Actively_Funny

Happy Holidays!!! Christmas has passed. Although not the biggest Christmas fan, this holiday flew fairly smoothly and I do like having some extra days off. Happy times. One thing that I should have thought of was the day that these holidays fell on - Tuesday and Wednesday. My shopping and cooking were affected this week with my last minute holiday shopping. I plan to make better choices for the upcoming New Years week so I don't end up eating out. Nutrition has been positive with the Zone, so all I need to do is go shop! Christmas meal was perfectly delicious and nutritious; kuddos to my family. Exercise speaking, I completed the first cycle of Wendler and I am already 1/2 way into the first week of cycle 2. I've been proud for my general performance in CrossFit; YESS I got on the leader board with Cindy (20min AMRAP of 5 pull ups; 10 push ups; 15 squats)!!! 2nd place with 20rounds + 5 + 10 + 6. Also, my measurements are going the rigth direction (they will be highlighted in one of my photo albums - link below). Today I will work on my bench press and Sunday I'll focus on my back squat. I am excited to continue the second cycle since I have made two modifications to help it become a tougher workout - true to its strength purpose; it has been working! When I began the Wendler program 5 weeks ago, I found out where my 1RM were with the 4 main movements (back squat, military press, bench, and deadlift). After almost 2 months of nothing but work, my numbers fell short. Because I didn't want to get injured, I used these lower numbers to program Wendler. All this caused for cycle 1 to be easier than it should have been. So I made some research, made some serious decisions, and I have made the following changes. Wendler is basically set up with 3 warm up lifts, 2 heavier lifts to prepare my body for the main and final lift, followed by the assisted work of Boring But Big (same movement, lower weight, 5sets of 10). In cycle 1, the transitions felt more of warm-ups. So I set up my app to go heavier on these 2 sets. It has worked very well and I felt much more confident with the final set. Boring But Big was set at 45% of the 1RM number, but that seemed too light. So I followed Wendler's advice and went up to 60% which is definitely making a difference. I am very-very-VERY pleased with these changes and I hope it works for the best. Lastly, my roommates found a lost cat. So we are on the hunt to find his owners. Complicated story, so let's hope we find them sooner than later. That's all! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

So this week is looking positive. I have successfully kept up with the Wendler program, now I am entering onto week 4 which is deloading; a needed break from the heavy stuff in week 3. My perfromance in CrossFit is slowly progressing and that is a good thing. Today, I started my meal plan. 6 meals throughout my day; I must admit that my meals came out delicious. I have to get through this last week of Wendler to take my 4 week measurements and pictures. I do hope I see just a tiiiiiiiiny bit of change. My pants are started to get a little tight around my thighs and calves and the same goes for my shirts and my torso. In either case, I am only 3 weeks into this so I won't be counting on any chicks yet. Happy note: my social life is back on track and I hope to get a clear balance between my friends, my family, my "me time", and meeting new people. While I was out on a first date, I did end up learning a lesson and I MUST start reading again. A very cleaver 8year old boy schooled me this past Sunday when he brought his book to the show I took my date to; he wanted to read between intermission. Well done kid! As for school....well, I am questioning if I should follow my passion (and end up broke and piled with debt) or go for a financially promising career???? Questions...questions. I read two seperate articles/posts having strong arguments for both sides. Oh well, I will make sure to figure all this out.

I'm wrapping up week 2 since returning to my morning lifting routine and CrossFit in the evenings. In terms of my strength - I am still building that back up but my endurance is coming back. It is a happy moment because I am not walking in the gyms with personal doubt. Nutrition was my issues last week - I ate a lot of crap and my body began to draw the line. So last night I got myself cooking. I didn't have a solid plan for my meals but I knew that I had to stop eating out. All in all, I am very pleased with what I created. I might have over-done-it with the amount of food I brought to work, but at least it is giving me areas to fix for tomorrow. The bad thing about cooking for several days out is the time it requires. I started late and I ended late, so my priority for today is to get enough sleep for tomorrow. Ok, that's all.

