LET THE PALEO CHALLENGE BEGIN!

Have you ever taken note of the pyramid chart that is in the free issue of the CrossFit Journal "What is Fitness," I have linked on flux CrossFit's website?

Notice what forms the base of this pyramid?

Nutrition.

If you are not making healthy choices in your diet you will not flourish as an athlete.

My hope is that this will become much clearer to everyone by the end of our 6 week paleo challenge.

More specifically, I hope everyone experiences the continuum that exists between good nutrition and improvements in fitness and athletic performance.

One concrete way to quantify your health is to have a blood lipid profile done. Another way to quantify your fitness is through the measurement of a performance and Grace will serve this purpose.

Or, as Robb Wolf succinctly states: "if you feel good, look good and perform better" chances are the paleo approach to food is working for you.

For inspiration, take a look at 69 year old Jacinto Bonillo, a level two CrossFit Coach at CrossFit New York.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znxXTf9svfU

If you subscribe to the CrossFit Journal you can read more about Jacinto's approach to nutrition and fitness in a Jul 4/09 entry.

For the next 6 weeks, let's trash the processed food; acquaint ourselves with good eating; relish in the art of cooking; enjoy quality food with family and friends; get lot's of sleep; take our fish oils; and drink lot's of water.

-Darci

Here is our theme song for "Grace"

Pop culture guru Beth sent it to me.

It's called "Jerk it"

http://radio3.cbc.ca/play/band/Thunderheist/Jerk-It

Exciting News- flux CrossFit on CBC Radio

Tomorrow, sometime between 4:00 and 6:00 pm, flux CrossFit will be showcased on CBC.

Tune in tomorrow!

And, check out the photos on CBC.

http://www.cbc.ca/afternooneditionsask/

A great website

I really like Dr. Harris' website on the concept of paleolithic nutrition. Note on the right hand side of the home page the links to the archives.

http://www.paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2009/5/18/6s-and-3s-and-the-logic-of-grain-avoidance.html

Here is an excerpt from the above link.

"Humans are omnivores that now have a hugely expanded ecological niche through the technology of adapting rot resistant carbohydrate rich seeds that can be stored, milled, ground up cooked and eaten, mechanically planted and fertilised with the aid of petroleum, bred for higher yields, and even genetically engineered. Humans have thrived and expanded to 6 B souls on a finite planet despite the fact that grains are not an optimal food source at the level of the individual. Remember that thegene is the unit of selection. Grains are adaptive at the level of the gene and increasing human poplulation. Your genes do not care if you get coeliac disease, heart disease, diabetes, degenerative arthritis, tooth decay, autoimmune disorders, cancer or alzheimer dementia if by eating grains you were able to avoid famine just long enough to reproduce.

Look beyond the very misleading inter-country and even intracountry observational studies, which you could spend a lifetime trying to parse. Do pay attention to any controlled randomized trial that is well done. Do pay atention to the archaeological record. Do use some inductive reasoning with comparative anatomy, and ground your thinking with the best evidence from clinical and basic sciences like endocrinology and biochemistry. "

Clarifications on the 6 week paleo proposition

Some questions that have arisen regarding our paleo challenge:

1. What about dairy? A strict paleo diet does not allow dairy but we need not be dogmatic about such things. The 'primal' point of view does advocate dairy, especially butter. You decide for yourself. Things to consider when making the decision whether or not to eliminate dairy. The quality of the product. After all the research I have done on industrial dairy farming I am reluctant to eat too much of it but I do eat butter and cream. When I can get my hands on raw, pastured dairy I practically bathe in it! Dairy is a powerful growth promoter, so a glass of milk after a workout isn't a bad idea. One thing Robb mentioned at the paleo seminar was that if one of your goals is weight loss and you are 'stuck,' eliminate dairy. Finally, go without dairy for a few weeks and then reenter it into your diet. Note any differences in how you feel.

2. What about legumes, rice and corn? Still high in carbs, and therefore insulin spiking.

3. A common mistake people make when they make the switch to paleo is that they do not get enough fat and therefore feel hungry. Eat your fat!! Your brain needs it!

Some fats to eat: avocado, coconut oil, coconut milk, butter, olive oil, nuts. And of course animal fat.

6 weeks of paleo living

March 1 kicks off our 6 week paleo living challenge.

Anyone can sign up. The winner will get a $100.00 gift certificate for The Willow Restaurant. I chose the Willow because they use a lot of local, pasture raised and finished meat. It is also a culinary delight!

You do paleo for 6 weeks, beginning Monday, March 1st and ending April 12th.

Your final score will be based on the following:

1. inches lost around the midsection.

2. paleo spirit (commenting on blog, finding new recipes, etc).

3. performance comparison of Grace.

4. Those who take part in the challenge will vote on the winner.

Supper Time!

I forgot to mention another great site for paleo recipes: http://everydaypaleo.com/

Tonight I made 'Rockin' Moroccin' Chicken and I got the recipe from EverydayPaleo.

For dessert tonight, as a special treat, I made a lemon meringue pie from a recipe I found on livingpaleo. It has 1/2 cup of maple syrup so it isn't something you would eat too often. On the other hand, at least it is homemade and therefore doesn't have all the processed crap that would be in store bought sweets.

