Just because.....

Just because it says it's healthy doesn't mean it's healthy.  We've all been sucked into the microwave meal market at one point or another but get out.  Learn how to eat healthy properly.  Just because it says healthy, lean, or smart, doesn't mean that it is what it says.  Look at the nutritional facts on those boxes and no I'm not just talking about the calories and fat, but the carbs and sodium contained in those meals.  How much of this meal is great for you and how much isn't?  Think about that next time you pick one of those meals up and throw it in your cart.  But that just doen't go for those types of meals but also yogurts and other things.  I looked at someones yogurt the other day and noticed it had 19 grams of carbs.  Wow!!!  When I eat yogurt I usually eat the Carbmaster yogurt, not only is it low in carbs but it also contains a lot of protein.  So, all I am saying is be vigilant when you shop.  Shop healthy and make good decisions about what you put into your body.

Today's WOD
The Dirty Thirty
30 mountain climbers
30 double unders
30 sit-ups
30 wall balls
30 push press (75lbs)
30 back squats (75 lbs)
30 lunges
30 air squats
My time: 13: 25

My First Adventure into the Primal Blueprint Cookbook

Today I took a walk on the primal side.  I like to follow one of my coach's nutrition blog (http://www.coachjdietrx.com/) and it just so happend that an interesting recipe was posted.  It looked like something that Pat would like to eat so I made it.  My first recipe from the Primal Blueprint Cookbook was Tatanka which is a chili.  The recipe is as follows:
Note: this recipe comes from the Primal Blueprint Cookbook by Mark Sisson – a totally rockin’ cookbook, which is highly recommended by my coaches site!
INGREDIENTS

• 2-3 slices of uncooked bacon, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 2 pounds grass-fed bison
• 2 T chili powder
• 1 T fresh, minced oregano
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1.5 – 2 cups water (or beef broth)
• 14.5 oz can chopped tomatoes with liquid
• 1 T unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 T apple cider vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium-low heat until slightly brown and some fat is rendered out. Add chopped onion to the pan and stir into the bacon. When the onions are semi-translucent, add garlic and stir. Cook a few minutes longer. Add ground bison to pan and cook over medium-low heat until brown (cooked) throughout and no pink remains. If fat seems insufficient, add some of the reserved bacon drippings (or butter or olive oil) to keep bison meat from sticking to the pan and drying out.
Add spices, water or broth, tomatoes and stir well to combine. Cover and simmer over low heat for one hour, stirring every 20 min.
Add vinegar and cocoa powder and stir well, adding a bit of water if necessary. (I’ve used beer before in this instance Simmer uncovered another 20 min. Taste and season with sea salt and black pepper. If you want to “kick it up a notch,” add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce. (I added sarachi chili sauce.)
Garnish with chopped avocado, shredded cheese or sour cream. Makes 6 servings.

Pat enjoyed this dish a lot and added some sausage to the chili and said it was excellent.

For a little snack I made a cranberry almond bread, which I made up the recipe.  The recipe is as follows:
Ingredients:
2 C Almond meal/flour
1 C Agave Syrup or honey
1/4 C of almond milk or coconut milk
2 eggs
3/4 C cranberries
1 T vanilla
1/4 C almonds

Instructions:
Preheat over to 350.  Mix flour, agave, milk, eggs, and vanilla together. Stir in cranberries and almonds.  Put in a bread pan and bake for 45-55 minutes.  Let it cool and enjoy.

Let me know what you all think of the recipes. 

After making this meal I headed to the gym with Pat where we did a team workout.  Great job guys.

Today's WOD
Teams of 3
9 wheelbarrow walks (3 per person)
6 leap frogs
60 kettle bell swings (20 per person)
6 burpee broad jumps
60 sit-ups with a 20lb ball (20 per person)
150 double unders (50 per person)

Pat doing a kettle bell swing

Our time: 36:00

Cheat Days

We've all experienced the urge to not eat what is exactly allowed on our diet.  When I stray I call it my cheat day.  A wise man once told me that if you want a cookie eat a cookie, just don't binge and eat the whole bag of cookies.  Today, I ate the proverbial cookie.  After an awesome team workout at the gym, a group of us went to Fat Patty's (a local burger joint).  I don't eat meat and since I ate a salad for lunch I didn't want to eat  just a salad, so I ate a salad, grilled cheese, and fries.  Let me say that I ate the salad first, then the grilled cheese leaving the crust, and finally 3 french fries.  I use to take down that meal like a champ and today I couldn't even finish it.  Although the meal was delicious, I feel like crap now (bloated). 
However, I am a big proponent of the eat the cookie approach when it comes to dieting.  It is easier to stay on your diet when you allow a little bit of wiggle room.  Strictly dieting 24/7 at least for me has led to food binges and then abandonment of the whole diet.  That's why when I want the cookie I eat it.  Then I go back to my diet without a problem.  I'm not saying everyday should be a cheat day but I am saying if you want the ice cream or the bun or whatever your vice is eat it but don't do it to an extent to which you can get back to your diet.

Today's WOD
Team workout; Teams of four no more than three people working at a time
300 pull-ups
400 push-ups
500 sit-ups
600 air squats

Great job to all the teams!!!!

