Juicing!

This (Blendtec Wildside Blender)


+

Lots of fruit


=

Wonderful Juice!

I have replaced juice with one or two meals a day.  I was going to go on an a total juice fast, but with the recent vacays and crazy month I have had, it was just easier to replace meals.  I felt great the first week that I did it, even though with the Blendtec the juices are a little bit thicker and harder to drink because the pulp from all of the fruits is still in there.  It is easier if I have a straw.  I don't feel hungry and don't seem to crave all of that bad food like normal.  You pee a lot, and as for number 2.  WOW.  I didn't realize there was that much in me.  If you want some inspiration watch Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead (A Film by Joe Cross).  Amazing Story to help jump start your juicing diet.

When it's hot outside!

Who loves smoothies?  I do.  They are wonderful for a quick meal and just lovely in the summer when it's hot outside.  The one problem that I have found with smoothies though is that they are liquid calories and I seem to be starving after 45 minutes are drinking one.  G doesn't seem to have this problem, maybe he has trained his stomach to not be hungry or maybe he is beefing his up so that it has more substance.  Also, one thing that I hate is seeds.  Awww.  Berries you taste so good, but why can't those little seeds just blend too?  So how do you make your smoothies?

Here are few recipes to try:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie
Substitutions: plain yogurt instead of vanilla,
chocolate protein or cocoa powder instead of chocolate syrup,
almond butter instead of peanut butter

Green Tea Smoothie
It is all about the greens!
Add mango for a nice twist.

Mango Berry Smoothie
So pretty!
I would probably just blend the whole thing together.

How many days do you do it?

Question of the week: how many days do you workout? What do you feel is the best number of workouts per week to make you feel like your body is moving and losing weight? My current plan only has three days of weight workouts and that's it. Of course I can add a day of yoga and a day of cardio in there and possibly add some intervals to the weight days, but the author of the "plan" says it's not necessary.

I personally have always thought you must workout 4-5 days to lose weight. 3 days seems like a maintenance program. I have just started this week and I am on my third workout today and I have noticed a difference in the appearance of my muscles but not so much on the scale. (it has only been a week)

Let me know your thoughts. Have a great weekend!

New Rules of Lifting for Women.

Ladies, get this book. Review coming later.

Men, get the book Maximum Strength. I have a guest review coming later, too.

Happy lifting and getting stronger. And Happy Independence Day!

Airdyne

Has everyone heard of an Air dyne bike? It is actually pretty cool stationary bike that is great for interval cardio training that is low impact and killer on the legs. But for the love...could someone please explain to G that this should be done while no one is home and when people are not trying to concentrate on their home work assignments. Just saying. I get being fit and all, but the sound that is produced from this machine is deafening. I need to change my attitude about it and see if I can think of it as soothing. But if you are an at home fitness seeker or rehabilitating some leg injury this bike rocks.

Okay, okay, in all seriousness, this bike really does rock. It is a great cardio workout. Plus it is low impact...aka...it isn't going to hurt you. Well maybe your sit bones, but that is another story. Don't believe google it. You will find at least one website that is all about it. Want a professionals opinion take it from Cressey Performance and Mike Boyle.

My Fitness Pal

My darling friend Miss Pants, recently told me about a new, awesome website to track calories and workouts. It is called My Fitness Pal. It is a social media website that keeps uses a community of people to keep you motivated, but also is a great tool to track what you are eating. Dietitians and weight loss professionals are always saying keep a journal of everything that you eat. Does any one know how time consuming this really is? It is crazy to try and write every single thing down right when you eat it. This handy website is also accessible on your phone or other mobile devices.

Blackberry

Android

Iphone/Ipad/Ipod

The best part...it is a free app. You can also search and download directly on your mobile device from your app store or market place, which ever you use.

This is ultra easy for me to use. I either plan what I am going to eat and enter the amounts and calories in then, or I see what I am actually going to eat and then enter it in after. I also able to enter in all of my workouts and activities. This way I know how much I have to workout to not go over on my calories, or how much I get to eat based on my workout. Another cool feature is the nutrients part. It tells you a total of all of your nutrients that you are eating. Using your weight and age it figures out how much of each nutrient you are allotted for the day. This is a great way to track your sugar.

