Getting in the Mindset...Meal Planning and Preparing Your Workouts

I want to welcome in the new year with a bang! Oh I'm not denying that I will indulge on New Years Eve....but it's about taking appropriate measures before hand so that it does not sabotage you. I tend to scale back my calorie content about 100 calories a day the week of a big event...allowing me an extra 500-700 calories to eat/drink without gaining anything. I could of course run 7 miles instead to make up for that...but, this just seems easier!

And of course, if you know you are going to be in a situation with horrible food, take measures ahead of time to address it/bring something yourself so you can eat. The whole "oh I brought this new dish I wanted to try out!" (code for -- I am really afraid to eat any of your buttery food and am trying to exercise self control).

Anyways, I decided to start my program a few days early. The reason for this is I go back to work next week and it's about to get CRAZY! I need to be back in the habit of meal planning, and especially, working out.

Yesterday I topped out at 1400 calories. Lower than I normally do, but I'm preparing for NYE remember. I won't go any lower though because my body needs about 1300 calories to even run itself (BMR). It was not a conventional day of eating by any means. And that will happen. But I started my morning strong with a lentil soup from Amy's (the canned kind--320 calories for the whole thing, 14 gram protein), and made a lean meal in my crockpot (porkloin stew-- with eggplant, asparagus, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, seasonings and chicken broth) that could serve as lunch and dinner. Add in some Chex cereal w/ almond milk and a bag of popcorn and tada!! See....Indulging in an entire bag of popcorn doesn't have to be an end all be all.

Pork Loin Stew

Yesterday's/This morning's workout was as follows. I did a double dose of arms, and I definitely could feel how much weaker I was today. I don't typically recommend that, but I was sure to have protein shake when I was done (instagram= healthyteachergirl for the recipe and to follow me!):

Peanut Butter Banana Protein Shake

Yesterday: Chest/Core
15 Tuck Jumps
15 Seconds of Burpees
20 Pushups (10 one legged)
20 Russian Twists
5 Full Crunch/Extensions
60 Reverse Crunches
50 Crunches

This morning: Abs/Shoulders/Chest
15 Tuck Jumps
15 seconds of Burpees
20 Tricep Dips
10 pushups
18 Pike Pushups
10 One legged Pike Pushups
10 One legged pushups
3 Side plank pushups

Later today I plan on getting my run in. I signed up for the ColorRun on January 23 and need to show up looking like I can manage to run a mere 5k. And I'm really ready to have a nice ass again.


And to meal planning:
My CSA box this work serves as my inspiration:
*Komatsuna
*Oranges
*Yellow Tomatoes
*Cabbage
*Acorn Squash
*Bok Choy
*Micro Greens



I found some chicken breast and pork loin on sale last week so they will serve as the bulk of my protein for the week. I also will get some seafood (shrimp and salmon) to get some Omega's in.

I am a simple creature when it comes to eating so I do one of two things for ease:
Make a double portion of dinner so I can eat the rest for breakfast or lunch the next day,
or I cheat and buy the healthy choice dinners that I can pop in the microwave really quick. Those are the only two ways where I can really know what I'm eating, since it's either already labeled, or I have done the calcs already from dinner the night before.

So far, I have planned the following dinners:

Garlic pork loin w/ mashed acorn squash
Pulled Pork (BBQ) and stuffed yams (Monday night...I need something I can crockpot)
Pulled pork tacos
Asian Salmon w/ Bok Choy (tonight's dinner)
Thai Pumpkin Curry with Bok Choy
Chicken sandwich with lettuce, sprouts and tomatoes 

You'll notice that I don't have a lot of starches in there like pasta and rice. There are two reasons for that: 1. My blood sugar stays a lot more stable when I avoid those foods, and they are high glycemic and therefore cause a blood sugar rollercoaster (increasing hunger), and 2. they are more calorie dense, and I like eating a lot of food!

Snacks for my prep hour at work include:
Lentil Chips,
Sliced Veggies + Hummus
Hard Boiled Eggs


I have a good week's worth of meals here, so now I shall head back over to Pinterest to find some breakfast ideas in case I don't want leftovers :) After I find my meal there, I will usually reconstruct it if I feel it will be too calorie dense, and then add the items to my grocery list.

