Bacon & Skinny Jeans

The Importance of Fishies.

2012-02-15T14:07:00.000-08:00

If you have been researching paleo/nutrition/vitamins, whatever it may be in the health world, chances are you have heard of FISH OIL. We all love sushi (or sashimi for you paleos). We all love snorkeling. We all love those pet fish growing up that somehow fell asleep permanently and went on vacation down the toilet, and there is not one person in the world who hates Finding Nemo. But fish oil? Sounds fishy.

What is fish oil?

Fish oil is basically extracted from different types of fish tissue, whether it be sardines, anchovies, salmon.... Maybe I should stop because the point of this post is to get you to take it, not be repulsed. All the nasty part aside, fish oil has something VITAL to our life and well being. OMEGA-3s. Now the trick to getting a good OMEGA 3 supplement is to understand what exactly it is. They consist of two acids, EPA and DHA. The more we have of EPA/DHA the better. They are the best anti-inflammatory out there, protecting your heart, brain, and all the little structures inside our body.

Why am I talking about fish oil and why would I want to take it?

Okay, science/nerd/geeking out time! Bare with me. When all food was unprocessed, unmanufactured, unhindered and best of all FRESH, the natural ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6s (another fatty acid) was 1 to 2. Meaning for every 3, we had 2 of the 6s. That being said, can you imagine what a world with processed, manufactured, yucky touched-up, not-fresh food has?? 20-30:1. YES. RIDICULOUSLY TOO HIGH.

Review.

Omega 6s: Omega 3s

Should be: 2:1

Actual? 20-30:1

What does this mean for us? Allergies. Bad skin. Not very healthy hearts and not very healthy membranes in our body. Worse memories. Even depression. When our body is not balanced, THINGS START FALLING APART.

Holy SHIT. "So where am I getting all these Omega 6s?," might you ask. Practically everywhere. They are in most meats you eat since most meats you eat are grain-fed. They are in nut oils and nuts, vegetable oils, margarine, mayo, dressings..... Yes, you still need them. But they are known to "inflame" the body. Which is why we need a balance to "anti-inflame" this inflammation. (Keep on reading more for full benefits of getting your body back to a normal 2:1 ratio.)

How do we counteract? You got it, OMEGA 3s.... :) If you eat grass-fed beef/chicken/any meat, you are already a little closer to balancing that out. If you eat LOTS of fish weekly (salmon, sardines, anchovies) you are even closer. But chances are you don't, and that's totally okay. Fish oil is easy to find. It is everywhere. Just know that not all kinds are good kinds, and to really get the bang for your buck be conscious of the EPA and DHA levels. Try to get 1000-3000 mg of them total. 3000 mg is IDEAL.

I have searched for different types that work for me. I hate swallowing pills and to get the amount I needed of EPA and DHA I was taking like 15 a day. Being dramatic, but still, not fun. I found that liquid fish oil, as gross and scary as it sounds, is perfect. It is HIGHLY concentrated, you only need a teaspoon if it is a potent kind, and it usually is FLAVORED. I have mint in my fridge currently. Cod liver oil is great as well, just be careful you don't overdose on Vitamin A.

Last but NOT least:

What are the benefits of a balanced ratio, aka benefits of taking omega-3s??

Not only are you going to make your heart and brain cells happier, you are looking at better skin, better nails, less chance of depression, increased metabolism, a gino-load of antioxidants, and my favorite: I am not as sore the next day from a hard workout.

IT IS A MIRACLE SUPPLEMENT.

I knew I loved Finding Nemo. Ohhh, Dory.

Just in case, here is where I get my fish oil:

http://www.strongerfasterhealthier.com/

Now go get fishy.

Chocolate Rehab.

2012-01-31T21:46:00.000-08:00

I'll keep this short and sweet.

When I say "Rehab" above, I'm not even kidding. I love chocolate. I maybe have met one person in my life who "isn't really a fan" and I call them a LIAR. There is nothing bad about chocolate................ until you look at the ingredients and realize it has enough sugar content to make a village happy, topped off with not-so-paleo dairy products, and sometimes soy. That sneaky bastard soy lecithin.

I panicked. Here I am: grain-free, dairy-free, legume-free, stomach-pain-free, happy-go-lucky Emily. But CHOCOLATE-free? This can't happen. Happy-go-lucky Emily has left the building. I needed my chocolate. I get angry without my chocolate. It felt as if I was PMS-ing every week. My cravings were strong and forceful and I tried so hard to fight them, yet grocery shopping became traumatizing and gas stations became booby traps. There had to be a way.

