Cook bacon (Applegate Farms in this instance nitrate/nitrite/no preservatives!) in caste iron skillet
Add cut red onion, garlic, apple wedges (any other veggie you think would work)
Add spinach/kale which is just slightly wilted
Put spinach, onion, garlic, apples, etc. in a bowl and mix
Crumble cooked bacon over mixture
Served with hard boiled egg and Bilinski sausage found at Earth Fare or any other protein of choice.
It was incredible! Very flavorful!
Thank you for sharing Sean!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Coach Corey's Perspective
Over the last three years I have seen some fantastic improvements in body composition and performance gains. I have gradually decreased my intake of processed foods and spoken openly about moderation. I will look down on NO ONE for not following this idea strictly. Tom, Tamara, Mr. K, Matt(s) and anyone else who has made progress lately: I am extremely proud of your efforts. It has nothing to do with me, but I enjoy being around those who take pride in their own life and abilities.
My job is taxing, both physically and mentally. I have up days and down days; I have days when coaching, motivating and doing my own workouts are easy, and other days when I have to slap some water on my face, pinch my cheek and get rolling. I see a VERY big difference when I am eating well and eating poorly. My physical recovery from workouts and my mental recovery from each day wax and wane based largely on my diet. I have been toying with the idea of going "strict" for a period of time to jump start my system. Our entire existence is a balancing act of building yourself up and breaking yourself down. This is controlled by a hormonal balance between stress and regeneration, between improvement and usage, between sympathetic and parasympathetic neuroendocrine activities. Your relative improvements and losses are based upon that balance scale. If you are perfectly balanced you remain right at your ability. If you are unbalanced to the "breakdown" , "stress", "sympathetic" and "usage" side you start to do just those things. If you are unbalanced to the "healthy", "build-up", "preparation" and "parasympathetic" side you make improvements and "get healthier".
The DEGREE to which you are unbalanced determines the SPEED at which your health improves or declines. If I have a beer or a glass of whiskey every night but couple it with a good dinner I will not decline very fast, if at all. If I wake up to a shot of vodka, drunk by noon, eat a hot dog for dinner, repeat for 10 years, I will decline quickly. My intent with this strict period is an attempt at rapid improvements. I want to shift myself on the spectrum of health rapidly and with great magnitude. I want performance gains to come quickly and steadily. I have made small gains, loved them and felt very content. I have done this for two years. FOR ME, I want a change and this is a great way for me to do it. Two years ago I would NEVER have gone "cold turkey" to a paleo-diet. I had no desire to be strict. I knew others who were, they had success, and I commended and supported them through it.
Some may look at those who are strict as "freaks". Please don't. Support them as we support those who are not. We are individuals of freedom, of choice, of balance.
Happy individuals are those who are free to make their own decisions and are content in those decisions. My only concern for you all is that you are happy in your own decisions. My decision is to be "strict" right now is easy because I want it. THAT is how I knew it was the right decision to make. Two years ago it would have been a great struggle. If you, as an individual, are making progress, improvements and performance gains then I am proud of you. It matters not your current state, only your direction.
Everything in moderation, even moderation.
My job is taxing, both physically and mentally. I have up days and down days; I have days when coaching, motivating and doing my own workouts are easy, and other days when I have to slap some water on my face, pinch my cheek and get rolling. I see a VERY big difference when I am eating well and eating poorly. My physical recovery from workouts and my mental recovery from each day wax and wane based largely on my diet. I have been toying with the idea of going "strict" for a period of time to jump start my system. Our entire existence is a balancing act of building yourself up and breaking yourself down. This is controlled by a hormonal balance between stress and regeneration, between improvement and usage, between sympathetic and parasympathetic neuroendocrine activities. Your relative improvements and losses are based upon that balance scale. If you are perfectly balanced you remain right at your ability. If you are unbalanced to the "breakdown" , "stress", "sympathetic" and "usage" side you start to do just those things. If you are unbalanced to the "healthy", "build-up", "preparation" and "parasympathetic" side you make improvements and "get healthier".
The DEGREE to which you are unbalanced determines the SPEED at which your health improves or declines. If I have a beer or a glass of whiskey every night but couple it with a good dinner I will not decline very fast, if at all. If I wake up to a shot of vodka, drunk by noon, eat a hot dog for dinner, repeat for 10 years, I will decline quickly. My intent with this strict period is an attempt at rapid improvements. I want to shift myself on the spectrum of health rapidly and with great magnitude. I want performance gains to come quickly and steadily. I have made small gains, loved them and felt very content. I have done this for two years. FOR ME, I want a change and this is a great way for me to do it. Two years ago I would NEVER have gone "cold turkey" to a paleo-diet. I had no desire to be strict. I knew others who were, they had success, and I commended and supported them through it.
Some may look at those who are strict as "freaks". Please don't. Support them as we support those who are not. We are individuals of freedom, of choice, of balance.
Happy individuals are those who are free to make their own decisions and are content in those decisions. My only concern for you all is that you are happy in your own decisions. My decision is to be "strict" right now is easy because I want it. THAT is how I knew it was the right decision to make. Two years ago it would have been a great struggle. If you, as an individual, are making progress, improvements and performance gains then I am proud of you. It matters not your current state, only your direction.
Everything in moderation, even moderation.
