CrossFit - Beauty in Strength

Strong is Sexy

  Good evening! It has been, oh ya know, FOREVER since I've blogged. I must apologize. BUT, tonight I have some goodies for you that I hope made it worth the wait. First item up, a video I want you all to watch. Please take a few moments to watch it. These woman are strong and sexy. I would MUCH rather look like them than any model on a runway. I am so thankful that my eyes have been opened to being strong and in shape. I couldn't even tell you the last time I got on a scale. That number no longer matters to me. I used to weigh myself 3 times a day. I was way too worried about the number below me. Ladies, it does NOT dictate who we are. How do you feel about yourself? I don't know about ya'll, but getting a pr on deads or squats or doing a "real" pushup or learning to do a unassisted pullup feels WAY better than seeing a littler number on the scale. My fat is being replaced with muscle. As a result, I get stronger and sexier. It isn't about being skinny, it's about being healthy! Please enjoy the video!
  Second, I recently started doing hair again. Doing hair makes me happy. I absolutely love giving people the change they are looking for. Happier job makes for a happier Jen... happier Jen wants to learn new tricks. So, this is me pretending to be strong and having fun doing it. =) PS. if you need a hair change, let me know. I'm ur chick. Just sayin...

  Thirdly, RECIPE! It is my absolute favorite time of year. YAY FOR FALL! I love everything about fall. Crisp weather, pretty leaves, pumpkins, every place on the planet busts out their pumpkin delights, anddddd FOOD! (now would also be a good time to go back in my recipes and find the pumpkin protein shake recipe. I had one today. amazing. the end.) So, I figure fall wouldn't be fall without chili. But wait, paleo doesn't allow beans, damn. But wait again, I'm resourceful. Imma make this ish paleo. And I did. Andddd it was amazeballs. SO, enjoy, friends, enjoy.

Paleo Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef (I used Elk, it was awesome)
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp cummin
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 2 oz. tomato paste
• 14.5 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. Brown your ground beef with the onions mixed in.
2. Once your beef is fully cooked, add all the spices and mix thoroughly.
3. After it's evenly mixed, add your paste, tomatoes, and water.
4. Let simmer for 45 minutes - 1 hour. 
5. Enjoy!

  Easy peasy lemon squeezy. And super amazing too. AND super paleo! Now, we all know that crackers or cinnamon rolls would stinking ROCK with this recipe, but alas, they are not paleo. I should really figure out some way to make paleo cinnamon rolls. Oh yes, yup. Happening. Right now. That shall be my next recipe. Until then peeps!

Getting Back on Track

  Good Monday evening lovies! Alright, soooooo, confession time. I have been bad. Very very bad. There is not a word bad enough for the epic failure I have been at eating good lately. I went back to Plainville for the weekend. Anddddd, I ate. and ate. and ate. All unhealthy. Complete with lots of grease, fried foods, and ranch dressing. OH and margaritas. Getting the picture? Bad bad bad. AND, I haven't worked out in 5 days all due to my trip to Kansas. I could have done some simple self workouts, but where is the fun in that? Destroy my body I did. Okay, SO, today I go to CrossFit and just about die. Almost threw up. Everywhere. Couldn't breath... ugly mess I was. Bleh. Sooooo very bad news.
  SO, in everything there is a lesson. My lesson has been learned. Eating unhealthy and not exercising for almost a week is a recipe for disaster and near death. SO, today, I get back on track! I made a delicious paleo dinner that I will soon share, and I'm really excited about continuing it. My body is not cut out for all the crap I put in it the last 5 days. Let's be honest, no ones body is cut out for it. That's why we feel icky and slug like when we eat it! C. Popp once told me that I should look at life as one giant paleo challenge. Obviously, sometimes, we have to eat things that aren't paleo, because they are yummy! But, striving to stay about 80% paleo is a generally good idea. My biggest non-paleo yummy is hummus. I effing love hummus. By most standards, hummus is healthy, it's just not paleo. SO, if you have some healthy yummies that aren't necessarily paleo, enjoy them in moderation. Just don't go crazy like I did last weekend. There was nothing healthy about anything I ate. Bleh. Makes me wanna vomit just thinking about it! SO ANYWAY, eat healthy and exercise, keeps death away. =) OHMYGOSH! I ALMOST FORGOT!!! I GOT NEW SHOOOEEEESSSSS! YESSSSSSS!!! I'm absolutely positive that having bright pink shoes to workout in is going to make me stronger and faster. And don't you try and tell me otherwise. I live in a very nice little bubble of delusion. Thankyouverymuch.

  Enough rambling. ON TO THE RECIPE! Tonight, I found yet another goodie from paleomg.com. However, tonight I modified it a bit to work with what I happened to have in my kitchen because I need to go grocery shopping. Bad. The original recipe was for "Lion's Head Meatballs" if you would like to look it up on her website. Here is my version...

Lamb Meatballs

 

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: 20 mins

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients

• 1lb ground lamb
• 1/4 cup almond flour/meal
• 1 cup canned coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon coconut aminos
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1-2 tablespoons coconut oil

Instructions

1. Add your lamb, almond flour, extra virgin olive oil, ginger, red pepper, and salt and pepper to a bowl and mix together.
2. Make you meatballs sized to your preference.
3. Heat up a large skillet over medium heat, add your coconut oil then add your meatballs.
4. Cook for around 5-6 minutes then flip to cook on all sides.
5. When your meatballs are almost cooked through, around 3 minutes, add your coconut milk, coconut aminos on top of the meatballs
6. Turn the meatballs to coat with all the flavorings!
7. Cook for about 2-3 more minutes.

