I'm Moving

Well, you're probably wondering where I've been. I've been not exercising and eating too much. Now only part of that is true. I've been taking a week off from exercise and working on a project that is my new blog. I am finding that I want to expand a bit so I can talk about exercise AND food.

Here's my new address. Come visit me and maybe leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you!

Update on the Weekend

It's been a very busy weekend. My week off from training started on Saturday and I feel ready for a break.

On Saturday morning, we headed out early to the beach to cheer my husband and sister on in the Belmar 5 mile race. My husband did it in 46 mins! My sister did it in 59 mins but she was running with a friend. After that, we hit the beach. Amazing weather with a nice breeze and water temps were perfect.

Saturday night, we went to my husband's 20 yr high school reunion. We had a blast! I didn't know anyone at all but I make friends easy plus I had one glass of red wine which always helps. The food was very rich. Tortellini alfredo, vodka penne, chicken franchaise, eggplant rollatini, crab dip with pita chips. UGH! I had a VERY little bit of each and ate it slowly. I stopped often and had sips of wine and water in between. They had a dessert table with small pastries. I did have a lemon tart not much bigger than a quarter and a mini cannoli. I was sweating alot in my sleep last night which does happen to me when I eat not so healthy foods or drink alcohol.

Today, I caught up on all the house chores and headed over to my local organic farm and picked up some great stuff. Basil (in a bunch the size of my head), rainbow swiss chard, zucchini, white corn, beets, and honey made right on the premises. After that it was prep time. I cleaned, boiled, peeled, and chopped beets to add to salads. I boiled corn so I could cut it off the ear next week for recipes. I rough chopped swiss chard to keep in a green bag to add to my green drinks. As if this wasn't great enough, my mom stopped by with a huge tray of blueberries she picked this morning! They are huge and amazingly sweet. Perfect to go with some greek yogurt, raw walnuts, and a squeeze of that local honey.

Aside from the reunion on Saturday, my diet has been pretty typical. I did purchase Ezekiel tortillas the other day to make beach trips easier. It does contain wheat which I avoid, but it's sprouted grains which are great for you and I'm going to include them in my diet occasionally as I can tolerate them. I did purchase brown rice tortillas but they tear when you try to close them and taste like cardboard. Corn tortillas are great but don't go with everything. Someone needs to come out with a wheat free sprouted grain tortilla!

So, the plan for my week off is to eat plenty of varied colored whole foods (the deeper the better) and get plenty of rest.

Workout and Meals 7/10/09

I made it to Friday! I went to the track this morning to do my sprints and stairs and I was determined to flip that truck tire but it didn't work out as planned. That tire was freakin heavy! Now I'm determined! I WILL do it. I'll just keep trying.

I sprinted the straights and walked the curves of the track, then did about 8 rounds of stairs doing 8 vertical jumps in between each round without stopping. I was really sweating and it was only 57 degrees at 6 am this morning. The workout was about 30 mins total.

Unlike other mornings, I also had some company. Two guys were doing some stairs and other drills. One of the guys looked familiar to me and I realized he was the owner of a previous gym I belonged to. See, even the owner knows the best place to workout is NOT the gym!

Meals:
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/blueberries and raw walnuts

3. one sprouted corn tortilla w/ground turkey breast, guacamole, sprinkle of cheese, salsa w/side of steamed broccoli, cherries

4. sugar snap peas, red bell pepper w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. organic chicken drumstick and leg, 1/4 c brown rice, roasted zucchini, red onion, red bell pepper

6. serving of 2% cottage cheese w/sliced mango, nut and seed crunch bar

Now for the numbers! There hasn't been many changes as far as measurements but my weight did go down a bit. I did not take pics but I will probably do that sometime next week.

Measurements (5/24) 7/10/09
Weight - (128.5) 124
Waist - (27 1/4) 27 1/8
Hips - (35) 34 15/16
Arm - (9 3/4) 9 3/4
Leg - (19 4/8) 19 1/2
Calf - (15) 14 1/4
Flexed bicep - (11) 11
Chest (under) - (26 1/2) 26 1/2
Chest - (30 1/4) 30 1/4

Tomorrow my husband and sister are running a 5 mile race and the kids and I will be there to cheer them on. Then we will hit the beach.

Not sure if I'm going to workout on Sunday or start my week off tomorrow.

Workout and Meals 7/9/09

Another day closer to a rest week! I'm excited now but within a day or two I'll be bored.
Here's my day:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink w/brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/blueberries, serving of Mrs. Mays fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/roasted zucchini, red onion, red bell pepper, feta cheese on a brown rice tortilla, watermelon

4. sugar snap peas w/3tablespoons hummus

5. ground turkey breast w/organic taco seasoning on 2 small sprouted corn tortillas, with some homeade quacamole, some shredded cheese, and salsa

6. serving of 2% cottage cheese w/sliced mango, nut and seed crunch bar

Workout
New Rules of Lifting for Women, Phase 1 workout B
For this last workout B you do as many reps as you can with your starting weight followed by 60 seconds rest for all the exercises.

5 min bike warm up, bridges

deadlift - 50 lbs for 30 reps
db shoulder press - 8 lb db for 30 reps
wide grip lat pulldown - 50 lbs for 25 reps
lunge - 8 lb db for 30 reps
swiss ball crunch - 45

5 min bike + stretching
Weight portion of this workout was 14:45 so a total of about 27 mins.

Tomorrow I can either flip a tire and run sprints at the track OR take a spin class. Right now aiming for flippin that tire! ;-)

Workout and Meals 7/8/09

I'm a little behind because of a modem issue which ended up not being a modem issue. Long story. Anyhow, I realized one thing without the use of a computer for almost an entire day. I spend too much time on it! I have a laptop in my kitchen and a computer in an office upstairs and each computer has something open on it. I may have a serious problem. I don't watch TV much at all in the evenings but I do spend that time on the computer. I think I am going to cut back a bit.

Here was my day:
a.m. - workout - track sprint intervals. all out sprints on the straights and walking the curves.
1. syntrax nectar protein drink
green drink w/1tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/sliced mango, blueberries, and a few raw walnuts

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/roasted zucchini, red onion, and red bell pepper, feta cheese, watermelon

4. sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons roasted garlic hummus, veggie fries (I was craving salt)

5. 5 oz shrimp cocktail w/my cocktail sauce (organic ketchup, lots of horseradish, and a squeeze of lemon), steamed broccoli, 1/4 c brown rice

6. cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

I was disappointed the bleachers were soaked so no stairs but I did notice there was a big truck tire laying at one end of the football field and a plyometric box on the other end. I didn't do anything with them but I'm thinking of skipping spin on Friday to head back there and give that tire a few flips. I want to use the opportunity before it's not longer available to me! What a way to shake up training.

In all the free time I had in the evening I was able to practice swings with my brand new 12 kg kettlebell. I also did five naked turkish get ups on each side. I practiced the swings in my foyer on a wood floor with no shoes and TGUs on a rug in my bedroom. I would have went outside but it was dusk and mosquitos like me a little too much. ;-)
This is what I did with the swings.
10 swings, 30 sec rest
10 swings, 30 sec rest
15 swings, 30 sec rest
15 swings, 30 sec rest
10 swings
I felt during this practice that going over 15 was compromising form so I stopped there. Then I moved on to the TGU practice. It was fun and a nice way to wind down the day.

After a quick shower, I sat and read Enter the Kettlebell by Pavel. An entertaining read and I picked up alot of information from it.

All in all, I felt I got quite a few things accomplished. I definitely want to continue with kettlebell practice a few times a week just to get the basics down. I'm in no rush. I just want to have fun.

What's the point of doing it if it's not fun?

Workout and Meals 7/7/09

Well here it is two days after the weekend and I'm still dragging a bit. I feel like I need to catch up on some sleep or something. Not to worry, next week I will be taking off to rest up between Phase 1 and 2 of NROL4W so plenty of time to sleep then.

Here's my day:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink w/brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/ 1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/blueberries and raw walnuts

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/roasted zucchini, red onion, red pepper, feta cheese, 1/2 avocado, and some watermelon, green tea

4. raw sugar snap peas & red bell pepper w/3 tablespoons roasted garlic hummus

5. 3 oz salmon burger, 1/2 cup brown rice, steamed broccoli

6. snack pack cottage cheese, mango, nut and seed crunch bar

Workout
This was one of the final workouts of Phase 1 of NROL4W which are set up a little differently. You do as many reps as you can with the weight you started the program with, then rest for 60 seconds, then move on to the next exercise. For most of the exercises I felt I could have done more but I didn't want to compromise good form for reps.

squat - 45 lb olympic bar for 25 reps
push up - 30 reps
seated row - 80lb for 27 reps
step up - 8 lb db for 32 reps
prone jackknifes 45

Wow I was sweating after this! I didn't have my stop watch so I didn't know how long this took but I did my usual 5 mins of the bike before and after and stretching.

