25 and still peeing my pants.

Hey everybody!

Just want to fill you in on the trip to New England thus far. We got a late start yesterday. Really late. Fast forward to 5 am this morning. Flat tire in bumblefuck (shippensburg) pennsylvania. Had to wait 2 hours for AAA to show up to tow us to a tire place 30 miles away in Harrisburg PA. Then had to replace all four tires bc my car is AWD. Then was informed that despite the fact I drove on the flat for maybe 10 seconds (it immediately made noise - so only drove on it long enough to pull over and stop) the rim is bent. So I have to replace that at Exeter Subaru tomorrow - fortunately they had my exact rim in stock so I just have to go down there and have them mount and balance the tires and redo the alignment. Costly, but quick.

Anyway, so after spending 5.5 hours from time of tire flatness to leaving the tire place we went in search of coffee. The next exit had a highway sign for Starbucks so we went - it was one of those where it's nowhere near the actual exit. I was cursing a blue streak over hypothetically not finding it.

Then I drove right past it. Eagle eyes. Right here.

Then MKBBF decided to eat an orange while we were parked. He was suckling on it oddly and made me laugh so hard I actually peed in my pants. Which then made him laugh really hard and dribble chewed up orangey juicey goop all over his self. Which then made me laugh harder - snarf my plantain chip and pee a little more.

Then I went into Starbucks and the barista asked how my day was going. So I told her. Including the part about peeing my pants. MKBBF was embarassed, but he knows I'm outrageous and have zero shame, so I'm sure he expected it to come up. Then he went to the bathroom . . . For 45 minutes. And you know what I did? I curled up in one of those big chairs and passed out like a dirty damn bum.

Fuck it. Today is awesome. Life is good :).

Symptomatic Sunday

Hey everyone!

I started feeling a little bit symptomatic last night after dinner - dry throat, stuffy nose etc.. So I finished up my cleaning and laundry, drank a big cup of garlic (anti viral) honey (general anti microbial) lemon (Vit. C immune booster) tea and passed out. I woke up this morning naturally at 9:30 with the dry throat relieved, and the nose is more drippy now. I feel so much better already. I have consumed another cup of the tea, and will be effectively giving myself a low grade fever by doing a BodyRock workout a bit later. (Fever = best way for your body to KILL KILL KILL pathogens)

I use the word symptomatic and not sick for a reason. Sick people have recurring symptoms for weeks months years. Symptomatic people have bodies that are reacting and responding to the a stimulus or non-self the way they're supposed to. I am actually very well, thank you, and am supporting my natural ability to fight off crap by bolstering my immune system. A well functioning immune system will kill off sneezy sniffly bullshit faster than anything else.

Anyway, the workout of the day is
Red Hot Workout (revisited)
8 min abs

Now. Back to bed and tea. Then when I wake up, MKBBF will be here. Thank. GOD. I haven't been consciously miserable without him here, it's more that I just don't function as well on a physiological level when he's gone. Sleep and digestion are what are usually most affected. So he'll be here, then I'm going to pack and we're going to head out for my favorite place on Earth - New England!

ROCK!

YO!

I have deliberately not updated so that the last post I wrote would be the first thing people that visit the blog see. I felt like it was something I have been judged and ridiculed for, needed to get off of my chest, and has been bottled up for a while.

Moving on. I have been climbing or doing workouts at least every other day since, so the intensity has tapered off quite a bit but I am trying to stay consistent. I will ramp back up at some point, but I don't want to burn out altogether, so I'm scaling it back a smidge on the time commitment end of it.

Anyhow, I don't have a ton of time today, as I have to take a nap, clean the condo, workout, and pack for next week's trip to New England. All that before dinner time because I'm going over to my dad's to eat dinner with him there.

MKBBF is out of town at a Maximized Living camp, so I have been spending a lot of time with MKBDad. Last night I went over to his place and ate an AMAZING fresh paleo dinner, watched our beloved Florida State Seminoles get their asses handed to them, and then he came back over here to sleep on the couch. Maybe a bit odd, but we usually end up staying up really late telling idiotic jokes about farting and such during our slumber parties haha, and I wanted to sleep in my own bed.

Woke up early this morning, took care of the muppets, and headed into work for a Doctors Report. Then came back, made a turnip, spinach, garlic, sundried tomato egg white scramble with a TON of fresh parsley, ate, and took my dad home.

