Cooking Protein Bread

 #Eat clean and Train Dirty

I decided to start off by making Protein Bread, the first recipe in the "breakfast" category of the nutrition guide, to make a healthy high-protein sandwich to take with me and eat about 1 hour before soccer.

Protein Bread, according to the nutrition guide, is lower on carbs and higher on proteins and vegetable fats than regular whole grain bread. It's still bread, so don't go crazy eating tons of it, but it is the best alternative you can find for making a healthy sandwich.

I started off by going to a Nuts & Seeds shop to buy a few ingredients I was missing. I bought Linseeds, Pumpkin Seeds and pealed Sunflower Seeds. I modified a little bit the Nutrition Guide recipe; I used Almond Flour instead of ground almonds and white flour instead of whole flour -because my adorable girlfriend has trouble digesting whole flour-. I also used free range eggs because hey, we're being healthy here! The other ingredients are Oatmeal, Baking Powder and Greek Yoghurt. 

The dough is very very very wet and "fluffy". I was afraid it would not bake well. Other than that it's very easy and quick to assemble and mix. I used a silicone loaf pan and I baked the bread in a preheated oven for 60 mins, very late at night, so then I left it to cool down overnight inside the oven.

Voilà! The bread turned out great in spite of my modifications (it is actually mother in law approved ^.^). At first it is a bit unsettling because it does not have the texture of a usual whole grain bread, which normally are quite consistent, hard and dry. I don't particularly mind that, but for some people it can be an issue to have to eat such a hard, dry piece of bread in the mornings. The protein bread has more of the consistency of a cake, spongy and moist.

Flavor wise, the seeds on top make all the difference, I believe. I don't use salt when I cook and this time I think I could have put a little on it to make it taste stronger. It is a little dull on its own, but with some avocado and a piece of cold turkey breast it's great! Also this time I followed (pretty much) the recipe to the T, but there's tons of room to play around. I think carrots would be nice on it. Also I really can see it going very well with berries! I'll keep you posted on my future innovations... In the meaning time, it really made a great pre-workout sandwich, tasty and easy to eat; I could not be more thrilled!

In with the Nutrition Guide

Ok, so things have changed a bit (a lot) in my life these past few months. I'm living with my girlfriend now and the days of keeping my training "hidden" are behind me. She's doing CrossFit three times a week so, since we're both training hard and consistently, we decided to give the Freeletics Nutrition Guide a real try. Its not like we're eating only out of the recipes from the guide, but we'll try out the ones that seem the most appealing to us. From now on I'll be not only posting about the workouts but also whenever I try out any of the recipes (and I'll probably add up some of my own culinary creations since I love cooking <3 ).

Eat clean

Starting My Coach (version 2.0) - Fitness Test

As I was saying in my previous posts, I'm trying myself to make 2015 the year of no excuses. In that line, I've re-activated my coach and I'm starting to do Freeletics on a regular basis again. I started off by doing half Aphrodite on a Sunday a couple weeks ago and I was really sore until Thursday that week! Since I'm in the final rounds of my summer soccer league, I didn't want to see my performance on the field be affected by sore quads and wiggly legs, so I kept off of Freeletics. On Monday, however, I will play the semi-finals, and if we win, the final will be on Wednesday. That means soccer will be over, no matter what, this week. Therefore I thought now was the perfect time to keep momentum and "replace" soccer (which will most likely not start over until April) with Freeletics.

One of the things I like the most about the "new" Coach is how personalized it is. When I started doing Freeletics back in August 2013 we used to get e-mails with PDF instructions of the workouts with a few pointers and a couple of photos. Today, however, the Coach had me taking a fitness test to assess my current fitness level and plan my next week  of training accordingly.

The first step is to fill your profile; basically it asks your age, height and weight.

Then the coach asks about your previous sports experience, which of course is very relevant to asses the athleticism and fitness of any individual. It also asks about the frequency of weekly training.

Then you have to actually take the test; PushUp Max (100 sec), Squat Max (300 sec) and SitUp Max (300 sec). All exercises must be done in the star version. I did them all in a row, with two minute breaks in between exercises. The Squats made me sweat quite a bit! Overall I think I did decently (considering the months of inactivity) although I still have little to no upper-body strength as you can tell by my lazy 17 PushUps... Well, this is what I'm training for!

