Oops, I did it again.

It's been a while.  In fact, I believe tomorrow is the anniversary of this sorry excuse for a blog!  Someone left me a comment asking if they could take over this blog because they too were a "Pants" and I suppose must've also been Paleo, and it made me realize that even though no one reads this, I'd like to rededicate myself to it.

Things have been rough for the past few months, and I've lost sight of every goal I set for myself.  I tore a muscle in my hip that is apparently a super rare injury, and have been battling hip flexor tendonitis and some major scar tissue in my lower back since the muscle has healed.  I've been going to physical therapy and have taken some major rest from CrossFit, and it shows.  I think I would have been a lot better off physically and probably more importantly, mentally, had I continued to follow the Paleo lifestyle after I was injured.  However, my brilliant little brain decided that since I couldn't work out, I might as well just eat whatever the hell I want!

Not surprisingly, since I've made that decision, my clothes don't fit correctly, I am depressed as hell for no apparent reason, my libido seems to have left for vacation (sorry, babe!), I'm tired all of the time and have zero motivation to do anything, and when I see pictures of myself, I want to just cry.

Sure, some of this could be SAD, combined with stress from work, bad car luck, a lack of those feel-good endorphines that one who can exercise gets, and an impending move, but I am pretty sure the major reason is that I've been chowing down on pasta, bread, chocolate, cookies, peanut butter cups and all manner of junk food like it's my occupation since I was told to give it a rest athletically.  Yes, it's completely ass-backwards, I am well aware.  I guess that part of me that doesn't want to "ruin" my hard work in the gym with bad food turns off when there is no hard work at the gym being done.

I'm tired of feeling this way and I've decided that right now, in this very moment, that I am going to change.   I've once again gotten stuck in that sick cycle of looking to food for comfort, feeling horrible about how I'm looking after eating comfort foods, eating more food for comfort...ad nauseum.  It's stopping, right now, and now that I've put this out there, I want you all to hold me to it.  I know I won't be Ms. Perfect Paleo, but I want to try harder.  Here goes nothin'.

Mmmm...Red 40.

I came into work today and found this on my desk:

OH GOODY! IT'S A POOFY POP!  An undoubtedly nice gesture from one of my coworkers, left on my desk while I was working from home yesterday.  Check out that ingredients list.  Does any of that sound like real food?  I'm terrified.  I think every since one of those things is just another word for "diabeetus".  Friends don't let friends eat FD&C (what does that even MEAN?) Red 40.

Now, check out what I brought to snack on today:

Now that's the stuff.  REAL FOOD made from ACTUAL NATURAL, EDIBLE THINGS...who would've thunk it?  A snack that wasn't manufactured in a laboratory?  That's bananas.  

It scares me to think about how much "Artificial Flavors" I've probably ingested in my life, and how accepted ingredients like those found in the "Poofy Pop" have become in our time.  Sugary corn-laden food products are the norm.  How ridiculous is that?  Perhaps you don't subscribe to the paleo diet, or perhaps you're even against it for some reason, but I at least challenge you to look at the nutritional information of the food you buy and EAT REAL FOOD.  

Words to live by...

(Click to enlarge, unless you have awesome eyesight.)

Courtesy of Steve's Original. 

Yes, that is a Richard Simmons magnet on my fridge.  Don't be jealous.

I am the worst.

Yep.  I am the absolute worst.  It only took me a few days to drop the ball on updating this thing!

Well, what's happened since I last posted?

• I ate a lot of food
• I did a bunch of awesome workouts
• On Saturday, I went to Eataly and could not help myself - I HAD TO try a bite or two of the fresh mozzarella that everyone I was with was partaking in...paired with some amazing pancetta.
• THE NEW YORK FOOTBALL GIANTS WON THE FREAKIN' SUPER BOWL!

I bELIeve!

(Image from SI)

Of course, since I have no self control, I kind of fell off the wagon last night at my friend's Super Bowl party.  Well, maybe not fell off, but I definitely wasn't riding with my arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times.  I had my little sister and her boyfriend visiting from Virginia, and I didn't think to plan ahead and think to bring anything to eat that would be Paleo to eat.  I thought I'd be fine chowing down on some buffalo wings, but after a couple of sangrias, I knew I needed something more substantial, so I had half a slice of sausage pizza.  Then, after the Giants handed the Patriots their tookuses, I was so excited (and buzzed) that I had not one, but two celebratory cupcakes.  

Sigh.

I know, it's not that bad, and the rest of the day leading up to the Super Bowl was filled with good (read: healthier) eats, but it's just a little frustrating that I can't seem to keep myself disciplined, and I shouldn't have to rely on others to keep me in check.  

I suggested to my Nutritional Challenge team that we enforce a 50 burpee penalty for each infraction on our diet.  I'm not counting the wine, sangria & shots I drank (although if I do for some reason consume beer, I'm definitely counting it) this weekend, but I am counting the pizza and 2 cupcakes, so I've got 150 burpees to look forward to doing this week!

Other than some Paleo infractions, I'm feel pretty good!  I weighed myself a few days ago for funsies and I'm down a pound a half.  My midsection looks way better, and I've even noticed a reduction in cellulite.  I woke up today without an alarm and despite drinking a bit last night, I feel completely fine.  The extreme thirst I was feeling for a few days has mostly subsided, thanks to adding even more fat to my diet.  You're the best, avocados.

I will try my best to be better this week, but with a wedding to go to coming up on Friday, I may find myself with even more burpees to do!

