Monday, October 6, 2014

Day Fourteen

Still on the diet. I flubbed a little yesterday. There were rolls, delicious, fresh
mouth watering rolls. Of course I had one...and a half-ish.

But I'm back on track today with 30 in  30.

Starting to realize that I get burned out cooking on this diet. So I either need a meal prep day where I can cook ahead OR cook a ton of whatever I'm making so that I have leftovers, which can also be snacks and such. A combination of those methods will probably be needed.

I've also noticed weight fluctuation when I don't exercise daily. Daily exercise routine plus diet equals a pretty steady weight loss on a day to day basis. However, if I unintentionally skip meals due to being busy or being unprepared, my weight goes up. If I'm just eating the diet but no exercise, I remain pretty level. So, for me, I need both the diet and exercise.

Ok, off to go implement a cooking battle plan.


Thursday, October 2, 2014

Day Ten

Weighed in this morning at 156.6lbs. Completely busy yesterday, so I skipped working out. I plan on fixing that today. On to food!

To the right is breakfast. It's basically queish.

Six eggs, 1 avocado, about 3Tbsp of diced ham, a handful of sliced baby bellas, and a handful of spinach. Seasoned with cumin, chili powder and a touch of salt and pepper. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until no longer runny. Top with your choice of Pico or Salsa. Serves 2. I bake it in a bread pan.




To the left, yesterday's dinner. It's that Slow-Carb 30 Minute Baked Chicken recipe I posted previously. YUM!





Guess I'll keep on, keeping on.

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Day Nine

Nope, didn't go MIA.

I have a family.  Things go from zero to 150mph without warning. :D

So, I took fat pictures, no, I'm not sharing. Those shouldn't be shared, ever,...maybe once I reach my goals to see how far I've come, maybe.

Still on the diet and doing fine.

I'm down to 157.8lbs as of this morning.

I'm doing pull-ups (wide), push-ups (narrow), weighted squats and lunges, and plank. Gonna throw some ab specific exercises in there today. Not sure which. Ab exercises are like my Achilles' heal.



But that's okay cuz:


Sunday, September 28, 2014

The Day After Cheat Day

Ok do yourself a favor and make 30-Minute Easy Slow Carb Chicken. It is officially one of my favorites thus far. Even if you're not slow carbing it, this is a tasty dish and can be modified to include potatoes and such.

I never weigh myself the day after cheat day, because, yes, I will be heavier, but it's temporary. Even though I know it's temporary, it still busts my bubble, so for the sake of my gentle psyche and self image, I just don't talk to the scale on days like these. :D

My exercise today consisted of cleaning the dickens out of my apartment and I'll probably bust out some pull-ups and crunches before bed.

Did my 30 in 30 today. And stayed true to the diet. Onward and upward.

I'll try and get some pictures of myself up before too much longer, but you can understand my lack of enthusiasm. Fat pictures are the pits, however, its always nice to compare once the goal is reached.

Oh yeah! I forgot to post my goals. My overall goal is to be 135lbs again. But short term goal is to lose 3-5lbs a month. Eventually, I'd like to have a body like Caitlin Rice. I so need to lift weights, squat and lunge like it's my job.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Cheat Day

Ug, I'm sore. Yay, exercise!

Ok, today is cheat day. What does that mean?

It means I can eat pretty much whatever I want throughout the day. However, if you eat something and it makes you feel like crap...probably shouldn't eat it.

For example, refined sugar and I can be described as an unrequited love. I have a sweet tooth, I LOVE brownies and ice cream, and chocolate and donuts and you get the picture. However, sugar does not love me.

It gifts me with headaches, sluggishness, and a clouded mind. I've noticed since being off sugar, my mind is much clearer, I don't have the headaches and I have long lasting energy rather than spikes.

That said, yes, I might have a little dessert something or other, but for the most part, I'll probably just be eating some white carbs and fruit that I can't have during the normal week.

Over at www.findingmyfitness.com all the rules for cheat day are posted (I just have to find it and link it here for your convenience.) A cheat day hack was mentioned: keep your cheat day gluten free.

I've noticed that some of the symptoms I've stated can also be caused by a gluten intolerance aka Celiac's disease. So, as I go through my cheat days I'm going to try and see if gluten might also be an issue for me.

I seriously hope not cuz I love me some Papa John's pizza every now and again. It's so on the menu today. YAY COUPONS! So is a pineapple and grapefruit juice...

Ah, I almost forgot. Before your "crap laden meals" 60-90 seconds of squats, push-ups or whatever else gets you moving has to be done. Why? Because as I understand it, it basically allows the food you eat to go to your muscles rather than to your fat cells to be stored. Suddenly, I love push-ups and squats before I eat. Then do it again 90 minutes ish later.

Also, grapefruit juice before your first "crap laden meal" helps your boost your metabolism. I'm not Tim Ferris, obviously, so if you want better explanations, get his book (Mr. Ferris backs it up with Science) or go to www.findingmyfitness.com for an overview.