Food fascinates me. The way our bodies respond to food fascinates me even more. When you are eating superbly healthy or "clean" and you crave something as much as I was craving chocolate, I knew there had to be something going on. SO I researched, and I shit you not, I think I found a cure.

A little known fact about cocoa is that has amazing sources of chromium and magnesium. You know what else does? Grains, beans, and dairy. Which I no longer consumed any of. MY BODY WAS TELLING ME SOMETHING... I was missing chromium and magnesium, and without those things? UNHAPPY Emily.

Problem: diet low in chromium and magnesium
Solution: incorporate in your diet foods high is chromium and magnesium, aka 100% cocoa.

My quick fix: I take two heaping spoonfuls of 100% cocoa with some boiling water, top it off with cinnamon and coconut milk, and holy crap my body loves me. My smile comes back. I come out of my cave. I stop scaring people away. PMS is gone. It is MAGIC.

Now don't expect a Starbuck's mochaccino-latte when you take a sip, but trust me when I tell you after you finish it, you will feel better and start to curb those horrendous sweet teeth we all have.

And don't forget, listen to your body. It always is telling you something ;).

Looking Down Under

2012-01-30T09:08:00.000-08:00

I was thinking today about what I wanted people to get most out of this blog. I decided I wanted each reader to gain:

1. a kick in the pants to get moving more
2. a basic understanding of a primal/paleo/cavewoman grain-free, dairy-free diet
3. knowledge of how to see food as fuel and the effects of hidden, processed junk in food we eat daily

Number three seems hefty. In other words, I want you each to know what is going in your body. Start being aware of ingredients. Start paying attention and CARING about the hidden junk, the fine print, the "fillers" that are put in every day, cabinet-filled foods.

Do you ever go through the home department candle isle and literally smell every single candle? I'm especially a fan of the sugar cookie flavors. Ah, and of course pumpkin. And if I'm feeling really zen I'll go for the "Forest Green". I'm guilty of heading to Bed, Bath, and Beyond for this reason alone.

Think about a "Sugar Cookie" candle. Close your eyes, hold it in your hands, and take a big whiff. I practically am salivating at the idea of fresh-baked, warm, succulent cookie coming out of the oven, about to be frosted with homemade cream cheese frosting, topped off with multi-colored-melt-in-your-mouth sprinkles. Holy cow. This smells yummy. Now open your eyes. You have literally just drooled over a 1 pound block of paraffin wax. Wax that is absolutely nothing. It is completely irrelevant. For all you know it could be something that came out of your ears.

This simple pound of wax has been molded into, turned into, made into, created into..... an exact replica of Grandma's Christmas Cookies to every innocent nose that comes within a 50-foot radius.

Do you see where I am going with this? Grocery isles are 90% full of foods that are absolute JUNK. Processed nothings turned into fantasizing smells, tantalizing colors, and irresistible qualities. We divulge. We can't say no. "It just tastes so gooooddd" you say. "I'm addicted, I can't help it", and you laugh it off.

Funny you say the word "addicted". Think Hostess is an innocent cake company for kid's lunches world-wide? Think Nabisco is just trying to make the world a happier place?? WRONG. They know what your taste buds respond to. They know how to cause an irresistible, "I need more" reaction. There is a science to junk food, and we are all victims. Food companies are money hungry and obesity, diabetes, high blood-pressure, beer gut, pear hips, and clogged arteries are all the products of their greed.

Your challenge: as you walk through the grocery isles on your next visit, pick up an item, turn it around, and look at the nutritional facts. And although our eyes are trained to just look at calories, carbohydrates, and daily percentage of fat that item has, look a little more south. Look at those ingredients.

Okay, I got you looking. That is step one. What are you looking for?

What To AVOID in the FINE PRINT:

nitrates
nitrites
sulfites
BHT
BHA
artificial coloring
artificial sweeteners (aspartame, saccharine)
artificial flavorings (including MSG)
emulsifiers and thickeners, i.e: propylene glycol
refined/bleached flour
hydrogenated oils (aka cheap peanut butter)

If it has a lot of ingredients, especially ones you can't pronounce, put it down and walk away. All the above things being put in our body are scientifically proven to cause mood swings, depression, headaches, asthma, allergies, hyperactivity problems... you name it.

