Hello Again.

Oh Hi there. I've been MIA? Yeah no kidding.

Falling off the wagon was my last post? All that stuff about getting back on track? Yeah that didn't happen.

I've been MIA because I've been on a binge. An eating binge and no gym binge.

This came about probably from my mental state from before, but also the fact that I hurt my knee (no, I have no idea how) and it has been bothering me. I went to the doctor for it, and I pretty much can't do any squats or lunges now... I get slight pain when sitting for long periods of time, and then when I get up, and sit down.

But I mean, come on. The end of my last post I was "looking forward to Christmas in NY in 3 weeks" -- yeah, we leave on Friday.

I've pretty much been eating anything and everything terrible that I possibly can, with some random occasional healthy choices in there.

I tell you what though, my mental state and energy levels are crap right now. I want to get back on track.

I knew from the beginning that the day that I gave in to temptation, or didn't go to the gym, that it was going to be hard to get back on the wagon; just because that's how it goes for me.

Since I need a new gym routine, I was thinking about waiting until next week to get back to the gym... Give my knee a little more time to heal and then I could get my new routine while I'm in NY with my brother.

And as I sit here now, at my desk, with my knee slightly tightening from sitting so long; after I've eaten an ENTIRE bag of chips and some chocolate and candy; I'm just thinking to myself, why wait? My knee needs to move, it obviously hurts when it doesn't. I need to eat some healthy food, this crap is obviously making me feel fat and uncomfortable.

Why should I sit here and destroy everything that I worked so hard for? I mean, do you really want to know what I weigh right now?! Go look at the results page! It's bad!!!

So here's my pact. My pact to finishing this post, getting out my notebook, and planning my food for the rest of the week. To healthy snacks while driving to NY and exercising everyday, except travel days (15 hours in a car on one day does not condone workout time). To getting up and moving my knee throughout the workday. To getting back to the routine that I grew to love.

I have some things to do.
XOXOXO

Falling off the Wagon... For Real this time...

Well I just noticed that I had been bloggin away but not putting in my results on the Results page. Oops. They're all updated now.

As you can see, the events occurring in my life did affect my journey, as well as Thanksgiving.

We had not one, not two, but three deaths within a span of 5 days, right before Thanksgiving. It's been difficult, but we are making it through.

I was definitely having a hard time keeping myself together after all that. As you can see, my weigh in last Monday was great, and I'm proud to say that I won all 3 of my DietBets and made about $50 on top of what I put in. So that's a win for me.

But as soon as the final weigh-in last week, I fell off, and kept on falling for days.

And this time, it was for real.

I overslept on Tuesday morning, missing spin class. So I decided to make it up by going to spin at Time Trial on Wednesday evening.

Well Tuesday night we found out about the third death, and I was up later than usual with high anxiety and emotions out the wazoo. Therefore I also overslept to go to the gym for strength training and cardio on Wednesday morning. Doh!

I did go to spin on Wednesday night, and then again on Thanksgiving morning, but continued to skip out on the gym on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Woof.

Speaking of woof, a brief intermission to tell you how much I love Home Alone and that it has to be one of my favorite Christmas movies.

Anywho, I also spent the weekend wallowing in sadness and procrastinating work around the house.

So in addition to this melancholy mood, eating my emotions, and sitting on the couch a lot, I also had not one, not two, but THREE Thanksgiving dinners. Gobble gobble gobble.

I made Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, but I made an organic turkey with an entirely gluten and dairy free meal. It came out pretty good for my first Thanksgiving dinner ever. I'm also psyched because I don't have to do meal-prep for the week now. I can just have the leftovers! Yay!!

But the other two meals were not as healthy, although just as delicious!

So that's my explanation for my giant weight gain this past week.

The good news? I'm back on track. After our third and final Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday, I decided to head home earlier than Joshua so that I could do laundry, pack my gym bags, and prep my food for the next day. I even got into bed by 9pm, and was successful in starting up my routine again this morning; the start time of my warm up was 5:15am!

Eating crappy usually makes me hungry when I get back on track, and that is no different today. I am so hungry! Luckily it's my lunch time and I have some chicken and green beans waiting for me ;)

So back to it today, trying to leave the sadness behind and start looking forward to driving home for Christmas in 3 weeks!!!

Another great week...

It really was, although you might not think so from my dot dot dot...

It was a great week nutrition, exercise, and weight-loss wise. It was a sad week emotionally though.

I'm not ready to post what happened to cause the sadness, but just believe me that it is very sad, and makes me cry.

Exercise for the week was mostly on point. I didn't work out on the weekend, but was still successful in my efforts for the week. It's good to know that I could take a weekend off if I needed to. I wanted to increase my weights this past week, so Monday morning I went for the 25s instead of the 20s dumbells for my chest presses. Needless to say, on my first set I biffed myself right in the face with one of the dumbells! Luckily it wasn't bad, and I still pray that no one saw it!!! I went back to 20s for that exercise, but increased weights on more.... safer exercies. lol

Nutrition was really good last week too. I stuck to my diet, except for wanting to get sushi one night. I did order sashimi, which is fine for you and all, but unfortunately it was TERRIBLE!! I thought it was just me; then the next night Josh went to cook it (you know, to salvage a $25 entree) and he said there was something wrong with it too. Yuck. I have a $25 credit at the sushi/thai place, where I now will not eat sushi, and have no idea what Thai food I would get. Ugh. I'll figure something out.

Weight loss was fantastic again this week. Another 3.8 pounds, and I'm under my DietBet goal, which ends tomorrow, so I will be winning some money!

Thanksgiving is coming this week, and I'm totally psyched to be cooking a small dinner on Thursday. I'm going to pick up the Organic Turkey tonight, and the rest of my ingredients.

