Happy Tuesday!

Gym Time with my IPOD

Today's run down: 

20 minutes of cardio (treadmill) including 4 minutes of Tabata @ 6% incline, 8.5 rpm

Legs (squat focus), Lower back, and Abs

• Deadlifts 3 x 12 (95,115, 125 lbs)
• Burpees 3 x 10
• RDLs 3 x 12 (95 lbs all)
• Squat 3 x 10 (95, 115, 135 lbs)
• Superset - Back extension and oblique side raises
• Leg extension 3 x 15 (50 lbs)

Home workout: WII Pilates!!!  Hundreds, Mermaids, Bicycles...good times!!

• Handstand holds 3 x 30 seconds

Sardoodledom type of day

Made it through the weekend! First day back = tough Monday.
Sometimes we have to just have a "Sardoodledom" day. Have some fun, laugh
it off!! =)

Heading to Vegas - Travel Workouts and Planning for it

This time comes around every year to go out and support the husband and family in there annual Japanese basketball tournment.  The time is upon us!  Heading to Vegas this weekend.   The biggest challenge I always have in going to these family events is the area they like to stay.  Normally, you are able to modify your food or pay the extra fee to go to the normally very expensive "spa" to be able to get your workouts in.    However, in this league they require a certain amount of people from the team to stay in Downtown... 

If you have ever stayed in Downtown LV, you will understand.  The hotels there are not catered to the CA traveler that values fitness and "healthy" options.  Actually it's the contrary at the "California Hotel" where we will be staying - they value creating an authentic Hawaiian atomosphere.  It's all about Spam Musubi, Hawaiian/Japanese fusion foods and buffets.  There are no gyms because who would go, there are no options because spam and eggs or portugese sausage and rice ARE your options.

So how do we get do we get buy in situations like this?   We do something about it!!

Travel workouts without machines... Planning for the weekend... Bringing your own snacks... Some good suggestions if you find yourself in this situation:

Top Travel Workouts, Crossfit Style - courtesy of Crossfit North Atlanta

Pack your snacks

How to Stick to a Diet While Traveling | eHow.com

Why Nothing Is Impossible

Tomorrow Morning's Workout!

Who's with me? Gym at 6am, be there or be square as they say!

Supersets of 15
1 - Overhead Barbell Squat
2 - Low High Band Chops or commonly known as the Woodchop
3 - Dumbell Front Squats
4 - Dumbell FULL Getups Turkish Getups

Back into the routine

Somehow I managed to get in two workouts today - although short in duration they still count! In a measley attempt to get back into the "routine" I began the morning with a little cardio. I've been trying to stay off training my shoulder because of some shoulder bursitis that seemed to have developed throught training for the last show. The shoulder is just so hard to truely rest. You use it in everything - I run for 45 minutes and the volume and motion gets it to flair up again, sitting at a desk for 8 hours hunched over a computer screen causes it to tighten and stick...sigh. Stupid arm.

Nevertheless, I will not slow down. I got on the bike this morning determined to give myself a good 20+ minutes before I moved to my favorite of the cardio machines, the treadmill. I find it's just so much more relaxing to run then to get stuck on some moving stairs or have your feet stuck to the elliptical pedals. While I am always mixing it up, I find it's much easier to start on one machine for 15 or so minutes and then move to the next piece of equiptment for the remaining time. That way I don't get too bored and I can decrease the volume training on my arm. Success - I walked away with 40 minutes of morning cardio before 730am.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow's workout: Total Body with what? CARDIO! Yay... =) In planning my meals for this week I ran across a fun recipe that looks like something good to try for tomorrow night's dinner: Garlic-Basil Shrimp Recipe

And last but certainly not least for today - some inspiration:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AD2DvqxSiI

Getting back into the Game

I've decided to get back in the game and start blogging again.  But this time it's for the right reasons.  It's not because I should or someone wants to know what I do and why - this time it's for me. 

At the end of July, I competed in USA Nationals in Las Vegas for a chance at my pro card.  I knew the competition would be tough, both physically and mentally with competitors that would all look great.  It turned out to be much more difficult than I expected.  To see these girls at a semi-pro level was amazing and eye-opening.  Much different than any local show that I had ever competed in.  Not only were the girls conditioned very differently, but the attitudes of both the competitors and the backstage crew were I hate to put it - overwhelming? 

I arrived the day before the event to check in with the judges and figure out where all the pre-contest prep was taking place - the hair and makeup, backstage pump, etc.   I was pleasantly surprised with how well run the pre-stage mandatory meetings went, but I was not so happy with the Jan Tana (hair and makeup) consultants.  Not only did they seem to not care that I had not received any of my prepping products - they actually made me purchase things I had already purchased online but never received - they seemed very put out by the fact that I wondered how and what would happen... yes I had never received that information prior to arriving to my show.  Upon returning to my appointment the night before the event, I was greeted by a man that told me to take off my clothes and follow him back to my "tent".  Now I would not consider myself prude in any sense, but you think you could have warned us that a man or woman would be spraying you, and regardless you will be asked to strip in down in front of a man that hardly looked like a "consultants" there?!   Yea, I would think so... to say the least.  Haha - I'm not bitter about this piece of the story at all... =)

So to make a long story short -  I walked backstage to see ~400 girls that all looked 150% better than any of overall winners at my previous shows.  It was unreal.  Scary, amazing and quite a learning experience.  Needless to say, I did not place out of the 38 girls in my class - but I knew I walked into to this show with better conditioning than I had every had in the past.  That was all I could ask for.  I looked amazing, felt amazing and had more confidence on stage than other competitions.  Each experience is one that we can learn from. 

