Thursday, February 21, 2013

Recent Happenings - Plus Weigh-in!

My four week challenge of not weighing in was a complete success! Over the 4 weeks of just focusing on being healthy i managed to dance my way down 5.5lbs. The following week, i was down another 1.3lbs so i'm almost 7lbs down over 5 weeks time. It's a Valentine's day miracle! Well, not really, it's because i said no to chocolate on Valentine's day. Self-control people!

Which brings us to another weigh in tomorrow, we'll see how that one goes! My new goal is to be down 10lbs and a dress size by April 6th. Holiday weight be gone.

So speaking of Valentine's day. This year instead of doing the traditional binge on sweets and grease or pasta we had a healthy dinner of sushi. Way to stay on plan! I'm super proud of hubby and i for having a great 6 weeks in the eating department. We still have a ways to go to get us back where we were before my pregnancy with the twins but we are well on our way.

I started Weight Watchers back this week. SO happy about that. I adore Weight Watchers. It really seems to help simplify things for me and takes the guesswork out of which foods are good to eat. 5 points for those potato chips or 0 points for that bowl of pineapple? HELLO easy decisions.

I'm also starting a new workout routine of every other day now. My workouts are getting harder and my muscles are getting more sore every time so my body needs the time off to recover. It will be interesting. I'm so stuck on having to workout every single day that it feels like i'm cheating to take a day off.

Non fitness related news -

My kids are wild and crazy and i'm pretty sure i will never sleep again!

People always ask me how i do it and how i find the time and they assume my kids are nice and calm, play to themselves, sleep when they are supposed to.

No...

Not even a little bit.

I'm tired. I am ALWAYS tired. I am ALWAYS busy. My monsters (twins) do not take care of themselves, nor are they ever quiet. They are the biggest challenge i have ever faced. Losing 100lbs was easier. Giving up chocolate would be easier. Shaving my head and getting a tattoo on my face...

Would

Be

Easier.

The twins still do not sleep through the night, the are opinionated, loud, and rambunctious. This mama was not made to handle rough and tumble boys! They are starting to talk, but still not able to which upsets them that we don't always understand their wants and needs. They are teething canines (finally their last teeth!), they are running a mile a minute, and showing more personality every day. It's very obvious that D will be the ringleader of everyone and will take roll as the bossy older brother - even of L. J is adorable, and loving, but when he's unhappy, everyone within a mile radius knows. J is also quite the womanizer and has been stopped numerous times trying to run off with pretty women of his liking.

L is finally through the "terrible 2's &3's" and is amazingly smart. No argument can be won against her because she will logically explain how she is right and you are wrong. She is also an amazing big sister, and mommy's helper. I can only hope that the monsters grow up to be as great a kid as she is.

Together they are all a massive handful. I'm glad they are all so close together in age, they are all best friends already, but they are tough. Most days i am begging for bedtime by 5pm, somewhere around the time that i'm trying to cook dinner while D is hanging off my leg screaming, J is trying to stick his hand in the hot oven, and L is running around the room in circles acting like she's on fire, but i wouldn't have it any other way.

So how do i do it?

I'll get back to you on that in about five years!

For now, Eat, sleep, breathe, laugh, love, enjoy, repeat!






Thursday, February 7, 2013

There Is No Magic Number

One of my friends posted a link to a fantastic article that kind of goes along with my "Food" entry from yesterday. I covered some basic rules for eating and weight loss, but i didn't include information about the dreaded weight loss plateau. You are just starting out or need a refresher course? Great, then that entry is perfect for you! Been at it a while and stuck? Maybe this one is better.

5 Reasons You Might Not Be Losing Weight is an article on Beachbody's Website (found via the Turbofire FB page and my awesome friend Sam) that covers some pretty awesome basics of plateaus. What really hit home to me though was the 5th reason which touches on eating more to lose more.

When you are losing weight, do you allow yourself cheat days? Cheat meals? How often?

Do you stick to the perfect 1200 calories every single day? Ok fine, but do you workout on top of that? Consistently eating only 1200 calories a day and working out on top of that without eating any calories back seems like a great idea in the beginning, but not so much when your body gets used to it and plateaus. Why? Because you are starving it. Your body needs a minimum of 1200 calories a day, if you are burning 500 calories a day, then you need to make sure you are eating some healthy foods to make up for that loss to keep you around the 1200 mark in the very least.

That's not to say that every day you can walk on the treadmill for an hour and go out and binge eat, but your body needs change and it needs you to keep it moving and guessing.

This article says to eat MORE calories to lose weight, and it's hard for any of us to wrap our heads around that, but it's true. I'm a firm believer in cheat days and calorie cycling. I still have plateaus but i can work my way out of them a lot easier with higher calorie days. A normal week for me includes 1 high calorie day, 1 medium/high calorie day, 3 medium/normal calorie days, and 2 low calorie days. My cheat day obviously being the higher calorie day and my lowest calorie day is near the end of my week when i take a day off from working out.

That's a lot of words to simply state -  DON'T STARVE YOURSELF! You will not lose weight that way long term, you will not keep that little bit of weight off, and you will not like the person you see in the mirror. No matter what you have come to believe "1200" is not the magic, problem-solving number that we all make it out to be.