Finally I had to tell the coach what my focus is: Cardio for losing fat, Strength for gaining muscle or Both. I've always considered that the more balanced a workout is, the better. I don't want to become super lean and loose my strength on the soccer field, but I also don't want to just build muscle and loose speed or overall cardio fitness, so I still think a balanced approach suits me best for now. Maybe in the future I may change to strength mode, just to get a bit bigger and tighter. Also, since this week I will still have one or two soccer matches, I asked to only train twice -another feature I love about the new coach because it matches up better with the reality of how much time I can spend training, how tired I am after soccer, and it eliminates the mental burden that before was constantly saying "You had to train 4 times this week. It is Friday and you've only trained once. You'll have to train today, tomorrow and the day after to reach your weekly goal, otherwise you will have failed".

So after I cliked the "Start your Coach" blue button, the Coach told me what my two workouts for next week will be. I will be posting about them when they are done, but for now I'm just going to say that one of them is a well known old friend and the other one terrified me... until I realized it is a slightly simpler version of the WOD I knew from before the Coach, so I'm thinking now it's within my possibilities. I'm excited!!! Wish me luck and keep tuned for updates and more descriptions on the features of the coach!

Back In Training... with Aphrodite OF COURSE!

04-01-2015, 1/2 Aphrodite: *00:23:02

Well, I just couldn't start blabbing about the coach being on sale and all these New Year Resolutions without actually doing something about it, could I? I have to #trainforit !

I decided I'd start this new year going back to basics, starting once again with the very first Freeletics WOD I ever did; APHRODITE. It's been forever since I last trained, and it showed. We're in full summer here in Chile and on Sunday (when I trained) it was 36°C. I don't deal very well with the heat, so that was an extra difficulty added to my evident lack of fitness...  I was pouring sweat like crazy, completely out of breath and struggling with on and off dizziness. I had to stop and catch my breath a couple of times; then I decided it was not wise for me to go past the 40 rep series, and I'm glad I made that decision. It's still mentally tough to leave a WOD unfinished, but I figured an unfinished WOD is better than no WOD at all.

The 50 + 40 Burpees, Squats and Sit Ups took their toll on me. I was exhausted. Yesterday I woke up a little sore in my quads and pecs. I had a soccer match last night and it was a little hard to begin moving during the warm up because my legs were hurting a lot. I stretched and massaged a little when I got home afterwards... But today I'm feeling even more in pain, adding the triceps to the list. As usual, the worse comes 48 h after the WOD.

DAMN I needed to workout! I'm re-activating my coach and I'll start training more consistently again. This is it. I'm getting back on the horse.

New Year Resolutions (30% discount!) #NoExcuses

Hello everybody!!! It's been a while since my last post, but contrary to what you could think, I'm still alive and kicking. First and foremost I want to wish to all of you an excellent 2015. May this year be filled with compassion, happiness, love and satisfaction in all aspects of your life.

Today I want to talk very quickly about the infamous "New Year Resolutions". Weather we admit it (to ourselves and/or to others) or not, I think we all do some sort or variation of a new year resolutions list. It's impossible not to think about the good and the bad of year that has passed, and at some point of new year's eve we find ourselves wishing for better things for the following year. I really don't know what it is about the arbitrary beginning of a new year that makes us suddenly hyper-motivated to do all things we have been putting off during the year... but hey, better at new year than never! 

Often (always, if I dare say) the list has some sort of "get in shape" or "do more exercise" or "re-start playing sports" in it. In my case, that wish was more in the lines of "re-start (yes, again) the Freeletics Coach Program (AND FINISH IT once and for all...)". To contribute to all those fitness resolutions the Freeletics Team has decided to release once again a New Year's discount -and we are all grateful for it!- This time it's 30% off during all January on the Freeletics Coach using the coupon code: noexcuses

And for those of you who already have the coach, well, you can get2 free bonus weeks . All you have to do is click on this link and share one of the campaign videos on Facebook. Just by sharing one video, 2 free bonus weeks will be added in February to your Coach!!!

Let's all start together a great 2015, filled with burpees, muscle soreness and getting in the best shape of our lives!

(Posts on my actual progress will be coming soon -I hope-)

New Coach!!

