live blog.

yes before no

stop, brain, with the: "no" or "i can't" or "that is dumb" or "i don't get it"

what i learned today. no i didn't get the movement at first. i didn't get at second either. but doing it wrong a few times. i figured out how to do it right. and i got it.

so. new rule.

always "yes" first. this isn't about "i can" this is about the willingness. maybe i can't. but that shouldn't factor in...

giving up fruit?

I think it might happen.

To further efforts to lean-out. I think I will attempt to give up fruit in July.

I am hiking for 4th of July weekend... so after that I will turn-up my nose at fruit. I will allow blueberries.

Yep. Think I will do that. I will keep you posted.

i don't like very much

heavy weight. when it really isn't THAT heavy. and your brain is like, "well, this sucks." and i am like, "yeah, i know, it does" - and the body is like, "well, then we are all in agreement." and then the weight seems to be incrementally heavier. and less fun.

in other news: i am still stoked about push ups.

and for your eyes - some pics of food:





















chicken cooked in coconut oil - w/ fresh blueberries, strawberries and radishes









3 egg omelet w/spinach, sweet potato, red pepper, blueberries













Soup - based w/ Veggie Broth (low sodium), brussel sprouts, broccoli, carrots, and grass-fed beef

Body sore.

I hate running. Oh, I don't mind it for... say a half mile. I even give you 1 full mile. But, after that, if it is *just* running. Not after anything. Not with anyone. And my jams aren't keeping me distracted. B.O.R.E.D. I don't understand you distance runners.

However - I do see it as a valid form of training every so often.

Jordan asked me the other day when I had last run over 2 miles. My brain froze. I couldn't remember. I used to do it all the time. Back when I was in much worse shape I ran Greenlake almost every day... well Greenlake plus, because I would run from my house in "Wallingmont"to Greenlake around and back again. But. This did not put me in great shape. This did not make me faster. At this time I was still tired all the time... but, that is for a later post.

So. I went running yesterday. Boo-yah. I stopped mid-way around and did 3x10 of push-ups using a bar thing. And then I walked... and then I ran and sprinted back to my car. Yep. I hated it. And today my quads and calves are respectively sore and tight.

On this Sunday morn - I am having a nice sized breakfast (let me lay it out for you):

3 Egg Omelette (Omega-3 Eggs) - whisked with a tablespoon of Coconut Milk
add-in: .5 cup cooked ground grass-fed beef (cooked w/ cinnamon and cumin)
add-in: .5 cup bluberries
add-in: .5 cup cubed sweet potato
add-in: handfull of baby spinach
Cooked in .5 tbs of Coconut Oil - cinnamon added w/ a dash salt

Also... mixed 4 shots of espresso w/ 2 tbs of steamed Coconut Milk cut w/ H2O

Finally, video!!! See what it is all about!

Drinking

So, when I told a lot of my friends about this challenge they were supportive - until - I mentioned NO DRINKING (except for a few choice days). They railed against the restriction. Why? Annette - why? How does drinking affect your ability to reach a Muscle-Up in 90 days.

Well. My friends. A lot of ways. And last week was an example. It is time to come clean.

It started innocently enough. I quit my job. Got a new job. EXCITING, right?! And so, I decided to indulge in what Robb Wolf calls a Norcal Margarita - basically - tequila, fresh lime juice, splash of soda - and that is it. MMMmmm... I had two. No big deal. No ill effects. So then. I think... why not? Add in a little of the alcohol into the plan. I mean, after all, what will happen when the challenge ends? Don't I want to make sure that this is pretty much sustainable? The rules that I apply with drinking - only wine or tequila - because they are not grain based and nothing added - no sugar or fruit juice. And not, like, you know, drinking all the time ... right?! No problem. All is going well.


And then... Solstice - a week ago from today.


Oh. Solstice.

Here is the plan. Meet at my friend Katie's house... they will be drinking Mimosas - I will be prepared w/ tequila, lime juice, and soda...

