Current Status: I'm Having One of THOSE Days

You know... THOSE days. Those days where no matter what anyone says to you, you hate life... one of those days. Yup, that's right I'm not always Miss happy motivational Team Six Pack... my weight loss journey didn't transform me into some Type A energy freak... I'm still very much myself, and I have my bad days too. I just need my moment to be moody and then I'll get over it.

here is yet another segment on this blog where I rant/ramble:

Current Mood: Frustrated, angry, sad upset... something along those lines.

Current Weight: 192.5 (-16.5lbs since I started the blog)

Currently Thinking about: I lost our office biggest loser contest. I never blogged about it before because I didn't want to jinx myself AND then I forgot to talk about it. I plateaued hard core over the fall, even though I was still losing inches of fat the scale wasn't budging and it was frustrating. I was determined to break that plateau. Once the holidays rolled around, I snacked, ate more than I probably should... the scale was up a few pounds but I wasn't stressing because I knew I'd burn it off again. Everyone at the office kept pestering me to set up another biggest loser contest this year so I rallied the troops. It was just an added incentive for me because I really wanted to win this year... I wanted to prove myself. In Christmas 2008, despite losing 50lbs that year, I lost the office biggest loser contest to a freak of nature man who lost 11lbs. I lost 5.

This year we kicked the men out so the contest was more fair, and I was determined to win this time.

Want to know how much I lost... 6.5lbs.

Want to know how much I lost the contest by... 1/2 a pound!!

1/2 a FUCKING Pound!!!

Pardon my fucking French.

I was ok with losing the contest at first because I'm happy for anyone that loses weight and tries to live a healthy lifestyle, but I'm finding it increasingly difficult to stay happy when the person who won started saying how she hardly worked out, wanted to give up and had binge weekends! WHAT!!!!!!!!!! I want to rip my hair out!

I worked out 5-6 days a week and I'm not talking piddling on the elliptical for a little while, I'm talking intense sweat drip down to the floor work outs! I got super super strict with my diet, tried removing different foods, but above all eating very healthy, I gave up sweets completely! I thought I was doing everything right, I was trying my hardest, but I still lost and that's why I'm feeling pretty hurt right now.

It's seems I'm on a two year record of living a healthy lifestyle day in and day out losing through out the year, but falling short in these contests. So I'm retiring from office biggest loser. I don't need this to give me motivation to lose weight...all it does is stress me out when I can't prove myself to be the biggest loser even though I know in my heart I truly am.

Currently NOT thinking about: How much I want to leave the office and go out to my car and cry for an hour maybe two.

Currently looking online at:

Anthropologie flipside blazer.

I was going to buy this with my winnings. I really wanted to rush over there right after work today, possibly even at my lunch hour and make this mine... It would look SO cute with jeans boots and a t-shirt underneath. It's destined to be in my closet next to my awesome sigur ros shirts. You will still be mine though cute, casual blazer. I just have to wait till I get paid tomorrow ;).

Currently looking forward to: A concert this weekend and my trip to Dallas in two weeks! Because I can say I've been to Tejas!..... and pronounce it like that: TEJAS!

Currently wishing that: My mood would improve... Just give me time.

Currently listening to: Chopin impromptu #4 in C Sharp... I need my happy classical music place.

Currently Realized: Fuck this. I have a half marathon to train for...and outdoor soccer is just around the corner!! Come on spring weather! I need you to warm up a little, melt the snow some more so I can go to my happy fitness place.

Kick Starting Your Work Out Routine

Hello to my new readers! I've had a few new peeps follow my blog lately and some new comments too which is AWESOME!! Thanks so much for coming around to hang out! Welcome aboard!

So if you're new to the blog, new to trying to figure out all this weight loss stuff you probably have a lot of questions. Don't worry, I did as well when I started and I'm certain everyone does... I still have lots of questions, so I'm always looking for more info.

If you're wondering how I got started with my diet I have an older post on that topic. Read about it here!