Fit Tip: Definitely make sure you incorporate protein at every meal/snack (20-30 grams). This will help decrease hunger and stabilize blood sugar. It also helps rebuild your muscles if you are exercising! 

Going to finish my shopping list, and then off I go to the store!
Fit Tip: Do NOT go back to the store during the week, so make a good shopping list and meal plan now! Eat a bit before hand (with protein!) so you're not hungry at the store. This helps curb any spur of the moment junk food encounters. And do not buy any junk food!

Prepping for the January Challenge - Determining your Goals, and Planning

Part 1 of Preparing for the January Challenge: Determining your Goals and Preparing to Meal Plan (Part 2 will essential meal planning tips and ideas to create a strong meal plan for you. Former blog posts touch on this already).

This challenge is not designed to be a "who is the best" type of challenge. This is a challenge for yourself. It is time to take the steps to reflect on you, your wishes, and where you want to go.

Bottom line: the #1 reason for being overweight is a lack of energy balance (you are eating more calories than your body can burn). (Why you are eating too much is an entirely different issue).

Questions to ask yourself, that I will answer as well for myself:

What about your health/body would you like to change/What fitness goals do you have for yourself?
*I want to be able run a 5k and not get winded.
*Have defined ab lines
*Use 30 lb dumbbells for my squats, 15 for my biceps, 20-25 for shoulder row
*Workout 4 days a week
*Decrease stress - allow more relaxation time for myself

Based off of the answers to these questions, my January plan needs to incorporate cardio (running), weight training, and specific ab circuits. The only way to see the abs is to decrease body fat so they are visible + work those muscles!

Break it down. What do you have to do to reach those goals:
-Treadmill / outdoor running 3x/week- Running specific distances/slowly increasing the distance ran. Also, for some muscular definition I will be increasing the incline and having some interval workouts as well (go tushy and calves!)
-Do a 10 minute ab circuit 5 days/week before/after work
-Have a more defined workout time
-Clear nutrition plans to keep calorie goals in check (counting calories is the only way to know for sure where you're at)


What is standing in the way from you achieving your goals?
*My own excuses and willpower. I often talk myself out of why I can't workout (oh I'm busy, oh I'm tired) --for example, once I'm done writing this I'm already telling myself that I'm still sleepy from traveling yesterday and that I won't have enough time to workout before my ortho appointment. THIS IS WHAT I NEED TO STOP!
*Having a specific time to workout every day (i.e. after work every day, no matter what). Routine naturally makes things easier. In an ideal world, I would be working out in the morning before school. But I would have to get my work life together enough to make that happen first! ....unpeeling the layers of the onion. Remove all excuses.

It is very important to know the specific goals/the steps to reaching them, and what's holding you back before you begin. If one of your goals is to lose weight, be sure in incorporate meal planning. For this reason, there are two challenges that I am asking that you do yourself. Keep it private, or go public to get more support and accountability! If you are not sure that your goal is reasonable, or doable, check with me if you'd like!

Prep-work #1: Answer the questions above. Be specific. If you need help constructing some goals, contact me. Start with things you can measure yourself. If "want my pants to feel more lose" if your goal, that's fine. Want to run a 10 minute mile? Also fine. Just have a way to keep track of it. For extra encouragement and accountability put it in the comments below.

Prep-work #2: Take pre-measurements/photos of yourself. January 1 to January 31. Include things like weight, waist circumference, how your favorite pair of pants feel. Whatever your specific goals are, be sure to include a photo for them (example: have more define calf muscles, take a picture of your calves).

Challenge 1: Tracking Your Food. Track everything. Meal plan EVERY week and measure every single thing that goes in your mouth. To make this easier, I plan everything out on Sundays, and put it into containers for pre-made portion sizes. No WW points. Those are not specific enough to identify your strengths and weaknesses. Use MyFitnessPal, as it allows you to monitor things like sugar intake, protein, etc. For those of you concerned about weight loss, this is the all powerful tool here. Yes, other aspects of nutrition absolutely do matter. But step 1 is understanding how you eat.

