November 3rd, 2009: Holiday Paleo Challenge

Pictured: Patty's kids (left to right: Alyssa, Kamryn, and Karina) at the finish of the Breast Cancer 5k! Mama and I are proud of you three!

HOLIDAY SEASON IS UPON US!

Every year around this time, many of us (me included!) will let go of their good eating choices and relax their standards a little bit. While a small bit here and there is to be expected, going overboard will cause many people to acquire an unattainable 'resloution on New Year's Eve. In order to nullify the necessity of such silly false promises in the beginning of January, I have a plan for you. Sorry Corey, it doesn't have anything to do with 2-a-days.

In fact, it's just the opposite. We can all learn something about how powerful our newfound way of eating if we try to incorporate what Goat has been doing for the past few months, going almost all Paleo and having a less than ideal workout schedule (1 on, 3 off, right Goat?). He has been getting phenomenal results from doing this, and he hasn't been killing himself in the gym! 

I will be de-emphasizing the WODs and increasing the focus on food choices. Get to the gym if you can, and don't feel guilty about skipping a workout here and there, especially if you're busy with the holidays. 

So here is the challenge:

You will NOT buy any non-Paleo food. There will be plenty of opportunities at social gatherings to eat off-Paleo if desired, and those are the only events you will deviate. 

If it is a restaurant in which you will order from the menu, this counts as buying food, so you will make paleo choices, if possible. This definitely goes without saying, but this also includes work lunches.

If it is a potluck, now would be the chance to bring something Paleo that you can share with everyone, but you are free to sample non-Paleo foods.

Office type parties need to be off-site; birthday cakes and cookies for someone's anniversary at work should still be refrained from. The post-Halloween candy jar at work is off limits. They need to be special events that are not everyday settings.

You are to post any delicious indulgences you partake in, and, heaven forbid, any slip-ups outside of these rules (i.e. buying non-Paleo). It will be encouraged to post about the times you refrained from coming off Paleo and stick to you guns, and also is encouraged to let us know how you're feeling during the course of the challenge.

Post feedback and strategies to comments!

Comments

[Herm]

Xtina, we will haze you when we get together for the CF Games. You're welcome to go in on the FRAT house rental with us too! :)

[Kamryn]

Herm the race was tiring!!!!But,we had sooooo super fun!!!!:)They gave out lots and lots of free stuff(mostly CBS8)Like:Chip clips boxes of cereal,lara bars ect;ect.I hope i will see you on Saturday!!!:);)

[Karina]

Kamryn was right the race was tiring but my mom kept saying you can do it.So if we do the three day(60 miles) race me and Kamryn will be complaining. And we will only have a little bit ot time to rest because we have to do 20 miles each day .it will be so tough. like my mom said you can do it!!!!!!!!! =)

[adawgg!also known as alyssa(:]

hi herm(:its alyssa ohh probally know that but watever(: ummm ohhh the breast cancer walk was cool even thoug hmy sisters complained after not even a mile into it(:ahha but me&terry want to do it next year but in a run so yea(: ohhh bout the the pic you have up ummm it was the BEGING of the race not the end...just sayin umm the other pic was the end...&&thank you im proud of myself too(: yea well thats it ummmm wen are you coming down again ? hope soon(:
ALYSSA!

[Stephen]

You young ladies are so sweet, take after your Mom. Herm, you are a blessed man. This challenge will be challenging, does this mean I must give up my chocolate, guess so - look out almond butter and raisins, here I come. I'm adding my own challenge in to reduce my water intake, eat breakfast, and stop waiting until the end of the day to eat most of my food. I've hung on to this habit long enough - it's bye-bye time

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wow, the apples haven't fallen far from the tree, eh Patty? What awesome girls!! Congratulations to all of you for doing the 5k!

Herm, I'm in, except for 2 stipulations: tequila and dark chocolate ARE PALEO!!!

Stephen, your comment about hanging on to a habit for a long time... great reminder, which is making me think about what I'VE been hanging onto.

[Cookie]

Sooo sooo proud!!! Kamryn even wore her shirt to school today for her class to see :)
Holiday plan - Herm&I talked about this for awhile tonight. If you're like me this will still tend to be a challenge. i find myself brining hot artichoke dip to parties (i LOVE it) and then eating most of it myself or while im preparing it. I will consider it a HUGE win not to purchase any. I do do a good amount of baking for the holidays to give as gifts since I am cash strapped (Herm can attest that my fudge is the BOMB diggity! Im convinced thats when he fell in love ;) ) So i will have to consider how to go about this or a healthy alternative. I have already purchased fudge supplies hmmmmmmm....
I love, love love Pony's switch to giving the kids pennies for TnT the other day - fantastical!!
I did the Halloween suckfest wod. 1 real pullup per round, teeny banded pull-ups on 25s, 50& 75s were jumping (careful on my foot!) pushups were girls (cant bend foot well.....22:03 :)
Loved every gruesome second of it!!\
Hey Cyn.... how'd you do your avitar??

