Olympic Fitspo

To say that I fell off the paleo wagon this weekend is a drastic understatement. I did a swan dive off the wagon and then sprinted in the other direction. The Denver Beer Company (my favorite brewery in Denver, and perhaps in the world) had their 1st birthday party and I drank 5 beers, ate half a pizza, then drunkenly wandered over to My Brothers Bar and ate cheap nachos and half of a burger with cream cheese on it. Going totally overboard on things that are terrible for me is not something I do a lot… but apparently when I do, I go big.

And in case a 2-day gluten hangover isn’t bad enough, the universe decided to really drive home the point and today we are doing FRAN. Ok, I get it. I’m sorry. But, really? Fran? My WOD tonight isn’t for another 10 hours and I’ve already had a nervous poop.

I clearly need some inspiration. And where better to find it than the Olympics! I don’t have a TV so we’ve mostly just been watching reruns online, but it’s still been pretty amazing. Also I should just tell you upfront: I have a huge girl-crush on Hope Solo. I mean really.

If you could compete in any Olympic sport, which one would you pick? I think I’d have to go with whitewater kayaking or open-water swimming. Or archery. You know, so I could win the Hunger Games (very important)…

85 Days

If you have not seen this video, you need to watch it. It will convert you from a sunscreen-applying, grill-stoking, sunrise-before-8AM-loving summer enthusiast and make you wish you were currently watching a blizzard form in the late-afternoon twilight. Oh, and it will make you want to move to Japan, but what can you do. 

People. I just realized there are only 85 days between now and the first day of ski season at our “home” resort (Copper Mountain). You are probably sitting there thinking, “It’s AUGUST! WHY would you be thinking about ski season already!?” and you are right. We still have a solid 4-6 weeks left of summer-like weather (at least), and it seems wasteful for me to already be thinking towards ski season… but I can’t help it. Last year I got 2 RUNS in the entire season. The snow was crap crap crap, and I just kept thinking, “Oh, we’ll go next weekend–there will be snow by then.” And then suddenly it was April, and there was still no snow. The snow never came. It was sad.

So this year I am already looking forward to getting on the mountain. I grew up skiing–some of my very earliest memories are obscured by the hood of my tiny fuchsia onesy with my 80cm skis in the air after being knocked over by the trademark gale-force winds at Eldora. When I was 11 I switched to snowboarding, because it was the 90s and that’s what pre-teens did in the 90s, but when I was a liftie two seasons ago I decided to switch back to skiing. After one lesson I was already convinced that I had wasted over a decade on a snowboard when I could have been on planks instead, and was able to get in almost 30 days on skis in the second half of the season. So it was especially frustrating when last year I made zero headway, and probably actually lost a lot of ground, in my quest to make up for my 11-year old self’s poor decision-making abilities.

Apart from the general lack of skiable conditions last season, there was another problem. I never made it over the early-season hump–those first few days where every turn ignites your calves and shins, where you look forward to the lift stopping mid-mountain to give your hamstrings a little extra rest, where just buckling your boot into that perpetually-flexed-ankle stance is enough to bring tears to your eyes. Maybe not everyone goes through this, like people who have spent more than a half-season skiing in the past decade. But I did, and it sucked, and it made me not want to get out and go for it without the promise of at least a little soft snow to catch me when my legs reached muscle failure, which generally happens as soon as I stand up to exit at the top of the lift.

But this year I have a plan. Starting in September, Brandon and I are going to start spending some Open Gym time working on our skiing muscles–calves, shins (How does one build shin strength? We are going to find out!), hammies, quads, glutes, core, and especially hips and knees. I imagine this will probably involve a lot of jumping lunges, some light front-rack lunges (which we did yesterday during our WOD and today my butt is almost useless),  and lots of other light or bodyweight leg moves, with a little bit of heavy worked in for good measure. The goal really is to wake up those little stabilizer muscles, and to not end up in that situation where you wake up the morning after your first day on the slopes with that fun feeling of “How can I be sore in places I didn’t even know I had muscles?”

I would love some suggestions for your favorite lower-body movements. We are going to be largely making this up as we go along with lots of trial-and-error (as in what works and what doesn’t, not as in it-is-unsafe-for-me-to-be-trying-this). Are you a skier? What are your favorite pre-season moves to keep yourself from hitting burnout after three runs on your first day? Or do you just think it’s sacrilege for me to be contemplating winter in early August?

Paleo August Week 2

Man, I love Moab. Every time I go there I wonder why I left. Then I remember that it’s nearly impossible to find a year-round job, there are no large stores for anything except groceries (not even a Target!), and you can’t do anything productive during the day between May and October because it’s too hot. BUT I still love it, and I had a great weekend.

