IT'S A CONSPIRACY, I TELL YOU!!

THE CONSPIRACY STARTS

Last year in January i was driving home on the northern state parkway after dropping my daughter  off for her travel softball team practice. All of a sudden out of the corner of my eye i see something moving onto the parkway, its a very large raccoon. I am traveling 65 miles per hour, there is a car to the right of me and plenty of cars behind me..so i can't move out of the way or stop short with out causing a major pileup. I sadly i realize i have no choice but to continue on a collision course with this raccoon. 

When I run over the raccoon  i seriously thought i was going to throw up. It took me two days to even look at my car because i was afraid i might see this raccoon plastered all over my car grill. I was shocked by the damage which cost me $2500.00 to fix and 5 days in the auto body shop. The shop owner told me i was 1 of 10 cars in the last year that had accidents with raccoons. I was the only one who could actually drive my car,  so i counted my blessings and thanked God that i was safe and my car was fixable! After that when i would go to work at night i would seen many raccoons crossing road in front of me everywhere. All i could think is "they know, they know i killed their buddy, now they're after me for revenge"...lmao i have a great imagination!

MY NEW PLACE

My new apt is in a heavily wooded area.  Yup you guessed it,  raccoons everywhere, the little bandits raid my garbage pails. What they don't know is, i am a farm girl and i know how to out smart them or so i thought. I bought a garbage pail that locks even if its knocked over...hahahaha! On garbage day {I have an indoor cat} i threw the  used cat liter in an open garbage pail. Raccoons are territorial animals.  They sprayed their scent around that garbage pail. I picked up the garbage pail to bring it in from the curb...wait for it, Yes i now unknowingly had the raccoons scent all over me. 

RUNNING ERRANDS

 I had errands to run and hopped in my car determined to get everything done before crossfit class.  I am at my first errand on my list, standing in a store and all of a sudden i am smelling this funky gamey smell. "wow that smells is strong", i am thinking, "gee who is that and i turn around..gee it smells just like when i was a kid and lived in the park {my dad was a park ranger and we lived on the park property}, gee it smells like a fox, OMG A RACCOON!" THOSE B*****DS!!! I look behind me and there is a line and the people are standing very far away from me...OMG! i get outside the store and like a dog i start sniffing myself.... holy buckets, its me! The garbage pail, i realize! i get in my car and start sniffing the the car. The stench is allover the car, me, my clothes...ugh. I run home and scrub myself down, start a load of laundry, wipe down the inside of my car and pray when i start sweating in crossfit class i don't smell like roadkill.

THE SCENT
It is very hard to explain what a raccoon scent smells like. Have you ever been driving on the road and all of a sudden you smell dead road kill seeping into your car? Yeah that's what i smelled like.

THE RISE OF THE RACCOON'S

I was driving to work last night and i am still picking up a slight smell. The stench of raccoon is all over my beloved suede coat. I now have to get my coat cleaned , I can't wear it til i do, and baby its cold outside! I need to get my car washed.   I am going to try really heard not to smell like dead raccoon when i go out on a date this week. I could get lucky maybe this guy will be a hunter and i will smell "naturally" good to him. I told you the raccoons were out to get me! 

P.S. your wondering how this relates to crossfit? maybe this can be filed under " in crossfit we expect the unexpected?" or under the crossfit philosophy "sometimes you have to embrace the suck"...smelling like roadkill SUCKS!lolololol 

"Sandra Dee" has her groove back

THE SHOCK OF MY LIFE

The other day at the Crossfit box i was partnered up with one of the guys as we were doing an Olympic lift. By the last 2 reps of third set overhead i was struggling, at that moment i felt the guy come up behind me and place his hands on my elbows to help me lockout the bar overhead. In the instant he touched my elbows i blacked out...i no longer heard my coach calling out the tempo in which we were supposed to lift and descend the bar. I suddenly started to think "wow, a guy hasn't touched me in a long time"...the other side of my brain is thinking "um WTF..you have a bar over your head can you concentrate before you drop it?"  

