Sabbatical

So, I took a sabbatical.  Didn't even realize until I realized that I was definitely missing from action.  I don't know why exactly I stopped.  I know it was sudden.  That's about all I know on why my last post was in July...It's December 26 and I suddenly realized...what the heck am I doing?

A lot has changed since July.

1.  My sister moved out of our house and back in with Mom and Dad.  She needs to focus on her health right now and Dayton has some of the best doctors to help her get everything sorted out.  DD and Sciatica are a bitch.

2.  My Aunt Niki, who I have always just called Nik or Niki has been sleeping on my couch on and off for a couple of months now...no, no marriage woes...gas price woes.  Two hours is a long commute for anyone to take.  She's officially moving in with me as of 1/1/2013 so that gas saving can be a permanent thing.  Her family will be spending a lot of time with us at *our* house!

3.  My grandfather, papaw, moved in with my parents.  He has a nicer suite in their walk-out basement than my townhouse.  Dad hand-built the kitchen and bathroom for him.  He's been undergoing chemo for a couple of types of cancer and again, Dayton has the best doctors to help him.  Also, mom and dad can keep an eye on him.

4.  My dog, Daisy, passed away.  I still get emotional talking about it.  She was the dog-love of my life.  It was sudden and unexpected. 

So, I don't have to remind you guys that I'm an emotional eater.  Losing Daisy meant gaining 5 pounds.  She would have loved eating all of it with me.



Anyways........time to change the topic so I don't get too sad again.

Niki wants to work on losing some of her recent poundage too.  I've been on the fence about starting back up with my fitness, but after Christmas home, I've decided I should jump back on.

Basically, I'm going to start doing HIIT or Tabata again.  I think this will be the easiest for my aunt to work with and it's my favorite type of exercise.  The excellent thing about it is that each person pushes themselves individually.  Excellent idea since we are at different fitness levels. 

The biggest challenge for me is going to be energy to get started.  I'm not sure what it is, but I am just beyond exhausted every single day.  I think I'll struggle with that at first, but I know that when I work out, my body magically finds more energy.

Am I going to start today?  No.  Am I going to start tomorrow?  Why the heck not?

Ombre

There's this new trend called Ombre.  Ombre your hair, ombre your clothes, ombre your furniture, ombre your nails, etc.  I tried the nails part...at least to see what all the hub-bub is about.

Just do a google search and you'll see.  Beware the hair trend though...looks like your roots have gone wild and you need a new dye job.

I digress.

Result:

Not bad.

Not great either.

I can see what all the fuss is about.  From a distance, my nails look super cute.  Up close...kind of looks like I smeared unicorn poop on my fingers.

I did discover that if you smear diaper rash cream (the petroleum jelly kind) around your fingers, then the polish cleans up super easy with just a q-tip.  Don't judge...it was all I had in the house from a previous experiment with elbow softening...and what else am I going to use it for?

Also, I discovered that nail polish eats through styrofoam...kind of turns it gooey and gross.

Anyways, as per usual, they only lasted a few days.  Wah-wahhh.

I'll try ombre again.  Maybe if I did it on my sister's nails and got some practice in it wouldn't look so crap-tastic up close.  Also, the sublte ombre colors seem like they'd be a waste of time.  You need to go drastic or go home.  Ha.

Oh, I'm tired... Adolf (that's the name I gave the mockingbird...hey, might as well since he's a part of my life now) is relentless.  I've decided he doesn't care about the ladies and his sole purpose in his life is to torment. 

Death by Chocolate

I went very light on my workouts last week.  I just felt uninspired and...well...lazy.  Not to mention, there was a holiday, and food comsumption, and everyone deserves lazy days.  I had been craving something completely indulgent last week so I went ahead and made these:

Yes, this is a death by chocolate cupcake.  It's a double fudge cupcake with a gooey brownie in the middle with double chocolate fudge icing...

I had a difficult time eating this one cupcake.  I didn't frost all of them...thank goodness!  This is one cupcake that does NOT need frosting.  Trust me.  This is coming from a girl who thinks cupcakes are just vessels for frosting to get to my mouth.  I made 24 of these bad boys, ate this one and gave the rest away.  Katie took about a dozen to work with her where they were promptly inhaled, then I took 10 to the pub with us on Saturday and gave them to our friends.

Literally, the moistest, most chocaletey cupcake I've ever made, but one was enough to satisfy my craving for indulgence.

So since I didn't frost the cupcakes, I have enough double chocolate buttercream to put 20 diabetics in a coma.  I don't want to eat it, but I don't want it to go to waste.  I asked my facebook friends if anyone wanted a cake, but surprisingly, I didn't get any takers.  Maybe they didn't think I was serious.

I guess I'll have to make some cupcakes tonight and have Katie bring them into work again.  I just can't waste buttercream and I can whip up some vanilla cupcakes easy peasy.  Escpecially since the mockingbird is still at it and I am still without sleep.

Are mockingbirds allergic to chocolate?  I may have a way to get rid of him, if so..............

New table

Along with my sleep deprevation, I've been working on refinishing my living room coffee table.  I just couldn't take it's amber colored varnish anymore.