In other news, I got my 12kg kettlebell today and I'm excited to get in some practice! I am planning a workout for Sunday which will probably be my final workout day before my week off. I am not quite sure what I will do with myself for a week. Maybe I can still drag strollers in the sand at the beach and swim in the pool with my son? ;-)

Catching up after the July 4th Weekend!

Well, it was a busy weekend filled with the regular Independence Day festivities. Bbqs, beach, pool, fireworks, a road trip, and kids off of their sleep schedules. Fun! I'm going to start by going over the workouts over the last several days. Food intake was pretty much the usual stuff with some bbq stuff and sushi thrown in. I'll go over that briefly as well.

Friday, July 3rd -
Workout - spin class
My typical diet during the day, a bbq in the evening. I had some bbq chicken, potato salad, shrimp cocktail, mozzerella, proscuitto, roasted red pepper kabobs, and then a fondue bar! Of course I had to have a few each of marshmallows, pound cake, and strawberries dipped in chocolate.

Saturday, July 4th -
New Rules of Lifting for Women, Workout B

Warm up - bike 5 mins plus bridges

deadlift 45x5 warm up, then 3x8 - 70, 75, 85

alternating
db shoulder press 10x5 warm up, then 3x8 - 12, 15, 20
wide grip lat pulldown 3x8 - 60, 70, 70

alternating
lunge 3x8 - 15, 15, 20
swiss ball crunch 3x15

cool down - 5 mins bike plus stretching
Weight portion of this workout was 28:35, altogether about 40 mins.

Eating was the usual stuff during the day. We ordered sushi for dinner. Salmon sashimi, spicy tuna eel avocado roll, and a shrimp tempura roll.

Sunday, July 5th
OFF from workouts
We traveled up to Long Island which isn't that far mileage wise but traffic is just terrible. It was about 3.5 hours each way. I had my normal green drink and green tea then greek yogurt/nuts for a snack. From there I'm just all over the place. I had some of my cousin's sangria which was fabulous! I made good choices at the buffet considering the options. I had salad and chicken franchaise. I stayed away from sausage and peppers, six foot subs, creamy mac and potato salads etc. but of course I had to have a piece of special made strawberry shortcake and a small brownie for dessert. Ugh! I'm a sucker for dessert!

This brings us to today Monday, July 6th
Workout - spin class
Back to the grind of clean eating. Here's what I ate today:
1. after workout - syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - green drink w/1 tblspoon flax oil, green tea

2. Fage 0% fat plain greek yogurt w/fresh picked blueberries (my mom picked them on Saturday), mrs mays nut berry crunch

3. cold thai green curry shrimp and veges w/ 1/4 cup white rice. I was at the beach and this tasted yummy cold!

4. watermelon and blueberries, mrs mays nut berry crunch

5. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/roasted vegetables (sliced green and yellow zucchini, thin sliced red onion, red pepper tossed w/EVOO, italian seasoning and salt and pepper then roasted in a 425 oven for 20 - 25 mins stirring occasionally so onions don't burn), feta cheese, and 1/2 avocado, green tea

6. snack pack cottage cheese w/sliced mango (SO good!), nut and seed crunch

Tomorrow morning I'll be doing one of two bonus workouts at the end of Phase 1 of NROL4W. I'm looking forward to seeing how strong I've gotten.

The plan for this week:
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift
Wednesday - track sprints at the crack of dawn
Thursday - lift
Friday - spin
Saturday - OFF
Sunday - not sure yet

Separately, I was just thinking about my every day activities and chores and how it really requires me to be in good physical shape. When I think back on today, I can come up with a bunch of instances where I needed some foundation of functional fitness to complete tasks.
1. carrying and loading laundry
2. packing the truck with beach gear
3. getting the kids into the truck. I am still required to have my daughter in an infant carrier until she is a year old. That car seat with her in it heavy!
4. unloading the car for the walk to the beach
5. dragging the stroller and beach caddy in the sand and back
6. unpacking all our beach stuff, then packing it back up
7. doing laps in the pool with my son for a 1/2 hr this afternoon
8. unloading, folding, then carrying laundry back up the stairs
9. bathe and play with the kids

It's alot to do in a day! I am exhausted just typing it. I was pretty winded after the stroller drag in the sand. I am not one for monitoring numbers in heart rate or calories but I am curious about this task. I am thinking about blowing the dust off my heart rate monitor the next time I'm going to beach to see just how hard I'm working :).

Workout and Meals 7/2/09

I got up this morning at 5:30 am to do my weight workout in my new Chucks. I will say there is a huge difference. Those cushy running sneakers were doing me NO favors!

Here's my day:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink w/brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop of Miracle Reds, serving of Mrs Mays nut berry crunch

3. 2 egg whites, 1 egg in a brown rice tortilla with salsa and chopped raw red bell pepper, honeydew and watermelon salad

4. chocolate almond smoothie -2 tablespoons raw almonds, 1 pitted date, 1 small frozen banana, 1 cup cold water, 1/2 tablespoon each of raw cacao nibs, ground flax seed, and hemp powder.

5. SPICY thai green curry w/shrimp, green beans, and zucchini over 1/4 c white rice

6. cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

Workout
New Rules of Lifting Phase 1 workout A

warm up - 5 mins bike + bridges

squat - warm up 45x5, then 3x8 - 65, 75, 80

alternating
push up 3x8
seated row 3x8 - 90, 100, 110

alternating
step up 3x8 - 15, 15, 20
prone jackknife - 3x15

cool down - 5 mins bike + stretching
Weight portion of the workout 28:48 so about 40 mins total.

I could never seem to progress in my squats. Now I know why (form and footwear),but for the longest time I couldn't get past 70 lbs. Well today I did 80 so I'm thrilled. Now that phase 1 is nearly complete I'm a little bummed. I would have really liked to keep working at it but I'll move on and see where the program leads me. By next Thursday I'll be done with phase 1.

Tomorrow I think I am going to take a spin class but I could change my mind and hit the track. We'll see how I feel in the morning!

Workout and Meals 7/1/09

Wow, first day of July! That means I've been going at this pace for 9 months and that my daughter is 10 1/2 months old. I can't believe I'm planning her first birthday party! Where does time go? The little extra time I have, I've spent working towards my goal of getting leaner. The only way I know how to do that is high intensity short duration workouts, change it up often, and watch the food intake. Which brings me to today's meals and workout.

Here it is:

a.m. - workout - treadmill intervals from 8 to 10 mph in .5 increments and down again. 23 min intervals, but 30 mins total time and 2.75 miles
1. syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop Miracle Reds, Mrs Mays nut berry crunch

3. 6 inch turkey and provolone on wheat from Subway w/green pepper, tomato, cucumber, vinegar, and black pepper, water

4. snack pack cottage cheese, watermelon and honeydew melon salad

5. thai shrimp green curry w/green beans and zucchini over 1/4 c white rice

6. cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

My mom is on vacation from work this week and I was out shopping with her and the kids today. My choices for lunch were Nathan's hot dogs, pizza, or Subway. Now I probably could have gotten a salad but the chicken breasts were kind of weird looking and I was in the mood for a sandwich. I figured a wheat roll was better than white pita bread. I skipped the chips and got a water. Maybe some extra carbs will give me some extra energy to squat massive weight tomorrow? Let's hope so!

Workout and Meals 6/30/09

I was up bright and early at 5:30 a.m. to get my lifting done!

Here's my day:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink w/brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/organic spinach, kale, collards, celery, cucumber, parsley, ginger, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, 1 tablespoon flax oil mixed in and a cup of green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/a mango and Mrs Mays nut berry crunch

3. 3 oz chicken breast, green beans, 1/4 c quinoa, watermelon

4. snack pack cottage cheese, cherries

Meals 5 and 6 - Girl's night at a friends house. Snacks and fajitas are on the menu : ).

Workout
New Rules of Lifting for Women, Phase 1 workout B

warm up - 5 mins bike, bridges
deadlift - 45x5 warm up, then 3x8 - 65, 70, 80

alternating
db shoulder press 3x8 - 12, 15, 20
wide grip lat pulldown 3x8 - 60, 70, 70

alternating
lunge 3x8 - 12, 15, 15
swiss ball crunch 3x15

cool down - 5 mins bike + stretching
Weight portion of this workout was 28:48 so about 40 mins total.

My deadlift weight is going up now that my form has improved greatly and I've been doing it barefoot. I noticed some instability doing lunges with my running sneakers so I did go out and purchase my Chucks today. I hope things improve in future workouts.

