Things have been off kilter for quite a while but are just now getting back to normal so I should start making progress again. On Wednesday I finally did a crossfit workout. I can’t even remember the last time I did one. It was before vacation, my brother-in-law’s visit, my cousin’s visit and before Brent’s wildland deployment. (It’s been a crazy summer.)

I was nervous because I was pretty sure I was going to suck at it. I even took a little pre-workout supplement to help out.

I don’t usually do supplements because I think they taste gross but I knew Brent was going to kick my butt so I gave it a shot anyway. I took BLOX silk amino acid supplement which is supposed help you exercise longer, perform better and recover faster. I chugged down the fruit punch flavored drink on the way to the gym and it actually tasted pretty good.

I was coaxed into taking it because I was told that silk amino acids are good for people who are dieting and trying to lose weight without losing their muscle mass. It’s hard to lose a significant amount of weight without losing muscle mass along with it. That’s one of the reasons your metabolism slows down when you lose weight. However, if you can burn the fat without losing your muscle mass then your metabolism will be humming. You’ll become a fat burning machine…  that’s the goal.

I do have to say I felt surprisingly good during our workout but it’s hard to tell if the supplements worked or not. I kind of felt like a preschooler who was just given a new pair of iron man shoes… with velcro. If you aren’t familiar with the preschool world this means you are now officially SUPER fast and you have to run with authority on the play ground. That is precisely what I did during this workout.

A Quadtastic WOD

Part 1: Box Squats

5 x 10 at a fairly heavy working weight

(our working weight was 93 lbs)

Stack weights on a box until your legs just break parallel with the ground.  Keep tension as you lower down to sit on the box. Don’t bounce off of the box but sit for a second then stand as fast as you can with proper form. (note: you won’t be able to do as much weight as you normally would because you are working on your technique.)

Part 2

Sled Pulls (legs) x 3

Load up the sled at a heavy weight (we had 2 45 lb plates) sit down into your heels, straighten your arms and pull the sled backward as fast as you can to the other side of the gym.

Then turn it around, grip it behind you and sprint back.

Sled pulls (arms) x 3

Take a little weight off, sit down in it again but pull the weight toward your body rowing style only using your arms.

(It’s a little fuzzy but you get the point.)

Once again you sprint back pulling the sled behind you.

I’m obviously the fastest kid on the playground 😉

Part 3: AMRAP

(as many rounds as possible)

12 minutes

400 meter row

15 russian kettlebell swings

10 box jumps

I felt so good after this workout I woke up super early the next morning for a sunrise run.

Shortly after is when the quads started crying.

Later that night Brent and I went on our first date in a long time. We went to Jake’s Brew Bar and drank too many weird beers. One tasted like the incense you smell burning at shops that sell Bob Marley posters and another one tasted like balsamic vinegar… straight up vinegar.

We also sat at a big table lunch room style and made friends with a guy named Robert. After we left the bar to eat dinner we got into an argument over who Robert was attracted to most.

Brent-“He was staring at you to over compensate for wanting to stare at me.”

In other words, we had fun. A little too much fun because now I have a headache. Beer before weigh-in is never a good idea so I’ve put off stepping on the scale. In fact I’m going to have to take a little break to do it. Hang on…

I weighed in at 191.4… it could have been worse but I need to get out of the 190’s we’ve been hanging out there for way too long.

I’ve been issued a challenge from another blogger who does boot camps and develops clean recipes for her clients. It starts on Monday and lasts for 6 weeks… I think I’m going to have to take her up on it.

There’s nothing to boost your motivation like a good old fashioned challenge. You’re supposed to be able to do the workouts at home mainly using body weight so you guys can join me in the challenge if you are up for a little friendly competition. There will be three workouts a week and I’m supposed to try two clean recipes per week as well. I’ll post the workout and my time/reps and you guys can do the same in the comments section. I’ll also post the recipes if I find them especially delightful. It should be fun!

Now it’s time to get back into weight loss mode… who’s with me?! This is where you do the slow clap until we’re all pumped up. The only problem is that it doesn’t really work when you’re by yourself. So you can just go ahead and do that in your head.