Day 60 something: Big Thoughts from a Little Nugget

So this is the second listing in my two part series of balance. Last week I wrote about needing to take two days off as rest days when I realized I couldn't lift 65 lbs. over my head because I was mentally and physically exhausted. 


The entire time I was taking a break I knew it was the right thing to do because I came back to CF on Monday and have been feeling great. Yet, my friend Nugget wrote something from a different perspective. She writes about finding motivation necessary to do SOMETHING (and by this we don't emphasize crossfit - but SOMETHING) during the Holiday Season.


Hope you all enjoy - particularly the blog lurkers (yes, I'm talking about you) =)

The holidays are trying on everyone... There isn't a day in the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas that I don't wake up and want to hit snooze and roll back over and go back to sleep- a duvet is probably the most damaging invention ever on a side note.

 

One of the things I've noticed recently, and have been called out on before, is using my exhaustion and tiredness as an excuse for my laziness. Now before we go any further, let me give you a glimpse of my last 3 months... I DON'T SLEEP! It doesn't matter what time I go to bed or what time I wake up, it doesn't matter if the room is dark or bright, silent or eardrum bleeding loud, dirty or clean, I haven't slept more than 4-5 hours in a row in 3 months and trust me that will make you a little bit crazy... and by a little bit I mean to say REALLY CRAZY

 

I used to be able to go home and put on a pair of baggy sweats and just crash into bed for 12 hours occationally and feel okay or just mope and feel bad about myself, however, not anymore. One of the great/awful things (depending on your attitude) is the accountability of Crossfit. If I'm not there for a few days, I get calls and emails and texts asking where I am and to get my ass into the gym. It doesn't matter if I'm tired, I'm always tired and its nothing more than an excuse... everyone in our gym is tired, we're all adults and we all work hard...  other people have kids and familys to manage which I cannot even fathom and in addition it's also what happens when you clean and jerk your body weight or deadlift more than you ever imagined or do 100 pull ups in a day, you're exhausted and miserable... but happy thanks to endorphins (your body's natural crack-cocaine).

 

Please don't look at me and say well exhaustion means take a break- well yes take a break and recover but if your break or your rest day turns into a rest 2-3 days, it's easy to turn into a rest week or a rest month. As someone who had pnemonia last year and took a rest month, coming back is basically starting all over again and you dread it- It's really easy to get into the "Oh I'll go tomorrow" mentality and never step into a gym again. On that same note, It's the same with paleo and cheat meals... If you give a mouse a cookie, he'll probably want milk, a party, cake and other goodies and then will end up doing keg stands and dancing drunk on tables... its never a good ending.

 

So what does this mean? I've contradicted myself 3 or 4 times here but it means listen to your body. If you're truly exhausted go home and sleep... don't go watch a sex in the city marathon and eat 2 pounds of break and bake cookies, go sleep and allow your body to recover. If you're not going to do that, get your butt up and get going. You don't have to do Crossfit but at least go do SOMETHING****. Don't let little things become big excuses.

 

 

Day 59: Rest Days - Do you take them? How do you know when you need them?

This is the start of a three part series on balance. My favorite little nugget has written the second part but I'm writing the first in a spirit of openness and honesty (maybe some of you have felt this way - maybe some of you haven't).

I am an internal stressor. Period. This means that often my stress just continues to build until it gets taken out on my body. In high school I used to stress out so badly (prepare yourself this is disgusting) that I would have a mouth FULL of canker sores. . .NOT adding to my kiss ability as a high school girl either =)

Currently, being in a Ph.D. program I am quite familiar and accepting of stress, I've learned to deal, and that frankly stress is just part of my life. I also don't let it rule my life. But the last few weeks have been quite overwhelming with school stuff, dissertation stuff, teaching stuff, etc. Yesterday I went to CF and could barely row during the warm up. . mentally I wasn't there - I was thinking about all the other things I had to do and I just couldn't turn it off. Physically I felt pretty drained (all week actually) BUT I didn't want to seem like a lazy ass, and I didn't want to seem like I was letting my stress dictate my activities. So I ended up doin' a very half assed version of the workout but I just couldn't pull it together. Running felt like I was dragging around two ton bricks on my legs and I could barely push press 65 lbs over my head (which for me is silly - often times I'll pick up 65 lbs and wonder if I have the right weight on the bar because it seems so light)

Needless to say it was ridiculous and pitiful. I went home - feeling even worse since I 'failed' during that wod and started to wonder if maybe I needed a few days off.  Then I went into all the crazy negative talk
"Why do I need rest days - I take Wednesday and Sundays off"
"It's not like I'm doing anything abnormal in the gym - in fact, most days I come in towards the end of the pack in the workouts"
"Why do I need an extra rest - what's my problem, suck it up"
"I'm never going to lose this weight if I do this sort of thing"

But then I started to think that MAYBE I do need a rest - and what's it going to hurt if I take two mental and physical rest days. . .walk my dog, stretch, etc.

