What's Your "Why?"

Last week I met a friend in Providence to see Jillian Michael's "Maximize Your Life Tour." It was broken down into three main sections: nutrition, exercise, and mentality. While most of the information was a refresher for me, there were a few things that stuck out - the biggest of which was to figure out WHY I want to make a change now. Jillian argued that humans are creatures of habit, and I would have to agree. I typically eat similar foods for months at a time, swapping a meal out here or there, but always for another extended period of time; it is comforting and I am lazy. While I can only do so much right now, my goal this summer is to try cooking a new dish at least once a week, if not twice. This may not seem like a huge deal, but it will take a lot of planning and prep. I don't cook nearly as much as I used to and when I do, it is typically easy things like eggs or various grilled cheeses. I need to get into the habit of cooking 3 big meals a week so I have variety but also don't waste food. I digress.

Back to the WHY. My second blog post spoke to my WHY, but I want to delve a little deeper into it.

1. I don't always make myself a priority: I loved that Jillian mentioned this is an issue for a lot of people (mostly women), because I see it in myself all the time. I left everything I knew behind to learn more about myself and grow into the person I want to be. Not that I want to be selfish, but I want to be able to make decisions. I am frequently nonchalant about decisions like dinner, movies, games, etc. and I do not want to be anymore. Why should I pay $12 for a crappy movie I have no desire to see? What is wrong with going to a movie by myself if no one wants to see a movie with me? I am not sure if I will ever be the person who sees movies alone, but it's because I am CHEAP and movies are NOT. While I want to be accommodating to others, it shouldn't be at my expense. Part of making myself a priority is by working out on a regular basis. While I know 7 days a week is optimal to build the habit, I know it may not always be realistic. On the days I cannot work out, I just have to watch what I eat.
2. It is still pretty freaking cold here. Just yesterday my boyfriend made fun of me for wearing a winter jacket when it was mid-50's out. It was just a habit and by the time we were done shopping, I had it unzipped because I was so warm. That could have also been due to my losing my wallet in Target and freaking out until I found it (a huge THANK YOU to the customer/associate who returned it without taking any money). But, the cold and rain/snow does not help my motivation for working out. However, I can also feel myself turning into my mother (which wouldn't be a bad thing!) because when I am laying down and being lazy, I think about how I should be doing some simple workout. My mom used to do small things on vacation or in the kitchen while she was waiting around and we used to make fun of her, but now I want to! I know I will get crazy looks though if and when I start breaking out into random moves.
3. These past two weeks I've worked out sporadically and my back is screaming at me. It is just more proof that I need to exercise regularly if it means curbing back pain. 
4.  and 5. My drive for a PhD in Public Health and Nutrition hasn't changed, but it is scary thinking about moving and starting over AGAIN and being a broke student again. More on that later.

All of these are great reasons as to why I want to get into better shape, but they're somewhat superficial. Granted, wanting to make myself a priority is important and making sure my back doesn't bring me to tears, but more than anything, I want to develop good behaviors while I can because I know as I become more busy, I will stop focusing on myself. If I develop a consistent behavior I will be more likely to maintain it as I get older. It is well known that it is harder to loose weight as you age and I want to develop healthy habits so I don't let my health get out of control. That, above all, is my WHY.

Today: Les Mills PUMP which I LOVE because it is only 30 minutes and I can do it at night without disturbing my neighbors. The frustrating thing is they take too much time in between each set to explain things. I wish there was a "new to class" and a regular version. I find myself getting bored in between sets. My muscles hurt really bad the first two days, but now I don't feel it as much! The challenge group also starts soon so I am super excited!

Productivity

I slept in pretty late today. To many of my past roommates (and parents) it may seem typical, but I typically wake up around 8:30 on days I don't have to be to work early. Today, I slept until 10 am. I woke up around 6:30 and was still really tired come 7:15 am, so I stayed in bed and actually fell back asleep. It was glorious! This whole week I slept in which meant not working out. But, I was making up for my crazy anxiety attack from last week and that 2 hour-of-sleep night; I am also still convinced I was fighting something off as well.

