Sweat The Small Stuff...

There are two things I have learned from using my little doohicky armband (aka Exerspy by ditFIT):

1.  The small stuff really counts!
2.  The big stuff doesn't count as much as I thought! 
              See Below

1.  Yesterday was my day off from working out (I take Friday's & Sundays off) so I knew that my activity level was going to be lower than normal workout days.  However, what I didn't realize was how much "everyday stuff" counts towards calorie burn.  I sit at a desk all day for my job so it was pretty level from 7:30am-4:00pm, but when I got home and started cleaning the kitchen and making dinner, the graph took a swing on the upside!  My highest calorie burn yesterday was from 5:00-6:30pm, which is when I was doing housework. 

Now let's get personal.  I'm not going to be specific, but let's just say that it's a myth that having marital relations burns a lot of calories...only about 30 (unless you are a trapeze artist and into that kind of stuff with your spouse). So don't let your husband give you the excuse that you can burn some extra calories by fulfilling your marital duties (but don't tell your husband I said that!)

2.  I was so excited to wear my arm-hugger during Spin to see how many calories I was torching.  Seriously, only 252 calories during Spin class!  It's a 45 minute, kick your butt, drip sweat off your nose kind of class.  I thought for sure I was doing about 350-400 per class, but not so much. 

All of that being said, this is specific to MY BODY!  Everyone's body is different and there are sooooo many factors that go into how much you burn every day.  If you have a high lean body mass you are probably going to burn a lot more calories that I do...but if you're a couch cozy that hangs out on the sofa 23 hours a day there is no way you're going to burn as many calories as I do.

The whole reason I got this thing was to figure out what MY body was doing, and what works and doesn't work for me.  Don't take what I'm saying as literal for your body.  Find out what works best for you...AND DO IT!!  No excuses, just get out there and do something to CHOOSE YOUR HEALTH TODAY!!

Reality Sets In...

Honest, I'm being honest with myself...but sometimes it really sucks!  One of the reasons I wanted to get the Exerspy is because I wanted to know how hard I was actually working out every day.  I felt that I needed a better idea of how my body was discarding those nasty little calories.  So I get my little gadget, plug it in, and use it for the past 24 hours.  Low and behold, apparently my metabolism is taking the slow train to Chinatown.  I thought for sure I was incinerating about 2200 calories a day...not so much.

Today I did a pretty rough workout, spent a normal day at work (which consists of sitting in an uncomfortable chair and walking back and forth to the printer), and came home to family time and normal evening activities and I'm only at 1808. One of the many cool things about this handy little buddy is that I can see exactly how many calories I burn while exercising...and also one of my big disappointments for the day.  I sweat and huff and puff so much during my workouts you would think that calories would run to get away from me.  I thought I was burning about 500 calories/hour during a hard workout...turns out I'm only burning about 275.  Not exactly the result I was expecting.

That being said, this is exactly why I wanted the little bug.  I wanted to have a more accurate idea of what MY body was actually capable of doing and not what some machine was guessing for me.  In my opinion, knowledge is power and the more I have the better off I am.  So I'm adding this to my fitness-knowledge vault and using it to my advantage!

Let the Fun Begin!

I got my Exerspy today!!! I'm so excited to start using it and see what I find out. Let's hope it doesn't tell me I'm a lazy slob who only burns 200 calories a day and never sleeps!
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I Survived!

And I (and my workout buddy) kicked some serious tushy!! However, I am now blinded from the bright flash on my camera!
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Mix It Up!

I've been struggling with what to write for the past few days because I feel like I'm getting into a routine and nothing new and exciting has happened over the past few days (although sometimes that's a good thing!).  I've been eating really well, sticking to my 5-days-a-week workouts, and I'm really happy with the results that I'm seeing.

So how can I mix it up so it doesn't get boring?  I've decided to try a new workout tomorrow morning (and I'm going to make my workout partner do it with me!)  I absolutely LOVE Oxygen Magazine, which is where I got this workout from.  (If you could subtract all of the fat-burning, calorie-cutting, anorexic-inducing pill ads from the pages it would be perfect, but I understand that someone has to pay their bills).  I really like to see women (and many of them mothers and women that have started from being a lot more unhealthy than I was) that work really hard to stay fit.  It encourages me to stay on track and not give up on my goal.  Will I look like them someday, who knows, only time, nutrition, and killer workouts will tell.

