Goodbye 2012…Hello 2013!

Yes, I’ve disappeared for a few months.  I wanted to disconnect a bit because I was spending too much time on social media and not focusing more of my time on more important things.  For example, blogging took my time away from focusing on work and trying to better my career.

Nothing has changed much in my life.  I’m still super busy with the kids, busy at work, still lovin” CrossFit, still eating clean(except for December), and still trying to reach my fitness goals.  I’m gaining strength and enjoying my workouts.  I don’t really run much anymore, but lately I’ve been missing it.  Physique wise, I’m not completely there yet, but I will be.  I’m hoping I won’t need to focus on it so much, and just put all my energy towards my strength goals.  Then the physique part will come with it.  I HAVE TO STAY CONSISTENT and STICK WITH THE PLAN.  I can’t let temptation get the best of me.  And yes, I’m talking about food. I love eating clean because it makes my body feel good, and I feel horrible when I don’t eat clean. Staying focused and in control is the only way I’ll succeed.

I’ve learned so much in 2012 in regards to nutrition and fitness, especially since I worked with a couple nutrition coaches.  Everyone’s body is so different, and honestly, you just gotta find what works for you.  Lots of experiments and patience.  Patience is key, and I’m hoping patience will also get me to where I want to be in 2013.  

 

08/22/2012 – Overhead Squats and Air Force WOD

Another PR day at CFPA. Today was Overhead Squat day and I knew I wanted to get past 108 from two weeks ago.

Overhead Squat: 73#(3)-83#(3)-93#(3)-105#(1)-110#(1)

I put on the 1 pound plates once I got to the single sets. I’ve already done 103, so why do it again, especially if I’m going for the max lift. 110 felt a bit heavy to get overhead, but I was able to squat it. I wanted to try again with 113, but I knew there was a WOD waiting for me.

Air Force WOD

20 Thrusters(95#/65#)

20 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls

20 Push Jerks

20 Overhead Squats

20 Front Squats

Top of every minute do 4 burpees

Result: 11:53 RX’d

Last time we did this was in December! The thrusters went well, and I got through 19 of them in the first minute. The sumo deadlifts were another problem. I can’t seem to string them together. The movement just feels awkward to me now. Push Jerks felt like it took forever too. My overhead squats were not pretty. I was trying to stay on my heels, but my core was giving out, and my shoulders were tired, especially my left shoulder. The bar was wobbly and even though I was going slow, it just hurt! I went through the front squats in two minutes. I PR’d so I am happy, but I know I could do better!

Let’s hope Friday is a good one! I am beat!

08/20/2012 – Power Cleans and Helen

It’s the last week of our cycle and today was Power Cleans. I wasn’t mentally prepared for getting a PR because I missed last weeks cycle. I tried but failed.

Power Cleans: 63#(5)-83#(3)-93#(3)-103#(3)-113#(1)-120#(F)

Tim noticed that as I pulled the bar up, the bar was flying away from me. Steve said that same thing when I went to Catalyst on Saturday while practicing Snatches. Something to work on, especially if I want to go heavier. Everything felt good, I just wasn’t ready for 120#. 118 was my PR, so I didn’t want to do that again. Next time! Till then, I just gotta practice form with lighter weight.

For our WOD, we did HELL-EN!

For some reason I thought my PR before was right under 10, but I was wrong. The last time we did Helen(in May, I matched my PR of 10:24. I did pretty good the first two rounds, not getting of the pull up bar and going straight through with the kettlebells. The last round was touch. The run felt slow and mentally, I knew I had to get through the kettlebells. I’ve done more than 30 in a row before(multiple rounds), and this was JUST 21, so I had to get through it without putting the bell down. Success! Next was getting through the last 12 pull ups. I dropped 3 times. Argh! But I made it. 9:58. Forearms, hamstrings, quads were burning, but I did it! YAHOOOO!

Helen is totally mental. I have to fight through the pain, make sure grip is good for the pull ups, and just FINISH! Next time, unbroken is the goal!

I got to work and finished off my workout day with bench presses. 3×12 @ 73#

Great way to start a Monday.

08/18-08/19 Weekend Recap

Aaah the weekend. I love it yet it’s so tiring. Trying to fit in family activities, personal activities, while getting prepared for the week ahead is hectic. But it beats just sitting around the coach, being a lazy butt, and watching TV. I miss those days. Sometimes!

I was able to go to Catalyst Athletics for their open session weightlifting class. Fitbomb and K came along, so it was cool just to hang out, lift, and learn. We worked on snatches(squat snatches). I have no clue what weight I did. It was light, and I was too intimidated to put on more weight. Lots of good tips thought.

An hour before I lifted I ate my breakfast.

I came home and cooked more food because I was HUNGRY!.

Hubby and I had a dinner date at Espetus. It’s been a long time coming, so we finally got to eat without being rushed to get out of the restaurant. Everything was soooo good! I had lots of sirloin, beef wrapped in bacon, chicken wrapped in bacon, chicken hearts, grilled shrimp, grilled pineapple, and beef ribs. Yup, that’s them cutting beef ribs right in front of our face.

Here’s one of my plates with grilled eggplant and grilled zucchini.


I stayed gluten free on our date. PHEW!

Here’s what I ate on Sunday. I honestly had no time to cook breakfast and lunch. I had my greens and basically fasted until 4PM. When we finally had time for ourselves, we headed to The Counter, and I got a bison burger bowl with a fried egg and avocado.

Then when I came home, I had a couple of these suckers. Fresh broiled sardines. Nom.

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend and is prepared with good eats for the week. Stay focused!

