Squash Egg Bake and the end of 1RM week

So, I never got around to posting the results of 1-rep max week at CFA.

For your normal people out there that don't speak in PR's, 1RM, WOD's, AMRAP's, RX'd, and other CrossFit lingo, a 1-rep max is just your heaviest lift, or how heavy you can go for one rep.

I had set a new PR (personal record, or personal best) in my squat clean earlier in the week for 120-lbs.

Mid week, I came close to some old numbers with my squats. We're talking old. Like over a year ago when I was still kicking butt and taking names. Fearless. Heh.


My front squat: 145 (old pre-injury PR 155)
Back squat: 165 (old pre-injury PR 185)

I’m pretty sure the old PR’s were a bit shallow though.. probably met parallel, but not below, so I’m pretty happy with the numbers.

And, ding ding! Another HUGE PR for me. I overhead squatted 100 pounds. I think the most I've ever done before is 85. And you guessed it! I did go back through allll my workout logs and search out these numbers.

Unfortunately, then on Friday (deadlifting day.. yay!), I was toast. Ironic, seeing how I don't eat bread.

I couldn't even pull up 215 after two failed attempts at 225. So much for 235! Sigh. A little part of me really disliked CrossFit right then. Deadlifting is my thing! And I sucked it up, coming in with my number of 205. Lame.

Oh well, the WOD we had some fun things like rowing, deadlifts, and toes-to-bar. I am really working on my kipping, which is the hip swing that allows you to complete them fast and efficiently. Very gymnastic. Very not me. And for one of the first times in my life, I did the WOD at the prescribed weight. Woot!

I had to take a picture because even though I was NOT proud of the 205, I was super proud of the little "RX," which means as prescribed, behind my time. :)

One more bit of CrossFit related news...

Today this happened:

Please pardon my lovely "I want to die" face. I had a slight migraine this morning plus still dealing with my hip flexor issue. Yes, it's back. I'm pretty sure it was the squats. I hadn't noticed anything until Saturday's workout set it off, when I made a very abrupt switch and modified the rest of the workout.

Anyway, then this happened...

First time for everything. I didn't notice until I was done! Oh well. I still have a layer of skin there so it could be much worse. It just made washing dishes tonight super fun.

A while ago, I was going to blog my squash egg bake that I make all. the. time.

So here we go! It's a perfect mix of carbs, protein and fat. The goodness of eggs. The yumminess of squash, which in this case tastes just like pumpkin pie. Ready??

Squash Egg Bake

 Crust:
4-5 TB of butter
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup coconut flakes (unsweetened obviously)
1/3 cup almond/hazelnut/other nut flour
cinnamon

Melt butter. 
Add almonds, coconut flakes, nut flour and cinnamon.
Put another little plop of butter in your 8x8 glass pan and throw it in the oven for a bit while it's preheating. Don't forget about this. ;) Take it back out and make sure the sides are well covered.
Mix and spread in the 8x8 pan.
Put in 350* preheated oven for 10-12 minutes

While that's baking, add to a blender:
4-eggs
1-cup squash
1-tsp+ sea salt (**Do NOT skip this!)
Cinnamon, Pumpkin Pie Spice, and Nutmeg (I just dump and pour, but it's probably close to 1-tsp each.)
2 rounded TB coconut flour
Stevia, to taste (optional. I used liquid vanilla stevia, probably 5-6 drops)


Mix until well blended, add to the pan, and bake for about 30 minutes.

Top with berries, coconut milk, or even pure maple syrup or honey.

Enjoy!

My hubby likes this even.. and he's about as non-Paleo as a person can get. His only caveat is that he gets to put as much syrup as possible on it. ;)

Chocolate pancakes, the weekend, and why I CrossFit

What a great day today!

It's 1-rep max week at CrossFit this week... score! :) This means I should be in bed right now and not blogging. Oops. It has been an interesting few days, though, so I wanted to tell you all!

Today we tested cleans (squat cleans) and power cleans. I managed 120-lbs for both, which was awesome. There's nothing like everyone cheering you on as you're struggling to stand up. :) Coincidentally, that was a 5-lb PR, so that was awesome. Then I got my butt handed to me by the WOD, which was squat cleans and pullups.

Honestly, today was the first time I ever got close to losing my breakfast. I think I ate too close to working out. And it was one of those exhausting, on-the-brink-of-tears finales. I'm far too stubborn to quit though.

On that thought, over the weekend, it was brought up at the photographer's lunch table that I was a powerlifter. An older lady turned to me, wrinkled her nose in disgust, and asked why.

Oh, all the reasons I could have said, but I gave her my megawatt-endorphin-smile (see photo below), and simply said "Because I love it!"

Then the heavy-set, vegetarian older lady next to her proceeded to carry on about her life, husband, circumstances, how she was the strong one in the marriage and he was dragging her down, blah, blah, blah, for the rest of the meal. So I got to thinking about why I work out. Why I lift. Why I Cross Fit.

Because...

That first moment I bent over at home to get something out of a cupboard, and I felt my glutes fire as I stood back up.
I can help my husband move furniture.
I can move furniture myself.
I can kindly thank the gentlemen that offer to help me with groceries... and then decline while chuckling inside.
I can stand at a wedding show all day long without my feet hurting.
I can open sealed jars easily.