Challenge 2: Meeting Your Goals: This part is clearly indivdualized, but focus on about 3-4 of your goals that you are going to accomplish this month. The larger goals, or remaining goals can roll into February. They are not going there because you got lazy, but because you want to focus on a few things at a time. Plan it out first. 


Before January 1, create your first meal ideas for January 1-9. Include grocery items needed, approximate calorie counts (you will be getting the exact ones when you make it). Make sure you include items with protein!!! Don't forget to plan out snacks, if you are the type of person that likes to snack. If you plan on working out, don't forget to plan a post workout snack w/ 20 g protein for weight training days, and 4:1 ratio carbs to protein for cardio days (you only need 100-200 calories for post workout). 

I highly recommend creating a Pinterest board for this. It makes it easier to pin everything to one place, you can label which day you want it in the comments before you pin it.

If you don't already have a planner, I recommend getting one. They are fun to doodle in, and it makes working out and accomplishing tasks more fun (for me at least!). I use the Happy Planner, and plan to add everything in to that, but there are some great fitness planners available as well!
http://www.ogorgeous.com/product/2016-blogilates-fit-planner

My Happy Planner:

 Now that you have somewhere to start, get to it! We've got work to do!!

3 Free Fitness Apps You've Gotta Try!

The majority of us can say they have some type of fitness app on our phones now days. But can you say, that this is a quality app, that isn't giving you some bogus information/wasting your time? How do you even know that? This week, I am going to let you know what I think some fantastic fitness apps are. They are all free, with paid premium subscriptions, but I think for the first time ever, you might just cave and buy the paid one for one of them!


FitStar - Personal Trainer / FitStar Yoga
http://fitstar.com/

This app starts off free but has a premium service that costs about $40 a year (I have seen two different monthly prices advertised--one for $4.99/month, one for $7.99). 

But, it still offers a great service that is FREE -- two, specific workouts per week. 

You first take a fitness assessment (similar to that of insanity, but much shorter). After you do each exercise, which is timed, you input how many reps of the exercise you did, or how long you were able to keep up. You then input your exerted effort. The app uses this information to design your next workout. So far, the workouts range from 11-22 minutes. Short and sweet (or miserable, depending on how you look at it).

Input your level of exertion, and how well you did on each exercise.

Despite the fact that it only provides 2 exercises/week for the free service, you can still supplement it with some of their pre-designed workouts. I am using the app for those days that I am not up to go to the gym or do a run, but still need to be doing something active. If you don't have a gym membership, I would recommend paying for the premium version. 

Provides you with a single exercise, and a timer to keep you paced. You can go faster if you wish.

 










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Argus - 
http://www.azumio.com/s/argus/index.html

Assuming you don't already have some sort of fitness tracking device like a fitbit (or even a new iPhone), but own a smart phone, this is the app for you. Argus uses location monitoring to track your footsteps throughout the day. The only problem is if, like me, you put your phone down during the work day so it doesn't truly track what you've done. It can monitor other user inputted things, such as water, coffee, and exercise, but I use it strictly for the footsteps as I have other apps for everything else.



MyFitnessPal -
myfitnesspal.com

 MyFitnessPal is your best friend if you're trying to lose weight and just can't seem to understand why it's not working! It's also awesome for maintenance, and those days where you *think* you're doing alright but for some reason you're feeling a bit bloated (aka my life). It's simple. To lose weight, you must eat less calories than your body burns in a day. No, don't worry about what you're eating just yet, that comes later. Only worry about how many calories you eat (unless you're battling some health issue, everyone obviously has specific needs). This app is great because it has virtually every single food in there. You measure out what you eat, enter it in, and waalaa! You need to be honest with yourself. Don't guess how much you ate. Get a food scale, measure things out, and enter it in. You may be shocked by how much you're actually consuming.

So before you go into shake land, or some fitness program that makes you "lose 7 pounds per week!"....use FitnessPal. And be real with yourself. Being at a healthy weight isn't always easy. No, I don't have a faster metabolism (that's a complete myth), I just work hard to stay thin and in good shape.





