Doing it for Yourself

 

Tonight devin and i had a super yummy meal planned that is one of our all time favorites, cilantro lime grilled fish tacos. Seriously they have the power to turn a strictly land goer beg for seconds! So anyways, fish doesn't need to marinate for very long, like 30-45 mins at the most. So devin got home from work and i started getting out the ingrediants to make the marinade, i was going to make/eat dinner then go to the gym. Then devin brings it to my attention that this marinade is one that needs to be made at least 24 hours in advance to let the flavors meld before putting it on the fish. DINNER FAIL! now sure, we could very easily have scrambled to find something else to do with the fish but after you are anticipating that delicious combination, plain grilled fish isn't too appealing, especially after just having lemon pepper fish the night before. So i start to get cranky, im hungry we can't figure anything out, and we are out of almond milk and berries. So i cancel my gym plans, and we go to the grocery store, and were going to pick up some mexican food on the way home. Because a big melty beany cheesy burrito from favelas or jalisco sounded delicious. As we are getting out of the car at the grocery store i mention to devin, ya know we could just get a healthier freezer meal for dinner while we are here instead of picking up mexican. He didn't seem overwhelmed with excitement over that idea. So we get our groceries and as im sitting there cranky i start thinking about how yummy that burrito would taste right now. But thats it, only right now. Because i know that after i took those bites and the burrito was gone that satisfaction would be gone, and i would be sad, even more cranky, and even more pissed if i gained weight the next day and was swimming in a pool of guilt. So i had a choice, a choice that we have every day, are we going to eat healthy and work towards the goal, or give in to food temptation and overinduldge? So i go down the freezer aisle and look over the healthy choice options, grab a couple for a little variety to add to my normal lunch routine, and then devin walks up with a DiGionor pizza and says that he is going to get that and share it with the boys and i looked at it and thought about how much i really do like pizza and how it would be quick and easy and no mess. And i took a deep breath looked down at my thighs and love handles ( which are both getting a little smaller might i add ;) ) and turned back to the freezer and grabbed a healthy choice meal. It was not easy. Espically smelling the pizza as my food was heating up, but i felt so empowered and happy with my choice and wasn't at ALL sad about not eating the pizza, it looked gross, and packed with a ton of nasty stuff that my body didn't want or need.
For me this was eye opening moment for me. I realized i truly am doing this for me. And i think that is pivotal to longevity with weight loss and any goal for that matter. If i wasn't doing this for me, and doing it solely so my husband might think im sexy, or a hundred other reasons, i probably would have followed along with my healthy eating partner and ate that frozen pizza. But i didn't i looked temptation in the face and said piss off pizza! Learning to take control of my diet, learn to love food that loves me back, and treating my body right has given me such new confidence because now food doesn't control me

If It Walks Like a Duck & Talks Like a Duck..

           It might NOT be a duck! Tonight was a typical Sunday for us. Devin goes to meetings at church, comes home, we eat breakfast together, go to church, come home and eat lunch, take a nap, then go to dinner at Dev's parents. We love our Sunday dinners at Devin's parents house. We love the spend time together, we usually play games afterwards but c'mon the food is awesome! The meal is usually huge and plentiful and has a delightfully delectable dessert waiting to be devoured! So we get to dinner and im looking at the yummy smelling smorgasbord in front of me. I am a little nervous because i don't know what went into everything marinades, seasonings (potentially lots of sodium) etc.. so i figured i could eyeball 4oz of meat pretty confidently, so i dish it out, next come the greenbeans, they are fresh so i know there shouldn't be a lot of salt packed into them so that was easy, a baked potato, and a SALAD! This salad was sooo yummy looking, oranges, avocado, cheese, spinach, romaine, red onion, a little bacon, some cheese, and a poppy-seed vinaigrette. Seriously delicious looking. So i decide i would eat all my salad first so that i would fill up on that and be less likely to fill up on baked potato. I just made sure to not get as much bacon and cheese in my bowl and did exact;y what i hoped for, i only ended up having enough room in my tummy for 1/2 baked potato. I was feeling so good and proud of myself i even passed up the amazing looking lemon meringue pie! We love our time with our family so its even better when you can leave feeling good about the choices you make. So i get home and start to enter my calories into myfitnesspal. enter devastated face here :( That delicious salad ended up being a whopping 588 calories a serving! So the lesson of the story here is that even though its a "healthy" food option, it might not really be one. Now this salad wouldn't be awful for you if you had a little, but it is not something to load up on as a healthy filler. The dressing was a huge culprit, even though it was a vinaigrette when applied all over the salad you are getting way more dressing then you would then if you just had a little on the side and at it as you went. It is so frustrating when you are trying to make healthy choices and even making sacrifices just to find out you didn't do so hot, i don't know about you but it makes me feel pissed. Like if im going to go over my calories i wouldn't choose to go over on salad but would have gone for that lemon meringue pie! But once the anger and sadness goes away i know that even thought the salad was not a healthy option it still had better more beneficial ingredients then a sugar filled pastry.

