Happy New Year! It is the time again...new Year's resolutions. What were your New Year's resolutions in 2015? Did you stick to them? I can't remember what mine were. Lol. This year I am going to write them down and really work at them. Here are a few of mine...go on more date nights with Mark, spend more quality time with my kids, go out to lunch or coffee with my friends ( J.A, Michele, Michelle and Laurie if you are reading this), and build a huge following as a food blogger. As far as fitness goes I want to get stronger, get at least 50 double under's in a row (who am I kidding I will take 25 DUS in a row, why are they so hard for me? frustrating), get a muscle up, clean 125#! Ok, I wrote mine down now you do the same. Share them with us in the comment section below. I dare you!

Mark has been off work for over a week so he has been going to CrossFit Takeoff with me a lot more than he does when he is working full-time. Frequently, he will do strength and a metcon by himself during the week, hangin' around with me he is taking classes where the other people in the classes are fitter than he is or as fit as him...totally different intensity than working out by himself. Needless to say, he is working out 2x as hard so he is hungry. I came up with this "sandwich" for him for after his workout, it is packed with protein, medium glycemic carbs and good fat. I made one for myself but I ate mine like an "open faced" sandwich...1 pancake, 1 egg, 1 slice of ham, 1 slice of bacon. I just can't fit as much food in me as he can. Bummer. Try this recipe after you do a hard workout you will feed your body exactly what it needs. Sweet potatoes are packed with calcium, potassium, vitamins A and C. 

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons coconut flour
2 organic eggs
1/4 cup mashed sweet potato
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp ginger
1 stevia or 1 tablespoon raw organic honey
2 tablespoons full-fat coconut milk

In Sandwich:
1-2 organic eggs
1 slice nitrate free bacon
1 slice nitrate free ham

Steps:

For the pancake:
Whisk together the coconut flour, 2 eggs, mashed sweet potato, coconut milk and spices, salt, honey or stevia until smooth. On a frying pan put 1 tablespoon grass fed butter over medium heat pour batter to desired size (approximately 1/4 cup batter per pancake). Cook 3 minutes per side.

For the sandwich:
fry your egg, bacon and ham then put it between your pancakes. Eat and enjoy!

Can you believe there are only 3 days til New Year's Eve?  I can't. Wow, time flies. 2016 is going to be awesome, I feel it. I don't know about you but I am starting the New Year's cleanse today! I am totally grossed out by the sugary desserts, buttery mashed potatoes, stuffing, wine, beer, crackers and cheese that I ate and that was around me this past Holiday. ENOUGH! Thankfully, I worked out every day so I did not gain any fat weight but I am slightly disgusted with myself. A nibble here, a nibble there. Done.

In the afternoon, I thoroughly enjoy a small square of a paleo dessert or a 1/2 of a piece of banana bread with a small cup of tea or coffee. With all the over-ripe bananas I had sitting on my counter I decided to create a recipe this morning. This recipe has just enough sweetness to make you want another bite but is not overly sweet so you don't feel guilty after you eat it. It is super moist and nutritious too. I added chia seeds to make sure you get the extra omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, iron, calcium, protein and fiber.

This recipe is paleo, gluten free, dairy free, soy free.

Ingredients:

1 cup of coconut flour
3 very ripe bananas
4 organic eggs
1 tbsp full-fat coconut milk
7 tablespoons coconut oil ( measure as a liquid)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons of organic honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1.5 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup chopped  raw macadamia nuts
1/2 cup chopped raw pecans
1 tablespoon chia seeds
2 stevias

My Christmas present...The Kitchen Aid Mixer! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!

STEPS:

-Combine all dry ingredients in a separate bowl. 
-Combine bananas, coconut oil, honey, vanilla, coconut milk in your Mixer bowl and mix well.
-Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix well.
-spoon in 1/2 of the nut mixture to batter. stir well.
-pour batter into a loaf pan lined with parchment paper.
- Sprinkle the rest of the nuts on top with a little stevia and cinnamon. Bake at 350 degrees(in a pre-heated oven) for approximately 25-30 minutes. I like to take mine out a few minutes before it is completely cooked through and let it sit with aluminum foil over it. This keeps it really moist. If you like it a little dryer let it cook longer. Test it with a toothpick about 20 minutes in.
Enjoy!