SEX NOW??!!
I could not believe i am in the middle of class having sexual fantasies with a heavy bar over my head and i am trying not to turn 50 shades of red!  I retell the story of what happened to my friends. One said thru her hysterical laughter..."you need a boyfriend". My reply "I know! I wasn't even attracted to this guy". More fits of hysterical laughter, "Elisa, all he did was touch your elbows". I replied"I KNOW !!" My other friend says to me "you need a t-shirt "don't touch me" more hysterical laughter , another friend chimes in "did you read "Fifty shades of Grey"?" i said "what are you kidding, that could prove to be dangerous, a guy could touch me and i might have an orgasm in class and drop the bar" more fits of hysterical laughter . After we wipe our tears from laughing so hard, they both conclude its my age. Ok but WHY?

MRS ROBINSON
 I am such a science geek that i had to know why this phenomena of women reaching their sexual peak in their 40's occurs....here is what i found out..... 1.  more confidence= most women in their 40's have less insecurities about who they are, what they want, and their bodies. Most have an established career which gives them an  identity outside of the role of mom and wife.
 2. higher testosterone levels=as women near menopause the body realizes that this is its last chance to get pregnant increases testosterone production there by increasing sex drive
 3. mommy stage is over=most women in their 40's aren't nursing infants, they have their pre-pregnant figures back, and are having sex for the first time for pleasure not baby making

SEX and EXERCISE
So if being in my forties isn't enough,  now i am Crossfitting and exercise creates sexual benefits too. 

1. several different scientific studies showed that people who exercise become more aroused and more intensely than people who don't

2. exercise improves stamina and flexibility which translates into the bedroom

3. those who exercise have more sex than people don't exercise

4. exercise improves body image and people who exercise feel that they perform better in bed

5. exercise raises testosterone levels which increase sex drive, reduces depression, and increases sexual arousal 

exercise also releases endorphins which aid in supporting the release of sex hormones, creates a feeling a well being known as "runner's high"and helps to reduces stress which is a sexual inhibitor

For now i will continue throwing all my sexual energy into becoming fitter, faster and stronger at Crossfit....and try not to daydream in crossfit class again...hahahahahaha

"put one foot in front of the other"

I haven't written in a while. To quote a friend of mine

 "I think when Sandy hit Long Island she did something to me..I feel crooked...." quote by Lisa Marie Turner

Truly that has been the way i have felt for the last 2 weeks. I have a couple of friends who suffered extensive damage to their homes because of flooding, and are devastated. It is very hard to feel good when so many are hurting. 

PAIN

I saw one of my friends this past weekend, she was in the flood zone, her home had about 4 to 5 feet of water in it during the height of the storm. She now lives between a Friends house and her mother's house..just a couple of clothes that were in her car and what was on her back which she washes everyday to have something to wear. In talking to her, her pain was so palpable, so raw..i wish there was more i could do for her. She was saying how she couldn't sleep, eat,at times she had just wanted to run away and not have to deal with all of this heartache. I suddenly realized that i could relate to what she was feeling. 

LOSS

Five years ago in a period of 6 months so many "bad" things happened to me. My 2nd marriage ended with my ex husband paying off all HIS bills, emptying and closing out our bank account and he walked out the door...no forwarding address or phone number. I had to change my job to make more money..so a new hospital, new coworkers and a new shift-nights 7pm to 7am. The court decided that my children's father who tried to kill me in front of my children was the more "stable parent" and gave him residential custody...he works 9-5, i worked in a hospital which is open 24/7, he knew he had off for the holidays and i didn't, at that time it was legal to mandate nurses to work extra hours after their shift to fill in staff gaps, his 2nd marriage was intact, mine was falling apart and he had a home, mine was being foreclosed upon, the court told me to my face that the "incident" in which he hurt me was long ago and was not relevant to custody of the children....hmmm. My house which i put a $250,000 down payment on was now foreclosed , i tried to sell it, i tried to short sell it, i tried to work with mortgage company finally i had no choice but to decide what  possessions i could take with me and what i HAD to leave behind... 

ALONE

I withdrew from everyone my coworkers, my Friends, my family, from life itself.  I had a hard time sleeping, i over ate, i stopped going out, and i stopped exercising. So many times i wanted to run away and hide,  or just lay down and die, i hurt so bad i cant even begin to describe how much. There were entire weekends when i  didn't  have to work and i didn't have my kids that i spent inside my apartment, in my pajamas, and i cried.

THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN

I truly don't know how i have made it thru all the pain of all those losses. I can tell you it has taken me four and half years to do so. Daily i put one foot in front of the other. I allowed myself to cry.  I drew upon my faith in God. I knew with 3 children depending on me there was no such thing as giving up or giving in. I had no choice but to walk forward. 

CROSSFIT AND FAITH

Isaiah 40:31 "those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles: they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." I held on to this bible verse during this dark time. I felt that God was saying to me thru this verse... just hold on, trust me, i will help you thru, we will get thru this together. God was there with me when no one else was, so i trusted him. Last week in Crossfit, we had to do a Hero WOD for the Lurong Paleo challenge which consisted of  ladies scaled division=25 calorie row, 100 single jump ropes, 80 kettle bell swings (25lb kettle bell), 100 air squats, 60 push ups, 100 single jump ropes, 40 sit ups, 100 walking lunges, 20 burpee's in a 25 min  time cap..if you finish all that you start again until time runs out. I cant tell you how brutal this WOD was, how much it hurt, and when i finished round 1 and had more time left all i could think was "s***t I HAVE to keep going"...and i did keep going til my coach yelled TIME! I pointed out to my friend she was a Crossfitter...we don't give up, we don't give in, we keep going. In Crossfit we don't run away from fear we confront it and try to overcome it. Like Debra Cordner-Carson did at the Crossfit Games 2012 this year. 

This is a part of a speech the movie character "Rocky" gives to his son

"Let me tell you something you already know.The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!"

In the infamous words of Winston Churchill 

 We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender

To my friends as they try and rebuild their lives.... you can do this,  you are strong,  be strong in your faith, don't surrender, keep going, you are not alone , we care about you, we want to help you, we are here for you!

NO LIMITS

I have to give credit to Lisbeth Darsh of Crossfit headquarters for this picture which i found so Funny i had to share on my blog!

THE NY TIMES

Yesterday the NY times printed a blog on how women can not do pull ups, what is really disheartening is the blog was written by a woman. A scientific "study" of 17  "fit" women showed how we just don't have the physical strength and too much body fat to do pull ups. SERIOUSLY?  This study is obviously very flawed, 17 test subjects is not enough women to test their theory, and they never considered maybe their exercise programing was at fault not the women's strength? I think this exercise physiologist and the blogger need to visit a Crossfit Box.

 CROSSFIT

What i love about Crossfit is they do not label me or put limits on what i can do. THANK YOU GOD for my Coaches they are Four Men who think I CAN and with their support, encouragement, guidance i have truly  accomplished so much, most of which society tells me is impossible just because of my age let alone my gender. I am 47yrs old never once did they say, oh Elisa you cant do that because your "too old".  I started at 190lbs they never said your "too fat" to do that.  In fact they want to check my driver's license for proof of my age cause they don't think i am 47..how much do i  love them!!! In the past 9 months of Crossfit my Coaches have taught me how to jump a 20inch box  {i am 5"5"  20 inches is almost 1/3 of my height}, I can dead lift 200lbs,  i just started doing "real" push ups , i can power clean 90lbs,  i can jerk 80lbs, push press 85lbs over my head,  power snatch 65lbs, bench press 95lbs, i can swing 1 pood (35lbs) kettle bell  AND I  JUST GRADUATED to  BAND ASSISTED PULL UPS! Shocking i know according to this blog and scientific study i shouldn't be able to do this. In Crossfit the pull up is a "standard" regardless of height, weight, gender, or age. Our Coaches will have us all LEARN to do a pull up BUT there are ways to build up to this movement.  Crossfit has "The Crossfit Games" in which the games athletes compete for the title "Fittest on Earth".  Crossfit women come from all over the WORLD to compete....all different heights, weights, backgrounds, ethnicity and ages....ummmm  someone forgot to tell all these beautiful, strong women that they "cant" do pull ups. There is a specific division for the athletes who are 45 plus called the "Masters" division, i was simply fascinated, awed, and inspired by these men and women who defy the "age" label every day!  Uh yeah, they forgot to tell these women master's athletes they are "too old"  and "too female" to do pull-ups.