08/15/2012 – Good Eats

Here’s a recap of what I ate on this fine Hump Day! I grabbed the wrong container this morning, and it did not contain my breakfast that I made the night before. No fear though, my work cafeteria can make me a veggie egg white omelet. Yes…yes, I know egg whites aren’t very nutritious compared to the yolks, but I need the protein more than the fat on training days. Remember, eat for your goals!

BTW, I had sweet potatoes in the container that I left at home, and no my work did not have any sweet potatoes. I had to get 1/2 a cup of dried oatmeal from my coworker. I need my starch for the day.

I don’t know how to make oatmeal. It spilled all over!

Lunch was chicken breast with homemade gravy and veggies.

Mid-afternoon meal was ground beef with cauliflower rice.

Dinner was chicken breast with more gravy and veggies.

Day 55 of the 100 Day Push Up Challenge done, and I did not count the time trials as part of the push ups.

08/03/2012 – Handstand Push Ups

So for the next 3 Fridays, we’ll be working on our Handstand Push Ups. With my right shoulder bothering me, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to do them. I just practiced and got 3 in a row. I used the jet pack for some reps just so I could get reps in. Yet another thing to get better at.

Here was our WOD:

AMRAP 10 Minutes:

5 Thrusters(135#/95#)

10 Toes To Bar

5 Barbell Burpees

I loaded 83# on the bar, and that was plenty. The shoulder wasn’t really bothering me with the thrusters. It was when we did the toes to bar that I felt myself cringing. Ya, no more hanging from bars until I get my mobility back.

Result: 4 rounds + 18 reps

Day 43 of the 100 Day Push Up Challenge done!

07/30/2012 – Good Eats

Today was a good day! I ate everything that was planned and didn’t stray.

I started off with an 8 egg white omelet with cauliflower couscous, 4oz sweet potato, and strawberries.

Lunch was 3.75oz of london broil with more couscous and braised cabbage.

For my 3rd meal before I left work, I had chicken tenders with chinese broccoli. I didn’t finish the broccoli. It was too oily for me. My mom made it and it just tasted like fat.

Dinner was pressure cooker chicken breast with kale chips and braised cabbage.

07/02/2012 – Good Eats

Monday eats were good. I didn’t have my off meal plan yet. Been thinking about it, and not sure what I want to treat myself with. Grains or no grains. I am craving my Paleo Krunch and some dried cranberries. We’ll see. I do have a family BBQ that I am going to for the 4th. I’m trying to stay as healthy as possible through the meal and just eat meats and veggies. No grains, no sugar. But I don’t know how that will hold up. We’ll see.

After I got to my desk at 8ish, I scarfed down my egg white spinach omelet with sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts, and a cup of blueberries. I was starving!

I went to Dish Dash with my coworker. We got an appetizer which consisted of hummus, lots of grilled eggplant, babaganosh, etc. I just had a little bit of the hummus(for my beans portion), lots of eggplant and tomatoes.

My appetizer plate

I ordered a steak greek salad, no dressing. Super yummy!

For my 3rd meal, which I scarfed down before 4PM, I had scallops with brussel sprouts and cauliflower fried rice.

I ate dinner after we put the kids to bed, and it was mainly leftovers that we cooked on Sunday. Skirt steak with veggies. My fat servings were cashews…3 full servings.

I escaped with an off meal plan. I thought about it, then I knocked out. LOL.

06/30/2012 – Good Eats

We had a fun filled day planned for the boys, but Lil’ AMRAP was feeling a little hot. We think it’s his teeth because he keeps biting his hands and wanted all our attention. It turned out to be a lot of one on one time with the kids which is always a good thing. Gotta make time to make both kids feel special.

We started off with breakfast and I had a shrimp sauteed with two eggs, sauteed kale, and beet and ginger sauerkraut.

I took Mason to his swimming lesson and we had a good time in the pool. We went a bit early so he could feel more comfortable in the water before all the other kids came. It was fun and he made good progress.

When we got home, I got lunch prepared. I forgot what I had, but it was with veggies and an avocado.

For my 3rd meal, I took out my Paleo Stix and ate it with sauerkraut. Yum. I realized that I was eating too much of the stix. I think 1 package is one serving. I read the label wrong!! Woops.

Hubby took Mason to the beach while I stayed home with Lil’ AMRAP. Lil’ AMRAP went on a food spree with money. We went to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. Spent too much money on food. I picked up two rotisserie chickens from Whole Foods and cut it up.

That was basically my dinner. I picked at the meat while cutting it up. Probably had too much, so I felt full. I grabbed some macadamia nuts as well, but really didn’t have a whole meal with veggies.

That’s all folks. Busy and fun day.

06/27/2012 – KB Clean and Press

We learned a new movement today at CFPA. It was awkward for me because of the clean. I was always shrugging my shoulder to get the kettlebell up to my arm pit. I’ll practice more this weekend.

Kettlebell Clean & Press: 5(8#)-5(12kg)-5(12kg)-5(12kg)

Our WOD was suppose to be a quick one. I went super light on the hang snatches because my elbow was still feeling weird. It’s a dull pain that flares up sometimes. These movements didn’t help it, especially the chest to bar pull ups. I was able to get through them, one rep at a time. LOL.

3 Rounds For Time:

10 Hang Snatches(135#/95#)

15 Chest To Bar Pull Ups

20 Box Jumps(24″)

Result: 12:29, used 53#

I got to the work gym and worked on front squats.

Front Squat -

Warmup Sets: 45#-65#-85#-95#

Working Sets: 100#(8)-95#(10)-85#(14)

The warmup sets were all reps of 5 or more. I’m hoping these front squats will help me be able to power clean and thrust more. Good workout day!

Day 6 of 100 Day Push Up Challenge done!