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!

The Day I Broke my Husband

This week has been full of firsts. But how is that unlike any other week lately?

First, on our way home on Memorial Day, the awesome Heather tweeted about the Runner's World Running Streak. Basically it was a challenge to run at least 1 mile each day from Memorial Day until the 4th of July.

LOVED the idea. So as I determined to do it and mentioned it to my hubby. Much to my surprise he said he would do it with me?! Yay!! I have been trying to get him to run with me for a while.

Now lest you start to think that I'm some uber-awesome runner (like Heather), let's make it clear that I am NOT. Last year I started the couch-to-5k and it was brutal. I completed it, and then knee, hip and shin pain made me shy away from running.

This spring I decided I wanted to run a 5k. But Mrs. "Set's the Bar" too high started a training plan for a 10k and it was aggressive. I was at the 5.0 mi mark, struggling, but determined to keep pushing through, when I twisted my ankle on the stairs one day, 2 weeks out from the race I was planning to run, and I was completely discouraged and bowed out.

So sad.

But, I was actually relieved! Goals and charts and 1 mile increases each week were too much for this novice. And while I wish I had run the 5k, I was glad to be off that training schedule.

I have to admit these 1 mile runs have re-fueled this new love of running I had established, before I got ambitious.

Second, the lovely Robin at fitmixer challenged me to do a Wall Stand Letter L in this week's bootcamp. When I watched the video, I literally laughed out loud. Are you kidding me??! And she made it look so effortless! But I wasn't fooled. I knew that was no small feat.

But it was a challenge. IT WAS ON! It wasn't the prettiest thing, but I did it. That is all. I did it.

She also wanted us to do Wall Kick Ups, but all I got done were some donkey kicks. Sorry Robin. Baby steps here, baby steps.

Little man decided to join in on the fun too:

Yeah, he did it like 15 times. Show off.

Hubby joined in too. He was determined to do a handstand. He did really great too.

So now you're wondering. How did the hubby get broken?

Wednesday's bootcamp was the Ancient Pyramid (don't you love these names?). It looked like this:

 Star push ups - 10 reps

Knee slappers – 20 reps

Snowboarder jumps – 30 reps

Calf raises – 40 reps

Everest climbers – 50 reps

Calf raises – 40 reps

Snowboarder jumps – 30 reps

Knee slappers – 20 reps

Star push-ups – 10 reps

After our run, I told him I was going to go do the bootcamp workout. He said he would do it too. Wow!

So we are doing well. Working out side by side. A COMPLETE first. It was great. Yes, he was sweating buckets. I was at a distinct glow. No shocker there. And we got to the top of Everest. Sweet! I tell him, now we work back down.

Except when I looked over at him, he had this strange look on his face. He was breathing hard. And he looked kind of......GREEN.

UH-OH.

Keep going, he said, as he walked away.

I kept going, and going, and going. And then I finished.

............................................

It finally occurred to me that MAYBE I should check on him.

I found him in the bathroom, sitting on the floor.

Yes.

Hubby lost his cookies trying to do the Bootcamp!

Sympathy from the boy.  I think he's praying for him here?...

As much as I sympathized with him, 'cause it is NOT easy, despite how easy Robin makes it look....I think we've established that...I was feeling FIERCE!

I could physically do something that HE couldn't! WHAT?!!!

You have to know, that up until a few years ago, with work, kiddies etc, he has been THE athlete in this pair. Basketball, Baseball, Football - you name it, he rocked it.

So this was a huge moment for ME! Yeah, not a highlight for my man. But HUGE for ME!

Robin has also encouraged us to speak positively to ourselves. And I have to admit I have had LOTS of negative mind speak throughout my weight struggles.

But my a-ha moment in this story was this: I am a STRONG, FIT, WOMAN! I can't compare myself to other great fit athletic types. In that regard, I am no where close. But compared to where I started :

I am GREATLY improved.

Oh yeah. I am going to marinate on that one a while. And try not to gloat about out doing the hubby.

I said try....

Wordless Wednesday: Memorial Day Weekend

Transparency Tuesday: Frustrations!

Weight loss journeys are littered with frustrations.  As I challenge myself, and raise expectations, it gets even more difficult, especially when old habits die hard.

What are my recent frustrations?

1.  Doesn't this look delish?  

It SO was.  I'm also positive it blew my calories for the day out of the water.  But at that point I was too afraid to look. 

It's what happens when we try a new restaurant and I "think" I'm making better choices.  It's a portabello mushroom sandwich with hummus, according to the menu.  Unfortunately I either missed, or they didn't specify that the mushrooms would be breaded and fried.

Did I mention it was REALLY good?

2.  That leads me to my second frustration.

Oh it's a lovely score from my first whole foods trip.  It's not terrible by itself, although I bit high in calories.  Unfortunately, it is not the best choice for me as it has also been accompanied by some hearty bread.  Calories are not created equal, especially when you're insulin resistant.  (Reminder to self: Stop it, you are working too hard in this boot camp to sabotage yourself)

3.  High carbs mean I am not getting in my bootcamp ratio of 50% carbs/30%protein/20%fat.  Which means virtually no movement on the scale in week 2.  Bummer.

4.  I have to admit, I get frustrated at least once in each days set of exercises.  There are some things I cannot do, especially where upper body strength is required.  I've always known I am weak in that area.  But these workouts are making me face that weakness and it can be FRUSTRATING.  Case in point? Friday's Bootcamp army crawls   WARNING: Word to the naive: Don't do this on carpet.  OUCH! That is all.

5.  Over sized workout gear.  Have you ever tried to do Burpees in capris that now fit more like high water pants in a waist size two notches too big?   I wouldn't wish it on anyone.  But if it happens to you, this song might start playing in your head as you add the "pull your pants up" and "adjust your giant shirt that is wrapping around your body" moves to the repertoire.



