2/11/14 Dynamis CrossFit WOD

here’s last night’s WOD:

part 1:
3 sets max pull-up hold on bar with 1 minute rest between sets. THEN 1 max dead hang on bar.

part 2:
100 wall balls for time with 20 mountain climbers each time you rest or the ball is dropped

for part 1, i couldn’t hold myself up over the bar more than 2 seconds.  i definitely can feel the added weight.  i wish i was stronger! for part 2, i used a very light ball but it was still difficult!  my lungs wanted to quit on me halfway through the WOD.  wall balls are definitely a “goat” for me, so it was extra hard being pregnant but throwing a lighter ball definitely helped a bit.

27 weeks and counting

#BITO here just checking in.  work has been super hectic so my personal life has been placed on hold for a bit.  here’s the update on me: i’ve been trying to CrossFit 2 to 3 times a week, i’ve gained about 25 pounds so far, my nutrition is ok – not the best, and most importantly, I FEEL HUGE!  luckily, my strength in the gym hasn’t deteriorated completely.  i’m still able to perform up to 75% of my maxes for most lifts.  repeated deadlifts are starting to become uncomfortable so i’ve resorted to doing hang cleans and hang snatches.  despite all the websites saying i shouldn’t squat below parallel, i still do.  it’s just natural for me to do so.   metcons seem impossible for me to complete without taking multiple breaks.  i just pace myself and remind myself that i’m not allowed to let my heart rate increase uncontrollably.  i will try to record my WODs and exactly how i feel after.  in the meantime, here’s a short video of me performing 3 unbroken hang cleans when i was about 26 weeks:

my new bar path is definitely noticeable.  other than that, it felt comfortable and not overly heavy.  although my strength isn’t 100%, i’m still impressed that i’m able to move reasonably high weights still.  i posted this on facebook because i was impressed with myself and wanted to share it, but it wasn’t a good idea.  i have very traditional aunts and uncles, who didn’t approve of me lifting weights during my pregnancy.  they were overly concerned that i will harm the baby.   i will never do anything to hurt my baby especially with the husband coaching me, but i understand their concerns.

as far as my prenatal visits go, we had a little bit of a scare.  like many pregnant ladies, i “failed” the first glucose screening test, so i had to take the three-hour glucose test.  i passed the second one with flying colors, so that’s good news.  the only thing that they did notice is that i’m anemic, so now i have to take iron supplements twice a day.  iron-deficient people will fatigue easily, so maybe these supplements will help me with working out!  we’ll see!

well, that’s all the updates i have for now.  i know the last time i mentioned that i will provide specific updates with WODs and food.  i will definitely try harder this time to make that happen.  work has definitely mellowed out a bit, so my mind isn’t preoccupied with that.  until next time…

we’re pregnant!

it’s been a long time since i’ve blogged.  i’ve just been so busy with work that i put this on the back burner. no excuses! anyways, since the last time, we have some news! we’re pregnant! yay! because of my new condition, the bf has come up with a new nickname “BITO” (bun in the oven). fun stuff. so…i added a new category to this page call “#bito #ness” to record this pregnancy. i wanted to write about how i feel, how i’m eating, and how Crossfit is working out for me. so here goes:

i was lucky enough to kind of miss my first trimester.  i was travelling for work in Europe and i didn’t have time to think about being sick. luckily, i didn’t have the typical morning sickness.  i only felt very fatigued. i was forced to snap out of it because i wanted to make the most of my trip.  i was gone for three weeks, which meant that i didn’t Crossfit for three weeks.  i believe it was a good thing.  if i was home, i don’t think i would’ve had enough energy to even drive to the gym!  anyways, we went to the doctor shortly after i returned from Europe and it was confirmed. we are now 15 and a half weeks and we will be due on May 12, 2014.  May will be a CRAZY month for our family since tom and my birthdays are in May and our anniversary.  it’s going to be exciting!

as far as Crossfit and fitness goes, i came back to the gym after the Europe trip and i was so much weaker than i remembered.  i blamed it on the fact that i haven’t been in the gym for 3 weeks.  i consistently came to the gym doing multiple short metcons and lifting weights thinking that will help.  NOPE!  i was still tired and still weak.  i looked through blogs and they were all consistent in saying that when your body is “building” a baby, that’s where you energy and strength is being spent.  it’s normal to feel weaker and slower.  in fact, i need to start lowering my weights and limiting my metcons to short ones.  this made me feel slightly better but it’s still messing with my head.  i’m a competitive person so i’m bummed when i can’t won’t get stronger and faster with all the other Dynamis ladies.  i just need to keep reminding myself that my baby needs me to conserve my energy for him.  🙂  we did “Grace” for Barbells for Boobs last saturday and i was bummed i couldn’t go Rx.  i did it with 65 pounds and i finished in 2:32.