So I'm not doing my normal eliptical/strength routine at the butt-crack of dawn tomorrow.  Nope, I'm going to peel open my eyes at 4:45am and proceed to do burpees, bench lunges, inclined pushups, bench hops, jumping jacks, "V" ups, and a few others that I can't remember right now...I think my brain is hiding them deep away so I don't freak myself out thinking about it.

So here's to my new Tuesday morning workout...hopefully I'll survive to tell you all about it!

Calories vs. Calories

A calorie is not a calorie, is not a calorie.  Huh?  Not all calories are created equal.  Wouldn't it be great if we could eat 1500 calories worth of chocolate every day and still be healthy??  But alas, our bodies don't need 1500 calories worth of chocolate decadence.  What they do need however, is quality calories, not empty calories.  Eating foods that have no nutritional value whatsoever (i.e. the 100 calorie packs that are so popular right now) will do nothing for helping us get healthy. 

Think about it...would our society look, feel, and have the health issues that we do today if all calories were created equal?  Let's do a comparison...going back to the example above (and one of my current pet peeves) the 100 calorie packs. 

                                 100 Calorie Packs                                        1 Medium Apple
Calories                       100 (obviously)                                                  80 (roughly)
Fat                                   2 g                                                                          0 g
Sodium                           160 mg                                                                   0 g
Protein                              1g                                                                        .5 g (roughly)
Fiber                                 1g                                                                         4 g

Okay, so far nutritionally the apple is light years ahead of the 100 calorie packs.  So let's compare the ingredients in each one.

                                Apple                                                        100 Calorie Pack
                              An Apple                                                     Unbleached, Enriched Flour
                            No seriously, just apple                                          Sugar
                                                                                                    Canola Oil
                                                                                                       Cocoa
                                                                                                           Dextrose
                           Yep, still apple                                                    Cornstarch
                                                                                                   Leavening
                                                                                                    Color Added
                                                                                                        Salt
                                                                                      Vanillin (Artificial Flavor)-that's actually
                                                                                                                         what the label says!

Now based on those two items, which do you think is better for you to consume?  Which do you think your body can process better, use better, and sustain you longer?

I get so fired up about all of the crap that is advertised as "healthy" because it has a lower calorie count.  Don't fool yourselves...just because it only contains 100 calories (or whatever they are saying is "healthy" now) does not mean it is good for you!!!!!!

The Junk Never Ends!

I'm not kidding when I say I sit two feet from junk all the time! My desk is right behind that table and the little bag on the left is chocolate chip cookies. It's a good thing these morsels of chemical-filled tastiness no longer control my food intake!
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Is There Really A "Fat Burning Zone?"

There should be a sign that pops up on your forehead when your working out, just like a construction zone sign..."Entering Fat Burning Zone"!  Unfortunately that's not the way it works, and as you will see in the video below, most of what we have heard is a myth! 

Amber (the chick in the video) is a friend of mine and Co-Founder and CEO of The Healthy Edge.  If you could see her in person, you would know just by looking at her that she lives what she preaches!  She is a no kidding, work your butt off, knock your socks off kind of person...and someday I hope to have guns like hers!

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A New Toy!

I'm so excited...my husband got me an Exerspy for my birthday!!  I don't actually have it yet, but it was ordered today and it's on it's way as we speak.  If you don't know what an Exerspy is, it's an armband that you wear (all the time if you choose) and it tells you how many steps you take, how many calories you burn, how well you are sleeping...all kinds of good stuff.  If you want to check it out, Click Here.

The Pros and Cons of Weight Loss...

The happy and the sad, the good and the bad, the ups and the downs...here are a few things I've noticed about losing weight and getting healthier:

Pros:
1.  I feel AMAZING!  I haven't had this much energy since before I had my son 19 months ago and I'm getting up a lot earlier than I used to, normally around 4:45am during the week.
2.  My clothes are fitting better.  I no longer have the king-size muffin top hanging over my pants that I have to hide with a big shirt.
3.  My thighs don't rub together as much as they used to.  I've mentioned this one before, but the lack of friction is worth repeating, especially since I've dealt with it pretty much my whole life.
4.  If I do choose to eat something "bad" it tastes like the most amazing thing I've ever eaten.  One thing I have noticed is that when I eat bad all the time it all just runs together.  Nothing is special and nothing really tastes all that great.
5.  I feel better about myself.  I feel proud of myself because I have been so dedicated over the past 2 months to improving my health, and truly sticking to it.  And I don't beat myself up anymore if I choose to eat a piece of decadent chocolate cake.  It's only one piece of cake and then it's right back to it.

