Fighting Post-Fourth Fatness

So it's the Monday after Fourth of July Weekend and chances are you're feeling a little more like Kim Kardashian than Kate Upton.

Just say no to refined carbs!
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An excess of beer, cheeseburgers, and those delightful red, white, and blue cupcakes can wreck havoc on your bikini body even if you intentionally starved yourself maintained a healthy low-calorie diet for the past two weeks in preparation. What should you do to avoid looking like a heifer for the rest of the summer? I'm glad you asked.

1. Put down the hot dog! Stop eating crap immediately. For the next five days you should eat primarily meats and vegetables. Limit the amount of fruit you eat. Don't even think about ordering Chinese. Dairy is not your friend.

2. Put on the tightest workout clothes you own and go for a run. Feeling your thighs rub against each other and seeing your muffin top pop out of your tiny tank top is motivation to commit to clean eating and exercise. Do not wear anything that resembles a muumuu until August. Avoid leggings and other forgiving pants.

This just screams sad and bloated.
I didn't leave for my run until after sunset to beat the heat, hence the headlamp.

3. Shower and moisturize. If you spent as much time at the beach as I did, you will be finding sand in your bathing suit until September and your skin is browner than a coconut. Don't add insult to injury by being fat and scaly.

4. Drink Alka-Seltzer. Drinkable aspirin in seltzer form that helps with indigestion. This is God's gift to binge drinking food lovers everywhere.

DIY Tip: Use clear plastic shoe organizers for your toiletries

You should be back on track by this weekend, provided you don't plan to repeat last weekend's behavior.

Kings Park 15K

So I've been wearing my Kings Park 15K sweatshirt around this weekend because it's red, white, and blue and it occurred to me that I never wrote a post on the race.

Back on March 16, I rolled up to Kings Park to basically pay to do my long run. I had finished the Caumsett 50K two weeks before, my legs were dead, and a "scenic, hilly 9.3 mile run through the beautiful and challenging roads of Kings Park" sounded like a great way to get off my ass.

CrossFit Central LI

CrossFit Central LI, also known as CrossFit Syosset, is 7.3 miles and 15 minutes away from my parents' house. Since we all know how often I go to my parents' house, it was only a matter of time before I would be seeking out a box for weekend use (and every other opportunity I get to escape Manhattan.)

I emailed the owner Chris and he welcomed me to drop-in. I AM OBSESSED.

I love the window reflection shot and it's my blog so deal with it.

On Friday I headed over to Robbins Lane for the 3:15 PM class, got hopelessly lost 17 feet away from the entrance, and drove back to my house to do what anyone would do when they are frustrated, sweating, and missing their workout: eat large quantities of bread with butter. I cooled down, called up Chrysler to complain about my air conditioner not working AGAIN, regrouped and headed back for the 5:15 PM class.

I'm not sure if Jesse or my mom is the worse photographer.
Audrey, when can you start?

I gave myself so much time to find the entrance that I arrived 30 minutes early. Fine by me because I got to see what the WOD would be. The coach, PJ, came over to say hi when the 4:15 class ended and I felt welcomed by everyone right away. This felt much less intimidating than walking into CrossFit Hell's Kitchen. I think I'm just much more comfortable on Long Island in general, but it also helped that the place wasn't packed with really attractive guys. (Not that the folks here aren't attractive, but there were only eight of us in there on account of the holiday weekend.)

never so thrilled to see a building before

Warm Up:
Run 400M, 200M, 100M

WOD:

Amrap in 7 min:
10 Thruster @ 155/115
10 Pull ups

Rest 3 min.

Amrap in 5 min:
12 Thruster @ 115/75
12 Pull ups

Rest 3 min.

Amrap in 3 min:
15 Thruster @ 85/45
15 Pull ups
Complete as many reps in each round as possible.

Round 1: 63 lbs and I made it through 3 reps in the round plus about 6 more thrusters and then I wanted to throw up. And by pull-ups, I mean launching my body around wrapped in 2 green bands. It looked nothing like a pull-up.

