Bloggity Blog Blog...

Blog Slacker week continues on in full force.  I am not making excuses that it was a busy week, end of month, blah, blah, blah (even though all of that is true).  I think I'm just really annoyed that I've been working out consistently, eating well, not drinking at all and I haven't lost any weight in 10 days.  I'm going to go watch college football all day in hopes of lifting my spirits.  I'm sure being in sports bars surrounded by booze & fried food is just the remedy I need :-)  Go Spartans!!

Wednesday:
4 Rounds for time of: 15:34
400m Run
15 Thrusters (45#)

Thursday:

2 Rounds For Time: (2 min. rest between rounds) = 24:12

250m Row

30 KBS (1.5/1 pood)

15 Pull Ups

400m Run

15 Pull Ups

30 KBS (1.5/1 pood)

250m Row

Friday:
3 Rounds for time of: (6:32)
10 Power cleans (55#)
10 Front squats
10 Jerks

Developing Discipline

For whatever reason, lately I have not felt like blogging, although I'm enjoying reading everyone else's blogs.  Maybe I have blog envy, haha.  This week I committed to working out 6 days, a big step for me, but I realize I need to be at 5 - 6 times a week to be consistent with weight loss and to get better at CrossFit.  It's morning on Monday, Tues, Wed & Friday.  Tues & Thurs pm for CFE.  I'm already looking forward to the weekend!

I feel like I have been craving sweets/chocolate for almost a week now, yet when I've gone to grab for a piece of dark chocolate or candy I've stopped myself and asked "do I really want this?  is it worth it?  am I hungry or just bored?" So far, it's worked, I realize that I am doing it more out of habit than really truly wanting it.  I'm sure at some point soon, I will really want the piece of chocolate and I'll have it to enjoy.  I'll try to remember to savor it versus inhaling it.  When I was in Colorado I realized so much of my eating before was just consuming, not appreciating or enjoying it.  I was eating just to eat sometimes.  Not even really being aware of what I was eating or how poor my nutrition could get.  Keeping a food log has been one of the best things for me.

Making the commitment to workout, truly believing in the benefits of it and being aware of how good it is for me to do, has made being disciplined around working out easier for me.  I don't second-guess it or give myself excuses on why I can't make it to the gym or do a certain workout.  I don't think about it, I just tell myself to go and surprisingly I do.  I don't always look forward to it on the drive over, but am so happy once I've done it and feel great afterwards that I know it's worth it.  However, I've realized my discipline with food is quite situational. I am very strong and can stay on point, but in certain situations I automatically revert back to my bad habits, almost without thinking.  I think it's just habit, that I used to eat more/bad food around certain people or that I would "automatic eat" - eat without thinking around them.  This is something I still need to work on and be in better control of.

WODs:
Mon:
5 rounds for time (13:10)
10 burpees
10 box jumps
10 pull-ups

Tues am: (12:17)
30 pull-ups
50 kettleball swings (35#)
1k row

Tues pm:
8 x 2min on rower, 1 min rest between sets

Twist on Tuna Salad

I haven't posted very much this week.  I sprained my ankle on Wednesday night and haven't been able to workout since then, although today was the first day pain-free so I think I'm good to get back at it starting tomorrow.  It actually felt weird not going the last couple of days, I'll take that as a good sign.  My nutrition has been solid this week. I went out to dinner Thursday, Friday & Saturday but did well.  I had a cheat meal Saturday night at Uncle Julio's, I know it's so bad, but I love the "liquid cheese" aka queso dip.  We had been at the Michigan State vs. Northwestern football game Saturday, thankfully Sparty pulled off a victory after a scary 1st half.  I have been able to keep to my no drinking so far - 2 weeks with no alcohol.  It's been tough a few times, especially with all my friends around and everyone else putting it down.  I just keep reminding myself that it will all pay off.  So far, so good.

I finally tried a recipe I've been wanting to make for awhile. Costco has great Ahi Tuna and really well priced, so I made this salad with a few modifications (added below) and it was delicious!

