Day 14

The second week of the challenge has flown by and my second long run while on the diet was much better than my first.  I intended to heed the advice of fueling early and often, but I drifted off to sleep after a 5AM waking from the baby.  I ended up getting out of bed at 7:45 which gave me no time to prepare the breakfast that I was planning while still giving the meal two hours to digest.  I decided to stick with the menu plan and make Paleo pancakes anyway and hope that the decision wouldn't come back to haunt me. 

Annabelle eating the original Paleo diet: dinosaur

This was my second attempt at making Paleo pancakes.  The first time I tried, the recipe consisted of almond meal, almond butter and oil.  The results were less than satisfactory.  I figured this time I'd try to inject some carbohydrates into the mix and found this recipe instead.  This was a much more successful attempt, but in retrospect, I think unsweetened apple sauce would make a better substitute than the shredded apple.  As written, the batter was a bit hard to work with and despite making silver dollar pancakes, several were mottled by unsuccessful flips.  The cakes themselves were good.  The lovely wife even enjoyed them with some maple syrup.  I had mine plain with some scrambled eggs and an orange on the side.

I decided to apply some of the additional guidance from "The Paleo Diet for Athletes" and I consumed 1/2 of a banana ten minutes before starting the run.  I felt great for most of the run even though the trail was pretty slushy in many sections.  The air temperature was a good deal warmer than last week, there was little wind, and the course was mostly flat.  I finished the first twelve miles with an 8:04 min/mile pace.  Slightly faster than I was intending, but I can't complain.  The last few miles I ran solo and decided to give myself a break once I reached fifteen miles.  Sixteen miles would have been nice, but I decided to take a strong fifteen miles over sixteen miles with an enormous fade.  I still have a good deal of time before the marathon so I'm not concerned.  I'm just relieved that today's run was so much better than last week.

Speaking of running, I've targeted the Cook Forest Half-Marathon as a tune-up race.  I was originally thinking of running the Mill Creek Distance Classic in Youngstown next weekend, but seriously, it's in Youngstown (apologies in advance to all my Ohio friends).

After a nice warm shower, I decided to catch a quick cat nap to recharge from the run.  All the while, the lovely wife was crafting something delicious on the floor below me: Paleo Jambalaya.  This was a recipe adapted from Robb Wolf's book, but the lovely wife decided to double the amount of cauliflower and seasonings and the result was fantastic.

A Paleo taste of N'awlins and some applesauce 

After our late lunch, I spent a few hours working and by then the sun was shining and it was in the mid fifties.  When it was time for a break, we packed up Annabelle and went for a nice walk to the park.  This was also a great remedy for loosening up my overused legs.  Dinner was quick and simple, leftover steak from last night tossed in a spinach salad with a Dijon and garlic vinaigrette.  It was after the meal that I discovered something wonderful.  A simple Paleo concoction of my own design which I'm calling "I can't believe it's not apple crisp".  This recipe is simple, but takes time to get it right.  Feel free to substitute but I can't guarantee the results.

Directions:
In the fall, gather an assortment of locally grown apples (I recommend Trax Farm's pie baking mix).  Chop the apples and combine with water in a stock pot.  Boil for an eternity and then puree the resulting mixture.  Can the resulting sauce using the method of your choice.  Wait six months and crack open the jar.  Combine the apple sauce with a handful of walnuts and a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.  You won't regret it.

Despite the copious amount of time I needed to spend at the office, I accomplished everything I could have desired this week. This included: grinding out three hard running workouts, pushing through three Crossfit workouts, keeping a strict Paleo diet, writing a mountain of software, and having a delightful lunch during the week with the woman I love.  Does life get any better than this?  I suppose if you take out the software writing, then the answer is yes.

Workout:
15 mile run - decent pace 8:04 over the first 12 miles faded a little during the last three.

Food Journal:
Breakfast: 6 Paleo Pancakes
                  3 eggs (scrambled)
                  1 orange
Pre-Workout: 1/2 banana
Post-Workout: 1/2 banana
                           Whey protein shake mixed with water
Lunch: 1 orange
             Paleo Jambalaya
             Homemade Applesauce
Dinner: Steak and Spinach Salad
              Ham (I was still a bit peckish, o.k?)
              I can't believe it's not apple crisp

Day 13

The second weekend of the challenge has started and I must say that temptation is starting to wane quite a bit.  I've created a mental framework where I think of food as fuel for better performance and that tends to squash negative eating habits.  That said, even as I write this I'm turning a longing eye to the late night bowl of Go-Lean Crunch that the lovely wife is eating.

I actually slept incredibly well last night.  I guess it was just the busy week catching up with me.  Normally I'm up and out of bed by 6AM at the latest.  But the baby had a good night.  She woke up only once at 5AM and I conked back out and awoke to the sounds of birds chirping (think spring) at 7:30.

I had a light breakfast of 1/2 of a banana and some almonds so as not to upset my stomach before a 10AM Crossfit workout at the gym.  The gym today was packed.  There must have been a good 10-12 people there.  It is always encouraging to have so many others pushing themselves during a workout.  It definitely makes me work even harder.  I'm also glad that business is going so well for Mike and company (he may look mean and radiation emitting in the picture, but I can assure you he is neither in real life).  They truly are good folks and they take a strong interest in both the health and personal well being of their clients.  You won't find that at your local L.A. Fitness.

