Like a G-6

First of all, I had a fantastic weekend. Its 6:30 PM on Sunday and I am so content and happy right now. I'm watching TV and sippin a strawberry almond protein shake (special thanks to my new cuisinart mini-blender - perfect protein shakes every time). Had a productive and relaxing weekend. Got alot done around the house, had plenty of me-time and even hung out with my new man interest. So awesome.

I went to the gym to do glutes and finish up back, plus power out some cardio intervals. Felt really good, and I've recently gone up in the amount of weight I can lift, which is super exciting. Although, I REALLY need to get weighlifting gloves, lest I get callusy man-hands from throwing all this weight around.

So I always weigh on the YMCA East's scale, and when I weighed today, I could not believe my eyes. I have offically lost 20 lbs in 65 days. Because I love numbers: that's an average of 2.15 lbs per week, or .30 lbs per day, which is right where I want to be. I'm actually ahead of schedule by a week but like I said in the last post I want to celebrate Thanksgiving this week and while I plan to not gorge, I am going to enjoy myself and eat/drink what I want, so it is good that I am ahead. I am going to keep up with my workouts and eat clean for the most part though- don't get it twisted!

Getting closer and closer to my goals.... one day at a time, one choice at a time. And now I'm feelin so fly

Some Awesome Thangs

Whoa today was a pretty great day, some exciting things going on right now. First awesome thing is that my younger brother Corey (one of the twins) just got home from his 2-year church mission today. He's currently in Florida with my Dad. I just talked to him for an hour, we have so much catching up to do. Corey and I are of the same mind, we have similar personalites. I can't wait for him to visit. It is going to be soon.

Another awesome thing is that I met a super cool guy and we've been hanging out. He's oozing with personality, hot, hilarious, brilliant, and really fun to be around. So I'm excited about that (although I try to play it cool...). It is so funny how things come along when you have the lowest expectations. I just love interesting, fun people and if I also happen to have chemistry with and am attracted to an interesting fun person AND its somewhat mutual... then hot damn! Let's do things.

Third awesome thing: I just weighed, and I've lost 2.5 lbs since my last post. That brings the total to 16.5lbs. According to my amazing tracking and planning spreadsheet, I am 4 days ahead of schedule. WOO HOO. lol 4 days. I am planning to be super clean the next few days because I would like to live it up a bit (read: drank) over Thanksgiving next week. That means ramp up the cardio whilst continuing to lift lift lift, and my eating must be on point. Getting super excited as the progress continues. It is too soon for me to start looking at specific figure events, but I am getting closer every day.

This week I made good choices so the proof is in the numbers that I must be doing something right. Went to the gym tonight for chest, triceps, core, and 30 minutes of cardio. Another great Friday night where the gym is empty. Had salmon/yams/veggies for dinner and am drinking water and tea this evening getting so hydrated. Totally enjoying some "me-time" for the next few days. Getting my hair and nails did tomorrow yay.

I love this time of year. Ok, I mean I really bitch about the snow and things but I do like cold weather to a point. I like the clothes and jackets and scarves and bundling up, the smell of fireplaces in the air, glamming up for holiday parties and New Year's eve. It is especially cool for me with the Project because I feel like the layer of warm clothing is my chrysalis to be shed come spring. It is hard not to by new clothes right now. I just don't want to buy items that won't fit in 4 weeks, so I am trying to be smart about any purchases.

hmmm I think there was one more awesome thing but I just can't remember. Some other time perhaps.

Focus, Tiff.

This is my first post in 2.5 weeks! I am still alive and well. I will admit that hectic work travel and poor planning and social choices has caused more off days than I'd like these past few weeks, but I'd say I've been 60% with it. I am still on path to my goals, I have lost 14 lbs to date. It could probably be more if these past two weeks had been tightened up, but ah vell!  I think I always go a little "crazy" as the time changes and early darkness sets in for fall. And, the social choices I made felt really needed- made a new friend and spent time with them, went on a few dates, and had some Halloween fun. Because I want fitness to be my lifestyle, I am trying to learn to balance things. I don't want there to be a 100% or 0% situation, I want to be 90/10. Make sense? I do need to refocus this week though. As always, the eating is 85% of everything, so planning is very important as is abstaining from liqua.

My upper body is really coming along nicely. There has been significant change to my chest, shoulderz, back, and biceps. Better muscularity than I have ever had, and as I cut down I think I am really going to like what I see. I do need to incorporate triceps and core more. For some reason those have been falling to the wayside. Glutes/legs are ok, I carry most of my undesirable weight in my ass/thighs so although I know the muscle is developing nicely you can't see it well yet. This is why I think it is time to ramp up the amount of cardio I do. I want to ride the trainer for 30 minutes in the mornings before work, to get it out of the way and jumpstart my metabolism and start burning pure fat. I get the nicest legs when I cycle regularly. It is even more effective than running for me, probably because it directly stirs the quads and things. Gets the blood flowing, yo.

So my goal this week is to be 100%.

Endorphinz

With this being the work week from hell I had to work through lunch, but I ate 100 clean today, and headed straight to the Y for a gym sesh after work.

I did Back and Shoulders, and finished up with 25 minutes of treadmill intervals. I am so in love with the rush of a good workout!!!

Came home and had some turkey meatloaf and sauted spinach (going lower carb today and tomorrow) and watched The Fantastic Mr. Fox. What an adorable movie! I recommend it for good, entertaining, light-hearted fun.

I am training with a new friend, ZO at the Y tomorrow and I am totally looking forward to having a fresh perspective on things. He's a power lifter and super cool. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. I think it is a chest day and triceps day. :)

Slippery Slopes

Made a couple of bad choices over the last few days. Let me tell my little tale and what I learned from it.

Sunday night I was bored. I had eaten perfect and gotten in great workouts all weekend and had all my chores done by 6 PM Sunday evening. With no pending Mad Men to occupy me, I was antsy and decided I really wanted to go out for a little tasty cheat food and a glass of wine.

I called up MP and went to Alchemy, then met up with a friend for a drink. It was nice to go out since it has been so long, and I knew I would be A-OK because I already had my clean meals ready for work the next day.

And then Monday happened. I'll spare you the details, but the tip of the iceberg is that we have 10 executives from corporate visiting this week, I had 5 phone interviews to conduct, and benefit renewal season is in full swing. INSANITY! My lunch hour workout went right out the window. No problem, I'll just go to the gym after work. So I work, I work, I work, I work....until 7:00 PM! That's 11 hours straight.

I leave the office and drive home a zombie, starving and exhausted. That was when my weakness got the best of me. I had no more prepared clean food, no energy, and super high stress and anxiety. So what do I do? Do I whip up some egg whites and oatmeal and head to the Y to decompress? Hell no. I ask my little bro if he wants to throw in for some pizza delivery and order that shit up, then settle in front of the couch to watch cable til my eyelids start to droop. I was supposed to have made clean food for the next day.

AND THEN I JUMP OUT AFTER IT, K?

So that sent me off to work this morning with nothing prepared for lunch. I had my clean breakfast and snack, but nothing for lunch. We were having a catered employee lunch and since I am always on the set up/tear down crew, I couldn't leave and at least hit up the salad bar, I had to eat with everyone else...and there were no "healthy" options. bbq, potato salad, stuff like that.

