Five Worst Dietary Transgressions

from The Modern Forager:

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine told me that my “body hates me” because I don’t generally eat pastured chicken. Because of the amount of food that I eat to support my body weight and activity level, it would be very expensive for me to eat $2/lb chicken everyday. So I grab antibiotic- and hormone-free chicken from the local grocery store at $.69-.99/lb on sale (wait until it’s about a week from going out of date, then stock up the freezer). While the chickens are fed grains, they are not pumped up on hormones. I can shore up the poor omega-3:omega-6 ratio with some extra fish oil, which I do.

In light of that conversation, I want to touch on what I consider to be dietary indiscretions that will make your body hate you.

READ MORE!

10 Marathon Tips

Active.com's The Gear Junkie: 10 Tips to Make It Through a Marathon

'Tis the season to run your legs off. Each autumn, from St. Paul to Seattle, tens of thousands of runners wrap up a year of training with a 26.2-mile run. I ran my requisite annual marathon this past weekend, pacing at just under eight-minute miles in the Twin Cities Marathon to pull my best personal time to date at 3 hours, 27 minutes. Here are 10 quick tips--some highly personal, some quite unorthodox--on the gear, running techniques and nutrition I use to make it from the start line through 26.2 miles and to the end.

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CFT

There's a CrossFit Total tomorrow at Local's Gym again.

Am I ready to compete? Will I not scratch multiple times again?

I hope so...

i suck

i will be moving and writing at this blog from this point on.

time to organize everything and get on track. the last post really put me onto time management.

Time Management

I don't know why I didn't check this out when I first saw news of this. Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnagie Mellon University in Pennsylvania who was diagnosed with terminal cancer.



Here is the entire 1 hour 16 minute speech.

Tabata Sucks!

Only when you're feeling like crap, hot as hell and lacking sleep.

I was waaaaaay off my PR of 67 today. I scored a 44.

I started with pushups. Probably should've done squats since it's my strong point. Ripped my left hand on the pullups, blisters on my right AND I came out of the gate waaaay too strong (first round=22) only to mess myself up physically and mentally during the last set (1). Boo!

Is there a reason it's so much harder for me to function in heat? I was raised in Washington so I love and thrive in the colder weather. This was like when I was down in Vegas- I had to pause throughout my workout because I was gasping for air. Taking shirts off don't do much there.

I also made a mix for today's "Tabata This!" that you can download here. It's more hip hop, of course.

)=

I've neglected this site for too long. My laptop crashed a while back and I've been busy with running the Foundation CrossFit blog to put anything in here. I'll get back on this, I hope.

Quick updates:

• I'm on my 6th week of the 20-rep squat program. I'm currently at 210lbs for twenty reps. It is some hard stuff. I'll be finishing up on my 10th week 09Sep08, the day before my 23rd birthday.
• I was on a roll of PR's for a while. I have since hit some workouts and have not outperformed myself. It's ok though, I'm really satified with my progress. I need to figure out a proper programming.. I've only been going on a truely random template, making sure I don't repeat too many things.
  
• My nutrition took a big fall. Enough said. I'll get to cleaning it up AFTER September. It's my birthday month and I'm going to party. The way I see it is I'm waaaaay healthier than most of peers. In high school and post-high school I didn't NOTHING. I didn't develop any bad habits. I have taken plenty of complete sobriety breaks. I don't go crazy, but I'm going to enjoy it while I'm young. Nothing crazy, but you only live once.
  

Gymagery

dope site: http://gymagery.blogspot.com/

Yo

So I did the Reset and lost 4 lbs. I feel a little more energetic and maybe that combined with the butterfly kips have helped me make personal bests in 5+ workouts. Sucky part is that I moved and am currently not eating as healthy as I can/should be.

Tonight I decided to completely re-do the 20 Rep Squat program because I slacked over and over and would miss weeks and try to make it up in weight which would mentally make me fail. SO I'm now doing "20-REP TUESDAYS". Every Tuesday my workout will be a 20-rep squat day, hopefully with a 5lbs increase every week until September 9th (the day before my 23rd birthday).

