Life, CF, growth... and a cooking class!

Not a whole lot has been going on lately.... other than life. You know how it goes. :)

CrossFit has been going well. The Open WOD's are done, which is a bit disappointing. The best part about those is everyone in CrossFit does them... and it's fun to see how you stack up and compare.

I didn't do one of them, as pushing motions are still on the back burner for me. 150 wall balls? Ain't nobody got time for dat!

However, the rest of them have gone great.

This was 13.4:

95-lb Clean and Jerk's with Toes-to-Bar

Two of my favorite moves! What a blast.

I read this awesome article about what the Open teaches us. It's a sense of accomplishment, a measure of how we compare to ourselves, and what we can prove to ourselves. We can be proud of the accomplishments we have, no matter how humble they seem. Read the article here.

In general, I have multiple goals for CrossFitting, but I keep coming back to these main ones:

1. Have fun
2. Get strong
3. Prove myself by giving it my all and never quitting
4. Encourage others

I've had a lot of victories lately, physically. My injuries from the past have been healing.

Aside from burpees and a few light reps here and there, I hadn't done any pushups or bench-press type motions since last November. They would ignite my upper traps and neck and send me straight to migraine city. But I (weakly) did 84 of them on a 24" elevated box (along with 84 push presses and 84 situps in 15:32). Success! No migraines! Is this any more reason to head over to Valley Spine and Sport? Seriously. Dr. Alex is a genius. I was, however, sore for nearly a week with good ol' DOMS. :) I'm excited to cross off pushing and pressing motions from my list of can't-do's!

My deadlifts are back up where they're supposed to be plus my shoulders are holding up for toes-to-bar, kipping pullups, split jerks, and overhead squats. Hamstrings aren't complaining lately either! *knock on wood*

I've been photographing some different things lately too. I helped Dr. Alex update some images for his website and social media, as well as my good friends at CrossFit Appleton. It's been fun to photograph these Open WOD's and the incredible athletes getting it done. Check out some of the photos here.

Other than that, I've been enjoying time with family and friends.

We hosted supper the other evening and then played some games. I love my in-laws. :)

We also had a couple's weekend a few weeks ago where a bunch of us younger, married, child-less couples got together for games, food, and fun. That was a blast too!

In other news, winter is still. dragging. on. It's still cold, wet, and there's a chance of snow for later this week. Oh well. Summer has to come eventually, right?

Here's one of my Paleo fails from recently.. these are always fun! I saw several times online about mixing avocado with cocoa. Some people added a banana and blended it, which would have helped drastically. I'll admit that this required a LOT more chocolate chips to make it palatable. ;)

Oh, and how could I forget?!

I have been invited to teach a cooking class, for which I am super excited!

It's called "Civilized Cavemen: Gluten Free and Paleo Cooking"

Click here for more details, but this is the description:

"We might not grunt and live in caves, but we can learn a lot from our ancestor's diet of unprocessed whole foods and sustainable meats. Join us and learn how to create gluten-free, Paleo meals that incorporate fresh, local foods. We'll share an overview of the Paleo template, strategies on how to stock your kitchen, time saving tips, tricks and resources for preparing meals. Mariah will demonstrate tasty recipes that even your gluten-eating friends will love - no caves or fires required! Come learn (and taste) how great eating like civilized cavemen can be!"

I will be demonstrating a few recipes, plus doing a little educating and offering plenty of resources to make things easier. This will be fun! :)

Also, tonight I watched the documentary "Forks over Knives" about a whole-foods, plant-based diet, or veganism. I have quite a few reactions to that, and I even took notes during, so expect a post coming soon.

Anyway, I'm off to bed... Can't wait to CrossFit tomorrow morning. :)

Wow. So long.

Well, it has been forever since I've updated. Hello, August? How about we try that again?

I suppose being overwhelmed and exhausted to the point of tears doesn't leave much time for personal blogging, eh? :)

My recovery from the whole mess earlier is going pretty well. I'm back into some decent workouts the last few weeks.

Today was particularly fun. Nothing like a 10x10 squat sequence to get your heart rate up! Plus some deadlifts. Last week, I hit a new PR of sorts... 205x3, so that was pretty sweet.

I was pretty bummed at having to miss the Tough Mudder on Saturday, so when I happened to see this Diva Dash for this evening down at the TNT Obstacle Course south of Fond du Lac, I jumped on the opportunity.

I think I could get used to living in workout gear. ;)

It was a blast, and I have already marked down the next one in my calendar... which is Monday, October 1st, at 5:45pm... Come join us!

In other news, I've been running around like a photographer with her head cut off, literally praying for the strength to get through each day until I make it through October. I am super looking forward to conventions coming up, where I will be nearly shutting down Baseman Studios, my phone, email, and Facebook for almost two entire weeks.

It terrifies me to do that, as I know the aftermath will suck the life out of me.... but by then I will be refreshed, renewed, and ready to tackle life again (rather than hide in the corner and suck my thumb)... right? Please? Heh.

