Hello, hello! <3
I must say that I am in a very interesting spot health-wise right now. I told you guys that I got way off track in December. We were all sick for about 2 1/2 weeks. I missed a ton of workouts. My diet was just ho-hum.
THEN, when I did start to feel better, it was about a week before Christmas and I just DID NOT feel like being hardcore in regards to health and fitness, so I just coasted. I tried to get back on track the day after Christmas, but quickly fell apart as all the kids were still home from school and we are all still very much in “party mode.”
Needless to say, when all the dust settled and I finally got my butt back in gear, I found myself feeling very out of shape, up several pounds, feeling “hefty” and just not fitting into my clothes too well. 🙁 It was a sad reality check, but I figured that after I got back to my regular routine, I would quickly get back into shape and lose the weight that I had gained.
Well folks, that has not been the case! Gah! It has definitely been a struggle.
I must say though, that the first couple of weeks of January I didn’t give it my best effort. I got back to a good exercise routine, but my diet was just a’ight. AND, I’ve learned time and time again that a good diet is VITAL in the weight loss department.
So, the past couple of weeks I’ve done a much better job of cleaning up the diet. I’ve made sure to fill my body full of good, clean, real food that actually helps my body, I’ve kept the macros in check and I’ve made sure to not to overeat.
Aaaaaaand, the scale has still hardly budged. It’s been crazy!
Side note: I’m not one that obsesses about the scale. I’ve had many times in my life when I’ve lost inches, my clothes all fit me better, I like the way I look better, BUT the scale stays the same! I know it doesn’t show the whole picture. However, it is still a helpful tool to measure progress…I just don’t obsess about it.
Sooo, I’ve just been trying to be patient, stay consistent and focus on the positive.
It feels so good to be disciplined again. My body always feels so good when I feed it real food. Go figure. I’ve been sleeping really well and hard, which always happens when I eat well. It just feels good to know that I’m making efforts to improve my health and my body even if I can’t see the effects of those efforts right now.
Ya know, I have talked with SO MANY people over the years who have tried so hard to lose weight. They eat well, they exercise and they give it a good, valiant effort. THEN, they get so frustrated when the results don’t come. The scale doesn’t budge. They start to lose faith in themselves and lose hope that they’ll ever lose weight.
These people go on to tell me things like…
“Soooo, I just gave up because it doesn’t help me anyway.”
“My body just won’t ever change.”
“I’m too old and my body just doesn’t respond anymore.”
“I’ve been overweight my whole life and I think that’s just the way my body is.”
“I might as well just eat the foods I enjoy because it doesn’t make a difference either way.”
I can completely understand their frustrations and I, myself have felt those same frustrations many, many times….um, like right now! Ha ha. BUT, I don’t quit!!! I tell myself…”What good would quitting do??!??!” If I’m not getting results now, I will certainly NOT get results if I quit!
I try to focus on how even though I might not SEE the results, my body is definitely benefiting from my choices!
I’ve had MANY times in my life when I’ve busted my butt to lose weight, get in better shape, etc. and my body doesn’t budge.
Many, many, many times.
MANY times!!!
I’ve busted my TAIL to lose weight after having every one of my kids AND it was NOT easy for me! I’m not one of those mothers who comes home from the hospital in my jeans. Nope. It usually takes me a full year to lose the weight. I usually cling onto a beautiful fat layer as long as I’m a nursing mother too.
It’s crappy, but obviously so worth it.
I’ve also gained weight here and there over the years. It’s usually at times when life is hectic, I’m stressed or I’m just living up life a little too much. It’s alright. I know that’s just part of life. It is extremely difficult to stay lean and trim ALL the time. And, quite frankly I’m not sure if I even want to because I know exactly what it takes to stay lean and trim ALL the time.
Soooo, because I like to enjoy crappy food from time to time, I like to enjoy myself on occasion and sometimes life just happens and I find myself off track for a while….I know I will probably have to lose a little weight AGAIN and AGAIN throughout my life.
I’m A-OK with that because I know why that happens. It’s life and I love life.