WOMEN IN SPORTS

In 1972 women were granted under the Equal education amendment Title IX ,the right to have their own sports teams Any government funded schools and colleges had til 1978  comply or allow women to try out for existing teams. In 1979 i entered my freshman year in high school and i remember during a pep rally that they introduced the boys soccer team and there was one girl who had made the team. We had no existing girls team nor were there any girls who wanted to form a team and play, so under this new amendment she was given the "right " to play sports.  In my junior year of high school my friend approached me to play JV girls soccer, i really wasn't sure i wanted to because i really wasn't that good of a player but she said "if you don't play we don't have enough girls to form a team" I joined. I had no idea that what i was doing was ground breaking until my oldest daughter went to my high school. I remember pulling up in my car  to pick her up,  i was flabbergasted by  the sheer number of girls on the girls teams...soccer, field hockey, lacrosse, track, cross country, softball, tennis, what a HUGE difference from when i was begged to play.  My 2nd Daughter is a senior this year and has been a high school athlete all 4 years, she will go to college in Sept of 2013 on scholarship for athletics, she is doing something i never had the opportunity to do.  She will be starting Crossfit this coming Monday, yeah i will make sure i remember to tell her that she wont be able to do a pull up just like she shouldn't be playing sports either because she is a girl.

DO NOT TELL ME WHAT I CANT DO

Women have been told they didn't have the sensibility to vote, we weren't physically capable of  playing sports,  we shouldn't be educated and go to college, and this female blogger  and the NY TIMES has the audacity to tell us something else we cant do because we are female? 

I have had a lifetime of people tell me what couldn't do. I THANK GOD he made me stubborn and persistent! I had 2 colleges tell me i wouldn't be successful in their Nursing Program...hmmm i am a Registered Nurse for 25yrs now. I had 2 abusive husbands tell me that i wouldn't survive on my own without them...hmmmm gee i am still here and i am happier than i have ever been. I have pushed two 8.5lb babies out of my body and your telling me i don't have the strength to do a pull-up, as my Great-Grandfather would say "Horse sh**".     I am so grateful that Crossfit empowers all of us women, helps us to realize we are capable, we are strong enough, and encourages us to reach our goals. 

MY GOAL

I was just talking to my coach today about competing again and the standards to compete as a crossfitter. He told me the pull up, even in the scaled division is the standard. "OK" i said to him "i just wanted to be sure of what my goals are, i need to work to get pull ups" He smiled at me and said "you'll get them"

Shhhhhh, don't tell him what the  NY Times blog said!

below is the link for the blog post from the NY TIMES

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/25/why-women-cant-do-pull-ups/?smid=pl-share

"Iceberg Ahead!!"

Oct 21, 2012

THE ICEBERG

This week i was heading for disaster! My body was sending me signals  of impending doom and i just wasn't understanding what was going on. I woke up every day this week feeling exhausted, nauseated,  irritable, and so sluggish...similar to a hangover without the fun of partying to get that way.  I really thought it was just the stress of the last couple of weeks getting to me ...moving, my dads visit, being sleep deprived because of no curtains and blinds, the lurong living paleo challenge, and the rainy gloomy weather. I have really learned alot about and i am more in tune with my body  over these few months of Crossfitting, and i knew these symptoms were just something more than stress. I began to notice that when i ate the symptoms would go away but within one to two hours were back again....the nurse in me had an A-HAH moment. My diet needed to be readjusted. 

JON NORTH

Three weeks ago when i was taking the Jon North Attitude Nation Certification which PortCrossfit hosted...we were all out to lunch together, of course complaining about the diet adjustments we had to make and i mention how famished i was ALL THE TIME! My Coach started asking me how i was eating, i told him "i am eating just like i did when we did the in-house paleo challenge EAT CLEAN TRAIN DIRTY but my meats are now leaner." My Coach looked at me and said  "you may need to add alittle more fat, fruit and some sweet potatoes to your diet". I have been ravenous before but after a couple of days those feelings went away and i was fine, so i really didn't think anything of it. Even Jon North remarked how we were all eating, and how surprised  he was that any of us could lift the weights we were lifting. We all were drooling and our stomachs grumbling as we watched him eat a giant burrito, and chuckling he was glad he wasn't doing the challenge with us. After lunch i felt much better and went on to PR my squat snatch and my squat clean, i figured no problem, i am ok.  Jon North was so funny, a patient coach, a great educator in the sport of weight lifting, i learned so much, and it was really great day!

