There is a HEALTHY app for that

So, I have expressed my love for my Christmas present a few times...I know.  I've become even more obsessed with it because of temple run all of the helpful apps. I think that technology can be a MAJOR time waster, but I also think it can be a huge benefit. It's all in how you use it.

There are some apps on my phone that I found to be EXTREMELY beneficial. I think that some of these tools are really great to help you get yourself on track, and keep yourself there! (Note: I found all of these apps on my own and got all of them for free.)

 I am only going to touch on a couple of the apps I'm loving right now, but plan to go into depth with some of the others in the future.

Fooducate is definitely a great app when it comes to food knowledge. You can either scan the bar code of a food you are looking at or search it manually. As you scan it in it gives the food you are looking at a grade. I scanned in these baby carrots I purchased today.

 It tells you the pros and cons of your food item, gives your food a grade, and offer suggestions for better food options if there are any. Awesome right?

My other absolute FAVE right now is the Lose It app. It is an app that helps you easily track your calories and exercise for the day, helping you to see where your calorie deficit lies.

There are a couple reasons I really like this app. I love that you can scan your food in. Instead of manually having to search for and enter in every item you can just scan in the bar code and the item pops up. You pick the quantity and BOOM done. You can do this with recipes too. I scanned in all the items of the soup I made today and entered in the serving size and instantly I knew the nutritional breakdown of my recipe. So fast and easy. It really is awesome.

Do you have a favorite App that encourages you to be healthy??

Thanksgiving Day Food Log

I challenged some of my clients to take a photo log of everything they ate on Thanksgiving day. I have found that this is an AWESOME way of tracking your food if you aren't so down with recording everything. I figured since I was challenging them I would take the challenge on myself. I can tell you right now It helped completely cut out any grazing while baking in the kitchen.

7:30 AM - I ate a slice of this bread with a little spray butter on my way out the door to go run with my sis.

10:30 AM - By the time we were done with our run, the turkey trot, and the pictures involved I was starving, and devoured my greek yogurt protein shake. I also had about 10 raw almonds.

 2:30 PM - I knew we weren't eating until around 4:30 or 5:00 and I was getting really hungry, so I had a snack of an apple and some turkey to keep me from just grazing around the kitchen.

5:00 - Our Thanksgiving dinner was DELICIOUS. I loved it! Here was what my plate looked like. I pretty much cleaned it up except for some of the mashed potatoes and part of the roll.  Clockwise we have some mashed potatoes (made with greek yogurt) and vegetable gravy, turkey, cornbread stuffing, sweet potatoes, green beans, and one of my mom's homemade rolls.

 I also had some fruit and fruit dip.

 9:30 - We went to see Hugo as a family and I had a few handfuls of movie theater popcorn while we were there. I was so stuffed that luckily, I didn't want much. After we came home I had a sliver of my healthy pumpkin pie and a scoop of Dreyers Grand Light peppermint Ice cream.

SO MUCH delicious food, and some fairly healthy options. I felt good about my Thanksgiving day tracking. How did you feel like you did with your Thanksgiving Day eating?

10 Weight Loss Tips that Work and 10 that just won't

For those who are looking to lose weight, wasting your time with ideas, behaviors, and diets that don't work can make the process even more frustrating. I deal with individuals trying to lose weight and become more healthy and in doing so, I have experienced and seen a lot of trial and error firsthand. I have seen success and failure. I know many of you are on the same path, striving for your own success and hopefully these tips will help you along the way.


