Quest to be Lean

I'm Moving

2009-07-15T09:37:00.004-04:00

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

2009-07-12T18:26:00.003-04:00

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

2009-07-10T20:09:00.003-04:00

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

2009-07-09T20:24:00.002-04:00

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

2009-07-09T08:34:00.004-04:00

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

2009-07-07T19:42:00.002-04:00

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!

2009-07-06T09:06:00.005-04:00

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

2009-07-02T19:20:00.002-04:00

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

2009-07-01T19:29:00.002-04:00

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

2009-06-30T17:41:00.003-04:00

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

2009-06-29T20:46:00.004-04:00

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

2009-06-28T19:05:00.004-04:00

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

2009-06-25T08:33:00.005-04:00

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

2009-06-23T18:30:00.006-04:00

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

2009-06-22T18:59:00.002-04:00

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

2009-06-21T19:18:00.002-04:00

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

2009-06-20T20:07:00.004-04:00

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

2009-06-19T17:58:00.004-04:00

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

2009-06-18T15:45:00.003-04:00

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

2009-06-17T19:33:00.005-04:00

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

2009-06-16T18:58:00.003-04:00

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

2009-06-15T08:47:00.004-04:00

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

2009-06-14T18:55:00.006-04:00

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

2009-06-13T13:49:00.008-04:00

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

2009-06-12T22:09:00.004-04:00

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

2009-06-11T20:04:00.002-04:00

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

2009-06-10T09:46:00.003-04:00

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

2009-06-09T15:18:00.006-04:00

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

2009-06-08T16:18:00.003-04:00

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

2009-06-07T19:45:00.004-04:00

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?

2009-06-07T12:14:00.002-04:00

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

2009-06-05T19:26:00.002-04:00

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?

2009-06-05T08:32:00.010-04:00

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

2009-06-04T10:29:00.009-04:00

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

2009-06-03T15:35:00.002-04:00

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

2009-06-02T13:42:00.006-04:00

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

2009-06-01T14:12:00.004-04:00

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

2009-05-31T14:40:00.006-04:00

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

2009-05-31T14:28:00.008-04:00

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

2009-05-29T21:22:00.002-04:00

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

2009-05-28T16:11:00.004-04:00

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?

2009-05-27T19:18:00.011-04:00

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.....

2009-05-27T18:24:00.005-04:00

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

2009-05-26T08:19:00.003-04:00

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

2009-05-25T15:15:00.011-04:00

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!

Meals and Workouts for 5/23 through 5/25

2009-05-25T14:47:00.005-04:00

I have been MIA this weekend! Well not really. I've been enjoying the weather and getting a tremendous amount of household chores done.

My diet over the last few days has been on point with the exception of race day Saturday, 5/23. I actually had a cinnamon raisin bagel after I ran! That's right people! I couldn't tell you how long it's been since I've had a bagel but I will say my jaw was killing me from all that chewing! Later the same day I went to a bbq and had ribs and chicken and all the sides baked beans, macaroni salad and even dessert! I certainly woke up Sunday morning a bloated mess.

I got up early on Sunday morning to head over to the gym but someone forgot to get up to open the gym! I was pissed! I headed home and did this circuit:

dumbell squat
push up
standing shoulder press
inverted row
reverse lunges

I sort of made it up and did 8 reps for 6 rounds. I didn't even have my watch but I think it took about 20 - 25 mins. I also didn't plan for this workout so didn't write the weights in my notebook. I did 5 mins on the bike to warm up and 5 mins on the bike afterwards plus stretching.

This morning I headed over to the local high school track for some intervals and stairs. I would have done sprints but I think my legs are still recovering from the race!

I will be doing my weekly update in a post later today (hopefully). I hope everyone is having a great Memorial Day weekend!

Here's a pic of me and my sister on race day. I'm the one with the visor!

Recap of Spring Lake 5 Mile Run

2009-05-24T12:32:00.013-04:00

So the race is finally over! This race is the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend every year and it's a favorite here on the Jersey Shore. This year there were 9,500 participants. Registration opened on February 1, 2009 and was filled up by February 10, 2009. It's been around since 1977 and it's been listed in the country's top 100 races in Runner's World magazine. If people can't run, they even sell their bib numbers on craigslist! My official time was 52:02 which is not terrible although not my best time.

It took us a few minutes just to get to the starting line because of the amount of people that run the race. Then it was elbow to elbow until about mile 2 where it started to break up a bit. We did stop once for some water and my ipod earphones got unplugged so I had to stop and fix those. There were so many types of people of so many ability levels and ages, it is hard not to get inspired. All along the race route family members, people living in the neighborhood, and even the fire department came out to cheer us on! My sister and I ran together until the end and I sprinted the last 1/4 mile I'd say.

They give out a t-shirt and a glass to every registered participant. I've been drinking out of my 2002 glass for a few years now. It was definitely time for a new one. I say I won't run again but I most likely will. I would love to run it with my son and daughter one day!

My History of The Spring Lake 5 Miler

2009-05-22T19:29:00.010-04:00

Running this race came about in 2001. I was working for a gas company and one of my co-workers ran the race every year. I thought it would be a great idea to train for it! So me an another co-worker decided we would run during lunch a few days a week to train for it. Enduring shin splints and every other ailment and despite my best intentions I never ran the full 5 miles before race day. To make matters worse, my co-worker/ training partner never met me at the starting line like she said she would! I was forced to run with my sister which is not a bad thing. It's just I wasn't used to running with her. I wanted to stop many times and give up but she wouldn't let me. I finished the race in 52:36. Not terrible! I was hurting pretty bad though. I couldn't get off the couch for the rest of the day. Just to give you all a great laugh I even have a picture. Yeah that's me with my eyes closed and looking like I would die. There's my sister next to me looking like it was so easy!

Well, in 2002 I was going to redeem myself. I obviously thought running a 5 mile race would be so easy. Maybe for some but running doesn't come easy for me. I really have to work at it. I watched what I ate and really dedicated the time. I ran 5 miles several times before race day. I even got a few more people from the office running. We had a group of 4 or 5 that would run during lunch. It wasn't long before there was an office competition. Who would run the fastest? Nobody put their money on me. That was their mistake! I ran it in 46:00. Here's a great pic of that! I'm such a pro, I'm checking my watch!

Many years had passed. I had knee surgery. Then I had my two children. Over the holidays I decided I wanted to run it again. My sister said she would do it with me and I thought that was a great idea. About 7 weeks ago, my sister fractured her ankle in a freak accident. She was sitting in a chair and her foot fell asleep. When she went to get up she heard a pop and there was her fracture! Weeks have gone by and she only started training for the race 2 weeks ago! She is a runner though and your body does remember so she has that on her side. So tomorrow I'm going to run with her and push her if she needs it because she did that for me so many years ago. That's what sisters are for right?

If it wasn't for her I may have given up. I may have told myself I couldn't do it and quit. Where would I be now? I may not be the positive minded person you all know!

You CAN accomplish anything you put your mind to!

Workout and Meals 5/22/09

2009-05-22T10:08:00.004-04:00

Well folks, down to the final stretch! I'm ready as I'm ever going to be! Today was a hectic day. I wanted to make a few recipes so I can relax a bit this weekend so that meant doing a little food shopping and prepping. I am breaking tradition with the night before the race meal but it was 88 degrees here today. Not really in the mood for pasta and meat sauce. Here's how the day played out.