That's all for now. Just feel like I can't talk freely at the moment, so I'll wait until the time is right.

XOXOXO

It's All Good...

It's all good in the hood.

I had a fantastic week.

Let me elaborate... Was I perfect? No. Absolutely not. But was I successful and happy? Absolutely.

The Breakdown

As usual, I was on point with my exercise. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I did my weights/cardio training; Tuesday and Thursday I did my cycle classes at LA Fitness.

What I did NOT do, that I normally do, was go on my lunch walks. My lunches were filled with things to do last week: Go shopping for Mom's birthday gifts. Ship said gifts to Dom. Go grab nuts for snacking at work. Go grab lunch because I didn't prep any food last weekend. 

I also changed up my weekends a bit. We've decided to change our spin day to Saturday. This works FANTASTIC for me!!! Because we went to spin on Saturday, I then was able to do my grocery shopping that day (which I like doing), and then prep my food that day as well. Sundays, Joshua does not work. Therefore, it's best for me to get all my personal things done on Saturday while he IS at work.

While Joshua does not work on Sundays, he does still sleep in. This leaves the perfect opportunity for me to go to my favorite yoga class at LA on Sunday mornings now!! I did this yesterday, and while I hadn't taken a yoga class in a few months, I could still tell where I was stronger than I was before. I also was sweating like a pig by the end of class!! That's never happened before, but I'm glad it happened because it means I'm working hard!!


So onto nutrition. For a week I didn't prep any food, I have to say I did extremely well. I mean, my bank account didn't like me much but hey, sometimes you have to make sacrifices. I started every morning with an apple before the gym, a Detox Island Green smoothie with Probiotic and Fat Burner for Breakfast, and then snacked on nuts all day everyday whenever I got hungry.

Lunches were different all week. On Monday, I realized that I could order a smoothie AND a salad first thing in the morning, then save the salad for lunch. It saved me a bit of money because it was then considered a meal and "discounted". So Thai Chicken Salad from Tropical Smoothie for lunch on Monday.

I ran into a great deal on Monday night; Stir Crazy had 2 Fresh Market Bar Bowls for $22. I took advantage of this as they have all-natural chicken and local grown veggies to make these with. Of course, I chose brown rice for my starch. I had it for dinner on Monday, then lunch on both Tuesday and Wednesday.

I was running out of apples by Tuesday evening, so I went to the grocery store. I also needed something for dinner. While this wasn't the best option, I ended up getting a fully cooked rotisserie chicken, and a frozen gluten free dairy free single serving of macaroni and cheese. I ate half the mac and cheese and some of the chicken. I was then able to have the same meal for dinner on Wednesday night.

By Thursday I was running out of ideas. Money was getting low and I needed to get through one more day before payday. I sucked it up and purchased another Thai Chicken Salad for lunch that morning, and dinner was solely whatever I had left on the rotisserie chicken.

Friday was payday, so lunch was sashimi from Komoon, where I realized I actually like tuna MORE than salmon! Big surprise for me because I was totally on a salmon kick for a few years there... Only salmon. Only raw. Nothing else. What a surprise there!

Since it was payday I went back to the grocery store to make a nice dinner for Joshua and I. I picked up grass-fed strip steaks which I made with sauteed zucchini. It was absolutely delicious and delightful!

There were times during the week when I was eating my dinner and took a few of Joshua's french fries or cheese curds. So there's why I wasn't perfect. And I didn't regulate how much nuts I was eating. I just ate them when I was hungry. They're actually a pretty good stress food...

So I made it through the week without prep, but I wouldn't want to have to do it again anytime soon. My savings account took a hit for all that, and it needs to be growing, not diminishing!



Here's to a new week, one that I've actually prepared for.
XOXOXO

What a Revolution really is...

I've had a lot on my mind tonight.

I actually downloaded the Blogger app just to write this post, so be happy; you're getting a bonus post while I'm laying in bed about to pass out. 😏

Anyways, I just wanted to clarify that starting your own Revolution isn't only about eating healthy and exercising. It entails so much more.

It's a state of mind. Being a better person all around. Going that extra little bit to be nicer to someone, or try to relate and sympathize when others are hurting. Being thankful, and grateful for what you have. Giving to others when you can, even if it's not much. There are plenty more things, but I think you get my gist.

I always focus my posts on my nutrition and exercise every week, but I'm going to try to incorporate more real life things to talk about and elaborate on.

We're all human. Let's start acting like it.

XOXOXO

Season is coming

If you're a GOT fan, you're familiar with "Winter is coming."

Well in my world, Season is coming. Which is the same thing as winter but... in the sub-tropics and we're mainly affected with massive amounts of traffic on the roads and in stores, as well as our workload picks up about 600%. So the main purpose of me telling you this? Blog posts will probably go on the back burner.

So while I have time, I will recap last week...

My weigh in Monday was... ok I'll just say it - TERRIBLE. A gain of over 5 pounds is just terrible.

I'll tell you what happened though, I completely went off plan.

Ok I still worked out last week and I did eat good for MOST of the week, but then my BFF showed up on Friday and everything went out the window lol

I account most of my weight gain to the following:

- I am not a drinker - at all - but the BFF and I had a steady diet of coconut rum mixed with pineapple vodka all weekend. Kudos that we mixed it with a zero calorie coconut pineapple sparkling water. (you can roll your eyes at me now, I would). Lots of drinking means lots of dehydration, even if I did alternate every 2 mixed drinks with one bottle of water.

- Lots of drinking usually means lots of mindless eating! Cheese and crackers were always available, and I also happened to eat bagels with cream cheese for breakfast all weekend? Guess it was my hangover food... We also went to a BBQ and instead of me eating the healthy chicken and veggie kabobs, I indulged in the jambalaya and mac and cheese (you can roll your eyes at me again. that alcohol just took over!)