MY COACHES

This past Friday morning i emailed my coaches before i left work,  about how i was feeling (symptoms were getting worse) and to get their advice on how to remedy the situation with my diet. I am a Registered Nurse for a long time so i knew what my Coaches answer would be but i guess i just wanted their reassurance.  So one of my coaches emailed me back "Uh oh your pregnant again! this definitely preggers sickness"  I laughed so hard i started choking on my coffee. When i told my oldest daughter what my Coach said she replied laughing "what does he think your name is MARY?" I really love how my oldest daughter thinks i am "too old " to get pregnant or have sex.  I wont burst her "mommy" bubble. Anyway my Coaches did gave me their recommendations for making changes in my diet. On the way home from picking my son up from school we made a pit stop at whole foods. 

When i thanked my coach for answering my email ...he looked at me and said "so did you do what i suggested

 you needed to do?" i started giggling because i was thinking of the preggers comment. He said "you didn't do it did you?" I stopped laughing, very seriously "no coach i listened, i HAD to because i felt so terrible" He looks at me and says "I told you that you may need to change your diet, when you mentioned it at the Jon North Seminar" i started laughing again, i couldn't believe he remembered that brief conversation we had and  i sheepishly admitted "yes, you did tell me and i didn't pay attention." 

TROUBLED

I struggled during Friday nights wod, not because i couldn't do it but because i felt so weak.  When the wod was finished I walked over to get my stuff and felt lightheaded and dizzy. I went to buy a post recovery drink and i was struggling to choose one that had carbs in it...in my mind that was "bad" that would make me gain weight. My son (he crossfits with me) actually yelled at me "mom what the hell! your dizzy the one with the carbs in it is not bad for you, your body needs it!" If i didn't get over my fear of going back to where i was when i first started crossfit, immediately, i was going to go down like the titanic.  Not only could my fear of certain foods sink all of my strength gains i have made,  decrease my muscle mass that i built up,  but could seriously jeopardize my health. I sat down and drank the recovery drink.  i was saddened, and so completely shocked at myself, my fears. 

TURNING THE TITANIC AROUND

Your thoughts can be very difficult to change. I have to remember that my body needs these complex carbohydrates as fuel to function. I can no longer think these certain foods are "bad" or will make me gain weight.  I have to remember i have changed in the last 10 months, i need to adapt to my "new " body. One of my fellow crossfitters explained this new body adaptation so well to me,  "when we both started we had stores that our body could pull from to convert to energy. now we both are lighter, have changed our body fat  composition, can move faster, lift heavier and do more volume in a wod, we need to eat to give our body energy cause there isn't much storage left for our bodies to pull from." So i made sure i incorporated these simple changes into my diet this weekend, and i am happy to say...iceberg averted! I feel  so much better!! Thanks Coaches for your advice and support, oh and for the laughter too! Hugs!

"Elisa's PR Bell"

Oct 14, 2012

 I ask anxiously, "Coach how much should i go up?"  He asks, "how much is on the bar?" I replied, "175lbs" Coach says "put fives on each side...PR OVER HERE, PR OVER HERE!" I really don't know who was more excited that i was going for the PR on my dead lift,  ME or my Coach! When i started in January i could barely dead lift the 45lb bar, and now i am approaching a dead lift of more than i weigh.

Now i am really nervous, my coach and  some of the class is watching...so i go into the zone and block everything out. I start talking to myself in my head "you can do this,  remember your form..head up, shoulders back,keep your back flat, arms are just hooks, lift with your legs, butt and back and the bar will go up! I dead lifted 185lbs! I flew over to the PR {personal record} bell and rang it! At the end of class with a HUGE smile on my face  i wrote my dead lift PR on the PR board.