Round 2: 53 lbs, 2 reps, no-repped myself every other fake ass pull-up. It was effing hard.

Round 3: 43 lbs, 1 rep.

Obviously I had the time of my life so I went back this morning. I got to meet Chris and I was psyched when I saw Interval Sprints on the website.

loved breaking out the Saucony racing flats for interval sprints

So we started off by running around the building. If you were up at 8 AM this morning in NY, you would know that it was already 80 freaking degrees. Then we did my favorite things ever, which are kettlebell snatches. I used an 8kg kettlebell, although I realized that I shortchanged myself because I used a 10kg the last time I did them. We had 5 minutes to do 100. I had time to spare so I definitely should've used something heavier.

We did four or five rounds of 10 push-ups, 100M sprint, and 10 kettlebell swings. It turns out I have been half-assing my push-ups for years so now I make myself get on the ground for each and every one of them. I just can't get back up.

To finish off the WOD, we sprinted 50M and jogged back ten times. The sprint started every 40 (maybe 45?) seconds so it behooved us to jog back to the starting line if we wanted any type of rest. (Nice use of behoove there, huh? I'm more than just a pretty face.)

As I walked to my car, I found myself saying, "I love CrossFit!" out loud. I get what all the hullabaloo has been about because there was nowhere I wanted to be on a hellishly hot Saturday morning more than that parking lot.

Motivating Others

When I started this blog in 2010, I fully expected it to go the way of Creed's Word document and never be read by anyone besides me. Turns out I do have readers, although I've learned my primary demographic is twenty-something males. Might have something to do with the half-dressed selfies...

Anyway, I absolutely love when people reach out and tell me that In Shape Out of Mind inspired them to work out, try something new, or push themselves past what they thought possible. Sarah posted this to Instagram the other evening:

I am so proud of you Sarah, even if you now hate me for posting this on the Internet! Keep up the good work!

What's less cool is when you find out that the person you slept with for a few months who always acted as if he had no idea you had a blog was actually the person who sent you these messages months before you knew he existed. I knew his name sounded familiar.

WTF is a 25K mile?

Awesome or creepy, I am glad that I am having a positive impact on people and motivating them to push themselves.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July y'all! Independence Day is my FAVORITE holiday and I'm psyched to be heading up to Westchester to celebrate. The beach, grilling, fireworks - all in celebration of the greatest country on Earth - the United States of America!

I couldn't contain my excitement this morning and was awake at 5:33 AM. I hung out in bed until just before 7 and was running by 7:15.

Oyster Bay

Teddy Roosevelt

I obviously had to dress in red, white, and blue for my run. The shorts are Nikes and a real pain to run in because they have spandex shorts built in and those shorts refuse to stay put. The shoes are white and blue Brooks Ghost 4s. The t-shirt is Hanes, boys' size extra-large. It's super old and has shrunken into a crop top. The sunglasses are Knockaround because they are my favorite kind to wear.

Side note, does anyone know how I can get a pair of Knockarounds with the American flag on the sides????

Channeling Donna Martin's wardrobe from the college years.
No bellybutton is safe!

Thank God I entertain myself so much while taking selfies. Someone recently asked me how many selfies I take of myself each day - the answer is selfies any time and all the time. Just imagine how many never make it to this blog.

Stay safe everyone and celebrate the land of the free!

Flywheel Atlanta's Cara on Burning Off the Booze

My amazing friend Anna, who is one of my primary reasons for wanting to move to Atlanta because then I could see her every single day, sent me this blog post written by one of her favorite Flywheel instructors. Anna actually took me to one of Cara's classes when I was in Atlanta in April and she was awesome.

I can take no credit for this post but I wanted to pass it on.

How to Burn Off Those Booze Calories (From a Fitness Expert)

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Weight Loss Wednesday 7.3.13

Today is Weight Loss Wednesday even though the scale says I gained weight. I weigh 138.2 lbs, up from 137.6 lbs last week. I'm not overly concerned because pretty much everything can cause your weight to fluctuate by half a pound.

