New Years Resolutions??

So, it's that time of year where you tell yourself that you will lose weight/eat right/become fit/work harder/be a better spouse/parent/Lego builder/penny pincher/save for a trip, etc.  It might last for 2 days or 2 months and then go back to the way it was...

I think if you do want to make a change in your life you should take baby steps.  Just like training for a marathon, you don't immediately go out and run 20+ miles, you start off slow and have a plan, tell others about it so there is accountability built in.

My goal is to 1.  Lose some weight by eating better and more moderately.  2. Listen to people more by putting the stupid cell phone down as soon as I am spoken to, even if I was texting first and someone walked up to me in the middle of it.  3.  Become more productive around the house.

The Plan for 2013
1. Lose 15 pounds by March 31st.  I will follow the Paleo diet 90% in January and then dial it back to 80% for the rest of the year (the last few months I might have followed it 40% at best, you can see it and I sure feel it).  Sometimes you have to go the wrong direction for awhile until you are fed up enough to get your life back on track.
   a. grocery shop and cook for my house
   b. no beer kept in the fridge
   c. have planned cheat meals 1 evening per week where I can be a glutton, get my fix and not feel guilty
   d. pay a fine to my son if he catches me eating something I shouldn't

2. Listening
   a. put the phone in the back of the house when I get home
   b. only check it every few hours unless someone actually calls at which point I will answer it if I am not eating with the family
   c. pay a fine to my son if he catches me breaking the rules (similar theme but I hate spending money so he will help curb the habit quickly)

3. Productivity
   a. have an on going to do list separated by two categories - small thing and big things
   b. prior to doing something enjoyable a small thing must be completed
   c. one large item must be completed each week

That's it.  Let me know if you have any suggestions to my three to help me succeed. Have a Happy New Year and tell me, what is your goal?  How are you going to stick to it? Post it here and have some accountability!

Sandy Hook Elementary Tragedy

I don't watch the news, ever.  Everyone else always tells me what's going on.  The reason I don't is 90% of what is broadcast either pisses me off -politicians/government or saddens me -Friday's shootings.
Thinking about what happened makes me feel so useless, angry and heartbroken.  The thought of losing my son to something, anything....I don't know how to put it into words.
There are so many people out there that have already written much more profound and moving blogs about this.  I thought I would just share some of them with you.

I am Adam Lanza's Mother
December-14-2012
My corner of world

This past weekend the cub scout meeting was held at my house.  All the boys were playing tag except one.  He wandered around in a circle with a lego to his face mumbling.  I tried to engage him in conversation and he would not meet my eyes.  My first impulse (which is wrong) led me to think he was one of "those" kids, someone else's problem who will end up in trouble all the time for not paying attention.  Then I thought about the first blog link I posted above (I think he may have Asperger's) and made sure he got his derby car cut since his guardian dropped him off and no one was really looking out for him.  After I had cut his pinewood derby car he did thank me which surprised me, I wasn't expecting it and half the other boys didn't even bother.

If I hadn't read that blog I would have probably gone with my first impulse, I am glad I didn't and in the future I am going to go out of my way during cub scout meetings to help him out if I can.  This should be something everyone does, friends, family, neighbors, community and our government.  We must stop being so focused on just ourselves and our own little world.  If we don't, at sometime it will implode.

Pray for the victims families and be grateful for all you have this day and season together.

Something to warm your heart.
Moments that restored our faith in humanity this year

What will define you this season?

Most of us are defined by our job, not our marriage, relationships or good deeds that we do.
Why do we let our jobs define our worth and who we are?
Many of us put all our effort into our work and have nothing left over for the family, but we have a longer lasting effect on our family than we do at our workplace.
What will your family or friends remember this holiday season?
All the hours you spent at work or shopping for the perfect gift that ended up collecting dust?
Or will they will remember the time spent with each other playing card games and talking around the dinner table.
Don't stay late at work, online or shopping this season.  Spend your most precious commodity (time) with the things that matter most.
What will you choose to let define you?