This experience demonstrated to me what my Coach had been saying all along -

Are you a figure competitor or an athlete? 

Now he never meant any disrespect with this comment or to imply that figure was not an athletic sport because I'd be the first one to step up and disagree.  But I finally understood what he was saying all along.  There's a difference in the sport of figure that a traditional "athletic" sport.  They judge you on your physique and posing, muscle symmetry and overall appearance.  It doesn't matter if your muscles are conditioned for fast twitch or slow twitch fibers, whether or not you can bench press 10 lbs or 100lbs.  Your conditioning was determined on how you pulled together all the pieces of your physique to make one complete package that made you exude a presence on stage.  It didn't matter if I trained "harder" or "longer" or even "heavier" in my case... if the type of program you were on did not work as well in presenting this "package" you needed to try something different. 

For me this was contrary to what I learned as an athlete.  I was used to learning that if you have the talent, work hard enough, and want it enough you will beat the other competitor.  I took this to mean, put in the effort and the win will come.  But it's not just that - you have to do what I call "work smart".  Know what your body will look like if you train with supersets of shoulders and biceps - know that with 20 more minutes of cardio a day you can lean out just enough to show your abs but not lose your muscle mass.

It's hard to think that you understand a sport and understand what your body is capable of an feel you are in tune with how it works - and then to walk on stage with 300 girls who know how to do it better.  It's not about being "athletic" or being faster or stronger than your competitor - it's about who knows their body the best. 

To be the best you need to know YOU the best.

 I would argue that despite the way figure appears to an outside person - it's not about fitting into a mold with only one way to win.  Sure - a lot of people look similar on stage, but it's not because that is the only way to win.  What makes a real winner is taking what you have and molding yourself into someone who exudes confidence, symmetry and has learned to train and diet to show off the correct muscle tone and definition. Show what you work so hard for and be confident in your own skin. 

It has been about one month since I competed and until today I had a bad taste in my mouth about the entire process of the USA's -  how the competitors were treated both backstage and post-competition, frustrated about how far I felt I had come but yet still had so far to go, not to mention - whether or not I should push beyond the point of just a hobby and try to become competitive.

It wasn't until today that I decided this is what I want, this is what I want to put my whole heart and energy into - This sport.  As much as it will be difficult to put other sports to the side, I am training for something more important to me than most can understand.   Yes - I won't be able to go out to happy hour very often, or have dim sum with the co-workers, but this is my life.  I actually don't mind it.  I never have been a person that lives to eat or who's ideal day consists of sleeping in all day (at least not most of the time) - I love to be active and be competitive and push myself to a level that not everyone can or even that I feel is achievable.

USA's proved that you can look both muscular, feminine, and healthy all at once.  And I'm ready to start again and prove to myself that I can do it too.

Guest Blogger: Brandon on Focus, Schedule, Little Goals, Confidence

A lot of people ask us, what we (my wife and I) do outside of work.  Much to many people's surprise it often is the same thing as always - fitness related.  One of us has a race/event, Aubrey has a crossfit workout - everything that people say we do everyday.  True - This is what we train for.  This is what we love.  Fitness is a lifestyle, I like to think. 

One of the most important qualities a person can have is the ability to focus.  Focus on your family, focus on  your work, focus on your training.  Anyone can focus on one thing and complete it - I can focus on an upcoming certification exam and pass, my wife can focus on her figure competitions and become a pro, and my mom can train to finish a half-marathon, if she wants it.  But, if all we had to do in life was to focus on one thing, we could be pretty successful at it. 

The only problem is in life we don't have just one thing to focus on.  We have multiple, if not hundreds of them.

I can focus on an upcoming exam, but that's only after focusing for 10 hours at work and after focusing on my workout for 2 hours.  My wife can focus on her workouts but only after focusing on her job and me :)  It takes a special person to be able to focus 100% on multiple things.

My wife is one of those "special" people.  She will go to work, focus 100% of her time and effort on the job at hand, and then to her workout and re-focus her mind and body so it is 100% on the WOD.  Then when she comes home at night, she can re-focus once again 100% on the family.  The only way we have gotten this to work for her is through proper scheduling.  She literally has to write down her work schedule for the week, plan her workouts around her work schedule, and plan her meals around both of those. 

Scheduling is important not just for planning workouts, but for life.

Scheduling what you have to complete at work keeps you focused throughout the day; scheduling what you want to do in a workout keeps you focused and efficient in the gym; scheduling your meals keeps your energy high and metabolism up so you never have that "crash."

By scheduling out her day, no task will become too overwhelming.  If she were to look at the calendar and say "in 6 weeks I have to be in the best shape of my life to compete for a pro card" - which happened to her the other day - she would become very overwhelmed.  Fear and doubt would creep in to the mind and focus is lost.  However, we sit down and get her to write out her basic plan and schedule, so she can see things are not as overwhelming as originally imagined. 

Scheduling allows us to focus on little goals, which ultimately lead us to the bigger goals.

She can focus on each week, each day, each hour and complete "little" goals that give her confidence and keeps her focused.  Then when the big day arrives, she'll know that all of those "little" goals got her prepared for this "big" goal - competing for the pros.

