Wonderful is wonderful

I started Crossfit workouts in November of 2009, right before Crossfit ATP became totally Crossfit. I went sugar free on July 5th, 2011. I promptly lost 12 pounds in 30 days. I also cut out most of the bread and all the diet soda at that same time. After those 30 days I felt great, happy where I ended up...

Then I hear about this Stronger/Healthier Challenge at the gym. It's a 6-week contest and you have all these different components that are a part of it. Weight loss, BMI and Body Fat reduction, a benchmark workout, a timed mile run, and a journal requirement. Everything that goes into your mouth and all your workouts need to be recorded. The Grand Prize is a FREE 1-year membership to the gym...a.k.a. An Incredible Savings. I am very competitive and was so successful with going sugar free that I went for it. What an amazing experience. It was difficult and I do really want a milkshake right now, but I will get over it. I also had the opportunity to do it with the most amazing people! Everyone looks so SEXY now!!! I mean...I don't know what the Hard Rock is going to do with all of us on Saturday night.

Win or lose...I already won. Hello jeans from high school. You are now too dated to wear outside the closet but you fit like a glove (and not like ithey would fit on O.J.). I have to buy all new clothes. Winner, winner...grilled chicken dinner.

The blog postings before this are my journal...enjoy!

Lala

FINAL DAY - Results!!!

To say that this has been an amazing and difficult but rewarding journey would sum up this experience for me. On 3 hours of sleep after a back-breaking 5 days of manual labor (behind the scenes sets to set up) and a flight home from Jamaica (I want to go back!!!) these are my results.

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

Lunch with Mom at Angus on Hlwd. Blvd. Yes, I ate a piece of bread with chimichurri...que rico!
Churrasco with veggies and a salad with EVOO and balsamic vinegar
Zona Fresca Chicken Cali Wrap and some tortilla chips...it is the end of the contest and I KILLED IT today.

WHAT I WORKED OUT TODAY:

First, let's recap what we did on Day 3, the 'Benchmark workout' on 8/17/11:

Weight - 173


These are my new times for the 2nd attempt of the timed mile and 'Barbara' WOD:

Weight - 159 1/2

BMI - Dropped 2%

Body Fat - Dropped 2%

I bettered my mile time by 1:09 minutes (this is the one that amazed me the most) and I bettered Barbara by 1:22 minutes (on 3hrs sleep folks!)

There is one last post to come. I need to put this entire experience into writing.

Day 42 - 9/25/11

Today is the FINAL day of the contest as well as my final day in Jamaica. I am so tired, exhausted even that it hurts so much! Today there will be no WOD. I am going to paddle board after the shoot and have some fun while working out. Yes, I did a headstand on the board and was totally awesome!!!

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

Coffee with cream and Splenda

A banana (this is a FUNNY picture!!!)
Fruit smoothie *no sugar added
Lunch was HUGE. Curried conch, jerk chicken, salad, cheese, rice&peas, potato.

Finished lunch off with some fruit!

Beer after the last set was broken down and we went paddle boarding for about a hour...awesome workout!

Seaweed salad at dinner.

Miso horny soup

Tepenyaki style shrimp, fish, beef and chicken with fried rice. Very salty and I didn't finish it all.

Life is beautiful!

Day 41 - 9/24/11

Saturday. Photo shoot. Last 2 days of this contest. Exhausted. Drained. Spent. Tired. Happiest girl on the planet. My cup is full...spilling over even. I feel like 1 million buckaroos...

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

One quick watermelon piece while moving stuff (notice I am moving at the same time I am snapping) because I was starting to feel shady with nothing in my stomach.

Glass of apple juice. Had to do it. I was dying. Very low blood sugar. This is indicative of the need to EAT solid food

! Smoothie with fruit, ice, and some OJ. It's HOT here!!!
Finally breakfast. Eggs, watermelon, pineapple, plantain (boiled)
Roasted pork and potatoes for dinner. Really good. I ate a salad too but you can't tell by the pictures...a bit too dark.

Dinner with hummus and pita appetizer

WHAT I WORKED OUT TODAY:

Hedonism gym workout. Love working out with my ass facing the glass windows in one direction and mirrors in the other. This was awesome. My ass in serious pain from all the V-sit ups I have been doing. SO GLAD I brought the jump rope!!!

Day 40 - 9/23/11

Contest final days...and this photo shoot is KICKING my ASS!!! I did not work out today because I am exhausted and I spent the ENTIRE day moving sets from location to location dripping sweat and running, taking the stairs two at a time and carrying the heaviest things I could get for each task to get a better work out even though I didn't WORK OUT...get it? Hope you do...

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

A HUGE egg white omelet with callaloo, fresh watermelon, and a half English muffin with peanut butter to help get me to lunch.
Lunch of mostly salad, fish and a piece of cocoa bread (I am in Jamaica after all...)
More salad and fish. I can't stay away from that cocoa bread...

Tomorrow is a new day! This is tough to do with this schedule....looking forward to some rest.
See how good I look in my bathing suit...? Almost NO sign of that bitch, Cellulite! Let's kick it into the highest gear for the last two days!!!

Day 39 - 9/22/11

Good Morning from Jamaica!!! What a beautiful place! I am hungry today and looking forward to getting to work on this photo shoot!

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

2 cups of Jamaican coffee with 2 Sweet and Low and 1 Creamer (powdered - yuck!)