Strongman Seminar in Austin

Last weekend I drove up to Austin to attend Rob Orlando's Strongman Seminar.  It was a lot of fun.  
We started of with flipping tires.  I always thought you deadlifted them, wrong.  You push your chest into it with your feet about 12-18" away from the tire and then open your hips and drive your knee through.  We did a short WOD with tire flips and box jumps onto the tire for 75 seconds that left everyone breathing hard.
Next up were atlas stones.  If you are lifting heavy (I only got up to 175# - didn't feel like trying the 200#) it is a two stage lift where you create a shelf with your legs to rest the stone on.  Your arms are wrapped around the mid-line of the stone with your chin resting on it.  Then you load your hamstrings and violently open your hips so it rolls up your body.  You actually let go of the stone briefly as it nears your chest/shoulder area.  The other way is one movement without creating the shelf with lighter stones.  Our WOD with that was 4 rounds of Tabata, atlas stone to the shoulder.
So......I got one rep.  I decided to go really fast with the 95# and followed it back down like a slam ball to get it again (don't do this).  It was on 2" of rubber matting and it bounced back about 28 to 34" up into my chin.  Had some blood (they were cool and super glued it shut) and a cracked molar (my very first crown).  I was a DNF on that one.  The ladies at CrossFit Central were very cool, thank you.
The keg lifts were awkward, you have to shift it around 90 degrees to get it to your shoulder and then shift it back to press it, plus the contents move on you as you are doing this.  Rob suggested to make it really interesting by using water instead of sand.  The sand will only shift once or twice, the water never stops. The WOD on that one was optional so I passed.
That was it for the morning and I gummed some beef jerky for lunch.

Then came the yoke and farmers carry.  You take short steps and don't walk a tightrope when carrying either.  It was interesting on the carry, I can deadlift 365# but between the two hands I was walking with 370#.  This is due to the neutral grip, fatter handles and they are 6" higher than a bar with plates on the ground.  I liked both movements a lot.
We finished the day with logs.  It is similar to a clean and jerk but not as pretty and with a neutral grip inside the log.  You set it up like the atlas stone with your legs as a shelf but you lay your chest on the log keeping your elbows bent and at the same angle until it is at your shoulders.  We also learned to viper press the log where you take it from the leg shelf and almost treat it like a power snatch/press.  We then did a WOD with the viper presses and burpees.  Lots of energy and encouragement with over 50 people there.  We went through it in waves of 30 sec on the VP then some one else is taking your place on the VP's as you go to the burpees for 30 sec.  Total time for the WOD is 1 min.
To sum it all up..
1.  It's fun
2.  It's easy to teach.  I can have anyone learn any of these movements in 10 minutes or less but a good clean and jerk takes months.
3.  It's simple and practical.  Pick up that heavy ass thing and move it here or there.  Some of the strongest people around are farmers, electricians, plumbers, etc.  They are one their feet all day picking stuff up, putting it down.  Working with their arms above their heads, twisting and turning.  This is just the not boring version of that.
4.  The movements are transferable to the more complicated things we do in CrossFit, so it is good for beginners and progression.
5.  Did I mention it's fun?

A New Chapter...

Last week a co-worker and I were let go from our jobs as coaches.  We were told that things had gotten too big and the gym wanted to take a step back and lighten up on the amount of coaches and clients.  That's ok, I sure as hell didn't like it but it's not my place.  I don't get to make those decisions.
Something really cool that came out of it was all the responses I have received from my clients expressing their unhappiness that I would not be coaching them anymore.  It was really nice.  I hadn't realized how much that meant to me, so thanks everyone, I really enjoyed our time together.  I will continue to keep in touch with you all.
Now I need to decide what's next...
1. Train people out of my house at times that won't disturb my neighbors?
2. Open my own box?
3. Work at another box (already had one interview) and help it grow?
4. Conduct boot camps in a park nearby?
5. A combination of all of the above?
6. Or go back into the corporate world? :(
I'm thinking a combination of 1-5, what do you think?  Let me know.

Stay tuned, coming to you shortly a recap of the Strongman cert in Austin last weekend!

B.O.

People that CrossFit sweat, a lot, (living in Houston TX is a double whammy) so they should also practice good/great hygiene habits (most do).  We try to be a healthy community, exercise, eat right and take care of ourselves so why is it some people seem absolutely oblivious that they smell?  I know anyone can be odiferous at times based on what you eat, onions, garlic, or get that coffee sweat working for you where it comes out of your pores, but what about the ones that have the consistent body odor?  It may be a medical condition and that sucks, they could be allergic to types of soap/antiperspirants and it can also be that no one has ever said anything to them because it is embarrassing.  I shower two or three times a day and I still don't always smell like a rose.  My son is nine and is going to become introduced to deodorant in November (once I do a little research on kids and antiperspirant).  Just a general FYI out there.....Use antiperspirant, not just deodorant, take a shower after workouts and again that evening/morning, if in doubt do it again, wash your clothes in hot water with a little bleach to kill germs and do the same to your shoes, everyone will appreciate it and it is good for you :)

Oktoberfest Obliteration!

