My friend Katie is starting off the year on a great note and is tracking her emotions, eats and exercise. After looking at this year’s resolutions, I thought that tracking these three buckets would really help me in staying healthy and keeping myself accountable.
Plus, I recently found out that I am standing up in two weddings in May and August, so this will be great motivation to start tracking my progress to maintain a healthier lifestyle!
So here goes my first week!
Emotions
Last week, I got on the scale and was NOT happy with the number. I lost 30 pounds last year with Weight Watchers and have gained about a third of it. Crazy how hard it is to take it off and how EASY it is to put it back on! It’s not that my happiness is defined by a number, but I certainly feel like my clothes are a little tight and just feeling bleh (I blame part of it on stress at work, and the other part on the weather! Crazy cold and dark Chicago winters- grr!)
Regardless, I was frustrated and know exactly why it’s happening: I eat like crap. I exercise on a regular basis and have that part down, but it’s the kind of food I’m eating (and the volume) that are really problematic for me. And that brings me to…
Eats
This week, I decided to start a food journal. I think that writing down each thing will at least be a good start for me to be mindful of what I am consuming. That means I will definitely be more conscious when I reach for a handful of baking chocolate chips (yes, shameful I know. Self professed chocoholic here.)
I must say, the journal has been pretty helpful so far. I am consciously trying to fit in more fruits and veggies and writing it down helps. But I’m also a huge snacker after dinner and always crave sweets so I’m trying to curb it slowly but surely or at least find some alternatives that are sweet & tasty and are at least decent for you…any suggestions?!
Exercise
This week, I was able to take advantage of group fitness classes at work which really helped me mix it up from my current DVD + treadmill routine.
Saturday- 50 min, 5.1 miles on the treadmill
Sunday- T25 Ab Intervals + T25 Stretch DVDs
Monday- Muscle Sculpt class…this was Tabata-like in nature with :45 exercises and :10-:15 rest in each move
Tuesday- Spinning (it’s been a while since I’ve done a spin class but I enjoyed it! My butt, however, is still sore.)
Wednesday- rest
Thursday- Muscle Sculpt class
Friday- Run with Kim…outside!!! (last time I ran outside was on Thanksgiving with Kim, so this will be major! Hoping for double digit temps this afternoon.
How was your week? Any good (or bad) food choices? What kinds of workouts did you do?
Linking up with Style Elixir and Lauren Elizabeth.
Hey girl! Isn’t it so true?! I’ve cut 7 lbs since last year and over the past month and a half I’ve just been maintaining but I still want to lose 10-15 lbs. So it has been frustrating but one thing that really helps me is MyFintessPal and I have a lot of friends who use Lose It. It’s like keeping a food journal, but even more helpful because it helps you plan out your days ahead, per say. Like if I know I am going to a happy hour. I plan to have a couple drinks that day, which affects what and how much I eat the rest of the day. Not that I’m saying to drink vs. having things that are actually nutritious, but it helps!
Also, snacking after dinner is a thing for me too, especially since I work out at night. Lately I have been making protein shakes and they are actually super delicious, sweet and low calorie! Just buy some flavored protein powder (I have vanilla) and there are so many ways to go about making them. Here is a list of delicious ones on Bodybuilding.com: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/proteinshakes.htm and trust me they won’t make you bulk up, just to give you protein and help your sweet cravings. Plus, most are 150 calories or less!
And I had two bad days this week. I ate a burger and had a few drinks on Wednesday and shared onion rings with my boyfriend the day before. But all in all my week has been good! Just doing a lot of lifting to build muscle and get lean!
Way to go Rachel! Yeah it’s hard when you plateau though…I can totally relate.
I love that MyFitnessPal and will definitely check it out- love the planning ahead aspect for sure. And I JUST bought some protein powder at the grocery store today and will try it out- seems like it will keep my hunger to a minimum and hopefully satisfy my sweet tooth too!
I had a couple nights this week where I indulged a little too much after dinner- UGH! At least the onion rings were shared though right?! Lots of cardio (and making sure strength workouts are in my routine too) this week- long and lean is the goal! :-)
I’m going through the same thing – I’ve got exercise down, but was struggling with what I was eating for a while! Logging your food is SUPER helpful. Tons of studies show that weight loss efforts are a lot more successful if you log, and it’s just good to get a clear picture of how much you’re actually eating. You’re going to look great at those weddings either way, but I totally understand the feeling of things like that motivating you.
One thing that helps me not snack on sweets after dinner is brushing my teeth right after we eat. It sounds kind of silly, but I usually won’t eat again once I brush my teeth. But if you’re still craving sweets, fruit is always a good choice, but here’s some recipes for somewhat healthy sweets!
Chickpea cookie dough dip: http://www.fitsugar.com/Chickpea-Cookie-Dough-Recipe-28371473 (it sounds weird, but it’s really good)
Banana “ice cream:” http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-creamy-ice-cream-w-93414
Chocolate frozen yogurt: http://www.sugarfreemom.com/recipes/healthy-low-fat-chocolate-frozen-yogurt-sf/ (you could probably use sugar or honey if, like me, you don’t use Stevia)
Thanks Anne! I’m hoping the food journal helps. I’m definitely recording but haven’t been reviewing it all the time to actually make sense of what I’ve been eating…need to work on that!
SUCH a good tip on brushing your teeth! I could even bring mouthwash to the office in case I don’t want anyone catching me brushing my teeth (like it’s taboo for some reason?! I dunno!) But I remember having orange juice after I brushed and ICK! That would definitely work…and the dentist would be happy too! :-)
Looking at those recipes too! The cookie dough dip sounds unusual but definitely worth a try!!
I think I am the opposite! I have the food thing down, but have hit a few road blocks with exercise this past year. My work schedule changed in September meaning I am working later. So there is less time to work out at night, but not quite enough time in the morning. And my IT band has been so tight I can’t run with no amount of stretching helping. I need to just go see a doctor!
Oh that would be a tough schedule to fit in exercise but as you get into the swing of things more, I’m sure you will find the right time to get some exercise in- even if it’s 20-30 minutes! Hope you can get your IT bank worked out too!!
Food diaries are so helpful – I’ve been logging on myfitnesspal for about a year and a half now. It made me super conscious of what I eat. But…Snacking at night is my biggggest thing. What I’ve done lately is make a 12oz protein smoothie that’s just a scoop of protein powder in some kind of milk – that keeps me full all evening, I find I snack SO much more when I don’t have protein powder in the house. Like…shamefully more. Especially when my husband has a bowl of chips out or is having a slice of pie or just munching leftovers…social eating gets to me, but the protein smoothies leave me feeling so full I actually don’t want to, which helps a lot. And helps boost my protein, which I’ve been having a hard time getting enough of lately.
That’s good to know that tracking does make a difference! I just bought some protein powder at the grocery store and will definitely give it a try! (I just hope mine doesn’t taste like a glass full of chalk. Ew.)
Glad you’re joining in on the sharing! I am also working to get back into the habit of logging my food.
Me too! Yeah logging is a necessary evil for me at this point- but it’s much better than counting points or calories!