Kelly Trepp, Author

This is going to be a quick post, but I'm going to write it from atop my soap box. **ahem** Can everybody hear me down there? Okay, good... Despite the fact that I've been living the Paleo lifestyle for just under a year now, I still get all the questions of why, and the accusations of being on a diet. First of all, I'm proud of my hard work and find it insulting to be told I am on a diet. Child please!  Second, why wouldn't I live a lifestyle that makes me feel great, perform better, and improve my blood work? I suppose better than answering their questions, I could pose the same question to them: Why do you eat the way you do? Why do you eat processed foods high in sodium and preservatives? Why do you eat genetically modified organisms (GMOs)? Why do you drink liquid filled with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and calories? Why do you poison your body on a regular basis and inch closer towards modern, degenerative diseases which have been linked to your di

Okay folks, here it is. The moment you've all been waiting for... ...it's recipe time! Over the weekend I was experimenting with some new flavors. I have been trying to eat less red meat and more chicken and seafood to keep my triglycerides under control (I've determined red meat, egg yolks, and stress are the culprit of my higher-than-I-would-like triglycerides). But when you're accustomed to eating bacon every day, chicken is boring. There. I said it. Live chickens would be much more fun, but I still haven't gotten hubby on board with letting me have a chicken coop in the backyard. Not sure how the neighbors or the HOA would feel about that either... but I digress... I promise it tastes better than it looks. Sweet Potato Linguine Topped with Grilled Chicken Smothered in Sage and Mushroom Sauce (A working title) Serves 4, or 2 with leftovers for lunch Ingredients: 1 large Sweet Potato (or 2 medium), cleaned and peeled 4 tbsp organic Butter

Today was a magical day. I woke up to find the weather predictor live background of my phone snowing. I thought for sure I was still dreaming. But no. Snow was falling when I began my trek to work this morning. I wish I would have snagged a picture of it, because now it looks like this: Blehhhh. A rainy Monday afternoon meant no outdoor activities for the Running Club. Four coaches and 20 some odd kids took over the school gymnasium for stretching, push-ups, crunches, and burpees! By choice, mind you. One of the young boys led the warm-up. I knew then he was a child after my own heart. My future baby. After the warm-up exercises, we moved onto some core exercises to include high knees and planks. The kids did NOT. Like. Planks. There was so much moaning and groaning I thought I was in a pregnancy ward. After our abs were burning, we decided to attack the thighs. The kids lined up on the wall for wall sits. Yup. These little nine to eleven-year-old children do wall sits.

Holy cow! It's been nearly two months since I've made a blog post. That really shouldn't be allowed. February, being the short month that it was, flew by. Then March came in like a lion. Here are the highlights: Began attending Academic Lectures for the Instructor Training Program ( more on that here ) Registered for the CrossFit Games Open. Celebrated Valentine's Day with Bacon-Covered Roses from my hubby Began the Whole Life Challenge Which required a purchase from US Wellness Meats Entertained a weekend with the in-laws and managed to stay WLC compliant Dominated the CrossFit Games Open WOD 13.1 with a new PR Experimented with new recipes... How to poach the perfect egg Started volunteering at a local elementary school's running club Signed up to mentor an at-risk youth at a local high school Dominated the CrossFit Games Open WOD 13.2 As of this posting, I'm currently sitting at 2240th place in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Not

A Fish Fry is a meal which typically consists of a battered or breaded fish, french fries, coleslaw, hush puppies and dessert. Seeing as how I haven't tried any paleo hush puppy recipes yet (although now I'm determined to find one), my Sunday Fish Fry consisted of only the fish and fries with a side of sugar snap peas! Aw, snap! The Fried Fish recipe is fairly similar to my fried chicken recipe , but with a few tweaks. Fried Fish Serves 4 Ingredients: 1 pound cold water, wild caught fish (In this instance, I used Flounder) 1.5 cups of Blanched Almond Flour 2 tbsp Ground Lemon Pepper 2 tsp Paprika 2 tsp Parsley Flakes 1 tsp Garlic Powder 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper 1 tsp Iodized Sea Salt 1 Egg Coconut Oil for frying Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk the egg in a separate bowl. Melt coconut oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat (just enough to coat the bottom of the pan). Dip the fish fillet in the egg, coating the fish. Lay the fish in

A lot more goes into maintaining a healthy lifestyle than working out regularly and eating your fruits and veggies, although that certainly helps. Heart disease is the number one killer of women. The Mayo Clinic presents five reasonably practical and predictable measures to prevent heart disease: Don't smoke or use tobacco. ( check ) Exercise for 30 minutes on most days of the week. ( check ) Eat a heart-healthy diet. ( check ) Maintain a healthy weight. ( check ) Get regular health screenings. ( check ) I prefer to take a more holistic approach to the issue. More progressive resources recommend reducing or managing stress to prevent heart disease. Gaiam lists managing stress levels as one of the top ten ways to prevent heart disease for both men and women, recommending meditation, breathing exercises and yoga as methods to achieve less stress. Here's a few of my favorite ways to reduce stress: First and foremost, identify your sources of stress and eliminate

Very rarely do I ever leave the gym NOT smiling, laughing, teasing, looking forward to returning the next day, skipping holding hands and singing while birds fly out of my butt ... Unfortunately, today was one of those days... You know, that day that you leave feeling like you didn't give it everything you've got? Where you feel like if you tried just a bit harder you might have achieved the goal you were aiming for? No? Haven't ever felt that way? Good for you, you over achiever. Pat yourself on the back and sleep easy tonight knowing you have mastered the universe. For the rest of us average Josephines, these things happen. I'm pretty sure even Disney princesses have bad days... or they would, if they were real. The important thing that I've learned is not to beat yourself up over it. Throw a Tinkerbell-tantrum, get it out of your system, and get back to work. As a flawed people, we aren't judged by our failures, but by how we react to them.

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”  - Steve Jobs This weekend was a weekend of firsts. My first CrossFit competition. The gym's first year anniversary party. And my first step on a new journey. CrossFit Lakas  participated in the  Garage Games'   World Wide WOD - Gym Resolution  -- a one day national event held in gyms world wide. Thousands of athletes all competing in the same three WODs. And wouldn't you know, CrossFit Lakas was holding down the event's Facebook page for a few hours, with two of our athletes holding down the fourth and fifth spot overall before the west coast star

It can be difficult to prepare meals during the week. I get that. Working full time, going to the gym daily, and trying to eat cleanly is something you have to be dedicated to and make time for ( yes, make time for; I'm sure you can find it somewhere ), but it doesn't have to be a chore. What follows is a recipe that I have modified to make an easy meal that can be quickly whipped together during the week (with ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen) with enough leftovers to take to lunch the next day: cabbage "lo mein" prepared two ways. Shrimp Lo Mein Cabbage "Lo Mein" - 2 Ways Ingredients: 4 Tsp Toasted Sesame Oil 1 Tbsp Minced Garlic 1 Tbsp Minced Ginger 2 lbs Chicken, Cubed (Or Shrimp) 2 Cups Broccoli (Or Sugar Snap Peas) 1/4 Cup Celery, Chopped 1/2 Cup Mushrooms, Sliced 2 Cups Shredded Cabbage 1/3 Cup Green Onion, Chopped 1/4 Cup Coconut Aminos Variations: Chicken Lo Mein This recipe has been adapted from  Make it