This morning I hopped on the 7:30am flight from JFK to LAX, you don't even know how excited I was! I printed my boarding pass at home, so getting through security was no big deal. Once in my terminal, you know I was determined to find the BEST airport goodies to bring on the flight. (I do NOT do 7 hours of traveling on an empty stomach!) Here's what I decided on:
-XLARGE DECAF coffee from DD : But here's the annoying part. I had to BUY an entire "very vanilla" silk soy juice box because DD does NOT have soy milk!!! I used maybe 1 or 2 ounces of the carton that cost freakin $3...oh well. One day the world will be kinder to us dairy-free people.
-$5 bag of snap peas (not a huge bag either. airport prices. health is worth it!)
-an apple
-i said GOODIES, right?! Well, I was absolutely THRILLED to find NUGO VEGAN PROTEIN BARS in the terminal food spot! I NEVER eat these anymore, but decided I could definitely rationalize it for travel purposes. I picked the dark chocolate pretzel one. HOLY CRAP. I need to re-create those flavors in the form of oats. There were little specs of sea salt on the actual chocolate part of the bar, and the brown rice protein crisps in the center tasted like pretzels because of it. Oh baby, if you want a treat... That is definitely the way to go. 200 cals, 5 grams of fat, 10g protein, 15 sugars....WAY more satisfying than a hershey bar or a couple of chocolate covered pretzels *which always contain MILK FAT...ew* I'm not saying these should be an every day fix, but wow. I am telling you to TRY ONE because they're that good.
Anyway, besides the 2 small children kicking and screaming behind my seat the entire flight (ahem, MIDDLE seat...) and the fact I kept jumping over the kid sitting next to me so I could go to the bathroom, walk around, get extra water bottles from the cart at the back of the plane ( I can't sit still at ALL..) I had a great flight. Landed early, got a STARBUCKS, got my bag, and waited for Victor! It was HOT and 80 degrees! I was enjoying every minute of it. After running some errands with him, we decided we'd spend the rest of the hours of sunshine at RUNYON canyon. *does happy dance*
The parking gods were on our side today too, we got a sick parking spot, walked up to the canyon, and went our separate ways. I had to complete my first loop quicker than I had planned because i was DYING to get a water bottle at the bottom of the canyon entrance. I was thirsty and dizzy. I booked it down the loop, got my water, and walked all the way back UP the intense incline pavement for some more loops around the canyon. I did LOTS of running, I even ran up most of the stairs (they're a bitch.) Victor and I passed each other a couple of times, both running around with no shirts on , on a mission. We met up 90 minutes later. Checked the heart rate monitor. 832 calories! WHOA!!
I had pretty much my first meal of the day after that: 2 slices ezekiel bread, 1 can of tuna, 1/2avocado, and lots of baby carrots and snap peas. Usually, I wouldn't have fat after a workout, but I'm on VACATION so I really don't care. My body needed some SERIOUS FUEL. I'm still sort of on New York time, So it's like I've been awake for 19 hours, with pretty little food and a crazy workout. I'm only out here until Tuesday, so I need to make the most of EVERY DAY!! I'll have a great day of rest on Wednesday after my red-eye flight back to New York.
My vacation diet day 1:
7am: decaf coffee w/soy
plane-- 8am nugo bar, couple hours later snap peas, couple hours later apple
10:15 LA TIME (1:15ny) iced coffee w/soy
1:00 LA time 1 egg, 3 whites, banana
1:50-3:30 RUNYON.
5pm: 2 slices ezekiel, 1 can light tuna, 1/2 avocado, baby carrots, snap peas
6pm: small green apple, some grapes
So nice to Relax! I plan on having my eggwhites and oats in the morning before going to the gym... and maybe a shake from equinox after my workout ..
I'll be keeping you updated!!
XOXOXO
I've been thinking a LOT lately...
everything I'm interested tends to revolve around LOOKS. As a dancer and fitness obsessee, everyone around me is always trying to look better (ie: dancers want to be more snatched, wanna book more jobs, same thing with fitness. every blogger or competitor wants to be leaner, more muscular, have a nicer butt, eat cleaner than the next.)