If you hate this idea, then there are several other calorie tracking devices, here are just a couple that I have used in the past.

The Daily Plate - this can also be downloaded as an app, search for LiveStrong.

Calorie King - by far the most comprehensive for eating out. Visit calorieking.com for their mobile version.

You can also go old school. Hand write it. Look at food labels, add it up all together and there you have it, a food journal. Some people say this isn't important, but if you want to know what you are eating and why you can't lose those few pounds, this will tell you when, where and what you are eating that is causing the problem. I have this problem, I diet and feel like I am eating healthy, but then I will track for a week and I will see where my problems are. It mostly has to do with sugar. What can I say, I am having an affair with chocolate. I tell it no, but it doesn't know how to take the hint.

Alright, I will quit ranting and raving. I am going to join the crowd and tell you to make a food journal. I challenge you to try it for a week. If you hate that is fine, if it becomes a habit, you just may become that much healthier!

Paleo time!

I tried the Paleo Diet.

I cut out grains *gasp*, dairy *oh cheese*, and sugars *chocolate sin*. I lasted 4 days.

I had the worst headaches. Like so bad I was just pissed. I looked at sugar like it was the only thing that could save my life. At the end of day 4 G and I decided that we couldn't do it, so we quit. BUT that doesn't mean that we aren't totally giving up. We have added organic grass fed, no hormone dairy back into our diet and if we get offered a cupcake and don't want to say no we aren't going to beat each other up over it. But we are still going strong on no grains. This is by far the hardest thing for me. I am Japanese...we love rice. He is Italian...we love pasta.




The good news is that we aren't eating out at night. Major points for me for not having Taco Bell for over two weeks. Someone at work walked in with a Taco Bell bag and I almost tackled them....well I did in my mind, but then I realized that I should be happy. I got on the scale this morning and I have been rewarded with a total weight loss of 3lbs. Woop, woop! We also made a pact to try to not eat out for lunch more than two times, and if we do let's not make the worst decisions ever. We are trying to stick to salads (olive oil and vinegar dressing only), no creamy soups and for hell's sake stay away from french fries. Or FRIED anything for that matter.






So the moral of the story is don't be afraid to make a new change, if it doesn't work out maybe you find something that does work.

P.S. We are on day two of the updated diet and I still have not had chocolate. Staying strong!

Music!

I don't know about you, but I have to have music to workout. I don't have a special play list anymore for different workouts, I just put the iPod on shuffle and let it go. I am wondering if this is a mistake. Should I have a special play list for each of type of workout that I do? Like for a circuit, should have I have intense dance beats like Rihanna's S&M and then something a little more chill like Jem's Aciiid!? Same with running or cardio, should it just be upbeat, fast paced, get the blood flowing type of music or am I okay to have a mixture of Jason Mraz, Britney, Rihanna, and Aerosmith while I am getting my fitness on?

What do you do? Is music that important to everyone else? Am I hindering my motivation to push myself to the max by listening to a Modest Mouse tune over a Lady Gaga jam?

Apple, Inc. and Nike have made sure to partner to make the most of our workouts. Is this coincidence? Or have they read the research on the effects of music on exercise?

Read here. According to this, I need to carefully select my music to have a positive effect on my workouts. Can I get some help? What are your play lists for working out?

SLACKER

I am surprised, nobody has came to this blog and called me out on being a slacker. Shame on you. Well I have been a slacker. And I will call myself out on it. Ggg-man has decided that he is going to do 100 push up workout. That is a you will do push ups everyday until you can do 100 push ups at a time. Nuts. But it works. I started doing it with him. My goal however was not the 100 push ups, but something that gets the blood flowing and heart pumping so I don't feel like a complete failure on all of my goals for fitness and 2012 in general. If any one is interested in being able to do 100 push ups at a time here you go:

http://www.hundredpushups.com/

In addition to this crazy workout. I do a series of abs, squats, and pull ups. I also have been jump roping for at least 10 mins. I try to go until I am going to pass out. I know that this much isn't cardio or a structured diet, but it is working at keeping me strong and not gaining weight...which is kind of the goal until the end of the semester and bowling season when some time will open up.