I am just terrible at wide grip lat pulldowns. In most cases, my grip gives before I can finish the set. I really need to work on this. Looking forward to incorporating some kettlebell training and maybe some farmer's walks to help me with grip strength.

Also, I can normally use 20 lb dumbells for a shoulder push press and today was able to do regular shoulder presses with the 20s so nice improvement there.

If the weather is nice tomorrow morning, I'm going to rock the sprints and stairs at my local high school track with my friend Gymboss. If it's not so nice, I'll head to the gym for sprint intervals.

Workout and Meals 6/29/09

Monday again and the start of a busy week. I tried another raw meal for meal 5 today.

Here's my day:

a.m. - workout - spin class
1. syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/handful of blueberries, Mrs. Mays nut and fruit crunch

3. 3 oz chicken breast, roasted asparagus, 1/4 c quinoa

4. cottage cheese snack pack, cherries

5. zucchini spaghetti w/raw sun dried tomato marinara sauce, 5 oz shrimp cocktail (not raw)

6. watermelon, nut and seed crunch bar

The spaghetti was good but it called for briefly stir frying the zucchini in coconut oil which is supposed to be tasteless when used for frying. I felt you could really taste it so I would use extra virgin olive oil next time. Otherwise it was good. Here's a pic for you.


Tomorrow gonna hit the weights!

Update on Workouts and Plans for Upcoming Week

I have been slacking on my workout and meal posts but not to fear everything is moving along nicely. My eating has been the same. I didn't try any new raw food recipes but I have one planned for next week. Last night we went to dinner with some friends, and my husband and I had sushi and I had a glass of red wine because I didn't love the dessert menu. I was either going to do a glass of red wine or dessert ;-).

Here were my workouts from last week:
Wednesday - OFF
Thursday - run - treadmill sprints
Friday - lift
Saturday - OFF
Sunday - lift

Here are the details of Friday's and Sunday's workouts:

Fri, 6/26 - NROL4W, Phase 1 workout B
5 mins bike
deadlift - 45x5 warm up, then 3x10 - 60, 65, 75

alternating
db shoulder press 10x6 warm up, then 3x10 - 12, 15, 15
wide grip lat pulldown 50x5 warm up, then 3x10 - 60, 60, 70

alternating
lunge 3x10 - 10, 12, 15
swiss ball crunch 3x12
5 mins bike + stretching

Weight portion of the workout 31:16 plus bike and streching about 44 mins.

Sunday, 6/28 NROL4W Phase 1 workout A
5 mins bike
squat -45x5 warm up, then 3x8 -60, 65, 70

alternating
push up 3x8
seated row 3x8 - 90, 100, 110

alternating
step up 3x8 - 12, 15, 20
prone jackknife 3x15 (this was tough!)
5 mins bike
Weight portion was 26:43 plus bike and stretching about 40 mins.

I'm down to the final workouts in Phase 1 which are 3 sets of 8 reps. I felt stronger in today's workout especially with the squats because I did them barefoot. I am positive this has improved my squat tremendously in addition to the workshop I attended last Wednesday which really helped with my form. I feel that a previous knee injury has kept me from really being able to push the weights when it comes to squats and deadlifts but now I feel more confident in my form so we'll see what happens in future workouts.

This is my plan for next week:
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift + sprints
Wednesday - OFF (or sprints if not done Tuesdsay)
Thursday - lift
Friday - sprints or spin
Saturday - lift
Sunday - OFF

I've got to take Sunday off instead of Saturday next week because I will be traveling up to Long Island for a family bbq. I have many eating challenges next week. Tuesday night I've got a girl's night get together and I'm bringing spinach dip with tons of vegetables. Friday night I have a bbq and Sunday I will be traveling in a car for a few hours each way with a bbq in between. UGH! So as always I must stick to the workout schedule!

What challenges do you have in the coming week? Have you adjusted your plan accordingly?

Functional Fitness and Combat Conditioning Workshop: An Overview

I was excited and truly grateful that I was able to attend this workshop. My husband took a half day off work to be with the kids while I headed off to the Israeli Krav Maga Training Center in Hamilton, NJ.

Upon walking into the training center, I saw good sized group of people. I'd say about 40 people, mainly men and I was 1 of about 6 women. The first thing I noticed was the varying ages of the people. It was great to see!

We all started by taking our socks and shoes off and entering the training area. From here Dr. Cheng started talking about the two things that will hold you back in your training: 1. not paying attention to the details, and; 2. being overconfident.

We then started with basic squatting/deadlifting technique. Keeping the feet facing forward and flat on the ground, and pushing the knees outward and hips back while squatting. He had us partner up and had our partners watch our form and give feedback. Were the arches of the feet lifting? Were the knees buckling in during a part of the movement? He also had our partners kneel down and put their hands on the lateral part of the knee and gently push medially while we tried to squat and fight the resistance and push the knees outward. This is known as Reactive Neuromuscular Training or RNT to help reprogram the nervous system to perform the squat effectively.

This by far was the most interesting part of the workshop for me. I recently posed the question on Twitter about what shoes one should wear while lifting and most people responded with either nothing, or something with a little cushioning like Chuck Taylors, or Vibram 5 Fingers. I asked Dr. Cheng the same question, and he agreed with those suggestions. I couldn't believe how the muscles in my feet and ankles were just untrained. It took me a while to be able to keep my feet flat on the ground while performing the squat without weight! Imagine I was adding weight in the form of a barbell and plates while doing this dysfunctional squat!

From there, we learned the swing and Dr. Cheng said I should use a 16kg kettlebell which I thought might be too much but it was fine! Once the form is good, it is much easier. We also learned the deadlift. We learned turkish get ups without kettlebells, also known as naked turkish get ups. Wow! An amazing amount of detail in this exercise. Dr. Cheng said we should not even think about adding a kettlebell until we can do 5 good form turkish get ups on each side. I better get practicing!

The workshop was assisted by a few local RKCs. One of them, George Samuelson, did a short write up on the workshop and you can find it here.

All in all a very interesting and informative workshop. 4 hours went by so quickly! I feel as though I am still taking in and processing all of the information. If you have the chance to take a workshop with Dr. Cheng, you most certainly will not regret it. Keep an open mind and be willing to learn!

Workout and Meals 6/23/09

This morning I got up to do NROL4W Phase 1 workout A. Still at 3 sets of 10 for the exercises and I increased my weights slightly.

Here's my day:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink w/brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop of Miracle Reds, serving of Mrs. Mays nut berry crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/black bean avocado salsa, a pear

4. raw organic cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. My raw food dinner experiment! From the Thrive book, we had almond flax burgers w/spicy sun dried tomato marinara sauce. I served it with a side salad of spinach, red onion, red pepper, string beans, balsamic vinegar and EVOO. Here's a photo for your viewing pleasure!

I thought the burger was very dense. I couldn't finish it or the salad. I ended up feeling really stuffed. It was tasty but not sure if it agrees with me. My husband liked it though. I would try a different burger recipe from the book.

6. cherries, nut and seed crunch

Workout
NROL4W Phase 1 workout A

5 mins bike then some bridges

squats - warm up 45x5, then 3x10 - 55, 65, 65

alternating
push up 3x10
seated row 3x10 - 80, 90, 100

alternating
step up 3x10 - 12, 15, 15
prone jackknife 3x12

5 mins bike + stretching. Weight portion of the workout was 28:40 + bike and stretching about 40 mins total.

Since I will be going to a kettlebell workshop tomorrow afternoon, I will not be getting up to workout tomorrow morning. Nice!

Looking forward to learning new stuff and meeting some great people!

Workout and Meals 6/22/09

Monday again! That means my favorite 5:45 am spin class! The week has started off right :).

Here's my day:

a.m. - workout - 45 min spin class
1. after shower - green drink w/2 tablespoons hemp protein powder, 1 tablespoon flax oil, organic coffee w/organic 1% milk

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/handful blueberries, serving of Mrs Mays nut berry crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/black bean avocado salsa, a pear

4. raw chocolate almond smoothie - a frozen banana, 1 pitted date, 1 c cold water, 1/2 tablespoon each hemp protein powder, raw cacao nibs, flax meal. Delicious!

5. raw organic broccoli, cauliflower, sugar snap peas w/2 tablespoons hummus, then 3 oz grilled shrimp, 1/4 c quinoa, green beans, green tea

6. cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

I am loving this raw chocolate almond smoothie but I am finding I miss eating my regular raw vegetable and hummus snack so I just added it in with dinner!

Tomorrow I am making a raw food dinner for me and my husband. Stay tuned to see how it comes out!