Here I am right in the middle of it. One minute I feel super lean, happy with the progress I'm making...then I sign onto facebook and see that the girls winning Ameteur and Pro Bikini at the past Weekend's Arnold look way different than me. While I'm tempted to say they look "better" than me, I'm not going to say that. Sure, they're leaner. They likely broke down their bodies for the weeks and months leading up to that contest just to look paper-thin and muscular on stage. But that degree of intensity isn't supposed to last 365 days a year, so they say. They have an "off-season," in which they probably eat and train closer to how I do...some might train harder than me, others might slack a bit.
Where am I going with this ? Well , at the moment, I'm not preparing to step on stage in the world's most revealing sparkly bikini. That's next year. But there's something INSIDE of me that makes me PUSH PUSH PUSH beyond my own mental limits, and I Get so FRUSTRATED when I'm so sore that it hurts to walk, haven't eaten a single carb before 12pm...it makes me want to kick myself sometimes! But, then I remember, I'm always pursuing the better version of me. Yeah, okay I'm small, I have nice muscle tone, my bicep veins pop out when i lift. It's all good. But due to my CRAZINESS, it's not good enough. I often look at way too many pictures of women I want to look like, and forget to appreciate my own progress. Building a physique is a journey, painful and beautiful at the same time. I love the foods I eat, I adore my workouts (besides the squats, maybe,) and my heart rate monitor and ipod are some of the best company i could ask for.
You know what I want YOU to take away from reading this? Even if you spend tons of time looking at photos of people you want to look like, or abs you need, and reading the latest exercises and post-workout secrets for shredded abs...make sure doing such MOTIVATES you. Don't let it discourage you. Did you follow a workout plan from a fitness magazine because the model had an incredible physique? You finished it, put all your effort into it, AND made the suggested post-workout shake afterwards? GREAT. Oh, you looked in the mirror after you workout and didn't see a ripped midsection? Well, what the heck. It doesn't work that way!! We (I) need to remember, this is a JOURNEY and a lifestyle. Changing your body doesn't happen overnight. When we pull back from crazy fit-monster mode, we know this. But sometimes the DRIVE takes over LOGIC and you run yourself into the ground. I come to this realization every once in a while. It often comes at a point where I'm uncomfortably sore, my digestive system is breaking down because I eat too much freakin' spinach *seriously, I need to tone it down,* and I've been looking at TOO MANY bikini and figure competition pictures. How will I overcome this and re-charge? I'll take a day off from the gym, not eat a THING until my body cries hunger, and just relax. The next day (This time, will be en route to LA to spend 5 days with an AMAZING fitness inspiration, VICTOR SELF! )
--Can't wait to do some GREAT blogging in California, and give you guys a taste of Runyon Canyon, The LA Dance scene, and West Hollywood Equinox.
This blog was very therapeutic for me to write, and if you read the entire thing, THANK YOU.
Everyone who has been reaching out lately and asking me personal questions (there have been LOTS of you lately!) Thank you. You guys reassure me that I'm meant to do this for a reason. There's a purpose for my blogging, beyond my passion and self-motivation to do so. The only thing I love more than my own pursuit of fitness and health, is encouraging others with their own pursuit. I thank you for letting me share my knowledge and philosophies with you.
"Pain is Weakness leaving the body"
"Sweat is your fat crying"
These are both terms that I absolutely LOVE. I heard them first from friend and amazing Barry's instructor Keoni Hudoba, and they have stuck with me during EVERY workout!
I want to talk about PAIN and WEAKNESS today. Everyone has strengths. Those same people have weaknesses too. Not only in the gym, but in life. Some people are organized, some would lose their head if it weren't attached by their neck. Some people can cope with emotional hardship, while others let emotion take over them, and lose themselves in wallow and self-destruction.
But, I do fitness. So let's talk about your physical weaknesses. I'll start. My absolute weakness is leg and glute training. If someone asked if I'd rather run for my life for 2 hours, or squat for an hour...I'd be running for my life. I LOVE training my upper body, I could do core exercises ALL DAY.. but when it comes to these GLUTES and LEGS...I have to force myself. I used to avoid them, and just throw in a set of suitcase squats or barbell deadlifts here and there. But then, I realized my butt didn't look how I wanted. Most people would accept the fact that their butt must be sacrificed in order to improve their running. NOT ME!!! Yes, I have a weakness. But I'm willing to put in the effort to CHANGE it. Every damn Tuesday, I drag my booty to the gym, and just work with the leg press and squat rack. Minimal to zero cardio, just leg training. I hate every squat with more than 65 pounds. But I do them over and over and over again until I can barely stand straight because I want to turn my WEAKNESS into STRENGTH. I want to be just as proud of my backside as I am of my nice shoulders, obliques, biceps, etc. And THAT is why I torture myself every Tuesday.