CrossFit Champions put on their annual Oktoberfest Obliteration competition last weekend and I was able to be a part of it.  I had no idea how it was all going to come together 2 days away.  Prep work had been done but there was a whole lot of stuff to be accomplished.  Friday rolls around and the volunteers showed up, people from our gym and others, tons of them and the magic started to happen.  I am truly amazed at what all of the volunteers accomplished, the hours they worked in those two days.  The work ethic was amazing.  If I owned a company and had employees that worked like that everyday, we all would be able to retire in 5 years....any takers? - joking.
I ended up being a judge for the first time and they had me on the Teams judging.  The athletes, crowd and energy they put out was great.  I remember one female athlete that couldn't get a 95# snatch for her team to move on, she tried for 5-7 minutes exhausting herself, tears running down her face, but she never gave up, she didn't want to let her team down.  I was impressed with her perseverance.
The WOD's that they had to do like "Mathletes" were created by an evil genius (Matt Munson and others), it was absolutely crazy fun.  Check out more at http://www.oktoberfestobliteration.com/
All in all it was a fun, chaotic, amazing long day filled with great people in the best community (CrossFit) you can be a part of.

Beer review!

Since the blog is called Beer and Burpees I figured it was beer review time.  I like tasty beers but by no means am I a connoisseur, that's my buddy Anthony who you saw in an earlier post.
A few things I have figured out over the years is that I prefer it ice cold even though it mutes the true flavor.  In the U.K. certain beers are sold at cellar temperature and room temperature to bring out the tasting notes just like a red wine.  Beer can be paired with foods just like we do with our wines.  I like hoppy (bitter) beers with spicy foods, such as Saint Arnold's Amber goes well with spicy Chinese food, Newcastle Ale (or any dark ale) goes well with red meat or heavy foods, etc.

Some recent beer's I have tried and what I thought of them...
1. Aloha Series Pipline by Kona Brewing Co.  Made with Hawaiian Kona Coffe, it is a coffee porter.  If you like coffee go buy it, I don't and still loved it.  It has a rich malty flavor with hints of a dark roasted coffee without any bitterness.
2. Saint. Arnold's Divine Reserve #12 by Saint Arnold's.  This was a limited release that was made "Old Ale style".  You are supposed to let it age in the bottle for at least six months.  Yeah, couldn't wait that long.  I tried it when it first came out in July.  Heavy alcohol taste with lots hops.  I let it age a few months and it became smoother, less of an alcohol bite with a sweet fruit flavor.  I will try it again in six more months and see how much more the ale changes.
3. Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA, Imperial India Pale Ale by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery.  This is another limited release ale that should be aged as well.  If it is sampled now you mostly get a strong grapefruit flavor mixed with a strong alcohol bite.  As it ages it will lose the alcohol flavor and smooth out to become sweeter most likely.

4. Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar by Rogue Ales.  OMG! This is my favorite.  A full bodied nutty brown ale that is slightly sweet and a smooth finish.  It only comes in a bomber (22 oz) bottle so you can share it with someone if you want (thankfully my wife prefers the coffee porter mentioned earlier so I don't have to share).  Rogue does not add any chemicals, preservatives or additives to their ales, this one only has 12 ingredients - different types of hops, malts, yeast and water.
5. Dogfish Head Punkin Ale by Dogfish Head.  My mother and wife liked this one better than I did.  I expected more pumpkin flavored sweetness, instead it is spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice with hints of brown sugar and pumpkin.  It wasn't bad, I should have gone into it without any expectations (like we should with anything in life).
6. Belhaven Scottish Stout by Belhaven Brewery.  A dark stout with hints of nut, chocolate and hops.  Tasty.  This is the current drink of choice by my lovely wife Jane.

A few more not pictured.
If I am trying to stay low carb I like Michelob Ultra Amber.  There is a little flavor and it only had around 3 or 4 carbs.
Landshark Lager by Margaritaville Brewing Co. is a nice light lager that is refreshing and goes down easy with seafood on a hot day.
If you want to mix it up a little try Hornsby's Crisp Apple Cider in a glass and layer (by bending a spoon and pouring on top of it to keep the two separate) Guinness Extra Stout.   Initially you get a heavy stout bitterness that gradually sweetens as it mixes with the cider.  Yummy.

That's it.  If you would like me to review any more by all means buy me some beer and I will taste it for you :)
We all want to stay healthy and fit but I think we should also be able to enjoy things we like in life as long as it is in moderation.
Cheers

For your viewing pleasure... http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/81536704/

Get Unplugged!

