Sunshine Award and update!

Melissa over at My Life as a Folz nominated me for the Sunshine Award :) Thanks!

Questions she asked:1. What is your favorite "skinny" recipe? I recently made turkey chili and I love love love it! Lean ground turkey, organic stewed tomatoes, spinach, tomato sauce, and I put it over shiritaki tofu noodles... yum!

2. What is your favorite exercise? I love the way I feel after I run. Getting myself to do it is hard,  but once I do I feel awesome!

3. Where did you meet your spouse/significant other? Don't have one, currently taking applications :)

4. Do you have pets? If so what kinds? No pets, I feel like I am never home and it wouldn't be fair :(

5. What advice would you give to someone running their first half marathon? Ha! The furthest I have ever gotten is a 10k... and I really didn't like it, to be honest. I am much better with shorter distances. BUT I guess my advice would be you can do anything! and I mean ANYTHING! Just say you are going to DO IT!

6. Weight lifting or cardio? Cardio

7. Whats your favorite cardio? Insanity kicks my butt!

8. Whats your favorite TV show right now? there are lots- I love Duck Dynasty but one that I cannot miss is Scandal.. so ready for it to be back on!

9. How many times a week do you workout? I aim for 5-6

10. Do you have cheat meals? If so, whats your favorite? I have been cheating too much lately and the scale is showing :( but I guess my fav cheat is Mexican food- chips, queso, enchiladas, beans, rice...yummy!

Sorry I have been MIA... it has been a very busy week back to work. Teaching is so exhausting!

 

I have been doing GREAT with my diet and have worked out every day. I have not been eating or eating minimal carbs. AND the scale IS NOT moving. I am wondering what to do because I am getting frustrated. Maybe it just takes time. I am going to try and make it through the weekend with this plan and then if the scale doesn't change by next week, I will have to reassess. Maybe my body is starving? Even though I don't feel hungry? Any advice?

Wednesday... New thoughts

This morning I woke up and all I could think about was how bad I wanted a bowl of cereal. I don't mean captain crunch or fruity pebbles, just a good old bowl of frosted mini wheats! I thought about it and I have gone 10 days with pretty great eating, no carbs hardly, and I feel good. I wanted that cereal and guess what I had it! I started thinking and I think about every 10 days I will let myself have some freedom but not go overboard... What is that? 10% of the month? That is my so what Wednesday! Lol

Workout:

45 min TurboFire 

2.8 miles on treadmill

It was a serious cardio day!

Food:

Breakfast:

Small bowl of frosted mini wheats

Strawberries

Light grapefruit juice 4 oz

Snack: almonds and raisins

Lunch: we went out- I got a side salad and two avocado tacos, ate one and then the filling of the other but not the tortilla

No afternoon snack, I wasn't hungry

Dinner: sloppy joe- one on wheat bread that was only 140 calories

I counted out 13 chips and had little cheese dip. 

Glass of milk

Salad (had to have some veggies)

Tomorrow it is back to the grind and 10 days Til I let loose again.

We all have to take our own journey, there are no clear defined rules and I'm ok making it up as I go! So what!!

Leave you with a quote I put on my brothers board... Gotta love uncle Si! Duck dynasty day- woo hoo!

Day 2....

It's pretty hard to get back in the swing of things but I am doing ok here... Not too traumatized by 6:00 am wake up alarms lol...BUT I have to admit, I'd much rather be:

Workout: Bob Harper kettlebell sculpt DVD 

5 miles bike

Arms

Food:

Breakfast: 2 eggs with mushroom, low sodium bacon and a few cinnamon apples

Snack: peanut/raisin mix

Lunch: avocado with pico and boiled chicken, strawberries, larabar

Snack: mix again

Dinner: brisket, peas, a salad

Protein shake 

Tomorrow is hump day!! Heeeeeey!

First day back at work... Exhausted!

Today was my first official day back at work. I am tired! Guess that's what will happen if you are off for 10 weeks and then all the sudden have to wake up to an alarm... Lol! Did great today though!

Workout:

Jillian Ripped in 30

2.5 miles run/walk on treadmill. Still doing the "running to lose weight app".