Cons:
1.  My boobs are getting smaller.  Maybe you didn't hear me...MY BOOBS ARE GETTING SMALLER!!  I'm not one of those people that has a lot of actual breast tissue so my pretty average 34-C's are slowing deflating.  Not something I'm too thrilled about...I'm thinking about swiping my kid's piggy bank and starting a "fake boob" fund.
2.  I get up at 4:45am on most weekday mornings.  I know that I have more energy than I used to, but when that alarm goes off at 4:45am sometimes I want to rip off my husband's arm and beat the thing into a fine, red powder.
3.  My clothes are getting bigger.  This in itself isn't a bad thing, but my husband and I have started sticking to a budget and a new wardrobe just doesn't fit into that equation at the moment.  So until it does fit the budget, I'm going to keep wearing the saggy-butt pants that make me look like my son after he dropped a load in his diaper.
4.  Going back to number 1, my boobs are lopsided.  I don't know how I never noticed this before, but my boobs are two different sizes.  Apparently when God decided what I would look like he thought that two different sized boobs was what I needed.  Thanks!
5.  Now that my thighs are shrinking, I've noticed that they look like a map leading to the west coast.  Think of a full-blown balloon, and then think about it when the air starts to leak and it begins to sag.  No one told me that stretch marks stay hidden until after the weight starts to come off. 

What are your Pros and Cons?  Would love to hear how you're Choosing Your Health and what the results/side effects are!

Curiosity Killed The Liz!

I couldn't help myself!  I know I said I was going to wait at least 4 weeks to weigh myself but I got up this morning, went into the bathroom, sat down on the toilet, and the scale just stared at me.  And taunted me.  "Come on, you know you want to know.  It won't hurt to weigh yourself, just this once."  I seriously think the scale was taken over by the devil last night. 

I gave in.

And I lost 2.5 pounds!!!  Gotta say, it feels pretty good!!

Updated Pics!

It's been about a month since I posted my original pictures...my "before" pictures.  I've been seeing some changes, mainly in the way my clothes fit, so I thought I would update all of you on my progress. 

              This is me after a light leg day and a kick-butt spin class (hence the sweat all over me!)

I can't say that the last 2 months have been easy, but I can say that I feel soooooooooo much better both mentally and physically.  I've still got a long way to go to get to my goal, but I at least feel like I'm making some progress!!

How Finance Class Helped My Health!

Last night I went to our weekly "Financial Peace University" class at church, which is presented by Dave Ramsey.  I'm not going to get into the specifics of the class, but it is eye-opening and well worth the cost and time.  But during the presentation last night he said something that caught my attention, and made me laugh. 

He was discussing financial mindsets and how our actions determine how our financial situation turns out.  His metaphor hit the nail on the head..."If I want to be skinny, I'm not going to eat what fat people eat."  And it got me thinking...

How many times a day do we justify our actions with statements like "if I only eat one it won't hurt me," or "if I skip my workout just this once it won't matter."  Stop and think about how many times you actually eat just one, or skip just one workout.  If you are the type of person that can honestly eat just one oreo, or skip just one workout every couple months, then kudos to you...and chances are you probably don't have a hard time reaching your health goals.  But if you're like I used to be, that one oreo turned into an entire bag, and the one skipped workout turned into weeks on end of not getting my butt off the couch.

Dave's financial motto is "Live like no one else, so later on you can LIVE like no one else."  I'm choosing to make healthy choices now because honestly, what could happen later on if I don't make those choices scares the living crap out of me.  I've seen too many people die of heart disease, lose their hair from  chemotherapy, or end up with type 2 diabetes because of choices they made earlier in life.  If you don't think the choices you are making right now, today, are affecting your life down the road, then you're just being dishonest with yourself.  And we all know how much I love honesty.  You can be mad at me all you want for making these statements, but please know that I'm being honest with you because I want you to succeed and be healthy!  If I'm not honest with myself, how can I be honest with you?

So the next time I think about chucking in the towel and sucking down the pint of Graeter's Buckeye Blitz, I'll think about all people I know that are no longer here because of bad health decisions they chose to make. 

