Skip to main content

Kickin' It Old School

Monday starts the new challenge of kickin' it old school. 2 million years-ish old school to be more exact descriptive.

I'm talking about the 30 day Paleo Challenge that just began at my CrossFit gym.

"What is paleo," you might be wondering. The word Paleo is short for Paleolithic, as in the paleolithic era.Think cavemen.

The Paleo diet is more than just a fad diet (it has to be, it's been around for more than 2 million years). It's a way of living.

Man, as he has evolved today, has survived for millions of years (I know, I know, I'm repeating myself, but seriously if it's been around this long it can't be bad) on a diet of food items that can be hunted or gathered. Basically, if you can kill it, pick it off a tree or pick it up out of the ground, you can eat it.

The video below does a pretty good job of describing what foods are Paleo friendly.



Another part of the Paleo diet is exercise. Cavemen didn't run 26.2 miles a day to get their exercise (unless being chased by a predator). More likely, they got their exercise in short spurts by hunting their foods, climbing through perilous terrain, lifting rocks, etc. I am not recommending you go out to a local rock quarry and start throwing rocks and granite slabs around. I like to think we have evolved a little over the last two million years...

CrossFit is perfect for the Paleo lifestyle because exercise is based on high intensity, functional movements. In short, you get a bad@$$ workout in a short period of time.

The 30 Day Paleo Challenge is based on a point system. Meals, exercise and sleeping habits all have an impact on the outcome of the challenge. Additionally, there are three baseline workouts that are performed to compare your level of fitness before and after the challenge.

Max Deadlift: 163 lbs (Current)
Mile Run: Completing on Wednesday
Helen: 15:01;.75 pood Kettlebell, #4 & #1 Band on the Pull-ups

To prepare for the challenge, I've purchased two cookbooks (Paleo Comfort Foods and The Paleo Solution); a boat load of raw nuts; grass-fed, organic beef, pork and chicken; cage free eggs (which I already ate, anyway); and a bunch of organic fruit. It actually wasn't as difficult as I thought it was going to be!

Then today on my way home from the gym, I stopped by the Good Earth Natural Foods Company and grabbed some more organic, farm fresh vegetables that I couldn't find at BJ's or Giant. How awesome is that? I get to eat healthy and support the local farmers. I love it!

I cannot wait to share some of my favorite recipes with you and my progress and how amazing I feel on this new part of my healthy journey.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Gift of Prayer

I believe that prayer is a powerful gift and tool. It is how we are in relationship with God. We have a direct line to the creator of the universe and an advocate on our behalf that sits at the right hand of the Father. We go to God in prayer to say thank you when things are good and to ask for healing when friends and family are sick, but do we go to him with our everyday hopes, struggles, or anxieties? There was an incident earlier today that troubled me for the better part of the day. I was sitting at the local coffee shop with a friend while Silas played nearby. A woman walked in with two little girls, one of Silas' age and the other about half his age. She came and set her stuff down at a chair at the table where we sat. Her older daughter immediately reached for a toy stethoscope Silas had been playing with. He grabbed onto it and said, "noooo" with a whimper and made eyes at me. I said something along the lines of, "I'm sorry, Silas was playing with that...
Post a Comment
Read more

Be Here

I read a book recently that reminded me if we are always waiting for the next good thing -- a "better" house, a "better" job, a "better" location, a "better" spouse, the next vacation, your child's next developmental milestone -- you are never fully in the moment and, therefore, you never fully appreciate what you have. We live in a society that teaches us that bigger is better, surplus is superior to enough, wants are more important than our needs, and the next step will make us happier than where we are. But what happens when you reach that next step? Is all that glitters gold? Does chasing happiness bring us joy? Or does reaching that next step leave us in search of the next best thing? The next hit? The next high? What would life look like, then, if we put our focus on where we are? If we chose joy in any and all circumstances? I'm not saying that we should not have goals to improve ourselves or that we do not deserve to be happy. W...
Post a Comment
Read more

Heaven is Paradise

Judah and I managed to make it out to ladies bible study yesterday where we briefly discussed the idea of what heaven may be like. We ultimately decided that heaven will appear differently to each of us. While I know that Heaven is an unfathomable place, I find myself daydreaming (with a sleeping baby on my chest) about what Heaven will be like. The bible tells us there will be no pain, tears or heartache. Jesus is preparing "rooms" for us there where he will greet us and dwell with us. The streets are paved with gold, the gates are made of pearl, and the walls made of precious jewels. We will spend our days worshipping the glory of God. I like to think that Heaven is at the foot of a mountain. I'll greet, and in some instances meet loved ones for the first time, in a field where a river flows. The air is crisp and smells like new babies . There is no age in heaven -- we will all be recognizable and we will know one another fully, without the hindrance of sin, the wa...
Post a Comment
Read more