And that's what I plan to do.

 Normally I workout Friday and Saturday. Well this week I'm taking Friday (today) and tomorrow off. I'm going to walk my dog extra, stretch a whole bunch and just gear up for the next week (my last week of classes EVER btw). =)

But most importantly, I'm NOT going to allow myself to wear myself down because of my negative crazy self talk. . .if crossfit has taught me anything, it's taught me that THAT is a waste of time =)

So folks. . .what about you? Do you ever feel that your body and mind need a break? Do you take one? What do you do if you take one?

Hugs - THROUGH the interwebs (muhahaha - I can't help myself)

Why I Crossfit: From a small Nugget at Crossfit Peachtree

I couldn't say anything better than what a certain small nugget has written below. For those of you who currently are at CFPT this serves as a reminder that we have an unbelievable gym family. For those of you who currently work out somewhere else - I hope your gym is doing all of these things and more =)

Thanksgiving is an unbelievable time. Christmas has been been my
favorite holiday as long as I can remember but I have a new, new
appreciation for thanksgiving. The amazing thing is that after such a
difficult year, thanksgiving has a new place in my heart. I lost a lot
this year, an amazing friend who I will always hold next to my heart
and carry with me, my grandmother, an amazingly strong woman and a
super strong role model for my life, and my job (which is actually a
good thing in the end), but in spite of all of that I have so much to
be thankful for- An amazing family, a boyfriend who makes me want to
be a better person everyday, a great group of friends, finally a job I
love, and a second family.

I joined Crossfit Peachtree in January and never expected it to become
what it has in my life, I thought a gym was a gym and it didn't matter
whether the people were nice, you went there to work out and to be
done- I didn't know that CFPT would be my new community and a second
family to me. Walking into Crossfit Peachtree everyday is probably one
of the highlights and I actually feel like myself more inside of the
walls then a lot of other places.

When I try to explain CFPT to people they look at me like I'm crazy,
they don't understand why a 4 foot 11 girl wants to clean and jerk her
body weight or why everything is in class form or why I hang out with
gym people so much but it's because they've never truly experienced
it- the gym has truly become a support system, a great community. I
love when I'm struggling with a WOD and I hear someone in the class
cheer me on, not just a trainer but someone pushing themselves right
next to me!

So here is my advice to you- tell the people who make your life
better, tell them thank you for everything ... I want to say thank you
to Ray and B for creating and nurturing and growing such a great
community and to the amazing people at CFPT who support me, push me,
and encourage me in spite of myself.

Now, to go undo all my good paleo and eat a pound of Mac n' cheese and
pumpkin cupcakes with honey cinnamon cream cheese icing.

Happy Thanksgiving

Day 50 something: Thanksgiving food plan, a recipe and LA Fitness WOD =)

Hi peeps - It's been a while. . .but you'll be happy to hear I've been staying strict and have completely adjusted. I even enjoy drinking black coffee every day!! (this took a good 45 days). I don't really even crave the bad stuff (well not ALL of the bad stuff - lol). I am learning that when I'm hungry I should eat. . .and when I'm full I shouldn't. . .but more often than not I find that I need to eat a lot more frequently in order to stay full!

I wanted to first post that I made a DELICIOUS recipe - courtesy of health-bent.com (if you haven't been to their website you should, I mean their goal is to make paleo food that doesn't taste like dog food so that's already something to get excited about). I amended their website by adding more raisins and I put the pecans in the batter with some hazelnuts because I didn't make the icing (no dairy for me).

http://www.health-bent.com/treats/carrot-cupcakes

They are DELICIOUS and I hope it's a reminder that you can stay paleo (if you so choose) over Thanksgiving.

I'm headed to my boyfriend's house for Thanksgiving and am bring the above delicious treats, roasted cauliflower (one of my favorites and super cheap) as well as steamed broccoli (the one vegetable the bf eats - I know, I know!).

