The Countdown is On!

Holy hell I have been busy!  The funny thing is ... I have had a lot of time to chill too.  Weird.
It also rained all damned week which really sucked ass and probably made my mind all messed up.


I've been really busy this week prepping for the big competition which is officially 2 weeks away!
I have been testing my maxes at the gym, ordering last minute equipment, reading rules, making packing/shopping lists and mentally preparing myself for the mind fuck that will inevitably happen.

I did get out for a happy hour with some folks I haven't seen in a while so that was amazing.  Made me very happy.  Also took part in some really fun WODs and that always adds some sunshine.


Lets recap the fun that has been my life ... 


Cooking Cooking Cooking!

 Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

Absolutely delicious.  

I am not a huge sweets person BUT 

I may make a batch each week these are so good and SO EASY!

Kale Chips

No idea where I got this recipe, some random Google search.

Ridiculously easy, but I added too much salt and seasonings.  Oops

Sweet Potato Steak Hash

Another random magazine that I ripped out of SELF magazine.

I upped the recipe from one serving to like 6 and made some for the whole week.  

Its real damn tasty and filling!

Ingredients - steak sirloin (I used stir fry beef), sweet potatoes, red bell pepper, onion, cumin, salt, pepper, garlic, olive oil.  

Instructions - pretty much all you do is cook the meat, set aside.  Cook the potatoes and veggies until soft, add garlic and seasonings and the beef back in and heat it all together.  YUM!

Really, you can make anything into hash and its amazing I have discovered.

Now THIS is the prize of the weekend ...

Cocoa Coffee Chili Pulled Pork (Holy Shit)

I love that this is a crock pot recipe (read: easy) and also makes a shit ton.

It also tastes indescribably amazing.

Now here is my fail of the weekend ... Paleo Cinnamon Rolls.

Lets just say that I used semi-substituted materials and don't have all of the tools.

hence, the second picture where they look like blobs.  

They taste really really good though so I may keep the recipe and make bread!

Wow. I'm tired all over again.  

Aside from all of that I did some random prep like hard boiled eggs, bagging snacks, salad prep, etc. etc.  I spaced it all out through Saturday and Sunday of this weekend and am currently running my dishwasher for literally the 6th time.  I'm so glad I don't pay for water.

Lift Heavy Things!

Wednesday entered deadliest max day.  My favorite day on the planet.

Reverse a couple of weeks here ... I tried to max a few weeks ago in class and failed miserably.  I could barely match my old PR.  So honestly?  I had REALLY low expectations this week.  Plus I have been feeling like crap too.  

BUT low and behold, the stars were aligned and I kicked ass.  Thank god.

20# PR for this girl making my max a whopping 325#! BOOM!

 I absolutely adore my new shirt too.

Today (Sunday) however is where I disappointed myself.  I went into today with OK expectations.  I thought I would PR but more than I did.  That's all kind of whatever.  What REALLY bugged me is that my form was horseshit.  My knees pulled in again in my squat and I didn't use my legs at all for my bench.  Frustrating when competition is upon me ... 

Thus, I still PR'd which I have to be proud of.  

5# on my back squat, making 1RM 240#

10# on bench, making 1RM 140#

Preparing!

I sat down this week and read the USAPL handbook to prepare myself for the "fine print" of my meet.  It appears I didn't digest everything so I need to keep studying it like its my job.  Whatever my performance is is fine, if I fuck up or get red lighted because I can't read or can't remember, thats just stupid. 

I tried out all of my shoes this week - Chuck's for deadlift, VS lifters for the other.  My belt, feels broken in finally so thats a huge relief.  No more bruises and red marks - YAY!

I also got my singlet in the mail.  And my legs suffocate.  But it looks kick ass so whatever.

Another thing I notice this week is kind of an extension of what I wrote about in one of my last posts.  Community and my cheering section.  I continued to be amazed and flattered by all of my friends and family as well as the community of social media I am a part of which I love.  I really do wish that someday I could meet a lot of my Instagram followers (I say that because I spent a nasty amount of time on there), I have found them all through hashtags of similar interests and I love the whole crew.

Sharing my story, my successes and struggles does make me very vulnerable but also holds me accountable and keeps me humble which I like.  I know I'm not the best at everything (or really anything) out there, but I sure as hell do my best and want to help others do the same.

To all of my followers and people out there who keep cheering for me and following, I say THANK YOU.