3 miles on bike

Ab/ leg workout

Food:

Breakfast- oatmeal with cinnamon apples

I cut up a bunch of apples and put them in the crockpot the other day with cinnamon. It smelt like apple pie in my house :) they are great for "dessert", snacks, etc.

Snack: almonds

Lunch: went to a mexican place- no chips!!! Woo hoo! Chicken fajita salad, went easy on dressing.

Snack: larabar

Dinner: sweet potato with a little king ranch casserole stuff

Almost lights out here. Have another early day! Eyes are heavy 😴

Success :) Thursday... Not sure why this posted so late

Today was a success! Let me just be honest and say when I am at home, I do great with eating but usually going out is a REAL struggle. I always somehow fall into temptation. Well, today I didn't! I totally rocked that shit! 👏

Breakfast: oatmeal with a cup of triple berry blend (Kroger)

Snack: clif bar (I felt the hungry monster while out shopping and grabbed this at shoe carnival instead of m&m's- that was a score, in my opinion. If I wouldn't have gotten it- I would have def made a bad decision at lunch.)

Lunch: tilapia and shrimp with broccoli and carrots at cheddars. I also had a salad and did not eat the croissant or the croutons! 

 Snack: turkey jerky

Dinner: chicken stuffed with spinach and covered with artichoke hearts and sun dried tomatoes, sweet potato, and salad with no croutons or cheese.

I ate out 2 times today, had to buy my snacks on the go (forgot mine at home) and I still made good choices!!! I am on a roll here... Goal weight- watch your ass, I am coming for you!!! 

Saturday and Sunday

It's officially been a week since I really buckled down and decided to move forward instead of continuing to go back again and again. I've been making better choices with eating and sticking to my workouts.

Saturday-

Workout:

5 mile bike

2.82 running/walking on treadmill

Arm workout

Food:

Breakfast:

Oatmeal with a spoon of almond butter and some raisins

Lunch: kinda had a variety of snacks-- banana, Luna bar, 100 calorie wholly guac with sweet peppers as chips, grapes 

Snack: small salad and almonds

Dinner: we went out to eat and I ordered fish tacos and didn't eat the tortillas. I had a few sweet potato fries and a couple margaritas so it wasn't perfect but  I never said I would be :)

Sunday:

This was my last day before officially returning to work so I took an off day. I needed to relax, chill out, and just enjoy my couch for a day. I rarely do this at all!

Breakfast: didn't eat Til after 11, so more like brunch. Again, my friends and I went out to eat. I ordered a mexican omelet. I took the cheese off, ate a little beans, and a side of oatmeal. I didn't touch the hash browns or the chips and salsa they brought. That is HUGE for me! It doesn't even bother me which is a BIG change. Baby steps people, I am getting there!

Snacks: apples with cinnamon, Luna bar, and a couple almonds.

 

Dinner:

Steak, salad, grapes for dessert

I am back to work tomorrow. This will be a hard week because we will be eating out quite a bit so I have to try and watch it. I know I can!

Fabulous Friday :)

Time is running out for summer and yesterday I decided to have a little "treat myself" day and relax and enjoy some good, but healthy food and get a pedicure.

 

Workout:

Insanity Cardio Power and Resistance... I swear, I love Shaun T! Always a good workout!

3 miles on the bike

Leg and Ab workout

 

Food:

Breakfast:

2 eggs with a little salsa on top

Raisins and strawberries

 

Snack: Larabar

 

Lunch:Salad with tuna fish, pepperocinis, olives, tomatoes, and vinegarette dressing. I had a spoon of almond butter for dessert.

 

Dinner: We went to one of my favorite restaurants- Yamato's... if you are EVER in the Galveston area and you like sushi or hibachi, you will not regret going here! It is AMAZING! They recently got  a new roll on their menu and so we tried it out. Low carb and has no rice, but wrapped in cucumber. It was good, but expensive. Why are healthy options always so much more expensive?Anyways, we ate that, some sushimi, and then got one more roll which I scrapped the rice off of and ate.

