Editor’s Note: Updated 10/2/2019

There is something satisfying (and easy to remember) about rattling off numbers backward in a countdown. In fact, this ritual is even so important in some professions that it’s become part of popular culture – just think of NASA and their huge countdown clock.  As a kid, I counted down the days until Halloween, Christmas and the end of the school year.

As an adult, I count down the number of weeks until my next marathon and, admittedly, have even used a countdowns to threaten motivate my kids to accomplish tasks. Today I have a 4-3-2-1 Countdown Spice Rub recipe that is so simple, you don’t even have to write it down. Read on to get the paleo recipe:

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My 4-3-2-1 Countdown Spice Rub (Paleo) Recipe goes like this:

4 Tablespoons kosher salt,

3 tablespoons date sugar* or *coconut sugar

2 tablespoons sweet paprika

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

 

Shake together in baggier or mason jar, and you’re ready to season your protein of choice. *You can use traditional brown sugar, but then it wouldn’t remain Paleo diet freindly.

Dump all of these ingredients onto a zip-top bag and shake or mix straight on the plate that you will used to encrust chicken, beef, pork or what have you. The paleo dry rub makes enough to cover two whole chickens, about 3 – 4 pounds of chicken breasts and/ or steaks or about two medium-sized pork tenderloins.  By the way, I was so excited to have a recipe to use the cute little bags of paprika my parents brought me from Budapest! This paleo steak seasoning is amazing with those smokey flavors!

Now, as for the 4-3-2-1 Workout, I was looking for a way to make my morning speed work more fun. Sometimes just running the same interval over and over just gets boring! This WOD incorporates burpees, crunches and planks for a full body challenge. Rest one minute between each exercise!