I did not exercise today. I had a reasonable dinner, but it was too heavy for the hot weather, and then I discovered a plate of chocolate chip cookies I had forgotten about. I went to throw them out and accidentally ate them instead. After all that, I felt way too full to exercise. I have wanted to switch to exercising in the mornings anyway, so tomorrow I will get up early and exercise then.
Food today:
2/3 Hot Pink Smoothie
11 chocolate covered almonds
Chicken, quinoa, and stir-fry vegetables
1/3 cup M&Ms
a bite of cheese
Rice with black beans, tomatoes, corn, onions/garlic/chilies
2 chocolate chip cookies
According to FitDay.com, this adds up to 1900 calories, 660 of which was treats. Also according to FitDay, my lifestyle of being seated all day uses up 1925 calories. I have absolutely no idea if this is accurate or not. I looked up caloric needs calculations on several websites and got widely varying results. I have trouble knowing if I am actually hungry during the day, as I like to be eating something constantly, and I'm (obviously) addicted to sugar. It's difficult to tell whether I just want something in my mouth, if I want a treat, if I'm thirsty, or if I'm really hungry.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
30-Day Shred: Day 6 (Calendar Day 10)
I did not formally exercise Saturday at the family reunion. However, I did go on several walks and traipsed around a meadow/creek all while holding a 30-pound baby.
I ate all kinds of non-optimal food at the reunion -- the best was the white chocolate fountain with graham crackers, Oreos, marshmallows, brownies, strawberries, and pineapple! Second best was the delicious diner breakfast on our way back. Diner breakfasts have got to be my favorite meal in the world. Mmmmm. When we got home, I didn't feel too well. I think that once I decide to start eating better, I'm affected more by non-optimal foods than I would be had I not made the decision to eat better.
I will continue to list the foods I eat each day as a record for myself, even though I'm sure it's boring. I'll just stick them at the end of each post.
Today, most parts of the 30-Day Shred were a lot easier. I was able to get through each cardio section very easily. The ab exercises seemed much easier. Two things still absolutely KILL me. The first is the pushups. I did worse on pushups today than I did last week. Last week I was doing up to 12 in 30 seconds. Today I only got to 8 and that nearly did me in. And of course I'm still using the modified position. The second killing thing is the stationary lunges (one leg forward, one back). I always stretch/pull/hurt the left quadriceps muscle when I start this. The simplest explanation is that I'm just not warmed up enough when it's time for this exercise. Today it was bad enough that I couldn't do any lunges on that leg at all. Tomorrow I plan to stop the video long enough to stretch the quadriceps out for a few seconds before I start that exercise. In addition, I should probably stick with the modified version until I am stronger. I am still using the 2.5 pound weights on everything.
Things my kids did during my workout:
Pushed on my back and feet during pushups (completely killed my concentration and ruined the whole set)
Scattered plastic army guys right under my feet
Wadded my floor mat up
Gave me hugs
Untied my shoes
Food for the day -
corn flakes with milk (I was STARVING within 2 hours)
kim chi
2 tortillas with cream cheese, shredded chicken (very little), & green onions
13 Dove brand chocolate covered almonds (mmmmm, yummy)
(At this point in the afternoon I was going crazy with boredom-hunger -- you know, when you're so bored you just want to eat something?)
chicken (very little again), quinoa, and stir-fry vegetables
1 Hostess Snowball (I have been wanting to show these to my kids, and I finally found a package at a convenience store in Cedar City!)
1.5 mini banana nut muffins (ate them because the kids left them lying around)
some M&Ms (very late night snack)
I ate all kinds of non-optimal food at the reunion -- the best was the white chocolate fountain with graham crackers, Oreos, marshmallows, brownies, strawberries, and pineapple! Second best was the delicious diner breakfast on our way back. Diner breakfasts have got to be my favorite meal in the world. Mmmmm. When we got home, I didn't feel too well. I think that once I decide to start eating better, I'm affected more by non-optimal foods than I would be had I not made the decision to eat better.
I will continue to list the foods I eat each day as a record for myself, even though I'm sure it's boring. I'll just stick them at the end of each post.