Workout and Meals 6/21/09

Nothing like DOMS to greet you with a slap in the face first thing in the morning! Wow! Even though I was sore from yesterday's workout, I still felt okay to run some steady state. It was pouring rain this morning (what else is new) so I headed for the gym. Walked for a few minutes to warm up and BAM, the iPod battery is dead! UGH! Cannot run steady state without music. I walked for 3 mins then did 1 min intervals (from 8 to 10 mph) followed by 2 min rests (at 3.5 mph), then walked the last 5 mins. Total of 2.5 miles in 30 mins.

Here was my food intake today:

workout
1. green drink w/ lots of greens, 2 tablespoons hemp protein, 1 tablespoon flax oil

2. chobani plain greek yogurt, handful of blueberries, Mrs. Mays nut berry crunch

3. Father's day celebration! Few baked tortilla chips with black bean avocado salsa. Then about 2 oz filet mignon, 1/2 baked potato w/a little butter, 6 grilled shrimp, green beans. I had a tiny piece of tiramisu cake and then a 1/2 of a cannoli with a chocolate dipped shell. HELLO! Cup of green tea.

4. 6 grilled shrimp, 1/2 baked potato (no butter), green beans

5. cherries, nut and seed crunch

Here's the projected plan for next week:
Sunday - run sprint intervals
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift (a.m.)
Wednesday - kettlebell workshop (2 - 6 pm)
Thursday - OFF or run
Friday - lift
Saturday - OFF or run
Sunday - lift

I am going to be spinning tomorrow morning bright and early!

Kettlebell Training and Meals 6/20/09

This morning I woke up excited and ready to learn kettlebell basics! After having my green drink and some green tea, my sister and I headed off to Jersey Shore Crossfit. When we arrived, the morning Crossfit class was just winding down. They were doing their stretching and it looked like people of varying ages and ability levels. I'd say there were about 20+ people there.

Mike Stehle, one of the owners, was super friendly. We started with learning a basic squat movement. From there he went into kettlebell swings, one arm swings, cleans, clean and press, clean front squats, two arm high pull, one arm high pull, and thrusters. I used an 8kg kettlebell and that seemd fine to start with. Thankfully there were only 5 of us in the class so he was able to spend some time observing and correcting our form. I really like the explosive nature of the movements. After that we did push ups, inverted rows with rings, and assisted band pull ups. I felt it was a good overview of the basics in this hour and half class. Just enough to make me want to know more and practice the exercises!

Next Wednesday, I will be attending a 4 hour workshop in Hamilton, NJ taught by Dr. Mark Cheng and I hope to learn even more! I think after this workshop I can probably get started one to two days a week in practice and if I feel like I need some assistance, I will certainly set up a private lesson with Mike Stehle. My first impression of kettlebell training is that it is very technical and you really shouldn't jump into it without getting some instruction by an RKC. You can find a qualified RKC in your area by clicking here and entering your zip code.

Seperately, I tried some different things in my diet today. These were my meals for the day:

1. green drink w/kale, collards, red swiss chard, spinach, celery, cucumber, parsley, ginger, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, 2 tablespoons hemp protein powder, 1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop Miracle Reds, serving of Mrs Mays nut/fruit crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/salsa, raw diced red pepper, and 1/2 avocado

4. raw chocolate banana smoothie (from the Thrive book)
1/4 cup raw almonds, 2 cups cold water, 1 banana, 2 pitted dates, 1 tablespoon each of hemp powder, raw cacao nibs, flax meal (serves 2)

5. Sushi Saturday - salad w/ginger dressing, side order of bean sprouts, 1 order salmon sashimi, 1 order Toms River roll (spicy tuna and avocado inside w/salmon on top)

6. cherries w/nut and seed crunch bar

For those not familiar with hemp protein powder, it is a raw food powder made from the hemp plant. It is usually imported from Canada because it's illegal to grow hemp in the U.S. It has no gluten, dairy, lactose, or artificial sweeteners. I paid $12.99 for a 16 oz container of Nutiva Organic. I will say the raw chocolate banana smoothie was delicious! High in antioxidants and easy to make. I would definitely make it again.

I am feeling a little sore but nothing terrible. Probably going to run tomorrow. I haven't done that since last Wednesday. Tomorrow I will also be updating my training and goals for next week!

Raw Food Crazy and Meals 6/19/09

I think I have gone raw food crazy. Really! I took the kids to the library today and came home with 4 books:

Eating in the Raw by Carol Alt
Eat Smart Eat Raw - Creative Vegetarian Recipes for a Healthier Life by Kate Wood
Everyday Raw by Matthew Kenney
Vegetarian Sports Nutrition - Food choices and eating plans for fitness and performance by D. Enette Larsen-Meyer PhD, RD

The truth is I love to read books about diet and fitness and I love cookbooks. I can't get enough of either. The library is great because it doesn't cost a thing and I might learn something new!

This afternoon I did my food shopping for the few raw meals I am going to cook or should I say NOT cook next week! I'm curious to see if there is anything I'd keep in my diet.

I didn't work out today. Instead I chose to relax and I'm feeling rested so I'm ready to kick butt tomorrow.

Here's my meals for today:

1. syntrax nectar protein drink, then greens drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/handful blueberries, serving of Mrs Mays nut berry crunch

3. 1/2 c chickpeas, 1/2 c quinoa, few tablespoons salsa, diced raw red pepper

4. raw organic broccoli, cauliflower, sugar snap peas, w/3 tablespoons roasted garlic hummus

5. spinach salad w/raw green beans, grape tomato, 1/2 diced avocado, asian dressing served w/4 oz shimp cocktail (w/cocktail sauce), green tea

6. cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am to learn basic kettlebell exercises and get a sampling of the workout they do at Jersey Shore Crossfit. Hopefully I won't be too sore to go for a run on Sunday!

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post!

Workout and Meals 6/18/09

I went to bed early last night and got up at 4:30 am. I guess going to bed early really doesn't do much for me. The plus was that I was definitely well rested and ready for my workout this morning!

Here's how the day went:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink w/brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, organic coffee w/organic 1% milk

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop Miracle Reds, serving of almonds

3. salad with 3 oz organic chicken breast, spinach, grape tomatoes, slivered almonds and asian dressing, a pear, green tea

4. organic raw cauliflower and sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons Sabra roasted garlic hummus. YUM!

5. 1/2 c black beans, 1/2 c quinoa, few tablespoons of salsa, diced raw red pepper, green tea

6. snack pack cottage cheese, handful of cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

Workout
NROL4W Phase 1 workout B

5 min bike warm up followed by bridges

deadlift - warm up 45x6, then 3x10 - 60, 60, 70

alternating
db shoulder press - warm up 10x6, then 3x10 - 12, 12, 15
wide grip lat pulldown - warm up 50x6, then 3x10 - 60, 60, 70

alternating
lunge - warm up 8x5, then 3x10 - 10, 12, 12
swiss ball crunch - 3x12

5 min bike cool down + stretching

Weight portion was 29:29 with bike and stretching about 42 mins.

Debating what I'm going to do tomorrow. I'm thinking either spin or sleep. I've got that Kettlebell Foundations class on Saturday morning so I may need to rest up!

Workout and Meals for 6/17/09

I was up until 11:30 pm last night watching TV and that is pretty late for me. I did manage to get up this morning for my workout but somehow was just not in the mood to hit the gym. I took a detour to my favorite workout place, the local high school track. It was 6 am, a crisp 50 degrees which is perfect running weather.

Here's the workout I did:
light jog around the track
8 rounds 30 second sprints, followed by 1 min rests
6 rounds stadium stairs with 5 vertical jumps no rest
light jog around the track
stretching

I didn't have my watch with me (thankfully threw Gymboss in my bag) but this took under 40 mins total.

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - green drink w/spinach, kale, collards, red swiss chard, celery, cucumber, parsley, ginger, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, 1 tablespoon flax oil added after blended, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop Miracle Reds, serving of almonds

3. 3 oz organic chicken breast w/black bean avocado salsa, a pear

4. organic cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. 3 oz chicken burger, 1/2 cup quinoa, roasted asparagus, green tea

6. cottage cheese snack pack, small handful raw cacao nibs, cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

A friend recently asked me what I do with a bunch of red swiss chard and I told her that I throw it in a green drink I make every morning. Her response to that was, "If I didn't work I'd do that too". So that had me thinking how much time it REALLY takes to drink greens in the morning. Well, this morning I timed it. 14 minutes. That's to take the vegetables out wash and rough chop them and blend them. Clean up is easy. Wash the blender. Just because I'm home I have all the time in the world? With two littles I really don't have the time! It really just goes to show if it's important enough to you, you find the 14 minutes to fit it in. I like alot of variety in my drinks but you could take 3 ingredients and make a drink. It's still whole foods you are consuming, just blended in a drink!

Tomorrow morning is lifting! Looking forward to a good night's rest!

