The ruling on the field stands...

What a fantastic football weekend eh?? Loved that my Niners won! Bummed that Smith isn't playing but I guess they have to do what they have to do.  I  love that saying "the ruling on the field stands!" Not sure why. I just do


My menu for this week is super simple, breakfast crockpot, paleo pizza and turkey burgers. Simple right? 

Here are my staples I picked up at Costco this week. Sticking with the turkey, blueberries, eggs, brussel sprouts and this week I added this GINORMOUS bag of kale. I am one of those strange ducks that can actually stand to eat this. I love to chop it up and add it to my salads but this bag is huge so I am splitting it with Jo.

Eggs, blueberries, mushrooms, brussel sprouts, ground turkey and KALE!

Here's the skinny on Kale. Super easy way to cook it. Steam it..I do not have a steamer pan but you can put some in a gallon ziploc with just a touch of water and zap it in the microwave for a few-to your liking. I then get a frying pan throw in some olive oil, a little garlic and red pepper flakes-throw in that kale and get it all wilted. Add a little sea salt and ta daaa!! delicious green side. 
This week-all my recipes are borrowed for the most part. I was SO EXCITED when Maria posted this breakfast crockpot recipe. I didn't have to think twice about the fact that I was absolutely making this and sharing it. 
Super easy to make and honestly I love it when I do not really have to purchase ingredients I had all of them. I cook my crockpot meals in my garage but the aroma of this one-holy cow!! Delicious! I almost wanted to eat it for dinner tonight!

http://optimalnutrition1.blogspot.com/#!/2013/01/sausage-egg-slow-cooker-casserole.html

This is the sausage I opted to use- I did half and half ish you can get this at  Smiths

My seasonings of choice

The finished product. So much better tasting than it looks!!

I sometimes miss pizza. I made this crust about a year ago and I remembered loving it. I use this recipe for the crust only. I add my own ingredients just because I am super picky!
http://everydaypaleo.com/everyday-paleo-pizza/
I love that this crust actually has Rosemary in it. 
My tips, once you have the crust made make sure that you have greased up that pan. Roll the ball and put it in the center of your pan, get your hands wet and push the dough flat from the center you will probably have to wet your hands up a few times to get it all flattened out, then once its to the edges pat the entire crust until it's nice and flat. It tends to be thick in places, I just work with it.

Today I purchased tomato sauce. Just be careful if you choose to be lazy like me and not make your own. There are a few brands of sauce that DO NOT have sugar. Hunts has one of them. I still worry about all of the other crap but again, I was being lazy. 
Then just add the ingredients on top you want. For me today it was turkey burger (about 1/2 package) cooked with some basil, and remember the sausage from the breakfast recipe? I had 3 leftover and I used 1/2 of each kind browned it a little and threw it on top as well. I layered it with kale, mushrooms, yellow squash, red pepper, roma tomatoes, red onion, calamity olives sliced and just about 2 tablespoons of goat cheese. Yes I know it's dairy. This is one occasion where I might splurge a little. 
I pile it high because honestly I push the crust so thin I need to have some substance on top so I feel like I actually ate something!

My veggies.

The amazing finished product

Tips on almond meal. Just use your food processor and grind up whole almonds and make it yourself. I have never tried making this using almond flour in place of almond meal but I would think that you can.

With my leftover turkey I just broiled up a few burgers. I add the same ol seasonings as I do for everything else. I love to use some butter lettuce as my "bun" lots of mustard- a little avocado and occasionally dill pickle slices.

Looking forward to WODDING this week. I am feeling probably 95% better and it will be great to workout feeling a little better.
The open is getting closer and I am getting so excited. I have alot to work on but I am getting stronger and my endurance isn't doing too bad either- LOVE IT. Last week I actually ran some tempos for the first time in a while. Running on the treadmill sucks but I had to get some running in. Can't wait to share this with my friends this week. I think we could actually row this sequence as well. 
Well that's enough for a Sunday. Good luck to everyone this week. 
My tip for the week- (my opinion of course) You can't be all on all the time. You are going to have weak moments. You are going to have off workout weeks. TRUST ME I KNOW. What you have to do is get through it and get back on track. Don't wait a week or 2 weeks or wait for a new month. Turn the page, get over yourself and get right back on track. That's it. It's that simple. 