Tuna Salad - the Barefoot Contessa

2 pounds very fresh tuna steak, cut 1-inch thick
4 Tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus extra for sprinkling
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black, plus extra for sprinkling
2 limes, zest grated
1 teaspoon wasabi powder (I didn't have any, but it tasted great w/o it)
6 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (3 limes)
2 teaspoons soy sauce
10 dashes hot sauce (more to taste)
1 to 2 ripe Hass avocados, medium diced 

1 rib celery - thinly sliced

2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
1/4 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (2 scallions)
1/4 cup red onion, small diced

Brush the tuna steaks with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the tuna steaks in a very hot saute pan and cook for only 1 minute on each side. Set aside on a platter.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the olive oil, salt, pepper, lime zest, wasabi, lime juice, soy sauce and hot sauce. Add the avocados to the vinaigrette.
While still hot, cut the tuna in chunks and place it in a large bowl. Add the celery, parsley, scallions and red onion and mix well. Pour the vinaigrette mixture over the tuna and carefully mix.

Two for Tuesday

Doing the Paleo Challenge has been more fun and motivating than I was expecting.  I met both my teammates Suzanne & Kori last night.  Everyone at the box is really getting into doing this, sharing recipes, checking in with each other on progress, encouraging, giving advice etc..  It's great.   I'm learning so much about nutrition and it makes me want to keep learning more.  Understanding what works/doesn't work for you and how food positively or negatively affects your body is empowering.  I sincerely wish I had grabbed onto this earlier in life and not spent the last several years struggling with it.  However, I fully acknowledge I can't change the past, but I can make an impact for the rest of my life and going forward, be the best that I can be.

Tuesday is a double day.  CF in the morning and Endurance class at night.  Instead of dreading it, I was looking forward to it.  Lately I find myself looking forward to working out and going to the box.  This is probably the first time in my life I can say that.  I've never really enjoyed working out at a gym, I always loved playing sports & would take playing basketball or any sport for 2 hours over 1 hour at a gym.  Even when the alarm goes off at 5:15am, I'm not dreading it.

morning:
3 Rounds for time of
15 Hang power cleans
15 Burpees
I was winded after the 1st round of hang power cleans on this one.  The burpees felt sluggish

evening:
10 x 30sec sprints (2 min rest in between)
we did this in the upstairs parking garage.  the first half of the sprint was uphill/ramp.  Really worked on form, keeping distance consistent.  30 seconds doesn't seem long, but I definitely needed the 2min rest after about round 4.


Nutrition:
nutrition has been really good this week.  I feel like the light bulb has gone off/I've made the connection in understanding the reason for eating clean & being consistent.  I've been keeping consistent with my food log and I feel so much better and have had really good energy and slept well all week.   My sleep has been so on-and-off for the last 2 years, it's amazing to sleep soundly, what a huge difference it makes!

Making peace with the 5K

This morning I did the Harvest Run 5k at Lake Forest Academy with Bryan & Amy.  It was actually a lot of fun.  The campus is beautiful & all the trees were in full fall color.

I improved my time by 1 min since the baseline for the Endurance on-ramp program.  The best part of today was the realization I had.  I wasn't very excited to do the race to begin with and sincerely was nervous when I saw how small this race really was.  there were maybe 100 - 125 people there, almost everyone looked like they were in very good shape.  I got a sinking feeling in my stomach that it was possible I was going to finish last.  I started to get really crabby & pissy about even being there.  I hadn't ran in almost 3 weeks and was regretting it.  The gun shot went off and everyone took off.  Most people were ahead of me, but I started to realize that I felt good.  I had my iPod with me, which was nice to have some distraction, plus, I didn't know where in the world I was. I still did a run/walk interval but I felt strong and while I was semi-relieved each time the walk beeped, I didn't feel like I was dying and couldn't take another step.  The more I went, the better it was, I saw a few other people run/walking and I was ahead of a couple of them & at the same pace as 1 other person.  When I noticed that I wasn't going to be the last one to cross the line, my whole attitude changed and I started to have fun and remembered this wasn't a big deal, everyone else was enjoying themselves....so lighten up Sally and get over yourself already! 

The whole atmosphere at a race is just so great to me.  I had gone to watch the Urbanathalon yesterday and loved it.  That was still on the back of my mind, if I start working harder I can participate & be good in things like that.  if you don't know what it is, you have to check it out http://www.menshealthurbanathlon.com - I am doing this on a relay team next year, I was interested in signing up this year but didn't want to slow a team down, so I went down there yesterday to cheer everyone on and see what it was like.  What a really cool/fun event.  As challenging as it was, all the athletes seemed to love it.  The most inspiring part of the day to me was seeing 4 athletes that each had an amputated leg finish the race. They did the same obstacles as everyone else & they looked awesome.  People were going nuts cheering for them as they slid over cars, climbed a rope later over a CTA bus and then scaled an 8-foot wall!  Talk about not settling with any excuses - it was incredible.  A lot of people from CrossFit Chicago participated & 1 of the relay teams won the event!  out of 244 teams, they came in first!

