What I'm taking with me post-detox, fast

Sorry, just had to share that picture. Its not as good as the Dr. Phil one ... but still pretty amazing.

In the future, if I see myself trending towards some bad habit (I tend to gravitate that way, eh?), I'll fast that aspect out of my life. Go on a break, rest, retreat from it. Give myself around 10 days with no [insert vice].

Sometimes things that give us momentary pleasure can really destruct us in the long run. Whether it be meaningless sex or a second helping of cake. Breaking yourself from the temporary pleasures can really help put things in a longer, healthier perspective.

Plus, the fast weight loss (when it comes to food related fasts) doesnt hurt either!

The end.

Over the Hump of Master Cleanse

It's Day 6. I'm over the hump. I've lost 5.5 pounds and my pants are officially a bit looser. Theoretically things should be getting easier because it's all downhill from here. But, I've had some challenges along the way. For example, two nights ago I dreamt that there were all these desserts and I caved from the cleanse and ate them. I went as far as to cut off the edges of the cake so that I would have lots of icing. Luckily, I woke up and realized it was, in fact, all a dream. Failure is really not an option for this cleanse. I'm going to follow it and I won't cheat.

Last night, I was pretty moody, and I think it's because I haven't had real food. I was not craving anything in particular, just not the lemonade. I also tried going to yoga class just down the street from where I live. I couldn't do hardly anything until the stretching at the end because I just didn't have the strength. Child's pose was my friend last night. I was frustrated with my practice because I have never been that easy on myself. I always push it to the next level, muscle through it, or think the motto, "no pain no gain." But, this time was different because I knew that I just needed to take it easy because I was drinking all my meals and didn't feel like I would have sufficient protein afterwards to recover. It was one of those days/nights when you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. You don't know where you are going, what you are doing, and what the meaning of life is. By the end of the night my mood had improved because Scott called and encouraged me.

This morning, I was on my regular drive to work. When I drive now, I seem to be more observant. For example, one of the street signs on the way to the office is called, "Amador," which is the last name of one of my good friends. While driving, I also started to wonder, "Who am I?" I have been keeping to myself all this week. I haven't done my regular routine of working out, eating, socializing, etc. Normally I'm ALWAYS on the go with a rigid schedule. I do like exercising because I feel like it keeps me limber and cancels out part of what I eat every day. Sometimes I get the runner's high or have a wonderful yoga practice and I feel on top of the world. Because I've ommitted this part of my life for the cleanse I don't feel like I'm on top of my game. I am an extrovert and making conversation comes easily to me, but this week I've ommitted that because I really didn't know if I would have the energy to see anyone, much less be around them if it was dinner or happy hour.

In case the human race hasn't noticed, eating is a social activity. I grew up having family meals throughout the week. My mom would make a fabulous heavy meal each Sunday afternoon that would last us the rest of the day. My favorite weekend activity is brunch. The thought of having an omelette, biscuit, waffle, scone, or anything my heart desires makes me quite happy. When we go to work and want to socialize with someone, we ask if he/she wants to go to lunch. If people have a birthday cake at work you are looked down upon if you don't partake by having a slice. Except, of course, for Milton in "Office Space." No one cared or even noticed when he was the only one who didn't have cake!

We have to eat to live, but aren't there other ways to be social that don't revolve around food?

Day 3 of water fast is ending. And boy am I hungry.

So I’m ending Day 3 of my water fast. I had dropped like 2 lbs the first two days. But then last night I played basketball and sweated a lot. My mind wasnt in the game. Not that it would help if my mind was in the game. I’m a waste of 5’10” stature, thats for sure. Logically, I should be amazing at basketball. Tis not so. Well anyways. I weighed myself this morning and had lost 6 lbs from the previous morning! 6 lbs of what? Well, I know its not fat. I’m sure its just water and muscle. The things I dont want to lose. But, hey, what can you do?

Anyways, this is for me to know what to eat coming off my water fast. One time I ate nuts like the day after a fast and they basically came out like shards of glass.

From the ever reliable … yahoo answers.

One thing I’ve learned from years of fasting….NEVER break a fast too fast. You’ve got the right idea with starting slow on fruits and vegetables. I’d start with juices, teas fresh fruit and raw veggie soups and salads for the next week. Add cooked veggies and brown rice the next week. Stay away from processed foods because it’s a real slippery slope to “re-toxing” yourself. Add proteins in on the third week. Eat smaller meals more often throughout the day. Drink water with slices of cucumber or citrus to help hydrate more efficiently. Your body is still detoxing, so keep foods simple and healthy for longterm results.

Thank you “Dr. R.”

Its nice on paper but tends not to work in practice. I’m sure my first meal will consist of cheese, chocolate and nomnomnom. Im hungry.

The Master Cleanse

Well, I was roped/convinced/whatever you want to call it into doing the master cleanse. You've probably heard of it because lots of stars, such as Beyonce and Gwyneth Paltrow, have done it. The master cleanse, also called the Lemonade Diet, is a way to completely cleanse out your system with weight loss being a nice side effect.