Change Your Life Today!
From time to time the coaches at CrossFit Asheville are criticized for not hammering nutrition more. Ok, let's be honest we don't really ever hammer any of you, at all! Instead, we've decided to take the approach of allowing the clients to come to us when they are ready to make dietary changes along with the changes in how they approach an active lifestyle. Well, I'm not here to force anyone into anything. (You will not be successful if I were to demand lifestyle changes.) However, this is allowing you an opportunity to make a decision that will most certainly change your life forever...
Change the way you eat!! Gain a new perspective on food in our society. Challenge yourself to be stronger (mentally, physically, emotionally) than you may believe yourself to be. Overcome the "convenience" excuses that has put our society in the sad state it is today.
One of my mentors once said, "No one ever put something into their mouth by mistake." Rather take accountability for yourself and your daily actions. Including what you choose to consume day in and day out.
Join fellow CrossFitters around the globe who are taking steps to change their lives and discover how great they could feel if only they rid themselves of the unfortunate side effects of eating a typical American diet. For a great deal of further information and links please refer to the blog of fellow CrossFitter Melissa Byers here who is challenging CrossFitters worldwide to realize their true potential of gene expression via healthy eating.
Melissa presents some basic guidelines and below you will find the guidelines agreed on by myself, Corey and David Hughes. (A big thank you to David for initially inspiring myself through his goals. I feel it is only appropriate to further extend the inspiration to the rest of the CrossFit Asheville/greater CrossFit community. Thank you David. I can't wait to witness your continued progress!)
Change the way you eat!! Gain a new perspective on food in our society. Challenge yourself to be stronger (mentally, physically, emotionally) than you may believe yourself to be. Overcome the "convenience" excuses that has put our society in the sad state it is today.
One of my mentors once said, "No one ever put something into their mouth by mistake." Rather take accountability for yourself and your daily actions. Including what you choose to consume day in and day out.
Join fellow CrossFitters around the globe who are taking steps to change their lives and discover how great they could feel if only they rid themselves of the unfortunate side effects of eating a typical American diet. For a great deal of further information and links please refer to the blog of fellow CrossFitter Melissa Byers here who is challenging CrossFitters worldwide to realize their true potential of gene expression via healthy eating.
Melissa presents some basic guidelines and below you will find the guidelines agreed on by myself, Corey and David Hughes. (A big thank you to David for initially inspiring myself through his goals. I feel it is only appropriate to further extend the inspiration to the rest of the CrossFit Asheville/greater CrossFit community. Thank you David. I can't wait to witness your continued progress!)
- Eat REAL food-meat, eggs, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fruits, oils (like EVOO, canola, coconut, etc.)
- Eat foods with no ingredients listed at all because they're fresh and natural. If it comes in a package proclaiming how healthy it is, it's not.
- Do not eat dairy. This includes butter, cheese, yogurt (even Greek) and milk (including cream in coffee) Why no dairy? See Dallas's great post here.
- Do not eat grains. This includes bread, rice, pasta, corn (debatable), oatmeal and all of those gluten-free "pseudo-grains". They have been altered to make them that way and as such are not part of the plan.
- Do not eat legumes. This includes beans of all kinds, lentils and peanuts.
- Do not eat sugars of any kind, real or artificial. No agave nectar, Splenda, Stevia, Truvia or Sweet 'n Low type products.
- Do not drink alcohol in any form.
- If you have serious inflammation issues like arthritis you may want to consider avoiding nightshades as well.
Depending on the paleo resource you use there are many differences concerning what is allowed and what is not.
- We ARE allowing organic and local honey and maple syrup. However, no drinking straight from the containers. Limit your quantities.
- We ARE allowing sweet potatoes but not white potatoes.
- We ARE allowing packaged products without preservatives. Applegate products are a great example as seen here.
These guidelines will be amended as different questions arise.
Corey's birthday was Monday July, 13th so after we delighted in some delicious ice cream cake we declared the start date of July 14th. We are eating clean for 30 days straight (ending August 20th for us). A total of 10 "cheat meals" will be allowed after that. A cheat meal involves a three hour time period during which one may indulge on whatever food products/beverages one so desires. (The interesting part will be when you realize how crappy those foods now make you feel, but still quite enjoyable in the moment nonetheless.)
I am not one for scales, but we did take photos the night of July 13th and will continue to do so on a weekly basis. The initial trial period of paleo style eating will end on our 1 year wedding anniversary Oct 11th or 83 days from July 14th. At this point we will assess our experience and hope to be inspired to continue a paleo lifestyle. If not, at least we will know.
We welcome any interested parties to join us on this journey. Read about the many individuals who are commenting on Melissa Byers' blog many of which began their 30 day challenge on July 1st and decide for yourself. If you determine this is something you would like to try, set your own goals, IN WRITING. Comment here on this blog and get excited to discover how great you could truly feel!
This blog post is meant as a communication board both for those involved AND for those supporting the efforts of others. I welcome any guests posts. Feel free to email me ShannaDuvall@gmail.com and I will put up a post for you. If you have ideas for an appropriate post please let me know as well. One thing we are looking for is local Asheville eateries with menus which include paleo-friendly foods. Please update me when these are discovered and we will begin a list.
I look forward to the many success stories to come from the wonderful group of people we have in this community!
This all began here.
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