Have a great week- eat clean and WOD like a boss!

What I ADORE about being a part of an amazing CrossFit Community

My blogging ideas are a little slow this week. So I am super excited that this came up. 

This is one of the MANY things I love about being part of such a valid part of the CrossFit community. 

Last week we wodded to raise funds for the victims of Sandy Hook, in October we participated in Barbells for Boobs selling shirts that were donated to raise funds to pay for mammograms for women in Utah who might not otherwise been able to afford them. These are just a few of the things oh so MANY things that I get to take a part in since making my sisters and brother in law opened this box. 

Here is yet another opportunity for us to pull together and make a difference. This story tugged at my heart strings ALOT. Those of us that have had the opportunity to raise happy healthy children- some to adulthood and some still being raised, have NO idea what this must be like. So this is what I love. I give 30.00 I get a cool t-shirt..I do what I predict to be a wod that will probably suck the attitude right out of me and maybe MAYBE I help contribute to something that might make this families life just a little better. 

So here it is. I invite you to not only purchase a shirt http://dfslifestyle.com/store/ I encourage you to get your butt to CF22  on February 2nd and participate in this WOD. It's always a good time- See detailed info below:

Put yourself into this situation for a minute. You go to bed one night and everything is fine and normal. You have four beautiful children with a baby due in about a month’s time. The next day you wake up and one of your boys isn’t doing to well. You take him to the doctor for what you think is a routine visit. Come to find out that Dr’s visit is about to dramatically alter your life forever!

Meet one of our heroes, Alex. This handsome young man is 5 years old. Alex has what the doctors’ call Glioma, which is essentially a cancerous tumor on his brain stem. This is the most aggressive type of tumor in the worst of places.

We were contacted by Jake to put together a shirt for Alex. I went to the Facebook page for Alex and read the blog they had about him. What an incredible young man. I can’t even being to imagine what he and his family has had to endure this past couple months. I could only think about my own daughter and son while reading this. At that moment I knew that we had to do whatever we could to help this family out.

Alex is just a normal boy who loves boy things. On February 2nd at CrossFit 22 in Bountiful we will be doing a special WOD for Alex. Cancer is stealing his child so together we are going to fight for him, to let him know he is not alone in this fight! Unfortunately the cost of treatment is very expensive. We have created a shirt for Alex to help cover a portion of the cost. 100% of the proceeds will go to Angels For Alex. Please go to dfslifestyle.com/store to donate and buy a shirt to show your support for Alex. Share this with as many people as you can! Let’s help this wonderful family out!

The silhouette is actually of Alex. The little red hand on front symbolizes a child’s hand holding a silver ribbon, which is actually the ribbon for Brain Cancer, the same type of cancer Alex has. The superman symbol on the silhouette is there to show strength, not to mention what little boy doesn’t like Superman. On one sleeve there is a fighter chopper and on the other is a fighter plan to represent the type of fighter Alex is. The theme of “not all angels have wings” is there motto. Please show your support and purchase one of these great shirts for this great family and incredible child! All proceeds will go to Angels for Alex. Shirts are printed on American Apparel 50/50 material.

A idea for a great frozen treat..and why not?

I will start out with a super quick treat idea. I think I actually got this from my sister Amy. Those blueberries that have been so delicious at Costco? Snack bags... fill them...throw them in the freezer...about 3 pm when I am needing that little sweet sugar fix-they seem to do the trick. Its my new favorite thing this week and honestly it helps me to not waste. I can throw whats left in the container into the freezer before they go bad.

This is going to be quick. I don't have alot to blog about. I can only brag every so often about how strong I am getting. Today in a WOD I had to pull a 95# snatch 6 times(also had to pull 12 reps at 85 and 24 reps at 75). AND I DID IT!!! I love Oly lifts. I love everything about them even if my form is not what it needs to be. I am taking an Oly class as often as I can and am hoping to correct some really bad habits that I have.