Does muscle weigh more than fat? In a nut shell, 5 lbs of muscle takes up LESS space than 5 lbs of Fat. When placed on a scale, one pound of fat is going to weigh the same as one pound of muscle BUT they will look very different. A great analogy I read once is to picture a 1 lb brick and 1 lb of feathers. How different do they look? Muscle and fat differ in density. Would you rather have 5 lbs of lean, dense, smooth muscle tissue or 5 lbs of bulky, lumpy fat? I will take the muscle!

The difference in volume between muscle and fat makes muscle appear to weigh more. When a cubic inch of fat and a cubic inch of muscle are measured the cubic inch of muscle will weigh more. Body weight may increase as you add muscle mass to your body. The truth is pound for pound muscle and fat weighs the same. It is not just the numbers on the scale so don't get discouraged if you know you are eating clean, exercising and doing weight -bearing, functional exercises and the scale goes up a bit. Instead of being obsessed with the scale use your performance as a way to measure fitness. For example, just like running a 5k for time. Time yourself in a workout in January and do the exact same workout again in February, see if you can do it faster. If you do it faster you are certainly fitter! Try this workout below..

First, warm up properly then set the timer. 3-2-1 GO!

3 rounds for time:
5 burpees
10 sit ups
15 air squats

See how fast you can do this workout with perfect form. Never sacrifice your form for speed. As you get fitter your speed will come. It is always body mechanics first, then consistency then intensity(speed).

The Benefits of having more lean muscle mass:

Reduce the risk of injury

Builds beautiful, lean, strong body

Increases your confidence

increases your metabolism

Body burns fat efficiently

Increases energy

Improves athletic performance

Increases strength and endurance

more calories you will burn at rest

Improves posture

In the first picture above to the right I exercised a lot, mainly running and spinning classes. I ate grains. My children were young so I was trying to get in what I could for exercise with little time. By the time Conor was 13 and Chloe was 10 Mark discovered CrossFit. Mark would say, "Caitlin, check this out, this is going to be HUGE someday." We all started "dabbling" in it. We would practice exercises in our garage/barn. I started a kids class that both my kids attended. We were hooked. Eventually, I got certified to Coach it then Mark did. The best thing I could have done for my mind and body was to start CrossFitting. CrossFit is about performance not how you look. I am competitive in nature. I absolutely love to challenge my body, my mental toughness and my fitness. When I started doing CrossFit 3-4x a week I was thrilled that in a “Box” there are no mirrors, no scales…It was refreshing! The only thing that mattered was performance and body mechanics(your form). Lifting heavier weights completely changed my body and my fitness. My body fat went way down without me even thinking about it. All I had on my mind was to get stronger and to learn how to perform the exercises. CrossFit is about doing more work in less time. It was just what I needed. Who wants to spend hours and hours in the gym. Who has time? Not many.

5 lbs of fat versus 5 lbs of muscle

As you can see in the pictures of Mark and me our bodies look very different with more muscle even though our weight is the same in each picture. In conclusion, now that my focus has shifted to how I perform, getting stronger and faster in my athletic performance I don’t mind stepping on the scale and checking my body fat. I look at it very different. If I gain a couple pounds than I know the next time I go for a 1 rep max clean and Jerk I will definitely be able to push more weight. Find the exercise that you love to do and do it. Change it up once and a while so your body responds, be happy with the body you were given, make your body strong and healthy. It is truly a machine!

Chloe and I in Florida. I ate grains and just did cardio.

Mark and I in Florida in 2003. Chloe was only 2 1/2 years old. All I did was cardio and I ate grains. 

Summer 2015 at Saquish Beach. I CrossFit 4x a week, run, spin, do yoga once in a while and eat Paleo 80% of the time. Mark CrossFits 3x a week, plays hockey 2x a week and runs.

 I do CrossFit 4x a week, run, spin and Mark plays hockey 2x a week, CrossFit 3x a week and runs. We eat paleo 80% of the time. Can you see the difference in bodies from pic #1 and #2 and pic #3 and #4? Wow!