What DOES work. In no particular order...
1. Journaling Your Food I say it all the time. Food journaling is the BEST way to lose weight. Being accountable for the food you are eating is only going to happen if you start to recognize what exactly it is that you are eating. 
2. Increasing Your Protein. If you feel like you are eating healthy, but aren't seeing results there may just be some small tweaks that you need to make in your diet. One of these tweaks may be increasing the percentage of protein you are eating while decreasing some of the complex carbohydrates. Here are some easy tips if you need power up your protein. 
3. Eating Clean. Processed food is usually packed with sugar, refined flour, and words you can't read. I can promise you the closer you keep your diet to clean unprocessed foods, the better off you will be.
4. Increasing your Cardio. This includes interval training. When you are trying to get the weight off you that you have packed on over the years, you have to burn off the excess. The best way to do that is with a combination of increased cardio, resistance training, and a healthy diet. If you want to see weight loss I'd suggest 60 mins 5-6 days a week.
5. Resistance Training. The best way to increase your metabolism is to increase the amount of calories your body is burning all the time. To do this you must increase your lean muscle mass. To increase your lean muscle mass you have to get lifting weights. It is a key part of weight loss. Resistance training works.
6. Portion Control. Watching what you are eating is definitely important, but actually taking into account that a serving of cereal (calorie-wise) isn't necessarily a bowl of cereal may take some getting used to. If you aren't watching your portions, you are more than likely eating more than you think.
7. De-Grazing. Stopping by the kitchen each time you pass it to grab a little bite of this or handful of that could be what is sabotaging your diet. Those calories add up, whether they fill you up or not.
8. Cutting Out Sugar. For those who have a sweet tooth, I realize this is the last thing you want to hear. Getting rid of the excess refined sugar is a VERY good way to drop some lbs. Most sugary items are just excess in your diet. Candy and treats are the extras we add in on top of our meals, so cutting them out means you are getting rid of calories.
9. Planning Ahead. This is one of the BIGGEST keys to success. Knowing what you are going to eat helps you to avoid last minute trips through the drive through, or binge meals that come because you are too hungry to care about anything else. Planning ahead allows you to have snacks on hand, and will keep you eating regularly which will keep your blood sugar at bay. All of this is conducive to weight loss.
10. Find a Buddy. Have a friend get involved in getting healthy with you. Get in on a weight loss challenge. Create a contest for your family, friends, or co-workers. Having some healthy competition may just be the best motivator for you to keep up with your goals. Have a buddy to exercise with. It may keep you in line and keep you from skipping workouts.

And the things that DON'T Work.
1. Exercising Endlessly without watching you food intake. Unfortunately, people think that exercise automatically means you get to eat whatever you want. If you are going for weight loss this isn't so. Think of exercise more as like the bonus calorie burn you get in for the day. Focus on your food. It will be the key to your success.
2. Having the "I deserve this" Mindset. When you feel like you deserve foods you are giving into your emotional eating. This leads to over eating which can lead to weight gain. What you really deserve is to look and feel healthy and happy.
3. Sneaking Handfuls. As I mentioned above. These unaccounted for "extras" will be just the thing to keep you maintaining your weight, or gaining. Don't let all your hard work go to waste by thinking small bites here and there don't matter. Guess what? They do.
4. Crash Dieting. Trying to follow crazy diets may help you see success for a couple of weeks or a couple of days, but in the end you are just fooling with your metabolism. Instead of giving into crazy diets, give into a healthy lifestyle that you can maintain and will help you to see long lasting results in a method that you can live with.
5. Forgetting to sleep. Sleep is SO important. Many people don't realize that it is so important to weight loss. Your body has to have time to recover and repair itself. Lack of sleep can lead to poor habits that can cause weight gain. Trust me, making sleep priority will benefit your weight loss success.
6. Eating out. You most certainly can eat out and eat healthy. I do it all the time. BUT, the truth of the matter is, most people don't. Most people see their trips to go out to eat as splurge times, even if they happen more frequently than they should. The truth of the matter is when you aren't preparing it you don't always know exactly what is going into your dish. You also tend to over eat in these situations.
7. Believing you'll just have to accept how you were, "made." I hate this excuse. If you don't like the way you feel and look. Change it. Genetics will tell you how your weight is distributed, but your caloric balance is what is determining your actual weight.
8. Eating processed foods. You really are what you eat. It is just the way it is, so eat good foods. Create a healthy expressing on the outside of the good, wholesome, nutritious foods you are taking in on the inside. Put the effort into your meals. You are worth it.
9. Hating Your Exercise/Eating regimens. Find healthy recipes and a workout routine that you enjoy. Do things that make you happy and make you feel good. If you don't, you will always be hating and dreading your workouts and your meals. A healthy lifestyle should be enjoyed, not dreaded! When you do things you love you will find it easier to stay motivated.
10. Do the same things and expect different results. If you don't make changes, you aren't going to see changes. That is the bottom line. Stop complaining about the way you look and feel if you aren't willing to do something about it. Change is possible, but it requires effort.


What are some of thing rules you've stuck by to see success in your journey for weight loss and achieving better health?

A Smattering of Topics

I love the RARE occasion of not waking up at 5AM and getting in a good morning workout. I had some clients out of town for spring break so I was able to sleep in until 7:45!! It was glorious. I had my favorite breakfast...

