A Little of Something is Better Than a Lot of Nothing!

I have been coming down with a little something, probably a cold that I am pretty sure I received as a gift from one of my kiddos this week! As a result, I haven't been feeling into working out. I made myself do it despite feeling crappy.  They weren't the greatest workouts, I had to take more rest breaks and didn't do as many reps with as much energy as normal, but I still completed them. A lighter, slower workout is definitely better than none at all.

I have been enjoying my class. This was our first full week together, and it has definitely been challenging at times to get these little ones to follow class rules and remain calm.  4 year olds can wind each other up so quickly!  My room finally looks complete, I will post some pics in the next blog so you can see the before and afters!

I cooked every meal I ate this week, with the exception of last night's cheat meal. We got a group of friends together to go to a little Japanese bbq /sushi house and enjoyed grilled meats, sushi rolls, sake, beer, dessert, and each other's company. The best idea of the night was for each couple to order a different dessert and pass them around the table so everyone got a little taste of each. So yummy!!!

I lost 2 more lbs this week for a grand total of 19 so far!! It averages to about 5 lbs a month, but the losses have not been steady. I lose, plateau, then lose a little more and start the cycle all over again. It's a slow process, but definitely worth the effort.

This weekend, I made some play dough for my kiddos, cleaned the house with the assistance of H and B, and relaxed with good company.

 All in all a highly successful 2 days!  Now I am off to the store to load up on healthy goodness for the coming week!

Food for the week:

Breakfasts: either a sammy made of a sandwich thin, turkey sausage, egg, and light cheese; or a protein shake

Lunches: leftover salmon with half a yam,  leftover jerk pork with brown rice, a salad with yogurt dressing

Snacks: fruit, light cheese, protein shakes, juice for workout energy

Dinners: salmon with yams, salsa turkey with cheese grits, steak with polenta, jerk pork with brown rice and mango salsa, Japanese bbq and sushi

Workouts: TapouT XT: plyo, cardio, strength and force upper, Muay Thai 

Work Hard, Play Harder

On Saturday night, the hubster and I went out with another couple. We had intended to go cosmic bowling, and we headed over to a new bowling alley near our friends' house, which was convenient since H was babysitting for them so they could go out.

We arrived at the bowling alley, and we encountered a really fun-looking, large bar, where a live band was playing classic rock and pitchers of beer were selling for $13.50 (you call it, Coors Light was the same price as imports!!!). Needless to say, no bowling occurred that night, but we shared some pitchers and played shuffleboard and darts and enjoyed people watching all night! And we had some nachos and assorted fried foods for our cheat night!!! Yum.

The next day, I was sick. (This is girl code for hungover.) I did absolutely nothing for most of the day, until I managed to get myself together enough to go grocery shopping. After that, I came home and was asleep by 9 pm. We didn't even do our workout. :(

On the brighter side, I am super jazzed at how much our grocery bill has gone down since I stopped buying processed foods. I could spend $200 a week easily when we were eating from a box. This week, I spent $133. Score!! We are eating great stuff like steak, chicken breast, and salmon. We are going out way less as well, so this eating cleaner plan is not only making us healthier, it is saving us a crapload of money as well.

On non-cheat days, I am having a hard time meeting my calorie goal.  For example, I need to eat 500 more calories tonight. There is no way that is going to happen. I am afraid of eating too much and I am afraid of eating too little.  I eat when I am hungry for the most part, but my snacks are usually fruit, so they aren't calorie heavy, and my meals are pretty small as well. I would like, in an ideal world, to have 3 meals that are around 400 calories and a few snacks that added up to about 400 calories. That would get me to my 1600 goal easily. It's hard to do when I am working, though, since there aren't many breaks.  I even have trouble getting enough water in; today, I only had one 20 oz travel cup.  When I stay home, I drink at least 3. Now, I am dehydrated and have a headache when I work out. Boo!