I decided to increase my membership at CFC to 4 days a week + the Endurance program.  I realize I have to increase my cardio/endurance to get moving on losing more weight. I've been really consistent since Labor Day so I know I'm committed to sticking with it.  The more I go, the more I truly enjoy it.  I can tell the gains I'm making & I'm so much more comfortable being there.


Nutrition:
this weekend was a little bit of a challenge.  We had supper club on Friday night, which I love & we always have really yummy food.  The main was spaghetti bolognese, I brought spaghetti squash to sub for my noodles.  The rest of the meal was pretty good, it definitely has to be called a cheat meal.  Appetizers were stuffed mushrooms and dates wrapped in turkey bacon, filled with goat cheese & walnuts.  the sides were veggies so that was good.  I had intended to pass on the dessert, it was mini cheesecakes (homemade).  I took a nibble and then another & ended up eating the whole thing.  Saturday night I went out to dinner, we went to a sushi restaurant (Macku which was excellent!) but didn't get any rolls.  Ate a lot of sashimi, a bison salad, cod, etc..  So in reality it wasn't that bad, but in terms of being strict & on the challenge track, it probably wasn't super good.  I did weigh myself both Sat & Sun morning and I didn't gain weight, I'll take that.

Tonight, I did a bunch of cooking for the week. I decided to try out some of the paleo recipes a few people had given me & I have to say, they are pretty tasty.  I made chili, coconut chicken & what was supposed to be a fritatta but I ran out of eggs, so it was basically seasoned turkey, with mushrooms, broccoli, garlic & sun-dried tomato on a crust.  I really enjoyed it.

Back at it & Body Fat analysis

Today was my first day back at the box and it definitely felt like I'd been off for 1 1/2 weeks.  It did feel good to get sweaty & workout though.  As part of the challenge everyone has to weigh-in & do a 3 point body fat measurement.   Rudy offered to do a full body fat measurement & analysis (10 point pinching), a physical test, and a functional movement screen to the first 20 people who emailed him, I was one of the lucky ones.  I will admit, I wasn't looking forward to it. I also had to get on the scale & weigh-in.  I was trying to not be depressed about it, but as Rudy very kindly put it, "this is a starting point"....my intention is to make great strides and not look back.  I'm going to focus on the improvements I can make in the next 41 days!

Workout:
15-10-5 reps of:
Power Clean (65#)
CTB Pull-up (green band)
Burpees

I will never admit to liking burpees, but as I improve my fitness, these do not suck as bad as they used to.  A few months ago, having to do 30 burpees in a workout would sent me running in the other direction, now I don't even think about it.

Nutrition:
ok, I know I publicly pledged my commitment to the Paleo challenge, but I had a little slip up today.  I started yesterday (Monday) and was doing well with it.  Today I could not resist the candy bowl that is at my desk.  For years I have kept a candy bowl and everyone stops by, has a bite, etc..  Most days I don't even think about it nor am I tempted by it, today however, there happened to be some Reese Peanut Butter cups in there....that damn salty-sweet concoction got me!  Other than that, I've been good.  I made fish twice and some meatloaf; roasted brussel sprouts with onions & turkey bacon (quite tasty) and my new favorite salad - WholeFoods "detox salad".  I've only seen this at the Lakeview store, but it is so yummy.  It's got broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, sunflower seeds & currants with lemons juice & a little agave.  I added pepper & garlic powder.  I made a big batch and it keeps well, is very tasty & refreshing!

Ready, Set...Paleo!

The CrossFit Chicago Paleo Challenge has officially begun!  This is a 45-day nutrition challenge/contest at the gym based on the Paleo Diet (http://www.thepaleodiet.com/faqs).  There are 2 divisions and you get placed on a team of 3 for extra motivation.  I'm doing the weight-loss division (there is also a Performance Division for athletes who want to increase their fitness & workouts).  Tomorrow I do my weigh-in & body-fat percentage measurement/analysis....not really looking forward to seeing what the % is....

I'm committing to eating Paleo as much as possible and limiting my alcohol to just a few occasions during the contest.  I found some interesting recipes to try and am excited to see how much I can change my body in 45 days.  I know I need to increase my workouts, so I will be doing 4 days CF and 1-2 workouts for the Endurance.  I have signed up for 3...yes 3 races (5k) between now & Thanksgiving.  The first one is this Sunday.

After a week on vacation, lots of wine & Mexican food, my body is ready to get back on track.  I went to the grocery store & loaded up on fresh veggies, fish & lean protein.  So, here we go!

