And so we start another week.

Sort of a catch all random post today.


I had a nice and relaxing weekend.
We didn't do a whole lot.
I did a tiny bit of shopping-Christmas decor, presents and lights and also got some things to organize stuff.
I cleaned and organized our bathroom which now looks amazing. It was getting cluttered and cramped on our counters and was really bugging me. No longer. :)
We filled up the Marshmallow for the first time on Friday night and I averaged 39.67mpg! Super happy about that!



When I was at CrossFit on Friday they got some photos of me working out which actually turned out pretty good.
I'm really excited about this because without dragging everyone I know to the gym, this is the best way for me to share/show what it is I do 4 days a week.

Our workout on Friday was:

7 Rounds of:

Row 150m
7 ChestToBar Pull-ups
7 Front Squats
7 HandStandPushUp

Because(believe it or not) I don't sit in front of the mirror and flex for hours on end, I had NO idea my back had gained so much muscle. Kinda cool. :)
In this photo I was mid way through the pull-ups. I was using a thin yellow band to assist me in doing these because I'm still not strong enough to do 49, especially when I have to bring my chest to the bar and not just my chin like normal.

This is a front squat. I used 65lbs for this workout. So I did a total of 49 of these.

And from the front. :) Squats are one thing I tend to do well with. I have a lot stronger legs than I do arms.

This is my version of a Hand Stand Push Up. I'm still not strong enough for a real one. This was REALLY hard for me as it was. Again, did 49 of these.


Now this was "extra credit". I'm learning the different Olympic lifts. It's actually quite fun and nothing like anything I've done before.
In this photo, I'm in an overhead squat. To finish this move, I have to stand up with the bar still overhead. The most weight I did for this "lift" was 53lbs.

This is mid-way through the lift. I basically start on the ground and "snatch" it overhead while in a squat and then stand up.
As uncoordinated as I can be sometimes, this one is going to take me a while to learn.


As you can see, I need practice. I'm only holding 45 lbs in this photo. As I use more weight, if I can't complete a lift, I will drop the bar instead of hold it like I did in the photo.
At least I'm having fun!

Last thing I did Friday night was back squats. I hold the bar like in the photo and squat. Not a lot to it.
On Friday, the most weight I did was 94lbs and I did that 20 times. Which means, I can probably do quite a bit more weight less times.


Just one thing I want to add.
I hear a lot from female friends that lifting weights and training will make you bulky/gross and they aren't interested in it because of that.

That's totally wrong. Weight training is NOTHING like body building.
There have been countless studies done that prove the benefits of weight training for women that show everything from helping bones and boosting metabolism.

I not worried whatsoever that I'll look like a body builder(puke) ever. It's just not possible with my fitness goals and diet.
I would love to go into more detail, but I don't have the time right now.
:)




Last but not least, I was given this award by Jeska over at Living Our Love Song.
Her blog is great and she has a really cute little dog. :)
Thanks for the award!


Now I get to tell you seven things about myself you may not know:

1. When I was young I was very sure I wanted to be a Marine Mammal Biologist.

2. I could eat sushi(cooked and veg) every day. Even for breakfast.

3. I really really like the buttered popcorn jelly bellies. And since no one else does, more for me.

4. I'm stupidly afraid of bees. Way more than any normal person should be.

5. I still have stuffed animals on my bed(Ryan must love me to put up with that).

6. I never in my life thought I would be someone who's into exercising and actually enjoys it.

7. I really like my job and believe in my company. I know I'm very lucky to feel that way.


I'm going to give this award to:
Kelsey @ This Is The Story Of A Girl
Jenny @ So Say I
Ashley @ My Carnival Ride

Thursday Randoms

I've had a sort of "blogger's block" this week. I don't feel like I have anything interesting to say and I haven't had the time to take any neat photos. Not to mention, I don't want to post total junk because I'm only 2 posts away from my 100th post(1 after this one). I'd like my 100th post to be more interesting.

So I've just been mentally compiling random things/thoughts this week.

1. This is the highlight of my week. I was able to do my first ever in my whole life pull up yesterday night. 6 months ago the idea of being able to do a pull up wasn't even a possibility and the thought never crossed my mind. I'm so excited about this. I have always had poor upper body strength so this is a huge deal to me. Hopefully I'll be able to do some more tonight. This is one of the many reasons that I love CrossFit and am so obsessed with it.

2. Ryan and his dad are being taken to lunch today by Cadman Concrete Co. Um.... how cool is that? They're a pretty big company/big deal so I'm impressed. I asked Ryan why they're taking them to lunch and Ryan just said it's because his dad and him are awesome. I was kinda hoping for a better explanation than that, but it works. :)

3. A guy I work with suggested the yummiest sounding thing today. French toast made with flavored coffee creamer instead of milk!!! Can you imagine? Southern Butter Pecan french toast... Pumpkin Pie Spice french toast.... Cinnamon Creme french toast... Drooling yet? There are waaaaay to many delicious sounding flavors. I'm totally going to try this. Soon.

4. We picked out a new color for our house and new shop yesterday. Ryan and his dad are hoping to have it painted by this weekend. I'm super excited. I'm not going to say the color so it's more fun when I post pics later. All I know is its going to look way better than before.