So what's next? You've read up your diet, learned a bit about healthy eating, but what about working out?

17foreverlisa asked me what she could do to kick start her work out routine, which is a great question! So how in the world do you make the change from being a couch potato to getting fit?

Ask yourself this question...

What motivates you?

There has to be something that motivates you to want to get in shape... think about what that is...is it your family, is it your future family, do you want to do it for yourself...

What is your favorite physical activity?

You might not be in shape right now but maybe there's something you've always wanted to try, always wished you could do, or wanted to start doing again after adult life got in the way...


Did you play a sport when you were younger that you really enjoyed?

Do you like being outdoors?

Do you like riding a bike?

Hiking?

Swimming?

Running?

Skiing/snow boarding?

Dancing?

Do you work well alone? Or with others?

I'm asking all these questions for several reasons:

• Boredom kills your work out! Plus, if you associate working out with being painful and exhausting instead of fun and invigorating then honestly do you think you're going to work out? Probably not.
  
  Find a fun activity that you enjoy that's going to get you out there, and make that part of your routine.
  
• If you like being with a group, then group fitness classes or rec sports are definitely for you!
  
  Even if you don't like being in a group I would recommend trying to push yourself out of your comfort zone! If you don't push yourself out of your routine, out of your existing everyday comforts then you won't see results.
  
• A benefit of group fitness classes is that you have a set time to meet. If you're the type of person that says "oh I'll just go to the gym whenever" but never actually set a time to go, do you think you'll actually make it to the gym?
  
  If you take a group fitness class or join a sports team that has set times to meet and a set schedule for games, then chances are you're going to be there because you've made the time for it.
  
• Working out with a group gives you the added benefit of camaraderie and motivation. You'll see once you get out there that you always feed off each others energy and you'll push yourself harder as a result.

For me, it was soccer. I LOVE soccer! But I was really bad at soccer when I first started playing so I wanted to get better. Soccer has always been part of my routine and every day I work out I feel like I work towards improving my game.

Here's an example of how I boosted my work out routine which helped improve my soccer game:

I needed better cardiovascular endurance... So I started taking regular spinning classes.

I needed to be faster... So I started running and doing sprint intervals on the treadmill.

I needed to improve my ball skills... So I started kicking the ball around after my runs.

I needed to be stronger to have more powerful kicks... So I started lifting weights.

Start Small, Baby Steps!

Note: To be on the safe side I would consult with your Dr. before starting any work out routine. Get a physical and make sure everything is running smoothly! :)

Do you think I was able to get out there on my first soccer game and bend it like Beckham? Hell no! I'm still not even remotely close and never will be at that skill level, but now I feel like I can hold my own out on the field and that I've gained the respect of my team mates as a reliable defender.

But that didn't happen over night. It took time. Achieving fitness is going to take time, remember this is a life style change not a quick fix.

If you're trying to start a work out routine, start small. Set small goals for yourself. Here's an example:

Let's say you have access to a treadmill...even if you don't you can try this outside...

Start off doing 30 minute walks at least 3 - 4 times a week.

If you can handle that, it's time to add a little bit of jogging to your routine.

Try to jog for intervals of 30 seconds to 1 minute, then walk to recover...and again set small goals for yourself to improve the length of time as you grow used to it...before you know it you'll be able to run a mile straight!

If you want to read more about doing run/walks, check out this article on runners world.

Just remember having to stop an activity to take a breather does not make you weak or less of an athlete! What does make you weak is if you had never gotten up off the couch that day in the first place...never get down on yourself for getting out there and trying!

Which leads me to my next segment... ;)

Discomfort is OK, Pain is not!

Remember the expression, no pain, no gain? Forget that expression! PAIN IS NOT GOOD! What you want to shoot for is discomfort, which should happen anyway if you're pushing yourself harder than what your body is used to. Make your self sweat, get your heart rate up...but if you experience severe pain STOP what you're doing. I'm not saying be a total wuss...Just make sure you know your limits.

