Things I Love

Thing I love, number one: recently, I've hit a new level of genius (and laziness): you can scramble eggs in the microwave.

They aren't quite as tasty as pan-cooked eggs (mostly, I suspect, because you don't add any cooking fat), but it is faster since there's no cleanup required.  So, I've been bringing a little tupperware to work with me, with a couple of eggs (three if I'm not adding meat OR two plus meat of choice) and some veggies (salsa is a really good "cheater" veggie...or a handful of spinach and cherry tomatoes...and lately, SO MUCH KIMCHI).  When I get there, I break the eggs into the tupperware with whatever meat I'm using, stir it all up with a fork, microwave for a minute and 15 seconds, stir, and nuke for a little longer to finish cooking - usually another 15-45 seconds, depending on the meat.  Top with veggies of choice, and it looks like this: 

Thing I love, number two: so this morning, I'm standing there in the office kitchen chatting with a coworker, who's watching me stir a couple of eggs in with leftover smoked pulled pork and a (particularly beautiful) chunk of brisket.  I work in a small office, so everyone has noticed my recent weight loss and several people keep asking me how I did it.  I usually say that I found out I was allergic to gluten, which isn't COMPLETELY true, but generally staves off any scrutiny about "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE NOT EATING WHOLE GRAINS ARE YOU ON ATKINS UGH YOU ARE GOING TO DIE."  

Anyway, she's telling me how she needs to start eating better, and going to the gym, and she just can't seem to lose weight.  "It's not like I overeat!  I haven't eaten anything yet today, and in a little while I'm going to have a yogurt.  That's what I'll have today...a yogurt."

It makes me die a little bit inside to know how miserable and frustrated she must feel.  I hate having my eating choices criticized, so I generally don't do the same to others (PhillyGuy must be rolling his eyes through the back of his skull right now - but it's DIFFERENT because I LOVE YOU!), but I always feel like I have this big amazing secret I want to share with all the sad dieters existing on boiled chicken breast and Yoplait.

One of the things that's surprised me with my third BCCC is that I'm not actually getting quite as much protein as I'd assumed I was.  Focusing on gettin' SKRONGER means that I need to make sure I'm eating a sufficient amount of protein - at LEAST one gram per pound of lean body mass.  With some very rough estimating, I've been using 115lbs as my LBM - so I shoot for 120-150g of protein every day.  I figured that'd be a given.  It is NOT.

Which brings us to thing I love, number three: canned fish.

Sardines, tuna, smoked herring (what my grandfather used to call "kippered snacks"): whatever.  They don't need to be refrigerated or cooked or prepared, which means I can keep a couple tins stashed in my desk drawer.  It's a decent way to get a hit of protein - one little tin of sardines has 22g - and if you stick with a good brand, the ingredients are nice and clean.

(Incidentally...how is a serving HALF of this little baby tin?)  So we'll see.  The past week has been rough, but I'm off antibiotics now and feeling MUCH better.  I'm still taking a probiotic supplement and eating kimchi and yogurt like it's my job, but hopefully my gut flora will rebuild themselves pretty quickly and I'll be back to normal. 

Log:

Tuesday May 15: some strict HSPU work - tripod to headstand and pressing up from the bottom. THAT SHIT IS NOT EASY.  Even though I can do a few sets of strict HSPUs with light and mini bands, and can kip them easily, I couldn't even press out of the bottom with an average (green) band.  Oy.  Strict overhead press, peak of three. 45-60-70-80-85x2, failed on the third.  This is a PR, since I could never get 85 up before, but it was incredibly ugly - I went up on my toes, arched the shit out of my back, etc.  These are still on my suck list.  Oh well.  Metcon: AMRAP 7 minutes, burpees.  I got 93 - quads seizing, sweat dripping off of my face, mascara annihilated, and beating my score from the open by nearly 20.

OK, Maybe Not EVERYTHING

One of my halfway-there-CFCC-BCCC-observations is that everything I eat now is delicious.

I mean...really.



I have steak almost every Friday night, with sweet potato rounds baked with cinnamon, paprika, chili powder and cayenne pepper. I call them "fries," but they're not - they're just fricking delicious.



And then the salmon wraps. This was a great discovery.



Smoked salmon, avocado, grape tomatoes and crumbled bacon. If you don't like this, you have no soul.



But...okay. Maybe not EVERYTHING is delicious.

Starting on Saturday - the halfway point - I added in a supplement. Erin made this recommendation at our first meeting, but I just didn't get around to picking them up until this past weekend.



BCAAs (branched chain amino acids) are, for chemistry and biology dummies like myself, three of the nine essential amino acids necessary for the body to function. They are metabolized in muscle, rather than the liver, and once broken down into their individual components (leucine, isoleucine and valine), are either burned as fuel by the body, or used by the body to build new proteins. BCAAs are a popular supplement in crossfit and in bodybuilding and olympic weightlifting in general for their ability not only to increase energy during a workout, but to assist in recovery. (Let's be clear: this is obviously not my independent scientific study, but just the understanding I've developed based on a whole lot of internet research. Take it with a grain of salt and do your own research, internet-based or otherwise.)

So, starting with Saturday's intro to oly, I've been taking 5 grams of BCAAs dissolved in about 6-8 ounces of water before and after each workout. Let me tell you something about BCAAs.

They taste awful.

A lot of articles describe it as a bitter taste, but I think it tastes exactly like that cheap-ass Barton's vodka we used in well drinks at TGIFriday's. People recommend adding citrus, but I'd rather just get used to the taste and deal with it, I think. Also, once they dissolve, you end up with something that looks like a bottle of water with glitter floating in it. It's far too early to make any real observations about what they actually DO, but I can say that - coincidentally or not - I'm not really that sore from the past three days of workouts.

Speaking of which:

- Friday. Some skillwork on the snatch, which is still not my best lift but is getting better. I need to just practice this a lot until muscle memory starts to kick in so I can get the form correct. Worked up to 65lbs, which isn't much, but it's something. Metcon: Jeremy. 21-15-9 of overhead squats (95-65) and burpees. I wanted to do it RX'd, but when your first three reps feel heavy, it's not good...so I dropped down to 55. Arms were like jelly by the end. 9:19.

- Saturday: intro to oly. Clean & jerk. I started with just the training bar to work on the form for the split jerk; tried the push jerk but that's just not me. 15-35-45-55-65-65-75-75-85, mostly doubling up the jerks with some singles towards the end. This is much, much stronger for me than the snatch.

- Sunday: gymnastics. Forward rolls (speed rolls with two connected, dive rolls) and handstand walking. Getting much better at shifting my weight and working towards the single-arm handstand, but haven't walked on my hands yet, despite many attempts. Metcon: death by handstand thigh slaps (handstand against the wall, shifting weight to one arm and bringing opposite arm off the floor to slap your thigh - one rep is both sides). One in the first minute, and then adding one more each consecutive minute until you can't finish the prescribed amount in the minute. 7 full rounds plus 6 thigh slaps.

- Monday: power cleans, starting with doubles and working up to a peak of one. 65x2-65x2-75x2-85x2-85x1-95x1-105x1. Metcon: death by thrusters (95/65). One thruster was OK; my shoulders were NOT having me rep them. Rather than aggravate my weaker rotator cuff muscles, I substituted front squats after the first minute. Starting with three thrusters in minute 1, 10 rounds + 8 front squats at RX'ed weight.