Tuesday, January 29, 2013

What I Ate Tonight

Tonight I made Tofu Parmigiana using this recipe here


This was the end product. And it was friggin delicious. 





Package of Organic Firm Tofu, drained. 


Seasoned breadcrumbs. (I used regular breadcrumbs and added garlic salt & Mrs. dash Italian blend seasoning)


You can barely tell, but that's the tofu breaded. 


I modified the recipe a bit and used Prego Mushroom sauce but still added the minced garlic. 



Should have taken a photo of it as it came out of the oven, it was bubbling deliciousness. 

Recently I have cut meat out of my life and I was very skeptical of this dish because I have made this traditionally, with chicken, and well, this isn't. I think the texture is the only thing that could turn someone away from this because it's really different. Anyways, this is always a great option for those thinking about meatless Monday's or just interested in trying something different. 

Enjoy! 

Monday, January 28, 2013

Weekly Wrap Up 1/21-1/27

Monday - 

I tried to walk the dogs on Monday but failed. Well, I didn't fail, but it was just too cold for the pups. We made it about a block away from the house before we had to come home. 
Good news is that I played soccer instead and OMG it was an intense workout.

Tuesday -

Same story with the pups today, it was just too cold. We didn't even attempt to walk. 


SWOD
BS 5x5 
115#, 135#, 165#, 175#, 165#
WOD

AMRAP in 20 mins
12 Box jumps 24/20 
9 HRPU (hand release push-ups)
6 Power cleans, 135/95 scale to 85#


6rounds + 2 cleans 

Had to really focus on keeping my knees out during the SWOD. It's different. My knees have always "wiggled" back in when I stand up and now I have to think about it so much. I know that eventually it'll become second nature but it's always weird to change something after doing it a certain way for so long. 
During the WOD I felt really good. I'm finding that my conditioning is improving and that I'm wanting and willing to push myself harder than I have in a long time. 


Wednesday - 

With a continuous running clock
EMOTM for 15 mins 2 front squats  115#
Then 8 min AMRAP of 
10 Goblet squats, 70/53 26#
10 Pull-ups RX
Then 2 mins max burpees
Score is reps and weights


I scaled the goblet squats, mostly because hanging on to the 53# KB was so hard! Gotta work on that grip strength. I felt really good about this WOD as well, which makes me think that I'm getting stronger. Which means, I'm getting better. 


Thursday -


REST DAY! Well, sort of. Took the dogs for long walks, almost 5 miles. They were happy and I felt good. Nice to "relax". 

Friday -

Snatch balance
1-1-1-1-1-1-1

45#, 50#, 55#, 60#, 65#, 70#, 75#

WOD
Row 1K
then 
21-15-9
Lunges
Pull-ups
Sit-ups


Ooh! Snatch balance was tough. As the weight got heavier and I got out of my head, I started to feel comfortable with the movement. Felt pretty good going into this WOD, minus rowing. I'm terrible at it but I did alright. Lunges I can rock out no problem, pull-ups and I don't necessarily get along but I was excited for the opportunity to get better and well, I suck at sit-ups, or so I thought. Yvette actually said "Nice sit-ups Paige" and that is officially the first time any has ever said that to me. Then I tore my hands open so half way through the WOD I had to switch to ring rows. 

*Lesson here, take care of your friggin hands. This is the MOST annoying reminder ever.*

Saturday -


Saturday was a busy day. Got in a good 4-5 miles first thing in the morning, really tuckered the pups out. Moved a treadmill into the basement and shit it was heavy! It was a busy but relaxing day. 

Sunday - 


Got up early and took the pups for another walk. Man they're spoiled! Can't wait to have the treadmill upstairs so we all can use it. 

20 Min AMRAP
10 Front Squats (50% 1RM) 60#
10 Box Jumps (24)

Completed 9 rounds + 1 front squat 
I really wanted to get 10 rounds but it was exhausting! Now I have new goal to work towards. Later that evening I played soccer. What a long day! 


Now will I update this weekly? Hell no. It's taken me 3 days to write this anyways. But I thought it would be nice to write out but then I did it and I don't think I like it. I'll continue to use my notebook to write my WODs in and MapMyRun to log my dog walks. 

Monday, January 14, 2013

2013 Goals

So I haven't done this yet this year. I haven't set any goals to achieve, fitness or otherwise. I guess now is a good a time as any to make some goals...

Originally Written 1/14/13 (I will update this every few months with accomplished goals and additional goals)

1. Find a consistent weight and stick with it. I'm thinking 145 +/-

  • I'm the queen of fluctuating weight, not just a couple of pounds either. We're talking swinging 20 pounds either way. Time to stop that. 

2. Continue to make the time to exercise my dogs properly

  • I have 3 large rescue dogs that need exercise to be well balanced dogs and a mile a day is not enough. I have committed to walking the dogs every day, I do a total of 6 miles on average, walking & jogging. This is making things much better in the house and it is necessary for my sanity.

3. Get up the rope

  • That stupid rope. 

4. Move to toe pushups exclusively

  • I can do about 3 pushups on my toes in a row and if the WOD requires a large number, I usually scale to my knees. Time to get off those knees!! PERMANENTLY. 

5. Master Toe to Bars

  • Those stupid things, time for consistency. 

