Reflecting on my first year of CrossFit + Paleo(ish) diet

A year has come and gone since I started this journey... It's been 15 months since I cut gluten, dairy, and most processed foods of my diet. And it's been almost 14 months since first I walked into a CrossFit box.  And I've never looked back. 

The photos say it all. At 39 years old, I am the healthiest I've ever been in my life. Adhering to a mostly Paleo diet (with some corn, soy, sugar, and booze sneaking in here and there) has rescued my body from a constant state of inflammation and fixed my sluggish thyroid. Although my weight has pretty much stabilized for several months now, my body composition continues to change with all the muscle CrossFit has been helping me grow. I've already reached my goal of Fittest by Forty, and I still have 9 months to go! I think back at the crash diets and hours and hours I spent on an elliptical getting no where, and I just wish I could have found Paleo and CrossFit years ago!

I've done 6 CrossFit competitions now, and have grown into more of a competitor each time, even taking 1st place in one and 3rd in another. I am amazing myself with how far I can dig deep into the suck and give it all I've got. And I love that I'm being the healthy role model for my kids that I want to be.

And I've found that I love to lift HEAVY!!! It's so empowering to lift a heavy bar over your head for a new PR and throw it back down with a crash! All of the Olympic lifts (snatch, clean, jerk) were brand new to me in September of 2013, but I loved learning the mechanics of executing them, and getting faster & stronger each time I did it again.

Movement	Dec 2013	Dec 2014
Back squat:	155	195
Deadlift:	235	285
Press (strict):	90	100
Bench Press:	110	135
Push Press:	115	135
Power Clean:	125	155
Jerk:	115	150
Front squat:	130	155
Power snatch:	65	110
Overhead squat:	85	120
Strict pull-up:	heavily banded	chin-up with the smallest band
Mile run:	10:01	8:41
2K row:	8:12	7:48
"Grace" (30 clean & jerks)	@65# - 3:00	@95 - 3:45

What I find most amazing is that I've finally stopped the yo-yo weight loss pattern that I've been stuck in since my teens. I've always battled with my weight (hitting the 240s in high school, topping out in the 260s in my 20s, and closing in on 280 during my second pregnancy 4 years ago - yikes!). I would always manage to lose a little weight by depriving myself on a low-cal/fat diet, and then gain it all back (and more) once I couldn't stand the deprivation any longer. Now, I've finally made the mental changes that have helped me maintain a 30+ pound weight loss for almost a year (so far) instead of gaining it all back again like I'd always done in the past. CrossFit has been a great driver to make me want to keep on fueling my body properly so that my performance can improve, and the CrossFit community is an amazing support system too. I'm finally realizing that I have to eat MORE healthy food to perform like an athlete, and that my body will continue strengthen and tone as I do so. And I'm realizing that I really need to throw away the scale - I've actually gained a few pounds since the summer, but have lost inches - THAT's progress! 

CrossFit + Paleo is a powerful combination. When I see people struggling with their weight and health, I want to yell from the rooftops about how CrossFit + Paleo can be the game changer for them, like it was for me. And this game is only getting started!

Strong is the new sexy!!!

   

    

Just another day...

Again, pretty pleased about my energy level at CrossFit today. The metcon was 4 2-minute segments of effort with 2 minutes of rest in between each one. Each time, I was able to go full out for the full 2 minutes instead of petering due to lack of energy (although my shoulders were pretty dead during my last set of strict presses - had to rest between the last few reps, but then jumped right back to pull-ups). Even the burpees weren't THAT bad! After watching the people in class log their scores on the whiteboard today, my newly 6 year old daughter decided to log her own WOD in the lower left. Pretty cute.

• 30 burpees 
• 61 sit ups (that was actually on a different day - her big PR)
• 10 rope swings (little miss Tarzan)
• 0 running - she didn't actually do any running today, so scored herself a zero. ;)

And happy that my nutrition was on target today even though I didn't plan it ahead of time. At the end of the day, I just figured out what was lacking, and had to add some fat and protein to my cereal to meet my macros. Starting to get the hang of this! But I still feel guilty about eating 2500 calories... I guess I just need to get over it... 

It was a beautiful evening, so I took a walk with the family down to Dairy Queen so the kids could get ice cream as a reward for helping me clean the house today. It's only about 1/2 a mile away, so it makes for a nice walk after dinner. Then we walked over to the supermarket to pick up more cereal supplies for tonight. Nice to have all these places so close by. Got a little workout on the way back though since my son said he was too tired to walk - carried him on my shoulders for about a quarter mile, which all happens to be uphill. Got a little sweat going!