  I served mine with steamed broccoli. It was, as per usual, amazing. I've never had lamb before. It smells terrible but tastes amazeballs. So, I'm sure the original version of this recipe was delish too, but my version was also delish. Try either. Try both. I care not. Just make sure you are eating healthy. I would hate for you to learn the lesson of shitty eating the way I did. The hard way. Ick. Have a good healthy week peeps! Love n stuff.

Beast Mode: On

  Happy Monday Lovie's! I've been a particular brand of spaz today. Not quite sure what my deal is, butttttttttt I like it. =) Soooooo, lucky you, you get to deal with it! Warning: I will prooooobably ramble today.... So, anywho, HELLOOOOO!!!! Today, I was actually excited about the WOD. Sure sign I've completely lost my mind. In any case, Ashley, Maranda, and I talk a lot about turning our inner beast mode on. It's something I need to work on. They are both beasts and total badasses. One day when I grow up, I'll be like them. =) Soooooo something everyone should do. If you walk into a workout, or anything for that matter, thinking you're going to suck, you probably will. So, I've decided to flip on my beast mode switch every time I walk into CrossFit and get the ish done. Completely rock it out. That is my plan as of now... we'll see how that works. OH, and I'm also going to be super excited about all the wods and STAY POSITIVE! So, this is me after today's wod. POSITIVE! hehehehe... like I said, particular brand of spaz...

  On to the good stuff, tonight's recipe! I used to hate mushrooms. Like bad. BUT, now I love them, and THESE WERE AMAZEBALLS! Courtesy of my Everyday Paleo cookbook! Sooooo, enjoy!

Giant Stuffed Portobellos

Prep Time: 25-30 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 5-6

• 4-6 BIG Portobello Mushrooms
• 1.5 lbs grass fed ground beef
• 1 lb spicy Italian pork sausage – casing removed
• 3 celery stalks diced
•  ½ green bell pepper diced
• 1 red onion diced
• Diced mushroom stems
• 1 tsp paprika
• a few shakes to 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tbsp dried basil
• 1 tbsp tarragon
• 6 crushed garlic cloves
• Pinch of sea salt
• Black pepper to taste
• 1 omega 3 enriched egg
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup coconut flour (or I’m sure almond meal would work just fine too!)

1. Preheat oven to 400. 
2. Use a moist paper towel to gently clean the mushrooms, if you run mushrooms under the tap to clean them, they get a little soggy… 
3. Remove the stems and set them aside and carefully scoop out the feathery insides of the mushrooms with a spoon. 
4. Rub the outsides of the mushrooms with olive oil and place cap down in a large glass baking dish.  
5. Dice the bell peppers, onions, celery stalks, and mushroom stems.   
6. In a large soup pot brown the sausage and ground beef, add the bell peppers, onions, celery, and mushrooms and cook until the veggies are tender. 
7. Move the meat/veggie  mixture to a food processor and add all the spices, the egg, olive oil and the coconut flour.  Process until the mixture is finely chopped but NOT mushy, it should be chopped fine but still chunky.  Scoop mixture into the mushroom caps – make them really full.  
8. Spoon any remaining mixture around the mushrooms and cook your stuffed mushrooms in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

  As I said, they were amazing. They will surely energize you and bring out your inner beast mode. So, GO, turn it on my children. Love ya peeps!!!

 

You Hold The Key To Your Own Happiness

  Ohhhhh HELLO!!!! My little neglected blog-o-sphere. I'm SO SORRY I've been gone for so long! The good news is, it's because I'm out enjoying my life. The bad news is, I have robbed you of some great recipes!!! Alright, sooooo I usually start off my blog with motivational mushy goodness that my brain produces from time to time. WELL, I have this friend. Her name is Ashley. And she is a beast. I love her to pieces and the other day she posted a new note to her Facebook. Simply put, it rocked my socks. It is too awesome to not share. SOOOO, with her permission, I share it with all of you... enjoy!
 

I’ve always struggled with my lack of self-confidence and still have my moments.  I’ve never felt “skinny” enough or pretty enough, which I feel is mostly due to the stereotypes that we face in the media today.  I am what you would call a yo-yo dieter, I’ve tried everything from cutting out carbohydrates, eating only 1200 calories a day, zumba, running, elliptical, stairmaster, lifting weights…I even tried Weight Watchers and through all of that I still didn’t feel that I was “skinny” enough, that the number on the scale was LOW enough or that I was a small enough size.

At one point I was at my lowest weight, I was working out 6 days a week.  Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday you could find me at the gym anywhere from 2-3 hours doing weights and a hour of cardio, the other 3 days of the week I was there doing an hour of cardio.  Something with my current job I couldn’t maintain.  I ended up getting a really sick, and couldn’t find the motivation to keep it up after I got better.  Though I hadn’t reached my goal and I still had more I NEEDED to lose I just quit.  Slowly my diet became terrible again and I gained back 20 of the 50 pounds I had lost.

November 2011 I found the courage to start Crossfit, thanks to my little brother.  I was absolutely TERRIFIED!  In fact it took me about 3 weeks to finally get up the nerve to email them to start my one-on-one sessions.  I was petrified to start the group workouts.  But right away I was in love! Something about the WODs (workout of the day), the team environment, feeling accomplished even if I finished last, everything just made me want to keep coming back.