For 10 days, I'm drinking this liquid concoction that consists of the following ingredients:
-Cayenne Pepper
-Maple Syrup
-Lemon Juice
-Water

I'm on day 4 and suprisingly enough, I'm doing fine. I can't say this is the most exciting thing I've ever done, but I've actually never gone on liquids this long. I remember trying liquid diets in the past, such as Slim Fast. I bet you can remember that commercial, "Just Drink One shake for breakfast, one for lunch, and enjoy a sensible dinner." In case you were wondering, Slim Fast never worked for me. In fact, come to think of it, no diet has ever really worked for me. I like carbs too much, so Atkins and South Beach were out of the question. Overall, I think my eating habits are pretty good, but they can always be improved.

I'm quite eager to finish this and to have something to add on my list of accomplishments. I love food so much. When it's breakfast, I'm already thinking about what I get to eat for lunch. Lunch outings at work are always fun, especially when the company pays! Of course, when the company pays, that means I may get more food than I need, not to mention if the table orders appetizers and dessert. Going out for dinner and drinks with friends can also wreak havoc on my diet.

Taking a few days off to self-reflect and think about things other than food is very beneficial to me. The only part I worry about is when I do start eating again. Here are some questions that plague me at this time:

-Will my eating habits have really changed?
-Will I be able to say no to caffeine?
-Will I not let food and social situations control me?
-Will I chew more and really savor each bite?
-Will I be able to stop eating when I'm not hungry anymore? In other words, can I no longer be a member of the clean plate club?
-Will I be able to say no to second helpings?
-Can I control my adoration (a.k.a. serving sizes) of my brother's food? He's the best cook I know, so this one may be hard.

I'm looking forward to seeing how the rest of these days unfold and to see if my relationship/love affair with food changes. I want to appreciate food more and not be tempted to eat it in social situtations unless it is actually something I am craving. For instance, just because it's someone's birthday at work does not mean I have to partake and eat cake. Let the journey continue!

UGGGHHHHH!!!!

I just don't get how my weight is staying static no matter what I do. I won't say that I'm perfect with my diet, but I have been eating extra healthy lately. I'm on this weight loss contest. I have 5 more weeks to lose 10 pounds because I have nothing to show for my first 3 weeks. I just don't know what is going wrong because I feel like I lead an active life and that I eat pretty well. If I'm the same weight when I eat crap as when I don't eat crap, then why don't I just eat crap so I can be a little happier? I need some motivation to stay on track...

Wake Up Call on Vacation

April did not turn out to be health month quite like I had intended. My goal was to lose lots of weight so I could go to Atlanta and have everyone think that I was super thin. I think that might have happened had I discovered what my weight was prior to the first day of Lent. When I went to Atlanta, I noticed that many of my friends had lost weight. It's never a good feeling when people around you are changing their bodies and you aren't. Granted, if I was in a maintenance plan this would not be a big deal. Instead, I'm trying to make myself look better. I want muscle tone.

When I was in Atlanta last weekend, people said that I looked fantastic. I think that was because when I lived there up until July 2008, my job was so horrible that it reflected in my facial expressions. So, just being happier now is better. But, I can promise you that I do not weigh less than when I left there.

I really loved spending time with my friends from yoga class. I went to one yoga class on April 30, two yoga classes plus running the trail on the Chattahoochee River May 1, one yoga class and one crossfit class May 2, and one yoga class and one crossfit class May 3. It's a little comical that I did workout that much, but exercise was such a part of my life while I lived there that I couldn't imagine going back and not exercising. I absolutely adored crossfit classes. One day we ran half a mile, did 50 back extensions, and then 50 situps as fast as possible for three times. The next day we did 7 deadlifts, 7 "knees to elbows" and then 7 burpees. There is something about doing those classes that gave me exactly what I needed..... A WAKEUP CALL!

Those crossfit classes were similar to "last chance" workouts on The Biggest Loser, or boot camp classes. My body was placed under extreme stress, and being sore the next day (while it wasn't fun), was good because it said to me, "my body is changing."

Now my goal is to put my body under extreme stress. Unfortunately, there is not a crossfit place close to where I live. So, that puts an extra challenge on me to work myself out harder. My workout Thursday was difficult. Imagine this:
-one hour teaching spin class
-30 minutes hill interval training on treadmill
-1 hour racquetball

Friday I rested- I'm sure you understand why!

I'm going to try new workouts, new ways to kick my butt. Beach body will be here if I can stick to a workout AND eating plan.

let me update you on my sore ass, target pants

Wow, so its the day after the 100 inverted burpees and my rear end is sore. To top it off, we did LUNGES this morning in bootcamp. Something like this: burpees, lunges to place where you do abs, abs, lunges back to place where you do burpees, some more abs, lunges to the place where you do abs, abs, lunges to place where you do burpees, some other abs, lunges to place where you do abs, abs, lunges to place where you do burpees, do burpees again. KILL. ER. The word for today is BOOTYlicious. And my booty was licious from yesterday. I didnt need anymore lunges. THEN to top it off, I got Xed (bc my food diary was bad). The bootcamp instructor was like, "Okay we've done a lot of abs so lets do some Buddha squats [he called them something else, but thats what I call them]". Yes, MORE leg/butt stuff. 4 minutes of it.