That gives me 10 weeks (including today) to stay accountable. By the 9th I should be squatting 235lbs for 20 reps, meaning my 1RM should be around 350lbs. And by then my deadlift should be over 400lbs. Both would put me between Advanced and Elite Levels of Strength according to this. It's going to be awesome.

After 30 minutes or so after doing the squats I decided to join the class in doing a CrossFit benchmark WOD

"ANGIE"
100 pullups
100 pushups
100 situps
100 squats

14:29 (PR by 2:30)

YEAAAAA. Laid the f*(& out!

And you know when you've ripped too much when a callus rips only to reveal another callus!

This was dope. No blood, no pain.

Do full squats!

many professionals in the industry advise against full squats

millions of people all over the world disagree.

"Partial squats are never good. They neglect the hips and hamstrings. When an athlete stops above parallel, his knee joints are forced to halt the downward momentum, but once the athlete goes below parallel that stress is transfered to the more powerful group in the hips, hamstrings, and adductors. Full squats keep all these muscle groups proportionately strong."

Bill Starr - Strength Coach John Hopkins University Sept. 1997

Frantastic

How many times do you think people have used that post title?

Anywho, I PR'ed today by 61 seconds.

"FRAN"
21-15-9 reps for time:
thrusters, 95lbs
pullups

4:23

Yeaaaaa.. And I just recovered from a brutal workout the other week. Why'd I PR again? Maybe it's because I'm on my first day of my 5-day Reset! I forgot to take pictures of myself as a "beforehand" so I'll hopefully remember it tomorrow morning.

Today:
Morning - AM Multivitamins, Strawberry Shake
Mid Morn - Iced Lemon Bar
Lunch - Vanilla Shake, 15oz can of Lite Sliced Peaches, Braeburn Apple, 5oz Black Forest Ham
Afternoon - Peanut Butter Bar
Dinner - Chocolate Shake + Hard Boiled Eggs (2)
Evening Snack - TenX Blast Antioxidant Bar, PM Multivitamins + Episodes 4 & 5 of Battlestar Galactica: Season 3

Easy as pie.

Nutrition 101: The One Rule to Remember (from the Modern Forager):

EAT REAL FOOD.

Let’s keep it simple: Eat real foods, preferably in their natural state. I think it’s pretty easy to figure out what is “food” and what isn’t. A few things to remember:

• Food grows and dies. It isn’t created.
• Food rots, wilts, and becomes generally unappetizing, typically rather quickly.
• Food doesn’t need an ingredient label (and probably isn’t in a package either).
• Food doesn’t have celebrity endorsements.
• Food doesn’t make health claims.

Let’s give some foods this simple test and see if we should eat them:

• Broccoli - Most certainly a real food
• Steak - Deliciously real food, straight off the cow
• Oreo cookies - Hold while I read the ingredients. Are you serious?
• Eggs - Bingo
• Walnuts - Check
• Spaghetti - I don’t recall seeing a spaghetti tree on my last hike
• Pop-Tarts - Just seeing if you’re paying attention
• Pasteurized/Homogenized Milk - Nope, not in its natural state
• Raw Milk - Yep, real food, naturally

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It's so easy, but today's society wants to make it so difficult. Stop playing into the hype! Real food will put you into the best state in your life.

The preparation begins

I've become so ridiculously busy in the past couple of weeks, but because of that I'm going to go through with my Reset next week (starting Monday). Most people do it to lose weight. I don't need or intend to do that. My reasons are to clean my system out. Detox. I'm tired of being tired. Not smiling and being bubbly. It sucks especially when you need to be on top of you game because people look to you as a role model and for advice. I don't want to be a hypocrite. I guess, if anything, this just shows that EVERYONE (including the people you admire) slip up and need to restrategize and freshen up their gameplans.



One of the most important things with nutrition is getting the right amount of vitamins and minerals in your body. Ideally, you'd want to get that through the foods you eat. WE DO NOT EAT "HEALTHY". I'm guilty as well. Most of you know I'm not a huge supplement person (when compared to most meatheads whose daily meal plans look like a science experiment), but I do take some important ones:

1. Multi-vitamin. We don't get everything. Even when eating Zone/Paleo, I felt I didn't get everything that I should've. Maybe it was what groceries I had. Regardless, I caught up with everything else in that little pill.