Hey guys! I know I've been MIA for a while... during these past months I've been doing "Freelance Freeletics" as I'd like to call it (I'll explain that in another post), that's mainly why I haven't been writing so much in here. However I'm still a Freeletics Affiliate, and I got word of a very special thing I wanted to share with you all: 

The NEW FREELETICS COACH will be available for everybody starting tomorrow (Tuesday August 26th)

As a launching offer, it will be 30% off for the first 1000 coaches purchased so if you want in on it at a lower price, you better hurry!  (click here to go to the Get your coach! page)

I've had the pleasure of using the coach myself, and this newer version, as some of you may know, has many improvements, all designed for you to take your training to the next level.

I leave you below short descriptions of the main new features. Many of these changes come from the experience and feedback of Free Athletes, such as myself.  For example, if you read my early posts you'll see that, as a beginner, I started doing Partial Workouts ( 1/5 Aphrodite, quite exactly!!! ) but since that wasn't "supposed to be like that" I always felt bad for not achieving the set goal... and as we all know, a strong mind is crucial for success. Now, beginners can set reachable goals, accomplish them, strengthen their minds and commitment and move on to more demanding goals accordingly! 

I do believe that that is one of the most important changes made since it will really allow the beginners to work their way up, always feeling accomplished (positive reinforcement) and not "failing the workouts"  because they were just too hard for them to do in the first place (negative reinforcement). I'm confident this will allow the Free Athletes to grow.

100% individualized
Analyzing athletes experience and fitness test results for maximum adaption and personalization. Responding to weekly feedback and progress ensures a highly individualized program. 

Freeletics Running 
With the upgraded Coach, Athletes unlock all competitive Freeletics runs. Sprints, middle and long distance runs are integrated into the training plan for a well-rounded exercise routine and maximum progress.

Warmup + stretching
Training sessions now come along with functional workout preparation, warmups and workout follow-up stretches. Warmups improve mobility and motor patterns and workout follow-ups can shorten rest periods. 

New exercises
The upgraded workout coach provides more than 700 workout and exercises variations in type and volume - for both beginners and pros. Endurance, Standard and Strength workouts target different aspects of physical fitness.

Partial workouts
The upgraded Coach now adapts to each athlete’s specific fitness level. Beginners might start with 1/5 Aphrodite and progress towards the full workout as they continue to improve.

Set limitations & numbers of sessions
The upgraded Coach makes it possible to reduce the training volume on overly stressed parts of the body. Moreover, the number of weekly sessions can be varied between 2 and 5. 

Feedback for the Coach
The upgraded Coach listens to the athlete’s feedback and adapts accordingly. Too easy? Too difficult? The Coach will adapt.

Cardio&Strength - W3D3

 1/2 Hyperion: 00:28:35

 Sit-Up Max: *97

I said to myself: 

"There's no way I'll be able to do Hyperion. It's simply beyond my physical abilities. Why try? Why suffer? Why risk an injury trying to do something I know I cant do. I'll better replace it with a workout I find hard (not to be lazy) but that I know I can do, like Hades..."

Then I talked back to myself...

"If I don't try, I'll definitely never do Hyperion. If I have to try again, and again, and again before I can finish the WO I'll just have to do it. I'll not make the progress I'm meant to do if I don't REALLY push myself and keep having a weak mind"

Also I remembered Freeletics' first email that said "at the beginning your first challenge is to complete the workout" so this is my beginning with Hyperion. My first challenge is to complete the workout.Last week when I tried to do a HS Push Up modified I couldn't even do one. Literraly, if I went down, my head touched the floor and then my arms just couldn't get me back up. Today I had a hard time, but I managed to do them.

In Hyperion HS Push Ups come in series of 6. The first 3 were quite OK; I just had to get my torso in a not-so-vertical position to do it.... Like a hyper-modified version of the exercise. The 4th repetition started to become quite hard but still doable in the "comfortable" pseudo-verticality. During the 5th repetition I really think I'll not be able to go back up, but somehow with all my inner strength I manage to do it. And then there's the final repetition where I simply have to bend my knees a little bit (NOT touching the floor though) to be able to go up and not squash my head on the floor in the process.

I felt really proud of myself for pushing, specially mentally, ang getting the workout done. My arms really couldn't keep going so I stopped midway; I did 3 out of 6 series. Next time I'll do Hyperion, I'll aim for finishing it. Since I only did my mandatory workout it halfway, I decided to add a Sit-Up Max to "compensate" for the "missed" of exercise. I didn't do so great at it, but exercise is exercise no matter what!!!