Workout and Meals for 6/16/09

This morning I was excited the workout was going to be a little different. The same exercises but the sets and reps changed. Just enough to shake it up but not too much. I am also happy to report I made a really good decision to switch from my usual white rice to quinoa. I don't know why I didn't include this pseudograin sooner. I always have some in my refrigerator! The rice cooker is just so quick and easy though.

Here's how my day went -

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink w/1 tsp glutamine, a brown rice cake
after a shower - green drink w/spinach, kale, red swiss chard, collard greens, celery, cucumber, parsley, ginger, an apple, lemon juice and apple juice, 1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt with 3 sliced strawberries and a handful of blueberries, serving of almonds

3. 3 oz grilled shrimp w/black bean avocado salsa, a pear

4. organic raw cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. 3 oz chicken burger, 1/2 cup quinoa, roasted asparagus

6. cottage cheese snack pack, handful of cherries, nut and seed crunch bar


Workout
NROL4W Phase 1 workout A

5 min bike warm up followed by bridges

squat - warm up 45x8, then 3x10 - 55, 60, 65

alternating
push up - 3x10
seated row - 3x10 80, 90, 95

alternating
step up 3x10 - 12, 12, 15
prone jacknife (my new fav exercise) 3x12

5 mins bike then stretching

Total time to complete weight portion 29:15, so about 40 mins total.

Unfortunately I didn't get up to leave myself enough time to get the sprints in SO I'll be getting up tomorrow morning to do them!

Food Observations and Workout/Meals for 6/15/09

Have you ever paid attention to how you feel after eating certain foods? Does the back of your throat itch? Do you feel nauseated? Do you have high or low energy after consuming the food?

I've kept a food diary for years and one thing I know for sure is that I feel like I have amazing energy the more raw vegetables I eat. As you all know, I consume raw vegetables in the form of a drink every morning and for about a month now my mid-afternoon snack has been raw vegetables and hummus. Throw in an occasional salad as lunch or dinner and I'm practically living on vegetables.

Yesterday, I had a piece of cake at a party and I've never felt so sick. Sugar rush, nauseated for hours, felt really tired and then my knee started hurting. You heard me right....my knee! My bad knee, the one I had a cyst removed from in 2003. I think sometimes people think that "getting older" causes all these aches and pains. I think people underestimate the power of food and how it affects just about everything. Hormones, sleep patterns, exercise recovery. You'd be amazed. I require less sleep than I used to and I feel refreshed when I wake up. It's quality restorative sleep. The kind where muscles are growing ;-).

Anyway, yesterday made me think I'd like to try incorporating more raw foods into my diet. I've been reading Brendan Brazier's book Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance in Sports and Life and there are some interesting raw food recipes I'd love to try. I love to cook and try new things so this is a perfect little experiment. My husband will eat just about anything so I luck out in that department. I plan on incorporating at least one recipe next week and see how it goes. I'm going to pay special attention to how I feel after eating these foods. Don't worry, I'm not going to turn vegetarian or vegan. I just want to try something different!

This morning there was a substitute spin teacher and she kicked butt! I mean, I was wishing I wore my heart rate monitor to see what was going on. The worst part about it is I forgot my towel and I SWEAT! So I had to take some paper towels and hold them in my hand and make do. Great way to start the week!

Here's how the rest of my day went:

a.m. - workout - 45 min spin class
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink
after a shower - green drink, w/1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/handful blueberries, serving of almonds

3. 3 oz grilled shrimp, black bean/avocado salsa, honeydew melon

4. raw organic cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus, handful goji berries and cacao nibs mixed

5. free range organic chicken drumstick and thigh, 1/4 c white rice, roasted asparagus, green tea

6. handful cherries, snack pack cottage cheese, nut and seed crunch

Tomorrow, NROL4W plus sprints. Woohoo! Ready to rock it!

Workout and Meals 6/14/09 and Goals for Next Week

Busy day today. We had a christening party to go to in the afternoon. A few of my meals show what I ate at the party. It's not TOO terrible!

Here's how the day went:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - Syntrax Nectar protein drink w/1 tsp glutamine, brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/ spinach, kale, collard greens, red swiss chard, celery, cucumber, parsley, ginger, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, 1 tablespoon flax oil mixed in, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop of Miracle Reds, serving of almonds

3. 1 egg, 1 egg white omelet w/black bean avocado salsa, honeydew melon

4. raw broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers w/ a little bit of some kind of creamy dip

and get ready for this......

5. small piece of chicken saltimbocca, 1 meatball, 1 eggplant rollitini, huge serving of salad w/balsamic dressing and a piece of strawberry shortcake!

6. fresh cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

Meal notes - I skipped the bread and penne vodka so I could have a piece of cake which was from this amazing local bakery. Halfway through eating it I got such a sugar rush and then I felt sick for 2 hours after that! So much for that!

Workout
NROL4W Phase 1 workout B

5 min bike warm up followed by bridges

deadlift - warm up 45x8, then 2x12 - 60, 65

alternating
db shoulder press - warm up 10x8, then 2x12 - 12, 12
wide grip late pulldown - warm up 50x8, then 2x12 - 60, 60

alternating
lunge - warm up 8x5, then 2x12 - 10, 12
swiss ball crunch - 2x10

Then I headed outside for some killer sprints. 30 second sprints followed by 1 minute recovery for 8 rounds. Wow!

Total time for the weight portion of this workout was 21:25. Add in the bike and my sprints. Total workout time 38:25.

Workout notes - Those bridges are really helping with glute activation. I notice a huge difference! Next workouts will be 3 sets of 10. The sets increase and the reps are decreasing so I can really push those weights. Looking forward to it!

The plan for next week:
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift + sprints
Wednesday- OFF (or sprints if not done on Tuesday)
Thursday - lift
Friday - run or spin
Saturday - Foundations kettlebell and bodyweight class!
Sunday - OFF

I have decided to hold off updating numbers and pictures until the end of Phase 1 which is a few more weeks. I figured I'd take pics at the conclusion of each Phase just to be consistent.

Ready to kick butt next week, are you?

Meals 6/13/09

Saturday, glorious Saturday! No workout today. Spent time with the family and got to the organic farm for some fresh red swiss chard. Going to saute half the bunch and use the other half for green drinks.

Here's how my day went as far as my meals:

1. syntrax nectar protein drink, then a green drink w/1 tablespoon flax oil, organic coffee w/organic 1% milk

2. plain chobani greek yogurt w/handful blueberries, serving of almonds

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/ black bean & avocado salsa, honeydew melon

4. organic raw cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus, handful goji berries

5. Sushi! 2 oz salmon sashimi, a spicy tuna roll, a shrimp tempura roll

6. handful of cherries, nut and seed crunch bar

I'm sure people get tired of seeing my diet day after day but I find it creates accountability for me and also it shows people what it really takes.

If you were to ask me years ago what a good diet to get lean was, I would have told you plain grilled chicken breast, tilapia, egg whites, oatmeal, protein drinks, protein bars, fat burners. This is because magazines preach this type of diet and then you are relying on all sorts of expensive supplements.

I was surprised to figure out for myself that things like fresh vegetables, Thai curry made with full fat coconut milk, chicken chili, nuts, yogurt, beans, free range organic eggs, rice, and other yummy foods can contribute to getting lean. A watch of portion sizes and an emphasis on whole foods is what is going to make all the difference.

Tomorrow I plan on lifting in the morning and if I can squeeze it in, I'd love to do some sprints after.

Remember the pictures I was telling you about yesterday? Here are a few.

What do you think? I can't believe that's me! I can't believe those are my arms! Hard work has gotten me here and I'm going to continue on and see where it takes me. That is my husband in the pic. Too bad we couldn't get my son to look at the camera.

Workout and Meals 6/12/09

TGIF! It's been a long week and I am thrilled it's over! Today was a busy day. It was my son's last day of preschool and we went to his school this morning for a little party. Then we had the family over for a bbq and little make your own sundae party. It was fun!

Here's how my day went:

a.m. - workout 45 min spin class
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - greens drink w/1tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt, handful blueberries, serving of almonds

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/black bean avocado salsa, honeydew melon

4. raw organic cauliflower, broccoli, and sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. grilled shrimp kabobs, 1/4 c white rice, roasted asparagus, handful of cherries
piece of dark chocolate, green tea

6. few pieces of nut and seed crunch

My husband snapped some pics of me and my son at the school party and when I look at them I can't believe it's me in the pictures. Really. I'm used to seeing things I don't like. It's strange and kind of bizarre that I like what I see. I'm going to post a pic in my next post.

Dinner time was challenging because I thought for a split second about having a nitrate free hot dog on a potato bun (they are the best) with saurkraut and mustard but I had the shrimp kabobs instead. I opted for fresh bing cherries instead of making my own sundae and they were sweet and delicious. We have a party to go to on Sunday and I want to be able to eat some treats and enjoy myself then.

