It’s getting to be that time of year… the holidays are around the corner and it is time to decorate our Christmas trees or at least think about decorating them. Many people choose a theme or color scheme and others just like to use a variety of ornaments that have personal significance to them. Either way CrossFitters and athletes in general (runners, yoginis) would probably get a kick out of Christmas ornaments that highlight their passion for their sport. I know I LOVE the idea of CrossFit ornaments. In searching I didn’t find that many good options though, so I am thinking I may get crafty and make some. Here are some of the ones I found via Google search though. Enjoy!
Weighlifter Female Brunette Ornament Gift (They have a blonds and men too!)
Bacon Ornament
Heart, Sweat and Dumbbells Gym Workout Christmas Ornaments
Weight Plate Ornament
I am a woman and a CrossFitter. I absolutely LOVE to get new fitness gear and CrossFit apparel and shoes. I think I am not alone in this borderline obsession with fitness goodies either because CrossFitters are some of the most stylish cats out there! It is not uncommon to hear us gab about someone’s awesome new shoes, knee high socks, or where in the world one can get that awesome hoodie. Fitness becomes our passion and our favorite past time so of course we want to look good while doing our thing and since we spend so much time at the gym…that is what we “dress up” for.
Fitness companies have taken notice too. You can get minimalist shoes in every color of the rainbow and knee high socks customized with CrossFit lingo. So what will a lady CrossFitter like to get for Christmas, birthdays, or just because? Here are some ideas.
Shoes: Hello! Shoes are incredibly important for CrossFitters. They need to be able to handle lots of cross training….running, jumping, olympic weight lifting, etc. Shoes specific to running probably won’t work for lifting and vice versa and no one wants to change shoes in the middle of a WOD.
Toe shoes are pretty common in CrossFit boxes so the KomodoSport LS Shoe or some Fila Women’s Skele-Toes are nice possibilities.
Inov-8 makes a good looking, rather minimalist shoe that has become popular among CrossFitters. They look pretty snazzy too!
But the big daddy of CrossFit shoes is the Reebok Nano. Pretty much all the CrossFit Games competitors and elite athletes are sporting them and it is no wonder because Reebok has a vested interest in CrossFit so they are making gear designed to please this group of athletes.
Head Gear: We women tend to have longer hair and that is a royal pain in the you-know-what when we are working out. The headbands that Olivia Newton John sported are just not gonna cut it these days. I recommend Sweaty Bands and Bondi Bands. They would make great stocking stuffers!
Equipment: In general most of the stuff we work out with is at the box (what we call a gym). I have little desire to have a bunch of dumbbells, barbells w/plates, and kettlebells laying around. Too much to store and the action happens away from home if at all possible.
Stuff I DO want around in my off time would include a speedy jump rope (to practice those double unders), resistance bands for stretching, a foam roller for working tight muscles, and Lacrosse Balls for those hard to reach muscles that need some massaging. Though if you want to go all out…most CrossFitters would not mind having a set of rings or a pullup bar at their disposal.
Workout Clothing: This one is a no brainer. We women want to look GOOD during our WODs (CrossFit speak for workout of the day). Our bodies also tend to change quite a bit after we have been working out this way for while. It is a continuous change as we get stronger and the clothes we started out in become lose in some places and tighter in others. Clothing designed for Crossfitting is a blessing. The best place to get functional workout wear is the Reebok Store.
Gym tanks tops and tees are a good bet, as are good sports bras. Compression clothing is much desired. On the fun side though I recommend knee high socks in funky colors and prints or with witty slogans. These babies save our shins and legs when we are doing rope climbs and deadlifts.
You also can’t go wrong with slogan tees. There are some GREAT ones out there! You might want to check out the local box where the lady in question works out and see if they sell shirts with their own logo, those would be most welcome I am sure. We take great pride in our gym/box.
Paleo-Primal Cookbooks and Food: The lady in question may or may not be paleo. You should know right? Many crossfitters are, or at least try to be most of the time. Some good cookbooks include:
Eating paleo can also be spendy so any CrossFitter would be over the moon to be gifted with sustenance. Gift certificates for local butchers, Whole Foods, Tropical Traditions (coconut products), and online sources of grassfed meats would be amazeballs. Other welcome items might be a homemade gift basket of LaraBars and beef jerky, a case of coconut water, or some high quality fish oils.
I hope this list gives you some good ideas for your lady CrossFitter!!
Energy candy, chews, jellybeans…for quite awhile know I have known about them and wanted to give them a whirl to see if they really work. I know quite a few fitness bloggers, runners, and enthusiasts who swear by them. They look just like candy and come in a variety of shapes and sizes but they are more Red Bull then sugar rush. My workout routine though really didn’t require them. I worked out in the mornings, when I am naturally at my most energetic and fresh.
That changed this past month though when my schedule did and suddenly I found myself only able to workout in the late afternoon. It was a complete shock to my system. As my body was naturally ready to wind down and take it easy I wanted to get a workout in…at least one or two days a week. Yet every time I went in to the gym I felt lethargic and sluggish. Weight that I should have been easily be able to handle started to feel like it weighed a ton and I was getting pretty discouraged. So I decided to give some energy candy a try, specifically Energems, which look and taste kinda like M&Ms.
Eating or drinking too much before a CrossFit workout is a big no-no for me. It will start to come back up. This is why if I eat anything before working out it has to be super light, like a snack bar and a little bit of coconut water. Candy seemed like a great way to get some calories/fuel without having to worry about my stomach being full and having to run outside to visit with the bushes. So far I am really liking them too. The ingredients in energems are what you would expect from a traditional candy, though in my opinion they are a bit better…not so many ingredients that you cannot pronounce. They do have artificial dyes though.
