Let’s try this again. . .

Confession: I’m a horrible blogger. The frequency of my blog posts are sporadic at best, and when I do get around to typing up an update, it tends to turn into an epic novel. . . concise and to the point, I am not!

But. . . I really like to blog. While I find a hard time squeezing in the time to post consistently, I DO love to write and share my life experiences when I’m not being pulled in 10 other directions.

So I’m going to attempt to start blogging again on a semi-regular basis. A LOT has changed since I left off nearly a year ago, most notably the fact that I have transitioned the primary focus of my athletic endeavors from CrossFit & Olympic Lifting to . . . drum-roll please. .  . bicycle racing!

Yes, I know – you really can’t go much further from one end of the athletic spectrum to the other. And I still LOVE CrossFit and Olympic Lifting, but I have truly found my passion in cycling. And racing my bike fulfills that adrenaline rush seeking part of me that I’m always trying to satisfy. And, let’s face it, my genetic makeup and build aren’t exactly “ideal” for CrossFit, but seem to be working out pretty well for me so far in the Cycling World! My only regret at this point is that I didn’t find Cycling until my mid-30’s. . . . but whatchagonnado? I’ve still got plenty of active years left, and I hope to be racing for many years to come!

One thing that hasn’t changed is the way that I eat. I’m still sticking to Paleolithic Eating Principles in my day-to-day life, with a few “worth it” splurges from time to time. I still do a Whole 30 once or twice a year when I find that I’m splurging a bit too much, or find myself craving sugar like crazy. I keep my day-to-day meals pretty simple. Between work, training, & racing, I just don’t have a lot of time available to cook elaborate meals, so I tend to lean toward simple combinations of grilled meat or ground beef cooked in a skillet, roasted or grilled veggies, and roasted squashes and sweet potatoes to provide the starchy carbs that are very much needed to refuel after my long and intense training sessions or races. I don’t do Paleo “Treats” often because I just don’t have the time, and to be honest, I’d much rather just splurge on the real thing once or twice a year and truly enjoy the experience, and then suffer the consequences!

So that’s all I’ve got for now. In the upcoming posts, I plan to type up a Race Report from the Tour of New Braunfels Race Weekend, which was the start to my 2014 Race Season. I also plan to summarize my January Whole 30 – the challenges that I encountered and the benefits that resulted. I’ll probably also discuss my training plan (or lack thereof) due to this battle w/ the flu that I’m currently fighting. I’m sure there will be talk of dogs, work, bike rides, and food as well!

Today’s View From My Green Machine (actually taken last month as a cold front moved into S TX during one of my rides):

IT’S OFFICIAL – I’VE FINISHED MY B.B.A. COURSEWORK!!!!

This is going to be a short and sweet post b/c I am EXHAUSTED and have to work tomorrow. . . but I just officially completed the final assignment of my B.B.A. with a concentration in Accounting!!!!

As soon as my teachers are done with the grading, I will (FINALLY) be an official college graduate!
Okay . . off to bed . . . CAN’T WAIT TO OLY LIFT AND CROSSFIT TOMORROW!!!!!!

Coach – if your reading this – ready for the squat program now 🙂

A weekend full of Schoolwork . . Again

Okay, I am soooo close to finishing my degree, but am so far past the point of burnt out, it’s not even funny. I know that I can probably wrap up all of my remaining assignments this weekend if I just buckle down and DO them, but every time I start to do research or write a paper, my mind wanders off to Weightlifting stuff, or CrossFit stuff, or I start thinking about creative paleo recipes that I could try, or I start daydreaming about my upcoming vacation. . . It’s like my brain is hell bent against my finishing.

I am so tired though, and the classwork is just hanging over my head like a cloud and making everything else less enjoyable. I know that if I just knock it out, I’ll be able to get on with enjoying all the other stuff in my life. . . so why won’t my brain cooperate???