 

Afterwards, we drove around the island for a while and my friend wanted to hang out a bit longer, so we headed to another restaurant and sat outside. It was raining, but nice out. We ended up ordering these AMAZING oysters to share. They were covered with chorizo, blue cheese crumbles, and corn. Not the best clean eating wise, but not too bad either. She ordered a pizza to take home and I said NO! I did have a few glasses of wine yesterday while getting a pedicure and a couple at dinner, but my weight is holding steady this morning and I am back to my water. About to head out to workout and enjoy this day! :)

 

Here is a pic of my cute toes!

 



Back to work...

It is that time again....

Yep, here we go again! I am no "officially" back to work until Monday, but as any of you teachers out there know, you need time to put your room back together. It takes more than a day and I went up Tuesday for 1/2 a day and then yesterday again for the whole day. I feel like I have gotten a lot accomplished and feel ready, well as ready as any teacher who LOVES summer can be.... the waking up part is going to SUCK big time because I have been sleeping til 9...10....11 sometimes... I know, smh!

So, I got busy yesterday and forgot to post about my day.

Workout:
Went old school and did Tae Bo Cardio Shred, still makes me sweat! whew! 45 minutes long.
Did my "running for weight loss" app and ran/walked 2.8 miles on the treadmill.
Stationary bike for 5 miles.
Arm workout with weights.

Food:
Breakfast:Oatmeal with raisins
Snack: Almonds and raisins
Lunch: Grilled shrimp and mixed veggies
Snack: Luna bar (I am getting rid of them and replacing with lara bars)
Dinner: my mom mad this bean and meat mix- no bread, sugar or dairy so I ate it... beans are not recommended on The Whole 30, but guess what? Who cares? It wasn't a loaf of bread so I am glad.
Protein shake before bed.

The scale is steadily moving down. Started at 174.8 on Monday morning and down to 169.2 this morning, so over 5 lbs... some of which is water weight from the weekend.

Today is a test- I am going shopping to finish getting things for work, going out to eat possibly twice, and going to the grocery store.

Some of the things on my list today:
LOTS of fruits and veggies
Chicken, fish, and turkey
Oatmeal
Almond Butter
and so much more!!!

Gotta get stuff together for my healthy meals. Have a great day ladies!

Tired Tuesday

Let me start off by saying that this morning as soon as I woke up I felt IT and by IT I mean pain! Yesterday's workout kicked my butt! I couldn't sit on toilet without pain, walking up stairs hurt, you know the drill... Means its working! Oh yea!

Today's workout: 

Jillian Michael's 6 week 6 pack

1.88 miles on treadmill, increased incline in 2-3 min spurts from .5 to 3.0 and back again.

3.0 miles on stationary bike

Leg weight workout

Plus I worked in my class for nearly 4 hours today setting it up and you teachers know that's lifting, up and down on a chair, and all that jazz.

Food:

Breakfast: 2 eggs with pico and mushrooms, 2 slices low sodium bacon

Snack:

I snacked on grapes and almonds while working in my room

Lunch:

Salad with olives, tomato, and artichoke, vinegarette dressing, Luna bar (I know I shouldn't but I am going to be buying more larabars soon because they have nothing but natural ingredients in them.. I wanted something sweet, coulda been worse) 

Dinner: my mom cooked my brothers Fav: stuffed manicotti ... I didn't eat it!!! Score for me! I had a sweet potato with a little of the meat sauce she made on it and a big salad, grapes for dessert. 

Now I'm finishing the day with this: 

:) 

Back at it again...

What can you do when you fail? Pick yourself up, dust your butt off and go for it again! So here we go:

Workout today: 

Bob Harper's cardio shred kettlebell workout

2.5 run/walk on treadmill.. I got a new app that is supposed to be "running to lose weight" and I have been doing it for the past week. I like it and feel it is helping me get my stride back.

5 miles on stationary bike with resistance.

Arm workout with weights.

Plus, I cleaned my car inside and out! 

I sweated a lot today and rocked the workout section of the day!!

Food:

I have been reading this book:

It's really interesting and has opened my eyes to some things about eating. I am attempting to try it out for a while and see how it works. So today I ate:

Organic oatmeal with almonds for breakfast. I sprinkled a little aria protein powder in as well.