 I have been making my oatmeal with 6 oz of skim milk instead of 8 oz of water like I used to do, so I could increase the protein. I'm loving this change. It's so dang tasty.

After I ate I got ready and peaced out to the gym for a pre-work workout. This RARELY happens, so I was super excited about it! Morning workouts are the best, and you know what makes them even better?? Surprise visitors! My sweet lil' BFF Janae came and surprised me mid workout with a bag of my favorite things! It totally caught me of guard and seriously made my morning! She is a total sweetheart!! Thank you darling!!!!!!

 Sipping on some DDP and chewing the strawberry shortcake gum as we speak. Heaven...
After my workout I headed to work. It was so nice knowing my workout was done and behind me. I prefer to workout in the mornings. I like to have it done, and sometimes I HATE that looming feeling of my body getting more tired as the day goes on knowing I have to summon up extra energy for a workout. I know there are some people who enjoy the late hours, but for the most part, I am not one of them. Lots of people will ask me when I think the best time of day to work out is...read THIS POST to answer that question.

For lunch today I had a Mexi Chicken Wrap that was VERY delicious. Ingredients were a La Tortilla Factory Wrap, spinach, chicken grilled with fajita seasoning, a drizzle of fat free southwestern ranch, and a few heaping spoonfuls of mango salsa. It was so tasty! This whole wrap is about 250 calories. Mango salsa is the answer to so many problems. I'm pretty sure it could bring world peace.  

I also added in a side of Edama me for some bonus protein. My whole lunch had 40 grams! That is huge for me FYI.

I know some of you have told me that you've had a hard time finding the La Tortilla Factory Tortillas. I get mine at Costco in the bread section. They come in a pack of like 20 that lasts forever. I just keep mine in the fridge, so they stay fresh. I have also seen them at Good Earth and Sunflower Market. If you don't have any of these stores, or you aren't seeing them click HERE and see if that helps?  

Where did Elaine get the silicone oven mitts I spoke of yesterday?

Sur La Table. That store is amazing. Here is the link to the square potholder, and the mini mitt.

How do I know what the nutrition facts are for my recipes? I use THIS website. I am obsessed with knowing the nutrition facts of the food I eat, so If I make something myself I have to calculate it out. There are a lot of free resources out there that can help you break down your recipes. You have to know the amounts of all of your ingredients and how many servings one recipe makes.

How do I keep track of my calories? I don't really need to write them down because I have a strangely large library of caloric facts in my head. I can't remember people's names, but I can tell you how many calories are in pretty much whatever you'd like to know. That is sad...I know. What I can't figure out in my head is my macro nutrient percentages (fat, carbs, protein) and that is what I'm most concerned with. I also like to be exact, so keeping track keeps me in line. I used the fitday.com website FOREVER. It's free, it's super user friendly. I did a post about it HERE. I now use a program that I use with my clients at work called dotfit.com It is also fabulous, but not free. There are a ton of methods of tracking food, and you just have to find what works for you. I also own a food scale which makes exactness possible.

Hopefully that answers some of your questions!! Anything else I can help you with? Let me know. I love it :) 

p.s. Amazing JEN is giving away a GARMIN, a Spibelt, and a super cute shirt. You should probably go check it out! 

Power Up Your Protein

I told you at the beginning of the week that I had some goals for myself. 
My goals are:
- at least 100 grams of protein per day
- more water! Aim: 80-100 oz per day
- no random snacking.
- log my food.
- Workout like a pro.

I'm happy to report the week has gone great thus far! 

Protein: I give myself an A- I've reached 90-100 grams each day and my meals have been first focused on the lean protein, and then surrounded by veggies with some quality whole grains.


Water: I give myself a B here. I'm definitely doing better, but I think I've reached 60-80 oz each day.


Snacking: A :) WAY better here. I've still reached for a few handfuls of my Kashi Go Lean Crunch as a snack, BUT I've logged every last bite. No calorie left behind. Which leads to...


Log My Food: A. Wow it helps me SO much when I do this. I can't even tell you. If you are feeling stuck. LOG YOUR FOOD.