The same can be said about training for a marathon, triathlon, body building, losing weight, even an exam.  Instead of "I have to lose x amount of pounds in 3 months" break it up into smaller goals.  The visual now becomes, "I will eat healthier tomorrow by doing this" or "I will do 30 minutes of cardio".  Then when you complete that goal move on to another, and another, until finally you are where you want to be - your ultimate goal.  When studying for the CPA exam I would say to myself, "Today I will get through 15 pages of this book."  Once I completed that I would say "Today I will get through 15 more pages."  By keeping my mind focused on these little goals I was able to completely focus and ultimately pass the exams.

Along the way there will be distractions that try to disrupt your focus.  Do not let this happen!  Stay focused on your goals, not the negative distractions.  Stay on course and in the end you will be a happy camper :) 

It doesn't matter what others think - it is YOUR goal to obtain and no one else's. 

As an endurance athlete and half-ironman finisher, people think I am crazy to pay $250 to enter a triathlon and put my body throuogh 5 hours of pain.  But it's what I love to do and what I want to accomplish.  No one can tell me differently.

If ever you have a moment of doubt, just watch the greatest basketball player ever to walk this earth and be inspired by the focus and determination displayed in this clip:



Now THAT is focus!  Go out there and get that goal!!

Bell Curves: Kettlebell Workout - Fitness Magazine

Bell Curves: Kettlebell Workout - Fitness Magazine

Today's challenge -

For women used to working with kettlebells use 1 pood (16kg). For women new to this start where you feel comfortable (lighter for the windmills - 6-8kg, heavier for swings 10-12kg). This should not be as easy as this demo.

KB should be fairly heavy in the swings. Exercises like this give you the benefit of working your core while engaging the muscle targeted (ie. legs, glute, low back for swings, and a bit more arm and obliques for windmill). To keep your heart rate raised and increase fat burning do this at a consistent pace with little rest. This may mean you need to go lighter, however keeping your workouts at a lower intensity for a consistent duration is necessary to keep your body moving on those days when you just feel like you'd rather take the day off.

Post questions and results to comments.

Did you just call me a "nasty girl"?!

In the world of crossfit, what do you do if someone comes up and calls you "NASTY?!"
You look back, smile and say "yea we are".

One of my teammates for the Affiliate Cup, Eric, recent conversation at the crossfit qualifers.

Man: Are you from Crossfit Balboa?
Eric: Yea!
Man: Damn, your girls are "nasty"!!
Eric: Your (dang) right they are!!

Now in any other context outside of crossfit people this would be taken as an offensive comment. But a "nasty girl" refers to someone who can handle a wicked tough workout and come back for more, who doesn't just stop when things get hard. Check out the "Nasty Girls WOD" above for a great workout.

Traditional crunches vs. "Flex Belts" or the like

I recently got a question from a friend about my thoughts on the product - Flex Belt - that basically works like shock therapy.  Activating your abs through the use of electro pulses to activate your muscle without the individuals control.  Here are my thoughts on this:

Disclaimer: I have never used the flex belt - I'm not familiar with this particular line, but I am familiar with the concept. The downfall with this kind of thing is that often people report that after using things of this nature have problems with actually flexing the muscle properly without using the "shock". Additionally, the muscle may spasm. Basically it tries to flex without your control because it's used to do this through the shocking therapy.

My thought on anything like this is that if you don't put in the work and it's a "easy out" it's probably not a great option.

Gaining a great body - one to be proud of takes a lot of work. That's what makes you more proud of it. Accomplishment! I would work with the diet and put in some core exercises throughout your exercise plan. It's actually not much about crunches, it's more about eating healthy to lose the body fat on top of the muscle and working in the full range of motion for all exercises. Cardio is good, but is not seen as strength building exercise. The thing to remember is the more muscle that you have the easier and faster your body works to burn fat --> higher metabolism.  Double bonus!!! :)

Is strength training beneficial for endurance athletes?

Sample meal plan - paleo style specifically for endurance athletes thanks to the paleodiet.blogspot.com

Endurance Athlete Sample Menu for Two-a-Day Workout


5:30 AM
Pre-workout Breakfast Smoothie- 8oz brewed, chilled, natural decaf green tea with a banana, egg white protein powder, almond butter whizzed in the blender with some baked yam on the side.

6:30 AM
3-hour bike ride on the trainer-carbohydrate gel taken every 25 minutes.

9:30 AM
Immediate Post-workout recovery drink- HOME BREW (recipe in The Paleo Diet for Athletes) – cantaloupe, egg white protein powder and glucose. Drink plenty of water- keep hydrating.

10:00 AM
Raisins (to restore body alkalinity, continue to help the body recover post workout, and prepare for the session later in the day).

11:30 or 12:00 PM
Grilled Chicken breast, flash-sautéed asparagus, drizzled with flax seed oil and an apple

3:00 PM
Natural unsweetened applesauce with chopped egg whites (to prepare for 2nd workout of the day-shift from the usual Paleolithic macronutrient ratio to the pre-workout focus on carbohydrates).