February of this year I ended up having to have an emergency gall bladder surgery.  After I was out of the hospital and getting back into my routine I was miserable that I couldn’t go workout.  I missed the workouts and the people I worked out with.  It was the longest two months.  Every week I would go in just to say hi and see everyone.  Finally I got back in March, and I felt like I was starting all over.  I had to use the green band for pull-ups again and I wasn’t running as fast, I wasn’t lifting enough.  Then one day a couch told me, you had surgery, you have to remember that even the small successes count…they matter.

This year was the second year I watched the Crossfit Games.  While I was watching it all I could think was I wanted to be there…I want to compete.  With a team or as an individual I want to make it to the Crossfit Games.  I found that I would spend more time working on my double-unders, push myself a little harder to PR, do whatever I had to do an unassisted pull-up.

I am no longer worried about how skinny I need to be, that the number on the scale is to high or that I am not the RIGHT size (our fashion industry considers a size 6 plus sized).  Strong truly is the new Sexy for me.  I find that every day I would rather become stronger then skinner.  Crossfit doesn’t make women bulky…I know I am not going to look like a female body builder at the end of the day.  I am going to look lean and muscular.  I look up to the women who compete in the Crossfit games.  They are extremely beautiful!

I am truly blessed to have amazing coaches at Crossfit Lincoln.  I attribute the fact that I can now string together 11 double-unders, is a direct result of their coaching and pointers.  I can now do 2 pull-ups unassisted in a row.  I find I PR almost every time we have a strength day.  To me I find it less stressful and I am SO much happier being healthy and strong.  Crossfit has truly opened my eyes and the door to a world I would have never encountered….Strength is true beauty.

  As I said, she is AMAZING! She is like me, we share our stories to inspire and motivate. Everyone has a unique story and journey. Go out there and make your own too! Noww.... recipe time. This one... was... amazing. Simply put. YUM. Of course, PALEOMG.COM =)

Pork Avocado Cream Enchiladas

Prep time: 8 hours

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 8 hours 20 mins

Serves: 3

 

Ingredients

• For the tortillas
• 6 egg whites
• 3 tablespoons coconut flour
• 6 tablespoons canned coconut milk
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

For the filling

• 1.5lbs pork rump roast
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1.5 cup vegetable broth

For the avocado cream sauce

• 2 avocados, pitted and insides removed (don’t put the skin in the food processor. duh)
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, stems removed
• 3 tablespoons canned coconut milk
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• salt and pepper, to taste
• juice of 1 lemon
• juice of 1 lime

Instructions

1. Ok so you got to start a day ahead of time with this meal. Slow cook that pork butt. Place onions in your crockpot, then rump roast on top, and then all the rest of the ingredients for the filling in your crockpot. Turn crockpot on low and cook for 6-8 hours.
2. Once your pork is doing cooking, use two fork to shred it to pieces. Mmmmmm shredded meat.
3. Now time to make your tortillas. Whisk all your tortilla ingredients together until all the lumps are gone.
4. Place a large skillet over medium heat and grease with a bit of oil. Pour a 4 inch in diameter circle in the center of your pan and tilt the pan around to spread the batter into a large circle.
5. Let the tortilla cook for a minute or so, until the tortilla bubbles and the edges begin to turn up. BEING VERY CAREFUL, circle your spatula under the tortilla pulling up all the edges before you flip it.
6. Cook on other side for another minute.
7. Place on plate to let cool. Repeat with leftover batter. You should get 5-6 tortillas from your batter.
8. While your tortillas are cooling, place all the ingredients for your avocado cream sauce into a food processor and puree until completely smooth. This may take a couple minutes.
9. Now turn on your broiler to high.
10. Grab an 8×8 glass baking dish, lay out a tortilla, place a little bit of your shredded pork along with a little avocado cream sauce (be sure to save some to put on top of the tortillas later) then curl the sides of the tortilla around to make a mini burrito. Repeat with all of your tortillas so they are lined up side by side in your glass baking dish.
11. Put your baking dish under your broiler and cook for about 6-8 minutes or until your tortillas become crispy.
12. Then remove baking dish from the oven and turn broiler to low. Cover the enchiladas with the rest of your avocado cream sauce then place back in the oven for 5-7 minutes.
13. Top with cilantro.
14. Serve those little enchiladas on up!

  I used chicken instead of pork because I was in a chicken mood. Stan topped his with salsa and said it was amazeballs. I, did not. I eat salsa every morning for breakfast with my eggs, so sometimes I like a break from salsa. Anyway, top it how you like, it's sure to be awesome!
  I promise to try and keep up on this more. I  miss you guys, did you miss me?! =) Have a good week peeps!

God's Greatest Creations

  Happy Sunday evening bliggity bloggers! I hope you all had an amazing day and weekend. I certainly did! I had a good workout to start the day yesterday, got to enjoy the farmers market with Jerm, got my brows did, which was much needed, then spent the afternoon soaking up some vitamin c with my kiddo. Got to spend the evening with the hubby, which is always nice. THEN, today, I got to spend the entire day chillin' with my husband and kiddo. Nothing better in life. Oh, and below, this is my son. The 2 1/2 year old future CrossFit badass. Yup.