Experiencing soreness after a work out is normal though. This is often referred to as delayed onset muscle soreness. It's very important to stretch after each work out and to keep yourself moving the next day to minimize your recovery time. For example if you did cardio yesterday and your legs are sore, make sure you do a different activity today such as lifting weights. Remember to stretch, or do a light activity such as walking...don't just sit around.

I've found working out over all has not been a smooth process. I've had minor muscle pains, bumps/scrapes/bruises, a shoulder injury (which has been on going since I was 22 I have to modify my work outs around it) and a foot injury from soccer and not laying off of it. Don't expect everything to be smooth sailing, but also don't let a little soreness make you stop! Listen to your body, listen to your doctor, do what you think you can, but above all keep active!

To summarize my advice... keep it fun, push yourself out of your comfort zone, do your best and most importantly don't give up!!!

Now it's time to put away the lap top and get started!

Hope this helps, and let me know what your favorite way to work out is!

No Sugar: Day 45...The finish line!

I made it to the end!!! Yesterday was crazy busy, in fact the entire weekend was busy, but more on that later... when I have time to just process everything and think of a blog entry. I just wanted to make this one brief.

I survived my goal of no sugary sweets for 45 days!!

I can't really explain completely how I resisted the temptation because there was certainly a lot of opportunities to cheat. I guess after a while it almost became mechanical to say no to all the cookies, chocolate and cake thrown in my face.

Instead, I ate fruits or apple sauce for dessert...and after all this time, I'm not having cravings in fact I'm feeling a little repulsed by sugar...it's just not tempting to me right now. I had some of my mom's homemade chocolate chip cookies and even those weren't enjoyable...Something might be wrong with me... but I'm ok with that for now ;)

Also, now it's time to think of my next diet challenge. Any ideas?? Or are you thinking of one for yourself?? Let me know!!

Muse for Motivation!

For my readers willing to ROCK! I salute you!!!

I was raised on rock n' roll. Kinda of like I was raised on spaghetti because my mom's Italian, but I was also raised on the Who, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Black Sabbath, The Beatles, Neil Young, David Bowie... the list goes on and on. Blame my parents they were teenagers in the 70's.

I wore Zeppelin shirts when I was a teenager till they literally had so many holes in them they had to be retired (I hadn't learned the art of tshirt repair like Rob displays on his Stoli shirt back then). To this day I still love me some rock n' roll, and I especially love it on my work out mix. If you're like me, music...but not just any music, good music...is essential to a good work out. Honestly if I had to listen to top 40 radio on my work out mix I think I'd fall off the tread mill... on purpose. *Snore fest!*

Looking back there is one band that has constantly been running along with me since before I even got serious about getting fit...

Twi-hards need no introduction to the ROCK that is Muse!

Absolution was my first Muse album... in 2003 I was still in college, glued to my ipod, and spending many hours in the dark room. Muse was there to rock me through it all. And when I occasionally decided to go to the gym Muse was there too. They've always been on my work out mix ever since.

Muse made me realize that some darker, heavier rock was ok. It didn't always have to be sad Brit rock on my play list (which I had a heavy addiction to at the time, along with a certain icelandic band *cough sigurfuckingros! cough* which I'm still addicted too lol ;)).

I'm listening to Muse as I type this up, and I have to take a break to throw out the Rock fingers.............. .... ... ...

Ok, I'm ready to continue now.

Black Holes and Revelations came next.

Twi-hards will know this one best because Supermassive Black Hole came out on this album.


You know the song...If you don't, where have you been?

It made the vampire baseball scene!
Let's face it, that scene would have been even more bizarre with out it.

Muse's current studio album the Resistance has some kick ass tracks on it as well. My favorites for working out are uprising and undisclosed desires.

This album also features I Belong to You, the track that was remixed for the New Moon soundtrack. And as if you needed further proof that Muse rocks... that song features a bass clarinet solo. Guess who played bass clarinet since seventh grade... this chick! All those people who thought it was a dork instrument were so SO wrong! Bass Clarinet is meant to ROCK!