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oooh freaky... I signed in via Facebook, and it put my profile picture here as my little avatar. I didn't even notice!

I feel like I've been MIA for at least a month. Kept up with my Paleoing pretty well, except for little squares of really dark chocolate, the occasional Peppermint Mocha, or a night-time Tequila Sunrise.. when I think about how much I have changed (no grains, no dairy other than that Mocha) and no other sources of sugar... ) plus how consistently healthy all my meals have been.. I'm ok with my nutrition overall. Yeah, I could give up my little sins, but in the grand scheme of things they're minor compared to the total picture. One place I can improve upon is snacks - since I got kind of bored with my apples & sunbutter (gasp!) and the handful of turkey, nuts & fruit... I've kind of just skipped snacks altogether, then ended up hungry at bedtime. Thanks for the nudge, Stephen!

I got some kind of sinus thing 2 weeks ago (Corey, was it you who mentioned needing 2 weeks to get over something similar??).. I'm FINALLY able to breathe like a real human being, and FINALLY getting some energy back. I have managed to teach my kids classes (woohoo, they're so much fun!) but I haven't worked out since the Oly seminar with Sage. I'm hoping this week I can get back on the train. Cool thing though... no change at all in my weight. Huh.

I don't think I'm going to make the half-marathon on the 16th (unless I just get annoyed and decide to go anyway) since I haven't been able to run much at all, and obviously haven't moved an inch in 2 weeks.

Veggie Critters!! I had forgotten about them! Guess what I'll be making tomorrow. I may not share.

Stephen, good luck with the interviewing!

Pony & PB - 80s music is High School for you. Sheesh, I feel old.

[Xtina]

Since I couldn't sleep, I decided to look at the challenge! I love it.....especially since I started my own goal of recommitting to Paleo!

Herm/Cookie- Your girls are fantastic! It's so awesome to see them following in your footsteps and having a great time! I always think it's great to see kids doing their part with charity and volunteer work. So many people tend to think there are no young people or kids that get involved in their community and that is just not true!
As for the hot fudge that does sound delicious! Luckily neither I or my mother bake!
Herm- That house rental sounds good! Can I bring a friend?? I have a question for you.....If I want to have a shot at competing in the CF games, what should I be doing? I do the main site WOD and I run, but I'm not sure what else to do without overtraining.

Stephen- Good luck with your interviews! I know you will do fantastic!!!
I'm glad you're kicking old habits to the curb! I'm right there with you.....although I have no idea how you can NOT eat breakfast! :) I can't function if I don't eat breakfast, I'm hungry the moment I wake up!

Cynthia- Glad you are starting to feel better!

I did the WOD from Halloween on Sunday.....I"m still sore! Was able to do all the pull-ups though! But my lats are paying dearly! as RX'd 28:30......I went to go do sit-ups and forgot to get a mat......I refuse to get anymore butt blisters!!! So I ran to get a mat during the WOD!! LOL, slowed my time a bit, but NO BUTT BLISTERS!! whoot whoot!

[J9]

Still have to catch up on reading this new post....

No Avalanche today. Change of schedule and rest day!
Tomorrow I will be traveling - so it will be a hotel WOD.
Maybe Thursday?

Have a great day everyone!

[Pokey]

Herm-the challenge will definitely be a challenge. I can say I won't buy any non-paleo for me but my wife hasn't completely converted plus we have a 16 year old and four year old and an occasional 15 year old.

Probably the hardest part will be at work. We have people bringing in plates and plates of home baked goodies beginning in December. Store bought stuff doesn't do anything for me but home baked stuff...well, that's another story.

Cookie- your girls are wonderful. Because I am a step Dad I thought the best part of their posts was asking Herm when they were going to see him again. You guys are all doing something right - way to go !!!

Cynthia-cool pic. how do you sign in via facebook?

Stephen - good luck with the physical Friday. You'll do great. And make sure to remind us about your interview on the 9th so we can all think/pray for you then too.

Yesterday's food:
bfast-3 scrambled eggs with 1/2 a tomatoe, a bunch of left over ham from a baked ham, a bunch of baby carrots and a handful or two of almonds

snack-apple and a little more almonds

lunch-8 ounces free range moose meat, green leaf salad with 1/2 a tomatoe and carrots smothered in EVOO and a dash of italian dressing.

snack-approx 4-5 ounces of free range moose meat and another handful of almonds. Apple

dinner-missed do to catching bad guys. So worth it sometimes.

late snack-4-5 ounces free range moose meat and almonds

approx. 40-50 ounces of water throughout the day and 3 cups of black coffee.