OK, so a week has passed and I am doing quite well with my workouts. I am shocked that it only took a few CrossFit classes to get my energy and endurance back up to a less shittier state (cosidering how I was when I got back to it). I have been waking up early and have gone to my other gym for my heavy lifts - waking up is more than half the battle for me. The one thing that I need to work on is my nutrition. I know what I need to do, but I need to go and buy it - which is tougher than it sounds. Paying off my debts/loans early has also left me with being financially diabled for a few weeks. It is just a matter of time to really be able to invest in my food. So, for the time being, I am working out. Man o' man, I am sure craving my home-cooked meals now.

Ever since I can remember, I've been told that I could amount to anything and that I would make all my dreams a reality. For many years I believed all that to be true - that I would be everything by just being myself. I set goals, I got excited, I made actions to go after them, then the year passed by. A new year began and I repeated that cycle: set the same goals, get excited, made actions, and time pass by. 2012 was ending and there I was again: goals - excitements - ready to act...then it struck me: I have done nothing. All these years and the goals never change. I keep on giving up half way through. Why? Turns out I’ve been afraid of personal success. I was comfortable in the mediocre zone. I never gave it my all. I gave a 70%. 70% is average – it’s normal. It wasn’t great but it wasn’t horrible, it was enough. Looking back at my life, I gave everything 70%: exercise, relationships, school, hobbies, and, yes, even those goals. I made myself, and others, believe that 70% was my 110. As 2012 began to wrap up, I decided that I was done being afraid of my true potential. So I began to read a year’s worth of emails from a site that was recommended by a fellow CrossFitter: Nerd Fitness. I made the goal to read all those emails – clean out my inbox – by my birthday (Jan. 30). As I read, I was not only accomplishing my task but I was about to start a new life. 2013 began and it was enlightening. I put in the work and I got some goals done. Sure, here and there, I slacked off but I was better. I was giving 85-90%. Life was looking up. Then late July hit, my dog (the best dog that could ever exist for me) got ill. He was just 7 – he was strong, fit, and I was doing better with him (more play, more walks, and started swimming). He got very ill and extremely weak. Surgery was performed and, just like that, I lost my furriest best friend. I was mad and devastated – I imagined him being there right next to me as I accomplished these goals: graduating, getting out of debt, traveling, stepping into a new home, etc. I was in a momentum, I was expecting at least 5 more years out of him. What happened? I had a window of opportunity to go back and give 70% at everything – use sorrow as an excuse to get me back to my comfort zone. But I just stepped back, I focused, I breathed…and I realized that my dog taught me more that I thought. He was sick but always greeted me with a wag of his nub – he was happy every day. At that moment I found my 110%. I am focusing on my dog’s overall awesomeness as a motivator to do the same. Since August 2013, I’ve been on a hunt to accomplish all my goals in memory of my best 4-legged friend. I will admit that I rather have him here but I know I can’t. So I push through and the feeling is quite kick ass. I will not have my dog next to me as I do all this, but I will have him to thank for me getting though these goals. As of last week (mid November 2013), I was officially debt free (one of my main goals). Now it is time to get this transformation and I will log it here along the way. =)

Month and a half later, I'm finally back. About 2 weeks ago, I logged on to post an update but I ran out of time and lost my draft. That update had details on how work got out of control but I took deep breaths to stay calm, the plan I implemented, and the sacrifices that I made to successfully be on top of my work and regain a sense of control over my life. Also, I wasn't able to successfully complete my first challenge since I was focusing my days around work and sleep. All in all, the month of July, as far as I knew, was a bad month and August was going to be the month of my comeback. Regrettably, I wish I was still in July because several days ago I lost my boxer Pepino to a awful side-effect from a surgery he had. He was 7 and he had at least 3-5years left in him. I was angry, I was in denial, I was trying to negotiate with life, I was mourning, and now I'm starting to leave sadness to get to acceptance and peace with the loss. With that said, I have several plans to celebrate my dog's life, his memory, and the lessons that he has taught me in these 7 years. Before his passing, I joined my CrossFit peers in The Whole Life Challenge . This is basically a 8week challenge that mimics NF's 6 Week Challenge and CrossFit's Paleo Challenges. Only difference is that I am putting my money where my goals are and, to be credited for my efforts, I must log in my days' efforts daily. Aside from the challenge in the program, my CrossFit is also taking this as a challenge within our box (gym). I don't need to win, but I do need to be successful. Now that I am better walking to peace with Pepino's death, I am getting clarity and energy back to approach this challenge with everything I got. Ok, that was it. I didn't want people to assume that I up and left this community because I haven't. I'm just in a process of overcoming some rough times. But next time I post, will be with strength and more determination. Good luck for those participating in the new 6 Week Challenge!!!

