Copy & Paste...My Version.

Have you checked out http://www.threesixtyfiveblog.com/ yet?

Stephanie is a great, long-time friend of mine! She always has great blogs...even the super short ones that are just explained in photos! The following was copy & pasted from her blog and I created my own answers. Super fun! It makes you realize what you're really focused on in life: positive/happy or negative/unhappy!

Making : 

Tremendous progress in life. 

Cooking : 

A lot of things I would have never even thought about trying...eggs, green peppers, onions, turkey burgers, quinoa, cauliflower, oatmeal, ect.

Drinking :
Water and pomegranate tea. Needing a lot of hydration after this AM's workout!

Reading : The Compound Effect! 

Wanting :
A shopping trip soon!

Looking:
For more cute {homemade} ideas for my next Halloween costumes, coming at ya this weekend!

Playing:
all kinds of music. Nothing slow. Upbeat, bass "dropping" music really gets me pumped!

Wasting:
Nothing. I would have been able to say "spinach" before the last few weeks, but lately I have been putting a cup and a half of spinach in my AM protein shake! Weird color, but you can't taste it! :)

Sewing:
 I need to get lessons from my ma!

Wishing:
I knew what day and how soon I was going to be able to get butterfly pull ups and a muscle up. 

Enjoying:
the new CHANGES in my life. I am so lucky to be OK, happy, and excited about change. Jobs, workouts, eating habits/diet, meeting new people, trying new foods, ect.

Waiting:
for the weekend! 

Liking:
gum. Seriously, I have been going through so many packs lately! 

Wondering:
What the holidays will be like this year. And where I will go for my birthday in March!

Loving:
where I live. It is so central and quaint. I am so thankful Collin opened up his home to Beebs & I.

Hoping:
For another tattoo in the near future. This one will be very meaningful, as well.

Marveling:
how lucky I am to have such great people that surround me. Starting off with a person (Collin) with a great attitude as soon as I wake up in the morning, to my friends supporting eachother at the gym, to the friendly faces I see every day, and so on.

Smelling:
Cold pomegranate tea. YUMMO!

Wearing:
Black slacks, a turquoise tank, a gray blazer, and black pumps. Hellooo business woman!

Following:
The first thing that comes to my mind for these things!

Noticing:
The improvements I have made as a person in the last 6 months!

Knowing:
that hard work pays off. I am extremely excited for today and for the future.

Thinking:
about our honeymoon constantly. However, my body does not reflect this ;)

Bookmarking:
Business attire dresses that are super sexy, but very elegant!

Giggling:
has always been my expertise. One specific instance, recently...Collin trying to put me in an Herbalife box...and not giving up. 

Feeling:
Successful

Lazy Sunday's According to Beebs...

And LITERALLY, every other day of the week! Beebs is Italian, if you didn't know. So if you find some misspelled words, sound them out with an Italian accent. 

First, mum sits down to do "work" on her computer with my biscuit blanket...

I watch from my favorite rug in the bedroom...plotting my next move...

Zen, no matter if she's ready or not, I snuggle up on my biscuit blanket...even if her foot is under me. Either way, I must face away from her.

Zen my mum thinks I'm "photo ready"...not today, mum, not today! Secretly, every Saturday night, I throw huge ragers with the neighborhood & alley cats. E-magine the shadoobie box I have to clean before she returns—I'm exhausteeeeed!

I'm so glad I'm still facing away from her...e-magine za photos she would get if I faced her!

Oh, zat iz a good shot of me, mum.

Time to do my usual, 5 meenit, rotation so I can tiger-snooze. You know.

Competing...From A Beginner's Perspective

I remember how sweaty my hands were watching the competitors at the MAT Games in Des Moines, IA. I was so eager to be on the floor with the athletes doing the event. I wish I had signed up to compete, but had never done a CrossFit competition before...and it was a 3-day competition! As soon as I got home, I looked up the next, 1-day competition. There was one near by...in the next 3 weeks!

Now, that may seem like a long time. BUT, most competitors practice when the workouts come out. (At least one workout from the event is posted ahead of time. Sometimes more, depending the length of the event.) So 3 weeks was SOON. I planned to practice. I promise, I did. It seemed like the days "got away from me." Typical excuse.

I strategized with a CrossFit coach and mentally prepared myself.

The day came quickly...It was nerve-racking to see all of the different people. Muscly women, tall bulky men, short skinny people...I always had a prejudgement of each. I'm human...SHOCKER. Turns out, don't underestimate the short or skinny people! Dang!

Anyways...I haven't competed for anything since the high school dance team days. I loved the feeling of competing. I thrived from it. I absolutely looooved the rush. So I was ready to do that again. I mean, when you're 24, there's not much you can do as far as competition and being a part of something with such...

The first workout was great. Collin was my partner (this whole competition was a partner competition.) We faced eachother for the first WOD, and alternated a certain amount of certain moves...i.e. cleans, back squats, shoulder to over head, snatches, ect. I'd say we whooped it with one of the fastest times in our division.

