Theory to Practice

“Any intelligent fool can invent further complications, but it takes a genius to retain, or to recapture, simplicity.”

~ E.F. Schumacher

I’m sure many of you have already seen this Washington Post article about the increased incidence of  non-battle related musculo-skeletal injuries sustained by American (and, I would presume, other countries as well) troops engaged in the  Iraq and Afghanistan theater of operations.  I have been of the opinion for quite sometime that the military is woefully inadequate in its physical preparation of troops for combat operations.  If whatever entity is in charge of the military’s physical preparedness was a the strength and conditioning staff at even a bottom-tier college athletic program, they’d have long ago been roundly dumped.  Anyone familiar with general military physical preparedness knows that there is a complete absence of hip extension work in the overall program (body weight or otherwise), and a predominance of long, slow running.  This training methodology, of course, bears little resemblance to what soldiers will face in the real world.  A sensible program of high-intensity, sprint and weights predominant work (and plenty of hip extension work as well) is what these soldiers need.  The military would be well-advised to incorporate a CrossFit-like training regimen, with an emphasis on sprinting and high-intensity weight room work, and training for the unknown and the unknowable.  What is known, though, is that there is no place for long, slow running, sit-ups, and other such nonsense.

Along this same line of thought, let me interject with a reader’s question

Keith,

I was hoping you could offer some ideas to my current situation. You are one of the most knowledgeable writers I am regularly reading.  Sorry for the length.  I am currently in the running for a federal law enforcement position. I am training for a fitness test. Unfortunately, most law enforcement and military fitness tests are still endurance based. They lack a lot of real world application if you ask me. That is a rant for another time. Here are the tests:

Sit-up – as many as possible in 1 minute

300-meter sprint

Push-up – as many as possible, untimed

1.5-mile run

Pull-ups – as many as possible, untimed

(In that order, with approximately 5 minute breaks in between each event)

I have to admit that endurance has always been a problem. I seem to be naturally predisposed to the strength and power end of the spectrum. I have never been a fan of training for endurance either.

I would love to hear your thoughts and advice. I appreciate any thing you can offer.  Thanks and keep the great posts coming along!

Sincerely,

Jason

So here we have a case-in-point dilemma.  This individual is well aware of this test not being indicative of what an officer will face in the real world, however, his is stuck in having to master its content.  The 300 meter sprint and the pull-ups?  Right on.  The rest?  Shit-can that stupid crap.  And yes, even the push-ups.  Anyway, here was my reply:

Jason,

Write back and let me know how much time you have to prepare for this test and I’ll be able to outline a more detailed plan for you.

(*Note: Jason wrote back to let me know the following: For the 1.5-mile run, the passing time is under 12 minutes and to max it is under 9 minutes.  For the 300-meter run, the passing is under 50 seconds and to max it is under 41 seconds.  Long term goal is to max them both, but the immediate is to run the 300-meters in about 45 seconds and the 1.5-mile in the 10’s.)

Basically, though, this is how I’d attack it (I’m going to assume shooting for max points, ’cause that’s just how I am):
First off, I’m going to assume that this test is coming up pretty quick, and I’m assuming, as well, that we can concentrate on the runs at the expense of the push-ups, pull-ups and sit-ups.

We’re faced here with having to train for two different energy system requirements in the runs, and we’ll be forced to train them concurrently.  I would suggest that your total volume per training day should not exceed 1.5 miles, and I’d maintain a training frequency of every-other day (or so).  Break the first 300 meters of that into 3 x 100’s.  Sprint each of these segments, with a full recovery between each segment, in something < 15 seconds.  We’ll call a full recovery, at the onset, 2 minutes.  Each subsequent workout, then, shave some time off your recovery while at the same time attempting to shave a bit from each individual sprint time.  Now, break the remaining approx. 2200 meters (if the math conversion off the top of my head is correct) into 10 x 220 meters.  Now apply the same sprint/ full recovery concept to this chunk.  Let’s just say, in order to make the math easy, that we’ll begin with a goal of 50 sec’s for each 220 meter sprint, with a full (2 minute) recovery.  On each subsequent workout, shave off a few sec’s from the sprint time goal, and some off of the recovery time.  Ultimately, you want to shoot for shattering the (total) time requirement for each test portion when it’s broken-up this way, then work on shortening the recovery time between each sprint.  About once every 10 days or so (in place of one of your sprint workouts), I’d do a “distance check”.  This is done by setting a count-down stopwatch for (as an example) 45 sec’s, then sprinting all-out for distance.  Did you get 300 meters in? Great!  If not, you now have a “distance” deficit amount to make up which is much easier than a “time” deficiency to visualize.  Do the same test w/ the 1.5 mile run.