Today, most parts of the 30-Day Shred were a lot easier. I was able to get through each cardio section very easily. The ab exercises seemed much easier. Two things still absolutely KILL me. The first is the pushups. I did worse on pushups today than I did last week. Last week I was doing up to 12 in 30 seconds. Today I only got to 8 and that nearly did me in. And of course I'm still using the modified position. The second killing thing is the stationary lunges (one leg forward, one back). I always stretch/pull/hurt the left quadriceps muscle when I start this. The simplest explanation is that I'm just not warmed up enough when it's time for this exercise. Today it was bad enough that I couldn't do any lunges on that leg at all. Tomorrow I plan to stop the video long enough to stretch the quadriceps out for a few seconds before I start that exercise. In addition, I should probably stick with the modified version until I am stronger. I am still using the 2.5 pound weights on everything.
Things my kids did during my workout:
Pushed on my back and feet during pushups (completely killed my concentration and ruined the whole set)
Scattered plastic army guys right under my feet
Wadded my floor mat up
Gave me hugs
Untied my shoes
Food for the day -
corn flakes with milk (I was STARVING within 2 hours)
kim chi
2 tortillas with cream cheese, shredded chicken (very little), & green onions
13 Dove brand chocolate covered almonds (mmmmm, yummy)
(At this point in the afternoon I was going crazy with boredom-hunger -- you know, when you're so bored you just want to eat something?)
chicken (very little again), quinoa, and stir-fry vegetables
1 Hostess Snowball (I have been wanting to show these to my kids, and I finally found a package at a convenience store in Cedar City!)
1.5 mini banana nut muffins (ate them because the kids left them lying around)
some M&Ms (very late night snack)
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Bra Fitting and Sports Bras
One benefit of never exercising was that I was able to avoid the fiasco of finding a sports bra until the ripe old age of 27. Before children, I wore typical bras that you find in cheap stores. I never owned a sports bra, since you don't really need one if your maximum impact exercise is walking fast.
Last year, I decided that if I was going to jog, I needed a real sports bra. If you wear a normal size, apparently you can just walk into the store and buy a bra. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to do that since I had kids and I learned about True Bra Sizing. If you have not been educated on True Bra Sizing, you need to go check this post and these two. The moral of the story is that unless you've been professionally fitted (NOT at Victoria's Secret, PLEASE), you're likely wearing a band size that is way too big. You should add a maximum of 2 inches to your rib cage measurement when determining your band size. So you probably need a smaller band than you have now. When you go down in band size, you need to go up in cup size. Let's say you thought you were a 34C, but you determine that your band size should really be a 30. Since you went down 2 band sizes, you need to go UP 2 cup sizes. You're probably a 30E (assuming we're counting sizes as A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H. . . and skipping double/triple letters - make sure to always check the sizing, because every company does it differently, of course).
Good luck finding that size in stores (hint: you won't, even Dillard's only has a few bras in a 30 band size). If you find yourself in the 'freakish' category of bra sizes, Figleaves.com is your new best friend. They carry everything from the teeniest bras to the mammoth bras. They have very good return policies, because they know you'll likely need to try several bras before you find the right fit. The best way to do it is order a bunch and return the ones you don't like, but I've never had enough reserve cash to do that. So I just order one at a time and keep returning until I get it right.
Anyway, back to the point. I needed a heavy duty sports bra. Sports bras you can buy in department stores are completely ineffective for me.
Runner's Corner in Orem actually had a very good selection for my range of sizes. I needed one just one size bigger, and they special ordered it for me. But it wasn't quite right -- too much movement and bouncing. If I was going to spend $45+ on one item, I wanted it to be perfect. I ordered the Shock Absorber Max Sports Crop Top from Figleaves, but it looked really lumpy and terrible under clothes. So I returned it and moved on to the complete Granny-style, but best sports bra ever -- the Enell. The Enell is fantastically ugly. But it will give you the best support of any sports bra, as long as you get a small enough size -- it's supposed to be really tight. The Enell site has good instructions on fit.