For more specifics and a non-training day diet, please visit there great blog @ http://thepaleodiet.blogspot.com/2010/04/sample-menus-for-endurance-athletes.html

Egg whites vs. Whole eggs

Came across a great article today on why you should consider eating whole eggs (Omega 3 - egglands best preferred) instead of just your egg whites.  Which brings me to another topic...fat is NOT the enemy people.  Everyone is so worried about the fat on their body that they translate it into no fat in foods.  Now I'm not saying we go out there and eat crazy high fat foods, but the goal is to stay away from saturated fats (ie. your grease and processed foods) but it's okay to have SOME of the unsaturated foods (almonds, goat cheese, avocados, EGGS).  I always emphasize "some" because most things are all okay in moderation, but too much of anything can make you stop seeing results and start regretting the decision. 

Today we know that fat is not the enemy, especially healthy fats like monounsaturated fats and essential omega-3 fats. Although egg yolks have some saturated fats, it makes up less than half of the total fat. Plus the type of saturated fat in egg yolks does not get stored readily as body fat. Not to mention, you can buy eggs that have higher amounts of omega-3 fats, which can actually aid fat burning, as well as boost muscle and joint recovery. --Muscle Fitness Hers (whole story)

A thing to keep in mind - Omega 3's are shown to enhance fat burning, in addition to their helpfulness to the joints that they protect!  This week I'm going to talk about DIET and the benefits of keeping protein high and still taking in fats =)

LeBron James' Pre-game Workout - Weplay

In the spirit of this possible LeBron Trade...What does he do to keep in shape (other than his elbow)?

Yup, unlateral and Kettle Bell stuff - you got it. Bandwagoner...haha.

The big 2-7 is here - Happy Birthday to me!

Birthday Dance! 

Lot's accomplished this year - figure and crossfit qualifier in the same year!!

CFB goes to the Crossfit Games 2010

The final placings have come in and the Top 8 teams going to the Crossfit Games Affiliate Cup 2010 have been secured.  Going into the final workout - Crossfit Balboa had the 11th place overall needing to overtake 3 teams to make it into the top 8 out of the 84 registered teams.  With an impressive 7:07 finish in the last workout, my team and I took it to the next level and worked hard to finish 3rd in our heat and take the final overall spot to secure our spots in the Crossfit Games 2010!!! 

Here's how Kate, Ben, Ryan and I spent our Mother's day...

• Carry 185 lb log in unision with a teammate(s) flipping a tractor tire the length of a football field.
• Once at the end, all 4 members of the team must then get under the log remain touching the log at all times while the group performs 40 below parallel squats.
• Once squats are counted - (20 )185lb team log presses begin.  Up and over each person's head touching everyone's shoulder before it's counted.

• After completed, team must have teammates carry log back to start (100yds) while other teammates flip tire.

Needless to say, this last workout was brutal.  Not to mention the rough distribution of the weight of the log with the very different heights on the team.  But our guys were strong very very strong.  Ben and Ryan made up some serious time on the tire flips taking turns flipping at first and then doing it as a team to finish of. Quite a team challenge of communication and strength.  Without a voice trying to tell my team to wait, didn't quite workout out so well...haha.  But nevertheless we hung tight and finished amazing ourselves with the team that was developed in just a short 2 weeks. 

The Crossfit Affiliate Cup was one of the most memorable experiences for me.  The team pulled together for every challenge and pushed each other to keep going, keep driving, move quicker than we thought we could. 

We carried the Crossfit Balboa flag high and showed that we condition ourselves day in and day out to be the best. 

Crossfit Affiliate Cup 2010 - End of Day 1

Our team finished Day 1 of our qualifiers with flying colors! Coach Max and teammates kept everyone's heads in the games and warmed up and ready to go.

Crossfit Balboa takes 11th overall out of 84 participating teams!

 Your TOP OVERALL teams: 

 Competitor Place (Total)      Team WOD 1       Team WOD 2  

1. CrossFit Invictus 1 (3) 2 (10:16.0) 1 (15:24)
2. San Francisco Crossfit 2 (6) 1 (09:14.5) 5 (15:45)
3. CrossFit Oakland 3 (7) 4 (11:10.3) 3 (15:37)
4. CrossFit SoCal 4 (9) 7 (11:44.0) 2 (15:30)
5. CrossFit East Sac 5 (9) 3 (11:09.5) 6 (15:47)
6. TJ's Gym/CrossFit San Rafael 6 (15) 5 (11:13.2) 10 (16:30)
7. Diablo CrossFit 7 (18) 10 (12:49.0) 8 (16:28)
8. Unlimited 8 (22) 9 (12:04.9) 13 (16:41)
9. South Bay 9 (29) 25 (15:09.6) 4 (15:43)
10. Crossfit Inferno 10 (29) 22 (14:37.9) 7 (15:59) 
11. CrossFit Balboa 11 (30) 13 (13:42.0) 17 (17:10)

The gyms from San Diego and Northern California battled it out for top 5 - we held our own quite well having put the team together about a week ago and having a very small box comparatively...Crossfit Newport Beach and OC Crossfit didn't even show...?!?!  Apparently, OC Crossfit has tomorrow off too...website says so.

 

 

  

Blogging day off?! Games tomorrow.

Day off from Blogging - Brandon tells me I have to go to sleep to get ready for tomorrow's events. He keeps telling me "just relax..."  Do I look hyped?!?   Tomorrow is the big day for all of our Crossfitters going out to compete at the So Cal Regional at UC Irvine.  Good luck to Kelley, our own OC Throwdown winner, who will be taking on the individuals for our dojo and keep your fingers crossed - Ryan, Eric, Ben, Kate, Carey and Aubrey representing for Crossfit "Sweep the Leg" Balboa in the Team Affliate Cup. 