After the workout, I stopped by a small independent grocery, John McGinnis Market, on the way home.  What was really drawing me there was that the had advertised on their website that they carried grass fed beef.  It had been probably a few years since I had visited the establishment and I was greeted with a beautiful selection of produce.  I went a little nuts in the produce section as you can see:

Celery, Acorn Squash, Poblano Peppers, Portobello Mushroom Caps, Green Beans, Cabbage, Tomatoes, Lemons, Baby Carrots, Asparagus, Cauliflower, Brussel Sprouts, Granny Smith Apples, Red Onion, MacIntosh Apples, Pineapple, Red Bell Peppers, Cilantro, Broccoli Slaw, Sno-cap Mushrooms, and a Partridge in a Pear Tree

I was also able to find some interesting Paleo items that are a bit hard to come by in a regular supermarket.  The first was Stonewall Kitchen's Mango Lime Salsa.

The ingredient list for this beauty was nice, simple and healthy: Mangos, Tomatoes, Onions, Jalapenos, Lime Juice Concentrate, Garlic, Vinegar, Cilantro and Cayenne Pepper.  I'm thinking it will make an excellent topping/marinade for chicken or fish.  I'll probably try this later this week so I'll keep you posted.

One of the other good finds was some nitrate free wild cherrywood smoked thick-cut bacon.  If you thought applewood smoked bacon was hoity-toity, you just got one-uped fool.  The makers of this stuff need to go into the wild to hunt for the elusive cherrywood.  Domesticated cherrywood simply won't do.


What photo album would be complete without a picture of bacon?

Sadly when I reached the meat counter to inquire about the grass fed beef, they said that they didn't carry it. :-/ The folks seemed like nice people behind the counter so I didn't broach the subject of their mendacious website claims.  Their meat was all natural and antibiotic free so I picked up two steaks and a roast.  Since they didn't have what I had specifically came for, it was a bit disappointing, but the produce was great and I definitely didn't leave empty handed.

Dinner tonight was one of the more impressive showings.  There was no special occasion, just that we had some time to plan and cook this evening.  The meal consisted of the beautiful steaks that I had purchased earlier in the day covered in mushrooms and onions with a side of smothered green beans.

I seasoned my steak with just a trace amount of salt and a generous amount of black pepper and grilled them to perfection (medium for me, medium-well for the lovely wife).  The smothered green beans were a great opportunity for me to use some of the fancy bacon that I picked up.  The recipe is as follows:

Ingredients

• 6 thick slices bacon, chopped
• 1/2 cup onions, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
• 1 cup water
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 pinch ground black pepper

Directions

1. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until the fat begins to render. Stir in onions and garlic; let cook for 1 minute. Stir in beans and water. Let the beans cook until the water has evaporated and the beans are tender. If the beans are not tender once the water has evaporated, add a small amount more water and let them cook until tender. Season with salt and pepper (to taste) and serve.

In other news, I have in my possession a loner copy of "The Paleo Diet for Athletes".  It is chocked full of fueling information which I'm hoping will make my long runs go by a little easier.  I've got a 16 miler tomorrow, and based on last weeks run, I'm a tad nervous.

Workout: 
-Buy In-
30 Supermans
30 Walking Lunges
-WOD-
5 Rounds For Time Of:
5 Hand Stand Push Ups
50 Double Unders
20 Kettlebell Swings  1.5 Pood/ 1 Pood
-Cash Out-
Row 500M

My time for this WOD was 14:25.  I substituted 3 single jumps for each double under.  I can do the double unders, I'm just much slower at them.  I also used a 44lb KB (~1.25 Pood) for the swings.

Food Journal:
Breakfast:1/2 banana
                 Handful of almonds
Post Workout: Whey Protein Shake mixed with water
Lunch: Spinach Salad with Mushrooms and Ham
            Oil, Red wine vinegar and Dijon dressing
             Left over pork roast and veggies (from day 10)
PM Snack: 1 Orange
Dinner: Steak with sauteed mushrooms and onions
              Smothered Green Beans
              Homemade Unsweetened Applesauce

Sleep:
8.5 hours plus an afternoon nap :)

Day 12

Thank god it's Friday.  This has been a killer work week and I'm sure the effort will continue throughout the weekend. But it's Friday night. I've got a solid workout and work day in. The baby is asleep. Now I'm going to rest and relax.  Since I was lame, and didn't take any pictures today, I've decided to include a fun little video carbohydrate digestion and insulin resistance.  My gym posted this video a few days ago and I found it pretty entertaining.

As far as meals go, today was a bit backwards.  The lovely wife and I decided to get together for lunch since our time alone together has been diminished with the new addition in the household.  We decided to hit the Penn Avenue Fish Company in the strip since their menu looked awesome and fish is the paragon of Paleo.  It was the first time that either of us had been to this establishment and we were both exceptionally pleased.  I went with the "Energy Lunch" which consisted of a generous portion of the freshest grilled salmon I have ever tasted, a spicy ginger carrot salad and green beans in an apple cider vinaigrette.  The lovely wife ordered a shrimp and crab pizza.  I was a little nervous that the veggies that came with my meal might be coated in non-paleo goo (syrup, etc.) so the lovely wife agreed to be a taster for me.  I'm happy to report that their was no detectable trace of sugars and the like.  The spicy ginger carrot salad was delicious.  I'm going to try to replicate this one at home.  It consisted of carrots, grated ginger, and what I believe were habanero peppers.  The Paleo food I was eating was so incredibly good, I barely noticed the lovely wife scarfing down her entire pizza.  She reported - between swallows - that it was fantastic.  Although I did not partake, they had some awesome looking sushi, various chowders, and everybody's favorite: fish tacos.  I definitely recommend this place.

