The CrossFit Open

Good grief!  I've been horrible at posting!  Let's just say it's been a busy couple of months and move on!

So the CrossFit community participates in what they call 'The Open' - 5 weeks of workouts where you post your scores and the top athletes in the area go on to the 'Regionals' and the best from there compete at the 'Games' in Los Angeles in July.  The 'Open' is just that.  Open to anyone who wants to test themselves against the rest of the world and see where they stand.  I had no intention whatsoever of signing up.  Why should I?  I've never completed a workout at the prescribed weights - I've never done an unassisted pull-up - I've never accomplished a 'toes to bar'.  Maybe next year.
Enter Travis HoGlin -- owner of the box where I work out.  He successfully guilted the entire 5:30am class into signing up.  Way to go Trav!
The first week I was beyond nervous.. and then my dear buddy, Shasonta, told me "just treat it like any other WOD" and that made so much sense.  The first week was 17 minutes of burpees and progressively heavier snatch lifts.  With a ton of encouraging shouts from Travis, I completed the 40 burpees, 30 snatches, and the next 30 burpees.  The second week was 10 minutes of shoulder-to-overhead and deadlifts (75#) and 20" box jumps.  Week three was 12 minutes for 150 wallballs, 90 double-unders and, if you got that far, 30 muscle-ups.  Tossing a 14# medicine ball 9ft in the air 150 times just about did me in.  Again, it was the community around me that pushed me beyond what I thought I was physically capable of doing.  Pretty incredible.  Accomplished the dreaded wallballs and still had 30 seconds to stumble thru 6 double-unders.  Week four was short and heavy.  7 minutes to do a progressive ladder of 95# clean and jerks and toes-to-bar.  I walked into the box that morning not knowing what to expect - but was determined to try my best.  Shockingly, the heavy clean and jerks went well.  Then it was on to the bar.  For 6 minutes I hung there trying.  I would get so close, but couldn't get the toes to touch.  It was so frustrating and I could feel the tears building up.  Again, it's those crazy people cheering you on that won't let you quit.  With just 30 seconds left, I swung up and *BAM* my toes hit!  My partner (and the box owner's wife) screamed so loud I think it scared the hell out of everyone there, but we were so damn excited.  I cried, she cried, we hugged each other.. and then there's Dan the coach yelling at me that I still had 15 seconds left, so get up there and get another one!  I finished the workout with only 3 clean and jerks and 3 toes-to-bar, but I may as well have run my first marathon.  It was one of those 'you had to be there' moments.
So Wednesday they will announce the final Open workout for 2013.  Whatever it is, I'll walk in and try and my best and be proud that I competed.  That for the first time in my 45 years, I can call myself an athlete.

A new year ahead... Time to set some goals

I've been pretty remiss in my postings of late.  Amazing how busy life can get!  And suddenly it's the end of 2012 and 2013 is looming in the not-so-distant future.  WOW!  I've never been very good at resolutions, so this year I'm going to try putting some goals out there instead.
A Garufa's Goals for 2013

• Practice random acts of kindness
• Cook more (can't let Neil have all the fun!)
• Paleo!
• Get to CrossFit 4x (or more) a week
• 10 unbroken double unders!
• An unassisted pull up!
• A handstand push up!
• Ride 50 miles in the Chuckanut Century (Sept. 15)
• Participate in the Run Like a Girl 1/2 marathon (Oct. 15)

I am posting these to help keep myself accountable and to encourage anyone that may read this to keep me accountable as well.  I am ditching the usual 'start a diet' 'eat better' 'lose X amount of pounds' stuff and instead want to focus on giving back and being as healthy as I can be.

So here's to a New Year -- may we all be blessed!

The end of the Paleo Challenge...

I wish I could exclaim that I have wonderful news and that I kicked the challenge's ass, but not this time.  The good news is that I have a newfound awareness of what I eat and how it effects me; and I can happily report that I lost 6.5 pounds.  But as for the fat percentage loss... Well, those numbers were rather baffling.  Oh well.  I know in my heart that what I am doing is right.  To eat wholesome, organic, local foods... To dump the breads and pastas that make me feel horrible for hours after I eat them... And to push myself to walk into that box (gym) at least 4 times a week... These are all steps in the right direction for a happy, healthy life, and I just have to believe that if I keep doing what I'm doing, that someday that damn "muffin top" will be a thing of the past!
There is a great t-shirt I've seen with the saying "stronger than yesterday".  Hell yes I am!

Paleo Challenge -- the last week!

Just 6 days left of the Paleo Challenge!  I admit, I have not been 100%.  But those times that I cheated, I made sure that I REALLY enjoyed my cheat and then I moved on and got back to a Paleo lifestyle again.  The trick is to not beat yourself up and to think "well, I goofed, I guess I'm done with the challenge".  Heck no!  Start fresh with your very next meal and just keep trying to do your best.  I've been more than frustrated with the lack of movement on the bathroom scale but I just hope that there are changes going on on the inside that I just can't see.  The upcoming bod-pod reading will definitely be interesting.  Fingers are crossed!

Dogs...