Another reason I took a break from working out (maybe I was using it as an excuse?) was because when I showered for the first time after having my moles removed, the areas hurt REALLY bad. Needless to say, I feared A) showering again before they scabbed over and B) how my shorts would rub the area, even with a band aid because they always ride up since I've lost weight. Today's shower was fine (thank you, scabs!) but I was still conscious of the area on my stomach when working out. It wasn't uncomfortable per say, but I was aware. I am not looking forward to the scabs falling off. Sometimes I think that is the worse part! But, considering the situation, better safe than sorry. I got my results this week and everything was clear but there was a very small amount of activity under the microscope for the stomach section so they will be monitoring it every 6-12 months to see if the color returns.

Despite sleeping in, today was productive! I (partially) cleaned my apartment, made roasted cauliflower parmesan soup, talked to some friends I hadn't spoken with in a few months, worked out, and took a really long shower (sometimes I just need one). I also got through some class work, for the one I am teach AND the one I am taking. I even got through some of the TV in my hulu queue that had been backing up. Without trying to ruin anything, can I just say - Oh my goodness SCANDAL! I was definitely crying before my workout this morning.

Food today:

• Breakfast: a bowl of cereal (Kashi berry crunch) with soy milk.
• Lunch: sauteed apple and beet grilled cheese with goat cheese.
• Dinner: roasted cauliflower soup.
• Snack/dessert: homemade museli bar, two pieces of chocolate, and vanilla bean ice cream with chocolate syrup.

I did not drink my shakeology today which I frequently forget on the weekend. I also ate ice cream which I NEVER eat at home. These are not good practices and not something I plan to make a habit out of. It's also surprising since working out typically makes me eat healthier since I don't want the workout to be for nothing!

Workout: some of my co-workers use T-25, so I borrowed it from one of them to see if I like it. I love the concept of a 25 minute workout, especially because I have to work out in the mornings (which I hate) so I like having something quick so I can workout, shower, and eat between 11 am and 1 pm. I did the alpha cardio disc today and really enjoyed it. 

Random closing note: when thinking about moving, take the location within the time zone into consideration. Dawn and dusk occur an hour earlier out here compared to Ohio which is a little more depressing in the winter. Even during the summer the sun doesn't seem to stay up much past 8:30/9 pm which stinks!

Recommitted

I haven't worked out in almost two weeks. There. I said it. I am not proud; it is actually embarrassing to admit since I am on a quest to get healthy. The past two weeks have been anything but. 

I am convinced I've been battling some sort of cold. It never came to fruition the way I would expect, but my body was achy and I had zero energy. Even today I've found my kidneys seem to hurt a little bit. That, on top of getting moles removed on an empty stomach, stress and anxiety, and depression have made for a rough time. But, things have taken a turn for the better and I will continue to push on. I know it is going to take some time to get back into a routine, but it is necessary if I want to be successful. I will also be starting a weight lifting challenge in April which I am pretty excited about. I know it is going to be hard at first, but I anticipate it being something I will be able to do after phonathons if I am running late in the mornings. 

More than anything, I am looking forward to the exercise helping my back and sleeping patterns! I've noticed my back has started hurting again and I haven't been sleeping well at night because of it. Since going to the chiropractor and regularly working out, I've been able to lay in bed without it really hurting at all. But, the past few days have been really rough when I wake up in the morning. This is just more proof that exercise does the body good (as if I didn't already know that)!

I've Been Neglecting My Duties

As I mentioned in my last post (a week ago...), I am really bad at being consistent with blogs. I fully intend on getting back into the swing of things fairly soon, but it has been a rough few weeks so I've been pretty MIA.

My workouts have been sporadic at best - I try to never go more than a day without doing something, but this week has been pretty bad. I fully intended on working on Monday evening but by the time I remembered, it was almost 9. Then, I got side tracked again and it was too late to really do anything without waking up my neighbors. Yesterday, I went to the dermatologist for a regular skin check and he ended up removing two moles. Since I had an early appointment and figured it would just be a checkup, I didn't eat breakfast; that was a poor decision on my part! I almost passed out in the doctors office again when I had to change the band aids that evening. I ended up leaving work early, too, so I was out most of the day. I even almost passed out this morning when I had to change them again! I don't know what my deal is - I know I can get queasy, but this has been a bit much. I do think part of the problem is that I've been so depressed I've lost my appetite, so as much as I am trying to eat healthful foods, I am just not eating very much which doesn't help either.

