What I ate today:
6" veggie sandwich on wheat
1 cup of coffee (c&s)
60 oz lemon water
baked french fries
1.5 cups Jasmine rice with stirfried mushrooms, peppers, ginger, orange zest, dash of Tamari Soy
What I did today:
Mixed Martial Arts Fitness Class 40 minutes (heavy on arms & abs)
30 minutes interval running
60 walking lunges 15 lb weights
20 walking lunges, no weights
10X3 Adductor 190 lbs plus 20 second pulses at the end
10X3 Abductor 200 lbs plus 20 second pulses at the end
10X3 Seated Leg Press 190 lbs
5X3 Smith Machine Squats 90 lbs
10 minutes Elliptical
20 minutes Treadmill 3.5mph. Incline 4
Roller skating 1 hour
Plan for tomorrow:
MMA Fitness
30 minute Run
Arms & Abs (I did legs today because my arms and abs got a great workout at MMA)
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
FINALLY! A Bit of Visual Progress
It's been 10 weeks since my sister Sam and I started going to the gym regularly and seriously. My weight dropped a bit at first. 7 lbs to be exact. But I have since put 3-5 lbs back on, depending on the day. I don't worry about the number on the scale much. I know that I want to lose fat, and build muscle.
I take pictures and measurements at the end of the week, almost every week. But I honestly couldn't see any changes looking at those pictures. My body feels different. It just didn't look different. But tonight I got undressed to get in the shower and thought I'd have a look see. Holy hell my butt looks different. I want to be all cool about it like "My glutes are really starting to progress, and I can see a separation from my hamstrings that wasn't there before". But I'm pretty excited about finally having a bit of visual progress! My butt is looking pretty nice. Not finished. But pretty nice. It's firmer, and rounder. But my favorite part? It no longer looks like it's sliding down the back of my legs and into the backs of my thighs (hamstrings). There is a defined separation between butt and thigh. And that is awesome.
So I'm going to keep on pushing myself. We're going to go to mixed martial arts fitness twice a week in addition to the 4 times a week we go to the gym. I do wish our weekly rest days were not three days in a row. But Sam works a strange schedule, so it's 4 days gym, 3 days off for now. When the weather does something other than cold and windy I'll start running on at least one of those days too.
I do have to be more vigilant about my diet. I need to go grocery shopping. And when we're low on fresh yummy food I resort to quick and easy crap. It's time I put my hands up and backed slowly away from the pizza. So I have made a shopping list and tomorrow is grocery day.
*Oh, and I already failed at my 30 days with no wine challenge. It's less. But it is still wine. I'm going to keep working on this. Don't lose faith in me yet :)
What I ate today:
10oz fresh juice (apple, carrot and lemon)
Veggie burger with cheese, Whole Wheat bun, BBQ sauce, tomatoes
2 cups of coffee (cream and sugar)
Tortilla chips and salsa
3 small fresh veggie and fruit wraps (6" Tortillas)
50 oz water with lemon
What I did:
C25K W5D1 warm up, 5 minute run and 3 minute walk X3
60 walking lunges w/ 15 lb weights
10X3 Abductor Machine 190 lbs
10X3 Adductor machine 190 lbs
10X3 Seated Leg Press 190 lbs
Plan for tomorrow:
Morning MMA class
Gym for Arms and Ab workout
30 minutes of interval running on treadmill
Grocery shopping
60 oz water
I take pictures and measurements at the end of the week, almost every week. But I honestly couldn't see any changes looking at those pictures. My body feels different. It just didn't look different. But tonight I got undressed to get in the shower and thought I'd have a look see. Holy hell my butt looks different. I want to be all cool about it like "My glutes are really starting to progress, and I can see a separation from my hamstrings that wasn't there before". But I'm pretty excited about finally having a bit of visual progress! My butt is looking pretty nice. Not finished. But pretty nice. It's firmer, and rounder. But my favorite part? It no longer looks like it's sliding down the back of my legs and into the backs of my thighs (hamstrings). There is a defined separation between butt and thigh. And that is awesome.
