Monday's Report

After a weekend of not tracking my calories, I tried hard to get back to it today. The thing that helped me was the fact that I have NO FOOD in my house right now. Tomorrow is a BIG grocery shopping day for me (to stock our fridge AND get ready for Thanksgiving). I hope I can control myself when I have food around me! I only have a week and a half before DECEMBER 5th... my goal date to have lost the last 5 pounds! So, I'm hoping that knowledge will be my motivation!

DIET:
banana - 130
1/2 peanut butter and honey sandwich - 250
string cheese - 60
ZONE protein bar - 200
Trader Joe ABC crackers - 130
string cheese - 60
1/2 peanut butter and honey sandwich - 250
chicken noodle soup - 250?
crackers - 120?
Sourdough bread - 130?
bowl of cereal - 300
TOTAL = 1880

EXERCISE
30 minutes on bike
20 minute abs class
hour long weights class
10 minutes on elliptical
**(I am behind on my Book of Mormon reading goals and HAVE to catch up so I'm not reading all Christmas break, so there may be extra time reported on bike/elliptical in the next couple weeks!)

SUCCESS!

Today was weigh in and I did not expect to lose much because, whether I've admitted it or not, I have pretty much allowed treats back into my diet.  I shouldn't because those calories spent on chocolate would be so much better for my body if acquired by eating vegetables!... something I NEED to start eating more of.  Anyway, despite my expectations, I lost... drum roll... 2.4 lbs!  I give full credit to weight lifting and boosting my metabolism by lowering my body fat.  I think it is totally true that the more muscle you have, the more your body is burning, even when sitting around doing nothing!  Anyway, here are the rest of my stats for the day:

BMI - down .1

% body fat - down .2

Weight loss - 2.4 lbs

waist - down .5

hips - down .5

thighs - down .25

arms - still the same as when I started this diet months ago!  Why is that?

EXERCISE:

45 minutes triple fit (interval) class

20 minutes speed walking on treadmill

5 minutes leg weights

DIET:

ZONE protein bar - 200

(I will report the rest of my eating at the end of the day)

I HOPE EVERYONE ELSE HAD A GOOD WEIGH-IN FRIDAY!  KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

Wednesday's Report

My day was okay.  I fell into old habit and ate after 8:00.  Now I remember why it is so important, because I NEVER make good choices after 8:00!  I would have been GREAT if I would have distracted myself with something or gone to bed (early).

DIET:

protein shake (soy milk, banana, berries, protein powder) - 300

ZONE protein bar - 200

1/2 peanut and honey sandwich - 250

turkey burger - 150

whole wheat bun - 180

cheese - 60

mayo and ketchup - 60

chips - 200

joe joe's - 200

coconut almond clusters - 210

milk - 220

 TOTAL = 2030

EXERCISE:

1 hour of plyometrics

I never reported for yesterday.  It was pretty good.  I ended below 2000, which lately, is good for me.  I DID do some cardio on Monday night, so that was good.  Yesterday I did 4 miles on the treadmill (running 3 of it).  I also did 30 minutes of a Zumba class and biked for about 15 minutes.  

Monday's Bleak Report

My weekend was not the greatest. My dinner date on Friday kind of flowed over through the weekend. Today started out okay, but then my kids convinced me to make chocolate chip cookies (they are both out of school today). That kind of killed the numbers. My body needs 2300 calories to maintain my weight and I have been dangerously close to that number for the past FOUR days. So, I have to hit it HARD for the next three days if I want to lose anything (I'll be happy if it is .25 lbs! I just need gradual progress)

DIET:
banana - 150
Go Lean cereal - 200
yogurt - 120
milk - 40
sugar free chocolate treats - 150
graham crackers - 150
milk - 220
chocolate chip cookies - 500
Cafe Rio style pork - 350?
black beans - 130?
cilantro sauce - 130?
tortilla chips - 100
TOTAL: 2240

EXERCISE:
20-minute abs class
hour-long weights class

I was dragging today and didn't have it in me to do any cardio, so I'm going to try to do some tonight at home.