As the lunch was concluding, I realized that I didn't bring any snacks to work.  Since we were in the strip district, we decided to hit up Penn Mac (warning turn your speakers down before clicking that link).  Inside I found a delightful assortment of reasonably priced snacks to take back to my office.  I purchased a bag of cashews, some blueberries, a bag of baby carrots, and some blood oranges.  By the end of the work day I had consumed most of them :).  I also found that they sold almond flour (blanched almond finely ground into a powder) so I stocked up on it.  I sense some Paleo pancakes in my future.

Since I was a PM snack piggie, I wasn't very hungry come dinner time.  Since the lovely wife was interested in doing some poaching (eggs, not elephants),  I had a single poached egg and a small piece of ham before calling it a day.

Metrics:
Weight: 179.5 lbs [-7lbs]*
Body Fat: 11.0% [-2%]**
Measurements: Chest 39.5" [-.5"] Waist 34.5" [-1"] Hips 37" [Unchanged]

Workout:
-Buy In-
Squat Clean Skill Work
-WOD-
Every Minute On The Minute For 20 Minutes Do:
3 Squat Cleans
7 Push Ups
*Every 5 Min Add or Subtract Load
-Cash Out-
Mobility Stretching

This workout was taxing but a lot of fun.  I usually enjoy workouts that require a bit of strategy.  Each round was relatively easy, but keeping it up for twenty minutes with little rest is grueling.  I decided to start light (95lbs) for the first five rounds and then incremented the weight to 105lbs for the second and third five minutes.  The final five minutes I used 115lbs.  In retrospect I could have gone heavier, but I still got a tremendous workout where I was constantly moving.

Food Journal:
Post Workout: Whey Protein Shake mixed with water
Breakfast: 2 Chicken & Apple Sausage Links
                  3 eggs scrambled
Lunch: Grilled Salmon
             Spicy Ginger Carrots
             Green Beans w/ Apple Cider Vinaigrette
PM Snack(s): Cashews (a whole lot of them)
                    Blood Orange
                    Baby Carrots
                    Blueberries
                    More Cashews
Dinner: 3oz Ham Steak
              1 Poached Egg
Sleep
8 hours - the new streak continues

Day 11

I woke up this morning intending to go to an 8AM workout at the gym.  This is much later than my normal workout of 6AM so I decided I'd eat a little something that would be gentle on my stomach.  I then opened up my laptop to get a few things done for the work day.  When checking my email I realized that I had a lot on my plate and today was not a day to come wandering in at 10AM.  So I made a change of plans and decided to catch a run after work instead.  With the morning all out of whack, I forgot to grab my lunch on the way out the door to take Annabelle to daycare.  I ended up making it in to work on time but by noon I was starving.

After considering all of the local options, I decided on one of the nearby Mexican food restaurants.  I knew that they had a fajita salad option on the menu that I could fit into the Paleo framework.  I opted for a steak fajita salad with no cheese or sour cream.  The result was a nice bed of leafy greens, beautifully  seasoned steak strips, grilled onions, some spicy salsa and guacamole.  I skipped out on the dressing - it really didn't need it.

After work I hit the treadmill because the weather here has been cold and there is a significant amount of snow on the ground.  By 6:30PM all the energy I received from lunch had worn off and my run on the treadmill was pretty grueling.  I pushed hard just to get the 6 miles in.  This wasn't discouraging though, because I knew I didn't fuel myself properly.

Dinner was a filet of wild caught Alaskan salmon seasoned with dill and lemon pepper with a side of steamed broccoli. 

Workout:
6 mile run - a bit slower than I would have liked, but I gutted it out.

Food Journal:
Breakfast: 1/2 Banana
                  2 eggs (scrambled)
Lunch: Steak Fajita Salad
Post Workout: Whey Protein Shake mixed with water
Dinner: Baked Salmon w/ Dill & Lemon Pepper
              Steamed Broccoli
              Almonds
              1/2 Banana

Sleep:
8 hours - finally

Day 10

I have now reached the 1/3 milestone of the challenge.  Several pounds dropped, looking lean, and one bad long run.  All things considered it's been pretty good run so far.  My biggest obstacle this week is not the diet itself but the lack of sleep.  Hopefully I can fix this soon.

Wednesdays at work are always trouble for someone following a Paleo diet.  We have weekly seminars at our building and our work provides pizza for everyone.  Relax, deep breaths, I didn't partake.  But the smell completely permeates our entire building.  Talk about tempting.

Dinner tonight was another recipe from the Paleo Solution.  Tonight was crock pot pork loin.  I love slow cooker recipes.  Just set it and forget it...or sometimes you do those in the opposite order and you get to work only to scratch your head and wonder..."Did I turn the crock pot on?"..."I'd hate to waste an entire roast"...calling up neighbor..."Can you break into my house to make sure the crock pot is on?"...waiting...waiting..."It is? Whew!"