After waking up at 6:30AM to sit in class from 8 until 1:45, do you think I want to have my hardest workout of the week!? No. I do it because I'm determined to change, and the feeling once I'm done is amazing. Once I finish my brutal Tuesday workout, I feel accomplished, and ready to just sit down and dream about my booty growing with each minute (A girl can dream, right?) The only thing I DO love about my leg workouts is deadlifts. I've always had a strong deadlift, and I love how they engage my whole upper body as well. Squats, well...they just suck. Lunges too. In my opinion.
Some people would say they LOVE training their legs, and would just do that if they could. It might pain them to look at their flabby arms, or ugly stomach. They have the ability to change it too!! Some elite athletes HATE cardio. They still do it 6 times a week with more intensity than most "cardio enthusiasts." If you want a physique, or you want to get stronger, dreaming aint gonna get you there. Just like anything else in life, you cant expect to just be given something. You need to act, and GET IT. Want a nice ass? Get your butt to the squat rack. Grab some dumbbells, do suitcase squats. Put your leg behind you on a bench and lunge it out until you fall over. It's the only way to get results.
Tuesday workouts make me want to CRY, GIVE UP, EAT. I always push through. 3 to 4 sets is just a WARM-UP on leg day. If I can do it more than 4 to 5 reps, I add weight. Drop-sets. Non-stop. It's like an hour of inferno.
I LOVE IT.
There is no feeling more rewarding than pushing yourself past a limit you didn't know existed.
Change your weakness into strength.
MAKE THE FAT BURST OUT INTO TEARS!
That's what I have to say on this lovely Tuesday.
Wow my booty hurts!
XOXO
If you follow my blogs or read them pretty often, you know I really cut back (sorta went on a "diet" on Friday.) Until JUST NOW, I followed EVERY SINGLE MEAL, DID NOT SNACK AT ALL, ETC. However, I just broke my diet (GASP!) Wanna know what I did? Well, after burning 631 calories during my 75 minute workout today, i came back to my dorm (2:30pm) and had my post-workout meal i had planned. (1.5scoop chocolate protein, small banana, 1/2c WHEAT bran.) I was supposed to eat my mini-dinner at 5ish. (1/2can tuna, 1/2 small avocado, 1 pepper, 2 baby cucumbers)
Well, I ended up working on a homework assingment until 6ish, and was STARVING. SO...I had my planned mini-dinner...plus a whole bag of snap peas.
Whatever. I don't care, 4 extra servings of vegetables! My error today was that i should have had more in my system this morning, as i only had vegan protein and 1cup frozen blueberries for breakfast, and a scaled down version of a typical pre-workout meal. Like I said, they're freakin vegetables. They're not gonna stick to me !! So, there's my dramatic cheat. 3 days of dieting perfection...I don't believe in being HUNGRY. So, EAT! For dinner I have 1/2can tuna, other 1/2 the avocado, 1/2 bag of spinach, and 2 peppers on the agenda. I'll probably make that a whole bag of spinach to be extra daring! Don't want to be hungry! When on a specific/limited/restricted (whatever the heck you wanna call it) diet, you still should be HAPPY .. and your stomach shouldn't be growling. Always keep the metabolism going. So hey, an extra 140 calories from some freakin green vegetables? I'm really not gonna sweat it. I'm just mad the bag of snap peas is GONE and I can't have any tomorrow :-(
My tummy is very happy now anyway.
Oh, and did I mention I burned 631 cals during my workout today!?
Here's how:
I hit the treadmill super hard, as usual. Similar to yesterday's workout, but ran faster, sometimes running 7.5 up a 5% incline for a minute. spent 30 minutes busting my ass, included 5 cycles of running backwards at 5.5speed followed by minutes of 8.5 running. Spent 5 minutes walking fast to cool down.