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediatly following syntrax nectar w/ 1 tsp glutamine
after shower - green drink w/flax oil, cup of organic coffee with 1% organic milk, organic sugar

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir w/a scoop miracle reds, serving of fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg whites, 1 egg w/black bean avocado salsa on top, a pear

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

5. 1/4 c black bean avocado salsa w/a few baked tortilla chips, turkey burger (no bun), dill potato salad (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/potato-salad-recipe/index.html), steamed broccoli

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Workout - MMA conditioning workout
bent over rows x8
military press x8
good morning x8
lunges x8
front squat push press x8
deadlift x8
1 minute rest and repeat

6 rounds with a 35 pound barbell for all in 23.53

Race day tomorrow then it's a whole new set of goals! Very excited!

Meals 5/21/09

2009-05-21T08:08:00.004-04:00

I guess I don't have to set my alarm clock anymore. I woke up at 5:10 am this morning on my day off and really couldn't go back to sleep. The good news is that it was uninterrupted quality sleep which I needed. Here's what I ate for the day:

1. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine
green drink - organic kale, collards, spinach, celery, cucumber, ginger, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/scoop Miracle Reds, serving Mrs Mays fruit & nut crunch

3. 2 egg whites, 1 egg omlet w/2 tablespoons salsa, grape tomatoes, 1/2 avocado, a pear

4. raw sugar snap peas, broccoli, and cauliflower w/3 tablespoons Sabra roasted pine nut hummus (YUM!)

5. leftover turkey chili with 1/4 c rice, 1 piece raw cacao goji chunk, green tea

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Instead of doing my regular weight workout tomorrow morning, I'm going to do the MMA conditioning workout minus the upright rows because I don't love that exercise. Also going to do front squat push presses in place of squat push presses because I am more comfortable with that exercise. I think a general conditioning circuit is perfect before this race on Saturday. Not looking for any serious DOMS before the run!

Here's the link for the MMA conditioning workout: http://buildingbodies.ca/exercise/randy-couture-workout-for-mma-conditioning/

Workout and Meals 5/20/09

2009-05-20T08:06:00.004-04:00

I looked at my schedule this week and realized I didn't give myself a day off. Saturday is my usual day but I'm running this race. Tomorrow is looking like a great day for me to take off. I need to catch up on some sleep. My daughter was up and down last night with teething so I'm getting interrupted sleep on top of a busy training schedule. Here's how my day went.

a.m. - workout - Run 5 miles. Walked the first 3 minutes and still finished in 49.22. Nice!
1. on the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar w/ 1tsp glutamine
after shower - greens drink made with apple juice, flax oil, and green tea

2. vanilla greek yogurt, serving of Mrs Mays fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omlet with 2 tablespoons salsa, grape tomatoes and 1/2 avocado, a pear

4. red pepper, cauliflower, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus, green tea

5. chipotle turkey chili made with black beans, carrots, onion, corn and fire roasted tomatoes, 1/4 c rice, piece of raw cacao, goji chunk, green tea

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

Workout and Meals 5/19/09

2009-05-19T18:18:00.002-04:00

This is turning out to be a tough week for me. The last 2 weeks have been great so maybe it's all just catching up to me. I did manage to get up this morning and get in a good workout though.

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar w/1tsp glutamine
after shower - green drink made with apple juice, flax oil, green tea

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir w/a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of Mrs Mays fruit and nut crunch

3. tuna sandwich made with red onion, light mayo with 2 slices light brown rice bread, a pear

4. large plate of cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas and about 1/2 c hummus, green tea

5. 3 oz salmon, 1/4 c rice, roasted asparagus, 1 organic raw cacao-goji chunk, green tea

6. snack pack cottage cheese, nut and seed crunch

Workout
5 mins bike and pop squats to warm up

straight set
squats - 1x8, 4x6 45, 55, 60, 65, 65

giant set
dumbell push press - 1x8, 4x6 10, 12, 15, 15, 20 this is a PR for me!
incline dumbell flye - 1x8, 4x6 10, 12, 15, 15, 20
bulgarian split squat - 1x8, 4x6 10, 12, 15, 15, 20
reverse grip pulldown - 1x8, 4x6 50, 60, 70, 70, 75
push ups 5x8

straight set
deadlifts - 1x8, 4x6 45, 65, 70, 75, 75

superset
decline sit up 3x8 - 8, 10, 25
plank hold 30 seconds - 3 sets

5 min bike cool down + stretching

I didn't have my watch so not sure how long it took but definitely less than an hour. I thought I was going to put two 20 lb dumbells through my basement ceiling this morning with those push presses. I was really throwing them up! I will say it takes alot of core strength to be able to throw a heavy weight over your head.

I am happy to say that I finally got to have a tuna sandwich today! The light brown rice bread is not bad at all. It's no mushy wonder bread more like a stale bread but I forget how portable a sandwich really is. I am used to rushing all over the place to get home before lunch. I don't mind taking snacks with me but lunch is tough.

Anyway, tomorrow is running 5 miles and I'll be happy when it's over. I'll be sure to post a pic of me and my sister on race day :).

Workout and Meals 5/18/09

2009-05-18T14:37:00.004-04:00

Happy Monday everyone! This is how my day played out:

a.m. - workout - spin class :)
1. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine on the way home from the gym
after shower - green drink made with apple juice, flax oil, green tea

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir with a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 whole egg omlet with 2 tablespoons salsa, halved grape tomatoes, diced raw red pepper, 1/2 of an avocado, a pear

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

5. 3 oz chicken breast, roasted asparagus, 1/4 c white rice, 1 piece of organic raw cacao goji chunks (my health food store makes these YUM! See ingredients below.), green tea

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

Tomorrow, I will be hitting the weights. I am taking the sprints out after just so I can be sure to get my 5 miles in on Wednesday morning.

Organic raw cacao-goji chunks - date paste, sunflower seeds, raisins, apricots, cacao powder, sesame seeds, sunflower meal, coconut, goji powder, coconut flavor, vanilla flavor w/other natural flavors.

Update for week of 5/17/09

2009-05-17T16:58:00.007-04:00

Another week down! I am excited about the results of the fast. Looks like 2 pounds down since last week which is a big jump for me. I am concerned the bodyfat is the same but I am certainly glad it didn't go up. I can't worry about it until after I run this race. Then the focus will be on lifting heavy with cardio being secondary. That's where the real magic happens my friends! Here are the results of the week:

Measurements - last week (this week)
Height 5 ft 6
Weight 129.5 (127.5)
Bodyfat 21% (21%)
Waist 28 (28)
Hips 35 1/4 in (35)
Right arm 10 1/4 in (10)
Right bicep flex - 11 1/8 (11 1/4)
Right thigh 20 1/4 in (19 4/8)
Right calf 14 15/16 in (14 14/16)
Chest (at largest part) 31 1/2 in (31)
Chest (under) 27 1/4 in (26 3/4)

Very pleased with this week's measurements and already looking forward to next week's pics! Here is the training plan for next week:

Today (Sunday) - lift + run 4.5 miles
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift
Wednesday - Run 5 miles
Thursday - lift
Friday - Run 3 miles or spin (depending on how I feel)
Saturday morning - 5 Mile Race
Sunday - OFF

I plan to take it easy as far as weights is concerned. My priority is to run this race with my sister and to not overtrain.

As far as diet is concerned, I bought plenty of great fruits and vegetables this week. Organic broccoli, cauliflower, red pepper, sugar snap peas, anjou pears, and strawberries in addition to my usual vegetables.

I don't usually eat bread because I avoid wheat but I did pick up a loaf of brown rice bread because I've been craving a really good tuna sandwich. You know with red onion, and celery chopped in it. I will be having that one or two days for lunch next week!

I have run a few races and the night before I always have spaghetti with turkey sausage meat sauce. This time it's going to be quinoa pasta with ground turkey breast meat sauce :). I can't break tradition but I CAN make it better!

