Archive for the ‘Nutrition’ Category

I thought I had posted this months ago, but turns out it was still a “Draft”. Enjoy this awesome video!

Happy Monday, everyone! I saw this video this morning, and had to share it with you.

This video, from GP Access and the Hunter Integrated Pain Service, discusses Pain, and how pain stems from our BRAIN 100% of the time (click here to see their page that included the survey used to conduct some of their research). Regardless of how severe, or how long we have been experiencing the pain, it is our brain that tells our body that it hurts. After explaining that concept in very simple terms, the video then discusses some of the things that we can do to do try and train our bodies to be healthier and happier.

Smoking, nutrition, alcohol and activity level can have a significant impact on pain in our bodies, and how we deal with them. Think about the different areas in your life that may be contributing to any pain you may be having!

From the video:
“So to sum up pain, it comes from the brain and it can be re-trained, and when looked at from a whole personal broad perspective, gives you a lot of opportunities to begin.”

One of my closest friends is PaleOMG owner, founder, CEO, choreographer, and athlete, Juli Bauer. Homegirl can COOK. Therefore, many of my foodie inspirations will come from her. This first meal in the “Cooking with Smashby” segment is one of those meals.

Breakfast was probably my most often neglected meal, and as most of you semi-intelligent people know, it is also considered by many to be one of the most important meals of the day (if not THE most important). I only say “semi-intelligent” because I consider myself to be at least semi-intelligent. And I had heard that fact about breakfast many times. Yet, as someone who trains hard every day to try and get in good physical shape, I STILL chose to ignore this fact. Day after day, year after year, I would just skip breakfast. That’s just dumb.

When I went crying to Juli (probably saying, “Wahhh, Juli, I’m a big baby and don’t have time to make myself breakfast.. Wahhh”), she likely responded with something like this, “Are you kidding me? Stop being an idiot, of course you do.”

And with that, the BREAKFAST SCRAMBLE was introduced to me!

It’s a super-simple recipe that usually makes enough food to last me at least half-way through the week! That means I went from not eating breakfast at all, to eating almost everyday, with only 30-ish minutes of work. Win.

Ingredients:
6 eggs
1 to 1.5 pounds breakfast sausage
1 red pepper
1 green pepper
1 poblano pepper
1 jalapeño pepper
1 sweet potato
1/2 red onion
Olive Oil

There you have it, less than 10 ingredients. My kind of recipe.

Step 1-
Cut up the peppers into small enough pieces for you to enjoy them. I, am a baby, so I cut them into small pieces so I don’t have to say “yucky, that was a big piece of pepper.” Also cut up the sweet potato to your preference of size. I’d recommend cutting them smaller since they’ll cook faster that way.

Step 2-
Toss a little olive oil (nope, don’t care about measuring) in a pan, add ground sausage at a medium temperature. Let the meat begin to brown. Here where you’d add salt and pepper “to taste”.

Step 3-
Throw the veggies and sweet potato in another pan and let those start to cook (also at a medium heat).

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Cooking with Smashby, Separate Scramble, Breakfast Scramble

The calm before the storm! Veggies and meat cooking separately.

Step 4-
Stir both meat and veggies separately (using a different spoon since one pan has raw meat in it, bro… Not trying to make you sick here). The goal is to get the veggies to the softness of your liking, and the meat to almost fully cooked.

Step 5-
Once the meat is about done (meaning there is barely any pink visible), add your eggs to that pan! Yep.. Just crack whole eggs in there and start stirring away!

Step 6-
When your meat and egg magic is just about done, dump allll of the veggies into the protein pan. Toss in some crushed red pepper flakes to add a little zing to it if you’d like. Combine those bad boys and stir away!

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Cooking with Smashby, Separate Scramble, Breakfast Scramble

This is the storm. A bit aggressive in the pan, but it worked!

Step 7-
When it all looks nice mixed, let sit for a few minutes, separate out into your tupperwares, store in fridge for easy morning microwaving.

That’s it!! And this meal is DELICIOUS.

With the ingredients listed here, that would probably make about 3 big portions, or 4 slightly smaller ones.

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Cooking with Smashby, Finished Scramble, Breakfast Scramble

Breakfast is served. BOOM!

Not bad at all for less than 30 minutes of work. So, there you have it, Recipe #1 is in the proverbial books.

What’d you think?! Let me hear it, friends!

In my opinion, proper nutrition and adequate rest (aka, sleep) are probably the two areas where our bodies will reap the most benefit, (in terms of maintaining and reaching our physical fitness goals) so paying attention to them is key.
That said, those are two areas of my life where I lack the most discipline…. Nice.