I saw this spoken word video last night and it rang true to me.

I used to be in sales management, my phone would go off from 6 am till about 10:30-11 pm as well as on the weekends.  My son would be talking to me or we would be having dinner and I would put my family (the most important thing in the world) on hold for a stupid call.  I am so grateful that I was laid off since I would never have quit on my own.  It has allowed us to have a better quality of life together.  I still get to many emails and check them to often or jump on Facebook to much.  Jane is much better at it than me, she might check her emails once or twice a day and hardly ever gets on Facebook, her only electronic habit is the TV.  Liam would watch cartoons or play games all weekend if we let him.
Our society spends more time looking at some sort of screen than at our loved ones faces.  I have a challenge for anyone who reads this....unplug for one weekend.  If it has a screen you can't use it and only use the phone if someone calls you- no out going calls.  Can you, will you do it?  Spend the time outside or reading, play some board games together.  We have done this before and you would be amazed what a great weekend you will have.  I think your family/friends are worth it, do you?

Stuffed Poblano Peppers by Mom

My Mom made these for us the other day and I wanted to share with everyone because they kicked ass.  If you have to have exact measurements and instructions, read no further because we both eyeball it and change our recipes every time.  The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
ingredients...
1-2 poblanos per person
sausage or hamburger or shrimp- basically pick a meat or two
green onion w/shrimp-not as strong of a flavor or yellow with other meats
red pepper
your favorite olives
any type of veggie you want, squash? zucchini? celery?
parsley
cilantro
garlic
cheese (the only non paleo thing in the recipe)
directions...
put 4 peppers in a plastic bag and nuke for 3 min
when they cool slit down one side and remove seeds.  These will be the ones you stuff.
take your meat and precook it.
then mix the meat, chopped veggies including some poblano pepper, put them in a fry pan and add taco seasoning. Cook until the veggies soften.
I would taste the mixture now before adding it to the peppers to make sure you are ok with the flavor.
scoop it out and put it in the peppers add or don't add some cheese.
Grill to char them slightly.
With the shrimp we used pineapple and mango.

Kettlebells!

I had the opportunity to attend the Level 1 Kettlebell Certification class in Austin this past weekend.  At first I thought it might be somewhat informative but how much am I going to learn, I mean it's just a kettlebell, right?  Boy, was I wrong.  Jeff Martone, a great instructor and funny as all get out, started off by running the class through some joint mobility drills and stretches.  Those alone were almost worth the price of admission. The first few he covered I got to share with some of my classes this morning for the neck and shoulder. We then went over the foundational movement, the Russian swing, which brings the kb to chest level.  So this is a pretty basic movement, for the last four years I have been swinging a kb in CrossFit WOD's, and I learned that I was not nearly as efficient as I should have been.  I wasn't breathing properly, only occasionally drove through my heels, did not have enough hip snap and would "catch" it early. You can also have your arms too rigid, not fully open your hips, lean back to far, etc.  We learned to how to recognize and correct these mistakes.  If your Russian swing is not up to snuff than nothing else will be when working with the kb.
We learned how to do progressions to cleans, snatches, presses, squats, H2H (hand to hand), one arm swings, hand releases, thrusters, the list goes on and on.  Some are done with one bell and some with two.  They have versions of Fran and other named workouts where the barbel or dumbbell is substituted with a kb, which just makes it more challenging because we all know nothing is challenging about Fran, right?
I am looking forward to starting a elements kb class that will progress into an ongoing class.  Hopefully I will get to see you there, until then in Jeff's words "keep swinging".

We did not learn and I won't be teaching (yet/ever?) on what Jeff is demoing in the above video.

Being a Coach

Today I had the distinct pleasure of coaching 4 classes back to back.  It made me reflect on how much I enjoy coaching/training/teaching others that want to learn/improve.  I had just as much energy in the fourth class as I did in the first because I got it from those great athletes that showed up this morning.  We did cleans for max weight and I think about 8 people, at a minimum, got PR's.  There is so much positive energy running around you can't stop smiling.
Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that coaches enjoy the hell out of the people that they train and love to watch improvements in.  It gives them a great sense of accomplishment, plus it is fun as all get out.  The class that I regularly attend is coached by Shannan and you can tell she has a great time with her Cereal Killers (they think it makes them sound scary) and they have a great time giving her a hard time(all in fun of course).  If one of our athletes has a bad day, we think about it and wonder how we could have improved their WOD/morning/whatever.  I think our only regret is not being able to give everyone the same amount of instruction.  If we didn't spend much time with you today, that means someone else looked like they needed it more and you were doing pretty good.  We go to the areas where we feel we have the most impact.  If we missed you today, don't worry, we will give you more than enough attention next time (probably when you least want it - getting that full range on burpees).  To all those awesome CrossFit Champions athletes...YOU GUYS AND GALS ROCK!  THANKS FOR LETTING US TRAIN YOU!