Diet wise, I haven't been doing too badly, but not great either. I have been eating out A LOT. But I try to make good choices and control my portions of how much I am actually eating. My main vice seems to be candy, but kind of always has been. I really try to focus on my water intake so that I don't crave a lot of sweets or salty foods. Seems to be working, since I don't really crave the things I am eating just kind of choose to eat Tacobell once a week. Damn nacho cheese.

Well I'll check in at the end of the month with a lovely plan to be ready for bikini season. I need to just be smarter and stay in shape all year round and then I wouldn't have to worry about bikini season. :)

Diet Challenges

What do you all think of Diet Challenges? I personally think that they are good and bad. Let's break it down.




The Good:

• It can unite a group of people together to help motivate and challenge others to make the life style change needed to be successful in weight loss.


• It may create a new life for someone. By this I mean, it could help a person escape from the everyday temptations that people have a hard time of letting go. ie, the sweets, the salty, the fattening.


• It is a life style change, which is what people need mostly when dieting. You can't just say for 6 weeks I am not going to eat this and this and this...but after that 6 weeks is up, gorge yourself on everything in sight. Nope. You can't considered a "diet" successful if you lose X amount of weight and then gain it all back 1 week later.


• It can give a person the confidence to keep pushing towards a healthier life style.


• It can also change your attitude, mood and overall outlook on life. That marathon that you never thought you would want to do, seems possible now. The goal of going to the gym more often seems more reasonable rather than daunting.

The Bad:

• It can end up being a yo-yo diet. You lose 20lbs in 6 weeks, great, but did you maintain it? Constant yo-yo dieting makes it harder to keep the weight off because when your body mass decreases by 10 percent or more, it ends up slowing down your metabolism by 11 to 15 percent.


• Some people will give up. There are a lot of people that will see that there is no way that they can win the whole challenge so they just give up and go back to their old ways.


• Some diet challenges lack certain nutrients or types of foods that when introduced back into the body can be detrimental to your digestion. Like carbs. Completely subtracting carbs from your diet can be really good for a weight loss, but if you stop eating them for an extended period of time and then decide that you are going to have a huge sandwich from your favorite deli, your body may freak out slightly. It might not digest and just turn into fat or it may digest, but your body may think it is a poison, and well you get the idea.


• They don't work. Some diets work for some, but for some the diet might not work. There are certain things that everyone can cut out and lose weight, sometimes, there are items that don't affect people.


• They don't change the people's bad habits into good habits. Kind of falls under the yo-yo thing, but people just will not realize that the bad habits are what need to go, not just adding a diet.

I think that if you are going to do a diet challenge with a group of people this can be really successful in giving someone the push to a healthier lifestyle, but with some diet challenges that would be considered crash diets (HCG diet) you are setting yourself up for failure since it is a lifestyle that is unrealistic to maintain after the challenge is over. If you are going to participate in a diet challenge remember that you will only be successful in weight loss if you change your habits. Like if you eat late at night, try to stay away from fast food and snacks. Try to still make a decent dinner like you would if you were eating earlier. Try not to yo-yo diet, make it a new life.

Perspective

If you are ever looking to put your life in perspective watch the coverage of the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on CNN.com. Break your heart and realize that life is a precious thing. Wanna help?

Text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10 to help in the aid and relief in Japan.

Follow this link for details.

"We Pray for Japan" Lady Gaga bracelet.

Buy here.

#keepprayingforJapan.

February wrap up

I know that February is not over just yet, but I am pretty sure that I will continue on the same path.