138.2 lbs
25.9% body fat

I'm just psyched by the progress I've made. If you want to see what a difference 5-10 lbs make, click on the examples below:

• Example A
• Example B
• Example C
• Example D

It's actually pretty shocking.

And I'm wearing jorts to work again today.

A Little Above My Skill Level

Last night I went to CrossFit at 7:45 PM and it was beyond humbling.

I think I looked pretty adorable in my lululemon top and Under Armour shorts (those things have been around since 2003 and they are still doing their job!), but apparently no one cares what you wear to CrossFit. After many years of being looked up and down (and giving the same treatment to others) every time I went to the gym, I still find it odd that no one's checking out my color-coordinated outfits.

I couldn't interpret the WOD on the website and therefore wasn't sure what to Google. I harassed nicely asked my co-worker Selby to explain it to me. Ten minutes of gchatting and a visit to my desk later, I was fully prepared to watch YouTube videos for the rest of the evening. 

Someone recently asked me if all I did was blog and watch CrossFit videos at work. The answer is kind of. I am an exempt employee, which means I have a salary for doing my job regardless of the hours it takes me to do it. Because I work for a non-profit, we are all required to fill out a weekly timesheet even if we are not paid by the hour. If I was in the office for eleven hours but I spent 45 minutes blogging, Facebooking, and watching CrossFit videos, I log 10.25 hours of work for that day. It makes absolutely no sense for me to leave the office to go home if I'm going to workout in my office building later that evening. I also queue up a lot of posts the night before and publish them during the workday to drive more traffic to my blog.

I digress.

The strength workout was Wendler's front squat. I was able to front squat 83 lbs correctly. Booyah! Ninety-three lbs threw off my form and I wasn't getting low enough to the ground. I also risked breaking my wrist when I realized my partner was significantly taller than me and we hadn't lowered the rack to fit my vertically challenged needs. You live, you learn.

Conditioning

3 rounds for total reps of:

1:00 ME HSPU

2:00 AMRAP of:

12 TTB

12  Push Press 115/85

*Rest 1:00

Notes: This piece is 3 rounds of 3:00 of work with 1:00 rest after each round. There is no break between the HSPU and the AMRAP.

No amount of video watching could prepare me for this. While attempting the scaled handstand push-up, aka kneeling on a box and pseudo-push-uping, I managed to slip in my own sweat and fall off. Obviously this happened right when Marc, the coach, came over to try to explain what I was doing wrong. I firmly believe that if you cannot laugh at yourself, no one can laugh with you, so I said, "Ohhh! You mean I'm not supposed to be doing these tangled on the floor?" I think he was so concerned that I had hurt myself that he ignored my attempt at humor and just kept asking if I was okay. Oh Marc, it takes a lot more than slip 'n sliding off of a box to bring me down.

There were push presses (with 43 lbs, my chicken wings need help) and there was some swinging around on the bars but certainly not in the same round. I could not in good conscience claim to have done a workout and post a score on the whiteboard. I really wanted to write, "Ech ☺ " but I was afraid that my intent would be misinterpreted. I had a great time but I didn't actually do anything correctly so I didn't write anything at all. I have no idea if that violates some sacred CrossFit rule but I'm not cool with claiming I did something when I did not. (I have no problem saying I didn't do something when I most certainly did, so consider yourself warned.)

I dragged my sweaty ass back upstairs, took a selfie (obvs), and collected my things for the commute home. You would think that I would've been able to sleep like a baby, but it was another melatonin night.

Boobypack Test Run

This morning I got up to run in my Boobypack. I have been obsessed with the idea of a fanny pack for your boobs since I first learned about the Boobypack in December. I gave money on Kickstarter and received my very own first generation Boobyback in January. I was a bit of a chunky monkey for the first half of 2013, so my Boobypack lived in my sports bra drawer waiting to be seen in the light of day. Today is this day.

Don't mind my bloated stomach. I was eating carbs last night. Eek.