Now I'm wiped out. And I have all that stuff to do. Anyway, here is my workout of the day:

Just Can't Get Enough Exercise Challenge
4 minute workout
8 rounds Tabata Sasha Swings
200 In Out Challenge
8 minute abs

(Tabata = 10 seconds rest 20 seconds MAXIMUM effort)

Will post scores upon completion.

ROCK!

*******UPDATE*******
Just Can't Get Enough Exercise Challenge: 11:07
*Then my knees got clicky and poppy - so scratched the 4 min workout
Tabata Sasha Swings: 11/10/10/10/10/10/10/10
200 In Out Challenge: 5:44 (Old score: 6:16)
8 minute abs: complete

Now I have to get serious about cleaning. Packing isn't going to happen before dins, but I do need to clean so packing will be easy when I get home :). I have a thing about coming back from a vacation to a condo that isn't pretty much spotless. So, wish me luck!!

Quasi-Manifesto

Hey everyone!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I'm taking the year off from drinking, so I'll be doing the OTHER thing Irish girls are known for to celebrate. Not tolerating any bullshit :).

Today's post isn't exactly lighthearted, but this is my venue for . . . whatever I want to say, so I'll say it. I need to vent so I can relax and gather some strength to do a workout, because right now I'm just stressed and exhausted.

Let me set the stage for you. MKBBF and I have a pretty traditional relationship in that we both take the commitment and connection very very seriously. We have both dealt with stressors in the past revolving around old girlfriends and boyfriends soiling the current relationship, and dating people who have been less than honest.

One week at church there was a message about relational guardrails (it was actually an entire series - but the relationship piece was one message). The premise of the talk was that guardrails exist to keep us on THIS side of the safe zone. That isn't to say that immediately over the guardrail is something dangerous, but SOME where, over THERE lies a situation or person or place which should be avoided.

We took the opportunity to implement some of these guardrails in our relationship. The first and most obvious to implement (also the only one I'm blogging about) was to have zero contact between us and our former bedfellows. There is no room for anything but the present in our relationship, and connecting to past romance and spoiled love detracts from present time consciousness. It's just that simple.

Last night one of MKBBF's exes decided to make her presence known on Facebook, despite having been asked to please not have contact several months ago when she attempted. So I sent her a VERY polite benefit of the doubt message indicating our firm "no exes" policy, asked for her cooperation, and signed off with "I hope you're well". I also clearly indicated that my wishes were genuine and none of it was out of snark. So when, during breakfast I received a (poorly worded somewhat inane and generic) message from her tearing me and my relationship with MKBBF apart, I took issue with it. MKBBF has since handled the situation, and I don't think we'll be hearing from her again. *side note: quickest way to annoy a non-imbecile: mix up your and you're.*

Even still - I feel compelled to make a few things clear and submit them to the universe. MKBBF and I have both been failed MISERABLY in the past. I have never dropped the ball on him the way others have, and he has always done right by me and stood by my side which has unfortunately not been all that common for me either. It has taken us each a lot of agonizing splits, let downs and personal growth to combine at this stage on life's road, and look ahead holding hands.

The person you fall in love with, your partner, becomes your first family. They're the only person IN your family you get to choose. MKBBF is mine, and there is NO ONE I wouldn't challenge to protect our life together. Our relationship is a fortress. But someone has to be resilient to the rascalions and garbage on the outside, and keep them from getting in, or the walls we've built don't matter. I will never waver in my duty to deny unhealthy situations or people entry into our world. You can call it paranoid, you can call it uptight, you can skew and bastardize it as a lack of trust. You can be wrong.

Ultimately "he who walks with the wise becomes wise, but the company of fools suffers harm." I'm not in the market to become a fool, nor am I interested in idiocy marring the integrity of the trust MKBBF and I share. We have deliberately built our castle on THIS side of the guardrail to distance ourselves from the riffraff on THAT side of it.

I will NEVER stop and I will NEVER apologize for being one of the ever vigilant guards of my family. I love MKBBF dearly, and it is by faith and fortitude I plan to continue.

Now you know.





shamROCK!

Woke up to the sound of the rain

Hey guys!

I woke up to the sound of the rain and my two dogs snoring today. Favorite wake up call EVER.

Anyway, I am RIDICULOUSLY sore from the last two days workouts so today I'm going to take it easy. And by easy I just mean short. Because there's nothing easy about the 10 minutes of Tabata intervals I'm going to use to burn myself out :).