Fails:
Making time for working out. I originally thought that this would be an issue, but I would be able to over come it. Turns out...this is the biggest and main issue in my failure to lose weight. Obviously you can lose some weight by dieting, but to really shred it, you have to work out. I need to learn to over come this. I need to change my frame of mind and I need to make the time. Time is just not going to magically appear, so I will just need to make it happen.

Cupcakes. Well they just need to die. I can't resist them. When I see them, I can hear that they are calling my name. I am sure that I haven't helped the situation by having a cupcake war for Superbowl Sunday with Gregg, but still it was a fun experience.

Successes:
When I plan my meals and grocery shop, it is so easy to just eat what you are suppose to. I give myself a cheat meal for lunch during work and a cheat dinner on Thursday nights. I get out of a class at 9pm, and usually have homework after. I don't like eating in front my professor, I felt like she was staring at me the whole time I was eating, I couldn't handle it.

Water intake. Didn't realize how dehydrated I was until I was hydrated. I am also going to start drinking Liv Skinney again. This weird looking green drink made me feel so much better, I am sure that it is quite possibly the placebo effect, but I feel like my body is more regular, and don't crave the greasy sugary foods while I am drinking it. You can check it out here. If you are interested in learning more about it let me know.

Alright for March even though I will be on vacation for the first week, I am making time. Time for myself, time for my future health. Time to make my minutes more productive and accomplishing.

Also, I promise that I will be a better blogger...obviously the time thing again... :)

Holy Cow!

So I am not quite sure where two weeks went, but I am sure that they have happened because I am behind on homework and it is the end of the month.

So to re-cap the past two weeks I have had successes and I have had failures.

Let's start with the failures so that we can end on a positive note:

FAILURES:

• Taco Bell. I know. Disgusting, especially since the latest release of the meat not really being meat. Since this story has came out, I have definitely curbed this bad habit. I am still having issues with bowling and class nights, but I am trying to get a handle on it.
• Sweets. I hate that I can't turn away a dessert. I hate that I like them. But I do, so I need to figure out a way to limit myself and I need to figure out a way to not want to cheat on that limit.
• Preparing and planning meals. I have no excuse besides my utter laziness on a Sunday evening.

SUCCESSES:

• Water. I am hydrated. I make sure to drink at least three of my nifty camelbaks a day
• Exercise. I know I could do better, but even if it is late and I am tired I will do at least 30 minutes of toning per day to keep my muscles moving.
• Breakfast. This has always been my biggest down fall, but I am happy to report that I have ate breakfast everyday since I have made the commitment. They haven't all been complete and filling, but they have not been donuts or bagels either. One small win for me.

Moving forward. Well this week is already starting off a little rocky since I didn't grocery shop yesterday or prepare any meals. That means that I will probably fail on the eating out most every night this week. Well since I don't really have a plan, I will figure it out tonight while I am bowling, at least I can do something productive while I am waiting my turn. I have homework that I can catch up on too.

Another update, I am toying with the idea of going gluten free. Maybe not 100%, but possibly for certain times of the day. Gregg thinks it is bogus, which is probably true, but might possibly help my love for bread, and sweets.

So the food of the week is quinoa. Do you know what you can do with quinoa? Do people even know what this is? Well you tell me and next week I will let you know what you can do with this wonderful little seed. :)

Week #2 Plan, Week #1 Recap

Week #1 successes:

• Water intake are a minimum of 64 ounces was met everyday.
• Daily breakfast (even on school days)
• 4 workouts for the week (30-60 minutes each)

Week #1 fails:

• Sweets. My demise. The worst was foodie Friday treat sweet rolls...ugh.
• Taco Bell. Twice.
  
• Did not follow my food plan 100%

Well it seems that my fails are definitely out weighing my successes. Time to turn it around for week #2.