(Eric and Ryan)

If you're in the area, drop by - individual events start at 8am with Kelley and our first team workout at about 11ish.

Brandon will try to get the video camera going to capture us in action.  You can tune in to see us live at live.crossfit.com beginning at approximately 8:00am on Saturday and concluding at about 4:00pm on Sunday with the awards.

Yea... I'm getting summoned to sleep...

Crossfit Affiliate Team Workout: May 8-9

So the workouts are posted for this weekend's events.  Our team is ready to give it all we've got in this weekends team affiliate cup taking place at the University of California, Irvine athletics complex. 

903 W. Peltason
Irvine, CA 92697
Crawford Athletic Complex

We have a team of 6: 3 girls and 3 guys taking on some fun team based events.  Here's the rules - 4 people must take part per event (2 girls/2 guys).  Two of the workouts will be held on Saturday and the final workout, to be announced on Saturday takes place Sunday morning.  All movements must be performed throughout a complete range of motion or it will not be counted - therefore if you don't do your squats deep enough or you don't lock out at the top of the movement, you do it again...ugh...story of my life.

So here's what the workouts are looking like:

• Saturday
• Wod #1: Shuttle runs (10 yds, 20 yds, 100m), as soon as you reach the end of the 100m women pick up 30lb dumbells and begin 30 thrusters, once finished you run another 100m to tag the next teammate to start their shuttle runs and thrusters.  First person then moves quickly to ring dips where women perform 10, men perform 15.  Time stops when the 4th person finishes all ring dips and their judge stops the time.
• Wod #2: Relay race, each person completing their 100m sections, last person continues to run to pick up the rest of the team members and once everyone is picked up running 400m together.  Once finished with the run, begin 250 double unders (break up as needed), 150 pull ups (break up as needed)
• Sunday
• Wod #3: TBD

If you can't make it out events will be streaming live at http://live.crossfit.com/.  Watch for me and the team Crossfit Balboa and our shirts "Sweep the Leg"  =)

Cinco de Mayo and Cognitive Restructuring?!?

First off, Happy CINCO DE MAYO!!! Surprisingly today was not filled with tacos and burritos, tequila and margaritas...unfortunately...?! So for dinner I had to throw something in.  I came up with Clean Quacamole!  Yes that's right good old fashioned avocados with some lime, parsley, tomatoes...yum!  Tried to stay away from the heavy cheeses that this day traditionally brings for me - so no quesadillas, nachos, burritos today *tear*.

Clean-Eating Guacamole

3 ripe avocados

1 vine ripened tomato (diced)

1/2 onion (diced)

1/2 juice of lime

2 handfuls of parsley

sea salt and ground black pepper to taste

Delish!!

Today, was somewhat of a busy day - but not quite as bad as the nightmare the early portion of the week brought my way.  So things are looking up!  I attended a stress and relaxation seminar today, complete with techniques on how to begin "cognitive restructuring", yay!  Changing the way you perceive the situation and making sure that the thoughts you are having are logical and not distortions.  Interesting. 

In so many situations we often blow things out of proportion, take things personally that were not intended, or just let our other peoples opinions or thoughts get the best of us. 

 The biggest thing the seminar emphasized in order to maintain one's sanity is to follow the three P's -
1) Is it personal?  Is everyone out to get you?  Did they specifically pick up those weights that you were just about to use because they knew you wanted them? That cupcake they are eating in front of you and buying by the dozen because they know you can't/won't eat them?
2) Is it pervasive?  Is this stressor or situation permating into the rest of your life events? 
3) Is it persistant?  Is this a reoccuring issue or is this a one time bad lift? 

If this is too much - keep in mind stress can often be reduced by EXERCISE AND NUTRITION...hmm... of course!?!  To BE Continued....

Better than your Better

Why do you train? "For me it's for my better to be better than your
better."

1st Place - Class A and beyond

Little note from me - 1 week from OC Muscle Classic - progress...?!

OC Half Marathon and Marathon

 Congratulations to all the participants of this mornings Marathon!!!  I saw a lot of familiar faces and great work.  It was perfect weather, not too hot, not too windy.  13.1 and 26.2 miles respectively, a nice way to start the morning through the beautiful Back Bay. 

Our first woman half marathoner, Jane Maxwell came cruising by mile 9.5 with the top 5 overall runners - finishing in 1:20 third woman overall.  She looked determined and strides long and relaxed.   My husband, Brandon came by averaging about 8 minute miles and running with his dad motivating him to finish sub 2:00 hours. 

Overall a great race, beautiful day and hopefully some good times.  Pictures to follow.  GREAT JOB!!

Now off to my team workout to get it together for the Crossfit Socal Affiliate Cup going down next weekend at UC Irvine!!

Endurance Crossfit Workout

Today's workout courtesy of Crossfit Balboa -

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

5 Handstand pushups

10 Double Unders (jump rope)

20 Air squats

3 sets of 12 each hanging leg lifts (lower abs)

*Completed: 11 rounds for me =)

Post results to comments!

