Spring has sprung!

My April promises to myself:

I am going to try to keep the calorie count to 1200-1299 every day. This promise will include pre-planning and calculating my meals in advance.

I am reading the Runner's world book, Run less, Run Faster. I plan to implement some of their program (more to follow). So far, the training only has you running three days per week and it highly recommends cross training to strengthen your runs.

8 Glasses of water per day.

Green tea (still not liking it), but I am drinking it daily. And 1 cup of coffee.

Yoga class 1 x per week; this will help with the running plan.

Weight training 2 x per week

Now, this week we have a training run tomorrow that is 12 miles. It is funny even writing this, as that is almost a half and now I use 12 as a gauge for my training runs.

Next week I am scheduled to do a 10k that is hosted by the Naples Philharmonic. They are going to be playing at every mile marker. Hal Higdon is going to be there signing books. Pretty cool, huh?

I forgot to add this one link:

www.womenshealthmag.com/nutrition/detox-diet?page=3

It was an interesting article and I tried this meal plan o 4/1/10. On 4/2, I can honestly say I woke up with flatter abs. Not sure why, but I did feel "cleansed" a bit. And I felt better, which is the real whole point of the article. This page link brings you to the sample two days of foods to eat. It is from Women's Health Magazine.

Happy Easter everyone!

Monday Monday

 Today my hubby comes back from wet, rainy Rhode Island. He is in for a treat because it is 75 degrees and "bountiful" sunshine today.  I love the way the weathermen down here come up for new ways to describe sunny weather.  Makes me glad I live here.

So far, for breakfast, I had a smoothie.  It looks like I did that alot when I was successful with my weight loss last year.  So, I am coming around full circle.  The smoothie consisted of:

1 c. fresh squeezed OJ
1 scoop Pure Protein brand whey protein in Vanilla
1 c. frozen unsweetened strawberries
1 tbs. flaxseed
1 small container of Fage 0% greek yogurt, vanilla flavor

Total Calories for breakfast:  458, carbs 52, fat 7, protein 30

The higher carbs will help me to fuel.  Today I went for a 20 min. dog walk (aka stroll) and then went for a two mile run to my gym and did the full circuit with heavy weights.  Then I ran to where the alligators are and did 100 pushups off the wall.  Then I walked 1.3 miles home.  Whew!  Since I was not hungry this morning, I only had 2 cups of black coffee and 2 large glasses of water before the workout above.  Had the smoothie at 11AM after the workout.  I know the experts say this is bad, but I am going to try to eat when I am hungry and stop when I am not. 

Now, for dinner tonight.  As I said yesterday, the hubby wants to lose some weight.  So I made my famous Pea soup.  I will post on that later and take a nice picture of it with the recipe.  I found this interesting article on Prevention Magazine, which I would like to share:

One woman’s scale diary

Don’t let the number determine your self-worth! One 40-something Prevention reader shared how her weight fluctuated in 1 day.

7:15 AM: 133.8 lb, Right before hopping in the shower

8:30 AM: 137.5 lb, Wow, my clothes weigh 3.7 lb!

9:15 AM: 138.7 lb, Gained 1.2 lb from breakfast

10:30 AM: 137.9 lb, Bathroom break, -0.8 lb

1 PM: 135.8 lb, Lost 2.1 lb, thanks to a sweaty cardio workout

1:30 PM: 137.4 lb, Up 1.6 lb from lunch

4 PM: 138.6 lb, Gained 1.2 lb, probably from all the water I was drinking

5:30 PM: 137.5 lb, Bathroom break, -1.1 lb

11 PM: 140.8 lb, Yikes! Gained 3.3 lb—probably the pasta I ate and the wine!

11:30 PM: 137.1 lb, Undressed—huh, gained 3.3 lb since this morning

7:15 AM: 135.4 lb, Lost 1.7 lb while sleeping

Now, my weigh-in at the gym today (fully clothed and all I had was the two coffees and two large waters) was 140 lbs!  Ahhhh!!!!!!!  But I don't feel that fat today, what is up with that?


Lynda

Back on track

Today I decided would be a good day for me to get "back on track".  I have been eating well (for the most part) for the past 10 days.  I have not had dinner out and have been preparing meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) with recipes found on Spark People Recipe website.  I have been counting calories.  I decided to return back to this blog because last year at this time I was at a lower weight (by 3 lbs) and I was actually keeping fit. 

