Why I heart Arginine.

I am loving the newest product by Advocare--MASS IMPACT. Then after reading recent publications from Amino Acids and Journal Applied Physiology I am even more fired up to take this product. Below is a quick summary from one of the publications.

Amino Acids, 39: 349-357, 2010-- Arginine Supplements Promote Fat Loss
Arginine is an amino acid that promotes fat loss in animals and humans. It appears to work by decreasing food intake, increasing metabolic rate, and reducing the growth of white adipose tissue (storage fat).

Jason McKnight & colleagues from Texas A&M, in a review of literature, concluded that arginine supplements stimulate the growth of mitochondria (powerhouse of the cell) and promote the activity of brown fat--a highly thermogenic tissue that dissipates energy as heat rather than storing it as fat. Arginine supplements are a safe and effective way to reduce body fat, increase muscle mass, and improve metabolic health.

Journal Applied Physiology, 109: 1394-1403, 2010 -- Arginine Supplements Prevent Fatigue During Exercise
Summary from this article will be posted on Wednesday.

Race to the top

Join me and the Relentless Boot Camp team at the 2011 Fight for Air Climb. I competed last year and had a blast! This year Relentless Boot Camp will lead the warm-up prior to the race and gear everyone up for a fast and furious sprint to the top. I am going for 4:20 this year-- 30 seconds off my time.

Who's in? Fight for Air with me by racing to the top of Frost Bank Tower or donating HERE.

3, 2, 1 GO!

1/2 Marathon in the books

My very 1st half-marathon in the books. Woohooo!!! Coach Alex Janss posted a video on the Relentless Boot Camp fan page and asked-- Why do you run?  I specifically signed up for this race because one of my 6:30am Deep Eddy boot campers and dear friend, Michelle, is one of the head honchos for the event. After watching the marathon last year, I said I would do it and wanted to keep to my word. A year later, the event is sponsored by LIVESTRONG and my Poppie (grandpa) is battling cancer. The whole race took on a completely different meaning for me.

Around mile 9, the LIVESTRONG water stop was set up and quotes were written all along Cesar Chavez. I teared up in the middle of my run at this point. When I got up on Sunday morning, I was running in honor of my Poppie and his battle with cancer. I was running because God has blessed me with good health. I was running because I have the ability to run. I was running because I had never run that far of a distance in my entire life and wanted to prove to myself that I could do it.

After the race on Sunday, I am 100% more connected to the endurance community in Austin and relate to the triathletes, marathoners, and half-marathoners in the CrossFit Central family in a completely different capacity. I now have 3 athletes from my Trojan Challenge team signing up for the 1/2 next year (one of them this being their very 1st one), and my little sister inspired to run a 5K in April. I believe even more how well CrossFit and Relentless Boot Camps prepares athletes for these races without overuse injuries.

4 days a week training at RedBlack Gym, 1x per week track workouts, and about 4 long runs with Michelle (longest 8.5 miles besides the Tough Mudder), and I finished the race in 1hr 59mins.  I'll battle with someone who says CrossFitters can't run distance.

The last 3 miles were brutal, but I did it. Thank you to everyone who cheered for me along the way! The support was beyond appreciated. On to the next one...

Zucchini Pancakes

One of Relentless Boot Camps new up and coming coaches, Jessica Clark, tweeted about Zucchini pancakes. After reading the simple ingredients and directions I knew I wanted to try them.

All that is needed is coconut flour, eggs, zucchini, salt, and pepper. View the complete recipe HERE. I did not have enough zucchini so I also included eggplant.

WARNING: I bought a food processor on Thursday to make this recipe and had a few hiccups. There is clearly a difference between using the shredding disc vs. pulsing the food. The zucchini and eggplant were "processed" a bit too much and became runny; however, the final product still tasted great. It just did not look as fabulous as the Balanced Bites picture.

I paired my Zucchini pancakes with chicken sausage. YUMO!

I am trying the sweet potato pancakes tomorrow morning before the LIVESTRONG Austin Half Marathon. The Paleo way to "carb load."

Tough Mudder Recap

 One of 20 obstacles.

Julie & I laughing it up, freezing our butts off, and posing for the camera man.

I'm a Tough Mudder!

ClearLLLLy I thought it was a smart idea to hold hands with Julie before sprinting through electrical wires...

Obviously it took both of us down immediately with a shock, as well as, Robert.

Ouch! I'm assuming this was shock #3. NEXT.

10.5 miles of craziness with an amazing team! I would not have done it nor had as much fun without our team of Robert, Daniel, Julie, and Ben.  After this race, the LIVESTRONG Half marathon will be a cake walk on Sunday. =).

Fish Oil Calculator

Coaching the Trojan Challenge has added an additional level of accountability over the past 8 weeks to my nutrition. One area I have never fully delved into is the optimal amount of fish oil intake for myself. I've noticed I am sore for days on end, which more than likely means high levels of inflammation. Also, there are numerous clinical studies reporting improvements in fat mass, weight, and body composition from the consumption of omega-3 rich fish and/or supplements. These 2 reasons above are enough for me to find the proper dose of fish oil asap!

