This weekend was pretty low key. Worked (as usual). Sunday was an exciting day though. I put on my jeans for the first time since starting this challenge and they actually fit me which means that I'm now a true size 14. I guess it really solidified in my mind that the weight is really just a number. I've definitely slimmed down a bit and it's awesome. Still not taking measurements though and I'll explain that in a bit.
Got my butt out of bed and went to the gym today. My favorite coach wasn't there but one of the owners was teaching the class. He was the one I talked to about the paleo diet, so I'm starting to like him a little better than I did before. So today's workout was:
Warm-Up:
12 rounds tabata (goddamnit!) rowing or jump roping. I went with the jump rope.
Strength/Skill:
5-5-3-3-1-1-1 Push Press working up to a 1 rep max. Push press is one of those exercises that I've done well at even though it's an upper body exercise, I think it's because it's mostly based on shoulders while you're using some momentum from bending your knees to help get the weight up. My 1 rep max is 103 pounds! Holy cow! So below is what a push press looks like. It's just like a military press except it's heavier weight and you use your legs a little.
AMRAP (10 minutes):
25 front squats (with a 30 lb. slam ball)
10 slams
25 burpees
So a slam ball is essentially a medicine ball, but smaller and filled with sand. It sounds harmless...it's not. The slams were actually kinda cool because you literally lift the ball above your hand and then slam it back down to the ground. If you imagine someone's face printed on the ball, it's very cathartic. And of course burpees...gah. I finished 2 full rounds and then got through 11 more front squats before the 10 minutes was up. Whoever said 10 minutes isn't a long time clearly has never done crossfit.
Midline:
Side planks (1 min. x4 each side) - By the time we got to this part, my shoulders were so dead that I could barely hold myself up for 30 seconds, so I did what I could.
So food today was steak strips with broccoli on the side for both meals. Since I had to be at work tonight I kind of had to come up with something on the fly. I think it turned out pretty decent. Definitely not my best work and I STILL have to go food shopping!
Because my "challenge" is ending on Thursday, I took some time today to look back on how far I've come, even in just 3 weeks and the week leading up to me starting this plan. I wouldn't say I'm a completely different person, but I'm a fairly different person. Every day I get a little more of my self-confidence back and don't spend so much time wallowing and griping about how my body never does what I want it to do and looking back at pictures from high school wishing I could look like that again. Because the thing is, my body is changing in ways that I clearly couldn't see before. I'm no longer plagued by joint pain and I get up everyday feeling strong. Apparently I fit into my jeans again! Not to mention, I feel healthier. It's no longer a huge battle to convince myself to get to the gym and I've actually started making a conscious effort to stick to my diet plan. Did I cheat? Of course I did. I was a bad little girl at times, but the point is that I didn't give up. I just clearly need to stop hanging out at the ambulance base.
So on February 16th, the Crossfit Boomtown Paleo Challenge will officially commence. They sent us an email today with all the info and I have to say that I am incredibly excited. The challenge will go from February 16th to March 30th (6 weeks) and we will be competing with a crossfit gym from California. The challenge is essentially what it's called - 6 weeks of strict paleo. Mixed in with that will also be "challenge WODs" which are spread throughout the 6 weeks and we will put our scores against the other gym's. The reason I'm not taking measurements at the end of my challenge is because I will be doing measurements on the 16th. I'm going to continue tracking my progress and being as strict paleo as possible, mostly to get myself ready for the challenge. I'm basically using the challenge as a way to give myself a little extra motivation. Not only will I be accountable to myself, but I'll also be accountable to my coaches and the rest of the gym. Each week I'll be required to submit reports of what I ate and my exercise and will get points based off of that. At the beginning and end of the challenge we're going to do measurements and pictures. Whoever loses the most weight/inches and has the most amount of points wins. I'm not going to set the bar that high for myself, but I still plan on working my butt off. I'm mostly scared of the challenge WODs. I'm definitely better than I used to be, but that doesn't mean I'll be getting any points based off of how much I can sweat. I think it'll be interesting to see what happens. I've noticed a big difference just during these 3 weeks, even with my cheating, but it'll be awesome to see what happens if I don't cheat. I know, I know, maybe I should have thought of that 3 weeks ago.
You can't even imagine how excited I am for this winter to be over. The biggest thing my gym stresses with this challenge is getting enough sleep. Well...we all know that's a laughable cause with my life. My February schedule has already been set in stone so come March I'll be looking at ways to make things a little easier on myself. It may piss off my boss but after these past few weeks of pretty much killing myself on the weekends, my sleep schedule is definitely one of those things holding me back. With that said, things would definitely be better if it wasn't an arctic tundra out there. Generally in the spring and summer and most of the fall, I'll be up with the sun and ready to go all day. It's just winter...it's blah and I never want to leave my bed.
I'm definitely looking forward at all the things I can look forward to for the summer. I'll have this challenge keeping me busy for 6 weeks. School is over for me in 4 weeks and will leave just a little more me time. I'll be starting grad school apps in the spring. I just get the feeling that this will be an awesome summer.
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