The second workout was by ourselves but they added the two partners' scores together. It was 1 minute of as many power cleans as possible. OUCH. Seriously...this is when I remember my arms starting to swell. SWELL. You couldn't tell I had wrists! Then you had a 10 second transition to get to the "rig" (pull up bar) and do a "dead hang" for one minute...or as long as you could. Might seem easy, until you do X amount of super fast power cleans. My hands were numb and I am a chalk abuser when it comes to preparing my hands for anything metal. I reached into the chalk bucket to prepare myself for the dead hang...WITH ONLY 10 SECONDS, MIND YOU...and there was NO chalk. Mental buzz kill, WHAM! Ok cool, soooo let's get creative. Ok, no, there's no getting creative as the judge following me was hurrying me to get to the bar. I wasn't sure of the best position to stay still and to get that 60 seconds under my belt. The thoughts going through my head were numbing my hands...I think it was something like, "so many people are staring at me right now," "I'm going to go demolish one of those protein muffins when I get done here," "I wonder how the guy on the other side of the rig is doing (there was 2 people: 1 guy, 1 girl, on the rig at one time), "I wonder if I should adjust my hands, my fingers hurt," "man, 60 seconds is SLOW," THEN I opened my eyes..."I bet that guy is enjoying his donut and Diet Pepsi (ew)," "Shoot, do I cross my feet?" And I looked up to see 3 of my 5 fingers still clenched to the bar...I could hear one of the CrossFit coaches from the gym I go to telling me to bend my arms and squeeze my hands tighter...Just when I went to do that, BOOM. I fell. I looked at the clock, disappointed, only making it to 50 of the 60 seconds...10 seconds left, really? I beat myself up pretty bad after that point. Sometime later coming to, I gave myself a pep talk..."Dude, you lasted longer than some people! And you made it to a heavier weighted clean than others! There's nothing to be bummed about. This day is about learning!"

Now, I thought the 2nd workout would be the worst. Well, #3 (the final) was about to punch me right in the face. Collin and I were to start with 150 single jump ropes, followed by 12-9-6-3 of the following (each of us had to do all of the reps): dead lifts, man maker wall balls (BARF), kettle bell swings, with a cash out of 150 single unders with a 10 minute time cap. Every time we got to deadlifts, we had to take off or put on weight depending who's turn it was. Collin's weight obviously heavier than my weight. This guy was tough...Man maker wall balls...woof. Basically, these are doing a burpee onto a wall ball and then getting up to throw the wall ball at a target. If you didn't hit the target, the judge would "no rep" you...meaning you had to do it again and the first one didn't count towards your total.

I told someone recently that one has to be sort of sick and twisted (in a good way) to enjoy CrossFit at a competitive level. Depending on the gym, even in the every day workouts...we do some crazy stuff! I love it. I am so glad I did that competition. I know Collin is, too. We came out on top, tying with another team for 1st place. The tie-breaker was whichever team had more 1st places in the events. The other couple, unfortunately, got us there. So we received 2nd place. I'm plenty pleased with it, considering we DIDN'T practice any of it. (Trust me, I learned my lesson here).

I can't wait to compete again!

Cooler Days

Costume #2 of the year: Barbie & Ken

Beautiful color changes

Blair & I at the Herbalife Costume Party! Blair is a huge inspiration to me. She is so sweet and is a beast at CrossFit.

Learning from those who have become very successful and willing to share their journey.

Celebrating with people from all over the U.S. 

Although I am truly a SUMMER GIRL, I do enjoy this time of year. I love the seasonal change and the chipperness (is that word?) in the atmosphere. Right before the holiday season(s) begin, there is something wonderful that happens in the world. The colors of the trees/plants, those who exercise outside, start to come inside, the fall clothes layering, the excitement of cooler days (I'm a weirdo and LOVE a good HOT summer day...I grew up as a "pool rat"...can you tell? :) ) However, here is to scarves, hot tea/cocoa, snuggling, seasonal candles, family gatherings, and Michael Buble playing in every store!

Inspired.

Our dream boards: consisting of pictures of things we really want to work hard for. Some fun, some outrageous, and some very simple life wants/needs.

Top: Collin's goal board. He has a lot more detail than I do. I just got mine! I'm working on it!
Bottom: My goal board. Simple and necessary. I look at this multiple times DAILY.

My newly married friend, Stephanie Reed, inspired me to make and share this list of goals I have set.

Collin and I each have our own marker boards in our bedroom...sectioned out into different aspects of life: business, financial, physical, spiritual, lifestyle, ect.

Then we sectioned each off starting with weekly, monthly, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, and 10 years. I mean, we are thinking BIG. With different trainings we go to, the Personal Development we read and listen to, we realize that we can have WHATEVER we want in life. Literally, whatever we want. To be financially free, ride in an air balloon over the Eiffle Tower, spend a week in Hawaii (JUNE 2015!), go to MAC school (to learn to do make up with MAC), buy a pent house in LAS VEGAS...I LOVE Vegas, guys, swim with Sharks in Australia, build and own my own animal shelter, open a Casa Herbalife in the U.S., get my Level 1 to instruct CrossFit, real diamond pumps when I hit President's Team in Herbalife, buy a road bike, own my own floral shop, a fish tank as one of my bedroom walls, my own walk-in closet, learn to speak French, be a public speaker, write my own book, and so much more! Some little and some insanely outrageous!