Crossfit Intense Games

Sorry about being on hiatus for so long.  I took a break from working out for about a week to allow for some much needed rest and recovery.  Along the way I went to Fairmont with Patrick and some more of the Crossfit Thunder crew and played cheerleader as they competed in the Intense games.  The Crossfit Intense Games were just that INTENSE.  The Thunder crew definitely represented us well. 
The games were composed of four WODs.  WOD 1: 10 minute AMRAP (As many reps as possible) 50 double unders then overhead squat with a kettle bell (1 pood; 1.5 pood) as many reps, if the kettle bell fell below the head there was a 50 double under penalty, after the 10 minutes contestants were then given three minutes to complete as many kettle bell swings as possible.  WOD 2: 15 minute AMRAP Burpee Barbara (20 burpees; 30 pushups; 40 sit-ups; 50 squats).  WOD 3: 90 second AMRAP with atlas stones. WOD 4: Sandbag Run.
It was amazing to watch the competitors and their determination during each workout.  Sara was awesome at Atlas stones and brought home the trophy for that event.  Overall, Sara finished 5th which qualified her to compete in the WV games.  Great job girl.  A lot of my fellow ladies competed in the non-RX division.  Katie took first and Ashley took third in that division.  Awesome job ladies.
Congratulations to all who competed.  You all are awesome and you all inspire me:)

Monday's WOD
"Diane"
21-15-9
Deadlift (155/225) used 135
HSPU (Handstand Pushups) banded
Time: 9:35
Not for Time: 30 deadhang ring dips (small black band)
120 second tuck hold

Today's WOD
5 Rounds
20 feet hand stand walk
20 sit-ups
30 double unders
Time: 15:45
Not for Time: 50 straight leg deadlifts (85lbs)
30 deadhang pull-ups (blue band)

A Trip to The Grocery Store Paleo Style

For most people going to the grocery store is a weekly event.  It's the same for me, but my path is very different from most individuals.  I avoid the majority of the aisles in the grocery store and make my choices very carefully.  Like most people I use to roam the grocery aimlessly going up and down all of the aisles with my list, but adding anything that looked tasty to the cart.  The cookie aisle and the bakery was my nemesis.  I couldn't pass up the Oreos or the cupcakes.  Now I avoid those aisles all together, along with the pasta aisle.  The majority of my time is spent at the produce, the meat case, and the frozen fruits and veggies section, with an occasional trip to pick-up some almonds. 
The difference in the grocery bill now is not much, however, the amount of food I bring home is a lot less than before paleo.  This makes me think of why our country is so overweight.  To eat crappy processed carbs instead of good carbs and meats is cheaper and simpler.  These items are always staring you in the face at the store while you have to seek out the healthy alternatives.  For example, I like to make paleo cookies when I want something sweet and to do so I have to have almond flour.  To find almond flour at my Kroger you have to know where to go.  You have to go to the health food section and look carefully for it and then you'll find it for $9.99 per bag (not cheap).  Some ingredients I have been unable to find locally that paleo recipes sometimes call for include arrowroot powder and coconut oil.  I really wish that my area had a health foods grocer that carried healthy alternatives to common ingredients and had a wide selection of fruits and veggies.  While I dream of such a place I'll just continue to look for and buy these products on the internet.  Stay healthy everyone.

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe 
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c almond flour/almond meal
1/4 c chocolate chips
1/4 c honey or agave (you can use sugar if you like, I prefer agave)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix all of the dry ingredients in the bowl then add all other ingredients and mix well.  Use a tsp to scoop out small balls of dough onto a cookie sheet.  Bake 10-15 minutes.  The cookies will not look done but will feel hard to the touch when they are finished baking.  Let them cool and enjoy:)
   

The Verdict

So as I've mentioned before I've kind of been on the injured reserve for the past weeks.  Today, I finally went to see the orthopedic surgeon.  He agreed that the mass on my wrist was a ganglion cyst and decided to drain it.  He drained the mass with an 18 gauge needle (pretty big) and I got to see the clear gel like substance that has plagued me for so long.  The chances of the fluid coming back is great, so I'm scheduled to go back in four weeks.  If the mass reappears in that time period and begins to cause trouble I will have to have it surgically removed.  The good news though is that for now its gone and I'm allowed to go back to doing normal workouts. YAY!!!! 
When I got to the gym today I was excited to workout, because being able to train as normal is awesome.  I decided to do Lizzie which involves power cleans and ring dips.  After completing the workout I did part of the Not for Time (NFT) posted and then an endurance WOD.

WOD
"Lizzie"
12-9-6-3
Power Cleans (115/185) I did 85lbs
Ring Dips (Red band)
MY TIME: 4:44

Endurance WOD
Row 30s then rest 20s for 8 sets
Rowed a total of 1087m in 4 minutes

NFT (Not for Time)
100 Sit-ups

Today's Workout

This weekend I took some rest days and had some fun with friends.  So two rest days Friday and Saturday, and back to the gym today.  Today's workout was a Team WOD.  We were placed on teams of three.  My team was composed of myself, Trevor, and Drew.  The guys did an awesome job, especially with the 20lb wallballs and the 1.5 pood kettlebell being held over head.

Today's WOD
100 burpees without the pushup
100 pushups
200 air squats
100 wallballs (20lbs)
300 sit-ups
100 burpees
Row 3000m while resting members hold a 1.5 pood kettlebell overhead

Great Workout Guys:)