This is the before...well, I didn't take a real before...I thought of taking a picture after I had already wood puddy'd the whole thing.  I have it on plastic plates so that I wouldn't get anything on my carpet.

Then my mom and I took it outside and sanded the whole thing down and washed it with a warm wet rag to get the dust off.  This was boring and looked the same so I didn't take a picture.

Then we covered the whole thing in primer.  This was a several day process.  My mom stopped helping me after the sanding bit...she hates refinishing furniture.  If you need anything reupholstered though, she's your gal.

So I had to paint the top, let it dry for a day.  Paint the top, let it dry for a day.  Flip it over.  Paint the sides and the legs, let it dry for a day.  Paint the sides and the legs, let it dry for a day.  Flip it over.  You get the idea.  Basically, I kept flipping it and covering it with primer until it was white.

Then the color began.  I toyed around with a few different ideas, but when I found a gallon of a navy blue on sale for $5, I decided navy blue would be the primary color.  The sample almost looked black, but I'm glad it turned up lighter than that.

Here's the finished product:

It was still kind of wet here, that's why it looks two-toned.  I kept the sides white (painted over the primer with an acrylic paint), then did the legs and top in the navy.  Detailing the sides took a few hours because painters tape is a crap shoot on projects like this.

Now all I have to do is apply furniture wax, as per several "professional" refinishers.  They state that the wax yields a better end result than the varnishes and such.  It took a long time...weeks...but I think the end product was worth it.

I'm so freaking proud of myself!  It looks great!

A little birdie is trying to kill me

I've been kind of M.I.A. lately.  There was a holiday and family time, etc.  The real reason:  There is a mockingbird that has taken up residence outside my bedroom window.  Not just any mockingbird.  The pimp daddy of all male viral ready-to-mate mockingbirds.  Little known fact...male mockingbirds call non-stop all night in order to attract a female...because the competition is less at night.  If it were a seagull and was repetitive, I might get used to it.  No.  It is not repetitive, you cannot drown it out, you cannot ignore it, you cannot put a pillow over your face and meditate it away.  This beast of tortuous vocal abilities knows every dang bird call in the United States of America.  He even pulled out some toucan last night.  I swear to you.

I have never wanted to own a gun so much in my life.  I feel like Zooey's character in "Failure to Launch"...driven to drinking and madness and randomly wandering the isles of the local sport stores, asking which gun would do the most damage to a small bird.  I know I would never actually be able to hurt the dang thing, but the insanity has GOT TO STOP!!! 

Anyone have a large owl decoy I can borrow for a bit?

Anyways, my recent sleep deprevation has further deprived my "polite non-sarcastic in public" filter and I've had to avoid most people for fear of insulting beyond acceptable levels.

For example, my dear friends met my sister and I out at a little pub in town this past weekend.  Said friends are very used to my lack of filter and usually laugh at the rediculous things that come out of my mouth sometimes.  I was even less filter-y than usual on Saturday and after discussing with myself loudly the wonderful transvestite-like makeup on this lady who came in and sat near us (I mean, this girl could use the bronzer and eyebrow pencil), their group got up and moved across the pub.  After my friends calmed down from laughing so hard, they explained my lack of filter was going to get us into trouble.

It didn't, but I certainly kept my friends entertained that night. 

Mean, sarcastic, and sleep deprived.  Stay out of my way until a little birdie gets laid and leaves town.

Ruebens

I don't know what it is about them, but I love reubens. 

Back to life...back to reality

I started working out again yesterday.  It was a 15 day hiatus.  My hip isn't completely back to normal, but I waited the doctor recommended two weeks.  I will continue to ice it and do my stretches on it, but I can't hold off on exercise any longer.

Yesterday's routine was 4 movements three times each on a 50/10.  Pretty standard, but still challenging.  I got my mom to work out with me yesterday (she's staying with my sister and I for a while until Katie is back to par).

I was pretty proud when she said how deep my squats were.  Such a silly thing, but I was like "heck yeah!" on the inside.

Today, instead of working out, I started refinishing my coffee table.  I wasn't a fan of it's color anymore and I'm thinking some fresh primer and dark blue paint will spruce it up.  It's sitting with wood filler in all the ridges now, drying.

Why not work out today?  Because every single day was too much for my body.  I'm mentally ready for it, but I'm still really out of shape and can't afford to keep tearing muscles.  I'm going to stick with 4 days a week.  I'm thinking Thursday, Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.  Every other day sounds good to me.  And I'm continuing to journal my workouts so I can track my progress, and I'm going to keep switching things up.

There are a couple of areas that I'm going to work every day, though:

Triceps
Abs/Obliques
Thighs

There are very easy exercises that I can throw in every time to target these areas.  Squats, toe touches, sumo's, tricep extensions, and there's this series of abs moves that I printed out somewhere that I can mix in as well.

I never thought I'd say this...ever...but I missed working out!!!!!!

I'm so PROUD to say that!!!

Life Happens

Hello, hello, hello.  I promise I'm not dead.  Sometimes Life happens, and sometimes it happens in a BIG, BIG way.  My sister was in the hospital for over 10 days, and just got out today.  You forget all about yourself when someone you love is hurting.