So yeah, sore ass. Thats what I have. Will go to hot yoga tonight and maybe that will sweat some of the PAIN out of my rear.

In yesterday's news of hot Georgia yoga wear, I've seen like 5 people in my yoga studio wear these capris. And I own them too (I just found them still in the Target bag yestday yet I bought them a few months ago ....).

From Target, BEHOLD:



Link

Let me introduce you to my friend: the BURPEE

So I'm still taking Crossfit about once a week from BTB Fitness. The workouts and the guy/girl ratio keeps me coming back!

One of the primary exercises we do is a burpee.

Here's a video of a regular burpee.



We typically do these types of burpees. The guy in the video is a BEAST. He jumps straight down into the pushup. I pause at a plank then do one of those barely on my toes girl pushups. Work in progress.

So one of our workouts looked something like this:
500 m row
21 burpees
400 m run
repeat 3 times.

I made it about 2 times through. The burpees were the definitely the hardest for me to push out.

Today, our workout was 100 inverted burpees and thats it. Took me about 20 minutes. (I saw someone's time on the whiteboard at about 8 minutes ...). I'm pretty proud of myself since I'm starting to actually finish the workouts. I have to say my yoga really helped me with the handstand and getting my legs over my head. I should work on coming out of my handstand and landing on different feet. I was favoring my right leg and I think that one will be quite sore tomorrow compared to my left.

Anyways, video of an inverted burpee for your viewing pleasure.



To "modify" you can come up with your legs crossed at the ankles, but I actually didnt have to do that. I'm sure a lot of people use momentum to get their legs to the wall, but I imagine the more control you go up with, the more core work and the greater the benefit. I'd suggest keeping the elbows straight. Nothing would suck more than having that bend in the elbow and having your muscles punk out on you and falling on the floor when you're upside down.

I was going to post another video of an inverted burpee but thought the cupboards knocking around were kind of distracting (but I think she did a great job. Good job, Stacy!).

"I never take anything that warns you to take an extra pair of trousers with you in the instruction pamphlet."

I absolutely love reading online comments in forums about alli.

Here are some I found just foolin' around. [Warning: this is in complete poor taste. Do not read further if you are classy or easily grossed out].

~You'll be shocked at how much fat you've been consuming, because you'll see an oil slick in the toilet. The oil is orange and smelly, and it sticks to the toilet bowl. (I have to clean mine 3 times a day.)

~If you cheat on this diet and have some taco bell for lunch you pay for it by realizing you just shat in your pants. I would suggest a 'man pon' till you know how your body will react with this product. Dont forget that extra pair of undies..... you`ll need them!

~This destroyed all my white underpants. Everything came out orange. A few times it even went through my pants, which I had to toss. I don't see at all how this is effective. It doesn't control hunger at all, so what's the point unless you like public humiliation?? Just cut down on your fat intake and you'll feel better anyway. It's like a punishment to take this.

~i was about to use this product,until an co-worker of my sister told me other wise. she told me that you eat ANYTHING fatty its going to show...guess it works. but when you think that you have to fart, your actually crapping out the fat you just ate ! im never going to go near this stuff! im just going to keep exercising and drinking rockstar juiced B4 workouts, lost 33lbs just by doing that.

~Not a bad product to lose weight only when you can accept oil all over you pant.

~Not as strong as the prescription weight loss pill(xenical), but I have lost 2 to 3 pounds already. Some cramping, and bloating but not severe as long as you are prepared for it. Some of the gas will stain your underpants!!

~However, even though I felt great about my appearance it got to the point where it just wasn't worth it anymore. By now everyone should know that this pill has a nasty side effect that, to be blunt, makes you crap oil. I usually stuck to 1500 calories (except for cheat days) a day and still would suffer Alli's wrath in the bathroom almost everytime I had to do number 2. And by the way, the need for number 2 increases when you're on this pill. There was also several occasions where the oil made it into my boxers without me even knowing until its too late... Another ugly truth is you can't trust your farts while on this pill either. The oil finally broke me and I had to get off the drug (I continued to see oil for almost 3 days after stopping the pill).

~Can make your muscles sore from straining!

~Don't take it. My stylist took it one day wearing white pants while playing tennis in the Caribbean. Bad idea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Next thing she knew her husband and kids asked if she has sat in something orangey. She ran to her room and threw the pills away. When you go to the bathroom it has a pizza greasy topping consistency and she found out in a bad way.

~Don't do it! That orange stuff that leaks out is fat! You can't feel it leaking out, either. Read the above posters story about the white pants! And the stuff WILL NOT wash out! And talk about smelling HORRIBLE! INDUSTRIAL like, it's like nothing you've ever smelled in your life! Sorry to be so vivid, but it is true! You will regret using Alli, it's bad enough on a low fat diet! To use it while low carbing would be asking for MAJOR MAJOR trouble! You will ruin your panties, your shorts, pants, whatever. I'm telling you the truth. It is not like you've gotta fart feeling, this grease leaks out and before you know it, your buttcheeks are all squishy and it's everywhere! You wanna play a mean trick on somebody----slip one of these into their drink! I'm telling you, stay away from this stuff! It's OTC Xenical. Read up on it online yourself, about what people are saying. SIDE EFFECTS. Nasty stuff! ANd when you go to the bathroom, and that smell hits you, you'll wonder how in the world something that smelled like that was ever produced in your body.