Paleo Challenge Day 2: Evening Edition

I have some bad news, guys.  I forgot to photograph my lunch.  I know you're all devastated, but I was so dang hungry by the time Jill, our co-worker and I sat down to eat at noon that I started scarfing down immediately.

Here's what I had:
-1 serving of chili from Make It Paleo (Recipe makes 6 servings, so I put it in 6 individual containers after it finished cooking).  I had to basically force myself to eat this.  I cheaped out and got meat at Costco on Sunday, and it showed in this recipe.  The meat was too tough and the delicious, tender bites were few and far between.  Also needs more spice in the recipe.
-6 oz. roasted butternut squash

(Award yourself some bonus points if you know where that image is from.)


Snacks:
I cannot keep away from chocolate.  It's unpossible.  Deal with it.  I had two of these bad boys today.  Other snacks included 1 serving of that pistachio/almond/cherry/cranberry trail mix and 2 servings of all natural unsweetened apple sauce (one at 3:30pm, the other after dinner).

For some reason, I was insatiable all day long.  Could be the combination of too little sleep, and too little breakfast.  I was able to kick most cravings by drinking water, tea or coffee, but it was rough.

Dinner:
Was lazy/forgot to thaw the chicken I have in my freezer, so I swung by Stop & Shop and picked up a plain rotisserie chicken and some avocados that were somehow just ripe enough.  Had half of the breast  with the skin on (weighed about 4 oz.), half of an avocado, and 4 oz. of the butternut squash I made last night.

Workout:
Strength Training: Press (2x5, 1x5+)
2x5 - Bar (15#)
1x5 - 55% of 3x5 weight (35#...I round up)
1x3 - 70% (45#)
1x2 - 85% (55#)
2x5 - 100% (62.5#)
1x5 - 100% (62.5#....struggled on the last rep and could've gotten 6, but I gave up.  Sorry, Drea!)

WOD - Max Effort
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Pull-ups
Kettle Bell swings - 16kg RX
3 burpees after each set
Time: 10:37

Used the thin little purple band (about half an inch thick) for sets 10-5, and then did my whack-ass attempt at kipping for 4-1.  I'm definitely making progress with kipping pullups, but I'm still pretty spastic.  Gotta remember....v in the face.  (Don't ask.)

I did an impromptu poll on Facebook after logging my calories for the day and it seems I'm not really eating enough given my size and activity level. I may try to keep it at about 1,600 calories a day for rest days, and bump up the intake a bit more on days when I hit the gym.  I'd appreciate any feedback people might have on caloric intake.  I'm 28 years old, 5'2", 126.5# as of last week (pre-food breakup sex, but I doubt that made too much of a difference), I do CrossFit 5x a week, and I walk between 20-40 minutes each week day to get to work.

Paleo Challenge Day 2 - Morning Edition

Breakfast: 2 cage free omega 3 eggs scrambled with spinach, pancetta, with 2 strips of nitrate-free bacon, and 1 1000mg pill of Omega 3 fish oil (not pictured), and a glass of water.  I felt hungry very shortly after eating this, so I think next time I'll try adding another egg, or another piece of bacon.



I realized I forgot to post my workout for yesterday, so I'll share it now:

Strength:  Deadlift 5 Rep Max
2 x 5 @ 65#
1 x 3 @ 90#
1 x 2 @ 130 #
5RM  @ 155#

I did 155# last week as well and still struggled with it.  I find it hard to hold onto the bar, and my box only wants you to use the over/under grip (probably not the real name for it) when going for a 1RM.  My form was also not so hot, so I may stick with this weight next week as well.

WOD: Interval Training

5 minutes max power cleans (30 @ 80#)
1 minute rest
4 minutes max push ups (51)
1 minute rest
3 minutes max double unders (309, singles)


<-That's me, last night, wishing I could do double unders.  Thanks for the picture, Lauren! :)

I took some time to measure myself this morning -- my waist, thighs and biceps.  Forgot to do my chest, probably because there's not much there.

I think I'm still feeling the affects of my weekend-long bingefest, since I feel bloated and overly tired (which may also be attributed to the fact that I waited until 9:00 pm to start making a chili that takes 3 hours to cook), but I know in a few days, I'll be feeling SO MUCH better.  Looking forward to it.

Paleo Challenge Day 1: Food

Here's a very un-exciting breakdown of the food I ate today.

I overslept for work by an hour so I had to rely on the cafeteria at work for breakfast and lunch.

Breakfast: What I thought would be about 2 scrambled eggs, 3 turkey sausage links, and mixed fruit (watermelon, cantaloupe, pineapple, honeydew)

Lunch: Sprig mix with half a hard-boiled egg, grilled chicken, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, roasted eggplant/cauliflower/red peppers, a sprinkling of gorgonzola cheese (I know, I know), honey dijon dressing.

Snack: 3 piece of Ghiradelli chocolate with sea salt and roasted almonds (1 after lunch, 2 after dinner)

Snack 2: Almonds, pistachios, dried cherries & cranberries (3:30pm)

Dinner:  Kind of a weird combination -- Slow cooker salsa chicken, with baby spinach sauteed in bacon fat with crispy pancetta and garlic on the side.





Aside from my boss stopping by my desk with a plate full of mini cakes and chocolate-covered goodies to try, today was relatively easy.  I know I should be curbing my chocolate intake, but these little individually-wrapped Ghiradelli squares are so convenient...and tasty.  Hopefully I'll wake up on time tomorrow...