- I could have fixed myself up when we went to Universal Studios on Sunday, but I started my day with a bagel with cream cheese (like I already told you), then I NEEDED (yes it was a necessity) a Monster Rehab, and apparently I still wanted hangover food and got these fried chip things with cheese and bacon at a restaurant we stopped at. I also shared a Butterbeer with my BFF (hey she wasn't going to drink the whole thing by herself, I had to help!) and then Joshua and I got Tijuana for dinner. And I STUPIDLY got a chimichanga!

Yes. The alcohol took over all weekend. BUT - I had a fantastic time, AND I actually didn't get sick or have a hangover, so I still see that as winning.

The obstacle to overcome...

I now have some serious poundage to drop by the 24th, but I know I can do it.

Oh, another thing that happened while the BFF was here, I RUINED my myfitnesspal streak and forgot to log onto it on Saturday and it completely reset my days :( I was so close to a year straight! But I got over it quickly.

My new goal is to keep a new streak, with actually logging all my food and STICKING TO THE PLAN!!!

This has been working well thus far. Just another thing to keep me focused.

I also started back at the gym first thing Monday morning, and yes, I smelled the coconut and pineapple pouring out of my sweat. Yuck lol

The good news is that the number is already going down, and I have over a week to get to my DietBet goal.

This weekend will be dedicated to getting my meal plan together, as I've been flying by the seat of my pants all week since I partied all weekend instead of prepping.

I should also be getting a shipment of supplements soon from my Mom/Brother, so that will help as well. This will also help my wallet since I've had to buy smoothies every morning from Tropical Smoothie. Mind you, they are DELICIOUS! But just kill my wallet unfortunately.


Cheers to a better weigh in on Monday!
(I'm toasting with lime perrier by the way haha)

XOXOXO

Do This, Not That

I had a pretty good week, once I started the DietBets and really focused on my food. I do have to say that this weekend I was a little bad, I had sushi twice - two rolls each time. I could have made better choices on what rolls I chose, but there was a limited selection at Publix unfortunately; so no sashimi and no brown rice. In hindsight, I had the sushi on Friday, I should have done something else on Sunday, but alas, I didn't -- and now I have to live with it. Oh well!

I still had a loss of 1.8 on the scale from Monday to Monday - noting that I actually started my Dietbet on Wednesday weighing more than I did last Monday... Eek! Good thing I got back on track.

I've been thinking about numerous things lately, one of which, I just want to write out some of the things that I've changed in my lifestyle that I thought I wouldn't like, but actually do.

First - waking up early in the morning to go workout. Waking up early is HARD. Does it get easier over time? Yes. Is it ever easy? No. Taking that first step of committing to a workout routine and setting the time for the mornings is very hard. There's so much more you want to do with that time (SLEEP FOR INSTANCE).

Did I start out waking up early at 430am to go to the gym 5 days a week? Absolutely not. I started out going 3 times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) and using Tuesday and Thursday to sleep in a little bit and take Brockton for a walk instead.

Technically I still apply this principle, although I don't get to sleep in nearly as much on Tuesday and Thursday as I did before, but I'm getting a much better workout.

In the end of it all, I never thought that I would be a morning person. I wasn't excited about becoming one and doubted that I would last as one. Once I was able to stick with it for a few weeks, I can't imagine my life any other way. Getting up early is the only way I will fit in my workouts, and going to bed early makes me happy and content. I don't hate it at all, surprisingly.

Second - My go-to-kill-hunger-on-the-spot snack is salted deluxe mixed nuts. They are delicious and filling and perfect. I can't think of anything else I would rather have. It's kind of like my replacement for cheese, because these nuts are a healthy fat, where as cheese is really just a fat! Haha.

So on with my story about salted deluxe mixed nuts - I always forget them at home. Doh! I even portion them out into 1/4 cups in baggies, and I still forget them. I started incorporating them as an afternoon snack; but how is that supposed to help when I don't have them with me?!

The story of my life now is that I have 3-4 containers of salted deluxe mixed nuts because I keep buying more because I keep forgetting them at home. I learned my lesson this morning though. I am keeping one container AT WORK. See, I can be smart sometimes.

And third - well I don't have a third. Those were the two random things I've been thinking about a lot lately and wanted to share. I have also been thinking about adding another page for Motivation, but I'm not motivated to do it yet. See what I did there? Yes, I am lazy sometimes.

Until next time...

XOXOXO

Finding Focus

I know. I'm late again. But let me tell you, I have been swamped at work. You're lucky you're getting anything this week.

Moving forward:

While I didn't do as well as I had planned/hoped last week with my nutrition plan, I will still able to bring the number on the scale down a bit. Looking at the past couple of months, it seems that since the Transformation challenge ended, I've been doing a lot of back and forth.

I could be so much further in my journey if I hadn't been slacking off so much, but here we are today, looking for more ways to get back the focus.

The plus side of all of this is that I have not missed a gym session. So I'm still right on track with that.

I've tried so hard, planning out my meals, cooking all my meals the weekend before; it just seems that I let my emotions and moods get the best of me. I make rash decisions and eat without being mindful of my stomach, or my wallet.

Oh yeah, the no-spend challenge, I did so well with it for the first 3 weeks then fell off on the 4th. Oh well. I did learn a thing or two from it though.

Back to my emotional eating...

I can sit here and say "I need to get a grip on this!" but the fact is that, those are just words, and no matter how much I want it, what I REALLY need is to get my mind right!! So here are my plans:

I do all the planning and cooking ahead of time, so all I really need to do is follow through. Remember that I have already spend all the money and time investing in healthy food choices, so all I have to do is go heat it up and chomp it down!

