Days 13 - 17, Oh My!

Holiday weekends are busy...but fun!

Day 13

EXERCISE:
8 miles on my mom's stationary bike. Upper body workout.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - 1 orange, protein shake.
Lunch - Trout...mmm!
Dinner - Veggie burger, raw veggies, quinoa salad.
Snack - LOTS of watermelon and a couple of potato chips.
Snack - Protein shake, apple and peanut butter after my workout.

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. The United States of America.
2. Honey taffy.
3. Kidlets who chase the seriousness out of me.
4. Time spent playing badminton with my dad.
5. Popsicles.


Day 14

EXERCISE: None. It was the Sabbath.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Millet cereal and a banana.
Lunch - Green salad and a bunless hamburger.
Snack - An AWESOME ice cream sandwich that was healthy. Almond cookies with cashew ice cream in the middle....yum yum yum yum.
Dinner - Grilled cheese sandwich and orange slices.


Day 15

EXERCISE: None. Took the day off for my Bday.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Protein shake and a plum.
Lunch - Tostada with beans and rice.
Snack - Protein bar.
Dinner - Chicken sandwich and some potato chips.


Day 16

EXERCISE:
20 minutes of cardio (2.65 miles on the elliptical trainer). 4 miles on the tread mill.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Oatmeal and an orange.
Lunch - PB and J on a whole wheat english muffin, raw veggies.
Snack - Protein bar.
Snack - Low-fat smoothie at Maggie Moos.


Day 17

EXERCISE:
Lower body workout.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - 2 whole wheat Eggo waffles.
Lunch - One slice of chicago-style pizza, beans and rice.
Snack - Protein shake and some almonds.
Snack - More beans and rice.
Dinner - Pot stickers and edamame.
Snack - Orange Mango sorbet.

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. My niece, who turned 8 today.
2. Innovations that increase quality of life for people.
3. Growth.
4. The baby gate that keeps the wee doggie from coming into my room, but allows me to keep the door open so I can get fresh air.
5. Books.

Day #12

EXERCISE:
Lower body work-out. No cardio today...supposed to give the legs a rest two days a week.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Protein bar and a plum.
Lunch - 3 Bean Veggie Burger at The Wild Grape Bistro. Scrumptious! I highly recommend this!
Snack - String cheese and almonds.
Dinner - Chicken, broccoli, and quinoa.
Snack - Protein shake.

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. Useless trivia. Seriously. :)
2. Fireworks.
3. Tomato cages.
4. One day a month with work off. (Thanks to the boss!).
5. Summer showers.

Day #11

Today I pushed the limits in my cardio workout....and I think it paid off. I've been doing cardio every day except on Sundays, and using the Body for Life Cardio Plan. My goal is to be able to run 10 - 11 minute miles in the Provo River Trail Half Marathon, and I feel like this plan will be of great help in attaining my goal.

EXERCISE:
20 minutes of cardio using said above plan, which turned out to be 2.5 miles on the elliptical trainer; 3 miles on the treadmill.....all of which meant lots of calories burned!

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - 1 banana and a protein shake.
Lunch - PB and Honey sandwich, veggies, and an orange.
Snack - Almonds and a protein bar.
Snack - Sweet rice and SYTYCD....and it WAS sweet. :)
Snack - Protein shake.
I did not have dinner tonight because of a full schedule.

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. The Ensign.
2. Sweet-smelling candles.
3. The smell of rain.
4. Clean sheets.
5. Email.

My exciting news for the day: I've lost 7 pounds since I last weighed myself!! 23 more to go!

Day #10

EXERCISE:
20 minutes of cardio on the treadmill (about 1.5 miles).
Upper body exercises.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Protein shake and 1 plum. The protein shake upset my stomach a bit. Perhaps I need to eat real food in the morning before I have a shake.
Snack - 1 string cheese, almonds and M&Ms from my trail mix.
Lunch - PB&J and raw veggies.
Snack - 1 string cheese, some almonds. Protein Bar.
Dinner - Turkey burger and grilled veggies.
Snack - Protein shake after my workout.

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. Light, both spiritual and literal.
2. Sleep.
3. Planet Fitness.
4. A simple life.
5. Elizabeth Gaskell novels and the movies that are based on them. (I'm currently watching "Wives and Daughters" while transcribing September 1848 BMDs from the West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser).

Day #9

Today was a humbling tumbler for me. I burned my veggie burger in the microwave at work, and the smoke somehow went through the entire four-story building and set the silent smoke alarm off. The fire department even showed up! All because of a wee veggie burger. Wowsa. I wasn't a very good sport about it, quite embarrassed I was. I asked my co-workers not to mock me for it. I suppose that wasn't the best way to deal with things. Positive thinking makes situations much more pleasant! I must remember this in the future!

EXERCISE:
20 minutes (approximately 1.5 miles) of cardio on the elliptical trainer using the intensity guidelines given in the Body for Life exercise program.
2 miles of jogging on the treadmill.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Protein shake and a delicious slice of a butter cake that two of my dear co-workers brought from Solvang, California.
Snack - Almonds and M&Ms in my nummy Nutty Guys trail mix.
Lunch - A wellwellwellwellllll done veggie burger, and steamed cauliflower and brocoli.
Snack - Protein bar.
Dinner - More steamed veggies, along with some almonds and raw carrots.
Snack - Protein shake after my cardio workout.
(Woot woot...totally got in my three snacks today! Muscle growth, here I come!)