  I also must say, that I love my friends and I love the gym. Remember that one time when I talked about having an account-a-bili-buddy?! Well, CFL has given me a ton of them. I was full on ready to not workout yesterday. Then Maranda called me while en route to the gym. And while I was on the phone with her, Ashley texted me. Both of them convinced I was going to the gym. Little did they know, I was not. However, could I tell them that? Hell no. So I pulled my ass outta bed and went to the gym, and I'm so glad I did, because I felt TONS better.
  Okay, enough rambling. On to the thought of the day, then on to the recipes! Today's nugget of knowledge is this. WE are God's greatest creations. He worked really hard on us, and chose to give US life. We are imperfect beings and will never be worthy of the blessing He gives us, but shouldn't we try every day to somehow thank Him for giving us life? Maranda sent me this quote once... "We can't live up to our potential when we believe our potential to be so little." Woah. I don't know about you all, but for me, that is so damn true! I have a lot of potential hidden in me just waiting to bust out, so damnit, I need to let it! I am working on it every day and I think you all should too. It turns out, I am realizing that I am worth so much more than I ever realized. I am finding that I am meant to do some great things in life, and I WILL do them! So I urge you all to do the same. Allow your potential to come out and play with the world, great things are sure to come of it!
  Alright, so, my great weekend also consisted of great food. I made some really yummy meals this weekend. BUT, rather than overload you with them in one blog, I will give them one at a time. First up, SHRIMP!

Shrimp Flying Saucers

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 3-6 minutes
Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

• 1 pound medium-sized shrimp, cooked and tails removed
• 2 cups red cabbage, diced
• 1 cucumber, peeled and diced
• 1/2 small red onion, finely diced
• 4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and diced
• 1 tablespoon dried dill
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard 
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• 2 large tomatoes - sliced into rounds 1/4 inch thick
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

1. If needed, remove shell, tail, and vein from shrimp. Cook in boiling water for 3-6 minutes. Shrimp will be done when they float to the top of the water and turn pink and white.
2. Drain the shrimp and let cool in the refrigerator.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cabbage, cucumbers, onion, and egg.
4. Cut the cooked and cooled shrimp into halves or thirds, depending on the size of your shrimp, and add to the bowl.
5. Add the dill, garlic, cayenne, mustard, extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and mix well.
6. Serve huge scoops on top of the thick-sliced tomatoes. Top with a sprinkle of sliced almonds.
7. ENJOY!

  Alright peeps, I beg you to try this one. It was SO good. It's the kind of thing you eat straight out of the bowl as you walk by it in the kitchen. So very good. I can't wait to eat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow, I'm fairly positive we should all go out and make tomorrow our bitch. DOMINATE PEOPLE! Cause, ya know, we're badass-n-stuff. Until later peeps!

I am good, and I wear it well.

  I like the title of today's blog. I like it a lot. It is something that Maranda learned in these handy dandy little classes she had to take for work. We all need to tell ourselves this once and a while. One major thing that I struggle with is accepting a compliment, I don't know how to do it. I have had such overwhelming praise from the pictures that I posted, and it freaks me out. hahahaha! I just don't know how to act when people compliment how well I've done. Immediately I like to think that they are full of ish and that I haven't really done anything that great. But you know what? I have done something amazing, and I'm continuing to do it every day. We all are! We are all good, and we SHOULD wear it well. Eating right and working out takes a lot of self discipline and it's hard. If it was easy, everyone would do it and we wouldn't live in an obese nation.
  I think too often we believe that acknowledging our accomplishments and being proud makes us seem boastful. We need to re-train our brains. There is a difference between being proud of ourselves and bragging. My brain needs some serious re-training, that is for certain. I urge you all to try accepting a compliment gracefully the next time someone gives it to you. Truly accept what they are saying to you and own it. If you didn't deserve it, they probably wouldn't be saying it!
  Now that the motivation speech is over, let's get on to the fun stuff, shall we? Phil competed in The 2012 CrossFit Games this weekend. We are all so very proud of him! They call it the competition to be the fittest man/woman on earth. Well, I don't know about ya'll, but that's some serious shit! Even making it there is HUGE! Phil is a beast and I wish I could have been there to cheer him on. Next year friends, next year. I believe Penny said that he did 11 wods over 4 days. Uhm yeah. AND they were killer wods. When I grow up, I wanna be the chick version of Phil. hehe =) Oh, and below, just Phil on the big screen at the games. No biggie.

  Now, onto foooood! You guys are going to be so happy with me tonight. Not only do I have an amazing dinner recipe, but I have DESSERT too! Now that the challenge is over, I get to share yummy paleo treat recipes too! For those of us that love sweets, but still wanna be paleo friendly! First up, dinner. Swiped this one out of my super sweet new cookbook. Everyday Paleo. Go buy it. NOW =)

Hasta La Vista Pasta Lasagna

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 Minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 red onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound mild Italian sausage
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1/2 cup fresh chopped basil
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes, juices drained
• 1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
• 5-6 zucchinis, thinly sliced long way with a mandolin slicer 
• 1 cup sliced black olives

1. Preheat oven to 350*
2. In a large soup pot, saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil for about 3 minutes.
3. Add the ground beef and sausage and brown.
4. Season the meat mixture with all the dry ingredients, add the drained diced tomatoes and tomato paste and mix well.
5. In a 9x11 glass baking dish, place a layer of sliced zucchini, making sure to overlap the long slices. Ladle on a thick layer of meat mixture, and top with the sliced black olives.
6. Top meat and olive layer with another layer of sliced zucchini and top with a final layer of remaining meat mixture. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Let the lasagna sit for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
7. ENJOY!

Andddd the dessert I promised. From paleomg.com. The woman... is GENIUS. Make these. Tonight. Now. Yesterday.