Lunch:

Grilled pork, grilled shrimp, tomato, and a banana. 

Snack:

Apple and some organic raisins.

Dinner: I pretty much ate what I had for lunch but had a salad instead of tomato and had grapes instead of a banana.

Clean eating day!!! 

Just finished it off with an Advocare shake and I am done for the day. I feel satisfied and happy with my choices today. One day at a time, one step in the right direction. :) 

I do well, then I FAIL!

I have been avoiding this post for DAYS... because I am so disappointed in myself. I am sad, depressed, feel like a failure ONCE AGAIN! It is really hard for me to write this.

Sunday, July 28 I started the 10 day Advocare cleanse and I was so excited to start it again. I have had pretty good success with it before. It helped me start my weight loss again and helped me curb those cravings that I just couldn't manage to get rid of.Well, the cleanse went great for 6 days and then the weekend hit, friends came down, we went out, I drank, I ate, I let go and didn't look back. I had fun, I said "who cares?". I am sick to my stomach over it all.  

I have had a goal for YEARS... 150 and I have never reached that goal. I have come close- 158, but never made it. I always always ALWAYS slip up and go back. I want to cry as I write these words. IT is a struggle. I know I am not in the obese category or anything (even though I feel like I look in the mirror and see that)... I am overweight and have been for pretty much as long as I remember. I don't feel great in my skin. I am SO CLOSE to where I want to be and I just CAN'T get there.

Today, I went shopping with a friend of mine. She is a little 5'3", 110 lb girl. I am at 5'7" and currently 172, which is a number I haven't seen in forever. So, as she is trying on her size 0 pants, I struggled to button an 8. I was disappointed in myself. HOW DID I GET BACK HERE?! I know it isn't good to compare yourself to others. We are all shaped differently, we are all different sizes, and we are all BEAUTIFUL in our own way. It just made me sad to see how big I was compared to her and I know what I am capable of. WHY CAN'T I DO IT? Mind over matter. I need to figure out what it is that I NEED to do.

So, for lunch we went to Chili's. I ordered off the light menu and got the chicken with rice and broccoli (580 calories). I was proud. AFTER a day of shopping.... what did I do? Drank a margarita, chips and salsa/dip, quesadilla, rice and beans. REALLY?! I just tried on clothes and couldn't fit in them and still I am eating my emotions. So, as I sit here.. I am sad, bloated, disgusted, mad at myself.  I am tired of struggling, I want to feel good, I want to be healthy. I can picture it in my mind. I NEED to get there. I just hope I can.

When did you hit rock bottom? What did you do to make it better? How do you self talk to get there?

Day 6 of cleanse! (yesterday)

Workout:
1.75 on treadmill
3 mile bike
Legs, Abs
30 minutes of Bob Haper Cardio Shred Kettlebell workout

Breakfast:
Mushroom omelet with pico de gallo, low sodium bacon

Snack: Luna Bar

Again, got up late so had no lunch or anything

Dinner: OLIVE GARDEN! UGH! How do you eat on a cleanse there? LOL
I had salad, I ordered off the low calorie menu- lasagna primavera with grilled chicken... it was stuffed with veggies and had chicken on top, the worst part was one piece of lasagna noodle. My fail for the week- spinach and artichoke dip :( Again, I am not perfect, but I am doing a LOT better... I also drank tea again! So, one fail and many successes. I will take it!

Starting the morning with a shake and getting ready to go run, run, run... I will check back in later for Day 7. It's a beautiful summer day, friends coming down, bands playing...pray for me that I can make good choices :)

Day 5

Workout:

1.5 miles on treadmill

5 miles bike

Insanity plyometric circuit

Arms

Breakfast: 

Oatmeal, almonds

Snack: larabar

Lunch:

Salad with chicken

Dinner: pork loin, salad and a baked potato (I know I cheated but I was starving after my long workout) 

I have been pretty good on the cleanse. I feel good. I haven't had one drink. Can't be perfect all the time but I feel like this is a great start :) 

Also, I am super excited that my favorite sushi place is going low carb! I can't wait to try this ;) will help me in the sushi department since I love it!