So that sucked, and then blah blah blah (sparing the drama details) another day from hell, and I don't get home tonight until 7:00 PM. Again, no energy for the gym (probably from eating that crap food) and no clean food around, so I had a slice of leftover pizza for dinner and collapsed on the couch, defeated, mentally wrestling with my self but physically unable to do anything about it.

The guilt was eating me alive. What am I doing?  I don't want this. Sunday was cool, I was cool with that and felt like I had some wiggle room for it, but not yesterday and today. This is how it happens- how you get off track. You're too tired to prepare, and the lack of preparedness ruins your plan, and because you ate poorly and didn't exercise you are tired, grouchy, and more stressed than you would be otherwise. The vicious cycle.

Determined not to let the cycle continue for another second,  I got my ass up of the couch and started making my healthy meals for tomorrow. Hooray! So tomorrow I'll have a perfect eating day and get in a hard workout or two and all will be well. I'm going to go lower carb for the next 2-3 days too since I've had more than enough over the past few days.

No scrutinization, no self loathing, just evaluation, assessing, and moving on. Bootstraps, baby! This is another lesson in the importance of planning ahead and making good choices. I need to make sure I ALWAYS have my clean meals with me and be less of a martyr at work when I have a choice. I have a lot of responsibility, but sneaking out for a 40 minute run isn't going to cause the walls to fall in. I am going to make sure I make time for myself during the workday.

I am glad I was able to feel the night and day differenc having eaten poorly. Physically, I feel sluggish and full, not strong and fit like I had been feeling. Mentally, I feel cloudy and stressed, not empowered and happy.

And all that stuff they say about bad carbs making you crave bad carbs.... it is true! It messes with your cravings. I feel like learning this stuff was really valuable at this point in the game, like a true science experiment that makes me want to get back to my squeaky-clean livin' sooner than ever.

Am I too hard on myself? Maybe a little. Like I said, I thought Sunday night was fine, and cheat meals should be allowed. But I am not in maintenance mode yet, and it is very important to me that I make sure those days are rare and don't put me in a cycle I don't want to be in. I always want to figure out my "triggers" are and fight those stressful days the healthy way. Not to say I haven't! I've mentioned before some of the victories I've had. Days where I felt like skipping a workout but talked myself into going. I do win little battles all the time. I am determined and will not give up.

And I am sure that the guilt mixed with extra glycogen stores should lead to some pretty killer workouts for the next week. :)

Friday Night Lights

Its a gorgeous full moon tonight. Big and bright, its lighting up the whole sky.

I had to stay late at work and it was a helluva week so I was pretty beat when I pulled into the driveway this evening. Fridays are always busy for me, and today I had back to back phone interviews plus an employee issue and a mini-crisis so I couldn't get away from my desk to workout at lunch. Of course I ate clean and drink plenty of water all day. People at work are starting to know something is up - I eat 4 of my meals during work hours. I could eat the first of those meals at home (breakfast) but my morning doesn't work out like that. Today as I nuked my 4 pm meal and brought it to my office the IT guy was like "are you just now eating lunch?" and so I took the opportunity to explain my behaivor as of late, "no, I eat every 3 hours" he was like "oh one of those grazing things" and so I was like, "pretty much, yeah."  Good enough. I know he and the others have noticed I eat at my desk quite a bit. Or maybe no one really notices. My boss knows whats up and still teases me about eating so often, although she supports me and helps me make excuses for not attending optional business lunches. Much appreciated.

Can I just say I dislike the term "grazing"? It reminds me of cattle. But I digress.

I decompressed for an hour or so after getting home this eve, fighting the internal battle of go workout vs. go out to happy hour/dinner. The good news is that since I am so committed to the project I know that the guilt trip is totally not worth skipping the workout. So I told myself I was going to go rip it up at the gym, and then I could go out if I wanted to. Of course once I workout I only feel like being healthy any taking care of myself, so here I am, blogging, sippin on the home grown. HERB TEA 4 LIFE

A Solid Month

I mentioned yesterday that I am starting to see results. It's true! That being said I think I'm at the stage now where I keep doing what I'm doing and only tweak when I stop seeing results.

I just want to touch on a few subjects about what I currently am or am not doing and my reasoning behind my actions.

Calories.

I am not counting calories right now. I would chalk it up to pure laziness really. I'm getting results so I don't see the need. Plus, I'm not flying completely blind. I can eyeball a teaspoon, tablespoon, 4 oz of chicken, proper oatmeal servings, proper sweet potato servings, etc. I am eating around 1600 calories a day based on what I know from the days when I was tracking my food. Since I am making this project my lifestyle I don't want to make it un-fun or mundane by forcing myself to do tedious calorie tracking. I'm seeing results, I'm enjoying things, I eat super clean, and I'm never hungry so I must be doing something right. If I ever do a figure contest, I'll count calories then.

Eating at Night

This is an area of controversy for people. Many schools of thought tell you not to eat at night because you are more sedentary at night and thus less likely to burn any calories that you ate and they will get stored as fat. Other schools of thought say that it is ok to eat at night, in fact it is beneficial because the nighttime is when your muscles are the most at-risk of eating themselves.

I used to subscribe to the first school of thought, which sucked because I remember many nights going to bed hungry.

Calorie for calorie, as long as you consume less than you burn, you won't gain fat eating at night-- but, you can't just eat any ol' thing at night. You should eat protein. Pure protein, with maybe a little fat if you haven't had your fat serving for the day. Something like almond butter or peanut butter or avocado. By pure protein I mean a protein shake, or if you want something more substantial, scrambled egg whites, or 4 oz chicken breast, or both. Green veggies are ok too but not tons.  This way your muscles have something for the 6-9 hours you aren't feeding them, and they can really repair and grow.

I have been drinking 1 scoop of protein around 9:00pm or so when I start winding down for bed. I don't chug and then sleep- there is probably a solid 1.5 hours between consumption and sleeping, but it is late. I don't do this on nights where I ate a late-ish dinner though. It has to have been at least 2+ hours since my last meal.

I really think this is helping in my recovery process. I am shocked by my lack of soreness, and visible muscle tone.

Water.

See my purple Nalgene bottle on the right? This nifty bottle sits on my desk at work all day, and lucky me I sit right near the "water cooler" (lol). It's 32 oz, so 4 of these equals one gallon. I try my damndest to drink 3+ of these per day during work hours. Then in the evenings, at home I drink water all evening long too. So I figure I am drinking a gallon of water per day.

Water is magic. Read here for more info on that.


Lifting Heavy, Lifting Often

I am lifting weight as heavy as I can and still perform 10-12 reps with proper form. Sometimes I end up doing only 6 or 8 reps on my last set.

In the past I have told myself "you already have a good muscle base, you should probably just focus on cardio to burn fat." But that is just a myth people buy in to. I am finally taking the advice of thousands of fitness professionals and making lifting the primary focus, instead of a supplement to cardio. I lift 5 days per week right now, focusing on 1 or 2 body parts per day. The intense explosions that happen within the muscle when you lift heavy are metabolism fire-starters, and produce HGH - human growth hormore, plus other good things which I'll expand on in the future.

Alreadyt seeing some great stuff in my chest/shoulders/biceps.