Those are my 3 go to fitness apps!  I think they are a great combination, being able to monitor your nutrition, activity, and exercise levels. Stay tuned for my January Fitness Resolution Challenge!!  Hope you join!

Note-images are not mine, and I do not claim them to be. Please see image location for sourcing information. 

For the lazy days...

I work my butt off. I am up by 5 am preparing for the day, writing lesson plans and responding to work emails. It isn't until a full twelve or thirteen hours later (or more) that I finally walk through the door after work. Unfortunately long days don't mean active days, and I find my body exhausted yet conflicted because I need to do something to get back in shape. But I have absolutely no energy to do that. My new solution: work out in bed!

No, not sex...you have a dirty mind.

It is incredibly easy to do an ab workout and leg workout in bed. You feel the burn, but you don't have to roll out of bed. I call that a win-win. I think while watching Netflix makes it a super win.

My inspiration for the day: http://www.buzzfeed.com/jessicaprobus/lazy-people-exercise-moves

http://www.livestrong.com/slideshow/1011409-19-absculpting-pilates-moves-can-home/?pp=0#slide=1?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=fitness

If you are seeking this for tone and physique, don't forget to count calories y'all, or you won't be able to pull this off. The most important thing to weight loss is calories in must be less than calories out. But then again, if you are gung ho about getting fit I don't think you'll be looking for excuses to exercise in bed. Otherwise, gotta start somewhere! :) 

Basic Advice for Weight Loss Beginners

As an educator, every summer is a great opportunity for reevaluation. Weather is great (unless you're here in Arizona), attitudes are more positive, and you can be more active on a daily basis. For myself and other professionals in education, it's time to start gearing up for the new school year. I really enjoy assessing where I am at both emotionally and physically, and I use this time to create a plan of action, and better educate myself in areas where I am lacking. This is something that regularly needs to happen, and it should be a habit. Even though I don't have kids of my own, I am still responsible for 160 children on a daily basis. I still work from 5:45 am until 5 pm nearly every day. The pieces of advice below have saved me. I am tired of people telling me I'm skinny because of my genes, or that I have a faster metabolism (big misconceptions about weight...see my blurb below). It's called planning, knowledge, and self-control.

My blurb: My boyfriend has an AMAZING blog that's going to debut next month....It is blunt as hell at times, but very helpful for people who are serious about losing weight, and contains very helpful information to educate you about health and nutrition topics--not the mass misconceptions that are being portrayed all over the internet. Stay tuned for that. :) Nothing is live yet, but it can be found at weightequation.com. So go bookmark it. :)

Anywho....Prior to creating goals....a few pieces of advice.

1.) Stop kidding yourself. Think about the reality of the situation. Are you at a healthy weight? Are you participating in behaviors that keep you from reaching goals? Knock it off!

2.) Once you have a plan, actually do it. Don't say you'll do it and then don't.....don't lie about how much your doing....don't make excuses as to why you can't do it as much as you want to. If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you.

3.) Plan, plan, plan. It's in those busy or spontaneous moments that people tend to lose control. You're starving after a long day at work and you don't have anything quick to eat except potato chips and granola. NO!


What to do?
1- Evaluate yourself. You need to know your starting point to go anywhere from there. Determine your primary goal -- weight loss you say? Then go figure out what your daily calorie burn is (by identifying your basal metabolic rate + activity level), and then don't eat as much as that number says. Fact of the matter is, you need to be BELOW that number by the end of the day. The easiest calculator of them all is bmrcalculator.org. But don't lie about how active you are. Most people fall into the low category. Even when I'm on my feet 8 hours a day I categorize myself as being in the "light" category. The number provided will be for weight maintenance. If you want to lose, you need to cut calories. 3500 calories is 1 pounds. Therefore, if you cut 500 calories a day, you will lose one pound a week (500x7=3500).

