Recipe and Quote of the Day!

So I love deviled eggs...well eggs in general. I could probably eat them at every meal. Well I'm always looking for different egg recipes. I recently had deviled eggs so I thought I look up some paleo recipes and share. I found this recipe on paleo plan it has two of my favorite things in it.

Guacamole Deviled Eggs!

Ingredients:

Ingredients (for 8 devils):

• 4 hard boiled eggs
• 1 avocado
• 2 teaspoons hot sauce
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• salt & pepper to taste (optional)
• 8 thin slices smoked beef/roast beef

Directions:

Peel and halve the eggs and spoon their yolks into a bowl. Mash the yolks with the avocado, hot sauce, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Refill egg whites with the yolk mixture. Drape smoked beef slices on top, and serve!

Quote of the Day!

"Life is too short to spend your precious time trying to convince a person who wants to live in gloom and doom otherwise. Give lifting that person your best shot, but don't hang around long enough for his or her bad attitude to pull you down. Instead, surround yourself with optimistic people."
Zig Ziglar

Instructi

Ingredie

Ingredients

Day 49 of the Nutrition Challenge

Tuesday good ol Tuesday!!!

One more day closer to Eamon's pool bash!! I can't wait for this Saturday!! Heading to Chyanna Dolls to buy my new 4th of July bikini - it's going to be awesome!!!

Breakfast:

2 cups of my usual coffee

Lunch:

Claim Jumpers:

Cobb Salad with 5oz of grilled steak, eggs, olives, avocado, bacon pieces, cheddar cheese, lettuce & tomato. 2 tbsp of ranch dressing and 1 tbsp of balsamic vinaigrette.

WOD:

21-15-9

pull ups

shoulder press

Time: 8:51

3 attempts max double unders

87, 2, 68

Abs: 120 reps of GHD sit ups straight and side

Dinner:

6oz of coconut pork (leftovers)

I wasn't exactly hungry and contemplated not eating but I figured I should eat something.

Recipe and Quote of the Day!

Considering I've had bbq chicken the last couple of days and have used sauce from lucille's bbq I figured that's not exactly paleo!! I found a recipe that I can use for next time.

Zesty Paleo BBQ sauce

Ingredients:
- 1 6oz can tomato paste (preferable organic)
- 1 to 1.5 cups of beef stock (I made my own but if you buy, you want it without salt)
- 3 Cloves Garlic
- .5 of an onion
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons chili powder

Directions:
1. Dice your onions and garlic as fine as possible. You want your BBQ sauce a little chunky but the more fine you dice these, the better the flavor will spread through the entire sauce.
2. Combine all ingredients in a sauce pan. Whether you use 1 cup or 1.5 cups of beef stock will depend on how thick you want your sauce.
3. Bring sauce to heat on stove with a low setting.
4. Cover and simmer. Stir frequently and taste regularly. The longer you simmer, the more consistent your flavor will be. I simmered for 20-30 minutes.
5. Enjoy!

Extra can be stored in refrigerator.

Quote of the Day

"In everything I do, I love the mental challenge, the competition, the environment, there is something so relaxing about it!"

Day 48 of the Nutrition Challenge

Oooohhh Monday's!!!!

It's going to be another busy week!!

Breakfast:

7 blackberries

1 egg

2 egg whites

2 TJ's turkey bacon

1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

1 cup of my usual coffee

Strength WOD:

Back squat 10x3 60kg

1 power squat into 3 overhead squats 5x3 35kg

Reverse Hypers 3x12 130lb

100 ghd sit ups

Lunch:

4 oz of rotisserie chicken

WOD:

4 rounds

15 pull ups

12 burpees

9 dumbbell ground to overhead 25lb

Post WOD:

Protein Shake

1.5 scoops protein

7 blackberries

1 tbsp almond butter

16oz of almond milk

Dinner:

8 oz of grilled bbq chicken

large side salad

guacamole with approx 10 chips

Recipe and Quote of the Day!

As it gets warmer and warmer I like to have different things with fruit for breakfast or for a small snack in the afternoon. I found a recipe for a great way to make cream to go with some berries.