Anyhow...here is the recipe for those inclined to try it:

• 1 lb Pork Loin
• 8 oz Tomato Sauce (no sugar added)
• 3 medium Zucchini
• 4 cups Cauliflower
• 2 tbsp Basil

Throw all of the above in a crock pot. TURN IT ON. Let is cook for the day.  Enjoy when you get home.*

Tastes better than it photographs - I promise

*warning according to the lovely wife, the cooking cauliflower might make your house smell like it belongs to an old lady.

Workout: 
A late night 6 miler - I'll be hitting the gym for a WOD tomorrow morning.
Food Journal:
Breakfast: 3 eggs scrambled
                Blackberries
AM Snack: Walnuts
Lunch: Avocado wrapped in turkey breast
           Carrot Sticks
PM Snack: Orange
Dinner: Slow Cooker Pork Loin w/ Cauliflower and Zucchini
            Strawberries & Almond Butter
         
Sleep:
7 hours - getting better - but not there yet.

Day 9

Work has been insanely busy recently.  I've been putting in a good 10-14 hours a day this week.  Life was further complicated by a trip to the dentist today.  No cavities or anything like that (I'm a stickler for flossing) but it just removed a few hours from an already busy day.  While the schedule makes it very difficult to execute many of the delicious Paleo options I've found on others websites, the strength of the diet is that if you have a well stocked pantry and fridge you can whip up some decent meals with little thought or planning.  The dinner that I consumed tonight is the perfect example of that.

Pac-burger hovers atop the slaw

  

The protein from this meal couldn't be any simpler.  A hunk of organic lean ground beef shaped into a patty, seasoned with some black pepper and garlic and fried.  Even a caveman could make it.  What made the meal into something much more exciting (and nutritious) was the side vegetables - Indian style slaw.  Making the slaw was very simple thanks to the good folks at Giant Eagle.  They sell bags of prepackaged broccoli slaw.  For those of you that might not know broccoli slaw is more or less like coleslaw with broccoli taking the place of the cabbage.  Basically the bag contained a bunch of julienned broccoli stalks, carrots and a bit of red cabbage.  The recipe for this dish comes from Robb Wolfs book and is as follows:

• 1 bag broccoli slaw
• 1 cup fresh diced tomatoes (optional)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice

Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium heat in a skillet, add 1 tsp of mustard seeds. Cover and cook until the seeds stop popping. Next, add the whole bag of slaw, the tomatoes (if using), plus 1 tsp cumin and 1/4 tsp of turmeric. Saute for 3-5 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the slaw is soft. Add 2 Tbsp of lemon juice. Stir and serve.

I really liked the crunch of this side dish.  I ended up eating two mountainous helpings.  I think next time I would add just a touch more of the seasonings to the mix. Dessert was blackberries.

 

Annabelle smash!

 

Workouts
Rest Day - somewhat unintended, but very much needed - I'll just do some workout shuffling this week.

 

Food Journal

 

Breakfast: 2 eggs (fried)
                2 Chicken & Apple Sausage links
                1/2 cup Blackberries
AM Snack: Almonds
Lunch: Left over Salmon
PM Snack: Carrot Sticks
Dinner: 2 Lean Beef Burgers ~ 1/2 lb
            A mountain of indian style slaw
            Blackberries
            Carrot Sticks w/ Almond Butter

 

Sleep
6 Hours - not a good week for sleep so far :(

Day 8

The good news is that after some food and rest I felt much much better today.  The bad news is...well, there is no bad news.  The catastrophic long run is behind me and I've learned a few lessons from the experience.  The main one is that I should fuel myself a little bit better both before, during and after the run.  A little bit of simple arithmetic reveals that I ate about 300 calories the morning of the run and likely burned about 1500 calories during the run.  My strategy for next week is to pack myself some orange slices and maybe a banana (gasp - lots of sugars, I know).  The other mistake I made was downing my protein shake so quickly.  I was thirsty as well as hungry after the run and I should have had much more water first.  I think there wasn't enough blood circulating to my stomach from all the exercise, and that lead to the queasy feeling.

Sorry there are no pictures again today, we ended up getting a monster snow storm and I didn't make it home until very late.  Dinner was hastily consumed and I didn't think to take any pictures.  I promise there will be some tomorrow.  As a substitute, let me present you with some....

Metrics

Weight: 180.5 lbs [-6lbs]*
Body Fat: 10.5% [-3%]**
Measurements: Chest 39.5" [-.5"] Waist 34.5" [-1"] Hips 37" [Unchanged]
*6lbs in 8 days - there is no way I'm getting voted off the island. :)
 **I'm measuring body fat % using electrical impedance from a Tanita scale and is highly noisy subject to my hydration level.  I do take my measurements at the same time every day to help mitigate this effect.

Workout
-Buy In-
2 x 12 Good Mornings
-WOD-
Hero workout "Roy"
Five rounds

• 225 pound Deadlift, 15 reps
• 20 Box jumps, 24 inch box
• 25 Pull-ups

-Cash Out-
50 Ab Mat Sit Ups

I completed this workout in 19:55.  I scaled the deadlifts and did 185lbs.  I used the 24" box for the first two sets and then dropped down to the 20" one.  I started the pull-ups with a blue band and finished with a green one.