6. Reduce my meat intake and dairy intake

  • See my "going green" for an explanation regarding this. 

7. Make my bed every day 

  • Doing this one thing will create a bit of structure in my life. Oddly enough. 

8. Finally begin working with a rescue 

  • I've been talking about doing this for some time and really, until now, I haven't had the time to do so. I don't have a ton of free time but I'm ready. 

9. Find small ways to be more green

  • Walking more. Reusing more containers. Recycling more. Educating people more. Making my own cleaning supplies, detergents, etc. Small steps. 

10. Educate yourself weekly

  • Watch the news. Watch documentaries. Read blogs. Read about things you don't understand. Learn more and be better. 

11. Become a more balanced pack leader

  • My dogs are my world. I don't have kids & I am a military wife. I spend a lot of time with my dogs, most days, I spend more time with them than I do my husband. For all of our sanity, I need to be better and I will be. 

So as of today, these are my 2013 goals. We'll see what happens a few months from now. I also got a physical today and will post my numbers and see how they improve with the lifestyle changes. 





Thursday, January 10, 2013

Biggest Loser Made Me Do It

So I'm sitting there catching up on Biggest Loser (apparently I missed 2 episodes already, oops!) and I heard one quote that made me want to post something on Facebook regarding it. Then as I was typing about it, there goes another quote that I liked, so now this is my Biggest Loser inspired post.
I feel like this blog is all over the place, all the time, but I guess that is similar to who I am. So there I was catching up on Biggest Loser and by catching up I mean watching the only episode that I have DVR'd thus far. I had heard that a bunch of the big name crossfitters would be on, well, if that's why you're watching, don't. They weren't introduced and rarely shown and it was referred to as functional movements instead of crossfit, just annoying.
Anyyyy whoooo, so I'm really into Biggest Loser when the cast doesn't suck (aka last season) but I have never experienced Jillian. So basically I've only watched it for a season or two. Bob, you're kind of scary, like seriously scary. I was surprised to see you have tattoo sleeves but it made sense, because he's scary. Then I got to see Jillian for the first time and a big WTF came to mind. She was insane, so overly intense and all you could see is her team breaking down and by the time she realized it, I think it was too late. Then when Nathan got kicked off she cried because she didn't have anyone to respond to her awfulness anymore, not because she was going to honestly miss him. Dolvett is extremely competitive and so intense, I like it. He seems like a great motivator and I think he'd make a great life coach.
So the episode that I watch is the infamous "doctor tells you how heavy you are and the many ways it's killing you" episode. While watching this specific sentence really got to me regarding obesity
"If I told you that you were dying from lymphoma, would you take 2 hours out of your day for chemotherapy?"
This quote pretty much blew my mind, which now that I read it again, it makes so much sense. Being overweight is unhealthy and is killing you, me even. I mean honestly! There have been times in my life that I was so overweight that it was probably starting to kill me and I couldn't take 2 hours to walk or do some sort of exercise. And on top of that, take some time out to just plan out my meals for the week so I don't eat like crap on a whim. This seems so simple to me now, it seems crazy that I couldn't find time to workout and plan & cook my own food. How ridiculous.
As of late I go to the gym at least 3 times a week and no more than 6 times a week, but truth be told, it's been a long time since I've done 6 days. And I've recently added in the extra long dog walk/jog, which since Tuesday has produced between 14-15 miles and 3 more days left in this week... All this exercise is good for me, I'm just ready to put a backpack on these kids and cut some miles back and put some better focus on crossfit.
Then there was another part of the show, during Bob's "functional movements" clips, one of the contestants (I can't remember his name for the life of me, which is terrible) had some breathing problems and Bob said this
"I want you to never forget how this feels right here and right now. I don't want you ever to forget this moment. I want you to remember when you're home and under 200 pounds and think about going back to your old life..."
That is so crucial to staying healthy. It's so easy to go back to eating whatever you feel like. If it were easy to be healthy and fit, everyone would be healthy and fit, but that's not how it goes. You need something to keep you driven, something to keep you motivated, something to pick you back up when you've fallen down. Remember how you felt when your fat pants became your skinny pants? Or when you feel so crappy about how you look that you'd rather stay home alone then go out? Yea, those times, that's when you need a moment like this. A moment when you realize that you did not die, you pushed yourself harder than you have in possibly your entire life, and you survived. And tomorrow when you wake up, you'll be stronger than you were today, and huzzzaahhh! you're still alive.
You're still alive. You didn't die. You survived the workout and you know what, you'll survive today's as well. Biggest Loser is crazy for sure, these people workout all day, every day, just about, for like 6 weeks or so. I don't honestly know how many weeks they're at camp. Then they go home and many of them don't work and just focus on getting healthier until the final show. THIS IS NOT REAL LIFE. Very rarely are people afforded the time to workout like that. To be so dedicated to losing weight and getting fit, not working, and only taking care of you. That's insane. In real life we are parents, siblings, partners, husbands, wives, children, aunts, uncles, and friends, which means we aren't given a plethora of free to take care of ourselves. This however just means that you have to make time, which isn't easy, but it's doable. 
So in closing, Jillian did finally have some good input when she said this.. 
"The people that watch the show really get deeply inspired by the things that happen here, they're not inspired by me. They're inspired by the changes you make." 
This is so true. Watch the show, I dare you not to be inspired.