Paleo Berries and Cream

Ingredients (using 1 can of coconut milk ~4 servings)
- 1 can of GOOD quality coconut milk (not the light version). Chilled in the fridge for 2 days.
- 1 tsp ground vanilla beans – you can get whole vanilla beans at Whole Foods or Mother's
- the zest of 1/2 an orange
- the juice of 1/4 an orange
- berries or any fruit that you want to top with cream

Directions:

1. Make sure your coconut milk has been chilled. If you didn’t do that, pop it in the freezer for a couple hours to speed up the chilling process.
2. The cream from the coconut should have separated from the water and be sitting at the top of the can. Carefully scoop it out into a bowl and don’t include any water.
3. Add the vanilla, orange zest and squeeze of juice.
4. Using a hand mixer (you must use a hand mixer….sorry folks, there is no other way), whip the cream until it fluffs up a bit (about 3 min).
5. Serve immediately or chill in the fridge for later use. This is also great topped with some toasted coconut shreds and your favorite nuts!

Quote of the Day!

"Until you commit your goals to paper, you have intentions that are seeds without soil."

Day 46 & Day 47 of the Nutrition Challenge

Saturday Fun night & Sunday rest day!

I fasted all day Saturday until dinner.

Saturday WOD:

Team WOD

Individual 1 mile run

150 burpees

150 box jumps

150 weighted lunges (25lb)

3000m row

AB

30 seconds on of 2 touch situps/15 seconds of bicycles 6 rounds

Dinner:

Poki appetizer salad

Turkey cobb salad w/1 tbsp of ranch dressing

3 sweet potato fries

At montanas

I drank a captain & diet

2 patron shaken over ice

Sunday:

Breakfast:

usual coffee

1 egg

2 egg whites

2 TJ bacon

3 onions

1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

Lunch:

Vente Cafe Americano

3 squirts of sugarfree hazelnut

heavy cream over ice

Dinner:

some chips guacamole

grilled chicken

side salad - yum!

3 lemon cake bites

3 beers :-/

Day 45 of the Nutrition Challenge

Training filled Friday!!

So excited for today because I am sub trainer at RXD all day!! Yay!!

No Breakfast except my usual coffee

Lunch:

El torito grilled chicken fajitas

WOD:

AMRAP 20 min

10 push press

15 24in box jumps

10 ring dips (dam these get hard after a few rounds)

7 rds

Dinner:

Rosine's

1/2 roasted chicken

babaganoush

ratatouille

Recipe and Quote of the Day!

Staying on the lunch idea recipes here's another recipe you can whip up and take with you on the go.

Curried Chicken Salad Wraps

Ingredients (makes 3 servings):

- 1 whole cooked chicken – meat removed from the bone and shredded/chopped
- 3 celery stalks – chopped
- ¼ onion – chopped
- ½ red pepper – chopped (you could use a fruit here instead…pineapple or apple would work well)
- 1 + ½ or 2 avocados – very ripe
- 2 Tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- Juice of ½ a lemon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Romaine leaves for the wraps (optional)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine chicken and veggies.
2. In a small bowl, mash the avocado with the spices and lemon juice – mash/mix well to create a creamy texture
3. Mix together the mashed avocado curry mixture with the chicken and veggies. Mix thoroughly.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste
5. Serve in lettuce wraps or on a bed of greens. When I served mine on a salad I used extra lemon juice to liquefy it a bit more.
6. Enjoy!

Quote of the Day!

"You are the way you are because that's the way you want to be. If you truly wanted to be any different, you would begin the process of changing now!"

Day 44 of the Nutrition Challenge

Twisted Vine Thursday!

Stood up a little late last night (3am) but still managed to wake up at 8:30!! I'm drinking my first cup of coffee and still trying to wake up.