Workout of the Day:
Pretty Fly Exercise Challenge
8 minute abs

Then I'm going to roll over to Stone Summit - spend some time in the bouldering room and do some Tabata interval work (10 seconds rest 20 seconds work is one round).

1 round jumping jacks
1 round on stationary bike
1 round burpees
1 round on stationary bike
x5 sets for a total time of 10 minutes

Then maybe tonight I'll go to Gonstead Club with MKBBF and get a ridiculously forceful adjustment :) and afterward con him into giving me a (extremely painful) deep tissue massage.

I'll let you know how it all goes, and post my score from the Pretty Fly Challenge later.

ROCK!

*******UPDATE*******
Went to the rock gym, bouldered for about half an hour until my grip strength and toes were shot to hell, and then headed upstairs to do my stationary bike/jumping jacks/burpee intervals. I did 25-26 jacks each round and my burpee scores were 14/12/11/10/10 for totals of 125 jacks and 57 burpees. I hadn't done the Pretty Fly Challenge so I went ahead and tacked it on afterward. I did 19 sets in 10 minutes which comes to 570 high knees and 190 knee hugs. I never got around to 8 minute abs because after I got back, I whipped up a quick onion, celery, mushroom, olive, kale, sun dried tomato sauté and MKBBF and I headed down to Caribou in Buckhead to have a study date. *Study dates go back to the very beginning of our relationship. I consider them (along with absurd roadtripping) to be one of our "things".

Wake up and smell the chicken stock

Hey guys!

Last night MKBBF and I did our normal Sunday routine. I did something a bit different though. I realized putting shredded chicken on my salad at the Salad Bar at Whole Foods was idiotic. Because the salad bar is $7.99 a pound. Under no circumstances should chicken ever cost that much. This thought was accentuted by the fact that Harry's has precooked NAKED (ie no added salt or garbage) rotisserie chicken on sale on Sundays for $5.99. So I picked one up yesterday afternoon, and took it completely apart to make 3 piles: a stock pile, a red meat pile, and a white meat pile. Literally nothing goes to waste when I buy a whole chicken. Nothing. Those creepy little ooeys and gooeys are what make chicken stock taste like . . . chicken. The red meat I'll use in breakfast scrambles, the white meat I took down to Buckhead and added to the dinner we ate at Whole Foods, and everything else went in the crock pot.

I used to make stock in a stock pot on the stove, but I've found it's so much easier to do it in a crock pot and leave it on high over night. All I do is dump in the chicken parts, half an onion, 3 carrots and 4 big celery stalks. The veggies are chopped very roughly - why this is important will make more sense in a second. Anyhow, after letting the stock do its thing for 12-14 hours, I strain it. Then I pull the celery and carrot chunks out of the strainer and add back to the stock - much more difficult to extricate veggies from chicken parts when they're tiny. Then I Vita-Mix it all together and strain it again (just in case). It makes a TON of stock. In the neighborhood of 3-4 quarts just from one 6 dollar chicken. That would cost 9-12 dollars if I bought it packaged - and the packaged stuff always has some sort of weird ingredient like "natural chicken flavor". I mean, what the hell IS that exactly . . .?! Moral of the story: I save money just on the stock, it tastes SO much better, and I still have an entire chicken worth of meat on top of it!

So I'll be incorporating this into the Sunday routine, for obvious reasons. Which means that on Mondays I'll be waking up to the delicious wholesome smell of chicken stock cooking like I did today. WIN!

Anyway, today's workout looks pretty grueling - so I'm not going to back to back BodyRock it like I did yesterday. Don't get me wrong - I'm not doing one BodyRock workout and calling it quits, either. You know me better than that!

Workout of the Day:
Set Fire Workout
20 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds work rope skipping
8 minute abs
20 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds work rope skipping

Total time: 44 minutes

ROCK!

*******UPDATE*******
This workout. Was . Brutal. I changed up the skipping a bit and my rope broke in the middle so then I had to do high knees and jumping jacks instead.

I did 16 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds work skipping, then did the Set Fire Workout, then 24 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds work skipping - somewhere around round 12 in this second block of rounds my rope broke, so I alternated high knees and jumping jacks for the remainder.