So I'm going to keep on pushing myself. We're going to go to mixed martial arts fitness twice a week in addition to the 4 times a week we go to the gym. I do wish our weekly rest days were not three days in a row. But Sam works a strange schedule, so it's 4 days gym, 3 days off for now. When the weather does something other than cold and windy I'll start running on at least one of those days too.
I do have to be more vigilant about my diet. I need to go grocery shopping. And when we're low on fresh yummy food I resort to quick and easy crap. It's time I put my hands up and backed slowly away from the pizza. So I have made a shopping list and tomorrow is grocery day.
*Oh, and I already failed at my 30 days with no wine challenge. It's less. But it is still wine. I'm going to keep working on this. Don't lose faith in me yet :)
What I ate today:
10oz fresh juice (apple, carrot and lemon)
Veggie burger with cheese, Whole Wheat bun, BBQ sauce, tomatoes
2 cups of coffee (cream and sugar)
Tortilla chips and salsa
3 small fresh veggie and fruit wraps (6" Tortillas)
50 oz water with lemon
What I did:
C25K W5D1 warm up, 5 minute run and 3 minute walk X3
60 walking lunges w/ 15 lb weights
10X3 Abductor Machine 190 lbs
10X3 Adductor machine 190 lbs
10X3 Seated Leg Press 190 lbs
Plan for tomorrow:
Morning MMA class
Gym for Arms and Ab workout
30 minutes of interval running on treadmill
Grocery shopping
60 oz water
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Hard Workout, Boost of Energy!
Yesterday I did not love my workout. I did it, but I was tired and my heart wasn't in it. Today I worked my butt off but it made me feel energized! I was pumped up when I left MMA, and we went straight to the gym to run. Couch to 5K week 5 day 2. No problem. Then I did abs. Then the elliptical.
Some days are better than others. Sometimes I just don't feel like doing it but I do anyway. I know I'll feel worse if I don't. But then some days I love every bead of sweat on my brow and I can't wait to do more. I wish they were all days like that.
My sister Sam and I have decided to go to mixed martial arts fitness twice a week. I got a 10 session punch card but if we're going to go that often I'll just buy a membership. It would be a lot cheaper in the long run.
Speaking of my sister, having a workout buddy is awesome and we really push each other to do better. She will not let me stop before I've finished all of my reps. No matter how tired I am. It makes me work harder. And she pushed herself harder because she is competitive and she can't have her little sister beat her at something. I'm pretty lucky to have her. Today her daughter even came with us to MMA. She did awesome and I'm pretty sure she'll be going back. Punching things is a great workout and it's pretty fun.
Next week we're going to go check out a combat fitness class from Union Street Athletics. It sounds interesting and they offer a free pass. I'll try just about any workout that offers a free class. I'll let you know how it goes.
What I ate Today:
5.50z can of V8 juice
1.5C orzo, grape tomatoes, kalamata olives, lemon juice and olive oil
1C homemade mac & Cheese w/ broccoli, roasted red peppers and spinach
What I did:
Mixed Martial Arts fitness class (apx 45 minutes)
Couch to 5k w5d2 (8 minute run, 5 min walk, 8 min run)
15X3 Sit ups with 8 lb weighted ball
15X3 Twisting Sit ups with 8 lb weighted ball
15 minutes Elliptical (various levels)
Some days are better than others. Sometimes I just don't feel like doing it but I do anyway. I know I'll feel worse if I don't. But then some days I love every bead of sweat on my brow and I can't wait to do more. I wish they were all days like that.
My sister Sam and I have decided to go to mixed martial arts fitness twice a week. I got a 10 session punch card but if we're going to go that often I'll just buy a membership. It would be a lot cheaper in the long run.