[Herm]

Pokey, it lights me up when I hear them asking about me :)

Good morning all! I just put spinach into my eggs and I'm wondering why I haven't been doing this earlier....mmmmm!

I'm a bit sore from squats (overhead and front) and shoulder presses yesterday, but missed 2 of the past 3 WODs from the main site and would like to break my Avalanche PR of 27:43 today. We'll see what happens!

[Cookie]

Im shockingly not sore today...hmmmm. Today is 800m sprints so i will be on the C2.
Pokey, you mentioned the plates of food - my goal is to walk away from the plates of food brought in randomly and wait for a real celebration. I live near the boarder so the homemade tamales....;well if you dont bring em in for a potluck then, im gonna halfta wait on them.
I had a food find yesterday - one of the produce markets here does the fresh mixed fruit bowls (good sized) but marks them down to 50c or a quarter depending on the date - perfect mix for my smoothies!! Im all about the fritters tonight - thanks for the reminder!
As soon as it gets cold im gonna do a crock pot roast w veggies. been a while since Ive done that!

[Paul Casimir]

Here is that cabbage recipe. I followed the instructions exactly and it was great, except I left out the potatoes. If you read the comments, lots of people say it had too much oil but I thought it was good as is. I also used a pre-shredded coleslaw mix from Sam's Club rather than chopping everything myself, and added more carrots.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Ethiopian-Cabbage-Dish/Detail.aspx

[Gene]

2 days without sugar, staying paleo, and I want a pint of ice cream something fierce! did the snatch/ohs/run WOD last night. I scaled to 85# because 95# is about my PR on the snatch, and I think it's been months since OHS came up on the main site! My time was 22:29.

I've had a mental fortitude issue lately. I wanted to quit during the run of round two last night. I was telling myself I should lighten up on wod's, take a week off, scale to just three rounds, etc. Once I got the third round done though, I was too close to being done to quit!

Herm and Cookie- you guys are very lucky the girls are taking to Herm so well! My girlfriend of one year is moving in this week, and my two boys are a bit more guarded...

[Herm]

As soon as it gets cold im gonna do a crock pot roast w veggies. been a while since Ive done that!

Posted by: Cookie

HELL YEAH!!! :)

[CynthiaJ in Sunnyvale]

Hey Pokey - down by the Post a Comment box, it says Comment below or sign in with ... and Facebook is one of the options. I did that last night because it wouldn't let me post a comment any other way!

Paul thanks for the cabbage recipe. that looks yummy. what do you think it would be like with yams in lieu of the potatoes?

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1362076940]

A CFr in Alabama sent me this this morning - Go Cori!
Italian Meatballs:

2 pounds extra lean ground beef (buffalo works well also and I’m sure ground turkey, too if you’re opposed to red meat)

2 splashes of olive oil (prolly 2 tbsp)

Minced garlic, however much you like (I used about 2-3 tablespoons) – also if you can find a “roasted minced garlic” that’s fabulous also

1 finely chopped red onion

About a cup of chopped mushrooms, whatever kind you like

2-3 eggs (gonna depend on the consistency once you get to mushing it up; I started with 2, then added a 3rd one)

Basil, oregano, white pepper and rosemary to taste (ranging from 1-3 tbsp depending on the flavors you tend to favor)

Diced tomatoes (if you like but not necessary. Make sure you’re conservative or the meatballs won’t hold together due to too many veggies)

Put all of this in a bowl and squish together with hands until mixed well and can form meatballs.

Form meatballs about 1 ½ - 2” thick. Cook in oven on 350 for 25 minutes or until done. (I cooked them on a rack with small grates that goes on top of a pan to catch/expel the grease. I can’t remember what this particular pan is called, but if you don’t have something like this, you can fashion one, I’m sure.)

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Just a quickie post from work

Did the Avalanche this AM, hit start and just went off, huffing and puffing, man Im worse at rowing than I am at running LOL

Did not concern myself with time. Figured I'd just be scientific and record how much off track I'd gotten.

37:41

THAT IS EXACTLY 30 seconds slower than my September 1st time! I didnt do the October benchmark for obvious reason. I ran once since rhabdo, that was for Michael last Sunday. I have done no rowing. In fact I think I have done about 6, maybe 7 WODs since rhabdo. I have been very strict paleo :)

[Herm]

Cool! I'm signed in thru Facebook now too!