Menus:

Workouts:

Sunday - skipped 

Monday- it's yoga day which usually means no workout, but I feel like I need to do something, especially since we didn't workout yesterday!

Finally Friday!!

Hello, all! I am so glad it's Friday! When you are off for the summer, you forget how good you feel at the end of the day on Friday. I only taught 2 days this week, and spent 2 setting up my classroom. I am exhausted and need this weekend badly!!

I managed to keep up with my workouts this week, with the exception of Tuesday, when I had dinner with some girlfriends.  I am happy to say that I start week 10 of TapouT XT today. The time has gone by so fast. We are already thinking ahead to what we can do when we are finished. I have a ton of videos that really are now useless to me, because I am beyond the fitness level that they are intended to serve! I have finally found the fit girl that was hiding inside me and it feels really good!

Also, my eating has been pretty on point this week. I didn't even have a cheat meal, and I stayed under my calories all week.  I have been eating small portions, rounding out my lunch with a salad and yogurt dressing, and eating mostly fruit for snacks. Despite this, my scale is showing a small gain, but I have been really bloated (I know this because my ring wouldn't slide off like it usually does). More water is definitely needed. It is hard to get it in when you are teaching though.

I am loving my class so far. I had a few criers, but for the most part, the kids are sweet and willing to follow directions.

Here are my diet logs:

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

Friday:

Workouts:

Monday: rest day

Tuesday: off due to dinner with friends

Wednesday: cross core combat

Thursday: rest day

Friday: competition core

Gotta rest up, back to work again Monday!!!

It's Day 60!!

Day 60 has finally arrived!! I am 2/3 of the way through TapouT XT. I have also been doing MFP for about a week and a half, and I am down 3 lbs from that. Here come the progress pics:

Boom!!! Even though I have only lost 5 lbs in the last 60 days (and 3 of them were just this week), there has been a major shrinkage in my body. I am really amazed at the change that can be made in such a short period of time. It's so crazy to me. There are only 3 and 1/2 weeks left in the program (it's not really 90 days, it's 12 weeks).  

Another thing that I have noticed changing is my relationship with food.  I am able to eat smaller portion sizes and still feel satisfied.  I don't experience sugar cravings at all, and I have no problem resisting bad foods when I don't want to eat them.  The other night, we hung out with some friends, and rather than diving into the chips and salsa, I hit the veggie tray, and I didn't feel like I was missing out, even on the giant chocolate chip cookies they had that I didn't even taste. I did help myself to some beer, we played beer pong (so appropriate for someone over 40 lol), and we had a shot of tequila.

Sunday was full of drama, because my niece B went to the reptile store and bought herself a snake while her mom was out of town.  There was no way that my SIL was going to let the snake love at her house.  Long story short, H has been wanting a snake, so I had told her that if she kept her grades up all this school year, I would get her one.  Needless to say, now the deal is that H has to keep her grades up all year or I will sell the snake on Craigslist.  Here is a pic of Hanz, our new family member:

He is a ball python.  Welcome to the zoo, Hanz.

I know I haven't posted in a while, I am not going to give you the full rundown of my entire diet. Here are a few pics from MFP so you can see what I have been eating.

My workouts have been pretty steady. Thursday was rest day :) Friday was cardio XT, Saturday was strength and force upper, which is a ton of arm, shoulder, and chest work with resistance bands.  On Sunday, we did plyo.  I hate that one.  It is mostly squats, lunges, and speed skaters with jumping.  It is the one video that never gets easier!  

That was the weekend in a nutshell!! Have a fabulous Monday, everyone!!

Filing Cabinet Bites and other horrors

Today, I went back to school to see my classroom and begin setting it up for next year.  This is what I encountered when I walked in the door:

This does not look like an engaging learning environment.  I should mention that I am sharing a room with our site's preschool at his year, so it is not all my stuff.  I was the first to arrive in the room, however, so I started the work of putting it to order.