I didn't have a pie tin so I made a lemon meringue 'square.'

The FatHead Links - Again

I already posted these short youtube pieces but I don't think many of you watched them so here they are again.

FATHEAD- The Documentary

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNYlIcXynwE&feature=player_embedded#

A great excerpt on insulin resistance from the documentary FatHead.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCVo8HbDpXI&feature=related

This second link is also from FatHead. Discussed here is the un-naturalness of the Recommended Food Guides that are established by federal governments.

more sectional fun

Check out the standards on flying pull-ups and hspu for another set of sectionals.

http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_SDAZSectionalStds.mov

MIdwest Sectional Qualifiers - Recap

Yikes!

Fluxers hit it hard and rage ensued.

It must have been the never ending burpees.

Glenn fights to keep the elbows up.

MIdwest Sectional Qualifiers

We are going to do one of the qualifying workouts today.

http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/Games2010_Midwesternevent1.mov

Don't Be a Flincher!

I have noticed there is an inordinate amount of flinching going on these days with the deadlift. What is flinching? Flinching is when the athlete approaches the bar and pulls hard WITHOUT first tightening up, or bracing. It is easy to identify a flincher by the sound of the bar when the athlete executes the movement. A flincher does not create tension under load and therefore creates slack between him or herself and the bar. THis results in a clanging of the barbell as he or she lifts the load. Trying to tighten up while lifting will really mess you up!

To tighten up on the deadlift is to squeeze the abs to the belly button, lift the chest and squeeze the scapula and tighten the lower back. And something new that I learned at the Movement and Mobility Certification with Kelly Starrett is the principle of loading and tensioning. This principle states that the body will activate that part of the body that you first place under load or tension. Of course, with the deadlift, we should be biasing our hamstrings.

Next time you go to do a deadlift, go through the entire process of tightening up just before you actually get your hands on the bar. Then re-tense or reload the hamstrings once you are in position. You do this by lifting the hips just a little before you are about to lift. This will place maximum tension on the hamstrings. Provided you have gone through all the movement prep and you have braced yourself this reloading of the hamstrings will make it impossible to flinch. It also means that your hamstrings will be the first thing to fire under the load of the deadlift.

Try it. It makes a huge difference in the efficiency and thus the safety of the deadlift as you will have further eliminated the potential for movement of the spine under load. It will also enable you to go heavier.

http://sanfranciscocrossfit.blogspot.com/2009/12/loading-and-tensioning-part-1.html

flux closed for the holiday Monday, Feb 15

We will be closed all day tomorrow.

Enjoy the holiday.

The Press and the Push Jerk

Paleo Recipes

White fish with macadamia salsa. Yummy! This recipe can be found at living paleo. The last link here.

I am in the middle of constructing a Nutrition link on the flux CrossFit website. Some of you have been asking for paleo recipes so here ya go!

http://mypaleokitchen.blogspot.com/

http://www.cathletics.com/recipes/index.php

http://livingpaleo.com/paleo-recipes/overview.html

A day at flux

FATHEAD- The Documentary

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNYlIcXynwE&feature=player_embedded#

A great excerpt on insulin resistance from the documentary FatHead.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCVo8HbDpXI&feature=related

This second link is also from FatHead. Discussed here is the un-naturalness of the Recommended Food Guides that are established by federal governments.

Are you a "LIPOPHOBE?"

Here are three good links to the whole cholesterol debate.

Typically, folks with high cholesterol are told to stay away from red meat, eggs and other animal fats. The paleo diet, which advocates a high protein/low carb, high fat diet is gaining credibility as way to combat high cholesterol, lower insulin, and lose weight.

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/lipid-hypothesis/low-carb-litesort-of/

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/cardiovascular-disease/four-patients-who-changed-my-life/#more-3923

The link below looks specifically at eggs

http://www.garagestrength.com/?page_id=896

Update on Tedd's Party

I have reserved a room upstairs at La Bodega for this Saturday night at 9pm. Come on out and say good-bye to Tedd!

Deadlifts, Burpees, and Knee to elbows

Flux Kids Change in Schedule for tonight

Hi folks,

Sorry but we have to cancel the kid's class tonight. Coach Charity is out of town.

Change of Date for Paleo Seminar

We will be holding the paleo info session on Tuesday, Feb 9th at 7pm at flux.

Going Paleo

An invitation to flux CrossFit folks:

Tuesday, February 9 at 7pm.

A message from Robb Wolf: "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, GET OFF THE GLUTEN!"

Topics to be Covered:

What is paleolithic Nutrition? The Evolutionary Timeline and the Transition from Neolithic to Paleolithic

Hormones: Insulin, glucagon and cortisol

The Digestive System

Understanding Fat

Acid Base Balance

Blood Work

Opposition to the Paleo Diet

Is a Paleolithic Diet Sustainable?

Farewell to Tedd

UPDATE:

OK, no party on Friday. Will you be around Saturday night Tedd?

As most of you know, Tedd just got a job in Swift Current. Yah for Tedd, but too bad for us!

Soooo, let's send Tedd away with a big farewell party at flux CrossFit this Friday night.

We'll get things rolling at 7pm, right after class.