Happy Sunday!

I have been counting my macros as a way for me to really stay in control of my food, help digestion, get stronger with CrossFit and to make sure my body is getting exactly what it needs before and after a hard CrossFit workout.  Macronutrients are protein, fat and carbohydrates. These provide you with a source of energy through calories. They are vital for the growth, repair and maintenance of our bodies and each one will provide you with a certain calorie value per gram. Carbohydrates and protein each have 4 calories per gram and fat has 9 calories per gram.

I was getting into the habit of training clients, going for a short run, doing a CrossFit WOD, train 1-2 more people and NOT eating anything within 30 min after my workout. I would get home and feel like I was ready to collapse, low blood sugar, starving etc. Of course I knew this was not good for me BUT like everyone else I was putting myself last. NOT anymore. Counting my macros has forced me to get back into weighing and measuring my food, eating carbohydrates and protein within 30 min of my workout. My favorite snack right after a workout is a 1/2 cup of steele cut oatmeal and 1 scoop of About Time Vanilla Whey Protein Powder(mixed together). There are 29 g of carbs and 30 g of protein, only 4 grams of fat. It is a perfect way to fuel my body. When I get home for lunch(about 1.5-2 hours later) I eat a salad with 4 ounces of grilled chicken. I feel better, my body fat is lower, I weigh less, no more digestive bloating, I am eating a lot more food and I am getting faster and stronger in my workouts! I am so passionate about this way of eating now that I have started my own business helping people count their macros. It is called Chiseled with Chisholm. If you are interested please email me at caitlinryanchisholm@gmail.com. Lets's do this together!!

MY LATEST RECIPE!! Below the recipe, I have all the macros listed for you. These bite size squares are peanut-free, nut-free, soy-free,  grain-free, gluten-free and refined sugar-free. You know I love chocolate so here is a perfect mid-afternoon snack for you! Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 heaping scoop of Ascent Chocolate Casein Protein Powder
• 1 cup bananas
• 1 tablespoon raw cacao powder
• 4 tablespoons sunflower seed butter (a.k.a sun butter)
• 1 tablespoon raw honey 
• 3 tablespoons coconut milk, full fat
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 stevia
• pinch of salt

Instructions

1. In a large bowl add all of the ingredients (the bananas, cacao powder, sun butter, honey, coconut milk, vanilla, stevia and salt). Blend everything together using a food processor or Kitchen Aid Mixer. Blend until creamy and smooth.

2. Line a mini muffin pan with parchment paper liners and add 3 tablespoons of batter to each one or use a 9X13 brownie pan. Make sure you line the pan with parchment paper.

3. Cover and freeze until set. Approximately 2-3 hours.

4. Drizzle top with melted cacao chocolate or sprinkle with enjoy life chocolate chips(optional) or sprinkle with ground espresso powder.

MACRONUTRIENTS:

**There are 16 servings in one batch of this recipe.
Each serving has 63 calories, 43.48% carbs, 39% fat and 17.4% Protein. 
Ea square has 63 calories
6.5 g carbohydrate
2.6 g fat
2.6 g protein

Crossing the finish line.....

Happy Monday Morning! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I sure did. I went to one of my favorite places this weekend....Martha's Vineyard. All girls weekend...my sister Trish, my daughter Chloe and her BFF Laila. My sister in law and brother in law live there with their 4 children. My bro-in Law Jack owns a landscaping company on MV called Contemporary Landscaping. We stayed with them in their ginormous house. So fun.

A few months ago one of my clients told me about the 1/2 marathon on MV on 5/21/17. She inspired me so I decided to sign up too. We rode bikes all weekend, went out to lunch, out to dinner, hung out with Jack, Kim and the kids, had a few margaritas! Sunday morning was the race. Such a beautiful run!  If you know the Vineyard here is the course....The Half Marathon started at Martha's Vineyard Regional High School and runs the first 2 miles with the marathon and a total of 3 miles through the middle of DCR Manuel Correllus State Forest and pass the airport.  Then left on Edgartown road on the paved bike path for 5 miles.  Then left again, along Beach Road over the famous "JAWS" bridge with a finish in beautiful Ocean Park in Oak Bluffs.

I ended up winning for my age group!! I am soooo excited!! My goal on Sunday was to run the best run for me on that day, not to pressure myself and to enjoy the scenery. I start off in wave #1...the fast runners. I ran the first mile in 7:08, I am really good at pacing myself (I credit CrossFit to this) so I did not let myself run slower than a 7:25 min mile. My hamstrings have been extremely tight so they were "talking" to me the entire race and the bottoms of me feet were burning b/c of my new sneakers but I blocked it out and sucked it up. lol. There was one woman far enough ahead of me that I could see her but never thought I would pass her. I could tell we were around the same age. I knew if I passed her I would have a chance of winning for my age group. I got inside my head and said to myself what Ben Bergeron always says..."Pain is NOT a workout, pain is losing a loved one or stepping on a nail, a workout is ONLY uncomfortable." Thinking about this gave me more energy and suddenly I did not feel the burning in my hamstrings or my feet. I ended up flying by her and winning the race for my age group. Needless to say, I am thrilled!

Happy Easter everyone!! Today will be a fun day with Mark's side of the family. We go to his cousin Jimmy's house in Dover. Uncle Christian (Mark's brother) will be there and that is always a blast. Christian has a fantastic sense of humor so all we do is laugh. There is something special about each person in the Chisholm family...everyone accepts each other for who they are and everyone is truly happy for one another when something great happens in their life. No one judges or criticizes. It is a beautiful thing! I love being around them. Everyone asks, how are your clients, how's work, are you running the marathon this year, how is CrossFit going? That would never happen with my siblings. Sad but true. Fitness is my passion, it is my life and I love it! I am proud of what I do each day. I hope everyone has a wonderful day today! XO

Soooo much going on! This weekend 4/21/17 is The Comptrain Camp that I am attending in Natick at CrossFit New England. I signed up for it last fall and it is in 5 days! I will be training with THE BEST OF THE BEST...Ben Bergeron and Katrin Davidsdottir. Katrin Davidsdottir is the fittest woman on earth. She won the CrossFit Games 2 years in a row! I am soooo excited that I get goose bumps when I think of it. It is 3, 8 hour days of hard-core training, nutrition lectures and programming for athletes. After the CrossFit Open 2017 Mark qualified for the Masters Qualifier so he will be doing 4 brutal CrossFit WOD's the same weekend. Mark is #44 in the world for ages 50-54. 2 months ago I emailed the head coach of CrossFit New England and I asked him if Mark could do the Master Qualifier WOD's at CFNE while I was attending the camp. Harry, the head Coach emailed me back yesterday(finally) and said YES he could. WOO-HOO!! CFNE has 15 men and woman that made it to the Masters Qualifier so Mark will be working with the best coaches and 15 other masters athletes. It will be so much more motivating for him doing the workouts with other people his age instead of doing these workouts by himself with 1 judge and 1 person video-taping.  His chances to go to the CrossFit Games in August just increased by 15%!! If for some reason he doesn't come out in the top 20 after the 4 workouts at least he knows he did everything possible to get there!

Below is a clip of the camp I am attending. That is Ben talking (yes, I have a crush..he is a brilliant, passionate man) and Katrin is running up the hill. Check it out....