I know i am one of the few women in my box  who write on the PR board or ring the PR bell. Why? I am not sure? I know when i first wrote on the board my PR's were so much smaller in weight in comparison to everyone else, i felt alittle embarrassed. Then i realized it was a great way for me to  celebrate MY achievement, MY hard work and  that my PR's deserved to be on the board also, even if I thought they were small. When we hit a PR, it represents our labor ,  our personal progress, and moves us one step closer in our ever evolving quest for fitness.  I wish i had a snapshot for every PR achieved, the look of Triumph on my fellow crossfitter's faces is truly priceless! That is why I really want to encourage the Ladies of PortCrossfit to share their accomplishments.  Why not?  Ladies be BOLD! Be Proud! Write your success on the PR Board! RING THAT PR BELL! Let us ALL be happy for you, let us ALL join in your victory!! We are a family, a crossfit community..we celebrate our successes together!  Congrats to Derek, Don, Joe, Scott, and Vinny for your PR's ..awesome job guys!! Congrats to Jen,  Amanda, Meg, Stacey..for your PR's..you girls ROCK!!

More awesome news!! A number of both guys and girls have done an awesome job of losing 8-10lbs in the first 3 weeks of the Lurong Paleo challenge! Not only have they dropped the weight but have lost a lot of inches too....lean mean Crossfit Machines!! I have seen so many of you in the last 3 weeks get faster, stronger, fitter but the best of all ...have more confidence in yourselves! Thank you for keeping me posted on your progress, i enjoy hearing all about your successes and i am inspired by all of your PR's! Me? i haven't lost any weight yet but i bought a  new uniform this week in a size extra-small top and small pants {in January i wore a extra-large top and  extra-large pants} , so i know i am going in the right direction!  So keep up the awesome work guys and gals from PortCrossfit..those who's goals are building more muscle, &  those who's goal is getting lean,  and all of us together becoming stronger, faster and fitter during this challenge! Lets see some more PR's and don't forget to RING THAT BELL!

oooops I did it again

oct 9, 2012

Yup, for the last 3 weeks i have gotten lost on the way to work almost every night.  I usually have a great sense of direction but i think with the lack of sleep(no blinds and curtains), my car breaking down AGAIN,  a head full of to do lists, and my father's  impending visit ...i just kept missing the road i needed to turn down to get to work, stress, stress and more stress...sigh.

Yesterday was the first "normal" day i have had since moving.   I just finished putting up all my blinds and curtains on Sunday, when my dad  & step mom took the kids out, YEA!!!  Yesterday when my company headed for home, i had a darkened room, which i call the bat cave,that i could sleep in. SO AWESOME!  I love my family...but 2 1/2 weeks into a move...with boxes, curtains,blinds, and pictures all around , six people in 600sq feet and only four beds, me working 50hrs a week on the night shift, 3 kids who work & have after school activities, cooking, cleaning, crossfitting ...i am just tired. 

So how do i handle all the stress? Hmmmm good question!
Its OK to accept Help! 
This one is hard for me, it is difficult  for me to trust that someone would actually want to help me, because of the abuse i had suffered, i have remained isolated and silent for a very long time but i am learning to do this better. I am very lucky tho, my dad and step mom are  truly awesome house guests! They do offer to help me out whenever and as much as they can. Even though my dad arrived 8 HOURS earlier than he told me he was, lolololol..the first thing he did was offer to help by picking my son up from school for me....so i took him up on his offer of help. Many times we get overwhelmed with daily stress and we think its "weak" to ask for help..its not! It is wisdom when you understand you cant do everything all by yourself. My Mom always told me never be too proud to ask for or accept help when you need it. I owe a debt of gratitude to my friend Martha. I was supposed to meet her for lunch 2 weeks ago and when she called, i began to describe how unclean my new apartment was,  that i couldn't go to lunch and i started to cry, she told me she was coming over to help, and i couldn't say no, i so humbly said OK. She spent her day off {she is an ER nurse} helping me scrub my kitchen cabinets(there was fuzzy things growing on them), moving furniture, unpacking boxes, etc! Thank God for Friends!! When you allow your friends and family to help it gives you a chance to step back for a second, breathe, and refocus on what needs to be done to relieve your problem or reduce your stress. So reach out and ask for help when you need it..its OK!