...and the big things:

There is no greater feeling than discovering my mind and body are powerful.
Pushing myself to the limits always yields results.
Each success brings more self confidence.
Every new measure of strength helps me walk with my head held higher.
Nothing can bring me down when I am assured in myself and my abilities.
If I am determined enough to get through a workout that nearly has me puking and crying all in a span of 15 minutes, I can get through anything in life.

I don't know what image the word "powerlifter" brought up in her mind, but I'm imagining it was fat, hairy balding men grunting, snorting, listening to heavy metal, and bench pressing.

In short, the reason why I do what I do is for the quality of LIFE.

Moving on. Mini heart-to-heart done.

Here's my official new member picture from awhile ago:

They insisted on taking it post-WOD. Lovely. And me being the photographer: "Can I see it? Ew, it's blurry! .... oh, wait. That's perfect." ;)

After the WOD today, there were free 10-minute massages by area students. It was awesome. I was trying out the the panorama feature on my phone finally. And I love it. Except for poor Inna here in the first one...

On a slightly related note, we got news a bit ago that we're moving to a new, huge space in June this year. I'm super pumped!

After that, it was the usual groceries, then back home. And then the dog ran away from me (again). Sigh. I wanted to strangle her. Yesterday she was mad at me for leaving her all day while I was at the photo convention. I didn't think she held grudges...

As I was rushing around to eat lunch and get ready for my chiro appointment, the doorbell rang in the middle of my shower. The dog was barking, the doorbell was ringing, there was pounding on the door, and I managed to throw a few towels on to go kill whomever was at the door.

Turns out, it was the Fed Ex guy with my newly repaired camera body and lens. Okay, I guess that was worth the hasty shower. 

Welcome home, my lovelies. I can't wait to use my new and improved lens!


The rest of the afternoon was pretty normal.

Speaking of normal. Or the absence of normal. This was a crazy weekend! Friday night started the WPPA (Wisconsin Professional Photographer's Association) spring convention which continued each day until Monday. The speakers were great, and it was fun to reconnect with some past friends and meet some new peers!

This was the view from the skywalk looking farther into downtown Friday evening.

And this was the speaker on Monday.. he talked about weddings, sales, marketing, and we had great fun learning from his posing and photographing demonstration. He's incredibly talented.

He started out with a bang... I loved this thought: Do you live to work? Or work to live?

Going back a day, Sunday offered another lovely wedding show.

These really sap the energy out of me... but I love it. I was told by two different future brides that I was their favorite photographer they had talked to that day. Another couple came back and asked if they could look through my albums some more because they liked my work so much. Talk about heart-warming!! I could hardly fit through the door to leave from my big head and inflated ego. ;)

And I haven't changed the teal and green at all.. because I get so many positive comments and feedback. "Oh, you're the teal and green lady!" Yes! My branding is working! ;)

Monday evening, I also had a wedding professionals networking meeting where I got to see a lot of my friends/other vendors from the wedding show and catch up with them. It was great.

The bummer part was, Joel was working out of town all week, and only home for the weekend. Thankfully I was still able to see him in the evenings, and he even helped me set up at the wedding show. I love that. :)

Okay, so back to today.



I was hungry for pancakes this evening. Again. It seems like an every other day thing since being off the Whole 30. Weird. I'm keeping them clean though.

So, I loosely followed this "recipe."

Ingredients:
1-ripe plantain or banana
1/4-cup nut flour (I used hazelnut this time, as the store was out of almond. Don't get me started on that.)
2-eggs
1/2-tsp of baking soda
1/4-cup cocoa powder
2-3 drops of vanilla stevia (optional)


Directions:
They're pancakes, not rocket science. ;)

1. Blend. I used my awesome immersion blender. Buy one. Make this. And squash soup.
2. Cook them. I heated my pan, put coconut oil in, and poured the batter in.
3. Flip and top them with any variety of berries, fried apples or bananas, coconut milk, coconut cream, pure maple syrup, nut butters, etc.
4. Enjoy.

I worked hard for those frozen raspberries. They were on sale at the store, so there were only a few bags left. I had to step up and nearly crawl into the freezer to grab some! I can't let a great deal on my favorite organic frozen berries go to waste.


Now.. off to bed finally. Tomorrow's lift is the snatch and power snatch! Woo hoo! :)


PS. I turned off anonymous comments. I hope you can still comment if you like, but I was getting sick of the spam. Let me know if you have issues.

PPS. I stumbled across some pictures the other day from New Years' Eve. Those will have to get on here soon. Along with our ugly sweater/men-cook-the-food-potluck from Valentine's Day. Fun times.

PPPS. And this was a great article. But I can't pin it due to lack of images. Boo! So it's linked here for me to remember. Food Logging, What I Learned

PPPPS. Kidding. ;)

I joined CrossFit... finally!

Well, I did it!

I'm finally a member at our local CrossFit box, CrossFit Appleton.