Treadmill stats:
--35 minutes, 3.75 miles
THEN i hit the cables for a quick tricep/shoulder superset:
Circuit 1: 3 sets x 12-15 reps
-Tricep rope pull down
-High rope delt pull
-Stiff arm rope pull down (upper tricep/upper back)
Circuit 2: 3 sets , reps until failure
Bicep curls 40lb dumbbell
bent arm lateral raise
stiff arm lateral raise
side crunch off hyperextension machine
Circuit 3:drop set bicep curls (40lb dbell/ 30 lb/ 20lb )
Drop set lat raises (10lb/8lb dbells)
Circuit 4: 3 sets x 10-12 reps
Dbell chest press 30's, 35's
Dbell one arm bent over row 25's, 30's
Overhead tricep extension 15lb dbell
Toe touches on bench
Teasers on bench
--Did some tricep pushups and held a few forearm planks to finish
--done in 1 hr and 15 mins, 631 cals burned.
Foam rolled, stretched, outta there in less than 90 minutes!!
More than 5 hours later, and my arms still HURT..it's hard to bend them to type and text because they're pumped UP!!
PS: Know what kept me motivated to SQUEEZE out those extra reps today while using heavy weights? I've been reading TONS of fitness articles lately, and i read one recently that said something like this: "The last few reps, the ones when you feel like you can't do anymore ... that's when new muscles are built." Those aren't the exact words, but it was a quote by the man himself, ARNOLD Schwarzeneggar. The Arnold Sports festival (Major bodybuilding convention/contest) was this weekend, and I saw SO much coverage on twitter and facebook. I decided, I will be THERE next year...ON STAGE!! (Hopefully!) More about this to come... But I'm pretty sure I want to DO IT!
GOOD TUESDAY RIGHT?!
Thought so. Even after a bag of snap peas. :-O
XOXO
11:15 AM on a Sunday morning and here I am DONE with my workout and post-workout meal (my favorite chocolate banana bowl.. recipe at bottom)
I wanted to blast out a short but effective workout this morning, mainly cardio. 1 circuit after just to fire up my upper back and abs
Treadmill:
min 1: 5.5mph jog - 0%incline
min 2: 6.5mph run - 4% incline
min 3: 7.0mph run - 2% incline
min 4: 9.0 sprint - 0% incline
(repeat mins 1-4), run 6.0 until 1 mile
I hit 1 mile just before 9:30, and then RAN to hit 2 miles in just under 17:30 (0% incline)
From 18-20 minutes, I ran at a comfortable 6.5-7.0 at 0% incline to get ready for more intervals and inclines
min 20-27: steady 2% incline, ran between 6.5-8.0 (hit 3 miles in 26 minutes)
min 26-30: 0% incline, ran (7.5)
min 30-35: 10% incline, walk FAST 4.5
1 min cooldown: walk 0% incline 3.5
The incline work kicked my BUTT !!
Circuit blast: 15 reps x 2 sets
Seated rear delt row
Seated low row
Seated one arm row w/ torso twist
toe touches on bench w/12lb medicine ball
russian twists on bench w/ 12lb medicine ball
Total: 50 minutes
Calories burned: 486
Heart rat max: 186 (WOOO!!!)
After i worked out, I foam rolled, did 1 set of ab exercises, and stretched for 10 minutes. Definitely put me over 500 cals.
In and out of the gym in an HOUR! perfect for a Sunday
Post-workout chocolate banana bowl
--1 scoop vegan chocolate protein
--1 small banana
--1/4c oat bran
directions: heat the oat bran and banana together (2-3mins microwave)
take it out, mush the banana around with a spoon or fork to blend it with the oat bran
add 1scoop protein, and just enough water to mix the powder in. The oats will absorb more water as you continue to stir, so just add liquid conservatively until its the consistency you like. YUM.
purpose of each ingredient:
--banana: high glycemic index carb, aka fast-digesting, will get into your muscles faster to repair post-workout
--vegan chocolate protein: I'm entirely milk-intolerant, and can't use WHEY protein...which I would recommend to anyone who is NOT milk-intolerant because of its fast-releasing protein complex. Whey is a dairy-derived protein powder, and is FAST-ACTING (like high glycemic index/ simple carbohydrates,) and therefore is said to be more effective for post-workout, since there is a short window of time (no more than 45 minutes) to replenish your body to assist in muscle repair. The protein also counteracts a spike in blood sugar that could possibly be caused by a high glycemic index carb. However, this isn't likely with something like bananas because they do contain fiber, which stabilizes blood sugar.