Tomorrow is my day off and I am so looking forward to it! Then it's time to regroup and set goals for the week.

Workout and Meals 6/11/09

I woke up and it was misty rain and fog AGAIN! I'm starting to feel like I live in Seattle. I've been working my ass off and I can't even wear tank tops! No really I am laughing because when I was overweight I loved days like this. Where I didn't have to worry about feeling uncomfortable because it was chilly enough to cover up the flabby arms and the out of shape legs.

Anyway, I got up this morning and got the workout done and that's the most important part.

Here's how my day went:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately after - syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - vegetable green drink, 1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt, big handful of blueberries, serving of almonds

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/few tablespoons salsa, 1/2 avocado

4. raw organic broccoli, cauliflower and sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. 4 oz salmon, 1/2 cup white rice, roasted asparagus

6. cottage cheese snack pack, 4 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch

Workout
NROL4W Phase 1 workout A

3 mins bike warm up followed by bridges and pop squats.

squat - warm up set 45x8, then 2x12 - 55, 60

alternating
push up 2x12
seated row 80, 90

alternating
step up 2x12 - 12, 15
prone jacknife 2x10

5 mins bike cooldown + stretching

20:47 to complete weight portion 8 mins bike, few minutes stretching. About 30 mins total.

Some side notes - I've been trying to eat brown rice instead of white rice over the last week or so and I'm finding it really difficult. I'm half Thai and my husband is half Japanese so we grew up eating steamed white rice. Brown rice is just wrong on so many levels. Maybe I'll pick up a small bag of brown rice next time I go to the asian grocer. The Lundenberg organic long grain brown rice is just not cutting it for me. Anyone have a brand they like?

I think tomorrow morning I'm going to do a spin class. There is a new instructor for the 5:45 am class. I want to see if this guy is any good!

Workout and Meals 6/10/09

Got up to a foggy and misty rain kind of morning here. I went to the gym to do my sprints and rocked it!

Here's how the day went:

a.m. - workout - treadmill sprints 3 min walk followed by 1 min sprints 8 - (2) 10 mph, followed by 2 min recovery walk at 3.5 mph, then walking the last few minutes. 2.5 miles in 30 mins.

1. on the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar protein drink
After shower - lots-o-vegetable green drink, 1 tablespoon flax oil, organic coffee w/1% organic milk

2. chobani plain greek yogurt, large handful of blueberries, serving of almonds

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/ few tablespoons salsa, 1/2 of an avocado, mandarin oranges

4. organic cauliflower, and sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. shrimp cocktail (about 4 oz cold shrimp w/cocktail sauce), spinach salad w/beets, feta cheese, EVOO and balsamic vinegar

6. cottage cheese snack pack, 4 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch

In the last few weeks I've eliminated the protein shake before bed and replaced it with cottage cheese and nuts. I wanted to incorporate more whole food choices and get away from relying on protein shakes. I do like the post workout shake in the morning because of the convenience so that will remain.

Over the hump, and into the home stretch! Lifting tomorrow morning.

Workout and Meals 6/9/09

I slept in a bit this morning. Got up at 5:30 am instead of 5 am! Now that I know NROL4W Phase 1 is about 30 minutes total I don't have to be up SO early.

Here's my day:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink, brown rice cake
after shower - lots-o-greens green drink w/1tablespoon flax oil, organic coffee w/1% organic milk

2. chobani vanilla greek yogurt w/handful blueberries, True North pecan, almond, peanut crunch

3. the last of the chicken chili (finally) w/ 1/4 cup brown rice, a pear

4. raw organic cauliflower and sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus, 2 cups plain microwave popcorn (thanks to my son for sharing), green tea

5. 3 oz chicken breast, 1/4 cup brown rice, roasted asparagus

6. cottage cheese snack pack, 4 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch bar


Workout
NROL4W Phase 1 workout B

warm up - 5 mins bike following by some foam rolling and bridges. Thanks to some Twitter folks, @laurapasik and @fitprosarah for the exercise suggestions! I'm having a problem with my left glute not firing during squatting, split squats, lunges, deadlifts. Also, Dr. Mark Cheng was nice enough to do a blog post on Reactive Neuromuscular Training which was quite helpful. I plan on trying his suggestions as well.

deadlift - warm up set 1x8x45, then 2x12 - 60, 60

alternating
db shoulder press - warm up set 1x5x10, then 2x12 - 12, 12
wide grip lat pulldown - 2x12 - 55, 60

alternating
lunge 2x12 - 10, 12
swiss ball crunch 2x10

5 mins on the bike + stretching

Time - 19:48 for the weight portion of the workout. 10 mins bike + warm up exercises/stretching about 35 mins total.

It was raining this morning so I didn't get my sprints in after weights. Gonna get those in tomorrow morning!

Workout and Meals 6/8/09

It's Monday again and one of my favorite workout days. I love spinning even at 5:45 am.

Here's how the day went:

a.m. - workout - 45 min spin class
1. on the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - lots-o-vegetable green drink, a tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop Miracle Reds powder, serving of True North pecan, almond, peanut crunch

3. leftover chili (I make alot of it), 1/4 cup brown rice, a pear, green tea

4. raw organic cauliflower, broccoli, & sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. dark meat chicken (not sure how much), 1/4 cup brown rice, roasted asparagus, green tea

6. cottage cheese snack pack, 4 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch bar

I realized last night that I made an error in yesterday's workout. I was supposed to be doing 2 set of 12 for the exercises and I did 2 sets of 15 again. It's spelled out in a book and I managed to mess it up! Anyway, going to fix that for tomorrow morning's workout. Notebook, iPod, and Gymboss standing by.

Workout and Meals 6/7/09

Very busy weekend opening the pool and getting lots of chores done. Saturday was my day off from training and I stuck to my diet with the exception of dinner. We usually order sushi on Saturday nights and I did get an extra roll just to make sure I was fueled up and ready to lift this morning.

Here's how today went:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink, 1 brown rice cake
after shower - green drink- organic kale, spinach, collard greens, beet greens, celery, cucumber, ginger, parsley, apple, lemon juice and apple juice, 1 tblspn flax oil mixed in, green tea

2. chobani vanilla greek yogurt with handful of blueberries, True North peanut, pecan, almond crunch

3. chicken chili w/1/2 cup brown rice, a pear

4. raw organic cauliflower, broccoli, and sugar snap peas with 3 tablespoons hummus

5. grilled shrimp kabobs marinated in asian dressing over spinach salad w/sugar snap peas, grape tomatoes, mandarin oranges, slivered almonds and asian dressing

6. cottage cheese snack pack, nut and seed crunch bar

Workout
NROL4W, Phase 1, Workout A

squat - warm up set 45 lbs for 8 reps then 2x15 - 55, 55

alternating
pushups - 2x15
seated row - 2x15 80, 85

alternating
step up 2x15 - 10, 12
prone jacknife 2x8

Workout took 23 mins. 5 min bike warm up and cool down + stretching about 35 minutes total.

I was finding that when I was approaching the 12 rep mark on squats that I felt a pinch in my lower back on the left side. I can definitely do heavier weights but not on sets of 15. I'm used to 4 sets of 6, or 5 sets of 5 with longer rests. The next time I do workout A the reps decrease and the rest periods increase so I'm expecting to do much better.

Here is how I'm planning the week ahead:
Sunday (today) - lift
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift + sprints
Wednesday - OFF (or sprints if not done on Tuesday)
Thursday - lift
Friday - run steady state/sprint combo or spin
Saturday - OFF
Sunday - lift

Hope you have your plan for the week!

Are You Eating Enough Plant Based Foods?

I recently read a blog post on Jason Ferruggia's site, "Grow a Younger Body with Plant Based Foods". He had a guest poster Brendan Brazier, Author of Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance in Sports and Life that said something that is sticking with me. He said "Your current body has been constructed from the food you've consumed over the last year".

Now think about that statement for a second. To me that confirms that you must have long term consistent healthy eating in order to see the results you're looking for. One week on a diet, 6 weeks on a diet, even 3 months on a diet is going to help but probably not make much of a difference in the long run. A year of good solid clean eating, imagine the possibilities!

I am not a vegetarian or a vegan but anyone who knows me knows that I eat alot of vegetables. We are into the summer months and that means tons of fresh local produce at your fingertips. Here is a fabulous website where you can locate local farms and farmers markets. If a vegetable is in abundance at the farmers market, buy it and bring it home! Don't be afraid to experiment. There are many websites where you can look up an ingredient and find recipes to incorporate that ingredient. Two of my favorites are Cooking Light and All Recipes.

Here's to fresh summer eating!