Rewards & Consequences

I've been in Colorado since Saturday and am so happy being out here.  I'm with great friends, the weather has been fantastic, we have sunshine everyday and the view from our balcony is the mountains.  Can't really ask for much more.

We've gone hiking a few times and I checked out a local CrossFit gym.  This area is filled with active people, it's really inspiring.  Pikes Peak is right by where we are staying, there is an extremely intimidating hike called "The Incline" - it's 1 mile (vertical/uphill) hike with 5,000 railroad tiles.  You can see the trail aka "the scar".  The owner of the CF gym we went to said he has clients come in specifically to train for The Incline...maybe next trip out we'll try it!

Monday night I was talking about the goals I had written down and JMac asked me what I was going to have as my reward for achieving them & consequence for if I didn't.  I hadn't thought about it before, so I tried to avoid the answer by saying "I'm just going to be happy with crossing them off my list".  She knows me well enough to call my BS and firmly replied by saying "try again....you need a consequence and a reward"  I said didn't have one.  She gave a great argument for doing it and having something visual to look at to remind you along the way to stay on track.  I told her I have my goals taped to my bathroom mirror, I look at them 3-4 times a day - I was fine with that.  She had a better idea.  She asked me what my biggest fear about myself was and I admitted it was having anyone see me in a sports bra & spandex.  After much back and forth, me bursting into tears, it morphed into my consequence.  Somehow I agreed to it and accepted the consequence.  Even writing this down, I have a nervous stomach about it...However, I acknowledge having a consequence has validity and that I will do everything possible to make sure I hit my goal.  I will lose 50lbs by May 30, 2011

So here it is...officially declared that if I have not reached my weight loss goal by Memorial Day 2011, then I will do a walk of shame in my sports bra & spandex shorts on Michigan Ave....I'd rather take a hot iron in my eye.

Nutrition:
I'm on vacation, so I haven't been strict on my diet, but I have to say, it really hasn't been that bad.  We're staying at a condo, so we have a kitchen and have cooked in a few nights.  However, Saturday night (first night here), we went for Mexican food.  Admittedly, I fell face first into the margaritas & queso dip.  They were tasty and we were having fun.  I semi-justified it with the fact that I was drinking "Skinny Margaritas" - my, my, I think I have found a new drink!  It's Silver tequila, lime juice & agave, over ice.  Delicious!  I also have my eye on the calendar...the Paleo Challenge starts Saturday, so slacker time is over soon.

Vacation now....Paleo Challenge later

I did not get my 5k run in today, I started to beat myself up about it for a few minutes and then realized, I can get it done when I get back, it's not the end of the world.  I have it as a "to do" the week I'm back.  I am curious to see what the result will be, I definitely feel like I will drop my time a bit, I'm not expecting a 10min mile yet, but I should see an improvement from my 39:38 time.  I've also signed up for 3 - yes 3 - upcoming 5k races.  The first one is Oct. 17th,  Harvest run in Lake Forest, then the Hot Chocolate run on Nov 6 and the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day.  I think having all of these coming up just about 2 weeks apart will keep me on task of running, intervals and drills.

I am SO excited.  I found out this morning that CFC is doing a Team Paleo Challenge from Oct 9 - Nov 23.  It's a 45-day nutrition/weight-loss challenge. (focus on the Paleo diet)  You are placed in teams of 3 and evaluated on percentage of weight lost.  Perfect way to get ready for the holiday season and extra motivation to be doing it in a group, knowing your total score counts

This mornings post had a great quote and a perfect reminder of accountability:
"Just remember, you are choosing everything you put into your body.
Have a reason for everything you do, and you WILL be successful."

Air Squats & Kettlebells

I have to admit, I'm not in the mood to blog right now.  However, my Catholic guilt has crept up and I'm doing it, but it's going to be like mass on a hot summer day - short & sweet.  I wasn't sure if I was going to make it CF today, I didn't feel good this morning but made sure I threw my gym bag in the car so I would have it with me.  I told myself I had to leave work by 4:30 so I could make to the 5pm class, usually when I do that I end up getting out later, but I got everything done and made it on time.  Was very glad I went, it felt great to finish.

Workout:
5 rounds w/ 8min cap
10 kettbell  swings (25#)
20 air squats (used wall ball to make sure I got proper depth in squat)
time: 5:07 - wanted sub 5:00

post-workout: 1K row = 4:25.  Legs were cashed after this and are still sore.