Aileen, hi! Great news about your Avalanche benchmark! Now keep doing the resting, and chill. As I stated in the main post, your performance should maintain if you eat correctly without very much physical activity. Concentrate on the food choices.

Paul C, I requested you as a FB friend, did you get the invite? Man you're popular, over a thousand friends?!

Gene, I hear you (rather, my stomach hears yours) on the ice cream. I am an addict. That stuff is like crack to me.

I ate yet another eggs with spinach meal! Wow, it really tastes awesome to me for some reason!!!

I've decided that I eat enough almond butter sometimes to make me feel terrible. I need to knock that off. Usually I can down one can in a sitting with various veggies and fruits, and the same thing happens to me as when I cheat on processed carbs: it puts me into a coma! So I decided that I will do such a thing on rare occasion only (when I want to veer off the Paleo bandwagon), and try to eat more meat/fruit/veggies instead.

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One day in and I'm all ready off the wagon. While working my buddy stopped at taco bell/ KFC and got some chicken wings and potato wedges. I had some about five wings and 6-10 wedges.

Bfast: 3 scrambled eggs with one tomato, bunch of left over baked ham

snack: apple and almonds

Lunch: green salad with EVOO, almonds

then the above briefly mentioned side trip to taco bell/kfc

dinner: yet to be determined

approx. 40 ounces of water so far and two cups of coffee

[Jenn from CO]

When I first read the Holiday Challenge I thought to myself it'll be easy as I work the holidays & weekends so I won't be tempted by food at parties & such. Nor do people bring in food - it seems everyone has a hard enough time to carting around food for one for four days much less bringing anything to share. And I don't bake holiday goodies - what's the use when it's only for one. But then I had a quick grocery store stop - and I realized I couldn't buy my half & half for tea or Coke (some days I've just gotta have caffeine so I am stuck) nor can I buy butter (I can't scramble my eggs in EVOO) and I shouldn't buy my Gatorade powder (I have drastically cut down on how much I use). Those have been my consistent cheats. And, honestly, they will continue to be. But I will only buy one at a time so today is was the powder.

By 11am I'd already had 2 eggs, lots of fruit, a steak, avocado & peppers. And I am starving again. I guess the amount of food I ate daily in Mexico is how much I should keep eating but that's tough.

I struggle with the mentality of if I don't workout each day then I shouldn't eat - or eat much. And then I have an energy drop like last night- I almost passed out in the 2nd Krav class.

Today in CF we worked on Hang Cleans, I think. Sorry- this Olympic lifting, power lifting, whatever is a whole new world to me. The thing we did today: started with the bar in the "pull position?" then shrugged the shoulders, jumped & brought the bar up to under the chin. Everyone else was about to do some rotation thing with their arms & drop down. I saw it but could not duplicate it for the life of me. Thank gooodness I was the only one using a PVC pipe or I'd have a sore chin from how many times I hit myself. But I kind of got the movement. I am the worst in class so it is very tough to go.

Good luck to everyone on your holiday eating.

[J9]

Patty's lil cookies!
Nice job girls on the 5K!

Was getting anxiety over reading the 1 day on, 3 off and was liking more of the mention of Corey's 2 a-days. Too many rest days makes me cranky.

Will have to do a hotel WOD tomorrow. Throwing out a challenge for your best travel WOD. Will consider a super-tough one! I have a jump rope and will probably end up having to do the WOD in my room. I can get creative on making space. Last time I did a double-under/hspu WOD, followed by a descending time ladder of burpees and sit-ups (2 mins, 90 seconds, 1 minute, 30 seconds).

Let me know if you have any fun suggestions and I will give it a try.
Thanks!

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Hey everyone the challenge sounds good. I have fallen off the wagon lately so I definetly need to get back on. On the 8th of November I am competing in a 24 hour run. It is a team of seven 1 person must stay running at all times and the actual coarse is 5 miles long. The team with the most miles completed will be the winner. Wish me luck.

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Jenn - the lifts are still a work in progress for me too!! What i know, Im finding out now from Herm that I've been doing them incorrectly. Once he moves here and we have more time to dedicate I will be all about the pvc!! Couple that with the fact I hit my boobs A LOT with bar!!! OUCH!!!
I think the most important thing for all of us in this challenge is to just make an effort to do better than we would have done, pre-challenge. WODs are sometimes hard to get to, food everywhere, but if you change it up and pass on this or that or get a wod in at a busy time, then that's a win!!
FYI.... for my snack today i tried the samples of the new LARABARS - Jocalat and Tropical fruit - TWO THUMBS UP!!! WOW!!!!