So if the Stephenie Meyer seal of approval isn't enough, I'll add my seal of approval as well...

MUSE MAKES ME WANT TO RUN MY ASS OFF!

Seriously some of their songs are adrenaline pumping rock n' roll that make me think I'm in some crazy Hollywood chase scene lol. If they don't make you want to bust your ass on the tread mill (or other form of work out) I don't know what will! When the drumming, heavy bass and rocking melody's are blasting in your ear it's guaranteed to motivate you to move!

Here's a play list of songs I suggest from all three of these albums:

And, hey if rock isn't your thing check out this Thin White Duke Remix of Undisclosed Desires from fridaymixtape.com. It's over seven minutes long great for motivation on the tread mill... although I'm warning you it *might* make you stop your run and shake your booty in the middle of your work out ;)

Check out more muse on the web:

Muse.mu
myspace.com/muse

p.s. does uprising make anyone else want to raise their fist in the air and start a riot? or maybe that's just me? haha *rock fist!*

Why Fitness Dweeb?

So I've realized that this is something I've never really addressed before... I've mentioned it briefly in my profile, but I've never really written at length explaining the name of my blog. Do you need to ask?  I grew up a band dork, I loved playing music.  It was my life when when I was a child all through my teenage years and up until my second year of college.  Even now as an adult, I still miss playing a lot.  When other girls were going to the mall, I was reading Jane Austen and watching Colin Firth in the BBC Pride and Prejudice mini-series (I owned it on VHS...yes, I worked a part time job so I could buy the box set). I'm a bit of an anglophile (I have a thing for the Brits!) and I'm in love with costume drama's, Austen, the Bronte sisters, Hardy, Gaskell...I've read it or watched the mini-series.  I like fantasy stories and movies like Lord of the Rings as well...so needless to day some would categorize me a "dweeb", but well that's me.  Get used to it.


What inspired me to start getting healthy?

Being unhealthy, out of shape, frustrated, depressed and afraid of my health for the future was what made me decide to start getting healthy. I took my first spinning class in March 2008. I was embarrassed, and couldn't keep up with the group because I was so out of shape. But I thought if THIS doesn't help me lose weight I don't know what will. Well it didn't help me lose weight. Taking one spinning class once a week wasn't enough to shed the pounds. I wasn't focusing on my diet at all.

The final straw came when I bent my sisters bed frame after jumping on it...no I wasn't jumping on the bed, we were having one of those silly fight moments and I chased her into her room and jumped after her on the bed.  I bent the frame.  It was HORRIFYING.  But looking back thank god it happened because who knows if I ever would have gotten the determination to make a life style change.  It's weird that I can pin point the exact moment in my life that I snapped, but that was absolutely it.

On April 8, 2008 after a discussion with my doctor I learned about sparkpeople.com which helped me learn to change my eating habits for good! With regular exercise and a healthy diet the weight started falling off!

I saw 5lbs drop off then 10lbs and I thought "wow this does work, I'm not giving up!".

Never Again!

fitnesspants!

How did I get away from the books and off my butt?


It was a very slow process, I still love to read, obviously that's never going to go away, but I've learned to sort of compartmentalize that side of me.  I can read at night before bed. Sure I don't read as often, but I still do.  I still love all the things I loved before I just spend less time focusing on them.

I started out just trying to play soccer.  I knew I loved soccer so I wanted to try it and I knew I wanted to get better at soccer so that made me brave enough to try other things like spinning classes and yoga.  Then the ultimate work out... bootcamp.  That was the real push to get me in shape.  The the thing to remember is that my habits didn't change over night, slowly but surely I started trying new things and spending more time at the gym and less time on my butt in front of the tv/computer or reading.

SO Why, Then,  Fitness Dweeb?

