turkey day 10k + november goals

happy NOVEMBER &  friday :)

let's celebrate.  have some pancakes.

i made a big one for Chiso's breakfast yesterday.  since he hadn't had them in a while (we switched to Ezekiel's cinnamon raisin bread for a little bit) he killed the whole thing in a few minutes.

it was topped with some cinnamon and a drizzle of walden farms pancake syrup.

SO, what are your fitness and nutrition goals for this month?  how often do you make goals anyway?  do you even make them? daily? weekly? monthly? making goals has become an incredibly useful tool for me now that i'm in off-season with my competition training.  whenever i write ANYTHING down (grocery list, an event, reminder, whatever) Sonny feels the need to remind me what year it is and to document things electronically.  well sometimes i don't want to!  i mean seriously.  i enjoy writing out my grocery list by hand and crossing off items one by one while i'm at the store.  i just do.  i'm pretty sure it's cause my mom did/does that.  i also like to group all my items together (frozen, produce, etc.) as i take them out of my basket and put them on the belt at checkout.  Sonny finally understands this and lets me do my thing :lol:  anyway, it will take me longer to type my entire list into my phone... and then what if it dies!?

i did a reverse selfie (which is way freakin harder to do than i thought) of my october progress which was to eat as clean as possible and to add more definition all over, especially my abs.  i stuck with my clean eating for the most part even though these weekend parties filled with pizza and cake got me a few times!   but i stayed inside my 80/20 rule, so it's all good.  i also upped my weight training and decreased my cardio.  i'd love to stay where i am right right now so that when i compete again, i'll be at an acceptable 'starting' place.

 le’s NOVEMBER 2012 fitness and nutrition goals 

• continue to stay on track with my meal plan and clean eating
• ENJOY Thanksgiving to the fullest – no meal plan, scale, nothin’ on that day
• Run this 10K on turkey day ----> http://turkeytrot.shelteringarms.org/  and beat my current PR!
• Add HIIT back into my current workout routine (sprints 2x’s a week)
• Take my ab workouts more serious

ok those are mine!  whether you write them or type your goals, just make some.   i'm not just running a 10k so i can eat like a crazy woman on TG, but  i already planned to workout anyway.  i know my gym class will be canceled like it is every year, but i'd totally be there at 5:30am sharp for anyone who wanted to get in a great weight workout that morning.

have you ever worked out on Thanksgiving Day???  

  my little Ruggles Green lunch date from the weekend inspired me to throw a butternut squash in our grocery basket.

 i threw the whole thing in the oven for about 20-25 minutes on 400 degrees.  after it cooled, i cut it in half, long ways.

i think i got pretty darn close to their Famous Butternut Squash.  in terms of taste, not looks, apparently.

at least Chiso thinks so- he liked it *wipes forehead*.   i used:

squash:

• walden farms pancake syrup (instead of the maple syrup)
• i can't believe it's not butter spray butter
• few dashes of cinnamon
• dash of salt

topping:

• crunchy lite granola (bulk bins at HEB/Whole Foods)
• coconut crystals (found at Whole Foods)

that's all that's in there and it was too simple to be that good.  i didn't measure a thing though and just threw it together, fyi.  i was gonna cut it into chunks and throw it in the blender, but it was soft enough to just whip/mash up in a bowl by hand.  also,  i didn't have graham crackers like the original recipe, but Sonny's lite crunchy granola worked out fine.

does he look warm?  bless his heart.  i hadn't been outside since my eeeeearly morning workout, so i assumed it was still pretty cool out.  not quite.

i took him out of the jacket and he took the hat off himself lol.  Moms, if you don't have a jogging stroller, INVEST in one.  no gym membership required.  your post baby body journey starts with some good ol' walking.  you'll be jogging/running again eventually though, and you'll be able to knock out two birds with one stone!  family time and exercise.  never let your little one be your excuse...only your reason.  we were blessed with this stroller as a baby shower gift and i am SOOOOO grateful for it.

i used the last of that fresh atlantic salmon we bought to make breakfast tacos for meal #4 that night.  i put this concoction together in my head while on our evening walk- fresh salmon, avocado, egg whites, shredded almond cheese all on a Ezekiel sprouted grain corn tortilla. yum!  the tortillas pretty much broke apart once i picked it up :( , but hey it all went to the same place.

we topped them with cilantro and salsa first.

after that, i went to my freezer for the next best thing since we're outta salmon right now- tilapia!  i baked a few pans of garlic and herb tilapia in the oven so i could prep some more meals to get us through the week.

i also made so fresh steamed asparagus for our green vegetable. lots of lemon pepper and Pam.

meal #5  for that evening consisted of spaghetti squash i baked earlier in the week, tilapia, and asparagus. i just rolled up two fork fulls of the squash and made it look like little pasta nests.  then i sprinkled them with garlic and herb seasoning and some dried parsley.