Workouts: A+! My workouts have gone GREAT this week. I usually workout after all my morning clients, and I was on my way to workout and I started feeling really tired, and hungry...and in my head I thought...just go take a nap or eat lunch and then later before you go back to work you can get your workout in. It was like the devil and the angel on my shoulder. BUT I decided I should just start doing SOMETHING. I got there and saw some friends who ended up giving me some new burst of energy. I ended up doing a ROCKING 60 min interval session on the stairs that had me sweating like crazy and feeling great, along with some lifting. When I left I felt SO good, and I was SO SO SO glad I went and got it in. Another reminder that sometimes all we need to do is get started and then we'll be super glad we did!

I've had some of you asking how I'm getting my protein in. I've mentioned several times this is the hardest part for me. I don't like red meat, or pork. I hate fish, but I've surprisingly been eating tuna. Weird? Yes. I really don't loooove chicken because I don't like to prepare it. It has to be extremely clean, no fat/no veins, and very thin. This can create some problems.

So...here's what I've been doing...

I wanted to add a little more protein to my chocolate PB oatmeal, so in the morning instead of making it with 1/2 cup old fashioned oats 1 cup water. I have been making it with 1/2 cup old fashioned oats, 1/2 cup water. & 1/2 cup skim milk. Adding the milk only adds 40 more calories and 4 more grams of protein, so my breakfast totals out at about 15 grams of protein for the bowl. It is so good, and the milk makes it a little more fluffy...Can oatmeal be fluffy?

 I have been loving these individual tuna packs. They have 80 calories and 18 grams of protein in them with only .5 grams of fat. hellooooo amazing. I love that they are portion controlled too.

I pair them up with one of my favorite La Tortilla Factory Low Carb Tortillas. 80 calories each, 8 grams of protein, 12 grams of fiber. AMAZING. I eat these once a day with something it seems like.

The whole wrap has 25 grams of protein in it.

One of my favorite go to snacks for some quick and delicious (and vegetarian might I add) protein is edamame sprinkled with a little bit of sea salt. I get the individual frozen packs you can get at Costco. Each bag is one serving. about 150 calories and 13 grams of protein.

I also have to have some portable snacks I can eat at work and for that I will often eat some almonds or a part skim mozerella string cheese. Each string cheese stick has about 80 calories and 7 grams of protein. This is just about the only cheese that I eat. I'm not a huge fan of it. 

I make a lot of protein shakes. Mine usually consist of 1/2 banana, frozen strawberries, vanilla whey protein powder, ice, skim milk, and LOTS of cinnamon. These have about 20-30 grams of protein in one shake.

I eat a lot of chicken as well. I usually just grill it up on the George Foreman. I will cut it up and put it in a salad, eat it with some quinoa, put it in a wrap, or just eat it with some grilled veggies. A chicken breast usually has 110 calories and around 25 grams of protein.

I have also been incorporating a lot of egg whites. I usually do one egg and an egg white if it's for a snack, sprinkle it with some fajita seasoning, and then fry it up with Pam. This is 83 calories and about 9 grams of protein. If I'm feeling like I'm not getting all my protein in I'll do one egg and three egg whites. This is 120 calories and 17 grams of protein.

If I am eating it as a meal I will do three egg whites and one whole egg with some spinach, a lil' bit of salsa wrapped up in a La Tortilla Factory Wrap. This has about 25 grams of protein in it and 200 calories.

 Sometimes at work in between clients I need to grab a quick snack or meal and I have been running over to the local Target, and having them shave up 3 oz of of lean deli turkey. I can just eat this straight up with a fork. Weird I know. For having the meat issues I do it's amazing I can just chomp this down. It's about 27 grams of lean protein and 135 calories. I try not to do this too often because it does contain a lot of sodium, but it's a better option. I am obsessed with Target BTW. I could spend hours there.

Other protein options...I add beans of all sorts to everything; pasta, salad, soup, wraps. I love beans they are great for you and contain both protein and fiber. I eat veggie burgers, deli turkey in wraps, and sometimes will eat protein bars if I absolutely can't get my protein in otherwise. I am picky about my protein bars and I don't like the excess sugar that comes with them.

How are you doing with your goals this week? Are you accomplishing all you hoped to accomplish? I hope so! I loved reading your comments on what you wanted to work on for the week! How do you get your protein in? Any awesome tricks we should know about?

Don't forget only a few more days to enter the Spring Mix Giveaway!!

What do you call a fish with no eyes?