You forget meals and suddenly remember you need to eat, so you grab whatever you can.  Yikes.

Then, I am a HUGE emotional eater.   I have a bad day at work, I reach for carbs.  Reese's, bread, pasta,  Katie (yes, real names here) gets admitted to the hospital and what do I want?  Soda and blueberry roll ups.  I don't know why.  I just needed it.

Well, she's home now and I've got to get back on track.  My hip is still killing me (remember that two inch tear I so nicely gave myself?) but I've just got to stretch it out really well and hop to it.

I have been stretching every day and icing it and doing the whole medicine thing, but it's time to get back to my routines.  I'll take it easy at first but slowly work my way back to where I was and then keep pushing forward.

I want to note though, that I am keeping my doctor in the loop, and I'm not just going all Hulk on this.  I have an appointment with my physiologist next week and we're going to work together on some hip movements to really focus on getting that region back to par.  Always keep your doctor's involved if you can, folks.  Especially when you're going from fatty to fit like me.

Smoothie Queen

Ha, my title made me giggle.  It's so ridiculous. 

For about 4 days, I've been trying out a new type of breakfast.  A smoothie.  It's just ice, water, sugar free pudding (for flavor), and supplements.  These supplements were prescribed to me by my doctor and are a great, great way to save some money.  For example, the one she gave me retails at $50.00 but I only paid a $10 copay on it.

I use 1 scoop of each in my smoothie and just barely pulse it in after I've combined everything else.  The total Green has real veggies in it, so you can't overwork it.  The Daily Energy is something that has to build up in your system, and takes a few days before you start feeling the effects.

This smoothie only has 127 calories, 14 carbs, 1 gram of fat, and 12 grams of protein.  Pretty great start to the day.

Chocolate sugar free pudding and cheesecake sugar free pudding.  Different days, of course.














I'm still surprised at how yummy it is.  I'm going to keep drinking these even though I'm not able to work out for a bit.  It's still a great way to contain calorie, etc. intake.  And protein for breakfast?  Score.

Bad News Bears

Well, that was short lived.

I had to go to the doctor yesterday.  My right hip had been hurting since last Friday.  Wednesday the pain was very bad and yesterday (Thursday), the pain was so bad I was crying at work.  I decided it was time to call my doctor to see if they could find out exactly what was wrong with it.  The awesome thing about my doctor is that they have an on staff physiologist, so if it was something that just needed to be worked out, like a knot or something, then I could walk down the hallway to her.

As it turns out, I tore a muscle in my hip.  Yeah, that's right.  My doc said that it was probably just a pull at first, but because I kept going intense with my workouts, that it just kept pulling until it started to tear and now it's just torn.  Remember on Wednesday when I said I kept pooping out on my exercises and how hard it was for me...that should have been a big clue for me to stop.  But I kept pushing myself and was like "no pain, no gain".  Well, I was wrong.

The pain radiates from my lower back, just on the side all the way down my hip, through my thigh to my right knee (which already has bursitis).  I was so upset yesterday.

Treatment plan:  heat or ice for 20 minutes every 2 hours, whichever brings me greater relief.  Ibuprofen 800 mg 3 times a day, with food.  Flexeril 3 times a day until pain is tolerable.  Up water intake to help the muscle heal faster (good thing I'm already drinking so much).  The worst part....no physical activity for 2 WEEKS. 

I asked if I could walk, and she said no more than a mile 3 times a week and to go very leisurely, ie: no sweating, no pulse increase.  Right now, I've got kind of a sexy limp going on, so I can't imagine walking right now, but I might start after about a week to get myself ready to work out again.

Pretty much the worst news a new workoutee could get.  I was so proud of myself for going so hard so much, but apparently, it was too much.

Moral of the story here...listen to your body.  If you're sore, really stretch it out to see if you can tell why you're sore.  If you're as out of shape as I am, try not to push yourself so hard at first.  Only go 3-4 days a week until your body gets used to it.

Holy Toledo Chips!

76 page views today!  I never in a million thought I'd get that many views!!!!!  Thank you so much for stopping by to my page!!!

That's a great way to end a grueling workout.

I tried Zuzana's ZWOD #1 today.  I failed.  Seriously.  I knew watching her struggle that I would definitely have problems, but wow.  That girl is super strong!

I only got through the second set of burpees (I wasn't even doing the push-up part, just holding for a second...I can't do pushups yet) and got down to do the side planks and my muscles were like "nope".

So, I wrote down fail, kept the timer going and moved onto an easier routine.  I will come back to ZWOD when I get a little better.

I called this routine:

Attempt II

Leg Raises:  15 per leg, one leg at a time, tucking toe in and squeezing thigh...this really worked the inner thighs and I could feel it in my lower abs as well

Tricep Dips:  During Tabata, I would get 11 per 20 seconds, so I did 20 total, and it took about a minute

Squat Leg Lifts:  This is from Zuzana's routine, but I really liked it and could feel it in my butt big time.  I went lighter though, 8 per leg, total of 16

Push up box style:  20 reps

I did this whole thing twice then kind of fell apart the third time.  I just did each part until I couldn't anymore.