--1/4c oat bran: a serving of oat bran is 1/3c, but since the primary post-workout carbs are coming from the banana, i cut the serving down, especially during this "diet" phase I'm in. Oat-bran is a complex carbohydrate, contains 7g protein and 6g fiber per serving. It is slow-digesting, and keeps you fuller, for a longer period of time, because it takes longer to digest. I put this in my post-workout meal to make it a complete meal that keeps me full for about 3 hours. The 2 hour time period after a workout is the best time to get carb intake because your metabolism is elevated, and is working to repair the muscle stress and tear from the workout.
The reason there's no PHOTO of my amazing banana chocolate creation, is because it just looks like weird brown oat bran. not exactly enticing.
Don't like bananas? Other good high GI post-workout fruits include: pineapple, mangoes, dried fruits like raisins. Find one you like!
Happy Sunday !
xoxo
While I make 100% healthy choices every single day, and typically eat a diet filled with lean proteins, tons of veggies, some berries and apples, and the best quality carbohydrates, I'm typically not focused on "losing weight," or "shedding fat." While these thoughts are the very back of my mind, consistently driving my lifestyle's progression, they are not a main priority. That's no way to live, especially when you're like me, and don't have much weight to lose, or fat to shed. My main focus is to FUEL my body and power through my daily workouts so that I can add muscle and get stronger and faster. This philosophy has clearly worked in my favor, since I've changed my physique drastically over the past 6 months.
Every once in a while, I feel like I want to make a rapid change, and really see some damn results. Yeah, I see the V-cut in my abs every day, see my veins pop out every time I get a lift in, but I sometimes reach a point where I want and EXPECT more from my work. So, that means I work harder. After some experimentation with NO GRAINS and some carb cycling, my body was craving more structure in the diet field. Being that I leave for LA (WEEE!!!!!!) in less than a week, I had the sudden kick of motivation in the ass to lean out a little bit. So, what did I do? Buy some magic thermogenic-inducing diet pills at Walgreens, DUH....
Um....No. I planned out 6 days of meals, and went to the grocery store. Here's what it's looking like.
Friday:
M1 (pre-bootcamp) 1/4c oat bran, 1/2 scoop protein, 3/4cup frozen berries
M2 (post-bootcamp) 1/4c oat bran, big scoop chocolate protein, medium banana
M3 : 1 egg, 6oz whites, 1 bag spinach, 1 bell pepper
M4: 1 can tuna, 2 baby cucumbers, 1 pepper, handful fresh greenbeans
M5: (pre-pole) chocolate protein, cocoa powder, 1/2tb chia seeds, 4oz unsweetened almond milk
M6: 5 oz egg whites, 1 bag cabbage, 2 baby beets
Saturday: (no workout. LOTS of walking around with mom and sister!)