Breakfast:

1 egg

2 egg whites

3 stalks of green onion

2 TJ's turkey bacon

1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

My usual 2 cups of coffee (maybe 3 today)

WOD:

Power cleans 5x3 55kg x 3 & 60kg x 2

3 Front squats + 1 jerk 3 times 50kg

S ring pulls w/stability ball 3xmax 19,17,17

Ball slams w/40lb ball 50 reps for time 3:28

50x5 double under intervals 5:10

100 GHD sit ups

Lunch:

1/2 roasted chicken

side salad w/yogurt sauce

Dinner:

The Twisted Vine

I ate a bunch of random shit!!!

grilled chicken salad primarily (shared it with the Homie!)

some meatballs

some different meats

some brie cheese bread

some amazing peanut butter, banana & honey panini! WOW seriously I don't think anything gets better than this! I think I will have it for my birthday cake this year!

Some amazing wine!! I don't exactly know how many glasses I had as it was never empty :-/ but I didn't get wasted or anything drove home so it wasn't "that" much!

Day 43 of the Nutrition Challenge

Fried butt Wednesday!!

So I got a little too much sun on my backside yesterday and I'm feeling it today!! Ouch!! I feel like I'm radiating a red glow around my entire backside - Haha

Breakfast:

2 cups of coffee with heavy cream and stevia

2 TJ's turkey bacon (can I just say how much I love the way bacon smells)

1 egg

2 egg whites

3 stalks of green onion

sauteed in 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

Lunch:

1/2 of my usual protein shake

WOD:

400m run

100 pushups (not modified)

50 walking lunges

800m run

100 situps (ouch my burned backside didn't like this at all!)

50 squats

1200m run

Time: 25:32

Dinner:

My coconut pork ribs!! YUM!! See previous posts regarding the recipe!

11oz of pork

1 cup light coconut milk

1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

1/4 cup of almond flour

3 cups of mixed broccoli, cauliflower, squash sauteed in 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

added 1/2 cup of coconut milk to the saute after. It was YUMMY!!

Here is a picture of my dinner!

Recipe and Quote of the Day!

Sometimes lunch can be hard for people considering most are busy working. If you don't pack your lunch you're forced to eat out. I figured I search for some lunch recipes you can make to take with you on the go for lunch. I found this recipe from Cosmo Primal Girl.

Lemon-Basil Chicken Salad in Radicchio Wraps

Ingredients (makes 8 Radicchio Wraps)
- 2 cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts – shredded or cut in small pieces
- 1 radicchio
- 2 celery stalks – cut into small pieces
- 1/4 C chopped basil
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder (or fresh minced garlic)
- salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Carefully peel and separate the leaves from the radicchio. Soak them in cold water for a 1-2 minutes – this will help to crisp them up so they maintain their curves. Let them dry.
2. In a bowl mix together the chicken, celery and basil
3. In a small bowl mix together olive oil, garlic powder, lemon juice, salt and pepper
4. Pour the dressing into the chicken salad and mix
5. Scoop some of the chicken salad into the radicchio wrap.
6. Enjoy!

Quote of the Day!

I deserve all good in my life and I accept it now!

Day 42 of the Nutrition Challenge

Tuesday - A nice day to go to the beach!!

Breakfast:

2 eggs

2 egg whites

onions and mushrooms sauteed in 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil

1/4 avocado

my usual coffee!

Yay - I got some sun today! Although my backside now feels like I'm radiating heat off of it! I accidentally got a little burned! Hahahaa

Lunch:

Poke salad! The salad was amazing! Yum!

Lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, edamame, tuna, 2 tbsp of dressing

WOD:

Strength:

5x3 overhead squats 105, 115, 120, 125

10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1

deadlifts @ 165lb

burpees

deadhang pullups

Dinner:

al pastor tacos

a few chips & salsa :-/

Recipe of the Day!

Since it's summer weather out and I like to drink and eat things that aren't super hot etc. I thought I'd share a breakfast smoothie recipe. I've made this in the past but I don't have the ingredients to make it today which now kind of bums me out because it sounds so delicious! I randomly found this picture hahaha!

When I make this for breakfast, I also make some eggs to go with it for protein. Don't forget your protein people!!!! (2 eggs & 2 egg whites)

Mango and Flax Seed Shake

Ingredients

-½ cup diced mango
-1tbs almond meal
-1tbs ground flax seeds
-1 passion fruit pulp
-2/3 cup water
-2 ice cubes

Instructions

-Place all ingredients into a blender and blend on high speed for 30 seconds.

