Hotel room chili & some awesome bodyweight WODs

Hello!

Happy Monday!

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T-MINUS 5 DAYS UNTIL WE CLOSE ON THE HOUSE!!!!!!

So totally can’t wait!!!

Thing 2 started school today.

I’m actually a little jealous.

She has somewhere to go and will meet new people and make friends.

Not that I want to go back to high school.

Been there, done that, got the diploma and the jacket to prove it.

But, I do have some things to do to keep me busy.

Like, a kickass body weight WOD.

Yeah.

I got through 4 of the 10 rounds and really started to question my sanity.

Not sure what made me think 100 burpees on a Monday was a good idea.

I totally would have done upside down starfish as my cool down but some random, slightly creepy guy showed up in the fitness center and was trying to figure out what he should do while trying to strike up a conversation.

Um. Again –

So NOT trying to strike up a conversation with random creepy hotel guy.

Anyway, I did a google search last night for “Crossfit travel WODs” and that’s how I found that one.

In fact, I found quite a few excellent sites with all kinds of crazy hard awesome bodyweight WODs.

This is the site that I used: CrossFit Steele Creek

But, I also browsed these and will probably pull from them too:

The Traveling WOD

No Excuses CrossFit

There’s even an app  you can download to your phone!

CrossFit Travel

All really awesome stuff!

Just because you’re away from your box doesn’t mean you can’t get your WOD on. 🙂

No Excuses!!

Okay, now on to the best part!

I made some totally awesome chili last night!

In the hotel room!!

Seriously!

One pot.

A few ingredients (thanks to this wicked cool package).

Under normal circumstances, I would use my own blend of spices, etc. but, we’re in a hotel with limited space and I don’t want to buy a ton of things I’m just going to have once we get our stuff into the new house.

I checked the ingredients list before I committed and it’s all good stuff.  Nothing I didn’t know how to pronounce and all things I would add on my own.  Of course, I didn’t follow the package directions EXACTLY – where’s the adventure in that?!

It all worked out deliciously!

Hotel Room Chili
makes about 4 gigantic servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 green pepper, diced
1/4 yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 package six gun chili mixin’s
1 can (14.5 ounce) fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 can (15 ounce) kidney beans, drained and rinsed (optional)
1/2 pound ground sirloin (use a full pound for the full package of chili mixin’s)
1/2 pound hot italian sausage (use a full pound for the full package of chili mixin’s)

1. Prepare pouches of Mixin’s according to package directions. (There are 2 pouches. I used 1/2 of each because I cut the recipe in half.)

2. Saute pepper, onion, and garlic in olive oil in a large pot/dutch oven until onion is translucent. Add ground sirloin and sausage and cook until brown. Drain fat.

3. Add diced tomatoes to meat.

4. Stir in Mixin’s and water mixture and drained beans (if desired) and bring to a boil.

5. Add desired amount of seasoning from red pepper packet and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes or longer, adding water if necessary.

*The package comes with a Masa Flour pouch that I did not use. Directions are on the package.*

6. Put into bowls, top how you prefer and gobble it down! Don’t be surprised if the neighbors come knocking! 🙂

Question: Do you work out when you’re traveling or on vacation?

– jennifer

An Easter-themed WOD and (better than Bush’s) Baked Beans

I got a sneak peek last night of this morning’s CrossFit WOD – the workouts are usually posted on the box’s blog around 5pm the night before. I’ll admit, I was a bit intimidated but I was game! So, of course, I had to rock an awesome headband to help put me in the right frame of mind. Who let the dogs out?!

And, then, this morning, the WOD was on the whiteboard. Oof.

In honor of Easter, Gil went with the biblical reference. Golgotha was the site outside Jerusalem’s walls where Jesus was crucified. It was a place of great suffering and each move in this WOD was symbolic of the crucifixion. And, while our suffering was minor compared to that day, suffer we did this morning. Through 14 rounds. What’s a TGU? That’s a fun thing called a “Turkish Get-Up.” Looks like this. Thank goodness we only did that for 3 out of the 14 rounds! Anyway, I finished it in 53:07. Worked my butt off and have matching “battle scars” on my thumbs to show for it. 🙂

Food time!

So, I made the best baked beans for dinner last night. Seriously. Better. Than. Bush’s. Not kidding. This shall be my go-to baked bean recipe – especially for potlucks. I promise, if you make these and take to a potluck, bbq, party, or whatever, you absolutely, positively will NOT be bringing any leftovers home.

Carla’s Baked Beans
Makes 10 servings

1/2 pound ground beef (I used 93/7)
1/2 pound bacon, chopped (I used center cut)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
16-ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
16-ounce can pork and beans, drained
15-ounce can butter, or green lima, beans
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
2 tablespoons molasses

1. Brown meats and onion in skillet; drain.

2. Add salt, pepper, and beans. Stir in remaining ingredients. Mix well. Pour into slow cooker.

3. Cook on high 4-5 hours or low 8-10 hours.

Here’s the nutritional breakdown according to myfitnesspal:
Calories 232; Fat 3.1g; Cholesterol 14.5mg; Sodium 618mg; Carbs 41.2g (fiber 3.4g, sugar 20.6g); Protein 13.4g

Spicy Garden Chili

Ah, chili – one of the best dishes for a cool evening’s meal. It was 35 degrees when I woke up this morning (um, I live in Florida!  Okay, I live in northwest Florida so it’s not as warm as, say, Miami, but still!). I had 11 miles on my calendar for today and all I could think about was chili for dinner. You know, thinking about food while running isn’t the best thing to do. Thoughts of food tend to make people hungry and you should definitely not be hungry during a run – really makes things difficult. Thankfully,  I fueled before I ran so I survived without any issues.  🙂

Anyway….chili! There are so many types, varieties and methods of cooking. I found a great recipe for a vegetarian chili and decided to go with that. Meatless, packed with veggies, hearty because it’s thickened with bulgur and just the right amount of spice – yum! Of course, you can adjust the seasonings to your preference if you want it spicier or less spicy. All that’s left to do is whip up some cornbread and break out the bowls and ladle up some deliciousness. Enjoy!

Spicy Garden Chili
Recipe courtesy of Cooking Light
Serves 9

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped mushrooms
3 tablespoons minced seeded jalapeno pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups water
1/2 cup uncooked bulgur or cracked wheat
2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can tomato puree
1 cup frozen whole-kernel corn
1 (16 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained
1 (16 ounce) can red beans, drained
9 tablespoons shredded Monterey Jack cheese with jalapeno peppers
9 tablespoons shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
9 tablespoons low-fat sour cream

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and next 6 ingredients (through cumin); saute 3 minutes.

Stir in water, bulgur, tomatoes, and tomato puree; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat; simmer 30 minutes or until tender. Stir in corn and beans (I added half a can of black beans for more color and yumminess!); cook for 5 minutes.

Ladle chili into bowls; top with cheeses and sour cream, if desired.

Calories 267 (29% from fat); Fat 8.6g (sat 3.7g, mono 3g, poly 1.2g); Protein 13.4g; Carb 38.2g; Fiber 7g; Cholesterol 16mg; Iron 3.9mg; Sodium 520mg; Calcium 206mg