Pre-WOD banana
Post-WOD/Breakfast: Healthy & Fit Vanilla egg-based protein shake frozen banana 2 oz lite coconut milk
Lunch: Simply Enjoy marinara sauce with ground beef & ground pork 2 cups mixed frozen veggies
Snack 1: banana 1T sunbutter 3.5 oz grilled chicken wrapped in bacon 10 black cherries
Dinner: 8oz London Broil 7oz sweet potato hash, sauteed in bacon fat with 1.5 strips of bacon and 1/4 onion 5 baby carrots
Snack 2: 5 oz rice milk 3 oz coconut milk 1 c Captain Crunch 1 scoop Healthy & Fit Vanilla egg-based protein shake

Totals	2,477	196	88	187	24	2,400
Your Daily Goal	2,500	219	97	188	15	2,500
Remaining	23	23	9	1	-9	100
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Fiber	Sodium

Determined to make some progress!

Maybe it's just that time of the month and all, but I feel like all this Eating to Perform is making me a bit thicker. I'm afraid to hop on the scale to confirm. And my stomach has been very unhappy for the last 2 days (could it be the tapioca starch in the turkey sausage that I didn't know about when I at it?). Generally feeling crappy. But instead of giving up, I'm going to trust in the process, and I'm redoubling my commitment to make big progress.

First step toward that commitment today: showing up for a running WOD, which is definitely one of my goats. Today's workout was "Death by 10 Meter Run" which is just as horrible as it sounds. It means that for the first minute, you run 10 meters, and then get to rest for the remainder of the minute. Well, that's easy enough. Then on the second minute, run 10 meters, touch the ground, and run 10 meters back, then rest the remainder of the minute again. Well, that's all well and good for the first few minutes. But, slowly, running times get longer (and you have to run faster), and resting times get shorter. I made it through the 13th minute, just barely finishing the 130 meters in the minute. But then, NO REST into minute 14, and I was already beat! So that was the end for me, but I still pushed myself to run another 80 meters instead of giving up completely. What really impressed me was that I actually kept up with "the runner" of our box - the guy who runs marathons for fun, and laps me on every warm-up run. He missed the 14th round by 10 meters, only going 50 meters further than I did! Pretty proud of myself for keeping up with him. 

Second step toward that commitment: signing up for the Eat to Perform Team Challenge. I'd been waffling over whether to join it since it's running August 1st - Sept 30. My main concerns are the following events that will be happening in the next 2 months, which I'm afraid will negate my efforts and I'll end up disappointing my team.

• long weekend trip to a family reunion (some boozing, and hard to eat perfectly while staying in a hotel w/o a kitchen, although planning to hit a CrossFit in town a couple times)
• my birthday (gotta have a bday margarita!)
• my birthday karaoke bash (might have a couple A LOT of drinks)
• CrossFit summer party (BBQ and booze)
• the worst offender: 10 days in Disney World (big nutrition challenge, and a few vacation drinkies)

However, one of the ETP moderators suggested that the Disney trip might not be as damaging considering all the walking we'll be doing. And maybe I can rein in the drinking a bit... So, what the heck, I signed up. Now I have to go get a BodPod test to measure my "before" stats. It's available at a couple local universities - I'll probably go to Sacred Heart and get their package of 4 tests, which only come out to $40/apiece.

I've been pretty good about getting my nutrition back on track this week. I'm finally starting to get the carb cycling concept. This article gave a good explanation of when to eat carbs, and when not to. I'm still finding that I'm so full most of the time that I don't feel like eating all my calories! I honestly can't imagine bumping my calories up even further (I should supposedly be eating another 200 calories of carbs). Although one night, after a control day ending with a tasty bowl of Fruity Pebbled, I woke up at midnight STARVING - I guess I didn't eat enough that day for my revved up metabolism. But, I'm definitely seeing gains in my strength and endurance, so something is working right.

Post-WOD: Healthy & Fit Vanilla egg-based protein shake frozen banana 2 oz lite coconut milk
Breakfast: 3 eggs scrambled with spinach, green pepper, and onions sauteed in a little coconut oil sausage patty    topped with hot sauce
Lunch: Slow cooker pork carnitas topped with guac sugar snap peas 1/2 grapefruit
Snack 1: 4 oz Boar's Head Cajun turkey 1 cup strawberries & blueberries
Dinner: Simply Enjoy marinara sauce with ground beef & ground pork Barilla gluten-free penne
Snack 2: 2 oz rice milk 3/4 c Fruity Pebbles  1 scoop of Healthy & Fit Vanilla egg-based protein shake

Totals	2,534	207	98	178	31	5,043
Your Daily Goal	2,500	219	97	188	15	2,500
Remaining	-34	12	-1	10	-16	-2,543
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Fiber	Sodium

Back from vacation, and back on track (for a few days, anyway)

All right, vacation's over, time to get back on track. Even if it's only for a few days until the next trip in a few days for a family reunion weekend.

As one should on vacation, I didn't worry too much about what I was putting in my mouth for a few days. I still kept away from dairy and gluten (came close to giving in on an ice cream sundae though, but just kept reminding myself about the abdominal distress that would follow for a couple days...). And while I may have hit my calories each day (thanks to most of a bag of Fritos and some chips, and a bit (ok, a lot) of frosting that my daughter got to decorate Brian's leftover birthday cupcakes), I certainly didn't meet my protein goal each day. The place we stayed offered a continental breakfast, which doesn't do a whole lot for me, so we brought a griddle and cooked up eggs and sausage in our room. We also found a great breakfast restaurant called The Egg and I - tasty omelets, even without cheese (went there twice)! I indulged in a couple adult beverages most days. But we grilled up a healthy dinner of chicken and green beans one night, and burgers for lunch another day. So, all in all, I could have been worse. I was WAY short on water though. Just couldn't get into the habit of sipping all day while running after the kids.