Cardio

Like I just said, I am spending a lot of time lifting and getting a good sweat going that way.  My typical gym routine is to lift intensly for 30 minutes then cap it of with 15-30 minutes of treadmill interval bursts. I'm olny doing 15-30 minutes sessions because I just don't want to spend 45 minutes on an elliptical machine. I have no mind for it. I am really into doing really fast, intense running spurts followed by a walking recovery. Then I'll walk fast for a few minutes before doing another crazy sprint burst. I just feel so alive that way. I think it will make me a fast runner overall too as I get used to the fast spurts and can last longer each time.
I also run outside on my lunch breaks if that's all I have time for. Running outside is a different animal than the treadmill. I like both.


Being Prepared

Just like a boy scout. I can't stress enough how much of this lifestyle involves being prepared. Nothing just happens. You have to grocery shop, prepare food and portion it out, and wash dishes, and remember to grab your food before you leave the house, and pack your gym bag, and remember your ipod, and socks, and shoes, and clean workout clothes, and gym lock, and earphones, and water bottle, and post-workout fuel.....it's EXHAUSTING! But, it is doable. You just have to plan. And roll with things that come up.

Speaking of rolling with punches.... As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I made an awesome squash soup yesterday, which I had for my meals today and was planning to have tomorrow. Well this afternoon my boss asked me to travel on the company plane to our Illinois facility. So already I'm thinking "damn, no run at lunch...and hmmm what about my meals? The soup doesn't really travel well, so what am I going to do?" I knew I was going to have to make food for my trip. After work I walked to the co-op for a few ingredients and threw together a healthy garbanzo/diced chicken breast/pea shoot/diced zucchini/diced green pepper/toasted walnut/arugula/lentil salad. I spiced it with chili powder, lemon pepper, a splash of apple cider vinegar and some Udo's oil. Bam! Power food. Then I portioned it into my little containers that I can grab and I won''t have to worry about the volatility of soup transport. lol :)

Today was a rest day. Tomorrow is a big back day with some cardio to boot. I'm just going to go straight to the gym as soon as the plane lands tomorrow evening.



Sunday Funday

Today was day 30 of the endeavor. I am starting to see real results which is super motivating.

Another great day of training and clean eating to add to the bank. Did shoulders and ran intervals on the treadmill. I made butternut squash soup with lentils, chicken, and arugula for dinner and for lunch the next few days.

So after a weeked with the house to myself, beatiful sunny fall weather, and the Mad Men season finale (that ended like 2 minutes ago) this was a perfect weekend.

I have a big meeting in the morning so I need to leave the house by 6:15 am, looking dolled up and professional. Yikes! I work at a bike company so the standard uniform is jeans and tennys. Time to put on my business lady pants.

26

Today is day 26. I ran 3 miles at lunch today, and went to the Y afterwork for Back, Shoulders, and 20 minutes of treadmill intervals. Had a protein shake immediately after, then came home and made an egg white/veggie scramble for dinner. I'm super tired right now!

Went to a wedding on Sunday and had 2 glasses of wine and ate the food being served there. It was a pig roast complete wish mac and cheese, cornbread, and dessert. So delicious! That was day 23, and it was a well deserved splurge. It kind of threw me off a little because it happened on a Sunday and that is usually a day that I cook my meals for the next few days, but I just cooked Monday evening instead. I had to get creative for my meals Monday during the day though, went to the Copps salab bar for my lunch break. Went to the Y after work and did glutes and cardio intervals, although my glute workout wasn't the best because I didn't have proper fuel in my body. I should have had some carbs + protein 30 min to an hour before but I hadn't had anything to eat in several hours. Gotta give those muscles something to work with! It all goes back to being prepared.

I also had some cheat food yesterday, a friend came over and we ordered pizza and watched TV. I just really felt like it, work had been a bitch and I wanted to just relax and decompress. There aren't many days like that for me these days so I'm just moving right along with my clean eating and workouts otherwise. Although I thouroughly enjoyed the cheat.

Got my body fat tested on Tuesday Oct 12th. The last time I had it tested was June 22nd, 16 weeks prior. My body fat stayed exactly the same, but I had gained 5 lbs- of muscle. Damn! I knew I had gained lbs since June, I mean I've only been working out and eating right for a few weeks now, so that means I had June through September to get more out of shape. I guess I am just surprised that what I did gain was all muscle.

The report that this body fat test generates gives you some great information, it basically tells you how much you will weigh at what body fat percentage as long as you preserve your lean mass, meaning the only weight you lose is fat. Based on my 144.6 lbs of lean muscle, if I weighed 166 lbs I will be at 15% body fat- that is pretty low for a female, as normall healthy range is low 20's.

166 pounds? Isn't that what people weigh in thier "before" pictures? Granted, the lowest I've weighed in my adult life has been 175 lbs, and I have gained alot of muscle since then, but I am just surprised that number is so high. You can see a six-pack around 14% body fat or less, so that means if I weigh 162-164 pounds I'll have a visible six pack. Holy cow! I am so glad I got my numbers done because before, I was aiming to get down to 153 lbs, but that would something be like 6% body fat- which is too low for realisticness. Maybe if I were competing, but not for my current purposes and you could never maintain that.

Now if I were to lose lean muscle along with fat, that number would change, but why would I want to lose an ounce of lean muscle? I will study up o specifics and blog about why I am better off keeping all lean muscle and being 15% body fat at 166 lbs, than losing lean muscle and being 15% body fat at 150 lbs.

Anywho. So I shall strive to preserve all the lean muscle I can, while burning fat fat fat.

amen.

Got Ur Self A...

Day 22 today. Still at it! No alcohol in 24 days and no sugar in 22 days. Consistant clean eating and regular workouts. yay!

Got some new gym shoes Thursday, and I love them. Here's a hipsta pic:

I used to be an Adidas girl, now I'm into Asics. This is my second pair of this style of Asics. Its a super warm (for October) sunny day today so I'm going to ride my bike to the gym in a little while. Then later this evening I'm going to go to the Bodies exhibit at Hildale. Its that exhibit where they have cadavers on display, with skin removed so you can see the preserved muscles and organs. I've been wanting to go to one of these exhibits since I first heard about them a few years ago. I love anatomy and physiology, I used to want to be a Doctor.

Intensity

I was determined to get a good glute/chest workout in today. I was going to go to the gym at lunch, but the way my day was going it was a getting late and I didn't want to be rushed so I went on a quick (ha!) 2 mile run instead.

Still determined to get my glutes/chest workout in, I went straight home after work, changed into my gym clothes and went over to the Y to push some weight around. See I want to do big lifting days on Wednesdays and Thursdays so I can go heavy Saturdays and Sundays too. Fridays are my rest days. This pattern has just worked itself out to be like this. Monday and Tuesday are cardio days, and I will eventually do yoga on Monday evenings if I ever get the balls to sign up.

I read an article on bodybuilding.com about intensifying your workouts, both cardio and weight lifting, to maximize results, preserve the most muscle, and burn the most fat. You mean I don't have to do an hour of boring steady-state cardio, and I get to lift like an animal?? Sign me up!!! I decided to apply that approach to my training. No nonsense, no time-wasting, just beautifully intense.

The way to intensify cardio is obvious, just do HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) which I already do. In the weight room, the way to go intense is to lift heavy, only 8-12 reps, and cut way down on rest time in between sets moving from one move to the next. I tried it out tonight. It was awesome! I was pouring sweat half-way through and really got my heart rate up.