Speaking of my sister, having a workout buddy is awesome and we really push each other to do better. She will not let me stop before I've finished all of my reps. No matter how tired I am. It makes me work harder. And she pushed herself harder because she is competitive and she can't have her little sister beat her at something. I'm pretty lucky to have her. Today her daughter even came with us to MMA. She did awesome and I'm pretty sure she'll be going back. Punching things is a great workout and it's pretty fun.
Next week we're going to go check out a combat fitness class from Union Street Athletics. It sounds interesting and they offer a free pass. I'll try just about any workout that offers a free class. I'll let you know how it goes.
What I ate Today:
5.50z can of V8 juice
1.5C orzo, grape tomatoes, kalamata olives, lemon juice and olive oil
1C homemade mac & Cheese w/ broccoli, roasted red peppers and spinach
What I did:
Mixed Martial Arts fitness class (apx 45 minutes)
Couch to 5k w5d2 (8 minute run, 5 min walk, 8 min run)
15X3 Sit ups with 8 lb weighted ball
15X3 Twisting Sit ups with 8 lb weighted ball
15 minutes Elliptical (various levels)
Saturday, March 22, 2014
30 Days, No Wine
I love going to the gym. I really do (most days). And I am really excited about the progress I've made. I am stronger. I have more stamina. I could just barely run 60 seconds on my first day of C25K and today I ran 28 minutes. That's huge. I'm feeling results. But I'm not seeing them.
I take progress photos and measurements almost weekly and I honestly can't see a change from week 2 to week 8. My clothes aren't fitting any better. I can feel muscles under there, but I can't see them. Pretty frustrating. But I know there has to be a reason for it. I am working hard. I don't think the lack of change is due to not working hard enough at the gym. I push myself. So I have to look at my diet.
My diet is pretty clean and consists of mostly vegetables. I eat pasta a couple of times a week. Bread a couple of times a week. I have a fresh juice in the morning before the gym and a high protein smoothie after. Nothing that raises a red flag. Except for.... my wine.
I have read that when you're getting fit you should not have any more than 3 drinks a week. I laughed at that. I mean, who doesn't love a glass of wine or a beer or two in the evening to unwind? But those one or two add up over the week. And as much as I don't want to believe it, I think it may be the thing that's holding me back and keeping this nice layer of cushion over my pretty new muscles. I'm working really hard for them and I want to see them, so I'm willing to give it up. For 30 days. Seriously.
I rarely drink to get drunk. But when I take an honest look at it, I do drink almost every evening. A glass. Or two. Or three. And probably once a week I have drinks with my sister. On that night it's a couple extra drinks. When I add those up I see a big red flag.
So today I'm going to take before photos and measurements. I'm going to keep eating what I eat and keep pushing myself in my workouts and see what happens. In 30 days if I don't feel any better or look any better, well I can always hop back off this wagon at the nearest wine store. They'll still make wine in 30 days, right?
Here is what I ate today:
One slice of thin crust mushroom and spinach pizza
8oz smoothie
(apx) 2 cups of orzo salad with lemon and olive oil. Tons of veggies.
a few chips and salsa.
2oz prune juice (yeah, I like it)
Water. Lots of water. Probably 60oz
Workout:
5 minute walking warm up
28 minutes of running (Couch to 5k Week 8 Day 2)
60 walking lunges w/ 15 lb weights
10X 3 Hip adductor machine 180 lbs
10X3 Hip Abductor machine 180 lbs
10X2 Standing Glute Kickback machine 90 lbs
10X3 Horizontal Leg Press Machine 190 lbs/170 lbs
10X2 Seated Leg Curls (Don't remember the weight)
5X3 Smith Machine Squats 90 lbs
10 Tricept dips (Even though it was leg day)
I take progress photos and measurements almost weekly and I honestly can't see a change from week 2 to week 8. My clothes aren't fitting any better. I can feel muscles under there, but I can't see them. Pretty frustrating. But I know there has to be a reason for it. I am working hard. I don't think the lack of change is due to not working hard enough at the gym. I push myself. So I have to look at my diet.