Hope this helps get you going in the right direction.  Feel free to hit me w/any further questions.

Of course, (and Jason is well aware of this), nothing will prepare him for the real-world of possible law enforcement encounters like a well-rounded, CrossFit-like program will.  It’s just a shame that the military and law enforcement “establishment” is as backwards in their physical preparedness prescriptions as the government is in its nutritional recommendations.

In Health,

Keith

“Troubles impending always seem worse than troubles surmounted, but this does not prove that they really are.”

~ Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.

The diet and nutrition “establishment” really just doesn’t get it, do they? You’d think that a university study (Harvard, no less!), titled thusly:

Diets That Reduce Calories Lead to Weight Loss, Regardless of Carbohydrate, Protein or Fat Content

might offer a glimmer of intriguing scientific insight.  Maybe a well-designed study, the results of which force a rethinking of prior-held beliefs.  Not. Just have a look at the carbohydrate content of all four of the various diets used in this study.  Carb. content for all of the diets used fell between 35 and 65 percent of total calories. And to make matters worse, no mention (at least not in this release. Maybe in the study itself?) of what, for the purposes of the study, constitutes a “carbohydrate” calorie. Did a carbohydrate block of Oreos and an equal block composed of leafy greens carry the same weight?  Things that make ya go, hmm.

Really, I expect quite a bit more out of an illustrious institution like Harvard.  I mean, it is Harvard, for godsakes.  Hell, I could get the same dull-minded drivel from The Biggest Loser — which, by the way, I attempted to watch for the first time this week while awaiting the Obama address.  What a complete waste of a perfectly good 5 minutes of my time.  I hate to sound like a pessimist, but with the likes of The Biggest Loser and Harvard leading the way, the overall health of this nation will get a hell of a lot worse before it gets any better.

In Health,

Keith 

“It’s not the genius who is 100 years ahead of his time but average man who is 100 years behind it.”

~ Robert Musil

Vern Gambetta opined about the NFL Combine recently, in an interesting piece over at the EliteTrack site. I have to say that, although I enjoy following the Combine and the various “Pro Days” throughout March, I have to agree with Vern that little of true value (outside of the entertainment aspect) can be derived from these events. What happens, of course, is that the potential NFL draftees – out of necessity (and who can blame them?) – train specifically for the few tests administered at these “showcase events”. And to make matters worse, the tests themselves aren’t truly indicative of how a potential draftee will perform on the field. Let me rephrase that. The test themselves might tell you who the best athletes are at those particular events, but not, for example, who will wind up as a prolific, team-turning, running back. The 225 lb. bench press for reps is one example. For the life of me, I can’t figure out what football skill can be correlated to the bench press, much less a bench press for maximum reps.

Now, what about all that business I wrote about the vertical jump awhile back? What about the SPARQ tests I was enamored with? Big, big difference here folks, in our two “potentials” pool. The pool of potential NFL draftee’s is, no two ways about it, a highly select group of athletic freaks. My task (if I were a scout) at the Combine and Pro Day events is to rank the best athletes in the country at their respective positions, not to vet a group of relative unknowns according to potential athletic ability. This is a very important point, as each successive layer of athletic “herd culling” requires, then, ever more precise and ever more pinpointed analytical tools.

What I’d like to see is an agreed upon before hand, position-specific set of skills tests that would be administered and run in a Crossfit Games like fashion. Put a set of meaningful (i.e., no bench press nonsense), position-specific drills and exercises in a hopper, and draw-out a few to test each fitness aspect critical to the position in question. Such a “skills & drills selection” could be performed and agreed upon (though kept secret) by, say, a scouting committee, well ahead of time. The actual, particular tests, then, would change every year. This would serve the draftee’s best interest by forcing him to train and prepare for a wider range of modalities, thereby (1) increasing his overall GPP fitness, and (2) better preparing him for the rigors of upcoming camp. As it is now, the athletes are forced to narrow their training scope well prior to the actual testing so as to excel at the specific, known events. I would go so far as to say that most of the potential draftee’s off-season training, for years prior, is targeted toward excelling at these few specific combine events. And who can blame the athlete for “training for the test”, when obscene amounts of money hinge on the performance outcome? I just think it’s in the league’s, and in the potential draftee’s best interest, to widen the possible testing range, make it unknown going in, and thereby forcing a more well-rounded training approach.