Scores for Set Fire Workout (Zuzie totals in parentheses):

Mountain Jump Lunge 6/6/6/5.5 = 23.5 (23)
Sliding Push Ups 10/10/10/10 = 40 (30)
Mountain Jump Lunge 5.5/5.5/6/6 = 23 (21)
Crunch Scissors 19/20/21/20 = 80 (52)
Mountain Jump Lunge 5.5/6/6/6 = 23.5 (23)
Reverse Push Up & Knee Tuck 12/12/13/13 = 50 (44)

Well, boys and girls - looks like I beat Zuzu on this fine day! Of course, I do have an advantage by knowing her reps ahead of time so I have goals to shoot for :). However, the Lights (surname of Zuzie and Freddy), not to be outdone as a unit, beat me. How so? Because Freddy's scores blew mine out of the water. So I'll be gunning after him tomorrow!

Scramble Sunday

Hey everyone!

I'm having a killer day so far. The weather is great, so I'm sitting out on my balcony porch swing in a hoodie drinking my piping hot (second cup of) green tea and eating frozen blueberries. I know. I know. Two things may have just stood out for you. 1)That I'm drinking a steaming hot thing and eating a frozen thing. Try it, it makes your mouth feel funny/cool, and I swear the temp change enhances the flavors of the food/bev. 2) Freezing fruit destroys the Vitamin C. I'd be concerned except I already had an orange and half an apple today. "But apples don't have much vitamin C." False. Eat the skin, and you'll get plenty :). Oh, and I LOVE frozen blueberries. They are my favorite treat. Much much more than fresh ones. Little sweet packages of icy goodness. YUM.

Last night MKBBF and I decided to go climbing, so the workout didn't happen since climbing pretty much smokes me out of everything I have. I completed a 5.9, 5.9+ (had to sit in the harness on this one for a few seconds to let my forearms/grip recover), a 5.10- and a 5.10. My last route was a 5.10- I'm pretty sure I could have done on fresh forearms, but it was a really crimpy route so I wasn't able to at the time. Anyhow, I got up all other routes without sitting in the harness or falling off the wall. This was the first true 5.10 I've gotten up without resting, so I was pretty stoked about that.

This morning for breakfast I made a scramble with turnip, spinach and sun dried tomatoes. The recipe will be for the totals, even though I have to split it into two pans to cook it because I don't eat egg yolks, and MKBBF does.

Turnip and Spinach Scramble:

2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium sized turnip (diced)
1/2 large red onion (diced)
3 cups spinach
3 tbsp organic unsulphured sun dried tomatoes (diced)
6 eggs (3 whole eggs for MKBBF, 3 whites for me)
1 tbsp fresh basil or 1/2 tbsp dried basil
Fresh cracked pepper

Heat olive oil for about 30 seconds on medium-high heat. Add turnips (they should sizzle when you add them - if not they will end up greasy) and fry for about 5 minutes until they are brown on all sides. I like mine a bit crunchy so I leave them in longer - if you like yours softer you can add a tbsp of water and put a lid over them. Add onions and sun dried tomatoes and cook until onions are soft and a bit translucent. I buy my sun dried tomatoes without liquid so they are quite hard and require cooking so they aren't so tough to chew. If you are using the ones that come in oil (be careful you are getting JUST tomatoes and organic olive oil and no preservatives!) you can probably skip the step of cooking them and just stir them in at the end. Add spinach, and cook until nearly wilted. Add eggs and scramble until cooked through. Serve topped with basil and pepper to taste.

I'll be doing yesterdays workout a bit later on and will post my scores when I finish.

Then it's off to Buckhead for church with MKBBF and our Sunday routine of dinner at Whole Foods and conversation :). Usually we get dinner before church, but since MKBBF has board review until nearly right before it starts, we've been getting dinner afterward lately. It's nice because we're able to talk about the topic of the service and how to apply it to our lives and futures. Before you go off thinking "boy has SHE changed from the F bomb dropping rebel I used to know", understand that I haven't :) (I just wear different clothes hah). The church we go to is billed as "the church for non-church people", so it's pretty laid back. The messages, while biblically based, are presented in terms of practical application, instead of thee's and thine's and judgement and exclusion and hatred. Pretty awesome.

Hope you all have an awesome day!!

ROCK!