Anthony lost 11 lbs in 24 days!

My buddy Anthony took the 24 Day AdvoCare Challenge with me and helped to keep me on track.  Accountability is a wonderful thing.  He posted some outstanding results that I wanted to share.

                                 Starting Stats                              Results                   Difference
Weight                       252                                            241                       11 lbs lost
Right Arm Flexed       17 3/8"                                        17 1/2"                  1/8" gain
Waist                        50 3/8"                                        47 1/2"                  2 7/8" lost
WOD                        19:09                                           15:12                    3:57 improved perf.
The WOD was 3 rounds for time of a 300m run, 9 clean and thrusters with 95#, 12 jumping pull ups and 15 box jumps at 20".

He did a great job following the challenge along with a Paleo diet.  It was the first step in the right direction that everyone always has trouble with.  Anthony finally found out what it was like to eat clean, feel good and have the performance that resulted in almost a 4 min drop in a workout - IN LESS THAN A MONTH!  He has committed to eating Paleo the majority of the time to continue to lose weight and feel good.  He added some of the pre-workout supplements after the challenge and just started using a 24 " box jump which is amazing - no going back now.....(insert evil laugh here)  His only continued challenge will be staying away from the beer (he is a bigger beer snob than me) but we will get there together.  Great job bud, I'm proud of you.

Beer and Burpees CrossFit style?

Just a clip of CrossFitters in Big Sky Montana having to chug beer and do burpees as a consequence for not winning a challenge.  It starts around the 5:25 mark.


http://community.crossfit.com/video/snatches-beer-and-burpees-big-sky

Food (beer) addiction

We all know about addictions whether it is eating bad food, taking other things that are bad for your body or going back to people that always hurt you.  If you can stay away from those things it becomes easier the longer you are away.  The "trick" is to make the right choices to help you avoid situations where you can fall back into that cycle.  When some people have some ice cream occasionally and then it becomes nightly then a pint a night, etc. it's not good.  Other people can have one bowl a month and use that as a reward or celebration and have no ill effects.  That being said, the day I finished my challenge I went out and bought some beer.  Limited edition stuff, real fancy like.  I drank 3/4 of a bottle and wasn't that impressed.  The following day I had 1 Shiner at lunch and it tasted pretty good, I started to want another.  I am debating whether to go down this road again. I know I shouldn't but I also know that I will.  I like alcohol a lot, I don't do shots, it is enjoyed and appreciated, occasionally large quantities of it are enjoyed.  So the plan is to only put one beer in the fridge at a time since I refuse to drink warm beer I think that should help limit myself.  I am going to have it along with my "cheat meal" and or at special occasions.  I will make this work or if I catch myself sliding into old habits ti will be gone for good.  Just the idea of that makes me want to follow the straight and narrow.  We will see.

Yummy, yummy in my tummy

Just throwing out dinner ideas...
Flank steak, lean and inexpensive also hard to screw up.
(another meat you should try that is easy to make is pork steak, throw on some spices and grill)

Take the steak and put it in a pan and pour the marinade all over it, stab the meat as if you were using a meat tenderizer with a fork and let sit 1/2 hr or so.  We use Allegro Marinade even though there is some soy in it, it has 0 sugar and no gluten.
Cook it on the grill with high heat (500-700 degrees) for about 5 min per side which will give you medium rare.  The only way to have steak.  Slice the steak cross grain like fajita meat and serve.

Asparagus I throw on the grill as I am about to flip the steak, roughly 5 min.  To prepare it add a little olive oil, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper together and brush on it.

The slaw you see is broccoli slaw that you can find in a bag at the store.  We add dried cherries and an Asian sesame dressing to it, it is pretty good.  Got the idea from someone at one of the many CrossFit Champions pool parties.

On the side we added a little chopped up tomato and fresh basil.

Pretty easy to make.

AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge Results

Today is the 24th day and the results are in....
                             July 9th              July 31st         Total lost/gained
Weight                    193                   184                   9 lbs lost
Right arm flexed       14.5"                 14.75"              1/4" gained
Waist                      41"                    39"                   2" lost
WOD                      14:11                 12:28                1:43 improved performance
-The WOD was 3 rounds for time of 300m run, 9 squat clean thrusters at 95 lbs, 12 pull-ups and 15 24" box jumps.
I am very pleased, of course I would have liked to have greater weight loss but I have to remember two things. 1. It was only 24 days and I ate a lot of high caloric meats (pepperoni, bacon and more bacon). 2. I actually gained muscle, 1/4 inch in the arm.  I think any guy would love to gain a quarter inch :)

This was a great 24 day challenge.  It had structure, you had to spend some money which made you commit to it and it has jump started me back on the right path to fitness.
Before                                                                                              After

After

Supplements, hmmmmm......?

I have never taken supplements other than a protein shake until the last 2.5 weeks.  I don't like pills, that's why I started CrossFit in the first place to avoid high cholesterol medication.  Always thought it was a waste of money, as long as you eat the right things you should be getting everything you need right?  I don't know how to say this, but I may have been mistaken (hard to believe, I know).
So, I started the 24 Day AdvoCare Challenge 18 days ago and I have been pleasantly surprised with the supplements.  The results I have gotten so far is 8 lbs lost and an increase in strength/performance during workouts (whenever I have dropped weight in the past I also lost strength).  The only changes in addition to the supplements is that diet wise I got rid of alcohol (not having a beer for the first 10 days was torture but I hardly miss it now) and the Friday night pizza.  But, the amount of exercise has stayed the same.

Here is a list of some of the things I have tried and the results....
Herbal Cleanse for the 1st 10 days is supposed to detoxify your kidneys, liver and clean your intestines out and it did.  I felt better and lost 5 lbs in the 10 days.
My coach, Matt at CrossFit Champions, swears by a little pre-workout cocktail he makes with 1 scoop each of the Mass Impact, Arginine Extreme and 1/2 scoop of Spark.  I really thought he was full of it and then I used it.  I have hit 2 personal records in the last 3 weeks and I am able to exercise longer and harder with it. The Spark is a energy drink that my wife, Jane, loves.  It perks you up without making you all jittery.
The Nighttime Recovery is an amino acid/herbal/mineral that I have been taking at night  that reduces soreness and helps you recuperate faster, I looooove it.  If I had not been taking it there would have been a few workouts that would have made it difficult to walk.
A non believer has now jumped on the supplement band wagon and the ones I just listed I like the most and have seen great results from.  If you are interested in trying some and you are local give me a holler and I will see if I can get you a sample or just click here to look around.  I will be posting my final results late next week.

Careful what you say....

Yesterday I was talking to some friends about going running on the trails in Memorial Park.  We were gripping about all the trees that the parks dept has been cutting down.  Doug tells me that it's better than having a branch/tree land on my head and I say what are the chances of that happening?  So...this morning I am running there thinking to myself that it looks like crap with so many trees cut away and I hear a branch snapping.  I looked around and couldn't see it as I run and hug a tree to minimize getting hit.  A 50 lbs branch came crashing down onto the trail about 75 ft away from me.  Moral to the story, I got a wake up call from God (thank you) and you should be careful when you dismiss possible dangers, like playing outside or showering during a thunderstorm, etc.  We all dismiss them because those tragedies happen to someone else.  That person could end up being you/us.

Egg Smithmuffin

My wife Jane made some really good egg muffin's the other day out of the Paleo Comfort Foods Cookbook.  They are really easy to make, you can make a bunch at once and they are great for leftovers.
1. Basically chop up what you like and saute it in olive oil
2. We used 1 jalapeno, 1 onion, 1 pepper, 2 garlic cloves and lot n' lots of bacon
3. Crack a dozen eggs and whisk
4. Mix everything together and use a ladle to put it into the greased muffin pan
5. Bake at 350 for around 15 min.  They will rise on top and turn golden brown.  If it's jiggly, it's not done.
6. Eat

Next time I think I would like to do spinach and feta cheese or pepperoni and jalapeno.
I have been eating these for a couple of days.  Today I added Tabasco's Buffalo Wing Sauce on top.  Yummy.

Time to Man Up

I have procrastinated for the last week to put up this new post because I didn't want to put pics of myself  sans shirt until my 24 day Advocare challenge was over and I could show everyone the great results.  Well, it's time for me to man up.  If I put them up now, I will be that much more motivated to get better results, no risk, no reward, etc, etc.  For those of you that don't go to Crossfit Champions where I train, the whole gym did this challenge.  I didn't get in on it in time to start with everyone else so I waited until July 9th so I could get my "beer on" for the fourth.  Thankfully my lovely wife Jane and a few friends are doing the challenge with me.  When you are trying to make a change in your lifestyle that will stick, your spouse has to be on board with it.
I can exercise hard 5 times a week and not keep my weight where it should be because of the crap I put in my body (beer, pizza, more beer).  I am not a moderate person, I could eat 3/4 of the pizza knowing I would feel horrible after.  I think a lot of guys are like that, we know stuffing ourselves makes us feel bad just like we know the pizza is hot and if we take a bite it will burn our mouth, so...we take a bite anyway.  Getting off topic here....