My diet is pretty clean and consists of mostly vegetables. I eat pasta a couple of times a week. Bread a couple of times a week. I have a fresh juice in the morning before the gym and a high protein smoothie after. Nothing that raises a red flag. Except for.... my wine.
I have read that when you're getting fit you should not have any more than 3 drinks a week. I laughed at that. I mean, who doesn't love a glass of wine or a beer or two in the evening to unwind? But those one or two add up over the week. And as much as I don't want to believe it, I think it may be the thing that's holding me back and keeping this nice layer of cushion over my pretty new muscles. I'm working really hard for them and I want to see them, so I'm willing to give it up. For 30 days. Seriously.
I rarely drink to get drunk. But when I take an honest look at it, I do drink almost every evening. A glass. Or two. Or three. And probably once a week I have drinks with my sister. On that night it's a couple extra drinks. When I add those up I see a big red flag.
So today I'm going to take before photos and measurements. I'm going to keep eating what I eat and keep pushing myself in my workouts and see what happens. In 30 days if I don't feel any better or look any better, well I can always hop back off this wagon at the nearest wine store. They'll still make wine in 30 days, right?
Here is what I ate today:
One slice of thin crust mushroom and spinach pizza
8oz smoothie
(apx) 2 cups of orzo salad with lemon and olive oil. Tons of veggies.
a few chips and salsa.
2oz prune juice (yeah, I like it)
Water. Lots of water. Probably 60oz
Workout:
5 minute walking warm up
28 minutes of running (Couch to 5k Week 8 Day 2)
60 walking lunges w/ 15 lb weights
10X 3 Hip adductor machine 180 lbs
10X3 Hip Abductor machine 180 lbs
10X2 Standing Glute Kickback machine 90 lbs
10X3 Horizontal Leg Press Machine 190 lbs/170 lbs
10X2 Seated Leg Curls (Don't remember the weight)
5X3 Smith Machine Squats 90 lbs
10 Tricept dips (Even though it was leg day)
Friday, March 21, 2014
Vitaize Peel
I have never had a professional facial before so I decided to get one. A friend suggested that I get the Vitalize Peel. It's supposed to be the most bang for your buck. I read up on it and decided it sounded great. But I couldn't get over the discomfort with the idea of a stranger touching my face and burning my skin with acid :) I would rather do that myself.
Now everything I read about the Vitalize Peel said unless you have had them done professionally several times, do not do this yourself. And maybe not even then. But there are a lot of people who do them at home and get great results. I consider myself to be pretty smart and careful. So I purchased the chemicals on line and decided to give it a go. It is a 3 step kit.
3 weeks ago I did the peel. I decided I'd rather err on the side of caution, so I only made one light pass of each chemical. I got a light peel over the following week but not any real results I could see. So I waited 3 weeks and did it again, being more liberal with the chemicals.
Day 1~ Peel day. Moisturized with coconut oil. Washed with Cetaphil and moisturized again before bed. My skin looks pink.
Day 2~ Skin still looks pink, feels tight, no peeling.
Day 3~ Skin is pink, tight. Slight peeling around my mouth.
Day 4~ Today I've got a good peel starting. Still mostly around my mouth and nose, but moving onto my cheeks. My skin does look nice. Still feels tight. Moisturizing and using sunscreen about 4 times a day.
Day 7~ Peeling has stopped and my skin does look fresher. I don't feel like it made a huge difference, but some. So I'm going to stick with my glycolic acid for now. I might try a second and third round of Vitalize in a couple of months.
I want to note that I used Cetaphil wash for my face during this process. Coconut oil for my moisturizer (which is my regular moisturizer) and Aveeno Face Sunscreen with a broad spectrum SPF 30. I NEVER leave the house without sunscreen on my face when it's sunny but I do slack in the winter. Not when I'm doing a chemical peel. Sunscreen, lots of it, every time I leave the house, even if it's not sunny. This is super important. I don't want to sun damage my beautiful new skin.