Ok, First. I am determined to get in shape and reach my fitness goal. I had been working hard at that for over a year before I started this blog. I had lost 65lbs by that point on my own. On June 26th of last year I revamped my work out routine and tried something new. I got my ass out of bed at 4:40 in the morning and went to a 5:30 am Boot camp work out. When I got done with the work out I was so proud of myself 1. for simply getting out of bed but 2. that I didn't quit. This was the toughest work out I've encountered yet. I knew that these work outs were going to give me that extra push towards reaching my goal. 3. I wanted to write about it, I wanted to share my experiences thus far and maybe inspire others to work out and eat healthy as well.

There's lots of fitness blogs out there...and a lot of them are BORING. A lot of them might be a little too serious for the average Jane-ite like myself to grasp.   So I thought, I have to find a way to make this fun. I want to talk about fitness in a way that makes it understandable, a little easier to grasp. A huge demotivator with weight loss is boredom. Boredom with your work out routine and boredom with the foods you eat and sticking to a strict bland diet. SO I thought if I made a blog that was fun, entertaining and helpful it would be a win win!

I'm a period drama/romance dork, I've been obsessed with Jane Austen since I was 17...she's still my first literary love, I played in band, I was a member of the highschool art club, I never fit in, I spend entirely too much time online, but I figured if  *I* could find the motivation to get off my ass and change my lifestyle than surely other people like me who have similar interests could see that it's possible for them too.

So my goal with this blog (and always has been) is to help inspire my fellow nerdy girls start their own weight loss journey by posting advice that's easy to understand and cuts through all the fad weight loss crap and keep it simple. Eat healthy natural foods, exercise regularly and have FUN... and that's where my dorky side comes it. ;)

No Sugar: Day 39

Captain's Log: The end is drawing near...

"Want any pudding?"

No joke, my mom just asked me that question. Mom... seriously, you were with me on Jan 1st when I said I wasn't having any sweets for 45 days.

I've been snowed in with my family this weekend in an effort to avoid being snowed in with my roommate (trust me roommate is the worst option of the two....and oh yea we got 2 feet of snow dumped on us this weekend just an FYI)

Guess what we were in the "totally screwed" bubble! YAY!

Friday. The day the snow started we had two office birthdays to celebrate. I made the cake since my good friend and sometimes bloggy buddy Plain Jane was celebrating a birthday.. I did not eat the cake and I did not touch the batter! Of course since the office closed early because of the impending doom of snow, and the state of Maryland literally hits the panic button at the sight of the little white devils falling from the sky... there was left over cake I had to take home... AND there was another cake at home that my mom made for the house...you know since we needed one there too! There was cake in my face all weekend and I had to sit and watch the entire family enjoy it. No wonder I read a lot of fan fiction this weekend!

Mom: want a slice of cake?

Me: No, no sweets.

Saturday. The snow stopped about 4 in the afternoon. We started the dig out. Brother and I stayed out til a little after 8 at which point a increasing cold and numb toes made me call it quits. It took about two days of four people working about 3-4 hours to clear our cars and drive way.... it was a lot of snow. Trust me.

Mom: Want some hot chocolate to warm up??

Me: *grumbles...hell yeah I really want hot chocolate* No, Mom. NO chocolate, remember?

Mom: Oh, ok tea then.

Me: *smiles* yes please! :)

Sunday morning. Day 2 of digging out. Mom made cinnabuns as an afternoon snow shoveling snack.

Mom: You want a cinnabun??

Me: No, Mom... no sweets remember.

Mom: Oh, well give your dad and brother one.

Dad: Why aren't you eating one?

Me: NO sweets.

The shoveling of snow (and food) commences.

Sunday afternoon. Mom bakes brownies for a superbowl party. I decide to fore-go the festivities. I know it's going to be a glutton-fest and I don't like football. I stay home with a bottle of wine, twitter, and masterpeice theater. I'm also working on revamping my work out mix since I had a "little" time to do nothing this weekend.

Monday. Plow finally clears the court, I can venture out in my little car.

Let's play find Team Six Pack's Versa....