As always lots of water and green tea and generally kickin butt!

I hope you are working closer to your goals next week!

My First Fast for Fat Loss

2009-05-16T08:11:00.004-04:00

As many of you know, I decided to give fasting for fat loss a try as described in Brad Pilon's e-book Eat Stop Eat. The length was 24 hours with getting over 18 hours being the most important. After 18 hours is when your levels of human growth hormone rise dramatically.

I started my fast yesterday after a 3 pm snack of raw vegetables and hummus, a sesame crunch bar, and some green tea. I would say I didn't start to feel hungry until about 8:30 pm. I had a few glasses of water and felt better. This morning I woke up thirsty but otherwise fine. I felt okay until I hit the 18 hour mark. I was starting to feel tired and a little weak. Drinking water and keeping busy definitely kept my mind off food.

At about 23 hours, I was just not able to concentrate and was really dragging. I ended the fast with the same snack I started with. The rest of my day went like this:

1. snack - raw broccoli, cauliflower, red pepper w/3 tablespoons hummus, sesame crunch bar, green tea

2. sushi - salad w/ginger dressing, seaweed salad, 4 oz salmon sashimi, 5 pieces of spicy tuna roll, 1 piece of eel avocado roll, and 2 pieces cucumber avocado roll

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

I know I went a little overboard with the sushi. We order it every Saturday night and this week I splurged a little. We did great at the garage sale though. We made $236!

In conclusion, I would definitely do it again when it is convenient for me. Not sure if I'd do it once or twice a week as suggested in the book. If you would like more information about fasting for fat loss, check out http://eatstopeat.com

Tomorrow I will be updating measurements and goals for the week.

Workout and Meals for 5/15/09

2009-05-15T13:29:00.002-04:00

So glad it's Friday! This means I made it through another tough training week intact. Wow! The 5 mile race is next Saturday so I am going to do everything I can to get in a 5 mile trail run this Sunday.

Workout and Meals
a.m. - workout 3 min walk warm up, then run 3.5 miles
1. on the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar w/ 1tsp glutamine
after shower - green drink - organic kale, collards, spinach, cucumber, celery, parsley, apple, ginger, lemon juice and apple juice, 1 tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup Lifeway pomegranate kefir with a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of Mrs. May's fruit and nut crunch

3. 3 oz chicken burger w/salad of spinach and grape tomatoes, balsamic vinegrette, strawberries

4. raw organic cauliflower, red pepper, and broccoli with 3 tablespoons hummus, sesame crunch bar, green tea

Start of a 24 hour fast for fat loss! My husband and I are doing this together which makes it easier. He's looking to shed some bodyfat as well. We have a neighborhood garage sale tomorrow so it will be very busy around here! No time to think about eating. The plan is to make enough money at the garage sale to get ourselves some sushi for dinner tomorrow night.

I will post my thoughts about the fast tomorrow night! Sunday I will be updating measurements and posting my training schedule and goals for the week.

If you would like more information about fasting for fat loss, check out http://eatstopeat.com

Workout and Meals for 5/14/09

2009-05-13T20:15:00.003-04:00

I was very tired this morning and actually snoozed the alarm twice but the thought of not sticking to my schedule and scrambling to get the workout in this evening made me get up!

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

2. vanilla greek yogurt, serving of fruit and nut crunch

3. 1/2 c organic chickpeas, 1/2 c rice, salsa, strawberries, green tea

4. cauliflower and red pepper w/3 tablespoons hummus, green tea

5. 3 oz chicken burger, 1/2 avocado, grape tomatoes, a pear

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Workout

5 mins bike

Straight set
hang cleans - 5x5 - 35, 35, 40, 45, 45

Giant set
reverse lunges 4x8 - 8, 10, 15, 15
incline barbell press 4x8 - 45, 45, 50, 55
db shoulder press 4x8 - 8, 10, 12, 12
wide grip lat pulldown 4x8 - 50, 60, 70, 70
push ups - 4x8

Straight set
romanian deadlifts - 1 set for warm up 45x6, then 5x5 - 55, 60, 65, 70, 70

Superset
plank 30 second hold - 3 sets
cable reverse woodchop - 20, 30, 30

Bodyweight matrix - 24 squats, 12 lunges, 12 lunge jumps, 24 squat jumps

5 mins bike + streching

It took 57 mins to complete the weight portion of this workout.

This was my first time attempting hang cleans and the first set was horrible but by the second set I felt more comfortable. I watched a few videos on youtube but found this one helpful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfOBmNLCH0g I would definitely include this exercise again. It's very challenging.

One last note. Last time I did lunge jumps, I thought I was going to hurt myself. I am getting much more comfortable with that exercise as well.

Tomorrow morning is running 3.5 miles! Running this race next Saturday ready or not people!

Workout and Meals 5/13/09

2009-05-13T14:31:00.005-04:00

a.m. - workout - treadmill
3 min walk to warm up, steady pace running, 6 intervals thrown in toward the end, and 7 min walk cool down. Total of 3.75 miles 40 minutes

1. syntrax nectar, 1 tsp glutamine on the way home from the gym
after shower - greens drink, green tea

2. plain greek yogurt w/a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of almonds

3. spinach salad with grape tomatoes, feta cheese, 1/2 cup chickpeas, balsamic vinagrette, strawberries, green tea

4. raw cauliflower and red pepper with 3 tablespoons hummus

5. 3 oz chicken burger (ground chicken mixed with grated onion, 3 tablespoons peter luger steak sauce, gluten free breadcrumbs), roasted asparagus, 1/2 avocado, grape tomatoes, a pear

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Tomorrow morning I am attempting to hang clean. Will report results.

Workout and Meals 5/12/09

2009-05-12T16:34:00.004-04:00

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

2. vanilla greek yogurt, serving of almonds

3. 3 oz chicken marsala (leftover from Mother's Day), about 1/4 cup scallop potatoes, and alot of salad with balsamic vinagrette, green tea

4. snack pack cottage cheese, veggie fries

5. 3 oz chicken breast, about 1/4 cup scallop potatoes, asparagus, strawberries, green tea

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Workout
5 mins bike

Straight set
deadlift - 1x8, 4x5 - 45, 65, 70, 75, 80 (and a PR for me!)

Giant set
seated cable row - 1x8, 4x6 - 70, 80, 90, 100, 110
flat bench db press - 1x8, 4x6 - 10, 15, 20, 20, 20
barbell split squat - 1x8, 4x6 - 35, 45, 50, 55, 55
push up - 5x12

Straight set
front squat push press - 1x8, 4x6 - 35, 40, 45, 50, 50

Superset
45 degree planks hold for 45 seconds - 3 sets
flat bench reverse crunches 3x8

Sprint intervals outside for 12 minutes! Holy hell that was tough. The high school kids were waiting for their bus while I was haulin ass down the street :).

Gonna run my 3.5 miles tomorrow!

Finding my Inner Powerlifter

2009-05-12T07:59:00.003-04:00

We all have our favorite exercises. A few of my favorites are front squat push press combo, dumbell or barbell push presses, and any pulling exercises. I'm finding over time that I like explosive powerlifter type exercises because they are challenging and recruit alot of muscles in the body to perform so they are super calorie burning.

Am I concerned that I'm going to look like one of those strongmen on ESPN? Not in the least. I don't have the hormones nor am I eating in excess so not a concern for me. My only problem with learning these types of exercises is correct form. It took me a while to do a front squat push press correctly!

Going forward I am going to try a new exercise every few weeks to learn proper form. Hopefully they'll make their way into my workouts and maybe I'll have a new favorite. This is me stepping out of my box. We should all do it once in a while!