Quote of the Day!

"Wisdom tends to grow in proportion to one's awareness of one's ignorance."

Anthony de Mello

Recipe and Quote of the Day!

I was looking for a new breakfast recipe and I have some zucchini so this is what I found from wheatfreedairyfreebreakfastrecipes.com

Paleo Breakfast Zucchini Pancakes

Paleo vegetable pancake recipe. Start you morning with this Paleo nutritious recipes. Serve with bacon or ham with a side of fresh fruit. Top off with a tall glass of fresh fruit or vegetable juice to taste. PaleoBreakfast Recipe



Paleo Zucchini Pancakes



Ingredients:

- 1 medium size zucchini

- 1 medium size green onion

- 1 large egg

- Salt to taste

- Pepper to taste

- 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil for frying

Prepare:

- Grate zucchini into a small bowl.

- Finely chop 1 green onion and mix with the zucchini.
- Combine 1 large egg into the bowl and mix thoroughly adding salt and pepper to taste.
-Spoon three mounds of the zucchini mixture into the pan and fry until lightly browned, pressing down to flatten. Flip and while second side is browning,

Quote of the Day!

"Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can."

Day 41 of the Nutrition Challenge

Motivated Monday! - Now amended to Mad Monday! :-)

After watching some amazing athletes this weekend, I'm motivated to get to work!! I have a competition coming up on July 9th so everything is REALLY getting dialed in and I'm getting down to business!!

Breakfast:

Still debating if I'm going to eat breakfast but I'm on my first cup of coffee now!

Just drank my two cups of coffee this am!

Strength WOD:

Back squats 3x10 60kg

RDL 3x10 65kg

Weighted dead hang pull ups with 8kg 3xMax 4,3,2

Reverse Hypers 3x12 140lbs

ABs: Hanging leg raises 3x10

Snack:

10 blueberries, 8 raspberries, 1/4 cup walnuts

Lunch:

Protein Shake

1.5 scoops protein powder

1 scoop green superfood

1/2 banana

16oz Almond Milk

1.5 tbsp almond butter

1/2 pre metcon & 1/2 after

100 burpees 9 minutes

120 reps of random ab work

Dinner:

Lamppost

Greek Grilled chicken salad with

Lettuce, tomato, onion, 2 tbsp olives, 2 tbsp feta cheese, 1-2 tbsp of balsamic vinaigrette dressing.

As usual always good conversation at dinner - and birthday party planning!!

Day 39 & Day 40 of the Nutrition Challenge

Saturday & Sunday - Pure Awesomeness

So my eating habits this weekend just went out the window, I'm not going to lie!!

Saturday

No Breakfast except my usual coffee

Lunch: Chipotle

chicken & pork bowl with grilled veggies, lettuce, guacamole & salsa.

Dinner:

Lucille's

1 beer

1 beef rib

6 oz of tri tip

2 bite fulls of mashed sweet potatoes

2 bites of steamed spinach with garlic

2 biscuits

Dessert:

Yogurtland

6 oz of 3 flavors

almonds a few cookie dough pieces & sprinkles

It was a long day in the sun at So Cal Regionals - but so much fun to watch all my friends compete!

Sunday:

No breakfast except my coffee

Lunch: Bryan's idea!! Tommy's burger

Okay so I ordered the chili boat that came with pure chili, onions & cheese.

I took 1 bite and thought to myself this is gross, but let me try it with some fries!

I stole 6 fries from Homer and tried to eat the chili with that - NOPE couldn't continue!! So after 6 fries I threw this gross crap away!! Let me just say just those 6 fries and the chili I did have the worst stomach ache!

Snack:

Went to watch Super 8 with some friends. Great movie!! Had some popcorn not a ton!

Dinner:

Slater's 50/50

grilled chicken sandwich with bacon, egg, lettuce, tomato & I did eat the bun :-/

2 beers (I believe I'm up to 500 burpees yikes!!)

Day 38 of the Nutrition Challenge

Fun Filled Friday!!

First day of regionals!! I except nothing more than amazing and inspirational!!