So, I plan on going back in time to 2009 and see what I was doing "right" and find out why I feel a little pudgy and not fit and trim like last summer. 

I ran 4 miles this morning and it was a beautiful morning  We ran down at a place called "Clam Pass" in Naples, Florida. It had this really cool boardwalk that is pretty new and was made from recycled milk cartons--really cushiony run.  We ran at 8:30AM, ran on the beach and actually made a circle and ran back to our car.   I need this practice running on the beach since my next 5k is the Beach bum 5k, which is held on the beach.  Beach running is tougher on the knees and ankles than running on a flat road.

Tomorrow is meal planning like last year.  I think why I haven't been doing so well is that my portions are not the same as the ones posted on the Spark Recipe website.  Hubby is back from Rhode Island and wants to lose weight too. 


Lynda

I am back!

Where have I been?  Great question. I have formally moved to SW Florida.  It is supposed to be warm here but someone left the door open to Canada and we are freezing!   So, I am sitting here enjoying a nice cup of Chocolate Pistachio Green tea and writing this blog.  I have my electric heat on 73 degrees.  This house just does not warm up like the one in Rhode Island, which is probably due to the heat rising and we have 12 ft. ceilings here.

So, what have I been up to?  I am training for my first Half Marathon.  I started in late October and am now into my final week!  How did that happen so fast?  I have also found out that my inner athlete has finally come out and I am officially a "crazy runner".  I joined the running group down here, The Gulf Coast Runners".  What a cool bunch of healthy people this group is.  And it is also a wonderful way to meet people with my same interests.  So far, the farthest I have run is 12.8 miles.  Next Sunday is the big day.

Updates:  Unfortunately, I was unable (or unwilling) during the holidays to maintain my weight loss.  I had managed to get to the magic number of 129 lbs. and felt and looked so great and light.  My size 6 clothes were falling off of me.  However, I am not at what I guess you would call my happy weight of 135 lbs.  Not tragic, but I am going to try to get to the 129 again and maintain.

So, for New Years, I pledge I am going to try to make the following changes:

1. Yoga (I think I stopped doing this due to all of the running and distances and time alloted for that during training.  Very dumb of me as if I ever needed a little yoga for my body, I need it now!
2. Green tea - I have to admit that I am not sold on the taste of green tea (bitter to me).  So, I remembered how I went to this awesome store down here in Estero called Teavana.    The lady taught me how to brew tea.  I know, this sounds silly, but, all teas should be made at different temperatures.  Green is brewed at 175 degrees, not boiling and only for 1-2 minutes of steeping.  I think in the past I boiled the water and left it to steep too long.  So, this morning I am having Chocolate Pistachio Green Tea and it is Yummy!  
3. Run my Half Marathon injury free!  This is a goal that I am enjoying so much now that I have friends to run with.  I am exited and I know that I can do this.  I am almost sad to know that I will no longer have this goal after next weekend.  My running friend told me that once I am hooked after the half, I will be signing up for a full marathon.  Question is:  Do I have that in me?
4. Drink less wine.  This is a tough one for me because I love my Cabernet.  However, with all of the training, I quickly found out that my running ability is linked to no alcohol the night before.  Since I have been running 4 days per week, that limits the wine.  I have found that less is best.
5. Sleep more and plan my sleep time.  Does this sound like a strange thing to add?  Well, I have been getting 7 1/2 to 8 hours of sleep per night and it is heavenly.  You have to plan on your required amount first and then adjust your time you retire for the evening.  It works!
6. Plan my meals.  When I get overwhelmed with work, this is where I slack off.  I am back to calorie counting and planning because that worked for my weight loss. I have learned eating healthy has made my running better.

So there you have it.  New year, new me.  Let's see how I do!  Green tea below:

Breakfast this morning was baked banana oatmeal brulee! (One fourth of this pan).  I added a little dollop of vanilla yogurt mixed with Fresh Market almond butter which was made right there in the store.  Recipe for the oatmeal was from www.katheats.com.  Her website is wonderful and has great healthy recipes.

