CrossFit + Paleo Challenge

First thing: I started CrossFit on September 7th, 2012 and it changed my life! I also know it is still actively changing my life! I cannot even imagine not doing CrossFit at this point! I know that my experience with it is not unique, but it has become such an important part of my daily routine! I go five mornings each week and take the weekends off. In just under six months of CrossFit, my body has become so much stronger and capable of things that I thought I couldn't do! I can do kipping handstand pushups as prescribed (even like 50 of them in a workout!), I have my bar muscle ups (working SO hard on my ring ones!), Fran RX'd (although be it very slowly), and deadlifted 215 pounds last month!

Although I'm thrilled with my progress, I also have so many more goals! I want to lift heavier and get faster. I want to push 100% at the box each day. I love that CrossFit is always challenging and there's always something to improve on! I also love the community that cheers me on when I'm the last to finish a workout, or that celebrates with each other when someone gets a PR!

My gym is also wrapping up a two month long paleo challenge. This was a great experience for me, as I'm already mostly paleo anyway. However, my biggest challenges were no dairy (outside of the challenge I drink non-homogenized full fat milk and occasionally kefir or yogurt and goat cheese or cheese from grass fed cows) and no paleo baked goods! I LOVE baking paleo friendly treats and plan to post more of my adventures on here when the challenge is over. Additionally, I was trying not to eat as many nuts as I usually do, due to their higher omega-6 content and less fruit because of the sugar in it.

 I love the way I feel with no sugar, and after the challenge, I am looking forward to experimenting with sugar free chocolate (using stevia or erythritol) or very low sugar chocolate with a bit of local honey. I also want to bake more with coconut flour instead of almond flour, although I am not giving up my almond flour chocolate chip cookies! :)




Here's a typical breakfast for me, which I've been enjoying while typing this. Two scrambled organic eggs, 2 slices nitrate free turkey bacon, sauteed broccoli in lots of coconut oil, 1/4 avocado. Also, coffee with coconut oil mixed in! (Sounds weird, but is so delicious and healthy!) Obviously, the paleo diet is about nourishing your body correctly and not some horrible weight loss fad that fights your physiology.












Lastly, I was also enjoying my new BCAA's that I ordered this week. They are from SDC Nutrition which is a local Pittsburgh company. I purchased them on a friend's recommendation with the hope that they would help me be less sore and recover faster from CrossFit workouts. They definitely seem to be helping (for which I am grateful!), but I've only been supplementing with them for a week. They honestly don't taste great, but that's not really why I'm taking them. It's kind of like medicine for my muscles. Haha! I do like that it is sugar free, although I'm not crazy about it being sweetened with sucralose. I feel like it has to be possible to make one using stevia or erythritol, but obviously I'm not a food scientist. Anyway, not to be negative; I am really grateful that it seems to be speeding up my recovery time. My body was really hurting for several weeks, despite doing everything I could with nutrition (including post WOD) and trying to sleep at least 7.5 hours a night!

So, to sum up my post: CrossFit and Paleo eating ROCK MY WORLD. :)