             P.S. the salad was seriously delicious and if you aren't cutting calories to create a major calorie deficit it is something i would recommend! ha! im not posting the recipe because its not a super healthy option, but if you want it bad enough, leave a comment and i will share the recipe :)

Burn baby Burn

One essential thing that i have been learning is nutrition. Now i am not a nutritionist or a dietician for that matter but what i have learned from research, personal trainers, etc. Is that before you workout you need to have a meal with a good amount of carbs and protein to fuel your body for its workout. If you start with your tank on empty its going to burn muscle instead of fat, which is the opposite of what we want to happen. A good way to think of it is that your body is your vehicle. If you need to go on a 4 hour drive round trip it would probably take one tank of gas, but lets say you needed to go on a 12 hour drive, would you put one tank of gas in your car and expect to be able to go all the way? Of course not! and our bodies are the same! There is no way i would have been able to make it through my intense workouts tonight if i hadn't fueled my body up properly. Also when trying to lose weight and build lean muscle it is important to consume a protein rich meal/snack asap after working out within 30 mins if possible. This aids in your muscles recovery, because when you work out you are ripping your muscles and then your body builds them back up, makes em stronger to fight the battle. The more lean muscle you have the more fat you will burn because your metabolism will be higher. And who wouldn't want their metabolism higher?? hellloo highway to hot bodydom! So heather, what did you eat before and after your workout tonight?? I thought you would never ask! for dinner we made a favorite of mine Chile rubbed chicken with mango mint salsa. i would give you all the nutritional information but my cell phone with my app is currently dead but i promise to add the data tomorrow! and then after my workout i had a protein shake that is actually pretty delicious! 1 scoop of chocolate protein, 1 cup of milk, half a banana, and some ice chips! Does anybody else have any favorite protein shake recipes or pre workout meals? leave a comment and Share them!!

zumba zumba hot hula!

   
Tonight my dear friend Erin joined me for a zumba class followed by hot hula! If you don't know what zumba is its a high impact aerobic class that is centered around Latin dance! It is high energy and really fun! If you keep your bounce up and throw your body into every move it will get your heart pumping, sweat dripping, and leave you with a bounce in your step! I asked the instructor tonight how much i should expect to be burning during her zumba class and she said that when she wears her bodybugg she burns around 900-1200 calories a class! HOLY CRAP! now, my energy is totally not up to where hers is i don't know the steps yet but i will tell you that i am bright red, flooding sweat and thirsty as a beast after that class. I know that i get a harder workout in there then when i do the elliptical for the same amount of time and on the elliptical i average 630 calories an hour. So we finished that class and then we were crazy enough to stay for another class! HOT HULA!! Hot hula is a isolation strength training class for your core and legs. It was crrrraaazzzyyy hard. I was so frustrated because i usually can pick up choreography pretty quick thanks to all those past cheerleading practices, but this i felt so uncoordinated and awkward! I felt like once i got the feet work down, i had to add in my arms, all while keeping my upper torso perfectly square and upright, and i would lose everything i had just figured out! There were some other girls in the class that were really good! One lady told us that she had been doing it since september and to not get frustrated, it just takes time to catch on to the isolation concept and to learn the moves. As frustrating as it was, it was an incredible freaking workout. I am sure i won't be able to move tomorrow morning and i will know its because of all the hard work i put in during my classes tonight, and that alone is better then any slice of cheesecake i could find anywhere!

Garbage Disposal

    In our house we don't put a lot of food waste into the garbage, most goes down the garbage disposal. I was doing dishes yesterday of the pile up that had accumulated throughout the day and underneath the pile of dishes was eggshells, a celery rind, bell pepper core, carrot top, lots of cutie peels, a dollop of hummus, a couple reduced fat wheat thins, oatmeal, and a couple strawberry tops. I stand staring at this and thought to myself how wonderful my dirty sink looked! My sink before would probably have had a combination of french fries, bean and cheese burrito, chips, part of a butter soaked grilled cheese, some taquitos, a bagel bite or two, etc, you get the picture.
   I seriously think our dirty sinks can be a reflection to us of what our diet has been. I am happy that mine looked more like a compost then a grease laden trans fat pool of waste! How empowering it is to see the healthy changes in our lives. Even when you know you are making good choices, and tracking your intake, sometimes its nice to see it presented to you in a different way. So c'mon make the vow with me to keep your stomach looking like a compost rather then a waste bag :)

First post!

    

  Hello everyone, and nobody since i have no followers yet! ha! I have just completed the first week of my new life! Really exciting. What is even more exciting is that i haven't wanted to stop and give up! I have never felt determination like this, not even when giving birth to a 7lbs love nugget. Even my Devin (my husband) commented on how he has never seen me this motivated before. I downloaded the Myfitnesspal app and have been staying within 1400 calories and exercised 60+ mins 5 times this week! I am loving how i feel after my workouts, i feel like i have more patience with my children, like my chest is open and light, and am happier :) The workouts aren't easy but listening to some upbeat music and staying focused sure helps. And same goes with the diet as well, just finding creative new ways to eat favorite foods. Some of our favorites have been no guilt enchiladas, black bean soup, sausage potato soup, stuffed bell peppers, and lettuce wraps with coconut quinoa! Remember the more committed you are the more success you will find.