Off to the gym I go!!! *HAPPY DANCE!!!!!!* Seriously I had major cabin fever. Sure I got a great work out shoveling all that snow, I also think I discovered new muscles in my back and new bones to be cracked back into place...but I needed to get some cardio in! I ran 3 miles on the treadmill which felt SO SO good and was fun with my new work out mix and I did lots of abs. Trust me I didn't need to work my upper body after all that snow.

Monday evening. Haven't made it home yet (parents live closer to work and the gym than I do so it makes sense to stick around for a little bit), kinda thinking it's not going to happen til later this week anyway because...we're expecting ANOTHER 12-20 INCHES OF SNOW TOMORROW THROUGH WEDNESDAY!!!!!!! GAH! Enough already!

Run for your lives!!!! It's Snowmageddon!

SO anyway as I was saying, this evening I'm sitting with my lap top and my mom walks by and asks me...

"Want any pudding?"

*facepalm* haven't we discussed this already Mom???

Welcome to my life :)

Ok just because I haven't been able to eat all the sweets around the house doesn't mean I don't enjoy dessert...My dessert options this weekend were unsweetened apple sauce with cinnamon, grapes, apples and natural peanut butter, sugar free protein shakes....and Daniel Cudmore...

Don't mind if I do!!

A Month of Work Outs

So this post was an entire month in the making :) I kept track of my work outs for the month of January... I extended it a bit beyond that though because for the beginning of the month I was out of town visiting family way down south...just across the border. Hey Miss Rebecca...I know you're reading :)

Just kinda hanging around down south for a few days.

Ok so here's my entire month of work outs after I got back from my lil trip on Jan 5th... including days I rested. Bootcamp work outs are 1 hour long and burn an average of 630+ calories depending on the work out. According to sparkpeople one hour of Spinning burns about the same around 620 calories. 1hr of Yoga class burns about 220 calories.... As for indoor soccer I guess on average I play 25 minutes or more of a game depending on how many subs we have, so that burns about 270 calories. I'll leave it to someone else to figure out the total calories burned... I wasn't a math major ;).

1/06 Wed - Bootcamp

1/07 Thurs - Bootcamp

1/08 Fri - Spinning

1/09 Sat - bike trainer 45min, upper body, abs

1/10 Sun - Treadmill 3.5 miles jog, abs, weight training

1/11 Mon - Bootcamp

1/12Tues - Bootcamp morning, and Indoor soccer evening

1/13 Wed- rest

1/14 Thurs - Bootcamp

1/15 Fri - Spinning, 1hr

1/16 Sat - Run 3 miles, kick soccer ball around for 1hr.

1/17 Sun - Rest (ladies afternoon spent trying on brides maid dresses.)

1/18 Mon - Spinning and Yoga

1/19 Tues - boot camp (bye week in soccer *sad face*)

1/20 Wed - Rest (massage for my shoulder)

1/21 Thurs - boot camp

1/22 Fri - boot camp

1/23 Sat - Run/walk (4 min run 1 min walk intervals - hills) 6 miles <--- this was killer!

1/24 Sun - Run, 3 miles (mostly flat)

1/25 Mon - Rest

1/26 Tues - Boot camp morning, and indoor soccer evening

1/27 Wed - Boot camp

1/28 Thurs - gym: treadmill jog 3 miles, abs, weights

1/29 Fri - Bootcamp

1/30 Sat - Rest - went to NYC to be a Jane Austen Fan Girl ;)

1/31 Sun - Gym: treadmill jog 2 miles, elliptical 10 minutes high resistance, abs

2/1 Mon - Bootcamp

2/2 Tues - Bootcamp morning, indoor soccer evening

2/3 Wed - 30 minutes on bike trainer, abs <- slacker day!

2/4 Thurs - Bootcamp

2/5 Fri - Bootcamp <- instructor tried to kill us today because snow storm we're having is going to keep us in this weekend.