Just because something smells like Sugar Cookie scrumptious doesn't mean it's anything more than a block of wax, and just because something looks like cake/meat/turkey/ice cream/____ doesn't mean it is either.

Treat your body like it deserves to be treated. Putting junk in your body is short-changing yourself. BE SMART AND BE CONSCIOUS!

Find Your "Happy Foods"

2012-01-25T14:07:00.000-08:00

Look down. This is your body. Not mine. Not hers. Not his.

As someone who has had their life changed by Paleo, I will always be a little bias in my posts. However I want you each to realize that EVERY SINGLE BODY has a different reaction to food. Our guts are different. We digest separately (obvii) so we naturally respond uniquely to every item we put in our body. Keep that in your cute brain while I continue.

When I decided to do Paleo, I went strict. I cut the dairy, grains, legumes. That meant no soy. No gluten-free. No black beans. No corn. No potatoes unless they were sweet (yum yum I'm hungry now). My energy source went from carbohydrates to fats.* I replaced oatmeal with turkey and avocado for breakfast. I replaced whole wheat bread with Larabars. I replaced pasta with coconut oil and veggies.

*CARBS OUT. FATS IN.*
*carbs from veggies and fruits? ALWAYS okay.
*good and bad fats? stay tuned for a later post.

The reason I went so strict is so that I could see what affected my body differently. I experimented. I would slowly incorporate things back into my diet and see how I responded. I went from not knowing why my stomach hurt or why I couldn't poo to realizing, "OMG those black beans just walked into my gut and cut it out!"

I tried non-fat Greek yogurt. Womp. I WISH I didn't get so snotty in my throat, but sadly dairy makes me mucousy.

I tried milk-chocolate. Damnit. Let's just leave it at it wasn't pretty.

I tried dark chocolate. Eeeee!!! I LOVE IT, and I eat it.

I tried peanut butter. It made me break out. I pretend almond butter is just as good.

I tried lots of almonds. "But these are healthy!!" It gave me serious gut issues. I can't consume any more than an ounce at a time.

You guys get the point. When you change the way you think about food, when it is ENERGY and not just FOOD, you realize the value of it. It becomes more delicious. And best of all, you can find out what affects you. You can be your own doctor.

Paleo or not, play with some foods. Get crazy. GET WILD. If you have stomach issues, acne, or low energy, THERE IS A REASON. FIGURE IT OUT!!!

Pumpkin Obsessed

2012-01-23T19:04:00.000-08:00

Fall has come and gone, but my pumpkin fascination still runs strong. I LOVE PUMPKIN. Do you guys realize how good pumpkin is for you?

Quick review. Canned pumpkin (not the processed-gross-Thanksgiving-pie mix) has:
1. SUPER high levels of Vitamin A: An Amazing Antioxidant (aka better vision, better skin)
2. High fiber, low carb
3. Lots of potassium
4. beta-carotene, which is created into even more Vitamin A
5. loads of deliciousness

So with lots of cans of pumpkin and some curiosity, I have found numerous ways to not only satisfy my sweet tooth, but get exactly what my body needs. All from pumpkin. See why I love it so much??

Here is a quick recipe for a POST-Workout smoothie. This is a perfect medley because not only does it taste amazing, it has the exact right amounts of carbohydrates to protein that I need after my body is WORE OUT. Your body must have carbs with your protein shake to digest the protein. If not, you are doing your body no good and wasting money on expensive, fancy protein powders.

Ratio needed to support lean muscle mass (this a good thing, just in case you didn't know):

2 carbs to every 1 protein

So back to this delicious recipe, with the hope that I did not run the country's supply of canned pumpkin out of stock......

BLEND TOGETHER:

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 tbsp honey

1-2 carrots, chopped (for some extra orange goodness)

1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder (I use Jay Robb's 100% whey)

1.5 cups water

lots of cinnamon (the more, the merrier)

ice as needed

POW. Pumpkin paradise.

Umm.. But like, isn't Bacon like super fattening???

2012-01-23T12:25:00.000-08:00

Bacon and Skinny.

Isn't that an oxymoron? Isn't bacon the biggest no-no in the fitness bibles?? Isn't is like, full of fat???

My point exactly.

disclaimer: I do not wish to push my lifestyle on anyone or do I declare that all people should follow the lifestyle I do.. However. It rocks. Now continue reading.

In June of 2011, I took the plunge. I threw out my bread. I threw out my granola. I threw out, god forbid, my OATMEAL. Oatmeal had been my breakfast for the last 6 months. What the f*** was I doing?