I had my first workout this morning, which was awesome. Lots of friendly coaching, which is exactly what I need. Better technique = fewer injuries. ;)

After 6 long rest days with only one night of ice skating for physical activity, I also tried re-maxing out on my deadlifts yesterday. I know I can do 240. I am positive. But then I can't do weight math and try for 250 instead of 240... And that was the end of that.

Sigh. Oh well, there's always another day, right? I'll keep my 235 for now. :)



I am also finishing up my Whole 30 (well whole 41, to be exact) on Thursday with measurements, my weight, and a body fat test. I'll take a few "after" pictures too. However, I'm pretty sure those will not reflect the true changes that the Whole 30 has taken me through.

So usual metrics aside, these have been my standards/benchmarks for change: (Sorry, these might get personal.)

-My hormones. I feel like they're finally balancing out. Finally. I still get mood swings, but they seem fewer and farther apart. I guess the true question would be to ask Joel if I'm any easier to live with. Maybe I don't want that answer. ;)

-My complexion. It got worse for awhile in the middle... when I was OD'ing on coconut cream (oh, so yummy), but then evened out after I gave that up.

- The Sugar Dragon. I feel like I've conquered it. You know that thing... where you have cravings for sweets? Especially at the end of meals? Or right before bed? Yeah. Me too. Nearly gone. Now, old habits die hard, but I got some serious work done on this one.

-Like I mentioned earlier, I had discovered how delicious coconut cream is halfway through my Whole 30. And since it was technically legal, I went for it. I used to be that way for almond butter... but that was pretty much off limits for me because it's what they call "food-without-brakes." And that's just like it sounds. Food that you can't stop eating once you start. Speaking of, that is the real beauty of the Whole 30....

-The physiological effect of food. They really delve into your emotional attachment in the book, It Starts With Food (which I highly recommend reading). This is why they say no to things that you can make or create within the guidelines, that still end up being comfort food and mess with your mind. Pancakes is the first one that comes to my mind. Also pizza. You can Paleo-ify these quite easily, but it's still a no-go. They actually call this "sex-with-your-pants-on," which they describe much better than I ever could. ;)

-My digestion is better. I'll leave it at that. ;)

-I'm eating more food than I ever have before. And I feel lean. This is amazing.

-I will never, ever keep track of calories, protein, carbs, fats again. Ever. If I'm hungry, obviously my body needs something. How can my conscious brain know what my body needs better than itself?? I'm still keeping a food and workout log, but no numbers.

-I feel a lot more in tune with my body. Now, I'm not going to start chanting, meditating, and saying Namaste, trust me. What does that even mean, btw? It's a good feeling though.

-My fingernails have skyrocketed. It feels like I'm cutting them every other day. (Random.)

And of course, about the food:

-I can survive 30 days without bacon. Granted, I have connections to sugar-free, junk-free, humanely-raised bacon. It's called U.S. Wellness Meats. But consuming that on a daily basis is waaaayyy out of our price range. And I'm normally okay with spending decent money on quality food.

-I discovered hot plates and weekly cook ups. Basically, you spend one day in the kitchen: you cook up a bunch of meat (ground turkey, beef, etc) and prep a bunch of veggies. Then you can throw your veggies in the pan with oil, add your meat, add in any spice you like (Asian, Mexican, etc) and BOOM. Dinner's on in 10. Yum.

-I developed a taste for green beans. Whaat?

-It's really easy to plan ahead for meals... more than I thought! :)

-I gave up my daily (and sometimes most of the time, 2x daily) protein bar. For good. I gave the rest away. Now I eat meat and sweet potatoes after my workouts. I get some strange looks... ;)

Anyway, this is just a small sample of some of the changes I've noticed, but if you're even thinking about trying it, definitely read their book. They explain everything in detail, but make the science and facts behind their theories so easy to understand.



And this is just funny to me. A lot of them really hit home. You know you're doing the Whole 30 when...

In other news, Joel and I went to my parents last weekend for family pictures, ice skating, and general laziness. It was perfect. And my lovely mother even let me cook everything in coconut oil rather than butter. And I said no to fresh Blue Bunny ice cream. And multiple other sugar-laden nuggets of deliciousness. High five! ;)

I didn't take along any cameras, so no pics here. You'll survive. :) We had a good trip.


Back to regularly scheduled programming... I'm exhausted and headed to bed. :)
(PS. None of these links are affiliate links, just fyi. I'm not making any money off of the Whole 30 program or US Wellness Meats, but I definitely believe in them.)

Today's thoughts.

Today was a weird day.

A new PR in the gym.. 235-pound deadlift which is up by 5 from two weeks ago. I had 240 in my grasp, but lost the mental control over it. (Plus I've been "sick," does that count for anything? :D)

That was pretty awesome.

But last night/this morning I had one of those very REAL dreams. All of my dreams are more vivid and lifelike since I've been doing the Whole 30 this month. (Wow, I'm almost done!) But this one involved my brother Justin.

I haven't dreamt about him in awhile, and usually when I do, it's some kind of scenario or situation where we only thought he died. This morning was no different. So we planned the funeral, gathered the family, and then he "woke up," gave bear hugs all around (oh, I loved those bear hugs!!), and thought it preposterous that we were planning his funeral! Then I wake up with a lonely feeling in the pit of my stomach. Every time I dream about him, I always get one of those awesome bear hugs. 

