My Fitness Girl in the Making

Let me start off by warning you that this is a little more personal post.  I've taken a step back to reassess some things so I've been a little MIA here.  This doesn't mean I'm giving up on fitness by any means; I'm still in the game and will be back posting more later I'm certain. 

My daughter has been coming with me to my personal training sessions and she goes with her daddy to his more hardcore, no a/c gym.  She is so very competitive and doesn't see herself as a little person; in her mind, she can lift as much weight as any adult can.

On track nights, my trainer has us do these things on bleachers that Celeste is doing in this video here.  She just decided to do them randomly while I was sitting with her at lunch.  Totally cute!



Kids.  They see everything we do and want to be just like us.  It's an incredible responsibility to be a parent.

I kind of love that she's learning about health at her young age.  If we can teach her the proper lifestyle now, she won't have to be re-taught when she is older. 

=)
Amanda

Food Poisoning Hurdles

It's been quite a while since I've been sick.  This past Sunday before church, we met with some very sweet friends at Barnes & Nobles.  After we were done, I grabbed a Turkey & Swiss sandwich from Starbucks because it was past time for me to eat and we had to hurry.  I ate in the car and about 30 minutes to an hour later, I was doubled over, cringing and holding my stomach.  It's expiration date was that day, so I should have been fine.  But something in it wasn't good any longer and wreaked havoc on my body for the next few days. 

It was pretty awful.  I'd love to paint a pretty picture of what my body went through but I can't.  There was nothing I could hold down.  On Monday, all I could stomach was some Pedialyte and a few wheat saltine crackers.

I kept telling myself that 24 hours after it started, I should be fine.  Makes sense, right?  So on Tuesday morning, I got up early and got dressed for the gym.  I ate my oats and berries and texted Natasha.  I didn't know what I was going to do at the gym, but I felt like I could conquer the world.  But when I got there, I was weak and 10 minutes at a slow walk on the treadmill had me shaking.  Yuck.  I hadn't realized how bad I looked until my boss made a comment at work about how it looked like I'd lost 5-10 pounds over night, practically.  He's probably right, I'm sure I did in water weight alone.  My watch was easily twisting completely around on my wrist.

What About the Challenge?

So obviously, being sick like this has set me back a bit.  I haven't been able to really work out yet and as of today, Wednesday, it seems like my normal appetite is coming back.  It stinks that this happened, but I'm not stopping.  I want that better me.  I want it for myself, so I'm desperately ready to give it everything I've got and get back in the game.

I'm not stopping yet!

=) Amanda

Resisting Sugar and... Healthy Pancakes!!!

First, let me tell you how much I love sugar.  Homemade cookies and cakes get me every time.  The less perfect it is, usually the yummier it tastes, right?  I can hardly resist a homemade chocolate cake with homemade chocolate icing.  Mmmmmmmmmm.... so yummy!!! 

When I allow myself to indulge, I'm a frequent customer of Rise Cupcakes in Friendswood, Sugarbaby's in Houston, The Chocolate Bar on Kirby, Piccomolo in Friendswood, Sweet Lola's Yogurt Bar in midtown (Houston), and my all-time favorite (because I can eat yummy food there too): The Cheesecake Factory in the Houston Galleria.

We're getting a Cheesecake Factory here at Baybrook Mall (suppose to be open in November), and I'm already dreading the challenge I'm going to face of turning down the sugary goodness after each meal.

How Do You Resist?

So now, I'm forced to find ways to satisfy that sugar craving in a healthy way.  It. Is. Not. Easy.  Everywhere I look, beautifully tempting sugary temptations are waiting to join the jiggle on my hips.

HEB Bakery: Mmmmmmmmmmm... but... ?

The only way for me personally to avoid diving in is to look the other way.  It's not always easy, and yes, there are times when I let my eyes rest of the beautiful creations at the H-E-B bakery.  What??  They're gorgeous!  But then I tell myself that they never taste as yummy as they look and I force myself to move on.  And the ice cream aisle?  Oh, I completely have to go around that one.  Ice cream?  What ice cream?  I didn't see any ice cream... 