They are made with real milk chocolate and are infused with energy by using caffeine, B vitamins and a proprietary energy mix. Three pieces of candy equals the same amount of energy in a popular energy drink…which I generally don’t like the taste of. These candies though tasted great, as candy does and they aren’t crazy high in calories if you are watching that sort of thing (only 15 calories per serving). I have been very pleased with how they have helped me power through workouts of late. It is important to me to workout and also not drag through them and feel discouraged. I know myself well enough to know that if workouts are tortuous every time and I don’t feel as though I am progressing, I will stop going and that just won’t do.
Energems are a delicious and low-calorie way to boost your energy, focus and concentration! Please visit energems.net for more info.
After rediscovering fitness and exercise a couple years ago it quickly became apparent why fitness clothing is such a big business. When I joined a gym, and it stuck, I needed to go out and buy some fitness clothing. What I found second hand (my preferred way to shop) was usually not sufficient. The workout clothing was either worn to shreds by someone who actually used it or it was new with tags but in size XXS or XXL. There seemed to be little middle ground. So I had to buy some workout clothing and being used to second hand (aka cheap stuff) I went to big box stores where I could get away cheaply.
This ended up being a very bad idea. I bought two $5 tees, two fitness brand shirts, and one pair of fitness capris. All of it was cheap as I wanted but I soon figured out why it is best to leave the fitness clothing to the higher end companies who actually know what they are doing and are not simply trying to churn out a cheap product. I guess I knew this already but since I just going to sweat tons and get dirty in these clothes I figured maybe I could get away with it. Wrong.
Every single item that I bought that day I still have but yet I never ever wear them. I will happily do a last minute load of laundry just to avoid having to wear any of those items. Why? Well, now that I know what good quality workout gear fits and feels like I cannot stand to wear anything else. The old capris ride down and show my underpants when I bend over. They fit bizarrely in the crotch area too and I am always pulling at them. The shirts ride up and show my belly when I am doing burpees. The waist area feels tent like and the arm area doesn’t stay put when I am moving and gets all bunched up. The result is that I spend the workout worrying more about my clothing then performing my best. Well no more. Now I will actually save up if I have to…to get the gear I need. It hurts a bit to buy a $50 t-shirt or a $100 pair of pants but they perform well and they last much longer than the cheap stuff.
I recently got to try some pvBody workout clothing and have been very impressed. The outfit they sent me looks and feels like uber expensive compression gear which is very popular among CrossFitters because they allow for more blood flow to muscles. They fit like a glove and stay put, which is wonderful and they are also made with high quality materials so I know they will last a long time and stay looking nice. The top has a built in bra and it actually works so there is no need for that extra bit of clothing. I am a DD so that is no joke yo!
I have been really pleased with these items and I know they will be heavily used. The top can be worn in winter with a pair of compression sleeves and the pants keep me toasty warm but not overly hot once I break a sweat, whether I am running outside or rowing inside, or both. They will work for all seasons.
I have my eye on this amazing top next…with a built in bra, I could actually wear a criss-cross design like this.
Easy peasy lemon squeezy: pvBody is easy. Take the quiz, sign up and boom, an awesome package arrives at your door each month with a hand picked outfit for you!
Every outfit is styled just for you by a pvBody expert. Each month you receive an outfit worth $150, but you pay just $49.95. You’re getting great, quality pieces for a fraction of the retail cost thanks to the relationships pvBody has built.
pvBody is not just another clothing company, but a lifestyle brand. Their blog is a great place to check out tips and tricks for healthy, delicious meals and at home workouts.
What is holistic weight loss? It’s about addressing the whole you instead of segmenting weight loss into it’s own little compartment. That’s what most people do when it comes to weight loss.
With weight loss there needs to be a combination of many things together in order to achieve success. Looking at various aspects of your life, not just the diet and exercise part.
They are the two most common components that get addressed when people want to lose weight. But what about your mindset, your level of stress, your work situation, the state of your personal relationships, your time out and relaxation, your sleep patterns, your level of perceived happiness, your overall view of the world? What about all those factors about YOU that really matter?
Do you think they might contribute and influence your results?
The clear answer to that is yes.
In fact I believe one of the main reasons that most people fail with their weight loss pursuits is that they are not addressing the rest of the problem. Often weight gain is a symptom of something else. For example, if you are stressed you will tend to reach for the bad foods. This leads to weight gain. The weight gain and more importantly the pain of it, is a symptom, not the cause. The root cause is the stress and until you deal with that, then chances are your success rate may not improve much at all.
Certainly this is not how it works for everyone, but often it is, and if you are reading this and nodding your head then obviously you relate.
First things first, stressing about losing weight won’t help you lose weight at all. And many of us chase our tails in circles stressing about wanting to do it, stressing about why it’s not happening fast enough, stressing about the whole process.
In order to take a holistic approach you need to first:
Relax
And Breathe…
Now slow down and take an objective look at your whole life, take a look at you.
Take the time to ask yourself some important questions, and more importantly, time to reflect and write down or think through how your life looks now and how you’d like your life to look in the future.
How is your level of stress? What would you like it to be like?
How is your work situation? Do you need a change of career? Are you happy doing what you’re doing?
How is the state of your personal relationships? How could you improve it if it’s bad?
Do you take your time out and relax? Pencil in how you will do more of it.
How are your sleep patterns?
Are you happy? What would your life look like if you were happy?
It may seem strange to think that these things can affect your weight loss results. But everything in our life is connected; we are a whole person. And often when we work on fixing the cause, our efforts to achieve weight loss, or achieve anything in our life, suddenly becomes much easier!
Jedha D is a weight loss and wellness coach who is passionate about helping people get off the merry go round and change their life from the inside out. If you need help with achieving better weight loss results and a lifestyle you love, please visit Jedha’s website for more info.