How are you going to live healthy today, so you can LIVE HEALTHY later on in life?

Sexy Legs, Here I Come!

I don't know if any of my boot camp ladies are reading this, but after last night's class my legs and butt feel like someone lit them on fire with a blowtorch.  But I have to say, it's a good pain.  I obviously worked my butt off and I love it when I'm sore...it tells me that I did was I was supposed to do.  Want to know what I tortured my class with last night?  Below is most of the class that we did.  By the way, if you're thinking that you can't do boot camp (or something like what I've listed below) because it sounds too hard, I would tell you to suck it up and be a woman/man (all in a loving tone of course), because the average age in my class is roughly 45, with the oldest being early 60's and they all kick serious tush every class! 

Try this and let me know what you think.  This is very easy to do at home, so no excuses if you don't belong to a gym!

Here's what you'll need:  mat or towel, heavy hand weights (if you have them, if you don't have them just use your own body weight), and WATER!!
Always warm up for about 5-10 minutes (we do a light jog) and then stretch (it helps prevent injury).

Session 1: (holding heavy weights if using them)
Lunge walk forward for 12 steps (6 on each leg) - Stop and do 12 dead lifts
Lunge walk back to beginning (6 on each leg) - Stop and do 12 dead lifts
Jog for 45 sec.  (if you are in your house, just jog in place)
             Repeat 3 times in a row
Abs: sit on mat/towel, lean back 45 degrees until you are balancing on your sit bones, feet in the air, then turn your upper body and touch your hands to the ground on each side (do a total of 15 each side)

Session 2:
Frog hop forward 8 times - jog 30 sec.
            Repeat 4 times in a row
Abs: repeat ab in session one

Session 3:
Ski lunge 15 on each leg  - shuffle to the left 4 then to the right 4
            Repeat 4 times in a row
Abs: repeat abs in session one

Session 4:
Deep lunge up to a front kick - do 15 with the right leg then 15 with the left leg
Skip around for 30 sec.
            Repeat 4 times in a row
Abs: repeat abs in session one

Session 5:
20 regular squats then 20 plie squats
Jog around for 30 sec.
            Repeat 4 times in a row
Abs: repeat abs in session one

Cool down and stretch.  Don't skip the stretching part...I swear that's why I haven't had a serious injury in the past 4 years. I stretch before and after every workout.

If you have questions about anything in this workout, or don't know how to do any of the exercises, please let me know.  And if you're legs are screaming a day or two after you do it, I want to know that too!  Otherwise I'll just feel like a lazy bum whose legs are severely weak!

Injuries Stink...So What To Do?

Have you been cruising along working out and eating well and then crunch, you get an injury that is so bad that you can't work out for an extended period of time?  What do you do?  You have two choices, you can go back to how you used to live your life or you can choose to continue on the healthy path.  Is it always easy, are you kidding me?!  If it was easy, every single one of us would look like bikini models while stuffing our faces with double stuffed, fudge covered Oreos.  Unfortunately it doesn't work that way.  It takes work and dedication, but how you choose to look at it is completely up to you.

So let's say you have an injury that is so bad that you can't do the normal hard-core cardio you're used to.  Do you have access to a pool?  Swimming is awesome cardio!  Also, focus on the muscle groups that aren't injured.  If you have a lower body injury, focus on your arms and abs.  You won't be injured forever, but if you don't give yourself time to heal, you will never be able to fully workout again anyway! 

This might sound cheesy, but it works...Think positive! (Stop thinking how lame that sounds, because it works.)  Make a list of all the things that you CAN do and start doing them! No more excuses.  Anybody can tell you all of the reasons why you can't do something, but who wants to hang around that crabby pants!  Why not be the person that decides to make a change, and actually does it.

So you need to know, that as I'm writing this I'm completely writing to myself.  There are so many times in the past that something has happened and I've just given up, mainly because I didn't think I deserved any better.  (It only took me about the first 29 years of my life to figure that out.)  But I do deserve to do my best and achieve all of my goals, and so do you!  So what's holding you back and why aren't you going for it??

Post your comments and let me know how you have overcome obstacles and pushed through...and let me know how awesome it felt to get there!!

Fun With The Bucks!