I worked out 26 days last month. I decided to start tracking just to make sure I worked out at least 5 days in a week. I guess after all that working out you can see how frustrated I get with the scale. I'm constantly being told that it's a little bit of effort in the beginning a lot of effort in the end...but honestly I'm really enjoying all the effort I'm putting in. I love the feeling after a good work out. I never regret working out.

Just to make sure I was keeping my work outs top priority I was curious if my dorky little habits might have cut into any of my work out time.  Trust me ladies I understand more than anyone how easy it is to succumb to addictions of laying around and reading and playing on the computer all day. But still I kept my (sometimes lazy) dorky ass in check and made time for my work outs.

Just remember it's ok to get away from the computer and the books and go to the gym....they'll still be there when you get home.

And if that doesn't work invest in a  kindle (there's a or the ipad when it comes out! You can take your books with you if you need to...but honestly when I'm working out I'm pushing myself so there's no way I can focus on reading at the same time, so Mr. Darcy will have to stay at home.

Don't Beat Yourself Up

The alternate title of this weeks entry would have been how to gain five pounds in a week....but the reason I didn't have a post at the beginning of this week was because I needed to give myself a few days to cool off, clear my head, and try to remember that it's not always about the scale!

As I posted in the last entry I tried a week of low carbs to shock my system and start weight loss again. Well, this week was low glycemic.

The low glycemic diet allowed me to add fruits and whole grains back into my diet.

My daily range was 1700cal 148g protein, 191g carb, 47g fat

I could eat carbs again but I had a list that I needed to chose from, I couldn't just go balls out and eat what ever I wanted.

Acceptable carbs included fruit (except bananas, dates, figs), sugar-free applesauce, light yogurt, beans (all types, black, kidney, chickpea etc.), other veggies like squash, beets and artichokes, some grains - limited to one meal a day (100% whole wheat bread and tortillas, oatmeal, sweet potato).

Here's an example of meals I ate for Low Glycemic week:

Monday:
Breakfast
Hard Boiled Egg, 2 large
Cottage Cheese, 2% Milkfat, 1 cup (not packed)

Lunch:
Apples, fresh, 1 small (2-1/2" dia)
Baby Carrots, raw, 10 medium
Guiltless Gormet - Blackbean Chipotle Wrap,
Romaine Lettuce (salad), 2 cup, shredded
Cider Vinegar, 1 tbsp

Dinner:
Cauliflower, cooked, 6 flowerets
Chicken Breast, no skin, 4 ounces
Bread, whole wheat (including toast), 1 slice
Butter, salted, 2 pat
Cornbread, 1 oz (I cheated with this... sister made some corn bread and I love the stuff!!)
Milk, nonfat, 1 cup

Snacks:
Mixed Nuts, dry roasted (salt added)1/5 oz (I wasn't paying attention when I grabbed nuts for a snack...last week nuts were ok, this week I need to watch my intake because I could only have 47g of fat.)
Apples, fresh, 1 medium (2-3/4" dia)

Tuesday:
Breakfast:
Quaker Instant Oatmeal, prepared with water, 1 Packet
Quaker Instant Oatmeal, honey nut, prepared with water, 1 packet,
Yogurt, plain, low fat, 1 cup (8 fl oz)

Lunch:
Chicken Breast, no skin, 0.5 breast, bone and skin removed
Oranges, 1 fruit (2-5/8" dia)
Cauliflower, cooked, 4 flowerets
Bread, whole wheat (including toast), 1 slice Applesauce, unsweetened, 1 cup

Dinner:
Bread, whole wheat (including toast), 1 slice
Skippy Natural Creamy Peanut Butter, 2 tbsp
Trader Joe's Chicken Tikki Masala (1 Tray), 1 serving (I screwed up here. I was tired, didn't feel like cooking so I had a frozen dinner which had white rice.

