Do your chains hang low???

I am writing straight from Dirty Jersey. I have been MIA the past few days, because myself and a hand full of coaches from CrossFit Central traveled to Edison, NJ to train with Zach Even-Esh and learn all the tricks of Underground Strength Training. It has been a phenomenal 2 days--Fun. Exciting. New movements. Outside the box training mentality.

I did the wheel barrow with Coach Lisa, walked up and down a wall, did pushups with chains on my neck, did every form of pull-up/chin-up possible--including rope pull-ups, flipped a 250lb tire (pic coming soon), and of course SHOWIN OUT!!!

Life is good! I am blessed!

Spring Cleaning

Spring Cleaning is this week at CrossFit Central. I partook in the Rejuvenate, Replenish, & Restore discussion with Carey and Crystal at noon and then took on yoga with Sanieh at 3:00pm. OH MY SOUL! I am clearLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLy not strong with yoga strength. My hips are way tighter than I realized, my arms were shaking in some of the plank positions, and I could literally feel toxins released in my body because I got light-headed right in the middle of the poses. I was quickly humbled and affirmed that I must start incorporating a more holistic approach to my training. I wrote down as one of my goals this year to hire a Yoga coach. I hope Sanieh is ready for me. =)

I challenge each of you to participate in any and all you can over the next few days with the Spring Cleanse. It is a great way to step out of your comfort zone and broaden your knowledge with nutrition.

Post-workout snack

The 6PM Tu/Th Relentless class at Dick Nichols Park finished off their workout with a post-exercise snack from My Fit Foods. Kim is a Nutritional Consultant with My Fit Foods and brought everyone a Fruit Chicken Cup, which included slices of oranges, apples, grapefruits, grapes and/or blackberries, walnuts, and chicken.

What is your favorite post-workout snack?

Attitude

"You can begin to shape your own destiny by the attitude that you keep." -Michael Beckwith

Do you view a glass of water as half empty or half full? Do you only see the negative in a bad situation or do you search for the silver lining? Does your attitude suck? I know first-hand that when I roll out of bed each morning that my attitude can dictate my day in a very positive or negative way. Working at CrossFit Central is very different that an 8:00-6:00PM job. I have a flex-schedule---grant it, there are specific times each day that I have to be somewhere to coach; however, the rest of the week is up to me on what I do, how quickly I get it done, and how I can go above and beyond. Pretty nice deal if I say so myself.

This is where attitude is vital. I could take the route of doing the bare minimum to get the job done and stop. Thankfully that is not the way God made me, and why I feel blessed to be in a position where I can dream big, push my limits, learn the art of time management, and kick some butt. I have big goals and dreams for my future! My attitude will shape a destiny that I used to only dream but will now be a reality.

What is your attitude like each week?

Laura's Race

Laura is in my 5:30am Tu/Th Deep Eddy class. She recently traveled to California for a race and kicked some butt. Nice work, Laura!!!! On to the next one. Check out her recap below.

I had a great race in Cali! The Carlsbad5000 went well, and I'm excited to see where my training as taken me and where I can go next! I placed 19th out of 419 women aged 30-34 and then took a much needed week off. I went from 21:04 in November to 20:28 in March, and at Carlsbad I raced to 20:05. Pretty excited about where my training is right now and where I can go next! My next race will most probably be Congress Ave Mile in May.

Living the Dream

"Teamwork makes the Dream work." - Showout

Yesterday was Affiliate tryouts for CrossFit Central. What a fun day! Non-stop workouts from 8:30-noon. 1 individual workout followed by a 2.4 mile run and then 2 team workouts. I absolutely love team workouts, and I realized that even more so yesterday. The energy at the Box was top notch. The camaraderie and team environment was exactly the reason why I love CrossFit, why I love the people I work with and coach, and why I love my job! I am living the dream.

I saw how far I've come in the past year with strength, endurance, and handstand push ups; however, I also saw I need some serious work on chest-to-bar pullups. Gymnastic skills will become my strength and not my weakness. Mark it down. My attitude towards my weaknesses are changing---I am approaching them as a fun game. No more negative attitude, whining, excuse-making, and complaining. I am a sapphire personality. When I take things too serious and do not see the excitement and joy in what I am doing then I stress and crumble. GAME ON...with FUN!

Garments

Jesse is on of my newest athletes in the Tu/Th 6PM Dick Nichols Relentless Outdoor Training class. She recently gave me her food log to look over and also showed me how the first few pages had motivational, thought-provoking quotes she had written. To preface, Jesse is an English teacher, hence her food log filled with quotes. I forewarned her that I would probably steal these quotes and include them on my blog since I am quote-obsessed.

"You are not inferior. You are not superior. You are simply YOU. You as a personality are not in competition with any other personality, simply because there is not another person on the face of the earth like you, or your particular class. You are an individual. You are unique. You are not 'like' any other person and can never become 'like' any other person. You are not 'supposed' be like any other person and no other person is 'supposed' to be like you."

"The word 'habit' originally meant a garment or clothing. Our habits are literally garments worn by our personality."