This weekend John and I went to the OSU vs. Indiana game...and of course, they kicked some serious hiney!  We had an absolute blast at the game and spending the night in downtown C-bus, sans child.  You could see from my previous post that I came prepared with my own munchies, but I also indulged in some tasty treats this weekend too. 

We enjoyed some Italian fare at Buca di Bepo in the Arena district.  I kept it pretty clean by ordering sauteed chicken w/ mushrooms and a side of broccoli.  For an appetizer we got Caprese salad (fresh mozz, tomatoes, and basil, one of my faves!).  I had a glass of wine and no dessert.  Not too bad considering I could eat an entire 1 pound box of pasta on my own!

Later on Saturday night we went to The Big Bang Piano Bar and had probably the most fun I've ever had at a bar (thanks Ada!!!).  There were definitely some adult beverages involved (gin and tonic with lime was the liquid of choice) for me, and as you can tell from the slits where my husband's eye should be, he had fun too. 

I chose to have some drinks and I definitely enjoyed them.  Did they take me closer to my goal, oh heck no!  But I knew that going in and I chose to partake anyway, and I absolutely enjoyed it!  I'm not going to beat myself up for it, but I probably won't do it again for a while. 

Eating at the Game...Illegally!

I brought my own food to the OSU game because I knew there wouldn't be anything healthy to eat here. Only to be told at the gate that I can't take in food. So in keeping with my mission, I walked to another gate and smuggled food in under my sweatshirt! Don't try to stop a woman with a goal!
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How Quickly The Demons Find Me!

Last night I had a wonderful meal of stuffed peppers made with lean ground beef, brown rice, crushed tomatoes, garlic, and lots of fresh herbs with a big side of broccoli.  It was excellent and I could just feel the fat melting off my thighs from not ingesting a bunch of crap. (By the way, I've been tricking myself into thinking that I'm eating a boat load of food by using a smaller plate.  This looks like a ton of food, but it's actually about 1 1/2 cups of broccoli and 1/2 pepper stuffed with about 4oz. of meat.)

Then I get to work this morning and this is what I see...

Seriously people, a fresh bag of Ballreich's is like crack to me!  If I could melt them down and inject them into my veins and get the same feeling from eating them, I would do it!!  And of course the box of fudge sitting next to the chips is like a heroin chaser.  Do you think if I snort the fudge and inject the chips I wouldn't get any of the calories and fat??

Back to reality.  No, I haven't had any of the chips or fudge, but my desk is about 4 feet away from the counter so it is taking some serious determination to not eat them.  Here is what I keep telling myself..."If I eat those, will they get me closer to my goal or farther away?" So as I sit here and type this I'm eating my 1/2 large apple and small handful of walnuts knowing that I'm one step closer to my goal!

What are you doing today to get one step closer to your goal?  It's not the gigantic goal at the end that I'm reaching today, but every day I'm one step closer and all of the decisions I make will either get me closer or further away from that goal.  And yes, whether you want to hear this or not, eating that slice of chocolate cake WILL show up somewhere on your body.  It took me a long time to admit that, but since I've been honest with myself the changes have been AMAZING, just in the last two months!!!

It's the Small Things...

It doesn't take a whole lot to make me happy, but here are two things today that have made me as happy as a 5 year old on Christmas morning:

1.  My thighs don't rub together as much as they used to!  If you're like me and your thighs tend to be the storing place for all things that go into your mouth, then this is a huge thing!  Woohoo!!

2.  My pants (that have been tight for the past 16 months) are now getting to be too big (see below)!!  DETROIT WHAT??!!

Tuesday Was MUCH Better!!

I should have taken a picture of my dinner, but I scarfed it down so quickly, I completely forgot to take the picture!  My fantastic hubby made dinner (see recipe below) again tonight and it was tasty!  It was also the highlight of my day.  Other than the usual job craziness, it was a pretty quiet Tuesday.  Got up at 4:50am to work out, worked all day, ran some errands after work, then came home to a scrumptious meal.  Here is what I munched on today:

7:00am
Breakfast smoothie (same as yesterday)

10:15am
1/2 large apple and small handful of raw, unsalted walnuts

12:30pm
1 1/2 cups of lentil stew (recipe from the Eat Clean Diet Cookbook - one of my faves!)