Eat to Live - Ellen Coleman, MA, MPH, RD, CSSD

I spent my lunch hour today with an interesting presentation by Ellen Coleman.  Ellen Coleman, author of "Eating for Endurance" and "Ultimate Sports Nutrition", had some good tips to remember when taking a look at your diet.  She noted the extreme importance of having significant amounts of exercise to maintain our health.  At minimum 30 minutes per day on "most days" which she states is 5 days per week. 

She stated that as we age, in order to maintain our weight we need to do approximately 60-90 minutes per day on an average of 5 days! 

Additionally, she stressed the importance of having a daily food log of what you are eating and the portions that you are eating.  A good rule of thumb to keep you on track is to go for nutrient dense food.

Keep your plate colorful and increase the fiber and/or protein to give you satiety. Go for the actual fruit instead of the fruit in juice because of the increase in fiber to give you a sense of fullness.

The benefit of being a competitive athlete is that you have more "discretionary calories", where as most of us only have about 100-300 calories an athlete can choose to have the ice cream or Starbucks frap without hesitation.

Although a lot of this is second nature to me, I couldn't help but look around the room to those in attendance and see the "ah ha" moments that were being created.  If you're not sure if you should have something, ask yourself.  Be real.  You most likely know if what you are having is really necessary or if you are just eating it for a fix or because of convenience.  If something would have more than 2-3 ingredients total in it's food label, it probably is not a great choice and you can do better.  Not to mention the 1 or 2nd ingredient should always be the food that you are hoping to consume!  If it's something else, it's processed so try again.

Eat to live, don't live to eat. 

Enjoy yourself but there is no need to plan your life around when you will be consuming your next meal - only exception would be a bodybuilder who is trying to increase their size and eat around the clock to maintain size.

Everyone has their sport - what's yours?

Ironman - You Will Do This

Some wonder why we do things and can't understand the drive. Others say that they're impossible. But with true drive and passion you can do it and will do it. There's only a small question of how will I get this done? Where should I start? Why would you let that stop you?

As Dwight Howard says, "To be the best you have to train like the best"

Dwight Howard Superman's Workout

Take a look at the differences in the workouts done by NBA Star- Dwight Howard vs. your traditional bodybuilding professional.  Completely different body styles with different needs - both exercises have achieve amazing results and are considered some of the best in their fields.

Interesting to note:

• Range of motion exercises in Howard's workouts vs. Cutler's
• Emphasis on core work with Howard, Cutler's core comes from spine stability in exercises
• Unilateral movement in both workouts, however Howard emphasizes a lot more balancing activities
• Howard works with KETTLEBELLS!
• Cutler eats Bison

Both workout to be the best and according to Howard "fill out their t-shirts"!

Jay Cutler training for Olympia 2010

What does this dude do to get so big (294 lbs)?!  Take a look at Jay's meal and workout log yesterday...

09:30 AM Meal 1:   20 eggwhites with 1 yolk and 2 servings of grits with almonds and raisins

10:00 AM Pre-workout: 1 serving of Nano Vapor
10:30 AM Workout:  Sip Intravol during the workout

ARMS

Rope pushdowns

Reverse pushdowns

Hammer strength dip machine

Hammer strength tricep extension machine

Overhead cable tricep extensions

Seated alternate dumbell curls

One arm dumbell preacher curls

Spider curls

Hammer strength overhead curl machine

Standing barbell curls

Reverse curls

Wrist curls

20 minutes of stair climbing

12:30 AM Meal 2:  12 oz steak with 1 1/2 cups of white rice and onions

3:00 PM Meal 3: 12 oz Eat to Grow chicken breast with 8 oz red potatoes

5:00 PM Meal 4:  12 oz Eat to Grow ground bison with pasta

7:30 PM Meal 5: 12 oz Eat to Grow chicken breast with 8 oz red potatoes and some almonds

10:00 PM Meal 6: 12 oz Eat to Grow chicken breast with 1 1/2 cups of white rice

11:55 PM Meal 7: 12 oz Eat to Grow filet with 8 oz red potatoes

Paleo Recipes

Truthfully, I modify the paleo diet to suit my fitness goals and body, but the true paleolithic diet stays true to the idea that your body does not function to it's true potential unless you take it back to the basics. 

"The Paleo Diet is a way of eating in the modern age that best mimics diets of our hunter-gatherer ancestors - combinations of lean meats, seafood, vegetables, fruits, and nuts."

True "paleo" recipes from the man himself, Professor Loren Cordain.  A good start with some basic recipes to get you started.  Simple to make and relatively inexpensive to prepare and put on the dinner plate :)

http://thepaleodiet.com/nutritional_tools/recipes.shtml

Daily laugh

Anyone else have these feelings?!   Or is it just me...haha.

What is it that you guys would like to see? Questions that you have?

I'd love to make this as relevant as possible, so if you'd like to see more info on workouts, nutrition, fun facts, etc. LET ME KNOW! =)

Results are in!!

So the big day came and went faster than I really realized it would.  Husband Brandon, Mom, Dad, Andrea, Punky, Lindsey and more, were all close at hand to yell "Go 21!" to anyone that could hear. 

Thanks to all the support I received from my team over at SoCal Strength and Conditioning - Coaches Max and Gillian; perfect makeup and hair by Briana Nickas and posing help from the lovely Nancy Georges, it was a perfect day!