Mom also had a dream last night... and she also got a hug from Justin. These hugs are so real!!

Interesting. Not that this is completely out of the blue.

A few days ago, the 23rd, was the 2nd anniversary of his death which I didn't post about that on here. Sometimes I think the deep workings of our heart cannot really be put into words. We can't communicate the complexity of feelings we have so we sit in silence, unable to talk.

Justin and I when we were much, much younger.

At times, it seems like just yesterday we threw a bag together on that bitter cold Sunday morning and rushed out the door to Rochester, Minnesota. I don't think the car thermometer got above -20* the whole way there.

We dropped the dog off at Joel's mom and dad's, and began the journey to say goodbye.

How do you say goodbye when you weren't there? When he had already had one heart attack and was airlifted to Mayo? When you were expecting to be there for his surgery which was planned for the very next day? When he's only 25 for crying out loud?

It was the longest 4 hour drive I think I have ever sat through. And really, that was probably the longest day of my life. Once we said goodbye, we headed back to our homes.

The next few days were a haze. I know I had a wedding consultation which I booked, amazingly enough. I had lunch with some of our ministers, but the worst part is, I can only remember one of them for sure. I'm pretty sure who the other two were, but that's quite unnerving not to be positive.

The reality set in when we went home for about a week surrounding the funeral. The family, friends, and outpouring of love was astounding. I can't imagine getting through any intensely difficult time by yourself. I can only attribute my survival to the grace of God and the prayers of others for me.

Why these thoughts today? Could it be Mom and I's dreams? The Puff Daddy song on the radio this afternoon - I'll be Missing You - that reduced me to tears?

I am thankful though, that with the passing of time, there seems to be more and more sweetness of memories and les and less of the bitterness and pain of loss.

So today was interesting. Some decent success in the gym. Plus I found out I'm famous.. ;) I was featured in my gym's magazine earlier this month, and then that magazine was printed on a poster! Cool.

I also had a lovely texting conversation with one of my good friends who's like a little sister to me. :)

But then a very sobering and introspective afternoon... 

Some days I really miss my brother. I miss his positive prospective on life, his love for music, and the twinkle in his eye. Some days when I hear a really great song, a new album by Collective Soul, or even a really great singing/playing/jam session, I just stop and think how he would have loved to hear that.

I'm so thankful for the family and friends that I do have, and I love them all dearly.

This general thought has been on my mind lately: 

Source: Uploaded by user via Mariah on Pinterest

Anyway, if I am going to nip this cold in the bud, I better head off to bed. These were just a few thoughts on my mind today. Thanks for listening and have a good week. :)

Just another Wednesday. Not.

Yup, it's been forever. Like since before Thanksgiving. Oops.

I have a massive post coming up, or rather, probably several small posts for you on the deets of the holidays. But for now, just a quick check in to share some small victories from today.

I power-cleaned 105# for the first time since last July, which at that time was a PR and I only did it once. Today I cleaned it 6 times. (!!)

Even cooler, when I started my lifting program 6 weeks ago, I was worried about cleaning just the 45# bar, due to my shoulder/upper trap injuries. Any upper body work would send me straight to migraine city.

A million thanks to Dr. Alex from Valley Spine & Sport, who has been working with ART, other manual methods, and corrective exercises to fix all my injuries and issues. (Hah! Maybe not all.) Plus, I've not had a migraine or serious headache in almost a month, and after the accident last June, it was a multi-weekly, sometimes daily, occurrence.

He's also been helping me with my hamstring tendinopithy/tendinitis and wacked out hip flexors/adductors. (or is it the abductors? who knows.)

But the icing on the cake? Thanks to the Whole9's Whole 30 program, I have better mental clarity than I've had in months, am eating more than I ever have, and am the leanest I've been since probably last May.

As I was thinking about this today, I was filled with such a thankfulness of how far I have progressed from my injuries. My body is completely loving this break from CrossFit and high-intensity work... and the heavy weights are fun. And even though I'm still not cleared for regular ol' pushups yet (works the wrong muscles and it's back to headache-town!), I have pullups to console me. :)

So much for the Wednesday mid-week blah's!


Ps. These two pins have meant a great deal to me lately:

Source: melodyross.com via Mariah on Pinterest

Source: franklyesoteric.tumblr.com via Mariah on Pinterest

I'm enjoying a simpler, more relaxed life here in this wonderful off-season of photography. :)

P.P.S. If you follow mbaseman on Instagram, you'll see many of the food creations as I'm going along this Whole 30. Fun stuff!

P.P.P.S. Just kidding. :)

Paleo Protein Pancakes and Fried Apples

Pretty normal life lately.. but some fun things thrown in here and there!

We had a couples' game night in Oconomowoc the other week. That was so. much. fun! :)

A rousing game of Pictionary, guys against gals.

A wacky game of "Things."

We need to do more of these! :)

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In other news, I have been wrapping up my summer projects quite nicely... lots of album designs, orders, and being in touch with my lovely brides.