I was even impressed with my ability to stick to paleo! Out of seven meals eaten either on the road or at a restaurant, my indiscretions were limited to 5 tater tots, an ear of corn from the grill (I am really having a hard time with this… I mean, it’s CORN SEASON!), a few handfuls of tortilla chips, one PBR and 1/2 of a blueberry muffin. I am pretty proud of myself. I didn’t keep a journal this weekend but I found that it’s really not as hard as it sounds to eat paleo on the road if you are willing to do things like order plain grilled chicken sandwiches and pull them from the bun, buy bananas instead of Sun Chips at the gas station, and Just Say No when your boyfriend offers his chocolate malt to you after a 4-hour rappel through a slot canyon.

How is it going for anyone else? Even if you aren’t doing this particular challenge, what goals have you set for yourself in August and how did the first week go?

What is the Paleo Diet, Anyway?

Editor’s Note: There are lots of posts, books, videos, you name it out there about what the paleo diet actually IS. But I haven’t posted much about the nutrition science behind paleo because, well, I’m not a nutritionist! Luckily, Becky from Austin Nutrition And Fitness With Becky  is… so I asked her to give us all a basic paleo refresher. This post is a great reminder that being a paleo “purist” is not for everyone and that it’s more important to find a healthy diet that works for your life than it is to be dogmatic about sticking to a set of rules. I would also definitely suggest going to check out her blog for more great info about food trends, diets, and staying healthy!

If you are new to paleo, this post is especially for you. And if you aren’t new to paleo, it never hurts to re-visit the basics, plus there are some surprising facts in here… particularly one that might make you re-think the 2 lbs. of hickory smoked bacon you just bought from Whole Foods (ahem).  

The Paleolithic Diet focuses on eating foods that were available for our ancestors and not consuming the items that have appeared in our diets due to modern technology and science. This leads to being able to consume grass fed/free range/wild meat and fish, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables. If you can find it in the wild then you can eat it. Paleo followers stay away from dairy, grains, legumes (think beans), sugar, and processed oils.

The science behind this is as follows. Our ancestors had to forage for their food, which lead to lots of snacking on wild fruits, vegetables, and nuts and seeds (lots of carbs and a small amount of protein and fat). Then occasionally they would find meat and would gorge themselves on meat (lots of protein and fat). Hence when we gorge ourselves on meat it’s technically an innate behavior, because we “don’t know when our next meal of meat will be”.

Our ancestors did not have access to sugar or grains and for good reasons we shouldn’t be over consuming these either. When you consume sugar your blood sugar spikes and it takes 1-2hrs to return to normal. Refined grains, especially white bread/rice, cause this same response and that is why paleo suggests removing these. Not to mention, it is great to remove gluten from your diet to reduce bloating and improve body functioning. However, I still consume whole grains that do not contain gluten such as
brown rice and quinoa. These grains have a low glycemic response and do not cause a blood sugar spike because of the high fiber they contain.

As far as processed oils you have to be a little lenient with this one. All cooking oils are processed to a certain extent. However, extra virgin products are the least processed, so use these. Yes you can eat unprocessed oils in fish, nuts, and seeds, but what are you going to cook with?

Paleo allows you to consume as many fruits and vegetables as you would like, but I would be careful with the fruit. Fruit causes the same high glycemic response that refined sugar does therefore too much fruit will cause blood sugar spikes, which isn’t ideal for your body. Go all out on the veggies though. I challenge you to incorporate as many colors and types as you can a day.

Lastly, the meat portion of paleo allows you to eat any and every meat, which is kind of baffling to me. I know how much people love their bacon, but sometimes you should just decide to not eat certain things for your health. Yeah go ahead and eat it every so often, but know that every 1.7oz of processed meat increases your risk of contracting cancer by 21%. That’s a big percentage, so I’d rather leave the bacon off. Stick to the leaner meats and watch even more pounds come off is my thought.

Paleo is one of the healthier diets out there right now, so try it out and see if it is for you. Don’t be surprised if it’s not for you though. Some people require a high carb diet, which is not paleo, and some require a high protein diet, which is paleo, so don’t fret if it doesn’t seem to be working for you.

Becky’s Food Journal: August 3rd (Don’t you love how she adds “scale” and “clean” ratings to her food journals? Definitely going to start using that!)

Lemon water and cranberry water
Breakfast
2 egg quiches: 2 eggs, ground beef, mushrooms, and onions
Avocado and salsa
Coffee with non-dairy creamer
Snack
Naked protein juice
Lunch
Chicken teriyaki: brown rice, chicken, peas and corn, water chestnuts, soy sauce,
ketchup, and honey
Snack
KIND bar: almond coconut
Dinner
Chipotle salad: lettuce, bell peppers and onion, steak, corn, guacamole, and salad
dressing

Scale: 8 (I rate how my day was mentally and physically for food)

Clean (I track whether it was a clean day, no dairy, gluten, etc or not clean)

#bottles (24oz glasses) = 6

Adventure and My Boyfriend’s Name

I’ve suddenly decided that it’s awkward that I use everyone else’s names in my blog but refer to my boyfriend just as “The BF.” So, henceforth I shall be using his actual name, which is Brandon. Just didn’t want to confuse all of you.