*******UPDATE*******
I don't have any scores to share other than that my avg skipping during the intervals was 35 skips per 20 seconds because I did the 5 pulse pistol challenge and the rope skipping first. I need to get ready for church and head to the grocery store now, so I didn't have time to do the 12 minute Halo of Sweat. I will do it tonight after church while MKBBF studies for boards. Also, I changed up the second half a bit.

I was feeling really good after the first 4 minutes of interval skipping (which was surprising since it is notoriously my least favorite part of any workout), so I did another 4 minutes. I was still feeling great so I did 4 more. 12 minutes of high intensity interval jump roping is a HELL of a lot harder than it sounds hah. Then I did 10 reps of 5 pulse half pistols on each leg, 4 minutes of interval skipping, 10 reps of the half pistols, 4 minutes of interval skipping, and then the last 10 reps of half pistols on each leg. I can't even describe how much sweat is going on right now. I am actually going to have to invest in one of those cheesy sweat bands for my head if I continue with this interval skipping. There was sweat in my eyes, and let me tell you, jumping rope with your eyes closed to finish up the work interval is NOT fun, and is surprisingly disorienting.

Anyway, look for update 2 later :).

*******UPDATE 2*******
Just finished revisiting the Halo of Sweat workout. All in all I improved a lot, although there was one section in particular that I just didn't do nearly as many reps of as last time. I'm attributing it to two things: 1) my form this time was a lot better - the exercise was much much more difficult when the knee raise was completed with the supporting leg in a deep squat as prescribed and 2) I did 30 5pulse half pistols on each leg already today so maybe my thighs were just shot.

Anyway, here were my scores (old scores in parentheses)
Sumo Jump Knee Up 12/10/9 = 31 (12/13/11 = 35)
Sumo Pulse Calve Raise 22/22/20 = 64 (16/20/17 = 53)
Reptile on the run 43/26/25 = 94 (35/30/30 = 95)
Reptile Push Up 6/5/6 = 17 (6/5/6 = 17) **These are supposed to be SUPER slow, so number of reps kind of irrelevant
Knee Hugs 27/21/21 = 69 (18/13/15 = 46)
Ab Burn Out 38/42/42 = 122 (32/32/32 = 96)

7:30 am on Saturday is inhumane.

Hey guys!

As the title of my post indicates, I woke up at 7:30 am today. Why, you ask? I have no bloody idea.

Maybe it was my excitement over a beautiful gift I received yesterday. MKBqMIL (quasi Mother In Law - little q because she really feels like part of my family already :D) sent us a care package. Inside: an Athleta magazine, 2 boxes of girl scout cookies for MKBBF (which, oddly don't look all that appealing to me these days?), and a GORGEOUS. GORGEOUS French Connection top for me.

Here are a few photos - the coloring of the shirt is like the first photo in real life - the photo of the back doesn't do the sheen of the fabric or the life of the navy background any justice.




On top of everything else, I also have a qMIL with a keen fashion sense, and heightened generosity (it was a "just because" gift - I almost started weeping - seriously). This top is not like anything I would ever pick out for myself, but I absolutely LOVE it. Those are my favorite kind of gifts (tied with those that are very practical). Tried it on and it fits properly, and draws a fair bit of attention to my arm muscles haha. And it has SPARKLES! on it. So awesome.

Now down to business. The workout of the day is:

Halo of Sweat Workout (revisited)
Half Pistol and Interval Skipping Challenge
For the second half of this workout Zuzana said you can split the half pistols up any which way you like. I'm going to split mine with the rope skipping.

6 reps (each leg) of 5 pulse half pistols - each set of 5 pulses to stand up counts as 1 rep
8 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds jump roping (4 minutes)
The whole thing x5 rounds. This challenge is not for time, it's for form. Half pistols will burn you out even without going fast.

The total will be 30 reps of 5 pulse half pistols each leg and 20 minutes of jumping intervals.

ROCK!

Been busy and have LOTS of news!

Hey everyone!

Long time, no see. Sincerest apologies for my garbagey blogging attempts lately. Turns out these entries take more time than I thought.

I have also admittedly been less than committed to my home workouts. FOR. SHAME.

I have been going climbing though and I did spend the earlier part of this week on the road, which made it difficult.

BIG NEWS 1:

I GOT A NEW CAR! I am not really one for a flashy car. Or flashy anything. My favorite cars are ones that look totally normal on the outside and are knock your socks off nice on the inside. My first car (the one I drove until about 4 days ago) was a 1999 Jeep Cherokee Limited. So from the outside looked like your generic All American box on wheels, but inside had a killer two tone leather interior and a good deal of wood panelling.