With all of that said, let me introduce you to Thomas White, a draft-eligible wide receiver out of Baylor University, and a gifted athlete whose play I’ve followed for quite a while. Not only is he a great all around young man and a tremendous athlete, but he’s a testament to dedication and work ethic as well. Check out Thomas’s blog, and especially this video montage of him preparing for his chance to shine at an upcoming Pro Day event. I’m looking forward to him putting up some impressive numbers, and putting on a hell of a demonstration of athleticism for the scouts.

In Health,

Keith

“Men build too many walls and not enough bridges.”

~  Isaac Newton

The Mind/Brain Conundrum

This is a tad bit tangential to the Paleo/Hunter-Gatherer/Evolutionary Fitness theme of this blog, however, it is rather interesting to me, and so I thought I’d make mention of it here on TTP.  If nothing else, it is thought provoking, and, in a way, this manner of pro-and-con evolutionary argument is of the same genre as what is sometimes bandied-about in the context of genome evolution, and, especially, “rapid” evolution.

The “mind-brain conundrum”, or “consciousness conundrum” debate has become the new battlefield of the intelligentsia, or more enlightened individuals embroiled in the evolutionary/creationist (or, Intelligent Design, if you’d rather) debate.  Check out this NPR segment which aired recently, for a good feel for what the debate is all about.  Also, some thought-provoking, intelligent discussion and debate (not the usual, mind-numbing drivel from the ID crowd) on this subject can be found on the following blogs:

Evolution News and Views, takes the side of Intelligent Design, while in the other corner, NeuroLogica argues the Darwinian/Evolutionary side of the debate.

Tiny Toes Equate to Spectacular Sprints?

Thanks to Raymond Ho, of the Prancing Papio for sniffing this one out.  I don’t have much to add to this Wired write-up on the subject, other than to say that I am a bit skeptical of the repeated references to endurance running.  I guess more clarification of the term “endurance” is in order before this aspect of the article can be adequately debated.  Where one man pictures “endurance” hunting, though, I picture a coordinated, team-effort, and a series of intermittent sprints from the participants.  I would imagine that our early ancestors preferred to hunt larger (more caloric bang for the overall energy expenditure of the hunt) and relatively slower game.  In my mind, that was the more likely hunting strategy.  Why waste unnecessary energy engaged in long, drawn-out chases of smaller, leaner, more fleet-a-foot (or hoof) animals?  Anyway, a link to the Journal of Experimental Biology, and the abstract for the above-cited study, can be found here.

Ancillary to this, notice the design of Oscar Pistorius’s prosthetics (and especially the small “foot” pad).  Lots of capacity for spring (power storage), and a small overall surface area onto which that spring power is ultimately deployed.  Interesting, indeed.

In Health,

Keith

“The Constitution only guarantees the American people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself.”

~ Benjamin Franklin

Sunday, the 15^th

Hucked the fixie out to the track, with the medicine ball in tow. The wind was hard and in my face, which made for the feeling of riding in deep sand. Add to that the weight of the medicine ball (about 45 pounds), and my usual, fast “huck” quickly devolved into a pedal-round by pedal-round “grind”. Anyway, once I reached the soccer field, I did the following:

1. 7-second sprints
2. 50 yard’s worth of prime-times

Reached drop-off in round 8 of the sprints. The Prime-Times really helped to activate a “pull” run (i.e., propulsion from the glutes/hams primarily, vice from the quads), especially early on in the sprint. My tendency, especially after coming off of the bike (which is a quad-dominant exercise), is to “push” in the sprints for too long out of the blocks. Prime-times help to nudge me in the right direction sooner. Check out this article from Chris Korfist, of Wanna Get Fast, for explanations of Prime-Times, a general lack of hip extension, and the differences between “push” and “pull” running. The video clips are small, which make it rather difficult to pick out detail; Chris’s explanations, however, are illuminating and spot-on – as are his exercise prescriptions.

Then, I proceeded headlong on into this mash-up:

1. caber toss (with medicine ball) for distance
2. forward caber toss (with medicine ball) for distance
3. single-arm medicine ball push-press for height (catch w/opposite arm)
4. standing broad jump x 7 for total distance.