~I had a friend who took this when it was prescription only and in the side effects list it said there was a high rate of "anal seepage". ANAL SEEPAGE?!? :eek: That term is almost as disgusting as the actual event!!! I saw her a couple of weeks after she started on it. I asked her if she was still on it and she laughed, "I dont own enough underwear for that diet! I dont know why, but it makes me laugh all the time!

~I knew I've heard the Alli is half the strength of the perscription version, so I had the bright idea to double up on a dose...and ate the meal. I felt fine that night and even the next morning.....had a typical BM, no problems.....then I went back to my computer and realized I left a giant oily orange stain on my sofa!!!! :shock: :oops: :shock: Thank heavens for Stain Devils for oil and grease!!!!!! Now I'm scared to go to work...will use an extra-long overnight Maxi today. But here's the thing.....I had NO idea!!!! Absolutely not a clue!!!! That's the scariest part!

Resetting my metabolism

I am in the process of resetting my metabolism and shrinking my stomach. This past Monday, I had every intention of doing a 2 day juice fast- the one my best friend did from Arden's Garden in a previous post. Throughout the day, I had hunger pains at time, but I would get over them. At 6 pm, I had to eat something, plus my brother made my favorite spinach for dinner (sauteed spinach in red wine vinegar with pecans and feta cheese but of course I didn't put feta cheese on it for Lent). I think that he secretly wanted me to eat solid food because he knew exactly what I intended to do for these two days. So, for the rest of the week, I decided that I would enjoy this juice concoction as much as possible for two meals a day and see what would happen.

Wednesday check: Weight- 131.4 lbs, 26% body fat- exactly the same weight I was a week ago, which is great after the craziness I ate last week and weekend (I was in a wedding in Houston and overdosed on cake).

Friday check: 130.2 lbs, 25.5% body fat- good progress for only two days.

So far, I am extremely pleased with this way of eating/drinking. It curbs my appetite and reduces all my cravings for chocolate. I actually crave vegetables because I'm drinking fruit juice the rest of the day. It's like the slim fast plan ("just drink a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, and enjoy a sensible dinner." Plus, I still have energy to complete my regular workouts. I notice that I'm a little slow in the mornings, but by night time I'm ready for a run. I also have not craved coffee or alcohol at all. Yes, this is all very new to me. But, for right now, I'm going to go with it and see how much weight I can lose. Tomorrow is weigh-in. I'm not going to get all depressed if it's over 130.2 because I did go to a Brazilian steakhouse for Easter lunch today. I think I got enough iron for a week! Happy Easter!

Feeling good. Making good choices

I went to Crossfit today and I was able to do all my pushups on my toes! The boy way [insert Tim the Tool Man Taylor laugh from Home Improvement]. I also stuck out with my running and didnt have to stop mid-jog like I had to during bootcamp last week. I did all my squats and I got to use a kettleball. I mean, I'm on fire.

Then I went to Hot Yoga at Atlanta Hot Yoga. I love that place. Its such a great studio. They have a very good rate as far as yoga studios go. And the heat really does "something" to my body. My muscles dont feel sore and I attribute it to the hot yoga. My face always looks clearer afterwards. Yay!

I've also started eating better. And I attribute a lot of that to keeping a food journal and recording my calories. Now I think, "Ugh, I cant write that down in my food journal" & that helps me not eat something that I probably shouldnt. PLUS, with the Bootcamp I'm taking (with BTB Bootcamp/BTB Fitness), the trainers look at what I eat every day and either checkmark it or draw a big X through what I ate. Like a double dose of accountability. Once when I write it down and once when the trainers are reading it. Jeez, I feel like a little kid waiting for them to read what I ate and make comments on it.

Also, I'm starting to see the benefits of eating small snacks in between my meals. I'm not as hungry throughout the day and my regular meals seem bigger. Tonight I had a sandwich and cottage cheese with tomato juice (I know, thats an 'ew' combination even for a healthy meal), and I actually was pretty stuffed! That NEVER would have happened in the past. Usually I'd make another sandwich or something.

If I do good enough this month, I'll sign up for 2 more months of bootcamp with BTB Fitness for sure. Combine that with hot yoga about 3 times a week, put a fork in me and I'm done.

April = Health Month

April will consist of something... don't know what yet. I want to do a cleanse or eat only vegetables and fruits for a while. I really don't want sugar or fat to be mixed in because I want weight to drop. I'm going to start taking Hydroxycut to help me in this endeavor. Yes, I know that it's not natural, but I need to speed up the process and drop the weight. Once that happens, I'll cut it off. I will have to say that it really does help my workouts because I get a surge of energy. Lately, work has been so incredibly busy that I don't know how I would last if I didn't have sugar, caffeine, or these pills. I haven't taken them regularly yet, but I will and will let you know how they work. I feel so gross from all of this eating (I was in a wedding this weekend too-- diet disaster!). I'll figure out what my April plan will be and post accordingly. Wish me luck!

to fast, or not to fast; that is the question

I'm doing a two day detox with an Arden's Garden product. They give you the recipe for it on the website, but I bought it for $15 @ Whole Food's. The contents say that it has distilled water, fresh grapefruits, fresh oranges, and fresh lemons. But it tastes like there's only grapefruits and water in it.