I wanted the same general idea for my new car - a nice but not flashy car with a great interior, switch to a manual transmission, and better gas mileage. Those parameters along with the necessity of AWD landed me in Subaru Outback territory. Unfortunately, finding a Subaru Outback Limited with a manual transmission that is NOT turbo (premium gas? no thanks) and less than 55K miles (I like to keep cars for 10 years) is next to impossible. But I did. The downside was that my dad and I had to drive all the way to East Texas to pick it up and then drive it all the way home (which I, realistically was happy to do :) ). Moral of the story is, my dad is easily the most generous person I know with both money and time and willingness to involve himself in what could have been a logistical nightmare.

Turned out not to be a nightmare. And the car is beautiful. My favorite parts are: how smoothly it runs, leather seats with seat warmers, and an EPIC sunroof. The car itself is also really big, 18 inches longer than my Jeep, but to drive it is more like a Honda. It has a great balance of agile handling and cushy suspension. Also, because the space behind the back seat is so huge, both dogs can be back there behind the partition comfortably without my having to deal with them tromping all over the seats. Win!

Here are a few photos:

Drivers Side

Radio controls and such.

Front seat from the other side.

Sunroof goes all the way over the backseat. Awesome. With the roof closed and the cover open, it feels like driving outside, except it's quiet and peaceful :).

Blocked MKBDad's face out because I didn't ask his permission to put it on here. Oh, and yes. It was overcast. And yes, my eyes are pale blue. So yes, I was squinting in the photo like a 5 year old :).

So jazzed here, so thumbs up photo of me in drivers seat HAD to happen. Again, squinting. And asymmetrically, too hah.


BIG NEWS 2:

I GOT A JOB! I got a job doing marketing and community outreach at one of the largest chiropractic practices in the state of Georgia. I start next week and I could not be more excited to combine my existing skill(z) with the message of wholesome/natural wellness. WOOHOO!

The workout for today is the one I set out to do in my last post but never completed, because MKBBF and I decided to go climbing last minute instead.

As a refresher:
The Trainer Who Loved Me Workout (revisited)
Then:
5 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds maximum effort skipping
50 Sasha Swings for time
x2 rounds

So I've got: a staggeringly generous dad, a loving boyfriend, 2 smooshy face dogs, a sweet car, a job that means something to me, and academic success.

Damn. I am SO. Lucky.


ROCK!

*******UPDATE*******
I completed The Trainer Who Loved Me workout in 27:37 with all unmodified exercises and pushups. The first time I did this workout took 33:43.

SWEET

ohmigod it's cool and overcast - life is GOOD!

Hey guys!

Woke up a bit on the late side today, and I'm sitting in with MKBBF in his obstetrics class today (which we're late for). Not a typical thing people that date do, but we're both very passionate about kids and childbirth and getting as much information as possible about accomplishing both as naturally/safely as can be done. Pretty cool to be with someone who takes such an active role in stuff like that inviting me to class and sending me links and such.

Today's workout is:
The Trainer Who Loved Me (revisited)
Then:
5 rounds of 10 seconds rest 20 seconds maximum effort skipping
50 Sasha Swings for time
x2 rounds

Also, it is my fahaaaaavorite kind of weather outside, cool and overcast. The only thing better would be drizzly.

Got a little taste of perspective recently, and realized not only that there a LOT of people that care about my wellbeing, but also that the people who are close to me care more than I ever could have imagined. Okay, okay. We'll store this one in the "trite epiphanies" box, but actually experiencing it has been singular.

Remember, team:


ROCK!

*******UPDATE*******

MKBBF and I decided spur of the moment to go climbing tonight, so that was my exercise for the day. It is an unbelievable workout. I was on some 5.10's, and even completed the 25 foot overhang part of a 5.11. Then I was smoked and couldn't finish it, but no matter, I made the big leap (which I wouldn't have done Wednesday) and just couldn't catch it. I'll do today's exercise challenge tomorrow and post my scores then :). Also, if you're lucky I'll post photos of my knee scrapage and bruisage. And next time a callous rips off I'll share that too. Aren't you lucky?

I'm not dead. I'm not dying! Kick. Ass.

Hey everyone!