I worked for 6 hours today, stopping only for brief rests and to eat a peach and a handful of almonds.  I had planned to go out to grab lunch, but I just didn't want to take the time once I started working.  I had a little help moving the heavy stuff from my friend G and her mom. My upper arm got pinched in between two filing cabinets while we were moving them, giving me a filing cabinet bite.  It is a little bruised, not enough to show on a picture tonight, maybe if I sleep on it, it will get darker and really gross.  Here are the intermediate results of my hard work:

Not too bad for a day's work.  I still have a ton of boxes to unpack and I have to do all the decorating.  There is a lot of wall space!! Then there are lesson plans, name tags, etc.  I still have a ton to do! I will go back on Friday and continue working.

I took a nap after dinner. I was really tired.  My dinner was super yummy, though.  I put shredded beef in the crockpot before I left this morning, and when I got home, I turned it into these delicious tacos:

I ate them with nonfat refried beans and brown rice.  I didn't even feel guilty about eating a dinner that was over 700 calories because I didn't have a lunch.  And I still have enough calories in my bank to eat a substantial snack.

Since the school is closed tomorrow, I will relax before wading back into all the beginning of the year business.

Tuesday's Menu

Breakfast: bagel thin with peanut butter

Lunch: Tom Kha with brown rice (leftover)

Dinner: shrimp and grits and a pluot

Snacks: a banana with light string cheese, and a protein shake made with coconut almond milk and half a banana

Workout: Insanity plyo (shortened by only doing 1 round of the warmup and not stretching in the middle of the workout)

Wednesday's Menu:

Breakfast: 2 turkey sausage patties, 2 scrambled eggs with light cheddar cheese

Snack: peach and almonds; light popcorn

Dinner: 2 shredded beef tacos with brown rice and nonfat refried beans

Workout: the hubster came home late from work, and I had been doing physical labor moving furniture all day, so we skipped it. I did lift a Coors Light to my lips, though. 

Monday, are you back again already??

Happy Monday, everyone!!  Even though I am on summer break, which is kind of like one long weekend, I still hate to see Monday come around!! I am going back to work next week, so I know this one is going to fly right by!!

www.someecards.com

It was a great weekend, with plenty of relaxing around the house.  Also, we went to see Man of Steel (finally!!) and went to BJ's to sample some more of their Enlightened menu. ( I am telling you, get over there, it is delicious!)

Photo via www.wallpaperid.com

Let me tell you, if you have not seen Man Of Steel yet, you have to go. It has great special effects and a good story. Also, Henry Cavill, who is the new Superman, is ripped.  Staring at him is not a bad way to kill a few hours!!

I guess I should work on my shredding today.  I have about 4 boxes of old bills and junk mail that need to get in my shredder and there are only a few days left in my vacation.  Boo!!

Have a great Monday (if that is even possible!!)

Saturday's Menu

Breakfast/lunch: Thai food - basil beef, orange chicken, rice, noodles with shrimp

Snacks: 1 pluot, 1 banana

Dinner: leftover Thai noodles with shrimp

Workout: yoga - NOT!!! We took it as a rest day

Sunday's menu:

Breakfast: sammy made with 1 whole wheat bagel thin, 1 scrambled egg, 2 turkey sausage patties

Lunch: salad made with chicken breast, corn salad, lettuce, Bolthouse yogurt ranch.

Dinner: BJ'S mahi mahi from enlightened menu, pint of lightswitch lager

Photo via bjsrestaurants.com

Snacks: 1 peach, 1 pepper jack cheese stick, movie popcorn shared with the hubster

Workout: Sprawl and Brawl (TapouT XT)

My Fitness Pal

My Fitness Pal, for people not familiar, is a website/app that helps you track your calories and exercise. My Fitness Pal, if you enter your weight as 149, height as 5'4", and age as 40, will give you a daily calorie allowance of 1300.  I find this to be complete BS. The way I believe it to work, in my tiny mind (ha, so not true!!) is that it is a pure calories in, calories out formula. It also appears that they take your goal weight and multiply it by 10 to get the calories needed for a loss of 1 lb per week. I know this because I have a set of 2 cookbooks called Eat Yourself Thin (these are really great cookbooks by the way!) that propose this same formula.  Of course, if you exercise, you get to eat more calories.  I was not finding MFP to be my pal!!! I am a hungry girl!!