So I'm almost at the end of day 1 of no food and just liquids. I'm actually not that hungry. I woke up really late today and that has helped me. Tomorrow (Monday @ work) will be completely different. I have a habit of stopping somewhere in the morning and getting something to eat or drink (usually coffee or fast food). So I'm looking at this 2-day detox as a spiritual means to squash and interrupt this dirty little habit of mine.

I'm not going to workout during these two days. Today I rested. I should have gone on a walk or something, but I didnt. Tomorrow I will clean my room and get rid of all hints of fast food in my car and elsewhere. (Right now I have a Sonics bag poking out of my trash can ...). Just purge it from my life! So instead of telling myself, "Well I wont eat that on the way to work tomorrow" I'm going to put some thoughtful energy into this and actually MEAN it.

With my general experience with fasting, I dont like to do shorter ones because you are hungry most of the time (I'd say up until after the 3rd day). So I know I'm going to be hungry until I eat something again. But longer fasts dont suit my lifestyle right now because I teach yoga and like to exercise more than the light stuff you are supposed to do during a fast. Oh, and I also like to eat out with friends! I personally suggest starting off with 1-2 day water fasts. I would not go over a 7 day water fast unless you are really read up on the information and have practiced fasting before. On your fasting days, light to moderate exercising will help move impurities through your system, but dont go doing anything extreme. Read up more if you want to try a 7 day water or 30 day juice fast thing.


A few notes on fasting
What is fasting: fasting is the practice of abstaining from food for the purpose of improving physical, mental, and/or spiritual health. There are many different kinds of fasts but the most common kinds are water fasts and juice fasts.
What can/do fasts do?
~ Dr. Joel Fuhrman has written books claiming that the body can redirect energy from breaking down toxic foods elsewhere in the body - for purposes of self healing (and he went as far to say to cure diabetes, migraines, arthritic tendencies, strokes, heart disease, allergic reaction, etc. Serious stuff). So in layman's terms: once your body stops digesting food, it will search for other things to break down that it couldnt because it was too busy breaking down food. Hopefully that means I'll get a better complexion!
~ Gives your digestive system a break. So again - during a fast, digestion stops. Digestion is a draining process. After you intake your pizza and Coke and are asleep on the couch, the body's work has just begun. Food is our external energy source but sometimes we overburden our body with too much food. So our organs that eliminate foods (kidneys, liver) tend to be overtaxed with toxins, alcohol or chemical additives.
~ Declutters the body. During this time that the digestive system is stopped and the body is looking elsewhere for energy, it also eliminates what you dont want or need until all the waste is gone (dead or damaged cells, extra fat). After that, you must begin to eat again because we dont want the body burning what you need, like too much healthy muscle or too much fat.
- Mental clarity. You know how you feel after you eat too much - sluggish, lazy, almost drugged. Fasting can lead to shaper mental acuity, faster response time, quicker comprehension. Fasting can give you a mental edge. It's important to stress here that fasting is NOT starvation. Starvation dulls the mind; fasting sharpens it.
~ Fasting makes you younger. You'll live longer. Plenty of medical studies exist. Look them up if you dont believe me.
~ Greater spirituality. Since your body's energy is directed elsewhere, fasting can be a great tool to forget the sensual pleasures of eating. It's a great time to meditate or pray. Many religions and people and prophets practiced fasting. Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus all have spiritual leaders or holidays involving fasting.

Well, this blog is really long. I could say so much more about fasting! It's a great tool in not only losing weight but in increasing your standard of life.
Now, if I can just carry on my fasting attitude with me to meals then I'd be grand and not grande.

Pound for Pound Challenge

So, the NBC Pound for Pound website is not letting me submit my story so I'm going to do it here. This is what I had written up to "share my inspiration to lose weight."

My inspiration to lose weight comes from the fact that I simply can't fit into my clothes anymore. I got into a bad habit a few years ago to not weigh myself regularly. I think I was in denile, and ignorance was bliss. When I finally decided to weigh myself a few weeks ago, I had a scary awakening. I was 20 pounds lighter three years ago. I know I can lose the weight, I just need a boost on motivation. I think this site will help keep me focused on the all end goal- to be 20 pounds lighter once again.

Short and sweet and to the point. That's what it is. I have to say it is interesting to read the pound for pound stories. I guess other people are "authorized to submit" unlike me. To read stories of others, go to this link: http://pfpchallenge.com/ShareYourStory.aspx

The key to longevity: Dont eat anything

I was watching Oprah (big surprise) and they had Dr Oz on talking about people living forever. Okay, to 150 but who's counting? Here's a link to the show.

I've read about calorie restriction as a healthy way of living from Dr. Joel Fuhrman as well. He also talked about eating less helping you reduce inflammation in the body. Inflammation seems to be a precursor to a lot of disease.