M1 : 6oz eggwhites, 1/2 bag spinach, 1/4c oat bran, 1/2c frozen berries, 4oz unsweetened al.milk
M2: 1 scoop chocolate protein, 1/4c oat bran, 1tsp chia seeds, 1tsp cocoa powder
M3: 1can tuna, 2 baby beets, 1/3 small avocado
M4: 1 egg, 4oz whites, 1/2 bag spinach, 1tsp flax seeds, 6oz green beans
M5: 2 servings vanilla protein, 1/2tb chia seeds, 4 oz unsweetened almond milk
Sunday: (have an audition at 2pm...no eating for 3-4 hrs before, so less meals)
M1: (pre-workout) 1scoop protein, 1c frozen berries, 1/2tb chia seeds
M2: (post-workout) chocolate protein, 1/4c oat bran, banana
M3: 1 egg, 6oz whites, 1/2 bag spinach, 1tsp flax seeds, 6oz green beans
M4: tuna, 1/2 avocado, 1 bag spinach, beets
If hungry before bed, have an eggwhite
Monday:
M1: 1 scoop protein, 4oz unsweetened almond milk, 1/2tb chia, 1 cup frozen blueberries
M2: (pre-workout) 4oz eggwhites, 1/2 bag spinach, 1/4c oatbran, 4oz unsweet al. milk
M3: (post-workout) chocolate protein, banana, 1/2c Wheat bran
M4: 1/2can tuna, 1/2 avocado, 1/2 bag spinach, green beans, 2 beets
M5: 1/2 can tuna, 2 peppers, 1/2 avocado, 1/2 bag spinach
Tuesday:
M1: chocolate protein, 1tsp cocoa powder, 1tbsp chia seeds
M2: 1 egg, 4oz whites, 1bag spinach, 1 slice ezekiel
---snack during 3hr class: 2 sliced bell peppers
M3: 1/3c oat bran made with 4oz unsweetened almond milk
M4: chocolate protein, banana, 1c frozen berries
M5: 1can tuna, 2 baby cucumbers, 1/2avocado, 1/2bag spinach, 2bell peppers
Wednesday:
M1: 1scoop protein, unsweetened almond milk, 1tb chia seeds
M2: 6oz egg whites, 1bag spinach, 1 egg, 6oz green beans
M3:1 scoop protein, 1 apple, 1/4c oat bran
M4: 1/2 can tuna, 1/2 avocado, 3 baby beets, 1/2bag spinach
M5: repeat meal 4, add 1 slice ezekiel
Thursday:
M1: 1 c frozen berries, 1/4c oatbran, unsweetened almond milk
M2: chocolate protein, 1 banana
M3: protein, unsweetened almond milk, 1/2tb chia
M4: 6oz eggwhites, 1 bag spinach, 1 slice ezekiel, 1/3 avocado
M5: huge salad with spinach, mixed greens, bell peppers, beets, 1 can tuna, 1/3 avocado
Friday: TAKE OFF FOR LA!!!! Once I land at 10:30AM in LA, I'll figure out what I'm eating. No crazy meal planning, just going to enjoy my vacation and eat like I always do!
So far, I've eaten PERFECTLY...haven't messed anything up. I LOVE the structure, I feel better already, only at day 2 of the diet.. Gotta look hot while running up and down the peaks of Runyon Canyon!
A lot of people have been asking me for pretty specific diet advice lately, so here's a look at how I EAT. By the way, this is how I eat pretty much all the time, except throw in an apple or extra veggie snacking, or bigger grain portions, depending on how I feel. When I'm not focusing on cutting back, I NEVER consider portions of veggies, and I don't measure my berries...I just go by what I want. This plan is like Body by Liz on extreme mode. Really confining the carbs to right before and after my workouts. I would not recommend a plan like this for long-term..not enough carbs to keep burning fat after a certain number of tough workouts.. lowering the carbos and keeping the diet lean drops weight FAST for me at least, so that's why those meals look so rigid.. However, I love every single food and meal planned out here, so at least it's enjoyable, not a DIE(t)... lol. I'll be working out hard as usual SMTWT..I assume I'll get in a good workout in LA on Friday, but it's up in the air..
Let's see how I stick to my plan!
**FOCUSED**
Xoxo
So, thanks to a few friends' facebook status updates and fitness tweets, I learned that it is the official Eating Disorder awareness week. Eating disorders are a huge topic, and FAR more complex than many might think. People throw around the terms "ano", "bulimic," "binger", but often don't realize that Eating disorders go WAY beyond the realm of anorexia and bulimia. Hiding food from friends and family for fear of being judged because you're off your "diet"...that's dysfunctional too. Eating a calorie-counted meal, then going to the gym for the sole purpose of burning off more calories to put you into deficit...that's dysfunctional too. I could go on and on for days with examples. Be it starvation, vomiting, overeating, et cetera...disordered eating affects more people than we would like to think. If I were to observe all of my closest friends and family, I'm sure I'd detect disordered patterns of varying levels of severity among nearly all of them.