You could eat pure acai, kale, quinoa, and coconut oil (supposed superfoods)... but if you eat too much...you're done for. Diets that say "you can eat as much as you want" are full of shit. They claim that because they recommend you eat low calorie foods, so therefore it is possible that you are under your calorie goal in order to lose weight. Well, that's not the case for every person, and you will be robbing yourself of a well balanced diet.

2- Track your calories. Stop making excuses. Don't be lazy about it. Until you have a well developed habit and knowledge about portion sizes and calorie contents (and you're at your goal weight), you can't afford to guess. Download Myfitnesspal on your phone, and start measuring your food. Hell, get a food scale. You might be surprised at how off you are. The calorie content is more important than what you're eating right now. I do have viewpoints on better eating habits, but that's for later.

3- Start planning. Get on pinterest, make a plan. Food prep ahead of time. It will be extremely overwhelming to do this on a daily basis. Sitting down on a weekend to plan out the week, go grocery shopping, and make your meals for 4 hours for the entire week is way easier than dealing with it every day after work when you're tired and hungry. Or when you're in a hurry running late for work in the morning.



Now, I'm off to take my body fat measurement, and make a meal plan for the next week. Ta-ta for now.

Elimination Diet: Day 4 - Bored but Still Alive

The first day was absolutely the worst. I not only received 0 real food (everything was pureed), I also had one of the worst headaches in my entire life. Words do not express.

Day 2 was a tad better...I ended up switching to phase 2 then based off how poorly I was doing from phase 1 (note: they say to stay on it 2 days...I'm a big, bad rebel). I got a little bit of protein in that I was desperately craving (from chicken), but still not horrible satisfying.

It is now day 4....The one thing I have noticed is that I'm not quite as tired when I get home from work. I am unsure as to if this is due to removing something in my diet that I was intolerant to, or because I'm eating less carbs than I was (I'm hypoglycemic...so carbs are bad for me..a rollercoaster ride). Regardless, even if I don't discover a food intolerance, at least I have gotten back on track for better eating for my hypoglycemia.

On another note, I have discovered some interesting foods, as I have to read nutrition labels for hours upon end in order to find something without added sugar and soybean oil in it (or gluten, or nuts, or dairy...etc).  I've also cooked some fairly interesting things....

Today-

I made turkey sausage with some spices and a tiny drop of honey (can only do honey or maple syrup pretty much...no sugar), then diced up some avocado. --> breakfast 1 (I have to eat a lot)

A smoothie with a few strawberries, half a banana, a cup of unsweetened coconut milk, and vegan protein powder. --> breakfast 2

Apricot for a snack or two

Salad with turkey, avocado, and apple cider vinegar

Lentil Chips for another snack.

Dinner was mahi mahi with some garlic seasoning, and then I made rice noodles and tossed it with olive oil, garlic, and sauteed mushrooms.

Sweet tooth dessert was homemade warm apple sauce with cinnamon.



Granted, this diet doesn't have much variety so I go towards my love of fruit...which is not good for me...but oh well! I am over the daily sugar amount...up to like 50 gram today...shame on me. But! I also hit my minimum protein (80 gram).

And, I have consistently had 10-12 cups of water every day!! :)

All in all, I miss variety in my food, and I have to bring food with me to places so that I can eat...but it's going all right now! 

Elimination Diet - Detox Stage (aka hell)

What can I say...my head is pounding....I'm beyond tired, my concentration level has flatlined.

I asked for it.

If I didn't know any better I'd think I had the flu.

The detox stage of this diet is absolutely horrid. Way worse than any symptoms before. I woke up this morning, made my usual cup of coffee, put my creamer in it....

Crap.

I can't have coffee.

I can't have the creamer either.

Soybean oil, corn syrup, sugar. Nope. Not happening.

I for a second thought my headache may be from my coffee withdrawal. I guess it's possible, but I only have one cup a day, and it took 7 hours past my usual coffee time for this headache to set in. I've felt progressively worse throughout the day actually. Let me tell you the two reasons this detox stage sucks: there's practically no protein consumption, since everything is on the "no foods" list, and it's actually fairly hard to get your calorie goal without getting incredibly bored from the few foods you can eat. And the foods allowed (fruit) have a lot of simple sugars. Bad idea. So I guess that's three. But, I must continue, I have an end goal in mind.