Fsh. I have to say THANK YOU for all of your steel cut oats wisdom. Thank you for your tips and your recipes. Seriously, you guys are the bomb. Apparently whatever blogs I've read in the past about putting protein in oatmeal were completely fabricated because ALL of you told me you hated it. Detested it actually. I'm going to work on this one, and when I come out with the best steel cut oats recipe known to man that is not a breakfast FAIL, I'll gladly share it with you. I can promise you that it will be sans protein powder, and NOT cooked in the microwave as you so wisely advised me. I am also glad to hear that all of you seem to love breakfast as much as I do. It is what gets me out of bed in the morning.

Upon returning back to work on Monday all of my coworkers and I were feeling a little "over-Christmas-ed," if you will. As I've mentioned earlier this week, I was rip-roarin' ready to get back into my routine and get in gear. All of the staff at Elevate, my place of work, was feeling the same. So, we decided that we should engage in a little competition as to who could lose the most weight in 4 weeks and then keep it off for 6 weeks. (This is so people don't just attempt to starve themselves to win.) 

Now, there are a few things you must know...

1) Elevate...my place of work...is a triathlon training gym. We also do physical therapy, chiropractics, basic weight loss coaching, personal training, nutrition counseling...etc. I am a personal trainer and nutrition coach there. Best. Job. Ever.

2) My coworkers are HARDCORE. We're talking marathon runners, iron men, personal trainers, athletes...etc. The owner of Elevate is planning to run a 100 miler in UT in September. These people aren't wussy by any means. 

3) They know what they are doing. This competition isn't between a bunch of people who, "might go for a run tomorrow," which makes the competition that much more exciting. I know everyone is going to be intense about it. Fun huh??

This is the reasoning behind all of my talk of wanting to get my protein percentages up. I'm shooting for 25-30% of my calories coming from protein, 50-55% from carbohydrates, and 20-25% coming from fat. I've been keeping very strict track of my calories, and putting in some serious time at the gym. I'm not going to lie...it feels SO good. I forget how much I love to be in control of my food...I'm totally weird, I know. I have some specific goals I want to meet, and win or lose, this is a GREAT way to help get me there. 

You should know that I HATE fish. I know it's an amazing source of lean protein...I tell my clients this all the time. I just can't do it. I hate the taste, the texture, and THE SMELL. For some crazy reason I decided to give Tuna a try today. (My mom is going to fall out of her chair when she reads this.) You know I'm serious about my goals when Tuna comes into the picture.

I had a La Tortilla Factory Wrap, with spinach and tuna mixed with a little bit of light miracle whip. I'm usually not a fan of mayo or miracle whip, but something had to be done to disguise the tuna. 190 calories and 26 grams of protein in this bad boy.

 I ate it with an extremely large side of steamed veggies over spinach drizzled with fat-free honey dijon dressing. Veggies are extremely low in calories and really filling, so you can eat a lot of them. Plus, I just love them.

The verdict: I didn't die! I had to not think about what I was eating, and certainly not breathe through my nose, but I actually didn't mind it.

Don't forget today is the last day to enter the bondi band giveaway. The winner will be announced tomorrow!!

So, tell me...What is your best, "high protein meal?" I know some of you have said you struggle getting protein in like I do, so I can't wait to hear all of your great ideas. Is your workplace/family having any sort of weight loss competition? Do you track your calories? Although it can be super annoying, and it's not for everyone, it's the best way for me to stay on top of where I want to be!

Bring it on 2011.

 It happened. 2011 is here. I hope you all had rocking parties or quiet evenings at home...whatever it was you were hoping to do. I hope you did it. We celebrated with laughter, fireworks, and dry cleaner bag hot air balloons.

 Aren't they beautiful?

 and aren't they beautiful?

 These peeps are my parents (The Piano Man himself and my mama cita) and my sister Nichole and her awesome hubby. All such great people.

We had a great night. This was the first New Years Eve that I spent with my family instead of with my friends out on the town, since I was super young. We had such a great time. I loved every minute!

I chose this darling boy to be my new years sweetheart. Don't you just wanna eat him right up?? I'm not really sure why I look like a gremlin in this photo? You win some you lose some, right?

For as much as I think New Years Eve is overrated, I LOVE what the new year brings. I am a definitely list maker and a goal setter. I look forward to the new year to reevaluate what I've accomplished in the past year, and what I want to do to make the upcoming year better. I love using this time of year as a sort of, "recharge," for my clients as well. When you are making goals for the new year don't try to change the world in one day. The chances of you becoming a new person from December 31st to January 1st is pretty slim, so start small and build! If you want to become vegan, exercise for two hours every day, lose 70 pounds, and start cooking all three meals a day at home, and you think that isn't going to be overwhelming you have super human powers, and I'd like them...Start with one goal, one meal, one workout; whatever it takes to get you from one accomplishment to the next.