Food Journal
Post Workout: 1 Whey Protein Shake mixed with water
Breakfast: 2 eggs over medium
                  2 Chicken & Apple Sausage Links (I know...how original :p)
                  3/4 cup of Blueberries
AM Snack: 1/3 cup of almonds
Lunch: Carrot sticks
             Avocado slices wrapped in turkey breast 
PM Snack: 1 Orange
Dinner: 5oz salmon
              Field green salad with tomato and walnuts

Sleep
Sadly only about 6 hours.  A very unhappy baby night :(

Day 7

This was without a doubt the worst day of the challenge so far.  I was concerned prior to my 15 mile run that I wouldn't be adequately fueled by what the diet was allowing me.  I got through the first 12 miles just fine, but at that point, my legs were shot.  When I finally completed the 15 miles, I was ravenous.  I downed a protein shake and went with my compadres to a local diner for some brunch.  My paleo options were a bit limited at the diner because:
1. They were lacking any fruit options
2. I didn't think I could stomach any of the veggie options

I ended up selecting the steak and eggs plate.  At the diner, I was unable to get my body to warm up.  Despite two cups of hot tea, I was shivering.  By the end of the meal I felt exhausted, cold and nauseous.  I drove home desperately trying to warm up and keep my lunch down.  One there, I relaxed in a warm bath for a good 30 minutes just trying to get my temperature up.  After bathing, a little bit of down time, and some more food I was feeling better but not 100%.  So a question for any of you Paleo savants out there: what are some ways to adapt the diet for the endurance athlete?  I don't want to go through this same process every week - it seems far from healthy.

Workout:
Ran 15 miles with lots of hills

Food Journal:
Breakfast: 2 eggs (scrambled)
                2oz. ham steak
                1/2 avocado
                1 cup blackberries
Lunch: 2 eggs over medium
           5oz strip steak
           1 orange (when I got home - to stave off puking)
PM Snack: Carrot sticks in almond butter
                  1 orange
Dinner: 5oz wild caught sea scallops (seared in olive oil)
            Steamed Broccoli w/ Lemon Pepper
            1 cup blueberries

Sleep:
8.5 hours

Day 6

I successfully made it through the first day of the weekend.   It turns out that a grocery chain in our area has delicious all natural rotisserie chickens as well as some wonderful grilled vegetables (squash, zucchini, peppers, onions).  So I picked up lunch prior to meeting with the family.  The take-your-chicken-to-family-day strategy was a resounding success.  They never even suspected that I was making them eat healthy.

Other than visiting the family, we made a yummy meal for breakfast.  Poached eggs and - you guessed it - chicken & apple sausage.  It always seemed like poaching an egg was a difficult culinary task so it was something that I had never attempted.  It turns out, in fact, to be quite simple.  It is also really nice because it requires nothing other than an egg and water.  Here is a picture of our lovely breakfast:

Snausages & Poached Eggs

We ate pretty early because I was going to do a Crossfit workout at 10AM.  I have learned far too many times to give my food a few hours to digest before doing a workout.  Failing to do so results in what are called meeting Pukie the Clown in Crossfit lingo.  Despite feeling pretty tired, I felt full of energy during the workout.  Tomorrow I have a 15 mile run with my friends.  I'll be interested to see how that works out with the diet changes I've been making.

In the evening we visited some friends that just had their first baby.  He was a cute little bugger.  It is hard to believe that Annabelle was ever that small.  In the prep of the visit I was tempted with chocolate chip cookies and I'm pleased to report that I avoided them as if they contained rat poison.

Dinner was the reheated leftovers from Friday night.  It turns out that a single spaghetti squash can fed a family of two hundred.  To jazz things up a bit tonight, we added a nice salad of mixed greens and tomatoes with walnuts and oil and vinegar.

Workout
-Buy In-
Power Clean Skill Work
-WOD-
4 Rounds For Time Of:
10 Power Cleans  135/95
20 Wall Ball  20/14
-Cash Out-
2 x 200M Farmers Walk

This was a nice workout.  Wall Balls have always been a weakness for me.  Sets of 20 reps are nice because I feel like my form doesn't get too sloppy.  I used 115lbs on the Power Cleans.  Total time for the WOD was 8:38 (I think - I forgot to write it down - hopefully it will still be on the whiteboard when I hit the gym on Monday morning)

Food Journal
Breakfast: 2 poached eggs
                  2 Chicken & Apple Sausage Links
                  1 Orange
Post Workout: 1 Whey Protein Shake mixed with water
Lunch: Rotisserie Chicken & Grilled Vegetables
             1 Orange
PM Snack: Almonds
Dinner: Spaghetti Squash & Buffalo Marinara
              Tomato & Mixed Greens w/ Walnuts and Oil & Vinegar
              Blackberries

Sleep
8.5 hours - Sleeping in on a Saturday is great.

Day 5

I made it through the first five days.  Now comes the real challenge. Not only is the weekend starting, but both sets of parents are coming to town to see their grandchildren.  Generally this means ordering up some pizza, wings, fries, you know all the healthy stuff.  My parents are slated to arrive on Saturday and we will have lunch together.  My plan of attack is to meet them at my brother's place with rotisserie chickens and sides in tow.  I can get a few non-paleo sides for them to enjoy, but the bulk of the meal I'll be able to partake in.  This in theory should get me through Saturday.