Training is going pretty well. I guess. I've really been taking it easy the last month or more, trying to heal up some of these nagging injuries. I have been seeing a sports and reconditioning specialist in the area, who has been using ART or active release technology on my messed up muscles. You can read a little write up about Alex and Valley Spine and Sport. He's super knowledgeable and can give you a diagnosis just by walking you through different movements where the pain is plus lack of mobility. If you're struggling with anything, even headaches, please, PLEASE check him out. I cannot refer him enough. Plus, he's a regular chiropractor if needed.

I have a strain/sprain in my left shoulder (don't even ask me about my lack of overhead work and pullups lately.. :/), some issues in both shoulders on top of that, an overactive hip flexor on my right side, as well as hamstring tendinopothy on my right side.

Anything overhead and even some back work aggrivates my shoulders, back squats get my hip flexor going, and deadlifts usually hinder my hamstring more than they help. Doesn't leave me with much, eh?

But we are definitely making progress. Especially as long as I follow the exercises he tells me to do. And follow his "be smart" advice. ;) The cool part is, Alex is an athlete and CrossFitter himself, so he understands (and actually supports) my desire to keep being active. I love that attitude.

So. I keep plugging along. Slowly.

Oh, I almost forgot though. Not sure if the blog world knows. I've been working on deadlifting lately, and will be starting a program to add about 20-ish pounds or so. My latest numbers have been 215x5 at the top of a 5x5, and I pulled up 220x1 just for fun after one of them because I was having a strong day. Not bad for my incapacitated state, eh? I think the deadlifting program will be good for me (as does Alex) since we can tweak a few things to help my hamstring vs. make it worse. Plus it will give my upper body a break from so much Cross Fit. One would think the last month and a half would be a break enough....

---------------------

Anyway, now that we're back to regularly scheduled programming, I can actually post the few recipes now and then that I've been creative with in the past few months.

Tonight I was jonesing for something... not sure what. Something interesting that I didn't have in my fridge or pantry already. Something that seemed like comfort food. But outside the rut I have fallen in lately. I had an apple that had been sitting on my counter that I figured was probably stale and gross. Random, but it needed to be used or thrown.

Since I've been regularly sauteing up carrots with coconut flakes (in coconut oil, obviously) with my eggs in the morning, I've gotten in the habit of frying anything I can. It's a good way to get more coconut oil in my diet! :) Which, a quick side note: I'm pretty sure there isn't a single bad thing about coconut oil.

As another example, I found these "hot dogs" the other day. Another great Woodman's find! :)

This was so incredible: carrots, broccoli, the hot dogs cut up like sausage, and spinach all sauteed in coconut oil.

Anyway, I figured the apple was shot from sitting there so long, so I might as well try frying it! Heh.

I threw a little cinnamon in with it... wow, guess it wasn't bad! It ended up a bit soft in the middle, a bit crispy on the outside and the perfect topping to my pancakes! Imagine the flavor with a fresh, fully sweet apple.

The major players, plus an egg, some stevia, a smidge of baking soda, and some extra water.

Now, isn't that a perfectly puffy pancake?

My first pancake wasn't so perfect, but the pan was too hot. Note to self.

I drizzled a little bit of almond milk (and even a spot of honey for my very last bite) and chowed down. Yes. The whole entire batch. Four large pancakes. With a fried cinnamon apple. Mm.

By the way, I did get the idea here for these
Protein Pancakes with Fried Apples

Ingredients:

1 c. almond flour
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1/3 c. almond milk or more as needed
1 egg
1/4 tsp. baking soda
water as needed, to make it pourable but not too runny
small apple, sliced or diced
cinnamon
stevia, to taste
coconut oil (for frying)
honey or maple syrup to top (optional)

Steps:

1. Heat coconut oil in your pan. Add apple slices/pieces and cinnamon. Let saute for a few minutes on each side.
2. Mix almond flour, vanilla protein powder, almond milk, the egg, baking soda, and a few drops of stevia. Add water as needed to make it slightly runny and batter-like.
3. Pour into the pan, flip when there are a few bubbles in the batter.
4. Garnish with fried apples, coconut flakes, honey, maple syrup or any combination you choose. Fresh berries would be delicious too.

And, as always, enjoy. :) I certainly did!




Hope your weekend is going well, and your Thanksgiving plans are well under way! :)

Taking a break. Or something.

I have a bajillion things to do right now. Bajillion is a very technical term, didn't you know? Probably a bajillion images to proof and edit. Plus a stack of papers on my desk that is growing exponentially. It's getting close to the "bajillion" status.

Plus my shoulders and elbows are feeling the fact that I have photographed more hours in the month of June than I did during the first 5 months of the year. Combined. They've been popping, grinding, and all sorts of lovely things. Tendonitis is only a photo session (or 10 burpees) away. Sitting at a computer and typing doesn't help.

Plus I'm hungry.

So that's like a bajillion strikes against me blogging right now. But here I sit with an ice pack on one shoulder and a heating pad on the other. Why? Because, darn it, I feel like blogging.

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Ever have those "lightbulb" moments? Flashes of realization?

I had one of those. I think. I am pretty slow at learning these things.

I realize there will be people who will shake their heads in judgement and get all "I-told-you-so" on me. Regardless. I've always been one to wear my heart on my sleeve, so why stop now, right?