I am a little concerned about my  knees. They were feeling fine up until after my run today. Today was my third day in a row running outside and I know better than that. My body is not conditioned enough to have high-impact three days in a row like that. Oh well! Took an extra glucosamine and fish oil this evening, and I'll rest them the next two days at least.
Tomorrow is back and core, plus shoulders/bis/tris. I might break it up into two workouts if I need to. We'll see.

***

Here is how I'm keeping track of everything, my master spreadsheet. The smiley faces are perfect clean eating days, and then I write in my workouts. Not too complex. On the right side I have columns tracking dates, days, and weight.

If you can't tell from the smiley faces, my eating has been perfect. Made more turkey meatloaf muffins last night, and paired them with broccoli, eggplant, and spaghetti squash. I am considering today and tomorrow "lower carb" days in my attempt to psudeo carb cycle.

Carb cycling is where you cycle low carb and higher carb days. Since any excess carbs that don't get used by your body as fuel get stored as fat, if you go lower with carbs you up your chances of not storing fat and making your body use fat as an option for fuel. You have to keep the protein up though, because the last thing you want to do is sacrifice an ounce of that hard-earned muscle by burning it as fuel.

The high carb days are to carb up and replenish your glycogen stores, to remind your body there isn't a shortage of food so it doesn't go into fat hoarding mode. It is a great method but a tricky game to play. I don't want to eat any carbs I shouldn't but I also want to give my body plently of energy so I feel great and can get in solid quality workouts. I just do what makes my body feel best.

I have had ZERO sugar since starting this thing. The only artifical sweetener I'll use is Stevia, which is actually not artificial, it is a plant extract. However, now that I have gone so long without any sugar and my blood sugars are constantly stablized, I don't need stevia in my coffee or oatmeal anymore, the two places I was using it. How about that? Pretty cool.

So all in all great day, things are going well, little worried about the knees but planning to rest them. No running until Saturday or Sunday.

BORING

Went running at lunch today. Got home from work and just felt bored. Its not like I don't have things I could be doing- cleaning, reading, organizing, etc. but I just didn't FEEL like doing anything. I already cooked yesterday so I'm good there through tomorrow eve. I thought about going to the gym for a second sesh but after my intense weekend all my muscles are sore and in repair stage, and my legs were tired from not only lifting but from running. I am being cautious as to not going too hardcore at first. There is something to be said about easing into things to prevent injury. I don't like the term "easing" into it because I bust my ass at the gym and I push myself on my runs, but I haven't gotten to the twice a day workout stage. My eating is on lock, so as long as I am consistant with that and getting in consistant good quality workouts I'm going to get there. I guess I'm a little hard on myself when I have downtime and am not excersizing. This is where I think I need to sign up to do hot yoga. I'm not there yet.

Haha, downtime. My friends with kids would roll their eyes about that, but what can I say? I have no kids, no pets, no plants, no boyfriends.....but I do have expanded cable. I ended up planking on the floor in the living room watching Hoarders. That show is gross. TV really does rot your brain. Then I had some chai tea with some stevia and almond milk. just a splash!

Tomorrow I am going to run at lunch, and lift after work. I'm doing chest for sure, and maybe glutes but my hamstrings and quads still hurt so I'm not sure. I love feeling my muscles get tighter and I love being sore. I'm glad I am not as sore as was the first week - holy cow that was bad. I will also do core tomorrow. Planks, bicycles, snd the captains chair. I need to get a solid arm day in on Wednesday. So far I've just piddled around with AJ's weights at home and get my bis/tris/shoulders sore enough where they hurt the next day but never a routine til failure like I do back/chest/legs.

I'm making it a point not to weigh myself for the first few weeks here, because I don't care so much about the number and I don't want to get discouraged. I feel slimmer though and can definitly tell in my face already. All over really, I just feel a bit more slim and toned. My fitness is also increasing. Everytime I run I can go faster, longer.

atta girl.

What's Cookin

DJ Baby Bok Choy

I sure do a lot of cooking these days. I'm basically on a pattern where I have to cook every other day, sometimes I can swing it til the third day. I don't like pre-making meals for too many days ahead of time because I get freaked out about the freshness, and I don't like freezing them because I've never done that and I don't know how they'll reheat.

So today I had to do make food for Monday and Tuesday. I eat one container at 1:00 and one at 4:00, and one for dinner at 7:00. I try to taper the carb content a bit so that the meal I eat in the evenings is more just protein and fibrous carb, not starchy carbs.

Here is what I made today:

• baked boneless/skinless chicken breast
• steamed baby bok choy
• quinoa - the inca red kind (first time!)
• baked cubed sweet potato
• swiss chard sauted in coconut oil with garlic, then red pepper flakes and lime.



Look how colorful! The chicken is on the bottom.

...And the cooking didn't stop there.

Every morning I eat a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. I usually add a partial scoop of protein powder to give it more substance. Ideally, I would eat egg whites too, but I just don't have time in the mornings to do all that cooking. It is a feat just getting out the door on time. So I was reading an old issue of Oxygen magazine the other night, and I found a recipe for these veggie-egg white bites this fitness model invented. You bake them in muffin tins to get individual servings and voila! Egg whites ready to go. She uses mini muffin tins but I just have regular size so I used those.

Egg Whites to Go
1 small box egg whites
1 small onion diced and sauted
1 shallot diced and sauted
1 small summer squash
1 small zucchini

Preheat oven to 350. Cut up the veggies; saute the onion and shallot in a bit of coconut or olive oil. Spoon diced vegetables into each muffin tin. Salt and pepper each pile of veggies. Open container of egg whites and pour over veggies into the muffin tins. They don't rise much so you can fill them as little or as much as you want. I just filled them til they covered the veggies. Bake for about 30 minutes or until they are done.

Here is what they look like:



egg whites to go!

I am so happy to have found a way to get high quality protein in the mornings! The benefit of solid food over protein powder is the thermic effect that is caused by the digestion process of eating solid food. And of all foods, protein burns the hottest, followed by complex carbs.

I'm getting ready to go watch Sunday night Mad Men (yay) and do my nails. This week went great and I am looking foward to tomorrow.

Lift Life

Day 16

It was a killer workout weekend for me. Yesterday was leg/glutes and chest plus 30 minutes of cardio. I did 5 different leg/glute moves for a total of 13 sets of 12 reps, and for chest I did 6 sets of 12.

I really feel like I got my post-workout nutrition on point yesterday. I had packed a scoop of quick-absorb protein in my new Pro shaker, and brought 8 oz of carrot juice with, so as soon as I finished stretching I went back to the locker room and mixed up the juice and some water with the protein and drank it right there so it could replenish my glycogen stores and sweep that protein up into those hungry muscles.

I just love working out on the weekends. I can actually take my time, and really make it count. Plus the gym is always slow, so there is no waiting for equipment or distractions.


 Today was back and triceps. I really like working my back, when I first got into lifting I didn't any other back exercises besides lat pull downs, but now I've rounded that up with a mix that hits each main back area.

I'm proud of my effort with cardio today. I was feeling pretty good, so after I warmed up walking on the treadmill I would kick it up to a fast run pace and try to hang on for 90-120 seconds. Then I'd walk 3 more minutes and repeat until it had been 30 minutes.  I can already feel my fitness improving, which is motivating. I ended my sesh with some ab work- planks, bicycle crunches and some pilates work.




just tea. no sugar, no sweeteners.

