Name: Mike Carr (a.k.a. MC)
Age: 32
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 205
Crossfitting Since: June 2008
Attends Class: usually late evenings and Saturdays
How did you hear about Crossfit?
I heard about CrossFit from some skier buddies and my cousin who found it thru his MMA gym.
What were your goals when you started?
My goals were to ski faster and more efficiently with less injuries (I get pretty beat up skiing the way I do) and to be able to lift heavy/O-Lift without getting yelled at. You hear that NYSC?
How did your new regiment differ from previous training?
CrossFit is way more intense than what I’d been doing since college. I had continued lifting heavy (particularly squatting) and O-Lifting, but CrossFit re-introduced me to an intensity that I hadn’t encountered since.
How was your fitness level when you got started?
When I first started CrossFit, I weighed in around 225. Not sure of the bodyfat % but I’m guessing it wasn’t pretty. I was lifting pretty heavy, but that was about it. Metcon killed me every time.
Then came the Paleo Challenge:
Starting weight: 217.9 lbs
Starting bodyfat: 18.2%
Fran time: 7:34
Final weight: 202.8 lbs
Final bodyfat: 13.0%
Fran time: 6:45
In addition to the drop in Fran time, I’ve PR’d almost all my lifts and dropped 4 minutes off my 5K.
How do you like the community and support of the challenge?
Pure awesomeness. Love the gym. Love the people.
What are some of your goals for the next year?
Wow, I dunno. Getting a muscle-up and getting as close as possible to a 1K CrossFit Total would be great! Other than that, just skiing with more power – there’s always room for that
What is the difference between semi-compliance versus full compliance in your diet?
I started eating about 80% paleo a year or so ago, and saw some minor gains. Going 100% was the game-changer for me. I can’t stress the world of difference that last 20% makes. Absolutely astounding.
What does a typical day of eating look like for you?
I’ll have 3 or 4 paleo muffins (basically scrambled eggs with some type of meat and pepper in it), a banana, and coffee. Lunch is some kind of meat-based salad. Dinner will be some form of meat, be it grass-fed beef, chicken, pork, or some sort of fish, with sautéed spinach or asparagus and avocado. I’m also hooked on sweet potatoes with coconut oil and cinnamon on top. Snacks are usually some sort of fruit, jerky, and raw coconut from the bodega by CVS. Dinner out is usually the pork chop with mashed sweet potato and Brussels sprouts w/pancetta from Brass Rail. It’s a great dinner, and as paleo as you can get in town without just ordering a pile of sashimi.
How hard is to resist former foods that were part of your diet?
Once you really get going it’s actually harder to cheat! After the second week of the challenge I’d crave specific things, like avocado or a grapefruit – like my body knew exactly what it needed. The cravings for crap food stopped altogether. I got to the point where a sandwich wasn’t appetizing. It was pretty crazy.
What helped you win the challenge?
Planning meals was absolutely key. Failing to plan is planning to fail. The food logs definitely helped with that. I’ve never fasted on purpose but there are days where I’m just not hungry so I just go with it.
That’s great Mike, but what really led to victory?
It was starting up the meal planning – the shopping and cooking ahead of time. It took a while to realize that I needed to have everything planned and set because there aren’t a whole lot of options for you if you haven’t. Oh, and giving up wine and cheese was rough, but not as bad as I thought. I’d allow a cheat here and there just to keep sane.
Do you plan on continuing to eat this way?
Absolutely. Meg and I are actually starting an in-house paleo challenge of sorts tomorrow!