Now everything I read about the Vitalize Peel said unless you have had them done professionally several times, do not do this yourself. And maybe not even then. But there are a lot of people who do them at home and get great results. I consider myself to be pretty smart and careful. So I purchased the chemicals on line and decided to give it a go. It is a 3 step kit.
3 weeks ago I did the peel. I decided I'd rather err on the side of caution, so I only made one light pass of each chemical. I got a light peel over the following week but not any real results I could see. So I waited 3 weeks and did it again, being more liberal with the chemicals.
Day 1~ Peel day. Moisturized with coconut oil. Washed with Cetaphil and moisturized again before bed. My skin looks pink.
Day 2~ Skin still looks pink, feels tight, no peeling.
Day 3~ Skin is pink, tight. Slight peeling around my mouth.
Day 4~ Today I've got a good peel starting. Still mostly around my mouth and nose, but moving onto my cheeks. My skin does look nice. Still feels tight. Moisturizing and using sunscreen about 4 times a day.
Day 7~ Peeling has stopped and my skin does look fresher. I don't feel like it made a huge difference, but some. So I'm going to stick with my glycolic acid for now. I might try a second and third round of Vitalize in a couple of months.
I want to note that I used Cetaphil wash for my face during this process. Coconut oil for my moisturizer (which is my regular moisturizer) and Aveeno Face Sunscreen with a broad spectrum SPF 30. I NEVER leave the house without sunscreen on my face when it's sunny but I do slack in the winter. Not when I'm doing a chemical peel. Sunscreen, lots of it, every time I leave the house, even if it's not sunny. This is super important. I don't want to sun damage my beautiful new skin.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Mixed Martial Arts is Hard!
Today was switch it up day.
My sister and I go to the gym four days a week. It usually looks something like this:
Tuesday~ Legs & Glutes
Wed~ Arms & abs
Thurs~ Legs & Glutes
Fri~ Arms & Abs
In addition to running every one of those days too.
After about 7 weeks we started to get bored. Getting bored at the gym is a bad thing. Bored leads to lazy leads to quitting. So I started looking into some other fitness classes that we could take maybe once a week. Just to switch things up a bit. It would be new, not boring, and I'd learn some things I could add to my routine. Most places offer a first class free so you can try it out. Others offer a cheap drop-in rate. Drop in is great if you want to go just one day a week.
I had planned to make a list and try a new drop in class every week. Then pick one or two to go back to. But on week one we went to a Mixed Martial Arts fitness class and loved it! So we went again today. There it lots of punching and kicking, push-ups and crunches, lunges and quick steps... and punching some more! I couldn't quite keep up today. I worked hard and sweat buckets, but there were a few times he called 'High Knees' when I just couldn't get my knees up there. I think it's still a great boost to my fitness routine.
After MMA we went straight to the gym. Still had to get a run in. Yesterday I ran week 8 day 2. But today I just didn't have that in me after being at MMA. My sister has been having trouble keeping up with her progress in running. Probably largely because she is a smoker. So she has been getting discouraged lately. So today we decided to go back to week 5 and work back up. At least for this week. And we completed it!
What I ate Today:
6oz Juice
Orzo Salad
8oz smoothie
Homemade Mac & Cheese with spinach, broccoli and roasted red peppers
3 grape tomatoes
My Workout:
MMA Fitness class
C25K Week5 Day1- 5 minute running, 3 minute walking, repeat X3
My sister and I go to the gym four days a week. It usually looks something like this:
Tuesday~ Legs & Glutes
Wed~ Arms & abs
Thurs~ Legs & Glutes
Fri~ Arms & Abs
In addition to running every one of those days too.