 Sunday afternoon and I'm getting ready to cook. AGAIN. No breaks there, I tell ya what. It is a bit tedious, but when I do cook I make sure it is for at least 2 days worth, and frankly, its not like I'm doing anything else with my time as this is my number one priority. Plus cooking is kind of zen for me.

I was stoked to learn that the co-op serves slow-cooked oatmeal at their salad bar in the mornings. An 8oz container ended up costing me $.94 cents, which is costly when you consider what oats cost, but well worth the price for the convenience. I had just walked over there this morning to get a coffee to drink while I cooked my oats at home, but bam! There it was. And it was delicious. I cooked up 3 egg whites to go on the side and had my dark coffee mixed with unsweetenedd chocolate almond milk for a wholesome power breakfast. Buying pre-made oatmeal was a huge treat, it tasted better than mine and was like my version of Sunday brunch. I wish I could afford to buy it everyday....but that would be fiscally irresponsible and along with this fitness endeavor I'm getting my finances in line too.

Ok, time to go cut up veggies and bake some chicken. again. :)

Do Work

It's a crispy cool fall  morning. I love these kinds of days. Last night I got home from work and was feeling insatible. Its been a few weeks since I've gone out, and the thought of reading, or watching a movie bored me. I wanted to be around people. So, I ended up going to my local hangout bar to chat with my ladies. It was good to see everyone. I just had a few club sodas and left at midnight. I wasn't even remotely tempted to have a drink, which is cool. I think I am getting to the point where I've got enough days going in my streak that nothing is worth it to break that streak. Today is day 15 for the plan, and 17 for no drinking.

I have a wedding to attend next Sunday. The bride is my friend at work and she's very into this open bar she's having. I'll see how I feel by then, but as it stands now I don't want to drink then either. Why break the streak and set myself back a day or two? Now if I get there, and I really want a cocktail I'm going to have one.

I have to go to the gym now. Today is leg/glutes, and chest, plus 45 minutes of cardio. I do work.

Regular old Thursday

I'm feeling spacey and ADD this eve. My bodybuilding.com order came in yesterday. I ordered multi-vitatmins, quick-absorb protein (for immediatly post workout), and a cool protein shaker that has a separate chamber for the powder so you can mix it right before you drink it, at the gym or whatever.

PROTEIN!

With multi-v's re-up I was able to get my supplement arsenal all in a row. Right now, it consists of:

-Multi-v

-Fish oil

-Glucosamine

-Magnesium

-Echinacea (only for this week since I was sick last week- to get my immune system kickin)



The last couple of times I've run on the bike path near work I've noticed this little guy along side the grassy part of the path. I finally stopped and took a pic:

He's a fun guy.

That's it for today.

One doz

Woohoo! It's day 12. Still 100%. We had a lunch-time cookout for everyone at work today that I had to oversee but I brought my own lunch and ate after. Besides the fact that there was nothing there I could eat except lettuce & tomato, it was too early for my lunch. I usually eat at 8:30am, 10:30am, 1:00pm and 4:00 pm -all at work! Thank goodness my office is super close to the breakroom. It works out perfect for me to grab my meals when I need them.

Yesterday was another hectic day at work but I managed to sneak out for a quick run. My legs were pretty tired but they feel better today. Today I went to the Y after work and did back plus 30 minutes of cardio. Eventually I'll build up to 45-60 min cardio, but for now I am acclimating my body.

I didn't drink enough water today. I've been trying to get down two 32-oz bottles full per workday but I only drank one and a half. I drink tons of water in the evenings, it's easy then. It's funny getting your body used to that though. At first you have to pee all the time. Last week I was getting up twice before I could fall asleep at night. It's better this week. I've become a huge fan of herbal tea. Easpecially chamomile. Celestial Seasonings makes a honey vanilla chamomile that is pretty tasty.

I love the structure and pattern my life has these days. I really am a creature of habit- just have to make those habits count. :)

One more day to add to the bank. Cha-ching!

(10) ten

Today marks the tenth day of my endeavor and I am pleased to say that I still have as much steam as I did ten days ago. My 3 day illness tried to twart me, but to no avail! I've eaten 100%, and worked out every day I wasn't sick in bed.

I finally started to feel better yesterday, but I was probably more stir crazy than anything so I went to the gym and did that glute routine I mentioned a few posts ago. I got on a treadmill to get some cardio in, but my lungs were not feeling very good, so I walked for 20 minutes.

Although I do feel very motivated, I almost talked myself out of my workout this evening. After being out sick Friday I was swamped, plus my boss was back in town, and then I had 3 back to back meetings this morning, my day got away from me in a hurry. I ended up skipping my lunch break (ate at my desk) and staying an hour late, which made for a 10 hour day. By 10:00AM I knew I would have to skip a lunch workout, but as the day wore on and I got busier and busier I talked myself in and out of my workout a few time. Never all the way out, but I did toy with the idea of just going home and curling up to watch Mad Men. I was tired!! So then I thought about getting home, and then driving over to the Eastside Y, but I knew if I did that there was chance I wouldn't go. So I changed into my workout gear at work and ran on the bike path there. I am so glad I did (Aren't you always glad when you do?) and now I have one more workout to take to the bank. It was nice being out on a crisp fall evening too, though that cold air made my lungs burn.


***
I've  been going back in forth in my head about results. Now that I am dedicated, disciplined and doing it, I have moments where I am impatient with results, but more than that, I over analyze every facet of the plan. Almost like "surely there is some secret move, some magic nutrient that will make my results come quicker- something the pros do, some secret they have." I research and read, and re-read, and research. Best moves, proper form, proper macronutrient ratios, proper timing of said ratios....everything. The truth -and what I need to remember- is that I do know what I'm doing. I AM doing what the "pros" do. I have done my homework. I just have to keep doing it, over and over and over again. I didn't fall off the wagon overnight, and it is only with consistency + time that I will get the results. Tell my doubting mind that!! It really is like having an angel and a devil on your shoulder, this human condition.

Oh, and its super weird being super single. Like I said, its what I want to be doing right now, I have to put this stuff first for a spell and center myself again, get my groove back so to speak, physically, mentally, and spiritually. But it still doesn't mean it isn't weird. I haven't even seen M in over a week! The last few times we hung out I realized he is  irritable towards me in a way that is kinda annoying and makes me feel bad about myself. So, I've loosened the straps on that one too. He's been my sidekick for a while, even through past boyfriends I've had but that "endearing" feeling of our friendship is wearing off. I'm finding it harder to relate. And like I've said before, my circle of friends in the neighborhood are really into the bar scene, and I'm giving that up for a while too. I am totally happy- more happy now than I have been in months, but I do acknowledge some moments of lonely. Lonely is not a bad thing. This time of, well, "me-time" rocks. I am kind of viewing this time as some sort of metamorphosis, almost like I'm in hiding for now but will emerge at some point, changed. And it is totally that. Its all a continual circle of reaping and sowing.

I should sign out and hit the sack but I wanted to display two new products I've entered into my regime this weekend:

More beneficial than peanut butter, and pretty tasty. I have a tablespoon with my night time protein shake.

The one and only Udo's oil. You can't cook with it, so I use it in classic oil/basalmic dressings. Fo' drizzle!