Calorie restriction isnt a starvation, pro-ana diet (800 cals or less). From what I heard on Oprah, the practitioners of the calorie restriction lifestyle ate about 1500 cals a day for women and about 1900/2000 for men. Another important key to this lifestyle is making sure the calories you eat are nutrient dense - like nuts, fruit, veggies, etc. Not ricecakes. . . . The man on Oprah ate the apple skin only because thats where all the nutrients were. He had a bowl of the apple skin, 2 oz of nuts, and maybe some berries (?) and made the statement [loosely quoted] "this is my breakfast, it has more nutrients than what most people eat in a day or two." That REALLY made an impact on me. Why do we eat? A huge part of that is to receive nutrients. And when you eat chocolate or fast food or sugary drinks or even diet drinks, you aren't intaking nutrients. What good are the chemicals that make up that food if it doesnt nourish your cells in any sort of helpful way?

My diet has been mediocre over the past few days. I will use the Oprah show (maybe not Oprah necessarily ...) to be my thinspiration so I can eat a nutrient dense, low calorie diet.

Yayyyyyyy. (that was sarcastic sounding).

:D

The Power of Self Control

So, it's Friday, and I did weigh myself. Body Fat is 21.5%, weight is 133.4 lbs. Granted, I felt bloated this morning and gross, but I still decided to weigh-in because it does keep me in check. Thanks to my awesome gmail chat friend who resides in Atlanta, I have been able to achieve a few positives this week. For one, I have denied myself chocolate ever since that little episode on Monday. It's really a magical thing when I actually follow-through with my self control. I think I'm going to deny myself chocolate longer than what I originally intended, which was this coming Sunday.

Speaking of self-control, I've also been quite proud of myself regarding Lent. I won't say that I've been PERFECT, but on those days I wasn't perfect were the days that you can technically cheat, which is Sunday. One Sunday, I had two bites of asiago cheese bread at Panera Bread. When I noticed what I had just done, I stopped.

I feel like since I have done so well with Lent, and with this most recent notion of giving up chocolate, I can achieve my goal. I think the key is to move with consciousness. When I eat mindlessly or eat so fast to not truly enjoy the food I am doing myself no good. I'm also trying to truly ask myself what I want to eat. If it's not what I truly want, I won't eat it.

So yes, my weight has fluctuated up, and my goal was to be under 130 sooner rather than later. My new goal is to continue to choose food wisely and even make better decisions than I am now. I'm also going to run more regularly. I know I can do this. Think thin. Think thin. Think thin.

THINK THIN! not FAT!

After a day of eating everything in sight, I need to have a self evaluation. I weighed this morning- 131.4 lbs and 24% body fat. I know I can make strides by this coming Thursday. My plan is to have a nice long run after I teach spin in the morning. I'm hopeful that my calf is not hurting in the morning. I like to run only because it's a huge calorie burn. Today I ate an insane amount of LINDT chocolate, and then came home with the intention of not eating dinner because I had eaten so much chocolate. Well, WRONG! I had started off okay, as there was cooked broccoli at my fingertips. Then I noticed that no one had eaten the wonderful goodies from Corner Bakery that I had purchased yesterday. Sunk cost, I know. I should have just ignored it or tossed them. But, I couldn't. They were staring at me, saying, "Eat me!" So, I gave in. I wasn't even really craving sweets; they were just there and I didn't want to go another day without them being eaten.

Game plan:
1. EAT LESS! Geez. It's not that freakin hard.
2. DO NOT EAT CHOCOLATE! Yeah, I know I'm a woman... but I can still have self control for goodness sake.
3. MOVE MORE- take more breaks at work to walk

Let's just see if this little trick works... progress report in three days.

Currently losing the game

Well, I thought I was off to a great start. Key word is "thought." I weighed myself this morning and the scale welcomed me with 24.5% body fat and 133.8 pounds. It doesn't really make sense to me. I have to admit that these past few days haven't been perfect, but to see a 133.8!? What the heck? So I think this means I just need to be a little bit more disciplined. Granted, I'm not the initial 135 pounds, but still. In the past three days, I've run 13 miles and I've been to yoga twice. I've also taught two spinning and one yoga class. So this is not due to lack of activity. The culprit is food. I've just got to be better. Think thin. Think thin. Think thin.

It's like a game

Losing weight is like a game. You say to yourself, "what can I do today to make sure that number on the scale goes down tomorrow?" I am very eager to see that number go down, especially since the number was extremely high exactly one week ago. Since then, the number on the scale has decreased 5.4 (135 to 129.6) pounds, but the body fat percent has increased from 20 to 24.5%. Granted, last week I weighed myself in the evening. I have this goal that the next time I weigh myself- Saturday morning- I want it to be somewhere around 127.5 to 128.5. Of course, today I don't feel like I ate that well, so I'm not sure if I will see a number in that range. I started off strong with a protein shake from Smoothie King, but then had a footlong sandwich from Subway because I was just craving bread; my stomach did not want another shake for lunch. I couldn't believe I ate a whole footlong. But then, I had chocolate at my desk. Then, this evening, I grazed. So, I guess you could say today was my "cheat" day. But, shouldn't a "cheat" day be when you are socializing? I get frustrated with myself when I'm not good on my diet, especially when I'm by myself. But, as long as it's not every day I guess I'm okay. I have to think thin and keep telling myself, "I am so grateful that I weigh less than 120 pounds. I am thin. I like healthy foods." I need to continue with positive self talk.