Friday Weigh In

THE BIG DAY!  Today was weigh in and I am actually happy to report that I lost .7 lbs (happy after Kolby's pep talk!)  The thing I am MOST happy about is losing .5% of body fat which means that I have officially met my goal for getting under 17%!  I have also lost 1/2 inch off my hips and a 1/4 inch off my thigh.  It is crazy how SLOW BMI takes to get down.  My first BMI test was on Sept 22 and it has taken me almost two months to get it to drop 1.0 point.  So, overall I am happy.  Kolby keeps reminding me that I need to stop obsessing over a "number" that I want to reach, weight-wise, because my body is different now than it was 8 years ago - I'm older, I've had two kids, I am actually MORE active now than I was back then, so my % of body fat is much different.  Regardless, although I am CLOSE to where I want to be, I am going to keep plugging along to see if I can lose a few more pounds.  

I should mention also that Kolby has dropped two pounds in the last couple weeks (he weighed after doing plyometrics and I think he sweated about a gallon of water, so I don't know if that affected it at all).  He is going to come into the gym this month to do weigh on a REAL scale and test his BMI and Body Fat.  

So, here is my  report for the day!  

DIET:

banana - 150

graham cracker - 60

Go Lean Cereal - 200

Milk - 40

Yogurt - 120

two bites of kids sloppy joe sandwiches - 60 

strawberries - 15

orange juice - 110

ZONE protein bar - 200

coconut shrimp - 400?

bread - 100

Caesar side salad - 600

sirloin medley - 500?

Diet Coke - 0 

TOTAL - 2555 (that's what I get for EATING OUT!)  

EXERCISE:

45 minutes of speed walking (3 miles)

15 minutes abs

I forgot how GREAT speed walking is.  I used to do it a lot because I heard that it "elongates" the muscles rather than bulks them up like running does.  I won't be surprised if my butt is a little sore tomorrow.  I raised the incline which helps get the heart rate up.  I'm going to try to do this maybe once a week.  I felt great afterward!

Thursday Report (and a funny story)

Good day today.  Here's the low down:

DIET:

yogurt - 120

go lean cereal - 200

milk - 40

ZONE protein bar - 200

battered fish - 175

tarter sauce - 75

2 slices of trader joe pizza - 200

two Joe Joe's - 130

Stir Fry with:

- wild grain rice - 150

- Broccoli - 30?

- Carrotts - 30?

- Onion - 20?

- Cashews - 110?

- Chicken - 120?

- Soyaki Sauce - 50

TOTAL: 1650

EXERCISE:

an hour weights class at the gym

ran 2 miles

Okay, so there is this guy at the gym who looks just like Michael Scoffield (Wentworh Miller) from Prison Break.  He has got to be a runner or something, because he is often doing sprint training on the treadmill.  Today, I ended up on the treadmill next to him and seeing him do mile runs at a speed of 8-10 (you know when you SNEAK a peek at another persons numbers on their machine!); it was making me feel somewhat competitive.  I usually run at 6.5... Not the fastest, but good for me since I am NOT a runner.  Today I started out at 7 and went up to 9 on each of my mile runs.  I have seen this guy get up to 13 on some runs before.  But for me, I felt good because I pushed myself and had a little bit of adrenaline at the thought of running next to Wentworth Miller (what if it really was him, you know?  Ha!  I am TOTALLY kidding!)  But I had a BRIGHT red face by the end of two miles and when I checked my heart rate... don't worry, it was in the 190's!  Okay, so definitely OUT of my zone, but maybe it's good to push my heart every once in awhile..?  (I am going to research that because Kolby thinks I was crazy and says that it's NOT good to be out of your zone).        

... Okay, I researched it (I'm posting this after the fact).  This is what I found.  It's interesting so I thought I'd share.  I probably won't be pushing my heart like that again:

QUESTION:

Is it bad to exercise above your target hear rate?:

ANSWER:

YES, this is bad because your workout becomes anaerobic.  This means that your body is burning energy without the presence of oxygen.  The carbohydrates in your muscles start to burn which causes acute exhaustion when this energy supply is burned off.  Your body can exercise aerobically until your body can no longer provide nutrients and oxygen to your muscles; this burns energy provided to your muscles, not the energy that the muscle is made of.  Anaerobic exercise only burns the energy within the muscle.  So, keep the heart rate down a little.  Let the body provide the energy, not the muscles.  