Result:  1st place for Class A - Orange County Muscle Classic 2010

Briana and I preshow

The feeling was amazing, better than I thought it would be.  My first win and it was just as I visualized and the rush waiting backstage for all of the winners to be announce from each class was unreal.  I was so happy to not only meet all of these new girls, but to go against the best was such an honor.  The competition was tough and all the girls were in phenomenal shape.  It was amazing how well everyone dieted this year - ABS were this shows hot ticket item! 

Jay Cutler, our guest poser, got the crowd excited with his dramatic presentation and crowd involvement.  He was there picking up babies, taking fan pictures, and just all around WOWING with his 300lb self...haha!

I can now reflect on the enormous amount of pride I felt with that win in the SAME figure show where I first started in 2008 at 6th place.  Every year you make changes, every year you push harder, every year you want first more.  Now that I received my first top finish, it is that feeling that keeps me going to compete in July. 

With every competition it gets harder, diet needs to be on point, improvement is earned.  I look forward to taking a little bit of a break from figure to help "carry the flag" for my gym Crossfit Balboa in the Crossfit Affilate Cup in May and then back to the strict programming for figure pros in July!  Tough competition to come!

Happy Earth Day 2010

Photo credit: Clyde Reavis

http://goddesshuntress.com/2010/04/22/earth-day-2010/

Presentation Quarter Turns: Figure

Sadly, I've been the "announcer" lately -->  currently working on the POP to make the judge say "Ohhh look at that...  Ohhhh..."

Crossfit Affiliate Cup 2010 - May 8 & 9 (UC Irvine)

CrossFit Movie WorkingTrailer "Every Second Counts" featuring good 'ol John Welbourn, Dutch, and some other familiar faces...

Just entering for my team in the Crossfit Affiliate Cup 2010. What am I getting myself in to?!

Pro tan application AKA "painting" begins TONIGHT!!

Great workout yesterday - my glutes and upper traps are really starting to get sore!  For my husband, his most loved job begins TONIGHT!   Haha. 

"Painting" begins tonight after class - each day one new application to get me to my competiton color.  It's crazy and somewhat painful, but well worth it! 

6AM workout: Crossfit heaven <3 ~

3 rounds: 10 pushups, 10 chinups, 1 minute handstand holds, 12- 1 arm KB swing (12kg)

Superset (on swiss ball): 1 arm DB fly (12lb), hip extension (15), situps (25)  x 3 sets

Reverse walking lunges

Today's food:

Egg whites, blueberries, sole fillets, green beans, chicken, strawberries --

water, coffee, green tea

Typical Day for Figure Athlete

Busy day yesterday-

7:00am - Wake - breakfast 3/4 cup egg whites 1 oz turkey (preworkout)
8:30am - Gym (total body)

*unless noted 3sets x 12

- Burgener warm up + DL & RDL

- kipping pull ups (3 sets x 10)

- HSH (handstand holds)

- one arm DB row (25lbs)

- DB pullovers (25 lbs)

- Bench hops (jump over bench - side to side)

 - lateral stepups

- bench step ups

- Barbell squats (below parallel)

- Supinated pullups 

- Weighted lunges (15lb db)

 - diagonal reverse lunges  (1 set x 15 ea.side)

- jumping lunges (2sets x 10 ea. leg)

10:00 am - Tanning and grab protein shake (post workout)
11:30 am - Modified lunch - tuna and lo carb tortilla
1:00 pm - Posing clinic with Nancy Georges!
3:30 pm - snack: 4 oz chicken breast, 2 oz rappani with garlic and EVOO
4:30 pm - Shopping for week's food
6:00 pm - Dinner: 5 oz chicken, 2 oz steak, 1/2 cup french green beans
10:30 pm - Pre-sleep Casien protein shake

Total cals: 1111, 26.5g fat, 38g carbs, 178.5g protein

Hardest Critic is Yourself

I've been realizing lately that your hardest critic isn't a coach or the others that may judge you.  It's actually yourself.  In that last week I've gone through just about every emotion over my body image.  I look too big, too small, don't feel ready, maybe I should do this or not that.

Literally, my mind turned into someone with a disorder - where I looked in the mirror and thought "Hmm, this isn't right" or "Wow I think I looked different during this time last competition".  But the fact is you are really comparing yourself to the stage ready person you were the day of the competition.  It's not a real or logical viewpoint.

It's amazing how quickly you can change your body if you put your mind to it.  The goal always looks so far away when you are struggling with body image.

According to womenshealth.gov, "With a negative body image, a woman has a distorted perception of her shape and size, compares her body to others, and feels shame and anxiety about her body. Being unhappy with your body can affect how you think and feel about yourself as a person. A poor body image can lead to emotional distress, low self-esteem, unhealthy dieting habits, anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. Developing a positive body image and a healthy mental attitude is crucial to a woman's happiness and wellness."

The hardest critic is really yourself.  While influenced by outside factors, it actually boils down to your own view of yourself. To put yourself in a good mindset is the most important thing to getting you to your goal.  Positive affirmations daily and a little bit of support go a long way.  Utilize your friends and family and most of all your own positive attitude to get you through these times.  The goal is not as far or unattainable as you are thinking right now.  If the goal is important to you; you WILL get there and you WILL succeed.

More on ideal body and body image

Sugar Cravings = Low Adrenal Function

Every wonder why you find you crave sugars or caffeine when you are stressed?

Stress interferes with the body's natural ability to regulate hormones.  Hormones secrete epinephrine (ie. adrenaline) which gives you the feeling of energy.  Additionally, food allergies and improper nutrition can lead to inflammation in your body.  The more inflammation the more stress is put to deplete your body's energy levels and thus creating more stress on your adrenals.  