I also try to find motivational pieces to help get me through the hard times. Quotes that will remind me that there is another option for my emotional eating outburst, or that I need to bring myself back to being grounded on my plan. I like to look at theberry.com for this and their Daily Motivation section.

Lastly, I'm getting serious this time as I've signed up for another DietBet. Well, actually I signed up for 3 DietBets. So for the next 4 weeks, I have invested money into myself to lose another 4% of my body weight, and make sure that I get that money back for my hard efforts!! I know that I can do it, and I think this was the final straw of motivational pieces to get me focused!!

So for the next 4 weeks, expect DietBet updates!

Toodles!

XOXOXO

Embarrassment leads to a Weekend Full of Prep

I'm very disappointed in myself. I have no excuse. I just didn't do what I said I was going to do. I didn't follow through with my intentions last week.

I'm actually embarrassed that I gained so much weight. I was looking at my weigh-in trends and the last time I gained this much weight was when I went to Disney. This past week was not a vacation, and shouldn't have happened.

What didn't I do exactly? I didn't stick to my food plans. I gave in to temptation and wants. I didn't think about what I was eating. Yeah; there was a lot of not thinking/mindless eating.

I won't dwell on my flaws though. I did continue to go to the gym and work out. And I learned my lesson and am back on track this week.

Actually, with such a climb on the # scale, I decided to take my measurements again (finally). While they weren't as big of a difference as I had hoped, I am still grateful that I haven't completely demolished all of my hard work.

Weekend Prep

Knowing how terrible I had been all week and not looking forward to my Monday morning weigh-in, I already knew that I had to refocus and recommit myself to my nutrition.

Saturday I had absolutely no plans.

Ok that's a lie. Initially I had plans to attend a Health and Exercise expo, but in the end decided not to go because parking ended up not being included and I didn't want to pay for it (way to go for the no spend month). This was a bit of a bummer though because I actually got a free ticket to this event through work, at a $250 value. Maybe I should have just sucked it up and paid for the parking... but I did have a productive day instead!!

I slept in a little bit more than usual. Our AC went out on Thursday and something about the fresh air coming in the windows and snuggled up in my bed with the pup - I just didn't want to get out. Good thing I cancelled those plans ;)

After my usual morning coffee on the lanai, I put a plan in order for my day. First - wash the dishes and clean up the kitchen. Pick up the living room. Sweep all the floors. Do all the laundry. I set forth on my mission.

I did a couple little extra things here and there, such as washing out the AC filter (it's reusable), and finished at a reasonable time, only 11am! My "reward" for getting the house cleaned? Sit and watch Once Upon A Time while planning out my food for the week and making a grocery list. My grocery list ended up consisting of 5 vegetables. Grocery shopping was going to be cheap this week!

At noon I headed to the grocery store for my 5 vegetables. While I was there, I decided I wanted to use up a small container of homemade modinott sauce I had in the freezer. I settled on frozen stuffed shells, meatballs, and cheesy breadsticks. Yeah, you can now see why I was TERRIBLE last week!! Plus, the shells and breadsticks were both buy one get one free, so you know, I just HAD to get the deal...

Back at home I set forth with my 5 vegetables and the other components I had already in my fridge and prepped ALL my lunches and dinners for the week!!! Go. Me.

Once all of that was finished, I put together the shells and sauce, threw them in the oven, and plopped myself back on the couch to watch more OUAT; after all, I deserved it!

I spent a lot of time prepping and cleaning on Saturday, and it really paid off in the end. I felt at peace in my home because it was clean and tidy. I feel relaxed now because the only thing I will have to cook this week are eggs to have with my pre-made zucchini hash.

Sunday I decided to do even MORE prep, and purchased ziplock freezer bags. I prepped portions of my smoothie ingredients and put them into the bags. Every bag makes two smoothies. I now only have to dump the bag into the blender and add Mediclear and Almond Milk. No more dirty cutting boards and knives every evening!

I'm also trying to stay ahead of my hunger, as I noticed last week I did a lot of snacking. Snacking is ok, as long as it's SMART snacking!!!

I purchased a small tin of Deluxe Mixed Nuts (no peanuts) and portioned those out in 1/4 cup increments. I'm bringing one with me everyday to work, and they can be my salty snack if I'm feeling peckish.

So literally, the only thing I really need to "prep" everyday is my apples with almond butter.

Life got so much easier because I spent a few hours preparing this weekend for the week ahead. Let's see where it all gets me this time...


XOXOXO

Unhappiness.

I'm very frustrated with myself today.

I almost didn't want to post my results, but the only way to move forward and learn from your mistakes is to accept them.

I was doing so well last week. I've been on point with my workouts, and I was really sticking to my nutrition plan.

Then I got a craving. And I gave in to it. For like... 4 days in a row. Terrible! If I had just held off on the craving to begin with, it would have passed and I wouldn't have succumb to it the next few days!! Bread and cheese, you are my nemesis.

And I'm mostly mad at myself because in giving into my cravings, I undid all of the hard work that I put in earlier in the week.

I really need to work harder on the weekends. I've been planning out my meals and what I'll have everyday, weekdays and weekends -- I'm just not sticking to it as well on the weekends.

I need to work on this and get it down.

In other news,

I was actually very active all weekend. I painted my bedroom on Saturday, which involved lots of cleaning and moving furniture, and then the actual painting part. It came out very nice. I then spent Sunday re-arranging the furniture in the room and putting on my new bedspread set. The nautical theme is coming along very nicely.

And if you're wondering how this affected my no-spend month, it didn't. This was pre-planned into my spending budget as I had intended paint the bedroom over a month ago, and the bedspread was bought over the summer. Way to go me on the planning front.