I used to struggle with dysfunctional eating habits. During my adolescent and early teen years,and throughout highschool, I always felt like I was the one who didn't weigh 95 pounds. Unlike most girls my age, I couldn't sit down with 3 pieces of pizza and some twizzlers confidently, knowing it wouldn't stick onto my frame. I developed a habit early on of eating well the whole day, getting salads or whole wheat turkey sandwiches in my school cafeteria, and then coming home to cabinets full of fun. I grew VERY close to my honey nut cheerios. One bowl with some skim milk. yum. But wait, there's more milk left, gotta add some more cereal. Oh, poured too much, now I need some more milk. You see where I'm going with this? I never ate my 3 or 4 bowls of cheerios in front of anyone. Always by myself. Looking back, I'm not sure if it was entirely intentional or not...but I'm sure it wasn't a coincidence that my cheerio parties were in solitude. Then, skippy joined the party. Give me a big old spoon, some skippy, and some whole grain bread. Ohhh would I just love every bit of that. And every bit of the next 3 pieces of whole grain bread with more peanut butter.
Foods like cheerios and peanut butter and edy's no sugar added ice cream became TRIGGER foods for me. One bite .. harmless. My problem was that I just couldn't stop. I would eat and eat until I nearly felt sick, and would hate myself (temporarily of course) afterward for not stopping with one portion. I would feel like I had ruined my entire day of healthy eating, and feel defeated. Might as well snack the night away, because I'd just start up again tomorrow. It became a vicious cycle, and I lived with those dysfunctional eating habits for YEARS, clearly in denial as to why I was not losing weight. While I was blessed with an hourglass shape, and weight that tends to spread itself out evenly, I was never really happy with the way I looked. especially in dance class, where i spent 4 hours every afternoon.
Fast forward to about a year ago when I realized that it's not about dieting. It's truly about living a healthy LIFESTYLE. "Cheating" with a protein bar was a first step. Now I don't go NEAR those just because I'd rather have an ounce of dark chocolate, or my amazing chocolate chia pudding. Every single day, I eat things that have direct benefits on the function of my cells and organs.
In order to combat borderline eating disorders and 1 week diet failure, you need to make a commitment to yourself, to your body. Think about how hard you work out, and how much your muscles do for you on a daily basis. Don't they deserve to be rewarded with anti-oxidants from blueberries, and protein from egg whites, and fueled with unprocessed carbs like oat bran? Why would you put your liver into shock by feeding it TOXINS like high fructose corn syrup in lots of candy AND many FIBER ONE products (WTF!) Stimulate the burning of your fat tissue by eating the correct , healthy fats...as opposed to tempting your body to produce more fat cells with the trans fats in products containing partially hydrogenated oils (beware: if a product contains less than 1 g of trans fats per serving, the label can still red 0g. check the ingredients for partially hydrogenated soybean/cottonseed/safflower oils, because TRACE amounts STICK TOGETHER...on your lumps!!)
It starts with you. YOU have the choice to choose chobani greek yogurt with fresh berries over yoplait with fake added sugars and artificial ingredients. YOU have the choice to buy 100% natural peanut butter instead of good-old skippy. YOU can drive PAST McDonald's and replace the burger and fries with home-made lean beef and a sweet potato. It's an entire lifestyle change that ANYONE has the ability to make. Start to CARE about how the FOOD you eat affects your body. DO NOT count calories and carbs if you're still going to eat pretzels, candy, and soda...it's useless. Maybe you're only eating 1500 calories a day. You need to understand that those calories should ALL be involved in making your body stronger and healthier on the inside and outside. 240 calories in a 20oz bottle of coke is going to raise your blood sugar, make you crave more sugar, and then all of it will just be converted to stubborn FAT tissue if not used immediately for energy. 240 calories from quinoa, veggies, and a lean protein like chicken, are going to STABILIZE your blood sugar, fuel your body, keep you full for longer, help your body to create new amino acid chains to comfort muscle tissue....see where i'm going here?
One more thing I have to say with regard to the topic of eating disorders, is that I DO NOT HAVE ONE. People who plan their meals, measure everything into tupperware simply exercise discipline and passion for keeping the body as clean and fit as possible. My nutrient timing is specifically organized so that my body burns off fat instead of muscle during my workouts, and is able to repair itself and replenish glycogen immediately after being torn apart during a workout. The way I (along with most people in the fitness industry) choose to eat and live is a choice. It's a choice, just like its YOUR choice to fill your fridge with veggies instead of jello and frozen pizzas.
Help someone you know with problematic eating habits.
Share this blog with them.
Means a lot to me .
Thank you for reading.
XOXO