If suggestions for a meet-up are still being thrown out there - how about bouncy dogde-ball? I've been finding many groupons on this. It's basically dodge-ball with trampolines! And if some drinking would happened afterwards then why not.

I've been MIA for the past month and a half, but I am from NW Burbs of Chicago (Schaumburg aka Ikea-Land). A meet up of Nerds would be fun.

How does: running around like a chicken without a head sound? My visit to New York was beyond awesome but coming back has been awful - haven't gone online until RIGHT NOW. Last night I called off my second job to stay extra at the office (almost 4 hours extra, & not getting a penny extra - the bad side of salary). I arrived today and it felt as if I had never put any extra time to catch up. All this is a collection of back-to-back situations where my work has been compromised. Before leaving for New York I had a plan - something that will help smooth everything over during my absence. Unfortunately a couple of days before my trip, our company lost all power. We lost a day and a half of work. The day right before my trip (a day I had off) resulted in me going in to do as much as I could. Sucky part - only half of my time was actually work. The rest was sitting at my desk trying to manage a way to start the computers with a minimal power source we had. So my planning went into a burning fire and hippies danced around it. I knew it was going to be bad when I get a call from my boss during my trip to help them with some projects. Then as I arrive, the president of the company has a brilliant idea of delaying everyone's work in order to implement an procedure that has been only 50% thought of (literally - that is how it went). So my schedule has been bad. My time to eat have been compromised. My gym time has been affected. The time I have managed to have I have used to get back on my meal plan, exercise, and walk the dogs. Sadly, this wasn't at all how I wanted my last weeks to end. But I keep a reminder to face the challenge head on because this will only be temporary. Next Tuesday is the only day I will actually be able to put in extra hours at the office. All other days I work at my 2nd job. Well I have to get back. I just wanted to drop a update. .

OK, this is how I cooked this. Keep in mind that I have only been, seriously, cooking for several months now (so I am no expert). Ingredients: - Sweet potato - Coconut Oil - Sweet onion - Mushrooms (sliced, baby bella I think I used) - Ground Cinnamon - Ground Cheyenne So I... 1. Washed/rinsed the sweet potato 2. Cut it's edges 3. Cut the potato in chunks (half an inch or so) - I left the skin on 4. I put a bit of coconut oil on a pan and let it heat up on medium-high. 5. I coated the sweet potato chunks in olive oil, added cinnamon, and some cheyenne for a kick 6. Placed the coated/seasoned sweet potato on the pan and allowed them to cook. I flipped them around once it seemed that they needed it. I wasn't sure what to look for aside from the potato to gain some darker color and get smooth. I tossed them more frequently as they became softer - I didn't want them to burn. After that, I set them apart in the plastic container you see above. 7. In the same oil/pan, I added a bit more coconut oil and put the mushrooms in. 8. Once the mushrooms are in the pan for a while, I add the onion and mix them all together. 9. Once the onion hits my desired "look" - nice and caramelized. I took them out and mixed them in with the sweet potato. I just finished eating them and they were DELICIOUS!!! I was quite proud of my efforts. Onion and mushrooms were there but they weren't empowering the sweetness of the potato and cinnamon. The potato was so soft but not mushy. Hope that helps.

Thanks! I realized last night that I should start my Sunday cooking earlier in the day. Nice job on the grilling - I love grilled ANYTHING!