Chocolate Coffee Caramel Bars

Prep time: 15 mins

Total time: 15 mins

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients

• For the crust
• 12 dried figs (or dates, if you prefer), stems removed
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1/4 cup Unsweetended Shredded Coconut
• 2 tablespoons Raw Honey
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• For the caramel
• 12-14 medjool dates, pitted and soaked in water for an hour
• 5-6 tablespoons canned coconut milk
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• For the topping
• 1 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips or dark chocolate, melted
• 1/4 cup canned coconut milk
• 2 teaspoons ground coffee
• coarse sea salt, to top

Instructions

1. First make your crust. Add all of your crust ingredients into a food processor and mix until well combined. Add the crust mixture to a bread pan and push down until the mixture is flat. Like a crust. Duh.
2. Now add your dates and pulse until dates have broken down (less than a minute) then add your coconut milk tablespoon by tablespoon to the dates while the food processor is still running. Then add your water as well.
3. And add your vanilla extract and pinch of salt.
4. Process until you get a caramel. BOOM. May take 3-5 minutes, tops.
5. Pour caramel over your crust and spread evenly.
6. Now you will want to melt your chocolate. You could do this in a double boiler or just the microwave. I chose the latter.
7. Melt chocolate and coconut milk together in the microwave. Heating for 30 seconds then mixing well and reheating when necessary.
8. Once your chocolate is completely melted, add your ground coffee and mix well.
9. Pour melted chocolate over your caramel and spread evenly.
10. Add coarse sea salt on top of the chocolate.
11. Put in freezer to let chocolate harden. Around 10+ minutes.
12. Eat!!

   Now, fill your belly and go accept those compliments! Until next time peeps!!!

Picture Time! WOOOOOO!

  Alright peeps. The day has come. I am about to show you all pictures of me in my bra. EEEKKKK! The ONLY reason that I am going to show these is because I will never go back to looking like the first pictures. AND, I am only going to continue to improve and get more beast mode-ish. So, soon, today's pics will be left in the dust as well.
  There is one thing I have learned in the last year, and that is that hard work and dedication pay off. Stay focused. A healthy lifestyle is a marathon, not a sprint. It takes time, and patience is a HUGE part of it. Let us all remember, it didn't take a day or a week to put on, so it certainly isn't going to go away that fast. I'm living proof. Take these pictures as motivation, and make your OWN success story to blog about! Happy Tuesday lovers! Enjoy...

Before weight loss. April 2011...

After losing 65 lbs, but before CrossFit and Paleo...

  

Andddd today. It has been 2 months since I started working out at CrossFit and eating Paleo. Ignore the sweaty bra. This was directly after today's wod. I can't wait to see my progress in 2 more months!!!

Alright friends, there ya have it. Progress! It's possible. I don't want to hear ANY excuses. You can ALL change your life. Make the commitment and STICK TO IT!!! Until later! =)

I'm baaaaaaaack!

  Oh hellloooooooo blog-o-sphere! I've missed you all so. Not sure if you've missed me, buuuuuut I'm sure you did. HA! Alright, so. It's been about 863 years since I've posted and I'm sorry for that. However, I am happy to report that it is because I've been out in the world kicking ass and taking names and living just a generally damn good life! =)
  Yesterday, CFO and CFL had a nice little friendly competition as a fund raiser for our athletes going to The CrossFit Games this weekend. GOOOOOOO PHIL! Anyway, we had an awesome day. Nothing like 3 kickass workouts and tons of crossfitters sweating on eachother to brighten a Sunday right up! Anywayyyyy, did our team win? No. But we had tons of fun competing. We wore some sweet ass socks, and I am damn proud of us. And, I can honestly say I pushed myself as hard as I could go and I'm proud. I'm also proud of the progress I am making at the gym. It also helps having these cool people to share it all with! I LOVE BEING MOTIVATED!

 

  Speaking of motivation, how did you all do with the paleo challenge? I don't mean to sound like a big deal or anything, but ya know, I won. Yes. That's correct. You may all refer to me as "winner" from here on out... I'm kidding. For real. But I did really win! I about fell over. Totally shocked. I am pretty confident in saying we all won. Sticking with something is haaaarrrrdddd. I didn't go without cheating. Which totally irritates me, but I'm human. Sooooo leave me alone (I'm lookin at YOU C.Popp) ;-)
  I have learned so many new things about myself since I last posted. Tuning out of the intraweb webbymail and tv was such a great idea. I use internet, of course. But I seriously don't even watch tv anymore. Complete waste of my time that thing is. I can't wait to share all of my good thoughts on life and random azz shiz with u guys! But, for today I will keep it short. Now that I've been doing CrossFit for 2 whole months, it's time for some PICTURES! Yes, that is correct. This very week you will get to see my "before losing weight", my "before CrossFit and Paleo", and my "after 2 months of CrossFit and Paleo" pics. Eeeek. I can't believe I'm going to share them. But I will in the name of science, AND motivating all of u to get off the couch and DO something about your weight complaints!
  Okay, so for now, I leave you with a new recipe I tried out of Everyday Paleo, ya know. One of my sweet ass prizes for winning the challenge! Enjoy! I certainly did. =)

Rockin' Moroccan Chicken

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15-20 minutes
Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons coconut oil
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
• 2 cups broccoli, chopped
• 2 cups carrots, diced
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried ground ginger
• small pinch of cayenne pepper
• black pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup pimento-stuffed green olives, sliced
• 1/4 cup raisins (optional)
• 1/4 cup chicken broth 

1. Cover the bottom of a large skillet with coconut oil. Saute the chicken until no longer pink in the middle (about 7 minutes).
2. Add the veggies in with the chicken and stir-fry for another 5 minutes or until the broccoli and carrots start to become tender.
3. Add the cinnamon, ginger, cumin, cayenne pepper, and black pepper. Once the chicken and veggies are covered with the spices, add the sliced olives, raisins, and the chicken broth to create a sauce. Stir well and bring to a simmer. Cook another 5-7 minutes stirring often. Serve immediately. 