Week #2 Plan:

Food:
Breakfast: Oatmeal (pumpkin oatmeal found here), fruit with peanut butter sprouted grain toast, Protein shake with fruit

Snacks: Celery sticks with peanut butter, cheese sticks and jerky, mini cliff bars, pretzels, yogurt, apples, bananas, oranges

Lunch: Salad with veggies and sliced turkey, pasta shells with veggies, quesadilla with chicken and salsa, sprouted grain grilled cheese

Dinner: Pasta shells with chicken, chicken enchiladas, Wendy's chili, Mexican pizza

Workout goal:

5 workouts this week (3 cardio and 2 muscle toning). I am still using that Nike Traning app.

Recipe of the week:

Low-fat cream sauce for a pasta dish. I don't know about you , but I love pasta and not only do I love pasta, but I love cream sauces on top of pasta. Does anyone know how many extra calories of fat this adds? Well let me not burst your bubble, but it is a lot. Spaghetti with marinara is around 500 calories per serving, Fettuccine Alfredo is around 900 to 1200 per serving.* Crazy.

* these are average calories based on serving size, not actual portions served.

Low-fat Cream Sauce:*
~1.5 tablespoons of butter
~1/4 cup of flour
1 clove garlic
1 cup 1%, low-fat milk
salt
pepper

*Enough sauce for 2 cups pasta. (2 cups dry)

Melt butter on medium to low heat, add minced garlic clove while melting, add flour until all of the butter has disappeared and it appears to be a buttery paste...not a floury paste. Whisk constantly for 3 to 4 minutes. DO NOT STOP stirring. You do not want to burn your roux (pronounced roo). When the roux starts to separate and becomes thick add half of milk, keep stirring until all of the lumps are gone. (mixture should still be kind thick) Then add the rest of the milk. Mix until smooth. Should have a nice consistency like Velveeta. Add salt and pepper to taste (1/4 teas of each). Add cooked pasta to sauce and mix. You can then top the pasta with mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, grilled chicken, frozen veggies, sun dried tomatoes, or whatever you feel would be good with pasta, which is pretty much everything.

This is my own recipe from techniques that I learned from making gravy and macaroni and cheese from the Pioneer Women. A roux is not easiest thing to do, but definitely handy when you need to thicken something up. Remember practice makes perfect!

Another tip that I learned from last week is that I really need to prepare better. With my on-the-go lifestyle I have no room for leaving things until the last minute. So I have prepared a few lunches, the pumpkin oatmeal, steamed some veggies, and cut some veggies for salads and other meals. I took pics, but they take too long to load, so maybe next week!

Good luck this week, hopefully I will make some progress this week, instead of just maintaining.

Meal Plan Week #1

I think that this is the hardest part of the whole process.

Breakfast: Pumpkin oatmeal, Eggs with spinach and cheese, Banana with peanut butter toast.

Snacks: Almonds, cheese stick, orange, yogurt, carrot sticks, celery with peanut butter, mini cliff bars.

Lunch: Romaine salad with veggies, Peanut butter and jam on sprouted grain bread, chicken salad.

Dinner: Bean and cheese burrito, grilled meat with veggies, salad with veggies, pasta with veggies and feta.

Recipe of the week: To keep the theme of eating breakfast each day...one of my most difficult challenges, I chose this recipe. Pumpkin Oatmeal:

Ingredients

• 1 (14-ounce) can pumpkin puree (the unseasoned kind)
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups unsweetened almond milk, or water
• 2 tablespoons raisins (golden or regular)
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice OR 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon plus 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom plus 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 cups quick cooking oatmeal (not the instant kind)
• 1/4 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• Honey or maple sugar, for serving
• Heavy cream, for serving

In large saucepan over high heat, combine the pumpkin puree, water, milk, raisins, salt, and pumpkin pie spice (alternative spices). Bring to a boil.

Add the oatmeal. Turn the heat down and cook according to your oatmeal instructions; mine usually takes about 15 minutes. Stir often.

Meanwhile, in a small cast iron skillet over medium heat, toast the pepitas until they're fragrant and a gentle golden brown, about 10 minutes.

Once the oatmeal is cooked (each grain should be tender), serve with honey or maple sugar on the side, pepitas to sprinkle on top, and cream if people like it more like porridge.

