Get Real Food Challenge and Swimsuits

The Get Real Food Challenge is coming to an end on Monday (with a weekend that's going to prove a little tough in the food department) and I'll have a wrap up post coming soon.

This week, things clicked again and my stomach started to feel so much better.  No waking up with an angry tummy.  This week taught me to be more in tune with how full I am.  Once I put everything on a plate, a lot of times I'll eat it all and that's not always needed.  With the time change, I've been feeling off and not so hungry this week, so if I felt like I was done eating, I was.  That's it that's all.  There's not much else to say, except that, for this week.  I feel like the rest will come in my wrap up post!

On to other more exciting things for you readers...

In my 2013 Goals, I listed that I wanted to feel confident in my swimsuit this year.  Sooooo, in typical Kelly fashion, I ended up taking photos in my current bikini.

I'm actually pretty happy with the way it's looking now compared to last summer (last summer I HAD to wear shorts due to my hips' love for looking all muffin toppy.  The top fits perfectly this time around instead of my boobs hanging out every where.   I just want it to fit my lower half just as well.  So that's what I'm aiming for.  OR I'm going to just get some new bottoms.... OR a new bikini.   I should have known when I bought these that the bottoms were a little skimpy for what I usually wear.  

Progress is progress is progress.  Even if it's more about getting it through my head that I can wear a swimsuit without covering up.  Let's see what happens with these pictures when summer is officially here and I'm spending my time jumping in lakes!

Get Real Food Challenge Update #2

There was supposed to be a vlog here yesterday, but my new computer was having none of that and I got too frustrated to fix it yesterday.  Or today.  So you get a blog.  Deal.

Food

Food wise was fairly good last week minus the times we went out to eat, but I stuck with paleo.  Umm.... except for me making a mistake with my pizza on Friday night and forgetting that I had to check 'no cheese' option when I ordered online.  So I ate a piece with it and then picked it off the rest.

Gym

Last week I felt off for most of the week and had trouble upping my weight on a lot of things.  However, during our special Monday workout, I actually managed a 2RM Turkish Get Up with 20lbs and majorly upped my box jumps.  Wahhoooo!  This week I've been PRing all over the place but I'll update that tomorrow.

Life

Sleep has been actually on a roll this week and despite feeling off and the stressors I've had, I've been well rested.  Some of those days were melatonin induced, but I'm okay with it.  Unfortunately this week started off with me trying to push down the stress eating cravings, but so far so good.

GOING FORWARD

Food 

My goal this week has been to take out my paleo treats and decrease my 'paleo approved sugars' to take down the stress eating cravings.  I didn't bake anything on Sunday, and instead prepped lots of veggies and protein to make it through.  Unfortunately, I also made maple cinnamon almond butter and someone needs to pry it out of my hands.  It's so good.

I'm also trying to up my water intake.  I've been slacking recently.  So the brita and I are now BFFs.

Gym

Trying to give it all no matter how I feel this week.  Pushing through and getting it done.  That's it that's all.

Life

My life goal is the same as the gym.  Approach things with positivity and every time my head gets into a vicious cycle of self doubt, counteract it with what is going right in my life at this very moment.

And a little something extra.... pictures and American Eagle LIE.

For those of you who saw that picture of me in my size 10 shorts and figured I was a 6-8.  Not so much.  AE is never consistent with their sizes depending on the cut.  Case in point:  I have 12s, 10s, 14s and they're all different.   I went in this weekend to try jeans on, and because EVERYTHING is flipping low rise, no 8s or 10s that I grabbed fit me.  Bah!

It's been a rough week....

This week has been full of ups and downs and stomach aches and frustrated workouts.

I've been sitting on a vlog I actually NEED to do since Sunday/Monday but haven't had the umph to get it done.  I'm hoping to have it up by tomorrow or Monday at the latest.  It's kinda necessary and should promote me doing more.

Let's start with the bad:

• Feeling sugar addicted again and wanting dessert and/or to stuff my face.  I don't know where it came from but I'm guessing stress and emotional eating triggers.  The good news is that I've resisted it, but it hasn't been easy.
• Alcohol.  With the vlog I need to get out haha, you'll know why, but I've been trying to keep the boozing to a minimum for the next 4-5 weeks and that just didn't happen this week.
• Getting frustrated with my lifts.  I get really testy when I can't nail my form and have to drop down in weight.  I know it's for my greater good, and I'm only 3 months in, but it would be nice to get out of Foundations.  Unfortunately, my coaches often get the wrath of frustrated OCD perfectionist cranky pants Kelly.
• That time I ate gluten.... I indulged with 1 homemade dumpling (but only 1/2 of the pastry) and a little bit of glass noodle salad and paid with my gluten baby for the rest of the day.   It was uncomfortable, but at least I can now l can laugh at it instead of curling up into a ball

The good:

• I managed to squeak out 6 reps at 63lbs for my bench.... last week I struggled to get 2 at 65 so it's a big change in a short time.
• I upped my box jump to about 20-22 inches... I should measure that.
• I did not let any of the bad things completely mess up my week and learned to accept and move on instead of dwelling on them.