I finally broke below 180 again - down to 179.2 as of this morning - but I know it is not a healthy weight loss which is upsetting. But, I anticipate things changing soon (hopefully).

I've also been reading The Happiness Project and anticipate starting that (or prepping for it) in April. I like to perceive myself as a fairly happy person (outside of these past few weeks), but there is always room for improvement.

How do you kick your bad moods? I would love suggestions!

Popcorn!

Since I bought those olive oils over the weekend, I've been on a huge popcorn kick. I converted to stove-top popcorn a few years ago and never looked back; the microwaveable popcorn contained too many added ingredients that I didn't want to ingest. I've been using the butter olive oil to pop it, but found it would start smoking before the kernels would pop, most of the kernels would only be half popped, and it would burn before it was done.

I decided to try microwaving popcorn in a brown lunch bag last night, and I've found it is SO MUCH EASIER, convenient, and less messy! I added about 1/3 of a cup of kernels to the bag, folded the top over a few times, and popped for less than 2 minutes until the popping slowed down. Once it was done, I tossed it in a little butter olive oil and salt.

 

I've been getting back into the swing of things over the past few days to get my workouts back on track; I also need to take some time to really plan out meals so I can really be successful moving forward. The past 3 days I've done Turbo Fire (Fire 45, HIIT 20, and HIIT 15) and started eating more veggies. They've always been my downfall and I am determined to get back to eating meals with mostly veggies. I also ordered the 21 Day Fix and can't wait until it arrives! I am looking forward to testing out those workouts and using the containers.

Two Weeks is a Long Time!

I am so bad at writing daily blog posts, so I usually go from one extreme to another with the frequency! Two weeks is a long time not to post, but there has been a lot going on (as there always will be). I need to get back into the swing of posting regularly - perhaps every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I still haven't fully decided yet, but I know daily is unrealistic and two weeks is too much of a gap.

So, what have I been up to the past two weeks? I honestly can't remember much of it! Last week we had a consultant visit which kept me busy, but was a great opportunity to improve the Phonathon. I haven't been working out regularly, but started again today (I would go 2-3 days without) and am getting back on track. I planned on getting back into the swing of things Friday since I had the day off, but my heat was off (and had been for two days without me realizing it - this is what happens when I work 13 hour days...), so I did NOTHING except lay under my electric blanket and comforter until it was fixed. It was probably in the low 50s before it was fixed. That evening I had a photography class at RISD and met up with some of the girls from the summer class I took beforehand for dinner. We went to Providence Coal Fire Pizza, which was phenomenal! Between the four of us, we split a hummus appetizer and two pizzas (with half a pizza left over). We ordered the lunch and dinner special pizzas - one had spinach, mushrooms, onions, and panchetta (on half) and the other had a cream base with brussel sprouts, caramelized onions, bacon (on half), and a garlic oil drizzle. I never thought I would crave brussel sprouts, but that pizza was amazing! They were thinly shaved and cooked perfectly! I thought for sure I was going to gain 2-3 pounds, but I've been able to maintain my weight at 180.2 for the past two weeks.

I've also come to the realization that I really need to make time to plan out my meals. It was much easier to eat a balanced diet when I could plan accordingly.

I'm reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin and plan on starting my own version which I will incorporate into my blog. It may take some time, but after a long internal struggle (long story), I decided it is worth it for me to continue focusing on improving my health and outlook on life. I won't be 27 much longer, and it will just get harder to create good habits as I age, so what better time than now?!?

I will leave with the following 3 pictures:

There is an olive oil and vinegar place in Providence that sells flavored olive oils and vinegars (I bet you never would've guessed...). We stopped by this weekend since I had a gift card and spent way too much time there! It was like heaven! I really could drink vinegar from the bottle...I ended up getting:

• Fig balsamic vinegar - for beets and goat cheese
• Cinnamon pear balsamic vinegar - I haven't decided yet, but for some breakfast pastry
• Peach white balsamic vinegar - for salads
• Wild mushroom and sage olive oil - for eggs
• Butter olive oil (it's vegan and tasted like real butter!)  - for popcorn

I took a wonderful cat nap (with Cat!) at some point over the past few days:

Yes, the only selfies I take are with my cat!

 Look at that cute face :)