It is an early drinking "festival day". See picture above - Katie and myself - all looks like it is going well... but, NO --- earlier at the house... making my second drink tragedy strikes. I was really excited because the amount of lime juice I had in my cup was AMAZING - this was going to be a good drink. PROBLEM. Hands + lime juice = slippery. Hands + lime juice + heavy square bottle of tequila = accident. I DROPPED THE WHOLE BOTTLE OF TEQULIA ON MY TOE. It hurt. And instantly started bleeding. No bandaides were available so Katie went super-camper style and jerry-rigged a bandage using a papertowel and her hairtie... beautiful...

See toe. This is post jerry-rigged-band-aide coming off.



I am a prize. Right? So this is the middle of my day. The day continues on and furthers itself in further acts of ridiculousness - which I really don't need to get into. But, this brings us back to why alcohol - NO.

It is not just the damage that it does to the liver. Or the body that needs to burn alcohol off first - it is the choices one makes when one over-indulges. They stop being well-thought out... or good. And there is fall-out from that...

Here is what it looked like for me:

The next day. HUNGOVER. All I want is food I have been doing a really, really, really good job avoiding. That sucks. I don't have that food, but I do eat more than I normally would. Oh... well that is not exactly true... in honor of full transparency... I am weak. WEAK. I have a cookie. My roommate was making some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies - with tahini!! WHAT! Tahini?! How must that taste!!!??? A girl must know. And so, in my weakened hungover state - I go for it. It is delicious and worth it. SO very worth it... but boy do I feel bad about it... and all I want now is 2o cookies.
Day after being hungover... I AM SICK. SICK. SICK. Throat sore. Have to get dental work. Have no energy... granted this is how my roommy was feeling - so I contracted from her, but would it have happened if I were not down yesterday...? That is the question. So I don't work out that day. I read. And have one VERY LARGE meal in the middle of my day. Beef, Cauliflower, Broccoli... made of good stuff... and then I have a modest amount of pineapple - which ends up becoming a WHOLE PINEAPPLE - seriously. Annette. Seriously. Also - I found these legit bars at Whole Foods - that are paleo... soaked and dryed made from coconuts, dates, almonds... goji berries - a good choice for a treat... but I eat 2... not ideal... and then I had this flaxseed spirunlina bar... MAN! Bars are meant to be rare treats, but because I am sick and there are cookies in the house... I go to town... ! And that is it for my splurge... thankfully... I cast myself into a bout of fasting... well, one, because I need to - for a blood-draw, and two... because I need to RESET.

I was really sad about the events above... the next day Tuesday... still sick... I took off (working-out)... fasted for most the day, slept for most the day... and then made a modest soup... good reset.

Feeling guilty and none too pleased with myself. I confessed my errors to my roommate Stephani... and she gave me some really solid advice. Basically she said that as someone who might track this challenge it isn't about... "well, I did everything perfectly... TAH DAH!" - She wants to see my struggles, my failures, and that I haven't lost everything I am still in the challenge... etc. etc. motivation... etc.

This was a needed talk.

And true.

SO... here it is Saturday again. And NO. I haven't had a drink... feels good.

good week. bad weekend.

This was a good week. Though I was sick - which kept me down for the count on Monday and Tuesday. I worked through the throaty-headcoldy-sinusy-thing and did some good work at yea' ol' gym. Engaging my lats. Big deal. I have not been doing that - I have however been hanging limply... so the world with my lats engaged is a whole new world. Interested in seeing where it will take me. In other news I can do standard push-ups... well... I can do at least 10 - I have yet to go max effort on this one, but will be sure to let you know.

As for bad weekend... stay tuned...

Sleep

One of the most important factors for me. And sometimes so hard to attain - especially when a schedule doesn't allow. BUT. I find my self in the position of being unemployed until July 6th. And so PRIORITY. SLEEP! I am curious to see if this will affect my training... ?