Since this is the first week of school I am concerned of what kind of meals I will be able to have time for, like on Thursday evening I have class until 9, so what will be a realistic dinner in that situation. So this week is kind of an experiment. Like I said before I just have a couple of goals to eat breakfast and veggies. Also, I want to make sure that I drink enough water...at least 64 ounces.

Official Week #1

Alright, the only noteworthy victory from this week was that I made sure that I ate breakfast everyday. Other than that, I would say that my crappy eating has carried over to the new year. I have taken my measurements so I know what I am working towards...I can't exactly remember what my last measurements were, but if I do remember right, YUCK. Very disappointed in myself.

Goals for this week:
Eat breakfast every day, work out 4 days this week, eat veggies with at least two of my meals and one of my snacks.

Work out for this week:
All come from the Nike Training Center app from my phone. This is actually a pretty cool app. It has made a bunch of different work outs based on what you want to focus on, they can be done at home are at the gym while jamming out to your tunes. This week I will be alternating from the Get Lean section and the Get Focused. The Get Lean portion is cardio intervals and the Get Focused is 15 minute workouts to focus on specific areas. All workouts will be 45 to 60 minutes with warm up and cool down included. I will either workout in the morning before class or right when I get home from work, school or bowling.

Day 1 and 3: Fighter Fit.

Day 2 and 4: Ab burner, Butt buster, Back definer, and Arm definer.

I get to do a lot of lunges, Russian twists, and push-ups. YES!

Meals for the week:
I didn't have time to plan this out just yet, so I will have to report this out tomorrow. I will tell you that I will be having oatmeal and coffee for breakfast, a banana with some nuts (almonds most likely) for morning snack, a salad, yogurt, and an orange for lunch (I will probably add something to this), I haven't decided on my afternoon snack yet and dinner is still up in the air.

Tomorrow I will post the rest of my meals and the recipe of the week.

Alright, I am wishing myself good luck because I am definitely going to need it.

What This is ALL About

Wow.

I am really going to do this. So I have made the goal, now I just need to plan how to accomplish this goal. This goal for me is not only be a healthier and more in shape version of myself, but to change my life and life style. I am easily swayed to eating out, eating quick and eating treats and little cheats (as I like to call them). And skipping my workout to work longer, snuggle with a blanket on the couch or just to sit and tell myself I need to relax. Which is true sometimes, but not for months at a time. On this blog, I am not only to report to you what I am eating and when I working out, but I have to admit to you when I have slipped up and what my excuse is. So that not only can you see how ridiculous my excuses are, but so that I can see how ridiculous they are too. By the end of the year, I want to recognize that I cheat on my meals when I am stressed or lazy and have solutions to combat that feeling. I also want to have a different outlook on food and exercise by the end of the year.

They say it take 40 days to make something a habit, but did they tell you that it only takes one day to reverse all progress made in that habit. As you know in the course of a year there are several 40 days. To be exact there are 9.13 40 day cycles. Since I will probably not be set up to reporting to you until 01/10 that leaves 8.76 40 day cycles to screw up or make it. Over the course of this year, I can think of at least three times that I could be derailed. #1: When I go to San Francisco for my annual Janba bowling tournament. This tournament is not only filled with bowling, it is filled with alcoholic beverages, delicious Japanese food, and late nights of grabbing something quick to eat before you crash to wake up 6 hours later. #2: Trips to New York. For one I live to gorge on bread, pizza and baked goods. And let's not forget Loretta's delicious home cooked meals. Plus there is always eating out and the whole trip is geared towards where we are going to eat. Danger, Danger. #3: Holidays. Enough said. This is treat central for every where you go. There is no escaping chocolate covered yummies.

Alright, so now you realize that may seem like the most crazy thing a person could do, but I am putting myself out there for all of you to see. This is to show you that even with the most determination to be a healthier person, there will be set backs. And there will be failing times, but I am tired of fat pants, flowy tops and ways to look thinner. I just want to be comfortable and proud of the body that I am living in. No more shame. Here is to 2011 and a healthier more alive self.