So I have made myself (and my husband) this promise – I will not log into facebook, blogspot, yahoo or ebay. . and will not do one single CrossFit workout or Oly Lifting session until I have completed the rest of my coursework. If you know me personally, then you know that I will go absolutely mental if I am forced to go more than 2-3 days w/o my workout “fix”. . . so I absolutely MUST just suck it up and finish the course work.

Wish me luck (Lord know’s I’ll need it!!!). . and hopefully I’ll be back posting an update that I’m finished by Monday!

Unplanned Rest Day

Okay, so I’ve officially got a nasty cold 🙁 I’ve been fighting it off since early this week, and it finally got the better of me.

Tossed and turned all night last night w/ the sweats and chills. . .hate that!

Sticking to a Paleo diet today, but not going to make the gym . . obviously.

Note regarding food today – I really feel crappy and have next to no appetite so I’m not going to get in the calories that I normally would, but I’m missing my workouts today too so It’s not like I need a lot of extra energy from the food anyway.

So far today:

8:30am – 2 mini fritattas, 4 oz Trop 50 OJ
late morning snack – 1 TB almond butter
12:00pm – 1 Lean Turkey Sausage Link, salad w/ spinach, tomato, onion, carrot, avocado, 1hb egg, and balsamic vinegar
Snacked througout afternoon on: 1 peach, 2 baked chicken tenders, 6 oz Trop 50 OJ
7:00pm – 6 inch Oven Roasted Chicken Breast sub

I know, the sub was totally not paleo, but I felt like total crap and really didn’t feel up to cooking anything, and being sick absolutely killed my willpower against starchy carbs 🙁 But I was good and got it w/ vinegar instead of mayo!

When Schoolwork interferes w/ Working Out!

I’m taking a quick mental break from the paper and figured I’d post a quick update 🙂

I was up until 3:30am this morning working on schoolwork, and consequently missed CrossFit this morning. I hate it when I miss a morning workout because it just throws my whole day off! I’m so exauhsted that I can barely see straight, but my Master’s Class officially ends tonight, and I have a cumulative project worth 25% of my entire grade that I must turn in before midnight PST. Trying not to let the time pressure get to me . . staying positive and just plugging away to the best of my ability.

I can tell that it’s going to be another 3-4am night and I’m PISSED that I’m going to miss CrossFit AGAIN tomorrow morning, but I’ve got to put my schoolwork ahead of my fitness pursuits . . . .trying to be a responsible adult and all . .

Anyway, had a fairly busy day at work today. I made time on my lunch break to call Allstate and file claims for BOTH vehicles that I wrecked. . . . The first girl that I spoke with told me that I would have to pay the full deductible for both vehicles. . . That was going to SERIOUSLY hurt the pocketbook! I told her that I’d discuss it with my husband and call back after we had worked out the finances. When I called back an hour later, I got a different representative. She checked our account, and it turns out that we have something called “Platinum Coverage”, and because we haven’t ever filed a claim before, our deductibles on both vehicles for this incident would be waived! Additionally, our insurance rates would not go up, as long as we maintained Platinum Coverage, and did not have another accident. . . . can you say HAPPY DANCE!?!?!?

After getting off the phone w/ Allstate, I nuked a bag of broccoli and heated up some chicken that I cooked this weekend, and had a very satisfying lunch:

Baked Chicken w/ Garlic, Rosemary, Basil, Oregano, and Red Pepper Flakes & Broccoli drizzled w/ Olive Oil and sprinkled w/ Slivered Almonds . . . NUMMY!!!
Got off work, went straight into schoolwork, thought my eyes were going to fall out of my head, took a 15 minute power nap, got up, and back to the schoolwork. Breaked for a dinner of Steak & Spinach Salad w/ tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, avocados, and HB egg. . . then back to schoolwork again.
And here I am! Well, gonna end it here and get back to this paper. Will be SO happy after this is submitted as it will signify the end of the Master’s Level class that has been kicking my butt for 12 weeks now. I will have one more HUGE comprehensive project in another class to complete by Wednesday, and then will have a few days off before my final 3 classes start on Sept 1st 🙂
Night All!