Last thing that I can remember, first meal of the day has to be slow carb friendly, after that, have fun!


UG and now onto my numbers. I always wondered why I look like a freaking tube. Here's why:

H-41"
W-41 1/2"
B- 40"

Weight: 158.4lbs


Onward to battle!

Friday, September 26, 2014

Day Four

Still with it!

I had turkey bacon and eggs for breakfast. Had left over Shepard's Pie for lunch and now I'm itching for a snack that will probably be a handful of almonds. Dinner will more than likely be something made with chicken and a side of peas. Unless I find some other recipe that strikes my fantasy.

Sorry so vague today. I had a lot of errands to run and still have things to do around the house.

That said, I'm going to attempt some yoga today before bed. Yesterday was a bunch of crunches, modified push-ups, and squats.

Off to tackle my "To Do" list. Until tomorrow!

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Day Three

Yesterday (Day 2) was cray cray. So I didn't post. But yesterday was also a kind of an anomaly because while I followed the diet, I didn't have a whole lot of time to eat and became hungry because of it.

I managed the 30 in 30 yesterday with 3 scrambled eggs and 3 slices of turkey bacon for breakfast.

Lunch fell apart because I wasn't as prepared with ingredients as a I thought. I think I had a tablespoon of crunchy peanut butter and 1/3 a bag of Brussels sprouts. Not fun nor recommended by me.

I biked a couple miles with the kids yesterday and did multiple other things so my body needed more sustenance than what I gave it. Headache and hunger pangs ensued.

Oh yeah, I had a handful of almonds after a mad dash to the store. They tided me over until dinner. (P.S. While nuts are indeed fine for the diet. It's very easy to go overboard. Don't go overboard.)

Dinner was much needed and yummy! Two roughly 4oz pieces of chicken, a big spinach salad, and a side of peas. (I inhale peas like oxygen, they're my favorite veggie up there with Brussels sprouts!)

Day Three

I weighed myself today just out of curiosity's sake because I felt lighter. Sure enough 158.6lbs says my scale. I expect it to go up just a touch as I eat "normal" today. Anyway, time for a visual.

That would be a picture of my breakfast this morning and let me tell you, that is a dinner plate, not a salad plate.

At the top of the plate is a sauteed mix of spinach and kale, going right, 3 eggs with ham, mushroom, green onions, topped with pico de gallo, and on the left, black beans, baby! So when I eat, I do NOT go hungry. If I am, I'm not eating enough or I'm not drinking enough water.

And speaking of H20, I drink about 32oz a meal. I drink more when I just wake up. Just being on day three of no sugar or carbs, I feel a difference mentally. My mind is clearer and my body has a little more energy.

Lunch is probably going to be a meat, salad and veggie, unless I feel adventurous and want to try a new carbless pizza recipe. And dinner will be a slow-carb friendly version of Shepard's Pie.

Ok, my children are plotting mutiny if I don't get off this blog. Until next time!

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Day One

Consider this my journey on the 4 Hour Body bandwagon. Why? Because I've done it before and lost 10 lbs. Then I kind of burnt out on it and life happened. So, welcome to the restart folks.

I am 5'4" and 1/2. (Yes, that 1/2 is important to us short people!) I'm 161.7 lbs and I absolutely hate it. Thus, this blog.

I was 135 when I graduated from high school and when I left to serve a mission for my church in Brazil. When I came back I was 175. O_O I lost most of it and was down to 143lbs when I got married. Then we had two kiddos and I haven't seen those numbers on the scale since.

You're asking, well, what the heck is the 4 Hour Body and what's so special about it? Well, it's a book written by Tim Ferris and the diet works. Yes, you have to fiddle with it a bit because everyone's body is different but for the record, it works. I lost 10lbs back in May and my husband lost 20lbs.

So now that you've Googled 4 Hour Body and Tim Ferris, your eyes have probably popped out of your head. Yes, the book is large, but thorough. If you have no interest in reading a second Bible, this website gives you the basics and a breakdown of how the diet works.

In a nutshell it's this:
  • No white carbs
  • No sugar (including fruit)
  • No dairy
  • Yes to veggies
  • Yes to protein
  • Don't drink your calories
  • Do drink plenty of water
  • Be stellar for 6 days and then have a "cheat" day
  • Oh and consume 30g of protein within 30 minutes of waking up. ;)
This diet is about losing fat. Exercise isn't necessary but it certainly wouldn't hurt!

Personally, I will be working out as I follow the diet. Hoping that as I build muscle and eat better, my body will thank me by looking and feeling better.

Today is day one. I ate 30g of protein for breakfast within 30 min of waking up. Went for a bike ride with my kiddos and had a Turkey Burger Salad for lunch. So far so good, I have Garlic Salmon planned for dinner. :D