Speaking of the no-spend...

it's actually going very well. While I was strapped for money to begin with and I'm still incapable of having enough money to actually save much (thanks a lot years of debt racking up), I am finding that I'm able to stick to my budget more effectively this way. This is huge for me, because it means that I'm not dipping into what little savings I have.



Time to refocus.
XOXOXO

No-Spending

Look at me, on a Monday with an update. ;)

Well, my nutrition challenge is to the pits. I mean, I didn't do terrible, but once I really dedicated myself to the no spend challenge, when Josh offered to take us out to TGI Fridays for dinner on Friday, I mean, how could I say no??

I didn't do terrible though, not at all! As you can see from my weigh in, I'm already back UNDER what I was before Disney. I call that an accomplishment and I am very happy about it. I'm continuing to work towards becoming leaner and stronger.

As far as my no-spend challenge goes, I've actually been doing very well with that. I got paid on Friday, and normally by now I would be poorer than poor already, trying to figure out how I will buy next week's groceries and gas, but I'm feeling good right now about my spending this weekend. I ONLY bought groceries and gas. I did have to stop myself from buying some unnecessary foods and a smoothie... but I made it through just fine. I survived, and I will continue to!!

Hah, yeah I'm a goof. Not a ton to report on unfortunately. Just steady as we go...

XOXOXO

New Challenges

Hi. My name is Melissa and I am a SLACKER when it comes to writing in this blog!!

Actually I've just been very busy, so can you really blame me? It's not like I get paid to do this or anything so... Priorities my friends.

So, last week I was telling you that I was getting back to the plan. Hah. I lied. I didn't. I sort of took another week off. I did get back into the gym though so that was a start, but we all know, the food is what really matters!!

So this past Monday I embarked on my own little challenge - to stick to my nutrition and workout plans through October 31st.

Combined with this, I'm also doing a No Spend Challenge as well - details at livingwellspendingless.com

Doing both of these together will definitely help me out. Committing to not spending money on frivolous things like eating out, stopping at the gas station for unnecessary bottles of water, or grabbing a smoothie instead of making one; will help me stick to my nutrition plan. Meanwhile, continuing to go to the gym will keep my body occupied (tiring it out to get to bed early every night), so that I won't even want to go out and spend money.

I did grab just a couple things before this no-spend challenge started. One was an adult coloring book and colored pencils. This is just another activity that I can do to occupy my time when I'm bored and want to go out somewhere. It will also be great for listening to good music, and calming the mind. Love coloring.

I also bought a new color of nail polish. I never used to paint my nails, but always went to the salon to get them done. I thought I sucked at doing it myself, but as it turns out, I'm not that bad actually. This saves a TON of money!!! It's not like I went on a regular basis, maybe twice a year, but I always LOVED the way they came out and the way I felt after they were done. Now I can do them myself, get that warm fuzzy feeling more often, and only spend less than $10 when I want a new color rather than almost $100 that I would pay someone else!!

In other news, I've been feeling very good about my workouts at the gym, and decided to up some of my weights again on Monday. The soreness feels good and productive.

I also had my cycle teacher tell me this morning that she can tell I'm getting stronger. This felt GREAT!! Cycle/Spin is something that I had never done before August 2015, so to have a teacher tell me that they can see I'm getting stronger is huge. She also mentioned that they might be looking for instructors at my gym, and to consider doing it. I'll think about it for now, as I could use a bit of extra money coming in...

Until next time...
XOXOXO

Challenge Results and a Reward

Long time no see! Or read. Whichever you prefer.

Challenge Results

Wednesday, September 9th I submitted my challenge results. You'll have to wait to see the photos (since I'm waiting for offical Jack Kunkel snazzy ones), but I can tell you that I weighed in at 186.2, losing 11 pounds of fat in 30 days. I also like to think that I probably gained a pound or two of muscle, but you'll have to wait to see the photos and make your own opinions on that.

Rewarding Myself

What better reward than to have a week at Disney World directly follow the challenge. I will say, I did not overdo it! Although from my weigh in on Monday, you will see that I gained about 4 pounds *yikes*

I could have done this smarter, and probably should have. In the mornings, I was able to get a non-dairy strawberry banana smoothie from the hotel, then bring it back to my room and mix in my Mediclear. This was a great start to the day.

I also had no appetite for potatoes the entire trip, and tried to remember to ask for more vegetables instead, but quite often forgot, so just went without eating the startchy stuff.

Where I could have done better:

• Almost every meal came with a bread basket. Most restaurants I did indulge in a 1/2 piece. A couple I had more than that... I tried to convince Mom to ask them to NOT bring the bread basket at all, but she really wanted it... In the future I think I might take matters into my own hands and just tell them not to bring it at all!!

• Desserts. Man, they were so good! They came with our dining plan so I had no concern over dairy products on this trip. I also had cheese plates for appetizers at times, and milkshakes as my beverage!!

• I had intentions of working out every morning before the parks, but that did not happen. Well, it happened on the first day, but then after I had a full day in the parks, waking up early was no longer an option as my body needed the rest. I did a lot of walking, but could have done with some weights. Then again, if I had eaten better, I probably would have been just fine with solely walking around the parks.

In the end, the reward should have been the trip, and not so much the food. I kind of made it the food because we booked the trip with a Deluxe Dining Package, and that was well before I started my healthy living lifestyle. Luckily, by the following weekend we had switched hotels and our new hotel had a gym. We spent a good 2 hours in the gym on Saturday, working our entire bodies and getting our high interval cardio in. It was a great start back, but I still didn't do all that great throughout the rest of the weekend.


Monday morning I was back in the gym and ready to go. I was VERY sore from the Saturday workout, but persevered anyway. I've also been trying to be good with food this week, but have faltered a bit, with my focus on prepping for the NEXT 30 day challenge starting Monday 9/28! Cheers!