  Hope you enjoy it peeps! Be back soon! (with pictures! wooooooooooo)  Here's a bonus pic for today... I feel like it's a bit B.A. just because of the bloody knee... Just sayin... 

   The greatest thing about working out is when your body suddenly does something it couldn't do a week ago. Keep going!

Boredom: What a dangerous thing

  Good Tuesday evening bloggies! As I sit down to write tonight's blog, I am so excited! I love new challenges and I also love new life lessons. Today, those things go hand in hand for me. I've been in a funk for a few days. Lots of different random things going on in the mind-o-Jen. I've learned a lot about myself and I've learned a lot about how I want to be.




 I feel like I haven't blogged in forever, so bare with me, this is going to be a long one. It is also going to be the last one for a few days, but we'll get to that in a minute. First, I love my friends. They are forever teaching me life lessons and forever helping me find things about myself that I didn't know were there. Maranda and I have had quite a few lengthy conversations this week. In those times, we found that self doubt is a nasty little thing, so is being a big bottle of suck. No one is going to improve us, we have to improve ourselves. Waking up and making the decision to renew ourselves and make today and all the days following better than they have been is all our decision. There is nothing stopping us, so we might as well do it now! Being a strong person and overcoming obstacles of our past is no easy feat, but we can do it. There is no better feeling than waking up with a renewed sense of being and knowing that life is just waiting for you and it's going to be great. So, I encourage you all to just sit down and think about where you want to be in life, and make it happen!

  Secondly, as this blog is titled, boredom is such a dangerous thing. I never really thought about it until Jeremy said it to me tonight. Being bored gets us all in trouble in some way. Whether it leads to overeating, not exercising, or being lazy, it doesn't matter what it is, they are all bad things! Don't let yourselves get bored. There are about a million and one different things that we can do in life rather than be bored. Tonight, Cale and I went for a looooooong ass walk in the heat and wind. Did it suck? Sure, at times it did. But ya know what? I did some really good thinking in that time, it got us out of the house, and it gave me some needed exercise. Then, when we got home, we went straight out back and hopped in the pool, which was also fun as hell and cooled us off! So, I challenge you to not allow yourselves to get "bored". Keep busy. Find a new hobby, go for a walk, go for a swim, something, anything!

  Thirdly, I want to talk about distractions. Phil posted something interesting on his facebook the other day. He posted a challenge to stay off of facebook for 48 hours. If you felt the urge to log on, read your bible, pray, anything to get closer to Him and further from facebook. I was inspired. I not only accept the challenge, I am going to add to it. I am going to stay off of the internet and not watch cable for 3 days. Starting tomorrow, the only time I am going to use the internet is to do my homework and sign up for my CrossFit classes, and I am not going to watch tv at all. It's funny that such a thing sounds "hard." I am 28 years old. I grew up without internet and limited cable. There is absolutely no reason I shouldn't be able to do it! I challenge and encourage you all to join me. If you feel yourself getting "bored", write in a journal, read a book, read The Bible, pray, go for a walk, spend time with your family, spend time with friends, set some goals for yourself. I think this is going to be a great thing and I'm so excited about it!!!
  As I said, this is a long blog with lots of words, SO, if you've all stuck with it and read this far, I thank you. I hope that some of you really enjoy this post and choose to join me. I truly believe this will be good for our souls, our faith, and our being. This last week of the paleo challenge is going to be a great one, I can feel it! Talk to ya Saturday! 3,2,1, GO!

Keep on Truckin'

  Happy Friday!!!! Ahhhh how I love weekends. Altho, I have to work tomorrow, which  makes for a short weekend. BOOOOOO! I'm feeling strong going into the weekend. We had an AWESOME wod today. And I ate an even awesomer, yes I just said awesomer, dinner!
  My words of wisdom are limited today. Basically, because I just ate soooooooo much food now I'm a bit slug like. BUT, I will give you a little tid-bit. The paleo challenge will be over ONE WEEK from Monday! How are we feeling? I, for one, have had several "eff paleo AND c.popp" moments this week. hahahaha However, I love paleo and Collin both. I am just to the point that being told I can't have something makes me want it more! BUT, we got this peeps! Only one more week! We've come far to far to fail now. Sooooo keep on truckin'. With recipes like the one I'm about to share, it should be easy, because it was SO good! Oh, and I have a new protein shake recipe tonight too!

Chicken Jicama Slaw

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked chicken, diced
2 cups broccoli slaw (I used Trader Joe's brand)
1/2 cup cucumber, diced
1/2 small red onion, finely diced
1 cup diced jicama
1/2 cup paleo mayo
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
pinch of cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients together and enjoy! 

Paleo Mayo-
1 egg
1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
pinch of sea salt
few shakes of cayenne pepper
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 cup olive oil

Protein Shake-
1 1/2 cups strawberries
1 cup almond milk
1 cucumber
1 tbsp honey
1 scoop vanilla protein
Ice

  Alright, now that I've shared all these amazing goodies, go make em! You won't regret it, trust me! On to the weekend and healthy living!!!