Third Day's a Charm?

Ughhhhh today is day three of my cold from hell. It has moved from my head to my chest, so now I get to cough it up. HAWT! I did some research about excersizing when your sick, and my findings were that you can workout if your cold is above the neck, but if moves below, you cannot. This sucks, because I've finally stopped having body aches and no energy, but I do know my chest is tow' up. Sad Panda!!!! I almost want to go to the gym anyway, but what I am worried about is that it will make me worse and then I will be sicker longer. Soooo I'm just babying myself and taking it easy. I have watched so many movies in the past two days, I'm sick of it. I did take a three-block walk a little while ago, and I might take a longer one later.

I think I am doing all the right things to knock out this wretched cold. When I woke up at 8am this morning and felt that it had moved to my chest, I immediatly busted out the Vick's, slathered it on my chest (hot!) and passed out for three more hours. That stuff works wonders! Although it evokes weird dreams.

For nutrition, I've maintained 100% clean eating...which means today is day 8 eating clean. Day 10 of no drinking. The only difference in my diet now to how it would be otherwise is additional fruit servings. I had a grapefruit Thursday, two oranges yesterday, and an apple today. I'll have an orange later. I want to pack in the vitamins and electrolytes that fruits provide. For breakfast today I made a veggie scramble with avacado.

This is the most lethal secret weapon off all......Popeye juice from the Co-op. What is this Popeye juice, you ask? It is 16oz of juiced beets, carrots, and spinach. Bam! Vitamins fo' yo' body. It sounds gross but juiced carrots are actually super sweet, sweet enough that the whole drink is earthy and delicious. I'm not sure how many calories it contains but I am sure it is high in carbls and natural sugars from the carrots so I let it count as my carb choice with breakfast.

Wish me well! I'm close to going crazy what with all this pent up motivation and no outlet. Heal body, heal!!!



I'm Illi

Left work at 3 today to come home and rest. This cold I have been battling has moved from my throat to my sinuses/head, with body aches to boot. I'm totally bummed about it because although my body is worn, my mind is like "Go! Go! Go!" and I really wish I had the physical strength to put in a good workout today. Ah well. I do understand the importance of resting when I need to, I guess I just wasn't expecting this. I mean, c'mon, it's day SIX! But- that is part of my theory of why I'm sick. I think it's part of the detoxification process. The sudden 180 probably put my system into bit of a shock and I'm sure my immune system was affected too. So when my defenses were down, the sickness strikes. I really hope I kick this in the next few (hours!) days.

This is kind of humorous- so Tuesday was chest day, and just like my first big back and glutes day, I'm sore as hell today from it, here two days later. Well the muscular chest pain is playing tricks on me with this whole cold thing, and it makes it feel like my chest is tight and super congested, when in reality it is not.

Whelp, I double dosed on sugar-free tussin a bit ago and I'm drinking tons of water. I have to go cook now, sick or not. These clean meals won't prepare themselves and I need to be armed and ready to go.

(please note I am currently accepting sympathy, chicken soup, and massages. Inquire within.)

:)

Thumbs Up

Today was a gorgeous September day, so I went for a jog at lunch on the bike path near my office. The forecast was calling for clouds all day, but right at noon, the sun decided to peek out for a bit. Perfect timing. It was warmer than expected, but I had dressed comfortably enough that it wasn't bad.

Getting back into running is tough. I can feel each ounce of extra weight on my body with each step. The good thing is that it is a great workout for me at this point, even if I'm jogging-walking-jogging-walking, my heartrate stays pretty high the whole time. I am not focusing on distance, or endurance or any of that stuff right now. I just want to get my body accustomed to the movement again, and get my heartrate up.


 There was a time, at my peak of fitness when I was training for a half-marathon, that I couldn't leave the house for a run without my Garmin Forerunner. So hardcore! I'll get to that point again, maybe, although that may be a little obsessive. I remember getting ready for a run once, and my Forerunner was low battery.  I fiddled around the house for and hour just to let the dang thing charge so I could clock my run. sheesh!

Anyways, a cool thing happened on my run today. As I was headed back towards the office, I was telling myself "you might not feel good but you can finish strong" and it was my last running spurt and I was really suffering. Well, just at that time, a nice lady riding her bike along coming towards me gave me a big smile and flashed a thumbs up as she crusied by. That was all I needed! Totally made my day too. Anyone who has done any type of athletic event know that the cheering, the music, the signs, the cowbells- really do HELP! The crazier the better, I'm starting to think. I remember when I did the Devil's Lake Sprint Triathalon two years ago, at the top of a huge hill climb on the bike course, there was a group of people sitting there with the tailgate of the truck open blasting Eye of the Tiger. It was fantastic.

NUTRITION:
I'm still on my clean eating routine, today marked the 5th consecutive day. It doesn't just happen though, it takes a lot of preparation. In fact that is why I didn't get a chance to write last night. I got some veggies cut up then ran to the gym for chest & cardio, and when I got home I had to cook chicken, steam veggies, shower, eat, and then package the food into containers for the next few days' meals, then wash dishes (we don't have a dishwasher in this old house).

I just got this nifty vegetable steamer, and I love it! My mom had one in the house when we were kids, and we would play with it like a spaceship, putting our toys in and flying them around. 



Spaceship!



The steamer cooked the veggies perfectly. I made it a point to take them out before they got too mushy because I am making a conscious effort to eat veggies as close to raw as I can tolerate. I don't mind them raw but I do tend to favor a more sauted, softer style when they aren't in a salad. I also picked up some acorn and butternut squash from the Jenny St. Market (a steal at $.50 a lb!) and softened them in the oven for about 45 minutes. I never thought I would like squash without butter, but I have come to love it. To me, it takes the place of a decadent, fatty, comfort-food style dish. I can't wait to make my squash soup! I probably will in the next few weeks. I'll post my recipe when I do. It has been tweaked to perfection. :) Those meals should last me through tomorrow evening, so I'll need to make something else then. Probably more turkey meatloaf muffins, with garlic quinoa and broccoli.

Oy! This overworked body sure needs a rest. As hard as it is getting back into it, the reward of this effort is 1000 times sweeter. The sense of accomplishment, feeling like I have control, the clear mind, the hope and moments of feeling pure joy. That is the good stuff, ladies and gentlemen.

Over Done

Boy oh boy, I am SORE AS HELL today. I am still feeling it from my Saturday back workout, and my legs are getting more sore as the day goes on. I am trying not to let it discourage me- I may have gone a little too heavy for just getting back into it, but hey, the sign said "Lift Heavy or Go Home" and I didn't go home.

I was too sore to go to the gym after work today- although I did walk 2 miles at lunch. I was planning on making today a chest/elliptical day, but that will just have to happen tomorrow. Besides the lifting, I have been run/walking on the treadmill, and that leaves me hella sore too. Its just using all these muscles that haven't been used in a while.  I admit I am feeling guilty about not going to the gym, but I really don't want to injure myself. I mean I am sore to the point of barely being able to sit! If I hadn't walked at lunch and eaten clean all day I would have gone anyway, but I think I made the right choice. I'm going to go to bed before 10 tonight and give my muscles the rest they deserve. It is still so good to be back!

almond milk. eh, so so. Probably because I use the unsweetened, of course.