not so fast, negative nancy

so i weighed myself. about a year ago (o god, has it been that long?) i realized i had gained 25 lbs above and beyond my low weight (and my current weight is 15 lbs more than my high school weight). therefore, i would pretty please like to lose 25 lbs. after a month of working out at least 3-5 times a week and watching what i eat, i thought i could drop off weight pretty easily. nay, i was wrong! a few things happened. one of the worse things was that i lost hope in myself. i would restrict, exercise, diet for a week and then weigh myself and not see a big enough drop (or even a gain!) and get really upset with myself and then eat fast food the next day or binge. that was happening about november/december of 2008. beginning of january, i started eating better but still checking in fast food a few times a week and eating out with friends but working out a little more diligently. i expected to see some weight loss over the 2-3 weeks i had decreased my eating out and increased my working out. WRONG! another weight gain. this time, 4 pounds on top of the 25 i wanted to lose. talk about devastation.

so i told myself i wouldnt weigh myself until the end of february.

so d-day came and i weighed myself today. out of the 25 lbs i will lose, i have only lost a pound.

typically, i would be really tore up about this. a month? and all i've lost is a freakin pound?!?

but, not so fast, brain. i could have possibly lost something closer to five pounds (since i had gained that four pounds over christmas/january - even though i still to this day think it impossible that i gained so much bc i really cut down on my fast food and increased my working out). and, thankfully, i had taken my measurements. i forgot my waist measurement, but i know i lost over an inch in my hips (still need to lose about 2-3 more but its a start).

according to my past behavior, i would have ran straight to the closest fridge or mcdonalds. but, aside from the number, im actually pretty pleased with myself. i feel better, stronger, and healthier. i am liking how i can say no to fast food easier; im not going to lie, i still dont have a perfect diet but its getting there.

what number on the scale would i have been happy about? i honestly was shooting for 10 lbs! that was my "happy" number.

but i am not going to let the scale dictate my life and how i view myself (and, oh, how it has done so in the past). i will live in the present and change what i dwell in. i wont say i didnt do enough in the past ... because i cant change the past. i can only change the present ... the now. i think this helped me because i did some boxing and yoga tonight and had a great time at the gym even after i had weighed myself. now, i think working out is fun ... and not just a means to an end to help me fit into my jeans. i actually feel energized after going to the gym. and, for so long, i was sluggish because of my inactivity and going to the gym was a chore. now working out is fun - i feel the benefits - and i am looking forward to my new eating healthy lifestyle! i dont want to be a slave to the scale chasing a number or to food finding comfort in some fries. i want to live my best life!

What is Measured IS Improved

So, as we know, Lent has started. We also know what I have given up. So far, it's been pretty easy to pass up everything. I think that's partially because I'm in crisis control mode. When I saw the scale tip at 135 the other day, I knew I had to get it in gear and start being accountable for my actions. When I weigh myself regularly, I stay in check. When I don't, it creeps up to a point where my pants have to start fitting snug for me to notice anything. When I'm this big, I don't even want sweets or fattening foods. So, it's good. I'm thinking that this kind of action plan will really help me truly realize when I 'm hungry and to eat what is healthy, not just eating something because it's staring at me in the refrigerator (e.g., the whipped cream at eye level on the top shelf). So, what is measured IS improved, and I WILL be living proof of it. Since lent started on Wednesday, I've lost four pounds. Granted, the first time I weighed myself was at night and that the first few pounds are water weight, so I'm certain it's not truly four pounds. But still, the number decreased, so I'm happy. I'm planning on weighing myself about two or three times a week and running a lot. My social butterfly personality may decrease; but that may be good. Maybe the "No Fucking Money Diet" is good for me!

I am fit.... or am I?

So, I was walking up to my friend's third floor apartment today and felt a little winded when I got up to the top. Not the wheezy feeling, just the increased heart rate feeling. I thought to myself, "What the heck? I teach spin classes twice a week." The problem with that mentality is that just because I teach doesn't mean I'm in tip top shape. I actually can't push myself as hard because I have to be able to speak clearly to the class. So, I think I'm going to need to up my workouts when I'm by myself to make sure that I'm training hard enough.

I bought some healthy food. thats a shocker.

So I went to Costco and instead of buying the croissants, I bought Four Bean Salad and some Stuffed Grape Leaves. I'm excited about the four bean salad. It looks loaded in fiber. The grape leaves look like they might not taste that good. But we'll see. I'm sure its better than my croissants (which I'm going to replace with whole grain bread). Looking at the nutrition info, I think the four bean salad has a little more sugar than the most ideal healthy food ... but I'm still excited about eating it. Should fill me up.