After about 7 weeks we started to get bored. Getting bored at the gym is a bad thing. Bored leads to lazy leads to quitting. So I started looking into some other fitness classes that we could take maybe once a week. Just to switch things up a bit. It would be new, not boring, and I'd learn some things I could add to my routine. Most places offer a first class free so you can try it out. Others offer a cheap drop-in rate. Drop in is great if you want to go just one day a week.
I had planned to make a list and try a new drop in class every week. Then pick one or two to go back to. But on week one we went to a Mixed Martial Arts fitness class and loved it! So we went again today. There it lots of punching and kicking, push-ups and crunches, lunges and quick steps... and punching some more! I couldn't quite keep up today. I worked hard and sweat buckets, but there were a few times he called 'High Knees' when I just couldn't get my knees up there. I think it's still a great boost to my fitness routine.
After MMA we went straight to the gym. Still had to get a run in. Yesterday I ran week 8 day 2. But today I just didn't have that in me after being at MMA. My sister has been having trouble keeping up with her progress in running. Probably largely because she is a smoker. So she has been getting discouraged lately. So today we decided to go back to week 5 and work back up. At least for this week. And we completed it!
What I ate Today:
6oz Juice
Orzo Salad
8oz smoothie
Homemade Mac & Cheese with spinach, broccoli and roasted red peppers
3 grape tomatoes
My Workout:
MMA Fitness class
C25K Week5 Day1- 5 minute running, 3 minute walking, repeat X3
Monday, March 10, 2014
Smoothie Day
Today is smoothie day. And I like smoothie day.
Rather than make a smoothie every day after I get back from the gym I make up 7 smoothies at a time and freeze them. When I grab one today from the fridge I move another from the freezer so it will be thawed by tomorrow.
I use half pint Ball canning jars with a wide mouth. Most of my fruit is already cut up and in the freezer, but I use whatever I've got on hand the day I make them. If I have a bunch of kale or blueberries that need to be used up, they go in my smoothies that week. Today I used:
Silken Tofu (3/4 package)
2 bananas
2 heaping TBS Peanut butter
Handful of fresh spinach
1 apple
1 orange
8 strawberries
3 chunks of pineapple
2TBS wheat germ
1TBS nutritional yeast
2tsp ground flax
Vanilla almond milk
I just throw it all in my smoothie maker or my blender. I add almond milk as needed to make it blend up to a smooth texture. It makes about 48oz.
A lot of people use protein powder in their smoothies, but I skip it.
Other than being yummy, smoothies help me recover from my work out, and kicks up the muscle building. There are a million recipes and measurements for the perfect smoothie. Do mine have the perfect balance of carbs and proteins? I don't know. I know they have a lot of fruit and vegetables, plenty of protein, and they give me a boost. I can't eat for a couple of hours after the gym and this keeps me from getting all light headed.
Rather than make a smoothie every day after I get back from the gym I make up 7 smoothies at a time and freeze them. When I grab one today from the fridge I move another from the freezer so it will be thawed by tomorrow.
I use half pint Ball canning jars with a wide mouth. Most of my fruit is already cut up and in the freezer, but I use whatever I've got on hand the day I make them. If I have a bunch of kale or blueberries that need to be used up, they go in my smoothies that week. Today I used:
Silken Tofu (3/4 package)
2 bananas
2 heaping TBS Peanut butter
Handful of fresh spinach
1 apple
1 orange
8 strawberries
3 chunks of pineapple
2TBS wheat germ
1TBS nutritional yeast
2tsp ground flax
Vanilla almond milk
I just throw it all in my smoothie maker or my blender. I add almond milk as needed to make it blend up to a smooth texture. It makes about 48oz.
A lot of people use protein powder in their smoothies, but I skip it.
Other than being yummy, smoothies help me recover from my work out, and kicks up the muscle building. There are a million recipes and measurements for the perfect smoothie. Do mine have the perfect balance of carbs and proteins? I don't know. I know they have a lot of fruit and vegetables, plenty of protein, and they give me a boost. I can't eat for a couple of hours after the gym and this keeps me from getting all light headed.
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