I felt mostly tired and sore today.  Perhaps I'm not getting enough calories or maybe my body is unhappily getting used to the idea that sugars and carbohydrates are out for a while, but I didn't feel 100% for much of the day.  There isn't too much exciting to report for the breakfast and lunch meals.  Breakfast was a egg, ham and veggie scramble (It was supposed to be an omelet, but I forgot to oil the pan :p).  Lunch was left over lamb burgers, salad and guacamole.


After I got home from work, I did a tempo run.  A tempo run is a moderate distance run at a pace that is faster than a comfortable pace.  My run consisted of a one mile warm-up and then five miles at a 7:24 pace (this is right around my current half-marathon pace) and then one mile cool-down.  The run felt pretty nice, aside from gale force winds, the temperature was ideal.  I definitely had to push myself to keep the pace and that made the workout all the more rewarding.


While I was running my wife started roasting some spaghetti squash for dinner.  The menu for tonight was spaghetti squash with buffalo marinara sauce.  All in all this was a pretty simple meal to prepare.  The squash was split in half and the seeds and membranes are removed.  It is then brushed with olive oil and roasted in a 350 degree oven for about 50 minutes.  When it is done roasting, the inside of the squash peels away in spaghetti-like strands as shown here:





The spaghetti squash originated on Mars

 

For the sauce, we sautéed some onion and garlic and then browned 1lb of ground buffalo meat.  The buffalo meat was very lean and therefore there was no fat to drain after it had been cooked.  Then we added an off-the-shelf no sugar added organic marinara sauce and voila, dinner was served:




Either that dish is steaming or our house is haunted - you decide. 

Workout:
Tempo Run - 1 mile warm-up 5 miles @ 7:24 pace, 1 mile cool-down (7 miles total)




Food Journal:
Breakfast: Egg and Veggie Scramble
                Blackberries
AM Snack: Almonds
                   Orange
Lunch: Lamb burger w/ Onions, Mushrooms & Guacamole over Mixed greens
           Carrot Sticks
PM Snack: Avocado wrapped in turkey
Post Workout: Whey Protein Shake
Dinner: Spaghetti Squash w/ no sugar added marinara sauce and ground buffalo


Sleep:
8 hours.  This is starting to be a habit.

Day 4

A couple of things to note in day 4:

1. The diet does not leave me feeling hungry.  I feel like I'm able to eat enough that I'm not constantly dreaming of my next meal.
2. The caffeine withdrawal headaches are gone.  I limited myself to a single cup of green tea today and felt fine.
3. Today was the first day I was tempted.  I happened to pass by our pantry and a box of raisin bran started calling to me. "Mike...I've missed you.  I'm sweet and crunchy and go great with milk." 

In other news, after a couple of days of trying Robb Wolf's recipes and finding them only so-so, I took the advice of a fellow Paleo enthusiast that is also keeping a blog and she referred me to yet another Paleo blogger that had a great collection of recipes.  Since I did all the shopping for the Week 1 of Robb's menu, I scanned the recipes for something that would match the ingredients that I had on hand.  I made a variation of this delightful dish.  For those of you with an aversion to clicking on links, the recipe is for lamb burgers with sauteed mushrooms and onions topped with a fried egg and guacamole served on a bed of greens.

If you think the stove-top looks dirty, you should have seen it after all the cooking was done.

This was the first time I've ever consumed lamb as a burger.  I've had myself a decent chop from time to time, but in patty form the meat was foreign to me.

Notice: The consumption of raw or undercooked eggs, meat, poultry, seafood or shellfish may increase your risk of food borne illness.

I got the ground lamb directly from a grocery store butcher.  There really wasn't any indication of the leanness of the meat.  I found that when cooking it, a pretty substantial amount of fat was rendered, more than lean ground beef.  As far as taste, it wasn't terribly different from beef.  I do think that I could have seasoned the patties a bit more.  I only used black pepper and garlic powder.  After these beauties were finished, I fried up an egg while my wife and daughter finished up making the guacamole.  Here's the final product:

There's a burger beneath the delicious egg and guacamole.  I promise there is.

The result tasted pretty good.  I did make the observation that guacamole by itself can serve as a pretty delicious salad dressing.  I didn't put any dressing on the greens and I found that eating them with a little bit of guacamole was quite delicious.


Metrics

Weight: 183 lbs [-3.5lbs]*
Body Fat: 11.5% [-2%]**
Measurements: Chest 40" Waist 35.5" Hips 37" [Unchanged]
*Note the 3.5 lb decrement from Day 1 is likely a bit biased as I indulged a bit prior to the start of the challenge
 **I'm measuring body fat % using electrical impedance from a Tanita scale and is highly noisy subject to my hydration level.

Workouts
Rest day...zzzzzzz

Food Journal
Breakfast: Ham Steak
                Eggs over medium
                Strawberries
Lunch: Almond Crusted Flounder
           Asparagus
           Orange
PM Snack: Carrot Sticks
                 Almonds
Dinner: Lamb burger w/ Fried Egg, Mushrooms, Onions and Guacamole
            Served on bed of mixed greens
            Blueberries

Sleep
8 hours, baby.