This is a picture I actually took. I pushed that sled. and I loved it

Someone once asked me why? Why do I "want" to lift heavy weight...to which I replied..."why not?" To me it's really not complicated at all..I push myself-I work on form, I get stronger. If I don't want to get stronger...what am I lifting for? I am always the first person to say that CrossFit isn't for everyone, but it is for me. I have had actually had people seem surprised when I tell them we actually do lift heavy weights at CrossFit or that we have something called "CrossFit totals" which is a combined total of lifts and your goal is to get that number LARGE! Our box actually programs a strength class on Tuesday and Fridays that is designed for exactly that, STRENGTH.
I could care less if you don't think lifting weights is "cool" I am not trying to be cool I am trying to get strong...back to why? because ...that's why. It's usually people that maybe have some major insecurities that ask such silly questions..why..pshaw...again.. WHY NOT???

I have a really good before and after coming up. I am not sure if I will post it this week. It will have good pictures...but the story, is more along the lines of overcoming ones fears than it will be of weight loss or anything weight related.

Happy Hump day..we are almost there!

Here's to good questions and yes..me too..I really am a CrossFitter!

I wasn't going to post today but I had a good question emailed to me so I felt like I wanted to address it. Its in reference to my post giving Ray Lewis kudos but questioning maybe if I didn't say a few negative things about athletes? Clearly someone who doesn't know me at all but for what it's worth.
I was married to an ex-professional athlete for 10 years. I watched my husband struggle with substance abuse amongst other issues and even after we divorced his struggles continued. Without getting into details-he is my sons Father and I often wished that his own Father, former NFL player, former collegiate athlete could have been a better role model. I am blessed  and feel thankful to the good role models my son did have and I am so happy and lucky he turned out as well as he did and I am sad for the way my ex-husbands life turned out. I honestly do not believe that all athletes have issues. That was not my point. My point was to give KUDOS to a great man Ray Lewis. 

I will leave my post with this- read this today-Love CrossFit Lisbeth-I don't know that I need to say much more to it but I think I have a few friends who can really appreciate this!
Words and pic courtesy of CrossFit Lisbeth. 

I don’t own wristwraps. Or socks with sayings on them. Or any compression gear. I have no tattoos and I’ve never puked from a workout. (Came close! But never actually did the deed.)
Some people might look at me and think I’m not a CrossFitter.
I’ve finished first in a WOD only a handful of times – well, other than when I work out alone. (Then, I ROCK that shit. First place all the time, baby!)
Some people might think I’m not a “real” CrossFitter.
I don’t obsess about who lifts the most or who can do the most muscle-ups or who can walk on their hands. But I care a whole lot about who has a big heart, who cheers the others on, and who brings the coach a coffee when she knows he’s having a bad day.
I go as hard as I can, for me, every single day. If we’re not front squatting or overhead squatting, though, I’m working a goat. I have many, many goats. I have so many goats, it’s like a f#cking herd. I should have a staff and a horn.
Today’s results may not be as good as yesterday’s, but they might be better than tomorrow’s. I really can’t predict anything. Sometimes I surprise myself with how strong I am, and sometimes I disappoint myself with how weak I am. Some mornings, my body just can’t handle too many pull-ups, and I have to resort to ring rows. But my effort never flags. It’s always there. I’m here to give, and give some more — and when I don’t think I can keep going, somehow I do. My head and my heart don’t know how to quit. My pedal is not just to the metal but I’m redlining the shit out of this puppy, even if I’m at the back of the pack. If the wheels don’t come off and I don’t crash, it’s going to be a hell of a day.
Oh yeah. I really am a CrossFitter.

Back to Basics..bake that bacon...hero status Ray Lewis...

I will work my way backward through the title today. 
Ray Lewis. A giant of a man. 17 years in the NFL is impressive. I think why I am writing this and posting about it is based on the fact that I was able to catch some interviews today and they were interviewing his teammates about how they felt about him retiring and I was completely impressed with what they had to say and how they talked about what an example he is, a role model, how important family is..etc. In this day and age where it seems professional and former professional athletes (really just athletes in general) can not really be considered role models, some of their lives are downtrodden with issues of substance abuse, domestic abuse, gambling with many ending up broke, broken, incarcerated, deceased, etc. it seems we need more athletes like him to guide the new generation. Just wanted to state I was impressed and moved with how his teammates put him on a pedestal today and kudos to a career that seems long to me in the NFL. 