what about my nutrition?  usually when i’m away for business, i stray away from paleo.  whenever possible, i will stay on track but when i’m in a different country, i’m curious to try their native cuisines.  this was the beginning of the end.  when i came back, i didn’t get back on the paleo wagon because the smell of broccoli and salmon made me gag.  all i wanted was salty foods, such as fries, breakfast burritos, chinese food, etc.  i even had McDonald’s for the first time in a long time! tsk tsk!  i’m still eating “badly” but not as bad as before.  i’m eating rice still because that’s the only thing that’s filling me up.  i can eat broccoli again if it’s cooked in a delicious marinade.  also, i can eat salmon if it’s seasoned properly.  i’ve made the executive decision that i definitely need to control what types of foods i’m eating, but i’m not going to the extreme of eating strict paleo until after this pregnancy.  i’ve read in so many blogs and articles that when you’re pregnant, you will lose out on the benefits that whole grains can offer to pregnant ladies.

so that’s the update on the BITO for now! i’ll be sure to provide updates and provide details on exactly how i feel with WODs and food.  the doctor warned me that i’ll be exhausted once again like in the first trimester soon.   because of that, i’m just going to do what i can and just listen to my body.  🙂

Figure AND CrossFit competitor?

Click on the picture for an interesting read.  I was under the impression it was always bodybuilding vs. CrossFit but now I know you can combine the two fitness worlds…

makes me want to dance!

What does it mean to be fit?

This video explores the different training styles of Bodybuilding and CrossFit.  Both sides agreed that no matter what you’re doing for fitness, the important thing is that you’re active and not just sitting on your couch watching TV all day.  Also, both training styles emphasized the importance of form in all movements.  Keeping perfect form will prevent injuries in the gym or box.

Here is a brief description of Bodybuilders vs. CrossFitters:

Bodybuilders train to sculpt their bodies to look tone.  They believe that strength training is the best way to lose body fat and build lean muscle.  It’s all about aesthetics for them.  The male bodybuilder in the video even made a few comments about how guys are more concerned with how they look around the ladies in the gym.  They demonstrated a goblet squat into a push press with a kettlebell as well as ab twists using a medicine ball.  When the male bodybuilder demonstrated the ab twists, he was concerned about “bulking up his obliques” so he recommended using a light weight. Really???

CrossFitters incorporate functional movements in their training so they are able to perform everyday tasks such as lifting heavy objects from the ground or putting heavy items overhead.  It’s a journey and lifestyle that helps people be as healthy as they can be.  They incorporate different aspects in their training that will change their body composition altogether.  They demonstrated burpees and dumbbell snatches.  The burpee shown would be bad form according to our Dynamis standard, but it illustrated a full body dynamic movement.

Who is more fit?

The host of the show asked both sides who is more fit and they BOTH agreed that CrossFitters are more fit since they incorporate EVERYTHING in their training.  The bodybuilders admitted that if they were to compete with CrossFitters in high intensity workouts, they would lose.  The CrossFitters’ lifestyle will help them be prepared for any physical task they need to do.  Because their main concern is to work out the heart and not look good, people will feel better as opposed to be more concerned with how they look. Maybe that’s why the globo gyms are infested with mirrors while normal CrossFit boxes don’t have any mirrors!

paleo chocolate chip pancakes

my friend lynne consistently makes chocolate chip pancakes for her boys almost every morning. i always drooled over her pics she posts on IG. so this morning i decided i wanted to try to make some…we deserved a treat after a difficult week of training. 🙂 so i searched for recipes and i compiled many of them into one DELICIOUS one!

ingredients:

• 5 large eggs
• 2 tbsp canned coconut milk
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 6 tbsp coconut flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 3 tbsp water
• some coconut oil
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips — i used Enjoy Life Semi-sweet mini chips

directions:

1. beat 5 eggs in a mixing bowl.
2. add vanilla extract and coconut milk and continue to beat.
3. add other ingredients — coconut flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, sea salt, and water.
4. fold in chocolate chips.
5. heat a skillet with the coconut oil.
6. once it’s heated, drop in spoonfuls of the pancake batter.
7. cook each side for about 2 minutes.
8. serve with whatever you want! we added Kerrygold butter and maple syrup.

these pancakes were moist enough and the butter added a nice touch. the bf definitely approved since he ate most of it. 😉 these are definitely great for kids or a good treat after a hard week of WODs.

paleo chicken wings

i have been craving chicken wings for a while and of course i can’t just go to Hooters and get some….so i searched and searched for paleo chicken wing recipes.  of course i didn’t want to actually deep fry the chicken so i tried boiling it. i heard that if you get the chicken cooking in water first, then you can bake it at a high temperature to get some crisp to the chicken. it actually worked! after that i wanted to make sure that my wing sauce was delicious so i found this wing sauce recipe from PrimalPal.  i made a couple of tweaks to this recipe though.