Alright, I have a date with my oven.... not for fun baking, but cleaning.  Here goes!

February Thoughts

I was going to do a vlog today, and then I realized that I really wanted to ramble right now, and I didn't want to be that awkward person talking to her computer while she has friends over.  Well they're still in bed right now, but still.  Anyways.... this sums it up well:

Dumb face... don't ask...

 Also, I'm pretty sure I woke up with a sushi hangover and I also think this might have something to do with it:

Sushi on sushi on sushi

We went to an AYCE place at Queen/Yonge, and it's the first AYCE place that really impressed me.  First of all, it took zero time to get our food (though we were also kinda out of the dinner rush (it was only about 5pm) and the fish it's self was really good quality - totally the area in Toronto I think that dictated that.   I also had this odd but delicious roll called the Firehouse.  It was banana and shrimp with spicy mayo and tuna on top.  It was really oddly good.

Anyways, sushi hangover.  I did really well.  I didn't totally overeat, didn't use a ton of soya sauce, and tried to stick to things that weren't uber deep fried.  Unfortunately, I still woke up with that hangover dehydrated thing, though I'm wondering if it's also because of the fact that there were a ton of foods I wasn't used to eating anymore.  I also had a headache last night and again, I'm wondering if it was because of gluten.  Fun times.

Ugh I lost my train of thought there for a minute.

Anyways, this whole post was supposed to actually be about one thing:  coffee.

I'm hardcore addicted to the stuff.  I get massive headaches (when I normally get like 2 headaches a year and they're not that bad) when I don't have coffee in the morning.  It's dumb and I need to fix it.  On top of the fact that I think I'll sleep better if I get off the juice. 

Plan: this week is one in the morning.  Next week is 1/2 cup diluted.  And after that, I'm taking it by feel.   Now, I'm pretty sure I should kick all caffeine, but there's probably still going to be some of this in my life:

No, not the wine.  Promise.  I finally restocked on two of my favourite teas:  Oh Canada and Happy Kombucha.  These two are the bomb.  Oh Canada is one of the best Rooibos that I've had.  It doesn't get all soapy and has a great sweet flavour.  Happy Kombucha is one of the only fruity teas that I like hot or cold.  The best part about Oolong's too, is that you can brew them twice (or more) and the caffeine content decreases each time.  So though this guy's a bit expensive, it's actually kind of a steal.  I think you'll probably see me drinking this all day today.

I'll try to check in halfway through this process.... wish me luck!

The Black Hoof

As much as I love being a lazy bum all weekend, hanging out in my workout clothes/sweats, making yummy food and watching Doctor Who, I also love getting all dolled up and going out for dinner.

Yup, I need to remember to clean my mirror.

Last week, my friend and I decided to go out for a little foodie experience with our boyfriends.  Her boyfriend is a chef in the city and has been looking up places to try.

They were both excited to try The Black Hoof so Greg and I agreed to go out with them this weekend.

Remember how I said this year was all about getting out of my comfort zone?  Yeahhhhh.  The menu for The Black Hoof was a little out of said comfort zone.  However, it was also a very paleo friendly menu.  A restaurant that focuses on good quality meats and good food, means no guilt eating out since you can pretty much guarantee they aren't using anything too funky in their cooking (like crummy oils).

It was a bit hard to see but they have their menu up on two chalkboards.  Very cool.

Our waiter noted everything was basically to share, so the four of us each ordered something that appealed to us, plus 'appetizers'.

The order looked something like this:

Bread, Olives, Charcuterie.

Salt Cod Mezzaluna, Bone Marrow, Pork Carnitas Tacos, Pork Belly and Cappuccio, Oxtail and Scallops, and the eat your veg option which was Squash.    Yes, we ordered almost the whole menu!  Everything came out about one dish at a time which added to the experience, with new plates and cutlery every few dishes.

The charcuterie board was out of this world!  I loved stuff that I wasn't really sure about.  The chicken liver terrine was spot on, and the meat at the right end was....... horse.  Yes horse.  Luckily I didn't know that before I inhaled it.  We also got warm, fresh olives, that were amazing.

 Pork Carnitas.  I made a paleo exception and ate the tortilla (corn is a no no) but it was worth every bite.  Perfectly spiced pork rinds and a squeeze of lime took these to the next level.