Confidence, Belief, Hard Work

  In the words of my dear friend Maranda, Happy Hippity Hop Hump Day! hahaha oh yes. Half way thru the week. Do I hear a hallelujah? Amen! Okay, so the sun is shining... ish, it's half way thru the week, I get to workout today, Maranda is coming over for dinner, and I'm cooking something delish! WOOOOOO for happy days!
  Enough rambling. Good Lord. You guys should really stop me. Somehow. Thru the intraweb. WEBBYMAIL. Omg. I'm out of control today. I have GOT to get to my point. Okay. So confidence, belief, and hard work. Formula for success? I think yes. Have the confidence to change your life. Believe in yourself and your ability to change. And work your ass off to make it happen. These are not hard things. Everyone can do it, and you WILL do it. You're here aren't you? You already have the confidence. Now, just believe in yourself and make it happen. I think too often people don't believe in themselves and what they are truely capable of. You all just wait till I post pictures. Once I do, I don't want to hear any exuses of why you think you can't do this. I don't really have tolerance for excuses, because I've been there, and they are allllll LAME. So, let's do it biznitches!
  As you all know, I spend my days dreaming of food. Today is no exception. That being said, I have today's recipe ready for you! Today I trolled ThePaleoMom.com. Another goodie. And this is what I found!

Swedish Meatballs

Ingredients (meatballs):

1 lb lean ground beef (grass-fed is preferred for this recipe)

1 medium yellow onion, very finely diced

1 Tbsp tallow or coconut oil

2 eggs

1/8 tsp salt, to taste

¼ tsp pepper

½ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp allspice

 

 Heat a skillet over medium heat.  Add oil and onion and sauté until completely cooked, approximately 10 minutes.

     Preheat oven to 400F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

     Mix all ingredients in a bowl (I find it easiest to use my hands).  Form 1 ½” meatballs by hand and place on prepared baking sheet (you should get approximately 16 meatballs).

    Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until cooked through.

Ingredients (gravy):

1 cup low-sodium beef or chicken broth (homemade is great if you have it)

½ Tbsp grass-fed butter or tallow

1 Tbsp arrowroot powder

     Place broth and butter in the skillet that the onions were cooked in.  Stir in the arrowroot powder.  Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. 

   Stir frequently until thick, approximately 3-4 minutes.

Toss meatballs in gravy (including any juices from the baking sheet) and enjoy!

 

 

Now, I may by late on the reaction of posting pictures tonight because Maranda is coming over. And we are ridiculous. Soooooo, I'll probably be occupado all night in random laughing and conversation. But, we shall see. Make it a good hump day peeps!

Ugly Little Gremlin

  Happy windy Tuesday everyone! Due to the fact that I live in Nebraska, we are never ever short on wind. Today is a perfect example of such things. Good hair? Forget about it. Which, is especially tough for me since I can call myself a licensed cosmetologist. Altho, with hairdays like today, I probably wouldn't admit it to ANYONE.
  On to my point. Lately, I've become somewhat of a gremlin. Not cute and fuzzy and cuddly like Gizmo, because he's a mogwai. A gremlin. As in the ugly nasty little shits that you stupidly fed after midnight. What could possibly turn such a sunshiney person into such a thing you may ask? Lack of exercise. Lack of CrossFit. Blah. I couldn't go Sunday because they are closed (unheard of I KNOW!) and then Monday I couldn't go because my fabulous husband was working (which I love him for because it's a hard job that keeps him away from us yet he still does it to give us a good life). And today, he is working yet again, so my workout time is again being threatened! Being a gremlin is no good. The only solution I can come up with is to become a hippie and live in a van (or bus) down by the river so that I can just not work and spend all my time at CrossFit. I have friends willing to join in on the fun. Don't be jealous. We may let you join. IF you bring the proper amount of neon paint and rope lights.
  ANYWHO, what turns you into a gremlin? I'm currently working on another solution for myself. It involves drinking tequila. Ohhhh yes. First item on the list when this challenge is over. But until then, how about focusing on all the good? Like cooking a yummy good for you dinner! Once again, I got this from paleomg.com. I should really re-name my blog ieffinglovepaleomg.blogspot.com. Just sayin....


Paleo Sweet Lemon Pepper Chicken

Ingredients

• 1lb chicken tenders/breasts/thighs
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 apple, thinly sliced
• 2 lemons, halved
• 2 tablespoons raw honey
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 2-3 tablespoons fat, I used olive oil

Instructions

1. Thinly slice your onions and apples and throw them into a fat greased skillet under medium-high heat.
2. Let the apples and onions cook down for a bit until they begin to become translucent. When they do, add 1/2 lemon (juice), 1 tbsp honey, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and pepper, and 1/4 tsp white pepper, garlic and onion powder and mix thoroughly to help combine and let caramelize.
3. While the onions and apples cook away, pull out another large skillet, add some fat and heat up under medium-high heat. While the skillet heats up, salt and pepper your chicken and add them directly to the pan.
4. While the chicken begins to cook, add the rest of your ingredients including the spices, honey, and lemon on top of the chicken.
5. When the sides begin to turn white, flip the chicken over and add any extra honey and/or lemon on top, to taste.
6. Once the chicken has cooked through, layer some caramelized apples and onions on a plate, and top them off with some chicken. Garnish with a lemon.

  As you may have guessed, my stomach is now aching for dinner. Later, I will do the unthinkable, I'll post pictures. Contain your shock. Hopefully, it'll be after a nice CrossFit SNATCH workout. Until then peeps! Alright, I'm back. and I need to tell you all 2 things. First off, I snatch balanced 65 lbs today HOLLA! (Call me a wimp and I'll kick ur ass. We all start somewhere.) and second, this meal was sooooooooooo efffffffing gooooooooood! If you don't try it, your a bigger fool than the people who feed mogwai's after midnight. OH, and good news, I'm no longer a little gremlin. I'm happily a mogwai right now. YAY FOR CROSSFIT!