BACK TO BASICS: This is what you do when you feel like you have gotten slightly "off track" There are always staples that you will find you are going to love. For me? It's either meatloaf of meatballs. Figure out what your "basics" are and get to work on getting them prepped for the week. These are probably items that may not require a real recipe and might even be something you have put your own twist on. Just get back to what's simple and quick. Its really all in the prep that will help get you back and keep you on track.

My menu this week looks a little like this- chicken meatballs with home made tomato sauce and spaghetti squash, crockpot chicken thighs in buffalo sauce with jalapeno cauliflower mash (yes I love this and make it probably 2 times  month) baked sweet potatoes with ground turkey, bacon, avocado and topped with a fried egg (this is a recipe I stole from Andy Gunther) I haven't had this since Fitness Elevated but it's something I always go back to when i haven't had it on overload. 

Andys recipe Sweet Potato on the bottom, ground turkey 1 piece of bacon, avocado and fried egg!

 Recipes go like this-I got this one of Multiply Delicious and it's made with a zucchini pesto which is delicious I just prefer my tomato sauce and spaghetti squash. The things I like about this- the parsley- the carrots in the chicken it's just a different kind of meatball-my tricks? I now cook my meatballs in my mini muffin tin. Makes just the right size meatballs. Here is the recipe and the link should you want to give the zucchini a whirl
http://www.multiplydelicious.com/thefood/2011/08/chicken-veggie-meatballs-with-pesto-zucchini-noodles/

Chicken Veggie Meatballs
1 cup zucchini, chopped (about 1 zucchini)
1 cup carrots, chopped (about 2 medium carrots)
½ cup parsley, coarsely chopped
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup blanched almond flour
1 egg
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon ground pepper
¼ teaspoon chili powder (optional)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350
In a food processor, pulse together the zucchini, carrots, parsley and garlic.
Add almond flour, egg, chicken and pulse.
Then add salt, pepper and chili powder and process until thoroughly combined.
Drop tablespoon size balls of the chicken mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake 23 to 28 minutes.

The crockpot chicken thighs are just a spin off from a recipe I got from Marias website
http://optimalnutrition1.blogspot.com/#!/2012/10/slow-cooker-meals.html

I use boneless skinless thighs and cut off the excess fat and I season them up good and give them a good bath in hot sauce-and when they are cooked I put them on a pan and give them a good broil. These freeze GREAT! Just plan on letting them thaw completely or throw them in a pan with foil and heat them in the oven

With the spaghetti squash you have 2 options- you can bake it- I think today I baked it on 400 for about 20 minutes or you can wrap them after you cut it and scoop out the seeds and microwave them for about 10 minutes. You simply scoop out the goodness and use it as you would pasta or noodles. My tomato sauce is simple as well. I use roma tomatoes, I just cut them up with a red onion some garlic and when I can find good basil I use that-season with some salt and pepper-i just bake that for about 20 minutes approx and then I just throw it in the food processor and give it a quick couple of pulses. If course you can always use bottled but this is super simple to make and you know exactly what's in it.

LASTLY!!! My last thing- BAKE THAT BACON. I forgot how much I prefer doing this than having it cook in a pan. After it bakes to the crispness I like I just take it off lay it on some paper towel and blot it with paper towel. I like to keep some cooked bacon on hand just in case. 

Looking forward to getting back into my routine this week! I am coughing still but I feel at least 75% better! Can't wait to do some comp class and get back into wodding! 

Good luck everyone! Cheers to a healthy and consistent workout week!

Deliriousness on Delsym..