Body Comp.

Yup. Did that today. Dunked in a bath of water to get my lean muscle mass vs. fat etc. Don't know how I feel about that - the judge is out. It is a good place to start from. I will post more stats etc soon. I promise.

Sometimes I feel like things won't change. And I hate that thought. I want this challenge to get accomplished. I want to prove that I CAN DO IT.

fingers crossed.

CRANKY. ANNETTE. CRANKY.

so. there are a lot of things that make me cranky. let's make a list:

1. Being Weak
2. Not knowing everything
3. Not being good at something
4. Not feeling 100%
5. Not feeling connected to my body
6. Not performing my best
7. Not making gains
8. Feeling weak (different than being weak)
9. Doing awkward things
10. Having mental hang-ups
11. STILL having mental hang-ups
12. Not going as hard as I know I can b/c of aforementioned feeling of awkwardness and non-connectivity

um. i could go on. but, i think you get the gist.

the last 2 days i have been CRANKY at the gym due to a combination of all of the above.

and i say to myself. GET OVER IT. but, i whine (unattractively) it is hard...

and yeah. it is.

especially the mental block thing. today we were doing burpees with a lateral jump over a paralette and i abhor lateral jumps. i loathe box jumps. jumps in general are a challenge. it is this lame mental hang up thing. as with a lot of things in CrossFit - somewhere my brain is telling my body not to perform.

and I am all: body, don't listen just do!
and it is all: screw you Annette - i do what i want.

which sucks. it is like GREAT how many mental blocks can we find.
and i think to myself - no big. i will just do this movement everyday until I am comfortable with it. but there are like A MILLION movements like that...

and when these thoughts start to roll in my brain along with not feeling completely connected to my body - and feeling the effects of not awesome digestion... the world starts to look dismal... hence the CRANKY.

get. over. your. self.

Dried Fruit.

Stumble. Stumble. Here is the thing about restrictive diets. At least, for me and restrictive diets. I want to eat things - that normally I have no trouble avoiding. Now that you tell me I can't. I want it. I feel like I have regressed to a five year old.

This weekend was tough. I wanted sugar. SUGAR. sugar.

So. Before the challenge I have been eating pretty paleo. Staying away from dried fruit and most fruit because of the sugar and carbs. I sometimes eat strawberries - especially because they are in season and DELICIOUS. But - I had taken apples and pears out - both of which had been my morning go-to.

This weekend. Because I was feeling deprived from my lack of oil adding and lack of almond/cashew/macadamia snacking - I decided I COULD have dried fruit - and I went a little over-board. Dried mangos, dried pineapples, dates... now keep in mind none of these had any added sugar, but, dude, they don't need to ... these little guys pack a punch - and I know that - yet give me a bag of dried mangos and I give you back a container of cellophane.

So. OKAY. Lesson learned. I am not ready to introduce dried fruit because apparently... I lack control.

Focus for this week is to tighten the dial slightly. Now with my parents out of town - I don't have to worry about eating out as much - so I should have the ability to focus up and dial in. I need to get creative with my snacky snacks.

The Challenge

FIRST. Sorry for the lateness of this posting. Today is officially Day 13. Day 13 of what you might ask. Well. Let me bring you up to speed.

I am doing a 90-Day challenge to a Muscle-Up. So I have 77 Days Left...

The challenge was proposed by my trainer Jordan: http://xplorecrossfit.typepad.com/

We are documenting it. I will soon be putting up some video.

Basically. The idea is for me to nail ONE muscle-up in 90 days.

Currently, I can't do an unassisted pull-up. So this would be huge. It would change the way I train. And I want it.

To reach the goal Jordan has asked me to go on a no-added-fat Paleo diet. THIS IS HARD. And I will be blogging about my tactics with the diet. I plan on letting you know the struggles. The successes, the failures, the progress, the inter-workings of my brain and the kind of challenge it presents also.