Larabars

I have been on the look out for a paleo bar.  Most bars have some sort of grain, but today I discovered Larabars!  They are made with only 3 ingredients: fruit, nuts, and spices.  How cool is that?!  In this day and age, the ingredient lists stretch on and on - and I don't even know what half of these ingredients consist of or how to pronounce them.  So I was extra excited to finally find a paleo friendly bar!  These bars would also be good for someone who has celiac disease and is following a gluten free diet.

I saw they were sold at Whole Foods so I popped over there after work.  I was planning on just buying 1 or 2, but once I saw all the different delicious flavors - I ended up buying 7!  Clearly, I am a bit of an impulse buyer and I haven't had sweets in a while...and by a while I mean a hot second because I have a sweet tooth problem.  But with flavors like: Apple Pie, Banana Bread, and Blueberry Muffin just to name a few at under 200 calories - I really couldn't resist.  Once I came home, they all sounded so tasty I wanted to open up all 7 bars and take a nibble out of each one immediately.  BUT, my practical side told me to exercise some restaint and try one at a time.  I tried the Apple Pie tonight and was pleasantly suprised.  It does really taste like wholesome apple pie.  I have a feeling I will be keeping these bars handy whenever my sweet tooth kicks in.  With no added sugar, and 3 natural ingredients - I am sure I will have to start buying these in bulk soon.  If you do buy a box of them, they are 10% off at Whole Foods (who doesn't like saving a buck or two :))  They also have other mouth watering flavors - you can see a list of all of them on their website: http://www.larabarstore.com/products/larabar.  Once I try the other flavors, I will be sure to update you on which one takes the cake!

Paleosaurus

So lately, there has been lots of buzz about Paleo and Crossfit.  Eating Paleo is essentially eating like a caveman/woman.  The diet includes local/unprocessed meats, seafood, vegetables and moderate amounts of fruits and nuts.  Of course, everyone's definition of paleo is a bit different.  In my opinion, you only live once so I try and live by the 80 20 rule.  Eat paleo 80% of the time and eat non paleo noms the rest of the time. 

As for crossfit, it is defined as a strength and conditioning program that is "constantly varied, high intensity, functional movement."  Initially, I was intimidated being surrounded by the heavy weights and half naked bods.  With time though, I began to fall in love with the crossfit community.  Everyone is so supportive and encouraging - and the eye candy isn't bad either.  The workouts are 1 hour long.  This hour includes a warm up, the actual workout, and the cool down.  The actual workout is 20 minutes max usually.  I love that all the movements can be modified - so honestly anyone can do crossfit.  We have people who are elite athletes and compete at the Crossfit Games as well as people who can't do any of the movements as prescribed.  But that's fine, because all workouts are adaptable to your fitness level.  To be honest, I have never sweated more/worked out harder in such a short amount of time.  Previously, I would go to the gym and work out for an hour doing boring cardio and some weights.  Now, I workout for less time but see greater results.  AND if I don't show up to a few classes someone from crossfit will keep me accountable and say they hope to see me at the next class.  All in all, I have been doing crossfit for over a year now and have no plans of stopping any time soon.  The community is awesome and the workouts really are the most bang for your buck!