Breakfast:

Skipped!

WOD

3 Rounds for Time

400m run

21 thrusters 35lb kbs used

13:26

Lunch:

Protein Shake

1/2 banana

1.5 scoops protein

1.5 tbsp almond butter

1 scoop green superfood

16oz almond milk

Dinner:

chicken sandwich with peppers and cheese on a french roll

french fries dipped in ranch

5 beers (I now owe 300 burpees)

Before dinner I did eat a couple of nachos

Early breakfast/late late dinner

Denny's (Hey it was Eamon's birthday!!)

skillet with 2 eggs peppers and mushrooms

2 pieces of toast

a couple of bites of Pete's pancakes

Regionals were amazing today!! All the athletes did well some surprises and some expectancies! All together, I was happy to witness it all!!

Day 37 of the Nutrition Challenge

Overcast and cool out Thursday

So far it's a 11am and I've had 2 cups of my usual coffee!! Considering I don't go to bed till after 2am half the time it's no wonder that I have breakfast during other normal people have lunch.

Breakfast: 11:39am

1 chicken sausage

1 egg

2 egg whites

1/2 cup red peppers

1 green onion stalk

1/2 tbsp of EVOO

Lunch: 4:30pm

1/2 cup mixed raspberries & blueberries

8 walnuts

8oz of canadian bacon

Workout:

Warm up

400m run

2 rounds

5 pull-ups

10 push ups

15 squats

20 sit ups

WOD:

30-25-20-15 for time

wallballs 14lb

knees 2 elbows

kb swings 44lb

walking lunges

17:56

Dinner

Slaters 50/50

Cobb Salad

6oz of chicken, 1 oz bacon, 1/3 avocado, feta cheese, lots of lettuce and tomato, NO EGG (I wasn't thrilled about this!) 1 tbsp o chipotle sauce and 1 tbsp of ranch. I didn't finish the salad I got full.

1 Allagash white (I owe 50 burpees)

Day 36 of the Nutrition Challenge

I've decided I am going to fast today instead of tomorrow. Besides some tea this morning and probably some diet coke at some point. It's pure water for me until dinner!

So around 6pm I had a 44oz diet coke which lasted me until 8:30 pm. It was amazing. Fasting today was not that bad. I forgot how easy it can be. Now the first few hours were a bit rough but once my day got going I was perfectly fine.

Strength Training (2:00pm)

Hang Snatch 5x3 4 @ 25kg 1 @ 30kg

Front Squat 5x3 55kg

Negative dead hang pullups 4x3

Reverse Hypers 110lbs 3x12

Ab wheel 50 reps

Metcon WOD: 7pm

For Time

50-40-30-20-10

Sit ups

Good Mornings 40lbs

Double Unders

Time: 14:34

Rowed 600m after in 2:15

Dinner: 9:30pm

3.5 egg whites

1 egg

1 chicken sausage

1.5 cups of mixed peppers

1 teaspoon of coconut oil

Dessert:

2 strawberries

Recipe of the Day!

This past Saturday I was reminded of kale chips and how much I liked them. I've had them a few times in the past but I've never baked them. I didn't actually eat any on Saturday but my friend Kelley was making some so now I'm craving them and plan to make some this coming weekend. I thought I'd look up a recipe for them and share. I took this recipe from a gluten free website.

Baked Kale Chips

1/2 teaspoon organic sea salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika or cayenne pepper for an extra kick
1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
3 large handfuls lacinato kale, torn into shreds
1 to 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Preparing to bake. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Combine the salt, smoked paprika, and garlic in a small bowl.

Wash the kale. Rinse the kale leaves, then put them in a salad spinner and spin until the green becomes a blur. Round and round, spinning and spinning — let the kale dry. After it comes out, dry it even more with paper towels. Those leaves should be bone dry.

Oiling the kale. Put the kale leaves in a large bowl. Drizzle over 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Massage the oil into the leaves. You might need more. You might have larger hands than I do. Use your judgment.

Bake the chips. Arrange the kale chips onto the sheet try and slide it into the oven. Bake until the leaves are crisp to the touch but still a dark green. (When they turn brown, they turn bitter.) Check at the 12-minute mark, to be sure.