My husband and I are parents to 2 dogs.  Yes, I said 'parents'.  Call it 'timing'; call it 'life choices'; call it whatever you like, but as I entered my mid-to-late 30's I knew that your typical kind of motherhood was not in my future.  Ok.  So I am the proud adopted mother of 2 dogs.  I've raised them from small pups; took them to school; made them study their lessons; engage them in 'sports'; take them to the doctor; care for them when they are sick, and make sure that they have grown up to be good canine citizens.  If you ask me, that's a parent.
I never grew up with dogs.  My parents liked a more independent kind of household pet, so cats were the pet of choice.  I got my first dog, Mocha, only because my girlfriend had just gotten a puppy and just happened to mention that there was a sister that also needed a home.  I was living on 10 acres at the time, so space wasn't really an issue, and she was pretty stinking cute.  A mix of (as best we can tell) Malamute, German Shepherd and Border Collie.  Or 'Mala-mutt' for short.  If I had a nickle for every time I was stopped on the street and asked "what kind of dog is that?", I'd be a very rich woman.  She's about 12 1/2 now and a more faithful companion, I don't think I'll ever find.  Through a divorce and countless other life-drama events, she has always been my friend and confidant.  She is my 'heart dog'.  And not to sound conceited, but I have been the focus of her world since the first day I picked her up.  She's just that kind of dog.

Mocha

And then, there's Mambo.  When Mocha was about 6, I had the grand idea that maybe she'd be happy with a friend to share her day.  So I contacted the Alternative Humane Society and was introduced to a litter of pups that they had just rescued from a local Indian reservation.  Momma-dog was about 65 pounds - same size as Mocha - and was a mix of Lab and Rhodesian Ridgeback.  Okay, that seemed like it could be a good match for Mocha.  The one problem with rescuing a mutt is that it's like reaching your hand into a grab bag.. you are never quite sure what you are going to get.  Mambo - now 6 - has matured into a 125 pound lovable lunkhead of a dog.  He's my ADD child.  Gung-ho to chase the ball... until a butterfly goes by his nose and then it's 'what ball?'.

Mambo

So these are my 'kids' and I love them dearly.  They ask for very little in life and yet give back so much.  Not a day goes by that I don't see the love in Mocha's eyes and have to smile.  Or have to just sit down and belly-laugh at something Mambo has just done.
So, if you come to my house, be prepared to leave with a few strands of dog hair on your clothes and maybe you'll find a toy dropped in your purse.

Same blog - new title

Since this whole blog thing is rather new to me, it took me a little bit to figure out the settings and to come up with (what I hope) is a better title.  Something a bit more... me.  Introducing 'a garufa's journey'.  'Garufa' is a word I learned from my husband, Neil.  I think it really means 'rapscalian' but it also implies 'little hobo' or 'little wanderer'.  Originally, it was a name given to a stray dog he found many years ago and now it's the name of our boat and our home ("Casa Garufa").  I think there's a bit of 'garufa' in all of us really.  We are all wanderers... searching for the right path in life - finding a dead end here; a bridge over there; some folks find the freeways; and others meander along an old country road.  Whatever your preference - or lot in life - it's all a journey.  A garufa's journey.

Paleo Challenge - End of Week 1

After years of coaxing, prodding, sharing, and encouraging from my dear friend, Shasonta, I finally started to listen.  On 31 January 2011, me, my husband, and our other dear friends, Michele and Bart, all kissed conventional eating habits good bye and launched into a Paleo/Primal eating journey.  Good bye bread and pasta.  Hello meat, veggies, and fat (the good ones).  For me, the scale didn't change much, but I certainly could tell that I was just "feeling better".  For my husband, Neil, he probably lost about 15 pounds.  Men!
Then, on 24 October 2011, I took the really big leap and went to my first CrossFit class (something else that Shasonta had been urging me to try).  Not to be alone, I dragged my husband and Michele along for the ride.  It was scary - hell, who am I kidding - it's STILL scary!  But I love it.  It's an addiction of the strangest sort.  (more on that later I guess)
So this "box" (aka: gym) that I belong to is CrossFitX and they have organized a Paleo Challenge... 35 days of clean eating.  We were put into teams of 3 and the goal is that whichever team loses the most body fat wins.  Sounds awesome... let's go!
To be strict Paleo means, in addition to the no bread/no pasta concept,  they take it further to say: no dairy, no sugar, no booze.  WHOA - say what?  But what about my post WOD (crossfit-speak for Workout Of the Day) glass of chocolate milk?  uh uh.  What about those blue cheese crumbles on my beautiful salad?  nope.  And for Heaven's sake... no wine?  Sniff the cork Lady and get over it.
Hmmmmm.... THIS is going to be a challenge!  It is indeed, but I'm a week in and yes, I will admit that I've had a few faltering moments.  But I've also had some successes and it's definitely made me conscious of what I'm eating and the choices before me.  I know once the challenge is over, that I'll go back to my chocolate milk and my cheese, and yes, my wine.  But I will definitely stop and THINK about how much I'm consuming... and maybe even make a different choice.
So, because of the challenge, I've been digging through the cookbooks and blogs to come up with some very  paleo-friendly alternatives to snacks and beverages.  I'll get my act together soon and get those posted, but in the meantime... only 21 days to go!