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. Good friends who'll be straight with me when I'm out of whack.
2. Workouts that work up a good sweat.
3. Opportunities to serve.
4. My pillows.
5. Shampoo.

Day #8

EXERCISE: None.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Eggo waffle sandwich with an egg, half of a banana.
Lunch - Nil. Went to church and wasn't hungry when I got home!
Dinner - Two veggie burger patties with cheese, steamed beans and carrots.
Snack - One peanut butter chocolate truffle. (yeah, not so good for me...but tasted wonderful!

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. The ability and opportunity to ask questions.
2. Personal revelation.
3. Peanut butter in a jar.
4. Doggie kisses.
5. Objects that inspire change and growth (a.k.a the size 8 swimming suit that I now have hanging on my bedroom wall. It stopped me from eating anything after I got home tonight around 12:30am.)

Sunday. A day of rest. Well, it's certainly a change from what I do during the week. :) Today was not quite restful, although parts of it were relaxing. It was my last day house/dog sitting for my boss and her family, who went on a cruise to the Bahamas for eight days. She has two very energetic and intelligent border collies who like to have lots of attention, love, and scratches on the back. These two dogs are cuties, I tell you! The only problem I had with them was that they always wanted my attention, even when I was supposed to be working from home so I could take care of them properly. Yes. They were my main distraction this entire week! Still, a very fun distraction!

Tonight I packed up all my things, (it was like I'd moved out of my apartment or something....should've rented a Uhaul to take away all of the things I'd brought with me!), cleaned the place, and said goodbye to the dogs at midnight or so. The boy dog, Teal'c, didn't want to go outside because he knew that I was going to leave. :( I played fetch with them for a few minutes, then when Hannah stopped bringing the toy back to me when I called to her, I made my exit.

Today should've been my "free day" where nutrition is concerned, and I think it will become such from now on. It doesn't make much sense to me to pack my diet with protein shakes on the day when I'm resting from my labors, so the speak. Of course, perhaps I need that day to rejuvenate muscle, which might require the protein intake as well. I'll have to read up on that a little bit more so I have a more clear understanding of just what it takes to build muscle.

On that thought, good night all!

Day #7

I just heard fireworks outside...wahoo for upcoming holidays!

EXERCISE:
20 minutes of walking on the treadmill.
45 minutes of lower body weight training. The hanging leg lifts caused a bit of trouble, though. My lower back popped every time I did one...not sure if it's related to the disc injury I've been recovering from. If the pain is still there tomorrow, I guess I'd better call the chiropractor for another appointment.

NUTRITION:
Breakfast - Sandwich made of two whole wheat Eggo waffles, one egg, and a slice of cheese (the processed kind...must get away from that). Protein shake (I find that I have a hard time fitting six meals in my day, so I combined breakfast with the mid-morning snack).
Snack - Protein bar and one peach.
Lunch (very late lunch) - Some of the stir fry I made last night.
Dinner - The rest of the stir fry and a protein shake.

So I only ate four times today, BUT I did get in all of my protein bars/shakes. This is a small success. I need all the protein I can possibly get!

GRATEFUL FOR:
1. Cute nieces and nephews.
2. Fairy tales. Seriously. :)
3. Hope.
4. Treadmills.
5. The food co-op.....fresh fruits and veggies!!!

After my first week of stodgingly working out, I've come to a few conclusions concerning exercise. I might conclude that these conclusions are wrong a few months, years, or decades down the road. Still, they are my stepping stones to a more complete understanding of the human body and how it should function. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. I think that, for a person like me, diet pills and other forms of quick weight loss are not the path to take. Exercise and a healthy diet are going to be the cornerstones of the healthy foundation I'm building for myself.

2. It's very easy, and quite enjoyable, to say "I'm an emotional eater," and then proceed to devour half of a carton of Moose Tracks ice cream after a stressful day at work. The results of these actions, though, are the opposite of enjoyable. It's much more difficult to say "I'm an emotional eater. The next time I'm feeling emotional about something, I'll go for a run instead of diving into the nearest chocolate cake I can find." The results of THESE actions are far more satisfying in the end. Must remind myself of this. Often.

3. Mirrors have been really helpful in showing me what I've become, and what I've made myself into because of the choices I've made where nutrition and exercise are concerned. They can also goad me into not quitting until my workout is finished, no matter how much it hurts. (Side note: I no longer buy into the passive expression that I used in the past...it goes something like this: "I don't know how I let my body get like this." HELLO SELF! I didn't "let" my body make itself fat. I made my body gain weight because of the excess of unhealthy (albeit yummy) foods I was feeding myself, and because of the sedentary lifestyle that I chose to lead. Active verbs are what I'm going for now. I'm changing myself, transforming into a better version of what I once was. And I'm in charge of the transformation!