MFP!!

I consulted with my girls on the Mama

Laughlin Fit Camp page, and some suggested using my BMR (basic metabolic rate), which is the number of calories needed to maintain my current weight if I did absolutely nothing more than normal human activity.  Then, I used the Baldwin equation to find my caloric need based on my actual activity level.  I came up with around 2100 calories based on my TapouT XT program.  Then I subtracted 500 calories to get a 3500 calorie deficit per week.  Now I will be eating 1600 calories per day. (If I can manage to stick to the program. My brain is screaming "What about my cheat meals!!!!")

The reason I am trying out the MFP program is that I have stagnated on my weight loss. I know that part of this is due to me building muscle from the strength training portion of TapouT.  But I would still like to see the scale move a little faster, and I sometimes wonder if I am eating too much, even though most of what I eat is healthy.  (For example, I normally eat a whole banana and guesstimate a tablespoon of peanut butter for my snack, but today, I only ate half the banana, and measured the peanut butter, which is like half the calories of my average snack, since I was way off with the pb!!!)

At the very least, I will gain a better perspective on how many calories I am actually eating.  I can use this to take it up or down depending on my activity level.  I will also be able to see the effect that the calories I am eating have on my weight loss.

And now on to the important stuff...

Our houseguest, T, shall henceforth be known to this blog as Mr. Tumnus.  H gave him this name, because his real name reminded her of the character Mr. Tumnus in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.  We have all taken to calling him this in conversation.

I have discovered that Mr. Tumnus is a sweet potato fairy.  Twice now, I have come downstairs to find a cooked sweet potato sitting out, waiting for someone to eat it.  The first time, it was on the kitchen counter.  The second time, it was on the dining room table.  I know that he means to take them with him for lunch, then he puts it down and forgets it! I, myself, am a coffee in travel mug fairy.  But I don't even think anyone notices. :(

The hubster tried to flood the kitchen filling the Brita jug today. Fortunately, I heard the water and was able to avert disaster!

If you fill the Brita this way, you CANNOT go outside to water the yard at the same time!

And on a sad note, I only have one week of vacation left before I go back to the salt mines.  I am warning you in advance not to expect to hear too very much about my work, because I have heard about too many teachers who lost their jobs because of something they wrote on their blog about their students, school, or district. Sorry in advance!!

Thursday's menu:

Breakfast: Special K vanilla almond with almond coconut milk

Lunch: half a croissant roast beef sandwich and various side salads (I was at a memorial service) 1 pb cookie

Dinner: Sriracha Salmon, half a sweet potato, corn salad

Snacks: a peach, a pluot, some cherries

Workout: rest day!

Friday's menu:

Breakfast: whole wheat bagel thin, 1 scrambled egg, 2 turkey sausage patties

Snack: half a banana, 1 tbs peanut butter

Lunch: sriracha salmon and half a sweet potato

Snack: peach and pepper jack cheese stick

Dinner: fried Mac n cheese balls, fried pickles, garlic cheese dip with pita chips, half a cheeseburger, 3 giant bites of coconut caramel chocolate cookie with ice cream. Beers. (Hurray for cheat meals!! This week, we went to Slater's 50/50.  Their burgers are huge and you can build it however you want it. The hubster and I shared our burger and we split the appetizers with another couple.  We shared the dessert with everyone at the table.  One of the best cheat meals ever!!)

Workout: TapouT XT competition core. Planks, push-ups, squats with resistance bands, short cardio intervals with high knees and mountain climbers.