Snacks:
Cheddar Cheese, 1 oz
Dill Pickles, 2 spear
Apples, fresh, 1 large (3-1/4" dia)



Cons of this diet:
1. you give me an inch... I take a mile. I admitted last week to my carb addiction now looking back at what I ate it's no wonder I gained some weight back. Towards the end of the week I made a big batch of whole wheat pasta with roasted peppers and onions added to the sauce and sweet Italian turkey sausage... sounds yummy right? Well I made it with the hopes that my sis would eat the left overs, but I forgot sis was leaving town so I had multiple portions of left overs that I wasn't going to let go to waste.


Pros of this diet:
1. It's more realistic.

2. You eat a larger variety of healthy foods.

3. Once again it made me look at my carb addiction and it made me realize that while I can still eat carbs I need to make an effort not to allow them it to be a part of every meal I eat!

Results of this diet:
Truth. I gained some of the weight I lost on low carb week back. This however should not be viewed as a reflection of the diet, but just proves my theory once again that the low carb diet does not work. As I said before when you go off of it you gain the weight back! I talked to one of the girls at my bootcamp who is doing the same diet and started before me. She told me she also gained some weight back after she got off the low carb week. I felt better hearing this knowing it wasn't just me. She also told me that once she stuck to the low glycemic diet she did see the weight fall off again after a little while. Ahh, the joys of dieting. I swear it's a rollercoaster some days.

I allowed myself a cheat day on Saturday because I went to NYC to see this amazing exhibit at the Morgan library about Jane Austen...yes I'm still fan girling. I'm allowed a cheat day every two weeks so it was convenient mine fell when I went out of town. I had what I normally had for breakfast since I was on a bus to New York...I ate two cereal bars and an apple. I allowed myself a vanilla latte once I got to the city because it was ff-f-f-f-ffreeeeezing last Saturday!! For lunch I ate at Franchia a vegetarian Japanese tea house. I highly HIGHLY recommend it. Everything was delicious even the $5 cup of plum tea. I had crispy scallion pancakes and spicy Malaysian ginger "chicken" fried rice, I tried a sesame and seaweed porridge but it was just "eh" not bad but not great so I only had a few spoonfuls. The meal was more than filling, probably more than I should have eaten, but damn did I enjoy every bite!

However that was where the eating should have ended. But I was craving pizza. When I got back home around 10 at night I hadn't eaten since lunch except for some nuts and an orange on the bus. I wasn't really hungry, but I told myself on cheat day I was having pizza and damnit!! I wanted pizza! So I had pizza.

And boy did I regret it. But Sunday the scale had shot up, all the weight I lost the week before was back and then some. I was freaking out...did one cheat day hurt me that much??! Did I really eat too many carbs last week?? I hit the gym on Sunday and I've worked out every day since. I beat myself up for a little while about my weight gain...I just didn't know what I did wrong. But as I said above I talked to one of my fellow dieters/bootcampers and she assured me that the weight would probably come back off soon.

I am happy to report this morning that when I weighed myself that I was back with in 1-2 pounds of where I was at the end of my low carb week. It's difficult to tell on my dial scale.

Another Lesson I learned this week.

DON'T GIVE UP! I'm not going to give up, I'm not going to stop eating healthy (even if I thought about if for a split second then I said to myself..Um WTF was that thought coming from have you gone mental!?) No, not me I'm not giving up! I have to keep thinking of the bigger picture I might have a bad day and then a good day, but I know over all I always have more good days than bad. I'm healthier and happier than I was before so I'm just going to keep working hard at it every day.

I'm going to try my best to stop obsessing over the numbers and deadlines I've mentally set for me reach my goal and just remember that this isn't something that has an expiration date once I reach my goal. This is for life!


This week's work outs:

1/25 Mon - Rest

1/26 Tues - Boot camp and indoor soccer

1/27 Wed - Boot camp

1/28 Thurs - gym: treadmill jog 3 miles, abs, weights

1/29 Fri - Bootcamp

1/30 Sat - Rest - went to NYC to be a Jane Austen Fan Girl

1/31 Sun - Gym: treadmill jog 2 miles, elliptical 10 minutes high resistance, abs