And the key is also to find healthy substitutes that are still yummy and I can look forward to eating.

Yummy Pancakes!!!

So it's great to get your oats (complex carbs for energy), egg whites (protein) and a protein shake in the mornings.  For a while, I did these separately.  That worked, but I also like to change things up from time to time.  Some friends of mine (Kayla and Amy) have both been making protein pancakes that they are loving, so I thought I'd look up the recipe and try them. 

It took a while to get it just the way I like it.  This first attempt was by stirring 2 scoops Vi, 1/2 cup oats and 2 egg whites in a bowl and cooking that on a pan sprayed with the fake butter spray stuff that has 0 calories, etc. 

These turned out pretty dry tasting.  They didn't cook evenly because the oats were soaking up every bit of liquid while being cooked and they just ended up being blah.  So Kayla mentioned something about adding cinnamon, and I came up with the following yummy concoction last night:

Protein Pancakes

makes 1 large pancake

3 scoops Vi

3 egg whites

1/2 cup oats

1-2 tsp. cinnamon

~ 1/2 - 3/4 cup water (for consistency)

Blend protein powder, oats and cinnamon in a blender until the oats are finely chopped.  Mix ingredients well, then cook.

I made a couple last night, cut them up and placed them in plastic containers for this morning; and they were still fresh and moist!  I had one whole pancake with 2 boiled egg whites for breakfast, which totaled 390 calories: 41g carbs, 5g fat, 46g protein, 13g fiber (oooooh yeah...!) and less than 1g sugar.

Mmmmmmmmmm... yummy and healthy goodness for my sweet tooth

So for this morning, my sweet tooth is satisfied and my belly is full.  And yes, the 13g of fiber has made for some interesting gasps this morning!

=) Amanda

Diet Modifications & Cooking Tilapia

I'm a nerd.  A pretty big nerd. 

Last night during my training session, Natasha informed me that she'd just completed my diet modifications to help me reach my goals.

Picture this: I was in the middle of doing a modified push up/squat thing with dumbbells.  As I jumped back up into a squat, she told me this.  I got so excited that I said something like, "Yess!!!" and completely overshot my squat and fell forward.  I busted out laughing; yes, I'm a nerd.  This is what I love.

Changes

I've seen some changes in the few short weeks that I've been with Natasha.  My winged hips are getting a little less winged; I think it would take a bigger gust of wind to make me fly now.  And... my abs!!  There is something firming up under my tummy skin!  The other day I was laying in bed, I rested my hand on my stomach and was literally shocked at what I felt there!  I'd skipped the ab workouts in my routine before a whole lot.  My goodness, I love these changes!

A Lot of it's in the Diet

By diet, I don't mean salads all the time.  Nor do I mean Lean Cuisines.  But a lot of the loss of my body fat is attributed to how I'm eating.

It's a lifestyle, really.  It's about eating grilled chicken or fish instead of pasta or pizza.  It's about eating green beans, broccoli, spinach and asparagus; and making choices like brown rice and sweet potatoes instead of chips, or oats instead of cereal.  And incorporating a well-balanced, lean shake for my snacks.

Cooking Tilapia

One of my favorite things to eat is tilapia.  It's super lean, crammed full of protein and yummy!  I've never had it taste fishy with how I usually prepare it, and since I've been asked many times how I do prepare it, I took the following video last night.  (Please forgive the way I look; we had just taken the dogs out for a run!)  It's pretty simple. 



Regardless of what you do, remember that you're going to see your best, long-lasting results when you make the choice to make it a lifestyle change.  It's not one decision that fixes any weight issues, rather it's the decisions we make every day about the things that we are putting in our mouths that can either help your feel better or worse, and look better or worse. 

Start small.  Find healthy things that you like and incorporate them into your diet.  Slowly branch out.  You'll be so glad you did.

=) Amanda

Falling Off the Wagon

Last Tuesday was not a good day for my challenge.  I was exhausted from the leg workout the night before so I slept in, then the whole day was thrown off.  I didn't have any of my food prepared and had to go home at lunchtime to let our new Akita out for his potty break, which ended up being around 2pm because of some things I had to wait on at work. 