2. Protein. This was my "quick meal". The best post-workout nutrition. Why? Because the body doesn't have to break it down as much, therefore the body absorbs it quickly and you really reap the benefits from exercise. Also, if I didn't eat (if i was hungry or not), this is something I could put down to keep "fueling my fire" (brownie points if you know what I'm talking about!)


3. Fish Oil. Healthy fats, peoples. Fats don't make you fat. Processed carbs, too many grains (!), bad fats (trans, LDLs, VLDLs), and lack of activity make you fat. Healthy oils such as this help protect cells (small picture) which of course help everything else function properly as well: joints, heart, brain, eyes, etc.

So those are my three. My good three. You can take everything else, but it's really about taking care of the body. We're so quick to help FIX things when the become a problem. We need to start PREVENTING it. Degenerative diseases are the #1 killer of people today.

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

So you have the weekend to make the choice and I would love for some more people to join along the adventure with me. Let's be a team!

Slacking... big time.

In the past month I've done really, really well with my workouts.

I've also done really, really well with slipping up when it comes to nutrition.

And so, in the ever-raging battle that is life I am going to partake in an adventure that will fix my ass up (figuratively/literally). I've done something similar in the past with so-so results, but I have a feeling this will be 100x better. It's also going to help with other aspects of my health: sleep & rest, energy levels and, most importantly, attitude.

Watch me and this blog; pictures and daily updates to come to track my progress and keep me accountable. If this works for me, I'm going to recommend that my clients and friends try this out too.

Here we go! (c) Mario

Yaay Burpees! (c) Coach Burgener

50 burpees for time:
2:48

I was going to then complete the 100 burpee challenge, but I quit. )= Haven't been in the right mindset lately and it's really getting to me.

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Scott wrote up an awesome article about the origin of one of my favorite sites/blogs:

"What does "Modern Forager" mean? How did I come up with that name?"

My First CFT

Earlier today at Local's Gym, the local affiliates had a CrossFit Total Meet. The turnout wasn't that big, so we only really needed one rack. Coach Dave and Jesse ran the meet. Good times!

My technical total was 775 lbs and I weighed in at 145 lbs. I missed some lifts OOPS

Thanks to Dwinson for the picture edit.

Squat 275 - 295 - 305 (miss: stuck in bottom)
Press 135 (miss: toe lift) - 140 (miss: stuck) - 140 (miss: stuck)
Deadlift 315 - 325 - 345 (miss: toe lift)

Deadlift starting position

I have to stop lifting my toes up. I was wearing Converse Chuck Taylors if you were wondering.

833 is the goal according to this ranking chart in the CrossFit FAQ.

Jello Legs

Yesterday Mikey and I did some MetCon because I needed to rest today in preparation for tomorrow's heavy lifts.

"Cindy"
amrap in 20 min:
5 pullups
10 pushups
15 squats

23 rds + 5, 10, 2 (PR)

Now I can't walk properly, my chest is tight and I can't raise my arms. This. Is. Awesome. In other news, the new May issues of the CrossFit Journal and the Performance Menu are out!

"Recognize that there is a benefit to not getting everything you want"
- Jason Dougherty, CFJ May 2008

I haven't been righteous with my nutrition lately

Mikey and i each ate a Gordito's Grande Burrito last night.

Jesse from Local's told me NOT to stay strictly on that 20-rep squat program.. so I did some other heavy lifts!

Press
6-6-3-3-1-1-1

125 - missed 5th lift - 130 - 130 - 135 - 135 - 140 (NEW PR)

yeaaaa

So ready to do my own total this weekend. I'm heading in early and doing my stuff and then staying to judge and cheer folk on. I'm hoping to get a 290 lbs squat, 140 lbs press and a 325 deadlift (CFT = 755 @ 145 lbs)

Baskin Robbins 31 cent scoop night! CHEAT NIGHT FOR ME!