Hucked it back home following all of that, medicine ball in tow. This time, thankfully, the wind was in my favor.  Overall, I felt a bit slow today, though my throws and jumps were OK.  This might portend of a need to shift gears into a different modality emphasis; it could, though, just be that I had an “off” day.  It happens.  It is, though, something I’ll need to monitor closely.

Tuesday morning at the Y

I’d initially planned on shifting my focus for a couple of weeks to more of a hypertrophy type program, maybe working in some German Volume Training. I felt, though (during the warm-up for this session), that I still had a couple of power weeks left in me, and that maybe I just had an off sprint day on Sunday. I felt much more explosive today. I’ll keep close tabs on how I feel, and will shift focus when necessary, but not any sooner. I’m not a big fan of bodybuilding-type hypertrophy work, though I know it is necessary, every now and again, in order to move the body, as a whole, forward.

1. Power Clean + Push-Press x 5
2. Regular-Grip Power Pull-Up x 6

4 total rounds, then:

1. Snatch-Grip High Pull x 5
2. Snatch-Grip RDL + Low Pull x 5

3 total Rounds. All in 30 Minutes total workout time.  Lots of snap, power and strength.

Friday morning at the Y

Still feeling explosive and powerful, so I’ll continue on with my power-oriented workouts for the time being. Performed a quick vertical jump test as part of my warm-up prior to this workout and found that I was only a fraction off of my norm. I’ll keep an eye on this, along with continued self-monitoring my overall perception of “explosiveness” as an indicator of when I need to shift gears. The time is near, I can tell – but not just yet — and it could be that what I really need is a 4 or 5 day block of not working out at all.  Sometimes, it’s as simple as that.

This workout was a good test of my overall explosiveness, and I think I fared pretty well. One other variable I have to account for is the fact that these workouts occur so early in the morning, which is not particularly my “prime time”.  Here was the workout:

1. Power Clean x 2’s and 3’s
2. Front Squats x 5’s
3. BTN, Split-Stance Push-Jerks x 6 total (alternating lead leg with each rep.)

Then: Snatch Grip RDL + Low Pull x 16 singles, rest-pause fashion.

So far, so good in the power/explosiveness department.  I’ll keep an eye on my progress (or lack thereof) as a gauge to when I’ll actually need to shift gears.

In Health,

Keith

“Love one another and you will be happy. It’s as simple and as difficult as that.”

~ Michael Leunig

Something Meesus TTP and I enjoy doing from time to time is picking up already “prepped” dishes (of the Paleo variety, of course) from the Fresh Market grocery store here in Greenville, NC.  We find this to be a good compromise between dropping a pretty big chunk of cash for a dinner out, and having something a little special.  Plus, we retain control as to the cooking method.  We’ve never been disappointed in Fresh Market’s product quality or variety, and the prices for that quality and variety are quite reasonable.  Here’s what we had on Friday night:

First Course

What you see here is coconut encrusted and fried shrimp, lobster and shrimp stuffed tilapia, avocado and a lemon wedge for the fish.

Second Course; "Black and Bleu" Sirloin

This is a bacon wrapped, bleu cheese stuffed, cracked black pepper encrusted sirloin, broiled to a medium-rare perfection on a bacon greased, cast iron comal.  Add to this a smattering of fruit and a glass of Shiraz Cabernet and you’ve got yourself quite a meal.  Bon appetit!

In Health,

Keith

“It is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.”

~ Carl Sagan

Much as it may seem to the casual observer, I haven’t actually fallen completely off the face of the earth. My lack of posting is directly correlated to crunch-time on a few of my “real job” projects, and I’ve been as busy with those day-to-days as of late as the proverbial one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest. Add to that a full social calendar and squeezing in workout between necessary home repairs, and, well, it all adds up to a diminished blog output. Not that I haven’t been busy there as well. I’ve been working on some behind-the-scenes things that will ultimately result in what I hope to be some some really good quality, future posts.

Proof of my continued existence: Meesus TTP and me at Wednesday night’s Willie Nelson/Asleep at the Wheel show.

Nevermind the very non-Paleo beer in the left hand

As for what’s in store for TTP future works: First and foremost, I’m excited to announce that in the very near future, I’ll begin reviewing the book Body by Science, by Dr. Doug McGuff.