Bone Marrow.  Honestly, while I liked this, it wasn't my favourite.   It was buttery and really interesting, but I think it would have been better if I was able to spread it on the bread.  I just didn't want to endure bloating for the rest of the meal.

So this was the pork belly..... We realized with one bite left no one had taken a picture of it.  This went down quickly and was my personal favourite!  Pork belly on a brussel sprout sauerkraut with a creamy polenta (damn corn) and an anchovy sauce.  Wooooooow.

I didn't snap pics of the oxtail but it was a table favourite as well.  Unfortunately it was breaded, so I kinda ate around it but what I did have was delish.

The squash (unpictured) was in a coconut sauce with roasted pepitas and must be recreated in my kitchen.

Honestly, there was nothing we didn't like. it was all ridiculously tasty and the service was amazing.  Very attentive staff who knew the menu well and made suggestions.  We'd go back in a heartbeat though I think we're off to new culinary adventures next month!

Pure Laziness

Maybe not pure laziness, but pretty damn lazy.  That's how I feel.

My dad and Gregers... it wasn't too long after this picture that my dad declared he was drunk and going to bed.

I actually booked myself off for the holidays for a whole week and a half and it's hard to believe so much of it is already over!  I spent the first weekend prepping for my parents to arrive and then when they did there was a lot of yummy cooking happening that I didn't take pictures of (whoops).  We had Greg's now infamous ribbies, steak, banana bread french toast, ham, brussel sprouts, and lots of bacon.  It was glorious. 

Even if you aren't paleo or hate paleo, you really need to make this banana bread. 

But not.  I'm not sure if it was the sheer amount I ate, or the chocolate chips in my banana bread that did me in, or maybe the alcohol, but I've spent the last few days with an angry stomach.  I was really hoping that I would avoid the Franklin/Hyland stomach issues but it appears I haven't.  Which is really sad.  Dairy and gluten make my stomach really angry and other things seem to upset it on a whim.  It's really frustrating. 

Local cider for the win!

Then there was the fact that Greg and I went out for our belated anniversary dinner at Fabbrica and I couldn't resist a piece of bread... or the tiramisu.  You can bet I felt like ass yesterday after not having gluten for close to 4 months. 

I also spent most of yesterday in my pajamas not moving off the couch.  I wasn't going to workout but I realized that there was  probably going to be a 4 day gap between workouts because of circumstances so I should probably get off my butt.  I finally made it off the couch for the 5pm workout.  It was sweaty and disgusting but so worth it.

It was also chilly since Toronto finally decided to have some snow.

Alright... it's almost 11 and I'm going to try to aim for the noon class today... guess I should probably put some workout clothes on or something.

Happy Holidays!  Nothing like flying a helicopter inside!

Learning to like...

1.  Black coffee.   Seriously?  Who knew black coffee could actually taste good?  I'm that person in your Starbucks who can never walk in there and just order coffee.  It's usually some form of crazy ass drink with 3-4 changes to it.  I'm sorry.  And I'm sorry to anyone who asks me if I want anything from Starbucks if they're going.  Anyways, the point of this ramble is that black coffee was never something I thought I could do.   On this whole Paleo challenge thing, one of the suggestions was to drink your coffee black, and ya know what?  It's actually pretty good!  Last night I even got a decaf americano.  Progress!

(Post-Crossfit hair)

2.  Me.  I took a picture of myself on the way to Peterborough on Saturday and I can tell you everything I hate about it:  I'm pale.  I'm tired.  I look chubby, etc.  But you know what?  My hair looks killer.  I love my makeup.  And I love that my eyes have gotten greener.  And I really look pretty good.  It's so hard to stop negative self-talk, but the only way to combat it is with positives.

3.  Spaghetti Squash/Substitute Carbs.  Let's talk about this.  Zucchini is not really a lasagna noodle, and no matter what anyone tells you, spaghetti squash does not replace fresh homemade pasta.  But sometimes it kind of tastes good.  And sometimes it's actually not so bad in a dish.  Promise!  Funny story about this one.

 As I was transferring pictures to use in this entry, I came across my screen cap for the recipe.  Last night I spent a half hour freaking that paleomg.com was down I couldn't see the ingredient list (can you tell I'm a baker by nature?  I can't deal without exact measurements),  and the damn ingredients were on my phone the entire time!

3b.  Side note:  changing up my cooking habits made me finally pull out my fancy Le Crueset cookware that I usually hate getting down because it's so heavy.

4.  Okay, we already know I love these two, but Greg wants me to post about our cats.  So here are our cats spooning.  Cutest thing ever.  How can you not like cats?  Also, we locked Pip in a closet for 24hrs this weekend.  Whoops.