Remove them from the oven. Sprinkle with the garlic smoked paprika salt.

Let them cool a bit. Eat.

Day 35 of the Nutrition Challenge

Tired Tuesday!

I woke up feeling like I could sleep another 8 hours. I trained hard yesterday!! Luckily, I am not super sore - although we'll see how I feel tomorrow. I have an early lunch meeting at 11:30 so besides my usual coffee, I won't be eating breakfast. I don't have time to it's already 9:40am!

Lunch:

Lampost Pizza - NO I didn't eat pizza!

Greek Chicken salad with lots of lettuce, tomato, olives, onion and some feta cheese.

2 tbsp of balsamic vinaigrette dressing.

Snack:

1/2 cup of blueberries and raspberries

10 walnuts

No WOD today, but did 100 burpees and some ab work.

Snack 2:

6oz almond milk

1 scoop of green superfood

3/4 scoop of protein powder

1 tbsp almond butter

Dinner:

Slaters 50/50

Cobb salad

8oz of chicken

1oz bacon

1/4 avocado

1 egg

tomato and lettuce (obviously)

1 tbsp of chipotle sauce

2 tbsp of ranch dressing

2 Allagash beers

3 decent sized slurps of a nutela chocolate shake Oh my cock was it AMAZING! (Thank you HOMER! :-)

The conversation at dinner was priceless...I love my every minute I spend with my 3 favorite guys. Okay Homer since you're the only one who really reads this, you're my MOST favorite! Hahahaha!

Recipe of the Day - Fasting!

So today's recipe it's not actually a recipe for food but a recipe on how to add Intermittent Fasting (IF) into your nutrition plan.

Considering I eat fairly clean on a regular basis, to lose that last bit of fat around my mid section I am going to incorporate IF into my nutrition plan. OKAY OKAY I won't lie either..IF will also aid in my counter productive social eating/drinking behavior I tend to have on the weekends. I kind of fast for a few hours during the weekend when I skip meals over an extended time but now it will be more deliberate. I will fast for 24 hours once a week. The way I did it in the past would be from dinner to dinner. So basically one time this week (which will probably be Wednesday night to Thursday night) I will not eat after I eat dinner on Wednesday until dinner on Thursday.

Before I even started CrossFit or became familiar with Paleo or Primal I would buy a lot of nutrition and training books. You name it, I probably have it; soft cover, hard cover and ebooks. One book I purchased was Eat Stop Eat by Brad Pillon. I actually incorporated fasting in early 2007 just when I had started training on a regular basis. I do believe that it is a great tool to add to your nutrition plan on top of eating Paleo/Primal/Zone. Below is some basic information about fasting and how to incorporate it. If you have the time and want to gain more insightful knowledge, I recommend purchasing Eat Stop Eat, you can visit the website at http://www.eatstopeat.com/index6.shtml

What is intermittent fasting?

For those that may not be familiar to the term, intermittent fasting is just taking times of fast (no food) and working them into your lifestyle. This can be either daily or a couple times a week (will get into that more below). Benefits include improving insulin resistance (which you will hear alot about as being the #1 key marker in so many health factors including weight loss, muscle gain, performance, recovery, anti-ageing and disease prevention) and giving the body a chance to do some internal cleaning (or housework), which can lead to improved immune function and overall health.

How do I begin to do intermittent fasting?

Is there only one set way in which to do intermittent fasting? No. I could easily come up with 10 different intermittent fasting protocols based on 10 people’s individual’s needs, lifestyle, exercise, goal, macronutrient ratios, and so forth. We will keep it simple and give the 2 most frequent and basic options.

• Daily Fasting: Typically done every day and only giving the person a smaller eating window in which to get their calories. (for example, a 18hr daily fast would mean someone would only eat every day between the hours of Noon and 6pm). You will see varying times from 15-19 hours for daily fasting as seen with theWarrior Diet, Leangains, and Fast-5 approach.

• Fasting 1-3x a week:This could also be called alternate day fasting/calorie restriction (for those doing it every other day). This is just fasting of usually longer periods 18-24 hours but only 1-3x a week. Many variations to play with here like the Eat Stop Eat method (24 hr fasts 1-2x a week).