2 egg whites + 1 whole egg and LOTS of veggies and callaloo, pineapple, and honeydew.

Jerk Chicken with steamed callaloo and veggies from Negril's PushCart...awesome dinner!
Shot of something I can't remember what it was and 3 Vokda Sodas. Yes, I drank because I NEEDED IT! This photo shoot is NO JOKE. All day up and down stairs and walking through the resort with heavy things. A WOD in itself...

WHAT I WORKED OUT TODAY:

Today I worked out with a new partner...Lindell! The workout proved too tough for him and BOY did he have stuff to say before we worked out...but he did great! Looking forward to tomorrow's workout.

Day 38 - 9/21/11

Today I leave for the photo shoot in Jamaica. I do not know if and when I will be able to eat today so I am packing the leftovers from dinner last night for the flight. Hopefully I will be able to figure something out for dinner. I MUST WORK OUT TONIGHT BECAUSE THERE ARE NO MORE 'OFF' DAYS UNTIL THE END OF THIS CONTEST...No rest for this champion!!!

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

One giant cup of coffee with 1 tbsp HWC and 2 Sweet Things in the morning

Leftover fajitas from dinner last night. Cheese, beef, and veggies. It is bad that this is all I ate today but the only other alternative was DEEP FRIED KFC (Jamaica does not bake their chicken!) or a granola bar so I decided not to eat in favor of a big breakfast tomorrow.

WHAT I WORKED OUT TODAY:

This was SUPER FUN! I did it barefoot on the beach and I realized that I have 2 HUGE blisters on the bottom of each of my feet!!! Painfully accomplished!

Day 37 - 9/20/11

OK...now we are moving and shaking. I am getting creative with the pictures now just because I am SURE you are TIRED of seeing the same coffee cup on the same cutting board every morning! Today I would like to introduce you to Mr. Ted E. Bear. I have had him since I was in Middle School and doesn't kick me in the middle of the night while I am sleeping so I will keep him around a little longer....
2 cups of coffee with a total of 4 Sweet Thing and 2 tbsp HWC.

A very ripe banana that was lovely. Want not, waste not. One more day and that would have been bread-worthy.

Lunch was weird today because I am running last minute errands for the JAMAICA trip tomorrow!!! A peach! and...
Some almonds. These are weird almonds. I am going to finish the bag but won't buy them again. Skinless almonds just doesn't sound good. Sorry.

Chips and salsa at La Bamba for dinner...no margaritas tonight.
2 Beef fajitas with cheese, guac, lettuce, pico di gallo, sour cream and grilled veggies

Mug of ice cream and one of those Sugar Free Reese's Cups

WHAT I WORKED OUT TODAY:

I took tonight off to have dinner with my sister and I do not feel bad about it. Tomorrow I am off to Jamaica and it will be tough to have a regular schedule for eating and working out...

Day 36 - 9/19/11

Day 36...or the Beginning of the End. Today marks the beginning of the 6th and FINAL week of this challenge...and it has been JUST that. Incredibly challenging on many levels - Physically, Mentally, and Spiritually draining...but with small victories throughout. I am definitely tired of photographing everything that goes into my face, but people are mostly used to it by now and don't even ask why and doing that actually helps me make better choices (*especially when I go out to eat). I know that no matter what I have already won. I am a winner. My high school SIZE 8 jeans fit. Winner. BOOM. Winner.

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

1 1/2 cups of coffee (I couldn't finish it before it got too cold to drink) with 3 Sweet Thing and 2 tbsp. HWC

Lunch at RUSTIC INN!!! I went with the Grilled shrimp lunch and double veggies. Very gassy (what? T.M.I.?)...but it was tasty. Like I said before, the sweet taste of victory kind of tastes like grilled shrimp...LOL!

I ate a peach on the way to pick up dinner because I left my H2O bottle somewhere and I was PARCHED! It was SO good!!!

Zona Fresca...Chicken Cali Wrap. I don't even want to know how many of these things I have had in the last 6 weeks...at least 6, I am sure. I ate most of all of it. Left a little of the tortilla behind. I am not giving up my ZONA!!!

WHAT I WORKED OUT TODAY:

Happy Birthday Scott is right!!! Including the warm-up it was a total of 612 reps! I did not DNF! I did not Rx. I finished in 41:23 and it was incredibly difficult to NOT stop. Need to work on Toes-to-Bar and pullups!!! IT felt good to lift a little lighter and work on my speed today...Sweaty Betty for sure!!!

Day 35 - 9/18/11

What a headache I woke up with today...yikes. Note to self: drinking red wine in the sun with a peach and some almonds in your stomach needs to be avoided in the future...It WAS a fun party and I had a great time though so...no regrets!

WHAT I ATE TODAY:

Half of an egg wrap with cheese and sausage that Nicole brought me (which is just what the doctor ordered)
Then we went to Bokamper's to watch the Bills SPANK Oakland and I had 3 Black and Tan's (Half Yeungling and Half Guinness)
Smoked Fish dip that I split with Nicole
We split this to and each took half. I ate half of my half and few sweet potato fries (Eyes bigger than stomach syndrome)

Dinner was grilled flank steak and homemade Chimchurri and steamed broccoli.

Mussels in white wine, tomato, EVOO, onion, garlic, and jalapeno.

This was a great way to end the weekend. Happy Girl.