As some of you will remember, back in January of this year, I reviewed an article pertaining to Dr. McGuff’s training system (actually the article was more of an interview piece, written in a Q & A format – you can read it in its entirety, here).  In any event, I undertook that article “review” in response to a TTP reader’s question about that single article, in particular. Since that time, I have been in contact with Dr. McGuff, and he has been graciously enthusiastic in his support of me reviewing his work, in total. I’d like to point out that this proposed review is totally on the up-and-up, as I’ll receive no incentive, financial or otherwise, to “skew” my review one way or the other. And actually, this arrangement speaks volumes to Dr. McGuff’s integrity, as my previous review of his above-cited article clearly put me – if not at total odds – at least somewhat critical of his exercise prescription approach. TTP readers can be assured – as can Dr. McGuff – that I will give Body by Science a thorough, honest and unbiased appraisal. Those points in which Dr. McGuff and I differ on will be well delineated, and I’ll elaborate on why it is that I take a different view. As well, I’ve given Dr. McGuff an open invitation to “guest post” as often as he wishes, so as to clarify any points he’d like. I’m looking forward to the opportunity, and I hope you’re looking forward to what I know will be an illuminating and thoughtful exchange of ideas.

Next on the agenda, I’ve had some really interesting and thought-provoking reader questions come pouring in over this past week, and I’ll be posting responses to some of these in the near future. I try to answer/address all email questions at least superficially, then attempt a more elaborate explanation in a follow-up post so that everyone can benefit from the exchange of ideas.  We’ve got questions ranging from how to train for a law enforcement fitness test, to grey-area carbohydrates, to endurance athletes and overall carb intake, to advice for someone just beginning the Paleo journey and struggling with the all-too-common,  start–fail-start-fail-start… fail… phenomenon.  We’ll see if we can get everyone headed in the right direction.

I’ve also been looking into some interesting material concerning fasted-state workouts, with the quick-and-dirty of the research findings I’ve studied suggesting exactly what we in the Paleo community have already known from empirical evidence: namely, that we can, in fact, maintain muscle mass – and in some instances, even increase muscle mass – while under hypo-caloric conditions. What’s the key? As you’d expect; a proper workout stimulus, combined with proper overall nutrition (i.e., fats and protein).

Anyway, stay tuned — there’s plenty of good stuff on the way.

In Health,

Keith

“You can tell the ideals of a nation by its advertisements.”

~ Norman Douglas

Barefoot Sprinter's Paradise

Sunday, the 8th, was a beautiful day for an extended session of barefooted interval sprints sandwiched between sessions of interval (biking) sprints on the fixie. Spring is definitely right around the corner, as evidenced by the collegiate women’s softball tournament being held at the ECU softball complex. And my son’s senior season baseball campaign kicks off (I guess that’s a mixed metaphor, huh?) in 3 short weeks. Bring on the heat! Anyway, no throws today, or anything other than running and biking sprints, as I did quite a bit of both. For the running sprints, I performed 10 rounds of 10-second sprints, with full recovery between each sprint. I hit a half-stride drop-off on sprints 9 and 10, and called it quits on the running portion there. Then it was back on the bike for more fixie hucking in and around the ECU campus and G-Vegas in general. This was performed 16-hours into a fast which I eventually broke at about the 21-hour point.

Tuesday morning at the Y

Up at 4:30 AM, coffeed-up and in the gym by 6:15 and hittin’ it hard by about 6:30. Here’s what ensued:

1. DB Split Snatch + Split Jerk x 3’s and 2’s, each arm

2. Reverse Grip Power Pull-ups x 7’s

3. Weighted Gironda* Dips x 7’s

* This is a pretty good demonstration of the Gironda dip.  I, however, perform mine with a reverse grip (thumbs pointing to the rear, which really forces the elbows out), and in my mind, this is what makes for a true Gironda dip.  It is rather tough on the wrists, though, if you’re not used to doing them.  After a while of performing the dips in this manner, though, your wrists will adjust.  This is akin to the “learning curve” (wrist flexability) in the front squat and/or proper clean & jerk catch.

Anyway, 4 rounds of that, then:

Weighted glute-ham raise, 3 sets of 3.

Total time, approximately 30 minutes.