I woke up, and got my mason jars ready. On the right, my usual water, this time with strawberries and mint. Then the hell sits in.

Green smoothie of death. Everything that makes a smoothie delicious (milk, juice, almond milk, yogurt) is not allowed during this diet. Sooooo, that blows. I opted for strawberries and spinach, with some flax seed and coconut. Not horrible, but definitely not tasty.

And then, on the left is a variation on my soup I've made before. It has sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, apple. Cook it with some olive oil, and purée, and tada! The whole "everything needs to be puréed" thing about this diet is just nonsense. I get the reasoning, but I like eating!

So, I ate/drank what you see for the day, and then some coconut water, and here I am, feeling absolutely horrible. 

Phase two includes solid foods and chicken/turkey/fish. No products with gluten, dairy, nuts, sugars, corn, soy. But I get quinoa and oatmeal! For the sake of my survival, phase two has now begun. If you have serious symptoms, or do not have hypoglycemia, try and do phase 1 for up to 3-4 days (book recommends two). If that's your thing!

More updates mañana! Time for food prepping! Steel cut oats for breakfast!

The Elimination Diet - Determine Your Food Intolerances

If only I had stuck to my water...

Right before I sat down to type this entry, I was sticking my fingers into a cake my students had given me last week. So I'm a little uncivilized, but as I was cleaning out my fridge and kitchen to start my next journey, the craving hit...I couldn't let good cake go to waste! And in I dove, white frosting, moist gooey cake. All over. Yum.

(The cake....now cleaned up):

Not smart, Jennifer.
And then the nausea and weakness hit.

My body doesn't appear to like me much. I am sick often, to the extent where friends and family members find it hard to believe. I don't have a visible injury--you can't tell that I'm feeling weak and nauseated. But it's a legitimate thing, that plagues my life. So apart from my poor self control, it's clear that it's time for something new. Something, with my decreased work schedule over the summer, that actually might be able to manage....The elimination diet.

For those of you that know me personally, you know I have struggled with some health issues over the years, mainly this recurring nausea and weakness I was just mentioning that seems to haunt me at random moments. While hypoglycemia (my diagnosis) probably plays into this, I continue to think something else has got to be off. I'm exhausted, I have lingering anxiety that doesn't go away, I'm shaky, weak, have stomach cramps. But my blood tests always come back normal. So what gives.

Upon searching for my summer reading in Barnes and Noble the other day, I stumbled across the food and diet section. I was hoping for a sign--something to help me with these mystery conditions. Nothing popped out at me. It wasn't until my good friend amazon.com had some recommended titles for me that I caught wind of my must-read for the summer (apparently they know I'm a basket case). One of those being, "The Elimination Diet."

The principal of this diet is based off removing any possible triggers from your diet to determine what may be causing unwanted symptoms-- fatigue, nausea, cramping, headaches, etc. It has used scientific studies to determine the foods that most commonly cause people to have allergic reactions or intolerances, and then takes those away.  This is not a diet in which you strive to lose weight and watch calories. This is a diet where you watch your food consumption and are consciously aware of what your body is doing and how it feels.

It is a process to identify the triggers for the unwanted symptoms and feelings that have gone undiagnosed for years.

I invite you to follow along in my journey, and even participate in your own journey as well. I bought the book on my kindle app for iPad for $12.99, or you could get it shipped to you. I don't typically like digital versions of books, but I felt like this was an urgent matter that I couldn't spend any more time waiting to begin. I would love to hear your own situations as well...does anyone else have nagging symptoms they can't seem to figure out?

Tomorrow, I begin step 1 - The detox.

Essentially, they want me to starve and whither away first. Okay, that might not be entirely true, but that is probably how I will feel by the end of day 2. It is based off of soups and smoothies. No solid food. Hmm. I'm not typically a "fasting" or juice cleanse endorser-- explicitly opposed actually. But, for the sake of my case study, I'm going to give it a go. Veggies all ready in the fridge!

(Unfortunately I don't get to drink the wine during this journey....)

Until tomorrow....