Work Thru the Funk

  Good Monday Morning bloggers! I hope you all had an amazing weekend. Mine was filled with food, friends, and fun. My three favorite f words. =) I'm so sorry that I didn't post a recipe on Friday. I was in a funk. Which, as you may guess, is where I get today's topic from!
  Everyone has off days. We are human for petesake! It's our right. I'm a happy person, but sometimes, I'm angry. Not very often mind you, but sometimes I am dammit! It would be so easy for us to justify skipping the gym because we are in a funk, but let me tell you something, sweating yourself out of the funk is the best solution possible! Going to the gym always makes me feel better anyway, but when I can work out my frustrations too, I'm like a whole new woman! Friday's workout kicked my ass. It was a toughie. HOWEVER, it also kicked my funk. Soooo it was a win-win! And so friends, I encourage you to just walk thru the door when you're having one of those days and do your damn workout. You'll feel soooo much better and be so glad you did!
  On to the daily recipe! Everyone loves tacos, right? We are in America. If you don't like tacos, get out! HA, I kid. You can stay, but you're on my list now. EVERYONE likes tacos... =) Enough rambling... and so I give you Paleo Tacos (courtesy of thepaleomom.com... another killer blog of course!)! Yesssssssssssss enjoy.

Paleo Tacos

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef (I use grass-fed)

½ large yellow onion, finely chopped

2 crushed garlic cloves

1 Tbsp cooking fat (I use tallow but Refined Coconut Oil would work too, omit if you are using fairly fatty ground meat)

1 Tbsp Chili Powder

1 tsp Paprika

1½ tsp Ground Cumin Seed

1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper(optional)

¼ tsp Dried Oregano

½ tsp Salt(to taste)

½ tsp ground Pepper

    Heat cooking fat in a skillet over medium-high heat (cast iron works well here).  Add ground meat, garlic and onion.  Cook, stirring frequently to break up the meat, until fully cooked, about 7-8 minutes.

    Add spices to beef.  If you meat is really dry, you might want to add 1-2 Tbsp of water.  Stir to fully incorporate.

    Turn temperature down to medium and cook another 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it smells so delicious you just can’t wait another second!
    Serve on lettuce leaves with your favorite paleo-friendly taco toppings.  Enjoy!

      So, as per usual, I am now dreaming about food. Thanks a lot! I do this all for you people. Okay, well maybe not. But it sounded good anyway! More pics later! Make it a damn good paleo Monday people. We are OVER HALF WAY THERE! WOOOOOOO!!!!

You Are Worth More Than You Realize

  Okay, so. Today I have to have an enormous moment of joy sharing. I feel like I need to tell you all how happy I am, so bare with me. =) I'm so completely overjoyed and overwhelmed by all the support and feedback I've gotten from this blog. I truly feel like I am somewhat helping and inspiring people and I am actually shocked by how many readers I have. You all make my days happier. I'm absolutely lovin' life and you have all helped make that happen! God is good, and He has truly blessed me. I already had the foundation of a happy life; a wonderful, supportive husband, a crazy, fantastic kiddo, and the best friends and family someone could ask for... who knew that simply living a healthy life and sharing my journey would add so much! Moving to Lincoln has also given me a whole new group of friends that I absolutely love and adore, and I wouldn't have found them if I wasn't living a healthy life. You never know what opportunities are waiting for you behind a door you have yet to open. So, go, pursue all opportunities presented to you, you may just like what you find on the other side.
  Alright, so you may have learned that I don't do mushy for too long. On to the good stuff! Today I will be giving you a recipe that I will not be actually cooking tonight. I'll try it in the future and add a picture of it then. Tonight, my family is getting leftovers from last night (which is certainly nothing to complain about because it was paleomazing) because I am going to open gym and making up Murph because I missed it on Tuesday. FMCFL. My new acronym. F*ck My CrossFit Life. That's what I shall say on days such as today when the WOD is sure to kill me.
  My awesome cousin Kaylea sent me this recipe today, and it sounds amazing. I encourage you to try it and let me know all the goodness I'm missing out on!

Chicken with creamy sun-dried tomato sauce recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 whole chicken breasts, bone-less;
• 1 ½ cups Coconut Milk
• 4 fresh thyme sprigs;
• ½ cup homemade chicken stock;
• 10-12 sun-dried tomatoes, purred in a blender or food processor;
• ½ tsp fresh thyme leaves
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste;

Preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 375 F.
2. Season the chicken breasts all over with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Optionally, also season them with a good quality steak seasoning. Look in your local health food store for a brand that is gluten-free and doesn’t contain any vegetable seed oil.
3. Place them in a baking dish, place a sprig of fresh thyme on top of each and place in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, until the juices run clear.
4. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over a medium-low heat, bring the cream or coconut milk and the two remaining thyme sprigs to a light boil.
5. Once boiling, lower heat and let simmer. Allow the cream or coconut milk to reduce by approximately 1/3 of its volume. This should take close to 10 minutes.
6. Remove the cream or coconut milk from the heat and allow it to sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Do not  remove from skillet.
7. Remove the thyme sprigs and return to heat. Add the chicken stock and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes.
8. Add the purred sun-dried tomatoes, season with salt and pepper to taste and the fresh thyme leaves.
9. Pour on top of the cooked chicken breasts and enjoy!

  I'm sure this will be amazing and I'm a little sad I have to wait days to try it, BUT Murph awaits me, and my body needs it. 10 days strong into the challenge peeps, that's practically half way there! Remember, you are worth more than you realize, so... realize it! Happy Thursday!