Total Time:  34:17!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  That's not bad, considering all of my pauses and breaks to huff and puff.

My body is super weak today.  I think it's because I'm really pushing myself with these routines and keeping a journal pushes me even harder to get it all done.

I really hope some of the "readers" from today come back.  Now I feel even more accountable for keeping this going and letting everyone know the steps I'm taking each day.

25 minutes in HELL

It's official.  I like kicking my ass.  Also, the 30 day challenge got really lame on day 2 so I switched.

I didn't give up, I just switched to someone I really, really admire.  More on it later.

I feel like I'm dying while I'm doing it and I smell and look really disgusting but I did it!  I did the entire workout to the absolute max I could do and I stuck it out!  I've got three really important things for you today, but I'm going to put one of them in a separate blog to spread the monotony.  For this blog, two things:

1.  Use this website for your interval training.  I've been training with my computer so I can watch the routines first and really get down the posture and hold counts and such, then I crank up the music and turn on

http://www.beach-fitness.com/tabata/ 

You can set the interval to whatever you want, which is amazeballs and it changes green and red depending on rest or go, go, go.  It also has an awesome surprise at the end of each set.  For example, yesterday my routine focused on 50/10 intervals, 4 routines 3 times each.  Today it was 20/10 intervals for 8 sets, total of 4 minutes each...classic tabata.

2.  Here's the routine that kicked my ass today.  Read: it's NOT EASY! 

HIGH KNEES: Tabata

• Basically run in place with your knees as high as you can get them with your boobs out, Olympic sprint style.  It's a rough start so be sure to stretch a bit before this.

LEG/STAR/BUTT:  30 reps

• Lay on the mat with your back as flat as you can get it.  Lift both legs at the same time, raising your feet toward the ceiling.  If this is too hard, start with bent legs.  Once your feet are up in the air, split your feet out to the sides and raise your arms and shoulders and push them between your legs, like a crunch.  Yes, it looks weird.
• Lay your shoulders back down, put your feet back together and with your arms spread out on the ground, try to lift your butt ONLY off the ground just for a second.  It's harder than it sounds and you'll really feel it in your core.
• I have to be really, really honest here.  I only got about 15 done then I couldn't do anymore.  Just could not.  So, instead of just stopping, I did 45 crunches.  Something is better than nothing.

LOW JACKS: Tabata

• A low jack is a squatting jumping jack, without the flailing arms.  The lower the squat the harder it is.  I'm going to be honest with you guys and let you know my knees were just bent enough and I couldn't make it through the full tabata...I kept pushing, but it was like two jacks, break, three jacks, break, etc.

 SIDE PLANK LIFTS: 25 reps each side

• This uses muscles I bet you didn't even know you had.  Here's a pic of what it should look like:

•  If you're like me, you're going to do the beginner one, which is the leg towards the bottom is bent at the knee and goes back behind you.  As you get advanced, you can straighten both legs and your lower arm.

SCISSORS: Tabata

• Scissors is like a Russian running man.  One leg in front of the other and jump to switch legs.  You'll be surprised how tired your legs get doing this.

BRIDGE TOE TOUCH: 30 reps

• Ok, for this lay on the mat, or floor or whatever.  put one knee up with your foot on the floor like this
•  
• It's a horrid picture, but there you go (PS, that's not me!  LOL).  Then you bridge your body, which is bring your hips only toward the sky, keeping your shoulders on the ground.  If this is too hard, keep both feet on the ground while doing the bridge.
• Lower your hips back to the mat then lift one leg up to the ceiling and reach both hands up and try to do a toe touch.  Lower the foot and go back to the bridge.  Then lift the opposite leg and do a toe touch.

My body was really drained at the end and I had to force myself up to stretch, but stretching is SO IMPORTANT!!!!!  I do some floor leg stretches, like toe touches, then one of my favorite stretches is standing up, bending forward and letting my hands drag on the floor.  I'll swing them back and forth a bit to loosen everything up.  Then I'll do some sunrise poses from yoga and if my abs are ripping, which they weren't really today, I'll do some dog poses.

IT WAS HELL!!!  Ok, I have to tell you who I follow for these exercises.  Her name is Zuzana, and she used to be with BodyRock.tv, but she has branched out and goes by Zuzka Lite now.  I'm a fan of her page on Facebook, but here's her link https://www.facebook.com/ZuzkaLight  You can youtube Zuzana and all of her little videos will pop up.  I'm doing her beginner stuff now because I'm a fatty cow, but she is amazing and just amazing.  Seriously, amazing.  And her body is RIPPED!!!  I'll never look that amazing, but she definitely is inspiration.  I tried doing the bodyrock.tv exercises, but they're heavy on equipment and I have a mat and two 5 pound weights...nothing else...and I'm not going to buy any new stuff and then realize I hate the workouts.  I love Zuzana because she's mostly just body intensity, sometimes throwing in small free weights or stuff like that.  CHECK HER OUT.