Chiso and i are gearing up to support Sonny in his 2nd bodybuilding show this weekend!

we are so ready to cheer him on :)

a trophy would be awesome, but i get to bring the man home with me! whoop whoop!

le

zig zagging

 i started carb cycling (aka 'zig-zagging') Monday and let's just say Thursday will be a BRIGHTER DAY.  was trying not to complain so soon but i am missing my fruit the most... i treated it as my desert after every meal and well, it sucks not being able to eat it for 3 days straight.  however, it's gotta be this way for carb cycling to do its thing.   i know it's just my body adjusting to my new meal plan, and it's always hard in the beginning. but that doesn't make me feel any better or make this any easier.  :roll:  the crabbiness i felt at the very beginning of this journey after i cut sweets cold turkey is making its way back, sorry Sonny.

on the flip side, i'm enjoying the switch to beef, a lot.  those thin sirloin steaks i made Sunday DID turn out great.  liquid aminos is some awesome stuff!  great flavor, versatile, low sodium, and plenty of healthy benefits. read up on that!

this was last night's dinner (meal 5),  my '1 hitta-quitta' per Sonny.  i like 'controlled chaos' better though;) everything (green beans, brown rice, seasoned sirloin steak) all in one cool whip bowl and covered in  spicy mustard.  when i put everything separate on a plate, it just makes the meal go by so fast.  i don't know how else to explain it.  i guess i just did!  having it all in one bowl gives the appearance of more food.  hey it works for me!  it's a mind thing for sure.  before dinner, i went outside with Chiso for a quick run. i already had my weights rendezvous at the gym earlier that morning.

30 minutes in my fat burning zone and 300 cals later, i called it quits.  as Chiso gets heavier it's getting harder to push his big butt!  but i love that i can bring him with me and change up his scenery for a little bit though.

i then sat and let him explore a little bit and do his thing.

i just adore his little smirk smile!! so, back to carb cycling. i'm still eating small meals throughout the day which keeps my metabolism revving high and my energy levels up.  but booooy if something holds me up from my scheduled meal time, it's back to crab city, quick.

after doing a little research on my own, i found that there are tons of different variations, schedules, and meal plans for carb cycling. my trainer has me on:

THREE consecutive days of low-carb intake followed by ONE high-carb day, then repeat.  like i said, come ON, Thursday!!!!

anyway,  you're basically tricking your body into burning fat rapidly without losing any muscle.

my thoughts?  this BETTER work. LOL

any competitors or non-competitors our there ever heard of or tried carb cycling for weight loss or maintenance?

le

kickin and pushin

who left their gym clothes at home yesterday? i could have kicked myself.  i was driving to work when i realized what i had done. guess where i went on lunch break:

i'll never have enough workout gear, so no biggie there!  no excuses...nothing will keep me from my workout date.

my colorful ensemble!

  i can feel my husband giving me a side-eye through the screen, but i could have gone to lululemon, sooo.... :-?

now shoes, on the other hand, those are deal breakers.  i would have just had to go back home for them. striking a pose before i went to kill it- upper body and cardio that night.

update:

currently @ 152 lbs and 18% body fat after two more weeks.

yeah i thought my body fat went down a lot more too by now, HMPH.  i'm losing weight for sure, but my trainer says i burned a little muscle too, bummer.  this means i need to make sure i am staying inside my fat burning zone during my cardio sessions.  it's honestly hard for me to stay there cause i just want to GO GO GO all the time and burn up everything.  i have to remind myself to stay focused and concentrate on burning fat.

been working on my posing and walking every chance i get. i hope it shows! these progress pics help me tremendously though- i see so many things i need to fix asap.

no cheat meal(s), no processed snacks, no white sugar nothin for 4 weeks straight now. wow is all i can say.  it's ALL God. i have never, ever, in my entire life gone this long without those things.  when i'm tempted, i start praying lol!!!! i'm so very serious though.  somehow i look up minutes later and the craving is gone and i've moved on to doing something else.  i was talking with Sonny the other day about just how much my/our lives revolved around food!  for any special occasion, milestone, celebration - WHATEVER - we go eat.  bored and nothin going on?  we go get fro-yo.  before Chiso was born, we would randomly wake up in the middle of the night and go get some fries or ice cream or something sweet.  gosh i miss being able to do that! with the way the weeks have been flying by though, it won't be long before i can enjoy those things again.  my mentor reminded me that 'the body always craves what the body can't have.' unfortunate truth. UGH.

i came to terms with having a thick waist and being shaped like a boy a few years ago.   i am happy to report that this couldn't be any further from the truth.

this is my first time wearing this dress since 2010 @ my mom's graduation.

matter fact, i almost sent it to Goodwill this past year.  it just wouldn't zip up anymore and i was tired of sucking it in.  i was sooooooo uncomfortable that day.  not only were my feet hurting, but i couldn't even breathe right cause the dress was so tight.  i was trying to be cute - you know how that goes :roll:

alright now!  it's pretty comfy these days as are my jeans and other bottoms.  found it in the back of my closet and wore it to church this past Sunday.  old dress turned new again!  competition or not, i love these results and i plan to commit to eating 85% clean after this is over with.  life is just too darn short not to indulge every now and then.  no food will ever be off-limits in my book.

kissy break during the 'photoshoot'- you know he was wasn't too far away:)

finally, i miss eating my fav foods these days for sure, but i miss cooking new things and meals just as much if not more.  i see TONS of inspiration and ideas on Instagram and Pinterest every single day and i have collected and created a nice log of cleaner and leaner recipes (breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and dessert)  over the past few weeks that i add to daily.  i cannot wait to get back into my kitchen and get creative and test out these recipes...and most important, EAT them!!  september will be a great month. a really, great month..

i'd love to place in this upcoming competition...i think about the day of the show often.  overcoming the entire journey leading up to stepping on that stage is what i will be the most proud of, though.

le