The challenge is for 24 days of eating proper nutrition (Paleo), exercise and take the supplements-of which I have never been a  big believer in till now, but more on that later in another blog.  Take your stats on day one and then compare them 24 days later.  So the stats are..193 lbs, 26% body fat (woohoo!), 14 1/2" right arm and 41" around the belly button/stomach area.  The baseline work out was 3 rounds for time, 300m run-9 clean and thrusters (95 lbs)-12 pull ups and 15 (24") box jumps, it took me 14:11. I am looking to improve in all categories in the three weeks of the challenge, but I have to remember that it is only 24 day's so I shouldn't expect to drop 15 lbs.  I believe the whole purpose of it is to start off on the right foot, to get started on improving our health because anyone can do anything for 24 days.  This last week that I have been on it I have had 0 alcohol.  The worst thing I have eaten was some beef jerky that had 5 grams of sugar per serving, so the challenge has already achieved some of it's purpose.  I don't feel like I have lost a bunch of weight (4 lbs) this week, but I feel physically better than I have in a long, long time.  Hopefully after I post the results in 2 1/2 weeks some of my other friends will become motivated to make a positive change in their life.

Pizza, how I love thee...

I love pizza even though I feel like crap after I eat it.  If I am being good my substitute is eggs.  Here is what I do...
Saute pepperoni in the skillet
Use the existing fat/grease and throw in scrambled eggs
Add any pizza toppings you like and cook thoroughly
I usually only do the pepperoni, sometimes mushrooms, basil, a little parmigiana cheese please? (not Paleo but better than dough)
If you want, you can make or buy your own red sauce and have it to the side to dip your eggs into but I found that they are great without it.

Gratitude

Every day I am grateful for my son, wife, our health, God, our country, having food and shelter, books, beer, a great environment to work in and follow my passion, etc.  The list can go "to infinity and beyond!" to quote Buzz Lightyear. Many people don't seem to comprehend how grateful they should be. They might break down on the side of the road and have that ruin their entire day, and post their misery all over Facebook, but at least they have a car to break down.  I was laid off from a position with a six figure income in April, the day before my wife and I went on a two week vacation.  At first I was pissed, for a day, and then I was grateful.  I felt as if a burden had been lifted off of my shoulders.  I didn't like it there.  I knew I would miss the income but that was it.  I enjoyed my vacation a whole lot more.  I didn't have that feeling four days before coming back where you are thinking "crap, I have to go back to work."  It gave me the opportunity to pursue something that I really enjoy with people that I respect and admire at Crossfit Champions.  Another benefit to the layoff was that today my son and I went to see a movie and played on the floor with his legos.  I was thinking less money is good.  

I can't continue to buy him or us more crap we don't need.  How many legos do you really need anyway?  I am trying to teach him that money is a tool that opens up choices but it is not the end all be all.  Six years ago, Jane (his wife--insert George Jetson theme song) and Liam were in a car wreck that totaled her car but they were both uninjured, that is all that matters.  If we get into a wreck once every 10 years, I would take that one because they were both fine.  That is how I wish people would learn to look at things. It can always be worse. The a$$hole that ran the red light made a stupid choice that could have cost them their lives.  So many people don't understand how precious and fragile life is.  We only get once chance to have it.  And, it can be short or long but we need to appreciate it by being grateful for what we have.  It is how you chose to look at life.  Everyday, we should make a list of what we are grateful for--it will make us appreciate it more, things and people we take for granted.  Tomorrow is July the 4th, our Independence Day.  I am grateful for the country we live in.  The sacrifices that our forefathers and our servicemen and women have made. 

I know those of you that read this are as well. 

Shrooms, the good kind!

I was a cook in the Army for three years a long time ago.  We didn't cook like this but it gave me confidence when cooking.  To many people measure everything out just right.  Take this recipe as a guideline and add or subtract the ingredients based on what you like.  You could sub basil for the rosemary, ditch the olives and add (a little) jalapeño.  Add extra bacon, no cheese, onion, whatever.  I have never made anything the same way twice.  Experiment and have fun (music, good beer, and others in the kitchen helps).