Glistening

As I write this post, I am queazy, sweaty, smelly, headachy, shaky, and feel DAMN GOOD about myself!

I really, really worked it today!  I found a new website that is all about getting your body as sexy as it can be.  I won't divulge who it is yet, let me get a few workouts in, but they are foreign lady's (and there's a dude too, if you prefer) and they get on there and kick their own asses, so you know it's gonna be good for you.  I especially love watching the videos of Zuzana (more on her later).  She is so motivational and REAL.

Disclaimer on this though...my body will never look as rock solid and cray cray hot as hers!  I can hope and work towards it though.

I'm doing their 30 day May challenge.  Every.  Single.  Day.  No breaks.  It's still HIIT training, which is what I'm used to and works well for my body.  Keeps me engaged and from getting bored.  Mini goals, as I've stated before.

Today's challenge sounds so freaking easy, but when you do it at 50/10 intervals 3 times, it makes you SWEAT!

Squats (pfft, been doing these for ages, yo)

Pushups (they showed me a great modifier called "box style" which is amazeballs!)

Tricep dips (which kicked my buttttttt)

Abs (which is a crunch with your arms extended over your knees)

Ok, easy, right?  Then why did I collapse and almost die at the end???  It is HARD!

They make you record your amounts during your 10 second break, so really, no break at all, and then when we rotate back to this routine, we should see improvement.

All I'm saying is I better see something!  I'm dying over here!

AND IT FEELS GREAT!

Here's motivation:

Want to hear something rediculous?

I was browsing Pinterest today, as per usual, and happened upon this website:

http://corpo.mvm.com/en/shopping/weightloss.php

What the actual heck?  Why yes, that looks EXACTLY like me!  How did you guess?  I mean seriously.  Everyone's body is different.  I had no words for it.

Anyways, back to actual reality.  I have been slacking on food journalling lately.  I think the last time I wrote down what I partook was last Tuesday.  Sheesh.  I didn't go crazy or anything, actually, I ate cheese quesadillas on whole wheat tortillas with salsa most nights and leftovers or a salad for lunches.  Well, I'll start it back up.  I'm not going to beat myself up over it.  I'm keeping it for me. 

I went to the Relay for Life here in Lexington on Friday and I walked 4 laps plus a little.  I wasn't really keeping track, I just realized during the long drive home that night that I had actually walked a lot.  I was proud.

So on Saturday when I woke up, I ate a quesadilla, got all dressed in sports bra, sports shirt (extra support), diy racerback (these are amazing.  buy really large t-shirts from goodwill, or use old t-shirts and make you some workout shirts), yoga capris, socks and sneaks, and, of course, sunglasses.  I put my phone between my two "bras" over on the side (in case I died, ya'll) and my Zune on my arm...I love armbands.  I walked a mile and a half.  Well, I'm assuming that's how far I walked since I was walking a brisk pace and took two or three minutes to stretch about half way through.  I was out there for 35 minutes.  Then I stopped in the field across from my house and sat down to stretch my legs some more and get some sun!  When the sun went behind the clouds for good, I got up and walked my butt on home.

Well, maybe not a full mile and a half.  Consensus is brisk to fast walk can be anywhere from 13-20 minutes per mile.  If you guys know the song "Three" by Britney Spears, that's the tempo I walked at the whole time.  That's not the best song, but I remember it being the second song to come on and I set my tempo to that.

I don't think I'll be able to do that everyday.  As a matter of fact, I know I won't.  BUT maybe twice a week?  At least for now. 

I'm tired but I'm going to get some serious exercise in tonight.  I won't quit on that.

I stink...I know.

Wow, it's been AGES since I've blogged!  I think it was early this week.  Whew, I have been busy and then I honestly just forget.

I got the nifty Blogger app for my Droid, but I find that I make more typos when going mobile and if you know me, you know how much that bothers me.  The other day I read back through my mobile postings and edited them.  Yeah, I'm a huge über nerd dork.  Sue me.

Where have I been this week?  Honestly, half my brain just took a vacation, I think.  Work has been stressful, but I haven't been stress eating, which is amazeballs.  I went grocery shopping and bought some essentials, sticking strictly to my list.  I even bought and wrapped an extra bunch of cilantro so I won't have to go to the store again for at least a week.  P.S. Have I mentioned that I'm addicted to fresh cilantro?  I am.  I need to grow it myself, but I don't think the plant could grow as fast as I want to eat it.  I'm in the process of moving my current food journal to a smaller book.  I made one million mini cupcakes and some regular cupcakes last night for a donation to the local Race for the Cure that my aunt is helping and donating all of her time to this weekend. 

I looked so strange last night.  I knew I wouldn't have time to get in a real workout, so I did squats while scooping out the batter and danced and jiggled my butt off for a few hours.  Not a traditional work out, but at least I was moving and doing something.

I have yet to get in ANY real cardio work.  I'm a little sad about it.  I keep seeing these little blurps on Pinterest saying "I regret that run yesterday...says no one, ever".  It makes me sad.  I want to get out there and get started on cardio whoring, and I think about it every.single.day. but I just haven't DONE ANYTHING YET!  Also, I'm trying to get in a little better shape and get in the mindset of working out everyday, but I feel like I could do more.  Heavier weights, actual cardio, longer sets. 