Be grateful and think positive!
While my dad was picking up my son i was scrambling to put more stuff away, and i was putting rug tape down on my area rugs so they wouldn't slide. I prayed "lord, please help me to not panic that my house is not in order, because my dad is visiting", all of a sudden i "realized",  i was in an"ass to grass" position(a squat). All i could do was laugh and thank the Lord for showing me a reason to be grateful,  this position was not something i could physically do in January of this year. Hmmmm i started  thinking of the positive things in my life and being appreciative of them, "Thank you Lord that my dad is alive(so many of my friends don't have their parents) and healthy, that i have a good relationship with him, i am happy to see him and my children have the awesome pleasure of  knowing, and visiting with their Grandfather(he is a really great grandpa and my kids adore him and my step mom)." I just went down the list of positive  things in my life that i am Thankful for...like i am grateful for my healthy kids, my own health, my stupid car that breaks down alot (lmao on this one but alot of people don't have cars..so i am happy i have one), my friends, my job.  By the time my dad and step mom got to my door from picking up my son..i gave them a big hug..and said "i am soo happy your here", and i meant it!

exercise
My dad walked thru my door and said "Lis, you look even better than when i saw you in July, keep up the great work! Wow this apartment is really nice! Mike (my son) looks great, i am glad he Crossfits with you". I let out my breath, and was relieved. i am really glad that i entered the Lurong Paleo Challenge because thru this move, and my dad's visit it has kept me motivated to keep to my exercise schedule. Moving furniture and boxes, hanging curtains, hammering nails to hang pictures, up and down on the step stool to scrub the cabinets, squatting to pick up stuff, carrying out heavy garbage...all of this is functional movement..that's what Crossfit is...and let me tell you how thankful that i have been crossfitting!! I know Crossfitting  has made the physical part of moving sooo much easier, i think back to January and how unfit i was and this move would have been impossible for me. In Crossfit many times we have WODS (workout of the day) that we term "chippers". "Chipper" wods are workouts that have a VERY large work loads that seem impossible (ie; 10 pull ups, 20 sit ups, 30 kettle bell swings, 40 air squats, 200 jump ropes that's 1 round and we need to do as many rounds as possible in 10mins..seems impossible right) but you "chip" away at the workload and amazingly you accomplish it. That is how i approached organizing my apartment this week before my dad arrived...i just kept chipping away at what needed to be done!  I  also know the medical community have documented the benefit of exercising on mental health, so i make it a point on Sunday's to plan for the week what days i will get to Crossfit. The challenge and Crossfit have really helped me to keep me focused on the positives, the "I CAN" instead of being down in the dumps and negatives, or the " I CAN'T". 

Be Flexible
Sometimes your day just doesn't go they way you want it to! Last week in preparation for my dads visit i was food shopping and the fire alarm went off  in the food store and we had to evacuate the store...OMG! I started out my day getting errands accomplished, doing great on time, i was almost done....and bam! It took the fire marshal 30 minutes to search the store and make sure it was safe for us to go back inside. That 30 mins set ME back an hour...but what can you do? NOTHING!!! Sometimes you just have to know that there are things you have no control over and you cant change them...sooo suck it up! lololololol I ended up taking pictures of the fire engines and our VOLUNTEER Firefighters (god bless these volunteers) and thought "gee this have never happened to me before"...and laughed...i was probably dilerious but i was happy and laughing!

Eating/Sleeping
When your stressed the body doesn't recover or repair itself...your body is busy maintaining the important functions...so it is the utmost importance to eat healthy and get sleep!! Most people underestimate the importance of sleep, a lack of sleep WILL kill you. Those people who don't get enough sleep (8hrs is best) will increase your risk of high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes. If your not sleeping ...look at your sleep environment is it dark or do you have the TV going, radio playing and your computer in front of you? Working the night shift, I can tell you it is hard to sleep during the day, my room has blackout blinds, blackout curtains...so it is very dark, i only take my cellphone in my room(only because of my kids)and it is docked on a station so it is not near me. If my mind is busy thinking of all the things i have to do then i read a book...guaranteed to knock me out! Exercise has been documented by the medical community to aide in sleeping better. I have seen this happen in my own life, Crossfit definitely helps me to sleep better! During the last 3  stressful weeks i have noticed that i am craving carbs and hungrier, which since i started a paleo lifestyle in January, i have not felt this way. I really have made sure that i stick to my healthy eating and if i do feel like i want carbs, i have an extra small meal of protein and vegetables instead. I really don't need to fill myself with yucky foods that will only hurt me or make me gain weight. Been there ,done that and it feels awful! 

so hang in there my friends, life is full of stress but it is how we deal with it that counts! This is one of my favorite inspirational videos..i hope you enjoy it!