But in order to have whatever I want, I have to practice small daily disciplines...
1. Budget
2. Talk to 8 new people/day
3. 10 (daily) affirmations
4. 30 Min. of Personal Development
5. 5 Things I am thankful for every day {saying them out loud}
6. Accountability (partner)/(Collin)
7. Meditating/stretching
8. Applying my gratitude and what I read or listened to for Personal Development
9. Walking into the gym with a "I can" or "I will" mindset.
10. Following my meal plan to a T. 5 meals. Breakfast, AM Snack, Lunch, PM Snack, Supper.

Well...Here I am!

Annnnd, here I am, 6 months later.


Alive & very well. If you were curious!

So much to catch readers up on!


I'm always up to something it seems like. Don't act so surprised.
New business adventures, new workout facility (yes, still CrossFitting), new meal plan, new books, new ideas, new everything it seems like. Just in this last week, I have made multiple decisions and am more than excited to tell you about them. First, let me tell you what's going on in the next few weeks/months...ok, just a few words sum it up—SO MANY FRIENDS GETTING MARRIED!

I am so excited to be a part of such a special day for multiple friends—Abby and Joe, Stephanie and Jeff, Ariel and Brett, and Melissa and Ben. While I'm getting ready for these weddings, I have taken some serious time to set goals for myself. I came out of last week with a lot of anxiety. Questioning what I thought I knew, constantly being critiqued, and really just confusing myself when it comes down to it. I had many deep conversations last week with a friend that seemed to really help me answer some questions I had about life and certain decisions that were made or that needed to be made. From these conversations, I decided a few things.

1. Being that I wanted to achieve a certain business goal and if I were to reach that, I would treat myself to some travel time. I am happy to announce that I will be visiting a very good friend of mine who just moved to San Diego in November. I've only made it as far as Las Vegas to the west, and would love to dive more into what's to see out there. I am so excited and feel like I have worked really hard to earn this.

2. CrossFit competing. While I'm only 8ish months into learning what it's all about, I am ready for the next step. Competing. I miss the thrill of competing. Even though it's always a competition with myself every time I walk into the gym, I'm only going to get better if I'm plugging into events that are going to make me try and be better at the movements. My friend, Kylee, and I volunteered at the MAT Games in Des Moines this last weekend. I have never really thought about competing until I actually watched the competition. So that on top of the conversation(s) I had last week, I knew it was time to dive in. There's no more "toe dipping" here. :)

There are many more things I would love to share with you, but I will save those for later! Until then, here are some photos that sum up what I've been doing!

Working hard at being a better athlete. The result of Toes to Bar. 

Discovering an obsession with zucchini and peppers!

Taking every opportunity to drop in at as many CrossFit's (Boxes) as possible!

My first trip to KC!

Extravaganza in Chicago!

CrossFit

"Wooohoo! Mollie asked me to write another blog for her spot and as always I am honored to be a part of it. Today I am going to talk about a new hobby that we have discovered. We have started to do a morning CrossFit class.  

If you have never heard of CrossFit you will probably start hearing more about it is a new fitness revolution that is going worldwide. The workouts are last about an hour with the first half being a lift usually an explosive Olympic lift like a clean, snatch, or deadlift to name a few. This half we really focus on using good form. The second half we go to the WOD room and do a WOD. WOD stands for "workout of the day."  These workouts range from quick workouts for time to longer workout for as many rows as we can do.

CrossFit is an awesome workout and has a sweet culture that comes with it. The goal of CrossFit is to use functional movement to improve daily life and have Constantly Varied Intensity. The culture is created by the WODs that we do.  CrossFit posts WODs and then anyone that goes to a gym with a certified CrossFit trainer can compete with others who did the same workout.  I just signed up for The Open which is where we actually compete with people in our region to make it to the CrossFit Games.  Anyone at any level can join CrossFit and it is  a great way to get an awesome workout!

Check out some of the CrossFit WOD's and their names HERE. Some days we do Hero WODs."
                                 -Collin


What is a... 

Hero WOD

CrossFit is quickly becoming “the training” program for our Military, Law Enforcement and Fire Fighters. Since day one CrossFit has embraced our men and women in uniform and they have chosen to honor the Heroes who gave their lives to keep us and our country safe.

These CrossFit Hero WODs listed below are some of the most intense workout experiences that you could experience. They have been conceived and are intended to be performed with intense effort, in honor of our fallen Heroes. Don’t think to your self, I can’t do that or it looks to hard. Instead focus on what you can do, scale where needed, and think about the Hero that has given his all for our freedom. Honor these Hero’s with your best effort. (to accommodate the growing number of Hero WOD’s, we have added a second page HERE.)