Don't get me wrong, I love, love, love, love the HIIT training that I'm doing, but I think I would feel better if I were using heavier weights.  I can't afford weights though, so poo on that.  I can't afford a gym membership, and let's be for reals for a moment, I don't want to stand next to all those skinny bitches in bras and spandex pants.  Bitches.

I did treat myself and buy a new sports bra last night.  It is freaking comfortable.  By Champion.  It was on clearance for $12.00.  I figured, why not buy this bright orange thing and just see how it does?  I'm always on a quest for comfortable sports bras that don't give me a huge UNIBOOB.  Oh, let me disclaimer that with I have 40DDD boobs.  Yes, I have been "blessed" with gigantic boobs.  I haven't been smaller than a 38DD since freshman year in High School.  Go me.  <Utmost sarcasm here>

I'm going to start killing myself in my workouts.  Not literally, of course, I kind of enjoy life sometimes, but it will feel very literal as I'm puffing and gasping for breath and my muscles are screaming.  I'm going to start walking at night, or evenings rather.  Just put on some clothes and the running shoes that I just had to buy several months ago and walk.  Until I get a horrid stitch in my side and feel like my legs are dying and my lungs can't get enough air in them.  I might want to bring my phone with me in case I have an asthma attack, but I have to do it.

I'm so tired of not liking myself.

Great, and now I'm crying. 

What a loser.

Yummy snack time

Here are the crackers I made. 














1 bag oyster crackers

1 pack low sodium ranch dip

1 tsp. Garlic powder
1 tsp. Onion powder
1/4 cup veggie oil

Combine everything but the crackers then carefully mix thr crackers in.  Bake at 275 degrees farenheit for 15 to 20 minutes on a cookie sheet.

They should smell garlicky and nutty and look dry.  I portioned them out into bags for easy snacking.  So easy, so yummy.

Grimm dinner

No, I didn't spell that wrong.  As I type, I am yet again, watching a movie.  This time it's "Brother's Grimm", the new one.  I already got my work out in for the day...and it kicked my butt.  Or, more accurately, my thighs.  Today was a leg day, so I really worked my inner thighs, calves, hips and front thighs.  I also did some abs work.  Hey, I was feeling it today.

I have made dinner for my sister and I (cheesy quinoa with kielbasa and beans) and am making a low cal snack for this week, some seasoned oyster crackers that I happened to have found when going through my can goods...they weren't stale, so I decided to mix them with some herbs and ground spices and viola!  Snack time.

They're in the oven now, but when they come out and cool a bit, I might munch on them while finishing up this movie before heading to bed to read then eventually fall asleep.

Did I mention that I'm an avid reader?  I am.  I almost refuse to read the new fad trilogy everyone is talking about.  Maybe in two years when it isn't cool anymore.  I just hate reading any trending book.  Call me crazy.

OHHHH, I almost completely forgot!  I am planning to start working in Cardio to my routine.  I'm thinking on some leg days I'll do cardio instead, two days a week should be good for a bit.  That is, until I get better and it doesn't kill me every time.  I happen to also have what the doctor called "activity induced asthma" which is a nice way of saying my lungs are fat and out of shape.  I'm hoping that as I work up my cardio routine, I'll need my inhaler less and less and less........  One day, in the distant future, I'd like to call myself a runner.  Something to work toward and aspire to.

Mulberry cobbler

I spent this weekend at my parent's house in Ohio.  It was a very nice trip.  I kept my food journal up all weekend, but my workout schedule got a little out of wack.

Friday, I didn't work out.

Saturday, I did some serious yard work and carried gallons of water up a huge hill.  It was definitely a work out, albeit, not my usual.

Sunday I did as a day of rest anyways, even though I missed Friday.  Sometimes you just have to take a break.

Today, I will be working my abs and obliques, and might throw in some leg stuff too.

Now for some fun....I found a Mulberry Tree in my parent's yard.  Alright, I thought it was a blackberry tree at first, since they look remarkably like blackberries, but I was informed blackberries don't grow on trees.

After confirming that the berries were, in fact, mulberries, my whole family went out and picked a huge bowl full off of the tree.  After a bit, we got a huge sheet, put it under the tree, and had Dad shake the limbs.  Mulberries everywhere! My legs and hands and feet were stained purple (from kneeling on the ground). 

I cleaned the berries THREE times to get rid of any unwanted things...since they were wild mulberries, and Mom and I made cobbler and mulberry syrup.

 

You pick the black ones, just like blackberries.  They're sweet and have a unique taste AND the seeds are practically nonexistent!  I don't eat blackberries because of seeds, but these are wonderful!

I have never seen a mulberry tree before, but from now until September (when the tree quits producing fruit), I'll be picking mulberries every time I go up to my parents.  We'll be freezing them so we can eat them throughout the year.  

The next time I make a cobbler, which my mom showed me the BEST recipe for yesterday, then I will post the recipe.  You will be thanking my mom for the deliciousness, that's for sure.