3:30pm
20 carrots and 2.5 oz tuna with spicy mustard

7:30pm
Chicken Portabella with spinach and 1 cup broccoli (to make the chicken, spray a baking pan with non-stick cooking spray then put down a thick layer of fresh spinach.  Put 4 stemmed portabella mushrooms on top of the spinach, lay a 4 oz. chicken breast or thigh on top of each mushroom then top each chicken breast with minced fresh rosemary, thyme, and 1/2 cup of crushed tomatoes.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes...viola dinner is served.)

Who says that eating healthy has to be boring!!  If you don't like what I'm eating, find healthy options that you do like...not liking certain foods is not an excuse to eat like crap.  We're being honest here, so be honest with yourself.  What have you been doing to Choose Your Health Today?  I would love some comments from you on what you've done differently to improve your health!!

Not. Enough. Food.

I've heard over and over that if you don't eat enough food then your metabolism shuts down.  And today that was definitely the case!  I don't know how  much my metabolism shut down (I'm guessing it was the equivalent of my dog running smack into a glass window that she didn't know was there) but my energy level was non-existent.  I teach a Boot Camp class on Monday nights and halfway through the class I felt the color drain out of my face, and I think I saw the big dipper.

Here is the minimal list of what I ate today (and a reminder to myself to EAT MORE tomorrow!)

7:00am
Breakfast shake - 1/2 banana, 1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed, 1 Tbsp. brown rice protein powder, 1/2 cup frozen mixed berries, and about 1 1/2 cups rice milk

10:15am
1/2 large apple and small handful (about 8) raw, unsalted walnuts

12:30pm
3oz. chicken breast, 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, and 1/3 cup garbonzo beans (don't ask about the crazy combination, I was in a rush for lunch)

4:00pm
20 baby carrots and 1/2 cup tuna mixed with 1 Tbsp. spicy mustard

8:45pm
1 1/2 cups homemade french onion soup (thanks to my wonderful hubby) with 1 Tbsp. grated parm. cheese and 1 1/2 slices brown rice bread

Note to self, if you're going to plan a class that will kick your butt, EAT ENOUGH FOOD TO GET YOU THROUGH IT!!

Oh Scale, How I Love to Hate You...And Why We Must Part Ways.

My best friend, the scale, is once again being completely honest with me.  I ventured into the bathroom at 6:30am to strip down to nothing but my socks to stand on the head of the monster, and this is what appeared, the same exact weight as last week.  But here is the clincher, since last week all of my clothes are looser...even jeans that have always been tight are bigger through the waist and thighs.  But my thighs aren't quite so thunderous now, so my clothes are slowly starting to fit better!

Which is why I must say goodbye to my comrade, the scale...at least for about a month.  I don't see the point in torturing myself every week if I know that things are changing.  Why stare in the ugly face of the monster bright and early every Monday morning just to be given an obscure number that can fluctuate for the craziest reasons?  I'm not going to say goodbye forever, just for about 4 weeks.  (If it doesn't budge in 4 weeks I might have to chuck the thing through the window and drive over it with the front wheel of trusty Ford Edge.)

Sunday and Sooooo Not Prepared...

For probably the past 6 weeks I've done everything I can to make sure that I'm prepared with what I will need to consume every day.  And apparently today my brain decided to take a break.  I knew that we were going to be gone all day and I didn't pack a cooler with some emergency noshes.  And I can feel it now.  Here is what I had today, and the commentary to go along with it:

8:30am
Breakfast shake with 1 banana, 1/4 cup mixed frozen berries, 1 1/2 Tbsp ground flaxseed, 1 1/2 Tbsp brown rice protein powder and about 2 cups rice milk.  (So far so good...plus I got to sleep in until 8:15 so it felt like a great morning!)

12:30pm
5-6 oz. grilled chicken breast with 4 bites of baked beans (Our church did it's annual "Fall Feed" and the menu consisted of potato salad, which I turned down, rolls, which I politely declined, bbq-ed chicken which I gladly took and begrudgingly peeled the skin off, baked beans which I took and ate 4 bites of, and a cookie that I didn't even look at because sugar can be another one of my nasty triggers.)  All in all, I'm still feeling pretty good about my choices.

2:30pm
2-3 oz. grilled hamburger and 2/3 cup (that's a rough estimate) of gluten free vegetable/pasta salad that my mother-in-law graciously took the time to make so my son and I could have something else to eat besides meat.  There were tons of other options to eat, like nachos, cheese, buns for the burgers, macaroni salad, and mixed salted nuts.  All of which are a clean eater's no-no.  So I chose not to partake.

