Making the Garage Less of an Eye Sore in Order to WOD More

February 3, 2012 6 Comments

Here’s the thing about garage gyms: Floor space is a premium! We’re only working with roughly 400 sq ft of space (we’re lucky to have a 2-car garage) so it begs the question: What deserves this space, the car or the barbell? (That’s a rhetorical question since everyone knows the barbell gets dibs.) I so WISH I could be one of those keep-cool-my-babies folks that can workout in a flurry of garage clutter but I just… can’t… do… it. Clutter, and I’m being very literal here, makes me tense and I about had a seizure when one corner of the garage started to look like a tornado ripped through it because, “HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO DO A KETTLEBELL SWING WITH A CHRISTMAS TREE IN THE WAY?!” <– Totally cyber screaming while I seize up just typing this.

In less than a day, our garage underwent this makeover all in the name of making breathing room for barbells:

(Not gonna lie, I’m a little embarrassed with that “before” image! I feel like I’m hoarding.) It’s so easy to make sure the pretty gym equipment stays organized but it’s all the other stuff, the automotive cleaning stuff, the tools, the christmas decorations, that takes up valuable workout space. But it’s actually pretty easy to get it all organized and off the floor… honestly, it took us about 4 steps.

Step 1: Remove everything from the space needing to get organized. This will seem to make an even bigger eye sore since you’re essentially just moving the mess but, trust me, it’s for the best. This is also the step where I would paint the walls a nice sterile white shade :) but we’re just renting this home for the time being so that was out of the question. Unfinished garages… I just don’t get it.

We had to move all the junk over to the bumper plates and power rack side of the garage:

Step 2: Break up that big pile of stuff into small categorized groups of like-items. For us, all the mountain bike maintenance tools went in one pile, the snowboard tuning stuff in another, lawn & garden junk in a separate pile, etc etc.

Step 3 is all about containing the categorized piles. Visually, you can see how big of a bin will be needed for the stuff just by glancing at the piles in Step 2. You can find containers almost anywhere these days: Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Lowe’s, The Container Store… it’s all good.

Step 4:  Making room for gym equipment means utilizing as much wall space as possible so set up some shelving units and get those bins all up on ‘em! We found this workbench rigged with a power outlet and lights at Harbor Freight Tools and it cost less than a Reebok|CrossFit hoodie. ;) The 4-tiered shelves we got at Walmart. Between all the containers, the workbench, and the shelf, we spent less than $200! Totally worth it for more space to do box jumps and double unders, if you ask me.

Step 5 is really optional and only “necessary” if you’re an organizational freak like me. My idea of “heaven” is getting locked in a room with a label maker and things needing to get organized. Step 5 is all about putting labels on the bins (aka putting the cherry on the sundae. Insert the voices of sweet angels singing here.)

Other ways we’ve maximized workout space by using walls include hanging the bikes vertically:

We got some yellow hooks at Home Depot and we just hang a tire off them:

We also stole our office’s decorative wall shelves and now use it to store our shoes:

Even the shop lights have found a home up on the wall with a makeshift shelf comprised of a board and a couple of L-brackets:

So now all that sits on the floor of the gym are the plyo boxes, the DIY weight tree, the bumper plates, power rack, and the workbench/shelf. Aside from that, all other floor space is fair game for foam rolling and burpees. Lucky me.

Filed Under: How-To's Tagged With: , , , ,

Call It Anything But “Ice Cream”

January 21, 2012 9 Comments

 

What is it about Saturdays that makes me want to indulge in sweets?! To make matters “worse” I live near Boulder where those self-serve frozen yogurt places with the pay-by-the-ounce topping bars are a dime a dozen. But, I can’t eat that on the regular. Ohhh, I know, I know! Chocolate frozen yogurt topped with Butterfinger crumbles, brownie bites, peanut butter sauce, mochi, and fresh banana slices is freakin’ delicious! (I won’t even TRY to deny that!)

So here’s a little trick that’s well known in the raw diet circuit and has been going around the interwebs. I’ve been using it for a couple of years now:

Step 1: Peel and freeze banana.
Step 2: Stick frozen banana in blender.

And… that’s it. I top mine with slap-chopped nuts and a sprinkle of cinnamon ’cause cinnamon has a way of making food look prettier – just ask Starbucks.

You have to try this banana concoction. It’s so creamy and delicious (there’s a “that’s what she said” joke in there somewhere.)

Here’s the caveat:
Admittedly, even though this qualifies as Paleo I still treat it like a cup of self serve frozen yogurt topped with Butterfingers and brownies. That is to say, I don’t indulge in it very often. After all, an 8″ banana packs 17 grams of sugar. And while I absolutely agree that a banana has its rightful place in a nutritious diet, I still believe a sugar is a sugar is a sugar. If I didn’t, I’d probably be getting drunk off fruit juice right now. I tend to stick with 1/2 a banana max and I eat this wanna-be frozen yogurt maybe once a month. So that’s my personal full disclosure.

Filed Under: Recipes & Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , ,

If MC Hammer Worked Out, He Would Wear These Shorts

January 19, 2012 10 Comments

Workout clothes. There have been days when I just don’t feel motivated to work out… and then I put on some [cute] workout clothes and suddenly I’ve got more zap zip zing than 4 cups of coffee ever could’ve given me. But here’s the (unfortunate) thing: is it just me or do workout clothes cost almost an arm and quadricep?! It makes no sense. These tight constricting clothes barely cover anything and I wear it for but a hot minute… wait a minute! This is starting to sound like something one would get at a store that starts with “Victoria’s” and ends in “Secret.”

Here’s the good news: It’s January (I know, tell you something you don’t already know.) It’s the middle of winter which means: NOW is the time to stock up on summer spandex – if that’s your thing.

I didn’t think these “the 1980′s called and want their spandex back” Reebok shorts were my thing until I looked at the additional 50% off-the-already-low-price tag. For less than $6, yeah, I could suddenly get into abstract teal, pink, and neon orange eyesore prints. (I can’t help that I like saving money.)

I also managed to score a black racer back baby-doll workout top from Target for, wait for it, $5.48. Clearance racks are SO my thing.

So, anyway, anytime I’m in a store that sells clothes, I make it a point to drop by their activewear dept and check to see if there are summer workout clothes on the clearance racks. Now is the time! I keep hoping all the summery colors might be extra extra extra motivation to workout in winter which might make barely-there-things from stores that start with “Victoria’s” and ends with “Secret” just a little more appealing. Who am I kidding; that actually won’t work for me unless said store wants to start selling “active” wear for a whopping five whole dollars. (And that won’t happen as long as beauty blondes and brunettes strut down glittery catwalks in oversized Angel wings.) Oh! But, they do sell really cute VSX workout and yoga clothes now!!!

Filed Under: Psychobabble Tagged With: , , , ,
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