Not getting enough sleep has been an issue for me for at least the last 10 years of my life (likely more than that), and I have never really enjoyed cooking enough to get really good at it. Good start to the “Cooking with Smashby” segment so far, huh?

The purpose of this series will NOT, I repeat… NOT be to provide a replacement page to the wonderful PaleOMG site of my good friend, Juli Bauer (only partly because I will probably never film a dance sequence and be willing to share it with the Internetz). I merely wanted to share stories of how I make some of my meals, given my (self-imposed) time constraints, and hope that it helps some of you guys and gals.

Hopefully you all can not only benefit from some of my quick meals, but also share some of your own ideas (and suggestions on how to improve mine) so we can all learn ways to make delicious and healthy meals TOGETHER. Yayyyy.

My influences and inspirations will come from all over the place, and will likely each have my own little twist to them. That will likely be for two reasons:
1- I can be a picky eater (read: big baby) so I may switch out ingredients that I find “yucky”. Yep, I just said yucky.
2- I may not have the product or device or cooking implement to make a part of the meal properly. In that case, it’s time to “audible” and make do with what I have!

As always with me and my blog, I’m only posting stuff in the interest of trying to help you guys. I don’t really think you’re dying to know what I had for breakfast! So please let me know what you like or don’t like about this, and what you’d like to see more or less of in this series.

Alright, here goes nothing!

Today’s post on “The Pursuit of Paleo” will explain, very simply, the impact that foods will have on our ingrained “nutritional teeter-totter” (I hope Nicole Carroll of CFHQ didn’t patent/copyright that term in her speech about it! At least I’ll reference you guys to my favorite “Paleo” video of all-time. Part 1 is here. Here’s Part 2). Any food that you put in your body will have some sort of effect on your “PH scale” (rated from a score of “0” for Acid to 14 for Alkaline).

This short video does a great job of explaining how, and WHY, the human body needs to maintain a balance for us to stay healthy, and briefly lists some of the major consequences of what happens when either that balance is lost, or when the body needs to work extra hard to maintain it. Imbalances in this scale (as stated in the video) usually stem from the over-consumption of acid-forming foods and beverages, and unhealthy stress in our lives.

From the video:
“Another general rule is the more processed the food, the more acidic it will be.” Hmm… where have we heard that before?

However, while too much acidity in our diet is definitely bad for us, just because a food is acidic does NOT mean it’s bad for you! It’s all about the balance and the QUALITY of the food we eat.

***Let me note, the video featured in this is not a post that focuses on a “pro-paleo” position. I don’t want to incorrectly give that impression.***

What I’m suggesting, is that by being more aware of what we put into our bodies, by learning about the impact that foods have on our “PH balance” as humans AND by following a nutritional guideline of “meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar,” (taken from CrossFit.com) that we will be healthier.

Period.

Education is power, so hopefully I’m dropping some knowledge on you guys and gals. 🙂

Enjoy. (Thanks for sharing this video, Trish!)

There’s not too much I need to say in order to explain this chart. If you have any questions feel free to ask, but I think this is a pretty helpful resource!

(Chart courtesy of Cole Bradburn’s website)

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Chad Bradburn, paleo chart

Pretty simple, huh?

This may be my favorite “Moment of Awesomeness” post I’ve ever done.

My favorite is hands-down #7.

THANK YOU to John, my good buddy from High School for posting this today!

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Cross Fit, The Rules of Bacon, Bacon, I love Bacon

Incredible.

And thanks SO MUCH to Willy for reminding me of this man, myth and legend… Ron Swanson.

Well, the folks at Living Social really did it now.

You pay $10.

You get $20 of food from Whole Foods Market.

Yeah, it’s that easy from some delicious and healthy treats.

Click the link below and get some free grub!!

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Deal of the Day, Living Social, Whole Foods

Get some GREAT food for FREEE!

https://livingsocial.com/deals/123805?ref=personalized-link-box-26537009&rpi=26537009

I created this blog to help people change their lives for the better! I want to help you guys get stronger, faster, and most importantly…. healthier!

That means I support the Paleolithic-style diet that consists of primarily lean meats, vegetables, some fruit, little starch and no sugar.   It’s important to me keep a fair and balanced perspective on nutrition, though, so you guys should see the dietary plans that some people follow, regardless of whether or not your belief systems are in line with theirs.  Am-I-right?

Before we move on, read this next part and read it again, please:
I am not telling anyone to do what is displayed in this video. I do not “support” people feeding their bodies this type of meal.  It’s not healthy and it’s not safe.  Many of you have heard of that show “What Not to Wear.”  Consider this my Pursuit of Paleo post “What Not to Eat.”

HOWEVER, speaking only for myself, and being willing to endure any consequences (which would certainly exist) from my own actions…..

I have found what just might be MY.FAVORITE.MEAL.EVER.