4:30pm
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Larabar (which if you haven't tried one, please do so VERY soon).  It is what I consider my treat now and since I was still hungry after we ate lunch I stole the one that I brought for my son and chowed down.  By this point I'm not feeling so hot, let the headache begin, and the hunger shakes are setting in because I'm not on my regular schedule and I'm not eating my normal foods.  I also have not drank enough water yet so I'm getting a little irritable.

6:00pm
1 cup of baked apples with agave nectar and cinnamon.  Again, my mother-in-law  was great and made my son and I gluten-free versions of apple pie.  It tasted very yummy, but there was no protein (which can be hard to do with apple pie because let's face it, who wants a meat product mixed in with pie) so by this time I'm hungry, not at home around my own food choices, and ready to bolt to begin chewing on one of my own appendages.

8:30pm
1 cup veggies out of gluten-free pasta salad.  I picked through some of the pasta salad that my mother-in-law sent home with me and took about 2 bites of pasta.  I was starving but I didn't want to binge on sugary foods, as that would have been one of my old habits.  I decided to at least eat vegetables and hope that the hole in my stomach that felt like it was created by a rabid raccoon would be somewhat filled.

Summary for the day...and this is the actual thought that ran through my head "Be Prepared Moron!"

Rainy, Dreary Day!!

Welcome to fall people!  I don't know who wanted fall to get here, but it wasn't me, especially after today.  We went to the farmer's market this morning (which is awesome that Fremont has them) and endured the cold, rainy drizzle to get some fresh fruit (mmmm...honey crisp apples) and vegetables.

Regardless of the wet weather it was still a fun day.  I started the morning at the gym by working my legs until they felt like jello (1/2 hour of leg exercises then 45 min. spin class), then went and got my haircut (thanks to the fantastic Karly at Ambience!), came home and took a nap (I love a good nap wrapped up in a blanket when it's chilly out) and then ventured to the grocery store with my hubby to get the rest of the necessities for the week.

In between I got in my five meals every few hours, and here's what they consisted of:

7:30am
Breakfast shake - same as yesterday except I added 1 1/2 Tbsp. of Sun Nut Butter because I knew it was going to be a long morning at the gym.

10:45am
Leftover salmon patty and 1/3 cup potatoes

1:45pm
5 oz. chicken with leftover salad from last night (about 2 cups)

4:15pm
1 rice cake topped with 1 Tbsp. Sun Nut Butter and 1 tsp. peach/pear jam that I got at the farmer's market.  Tasty!!

6:45pm
4 egg whites and 1 whole egg topped with 1/2 avocado and 1 Tbsp. parm. cheese and 2 slices brown rice bread topped with 2 Tbsp. Earth Balance.

It wasn't my most stellar nutrition day, but I kept my portion sizes in check and ate mostly clean/green foods.  (By the way, when I say "green" foods I'm referring to foods that are healthy for me, not actual green foods.)  Monday is scale day, so let's see if it has changed at all from last week!!

Join me in Choosing Your Health Today!!

It's Friday, Not a Free-For-All!

I used to follow the mentality "It's the weekend so I can eat whatever I want" because apparently there is no such thing as calories and fat on the weekends.  Weekends started as Saturday and Sunday.  Then somehow Friday joined in, and Thursday is Friday-eve so that must be included too.  Pretty soon the whole week was the weekend and I was eating whatever I wanted because it was always the weekend.

Chalk this up to one more thing I've changed.  Today is Friday and I ate just like I have been for the past 6 weeks...no splurging because it's Friday.  Here was my menu for the day:

7:00am
Breakfast shake (same as yesterday)

10:15am
5.3oz plain greek yogurt with 1 Tbsp. agave nectar and 1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed

12:30pm
4oz. salmon patty, 1/2 cup potatoes with Earth Balance, and one cup fresh green beans (all leftovers from last night)

3:45pm
1/2 large pear and small handful raw unsalted walnuts (probably 8-10 walnut halves)

7:00pm
4-5oz chicken breast and 2 cups of salad consisting of asparagus, tomatoes, mushrooms, and avocado. (See the picture below.)  Here's a trick...use a smaller plate and bowl and it makes it look like you're eating more!

No more using a day of the week to justify eating like crap!  Every day counts, even the ones that start with "S"!