The truth is that we are all not 19 years old any more. Weekend benders, and crappy food have gone out the door long ago and now we must make more dignified decisions about our nutrition. If you are over 30 and have gone to the doctor for a cholesterol panel, you may be slightly high for a number of reasons.
'Diet and exercise' your doctor says...
'But Doc I do CrossFit and eat super healthy'...
Not everybody is created equal unfortunately. Some may be predisposed to higher cholesterol despite the Paleo or Whole Food diet being a staple in your life. So we must look at our Protein; the one aspect of our diet that has the highest incidence of saturated fat and cholesterol.
I don't want to give any reason for Vegetarians to jump for joy but the one thing that they have on me as a meat eater is that my Protein sources are simply higher in cholesterol no matter how clean I try to source them.
Plant based Proteins are significantly lower in cholesterol. There... I said it... But it doesn't mean you should be going out on an all soy diet and giving up meat all together. Soy, for instance, is the most GMO crop you can buy and comes with a host of cancer causing properties just like charred meat. But replacing your 5 egg yolks in the morning with a non-GMO bean or some nuts can keep your Protein levels at a maintenance level but it will never be near the amount that you get when eating egg whites or some bacon.
Cholesterol levels in the blood are also a result of how much fiber you are eating on a daily basis. Another good aspect of switching to a plant based protein source for a couple meals a day is that you are, by default, going to be getting a good source of insoluble fiber necessary for optimal cholesterol levels.
But WAIT!!!! There is also FISH!!
Many fish like salmon, tuna, and herring just to name a few... give you a low cholesterol protein that is extremely high in vital Omega-3 fatty acids. These fatty acids help our digestive, neurological, and hormone health. So there is hope.
Cholesterol levels respond well to simple and steadfast changes. I am not one to espouse the strategy of a "cheat day" but if lowering your cholesterol is important, then I would recommend eating as clean as possible for 90% of the time and not feeling bad about enjoying a grass fed steak or a chicken breast from time to time. Don't stress, stick to a good high fiber diet and you will get the numbers you want!
Baseline:
20 X KB Standing Toe Touch
20X Windmills
20X KB Swing
20X KB Overhead Lunge
Skill Development:
Pistol Squat Progression
-Box Pistol
-Banded Pistol
-Bulgarian Split Squat
5X 10 GHDSU/ 10 Pistol Squat
WOD:
10X
1 Rope Climb
11 Burpee
22 Double Unders
*Compare to 1/27/16