Day 3

Day 3 of the challenge whizzed by.  Work has been insanely busy which is both a blessing and a curse.  Being booked to the gills is helpful in avoiding temptation, but it also limits the amount of time I have for meal planning and prep.  Suffice it to say, today I got a little bit lazy for my breakfast and lunch meals.  I ended up going with some old standbys for a veggie omelet for breakfast and the last of the chicken & apple sausages for lunch.

The really exciting news of the day is that today was the first day that I didn't get any headaches.  I must have consumed enough calories or I'm adapting to the diet soda vacancy in my diet. Either way, I consider it a small victory.

After work, I headed to the gym and did a 15 minute AMRAP - for those of you not familiar AMRAP stands for "As Many Rounds As Possible".  Each round consisted of front 5 front squats, 7 burpees and 9 box jumps.  I felt a bit tired and sluggish during the workout.  This could be me adapting to the diet, or perhaps I just need a good rest day.

Annabelle Adores Asparagus*

Annabelle Adores Asparagus*

Dinner last night was a little more exciting that last night.  We prepared Robb Wolf's whitefish recipe.  It was pretty simple:

• 1 lb of whitefish (we used flounder) 
• 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp finely chopped almonds 

Then simply slather the Dijon on the fillets and top with the almonds and bake.  I finished off the meal with some roasted asparagus with black pepper and thyme and a simple spinach salad.  Over all the recipe wasn't too bad.  The almond "breading" was quite good, but I think the mustard flavor was a bit too strong for the delicate flavor of the fish.  Next time, I think I'll just try using a little bit of olive oil and adding some herbs to the almond breading.

I'm still getting the hang of making food presentable for photographs

Metrics
They will be posted tomorrow.  Be patient.  I know the wait must be excruciating.

Workout
-Buy In-
Squat Mobility

As Many Rounds As Possible In 15Min Of:
5 Front Squats  155/ 110
7 Burpees
9 Box Jumps 24/ 20
-Cash Out-
40 Back Extension

I completed 8 full rounds plus 5 squats and 1 burpee.  I used 115lbs for the front squats.

Food Journal
Breakfast: Veggie Omelet (2 eggs, spinach, mushrooms)
                  Blueberries
AM Snack: 3oz AlmondsLunch: 2 links of Chicken & Apple Sausage (left over from yesterday)
                  Carrot Sticks
PM Snack: Orange
Post Workout: 1 Whey Protein Shake
Dinner: Kentucky Fried Chicken
            6oz. Flounder with mustard and crushed almond crust
            Asparagus with black pepper and thyme
            Spinach with tarragon, oil, and vinegar
            1 cup Blueberries

Sleep
Last night I slept for 8 hours.  Booyah!

*I just want to assure you that I'm not going to be one of those annoyingly doting fathers that post pictures of his little girl every day.  But c'mon, she's eating asparagus.  It's freaking cute.

Day 2

Last night I forced myself to get 8 hours of sleep.  This was good in the sense that I was well rested yet bad because I totally slacked on some of the other things I should have been doing.  This culminated in me needing to put in some extra hours at the office today.  Life is all about tradeoffs.

So far I have to say that breakfasts are the easy part of the diet and dinner is the hardest.  Before the challenge started we stocked up on tons of Paleo food at Costco.  It was there that I found my new best friend: Chef Bruce Aidells Chicken & Apple Sausage.  Man this stuff tastes great for breakfast.  A little bit sweet and very filling.  It is also all natural and has neither MSG nor nitrates.  I paired this with some left over avocado and an orange and I was fueled up.  I cooked an extra link at breakfast time so that I could take it to snack on during the day.  Around 11AM I was feeling hungry so I ate the sausage and some carrot sticks. 

I was a bit rushed in the morning so I decided to go with leftovers for lunch.  Since I was nonplussed by the fajita recipe and I really enjoyed the cabbage from the previous day, I thought I'd try the leftover chicken and peppers on a bed of cabbage instead of red leaf lettuce.  While this trick did add some nice crunch to the meal, it did little to improve the taste.  Ah well...all part of the experiment.  Later in the day I snacked on a handful of almonds and a granny smith apple.  I still had a bit of a headache today, but two cups of green tea seemed to help with that.

Since I didn't get home from the office until nearly 8PM and I wanted to: spend some time with the baby, clean the kitchen, go for a 5+ mile run and eat a meal all while still getting to bed at a reasonable time something had to give. In the end we decided to ditch our plans of a complex dinner and just toss together some nice quick omelets.  I ended up having a 2 egg omelet with spinach and ham.  For dessert we had some strawberries.

Annabelle enjoying some Paleo dinner

At 8:30PM I set out for a run.  I was dearly missing the 50 degree temperatures that we have been seeing as it was clear and cold outside.  I ran 5.25 miles that consisted of a warm-up, 5x800m intervals, and a cool-down.  After the run I had half of a protein shake which brings me to where I am right now...writing this blog entry.

Metrics
I've decided to record the metrics every 3 days so that local deviations from the general trends can be more easily ignored...that and I'm too lazy to record them all every day.  Instead, let me present you with a before picture of me in my skivvies.  Hey, if the folks on The Biggest Loser are ballsy enough to do this, so can I.  So here is a picture of me on Day 1 of the challenge.  I'm not in a horrible place, but I woundn't mind whittling down those love handles a bit - especially if it makes me a faster runner. 

Do my nipples look uneven?