My garment is bright and colorful but does not fade or wear out fast. What does your garment look like?

Repetition

"It's the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen." - Muhammad Ali

I could not agree more Muhammad Ali. I have been doing this daily with multiple aspects of my life. Taking action day in and day out even when it's not easy or when I'm tired. I am so passionate and convicted about the goals I have set for this year that I refuse to not do all I can to reach them.

I strongly believe in goal setting, similar to a lot of the coaches at CrossFit Central. It is one step to say your goals, a bigger step to write out your goals, and an even greater step to start taking action immediately. Repetition. Belief. Making it happen. I revisited my goals that I set for 3, 6, and 12 months in October 2009. WOW!!! Updates below. I have added more goals to this list and reassessed after completing the Personal Power series with Tony Robbins. More to come tomorrow.

If you have written down goals, then I challenge you to revisit them. It is encouraging when you see how far you have come or it is a big wake up call to get your butt in gear. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition of Belief in your dreams.

Career--
3 MONTH
1) I have 10+ clients in all boot camps- January 4th, 2010 - CHECK
2) I am coaching 2 groups of 3 personal training clients- Dec. 25th -I have just the right amount of clients now.
3) Monthly boot camp newsletter- January 6th, 2010- CHECK
4) Training up new, upcoming coaches-CHECK

12 MONTH
1) Relentless Boot Camp is a household fitness name in Austin- June 2010- WELL ON ITS WAY
2) 6-figure coach- November 1st, 2010- WELL ON MY WAY
3) Level II CrossFit trainer- as soon as a Level II opens up - reassessing since the cert is completely different now
4) Developed Pillars of Movement exercise book- March 2010 - changing to Relentless Outdoor Training Coach Manual...almost done


Personal--
3 MONTH
1) Patented SHOWOUT- January 16th, 2010 -did not patent but made a Showout shirt
2) 10% body fat- December 1st, 2009 - Not there, and not sure if I even want to be there; however, I am happy with where I am and where I am going.

12 MONTH
1) Completed the gymnastic, olympic weightlifting, and running/endurance certifications- Nov. 1st, 2010- attending Underground Strength Training at the end of this month with Zach Even-Esh; working with Chad Vaughn on Oly lifts currently
2) Financially free of all credit cards- Nov. 1st, 2010 - moving this date up to May 2010
3) Paid off car and bought a new and larger one (wayyyyy too much boot camp equipment)- Nov. 1st, 2010- identified cars I want so I have a plan of action


Health--
12 MONTH
1) Capable of doing every CrossFit WOD thrown my way as prescribed- need to improve gymnastic movements to reach this goal
2) CF Total-- squat: 215; shoulder press: 95; deadlift: 265-- Dec 31st- CHECK on shoulder press and deadlift

Jane's Success

Jane is in the 8:30am MWF Lake Pointe Relentless Outdoor Training class. A picture is worth a thousand words. I am one lucky coach! Read her story below.

"I'd been going to Boot Camp for less than 2 months when I decided to sign up for the Relentless Adventure Challenge. I knew I was completely hooked on Boot Camp and not going back to my 'big-box' gym, so I wanted to try/do even more. Being very new to CrossFit I wasn't quite sure what I was getting into when I signed up for the Relentless Adventure Challenge. What I DID know was that it was going to be tough, fun and I would get results - - all true!

Having Megan as a coach made it an even better experience. She's realistic in where you are in your life and where you CAN be if you set your mind to it. She doesn't focus on what you CAN'T have or CAN'T do - - she focuses on what you CAN have, what you WILL do, the kind of person you become when you set GOALS and work towards them. I had a hard time believing that someone was genuinely concerned about my health and fitness and wanted to see results as much as I did - - but now I totally trust Megan. I feel like the Relentless Challenge was just the start for me.

I've already signed up for the 'Trojan Challenge and can't wait to work with Meg again - - the extra workouts, food logging, hard work, and fun - I can't wait! She knows I hate to see pictures of myself on the websites and blogs, but after seeing my 'after' pic from the Challenge I believe her, I trust her and I trust CrossFit ... "

Have you reserved your spot for the Trojan Challenge? Results are not guaranteed; they are the norm.

Cap10K recap

Today was my first ever 10K race. My BFF/partner-in-crime/showout goddess, Whitney, and I ran the Cap10K. I must admit Saturday night we were contemplating not doing it and just sleeping in and then we quickly decided NEXT on that idea.

Today was a milestone for me. I saw first hand how CrossFit does prepare you for all kinds of athletic events. I was a bit frightened to run 6.2 miles since I have not run more than a 5K in years. I did not do any training outside of my regular CrossFit regimen and still did great and felt better than I imagined after it was all over. I ran 53:50 and that was with the untimed group. To preface, my 1st 2 miles were quite entertaining and slow since I was dodging all the walkers, people pushing strollers, and the 20,000 athletes that ran. It felt good to push pass the negative mental barrier of long distance running that I have developed over the past few years and actually have fun. The energy from the runners was contagious and made the race fly. Each mile was faster than the one prior which made me super excited. Whit- so glad we got to share our 1st 10K run together. Go Showouts!!!

