Traveling Fit

We have some catching up to do!

I have been UBER busy with the kids, and their summer activities. We have the girlies set up for a summer day camp which they are already loving. But that meant a change to ALL of our schedules, as well as a start up of their summer sports and activities. 

My kiddies are active ones! It's something I really purpose for them. I pretty much grew up in a closed up house (city kid), watched too many movies and played video games. I am probably the first of that generation of kids. Don't get me wrong, I definitely was somewhat active back then - tennis, bike-riding, walks by the lake - were all favorites but not truly an integral part of my lifestyle.  About the time I went to college, somewhere, SOMEthing went wrong for me to have gained SOOO much weight, right?

Fitmixer bootcamp - going strong.  I have to stay I am LOVING the workouts.  Okay, not so much when I am actually doing them - like the 3rd rep I am in despise mode - but afterwards - woohoo!  Feels so awesome.  Body has been continuously sore for the past 5 weeks.  LOVE that hurt! To date the LBS are down 6.8!  Its great, but honestly I was hoping for a full 10 at this point and I only have myself to blame.

cauliflower crust pizza. a not so guilty pleasure a la janetha

I am having food issues.  I always do. Period.  But especially when working out consistently.  I just get HUNGRY, or too busy (i.e. lazy?) to keep up with my food planning and logging.  And summer has always been a KILLER for my weight loss.  On the go, lots of cook outs and get togethers, and inconsistent eating schedules are all obstacles for this girl.

On the upside?  Sooo many people commenting about how good I look, so I know that even if the poundage isn't moving, my body IS CHANGING!  Working out the other day I noticed that my legs are looking slimmer, just in time for shorts and skirts season!  Best compliment? My chiropractor mentioned it at my last visit! I see him about once a month and his words when he walked in the room were:  "Now YOU have lost weight! What are you doing?" 

Winning!

Big on my list this week?  Florida Vacation!

I've been excited and nervous about this since starting the bootcamp.  It was on my list of reasons why I shouldn't try to do the bootcamp this summer.  Vacations are hard, but when you have family at the destination that likes to show their love by feeding you and cook EXTREMELY awesome, puerto rican, WILL make you chubby food that you just CAN'T pass up, AND you will be going to theme parks with crazy awful, yummy, so tempting JUNK food.  Ugh- it's a land mine.

And how do we start this trip?  On the ROAD of course!  Looong Wisconsin to Florida drive.  Gas stations, fast food - and you know all about fatigue eating!  

BUT. HOWEVER. NEVERTHELESS. AT ANY RATE.  IN SPITE OF ALL THAT.

Here is what I plan to do to stay on track:

1.  Pack a cooler.My plan is to have healthy fruits, veggies, yogurts, granola on hand for some healthy snacking.
2.  Pack workout clothes!  This is a first for me! I have NEVER planned to workout on a trip. I have never WANTED to!  On days we are not walking endlessly at amusement parks I plan to do my bootcamp workouts. I am so glad that I don't need any equipment to keep up with this one.  I will have my kindle fire along to quickly log in for the daily workouts, and will take along some of the note cards where I would sum up past workouts - just in case. Prepared!
3.  Plan for indulgences.  I know the day we see my family I WILL eat some not so great, but oh so yummy things.  I plan on eating ONE meal of such items, making the best choices I can and eating that one or two things that I can't resist as my treats.  At the parks, I plan on having one treat per park, and sticking to my food plan the rest of the day which would mean that I COULD stay in my calorie range. ( i think I can, I think I can...)
4.  Drink lots of water!  If I can stay hydrated I will avoid food temptations and help my body clear out any of those indulgences.
5.  Rest!  I will strive to get a good night's sleep every night, and take time to actually RELAX by the pool!
6.  Be kind to myself!  I will not compare myself to bikini clad women.  I will not focus on the weight I need to lose, but what I have lost.  I will forgive myself if I do not adhere to any of the above, and just try to be better the next meal and the next day.
7.  Focus on doing stuff!  Sometimes vacations can just be an excuse to overindulge.  My life has changed! I am a different person, and this vacation is going to be a reflection of the active and healthy person I have become.  I am looking forward to being on the move with my active family!

So what do you all do to stay fit and healthy on your vacations?

Eat Well. Eat Clean. Eat to Live

Dr. Oz  featured Dr. Fuhrman's Eat to Live program this week, which coincidentally is how I lost 45 lbs all on my own!  I really can't speak enough about it.  It is essentially changed the way I eat (key: lifestyle, not diet) and I think it saved my life as it sent me down the road of recovery at a critical time.

Shortly after joining spark people, a member introduced me to the book. I was amazed at the results she was having.  After reading the book, I was convinced that I had to try it.