My health & fitness goals for 2011 are...

1. Run a half marathon in under 1:45 (I realize this is turtle pace to some of you, but after recovering from my foot injury I have to start somewhere!)

2. Run another marathon 

3. Add another Sugar Free Year (exceptions: frozen yogurt & Mentos)

4. Record Food (The best way to keep myself in line. I enjoy it in this weird way.)

5. Add yoga to my fitness routine

This is my list for now...it still needs some tweaking...

Happy New Years!!! Did you have a Happy New Years Eve? Did you party hard? Go to bed early? Make a list of resolutions? Do you have goals for the new year?

I. Feel. Sick.

Ugh. Does your house look like this...

or this...

or this? 

Right now, Mine does, and that is not even the half of it. I told you that I don't usually eat sugar. I also told you that I decided previously that Christmas Eve and Christmas were going to be my, "free days." I had a list of my favorites that I wanted to eat while I was home.

The list included...
- chocolate covered cinnamon bears (check)
- peanut m&m's (check)
- caramel popcorn (check. check. check. check.)
- York peppermint patty (check)
- Danish Pancakes with homemade Magelby's Syrup (check)
- Red Vines (check)
- Stomach Ache? (check.)

Clearly, I don't discriminate. My mom saw me eating some caramel popcorn and she said, "It's good to know you can actually be a normal person sometimes." I felt weird, and very out of my element. Would you like to know why there are four "checks" by the caramel popcorn? Because my family had chewy caramel popcorn, baked caramel popcorn, white chocolate popcorn, and cinnamon caramel popcorn. I am not kidding. I had some of all of them. It appears it's one of my favorite food groups. Gross.

I feel like I have accomplished and relearned a few things in these past two days....
- I am so excited to NOT eat crap again starting tomorrow.
- I really like feeling like I am in control of my diet.
- I am an all or nothing person. Saying that I'll just have a bite, doesn't work for me. If it's something I really love I just want more, but if I don't even start I'm a lot better off. I think it is important to know how you react to your own habits.
- I love the feeling that exercising and eating healthy gives me. When I compare that to how I feel right now, it is not even a question as to which I'd pick.
- I was definitely reminded how extra candy, treats, and snacks can add up to extra pounds. Snacking can be SCARY if you are trying to lose weight. Eating a little here and little there is exactly why people don't realize where extra calories are coming from. Be aware of your food. This is why food journaling is so important.
- I definitely enjoyed eating my favorite foods. They were all really good, but not worth it to me looking back. I take it back, it was worth it for me to get eating them out of my system. It also gave me a great, "restart," so to speak. Here I am after eating them, and all it's done is leave me feeling gross. I'm excited to get back into a good routine.
- I think there is a LOT to be said about moderation. If you can manage to keep yourself in control with a little bit of a treat here and there to let you mentally feel OK about eating healthy, like you aren't being deprived, good for you. I wish I was that strong ;)

I'm ready to go back to healthy foods and my indulgence being frozen yogurt. How did you do over the holidays? Did you eat too much?

An Experiment of Sorts.

I am leaving to go to Arizona tomorrow for Turkey Day. YAAAAY!! Which means I didn't go shopping for my produce for the week, which means I have none. I hate having no produce. I honestly don't understand what people who hate fruits and vegetables eat sometimes? So, I decided today to do an experiment. As I've probably mentioned before, I am a snacker by nature. When I am cooking dinner I'll grab a handful of Kashi to munch on, or a few blackberries from the fridge, or sometimes I'll even sneak a lick of peanut butter straight from the container with my finger. Gross, I know, but true. I wanted to be very conscious of my snacking today, so I decided to take a photo of everything that went in to my mouth. Keep in mind that having NO produce made for some interesting meals...I had to get creative to get those fruits and veggies in. 

Breakfast: Oatmeal with a swirl of honey and a lot of cinnamon mixed in, topped with some peanut butter and a sliced up banana. So good, and it keeps me full all morning at work which is great.

 Lunch: Lunch was all about the protein. I had a slice of wheat toast with ranch chicken on top, and a strawberry banana protein shake. (To make the chicken I used canned Costco chicken, and put two TBS of fat free ranch veggie dip and mixed it in with a little salt and pepper.) Because I don't love meat I have a hard time getting all my protein in, so this lunch was GREAT for me. For the shake I had 1/2 a frozen banana and some strawberries i'd frozen previously as well.