Below is Whit's recap from today.

Today I ran the Cap10 with my partner in crime Megan. I admit, Saturday night we were a bit grumpy about getting up the next morning and running but Megan knew that we would be mad at ourselves if we didn't do this. So we were good girls, went home early and were ready to run the next morning. Thank you Megan for pushing me! I had no idea I'd have so much fun running 6.2 miles! I ran it in 62 minutes and pretty much kept the same pace throughout the race. It was like playing human dodge ball at times but the energy from all of these people running through my city was amazing and kept me pumped up. I truly did enjoy all 62 minutes of my run.

I can't speak for Megan but my "training" for this consisted of one 4 mile run a few weeks ago and a couple of other 2 mile runs in the past 2 months. That was it for distance. But I have been CrossFitting for the last 2 years consistently 4-5 times a week. I do a combination of boot camp classes and the indoor classes. I also eat paleo about 90% of the time (the other 10% is saved for pizza, peanut M&Ms, chips and salsa) and I resisted the urge to "carb load" prior to the race and stuck to my paleo diet. To be honest I thought that after mile 4 I would be winded and tired; but as a testament to how hard our WODs are and the benefits of eating clean are, I actually felt great! I wasn't tired, I wasn't winded, no stitch in my side, it just felt good. I even had energy at the end to sprint the last .2 miles across the finish line and once across, I felt great. No gasping for air, no urge to throw up, didn't feel like I needed to collapse on the ground in a pile of exhausted goo.

Even though I know I shouldn't be all that surprised, I was. I've done "Angie" I've done "Murph" and yet running 6.2 miles intimidated me and I wasn't sure if I had the mental stamina to get through it. Once again, I've been able to prove to myself that I can do a lot more than I give myself credit for. I am one of those people that can honestly say that they have CrossFit to thank for that and I also owe a huge thank you to my amazing coaches, Megan Parsons, Crystal McReynolds, and Jessica Sharratt. You three ladies have pushed me and trained me for the last two years and I can't tell you how much it means to me. Truly awesome coaches. 3...2...1...Go!

Breakfast at Lunch

I was running low on food the other day and threw together a random concoction. To be honest, I hate being wasteful so I have been waiting to go to the grocery store until I am completely out of veggies and protein. I see way too many homeless people each day with all my driving around town, and I simply cannot bring myself to throw away food because it spoiled. Enough with my rant. Here was my lunch (pic above).

• Stalk of red swiss chard cooked in 1tsp of coconut oil with garlic and purple onion
  
• 2 eggs
• 2 slices of bacon

YUMO!!! I love breakfast at lunch.

Faces of Fitness Philanthropy

I must admit. I coach some pretty baller, showout athletes. Not only do they have killer jobs that impact a vast amount of people, they show up to boot camp day in and day out and give it their all after a long day's work. Marinda is in my 6PM Tu/Th Dick Nichols class and was recently featured in Austin Fit under the article, Faces of Fitness Philanthropy. Pick up a copy and check her out on page 44. The quote below fully encompasses the character and heart of Marinda. I am one lucky coach to be surrounded by such amazing athletes.

Quote for the day: "Strength does not live in what you have. It lies in what you can give."

ShowTwitt

I entered the Twitter world today. I got a quick lesson on how to use the basics of TweetDeck tonight from Whit. I am calling myself a ShowTwitt. It is a multifaceted word that embraces Showout and Twitter all in one. Follow me @showoutmeg to keep up with CrossFit Central, Relentless Boot Camp, complementary classes, Advocare giveaways, nutrition tips, workouts, and my showout life.

Please send any advice on how to utilize Twitter efficiently, as well as the best application for a Blackberry. Post comments below.

Traveling CrossFitter

Michelle is in the Tu/Th 6:30AM Deep Eddy boot camp. I love coaching this girl! She has only missed class due to travel and always shows up full of life. She competed in the Relentless Adventure Challenge, already signed up for the Trojan Challenge, and knocked out the 1000 pushups in a month contest, and the 500 burpees in a month contest. Every week Michelle makes strides closer to her goals. I am motivated by simply coaching her. Michelle will be celebrating her 1 year anniversary with Relentless Boot Camp in June. She recently traveled to Japan to attend the Tokyo Marathon. The pic above shows her representing the Double Cs across the world.

6 Essential Qualities

"Six essential qualities that are key to success: sincerity, personal integrity, humility, courtesy, wisdom, charity." - William Menninger

Team Holla Back Girls tore up the Relentless Adventure Challenge. As a team they lost 19lbs, 7.3% body fat, and 24.25 inches. They are already focused on the next challenge--Trojan Challenge--and have reserved their spot.

Jane and Vanessa (far left) joined boot camp about 1 month prior to this Challenge. It was encouraging to watch them increase their workout loads and do a complete turnaround with their diet. This team possessed all 6 essential qualities above which explains their ongoing success and accountability to each other. Congrats to all 3 of you! It was an honor to coach you ladies!! More success is in store.