What are you doing to step out of your box?

Please leave a comment if you have an exercise suggestion for me. I'd love to hear!

A Little Experiment

2009-05-11T08:54:00.002-04:00

I recently purchased Brad Pilon's ebook Eat Stop Eat after reading some of the information on his website and also doing a little online research of my own about growth hormone. Human Growth Hormone (HGH) in the form of injections has reportedly been used by some celebrities as the "fountain of youth". I don't know if you remember but not too long ago Sylvester Stallone was arrested for having HGH!

Some of it's benefits, as listed on Wikipedia.org are:
-decreased body fat
-increased muscle mass
-increased bone density
-increased energy levels
-improved skin tone and texture
-improved immune system function.
Who wouldn't want that?

Also, Wikipedia.org lists the following as stimulators of growth hormone:
-sleep
-exercise (in particular restistance training)
-low levels of blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
-short term fasting
-dietary protein

So this had me thinking that Brad Pilon may be onto something with his theory of short term fasting for fat loss. In his book, he states that HGH levels are elevated after approximately 18 hours of fasting. Fasting meaning only water, black coffee, tea, or diet no calorie beverages if desired.

He also talks a little bit about being a slave to eating every 3 hours. Now I have to agree with him here. I have two young children that eat every few hours and so do I. Needless to say I'm in the kitchen preparing something 3/4 of my day. It is exhausting!

This Saturday I have an all day neighborhood garage sale that we are participating in. It's going to be a busy day and tough to find the time to eat. From Friday around dinner to Saturday around dinner, I going to try a 24 hr fast and see how I feel. In addition to having a spike in HGH, I am creating a weekly deficit in calories therefore resulting in some additional fat loss (hopefully).

I am looking forward to reporting my results!

For more information on Eat Stop Eat, check out this website http://eatstopeat.com

Update for Week of 5/9/09

2009-05-09T19:44:00.010-04:00

It's been 2 weeks since I've updated pictures and I can see a difference even though it is slight. Waist is getting smaller and abs are looking better. I did notice this week that my hip bones are more prominent than they usually are.

Measurements - last week (this week)
Height 5 ft 6

Weight 131.5 (129.5)

Bodyfat 21% (21%)

Waist 28 1/8 (28)

Hips 35 1/8 in (35 1/4)

Right arm 10 1/2 in (10 1/4)
Right bicep flex - 11 1/2 (11 1/8)

Right thigh 20 3/4 in (20 1/4)
Right calf 15 5/16 in (14 15/16)

Chest (at largest part) 32 in (31 1/2)

Chest (under) 26 3/16 in (27 1/4)

This is how I'm planning next week:
Sunday - OFF Mother's Day :)
Monday - Spinning
Tuesday - lift + sprints
Wednesday - Run 3.5 miles
Thursday - lift
Friday - Run 3.5 miles
Saturday - Off
Sunday - either lift or run a 5 mile trail run (depending on the weather)

I made a comment on a previous blog post about the lifting program I use. I have this thing about committing to a program since I did Body for Life many years ago and after 12 weeks I looked like a bloated marshmallow with some muscle underneath.

Since then I really have just stuck with the rule of picking compound exercises that are quad dominant, hip dominant, a unilateral leg movement, push, pull, and some kind of ab work and working them into straight sets, super sets, and giant sets. I used http://exrx.net/ as a guide to picking the exercises and rotate among them. I will say that since purchasing New Rules of Lifting for Women, I have been setting up the workouts similar to how Cosgrove has them. I usually write out my workout the night before looking at past exercises as a guide for what I'll do next.

I think after I do this 5 mile race on May 23rd I'm going to think about whether I'll actually do NROL4W as it's written or figure out what my next move is.

Once again, I will be purchasing plenty of fresh produce at the market this week. Keeping the water intake up and have my few cups of green tea every day.

Looking forward to a killer week!

The Challenge - Randy Couture Grappling Workout

2009-05-09T18:19:00.007-04:00

A few nights ago I found my husband looking up something on the internet before going into our basement gym to work out. He left the web page up on the computer so I took a look at it. It was a Randy Couture grappling workout and it looked good so I posted it on Twitter. A few people looked at it and someone suggested a bunch of us do the workout on Saturday. What a great idea!

This workout is meant to be done with a barbell at a continuous pace without resting until you get to the end of all the exercises. Then you get to rest for 60 seconds before starting another round.

bent over rows x8
upright rows x8
military press x8
good morning x8
lunges x8
squat/push press x8
deadlift x8

I did 4 rounds of this with a 35 lb barbell in 19 minutes 22 seconds and it was tough! I would totally do this workout again. For an even better explanation of the exercises check out this video. Randy Couture is actually commentating the video. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x27krr_team-quest-grappling-workout_sport

Meals for 5/9/09
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, brown rice cake
after shower - green drink, green tea

2. plain greek yogurt with a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of almonds

3. 1st b-day party - had a piece of melon, some chicken breast with cheese on it, a few small red potatoes and a ton of vegetables and water (skipped the cake even though it looked yummy!)

4. snack pack cottage cheese, sesame crunch, a pear

5. leftover turkey chili from the other night and 1/2 cup white rice

4. syntrax nectar w/1tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

I did take progress pics and measurements this afternoon and hoping to post those tomorrow. I am so looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow and enjoying my day off from the gym.

Workout and Meals for 5/7/09 and Random Thoughts

2009-05-07T15:48:00.003-04:00

So glad it's Thursday! This week has been a tough one for me. I am going to change my workout schedule slightly. Tomorrow I'm going to run 3+ miles and Saturday I'm going to pump some iron. Don't laugh but I have a birthday party to go to and there are going to be people there I haven't seen in a decade. I want my arms to be pumped. Is that so wrong?

I have to say that I have a really great feeling about this week's measurements. I am going to take them on Saturday at 5:30 pm instead of Sunday. Sunday is Mother's Day and my day off from the gym this week and I plan on sleeping late and eating some yummy food : ).

Here's how the day went:

Meals for 5/7/09
a.m. - workout (below)
1. immediately following workout - syntrax nectar with 1 tsp glutamine and a brown rice cake
after shower - green drink made w/apple juice, green tea

2. vanilla bean greek yogurt, 1 serving almonds

3. spinach salad w/ 3 oz chicken, 1/2 avocado, 2 sliced strawberries, feta cheese, fresh lemon juice and EVOO (so delicious!), green tea

4. raw cauliflower and red pepper with 3 tablespoons hummus, sesame crunch

5. turkey chili with onion, carrots, corn, black beans, fire roasted tomatoes and spices, 1/2 cup rice, piece of dark chocolate, green tea

6. syntrax nectar with 1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Workout
Straight set
RDL 1x8, 4x5 - 45, 55, 65, 70, 75

Superset
reverse grip pulldown 5x8 - 50, 60, 70, 70, 70
burpee/push up combo 5x8
step ups 5x8 - 8, 10, 12, 15, 15
standing shoulder press 5x8 - 10, 12, 12, 12, 12

Straight set
Squat 1x8, 4x5 - 45, 55, 65, 65, 65

Superset
stability ball crunch 3x8
decline sit up 3x8 - 10, 25, 25

Body weight superset
24 squats
12 lunges (each leg)
12 lunge jumps (each leg)
24 squat jumps

I was DONE after this! It was my first time doing lunge jumps and yeah it's not so easy. Took me about an hour.

Gonna crank out 3+ miles tomorrow! I'm on fire!

Workout and Meals for 5/5/09 and 5/6/09

2009-05-06T16:41:00.004-04:00

Feeling a little behind here with my daughter teething and lack of sleep. Here's the info.