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I debated even telling you all. It's embarrassing.

Ready? Here it is: I realized that I know absolutely nothing about what I am doing.

There. I said it. Just when I think I have things semi-figured out, something changes. Or goes haywire. Or goes off track with what I had been thinking.

I've come to these few conclusions lately... based some really great articles as well as on my own experience (obviously). But then again, I am pretty clueless. So. Take my thoughts with a grain of salt.

Rest vs. Recovery (The best one that set my mental gears in motion...)
Why Can't I Lose Weight?
On the mend: Healing from Adrenal Fatigue and Dealing with Hashimotos
Body Composition Testing and Losing the Goal Weight Mentality


---------------------------------------------


Here's what's going on.

Weight gain. We're talking 10-pounds-ish from my lowest point, which is about 6-8 more than my ideal.

Body fat percentage increase. Nothing over the top, but about 2%. And. it's. not. going. down.

Sticky shoulders and arms. The popping sounds? Yeah, not good. The chiro told me to cool it with some of my overhead work, or they are going to be out of commission sooner rather than later. I told him I was only split-jerking 105 that morning. My current PR is 125, by the way. Those are definitely one of my top faves for lifts. He didn't really seem impressed. Huh.

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Here's what I think I'm doing wrong.

Over-training. (See? I can see you shaking your head and hear you sighing. Stop that.)

Actually, scratch that. I think I'm actually under-recovering. It's so kind of me to beat my body to a pulp and then go sit here in this chair for the rest of the day. No wonder my hip flexors are so achy. I think it's time for more active recovery days. Time to take more breaks from sitting in this very chair.

Over-eating. Maybe. Somewhat. The jury in my mind is still out on this one. I might have gotten a little, um, liberal with my avocado broccoli slaw. ;) But I had to make a change from my extreme ketogenic to incorporate more carbs into my daily diet. However, I AM eating super clean. Do you have any idea how hard it is to say no to wedding cake Saturday after Saturday?? ;)

Too much stress, not enough sleep. I consider this the most important. I can tell dramatic performance decreases when I don't get enough sleep. And stress? What's that? ;)


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So. Obviously, I am just kind of bumbling along. Continuing on my journey. Making mistakes and learning as I go.

I have been attempting to back off on some things, forcing myself to quit working at 9 so I can be in bed, and playing around with my diet/food log. The usual things.

These few pounds have got to go. Or they at least have to turn themselves into muscle.

And it is time to let some of these nagging things heal. Hips, elbows, shoulders.. this means you.

And stress? We're working on it.

I'll keep you updated. :)

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PS. While I was typing/editing, I made myself spicy dog food. Mmm. So spicy. So yummy.

PPS. Canned, whole chipotle peppers are really unappetizing to look at. Like really unappetizing.

PPPS. I have other random news plus a recipe to get posted eventually. More work needs to get done first though...

This is what you're made of...

Phew. It's been forever since I posted. My apologies. Can I blame it on life?


Not a whole lot new. However, things have really picked up with my business... and June is going to be killer. Killer awesome! :) I'll be photographing weddings each weekend, plus starting some senior work.

Last weekend's wedding was a scorcher... (90*, anyone?) but beautiful. It was in an old church in downtown Neenah, which was gorgeous inside and out. Plus it gave me a chance to show off my man-traps in a sleeveless top. If you are like my mom, and wonder if "man-traps" is the style of my shirt... no. ;)

It is a bit funny... I have been "nesting" a little due to my anticipation of crazy June approaching. And NO, nothing about being pregnant involved. ;) I think it's just the fact that I know life will be very crazy... very soon. I did some cleaning, organizing. I even vacuumed! Whoa. This is serious.

This weekend we are semi-free despite the whole holiday thang. So, this week I have been soaking up the last opportunity to squeeze in 6 workouts until July. I love my Saturday met-cons, what can I say? Heh. Apparently this Saturday, I get to do two of them. Sweeeet.

Speaking of working out, that has been going great lately. I am still dealing a little with some elbow/tendonitis issues, but it really hasn't slowed me down too much.

This is the highlight reel:

Yesterday, we did the "Lumberjack 20." Oh. my. word. My trainer, another trainer, and I did this "together." I use quotes because we started at staggered times. I finished last. ;)

7 exercises. 20 of each. Plus running a quarter mile after each one.

Here is what it looks like with our respective weights:

The squat-cleans at the end really got me.. and as I headed out to run my last 1/4 mile, I lost control of my breathing and got a little panicky. Yikes. I actually got mad because I had to stop for about 20 seconds and just force myself to breathe. Wasting time!

You can see my time is 40:57.. my trainer's time was 35:58, and the other guy finished at 30 minutes and change.

But, there are a couple of really cool things about the whole experience:

To date, my heaviest overhead squat is 85-pounds... and I knocked out 20 of them at 75-pounds. "Knocking out" might be too strong of a term. Have you heard the phrase "exhausted to the point of tears?" Yeah. That was what set me back so far, time-wise.

Usually when I do kettlebell swings for volume, I use the 35-pounder. This time, I used the 55. Different ballgame, folks.