XOXOXO

Week 4 Challenge Recap

I know I'm days late on my post. Fact is, Monday I spent the day doing stuff around the house (yay for a day off!), and anticipated being able to post on Tuesday, but work was unexpectedly busy; so here we are.

I had a lot of weak moments that I gave into last week and over the weekend. I still don't know what my problem was. It started last Thursday, and carried on until Tuesday of this week.

I was not happy with myself. I was absentmindedly shoveling food into my mouth that I shouldn't have been eating! Not thinking about it at all, just doing it. Of course, after I would shovel the food, then I would feel like crap!

When I reflected on it and told myself "OK, time to get back on track", then I was STARVING all the time! I finally was able to get back on track yesterday, and will continue to hold strong on my good nutrition track.

As far as working out, I've been able to keep up with that perfectly. I've been trying to push harder, increase some weights, go a little faster, and this week I've been constantly telling myself in my head, "You can do so much more than you think you can."

Next week I will not have a post, as I will be away on vacation with my Mom. We're going to Disney, and I can't wait to come back to tell you how I do there! While I won't have a gym available to me, I do plan on doing some morning body-weight workouts, and of course we will be walking EVERYWHERE. I have a pretty good plan of what I will eat everyday for every meal, and still plan on sticking to my eating times throughout the day. I'll even be bringing my Mediclear to put in a hotel smoothie, and my coconut oil and stevia to put in my hotel coffee every morning.

Til next time...
XOXOXO 

Week 3 Challenge Recap

I feel really good about this past week. In other words, my bounce-back from Disney went well!

I was a mess at the beginning of the week. Nothing was ready, I somehow forgot some groceries, dishes weren't clean and ready for me to prep. I got through Monday by going the "out to eat" route.

Blender was dirty so I ate an apple that morning before my workout.

I did end up having a smoothie for breakfast, from Tropical Smoothie, who I had conversed with on a previous occasion to confirm they were using fresh ingredients and that nothing more was added than what was listed on their menu.

Nuts and raisins for my snack.

Lunch was a strawberry poppyseed salad from Panera, with half the amount of dressing than they give you - chicken on the side and I warm it up and eat it separately (don't ask. I'm just weird when it comes to salad).

So I made it through the day pretty well considering I failed miserably at prep and was completely EXHAUSTED.

Oh yeah, bonus, I drove all the way to the gym that morning, to realize that I forgot my water bottle at home, and instead of using my brain and driving into the gas station next door, I drove all the way back home to get my water bottle.

Yeah, it was one of THOSE weeks.

Regardless of the beginning of my week, I still stuck to my nutrition and workout plans and was happy with my weigh in this morning. I'm still on the right track!

This was also a very stressful week, so that was a win as well - no emotional eating!!!!

Yesterday (Sunday) I went to spin class as usual, and hit my personal best, 186 Energy. Just wanted to bring it up because I was actually only shooting for 175 and obviously meet and went over my goal. Guess I'll have to shoot for 200 next week!

I've met my DietBet goal and am now patiently awaiting official weigh in day and to see how much money I'll get back from it.

Disney is coming up soon again! Mom and I will be going in 13 days. I've been researching the menus of the restaurants we have booked so I can make healthier decisions. The challenge will officially be over, but I still have more fat to lose! So I'll be continuing to follow the program!

Sorry for being so scatterbrained today. Here's to hoping next week I will be better ;)

XOXOXO

Oops. Week 2 Challenge Recap

Well I realized last night that I completely forgot to update this past Monday. Oops.

Reasons for that:

1. I was exhausted from the Disney weekend.
2. I was extremely busy at work.
3. In general, I was not on the ball. I screwed up EVERYTHING on Monday. #fail

Anyway, I'll make this short and sweet since I'm still feeling the effects of 1 &2.

Stuck to my workouts and my nutrition plan last week, except in Disney. Cheated a little bit and paid for it. I'd like to use the excuse that I was on vacation and enjoying myself, but for the challenge, there are #noexcuses.

Also, didn't do my daily yoga routines, and I think it was because of that, I didn't see much of a change on the scale throughout the week.

I am proud of myself that I jumped right back into the gym on Monday morning, even though I was a mess and forgot everything under the sun that day.

I still haven't been doing my yoga routines. By the time I get home, do dishes, prep for the next day, and make and eat my dinner, I am going straight to bed.

After this weekend and catching up on my rest, I should be able to add back in a second workout after work. I'm considering doing my Yoga Booty Ballet DVDs instead. I used to really enjoy them and think they will be a great supplement at the end of the day.

Until next week,
XOXOXO

Transformation Challenge: Week 1 Recap

I'm trying to get this post in amidst a busy Monday at work (which I will [hopefully] get to at the end).

Let's just say that the Challenge came at the perfect time. I was "testing the theory" the week before, which really just mean CHEATING and I definitely needed something to get me back on track. The challenge definitely did it for me.

What's constantly motivating is that there are ongoing goals. I'm really loving them. Just when I finish one, I get another that I need to do and it keeps my focus.

Just a little overview of the things that I have done pertaining to the challenge:

Exercise

I decided to go with the Intermediate workouts through the challenge. I will say this, I WAS SORE ALL WEEK AND STILL AM!

But... I love it!

When I'm sore, I know that it's working!! The workout has 3 strength training days laid out, in which you also have to do either endurance cardio or HIIT cardio on those days as well. I choose HIIT cardio on those days to save on time. On my non strength training days, I do 45 minute spin classes. Spin is my new favorite cardio workout! I'm very intrigued to see just how much my stats improve by the end of the challenge!