One of my daily vices is my morning coffee - coffee with cream and splenda. Well, clean eating has no room for half and half so I bought some almond milk for my coffee. It isn't a fraction as delicious, but it is better than nothing creamy in my coffee. Eventually I want to switch to green tea in the mornings, but first things first! I am not eating splenda anymore either, I've switched to Stevia instead.





I leave you with some art

Clean Eats

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

courtesy of bodybuilding.com

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs ground turkey (or chicken)
• 3 egg whites
• 1 cup quick cooking oats
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tsp dry yellow mustard
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp chipotle pepper spice
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp garlic powder (2 cloves minced)
• 1 small onion (finely chopped)
• 2 celery stalks (finely chopped)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin pan with canola or olive oil. Mix all your ingredients together in one large bowl. Roll the mixture into balls and place in muffin pan. Muffins should be about the size of a racquetball. Bake for 40 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.

Here are pics I took of the process:



the spice blend





ground turkey, oats, onion, celery, spices, and egg whites



fresh out the oven





Ms. New Booty

I'm still piecing together some sort of a routine. I figure I'll just get back into the swing of things, and work one major muscle part per day.  Inspired by this badass glute workout, I decided to I might as well give it a try and make today a glute day.

Here is what I did:

• Leg Press (feet together): 3 sets of 12 reps
• Butt Blaster - 3 drop sets of 12-15 reps, finish with 5 partial reps
• Cable Kickbacks: 3 sets of 12- reps, each leg (this was HARD!!)
• Hip Abductor -  2 sets of 10-12 reps, finish with 5 partial reps

The 5th excersise she demonstrates in the video workout is a Smith Machine lunge, which I did not do because I need a spotter and I want to get a little stronger before I make a fool of myself on that. That is OK though, because I totally killed. It. My heartrate was soaring, and I totally felt the burn. Walking and sitting tomorrow is going to be a challenge. I love it. I am going to do a glute workout twice per week, it is a strong muscle group and one I want to focus on.
 
I finished up with 30 minutes of walk/run treadmill cardio, and a long stretch sesh. I am now downing my post workout meal, an organic apple and a carton of Fage fat-free plain Greek yogurt, with a partial scoop of protein powder. And my supplements: Fish oils, glucosamine, and my multi-v. I am rounding up the ingredients to make those turkey meatloaf muffins I mentioned. It'll be my first time making them, but Fitness superstar Jaime Eason invented the recipe, and since she is basically my idol, I have to try them.

Fitness Model Jamie Eason

 

9/18

WORKOUT
For weights I did all back. I was going to do back and biceps, but I was really focusing on hitting every part of my back and the lat pull-downs also hit the biceps, plus since I'm just getting back into things I didn't want to overdo it. Spent about 30 minutes on back:

Lat Pull Downs - 1 warm up set, then 3 sets of 12
Reverse Flyes (which is actually shoulders) 3 sets of 12
One Arm Dumbbell Rows - 3 sets of 12
Cable Rows - 3 sets of 12
and Back Extenstions - 2 sets of 15.

I did one more set of 10 Dumbbell Rows when I got home. Just felt like it.

Aren't the bodybuilding.com excersizes cool? Yet another reason that is my favorite website. I finished up my workout with 35 minutes of run/walk intervals on the treadmill. The gym was dead, so it was prime time for one of my biggest peeves- when you're on a piece of cardio equipment, and they are all empty, but some dude has to get on the machine RIGHT NEXT TO YOU. I mean come on! Give me some space!! haha, it doesn't really matter, but it is super strange. You'd think he wanted some space. I guess he wanted to watch Fox News (ew) which was on the TV right in front of us. I don't ever care what is on the TV, I am a music gal and oh yeah- my new iPod shuffle rocks!



MEALS
Breakfast was eggwhite/veggie scramble.
For my lunch and afternoon snack today I had grilled chicken arugula salad, with bean sprouts, cubed cooked sweet potato, green onion, grape tomatos, kiwi, pecans, and a homemade balsamic/EVOO/garlic/Stevia dressing. Super-clean, and super delish!

chicken/arugula/beansprout/etc salad

I think I am going to check out REI tonight. I was thinking about how cool it would be to go jogging in the evening time, and since it is getting darker earlier I need to get a light, like a headlamp or something, so I am going to go check out the merchandise. I also need to get to the grocery store to pick up the ingredients to make Turkey Meatloaf muffins - which I will document!

Preparing for Take Off

I am back in the game, dedicated, committed and with no excuses.

Since my last post I've spent alot of time in my head, trying to mentally stoke my fire that it takes to get back into the swing of a healthy lifestyle. I've made some physical preparations too. I got new gym clothes, slowly started to tighten up my eating, and stopped going out to lunch with friends at work. Today is Saturday, and I've just finished making a super-clean egg-white-squash-shallot-arugula-mushroom scramble (amazing!). I'm finishing up my coffee, and decided to blog for a while before hitting the gym for a chest/bicep day plus cardio. It is technically my first full Day One, but I have had so many "Day One" days that I grow weary of making any sort of declaration- almost like a jinx at this point.

As I've stated before, being fittness/bodybuilding oriented tends to make you a bit of a loner, especially when the crowd you've been running with for the last year+ is not of that mind set in the least. Today they are all heading for tailgating (day-drinking) at the Big 10 Pub beginning at 11am. Normally I would have joined them (feeling guity about it, but rationalizing it as a "last big hoorah") but today I am saying no. I've thought a lot about alcohol and the effects is has on the body, and I'd do best not to touch it with a 10 foot pole. I really hate to admit it, but I think my drinking was teetering on the edge of excessive. Some could say it is normal, I'm just a young woman who likes to have a good time, but I know better. I knew I was drinking to take the edge off of the harsh reality that I had skipped yet another workout and ate like crap that day. Healthy, fit people with phsyiques I admire do don't drink hardly at all. The lifestyles just don't go together. Forget about the immediate effects on the body (it coverts to sugar, halts fat loss, and lowers inhibition thus making you likely to eat crap), the next day is always ruined because of it too. Even if you only had a few, you probably didn't pack your gym bag, or get your clean meals together, and even if you did- do you really feel up for a good workout?

One of the (pathetic) excuses I've had this past year of hedonism is that I just didn't know what I would do on the weekend if I didn't go out. Friday and Saturday nights are for going out to the bars. I really like being out and about among people. Although, the more out of shape I got, the less I actually liked going out because I was really feeling uncomfortable in my own skin, and deep down I knew I was making a bad choice. So I've been thinking about what to do to fill the time. I definitely plan on blogging more. It's a great outlet and will help me channel my thoughts and share things I learn along the way. I also want to get back to my true roots as creative soul. I was always crafting and doodling and singing and dancing as a kid, and my life has been lacking any sort of true creative outlet. Sure I have dabbled in painting over the last few years, but only in moments where I feel inspired. I want to learn to knit hats, and make greeting cards, and other artsy crafty things. A sweatshop of love! I could see myself cozy of the couch on a Saturday night this fall/winter, happy from a hard workout, content and satisfied that I've eaten clean and have my clean meals ready for the next day, and working on some sort of busywork project. I can't wait to figure out what I want to do first! Maybe make Christmas cards? That could be cool.