Epic Meal Time guys …. thank you for making my eyes water from the sight of such an amazing creation.

 

Anyone who knows me is aware that the highlight of my days is getting the chance to coach INCREDIBLE athletes through challenging moments. Day in and day out I get the honor of seeing you guys push to… and then through, your self-imposed mental and physical barriers and reach a new confidence, and it moves me emotionally every single time.

So the first thing I want to do is thank you. ALL of you. I’m so privileged to get the chance to spend this time with you guys!

The work in the gym is only half of the battle, though. After you guys walk out the door when the workout is over, you’re faced with a entire world out there tempting you to indulge in the world of sugar and processed foods. Day in and day out you have the option of taking steps backwards instead of continuing a path towards increased health and wellness. As we saw with the Polks on my last “Success Story” post, so many of our CrossFit Lakewood athletes have made changes in their diets as well, and the transformations have been incredible!

This month’s Success Story is about Kip and Linda Henthorn! This husband and wife team have improved their health, flexibility, strength and stamina in ways that you can’t help but notice when you watch them work out in class. The physical changes in their bodies, though, you notice immediately when they walk in the door!

Instead of me telling awesome stories about the changes I’ve seen in these two, this time I’m going to let them tell their own stories.

Linda and Kip, I am SO PROUD of you two, and am so excited to continue to see the changes in your lives. You both look amazing, and your impact on the gym is significant. Thanks for sharing your positivity, and your story, with us!

This is MONTHS overdue, so here you go! ENJOY!

Linda’s Story:
I started at Crossfit Lakewood seven months ago. Several weeks after I started I saw a quote that said “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone”. I immediately thought – that’s what Crossfit is to me. Every WOD takes me to the end of my comfort zone because it is always a challenge and I feel like my life has taken a new direction.

I exceeded my weight loss goal in 3 months, losing a total of 26-30 pounds (depending on the week). I am now a size 4 – the same as I was in college and get a kick out of sharing clothes with my teenage daughters! I will be 50 by the end of this year and have never in my life had the physical strength, energy and mental confidence that I do now, giving me the ability to constantly challenge myself and keep up with “twenty-somethings” I get to team up with.

I also have a complete new awareness of what I put in my body and follow the Paleo Diet. I no longer have stomach aches or feel fatigued because I ate wrong. I crave fresh veggies and enjoy cooking again, constantly encouraging my family to also make changes.

I look forward to continuing to go to the “end of my comfort zone”, learning and achieving new goals.

Kip’s Story:
My stats: 8 months; 25 pounds; vastly increased overall flexibility and strength; able to do things I thought I would never do such as pull-ups and HSPU; big increase in my mountain biking endurance and fun-factor, which I thought may have been lost forever; real awareness to what I eat – far from perfect, but has made a huge difference in my energy and weight levels. Starting and running a business is stressful and time consuming. I used that “excuse” for 7 years, put on 25 pounds and fell way out of shape. I have a long way to go on my strength goals, but I know I am on my way.

I know this is not intended as a Crossfit Lakewood drum beat, but I can’t help myself because it’s unavoidable. I have done some fairly hard core training in the past for endurance road and mountain bike events, but I have never experienced real results as quickly as I have at CFLW. You have probably heard this a hundred times from others, but here is my attempt to describe the CFLW Mojo: My results are directly related to my effort and enthusiasm, which is directly proportionate to the camaraderie and support from everyone at the gym. Watching others improve their abilities is way encouraging too!

Bottom line is that I can’t wait to work out every day – must be the addictive nature of the butterflies when the clock counts down from 10! I feel very fortunate to have stumbled into CFLW and for being part of the family.

CrossFit, Smashby Training, Success Story, Motivation, Kip and Linda Henthorn, Before

Linda and Kip "Before"




CrossFit, Smashby Training, Success Story, Motivation, Kip and Linda Henthorn, After

Linda and Kip Now. GREAT JOB, you two!

WELCOME, everyone, to the first Episode of my new Series called: “Ask Smashby”

During these videos, I will field questions directly from you, and give you my best answers! Hopefully we’ll be able to start some great dialogue together.

Our very first question came from CrossFit Lakewood athlete, Heather Beck. She said:
“I’ve been doing Paleo for about 7 weeks now with some “cheats” here and there… Not really noticing any weight loss. Then this last week, I committed 100% and have dropped almost 5 pounds. My cheats were fairly minimal (except one) but curious if anyone has experienced a similar situation with having to be 100% spot on or no results?!”

It’s almost 7 minutes long (so a bit long-winded), but as I get more comfortable with this structure, they’ll get more efficient. I am very curious as to what input you guys have to this video, and really look forward to continue the series!!

What do you think, guys and gals?