I did take one day off in the past 7 days, and that was Saturday. For days I went back and forth about adding a workout that day or not. I ended up not making a decision, and therefore not doing a work out that day. I did however help a friend move, although this did not get me many steps nor much of a sweat. I should have planned for something, and will have to for Saturdays in the future.

I've also been "rewarding" myself after all of my weekday workouts by spending about 10 minutes in the sauna at the gym. It's been very nice to kind of "finish" sweating it out, and take some rest time before I have to get up and start getting ready for work.

Food

Nothing has really changed with my food intake (other than the fact that I've stopped cheating *yay*). I am finding that I get a little hangry in the afternoon sometimes, but have purchased some deluxe mixed nuts (no peanuts) and have a small handful if I need something to tide me over.

I did purchase some frozen dark chocolate covered bananas last week, but decided that once the box was empty that I wouldn't be purchasing them again. While they're terrible for you, I did notice that they have peanut oil in them, and I think that if I'm wishing for something sweet, a blended frozen banana will do fine and come out just like ice cream! I could even put some nuts on it, or drizzle some almond butter. 

Future Planning

I spent all day Sunday prepping food for the week. Today and tomorrow I will most likely be staying late at work; so in addition to my usual prep of lunches, I also prepped all my dinners for the week. I will reassess at the end of the week how much this helps, and consider possibly doing it every week.

This weekend I am going to Disney to meet my best friend and her two boys. I will be leaving Friday after work to drive there, and then will return on Sunday in the early afternoon. I have planned out every meal that I'm going to have, and got extra apples and some raisin/nut mix to have while at the parks. I will also be bringing my coconut oil to put in my coffee. I even prepped an easy "finger food" dinner for Friday that I can munch on while driving (will heat it up before I leave the office).

In order to stick to my workout plan, I have decided that my workouts each day will be walking around the parks. I am also considering waking up extra early to walk/jog around the resort before our park plans. The only reason I have not set these plans in stone is because I have to consider that I will be staying with other people that will most likely want to sleep... I will bring it up to them when I get there on Friday.



That's all for now!
XOXOXO

Testing the Theory and Starting the Challenge

I'm not a very good blogger, and I'm also not very good at handling my emotions.

Stress took over for me this past week, and I cheated on my food. Quite a bit.

Needless to say, this week's weigh in was not good, at all.

But, let's look at it as a testing period. Testing the theory.

I made it two weeks without any mishaps; and I was successful those two weeks in my endeavors. I felt full of energy, and happy to boot.

While I was off-plan this past weekend, I felt lethargic, antsy, and just wanted to sleep away the weekend. I watched too much TV and just wasn't very happy overall.

Could it really be from the food I ate?!

Yes. It definitely is. I know it for a fact. I even went to spin class on Sunday, so you can just add right in there that I kept up with my exercise routine too!

It's all about the food. What they say, is so, absolutely true.

The easy part is the 2 hours spent in the gym. The hard part is the other 22 hours, following the nutrition plan.

Why on earth is was so easy for me those first two weeks? I don't know. Maybe I lost focus. Maybe I need to add in meditation and yoga into my routine.

It takes 21 says to make or break a habit, and I have not mastered this one yet.

Yes, I could be sitting here writing a million excuses as to why I gave into my cravings of cheese and bread, but they're no use. It doesn't matter. What's done is done, and it is time to let it go and move forward.

Transformation Challenge

Today marks #Day1 of the Transformation Challenge. What a wonderful way to let go of the wrongs I have done.

The Prep

Friday the challenge documents were released. I found that what I have been eating (as part of the plan not the crap I ate this weekend!) is what was outlined that I should still be eating. So no changes on that front.

I had been discussing with my father that my workouts were getting a little too easy for me, and we had talked about increasing my weights. When the documents were released, I noticed that I was ready to start on the Intermediate Workouts. I set forth watching all of the exercise videos to learn what I would need to do at the gym in the upcoming weeks.

Enter Anxiety.

Most of the new moves meant that I would have to move from the exercise machines, to the free-weights part of the gym floor. These kind of things REALLY get my anxiety going (not that I'm saying it's an excuse but it might have contributed to the cheese and bread from the weekend!!!).

I looked at those documents all weekend, going through the exercises in my mind and where I would do each one, how many I really HAD to do on the free-weights floor section, and how many I could get away with in the group fitness room (unused at 5am).

Saturday I got up bright and early for my morning coffee and smoothie, and put together my grocery list. Since none of my plans had changed regarding nutrition, this was very easy for me. I go to two stores: Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. I can get everything I need for one week at a time.

I left the house at 8am (trying to beat the Saturday crowds!) and I'm happy to say that I was back in my driveway by 9:30am. I was in each store for only 10 minutes, and it is a bit of a drive to get to them, so that's where all the other time went.

Total spent on food for the entire week: $80

Then as you know, I was lazy for the rest of the day because I wasn't eating right. I watched a copious amount of Once Upon a Time and read a good portion of the book series I've been reading.

Sunday I was up bright and early again - smoothie and coffee (organic mind you!). I also decided to cook my chicken thighs for the week; I already had some green beans made for my lunches so I was good to go on that. On the weekends I do the dishes in the mornings instead of the evenings, so I handled all of those so that they would be ready for when I made my smoothie that night.

I read my book and sat out on the lanai until I had to leave for spin class around 9am.

Spin class. This was my second one, but I actually really like it! I bought a small package of classes and have scheduled them out according to when I'll be in town to take them (Disney trips are coming soon!).

After spin class, Josh and I did some shopping as I wanted new Go Walks for my Disney trips.

Then we spent the afternoon watching some TV, and I eventually decided that I wanted to get all my things ready for Day 1 of the challenge.

Make smoothie, get snack and lunch ready to grab in the morning. Get together my clothes for work, clothes to workout in, and towels for the gym shower.