So want the basics? Here they are:


NUTRITION

Basically the book centers around the idea of eating foods that are high in nutrients.  I was watching a documentary where Dr. Gerson of the Gerson Institute, said that obesity is simply the result of hunger.  I thought that was an obvious statement, but she went on to explain that our bodies are not being fed the proper nutrients, due to eating diets of highly processed foods with little to no nutrients left in them, so our bodies flag us that we need more nutrients by feeling hunger.  Feed it nutrients, and the cravings stop.

So true.  I was obese, and malnutrioned! I didn't know that was possible. Yet, when I got sick a few years back, that is exactly why I was sick - I had lost all core nutrients and minerals in my body.  The doctors gave me intense supplements.  I'm talking liquid iron (awful stuff!) and large doses of other pills.  I understand now, they were trying to save my life. Your body literally SHUTS DOWN when you don't have these stores, and I was in bad shape.  But they didn't once talk about nutrition to me!  Everything I learned about restoring and helping my body heal itself came from one person sharing their experience with ETL.  Thank you!!!!!

NO COUNTING CALORIES

There is no requirement to count calories or monitor portion size.  If you eat high nutrient, low calorie foods, its difficult to eat high calories.  Trust me it's true!  I, being an accountant, would track my calories.  I would eat LARGE portions of food, track them, and find that I would barely skim 1200 calories. Awesome! My concern? Getting ENOUGH calories!  I was so use to the feeling of deprivation on diets that at first I couldn't believe I could eat this way and still lose weight.  So I would try to limit my portions, and I would track my calories.  I found out it was true! I had to eat HUGE amounts of these foods to exceed my recommended calories. 

SALAD IS THE MAIN DISH

So do you have to eat salad every day?  Well yes. But that's not all. 

• Raw vegetables - unlimited
• Cooked vegetables  (your goal is to eat 1 pound of raw and 1 pound of cooked veggies daily)
• Beans, bean sprouts and tofu – 1 cup daily at least and more if desired
• Fruits – at least 4 servings daily
• Starchy vegetables/whole grains are limited to one cup daily.
• Raw nuts – 1 oz max per day
• Avocado – 2 oz max per day
• Ground flaxseed – 1 tablespoon per day

OFF-LIMITS:

• dairy products
• animal products
• between meal snacks
• fruit juice, dried fruits
• salt, sugar

What does the typical day look like?  Think simple:
Breakfast - Fruit/Grain (fruit bowl/smoothies/oatmeal)
Lunch - Salad/Fruit (unlimited variations)
Dinner - Vegetables/Beans (stir fry's, chili, curries)

Now mind you, this is the 6 week plan for weight loss.  You can restart the 6 week program until you reach a healthy weight.  After that you follow a 90/10 or 80/20 plan - whatever works best for you, meaning for the majority of the time you eat this way and 10-20% of the time you eat off limit items as you wish.  You don't HAVE to follow any plan after the 6 weeks and have reached your goal, but most people on ETL do end up eating this way long term.

Actually, as I was hearing and reading about this all over, and went back to my sparkpeople page I realize how I've wandered away from the 6 week plans.  I am NOT done with my weight loss journey and I need to refocus.

Know what else though?  After the work of learning to cook with these high nutrient foods and changing up my pantry, it is very easy. And even though I haven't done the 6 week program in a while, I do follow about an 80/20 plan - and I have been able to maintain my weight loss for longer than I have ever been able to in my whole adult life.

And best of all?  I feel great. I use to put on and drop 10 pounds without even feeling it. But I am now in tune with my body for the first time. I can read when my body is signaling for nutrients ( I crave salads!), when I need more calories (beans/fruits/seeds) and I feel AWFUL when I eat too much of the items in the "rarely" category. 

If you're struggling with diets and programs, tracking and health consequences - I would suggest you try it out!

If you're interested, every few months the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine sponsors a 21 day vegan kickstart where they provide information and recipes to get you started.  It doesn't mean you have to become vegan or vegetarian.  But it will help you learn how to cook with those foods from the 90% category so that you can get started and have success.





Good luck! And if you have any questions about any of this or my experience on the plan, please feel free to ask in the comments or email me!

Friday Fun

Happy June 1st everyone!  If you've been waiting for just the right day for a fresh start, why not today?  It's a whole new month, the first in summer, and you're worth it! 

Come on, don't wait until Monday.  Do it now!

What plans do you have this Friday to incorporate some fun into your everydays? 

Me? You ask? I don't know about you, but I get focused and decided and I get a little too serious some days.   As an accountant, I need a creative break here and there to keep me sane.

I've seen photo a day around for a while, and have wanted to participate myself. So this June I WILL!   And hopefully in the process I'll figure out all those little buttons on my camera and not be at the mercy of the auto button (he's so unreliable).

Sound like fun? Go check out how to join in here.

Happy Friday!!  Hope you have some fun scheduled!