Meals 5/5/09
1. syntrax nectar drink
Green drink, green tea

2. 1 cup kefir w/Miracle Red, fruit and nut crunch

3. 3 oz chicken, asparagus

4. raw cauliflower, red pepper, and grape tomatoes w/ 3 tablespoons hummus. Sesame crunch. Green tea

Workout - below

5. 3 oz salmon, 1/2 cup rice, steamed broccoli, green tea

6. syntrax nectar with 1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Workout 5/5/09
5 minutes bike followed by pop squats to warm up

Straight set
front squat/push press 1x8, 4x6 - 35, 40, 45, 45, 50 (only did 4 with 50 lbs)

Superset
push ups - 5x10
barbell row - 1x8, 4x6 - 35, 45, 50, 55, 55
bulgarian split squat - 1x8, 4x6 - 10, 12, 15, 20, 20
incline db press - 1x8, 4x6 - 12, 15, 20, 20, 20

Straight set
sumo deadlift - 1x8, 4x6 - 45, 55, 60, 65, 65

Superset
incline reverse crunch - 3x8
plank - 3x30 second holds

47 minutes to complete THEN outside for sprint intervals for 12 minutes for total of 59 mins

Meals 5/6/09
Workout - run 3.5 miles
1. syntrax nectar with 1 tsp glutamine on the way home from the gym
green drink, green tea

2. 1 cup kefir with a scoop Miracle Reds, fruit and nut crunch

3. spinach salad with 3 sliced strawberries, handful grape tomatoes, 3 oz chicken breast, feta cheese and balamic vinegar / EVOO.

4. raw broccoli, cauliflower, red peppers with 3 tablespoons hummus, green tea

5. 4 oz sesame crusted ahi tuna with 1/4 c rice

and soon to be last meal

6. syntrax nectar with 1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Weights on tap for tomorrow! Hauling ass this week!

What's With the Green Drink?

2009-05-06T08:39:00.005-04:00

People often ask me why I would blend vegetables every morning and drink them. There are many reasons but first I'd like to talk a little bit about how I got to this point.

After having my son in 2004, I wanted to lose the baby weight and didn't go about it in the best way. Fat burners, not eating enough, barely resting got me down to my goal weight but I was not healthy at all. In 2005 I had an abnormal pap test. Turned out I had some lesions on my cervix that were precancerous and had to be removed by laser at the hospital.

After the surgery, I got a recommendation for a nutritionist from a chiropractor friend. I set up a consultation and she put me on a good vitamin regimen and made suggestions about diet and exercise. I was not new to this so I felt like they weren't huge changes to what I was already doing. Almost a year passed and I looked the same and my health was really deteriorating. I caught all kinds of colds, sinus infections, and had horrible joint pain especially after exercise.

At one point I was playing outside with my son and when I came in I had about 12 welts on my body. Immediately I thought they were bug bites. They weren't itchy though just painful like a bruise. A day later I went to my doctor to find out they were boils. I have no idea what they were from but I was tested for MRSA and it came back negative. From there was I was on antibiotics and steroids and had to reschedule a vacation to Disney. This was my breaking point.

Also, during this time I went to see an orthopedic for my knee pain. He sent me for blood work. Immediately he thought my numbers didn't look good and referred to me a rheumatologist. The rheumatologist sent me for more blood work.

Between the time I saw the orthopedic to the time I saw the rheumatologist, I read a book called the 100 Year Lie by Randall Fitzgerald and in it he talks about how industrialization of the world over the last 100 years and how it has affected people's health. He talked about people who were gravely ill with cancer and other illnesses completely turning their health around through eating greens and adopting an organic way of eating. He talked about getting his own blood tested to gauge his toxic load and after adopting a healthy organic eating plan, the changes in his blood levels in 30 days were amazing.

I decided to give it a try. What did I have to lose really? When I returned to the rheumatologist (after doing the eating plan for 3 weeks), he said my blood work was great. Nothing at all to be concerned about. I believe it was the action I took that made the real changes to my health.

From there things just improved. I removed wheat from my diet suspecting gluten intolerance and without even trying weight was coming off me. I felt like I had a tremendous toxic load and my immune system was just breaking down leaving myself open to illnesses. I found out I was pregnant in December 2007 and continued with the greens until it made me sick one day and had to stop it. I resumed the drinks about a month after having my daughter was born and still feel great.

The green drinks used to be a green salad every morning. It would take me forever to eat it though. I saw an Oprah show with Dr. Oz and he said he drank a green drink a few times a week and I gave the blender a try. SO much easier! I find I like to blend it rather than juice it so I can retain the fiber content in the vegetables.

Here's the recipe I love:
1 stalk each of celery, kale, collards
small handful parsley
1 apple
juice of a lemon
handful organic baby spinach
couple slices of cucumber
1 to 2 inch piece fresh ginger
apple juice, water, or coconut water to blend

This makes 2 servings. My husband drinks this in the morning also.

Some benefits of including this into your diet:
-Powerful raw food antioxidents as well as vitamins A, C, K and magnesium. Kale and spinach have a good amount of calcium in it as well.

-A day's worth of vegetables in a drink. Even if you didn't eat another vegetable the rest of the day, you'd still be getting more than the average American.

-A natural way to stay regular. With having so much plant fiber you will definitely not have a problem staying regular.

-Detoxify your body and alkalize your blood. Fruits and vegetables alkalize or pH balance your blood and reduce the amount of acid in your body. Excess acid in the body leads to many diseases including cancer. Here's a complete list of acid/alkaline forming foods. http://www.rense.com/1.mpicons/acidalka.htm

If you want to experience amazing health and reduce your toxic load, give a green drink a try. Make sure they are organic vegetables to avoid exposure to pesticides and chemicals.

Update and Progress on Goals for Week of 5/3/09

2009-05-03T18:32:00.010-04:00

Last week was one hell of a week. Hope this coming week has me sticking to my schedule and making great gains. I am going to update measurements but not pics (don't be sad) because the honest truth is I have horrible cramps and well just not feeling up to putting on a bikini and flexing. I'm thinking that updating every few weeks will also show greater gains. As long as my measurements are progressing I'm thrilled.

Last week's stats (this week):

Height 5 ft 6
Weight 132.5 (131.5)
Bodyfat 21% (23%) I am not concerned this went up. I'm sure it's my "cheat" meal and my monthly friend : ).
Waist 29 in (28 1/8)
Hips 35 1/2 in (35 1/8)
Right arm 10 1/2 in (10 1/2)
Right bicep flex - 11 1/4 (11 1/2) NICE!
Right thigh 21 1/2 in (20 3/4)
Right calf 15 1/2 in (15 5/16)
Chest (at largest part) 32 1/2 in (32)
Chest (under) 27 15/16 in (25 3/16)

Goals for this week:
Once again making an effort to have a variety of fruits and vegetables. Purchased organic strawberries, red peppers, broccoli, cauliflower in addition to the vegetables for my green drink.

Purchased coconut water to use in place of apple juice in the green drinks to reduce the calories.

Stick to my schedule as best as possible. I did not run today as planned and had to switch days around last week.

Drink more water.

Foam rolling every night.

In general, kick ass so watch out people!

The Plan -
Sunday - off
Monday - Spin
Tuesday - lift + sprints
Wednesday - run 3 miles
Thursday - lift
Friday - Spin
Saturday - run 4 miles
Sunday - OFF - Mother's Day : )

If I can make it through this training schedule next week, I'll be well on my way to those 5 miles I'm running in a few short weeks. I got my bib number in the mail yesterday! I'm running ready or not!