Anyway, August was busy, crazy, and full of lessons, so that deserves its own post in the future. Summer is technically over, which deeply saddens me.

However, the coming of autumn doesn't just mean the coming of winter with snow, slush, muck, heavy layers, and short days. It also means some really good things. Like leather boots, cozy sweaters, feasting holidays, good shows back on TV (plus the time to watch them!!), and finally, the most important... the slow season. Ahh.

Okay, time to go do my dishes and head to bed.

Until next time,
~M

Just another update.

Busy, stressful days lately...

But good days. Last week my parents were in town, and we headed to a family reunion on Saturday.

This was amazing. Carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, red onion, red and green pepper, zucchini, pepperoni, black olives (which I literally cannot find in the grocery store.. so they're not in here) with olive oil, coconut oil, a dash or two of white wine vinegar, and sea salt.

 "Guys, I got this."

 I love this photo. Grandma, Mom, and I.

 Mom and Dad's new baby pupper: Sage. What a doll.

 Oh, the woes of a photographer... who cannot pose herself. Sigh.

 It was quite warm that day.

Playing with Sage.

Miss Aleisha and I.. good to see her again!

More of Turbo and Sage:

She just really wasn't that fond of him... started defending herself pretty quickly! haha

Some randoms:

One of Turbo's favorite people.. :)

Turbo in the doghouse.

Hubby in the doghouse. ;)

Hopefully only a week or so left on my car. Hopefully.

Gorgeous sky the other night. A couple provoking thoughts: 1. There's always beauty in a storm. 2. The storm always looks darker and more ominous when it's approaching. Sometimes that's the hardest part of the whole storm.

My amazing salad from a while ago. Wow.


See you in a few weeks.. ;)

Ahh. Relief.

This week, it rained finally.

Beautiful, light rain. There's something so serene and still about rain and the effect it has on my spirit and attitude.

Trust me, I love sunshine and too many rainy days in a row gets me gloomy. But it is quite refreshing after weeks and weeks of hot sunshine.

This week was quite refreshing in many ways...

Finally, some victories. Some small gains.

I have started slowly adding in more "strength" work along with some really light cardio. Seriously light. talking 2:00/1:00 walking and jogging intervals. And there's a reason "strength" is in quotes. ;)

But today. Nevermind that they were measly 135-pound deadlifts (okay, so I mind a little... because earlier this year, I was doing the same sets/reps with 185-pounds. Sigh. I will get it back, I promise! I'm coming after you, 205.). And very slow burpees. Nice and easy.

Okay, so the chalk-use was totally not necessary. But it was fun to use a little. My callouses are nearly gone after weeks and weeks of absolutely no gripping and ripping.. they're a little bit in shock right now.

And honestly, I don't know if I'm so happy because of the working out, or the fact that my appetite has increased. It's always about more food, right...? haha

This is Leah, one of my gym buddies. We matched today! Unfortunately, she was all fresh and pre-workout... and I was not. haha! Got my water belly going on.

This girl can jump.. her boxjump is insane! But what's really fun is when we take over the squat racks and deadlift. ;)

After noticing that eating cottage cheese for lunch left me (more) draggy than when I didn't eat it, I decided to try taking out dairy too. I've been putting a little bit of coconut oil in my coffee (yum!) rather than cream. So now I pretty much eat meat veggies. Lots.. and lots.. of meat and veggies.

My meatloaf that I cooked up today. Secret ingredient? ... What? It wouldn't be a secret if I told you!

Okay, okay. It's cayenne. And today I added smoked paprika as well. Yum.

And eggs. Mmm. Veggie/beef frittata.

My latest food obsession is sauteing onions and zucchini. And blueberries. But not sauteed with the veggies. Ick.

Huge honkin' zucchini there! And don't judge my cooking mess. :)

Oh, and then at the bridal show... Yeah. That happened. I gave up my dairy avoidance. And sugar avoidance. Because well, #yolo right? ;) I enjoyed every delicious bite.

Speaking of the bridal show...

My booth.

A really neat florist/event decorator/rentals booth from an Oshkosh-based business.

And, calling all pyro's! I saw bananas, captain morgan, butter and brown sugar, and was intrigued. It smelled simply amazing. I opted for only the Coldstone though. :)

And a few randoms... Tried to wear my hair somewhat down and curly. Slight fail. Sometimes I just cannot stand having my hair pulling on my scalp.

She looks deformed here... but I still thought it was cute. :)

And, big news! That is, if you're still reading. If I haven't lost you by now. :)

We finally found new tenants for the other half of our duplex. Just today. I am beyond excited... and relieved. One less thing to worry about right now...

And cheers to the weekend... I'll be plunked down right in this chair, working. So if you follow my photog stuff, stay tuned for some really awesome sneak peeks. We're talking engagement sessions with Corvettes, antique tractors, horses... fun stuff!

Hope you all had a little refreshing "rain" in your lives this week too!

Dear body. Let's squat.

*smile*

Ps. We are in the process of finding a new tenant for the other half of our plexer. Where in the world do these people come from? Goodness.