Whoops, forgot to give the recipe totals:

Calories:  375 (including my topping)
Carbs: 77 (which you need in the morning)
Fat:  12 g
Protein:  15g (yeah)

I also did yoga at home this morning for 60 mins.  I got the class off of www.yogadownload.com. This is a great website if you cannot get to a yoga studio.  I am not much one for doing a yoga dvd, I find it distracting.  This is just downloaded off your iphone or ipod.  I did the 60 minute Detox yoga.

Happy New Year Everyone!
Lynda

Has anyone tried the Amazing Grass Products?

Sunday, September 13, 2009

I am big into protein powders as way to get my protein numbers up on the nutrient calculator. I love the products from Amazing Grass and in a recent order, I tried the Amazing Meal Pomegranate Mango infusion in my "green" smoothie. It is delicious! I have tried all sorts of protein powders and now this one is a new favorite. You can find it on www.amazinggrass.com. For some reason (I wasn't sure if it was all in my head), I feel energized when consuming their products. I am always trying to find ways (because I am a vegetarian) to get my daily protein. When I do not have my smoothie for the day, it is very difficult. I was eating eggs till I read that story in the ProJo (local newspaper) about how egg processors throw the male chicks into the machinery to kill them because male chicks do not produce eggs. It makes me ill to think of that. I have been researching other ways of eliminating the dairy products or at least minimizing them. I have been reading the raw food way to eat. All interesting, although I am not sure I would take the plunge.

Sometimes in the morning it is tough to look at a green smoothie, but boy does the one I made with Amazing meal taste good. The ingredients I used are:

1 c. soy milk
1 medium banana
1 scoop Amazing Meal
1/4 c. raspberries
1 c. baby spinach
3/4 frozen mango
crushed ice


Lynda

Finish for a Guinness 5k in Warren RI

Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Boy, did we have fun at this race. The fun part is there is a group of us that goes to these 5k's from the gym. Our Trainer, Linda, wants to beat everyone, especially her 15 year old son. Well, it is kind of hard to beat someone who is 20 years your junior. He usually runs with us and as soon as he sees that 3 mile marker, he looks back to see where we are and those 15 year old legs turn on the steam and blow us away. That is Eric (her son) in front and I am in pink in the middle and Linda is in pink behind me. :)



Of course, the food after this race was spectacular. There were approximately 300 people running in this race. At mile marker #2, a sign was posted that said "only one more mile to your Guinness". We all had a good laugh at that one. The food after this race was donuts, watermelon, apples, bagels, oranges, brownies, cookies, clam chowder and of course, beer.



The best part of the race is that I beat my trainer by .10 seconds! I always beat her (and she is 7 years my junior and I have bad knees right now). But she forgot her inhaler (boy do we sound old or what?). So, I cruised past her at the last leg of the race. I do this to her all the time. I never knew I had a competitive side!



Looking forward to two weeks and the CVS 5K. I better work on my speed because I know Linda, my trainer, told me she is done letting her "elders beat her and I am going down!"




Lynda

First day back to the gym.....and back to running again!

Another picture of our Washington DC trip. That is me and the hubby. Our hotel package came with a fabulous picnic lunch. Arugula salad with walnuts and goat cheese, gourmet black olive pesto sandwich with roasted tomatoes and cheese, oatmeal cookie and of course Cabernet. We ate our lunch at Lafayette Park across from the White House. What a wonderful trip we had. Now, onto today's blog posting....

Today I was very excited. It was the first day I figured I would test out my knees and hamstring from their week off of exercise. Well, almost a week. So, I started with a shorter run, just 3 miles. Ran half way, stretched the ever tightening hamstring, and off I went to complete my run. And boy, did it feel good to be out there. I missed my running. It is like my therapy. And I missed the gym and lifting weights.

So, before I left to exercised, I jumped on the scale. Looked down and saw 129 lbs. even. Wow! For the past month, I have been up and down between 130 - 134. To see 129 even was surprising given my lack of exercise and recent return from vacation. And there is something psychological about 129 being in the 120's for me. I do like breaking the 130 barrier. But for the life of me, I don't understand the weight loss this week. I know I have watched my calories and food intake very carefully. I have not felt as hungry as normal which I attribute to my lack of exercise.

So, I am trying to figure this all out. Do I decrease my normal exercise routine? I kind of have to right now due to the injuries. Maybe the key for me is less is best. Less exercise, less food intake. Who knows? I guess only time will tell. I do know one thing, I need more sleep!

Lynda