Now to workout.  

Weekend away

I'm at my parent's for the weekend.  I shall resume blogging when I get back home.  Hope no one is too destitute without my awesome bloggings.

Weird Science

Yes, I happen to be watching this iconic movie as I blog.  I have already worked out this evening on my belly.  Oh my gosh, I forgot Robert Downey Jr was in this.  He has aged wellllllllllll. 
Anyways, I baked a TON tonight for my trip to my parents this weekend.  Banana bread, banana coconut chocolate cake, yellow cake with chocolate frosting AND chicken quinoa chili for my sister and I for dinner tonight and lunch tomorrow.
Busy, busy bee. 
Now to continue this fantastic movie.   Oh, it's hilarious in a bad 80's way.

When did yesterday happen?

I failed last night.  Well, not in the sense of my exercise regime, but in the fact that I forgot to blog!!!
Sincere apologies, if anyone happens to breathlessly await my blog updates.
In other news, I did my arms last night.  My triceps need some serious work.  I seriously have NO muscles there.  They just don't exist. 
Oh, and I had a GiGi cupcake today.  ONE MILLION CALORIES!!!!  Tried to counter it with a salad for lunch and a small portion of salsa for dinner, but still.  Yummy yikes.
Abs tonight.

Earthquake

Either my legs are extremely out of shape or I push a bit too hard during my workouts.  Today, I decided to work out as soon as I got home, so I put some laundry on, changed into my work out clothes and turned up the music.  20 minutes later, I was trembling and...let's just say "glistening". 

I cooled down a bit, had a bowl of salsa for dinner and went to make some frosting for a yellow cake I made and wrapped up on Sunday...only to realize I have no butter!  Can't make frosting without butter...you.  just.  can't.

So no frosting of the cake today.  I might keep the cake in the freezer and bring it with me to my parent's this weekend along with a coconut banana cake I'm going to try out.  I can frost it up there...easy peasy.

Instead, I did another lady thing and painted my nails with a fast drying ridge filler.  It's barely noticeable, but it helps keep my nails strong and from breaking or splitting.  I'll keep this on until I have time to put some color on, which is a recent new love of my sister and I.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention...I worked out extra hard today because I ate like a hippo at lunch.  I shan't even tell you what I ate...  You know the old saying "fell off the wagon"?  Well, I ate the wagon today in mild taco sauce.  Ok, maybe it wasn't that bad, but still.  One day I will start working in cardio and that will help immensely!  I'm still in the habit forming stage of my new exercise laden life.  Once I'm a pro and don't look like a whale blubbering down the street, then I'll step out and do some cardio...unless someone wants to buy me an elliptical machine?  No one?  Eh, the after-the-whale-stage plan it is then.

^^^^^^^I had to google a fat whale...just for clarity's sake^^^^^^^

I journal

You see that on hipster shirts all the time.  Well, now it's true for me too...well, kind of.  I started my food journal today. 

I realize now that I don't eat very much...my body must horde food like a starving squirrel.

Breakfast was a medium banana, 7 fig newtons and almost a cup of coffee.  Lunch was a normal size salad with ranch (not the best dressing, but hey, it was on lettuce).  I drank a large sports bottle of water, which I have been doing every day for over a week now.  For dinner, I had a bowl of salsa and a handful of chips to eat it with. 

Oh, I snacked on two whole grain no fat brownies throughout the day...yes, the ones I mentioned yesterday; they taste just fine but are very moist and don't hold up well...back to the drawing board on them.

I think I shall oblige myself to a skinny cow ice cream and a huge cup of water, then head upstairs to read a bit before I do my workout.  It's going to be a late work out tonight.

Tabata Mix

I wanted to give an example of the type of music I listen to when working out.  I made a playlist in Grooveshark, which is an awesome web based music site. The ones on there are a bit more blood pumping, but this is a great basic example.

This is a Tabata mix that is pre-set for the 8 rounds of 20 secs on, 10 secs off.  Pick an exercise, oh like squats, for example, and try to do a set of them…the full 8 rounds.

Double dare you.

Done already?

Not entirely.  I am, however, done with my exercises for the day.  I did my full arm workout (until I maxed out on each, of course), then I even threw in some butt and calf work, since I wasn’t feeling the burn enough from yesterday.

Now, I can continue the rest of my day in rest.  I feel like going to the duck pond and feeding them some old hotdog buns and, oh, I don’t know, read a book in the park while working on my ghostly pallor.

I’m also going to go to the store and get some tomatoes and cilantro to make some more salsa.  I think I may try my salsa on some baked chicken breast this week maybe with some quinoa on the side.  Not a bad dinner plan, I think.

I also need to find some dessert type things.  Maybe I can try making brownies with whole wheat flower and stevia?  I’ll let you know how that turns out…maybe the chocolate will mask the “healthy” parts?

No pain, no...oh, no.

So it’s Saturday.  I was supposed to do my legs yesterday.  I did not.  It wasn’t for a lack of effort.  I changed into my work out clothes and turned on my music and tried to squat…and trembled.  Then I tried to do a leg lift, and got two done before crapping out….I slowly turned off my music, struggled up the stairs, and collapsed haphazardly into bed.