To make a very long story short - your sugar cravings can actually be a product of low adrenal function.  Therefore a good option - decrease your stress levels and eat healthier and you will decrease your cravings that lead to further stress from consuming the food you didn't want to in the first place!

Learn more about stress
Unhealthy eating

It's normal to get in your routine!

9 Days out

Those Germans know how to get it done!!

"The large training volume appears to contribute not only to increased mass, but decreased body fat" (Hather, et al, 1992; Stone, O'Bryant, and Garhammer, 1981).

Early this week I started a new weight training program called "German Volume Training".  The general structure of these workouts is 10 sets of 5 reps at approximately 70% of my max.  Talk about intense!  It seems to allow me to lift a little bit more weight while still keeping my volume high (# of times I can lift the weight).  It's practically like cardio!   I've been noticing by about the 6th set I'm starting to feel a little out of breath and my body is literally getting hotter.  Enhanced thermogenics! 

Yesterday's workout AM:

10 minutes walking incline

10 minutes stationary bike

Yesterday's workout PM:

*All of these I completed with 10 sets at 5 reps.*

Press

DB Lateral raise

Barbell shoulder shrugs

DB BO Rear delts (ie. bent-over reverse fly)

Barbell bicep curls (5 sets of 5)

Abs - hanging leg lifts (20), decline situps (2x25), weighted situps (arms extended 8lb DB - 3x12)

I'm feeling good today and was down a pound or so this morning. YIKES! 9 days to go.

*If you try this workout: post results to comments.

Desire to Achieve

"Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not a hope, not a wish, but a keen pulsating desire which transcends everything."

~Napoleon Hill~

"Every day is a new battle"

"We constantly have to struggle to be better than we were yesterday, to test and overcome the limits of our body, mind and spirit is what creates a true champion of life." more

While browsing Bodybuilding.com today I found something that I've been struggling with daily.  "Every day is a new battle." It seems like daily I find something new to overcome, a new goal I want to push towards, a temptation that just won't go away, a reason to stop.   Obviously we do continue and we make every day count.  But what keeps us motivated?

For me it's been the inspiration from the people around me and the intrinsic value that the sport brings.  The belief that those around you believe that you can do it, you deserve to win and will do everything in their power to encourage you to perserver.  It's not my style to give up or give in.  I may break down in an emotional frenzy over one more pullup or a cupcake I just can't have.  But everyday I train I know it's worth it.  I believe in myself that I can be the best and need to train like the best. 

As my coach loves to remind me, every day there is someone out there training for 1st place.  Everyday there is someone out there that may want it more than me.  Don't give in.  Don't give up.  If you do, that person is right behind you ready to take what you want.  I don't say this in a bad way - just like in any sport -you slow down and someone behind you will try to dig deeper.  Be the one to dig deeper, be the one to keep taking it one day at a time.  Make yourself better with each stride, each rep, each exercise and you will get there - you get your time!

Healthy Options - Sure?!

Just about every morning like clockwork I get this craving to step inside a Starbucks, Peets, Tully's, etc. 

What makes me really want to go in there?  Am I really hungry?  Tired? Too much time?  Generally the answer is no.  For me, it's habit.  Despite the fact of knowing I really shouldn't go in and pay $3 for a black coffee, it's the buzz of those people going in and out of the doors.  They look so happy!

Carrying muffins, scones, blended beverages or lattes they just look so alive, energetic - coffee and food in hand.  But for me, everytime I walk into these places I'm tempted to get more than what I walked in for.  Yumm... look at those muffins, bagels, loafs...

So sometimes I give in to one of these "healthier" options with the thought it's lowfat it can't be that bad or look at those ingredients - it's doable. 

Supplements 101

So I started out this morning at 4am.  Yea some may say, "Ok, that's normal for me" but I woke up to extreme stomach muscle cramps and queasiness.  I found out first hand the "most common" supplement leading to upset stomach, stomach cramps, nausea, etc.  Zinc on an empty stomach or perhaps too much of it.  So in the case that you are taking anything it's good to know:

"Some supplements like IP-6 and amino acids like arginine are best taken on an empty stomach so only water should be used with them but for most supplements, eating some protein and/or oil with them will increase their absorption by stimulating the liver to produce acid."  more info

Good to know right?! Sadly, I should have just read the label.  But of course when you are "dieting" you think all things may not apply to you...haha. Needless to say, I won't be doing that again. 

Moral of the story: Read the labels.

Yum...dinner

Typical dinner for me during competition time -

• 
  
  4 oz chicken breast
• 
  
  1 oz oven roasted brussel sprouts with olive oil and walnuts
• 
  
  handful of spinach
• 
  
  1/4 avocado

Competition Resume

"Train Hard, Fight Continously" ~ Michael Murphy

Past results:

• April 2008 - Orange County Muscle Classic - 6th place
  
  August 2008 - Pacific USA Naturals - 3rd place
• August 2009 - Pacific USA Naturals - 2nd place
• March 2010 - MuscleContest 2010 - 2nd place

April 2008 - 6th place

March 2010 - MuscleContest - 2nd place




Upcoming shows:

April 2010 - Orange County Muscle Classic
July 2010 - USA Bodybuilding Figure and Bikini Nationals