Exercise
No Crossfit today - I'll see the gym tomorrow evening
Ran 1mi warm-up + 5x800m intervals with 400m jogging cool-down between intervals + 1200m cool-down. (5.25mi total)

Food Journal
Breakfast: 2 links Chicken & Apple Sausage (all natural/nitrate free)
                1/4 avocado (left over from last night)
                1 orange
AM Snack: 1 link Chicken & Apple Sausage
                  Carrot Sticks
Lunch: Left over chicken fajita mixed with cabbage
PM Snack: Apple
                 Almonds
Dinner: Ham and Spinach Omelet
Post Run: 1/2 Protein Shake

Day 1

From what I have read, most people have the hardest time with Paleo breakfasts.  I can see that being a problem in the coming days, but this morning I had some scrambled eggs, a little bit of ham steak and a handful of blueberries and it was pretty delicious.  For lunch and dinner I decided to use some Paleo recipes from Robb Wolf's book. 

For lunch I went with a salad of chopped cabbage, tuna and sesame oil.  This was actually a pretty nice combination.  I've never eaten raw cabbage before and it had a nice crunch.  The sesame oil and a little bit of pepper gave the dish a nice subtle flavor. 

For dinner, my lovely wife made me Robb's Chicken Fajita Salad.  The recipe has been posted and beautifully photographed here. Based on the recipe it sounds pretty awesome, but it would be much more palatable with a large pile of salty tortilla chips.  The redeeming quality of the dish was the delicious little avocado pieces. Other than that, it wouldn't be something I'd ever crave.

One of the other parts of following the Paleo lifestyle is getting enough sleep.  The recommendation is to get at least 8 hours.  I attempted to do this last night, but with a 7-month-old baby in the house, getting that much sleep will be hit or miss.  I figure I ended up with about 6.5 quality hours.

Despite missing my 8 hour mark for sleeping, the AM Crossfit workout went pretty well.  It was the first benchmark workout and I was able to fly through it with a pretty respectable time.  If I can improve on it after 30 days, I'll be pretty impressed.

A final observation is that I ended up getting a mild headache around 4PM.  This could either be from not eating enough or from caffeine withdrawal.  Either way I hope that it won't be a reoccurring theme for The Challenge.

Metrics:
Weight: 186.5 lbs (must have been those V-Day cookies last night)
Body Fat: 13.5%
Measurements: Chest 40" Waist 35.5" Hips 37"

Morning Workout:
-Buy In-
Shoulder Press 3-3-3-3-3
WOD
“CrossFit Baseline”
For Time:
Row 500m
40 squats
30 sit-ups
20 push ups
10 pull ups
-Cash Out-
Muscle Up Skill Work

For the buy-in I did sets of 95-115-125-135-140
I completed the WOD in 4:18

Food Journal:
Post Workout: 1 Whey Protein Shake mixed with water
Breakfast: 2 eggs (scrambled)
                3oz. ham steak
                1/3 cup blueberries
AM Snack:  2oz. almonds
                    1 orange  
Lunch: 1 1/2 cups shredded cabbage
           1 can of tuna fish
           1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
PM Snack: 1 apple
Dinner: Chicken Fajita Salad
             3 large strawberries

Day 0

The Paleo Challenge
The venerable South Hills Crossfit gym where I've been working out for the better part of the last year has started a 30 day Paleo Challenge.  The 30 second explanation of Paleo is that it tries to follow the Hunter/Gatherer type of diet that was consumed by our ancient ancestors.  For anyone wishing to learn more, I've provided a set of links to some useful Paleo websites.  Throughout the challenge I'll interject some of the principles and guidelines of the Paleo diet but I don't want to drive y'all away so soon.  So for right now I'll just steal a line from my nephew's favorite movie (Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs) "Blah...blah...blah...science...science...bigger healthier".

While I'm not about to make a religion out of this diet - you do need to live a little bit - I do believe that it follows some sound principles for improving your health.  Namely:
1. Eat lots of vegetables
2. Don't eat a lot of empty carbs
3. Avoid non-foods (prepackaged things that contain a list of ingredients that is a mile long)

I have had some success in reducing carbohydrates in the past.  Following a high protein, reduced carb diet allowed me to get from about 230lbs down to my current weight of about 185lbs.

The challenge is to last for 30 days and I'll be keeping a journal of this experiement through this blog.  The gym is conducting a series of benchmark workouts that will be completed before and after the challenge to estimate performance improvement.  In addition to the performance benchmarks, I'll be tracking the following metrics: body weight, body fat %, body measurements (chest, waist, hips).  I'll also post pictures of myself throughout the challenge.  (Note: any comments containing the phrase "muffin top" will be deleted).

What will be the hardest thing to give up?
Without a doubt, diet soda.  I drink probably about 4 cans of the stuff a day.  It is the way I get my caffeine fix and satisfy my sweet tooth.  The good news is that all of the Paleo acolytes that I have read from assure me that by cutting out sugar, I'll start craving it less and the sugar substitute is just a crutch that is keeping my cravings in place.

Get that sugar while you can
In light of the impending challenge, we decided to celebrate Valentine's day this past weekend (rather than on Monday aka Day 1).  With this in mind, I'll allowed myself to indulge a little bit over the weekend.  Nothing too bad...you know...pizza...ice cream...chocolate chip cookies...cinnamon rolls. :p

Wish me luck and I'll keep everyone posted.
M