In my next post I'm going to talk about what is behind those green drinks. I always get alot of questions about it.

Make it a positive and productive week!

Workout and Meals for 5/2/09

2009-05-03T08:41:00.006-04:00

Here's how the day played out:

Meals
1. syntrax nectar protein drink, greens drink with Macro Greens, flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup plain organic kefir with Miracle Reds, fruit and nut crunch

Workout - below

3. vegtable curry with 3 oz chicken added, 1/4 c rice

4. hibachi dinner, steamed soybeans, salad w/ginger dressing, salmon, fried rice, lo mein, vegetables, glass of red wine

5. green tea and a tasting of an assortment of cupcakes (for my sister's b-day) Yep those are the gigantic cupcakes!

Workout

5 min bike warm up

straight set
dumbell squat w/heels on 10 lb plates - 5x8 - 10, 15, 20, 30, 20 (30 lbs each hand turned out to be too heavy LOL)

superset
flat bench dumbell flyes - 5x8 - 12, 15, 15, 20, 20
barbell split squat - 5x8 - 35, 45, 45, 50, 50
dumbell push press - 5x8 - 12, 12, 15, 15, 15
push ups - 5x10

superset
dumbell single leg romanian deadlift - 5x8 - 12, 15, 15, 20, 20
negative chin ups 5x2

superset
45 degree plank - 3 sets - 45 second hold
cable reverse woodchop 3x8 - 20, 30, 30

5 min bike and stretching

I was exhausted and pumped after this workout!

Black Bean Avocado Salsa Recipe

2009-05-02T09:11:00.005-04:00

I love to cook. I do it as often as I can and use the freshest ingredients possible. I am a decade long time subscriber to Cooking Light magazine and more recently I love Vegetarian Times magazine. I am a little challenged on how to cook with agave nectar and other "different" ingredients and I find Vegetarian Times to be a great resource for me.

My favorite store is not a clothing store or a shoe store, it's WHOLE FOODS! Everything is healthy and I don't have to spend time reading labels that are designed to trick you into thinking their product is oh so good for you. The produce aisle is just beautiful to me!

Anyway, to the recipe......About 6 years ago I went to a barbeque and there was this delicious black bean salsa. The hostess wrote the recipe on a little card for me and over the years I have memorized it because it's so simple and delicious. Bring this to your next barbeque so you have something healthy to snack on! This recipe makes alot so you can just cut it in half if needed.

Ingredients:
-2 cans organic black beans drained and rinsed
-1 can organic corn drained
-2 large tomatoes seeded and chopped
-2 avocadoes, diced (get avocadoes a little firm to the touch)
-1 red onion finely chopped
-1/4 cup cilantro chopped (or flat leaf parsley if you aren't a fan of cilantro)
-Juice of 2 or 3 limes
-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
-1 teaspoon salt
-1/2 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)

Combine all the ingredients except avocado and use the juice of only 1 lime. At this point, I like to let it sit overnight to join the flavors. Just before serving I like to add in the avocado and the juice of 1 to 2 limes.

This is amazing by itself, with chips, over egg whites, and over a grilled chicken breast. Here in NJ we get alot of fresh tomatoes and Jersey corn so I like to use those fresh when they are available. Amazing!

Workout and Meals for 4/30/09 & 5/1/09

2009-05-01T08:25:00.007-04:00

Can't believe it's May 1st already! This week turned out to be a little crazy for me so I had to change my schedule a bit. Instead of taking Saturday off for a day of rest I took Thursday off. This morning I opted to do a spin class instead of running because I just wasn't feeling up to it. I am surprised I even made it the gym at all. I did feel better for going though I will say. Anyway, I will now do weights tomorrow and I'm looking forward to it. My body had a nice chance to rest. Also, it turns out we're taking my sister out for japanese hibachi for her birthday and singing happy birthday to her over her favorite cake - cheesecake! So I will get a tough weight workout in and then enjoy my evening with moderation of course. Works out better I think : ).

Meals for 4/30/09 - no workout

1. syntrax nectar protein drink w/1 tsp glutmine. green drink with organic kale, collards, spinach, celery, parsley, apple, ginger, lemon juice, apple juice, a scoop Macro Greens and a tablespoon flax oil, green tea

2. 1 cup pomegranate kefir with a scoop Miracle Reds, a serving of nut and fruit crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg, green pepper and feta omlet, a pear

4. snack pack cottage cheese, veggie fries

5. leftover dinner from last night - shrimp veg curry over 1/4 c rice

6. syntrax nectar drink, nut and seed crunch bar

Workout and Meals for 5/1/09

a.m. - kick ass spin class
syntrax nectar protein drink on the way home from the gym

1. green drink, see above and green tea

2. vanilla greek yogurt, serving of fruit and nut crunch

3. leftover shrimp curry with 1/4 c rice

4. cottage cheese snack pack, veggie fries

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

6. syntrax nectar, nut and seed crunch bar

In Memory of Kashi

2009-04-30T20:05:00.013-04:00

Kashi was a chinese shar-pei that I got as a 21 year old. I lived in an apartment on the first floor with lots of windows and I slept better at night knowing that she was there to protect me and she had a mean bark. She was a loyal dog that was with me through my dating years, then marriage, moving homes, and even two pregnancies. She welcomed my newborns home. She even tolerated when my sister got a dog and was here to visit a few times a month. I am sad that she is no longer here but she lived a long life for her breed and she is in a place where she can run free. RIP Kashi.

Workout and Meals for 4/29/09

2009-04-29T14:15:00.004-04:00

Very tired this morning but got up, got to the gym and got it done! 3 long miles. Of course it started raining on the way to the gym and when I got there it was muggy and the air wasn't on. So I was being tortured pretty much. Feeling a little sore from yesterday's workout but I feel tight. This is what I love about lifting. If I was just running I'd feel skinny and who wants to feel skinny? Certainly not me!!!!

Lower on carbs for the meal plan today because the workout was cardio only. Here it is!

a.m. - run 3 miles

1. syntrax nectar with glutamine on the way home
then my usual "lots O greens" green drink ; ) and green tea

2. plain greek yogurt with a scoop of Miracle Reds and a serving of nut, fruit crunch.

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg, omlet with feta cheese, green pepper and leftover steamed broccoli from last night, green tea

4. raw broccoli, cauliflower, and green pepper with 3 tablespoons hummus, green tea

5. thai shrimp curry, basically coconut milk w/spices, green beans, peas, bamboo shoots and approx 3 oz shrimp over 1/4 c rice
and coming up soon -

6. syntrax nectar with glutamine, nut/seed crunch bar

The plan for tomorrow is to sleep in a little bit (or as much as my husband and kids will let me) and get my lifting done in the late afternoon. Hoping to feel super strong. Love afternoon lifting!

Hope you are working toward your goals!

Workout and Meals for 4/28/09

2009-04-28T14:57:00.009-04:00

It's already Tuesday. I had a great night's sleep last night and was up and ready to rock this morning.

Here was my workout:
5 minute bike warm up, followed by pop squats to warm up legs/glutes

Barbell squat 1x8, 4x6 - 45, 55, 65, 70, 70

Circuit
incline bench press - 1x8, 4x6 - 35, 45, 55, 60, 65
dumbell walking lunges - 8, 10, 12, 15, 15
standing db shoulder press - 10, 12, 12, 15, 15
burpee/push up combo - 5x8
seated cable row 1x8, 4x6 - 60, 70, 80, 80, 90

DL 1x8, 4x6 - 45, 55, 65, 70, 70
threw in 3 sets of farmer's walks in between holding 35lb db in each hand

Superset
Decline sit up 3x8 - 8, 10, 25
Plank - hold 30 seconds for 3 sets

5 minute bike after + stretching

Meals
After workout - syntrax nectar protein with a teaspoon glutamine, rice cake
1. green drink with kale, spinach, collards, ginger, parsley, celery, apple, lemon juice and a little bit of apple juice & macro greens powder and flax oil

2. chobani vanilla greek yogurt, and a serving of Mrs. Mays cranberry, blueberry nut crunch (pistachios, cashews, sesame seeds)

3. thrown together "fake" chili. 3/4 cup chickpeas, 1/4 cup rice, 3 tablespoons salsa, some fresh diced green pepper and 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder (I like things spicy!)