Well, it will now ;)

#5 has been a long time coming.  It is a welcome reward of losing weight.  I really put it off because I know I have a way to go, and don't want to invest in clothes that I'm going to shrink out of.

This weekend I headed out to the outlet stores to try on (gasp!) some new work out gear.  The gasp is because I usually just grabbed whatever item was the largest and cheapest on the clearance rack.  You know, the stuff you think is covering your lady, and not so lady like, lumps and bumps?Whatever.  It wasn't going to look good, and I knew it wouldn't fall off. 

But do you know they make workout wear for each specific type of movement you could do?  Wow! Plethora of options.  It was actually fun - and very educational.

I found a motivational shirt and some shorts, and am going to cross my fingers for the rest, because both Running with Sass and Runs for Cookies have entered the Under Armour What's Beautiful Challenge to win $500 in new gear and I get a sweepstakes entry in exchange for telling you about it in this blog post!  You can check out the Under Armour What’s Beautiful site, and even sign up yourself.

Meanwhile, I'll just wear this shirt I picked up this weekend to remind myself that I can overcome these frustrations if I tell myself to:

Sweat or Glow?

Someone once told me that women don't sweat. 
Horses sweat.
Men perspire.
Women glow.

Hmm...

For most of my life that has been true in my case.

One hour zumba class?  Glow. 
3 mile run? Glow
Piloxing? Glow.
But you know what? 

I did notice that other women were sweating.
Like shirt drenched sweating.
Know what else? 

Some of them weren't even working as hard as I was.

After living by the fact that as I woman I should only glow during physical exertion, I found that I was really annoyed that I couldn't sweat!  I mean, I AM trying to lose weight.  Sweat is a welcome indicator that you're burning FAT! So I WANT to sweat. Right?

So I decided to look into it.

Why am I NOT sweating?

1.  Lack of hydration. Oh THAT. It's true.  Up until the bootcamp, and its suggested.. or is it required(?)... 96 oz of water daily.  I am definitely GUILTY of not even having a ONE glass of water in a day. I know, its AWFUL.  I'm living life extremely dehydrated.  I know, I know, it is not good.  But thankfully a little lesson from Candice, our RD from fitmixer, really hit home.  She gave us this bit of knowledge:

• Another important aspect of water is the effect on our kidneys. When we are dehydrated, our kidneys have to work twice as hard to clear toxins from our bodies, when this happens, our liver pitches in to help out our kidneys. When this happens, the liver is unable to do one of it’s primary jobs which is to burn stored fat for energy – YIKES! When we are working so hard to lower our body fat, it is really necessary to utilize every avenue we can, this includes staying hydrated so that our liver can do it’s job.

I also learned that when you're dehydrated your heart rate can increase to dangerous levels, and you can get dizzy, weak and confused because your brain and organs are receiving less oxygen. 

Okay, I'm convinced.  It is NOT cute to be a rebel in this area.  We are talking about MAJOR ORGANS here. No one messes with my organs! Not even me.  After my not so distant loss of core iron and minerals stores and all its complications, I don't take this lightly.

2.   Women have evolved sweat glands.  Ok, this sounds like the whole "glow" theory, but its actually true!  Did you know we actually have more sweat glands than men?  And though men sweat buckets (true in my husbands 'cause!), its not because they have MORE sweat glands, it's because their bodies don't regulate H2O loss as well as a woman.  So as soon as their bodies start to heat up, they sweat.  It's also why women bloat.  We get all the luck don't we?

3.  Sweating is not the only way that the body cools itself.  There is also:

1. Radiation - this is when heat radiates from your skin.  You've seen it.  A runner on a cold morning, steam cloud surrounding him or her.
2. Conduction - which is the transfer of heat.  Last Sunday's marathoners were encouraged to get in an ice water bath so that the water could absorb the heat from their overheated bodies.
3. Convection - or where moving air cools you down.  Remember standing in front of grandma's window fan and going "aaaaahhhhh" on a hot summer day?  ........ugh, am I dating myself again?
4. Evaporation - this is SWEATING people.  The water in your blood rises to the skins surface, absorbing heat along the way. Once at the surface via your sweat glands, it can evaporate and cool you down.

The last two fitmixer workouts involved some serious TABATA and something they called the FULL HOUSE.  Let me tell you now, they sound like fun and they even make them LOOK like fun.  And then when you actually DO them, you realize what masterminds these ladies are at getting you to WORK and/or suffer. 

You decide. 

Here are the parameters: Each card number determines the number of reps and the suit determines the exercise (see below). Face cards equal 10 reps, aces equal 11. Shuffle the full deck, then pick the top card and complete the corresponding exercise. Continue until you've completed the whole deck of cards. No rest in between.

• Hearts: Burpees
• Diamonds: Jack-Squats
• Spades: Jack Push-ups
• Clubs: Reverse Crunches

Seems fun right?  It is, until your body is screaming after your 56th burpee and it occurs to you in this madness that you are going to have to do 96 EACH of these.  

Now, it could be the recent and HUGE increase in water intake, or the fact that it was 91 degrees out the day I decided to do these, OR that I've NEVER tried anything like this in my LIFE, but guess what?

I did not glow.
I did not perspire.
For the first time ever, I not only felt the heat radiating from my skin,
I. did. sweat. 
Perspiration running off my head.
WHAT?!!!!

Remember Amanda's response when she cries for the first time in the movie "The Holiday"? No? Then watch the first minute here (watch the whole thing if you're a sap like me :)





Yeah, it went something like that. Except no tears, just sweat.  Oh, and no English chauffeur and.....oh, well - you get it.

So how about you?

Do you glow or do you sweat?