MY TARGET HEART RATE - 105 - 163

CLICK HERE To calculate your  T.H.R.

Wednesday Report

DIET:
Banana - 120
Protein Shake - 350
(Includes milk, banana, berries, protein powder)
ZONE Protein bar - 200
Light popcorn - 150
sesame honey cashews - 200
edemame - 200
blueberry pancakes - 250
croissant - 110
eggs - 130
TOTAL = 1710

EXERCISE:
1-hour of Plyometrics

Tuesday's Report

It's NOT pretty today, but here it is:

DIET:
Raisin Bran - 250
1/2 peanut butter and honey sandwich - 250
Orange Juice - 110
trader Joes baked cheesies - 130
ZONE Protein bar - 200
Kit Kat - 200 (don't ask!)
Trader Joe's Pizza - 350
tiny slice of ciabatta with peanut butter and honey - 130
Trader Joe's chocolate - 350 (don't ask... again!)
TOTAL: 1970

EXERCISE:
none :(

I'm not sure what my deal was today, but I know that NOT working out this morning affected my eating. Although it was nice to have a couple extra hours to get things done that I would not have had I worked out. I am realizing how much of my time during the day is spent exercising (part of the reason why I love early morning classes, so it doesn't cut into my day). I usually do a 6:00 a.m. class on Tuesdays but I didn't get to bed until after midnight and slept through my alarm... UGH!

On a positive note, my research has shown me that I can lose weight on a diet of 1730-1850 calories a day. I am doubtful of that since my success has come when I keep it below 1500. But we'll see on Friday (I better kick it in gear!)

Monday Report

Here is my report for the day:
DIET:
small apple - 60
hard boiled egg - 70
simple harvest oatmeal with pecans - 160
1/2 cup of milk - 45
Atkins protein bar - 200
butternut squash soup - 150
string cheese - 80
raisin bran - 250
turkey sloppy joes
bun - 120
meat - 200
cheese - 70
pickles - 15
potato chips - 150
orange juice - 110
TOTAL SO FAR: 1680

EXERCISE:
35 minutes on treadmill
20 minute abs class
hour long weights class

I am worried about bulking up with all the weights that I am doing. I seem to either be doing weights or high cardio (at the peak of my target heart rate zone). So, I have decided that I am going spend more time in the cardio and "fat burning zone," which for me is a heart rate of about 125-140. I will still do weights, but I think I'm going to keep it to Monday and Thursday and do Yoga on Saturdays. That is pretty much what I was doing except instead of Yoga, I've been doing an extra day of weights. We'll see how it goes.

Great Resource!

I found this great resource for figuring out your daily caloric needs each day (for maintenance, weight loss, and weight gain). It is all based on weight, height, age, and % body fat. There is a link into an excel document at the bottom of this web page. Open it up for a spreadsheet that will calculate the "Katch-McArdle" and the "Harris-Benedict" method for you. (at the top of the spreadsheet, just delete the current weight, height, age, body fat info and type in your own... the rest is automatically calculated).

I hope this is helpful!

Click here for the link (remember to scroll to the very bottom for the spreadsheet link)
http://www.discussbodybuilding.com

Sunday Report

Okay, so the P90X legs work out obviously KICKED my butt, because I could barely get out of bed this morning. Even Kolby is sore (surprising to me because his butt is seriously hard as steel!... ha, I'm sure you ALL were dying to know that!). I am growing to love P90X. The guy who made it is a total goofball and I often rolled me eyes at him at first, but after noticing a difference in our lives (Kolby more than mine so far), we have grown to LOVE him! His quirkiness has become endearing. Anyway, hopefully the soreness will be gone in time for my weights class tomorrow.

Here is the damage for today:
DIET
steel cut oats - 130
pecans - 80
raisins - 65
brown sugar - 80
milk - 40
hard boiled egg - 70
half tuna sandwich - 200
chips - 130
ZONE protein bar - 200
turkey meatloaf - 200
Butternut squash soup - 200
ciabatta bread - 150
butter - 60
Trader Joes Chocolate - 300
TOTAL = 1905

Okay, I am embarrassed to have to admit that I CANNOT let go of sugar right now! Seriously, I don't know what my deal is! I don't know if I just need a "light bulb moment" like Natalie talked about (I love that Nat). I am kind of getting discouraged with myself that my willpower is so weak. I think I am going to move ALL of the chocolate in our house up to Kolby's study room. We are bad because we ALWAYS have trader joe treats around. I know that is the only thing that is going to work for me, so I will report in tomorrow on how I do. Hopefully keeping it out of sight will be enough (that the treck up the two flights of stairs better be enough to keep me away from it! If not, I may have to just throw it out).