So now I have the Enell, and I don't have to worry about bouncing at all. If you have a bigger cup size and are serious about not bouncing, skip straight to the Enell.
Last year, I decided that if I was going to jog, I needed a real sports bra. If you wear a normal size, apparently you can just walk into the store and buy a bra. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to do that since I had kids and I learned about True Bra Sizing. If you have not been educated on True Bra Sizing, you need to go check this post and these two. The moral of the story is that unless you've been professionally fitted (NOT at Victoria's Secret, PLEASE), you're likely wearing a band size that is way too big. You should add a maximum of 2 inches to your rib cage measurement when determining your band size. So you probably need a smaller band than you have now. When you go down in band size, you need to go up in cup size. Let's say you thought you were a 34C, but you determine that your band size should really be a 30. Since you went down 2 band sizes, you need to go UP 2 cup sizes. You're probably a 30E (assuming we're counting sizes as A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H. . . and skipping double/triple letters - make sure to always check the sizing, because every company does it differently, of course).
Good luck finding that size in stores (hint: you won't, even Dillard's only has a few bras in a 30 band size). If you find yourself in the 'freakish' category of bra sizes, Figleaves.com is your new best friend. They carry everything from the teeniest bras to the mammoth bras. They have very good return policies, because they know you'll likely need to try several bras before you find the right fit. The best way to do it is order a bunch and return the ones you don't like, but I've never had enough reserve cash to do that. So I just order one at a time and keep returning until I get it right.
Anyway, back to the point. I needed a heavy duty sports bra. Sports bras you can buy in department stores are completely ineffective for me.
Runner's Corner in Orem actually had a very good selection for my range of sizes. I needed one just one size bigger, and they special ordered it for me. But it wasn't quite right -- too much movement and bouncing. If I was going to spend $45+ on one item, I wanted it to be perfect. I ordered the Shock Absorber Max Sports Crop Top from Figleaves, but it looked really lumpy and terrible under clothes. So I returned it and moved on to the complete Granny-style, but best sports bra ever -- the Enell. The Enell is fantastically ugly. But it will give you the best support of any sports bra, as long as you get a small enough size -- it's supposed to be really tight. The Enell site has good instructions on fit.
So now I have the Enell, and I don't have to worry about bouncing at all. If you have a bigger cup size and are serious about not bouncing, skip straight to the Enell.
Friday, June 26, 2009
30-Day Shred: Day 5 (Calendar Day 7)
I thought I wasn't going to be able to Shred today because I did it last night, and in 90 minutes we are leaving for a family reunion. I may be able to get in some sports or running at the reunion, but I didn't want to try to shred (and pee my pants) in front of everyone. But when I woke up this morning, I was feeling really good, so I worked out. I don't know if it's a good idea to repeat the workout 11 hours later, but oh well. At least I did some form of exercise today. The workout was definitely harder to get through. I had to do all modified lunges (no full lunges). My arms are shaking a bit now.
The food for the reunion is being 100% supplied by a grand-uncle, and I have absolutely no idea what he's making. Most likely your standard home cooked foods - bacon and eggs, sandwiches, hamburgers, etc. I plan to eat whatever is there and however much I feel like :-) I will try to be reasonable though. If I don't *really* want something, I won't eat it just because it's there. I'll be bringing along some dry oatmeal in case my kids just can't stomach the foods, and I can have that for a snack if I really need something.
The food for the reunion is being 100% supplied by a grand-uncle, and I have absolutely no idea what he's making. Most likely your standard home cooked foods - bacon and eggs, sandwiches, hamburgers, etc. I plan to eat whatever is there and however much I feel like :-) I will try to be reasonable though. If I don't *really* want something, I won't eat it just because it's there. I'll be bringing along some dry oatmeal in case my kids just can't stomach the foods, and I can have that for a snack if I really need something.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
30-Day Shred: Day 4 (Calendar Day 6)
I had a great dream last night. I was in fantastic shape -- sleek, fit, and strong. I woke up so motivated. I am supposed to be to work at 8 and I woke up at 7:20. I was so motivated that I considered working out even though it would make me even later to work. I didn't though.
