CrossFit Open workout 2

15 min AMRAP of:
9 Deadlifts
12 Push-ups
15 Box jumps

CrossFit Open workout 1

Here is the first CrossFit Open workout:

10 min As Many Rounds As Possible (AMRAP) of:
30 Double-unders
15 Power snatch

and here's a picture of me completing my double unders 

And for my next challenge - CrossFit

You may by now realise that I love a good challenge - I like to train hard and well and will always encourage you to do the same thing.  It is 6 weeks until my 30th birthday and I was feeling up for a new challenge and want to be in the best shape I can be before I hit the big 3-0!  I have dabbled a little in CrossFit previously but always complemented it with other forms of cardio and resistance exercise but now and for the next 6 weeks I am going to complete only CrossFit workouts and have even signed up for the CrossFit games open see here for more info.  I am going to take photos and record my progress and book in for Body Composition towards the end of the challenge (it will be a week short of my birthday and completing the challenge but we are heading to Perth so I will do it as late as possible in Sydney).  I am keen to see what CrossFit alone does for me AND some of the stuff they do is crazy, I can only aspire to be able to do some of the exercises the best CrossFit athletes do.....let's see how I go.

I will be posting daily the workouts I have completed which I am taking from the CrossFit Kensington blog and will sometimes be heading over to their gym to complete some of my workouts.... I'll bring you pictures and progress reports....I am aiming to train 5 days per week minimum and am looking forward to seeing the results I get from this type of training.

Here are the workouts (and  a little pic since kicking off on Monday)

Monday (taken from a previous week)

10 Kettle bell swings 16kg
10 Dumb bell push press 10kg each hand
10 Lunges 10kg overhead
10 Toes to bar
100m run
7 rounds for time

Tuesday

Push press 60% 3RM (Reps Max)
Box Jumps height of 45cm
KB swings 12kg (I did 20kgs by mistake)

Complete each exercise for 3mins, 2mins, 1mins - As Many Reps As Possible (AMRAP)

Wednesday

10 Dead Lifts 70%of Body Weight
10 ring dips
10 wall balls 5kg
200m run

7 rounds for time

My Body Beyond Baby 6 months on

India is now 7 months old but I took myself back to Body Composition a few weeks ago (just a week after she turned 6 months) and here are the latest results (with the old ones to follow)

10th February 2011
Body Fat % = 23.4%
Total Body Weight = 56.3kg
Fat Mass = 13.2kg
Lean Body Mass = 40.7kg

27th October 2010
Body Fat % = 28.3%
Total Body Weight = 59.9kg
Fat Mass = 16.9kg
Lean Body Mass = 40.5kg

23rd September 2010
Body Fat % = 30%
Total Body Weight = 61.8kg
Fat Mass = 18.5kg
Lean Body Mass = 40.9kg

5th August 2010 (first post baby scan)
Body Fat % = 30.5%
Total Body Weight = 64.1kg
Fat Mass = 19.5kg
Lean Body Mass = 42.1kg

Things have definitely moved in the right direction and I can really feel my pre baby clothes starting to fit properly, not in that 'slightly snug' manner that they do for a while after you've had a baby.  The weight isn't shifting quite as quickly as it did after Marley - the results below show where I was at Christmas time in 2008:

12th December 2008
Body Fat % = 22.5%
Total Body Weight = 55.3kg
Fat Mass = 12.4kg
Lean Body Mass = 40.6kg

 As you can see I was in better shape then a good couple of months earlier than I am now.  Though what is interesting is that I feel I am more relaxed and possibly more confident in my body now than I was after Marley even though at that time I felt more relaxed than before I had him.  Its a transition and the biggest shift is in the respect I have for my body, what it has done, how it has transformed and how I can train it to go back or even maybe improve on what it was before children..... it's a journey and I am enjoying the ride and am busy planning my next challenge!  I'll take a photo over the weekend and pop it up here next week....enjoy your weekend.

Six pack for my birthday please

I'll let you into a little secret.... every year for the past three years (this one included) I have been asking my husband for a six pack.  Not a six pack of beer , nor a six pack of wine but a six pack of the abdominal variety.  We laugh about it, we joke about it and each birthday has gone by so far without me being able to unwrap my present (my husband) and reveal a six pack.  BUT, it seems this year he has started making some changes - the beer has been cut down during the week, no more desert at work (he works on a film set so tempting, not so good for you food is readily available), no more chocolate in the freezer.....and it was him who brought up the 'six pack for my birthday' request this time round.

My 30th birthday is in 7 weeks and 2 days time, 23rd April, i wonder what I will be getting...... stay tuned (I might even try to persuade him to guest blog)

Chocolate is NOT a snack food

So, I just finished reading the Sunday paper - yes it's Tuesday and it's taken me this long but that's life with little people and I still enjoy it even if its tackled in bite sized pieces. In one particular article it read: "A Newspoll survey shows that of the 96 percent who snack during the week, two thirds choose chocolate, chips, lollies and cakes".  Wow.... my initial reaction was "who on earth puts chocolate, chips, lollies and cakes into the everyday snack category?" but apparently we do, they do, maybe you do....

This lead me to do a quick Google search on the definition of a snack, Wikipedia says "A snack is a small portion of food, as contrasted with a regular meal.  Traditionally snacks were prepared from ingredients commonly available in the home, often leftovers, sandwiches made from cold cuts, nuts, fruit, and the like" so far so good, it then goes on to say "With the spread of convenience stores, packaged snack foods are now a significant business. Snack foods are typically designed to be portable, quick and satisfying. Processed snack foods are designed to be less perishable, more durable, and more appealing than prepared foods.  They often contain substantial amounts of sweeteners, preservatives, and appealing ingredients such as chocolate, peanuts, and specially-designed flavors (such as flavored potato chips)." Aha...there lies the problem, with all of the marketing and advertising that we are fed, at some point, we forgot that a snack is a small nutritious meal that helps us through the day, helps to keep out blood sugar levels steady, energy up and preferably not  fat along the way.

Snacking is good, snacking can be helpful in maintaining a well rounded, healthy diet, but not if we start to confuse snacks with treats or 'sometimes foods'.  Snack foods need to be made up of 'always food', foods that can be eaten everyday and that are good for us.  So next time you reach for a snack ask yourself what that snack is going to do for your body?  Teach your kids the same thing, teach them which foods will help them grow up big and strong and enable them to run around and nourish their bodies.   What you teach them now and what they learn about food when they are young will be ingrained in them as they grow.  And let's save the chocolate and lollies for treat time and save a few inches around the hips at the same time.