4. cottage cheese snack pack, veggie fries, a pear

5. 3 oz salmon, 1/4 cup rice, steamed broccoli, small piece dark chocolate

and next meal coming up....

6. syntrax nectar protein with a teaspoon glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Plan for tomorrow. Running at a steady pace for 3 miles. Thrilling!

Tips for Starting a Fitness Program

2009-04-27T18:22:00.005-04:00

Like many of you, I have started (and stopped) so many different fitness programs and eating plans. I have to admit, I am a recovering diet book junkie. Starting a fitness program can be tough but it doesn't take long for it to become a habit. Make fitness a prioirity in your life and you will be happier and live longer because of it. Here are some of my tips for starting and sticking with a fitness program:

Goals - Pick a goal and follow a path to obtain those goals. Fat loss, building strength, being able to do pull ups, running a 7 minute mile. Once you achieve that goal, pick a new one. Constantly challenge yourself.

Be consistent - How can you judge what is working for you if you haven't given it enough time? Give it at least a month and make changes where needed. Usually the changes have to come from your diet or intensity of exercise.

Motivation - Find something that will help keep you motivated. Whether it be looking great for an upcoming event or vacation, some great music to get that cardio in, a picture of what you'd love to look like, or another person's blog to inspire you (hint, hint).

Accountability - Whether this be to a friend, a family member, or the public. You are more likely to follow through if you put your goals out there and are expected to follow through.

Measure your progress - I would suggest measurements and pictures. Don't obsess about a certain weight or clothing size. It's just not as important!

Mindful exercise - Focus on the task at hand. Don't think about all the things you have to do when you are done and please don't read a magazine while doing cardio. Exercise time is not a time for multi-tasking. Taking an hour to yourself without multi-tasking is not a terrible thing. I don't even take my cell phone in the gym with me.

Realize that exercise is hard work - You will sweat and you will be out of breath. If it was easy everyone would look fabulous. I remember starting out and being amazed that I am a person that sweats profusely and my face turns purple when I'm out of breath. This has not changed at all over time! Get over it! Bring a towel and some water and get it done.

Forgive any slip ups - I'm as dedicated as they come but from time to time you just have to put that workout on the back burner or you ate a piece of cake and you're feeling guilty. You are not perfect. Forgive yourself, let it go, and move on! Don't obsess over it and don't let it turn into a bad day, week, month, or year.

Positive thoughts - Always think positively and surround yourself with people that are going to support your goals. What you put out will come back to you so put forth some positive energy and you will attract people with the same!

Self sabotage - Be aware of self sabotaging thoughts. We all have these thoughts. Well I'm too tired I'm not going to workout. If you say you're tired 10 times in a day you REALLY start to feel that way. Try it one day and see what I mean. Instead, say you are tired but you'll catch up on sleep the next night and then just let it go. Don't think about it again.

Visualization - This really does work. Imagine yourself running that race, imagine the muscles being used for those lunges, imagine looking in the mirror and seeing the image you are visualizing!

Don't be a Monday starter - I know you've heard this before or are guilty of it yourself. I'm going to start eating right and exercising on Monday. Until then I'll just eat this cheesesteak and drink a ton of beer. What is wrong with all the other days of the week? There is no time like the present!

And with that, carpe diem or seize the day my friends!

Update on Progress and Goals - Week of 4/26/09

2009-04-26T13:45:00.022-04:00

I would like to start by saying that at 5:30 pm when I was due to take measurements and pics there was a ton of stuff going on in my house. My husband was hanging a light in the kitchen, I was making dinner but I made everything stop for 5 minutes to get this done and I am glad I did. Some good progress!

I ran 3 times last week and I can honestly say that I just don't enjoy running at a steady pace. I used to but now I'd much rather run my sprints and be done with it. Quick and highly effective! I did circuit training last week as my weight sessions. My thought was keeping the weights lighter and reps up, doing more bodyweight exercises than I usually do and focusing on the running. Not feeling that at all! Going back to focusing on full body straight set/superset combination for 2 days next week and see how that goes!

After looking at some other progress pics of different people, I'm going to change it up a little bit. Adding 2 additional pics. Also, an additional measurement for flexed bicep. I'm not looking to lose inches or pounds necessarily. Just looking for a leaner look.

Last week's stats (this week):
Height 5 ft 6 (same height LOL )
Weight 134 (132.5)
Bodyfat 22% (21%)
Waist 29 in (29)
Hips 36 in (35 1/2)
Right arm 10 3/4 in (10 1/2)
Right bicep flex - just added this week 11 1/4
Right thigh 21 1/2 in (21 1/2)
Right calf 15 1/2 in (15 1/2)
Chest (at largest part) 33 1/2 in (32 1/2)
Chest (under) 28 1/2 in (27 15/16)

Last week my hair was down, this week in a ponytail. I can't notice much of a change. I will say one positive thing here. I think my flexed back looks pretty damn good! Also, note to self....try not to make such strange faces when taking progress pics ; ).

My Meal Plan:
Eat more fruits and vegetables, of course! Purchased organic grape tomatoes, broccoli, avocados, pears, green peppers, baby carrots in addition to my regular greens and apples.

In place of kefir on my cardio only days, I'm going to try some greek yogurt. Chobani brand plain greek yogurt has an amazing nutritional profile. 100 calories, 7g carb, and a whopping 18g of protein!

Also new to the plan, wild caught sesame and ginger encrusted ahi tuna. A great find (at Coscto). You simply thaw, slice and enjoy. No cooking required! No artificial ingredients AT ALL. Per 3 oz serving, 100 calories, 3g carb and 23 protein. I would have probably a 3.5 - 4 oz serving to get closer to 30g of protein in that meal.

Going to be sure to add glutamine to my protein shakes this week for maximum muscle recovery.

My Training Plan:
Sunday (today) - Lift + sprints 2 miles
Monday - Spin
Tuesday - full body lift (straight/superset combo)
Wednesday - Run - 3 miles
Thursday - full body lift (straight/superset combo)
Friday - Run - 2.5 miles with intervals
Saturday - OFF
Sunday - Run - 4 mile trail run

Foam rolling every day and plenty of quality sleep (or as much as you can get with a toddler and a teething infant)!

I am thinking about doing posts on the days I lift so you can get a better idea of how I set up my program. Hope to see some more great changes next week in addition to being a little more prepared for this 5 mile race!

Have you set your goals for the week?

Iced Green Tea Recipe

2009-04-23T20:00:00.007-04:00

So, the weather is getting warmer and you still want to drink your green tea. Why not make some iced green tea?

Here is a great recipe someone gave to me and it's impossible to mess up.

What you'll need:
water
12 - 15 green tea bags
a few lemons
superfine sugar or splenda to taste
medium pot with lid
drink pitcher

Take a medium pot and fill it water. Bring to a boil. Shut the stove off and add the tea bags in a bunch. The size of the pot and how strong you like your tea will determine how many tea bags you use. Let the strings hang over the side of the pot. Put the lid on it.