The Quest for 315

I have a goal to squat 315 lbs by the last week of June.


The other day Dwinson and I were chatting online and he sent me a link to some training program about a 20-rep squat program. The main gist of it (as I understand) is that you get your 10-rep max on the bar and do ten reps. Then one more. Then another. Then another until you get to 20. They're also known as breathing squats because you end up breathing more and more in between reps. It is more of mental challenge than anything, but it separates the boys from the men.

Yesterday I tried it out, without knowing any of my maxes (because I've never attempted anything other than a 1RM). I ended up doing my real 20-rep set with 185 lbs. It was hard and I definitely became slower in those later reps and was screaming like a mofo, but I could've gone and done 10+ reps if I wanted to. I'm a little sore in the legs and glutes today, but I'm going to attempt a bigger one tonight with Adrian. If I do the math correctly it should go like this:

Starting today, I have 10 weeks until the last week of June/first week of July to hit a 1RM of 315 lbs. Let's say that the normal programming with this method calls for 6 weeks of training. If I do these workouts 3x/week then I should have 18 workouts ahead of me. If I am adding 5 lbs per workout then I will be moving a complete 90 lbs within those six weeks. If I start off the program with 195 lbs then by the end of the six weeks I should be squatting 285 lbs. Would four weeks be enough for me to jump another 30 lbs? I think that would be attainable given that I survive the first six weeks training mostly with the 20-rep squats. Apparently this program also builds a lot of mass. Hopefully I stay around where I'm currently at. I don't wanna outgrow my clothes and/or look funnier (short guy, big body)

Further Reading:

• 20-Rep Squat Routine [CrossFit.com Message Boards]
  
• 20-Rep Squats: The Brutal Path to Massive Gains! [Bodybuilding.com]
• Super Squats (Book Excerpt) [Dave Draper]
  
• High Rep Squats [Dave Draper]

Didn't know my legs could do that much

Crazy, fun workouts are just how I like working out. Nate, Marc and myself went up to Lynnwood for the Hooverball Tourney, except the turnout didn't go as planned SO we were still able to "Surrender Our Sweat" with an extreme WOD

From Jesse Ward, Clan Cheiftan of Local's Gym:

Have like a "Choose your own workout", kinda like "Those Choose Your Own Adventure" books. It could be so rad. You can rest as you decide where to go next…..

Set 1:

# 1: 5 Rounds of "Chelsea". If you complete in under 5 minutes go to workout #5 if you complete in longer than 5 minutes go to workout #6.

# 2: Go to workout #6

# 3: Work up to a max military press. If under m:100 w:60 go to workout #7 between m:101-149 w:61-79 go to workout #8 if above go to #9

# 4: Perform 30 Suitcase Deadlifts with m:20kg w:12kg each side and proceed to workout #7

# 5: "Tabata" Squats if your lowest interval is below 10 go to workout #2 if it’s higher than 10 go to workout #3

# 6: Row 1000m and do 25 Push-Ups. Proceed to workout #4

# 7: Perform 1 Rounds of "Michael". If using rowing instead of running proceed to workout #10. If time under 8 minutes proceed to workout #11, if over #12.

# 8: Proceed to workout #6

# 9: Perform 1 Round of "Lynne" If your score under 10 proceed to workout # 6 is between 11 and 20 proceed to workout # 11 if over 21 proceed to luckey # 13.

# 10: Perform 3 Rounds of "Chipper" Proceed to workout # 14.

# 11: Find your maximum weight for 3 reps on front squats. Proceed to workout #14.

# 12: Perform 21-15-9 of 20" Box Jumps and Knees to Elbows proceed to workout #14.

# 13: Perform "Grace" proceed to workout # 14.

# 14: Race 500m, see who wins !!! Celebrate

Jesse, Nate and one of Jesse's members did #1, 6, 4, 7, 12, 14

Marc and myself went through #1, 5, 3, 8, 6, 4, 7, 11, 14

Brutal enjoyment, especially seeing as I just became better (minus the stuffy/runny nose)