I was back in bed, reading my book by 8pm.

Starting the Challenge

I was up dark and early at 4:15am. I had to eat 1/4 of my smoothie at 4:30 in order to start my workout at 5. All went as planned.

I arrived at the gym a couple minutes before 5 and hyped myself up to workout on the free-weights floor section and... I did it! I didn't even go into the group fitness room.

What was awesome was that there was NOBODY on the floor when I started at 5:10 (5 minute elliptical warm-up was first!). This made it MUCH easier for me to get over my fear. Once I was set up, I wasn't worried about being in the way or being weak.

Once I was done with my final cardio session, I decided I had time to sweat out more in the sauna. It was very nice, and I hope that I have time to do it everyday.

I made it to work a couple minutes early, but decided to get in the doors and get working on my smoothie. I was hungry!!

Additional Focuses

Because I don't have anything to change with my food (other than following the plan!), I'm trying to add in a couple more aspects to help with following the plan.

First, I've set silent alarms on my FitBit. When they go off, it is time to drink a bottle of water. This has been working great thus far today, and should help when hunger strikes!

Second, I'm trying to incorporate yoga sessions everyday after work. I believe that this will help with clearing my mind, keeping my emotions in check, and maintaining my focus on my nutrition plan and overall health goals.



Cheers,
XOXOXO

Week 2 Recap and Challenges

I'm terrible at keeping up with writing in this but pretty good at taking care of myself all of a sudden.

Eating healthy and exercising has made me feel very good during the day. I have just enough energy -- not too much, not jittery, not tired or sluggish -- that gets me through the day and gets everything I need to done without feeling like "Ugh. I just don't want to right now" <-- which is what I used to say all the time.

And I don't mean things like going to the laundromat to do laundry, which I complained about on Facebook last week. THAT is a task on a Sunday evening. I mean simple things like doing dishes, cooking dinner and doing the laundry AT HOME. I used to DREAD doing those things and procrastinate them for days and days. Not anymore.

Turning all 3 of these things into habits are really helping to keep my mind focused and clear.

Everyday when I get home from work, I do all the dishes. Clean dishes mean that I have everything ready to prep any food or cook dinner.

I then start to work on dinner, which is something that usually needs to go into the oven for at least 20 minutes.

While it's in the oven, I'll start my prep for the next day's food. I make my smoothie (and rinse the Ninja afterwards for easier cleaning tomorrow), cut my apple to have with my almond butter, and portion out my chicken thigh and green beans for my lunch (both pre-cooked over the previous weekend). Now that all my food is ready for the next day, I go back to make my sides for that day's dinner (usually a vegetable that needs to be thrown in boiling water quick!) and voila. Food for the next 24 hours is done within 30 minutes.

Also, I always make my dinner foods in two servings. One for today, and one for the next day. Eating the same dinner two days in a row is very do-able (as opposed to eating the same dinner 5 days in a row or something; gets way too boring). Now my food prep for the next day is even shorter because I don't have to make dinner.

Every other day allows a little extra time in the evenings, which is enough to keep me going.

I always do laundry on the weekends, but then also always do it on Wednesdays (mid-week!). This makes sure that I always have clean WORKOUT CLOTHES. Yes, those are the most important because they are what I have the LEAST of out of my clothing attire. I always have enough clothes for work or lounging around the house, but I definitely need to make sure my workout capris and tops are clean so I don't have any excuses for not going to the gym.

Now, at this point, I have all of my food ready for the next day, and all my clothes for the next day clean. I then go through my short list of what I need for the gym.

Workout clothes - sports bra, tank top, capris, socks and undies

Work clothes - tank top, shirt, pants, and undies

Shower items - Full towel and hair towel (all other shower items are already in the bag and never leave it)

Once I get everything together, now I'm done for the night. Completely. Are there dishes in the sink? Yes. But I know I will be doing them the next day after work (this also works better because I live with a guy that dirties dishes after I go to bed). Is there laundry to be done? Probably, but I have everything I need for the next 24 so I'm not worried or doing anything last minute because of that.

Total prep for each and everyday; complete.

Some people think routines are boring. I think getting into a routine is more efficient. Because of it, I have more time to watch TV, read my book, or even get in another workout if I want to.

So a little recap of last week energy-wise -- for some reason I was very tired. I can't think of what caused this, as my sleep routines were the same and my nutrition was on point, but by Wednesday of last week I was dragging, so I had a cup of coffee after my smoothie that morning. Needless to say, it worked, because I was no longer tired or dragging the rest of the week. I was trying to only drink coffee on the weekends but one up each day during the week really isn't that bad, so I'm going to try for that now.

I've also been religiously ONLY drinking water other than the occasional coffee. It has definitely made me feel fantastic and every sip is refreshing (lots of ice please!).

I can already tell that my body is getting stronger, as the weights that I'm using on the machines are getting easier. Next week might call for an increase in weight, which I will discuss with the pros.

I tried my first spin class on Sunday and I didn't hate it, but not sure if I loved it? I liked it, that's for sure. Kind of like the elliptical, I don't love it, but I like it. It's do-able. Ironically enough, my gym added cycle zone classes at 5:45am on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which are my non-weight machine days. I'll start incorporating those classes tomorrow.

Challenges

Jack started a challenge group which will begin this coming Monday, August 10th. While I have not participated in one of his challenges before, my mom has and had great results. I've signed up and can't wait for it to start. I also believe it is a great way to get a taste of what the Jack Kunkel Revolutionary Nutrition program is all about. Check out the challenge website here, or the event on Facebook here.

In addition to this, I've also joined a DietBet group, just for some extra motivation and fun... and hopefully I'll win some money... yeah that was my only motivation for that. LOL