Let it steep until it's cool enough to pour into a pitcher. Fill the remainder of the pitcher with cold water. Add the juice of about 2 lemons. I serve it in a glass with some sliced lemon and I like to serve the sugar and splenda on the side.

Also try this recipe with flavored green teas. I once used a pomagranate green tea and it was delicious!

Enjoy!

The Meal Plan

2009-04-22T19:01:00.016-04:00

I really dislike the word diet. Diet indicates that I'm depriving myself of something. Meal plan sounds better to me. This is why I don't count calories. I know it sounds crazy. My reason is because I became obsessed with it and used to log everything I ate into fitday.com. That's not a way to live. Because I was logging in my food all the time, all I could think about was food and my next meal!

Food is fuel and nothing more. You need to fuel the machine with quality whole foods if you expect to perform at optimum levels. It really is that simple.

Now if I wasn't getting results for some reason I'd definitely have to monitor the diet more closely. I've been doing this meal plan for a few years now. The only difference is that I would often go for seconds at dinner and I'd eat more nuts and snacks because I'd just be grabbing them ALL the time.

The only guidelines I follow are:

Get enough protein. Anywhere from 0.5 to 1.5 grams per pound of bodyweight is recommended for an active person but I seem to do well with about 1 gram per pound of bodyweight.

I try to buy mostly organic produce and food. I am fortunate enough to have a local organic farmer and I shop there every week and make dishes based on what is abundant.

I eat more carbohydrates and more in general on days I lift weights. The only things I measure are carbohydrates, protein, and nuts. A serving of carbohydrate or beans is typically 1/2 cup. I stick to about 3 - 4 oz of chicken, fish, or shrimp when I eat it. Nuts are easy to overeat so I am just careful about that.

I don't do liquid calories other than an occasional glass of red wine. No sodas or drinks with sugar (or high fructose corn syrup as they use these days). I'd much rather eat my calories.

I try to limit artificial sweeteners. I stick with green tea or water with a squeeze of lemon.

I avoid wheat and wheat containing products. A few years ago I noticed I had alot of inflammation in my body mainly my left knee. Also, I could not lose weight at all for a period of time and even had problems with swelling after exercise. I read somewhere that wheat can be hard to digest and if you eliminate wheat and give it a month it can relieve those symptoms. I could not believe it actually worked! That's when 20 pounds just came off. That was 2 years ago and I haven't looked back. I'm not sure if I'm wheat gluten intolerant but in any case I feel great. I do want to add that I will eat bread or pasta on a special occasion or something and I can feel a difference pretty quickly.

Here is what I eat on a typical day:

a.m. - workout

Breakfast
Syntrax nectar protein drink - 23 grams protein
Green drink - Organic vegetables - kale, spinach, collard greens, parsley, cucumber, celery, apple, ginger, juice of a lemon and some apple juice. Blend in a high powered blender and add 1 tablespoon flax oil, mix and enjoy. If you add enough lemon and ginger it's delicious!

Snack
1 cup Lifeway Kefir (cultured probiotic yogurt drink) with a scoop of Miracle Reds mixed in. 1/4 cup dry roasted almonds

Lunch
This is usually leftover dinner from the night before or a salad with 3 - 4 oz of chicken, extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. It may include a carbohydrate if I did weights in the morning.

Snack
Cottage cheese snack pack or mozzerella string cheese, about 2 cups of veggie fries

Dinner
4 oz wild salmon, 1/2 cup rice, asparagus, piece of dark chocolate

Snack
Syntrax nectar protein drink with a nut and seed crunch bar

Lots of water and about 3 - 4 cups of green tea daily. I take a multivitamin, calcium/magnesium supplement and fish oil. Occasionally I will add glutamine power to my protein drinks for muscle recovery. I allow myself a meal a week to relax a bit which is usually sushi and seaweed salad on Saturday nights. I don't go crazy because honestly I just feel sluggish after eating most "regular" food.

The things I would like to improve:

Find a better protein powder that does not contain artificial sweeteners. Syntrax Nectar contains sucralose which is Splenda.
Include more fruits and non green vegetables in my diet. Obviously I get enough greens.
Eat a wider variety of foods in general. I am one of those people that can eat the same things day in and day out but I'd like to add some different meals in there. Maybe experiment with different grains and protein sources.
Include more nut butters because they just rock!

In my next post (Sunday), I will be updating stats and pictures!

The Moment of Truth

2009-04-22T08:48:00.031-04:00

In my last post I talked about ultimate accountability and what I mean by that is I'd be more likely to make excuses to myself or to good friends than to make excuses to the public and not follow through. Who wants to do updated pics and measurements and have them be worse? Talk about embarrasing!

Here are my starting stats taken on Sunday, April 19th:

Height 5 ft 6
Weight 134
Bodyfat 22%
Waist 29 in
Hips 36 in
Right arm 10 3/4 in
Right leg 21 1/2 in
Right calf 15 1/2 in
Neck 12 1/2 in
Chest (at largest part) 33 1/2 in
Chest (under) 28 1/2 in

Here are my photos also taken April 19th:

I want to add here that I really thought I looked good in the mirror. Taking the photos is eye opening for sure. I'm looking forward to taking pics and measurements this Sunday to see if there are improvements.

In my next post I'll be talking about my meal plan and dietary guidelines I follow.

This is Where I'm Starting!

2009-04-21T10:46:00.022-04:00

This blog is being created for accountability and to share and hopefully inspire someone who may be in the same situation. I recently read something about creating accountability for yourself and the ultimate accountability is public accountability. So here I am!

My journey to fitness started in my twenties after hours of commuting and a desk job caused me to put on more than just a few pounds. I had not a clue where to start since I'd always been a thin kid and was a junk food junkie and not really athletic at all. Probably like most people looking for information I turned to fitness magazines for workouts, tips, and inspriration. Over the years I've followed the fads, low fat, no fat, low carb, no carb, high reps, low reps, diet pills etc. I did all the "6 weeks to abs" workouts and there were some changes but nothing close to those fitness magazine models!

Eventually my metabolism and immune system suffered and I had to make a clean slate for myself. Turning to organic greens and fruits, legumes, green tea, and occasionally hormone free chicken and wild caught fish, I was able to lose 20 pounds in a few months. I excluded any processed foods, breads, and wheat sticking mainly to rice (white and brown), quinoa, and potatoes for carbohydrates. I felt good and my body never functioned better but I was still looking to change my body composition. Mainly to increase lean muscle and reduce bodyfat.

When I least expected it I found out I was pregnant with my second child and went through the pregnancy relatively healthy. Once I had my daughter which is now 8 months ago, I decided this was going to be the time I was really going to do it. Stop lying to myself and making excuses and commit to something that was going to be good for me.

In 6 months I was able to lose 22 pounds and 8% bodyfat using the following protocol:

Spinning - 2x week
HIIT sprinting - 2x week
Full body weight training using compound movements and bodyweight exercises - 3x week
At least 1 day off per week for full rest
I did not count calories but rather ate portion sizes of whole foods.
Listening to guided meditations in the evening before bed for relaxation and to focus thoughts.

I am so happy about how far I have come but the changes in my body are so small at this point I'm finding it hard to gauge how it is truly going.

My goals and plans in the short term are:

Increase running to do a 5 mile race on May 23rd while maintaining my strength gains
Take measurements and pictures at the same time every week to compare
Weigh myself at the same time every week using a bodyfat scale to monitor bodyfat (Bodyfat scales are not the most accurate way to measure bodyfat, however I started to measure it this way and will continue this way for consistency.)

In my next post I will include measurements and possibly photos (still thinking about that one) in addition to more information on my meal plan.

I am going to be accountable, are you?