“But which one is better and how to I do it now if I want…….”

Whoa, slow down. I know many have questions but let’s still try to keep this simple for now and expand into more specifics later. So far many people have experimented with both types of intermittent fasting and have seen great results. But you also have to take into account all the other variables such as what is the person eating in that window? Is is junk food? Is it low carb? How many times a week are they doing it? Are they overweight and wanting just fat loss? Are they lower bodyfat but looking for improved performance and health? How many times a week are they exercising? What kind are they doing and what intensity? The list can go on and on, but let’s start to analyze the 2 types of intermittent fasting and let you decide which one best suits your lifestyle.

More Frequent Fasting (15-19 hours):

The Advantages are:

• simple eating strategies for every day
• even people that may not eat 100% clean foods can see weight loss due to the smaller window and lower calorie total per day

The Disadvantages are:

• Can possibly lower metabolism if calories are too low for too long (not what you want if your #1 goal is weight loss)
• Not getting enough food in the smaller window may also lead to muscle loss for more active people (not good)
• Can increase anxiety, depression or other emotional feelings. If you have a history of these you need to start SLOW and see how you feel. Once you start to feel too much anxiety, depression or other emotional response, STOP your fasting and go back to normal all day eating.

Extended Fasting 1-2x a week (up to 24hrs):

The advantages are:

• Allows a person to make sure they are getting enough calories on the non-fasting days, and then just keeps to a simple small feed window (if any) on the IF days.
• Simple thinking for people who do not have experience in how to eat clean to eat one day, and then eat in a smaller window the following day (alternate day fasting/CR). This can achieve fat loss for people who are mostly overweight and may not be too active. (of course don’t get me wrong, that eating healthy is our main goal but this can be a good step for some people to start their weight loss journey and learn how to make better choices as they go)

Disadvantages:

• Doesn’t force a person to make better choices with their food (as one could probably eat junk one day, and then fast the next and still lose weight). Not something we want long term because this is not going to improve your other health markers (diseases prevention, insulin resistance) like a good IF program on healthy foods.

Again I can’t say it enough, as there are so many variables to play with in anintermittent fasting program (or should I say lifestyle). Some people may say “well it didn’t work for me” or “I didn’t gain any muscle”. Well unless I know everything about what you do for exercise daily, your total calories, when you eat and your macronutrient ratios (protein/carbs/fats), I can’t even begin to help. Intermittent fasting is a simple tool to start with, but you have to take full responsibility for your own health and progress and learn when it is not working and when to change things up! Like I said, if it is NOT working then stop your current intermittent fasting program and rethink your attack plan .

To Sum Up

Here are some examples of what you can play with:

• Fasting of 15-19 hours. I would highly suggest that if you do this make sure you are recovering from your exercise and start only 2-3x a week, not every day.See your how body responds physically and mentally and then go from there. If you choose to do it more frequently (such as every weekday) you can also give yourself the weekends to eat all day (hopefully with healthy choices of course)
• Fast 1-2x a week to start if you have never done any fasting or do not know how to eat healthy and control your macronutrients. Start with 1-2 days a weekwith fasts of 18-20 hours (I wouldn’t start with 24 hr fasts to begin as most people can not handle the hunger cravings and in turn will just end up eating all the wrong foods when they do eat) and say eat only from say 1pm-6pm for example. Drink lots of water (add lemon, your liver will appreciate it! and it will help with the hunger). For example, fast Wed and Sun (or whatever days fit into your schedule)
• Or you can do a mixed approach and fast every other day for a small eating window. For example eat all day Mon, only 12-6pm on Tues, all day Wed, 12-6pm on Thurs, etc. Start with bigger eating windows and make them smaller as you get used to fasting. This approach may work for people who have alot of weight to lose and can not (I should really say “will not” as everything is a choice!) eat 100% healthy for the moment. This approach may not work for more advanced people who have a high activity level unless you are getting a ton of health calories in that fasting window.
• If what you are doing is NOT working for you. STOP, and rethink your approach. Intermittent fasting is just a tool to use and there are plenty of variables to be modified such as how often you IF, how big or small your eating window is (how long you fast), what are you macronutrient levels and total calories, what are your activity levels (as you may need to eat more on workout days), and more. Start slow and see what is working. You can always change something up and remember that in the end it is just a tool, and you may need to tweak it to make it for specifically for your lifestyle and needs

Recipe of the Day!