Workout and Meals 6/5/09

Finally Friday! Another rainy morning here....UGH! I got up a little late to get my run in so I wasn't able to get 4 miles.

Here's how my day went:

a.m. - Workout - Run 3.75 miles - 3 miles steady state about 6.5 mph then 1 min intervals 8 - 9.5 mph w/2 min recovery
1. on the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar protein drink
after food shopping and a shower - green drink w/ 1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir w/scoop miracle reds, True North peanut, pecan, almond crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/ 1/2 avocado, diced raw red bell pepper, few tablespoons medium salsa, a pear

4. raw cauliflower and sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. chicken chili leftover from last night w/ 1/4 cup brown rice, green tea

6. cottage cheese snack pack, 3 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch bar

I am looking forward to sleeping in a little bit tomorrow morning and getting alot of chores done around the house. I am really thrilled we are opening our pool tomorrow. Swimming really tires my son out and he's got alot of energy so that's a good thing! The weather is going to be sunny so I am planning on getting a good dose of natural vitamin D.

Julie, is that you?

Recently at a party, an acquaintance did not recognize me at all. In fact, she didn't even know I was at the party. She asked my sister how I was doing and my sister told to ask me herself I was right over there!

I thought about it and realized the last time she saw me was September. I was about 4 weeks postpartum and she hasn't seen me since. I laughed for a minute and thought, "Wow, do I really look THAT different?". This prompted me to try to find a photo taken after my daughter was born in August but before I really got back into an exercise program.







The photo on the top was taken around October 13th because I went out for sushi for my birthday and this was at the restaurant. That's me on the right with the brown shirt. The most recent photo of me is the race photo from last Saturday's 5K and I'm in the pink tank.

This is the result of 30 lbs of weight loss and 12% bodyfat. Baby steps can turn into major changes and it's never too late to start! Short term and long term goal setting is very important. Make sure to write them down and review them regularly for the best success!

Workout, Meals and Random Thoughts 6/4/09

It's Thursday! One day closer to Saturday which is my day off from training.

Here's how it went:

Meals

a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar protein drink, brown rice cake
after shower - green drink w/organic kale, spinach, collards, beet greens, celery, cucumber, ginger, parsley, lemon juice, apple juice, and 1 tablespoon flax oil. Green tea.

2. 1 cup strawberry kefir with a scoop of Miracle Reds powder, serving of pecan, almond, peanut crunch

3. spinach salad w/ 3 oz chicken breast, beets, tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and EVOO, a pear, green tea

4. raw cauliflower, broccoli, & sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. chipotle chicken chili made with ground chicken, diced tomato, corn, carrot, onion, red bell pepper, black beans, chipotle chili powder, cumin, 1/2 cup rice
green tea and a piece of dark chocolate

6. cottage cheese snack pack w/3 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch bar


Workout
NROL4W, Phase 1 workout B

deadlift 2x15 - 50, 50

Alternating
db shoulder press 2x15 - 8, 10
wide grip lat pulldown 2x15 - 50, 50

Alternating
lunge 2x15 - 8, 10
swiss ball crunch 2x8

This workout took 18 minutes. I did 5 mins on the bike for warm up and cooldown plus a little stretching after. I'd say about 30 minutes total.

I am finding I'm REALLY not sure what weight to use for sets of 15 so I'm just going ultra conservative and up it next workout. I'm really loving the 30 minute duration for the first few weeks. I can get up at 5:30 am instead of 5 am. That's always a good thing!

I'm feeling in the mood to just run steady state so I think I'm going to do 4 miles tomorrow morning.

On a separate note, I am booking a foundations class at The Training Room, Jersey Shore Crossfit for June 20th. They go through basic kettlebell exercises and some of the drills they do there. I am looking for just a sample of the workout. I would ultimately like my family to pitch in to get me private sessions to learn kettlebells for my birthday in October. I am extremely excited that I am getting my sister and possibly a friend to join me for the class!

Who else wants to go?

Workout and Meals 6/3/09

This morning was rainy and the perfect day to stay in bed but I didn't. Got up, went to the gym, and got it done. This is what it's all about people. Getting up when you don't feel like it. Pushing the last 20 seconds on that sprint when you want to stop. Getting that last rep in when you feel like you just can't do it. These are the moments that make a real difference!

I took the kids to a playdate and stopped by a nearby Whole Foods. The closest one to me is about 35 minutes away so I try to get there when I'm in the area. Picked up some organic kale, parsley, beets, cacao nibs, salsa, and a few other essentials. Everyone that works there is SO friendly! Makes me feel like I need to get a job there ;).

Here's how my day went:

a.m. - Workout - treamill intervals, walk at 3.8 for 5 mins, run at 6.5 for 5 mins, then 1 min sprint (between 8.5 and 9.5 mph), with 2 min recovery at 3.8 mph. It was 2.61 miles in 30 mins.

1. On the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar protein drink
After shower - green drink w/flax oil, green tea

2. vanilla greek yogurt, serving of almonds

3. 4 oz salmon burger, 1/4 c rice, steamed broccoli

4. dry roasted soybeans, cacao nibs, goji berries

5. 2 egg white, 1 egg omelet w/raw red bell pepper, 1/2 avocado, few tablespoons medium salsa

6. cottage cheese snack pack w/3 sliced strawberries, nut and seed crunch bar

I am going to say here that I had a few pieces of the beet when I was slicing it up, and like 3 pieces of my son's Pirate's Booty which is a puffed corn cheese snack. I don't usually eat stuff just because it's there.

Tomorrow is lifting again. My cell phone alarm is set for 5:30 am!

Workout, Meals, and Random Thoughts 6/2/09

Today was the first day doing New Rules of Lifting for Women. It was me, my notebook, and my Gymboss this morning!

Here's how my day went:

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following workout - syntrax nectar protein drink
after shower - green drink w/flax oil, green tea

2. 6 oz plain greek yogurt w/3 sliced strawberries, serving of almonds

3. 2 egg white, 1 whole egg omlet with raw red bell pepper, 1/2 avocado, and a pear

4. sugar snap peas & cauliflower w/3 tablespoons hummus

5. 4 oz salmon burger w/ 1/2 cup rice, steamed broccoli
piece of dark chocolate and green tea

6. snack pack cottage cheese, nut and seed crunch bar


Workout - NROL4W, Phase 1, Workout A
Squat 2x15 - 45, 50

Alternating
push up 2x15
seated row 2x15 - 80, 80

Alternating
step up 2x15 - 8, 10
prone jacknife 2x8

Time was 20 mins. 5 min bike warm up and 5 min bike cool down plus stretching so a little over 30 mins total time. Planning on doing my intervals at the gym tomorrow morning.

I am not used to doing timed rest periods so that was different for me. Since I am starting from the beginning of the program I decided to be cautious when picking my weights for the sets of 15. I figured I can always move up next workout.

On a separate note, I bought a pair of shorts today. You may be thinking, "Yeah, so what?". Well I haven't bought a pair of shorts in a VERY long time. Not only did I buy shorts, but I had to buy the smallest size they offered which was a size 2! Now this is not a terrible problem to have I'll admit. However, it proves my point that I need to lift more and not focus so much on "fat loss".

Until tomorrow my friends!

The Start of New Rules of Lifting for Women

New month new training program! I was going back and forth about starting NROL4W from Phase 1 week 1 or skipping to Phase 1 week 3. I have decided to do the program from the beginning as it's written. The only modification is to add sprint intervals in on one of my lift days for Phase 1 just because I'm used to doing them already.

Yesterday I did get to the gym to do some machines that I love. I know what you're thinking. What? Machines? There are a few that I love and they are the assisted pull up, high row, pec dec, and the shoulder press. After I did those and some squats, I did 15 mins of intervals of 1 min of 7.0 mph (up to 9.5) with 2 mins recovery.

Here is how I'm planning the week:
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift + 15 mins sprint intervals as described in the book
Wednesday - OFF (or 15 mins sprint intervals if they don't get done Tuesday)
Thursday - lift
Friday - Run mix of intervals and steady state not exceeding 4o mins
Saturday - OFF
Sunday - lift

Diet will remain the same as it's been. Lots of fresh veggies and fruits, greek yogurt, nuts, salmon, chicken, and organic eggs.

I am going to use measurements and pics from 5/24/09 as my starting point. Since I took three days off last week, I don't think there is much of a change in the numbers anyway. I will update numbers every few weeks and pics about once per month.

Looking forward to seeing some great changes!

Food Find

I recently found a snack that packs a powerful nutritional punch. I first purchased Seapoint Farms dry roasted edamame at my local health food store. They are basically lightly salted dry roasted soybeans. They are a crunchy snack that is good and good for you.

During a recent trip to Costco Wholesale Club I noticed they sell a huge tub of them. Well, Costco sells huge tubs of lots of stuff but this one is worth the purchase.