Even though I was using a band for pullups, I flew through 10 of them unbroken. That's pretty sweet. Yeah, I know, I am patting myself on the back.

That's a lot of running, too. My running lately has been in the form of sprinting intervals and less about distance. Shock to my system. The funny thing about running, a mantra can really help you keep pace and your breathing on track. Or so I had heard in the past.

It came to me as I was out alone during one of the runs, that "this is what you're made of, to keep going when no one else is around." That somehow turned into "this is what I'm made of, just keep going." And then something about releasing my "inner Froening." Yes. Odd. But it rhymed. And it helped.

Never before have I ever wanted to quit in the middle of a workout. Actually quit. Just stop. My mind literally was playing scenarios in which I would physically not be able to finish the WOD. Freaked me out a little.

But you know what? I did it. I kept going. Never stopped running. Did every single rep.

Definitely tested my limits. And pushed past them. :)

Because "this is what I'm made of. I just keep going."


...and then I ate. It was glorious. Hah!



Moving on from the Lumberjack 20, I have been doing some other cool things too. Lots of volume deadlifts, lots of overhead work. I set a new PR in backsquats not too long ago. 185 for 2 reps. It made me happy. I actually tried 190 today... but failed to stand back up. Apparently that's the last half of doing a squat. Oh, darn. *snaps fingers* Eventually, I'll break 200.

Tuesday, I did some pretty sweet :30/:30 intervals. Just to clarify, that means you work for :30 seconds and rest for :30 seconds. So, the first 12 minutes, I worked up to 11.0mph, which is new. Then, I backed it down to 8.5mph and worked on the incline.. got up to an incline of 10.0, which is also new for me. Nothing like burning 500 calories in 24 minutes, eh? ;)

And today? I got to try my hand at handstand pushups. Ugh. Yes, they were fun. A little. I still need to work on my upper body strength a little, I believe.

I have been trying to overcome some more of my insecurities... nothing like forcing yourself to wear some shorts! I am not going to lie, they are sooo much nicer to work out in, especially when running outside. And neon! This horrid picture does NOT show how bright this top really is. I am trying to quench my inner ninja by wearing more color (and less black) to the gym. Yikes.

Anyway, aside from working out, not a lot going on. We met a bunch of friends for supper Sunday evening, which was a blast. They came back to our place for a while, which is funny, because we don't even have enough chairs for everyone! Oh well. That's what makes it fun, right? ;)

I haven't been too creative in the kitchen either... lots of eggs and meat plus a little full-fat dairy. I keep myself in a semi-ketogenic state most of the time. That just means keeping it pretty low-carb to induce fat-burning. Pretty basic stuff.

However, I did jump off my no-sugar band-wagon at Grandma's on Sunday. But, I think you would have to be dead not to go for a piece of rhubarb-cheesecake pie. Holy Hannah. Definitely worth the sugar crash.

Here's a great article I came across today, actually. I get asked this a lot when I explain how I eat, especially with my family history of heart disease... But what about your arteries?


And a random:
Funny bumper sticker I saw the other day.

"Free punches in the face." Yes. Love it.

I suppose... I better get back to work now. These images are not going to proof themselves. ;)

Have a great holiday weekend! Keep it safe!

Deadlifts, Dog Food, and more!

A few days ago, I created a "bring it" playlist on my phone.

It's pretty powerful stuff. Gives me my gym swagger. Perfect for breaking my past PR of 195-lbs for deadlifting.

Deadlifts. Ahhh. My holy grail. :)

If you've been following along lately, you'll remember that I've had a mental block with getting past 195-lbs. I knew the strength was there, but couldn't get past the wall. Or something.

Anyway, I could feel it. Today was the day to break that.

Not only did I pull up 200-pounds, I completed a full set of 5 at 200!

Then, I added a bit more weight, and on the second attempt, pulled up 205.

Aaaand, then I got so excited, I set the bar down to do a happy dance. I figured completing one full deadlift at 205-lbs was victory enough.

I'm pretty sure I shouted in glee, but it could have just been a satisfied grunt. Hard to tell with my awesome "bring it" music pounding in my ears.

In case you were wondering, this is what one side of 205 looks like.

I also worked on some single-arm kettlebell snatches, which are always fun. Then, I completed an intense WOD that completely sucked out my will to live. The good ones usually do. :)




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For lunch today, the hubbs and I fought the crowds at HuHot, where I set another PR in meat consumption in one sitting. It was glorious.

I honestly was not hungry from the time we ate at 1:15/30ish until 6:00 this evening. And after a workout like today's, that's just crazy talk.

Maybe that's why I wasn't feeling inspired to make supper. 





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After taking stock of what was in the fridge (very little) and what was in the pantry (also very little), I decided upon something with eggs, turkey burger, and hopefully a can of chilpotle sauce. I scoured Pinterest for a bit, looked at my food inspiration boards, stopped by PaleOMG, one of my favorite Paleo/CrossFit food bloggers, and still had nothing.

That's a lie, actually. I wanted to do something like this yummy-looking breakfast scramble from PaleOMG. But I ventured out on my own...

... and created my very own recipe for spicy dog food!

Kidding.

But even though it was quite tasty, it still looks like dog food.

