Sled Pulls and Prowler Pushes

Prowler push sprint!

Ever since I injured my hand a few weeks ago (and since I started being more patient with the healing process), I have been doing a ton of leg work.  With the injury, I have a hard time securing the grip and doing any backward motions with my hand.  I cannot do any shoulder-to-overhead movements, jerks, KBS, wall balls, front squats, overhead squats, muscle-ups, cleans, and snatches.  :(.  So you know what that means?!  Until it heals, leg work all morning, every day baby.

A Day in Jes' Belly

 Carb, Fat, Protein breakdown sample.

I had a few request for a picture blog post on what I eat on a normal day, similar to what I did for binge day.  I have been on the Paleo (no grains, refined sugar, soy, legumes, gluten, and dairy) diet for three months.

Anniversary Dinner at Manresa Restaurant

Three-year anniversary dinner at Manresa!

Yesterday, Eugene and I celebrated our three year anniversary at Manresa Restaurant in Los Gatos, CA.  We decided to splurge a little bit to experience dining at a two Michelin star restaurant and molecular gastronomy at its best.  For those of you in the Bay Area with a special occasion to celebrate, we highly recommend Manresa!  All their ingredients are seasonal and local.  Everything was top notch, from food quality to service to decor!

OktoberFit at CrossFit Silicon Valley

OktoberFit at CrossFit Silicon Valley!

Last Saturday, CrossFit Silicon Valley held OktoberFit, their grand opening inaugural throwdown for boxes nearby.  Everyone was invited!  Watching is free, but it costed $10 for all-you-can-consume beer and food.  Teams of three, with at least one female competed in four WODs in four hours, as RX or scaled.  The top five RX teams went on to the final showdown.  The event was sweet and very well coordinated.  It had sponsorers, photographers, a DJ, live entertainment, and of course, tons of beer and food!  KI Athletics had around 10 teams participate!!  There were prizes for the top three Rx teams, and also for the best dressed team.  Where else can you watch beer cans and super heroes WOD?

Mariner's Ridge Hike

Skye and the rarely visible, Molokai!!  Taken from the Mariner's Ridge Hike on a super clear day.

The most dear trail to my family and I is the Mariner's Ridge (Kaluanui) trail to the top of the Ko'olau Mountains in Hawaii Kai, Oahu.  The trail is about 3 miles round trip (~1.5 hours with pictures) with tons of photo opportunities!  At the top, there is an amazing view of windward Oahu and Kaneohe Bay, in addition to you know, Koko Crater, Koko Head, Hanauma Bay, Diamond Head, east Oahu, and the beautiful mountain range of course.  The hike is pretty easy, as it can be done in slippers.  We also like it because it has a lot variation from rock climbing to hiking to different mountains!

Jes' CrossFit Beginnings

Skinny Fat (January 2008) vs. Fit (September 2011) vs. Twig (May 2010).

Lately, I have been frequently asked about my CrossFit beginnings.  How did I get started, did I have any fitness background beforehand, how often did I go, do I have before and after pictures, etc.  So this post will be about how I started CrossFit and why I stuck to it.

Beefy Lettuce Tacos and Eggs

Two recipes in one.  Beefy Lettuce Tacos for lunch and Beefy Eggs for breakfast!

Lately I have been really busy at work and with moving.  I workout, go to work, sleep, and repeat the cycle.  I choose not to cook anything that would take more than 30 minutes since I rather use that time to sleep.  But I still want to eat Paleo and have some food variety throughout the day.  There is only so much takeout Mexican food I can eat before totally getting sick of it.  The other problem with eating out is they don't give you enough meat and the meat quality is probably not the best.
One day when I was driving home from work, I was brainstorming quick recipe ideas I can make with some of the pre-chopped food at Whole Foods.  Since most of my cooking time is spent prepping, I might as well try to minimize that.
So for the busy, the lazy, the picky, or all, this recipe is for you.  It takes 30 minutes to make, absolute max.  The base is minced seasoned ground beef that can be used for at least two of your meals during the day, depending on your appetite.  Beefy eggs in the AM, and lettuce tacos for lunch!  The two dishes have a great balance of protein, fats, and carbs, while maintaining variety.

20-Rep Back Squat

20-rep back squat!

Recently, I started to come in early to do supplement work, specifically to do some back squats!  I am really trying to increase my numbers, and I figured focusing on the squat would be a good start.  


The 20-Rep Back Squat program is "the brutal path to massive gains."  The idea is to perform 20 unbroken back squats in a single go.  One way to select the starting weight is to use one's current 10RM or 70-80% of one's 1RM.  For every successful set, add 5 to 10#.  Or if it's too way too easy, add 20# (Mickey!).  You should be able to get at least 10 reps in, or you went up too much.  Do this 1-2 times/week for 6-8 weeks.  Most people can reasonably expect to squat their 5RM for 20 by the end.