WODs & Well-Being

September 30, 2011 What happened to September? Wow… time really flew by. I think the last I remember it was sometime in August and Hubs had just said “hey I found this CrossFit place in Westminster… wanna go on Saturday and check it out, maybe try a workout?” The rest has been history. I cant believe we just finished week 7 of our training. I am feeling fantastic, sore, but a fantastic sore! This morning I was definitely feeling better. I am on the upswing of this cold and have no need for cold medicine anymore. I was also   happy about sleeping through the night without waking up coughing 100 times. I know that this isn’t the last time I will be sick, but I have to say,   I am really happy that I was able to get up and go to CFW every morning and push through my workouts. My times may not have been the best that they could have been, but at least I gave it my all. I didn’t want to let it get me down and I thought if I was able to push through maybe it would help me recov...

September 29, 2011 If I had a dollar for every time I have been asked this question since Hubs and I started eating Paleo I would be able to go out and buy a few of those $40 a whack bacon packages that I want to try (but am too cheap)! There is such a common misconception that eating paleo is boring, or limited... when in fact, since switching to this lifestyle I have had some of the BEST foods. This is thanks to some fantastic websites we have found as well as the fact that Hubs actually likes to cook and he experiments with all the foods we like and has created some excellent meals! I have shared some of the recipes that we have tried... some of my favorites being the Bacon Cole Slaw, Chicken Scallopini ,  Shepard's Pie , Flank Steak with Balsamic Bacon Sauce , Paleo Pancakes , and my new favorite dessert... the Paleo Brownies I posted two days ago! We have also made Paleo Chicken Poppers and mixed up the above recipes ...

September 28, 2011 Wow, yesterday was a rough day. I was exhausted and sneezing/coughing/blowing my nose all day! Not good. Apparently this is not allergies, this is a full blown cold! I went home from work last night and laid on the couch trying to sleep before Hubs got home from work and CFW, no success. We wound up eating dinner around 9:00 and than right to bed for me. I knew I was going to get up at 4:45am so I didnt want to waste any valuable Z's. The alarm went off and surprisingly I felt like I slept pretty good. I am hoping yesterday was the worst of my cold and I was able to sweat some more out at CF this morning. Out the door I went. I had checked the website last night to see the workout and I was so excited to do it. Not so happy that it was on a day I wasnt feeling well, but I was going to take a shot at it and see what I could do. I am proud of my handstand push ups!! K took this shot the other day when I did them for the first time at the new gym... www.crossf...

September 27, 2011 Well, I am still fighting off this cold. It is making me crazy. I am 99% sure it is not allergies, but I have been taking benadryl before bed and sleeping ok. Last night after a horrible pants shopping experience (does anyone woman actually like pant shopping...) I was left wondering what percentage of women can actually wear a pair of pants off the rack. Not only am I completely in between sizes, but the ones that do actually fit in the legs I could fit an entire second person in the waist band... WTF. Who is shaped like that? Alas... I bought two pairs of pants... one of them I am going to return. I can deal with what I have until I lose a few more inches. I was fighting staying awake once I got home so I made myself some dinner and was in bed at 8:00. hubs came home at 8:30, we talked for a few seconds and as soon as he went downstairs to make his own dinner I was out like a light. Thank you benadryl. To my own surprise I was feeling a little better when I ...

These are soooo good I had to share! I got the recipe at www.civilizedcavemancooking.com/2011/04/blueberry-banana-brownies.html What you Need: 2 Cups Almond Butter 2 Eggs 1 Cup Agave Nectar 1 Tbsp Vanilla 1/2 Cup Cocoa Powder 1/2 Tsp Sea Salt 1 Tsp Baking Soda 1 Cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips 1/2 Cup Dried Blueberries 1 Ripe Banana What you Do: - Preheat oven to 350 - Blend almond butter till smooth - Blend in eggs - Blend in agave and vanilla - Blend in salt and baking soda - Slowly blend in cocoa powder - Hand mix blueberries and chips - Slice up banana into really thin pieces and hand mix - Use coconut oil to grease 13X9 Pan - Bake 35-40 min (test with toothpick)

September 26, 2011 ... so I got it. I checked the CFW website last night before heading to bed and K had not yet posted the WOD for today. While we were talking yesterday she said "so, which one do you want to do?" So I was pretty sure I was going to be faced with one of the Garage Games WODs this morning. I was not feeling well at all last night. My throat is sore, my nose was stuffed and I was exhausted... I keep telling myself its allergies but I am not so sure. As soon as I was done uploading the (well over) 400 pictures I took this weekend I made a CD for K and off to bed I went. Poor Hubs was still in the kitchen making our meals for the week, but I couldnt wait anymore. It was almost 10:00pm and I had to get up at 4:45am! I popped a benadryl and was asleep in seconds. What felt like seconds later... the alarm went off. I dragged myself out of my benadryl coma and got dressed. I was thinking that this was going to be a tough one as I was still all heavy in the che...