Almost up there - did hold one
handstand for a couple seconds!

We were relatively active though. On Monday, we visited CrossFit MisFit in Portland - our first visiting WOD. It cost $20 apiece, but at least I got a cool tank top out of it. Everyone was very nice and welcoming, but it was a pretty fire-breather crew. The coach Amanda was VERY pregnant, and was cool with the kids playing around on the equipment, which made it a little less stressful for us. First we did some strength work of Split Jerks 4×1 80-90%; then 4×1 90%+. Then we did a metcon that I just sucked at: 5 Rounds of 40 Double Unders 10 Toes to Bar. I came in dead last and felt like a dummy, but I didn't give up (although it did cross my mind a couple times to stop at 4 rounds). I just couldn't get many good strings of DUs going, and only got 2 legit T2B (in my last round while EVERYONE was watching and cheering me on). Then we spent the rest of the day chasing the kids around Fun Town Splash Town, riding rides and sliding down slides. And for the rest of the week, we chased them around Old Orchard Beach, and then alternateds between swimming in the ocean (well, not me so much, that ocean is COLD) and the pool. I thought about taking a jog on the beach like I did last year, but decided to just enjoy a restful week - it had been a LONG time since I'd taken 4 days off in a row, and my body could probably use the break. And it did feel nice to actually not be sore anywhere for once!

A fellow mom who's also been on a journey to health posted a pic of herself wearing a bikini top for the first time ever while on vacation, proud to show off all her hard work. So, I was inspired to wear one too. I ordered this cute 2-piece, which was supposed to be high waisted (I was hoping it would go just over my belly button to hide that bit of extra skin there, but it didn't quite make it that high). I tried it on when I got it, and my daughter gave me the most wonderful compliments, saying I looked so nice - almost made me cry (coincidentally, just saw this great post about another mom's wonderful kids complimenting her). But, still, never mustered up the nerve to wear it all week. Lord knows I should have felt comfortable enough considering all the bodies I saw in bikinis at the water park and beach all week, but just too self conscious, especially around Brian's extended family. Making a promise to myself to wear it when we go to Florida in September though.

When we got back, I hit our box with a vengeance on Saturday. I did the Oly class at 8am (and got a new 2RM high hang snatch at 100#!), and then stayed for the WOD at 9am, which I don't normally do since I'm usually beat from the Oly class. But, I figured I was really well rested and had plenty of carbs in the tank, so I should go for it. It was a doozy, but I was pretty pleased with my finish time of 28:24 considering that I'd already done the Oly class. Then I ate pretty well all day...until I went on a girls' night with my sister and mother-in-law to dinner (2 drinks with a healthy Cobb Salad) and a movie (large popcorn - YUM).

• 50 calorie row
• 50 thrusters @ 35# - didn't I just do 150 thrusters a couple weeks ago???
• 50 km swings w/ 53# kettlebell - first time using the 53# - that was heavy! Dropped it from overhead once, and left a nice crater in the plywood! Just had to take it 5-10 swings at a time. And was my back sore the next day!
• 50 pull ups - I jumped from a stack of 2 45s and a 25# plate, and still could only do 5 reps at a time since I was so tired already
• 50 thrusters @ 35# - did sets of 10, and definitely had the black stare going on while pacing between sets
• 50 calorie row

I was pretty proud of myself on today - got another huge PR on my forward leaning rest (plank): 2:51, outlasting my other 3 co-WODers! That's 51 seconds longer than my last PR a couple weeks ago! And today, I got my eating much more on track. I switched to Jones turkey sausage instead of pork, which actually has a 2 more grams of protein, but 21 fewer grams of fat (although I just noticed that it has tapioca starch, which is on my allergen list - have to see how that affects me). Although I ended up pretty low on carbs, and therefore, calories. Oh well - had plenty over the last week, and tomorrow's a rest day, so I'll call it good. After my night time snack of Captain Crunch. :)

Breakfast: 3 eggs scrambled 3 turkey sausage links topped with hot sauce 4 oz baked sweet potato
Lunch: 2 tacos with ~8oz ground beef 1/2 avocado as with guac seasoning Ortega salsa
Snack 2oz deli chicken breast
Dinner 7.5 oz chicken breast wrapped in 3 slices of bacon grilled asparagus marinated cucumbers
Snack 2: 1 c. Captain Crunch 1/2 c rice milk

Totals	2,016	105	95	185	14	2,569
Your Daily Goal	2,500	219	97	188	15	2,500
Remaining	484	114	2	3	1	-69
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Fiber	Sodium