I don't believe in having regrets, and this past year of sedentry hasn't been a complete waste. Along with the promotion I worked really hard and payed off pretty much all of my debt, which is exciting and remarkable in itself. I've also had some interesting times relationship-wise. People who are close to me tease me about the fact that I date all over the board- I don't have a "type" and it's the truth. I don't want to close myself off of any experiences or interesting people just because I have some list of critera he has to meet. So I dated some cool cats. In the end they never worked out, but I wasn't really in a place to have a full blown relationship anyway. It was just another diversion, a time-waster to fill the void caused by not doing what I needed to be doing to take care of myself. Someone who is only functioning at 75% can't really nurture a relationship with another person, so I am currently unaffiliated with anyone, which is exactly where I need to be. I am going to give being completely single a go. I know I have said that before, but I really want to strive to nurture myself and make myself into the kind of lady I admire and know I am.

Some people have told me that I'm too hard on myself. Why is it that I am either living clean and active, or I'm failing? What about balance? To that I say that I know I am happiest when I'm taking care of myself physically. For me, it is tied so closely to my mental well-being and mood. And feeling well and being in a positive mood is what makes for "the good life."  I am not saying that I will always self-loathe when I have pizza or dessert or a cocktail, but I have to get where that is the rare treat rather than commonplace in order for me not to feel guilty about it.

Well this has certainly been a long, wordy entry. I am off to the gym and to run errands.

The Train is Off The Track

Notice how I haven't posted in a while? Well the train got off the tracks.


We had body composition testing at work a few weeks ago.

Here are my stats:

weight 216 (OMFG)
body fat % 34.5 (cringe!)
lean muscle mass: 141.0 lbs (yay)

holy shit! This is what happens when you don't make fitness and clean eating a priority.  For months I've been making poor choices so I'm not surprised. Too time crunched for running or lifting at lunch, I've been going out to lunch as more of the rule rather than the exception. After work I've been shedding work stress the wrong way - cocktails rather than gym time. And my weekends are filled with going out way too much then feeling to like crap the next day.

I guess the one good thing to come out of this is a lesson learned. A hard lesson, a lesson that makes me want to crawl in a hole or find a time machine. I know better! In fact I feel down right stupid about the fact that my BLOG PROJECT is about hard work and achieving peak physical fitness and I lost my focus. All my hard work at the office paid off, I did get a promotion which is really a great step for my career and financials, but I do know this, energy flows where attention goes. And, all those workouts and clean meals where I didn't see any results were in fact good for something - maintainance! I feel like with this lesson learned I will be able to stay on track better than ever.

Its time to go full throttle again. I have a work trip coming up in a few weeks, but once I'm back from that it will be on. I think I am going to schedule a photo shoot for February 2011 so I have something to aim for. I really want to do some pin-up girl modeling.

My mom said something that rang true to me. She said that when scientists are plotting the course to reach the moon, they are constantly veering off course then replotting. I feel like my journey is just like that.

Super Bowl Sunday

I can't wait for tulips and daffodils to start coming up. That's going to be awesome. It always is.

NUTRITION
I been sticking to the clean eating plan steadfastly and I feel really good. My energy levels are higher than they've been in the past, because I am keeping my carb levels slightly higher in the afternoon. Going to low-carb makes for sluggishness and moodiness. My new favorite grain is quinoa, the mother of all grains. It's the best, and also is considered a complete protein, although the actual grams of protein per serving aren't very high. It just contains all the amino acid chains necessary to constitute "complete" in compatibility with the human body. Plus, it cooks quickly and tastes wholesome and delish.

I haven't had any alcohol, wheat, or sugar in 3 weeks. I feel good.

I've been trying out a new protein powder, a whey protein isolate. Isolated protein powders contain more killa and less filla, and I'm about the killa. I've got vanilla flavor right now, and it tastes good by itself or mixed in my oatmeal with cinnamon, nutmeg and blueberries. My daily supplement regimen right now consists of:

-multi vitamin
-Omega 3 fish oils
-Echinecea
-A fat burner (green tea extract, caffeine, chromium)
-glucosamine (for the joints)

The only non-clean thing I still consume is a Tbs of sugar-free French Vanilla coffee mate creamer in my morning coffee. It contains tons of chems but I figure it is early enough in the day that my body can process everything OK. I have to have some kind of vice!

FITNESS
I've been going to the gym 6 days a week for the past few weeks, twice some days. I do weights first, and split up the body parts by the main 3 powerhouses, Leg day, Back day, and Chest day. I need to figure out a way to add bi's tri's and shoulders in. I do some of those, and they are all worked doing chest and back, but they need some targeted training. I am almost ready to start doing squats and lunges. I've been holding off on those, worried about my knees, but since I haven't done any pavement running me knees feel fine. I know once I start lunges and squats my legs are going to really love it, they hurt though. I guess that is why they work so well. I am focused on the booty, so I need to start adding them in.

After weights I do 30-60 minutes of cardio, usually in the form of walk/sprint intervals on the treadmill or the trusty ellip. Too ellip, too ellip 2 quit. I am soooo over any endurance sports this year. Maybe in 2011, but 2010 is all about the high intensity sprint. Fat burning, yo.

I've been stretching a lot more this time around, even dabbling in yoga. It feels really good to not have stiff muscles. Especially in the hamstring/calf region, which gets really tight from the running. Stretching is key. I really want to dig more into the yoga, maybe get some DVD's and do one every night.

Total weight loss over the past 3 weeks is 11 lbs. I've had one cheat meal in this time- Greenbush (crack) pizza. The best!

LIFESTYLE
The social aspect of this lifestyle is still the weirdest. It is really hard to find other people who are in the same boat as you, and understand why you do what you do. It is especially strange being a single girl. I'm kind of shying away from dating right now because that typically brings wining and dining, which I don't want to do. I don't have room for that in my life right now. I want to meet someone at the gym or something. My first criteria now is whether or not he works out regularly. I figure that's a good starting point. I don't care where he is in his journey, but whether he has made a commitment to taking care of his body.

Then there is the diet aspect. I am so mindful of everything I put in my body right now. I am done with sinning today to start clean tomorrow. I am quite serious about my lifestyle, it isn't just a brief phase. I will eventually get to a point where I have more flexibility in my diet for splurging and whatnot but the time is not now. It just sucks because I so often miss having someone special in my life, to snuggle with, laugh with, care about, and plan fun things with. Oh and how about some night games on a regular basis, that would be good. I really enjoy having someone to think about and be good to. I try not to dwell on it too much though, because I think meeting someone special happens when you aren't really looking.

The worst thing people say to me is "live a little" usually said when I say no to the work donuts or opt for water rather than a cocktail. Guess what- I am living! A lot! My cells are more alive than ever! My mind is clear, and I feel really good. Oh just wait til the weather gets warm, it is going to be ON!

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The universe is full of surprises. There are some strange things in the works right now career-wise. Another company wants me to go work for them. I am flattered and will be finding out more this week, but I'm not sure it would be worth it pay-wise, and there is the possibility of a promo in my current position. I love my current company. 2009 was all about paying off debt, but my plan for 2010 is saving up. I am banking as much as I can. I am considering being a full time student by fall 2011. I think I'd really enjoy nursing. Maybe communications/PR. Much more than HR anyway. Nothing wrong with HR, I like what I do, I just want something that will give me a little more flexibility.

So thats the haps. I think I am going to post some update comparison photos in the next entry. Although, blogger isn't the most user-friendly for uploading and placing pics.