That way I figure I can have some turkey, veggies and the treats I made. I'm actually excited to stay strict during Thanksgiving.  I decided to stay strict (again this is what works for me) because let's face it, there will be another Thanksgiving! =)

So that's my food plan - and while my gym is closed on Thursday and Friday I have a Thursday LA Fitness WOD planned (primarily to scare people) =)

21-15-9
Deadlifts (#185)
Push ups
Burpees

Friday I plan to put on the sneakers and get in a good run as the weather is really fantastic for running right now.

Hope you all have a FANTASTIC Thanksgiving.  I am thankful for each and every one of you - especially those who silently read the blog =) You encourage me to keep going and keep striving for something better

HUGS

Day 44: The Kindness of Crossfitters - THANK YOU!

Yes, I know it's a nutrition blog but I had to write this blog post because I've been really thinking about how much of a difference it makes to have individuals in my corner who get it. Eating strict paleo IS a life style change, it has not only changed my mentality about food but also makes me sound (as my boyfriend described) like Jehovah Witness who just found Jesus lol

I know I keep rehashing this point but I'm encouraging you folks to go find a gym that is right for you. There are two things that have happened in the last week have really stayed with me

1. I did a makeup workout on Thursday which was 30 minutes of HELL (the McGhee workout). Seriously my body hasn't been the same sense doing that and it was insane.

Afterwards I laid on the ground for a while and when I looked up a guy who had just finished his own workout was putting away my weights.

2. During that same workout I was struggling to get through each round when someone came over - picked up the stop watch and coached me through the rest of the workout. Telling me I could do it and encouraging me the whole time

Yesterday was another example of this! A group of us went out to support some amazing athletes from my gym at Garage Games.http://www.crossfitgarage.com/

 It is such an AWESOME thing to watch these athletes compete and see women with muscles, women who are not spending 2 hours a day running on the treadmill compete (but that's for a future blog post). They are strong and our girls and guys from CFPT were so inspiring yesterday.

So I leave you with this - I hope wherever you are working out and whatever you are doing that you find a gym like mine. A place where you'll be supported, where you can cheer someone on and get all of the encouragement you need to accomplish your goals!

Next topic: Staying Strict Through the Holidays =)

Day 30 something: Scale SMASH 2010

Hi world: As many of you know I am in my second half of my own nutrition challenge. The first 30 days was started by a competition at my gym and post body fat test results I had a MAssiVE cheat meal. Now I'm on the next 30 days.

Above is a picture of an event we held at Crossfit Peachtree this past Friday - SCALE SMASHING!

I'm not sure if any of you were/are scale obsessed but I'll tell you, the scale can literally make or break your day. I used to weigh myself four times every morning (four times) and I would calculate (again Type A personality coming out) the average between those weights.

For so long  the number on the scale would determine how I felt. So for example, during the nutrition challenge I would get on the scale and when it first dropped 5 lbs in a week I was ecstatic and than as the number went back up I felt despondent. I could NOT understand how it was possible. I told myself that after the competition ended if I had only lost two pounds I would just give up on my goal of size 10 and move on. In many ways I told myself that it was just not possible and I was destined to be at this size. . .despite. I told myself it was okay to just settle into average because it was obvious that nothing was working.

But of course (see last post) the scale hadn't told me anything. It hadn't told me that I gained a bunch of muscle or lost a ton of fat - IN THIRTY dAYs. . .It didn't tell me that I lost 2.8% of my body fat in 30 days and it wouldn't. It was THAT day that I decided the scale MUST go. . .and so on Friday, my gym family and I - we killed that scale

Crossfit style - with a sledge hammer =)

I wanted to urge each and every one of you - to find a place where you have support. As I told one of my friends (who is considering trying crossfit) 95% of the folks you come into contact with on a daily basis are not living a healthy lifestyle, so you have to find somewhere where folks can support you.

Thats what its about. . .I have a group of women and men at Crossfit that support me in my goals, whatever those are - and who when given the opportunity to use a sledgehammer, will get just as excited as I was!!! I hope for each and every one of you you find a gym like that - and if you haven't. . .fb me and give it a try

PS. . .If you have never taken a sledge hammer to something - you should. . .it feels AMAZING!!

Day 34: F*** the MF'ing SCALE

Okay, for those of you that don't know me that well I have to apologize for the curse words in the subject. . .but when I get hostile I only say the f bomb. It's strange, but there seem to be no other words that describe my hostility.

So the head lady in charge at our Crossfit gym has asked us to write our thoughts down. . .what was hard. . .what was easy? And I'm ready!!