Funny

Great movie

But...don't do this ;-)



Wednesday, February 6, 2013

My Rules To Live By - Food



This is the BIG one. Honestly probably the most simple topic of all, yet so in depth that i have been avoiding it. Most doctors and trainers will tell you that in weight loss, food is 80% of the battle, so here we are.

Simple rule of weight loss - Calories in, Calories out.

Simple rule of weight loss - You are what you eat.

Simple rule of weight loss - Abs are made in the kitchen.

Simple rule of weight loss - Weight loss isn't found in a bottle.

Simple rule of weight loss - Fads DIE, as they should.

In this entry, i'm not going to talk about WHAT to eat, as that is different for everyone. We all know we should eat more veggies, lean protein, stay away from fast food and sugar. Basic knowledge! So i'm not going to give you a shopping list and have you go get everything on it to last you a week then leave you lost. I'm going to teach you how to shop the right way for you and your family.

Calories in, Calories out -

SIMPLE. Burn what you eat. That slice of pizza you want so bad? You can have it, but do you know how many hours in the gym you are going to have to log to rid your body of it? Lots. It's not about depriving yourself of foods you love. It's about learning to eat healthier versions of them, and understanding that you have to be willing to put in the effort to burn those calories off later.

You are what you eat -

Think it's just a funny saying? A myth? One of those funny facebook ecards of a slice of pizza with legs running around a track?

No. It's truth. It's not meant in a mean way, or a way to belittle anyone, but let's be honest about something... how do you feel after throwing back that value meal from Burger King? I bet you don't feel like going out an running a marathon. I bet you don't even feel like getting up off your couch. Food is all about providing fuel for your body. You wouldn't pour sugar in your car's gas tank and expect it to run, so why put crap in your body then complain that you don't feel great?

I usually have my cheat days on the weekend (it varies between Saturday or Sunday), and let me tell you, if i overdo it then i KNOW and i don't just know right then, i usually know it for hours, and even going in to the next day. Getting up and lacing on my running shoes the morning after eating poorly is one of the hardest things ever.

Abs are made in the kitchen -

This is a new one for me. I never really heard this until i joined a bunch of fitness sites and pages on facebook. Many women ask how they can get rid of that little pooch they don't like, the mommy belly, the flabby skin, and the big answer is always "Abs are made in the kitchen". You can't expect to do 1000 crunches a day, eat fatty foods, and have a 6 pack. It doesn't work that way. You need to get that layer of fat off your abs so you can see them in all their washboard glory (saying this to myself here, those abs are in there SOMEWHERE!). Eat clean (Definition here), lay off the processed food, stick to doing your grocery shopping in the perimeters of the grocery store. Build those abs!

Weight loss isn't found in a bottle -

It's not. Simple. I don't care what those bottles claim. "It's safe, it's only to boost my metabolism!", "But it has natural products in it!", "All those people in the infomercials said it works!", "My friends doctor says it's ok!". Don't listen. If it's not a vitamin, not prescribed by your doctor, and it has stuff in it you can't pronounce, don't take it. Plus all the metabolism boosting in the world isn't going to make you loose weight if you don't use all the energy to burn calories!

Fads Die -

We have all heard of those popular fad diets that go around. I won't mention the names because that just seems mean and wrong, but are you really willing to throw your money at something that is going to make you starve yourself for weeks on end to lose weight? Know what that's called? Starving yourself to lose weight. The pills and fads have nothing to do with it. What "fads" do i like?

I don't like to call them fads, but if you do feel you need help then there are some great options out there for you that still focus on healthy eating and not fads.

Weight watchers -

I love weight watchers. I would still be going to meetings if i hadn't moved farther away from meeting locations. I love that they teach you how to wisely use your points (calories) to make it from day to day without feeling deprived. What else do i love? They teach you that it's ok to slip up. Picking up the kids late from soccer practice, having a girls night out? It's ok, just choose something within your points and move on. It doesn't always have to be a salad.

Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem -

I have no problem with these. They teach you healthy eating and potion control. Plain and simple.

Paleo -

Pretty much on track with clean eating. I honestly can't see anything wrong with this "fad".

That's it. No pills, no real fads, no quick promises. All three of those fads have the same thing in common, healthy eating.

Everyone wants a quick fix and thinks there is a secret. There is no secret, the "quick fix" is right under your nose.

Eat more veggies. There are tons, there has to be something out there you will like!
Eat fruit instead of cakes and cookies.
Eat more protein to fill you up longer.
Eat whole grains instead of starchy, bleached out, white grains.
Shop the perimeters of the store, stay far away from the aisles.
Don't drink your calories. Water, Water, Water.
Don't skip breakfast, it won't help you lose weight.
Don't deprive yourself of treats.
Find substitutes for your favorite foods that will taste just as good.
Count your calories (or points, or fat grams, whatever you choose), ALWAYS.
Measure your food.
Eat all the colors of the rainbow, the more colorful your meal is the more healthy it is! (and i'm not talking about ketchup, pickles, and mustard!)
Most of all, enjoy the food you are eating. Healthy eating does not have to be boring and bland, make it exciting and you are more likely to stick to it!