Today I bought Barlean's Omega Swirl Fish oil. However, after looking at the recommended serving size I knew that was not enough for my goals. After scouring the web and listening to Robb Wolf's Podcasts, I figured out my ideal amount thanks to the lovely...

FISH OIL CALCULATOR

I learned very quickly I was consuming 1/7 of what I need daily. Ouch. After a major tweak to my fish oil consumption, I have no doubt that at the end of the Trojan Challenge I will have less inflammation and lost 3% body fat.

7 minutes faster

Aimee attends my Tu/Th 5:30am class at Deep Eddy park, and she also goes to Coach Heather's 6:30am MWF class at Deep Eddy every Monday and Friday. Aimee has only been in class for 2 months and has seen tremendous performance improvements!! Aimee writes--

I wanted to drop you a line and let you know that I PR'd at 3M with a 2:10:48 - which is about 7 minutes faster than my best half.  I was really excited, and I know just training with you both in the last few weeks has made a huge difference in my fitness, and helped me suck it up for the last three miles when I started hurting.  So - yay!  And thank you!  I just am enjoying your boot camps so much!

Does Relentless Boot Camp work? clearLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLy! I dare you to join us and watch your life change.

Super Bowl Snack

The Super Bowl is only days away. For me that means a fabulous day hanging with friends, laughing, grubbing, and watching some football.  What hearty, Paleo-friendly dish will you bring to stay on track with your fitness goals (specifially, all of you Trojan Challenge athletes)? Do not use Sunday as an excuse to get off track. Use it as an opportunity to share with your friends all the new, nutritious foods you are incorporating in your diet while not experiencing insulin highs and lows. Below is one of my favorites.

Meatballs

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef (or bison)
• 1 lb sweet Italian sausage
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, minced
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme, minced
• 1 long sprig fresh oregano, minced
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped flat leaf parsley
• 1/2 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 2 eggs, whisked
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• A few grinds black pepper
• 1/4 cup cream (optional)
• 1/2 cup finely shredded parmesan (optional)
• 1/4 cup bacon fat

Directions:
Remove the Italian sausage from its casing. Mix all of the ingredients, except bacon fat, together until well combined. With lightly oiled hands, roll the meatballs into the desired size. To cook, heat bacon fat in a saute pan over medium to medium-high heat. Once hot, add the meatballs. Fry 5-7 minutes, until bottom is browned. Turn meatballs to opposite side and fry until that side is nicely browned, another 5-7 minutes. Cut one open to determine if it is fully cooked on the inside. If not quite done, turn heat to low and cover pan for a few more minutes or put meatballs in a warm oven while you fry another batch.

ENJOY!!

Goals

Goal achievement doesn’t come down to dreaming, writing out and planning. It comes down to the day-to-day decisions and behaviors of DOING what you said you were going to do, long enough for you to make it to the end point.

The past month and a half I have been hashing out my goals and everything I want to accomplish over the next year. I found it super encouraging to see I am already checking goals off my list before I even posted this blog. Coach Lisa Thiel is my accountability partner; her and I are seeing to it that we accomplish, reassess where needed, and take action. I challenge you to take the time to plan your life. Find someone to hold you to it. Below are some of my goals for 2011. Make your goals a reality!

PERSONAL

12 MONTH—

 I will be a Lulu Ambassador- 12/2011

 I will cook every recipe in Mark Sisson’s cook book.

 I will go on 1 date per month.

 I will be featured in a top fitness magazine- 12/2011

3 MONTH—completed by 3/31/11

I will have Showout brand developed

Patent

Logo design

 Website--- showoutlife.com

Shirts

I will cook every recipe in Mark Sisson’s cook book.

Prepare 1 new recipe each week

I will have professional photos completed- 3/5/2011

12% body fat

Find a photographer

 Schedule makeup appointment at MAC

Buy clothes

I will purchase an SUV

 Decide what car I want

Financing- done and done

I will expand my knowledge on CrossFit, boot camps, exercise science, business

 Read, watch videos a minimum of 15 minutes a day, 5x/week

 

PHYSICAL

3 MONTH—completed by 3/31/11

I will complete a muscle up

 I will practice muscle-ups on Mondays 10 minutes before/after class

 I will perform 10 consecutive chest-to-bar pull ups

 I will do 30 pull-ups, 5x/week

 I will perform 5 consecutive butterfly pull ups

 I will practice the butterfly movement on Tuesdays & Wednesdays 10 mins before/after class.

 I will perform HSPU in a workout

 Spend 10 minutes once a week practicing HSPU on days I do yoga.

Walk on hands 2x week before class

 Wall/hand/shoulder touches—perform 10, 2x/week on yoga and run days

 I will have 12% body fat

 Corn chips allowed 2x/month

Limit alcohol consumption to only 2x/week, max—clean drinks only