Here's the nutritional profile:




























The company also offers Wasabi flavor. I like to keep my wasabi in my soy sauce so I haven't tried it but if that's something you might like, then give them a try!

Avon 5K

I know what you're thinking. Why on earth is she running another race? The honest truth is just to be active and to spend time with my sister. I certainly wouldn't choose to do it by myself. I can find better use of my time like sprint intervals or running stairs. Both of which are MUCH more fun, efficient, and effective for what my goals are.

The race started at 8:30 am on Saturday but since we weren't registered in advance we really needed to get there early to get our number. With two young children and the hustle and bustle going on at my house, we got there 5 mins before race start! A friend of my sister's also ran with us.

The race was held in Avon by the Sea which is a small Jersey Shore town and the course started at the oceanfront and went into the town and ended with a hill! The temperature was perfect about 70 degrees and sunny. I finished in 31 minutes and change. Here's a great action shot taken just before the finish line.

My husband and kids came out to cheer us on and I was so happy to have them there. It is extremely important for me to be a good example for them and my son is at an age (4 1/2) that he can really pick up good and bad habits from us. My daughter isn't even a year old yet so I can still curse like a truck driver and eat potato chips in front of her ;-).

I'm not planning on running any more races unless my sister wants to do one. I really wouldn't want to do more than a 5K though.

Here's to staying active!

Workout and Meals 5/29/09

I haven't had a workout to report until today! I had a terrible night's sleep last night due to a teething infant so I decided to sleep the extra hour and a half this morning and squeeze in my workout this evening. I felt great but got ahead of myself a bit and almost dropped a 30lb dumbell on my chest. Not so great.

Here's my day:

Meals
1. after waking up - syntrax nectar protein shake
shortly after - green drink w/organic kale, collards, spinach, celery, ginger, parsley, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, macro greens powder, organic flax oil
organic coffee w/ 1% org milk and org sugar

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir w/scoop miracle reds, serving of almonds

3. spinach salad w/chicken breast, grape tomatoes, mandarin oranges, slivered almonds, and asian dressing, nut and seed crunch bar, green tea

4. sugar snap peas w/hummus

5. shrimp thai green curry and vegetables w/ 1/4 c white rice

Workout

6. syntrax nectar protein drink w/1 tsp glutamine, 1 cup rice chex w/ organic 1%milk


Workout
5 min bike warm up
Straight set
front squat push press - 1x8, 4x5 - 35, 45, 50, 50, 50

giant set
flat bench dumbell press - 1x8, 4x5 - 12, 15, 20, 20, tried for 30 lb db then switched back to 20 for last set! I need a set of 25 lb dumbells!
split squat 1x8, 4x5 - 45, 45, 45, 50, 50
burpee/pushup - 1x8, 4x5
seated cable row - 1x8, 4x5 - 70, 90, 100, 110, 120

giant set
single romanian deadlift - 1x8, 4x5 - 10, 12, 15, 20, 20
incline reverse crunch 3x8
45 degree plank for 40 second hold x3 sets

5 min bike cool down + stretching


I was really sweating during this workout. Maybe because I haven't done anything since Monday? Not quite sure.

Last minute decision to run a 5K race tomorrow, so I decided my after workout carb needed to be a cup of rice chex cereal with milk. Yum! I don't get to eat this stuff often so I enjoyed it!

The Race Photo

Well here it is! Not a terrible pic. Wish I had remembered to smile and put my hands up! Maybe next year :). I think my arms look pretty darn good in this pic. I also realized that the Spring Lake race page has a clock time and a net time. My watch said I finished the race in 49 mins and change and the net time on the website says 49:48 so I'm super thrilled I finished it in under 50 minutes! The girl in the black tank and shorts in the top left of the pic is my sister!

What Can YOU Accomplish in a Month?

What do you think can be accomplished in just one month? I want to share with you what I have accomplished from April 19th to May 25th.

Measurements
April 19th (May 24th)
Height 5 ft 6
Weight 134 (128.5)
Bodyfat 22% (20%)
Waist 29 in (27 1/4)
Hips 36 in (35)
Right arm 10 3/4 in (9 14/16)
Right leg 21 1/2 in (19 4/8)
Right calf 15 1/2 in (15)
Chest (at largest part) 33 1/2 in (30 1/4)
Chest (under) 28 1/2 in (26 1/2)

And the pics!











Unfortunately, I didn't do the flexing photos from the beginning so you won't see a before an after on those. Immediately I can see some more definition in my abdominal region and my back looks a little leaner. My legs are getting there! Not bad! I didn't follow any specific program but I kept it a mix of straight sets and supersets. I wrote down my weights and tried to improve on them in almost every workout. Sprints, spinning, and running were my cardio.

I have to say my diet is tight. I rarely cheat. I feel like this is one of the main reasons the last month has been so successful. Somebody once said that abs are made in the kitchen and that sticks with me so I am strict with it.

I'm looking forward to seeing some great changes in the coming months on the New Rules of Lifting for Women! Come along with me on this journey!

And the Training Program Will Be.....

I think that taking a few days off is just what I needed. I'm catching up on some sleep and researching some training programs. This is great! I'm not going to get used to it though. I'll be back to working hard in a few short days!

Today I was reading some information about Alwyn Cosgrove's Afterburn program. It's an intense fat loss program designed to rev up your metabolism. It has a circuit style weight workout, cardio intervals where you never do the same workout twice, and a nutrition program. It sounds so tempting but to be quite honest I'm 128.5 pounds, 20% bodyfat and I'm a size 4 pushing a size 2. I could certainly stand to lose some bodyfat, but do I want to be much smaller? Not really!

I think my goals are more to gain strength. To be able to do pull ups, improve my squat and deadlift. Things like that. So I think my decision is going to be New Rules of Lifting for Women! Keep in mind that Alwyn Cosgrove also designed the training for this program as well.

I am planning on making the weeks in Phase 1 look like this:
Sunday - lift
Monday - spin (45 min class)
Tuesday - lift + 15 mins of sprints
Wednesday - OFF (or do sprints if they weren't done Tuesday)
Thursday - lift
Friday - sprints/steady state combo (30 mins max)
Saturday - OFF


It's been a long time since I've followed an exact program (Body for Life in 2001) so I'm actually kind of looking forward to taking the guesswork out of it. I will probably update pics once per month and I will most definitely be doing before and after pics.

Change of Plans

Well folks, I think the time has come to take a break. I've been feeling tired for a while now and last night when I was writing my workout for today I realized I've been at it 6 days a week from as far back as February. I've been extremely consistent since October though and that's a long time without really an "official" break.

Since Monday starts are such a pet peeve of mine, I'm going to plan a weight workout for Friday morning and maybe a track workout on either Saturday or Sunday morning then start a new training schedule on Monday.

This gives me a few days to research what it is I really want to do. I'm leaning toward doing New Rules of Lifting for Women. For those who are not familiar, NROL4W is a 7 phase strength building program designed for women using basic strength building exercises like squats, deadlifts, lunges etc. The program is roughly 6 months in length. I am an exercise and diet book junkie but I would recommend this book to anyone as a good introduction into strength building. If you are interested in finding out more, check out this link http://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-Women-Goddess/dp/1583332944.

In the coming days I am going to focus on rest, good nutrition, foam rolling, and streching.

Update for week of 5/24/09

There have been lots of changes to measurements here. Not sure if it was the running or the little splurge I had on Saturday but in any case here are the numbers.

Measurements - last week (this week)
Height 5 ft 6
Weight 127.5 (128.5)
Bodyfat 21% (20%)
Waist 28 (27 1/4)
Hips 35 in (35)
Right arm 10 in (9 14/16)
Right bicep flex - 11 1/4 (11)
Right thigh 19 4/8 in (19 4/8)
Right calf 14 14/16 in (15)
Chest (at largest part) 31 in (30 1/4)
Chest (under) 26 3/4 in (26 1/2)

I'm up a pound and down 1% bodyfat if that is even accurate. We'll see when I weigh in next week. Based on the measurements, seems as though my upper body is getting smaller and my hips and thighs are the same and my calves are getting bigger. Great!






















I am free from race training but I am still in the process of deciding what training program I will do! For this week I'm going to continue writing my lifting programs the day before the workout.

Here's how I'm planning my week:
Monday - Track intervals and stairs
Tuesday - lift
Wednesday - Run 3 miles at a faster pace than I'm used to
Thursday - lift
Friday - Sprints or spin
Saturday - Off

The diet will continue to be the same as it's been. Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. I made a huge melon salad with honeydew and watermelon so I'll be having that for dessert after dinner until it's gone!

Next week I will update measurements and in 2 weeks I'll be updating both measurements and pics. Have a great week everyone!