PS: PrimalPal also used the boiling technique….it’s genius i tell you!

ingredients for the crispy chicken:

• 2.75 lb chicken — i used all drumsticks
• 2 tablespoons of the infamous Kerrygold butter — you can use coconut oil instead.
• salt

ingredients for the wing sauce:

• 3/4 cup of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
• 6 tablespoons of more Kerrygold butter
• 2 tablespoons for apple cider vinegar
• 3 teaspoons of paprika

directions:

1. preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. boil chicken for about 8 minutes. you’ll know when they’re ready when the chicken turns white.
3. when chicken is cooked, dry them on paper towels.  continue to pat them dry until you feel that all the moisture is gone.
4. melt 2 tablespoons of butter and add salt.
5. on a lined and oiled baking sheet, line the chicken so they don’t touch each other.
6. brush the salted, melted butter on the chicken.
7. bake for 25 minutes then flip the chicken. bake for another 10 minutes. *be careful because the oven and chicken will be HOT! there will be lots of sizzling going on.
8. during the last 10 minutes, place the wing sauce ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat and mix together.
9. when the sauce starts to boil, lower the heat to simmer.
10. when your oven beeps at you when the last 10 minutes is up, toss the chicken in the wing sauce.
11. SERVE!

the sauce is the right kind of tangy and spicy. we ate this with some sauteed spinach. it was really good. i was nervous that the bf would not like it because it would be too spicy but he liked it! it was still flavorful….move over Hooters! i can make wings too!

paleo cookies

cousin RM came over today and wanted to bake…so we made paleo cookies. i forgot how good these were. actually let me rephrase that: i gave her the recipe and she made the cookies. in my defense i was making dinner! i made paleo spaghetti..we kinda cheated because we added chicken hot dogs. either way it was super delicious!

here’s how we made it:

ingredients:

• 3 cups almond flour
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 cup raw honey — (we used agave this time)
• 1/2 cup semi-crushed walnuts
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

directions:

1. preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. combine dry ingredients.
3. combine wet ingredients.
4. pour wet ingredients except for the coconut oil into the bowl with dry ingredients using a wire whisk. a fork will work.
5. add the melted coconut oil and continue to combine.
6. fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.
7. drop tablespoon balls of cookie dough on a lined baking sheet.
8. bake for 12 minutes.

sauteed kale with bacon and onion

hi!! haven’t blogged in quite some time…it’s definitely overdue. a lot of things happened since the last time i was on here…definitely good changes. 🙂 the bf is now coaching at an amazing box and we LOVE our new CrossFit family! everything happens for a reason…..anyways, we are participating in a nutrition challenge to get back on the paleo lifestyle so of course i’m going to try new recipes! i received two paleo cookbooks for Christmas: Paleo Slow Cooking by Chrissy Gower and Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo. these books are not only filled with delicious recipes but they have a lot of information on the lifestyle. thanks mama kerins!! ❤

so….i made this DELICIOUS side dish — kale with bacon and onion. i actually found this recipe in multiplies paleo websites and recipe books since it’s a common paleo side dish. i regret not cooking this sooner!

ingredients:

• a bunch of kale — i used the 10 oz bag from TJ. it was already cleaned and cut!
• 8 strips of bacon
• 1 medium-sized onion

directions:

1. cube the bacon.
2. dice the onion.
3. in a heated non-stick pan, place the bacon and start sauteeing them. depending on how crunchy you like your bacon bits, that’ll determine how long you keep it on there. i like mine crispy!
4. when the bacon turns into the color you like, add the diced onions.
5. keep stirring the bacon and onions until the onions become translucent.
6. add kale. because too much kale for my small pan, i had to add my kale in bunches. i had to wait until some kale would wilt before adding more.
7. take a fork and ENJOY that sucker. it’s a perfect side dish for everything!

the sweetness from the onion and the saltiness from the bacon adds an amazing touch to the kale…this is definitely going to be a favorite in our household!