So what did I do?  Ate a Chicken Sausage Wrap from Starbucks for breakfast.  Then I had some oatmeal for a snack.  Then a couple of brown rice cakes.  Then I had some grilled chicken, green beans and brown rice for lunch.  Then half a shake for a snack, then a chocolate chip Nutra Cookie for another snack, then (it's about to get real...) pizza for dinner, followed up by buttery popcorn before going to bed.

Oh man, I felt so bad for doing all of that the next day.  It's like a crazy carb load because I failed to plan ahead.

Getting Over It

So I made some bad choices that made me feel terrible after.  It's not ideal, but it happens.  And it certainly doesn't mean it's the end of my dreams of reaching my goals.

Sometimes we allow ourselves to get so consumed with guilt from falling off the wagon that we stay there and never attempt to get back on.  But really, all you've done is taken a step back; it doesn't take much to take a few steps forward.

A Few Tips to Help

Grab a photo of you before you started and a a photo that represents what you want to look like.  Look at these often for motivation. 

Network with supportive people and avoid the ones who will tell you that you can't succeed.  There's no point in spending time with negativity, especially when you have to give your self a pep talk to stick to your goals (yes, I talk to myself, lol!).

When you make bad eating choices, don't give up on your diet or workout.  Pick back up where you left off as if nothing ever happened and you will continue to see results.

Be realistic.  Give yourself a cheat day (or meals) to look forward to. 

Bottom line, don't make it harder than it should be.  Keep moving forward.

=) Amanda

Challenge Update: Leaning Up

Today marks day 18 of my Challenge. 

I'm 5'5" and weighed in at 131.8 pounds. 
Current body fat is 13.2%
That's a total loss of 1.8 pounds and 2.2% body fat.

Granted, the updated measurements were taken post-workout instead of pre-workout as the original ones were, so that may make a difference.  This coming Saturday, I'm going to have my measurements taken before class (just like my starting measurements were taken) to get another read on my progress.

What Is My Goal?

Really, it's just to lose some hip fat and to build a little more muscle in that area.  And to be challenged; to be pushed a little harder.  I can honestly say it's working all the way around. 

What Is This Body Fat Thing About?

It's not so much about pounds as it is about body fat.  I honestly don't care about the number on the scale anymore, rather how my skirts are fitting me. 

As mentioned near the end of my very first post on this blog, I gained weight when I put on muscle and lost body fat, but I lost inches.  Body fat isn't about how thick you are, rather it's about the layers of fat that you have laying on top of your muscle and bone structure (think jiggle and dimples).  Your body fat percentage is just a measurement of how much of your weight is attributed to actual fat.  Therefore, at 13.2% body fat and a weight of 131.8 pounds, I have 17.4 pounds of fat on my body, which is considered pretty lean (even though the majority of it seems to be dispursed right where I don't like it... makes hard falls pretty safe though hah).

Body Fat Chart

I really could care less if I ever hit the 110-120 range every again; I just don't want to be jiggly.  Granted, I am happy with who I am now so you must understand that this isn't about getting super skinny or thinking I'm fat because honestly, I don't.  Rather, it's about being a bit more fit and reaching new heights with new challenges.  Why not set the bar high, especially when the holidays are looming and we ALL love that turkey and dressing, and the yummy deliciousness of all the sugary treats and warm cocoa during the season?  ;)

Fat Loss, Not Just Pounds on the Scale

Weight loss is always a hot topic.  With obesity rates at record highs, so many people are continuously looking for ways to lose weight.  And while the number on the scale certainly plays a part, it's not really what most people want in the end for their transformation.  Fat loss is really what you want, not muscle loss.  So let me ask you this: would you rather be 130 pounds and a size 8 or 135 pounds and a size 4-6?  That number on the scale is what you see; the inches are what everyone else sees.

So How Do I Lose Fat and Maintain Muscle?