This is what I look like at 5:45 AM.

The original Boobypack has single straps and they are not adjustable. The 2.0, which I am getting for my birthday and I am so effing excited that I bought it for my sister for her birthday so I can see it a month early, has double straps and they are adjustable.

I had to yank the top down to get the cups where they belong. Since we all know my cups don't runneth over, this is a perfectly suitable top for a casual run. If you've got the kind of chest guys notice, you will likely need more support.

The zippers are underneath the armpits.

The straps cross in the back.

I wasn't feeling skinny mini enough today to forgo the shirt so I threw on a white tank. I liked how you could see the Boobypack through it.

I stashed a Chapstick on one side and my apartment keys in the other. I thought I'd be able to feel them and that they would bother me, especially that Chapstick, but I honestly didn't notice them. I guess I keep my elbows a little turned out when I run.

The Chapstick in my armpit.

I had a nice 5 mile run up the East River running path and back. My best mile was 8:12 and my worst was 10:51. I was pretty achy. I started getting some looks on my way back and I thought it might be people's interest in my super cool sports bra alternative.

They were interested alright - because it had tie-dyed my freaking tank top!

My shirt was covered in pink because the dye used on the straps doesn't like sweat. Strangely the Boobypack was fine. I rinsed the Boobypack in cold water and squeezed out the excess water. Hopefully it won't run anymore. Don't worry about the tank top - a bath in detergent and bleach has left it looking better than it did when I put it on this morning.

The pouch turned inside out.

PROS:

• Looks awesome
• Cuter than the average sports bra
• Convenient place to stash your keys, credit cards, cash, Chapstick

CONS:

• Nearly impossible to fish out your keys when your tired, hot, sweaty and trying to get into your apartment
• Might lack the support necessary for more intense runs
• Dyes clothing

The Boobypack website says the product they are now selling has:

• Micro mesh lining that wicks away sweat
• Removable padding for added shape
• Double, adjustable, racerback straps for added support
• Reinforced, water-resistant, zipper-enclosed pockets on either side that can fit your cash, ID, smartphone and even your passport
• Elastic sewn into the hems for durability and stretch retention
• Unique dying method for color that will last jog after jog, concert after concert

I think all of my issues with the Kickstarter backer version have been addressed, except maybe for the pouch not staying put.

Overall, I recommend the Boobypack as a sports bra.

Hair Management in Humid Weather

I'm always astounded by fitness magazines that publish articles about post-workout hairstyles. I don't know how they define "working out" but I imagine it involves sitting on a machine and not moving. There is no way that a headband is going to make my hair look presentable post gym session because my hair is soaked with sweat.

For those of us with long hair, regular hair-washing can be a real pain in the ass. I'm pretty fortunate that my haircut allows me to air dry a lot, but if it's humid or I sleep on damp hair, I have the same bad hair day issues as the average person. I don't have the patience to style my hair every single day, especially when I know that it's going to be covered in sweat by that evening and I'm going to have to do it again.

If you have wavy hair and a straightening iron, I promise you can have hair that looks like the picture below in 8 minutes or less.

I sleep in my Sunday Funday t-shirt on Sunday nights.

Step 1 - Let hair air dry. I like to go to sleep when my hair is still a little damp.

Step 2 - Use a blowdryer if your hair is still wet when you wake up.

Step 3 - Divide hair into two halves.

Step 4 - Take one half and pin 2/3 to your head. Pull random pieces of the remaining 1/3 and straighten.

Step 5 - Repeat with the other 2/3s.

Step 6 - Do Steps 4 and 5 on the other side of your head.

Step 7 - Hairspray your head as if it's your ticket to see Jesus.

I like this hairstyle because it doesn't look too "done" but it also doesn't make you look like you rolled out of bed after being fucked. I choose the pieces around my face and ears to straighten and I also pick any curls that look a little worse for wear.

I have a Babyliss Pro 1 inch straightener and I use TRESemme TRES Two Extra Hold Hair Spray.