 Snack: A Cinnamon Sweet Potato Muffin and an apple. I made these muffins last week and threw them in the freezer because I knew I wouldn't eat them all. Thaw them in the microwave for thirty seconds and they are SO good.

 Dinner: At this point in the day I was absolutely CRAVING vegetables because I usually pack them in at lunch, and due to the fact that I'm produce-less I was dying. I was about to drive to Pizza Factory for one of my all time favorite salad bars, when I remembered I had some frozen veggies in the freezer, and a Smart Ones, Teriyaki Chicken Dinner. I always have some healthy frozen dinners on hand in case I absolutely have nothing, like tonight. So, i steamed the veggies and heated up the dinner and mixed them together. I threw in a few pineapple tidbits for some added sweetness. It wasn't bad. I'm not a huge fan of the chicken they put in those things, so I pretty much ate around it. I also only ate one of my pears because I was so full from all the veggies.The quality of these pictures is astounding...phone pics, what do you do?

 Dessert: I have a friend who has always thought I was crazy for loving frozen yogurt so much until like two weeks ago, when he miraculously decided he loves it too. Duh. So, tonight he decided he wanted some frozen yogurt, and I was willing to oblige. Tonight's delight included cookies and cream, coconut, and red velvet cake with some pretzels and cinnamon toast crunch. It's good. Trust me on the pretzels. You won't regret it.

The verdict on the experiment. It totally worked. I didn't snack at all except for my planned snacks. If I felt like I wanted to grab something I evaluated whether or not I was really hungry, and remembered I wasn't going to want to take a picture of it and declined. Although my food was kind of random today because I didn't have my usual goods, it wasn't a bad day overall, food-wise. I may try and keep the experiment up for the rest of the week to see how I do.

If you feel like you're a mindless eater/snacker give this experiment a try. Even if it just means writing down your food to keep track of yourself. You might just be surprised at what you are eating!!

For The Girl Who Loves Pastries, You know Who You Are.

Sugar. America is basically addicted to it. In any form really; chewable, suckable, drinkable, lickable...you name it. It's been done. It's addictive, but why is that? Many people have created a habitual need for sweets. For example, let's say you routinely have dessert after dinner, and so now your body craves that sweetness every time you finish a meal. Or perhaps you keep a bag of Peanut M&M's in your desk drawer at work, and you munch on them throughout the day. Now whenever you sit in your desk at work it's like Pavlov's Dogs, you feel that need to munch on your M&M's. All habits are learned, so this means if we learned them, then we can unlearn them as well. Your routines CAN be broken, but that doesn't mean it will be a piece of cake, (no pun intended.) Cravings exist because we feed them, and so we continue to have them. We have to take control and cut out the sweets, in order to cut out the cravings.

Every time you have sugar your blood sugar levels spike due to the fact that sugar, and simple carbohydrates are absorbed quickly into the blood stream. To try and facilitate this rise in your blood sugar, your insulin levels rise. This creates a hormonal imbalance in your body, and sets off a series of hormone releases. You want to avoid an increased level of insulin because it is a storage hormone, excess insulin will cause you to store fat...which if you are constantly causing surges of insulin through eating a lot of sugar and refined carbs might create a problem for you. Insulin will work until it can get your blood sugar back down, and at that point there will be an excess of insulin released. Your body will want to raise the blood sugar again so there is something to counteract it, causing cravings for more sweets. Do you see the vicious cycle that is forming? 

Whole grains, lean protein, high fiber, and greens keep the blood sugar at bay. When you realize what those refined sugars do to your body it's no wonder every diet tells you to cut them out. FYI, the average American consumes about 115 pounds of sugar per year. That is a LOT of sugar.

So what should you do? If you are looking to cut down on your sugar make a log of what you are eating every day, writing down the grams of sugar that your ingesting. You might be thinking about the candy you eat as sugar, and failing to realize that the pumpkin bread, apple juice, protein bar, and breakfast cereal are packed full of sugar just as much if not more so than the candy you're eating. You should be aiming to eat no more than 30 grams of sugar per day, not counting the natural sugars found in fruit. If the average American is consuming 115 pounds of sugar per year that means the average American is consuming about 150 grams of sugar per day. Yikes! And we wonder why we have problems. 