Don't say I didn't warn you.






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First off, I sauteed a bit of garlic with some coconut oil.

And then I added some turkey burger. That was boring, so no picture.

Fun fact. It's actually spelled chiLpotle rather than chipotle. I refuse to pronounce the first "l." Chih-poht-lee. It's how I roll.

Another fun fact. Notice the word "hot" on the label? Yeah, neither did I. I like things pretty much as spicy as they can get. The hubbs? Not so much. Oops. More about that later.

Yumm. Dog food. I let the sauce cook up a bit in an effort to make it less "runny." It worked.

While the turkey had been cooking, I whipped up 10 eggs and sprinkled some cumin on for good measure. Yes, 10 eggs.

I also had preheated the oven to 350*. Don't you love it when I blog the steps out of order?

Anyway, I poured the egg mixture on the meat and threw it in my preheated oven.

About this time, I started getting worried that this was going to be a complete fail. Yikes. A pound of turkey burger. 10 eggs. Yummy sauce. I probably would have seriously cried if it wouldn't have turned out. I hate wasting food.

After 17 minutes in the oven, it looked like this.

How about we zoom in?

See?! Dog food! The most unappetizing thing I've ever seen!

I could almost feel myself breaking out in a nervous sweat.

After hesitantly calling the hubbs to the table, I flipped a couple pieces upside down on plates, put on my cheery face, and took the first bite.

Success!

And then I breathed a sigh of relief.

But not for long... as it was pretty spicy. Lovely amounts of spicy. In my opinion.

After a thoughtful compliment about the flavor, the hubbs deemed it too spicy to have a second piece.

That just means more leftovers for me, right? ;)


Anyway, here's the combined ingredients and steps, if you'd like to make your own dog food
Chilpotle Turkey & Egg Bake

Ingredients:
Coconut oil
3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped/minced
1# turkey burger
1 can chilpotle sauce, mild or hot
10 eggs
Cumin, to taste
Salt, to taste

Steps:
Saute garlic in coconut oil.
Set oven to 350.
Add turkey burger to pan, cook.

Add chilpotle sauce.
Let meat and sauce boil to thicken.

Combine 10 eggs with cumin.
Pour egg mixture over meat.
Cover, and put in oven.


Bake for 15-ish minutes at 350.

Let sit for 2 minutes, slice, and serve upside down.

And enjoy!

Good Friday. But what Friday isn't?

Good Friday. It's been great, so far!

Started the day off right with a couple eggs, delicious bison sausage, and some sweet potato chunks.

Where have you been all my life? How did I live 24 years without you? That's a lie actually. My mom fed us very well as children... we had eggs nearly every day for breakfast. :) Unfortunately, I never appreciated it then.

Next highlight of the morning? Training! :)

We'll skip right by the over-enthusiastic gal in the locker room going on and on about how fun Zumba was. Honey, if you love Zumba, Zumba your little heart out. I've never been able to shake my hips. And, all the ladies that shake their boo-tay's every day in Zumba never seem to go through any major changes like weight loss, etc.

I simply told her that I love training. And we all know how much I respect Zumba. Please pardon the language, but I died laughing when I saw that pin on Pinterest.

I'd been looking forward to today's training session for most of the week because I knew we were going to do some Turkish Get-Ups. Score!

However, I didn't know we were going to do backsquats and split-jerks as well. Split-jerks are another favorite of mine. I ended up PR'ing in those... 3 at 95-lbs. Sweeet.

And then, TGU's. The most I'd done with these before was just the bar (45-pounds), which was quite some time ago. After doing one/each side with just the bar, we threw a 10 on each side, making for my very first attempt at 65-pounds.

Not bad, my friends. Not bad.







Please pardon my flailing legs. I'm quite graceful, no?

I've had a serious perma-grin ever since. Like the whole day.

After that, I had a WOD that was pretty intense. 6 rounds of power-clean/push-presses, pullups, and kettlebell swings. Another first for me was using the 55-pound kettlebell vs. the 35-pound, which I had been using all the time. It was time for the weight increase, but 55-pounds gets heavy when you're swinging it 9 times up to face level!

Good thing I liked my breakfast as I got quite close to tasting it again...

A quick stop at the store was next, where I was asked by an odd older gentleman: what are you planning to do with all this water?

Uhm. Is that a trick question? What does a person normally do with water? Drink it, obviously.

I believe I said something like I was stocking up. Plus it makes for a good workout... lifting it into the car, out of the car, up the steps and into the house.






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Anyway, in other news, I've stumbled upon this amazing little news video:

Is Saturated Fat Good For You?

My favorite line?

"Everyone is following the conventional advice, but the problem's not going away.
It's getting worse."

I've also been in contact with the author/owner of Eat Fat, Get Fit on Facebook. He writes a blog focusing on the Paleo lifestyle but highlights some transformations as well. I put together a little transformation image for his page, which he posted, and has since asked me to do an interview more about my story/success/motivation/etc. to post on his blog, www.eatmorefat.com.

I'll give you more details and obviously link to his blog again once everything is ready to go. Exciting. :)






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Hope you're all having a great Good Friday... and have a wonderful Easter!