UPDATE: Last week was the heaviest Wendler week in Cycle 1. Basically what this week does is grabs the 90% of my 1 rep max, then uses 90-95% of that new number to generate the heavy week (or something like that). In either case, the goal is to get at least 1 rep in. My results were: Shoulder Press - 80lbs - 6 reps Deadlift - 285lbs - 5 reps Bench Press - 145lbs - 8 reps Back Squat - 215lbs - 3 reps *I actually stopped short here because I felt a "pop" on my lower back. My numbers should have gone from 6-8 reps. This could be a consequence from my lack of sleep. Yes, I do. After getting the "pop" on my lower back during the heavy back squat on Friday, I made a mental note to fix my sleeping routine. I can't possibly improve when my body isn't fully recovered. My body also broke down - I over slept for 4/5hours on Saturday. Shitty part: I struggle to just "rest". I am always on the move, and if I am not I get extremely anxious. This was proven this weekend when I could have had 2 full days of rest but I ended up taking my dog to a last minute therapy swim (more on that below), lunch with friends, party with other friends, went to bed late, woke up early, went to the CrossFit Galt Games with a break in between for mimosas and brunch, then dinner with friends, then grocery shopping, washing dishes, cooking...then sleep. UGH! My thoughts exactly. For dinner, I usually make myself a steak and veggies. Since I am not a fan of reheating steaks, I leave my late night meals to be cooked that same night. BUT, my body is much more important than non-reheated steaks. So, last night after arriving from a LONG and hot day, I got myself into the kitchen (11pm). My thought was if I didn't start cooking at that moment then I will just screw my week even worse. So I started preparing for my 3.5 work week (I leave for New York on Friday morning!!!). My kitchen looked like this: Cinnamon Sweet Potatoes - for mid day lunch Salad - mixed greens, celery, carrots, pears, kiwis (not pictured) Protein: Steaks for dinner, 2 chicken breasts for lunch (I'm trying to gain weight) Mushrooms & Sweet onions - added to the cinnamon sweet potatoes Water & protein, ready for the morning. (NOT PICTURED): Kiwis, Avocado, steamed broccoli So, I have made a mental note for myself to take the steaks & broccoli and heat them and consume them within 30mins of arriving home. After that is complete I will rush to bed and work on gaining 1.5hrs extra of sleep. Sadly after all of this, I went to bed at 2:30am (adding dinners to my Sunday cooking plan plus learning how to cook sweet potato added more time than I was expecting). Today I forgot to turn on my alarm so I over slept and didn't walk the dogs (which I was really looking forward to last night) and missed my morning workout. One of my SMART goals was to start taking Pepino to swim clinics and that is what I decided to act on this week. Here are some pictures of his adventures. Pepino has another visit this Thursday before leaving. Once I arrive back, I will take him for another class. Currently this place I went to is in the process of changing management so they are not offering their package deals until everything has been transitioned. At this point my schedule is going to be hectic: 3 straight days of working from 9am-11pm. Thankfully, I have my meals ready to save some time and add to my sleep. Also, I am on week 4 of Wendler which is a rest/deloading week so the workouts should be quick and easy (I could be done in 15mins).Oh yeah, and I have the mentality to continue to push through....so I will continue working on my goals until I get a smooth rhythm going for me. Anyway, that was an update on myself. I got several compliments on my arms which is nice...means Wendler is definitely taking effect. Time to get back to work and eat all this food.

I get some motivational words (and pictures) through a page on Facebook called "Razones Para Estar en Forma" (RPEEF) which translates to "Reason To Stay Fit". This FB got popular enough that it resulted in this simple website: http://rpeef.com/ Although this is in Spanish, the words are equally powerful/motivational. Reason # 195 to stay fit: Because persistence is a virtue, not a defect.

Props man. Side tats hurt like a motha (talking from personal experience). Happy healing!

I'm also on track. I am finding myself doing these burpees at night, before and after my heavy lifting. It works well especially since I am doing all this around 11:30pm. When I arrive at the gym, I warmup with burpees. By the time I am done with the heavy stuff, I will knock out the # of burpees for the new day. 2 days in 1hr. =)