The Hell of a Shark Tank

Shark Tank: n. A training technique used by Mixed Martial Artists in which one person grapples and or spars with no breaks while their teammates rotate in every one to two minutes for as many rounds as there are team members.

The shark tank is hell.

The first time I did a grappling shark tank I think I had to grapple ten men, most of them at least 40 pounds heavier than me, and I cried through about half of it. I did the whole thing, but I cried like a baby.

That was an extreme case when my body was already exhausted form two-a-days and I trained with a lot of people who didn't know how to adjust to training with people of different strengths and levels.

Still, the shark tank is pretty much a cardio nightmare no matter what, because the people you're sparring/grappling are always fresher than you. You are frustrated and your arms hurt. You hate it but you know it's going to make you better. My coach makes sound effects to make things more frustrating and makes you laugh right before your teammate throws a kick right to your gut. It's a good time had by all.

After I got home from practice today (which consisted of circuits and shark tanks) I ate two egg muffins and a pumpkin smoothie, a couple dates and some cashews. It was a weird meal. I was starving. Then I showered and passed out for two hours in bed with my cat. I had planned on doing homework all day. Shark tank had other plans. 

I've been craving eggs a lot, so I had eggs again for dinner, with two paleo pancakes I made up that tasted like banana bread and and three pieces of bacon.  And a candy cane. Christmas made me do it.

Giving Thanks and Stomach Aches

Happy (Late) Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful day and/or holiday weekend surrounded by the people you love and plentiful food. I hope you all have plenty to be grateful for. I know I do. I was so excited for Thanksgiving and to see family and friends I haven't seen for too long. I started out the day running a 5K Turkey Trot with my best friend Jaclyn, who goes to college a couple hours away and is busy becoming a fantastic nurse, so I hadn't seen her for months. An old teammate of mine, Sarah, and her boyfriend Mitch also came to town and ran with us. It was chilling and my legs were killing me from lifting legs the day before, but I kept up with Jaclyn's jogging pace (she's a cross country runner) and finished in 26 minutes and some odd seconds. Then I hit the gym and worked upper body before the festivities began.

We went to my Mom and Dad's house for Thanksgiving dinner. I got to see my grandma and grandpa on my Dad's side, my brother and his girlfriend (they're having a baby!) and I got to meet her grandma and grandpa as well. It was a nice time. Pictures from my childhood were broken out, which is not a pretty sight, but I've learned to laugh at it now that I'm so sexy (kidding, ish). The women-folk talked about babies, since a new one's on its way, and further convinced me that I will not be ready for a mini-me for some time.

After my parents' we went to Joseph's Mom's house. His nephew was there, and he is so adorable I just want to squeeze him. Which I often do. We watched shows about tattoos. His family is awesome. We also got leftovers at both houses. Double awesome. Plus, his sister gave us an entire Oreo pie. It tasted awesome, but now I'm craving sweets again like a mofo and I must stop.

I ended the night with two bottles of wine. Shame on me. I have such a low tolerance for alcohol these days, those two bottles were too many. I never drink.

Thanksgiving also turned out to be a learning experience for me, because it was the first time I had eaten anything non-paleo in about a month. My body was not a fan of it. I had half a cappuccino mid-morning with Joseph and had to give him the rest because I felt like my stomach was tying itself in knots. I didn't feel too terrible after lunch, just sluggish and blah. By the time I went to bed I was a tad drunk so I felt pretty good. The next day not so much. It wasn't even a hangover, I was just crabby and bloated and felt like crap. I still kind of do. It's been hard to get back on track the past two days. We're short on groceries and I've been short on time. I'm planning on going back to 100% paleo tomorrow though. I'll either get creative with what I have or I'll go a little hungry. Whatevs.

How did your Thanksgiving go? Are you suffering from holiday food hangover?

How I Plan to Keep Losing This Winter: Part 1

I told you in my last post about my progress over the last month and a little about what I've been doing to get there. I've been feeling great and extremely motivated, but the hard part is coming. THE HOLIDAYS. Not to mention my 21st birthday shortly after. Winter has always been my diet downfall. During summer it's warm and lovely and I am the queen of sweat and fresh foods. Winter comes and all I want to do is stuff my face and go into hibernation. Not the case this winter, no sir! I am on a mission and I have a plan to not just maintain my weight loss thus far, but to continue to lose so I can meet my goal weight by February! You want in on the plan, eh? I thought you might....

MY DEVIOUS PLAN TO KICK WINTER WEIGHT GAIN'S A$$:

1. Stick to my freaking workout schedule. This is a pretty obvious one, but with all the festivities around the holidays, it's easy to start skipping a workout here and there, and eventually stopping going all together because you think you're too busy. DON'T DO THIS. Make working out mandatory, do it and get it done before your important plans and feel good about what a badass you are.

2. Gain control of my sugar cravings BEFORE the season gets into full swing. I've already done this part. I finished my 21 Day Sugar Detox two days ago. No sugar of any kind, real or artificial. I lost six pounds and feel more in control of my cravings. That's NOT to say I don't crave sugar any more, but my cravings are so much more manageable.