Food today:
- About half of a hot pink smoothie. I added ground flax seed to it today, and it was kind of yucky.
- Tortilla with refried beans, sauteéd vegetables, and Southwest Quinoa (yes, once I make something I try to eat it until it's all gone)
- cookie dough (equivalent of 2 cookies)
- sauteéd chicken breasts, baked potato with a little tiny bit of butter/sour cream, and stir-fry veggies
- several tablespoons of delicious sour cream off of Baby's plate (oops)
Since I didn't have a full Hot Pink Smoothie, I was kind of hungry this morning. All morning I was craving a Las Vegas sushi roll. It's got avocado, cream cheese, fish of some sort, some other stuff, and then it's tempura fried and topped off with a delicious sweetish sauce . . .mmmmmmmmm, YUMMY.
My quads were still a bit sore today. I was able to do more of the non-modified exercises in the 30-Day Shred tonight. I did full lunges, but then when it was time to do lateral lunges, my quads were shot from the regular lunges, so I had to go back to modified lateral lunges. I am still doing all modified pushups. The easiest part of the workout for me is the last 2 minutes of cardio. The cardio in the middle circuit is pretty hard to get through, but then when I get to that last circuit, it's so easy to go all out.
My almost-2 year old is SO precious when I'm exercising. Every time I get down on the floor, he gives me such cuddly loves! It makes it VERY hard to do ab exercises, but the sheer preciousness probably is just as good for my body :-)
My quads are pretty sore right now. They're not painful, but when I try to walk, I'm a little shaky. I may need to go back to all modified lunges until I develop some actual muscles.
Now that I'm finally ready to go to bed, I REALLY want some cookie dough. WANT. I am going to skip it though. No need to eat when the pleasure will last about 10 seconds and I'll be asleep 10 minutes later.
(I'm listening to my favorite Michael Jackson favorites as a little homage. No matter how strange he was, he still had some fantastic music and dance moves.)
Food today:
- About half of a hot pink smoothie. I added ground flax seed to it today, and it was kind of yucky.
- Tortilla with refried beans, sauteéd vegetables, and Southwest Quinoa (yes, once I make something I try to eat it until it's all gone)
- cookie dough (equivalent of 2 cookies)
- sauteéd chicken breasts, baked potato with a little tiny bit of butter/sour cream, and stir-fry veggies
- several tablespoons of delicious sour cream off of Baby's plate (oops)
Since I didn't have a full Hot Pink Smoothie, I was kind of hungry this morning. All morning I was craving a Las Vegas sushi roll. It's got avocado, cream cheese, fish of some sort, some other stuff, and then it's tempura fried and topped off with a delicious sweetish sauce . . .mmmmmmmmm, YUMMY.
My quads were still a bit sore today. I was able to do more of the non-modified exercises in the 30-Day Shred tonight. I did full lunges, but then when it was time to do lateral lunges, my quads were shot from the regular lunges, so I had to go back to modified lateral lunges. I am still doing all modified pushups. The easiest part of the workout for me is the last 2 minutes of cardio. The cardio in the middle circuit is pretty hard to get through, but then when I get to that last circuit, it's so easy to go all out.
My almost-2 year old is SO precious when I'm exercising. Every time I get down on the floor, he gives me such cuddly loves! It makes it VERY hard to do ab exercises, but the sheer preciousness probably is just as good for my body :-)
My quads are pretty sore right now. They're not painful, but when I try to walk, I'm a little shaky. I may need to go back to all modified lunges until I develop some actual muscles.
Now that I'm finally ready to go to bed, I REALLY want some cookie dough. WANT. I am going to skip it though. No need to eat when the pleasure will last about 10 seconds and I'll be asleep 10 minutes later.
(I'm listening to my favorite Michael Jackson favorites as a little homage. No matter how strange he was, he still had some fantastic music and dance moves.)