Saturday Report

DIET:
Banana - 170
yogurt - 120
cereal - 200
open face tuna - 260
trader joes cheetos - 130
turkey burger with cheese - 450
potato chips - 150
TOTAL = 1480

EXERCISE:
An hour on legs and back (pull-ups baby!)
20 minute P90X ABS!

Good day but Kolby and I talked today about how we tend to eat the same meals for breakfast and lunch... for me that means repeated protein drinks, yogurt, cereal, and tuna. Although I know it is all good for me, we talked about trying to switch things up and have more variety in our diets. P90X has a link to "Michi's Ladder" which ranks foods by nutritional value. Check it out HERE

Speaking of repeated meals. Can I just mention my new favorite... I highly recommend trying this one for breakfast:The small carton of yogurt (blueberry is my favorite). The plain yogurt is better for you though; sweeten it with splenda or maple syrup.

I mix a cup of GO LEAN cereal with my yogurt and add just a touch of skim milk. It is so good! The calories end up being the same as my protein drinks and I get the same amount of protein - 16 grams. Plus 8 grams of fiber. The sugar is a little high, but it is organic (on my "strict" no sugar diet, I would not allow this). The reason I like it so much is that it satisfies me longer. I am REALLY full until lunch and don't feel the need to snack before the next meal. I'm telling you, you HAVE to try it!

Friday Report

Today was a good day except in the sugar department. My kids trade their Halloween candy in for a prize and I stashed it away to use for stockings at Christmas. Well, the knowledge that it was there got to me. The good news is that it is gone. The bad news is that I ate it. Not all of it, but several chocolate pieces. The rest is now in the trash since I obviously cannot handle having it around. I did so well last weekend on my NO SUGAR challenge that I'm going to start it up again. Since I need a time frame to work within... I am going to try to go TWO FULL weeks with NO sugar. I think I was shy one day the very first time we did the two week challenge, so for me, I need to use the "challenge" as motivation. Hold me to it!

Here is the my daily report:
DIET:
banana - 150
raisin bran - 375
zone bar - 200
snack-size snickers - 100
Butternut Squash soup - 300
Ciabatta bread - 200
arugula salad - 400
TOTAL (before junk): 1725
total estimated calories on junk candy (I am only reporting this because I promised Natalie that I would report EVERY day. You don't know how bad I want to LIE right now! I guess I need this as one of those "light bulb moments")
total candy calories - 600
TOTAL = 2325

EXERCISE:
hour-long triple fit class
6 miles on the bike
ran 1 mile

Kickin' it in GEAR!!!

I just spoke with my friend Natalie. We both cheated and weighed in a day early (not knowing that the other was doing it), and we both feel discouraged by our lack of progress. In short, we concluded that we need to KICK IT IN GEAR! We are both on the countdown to our vacations (a cruise for her, Hawaii for me). So, since working out is not enough for me (I do it EVERY day... well 6 days a week... and I haven't lost a pound in 3 weeks!), Natalie is going to HOLD ME TO a more strict diet! Thank goodness for friends who can hold me accountable, because I obviously NEED it. With this re-commitment, I am going to report daily my calorie intake. I know they are not the most exciting posts to read, but I am not doing this blog for anyone but myself (I doubt I have many readers... other than my support girls). So, starting today, although it's not pretty, here are my calories for the day:

Diet:
blueberry yogurt - 120
Go Lean cereal - 200
1/2 cup of milk - 45
open face tuna on whole wheat bread - 320
potato chips - 150
dark chocolate covered blueberries - 180
ZONE protein bar - 200
Calzone - 650
TOTAL = 1865

Exercise:
hour long weights class
5 1/2 miles on bike
30 minutes walking on treadmill
(I know this may seem like a lot, but it is the only way I can get some reading in that I need to in order meet some reading goals that I have!)