Anyway, I also want to say that I have full faith that my body will respond soon and I will lose the weight I’m wanting to lose. This has happened to me so many times and I’ve just learned to NOT QUIT, stay consistent, focus on taking care of my body and the results will eventually come!
I also just want to say that I think it’s a lot harder for women to lose weight! Women naturally carry more fat than men, women deal with hormone issues and cycles and I think women are a lot more effected by stress (as far as weight gain/loss goes.)
I’ve learned that sometimes I might have to wait a couple of MONTHS for my body to respond. It sometimes just feels like I need to go through a couple hormonal cycles for my body to regulate and run smoothly again. This is just my opinion and what I’ve personally felt with my own body.
I just think sometimes our bodies get out of whack due to sleep deprivation, eating too much crappy food for an extended period of time (that seriously messes with the hormones), dealing with too much stress (hello motherhood!) and a zillion other factors that jack with our bodies and hormones. I just remind myself that good ol’ fashioned healthy eating, regular exercise and consistent sleep will ALWAYS help and will ALWAYS eventually yield results!
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I think one of the easiest and best ways to consistently eat well and healthy is to just find several simple, easy, healthy meals that you enjoy and just eat them often. Yes, it might get a little boring, but it definitely simplifies the process and just makes it so much easier to stick with a healthy diet.
I’ve been telling you guys that I’ve been trying to have a green smoothie AND a homemade protein shake every day. Well, I’ve since adjusted it to just having one OR the other every day. I found that two shakes a day was just too much. BUT, I’ve been loving my one shake a day. It is so quick, easy, simple and full of good things!
If I have a protein shake, it’s usually after a workout. If I have a green smoothie, it’s usually in the morning, but I’ve had them at all times of the day or night too. When I have a green smoothie, I try to have some sort of protein on the side. I usually put a little plain Greek yogurt in my smoothies, but I like to up the protein a bit more by having something on the side too.
That “something” is usually scrambled egg whites. They are just so fast and easy and I never get sick of them. Sometimes I add veggies, sometimes I add cheese. Sometimes I top it with salsa, ketchup or guacamole. Simple, easy and yummy.
Oh, and sometimes I’ll make some scrambled egg whites and then fry up one whole egg and throw it on top of my egg whites. It makes the whole thing taste awesome. I don’t have a picture, but I’m sure you can imagine what it looks like! 😉
I make things like eggs, oatmeal, protein pancakes, smoothies and yogurt creations any time of day! People always ask me about healthy, kid-friendly dinners. I certainly have a lot of those, but sometimes I just make something my kids like (spaghetti, homemade pizza, homemade mac and cheese, etc.) and I make ME something else for dinner like this….
Oatmeal with apples, raspberries, ground flaxseed, cinnamon and protein powder mixed in with a side of….you guessed it….EGGS!
This meal takes me all of 5 minutes to prepare and it always tastes good to me, so it’s a great go-to meal for me when I don’t know what to fix and eat!
This is a great snack I’ve been enjoying lately when I just want to munch on something…
This might look gross, but it’s GOOD! I like to make a batch of homemade chips out of various, healthy flatbread and pita breads. My favorite right now is Jospeh’s Lavash bread and Pita bread. They are so good and the macros rock (60 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 8 carbs, 6 protein….wha????!)
I buy them at Walmart.
I like to dip them in various things, but in that pic I dipped them in some low fat cottage cheese topped with guacamole. Super good, indulgent tasting and yummy! It’s also good dipped in cottage cheese mixed with various salsas too.
I also try to make 2-3 really good, healthy dinners a week (the other nights I’ll usually make quick and easy dinners or leftovers!) I always make a ton so that I can enjoy the leftovers for the next few days.
I made a yummy turkey chili in the crock pot last week that turned out great!
It was kind of like a mix between a chili and a taco soup. It had a little bit of a kick too, which Kev liked. I topped mine with just a little bit of lite sour cream and a few tortilla chips.
I used this recipe off of AllRecipes.com and it was great. I changed it just a little bit as I read some of the reviews. I cooked the onion with the turkey, I replaced one of the cans of kidney beans with a can of chili beans that I had in my pantry. I replaced one of the cans of soup for a can of tomatoes with green chilis, I added another small can of green chilis and a can of corn.