1. Diet.  Make sure that you are getting the adequate amount of protein needed to support your goals.  It is commonly recommended to take 1.2-1.5g of protein in per pound of body weight, per day.  If you don't eat enough meat or egg whites, this is a great time to start.  And add in some lean protein shakes if necesary to help you reach those goals.
2. Exercise.  If you're going to the gym, try doing some sort of resistance training (weight lifting), and try to stay away from only doing cardio exercises (treadmill, cycling, elliptical, etc.).  Resistance training will strengthen your muscles; your body's metabolism will increase and you will burn more calories throughout the day.

Here's an image that I found online of someone at 250 pounds and at 120 pounds.  You can see the fatty areas (yellow) and the muscle areas (red).  Notice how the bone structure even has less stress on it now with the lighter amounts of body fat.

Hopefully this puts a better visualization on what I'm referring to when I mention losing some body fat and maintaining muscle.

Fat Dungeon

=) Amanda

Muscle Soreness & Supplements

During the night Monday night, my leg muscles started cramping up from the leg workout with the girls.  I couldn't get comfortable, regardless of the position I was sleeping in.  Then it seemed like seconds later, I woke up to a tiny fist in my face.  Needless to say, I was exhausted on Tuesday!  And I think it's time to up the glutamine intake perhaps?

The Cause

Muscle soreness is caused by trauma to your muscle fibers.  Think of it this way: you're essentially tearing down your muscle during a workout and the soreness is your body's reaction to that breakdown during the healing process. 

No Pain, No Gain... sort of!

I secretly love when I get this type of soreness.  It's not a sharp pain that alerts you that you've hurt yourself, rather a dull one that lets you know that you've really worked those muscles.  In fact, I feel like I didn't really have a great workout if I don't feel it.  Without the soreness, I almost feel as though I didn't really push myself to any new gains, you know? 

What Helps

Glutamine can greatly help to alleviate muscle soreness.  I usually add a little over 10g in my post-workout shake.  The one I have is in the photo here; it's tasteless and odorless.  It has a tiny bit of a gritty texture, but it is barely noticeable.  Eric's trainer has him on 30g of glutamine per day to help with this.  The amounts will vary based on your needs.

Branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) are also very good with promoting muscle growth and helping with recovery.  I've read information that says it's best to take your BCAAs before a workout, and some that have recommended taking some before and some after.  I personally am doing both, but have found that I can't take these on an empty stomach because it makes me a bit nauseous.

Why Take Supplements?

Think of it this way: you're putting your body through a bit of stress when working out and it will be utilizing a lot of the nutrients already in your body.  So why not give it the proper nutrition that it needs, and the amount that it needs?  It just makes sense to take care of yourself.

You can purchase this stuff at your local nutrition store.  If you're in Texas and are close to a larger H-E-B that has a healthy living section, then you can locate these items there.  I personally like Nutrition Depot because they're much more reasonable (and because I get 10% off on top of those low prices as a client of Natasha's).  You can also find these things at your local Vitamin Shoppe or even order them online from www.bodybuilding.com.

My Supplements

Currently, I'm taking the glutamine and BCAAs mentioned above, my protein shakes and the Vi-Pak.  The Vi-Pak contains an amazing multi-mineral and vitamin, an anti-aging and energy pill that works on the cellular level, omega vitals (no fishy taste, no aftertaste, incredible for your hair and skin health), and a supercharged antioxidant that fights off free radicals in the body.

Another one of the cool things about the Vi-Pak is that it makes things simple for me because it's already sorted out.  To be honest, I'm a bit lazy about sorting out pills for the day/week and it gets a bit cumbersome.  Oftentimes I would put it off and then not take them.  But with the Vi-Pak, everything comes already sorted out for you (as shown by photos I found online) in morning and evening packets.  It's perfect for my lazy tail!


Daily supplements already sorted



AM packet example

As I always state, don't get overwhelmed by all of this information.  Baby steps are okay.  It took me a while to absorb all of this information and there's still more that I'm learning every day.  Keep it simple and start with the small stuff, then branch out from there.  Every step counts, even if they are baby steps. 

=) Amanda