First of all, in 31 days (my last body fat test was on 10/2 and my most recent one was yesterday on 11/2) I lost

WAIT FOR IT. . WAIT FOR IT

SEVEN pounds and gained FOUR lbs of muscle. . ..I know . . .I'm still smiling

When the body fat man told me I cried and we fist bumped. . .he said he hadn't seen results like that in a LONG time in 30 days! In ten minutes those body fat results have changed my life. . .(dramatic yes but VERY true). So here goes

What the Future Looks Like

1. I am sticking with strict paleo. Black coffee and all. I can NOT believe that I was able to accomplish that kind of weight loss and muscle gain in thirty days

2. I did NOT measure ANY FOOD. At first I started off thinking I had to do zone/paleo in order to lose weight but as time went on it was harder to do so I just stopped. I thought about it as an experiment to see how my body responded to eating without measuring.

Now for some of you this is no big deal but because I lost the majority of my weight on weight watchers I thought and believed (until yesterday) that I would ALWAYS have to measure my food to see weight loss. BOY was I wrong

3. I am going to do blow out cheat meals once every 30 days. My next one will be at the CFPT social where I will consume large quantities of alcohol.

Last night I had (and no I'm not ashamed to say it) chicken fingers, tator tots, 1/2 a beer and a slice of red velvet cheesecake. And the fat girl in me - loved every moment of it

4. I will remain strict. Meaning my idea and philosophy on cheats has totally changed. Once a week I'm going to have something that is paleo but not necessarily an ideal food - like baked sweet potato fries I make at home or flax seed crackers. Again, things I can make at home that are nutritionally good for me but shouldn't be regular occurences.

Again, a lightbulb moment for me was redefining what a cheat is.




Lessons Learned
1. I wasn't disciplined before. I'd have greek yogurt every other day, some honey, and a diet coke on a regular basis. Those things are NOT paleo. Period. End of story. Those things are not cheats, they just are doing a very amended version of Paleo that is not going to result in results. Period

I didn't believe that before.

I couldn't understand how those things that were seemingly 'healthy' could really be allowing the weight to hang on to my body. Boy was I wrong

2. The scale is a mutherf'ing LIAR.  . .During this challenge (about week two or three) I got REALLY discouraged. Although the scale had moved about 5 lbs in the first week in week two or three it went back up a few pounds.

I was FRUSTRATED. I allowed myself and my mood about the challenge to be dictated by that stupid f'ing scale.Well no more scale - NO MORE. You will never dictate my mood or short change my progress in the gym.

You will NEVER tell me what % of my body is muscle and what % is fat. If I relied on you I would think this challenge was a bust and that I had only lost 2 pounds.

So for that scale - you MUST DIE. . ..(On Friday we will be holding a scale sledgehammer smashing at my Crossfit - ALL ARE WELCOME) =)

3. Diet Coke is a helluva drug (please see Dave Chappelle's impersonation of Rick James if you have no idea what I'm talking about). I learned form one of my super smart friends (shout out to my almost doctor friend CJ) that even though diet coke has no calories, the way you're body treats the fake sugar is the same way it treats real sugar. . .so it prepares itself like it's going to eat sugar, stopping fat burning, and still spiking your insulin.

This was a WAKEUP call for me. by Diet Coke -we'll see each other in heaven (with the starbucks, tator tot restaurant and frosting bar)! That's right - frosting bar

4. You have to find what works for you. Lisa Bond at Crossfit (who has started a womans only bootcamp - http://buckheadfit.com/) told me after reading one of my blog posts that you have to find what works for you and experiment.

I think I was feeling like shit for some time because I wasn't eating enough. So I started mixing it up and my energy shot through the roof.

5. You can travel and do Paleo
-Period. No excuses

So here's what has worked for me (I completely acknowledge that this won't work for everyone but I wanted to share some things that have helped a TON)

1. I cook large quantities of food once, maybe twice a week.
-Pick whatever day you have time and cook everything. . .breakfast, lunch and dinner for the week.
-It not only saves time during the week but the thought and obsessing over food and what we're going to eat that most of us do is gone

2. Switch it up! What Lisa told me was so right on. I got crazy and started to think. What if I'm not eating enough? Why not add a serving of nuts a day? Why am I still scared of fat? Why am I only eating this or that? Why not incorporate some more of this or that and see what happens?

It's about experimenting and figuring out what works

3. Take your scale and put it in the dumpster. That crap is ridiculous. (Yes, Rachel May that means you)!

4. If you're really interested in getting your body fat tested and knowing some real answers about your body visit Bali.

http://www.bodyfattest.com/calendar/index.php?calendar_id=9

Because who doesn't want to fist bump with Bali? =)