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
30-Day Shred: Calendar Day 5
Today I was a little sore in my quadriceps, but it was quite minor. I did want to exercise today, but didn't get around to it. I got home from work around 6 pm. I had to take a kid to buy water balloons, make and eat dinner, do a couple of hours of work, go to the library, get quarters for laundry, and do 3 loads of laundry. I've finally gotten all that done, and it's 11 pm. I am interested to see if my soreness is completely gone tomorrow, and how that will affect my workout.
As for food today:
breakfast: 2 eggs over easy with sauteéd peppers and onions
lunch: tortilla with refried beans, peppers/onions, and sour cream
snacks: chocolate chip cookie, handful of chocolate covered nuts
dinner: tortilla with refried beans and Southwest Quinoa
snack again: 2 lumps of chocolate chip cookie dough
As for food today:
breakfast: 2 eggs over easy with sauteéd peppers and onions
lunch: tortilla with refried beans, peppers/onions, and sour cream
snacks: chocolate chip cookie, handful of chocolate covered nuts
dinner: tortilla with refried beans and Southwest Quinoa
snack again: 2 lumps of chocolate chip cookie dough
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
30-Day Shred: Day 3 (Calendar Day 4)
Today I was actually less sore than yesterday. I thought it would be worse since I did yesterday's workout while I was still sore, but it actually decreased. I was still sore in my butt, quadriceps, and chest, but it wasn't bad.
For breakfast I had half a hot pink smoothie (the beets and carrots in the smoothie make it somewhat cleansing, and I felt a little nauseated drinking a whole one yesterday) and a banana. Lunch was leftover Southwest Quinoa. I had two cookies again for snacks. I also had a peanut butter and honey sandwich mid afternoon. For dinner, I had fajitas, which included homemade whole wheat flax (both freshly ground!) tortillas, canned refried beans, sauteéd onions, red/green bell peppers, and squash, and some sour cream. I also marinated some leftover steak in olive oil, garlic, lime juice, and fajita seasoning, and then sauteéd it quickly. I intended to skip the steak, but the marinade was so darn good that I kept snitching some. The kids had some cheddar cheese on theirs. I am a fan of raw dairy, but I know that the typical grocery store dairy products are just not good. I also have congestion pretty much year round, so someday I'll probably go off dairy to see if it helps.
I did Day 3 of the 30-Day Shred. It went pretty much the same as before. I'm still doing the modified exercises. Some of them were a little easier today. I discovered that if you have problems with postpartum bladder control when jumping around or sneezing, you'll have the blessing of experiencing that problem during these workouts. I noticed it a little the first two days, but it was much worse today. I'm not sure if my bladder was more full or what. As for post-workout soreness, now that I've showered and have been sitting around for about an hour, I am VERY sore. Much more sore than I was directly after the first two days of workouts.
For breakfast I had half a hot pink smoothie (the beets and carrots in the smoothie make it somewhat cleansing, and I felt a little nauseated drinking a whole one yesterday) and a banana. Lunch was leftover Southwest Quinoa. I had two cookies again for snacks. I also had a peanut butter and honey sandwich mid afternoon. For dinner, I had fajitas, which included homemade whole wheat flax (both freshly ground!) tortillas, canned refried beans, sauteéd onions, red/green bell peppers, and squash, and some sour cream. I also marinated some leftover steak in olive oil, garlic, lime juice, and fajita seasoning, and then sauteéd it quickly. I intended to skip the steak, but the marinade was so darn good that I kept snitching some. The kids had some cheddar cheese on theirs. I am a fan of raw dairy, but I know that the typical grocery store dairy products are just not good. I also have congestion pretty much year round, so someday I'll probably go off dairy to see if it helps.
I did Day 3 of the 30-Day Shred. It went pretty much the same as before. I'm still doing the modified exercises. Some of them were a little easier today. I discovered that if you have problems with postpartum bladder control when jumping around or sneezing, you'll have the blessing of experiencing that problem during these workouts. I noticed it a little the first two days, but it was much worse today. I'm not sure if my bladder was more full or what. As for post-workout soreness, now that I've showered and have been sitting around for about an hour, I am VERY sore. Much more sore than I was directly after the first two days of workouts.
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