This is not me. But this is what I will be doing tomorrow night in the full moon!

This weekend I am going back to Moab (my favorite place in the world) with Brandon and TJ. Even though I was born and raised in Boulder, CO, I feel more at home in Moab than I ever have anywhere else, so really it almost feels like I’m going home for the weekend. We are going to go canyoneering in Pleiades Canyon and do a full-moon rappel off of Corona Arch, and hopefully eat lots of Green River watermelons and Palisade peaches! I hope I will be able to find my camera charger by then so I can take lots of amazing photos for your enjoyment. All that stands between me and those red rocks are 2 more hours of work and 6 hours alone on I-70. Woo!

Day 3 of Paleo August is going well. I didn’t do any accidental cheats on Day 2, but I am interested to see how I pull off a weekend of traveling without any grains or added sugar! I’ll keep you posted on how that all pans out.

Oh, and GET EXCITED because Monday I will be unveiling my first ever GUEST POST from Becky, a paleo enthusiast, nutritionist, and certified personal trainer. In the meantime, you can check out her website here.

Have a great weekend!

Super Fluffy Paleo Zucchini Bread Pancakes

Day 2 of Paleo August, and I am proud to report that not only did I not eat a single bite of Ben & Jerry’s (!), I also accompanied a co-worker to Good Times and didn’t even sneak a fry. Man I am good. Unfortunately I did mess up on accident, as last night I was about 90% of the way through a delicious, juicy, salty ear of grilled corn when I remembered, “Ah crap, corn is a grain.” But I’m still counting Day 1 as a success because despite that semi-major gaffe, it wasn’t on purpose… so somehow I think it’s less bad.

Also, last night we made Paleo Zucchini Bread Pancakes! This was inspired by a recipe from Smitten Kitchen, which is my very favorite food blog but is not even remotely Paleo. So I looked at her recipe, realized it was essentially a normal pancake recipe with a little extra thickener, some nutmeg, and shredded zucchini, and went to town trying to convert it using a basic almond flour pancake base. It took a little trial and error but here ya go!

Ingredients:

1.5 cups almond flour

3 whole eggs

3 egg whites

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tbsp nutmeg

2 tsp vanilla

2 tbsp raw honey

pinch of salt

1 medium zucchini, shredded

Directions:

Combine all ingredients except egg whites together in a large bowl.

In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whip egg whites until white, stiff peaks form. (This is where the fluffy comes in. I did this using my own two hands and a fork, so no excuses!)

Slowly fold the whipped egg whites into the batter.

Cook pancakes over medium heat in a greased skillet–we used coconut oil but I bet butter would be better…

Notes: Zucchini is pretty watery, so you might find that you want to add a little more flour. I used 2 tbsp of honey because I wasn’t planning on serving the pancakes with syrup, but if you are using syrup you might only need 1 tbsp of honey. Also, the batter can be refrigerated for later use but the egg whites won’t stay fluffy so that will change the consistency of the pancake a little bit.

Search Terms

Want to know something funny? In WordPress, you can see what search terms have led people to your blog, ostensibly so that you can use that information to write more relevant and/or searchable content. I try occasionally (mostly via Pinterest) to attract readers, but do not exactly try (i.e. know how) to make my blog searchable or not searchable. Thus I get some pretty great search terms that lead folks over here. For example:

“What does appendicitis really feel like?” Not sure.

“CrossFit hot chicks” I liked this one because it taught me that the phrase ‘hot chicks’ is still in use out there.

“Will my body change after 1 day of CrossFit?” No. It won’t.

“Is wine paleo?” I think it’s pretty close!

“My arms got smaller from CrossFit” Well, how big were your arms when you started?

“Bicep man!” No joke, this one had an exclamation point, making me believe this person was looking for information about a superhero called Bicep Man. Potential Halloween costume?

“Homemade Paleo Butter” Um, if you are the person who searched for this… Did you make it? Was it good? Can I have some?

“Why am I terrible at wall balls?” This one was probably my favorite. You poor person. You are not going to find help with wall balls from this blog, but you will at least find empathy.

I just thought you guys might get a kick out of those, because I definitely do. Also, today is officially Day 1 of what I am now calling Paleo August (original, eh?)!  So far, so good, seeing as all I’ve had to navigate thus far is breakfast. But we have a big quarterly meeting this afternoon that our entire company participates in, which Ben & Jerry’s is CATERING. Did you know Ben & Jerry’s catered? I sure didn’t. Is it a massive injustice that this is happening on Day 1 of Paleo August? Yes. But I will stand strong! Probably.