I have realized how out of shape I am.  Only four days in, and my body is exhausted.  In a way, that’s a really, really good thing.

So, since my workout was a bust yesterday, I am going to do my legs today, even though they are still tired, and I’m going to do my arms tomorrow on my day of rest.  It’s not the best start to my program, but I understand that it’s a one-day-at-a-time thing and I have to listen to my body until it gets used to what I’m trying to do to it.

On another horrid note, I had Taco Bell for dinner.  Two enchuritos.  They are delicious and saucy and cheesy but now I really, really need to get some work out in to burn off that deliciousness.  Then I’m off to an early bed.  It was a no coffee day, and my brain is rebelling by causing my pain.

C’est la vie.

"It is often merely for an excuse that we say things are impossible."

Francois de La Rochefoucauld

CUPCAKES

No, I will not be eating all of these myself.  I am going to share with you guys…I kind of make amazing cupcakes.  Today I was busy whipping these bad boys up for a little girl’s birthday party.

I rarely eat the cupcakes I bake.  I just love baking them.  I do lick the cake beaters after I’m done cooking them, though.  I love cake batter.  And now I’m off to work out…and shed the cake batter calories!

Heavently Green Stuff

First of all…how delicious does this look?

It’s called Watergate salad and can totally be made fat free and low sugar.  I think I’ll share a recipe today instead of doing the exercise stuff.  I’ll save that for Friday.  I’d rather talk about food right now.  Delicious pistachio-y cloudy creamy nutty food.

Watergate Salad
1 regular can crushed pineapple, drained
1 small bag finely chopped pecans, equals like a 1/4 cup
1 lg. tub free whipped topping
2 pkg sugar free pistachio pudding
1 handfull mini marshmallows (this is optional)
1 jar drained maraschino cherries (this is optional too, and I usually do without)

Mix pineapple, pudding and nuts until combined.  Fold in whipped topping.  Fold in marshmallows or cherries.  Let chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

This should last you a few days if you’re by yourself and love it as much as me.  If you’re sharing, it makes a large bowl.

Yum!

Who needs the "E" word?

I do.  I need lots of *whispers* exercise.  Let’s be honest, we all do.

Here’s my thing…I love food.  I love to love food.  I read food blogs in my spare time and dream of dinner while eating lunch.  I’ve always been this way.  Always.  Ask my mom.  Go on.

So, I decided that for me to suddenly change everything about my diet would be radical and make me miserable!  Thus, I came to conclusion that the only way to start getting my fitness on would be to exercise and then s-l-o-w-l-y change my eating habits.  I don’t think I’ll ever give up potatoe salad at 4th of July, but I might forgo it on a Tuesday night, which is what I’m working towards.

Anywho, I decided to make a 6 day workout routine that focuses on certain areas of the body one day at a time.  I do a combo of moves and workouts, depending on the day, but here’s the thing…they’re all HIIT focused.

What the heck is that?  High Intensity Interval Training.

Sounds crazy serious and daunting, right?  It’s not.  I like it because it’s like a mini-series of goals that I can achieve quickly.

Here’s the thing: After two sets, you’re like “oh, I’ve got this”, by the fifth set, you’re like “When will it end?”!  Then you collapse on the floor for 10 seconds before the next set begins.
I do a form of HIIT called Tabata that will kick your butt every time.  You quickly realize how out of shape you are.

Here’s the gist of it:
8 sets of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off.  They can be repetitions or help positions.  For example, on some routines I work in some yoga and those are held, of course.

Tomorrow I will give you my specific workout schedule as of now.  Excited for the “E” word yet?

And Then There was Salsa...

So, I’m going to share a secret with everyone…I’m in LOVE with chips and salsa.  I’m a self-announced salsa snob.  It’s true.  Luckily, I live really close by to a little Mexican restaurant that has the absolute best salsa.  The only problem with that, is to get the salsa, I feel the need to also order the Pollo Bandido (chicken smothered in a cheese sauce…yes, yum), and somehow that doesn’t fit in with fitting into skinnier jeans.

Thus, I realized I could make it at home and avoid the cheesy goodness that hates my thighs.

Here’s my recipe:
3 cans diced tomatoes (no salt added is preferred) do not drain
1 jalepeno, stem cut off, seeds included (I keep a frozen bag of them in the freezer)
1 small white onion
1 bunch cilantro, twist the top 3/4 away from the stems, discard stems
heavy pinch of salt (might need more to taste)
1 clove garlic or tsp. garlic powder, more if you love garlicky goodness
1 lime (or 1/4 c. real juice, sometimes I use lemon juice)
In a food processor, or blender, or stick blender in a bowl, whir the onion, 1 can of tomato and jalepeno.  You want these bits finely chopped.  Once they are small enough to your liking, add the remaining cans and whir again.  Then add remaining ingredients, including cilantro and whir until chilantro is chopped and mixed in.

SO EASY and SO GOOD!  I put it in an old juice bottle for easy pouring.  It also helps you shake any settling back together.