This recipe comes from my kitchen, it's something I like to cook up quickly!

Mediterranean Chicken!

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, cubed

5 large green olives, diced

4 sun dried tomatoes, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbs capers

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

3 tbs olive oil

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and brown chicken pieces.

2. Add in spices and veggies and cook for another 10 – 15 minutes.

Day 34 of the Nutrition Challenge

Monday - Back to the Grind!!

Breakfast:

2 eggs

2 sausage

my usual coffee except with 1/2 & 1/2 (YUCK I want my heavy cream!)

Strength WOD:

Back squat 5x5 @ 65kg

Deadlift Heavy 5 @ 95kg

Good Mornings 3x8 30kg

Ring Pulls with stability ball in between legs 3x max reps 16,13,12

Calf Raises 70lbs 3x max reps 20,18,19

Lunch:

Protein Shake

1 scoop of protein

12oz of almond milk

1 tbsp almond butter

1 scoop of green superfood

Metcon WOD:

Warm up 100 burpees (Owed)

5 Rounds for time :

50 broad jumps

40 squats

30 sit-ups

20 push ups

10 pull ups

33:11

Abs:

120 reps of random v-ups, weighted leg raises, etc..

Dinner:

2.5 cups of steamed broccoli and cauliflower with

1/2 tbsp of butter & 2 tbsp of heavy cream

14oz of boneless beef ribs cooked in 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

Late night snack - I had a sweet tooth and needed something

8oz of Almond Milk

1 tbsp of heavy cream

1 serving (2tbsp) of Organic Cocoa from Trader Joes

This definitely helped with the sweet tooth and wanting something warm to drink around midnight. The Organic Cocoa isn't too bad. 70 calories and 12 grams of carbs primarily of course from the organic cane sugar it has in it but it served it's purpose.

Day 33 of the Nutrition Challenge

Sunday - Funday!!

Go Mavs!!!!

Breakfast:

3 cups of coffee w/heavy cream stevia

1 egg

2 egg whites

1 chicken sausage

onions & mushrooms 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

WOD:

5 Rounds for Time: 25:32

20 squat cleans 65lb

20 burpee box jumps 24in

Lunch:

Oggis

1 small slice of pizza

2 beers ( I owe 50 burpees for the weekend)

Dinner:

Hoff's Hutt

Beef Sandwich (yes with the bread)

coleslaw

bite of strawberry pie

Day 32 of the Nutrition Challenge

Saturdat - Fran Day!!!

Breakfast:

Usual Protein Shake

1 cup of coffee

WOD: Fran

21-15-9

Thruster's 65lb

Pull-Ups

4:42 (New PR :-)

Lunch:

Waba Grill

Beef & Broccoli

1/2 avocado

Dinner:

Javier's

a few chips and guacamole

steak fajitas with 1 corn tortilla

1 patron drink

Day 31 of the Nutrition Challenge

Friday - Long Week!

Breakfast:

2 eggs

2 egg whites

1 piece of bacon

1/4 avocado

No Lunch I was bad

WOD:NNRA 20 minutes

10 OVHS 65lb

10 burpees

10 pull ups

400m run

5 Rounds 21:35

Dinner:

Esther's

3 street tacos with al pastor

shared a basket of chips & salsa with Homer

Day 30 of the Nutrition Challenge

Rest Day Thursday!

Today I am resting from the gym!! :-) Although I may do some burpees not for insurance per say but now I kind of like doing them.

Breakfast:

Coffee with 1/2 & 1/2 & stevia

1 egg, 2 egg whites sauteed with onion & peppers in 1/2 tbsp butter

2 pieces of bacon

1 sausage

Lunch:

Protein Shake

Dinner:The Twisted Vine

Salad

meatballs