September 25, 2011 Second day of true inspiration at the Garage Games. Today hubs and I watched K, M, Sam, Morgan and Cole as they competed in two more WODs. 4.  “Row/Sandbag” 5 Rounds for time of: Descending Row (500-400-300-200-100 meters) 30/20 Push ups 100 meter Sandbag Carry Descending Double unders (50-40-30-20-10) 5.   ”The Chipper” 20 Toes through Rings 30 Thrusters (95, 65) 40 Burpees to Target 50 Box Jumps (24, 20) As I said yesterday there was an amazing display of athleticism from athletes of all abilities. Men and women of all ages and of all different stages in their training again hammering away at these workouts was so motivating. In previous posts I have talked about all the reasons why I love crossfit and these last two days have just absolutely solidified its place in my training and life in general for a long long time to come. Every athlete as tired, sweaty and in pain as they were, were right back up and cheering on the compet...

September 24, 2011 What an inspiration!! Today was an amazing day. Originally I was going to be away this weekend and going to miss this fantastic display of athleticism, I am so glad that I got to see it. Hubs and I decided to go to The Garage Games at CrossFit New England to cheer on K and M while they compete amongst a few hundred crossfit athletes from all over. Previously I had only been to the one "mock" games at CF EXP a few weeks ago, but still I had no idea what to expect. This was phenomenal. Every athlete, male or female, started at the exact same place that Hubs and I are at. At one point they were the "new guys" learning all the movements and lifts. I will not lie, it was very hard to be there and watch and now having the competitive bug that comes with CF not compete. I cant help but see the WODs and think how I would do in any particular event. I am bummed that since I originally planned to be away for the weekend or I could have easily been ...

September 23, 2011 What a nice change. I had originally planed to take today off and head to the cape, but one thing lead to another, plans changed and I was blessed with a Friday off and no plans. What a wonderful thing. Not only did it allow me to sleep in a bit, but it allowed me to head to CFW for 7:30am rather than 5:30am... its amazing what 2 extra hours of sleep does for me. I worked late last night and had another meeting, so when I got home at 10:00pm I checked the website. For the first time in a few weeks I wasnt sure what every exercise in the WOD was. I was excited to try something new! So after sleeping in a little later than usual I headed over to see what K had in store for me. It was great to see double unders in the warmup. I am really happy with my progress with them and the more I do them the better I am going to get at them. The first set of 25 in the warmup I did wound up doing more than necessary because I didnt want to stop when I got on a roll. I think I ...

September 22, 2011 Anyone remember Nike's "My Butt is Big" campaign that started in 2005? I found what is actually a "fake" add for a 2010 replica of the poster but the words on the add got me thinking. Personally, I love the add. It has nothing at all to do with shoes and it wouldnt actually make me buy a pair of Nikes but I think the words send a great message to women with curves. The model in the add is not your average stick thin model. She has thicker thighs and a somewhat "big" butt (though still pretty small) and is a start to showing off that strong is beautiful. These are the words on the add... My butt is big and round and like the letter C and ten thousand lunges has made it rounder but not smaller and thats just fine. Its a space heater for my side of the bed. Its my ambassador to those who walk behind me. Its a border collie that herds skinny women away from the best deals at clothing sales. My Butt is big and thats just fine and thos...

September 21, 2011 I knew this morning was going to be a rough one. As it was approaching 11:00pm last night and I was still a the Historic District Commission meeting 30 minutes from my house for a project my firm is working on. I was watching the clock thinking... "tomorrow morning is going to suck getting up for..." I arrived home around 11:45, dragged myself up the stairs and into bed by midnight. I think I fell asleep in 30 seconds. Than what felt like 30 seconds later the alarm went off at 4:45... Oh.My.God. I pulled myself out of bed and headed to Fitchburg. I have been battling what feels like it could be allergies this week. My throat is sore and I am sneezing... I know I have fall allergies so I am going to chock it up to that. I think I need to get a few good night sleeps in so I can fight it off if it is in fact a cold. I havent had a cold in ages, I would have to totally blame it on the Dr office if I did get one. I was there last Friday. We shall see. I have...

September 20, 2011 Amen for a good nights sleep last night. I was absolutely so best from the weekend and such a short nights sleep on Sunday night I am not sure how I actually functioned through the day. I was doing everything I could to stay awake. I had to stop on the way home for some cauliflower so Hubs could make the Shepard's pie he wanted to make when he got home and a soon as I walked in the door I wanted to crash. Nope... not so much! Three loads of wash, put away the clothes that were washed over the weekend, loaded and unloaded the dishwasher... and finally cooked (eerrrr burnt) my dinner! 8:00 rolled around and I was so tired I said forget it, why fight. Washed my face and was asleep by 8:30-8:45. Dynamite... 8 hours of sleep! Yay! The 4:45am alarm is early and is going to take some getting used to. I want to make sure that I am up and out of the bed by 5:00am the latest, but I dont want the snooze to go off to many times so it dosent wake up Hubs. I snuck out...

September 19, 2011 Wow, what a weekend... I think I might have actually sat still for 5 minutes the whole weekend combined. It was totally my kind of weekend doing things that I love with people who make me happy. So, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that! We got home from the game, I went right to the computer and Hubs said "you are going to blog NOW?! You are crazy... go to bed." Hence the short picture filled post, it was a late night and I knew as I crawled into bed a little before midnight that 5:00am was going to be a blink away! For some reason I woke up at 4:00am with butterflies in my stomach. I have been excited about using the new gym and anxious about my morning routine, how I would get it all in, where I was going to shower and all that, it was like the first day of school! So, I think subconsciously I was thinking about it in my sleep. I couldnt for the life of me fall back asleep (not to mention those earplugs T has us wear while installing the pullup...