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Monday, January 7, 2013

Welcome to 2013 and the Paleo Zone Challenge!

You’ve paid your $40, you’ve gone through the painful process of getting weighed and measured immediately after the holidays, and you’re ready to buckle down and get serious about creating a healthy internal environment within your body.  Great choice! Like you, I have overindulged in the dietary and liquid arenas, and I’m looking forward to feeling 100% healthier and stronger.  In this CFF Paleo Zone Challenge, we have both veterans and virgins.  Many of you know what to expect, but most of you are wondering what you’ve gotten yourself into.  This blog will help you sort through some difficulties, ask questions, get answers, and support each other through a whirlwind 30 days.  Right now, I’d like to introduce myself, this post, and what you can expect from the challenge. 

Along with Amanda and Cindi, I will be posting on the blog to provide guidance, support, and initiate online conversations.  Please read it, and post your questions, concerns, stumbling blocks, and successes.  I have been at CFF for 2 ½ years now, so I have a pretty good idea of what to expect from the mouths of Amanda, Dave, and Cindi.  I don’t have any official credentials in the Crossfit domain, but I have a lot to say and the ability to get people talking.  Therefore, I’ve been entrusted with the task of funneling a bunch of bubble thoughts floating around my head into a forum where everyone can benefit from healthy communication.   In a moment of weakness, I agreed to post my “Before” pictures (Jeez, that Amanda is persuasive, isn’t she?), so that we can all see that the journey is ahead of us.  If you are also feeling courageous, we would love to post your “Before” and then the much-improved “After” pictures as well.  (Disclaimer: If you are a finalist, your pictures WILL be posted)
Amanda and Cindi have put together an informative packet about what to expect, and how to go about winning the whole thing.  If you have read it, great, you are already on the right track.  If it’s still sitting on your kitchen counter, take 15-20 minutes, and READ IT.  It will answer a lot of questions for you.  You’ve already addressed the Why of the challenge, simply by signing up.  You are ready to sleep better, have more energy, feel better, workout stronger and faster, and slim down to a trim, muscled, toned version of your old self.  The How is next.

You’ve gotten your blocks.  Planning is the key to success in this challenge.  The rules are really very simple: Eat what you are supposed to, none of what you are not supposed to, drink your body weight or more in water, hit CFF at least 3 times/week, write it all down, and submit it at the end of the week.  The blocks are a bit more thought-provoking, but after 1-2 days of cooking and meal prep, it becomes second nature.  Know the Absolutely Not List of Foods (page 4) of your handout.  There is no bargaining on this.  Eliminate them, and your body will respond.  Carefully shop the perimeter of the grocery store, and stay out the middle aisles, unless it’s the Gladware section, frozen vegetable, or spice aisle.    You will be buying meat, tons of vegetables, some fruit and nuts.  You need some vinegar, coconut or olive oil, spices, and nothing else.  Pre-made sauces have sugar, corn syrup, soy, wheat, rice vinegar, or rice flour in them. 

Get used to the real taste of food, again.  Start with mostly frozen vegetables, unless there is a fresh one you are certain to eat.  This will save you money, and help you develop your preferences.  Frozen vegetables are also great for those who struggle with the time management part of the challenge.  Plant yourself in your kitchen for about 2-3 hours a week, and prepare your food.  Marinate and grill your meat or chicken, then dice everything into bite-size pieces.   On the zip-lock, write your blocks = the amount (example 2 blocks=2 ounces) so that you know the moment you pull it from the fridge.  I even wrote the egg requirement on my egg cartons.  Keep your scale, dry measuring cups, and a pyrex glass liquid measuring cup in the most central part of your kitchen.  Weigh your meat every time.  Chop or slice your fresh vegetables, and steam or roast them.  Put them in a container, and immediately label the container with your block requirement (1.5 cups = 2 blocks).  If you like to mix your veggies, write the 1 block requirement instead.  Wash your fruit and label the container.  Raspberries are my favorite fruit serving because 2 blocks = 1 ⅓ cup.  Use a water container that is measurable and that you enjoy drinking from, and keep it surgically attached to you.  In addition to your allowed blocks, you can have an additional protein shake plus small fruit (a cutie orange or a half banana is ideal) immediately following your workout.  You should then follow within an hour with your next meal or snack.  This preparation and organization will make the process go smoothly and you won’t find yourself stressing about the choices.  If you go out of the house on errands or to work, take a cooler with you.  I can fit 4 meals in a lunch bag-sized cooler.  If you are going to into the grocery store, eat a snack or meal 15 minutes before to eliminate impulsive or poor food choices. 

Write your food down, that day, throughout the day.  If you plan on writing your journal at the end of each day, you may forget what you’ve eaten or the time you ate it.  If you have a smart phone, be smart and use it.  I have a list app, and I write down the food and time that I ate it.  I also use this to track my liters of water if I’m away from my home. If you are feeling a certain way, chances are we have felt the same way during a challenge.  At some point during week 1, you can definitely expect digestive changes, either diarrhea or constipation.   You will be tired, and you will have a headache.  You will be grouchy, and you will consider giving up.  DON’T!  Your brain is manipulating you to feed your addiction.  It does it with drugs, alcohol, and yes, sugar.  Recognize it, understand it, and pass through it.  Once it passes, you’ll swear you hear angels singing Halleluia over you. 

Yes, you can cheat, 1 MEAL per week, so plan for that accordingly.  If you have an impulsive moment, then document that entire meal as your cheat meal.  If you take a bite of something forbidden, you might as well make a meal out of it, because that will be your one cheat allowance for the week.  Also, document exactly how you feel the day after your cheat meal, so that you can see exactly how the food affects you.

Are you headed for the Winners Circle? Here’s how to make sure you are one of the finalists: Follow the block rules, every day.  Document your meals, the blocks, your water intake, and your workouts.  Turn your journals in each week ON TIME, in a hard copy to the gym, from Monday 5 am to Tuesday 7:45 pm. Please make sure you identify yourself on your journal. Don’t miss a workout -- at least 3x/week is required to be a finalist.  Don’t cheat more than 1x/week.  If you drink alcohol, that is your 1 cheat meal.  If you drink a lot of alcohol, that will affect your metabolism for the next 48 hours. 

You have chosen to participate in this challenge.  Choose to view it in a positive manner, and you will succeed.  Take it day by day, week by week, and before you know it the 30 days, plus many pounds and inches are behind you.  Don’t ruminate on what you are eliminating; instead, turn your focus to a way of eating that improves health, cleanses your body, and makes you feel much better throughout the day.  Please post questions, and I encourage other readers to provide answers and thoughts.  This blog is a forum for everyone to support each other.  We hope to make it a fun and healthy diversion from your work day or those crazy kids.  Let the 2013 CFF Paleo Zone Challenge Begin!

6 comments:

  1. Excellent post Angela! Keep 'em coming, we are all going to have our struggles during this challenge but we will be successful through constant "positive" thinking! Good luck everyone!!!

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  2. Thank you for setting this up! I love the idea of having this extra support system. Day 1 down 29 more to go!

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  3. Absolutely! We are hoping to make this a fun site for everyone to check into. Most of all, we want the challenge to be fun AND productive for everyone!

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  5. Thanks for setting this up. It's Day 2 and I'm starting to wonder if Paleo is a true eating discipline or something dreamed up by the resealable container manufacturers to boost sales. I just bought 2 more cases of Rubermaid containers. I hope it's enough!

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