3. Don't say yes to EVERY treat I'm offered. Just because it's the holiday season doesn't mean you should have a treat every time they're around. A random Tuesday at work is not a good reason to engorge yourself on gingerbread men.

4. Make healthy dishes to bring to parties. I love pumpkin pie. I do NOT want to skip pumpkin pie. So I offered to bring dessert to my family Thanksgiving dinner. Little do they know it will be a paleo pie, grain-free, dairy-free, the works, and according the recipe it is just as good as the real thing. I will be doing the same thing for Christmas get togethers.

5. Indulge in the things I really LOVE, but don't forget MODERATION. There are some damn fine cooks in my family. If you think I'm totally going to skip out on all the delicious treats they'll be packing, you're high. The key is BALANCE.

6. PLAN PLAN PLAN. I've got an intense workout and maybe a 5k planned for Thanksgiving morning. I'll be killing workouts all week and keeping my diet pretty tight so I can indulge a little bit guilt free on Thursday. Same thing will go for Christmas parties and my birthday. Most days I will keep on my normal, healthy diet, because too many treats and days of slacking WILL add up.

My next fight is scheduled for February 23rd, and I'll be fighting at 135 pounds, so I've got approximately 15 pounds to go. It will be essential that I control myself this winter. You could join me and get a head start on getting ready for bikini season! Just a thought... ;)

Do you have any other tips to prevent holiday weight gain? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

This is what 8 MONTHS of hard work looks like!

Just a little over eight months ago, at the end of February this year, I was fed up with how I had allowed my body to become. Sick of it. I felt like crap all the time. All I wanted to do was sleep. I missed training and fighting MMA. So I decided to do something about it. I decided to I wasn't going to let anyone or anything stop me from reaching my goals and being happy. I decided I was going to make sacrifices even if it was hard. It would be worth it.

It's been damn well worth it. That first picture is from the beginning of March. I weighed 181 pounds. I felt disgusting. The middle picture is 6 days after my last fight, at the end of October. I weighed 154.8. I felt pretty good, only gaining ten pounds back after cutting to 145 for my fight.  The last picture is today, November 9th. I have a fight tomorrow, but my opponent wasn't going to make weight, so I didn't end up having to cut at all. I weigh 149.2. I've lost nearly 32 pounds in 8 months, and I'm pretty proud of that.

Looking at that first picture, I can hardly believe that's me. I'll never be that girl again. Ever. 

I had back rolls! No more! Between the second and third photos, two weeks apart, I stuck to a pretty strict paleo diet (by strict I don't mean I starved, I mean I stuck to paleo principles. I was never starving :)) and cut out ALL sugar, including artificial sugar and fruits. I've been doing the 21 Day Sugar Detox for 11 days now. Between those two pictures I lost 5 and a half pounds. BOOM.

All this took was a goal, some hard ass work, motivation, inspiration. I've had plateaus and setbacks, gained a few pounds back then kicked them to the curb, and I'm not done yet. I'm only 5 pounds from my original "goal weight", but the number on the scale isn't my only concern. I want beast muscles and my abs to show. I have more of a "look" goal than a number goal.

Whatever you do, if your not happy, change something. If you have a goal, chase after it with everything you've got. When you make progress, be proud of yourself.

:)

20 Random Facts About Me

1. I love crafts. I have so many projects that I want to try stockpiled, they will probably last me the rest of my life.

2. I'm addicted to Pinterest. Admitting it is the first step. Except I don't want to quit. I love all the ideas and inspiration! Follow my boards!

3. I still can't sleep on Christmas Eve. I know, I am a child.

4. My wardrobe consists of more workout clothes than it does "go out in public looking decent" clothes. Cut-off t-shirts and sweats are my uniform.

5. I love to bake. Cupcakes are my favorite, but just about anything baked in my kitchen makes me happy.

6. I am super jealous of girls with abs. I'm working on mine, but they're still a little buried.

Goal Abs!

7. I was never super athletic or intimidating in high school. Now people fear my face-punching skills.

8. I work as a housekeeper as a hotel. I'm terrible at keeping my own house clean.

9. When I was little my mother made me get a bowl cut hair cut. I was often confused for a boy, and it was traumatizing.

10. One time I fell off my bike and smashed my face on the gravel road. My face was all bloody and an old lady walking by took me home. When my mom answered the door, the old lady said, "Your son fell off his bike." My bike was pink.

11. I am still as clumsy now as I was then.

12. I have nice new slippers, but I still wear my old ones because they are worn-in comfy, contoured to my foot, and I don't have to worry about them getting dirty.

13. I would rather spend money on food than clothes.

14. I am going to college for an associate's degree. I have a Perry the Platypus notebook.

15. I almost cried watching the most recent Batman movie. Alfred was so emotional...it got to me. If you haven't seen it, do so as soon as it comes out on DVD! Seriously!

16. I am a pathetic typist. Please don't judge me based on my typos.

17. My hair is naturally curly and it drives me insane. It's almost as temperamental as I am.

18. When I was little I wanted to grow up to be a horse.

19. I have a cat named Zebra.

20. I desperately want a dog. A miniature pinscher. I had one, named Rufus, and my old apartment building made me get rid of him. A**holes....

Anywho...now you know more about me than you did before. Congratulations! Come back soon.