Thursday morning at the Y

1. Front Squat x 5’s
2. BTN Push Press x 3’s
3. Weighted, Regular Grip Pull-ups x 3’s

5 rounds of this, with the first round being a “heavy, but not quite ‘at weight’” transition round between the end of my warm up and the “at weight” portion of my workout.  To save time, I used the same load for my BTN push presses as I did for the front squats.  I performed each rep of each set as fast as possible.  Note, this does not mean that I performed each set of each exercise, or each round as fast as possible.  There is a huge difference, physiologically speaking, in these two types of modalities.

Friday evening at the Y

A quick, after-work workout, followed by about a half-hour’s worth of steam bath/cold water contrasts (3 rounds).

1. Whip Snatch + Overhead Squats (2 reps, pause, 2 reps)
2. Regular grip Power Pull-ups x 6’s

5 total rounds of that.  The whip snatch to OHS is a beast of an exercise.  It’s amazing how much good work can be done in a small space, with a simple Oly bar, and a relatively small amount of weight.

Looking forward to next week, I’ll be changing things up quite a bit.  It’s about time to throw the ol’ body a curve, as I can tell I’m stagnating a bit in my power lifts.  I’ll probably hit a couple weeks worth of German Volume Training, while maintaining my weekend sprint/throw routine.  We’ll see how it goes, and I’ll throw out a post on GVT (and why I’m leaning toward this technique) during the week, so we can all be on the same page when the next edition of A Week’s Worth of Workouts” comes out.  Until then –

In Health,

Keith

“Nowhere to run to baby, nowhere to hide…”

~ Martha and the Vandellas

I have always admired Lance Armstrong as an athlete, and as (and in every sense of the word) a true competitor.  Of course he is in no way a sprint/power athlete, nor can he be considered, by any stretch of the imagination, “Paleo”.  But as a class-act person who happens to be an athlete, though, he’s got quite a bit to teach us all; lessons in humility, overcoming extreme odds, looking-down death itself, and the desire to give back to others.  I really do wish that he’d find and spread the word of the efficacy of ketogenic diets in battling cancer; he’d be one hell of a spokes person.

And I have to say that I appreciate, and agree with, Lance’s stance on re-admitting “doped” athletes back into the competitive fold (which he touches on in this clip, after he deftly rips Paul Kimmage).  Many would argue that a doped athlete should be banned for life, and I can certainly understand that point of view.  Maybe my lenient bias comes from having once been a highly competitive athlete myself.  I know all-too-well the “whatever it takes” mindset.  Add to that, then, the obscene amounts of money that the top few of these athletes in any given sport stand to make, and you’ve just created an ultra-volatile combination.  I think what the general public doesn’t fully grasp is that these athletes truly love their given sport, and to be tarnished in the eyes of that sport is unbelievably painful.  It doesn’t make any sense then, I know, to take the chance on doping and getting busted.   All I can say is, the drive to win sometimes overrides even the most powerful of feelings — even love.  Some athletes will let close, loving relationships wither and die rather than take the chance on converting some training time to “relationship time”.  Hell, I’ve seen this out of amateur athletes.

Anyway, Lance is one cool customer.  Just watch how he handles reporter Paul Kimmage in this clip.

Thanks to ccyclist for this particular clip.  And thanks to one of my favorite athletic blogs out there, EliteTrack, for the head’s-up on this one.  Nice find, guys.

In Health,

Keith

“Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.”

~  Erich Fromm

Meesus TTP has been hard at work as of late, actively taping a pair of audition clips (for lack of a better term) for an upcoming episode of Grill It! With Bobby Flay. Needless to say, I’ve been enjoying the process and eating well the past few days! And, the dishes she’s grilled (sides included) are, for the most part, Paleo-friendly.

In this clip, she’s cranking out some grilled ribeye steaks with an herb gremolata seasoning, grilled eggplant & tomato neopolitans and grilled nectarines with raspberry chipotle sauce.  I can’t even describe just how friggin’ good this all is together.

And in this clip, she’s working on Caribbean chicken, and grilled pineapples with raspberry balsamic vinegar.  Now, I should warn you before hand, the Caribbean chicken marinade does call for brown sugar.  Personally, I’m not too worried about the small amount of sugar that I  actually wind up ingesting, as it is a marinade, and not an after-sauce or post-rub.  Purists, though, could probably just skip the brown sugar altogether without too much taste difference.  Don’t let Meesus TTP know that I told you that, though, as she spends inordinate amounts of time tweaking her recipes to produce just the right flavor

Let’s all send out the good vibe for Meesus TTP getting chosen for the show.

Bon Appetite, y’all    And have a great weekend!

In Health,

Keith