It was quick and easy to make and tasted great. AND, I have 3 small individual serving size containers of it leftover in my freezer.
I also made this for dinner the other night…
I know this picture looks gross!! I really don’t know how to take a picture of it to make it look pretty and appetizing. It is just turkey burgers (my kids had them on buns) topped with some sauteed onions and peppers that I just cooked up in a little bit of olive oil spray. I love sauteed onions and peppers! They bring so much flavor to a meal and they were also about to die in my fridge….so I was happy I used them up!
Oh, and I have a great Turkey Burger recipe in the recipe section of my blog. This time I left out the cheddar cheese, and seriously, I didn’t miss it.
I also served it with some Trader Joe’s baked sweet potato fries on the side. They were great! Ya know, sometimes I cut up my own potatoes and sweet potatoes into fries and bake them, but lately I’ve just been doing the Trader Joe’s variety. They taste great and have very few ingredients. I trust the quality of Trader Joe’s foods….and they simplify my life. Win, win.
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Well, along with focusing on filling my body full of good, clean food, I’ve also been hitting it hard in the workout department too. I love, love, love my gym, F45 so much! I try to go there 4-5 times a week.
It really is SUCH a great way to work out! It’s HIIT training. Some days are more cardio focused and some days are more resistance focused. Most classes are only 45 minutes and every class pushes me so much. I’ve also seen more results in my body (muscle gain, endurance, strength and weight loss) than I’ve seen at any other gym or home workout….and I’ve done a lot of different things over the years!
F45 is relatively new to the United States (it’s based out of Australia), but it is quickly taking the US by storm. Right now there are only two gyms in Utah, but there are several more that should be opening up this year. Woot!
I’ve also been running a little bit. I’ve been wanting to run twice a week, but it’s been more like once a week. I need to change that. Our winter weather has been SO MILD this year!! I really can’t remember a more mild winter. It’s been awesome and so nice to run in!
I’ve just been keeping my runs to 3-3 1/2 miles for now, but I will probably do 4 this weekend. It’s been nice and easy….and oh so therapeutic!
Well, I gotta go to bed! I will keep you guys posted on my progress and will hopefully have some actual progress that I can SEE to share with you guys next time!
I will leave you guys with this cute picture of my puppy who’s been sitting with me as I’ve been writing this post….
Oh, how I love dogs! They are the sweetest, most innocent, loving, loyal and selfless creatures on the planet. Love them.
G’night! xoxo
Ugh, I feel all your pain. My biggest deal right now is trying to get enough sleep. I average about 6.5 hours a night and I know that isn’t enough. I’ve been doing a modified paleo/Whole30 diet for the last little and it seems to help me sleep better (if not as long as I need), and I’ve noticed my resting heart rate goes down into the 40s when I’m watching what I eat and keeping up with the exercise.
I say “modified” because I’m trying to maintain the no sugar, no processed foods, no grains thing without going all out crazy. I don’t quiz waiters in restaurants, and I will have a little milk in my coffee in the morning because it makes me happy. My husband and I also enjoy a beer together in the evenings, but keep it to one these days. I know the adult beverage thing isn’t your particular struggle, but it can be mine if I don’t watch it – which is disruptive to sleep and about 200 calories per beverage. Not good.
I love Trader Joes! I can always find convenience foods there that don’t have a gazillion ingredients I can’t pronounce. That’s one of the harder things for me – preparing things from scratch every night so we can avoid sugars and MSG and all the additives.
Your workout routine is impressive. Keep it up!
I know, it is a neverending struggle! Auuughh. It sounds like you are doing a lot of great things though! The Whole 30/Paleo diet is awesome, but so tough. I totally hear ya about making modifications. I’ve learned that if I go to strict, I burn out quickly. I think your adult beverage thing sounds like a good modification. Over the years I’ve definitely learned to pick and choose the “not so healthy” things that I really love and still want to have in my life. I’ve cut out so many things, but have learned to really enjoy my favorite crappy indulgences. 🙂