I was becoming PALEO. If you haven't heard of Paleo yet, then you haven't followed me long enough on Twitter or you really are just getting started. Either way, no worries. I am here to educate.

Paleolithic |ˌpālēəˈliθik|

adjective Archaeology

of, relating to, or denoting the early phase of the Stone Age, lasting about 2.5 million years, when primitive stone implements were used.
Uhhhh.... HUH???
The concept of being Paleo or Primal:
To avoid all things that aren't from or by this earth. aka: processed sugar, grains, dairy, legumes... because the way they are made today, our tummies just cannot handle. Don't avoid things from this earth: good meats, coconuts, veggies, nuts, fruits. (I really love coconut)
I was constantly struggling with belly aches, cramps, irregular poops (sorry TMI), never knowing how a certain food was going to affect me. I had been diagnosed with IBS, possible ulcers, bla bla bla. I hated it. It happened even when I ate healthy. I just didn't get it. WHAT WAS I DOING WRONG??
After hearing about Paleo and the good it can do for upset stomachs, weight loss, AND acne problems, WHAT THE HELL DID I HAVE TO LOSE. I had no idea if I'd actually be able to keep up with it, considering it would flip my current diet 180 degrees. But I love a challenge, and I needed a challenge. So I did it.
What happened? Belly aches gone. Regular poo's. More energy. Happier me. Oh. And a lot more ripped.
Point is, I eat bacon and my stomach looks like this:

my story

2012-01-23T11:53:00.001-08:00

Hello. My name is Emily. You can call me Em. I prefer Em considering how many Emily's there are in the world today.

I am 23. I am a personal trainer. I CrossFit. I ride. I shred. I workout. I love the gym. Bla bla bla. You get it, I get it, now to the good stuff.

Like most people, I hide things well. Like the fact that I hate public speaking, or that driving at night makes me more nervous than The Strangers. One thing I had perfected at hiding: that I hated my body. I hated being naked. I hated being in a swimsuit. Serious hate.

I've always been the "athlete", "tomboy", "chick who could beat the boys" kind of girl. I thought I knew what working out was, I would run some. Sprint some. Do crunches. Do some lat pulls. Leave the gym sweaty. Go take a shower only to look at my ass and think, "SERIOUSLY???" I disgusted myself and it ate me up inside. I was unhappy. And I perfected the art of faking my smile.

Like most things in my life, moving to Keystone, Colorado was impulsive and out of the blue. I needed out of Missouri. I hated my degree, my college, my job. I needed a change. I wanted to learn how to snowboard and even though I had no idea what the hell I was doing I picked up and moved a couple states over. I tried everyday to get better at snowboarding, and soon I wasn't half bad. But I smoked a lot. I drank a lot. And I ate a lot of Starbuck's Oatmeal Raisin cookies. Damn those cookies are good.

I covered up my extra pounds with baggy clothes until I finally WOKE up. Realized how much I admired those ripped chicks I saw on TV. How much I wanted to be the fittest. The best. I realized that I wanted to prove to myself that I could be just as muscular and just as fast as those magazine women. I knew I had it in me. I had the potential. I had the desire. I just needed to COMMIT.

January of 2011. Quit smoking. Quit drinking. Started getting serious. I learned about HITT training. I learned about "push" days and "pull" days and REST days. I learned about muscle groups and the concept of "afterburn". I learned how to EAT RIGHT. I ate 4 meals a day. Every four hours, no excuses. I wrote down everything I ate. If I snuck in a cookie, I highlighted it and made sure I felt guilty to stop me from doing it next time. It was hard as SHIT. But I was serious. I wanted to be ripped.

My body responded immediately to this new me. In two weeks I had loose jeans. In four weeks I had to get new jeans. I would write the number I wanted to weigh-in at by the end of the week on my hand, and it motivated me to get there. And the feeling of getting there?? EUPHORIC.

I dropped 15 stubborn pounds. I dropped 5% body fat. I dropped 4 sizes. I looked and FELT amazing.

Bla, bla, bla. Point is. IT CAN HAPPEN. It just takes EDUCATION. MOTIVATION. and COMMITMENT. I don't want any "I don't have time", "money", "energy" excuses. You can make time. It doesn't cost money. And your energy will SKY ROCKET once you start.

This is my journey. I learn something new every day. Quiz me, ask me, riddle me.. Do whatever you need to do to start your journey. It is the best thing you can ever do for yourself.

GET YOUR ASS MOVING