5. Last November we went to the ocean with our friends Ryan and Kelsey. It was fun. Because it was fall and really cold, it wasn't crowded and it was fun being in the stormy weather. Anyways, while we were driving around checking stuff out we came upon this little town called Seabrook that had just popped up in recent years. I guess it would be sort of a resort town. Meaning, it was built with the intention for people to rent out their little homes to vacationers. We ate dinner at the little restaurant in town and drove around it a little bit. It was a really neat place.
We decided that maybe we'd make our fall trip to the ocean a yearly tradition and this year stay in one of the cabin/houses. They range in price from $99 a night for a smallish but very cute place to huge mansions that sleep 20 people for $700 a night.
We're really excited and aiming for October 8th, 9th and 10th. We are hoping to have another couple come with us this year to split the costs and more the merrier. The one we're looking to stay in is called Shifting Gears. It sleeps 8 people, has 3 bedrooms and a hot tub too. All of the little cottages, as they call them, are very cute and would be super fun to stay in. I'm hoping I'll have it all reserved in the next couple days.

Last, I will leave you with some photos of places I'd rather be right now. :)

Grand Teton NP, Wyoming.


Moraine Lake in Banff NP, Alberta

Good news!

My leg isn't going to fall off or anything! Yes, I will admit I was having some hypochondriac type thoughts about my flesh rotting away or something. It happens.
When I went to the doctor yesterday my dent was pretty much gone(of course). I still went anyways to talk to her about it. She checked me out, went over a couple things and basically said that what's going on with me is similar to shin splints but with no pain. Ok, works for me. She said there is nothing to be worried about unless it starts to hurt or something.
Phew!

Also, yesterday I decided to step up my workout regimen. I'm really excited about this.
Like I mentioned a while back I'm really loving CrossFit. I've NEVER in my life been this into exercising. I bumped up my membership to unlimited status with the plan to go at least 3 times, if not 4 times a week. Yay!
Best shape ever... here I come!

Also I'm participating in a Blog Hop today.
Play along at:

The week's half over, well almost. Yay!

I'm getting into some of the best shape of my life.

I've mentioned to a couple people that I have started working out. I'm sharing this because I love it and it has made me happier with myself and feel really great.

In the past, I've had a problem with exercising. To be honest, I hated it. I hated running most of all. Unfortunately, without joining a gym, that's all I really could do. Snowboarding usually keeps me in shape in the winter, but that really isn't enough. I really like hiking, but by summer I'm so out of shape that I don't enjoy it. I had an issue with joining a gym because I felt like I would get bored and not know what to do if I went. Plus, the whole "meat market" aspect of it was unappealing.

Mid April I was introduced to a different form of training/exercising called CrossFit.
It takes parts of gymnastics and strength training and combines it with cardio for a very formidable workout. Work outs are based a lot on natural weight and movements. It incorporates the whole body and really works everything.

Here is a description from www.crossfit.com:

"CrossFit is the principal strength and conditioning program for many police
academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units,
champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes
worldwide.

Our program delivers a fitness that is, by design, broad,
general, and inclusive. Our specialty is not specializing. Combat, survival,
many sports, and life reward this kind of fitness and, on average, punish the
specialist.

The CrossFit program is designed for universal scalability
making it the perfect application for any committed individual regardless of
experience. We’ve used our same routines for elderly individuals with heart
disease and cage fighters one month out from televised bouts. We scale load and
intensity; we don’t change programs.

The needs of Olympic athletes and
our grandparents differ by degree not kind. Our terrorist hunters, skiers,
mountain bike riders and housewives have found their best fitness from the same
regimen."

You start with the same warm up every day.
3 Sets of 10 of:

• Overhead Squat
• Sit-up
• Back-extension (almost opposite of a sit-up)
• Pull up (assisted in my case till I am a lot stronger)
• Dips (also assisted till I am stronger)

After that, there is a specific W.O.D. (Workout of the day). This is usually about 15-20 long. Sometimes it is timed and you do as many reps as possible, sometimes you do a set amount of reps. It kicks your butt, that's for sure. You scale it up or down depending you your level, more weight or less weight and sometimes less reps than what is posted.

Example WOD:

3 rounds for time(as fast as you can):

Run 400m
KBS x21 -16kgs (kettlebell swing)
Pull-ups x12 (jumping pull ups in my case)

Every day is something different and you're almost always sore the next day or even next couple days.

The best part about CrossFit for me is it changes every day which keeps things interesting and it's quick. I'm usually done in around an hour.

After about 2 months of going twice a week I already feel amazing. I don't get winded very easily and I am stronger. I can even do a handstand against the wall, something I could never do before. The small CrossFit gym I go to is just that, small. This makes for a much more intimate and non intimidating workout experience. There are all levels, ages and body types that go to my gym, which I think is great. It's not just a bunch of beefy guys and perfect females. The gym I go to in Woodinville: http://www.agogegym.com/

I just wanted to share this. I'm working towards the best shape I've ever been in and it's awesome. I also hope that maybe someone else with a strong aversion to exercise (like me) might see this and become interested like I did. :)