Ingredients

18 button mushrooms, large

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

1/3 cup kalamata olives

6 cooked bacon slices, chopped

1 cup shredded swiss (skip it if you want, not a big deal)

After washing the shrooms, remove stems and chop 2/3 of them and add them to a bowl with all of the other ingredients.

Slice a little bit of the bottom off of the shroom so it won't roll around and dump the goodies out after you put them in.

Mix it up, the olive oil helps things clump and stay together.

Shove it in the shroom without breaking them.

Put on a greased grill or a cookie cooling rack over a cookie pan in the oven at 375 degrees for 5-10 min.  
Eat.

Church

A friend that I have been bugging to try Crossfit for the last 3 years finally started showing up at my house Sunday mornings. It whupped his butt, he is strong as all get out (400+ bench) but not much into cardio. We would do a WOD or some skill work, talk and then drink beer afterwards. Not necessarily the best thing to do but we did it and it tasted great. Sorry, getting off topic. Anyway, he likened it to church for us, we got the fellowship portion anyway. We would both look forward to it, the talking and sharing of issues that were affecting our lives. I believe that is the best thing about Crossfit. The health aspect is very important, but nowhere else have I experienced such fellowship and camaraderie. I don't know what it is exactly about the community but it has the lowest ratio of a$$hole$ of any group setting I have seen.  Maybe it is the pushing of one another to finish faster or the shared pain of a nasty WOD, but everyone that I have trained the last few years I consider a true friend and Anthony, I will see you next Sunday.

How it all began.....

 
It all began with my love of beer that made more of me for my wife to love.....

So it's early 2008 and at 5'8" I am weighing in at a stout 210 lbs at the ripe old age of 37. I go to my doctor for a physical and she wants to put me on medication because my cholesterol is at 230. I don't do pills so I told her I would take care of it. That didn't work out so well.

Anyway, I bump into a coworker who looks great and ask him how he did it, what's the secret (we all know the answer is hard work). In a superior way he say's "Crossfit, look it up". I look it up and think holy crap, not happening. That goes on for a few months and I finally choose to look up a local box (gym) and that is where I met Matt Munson at Crossfit Champions. So this guy that looks intimidating but also very competent tells me they are going to charge me a lot of money to put me through hell to get my life back. I'm thinking that I waste money every day on complete junk that clutters my life and if I don't do something now, I never will.....so I take the plunge. The first elements session where I am taught the basics doesn't go well, I have to stop or else I will throw up. During my first couple of months which started in 8/2008 I get exertion headaches that are the worst type of headache I have ever had, sometimes they will start as soon as I begin warming up. I also wheeze and my lungs gurgle when I go to bed. The doctor says I have bronchitis, Matt says that my lungs are learning how to work again, turns out he was right. The first month or so I only lose five pounds and feel horrible with all of this work I am putting in, sore every day, which is when they introduce me to the Paleo diet (basically meat and veggies). I had heard about it and other crossfitters would say that their performance was bad that day because they ate poorly. That would happen to me too, but while I would have a beer and Mexican food with jalapeños that would want to revisit me during the afternoon's WOD they might have a sandwich. Once I got on the Paleo diet in October 2008 I found out what they were talking about. I would follow it and then cheat with some pizza and feel physically horrible, but I did lose 15 lbs that month when I first started eating correctly. My performance improved tremendously and people at work started calling me the incredible shrinking GM. I went back to my doctor after I had been at Crossfit Champions for around 4 or 5 months. I weighed in at 174 lbs, and got my cholesterol down to 175, while eating lots of red meat I would like to point out. My doctor was ecstatic, wanted to hear all about it and then get her husband to start doing the same thing. We can cure/prevent a lot of things through exercise and proper (Paleo) nutrition.

Since then I have become a Crossfit Level 1 Trainer and have been training friends and neighbors out of my garage for the last 2.5 years.  Recently the stars have aligned and I have the opportunity to work with Matt and Pam up at their gym and it feels like I'm coming home. I love to work out now unless its burpees and I still love beer and food that is bad for me. That is my biggest struggle, the nutrition aspect. My wife is the same weight as when I married her in 1992 and she doesn't feel the need to throw away everything in the pantry which I will eat just because it is there. But, she has agreed to start a 24 day challenge with me July 9th and we will see what happens. I need it to get back on board with the nutrition, she doesn't have to do it, but my hope is she will feel better and jump on the band wagon. I will really miss my Newcsastle beer, but my body/health/performance will thank me for it.