If you're an addict, find some good healthy alternatives. Fruit, natural frozen yogurt, healthy cereals, etc. Cut out the sugar and you will see miraculous results with your weight loss.

Get out of the rut!

Slumps. We all have them. I have been talking to several people who have told me that for whatever reason they just aren't feeling the gym right now. They aren't caring what they eat, but on top of that they feel gross and aren't happy with the way they look. 

This morning while I was working out I was thinking about why this happens to us. How we can go from loving our gym routine and being in such a good grove, to hating stepping foot in the gym and not caring about a thing we put in our mouths. I think that a few things happen. First, we slip up somewhere. Whether it's missing a couple workouts, or feeling like we are over eating for a few days. This slip up, which should be thought of as just a bump in the road, and then forgotten as we get back to our good routine, often times does just the opposite. It gives us the "well I already screwed up..." mentality. After this thought process has occurred many times our motivation factors are low because we don't feel like we're on top of our game. This process may go on for a couple weeks, where you all of the sudden are wondering what has happened to you. Maybe you gained a couple pounds, your clothes aren't fitting right, or you just don't feel like your happy, motivated, healthy self. At this stage we feel uncomfortable in our own skin, and probably in your gym clothes. The last thing you want to do is look at yourself in the mirror and feel like you're out of your groove. Does this sound familiar?

On the other hand, think of the times when you feel like you are really in a good routine. You are doing great with your eating, you are sticking to your workout regimen, and you're feeling good. What a contrast between the two states of mind. More than likely, when you're on a roll you want to go to the gym. You want to keep up with your progress, so you continue to press on, hoping to keep feeling great. 

So, if you feel like you fall into the first scenario, don't let that downward icky spiral suck you in until you completely want to give up. My solution? Force yourself to be very strict for two weeks. Record your food, watch your portions, drink lots of water, be religious with your gym routine (even though you don't want to be there.) You'll probably feel uncomfortable still for the first couple days, but if you can get back into the place where you feel that motivation you'll be back on a roll. It is worth it! Discipline yourself back to where you feel like you can do it, because you can!

Mythbusters: Keep crunching to lose that spare tire

Crunches are great.
They are. They are great in the right doses, that is. I laugh a little bit inside/(feel bad and want to shake some sense in to people) when I see them doing countless reps of crunches, believing that is going to get ride of that plush midsection they've acquired. If only it were that easy.
The TRUTH of the matter?
Doing crunches all day is NOT going to get ride of your belly fat. Doing crunches alone won't burn enough calories to get rid of the fat you're storing.

What will get rid of that excess fat around your waistline that we all hate?
A combination of a few things...

1. Increase your cardio. You have to burn off the fat that is being stored on your body. When you lose weight you lose it all over. Because you can't specifically target one area for fat loss, you need to do enough cardio to lose the excess weight from allover, and in doing so losing it from your trouble areas as well. Cardiovascular exercise is the best way to do that. If you want to lose weight you have to create a caloric deficit, meaning you're burning more calories throughout the day than you are eating. Burning off excess calories is a great way to do that. If you are serious about dropping the LB's I'd recommend 60 mins of cardiovascular exercise 4-5 times a week.

2. Watch your diet. Here is another place where you can create that caloric deficit. If you aren't a calorie counter, cut out the junk foods. Cut out the snacks, and the extras. Try writing down your food to see if you're overdoing it. Make quality food choices. Eat foods closest to their natural form. Pack your meals with whole grains, fresh fruits and veggies, and lean protein. Cut down on the carbohydrates, limiting it to about 4-5 servings of carbohydrates per day. Try to cut out the fats and sugars from your food choices. All of these little decisions can make a big impact.

3. Include strength training in your regimen. Building muscle on your body increases the amount of calories your body is burning all the time. The more muscle you have the more calories you burn. It's a math thing. You won't become bulky. That is the number one concern I hear, and I can promise you. Weightlifting will actually make you drop inches, and become more condensed. Compact, in a sense. Women don't have the same genetic makeup as men, and because we lack the hormone Testosterone, we don't physically have the ability to become large and muscular like men.

4. Make all your training core training. You can strengthen your core and abs in everything you do. Balance on one foot while doing bicep curls. Do a plank in between every exercise you do. Incorporate core specific exercises into your daily workout routines. Include some abs and crunches in as well, but if you're working your core all the time you won't need to be doing a million sets of crunches.