This past week has been really really stressful. In my last post I told you all about some abnormally dividing cells, and that I had had a biopsy done. For whatever reason, my biopsy site has taken a week to heal enough so that I can get a solid pump with out turning back into weepy bloodiness. I wrote a few days ago that I was going to do a short non bouncy workout. Once I realized the state of affairs of the site, I knew that wasn't going to happen.

I switched my focus to just trying to do SOMETHING every day. Tuesday afternoon MKBBF and Seamus (my chocolate lab) and Sully (MKBBFs half pint great dane mix) went for a 5 mile hike around Kennesaw Mountain. Honestly, I knew better than to go because I thought the impact of the downhills would be . . . bad and burny for my wound. Anyway, miles 1-3 easy peasy - no pain - no sweat - all gravy. Mile 4 - my wound hurts. Mile 5 - get me off of this God forsaken trail I need to SIT DOWN in the car already!

Then yesterday we headed to Stone Summit, which was amazing. I did 9 climbs - the highest I attempted was a 5.10 and the highest I completed was a 5.9+. I was proud of myself for being able to negotiate upside down overhang type of stuff, and progress beyond it to the rest of the climb. Rock climbing: does it get MORE paleo than that?? Talk about building functional strength! I am seriously considering joining the gym, because I could see it being something that I become very very passionate about, and would be a good way to mix up my workout style.

Anyway, apologies for not blogging. I know you all wait with baited breath for each installment of my wellness drivel :). I haven't had much desire to sit down in front of my computer and get into sharing mode. I haven't been able to exercise intensely, and have been kind of a swirling black hole of negativity and shitty moods without it. Have I mentioned for the five thousandth time my main perk of exercising like a madwoman is the mood boost and concomitant anxiety relief? The 6 pack and the tighter tush are just a nice side effect. But seriously, I depend on movement for my happiness. DEPEND.

So that's what's been going on around here. I got the results of my biopsy yesterday and they were:

BENIGN!

WOOOOOHOOOOOOO! Thank you preservative free living :).

Alright so, now that I've explained my absence, onward with the workout of the day!

You Push Me Workout
Counter Strike Fat Workout

A quick note on my progress with my latest batch of wellness optimizing dietary restrictions: I am still completely salt free. I did have a bit of chocolate with my Biopsy Negative celebration small decaf coffee, and I had one banana on Sunday. Those have been my only transgressions, so I think it's coming along nicely :). I have been HOUSING green tea - triple brewed to make it taste like anything - because it's a warm liquid and staves off my coffee cravings on a regular basis.

I have also eaten kale or spinach for lunch everyday for a week and a half. Usually I sauté half an onion and a clove of garlic in a little water, wilt 4-5 cups of spinach or kale into it, add a little coconut milk and some organic no salt tikka masala spice. I like it really spicy, so I pretty much dump the spice right on there, but for a more mellow palate I'd suggest adding it half a teaspoon at a time to taste.

Today I made my kale with a more southwestern flair. Started out the same way with the garlic and onion being sauteed then wilting the kale. Then I added a diced tomato, and cooked for about 2 more minutes. Then I added 2 tsp of lime juice, half of a diced avocado, 1 tbsp chili powder (again, I like mine REALLY smoky) and 1/4 tsp cumin. For desert I had a small grapefruit and a few frozen blueberries. YUM!

Okay, I need to get ready to go to Biochem now. By that I mean, brew tea, floss, put on pants. The basics :). I'll do the workout when I get back and post my scores.

ROCK!

Oh, and here's a ridiculous and inappropriate video one of my friends from college made. Yes, he's actually this funny in real life too. But if you're ultra PC and can't take a joke, probably shouldn't watch it. As we all know, I'm pretty offensive, so I loved it.



*******UPDATE*******
You Push Me Workout Scores:
Kick Over and Knee Raise: 14/13/12
Side Lunge Jump: 41/38/38 (these are NOT my favorite)
Reptile Push Ups: 23/21/20
35 lb bar Clean and Squat: 9/8/8
High Knees: 100/110/125 (tried these with the rope in the first set but after tripping twice I did the rest without the rope to keep up the intensity.)

Counter Strike Fat Exercise Challenge:
39.

Old score? 36.

So I did 6 more side lunges, 6 more sideways jumps, and 9 more walking pushups in the same amount of time as my last attempt at this challenge. AND I did it straight after another workout! SWEET!