PPs. Don't worry. They were light squats. And later I stopped what I was doing because things were hurting. I am trying this new thing where I learn from my mistakes, remember? ;)

PPPs. Update on the car: over $11,000 in damages. If the insurance company would have known that a month ago when I had the accident, they would have totaled it before it was even towed to the shop! Should I be relieved that I'll have my car back eventually? Or scared for the new insurance premiums we'll be paying...?

PPPPs. The whole getting to bed at 9, de-stressing thing? Yeah, that has been a complete fail. Sigh. I'm trying though! Promise! Because of my increased wedding schedule (and family/time commitments) for this summer/fall, I am only accepting 5 additional photo sessions from now until mid-October. Time to put the foot down!

Play ball.

Emotionally draining week. Super busy. Chest pain came back for a bit the other day. New chiropractor. Some last minute "stuff" that screwed up my schedule a little. Emotions still all over the map. Shoulder and neck in fairly constant pain. Photographing = ouch. Computer work = ouch.

Crazy days ahead. Falling more behind. Therefore, getting more stressed out. Cannot handle stress very well anymore. At all. Sigh.

Not a whole lot of victories this week.

A whole blog post without a single complete sentence. Score.

Dear Body: Thank You

After quite a few craptastic days, today was good despite a little pain on my walk this morning. Finally.

Lots of wanderings and musings lately, so here is the highlight reel even though I've been absent here on the blog:

First and foremost, my heart is going out to this young man's family. I remember the feelings and thoughts around the time of my brother's death and funeral. I remember feeling calm at first, and it wasn't until a few days later that the overwhelming ache and loss set in. You walk outside, look around, and wonder how everyone else can keep living their lives, how their worlds keep turning, when it feels like yours has stopped. I love a thought shared from the funeral that if we try to avoid pain, we end up avoiding love. That makes sense, I guess, as in order to be comforted, we have to feel that sorrow.

Pretty sure I have adrenal fatigue. This article is phenomenal. I might have actually teared up while reading it.. as it was like looking in a mirror at my very sad reflection. The fix is really only rest and de-stressing along with some additional supplementation, which I'm doing. I'm still trying to figure things out nutrition-wise too. I think I was pushing too hard (overtraining), not recovering and resting enough, while on a ketogenic (extreme low-carb) diet. Then I jumped right into my stressful busy season. It just wore my body out. Then enter injuries, a car accident to make everything worse, and everything gets messy.

So last week, I did a little experiment: rest, relaxation.... and carbs. I increased my veggie consumption by about double and added in a few low-glycemic fruits. Okay, fine. I added in one: blueberries. How did I never enjoy these before? Mm. With the holiday in there, I was able to relax a little more. Results? I'm not quite sure what to make of it.

The good, first: I can sleep! I have been able to nap again (finally!) and can fall asleep without laying there for 15 minutes. I am starting to get some mental clarity back, score! Think I am starting to get some motivation back as well. However, I also gained 4-5 pounds from the weekend (stupid, I knew better than to weigh myself). I had a hormonal/emotional crash Tuesday where I felt very out of control and thought I was having a nervous breakdown. Plus I dealt with some other hormone issues. Even yesterday was just not fun. My relaxing Sunday afternoon nap came to an abrupt halt with a nightmare about a wedding I was failing to photograph, among other emotional crazies.

So, I'm not sure if the whole carb increase was or is a good thing. I know I've been trying really hard to reduce some stress in my life... even if that means only taking the photo sessions that come my way organically from now unto the end of the season. Yikes. That's a little scary.

Sleep is of utmost priority right now, meaning I get ready for bed at 9:00pm. (Oops, it's after that!)

I have been loving Saturday's at home... going to the farmers' market, having fun with friends and family, laundry, spending time in the kitchen. So wonderful. :)

These have been a few of my favorite thoughts from Pinterest lately:

And, one final thought that was passed on to me from my lovely mom in a comment on this blog :

You're right about it being a journey. And a journey has hills, valleys, curves, and even some dead ends. Try to enjoy the journey.

So, I'm trying to appreciate this journey... for what all those hills, valleys, curves, and even the dead ends can teach me. And "even the darkest night will end, and the sun will rise." You're a wise man, Victor Hugo. Maybe I'm finally starting to see that dusky pink sky right before the dawn..



Ps. Our tenant is leaving at the end of July. Nothing brings out the crazies like offering a place to rent! Yikes.

Pps. I made something incredibly super delicious the other day. Even the hubby was wowed. And yes, I took pics, so stay tuned.

Ppps. I haven't been the easiest to live with lately... so how about a pat on the back for the hubby? :)

Dear Body: Please heal.

In all honesty, I have had some progress since the accident. I feel silly making a big deal out of it. A stupid fender-bender. Screwed me up good, though. The perpetual migraine is gone, at least. I promise I have been doing everything in my power to speed things along. But no matter how sick I am of being the tortoise, I guess I won't get to be the hare until my body is good and ready.

Now for the patience to accept that.


Ps. Dear body, I fed you steak, turkey, bacon, and eggs tonight. You are welcome. Love, me.