I was reading my Fitness magazine from March 2009 and it had a list of things to bring in your gym bag. Some of them I had never thought of. The following is a list of the few items I was interested in (ie, approve of):
~ Clean and Clear Makeup Dissolving Facial Cleansing Wipes - I think facial wipes of some sort are good to bring. Sometimes dousing your face with water doesnt really get the job done.
~ Dove Go Fresh Burst Body Mist - My main thing with body mists is ... dont make me smell like a grandma or teenager. Please.
~ Deodorant (duh)
~ Batiste Dry Shampoo (does this stuff really work?)
~ Goody Headband - Headbands are great at hiding hair disasters! I like the Ouchless under their Classic headband collections. Sarah Beth has some cute ones under Decorative that I think look fabulous post gym.
~ Colgate Wisp - These are supposed to be some kind of bristly thing that leaves your breath feeling fresh. I dont know though. For $8 seems like you could just bring a toothbrush/toothpaste?? I cant find a link to this product online and it's not on the slideshow (Fitness magazine website). I wonder if Colgate thought this was a bad idea too and pulled the idea since the magazine went to print.

If you want a link to the whole slideshow, here's a Link ... pop ups and all.

Enjoy.

Lent Begins

So, today is Ash Wednesday, which means it's day 1 of my journey of Lent. Each year, my mom gives up sweets in their entirety- no candy, no desserts, no nothin'. I've given up something each year, and most of the time, it works. I remember in high school I gave up gossiping and saying negative thoughts, along with cursing. It was quite challenging when I saw some awful outfits!

I tried giving up sweets last year in their entirety. Ummm... worked for about a week. As Homer Simpson would say, "D'oh!" So, this year, I've decided to try this again. I know I can have self control when God is in the picture. He knows if I'm cheating, so I better not.

Isn't Lent 40 days? Well, for 40 days, I'm cutting the following items from my diet:

-whipped cream
-icing
-cheese
-ice cream
-bread basket/chips basket at restaurants

This will not be easy. No one really understands just how much I adore whipped cream and icing. But, I'm willing to do it because I desperately need to lose a few pounds-- the current pants I'm wearing used to be much looser in graduate school (grrr!).

The No Fucking Money Diet

I guess I'm shit out of tips. And judging from the two cuss words in under 10 words of blogging shows I'm probably not in the best of happy, peppy, unrealistic tips mode.

But, I do think that having no money is really curbing me from doing things like:
- spending money and eating out with my friends instead of going to the gym in which i have a membership i'm not maximizing
- buying food at Subway (with real fucking mayonnaise) instead of eating a can of pineapple my mom got from the food bank
you know. things like that.

So, I'm pretty sure I lost a pound or two but I'm not weighing myself until the end of February. It's not like it fucking matters since I fucking gained 5 pounds anyways. So instead of my original 20 lbs, I need to lose 25. So even if I lose 3 pounds, I'll still be pissed off because I need to lose over 20 pounds still. I'm set up to lose even if I win.

Maybe March will end better.

PS. Fuck my Camry for running into that fucking cement pole. FUCK YOU CAMRY. FUCK YOU AND YOUR 2000 DOLLARS PLASTIC SURGERY I HAD TO GIVE YOUR DAMN BUMPER ASS.

quick workouts

So this is a blatant copy/paste from Yahoo! Health.

But I take group fitness classes at my gym, but I feel like I dont get enough cardio. So the 30 minute bullet point at the front of this article really struck my attention!

I love my long training runs, but most days carving out more than an hour to work out just isn't in the cards. And when my schedule is really crammed, shoehorning a sweat session seems next to impossible.

Luckily, the fantastic fitness team at SELF let me in on a little secret: You can get an hour's worth of fitness and calorie burning in 20 short minutes. Yes, I was skeptical at first, but this fat-blasting routine is as ultraeffective as it is speedy, and the secret lies in high-intensity spurts of energy. Here's how to do it:

• Pick any cardio you like (running, swimming, the elliptical trainer). Warm up for 2 minutes at a moderate pace, then sprint for 30 seconds at the highest intensity you can muster. Slow down and do 90 seconds at a catch-your-breath recovery pace. Repeat eight times. You'll torch more calories in less time, while you burn fat faster. Follow this cardio session with a few of the following fast firmers for a total-body workout in less than 30 minutes.

• Tighten your tummy: Do two sets of 10 to 12 crunches on a stability ball. Research from the University of Auckland, Tamaki Campus, in New Zealand, revealed that using the ball makes crunches 20 percent more effective compared to hitting the floor.

• Firm up legs: Stand on left foot, hands on hips, and bring right knee to hip level in front. Trace a horizontal figure eight in front of you with knee. Then bend left knee and hop to right, landing on right foot. Repeat figure eight with left knee, then hop back to left to complete one rep. Do 10 reps, then hop back and forth 10 times to complete one set.

• Boost your bottom: Stand with feet hip-width apart, hands on waist. Shift weight to left foot and lift heel of right foot so you're resting on toes. Bend left knee and sink hips back, keeping weight off right foot (toes stay on ground). Rise up. Do 12 reps on left leg, then switch legs and repeat.

• Bare amazing arms: Holding a dumbbell in each hand, stand with feet hip-width apart. Raise arms, palms down, out and slightly forward to shoulder height. Slowly lower them behind you so weights almost touch. Do 12 reps.

• Slim all over: Stand with feet hip-width apart. Keeping legs as straight as possible, bend forward and walk hands out until they're under shoulders. Do two push-ups, then walk hands back and stand. Repeat twice, doing four push-ups, then six.