The sickness continues. I finally had to drag myself to InstaCare last night only to find out that I have a virus that can't be treated with antibiotics. Basically I am on a triple mix for my horrible sore throat, which I have to admit..it's the bomb and Delsym. Who knew? I learned through this illness that the basic things we did as kids still work. Throat hurts? gargle with warm salt water. Feel feverish? the old cool towel on the forehead still works to relieve that. I had a moment last night where I was shivering, sweating, puking and crying all at the same time.
I am happy to report today I feel a little bit better. I wouldn't wish this virus on my worst enemy.
Last night I actually played this little game on TV because what else do you do when you are laying around losing your mind...I would switch from station to station and pick out people who I thought would be fun to CrossFit with. That was when I knew I was losing it! I blame it on the meds.
I have wodded ONE time this week. Once. I feel like a slug. I know that I need to rest and if I don't it will just drag on forever. But honestly I feel like I have lost of week of training I will never get back. My goal for this year is to try and finish in the top 100 women in my age group in the CrossFit Games open and losing an entire of week of training freaks me out.
So here is my schpill for today- LISTEN to your body. If you are feeling terrible don't be like me and wait 6 days to get a diagnosis especially if you are getting progressively worse with each day that passes. Rest, fluids, downtime. They all work. ALSO they are talking about this virus on the news so you know it's a big deal.
That's it. That's all I have for this Friday.
I saw someone post this and I loved it so I stole it! LOVE IT!! couldn't agree more!!

DNF's and DFS must go hand in hand...

Being sick SUCKS! I don't think you realize how blessed you are to have good health until you are feeling under the weather. I have spent the better part of the past 5 days laid up on the couch like this...so NOT me..I am way too active to have to deal with trying to rest. First of all my sleep pattern is so interrupted right now I can't see straight. I felt tired so I tried to sleep which was great getting little cat naps, not so great at 1 AM this morning, laying there wide awake knowing I had to go to work in 5 hours. Bleh. Secondly -to get any relief you have to take SOMETHING -I tried Dayquil and then quickly realized it was making me more lethargic than anything. So today I finally just started searching for something other than OTC meds that I could take. EUREKA...I should have realized and remembered what my Mother used to have us do for sore throats when we were kids..good ol gargle with salt water! Its helping ever so slightly!!

Enough with my sickness rant. I don't really have alot of Hey Happy New Years did you write all your resos down?  I just hope REALLY HOPE that if any of them had anything to do with changing your appearance- this doesn't have to be weight loss related mind you- that you took a picture. This is ONE thing I wish that as I started this journey I would have kept better track of. It's something I still need to do to remind myself that even though sometimes I get off track..I have the tools in my tool box to quickly turn that around and the first thing I will do it shoot that "before" pic however slight the change may be-it could be a change that keeps me on track when I want to fail.
So, even though I probably shouldn't have I did go WOD tonight...you can't keep me away from a WOD with a deadlift ..it's my thing-I don't have many movements I can do well but I think if there were 1 movement I do at least better than the rest..it's my sweet deadlifts.
Here's the deal. I have NEVER in my history as a CrossFitter..which is just over 2 years, I have never wanted to just QUIT a WOD as bad as I wanted to quit this one today. It's called a DNF meaning you didn't finish...uh not finish? so sorry that's just not me. I looked around..I grabbed my bar alot..I swore more than 100 times I looked at my sis Liz in desperation as she calmly told me to keep going and shook her head that she understood I was struggling, which normally she would tell me to get moving I can breathe when I am done. This brings me to DFS. Dont F**king stop. You will see this logo on shirts around our box alot-and other places of well but there are alot at CF22-this comes from Garrett Smith. I recommend you "like" his FB page if you haven't already it's another great source to pull inspiration from.
So tonight..I didn't DNF and I DFS'd that wod. So I guess the moral to this story is pretty simple..when you are wanting to DNF (and it's BS if you are sitting there acting like you have never wanted to quit a wod) you simply DFS.
I hope Garrett (and Matt Jensen) do not mind that I grabbed this pic. I love the saying SO MUCH and I love that it's a pic of my sis!!
OH and btw..I am sure some people are probably over me posting pics of my sis and family and such. Well here's the deal- family first- also-I do not pintrest, nor do I instagram and whatever else is out there. So most of my pics will be real pics of real peeps that I actually know.
Weekend is closer than ever!