Showing posts with label eats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label eats. Show all posts

Friday, September 2, 2016

Shred Day 19: I'm Getting Stronger

Today was a good day.

It started with a nice breakfast buffet with mrC at the hotel and then spending some time together before he went to work. When he left I headed to the fitness center to do my strength training workout.

My workout ---> 10 minutes warm-up walking on the treadmill, upper body weight exercises: back, biceps, triceps, shoulders, and chest, some planks, lower body exercises: leg extensions and hamstring curls, then a 10 minute cool down walk on the treadmill.

I've been pushing myself to use heavier weights and it is paying off. I'm feeling stronger and liking what I see when I flex my muscles.


 I decided to do some yoga to stretch out my muscles. First of all, yoga just feels amazing and my muscles are ALWAYS happier after. Second, this happened when I decided to practice headstands...


I have been trying for at least 6 months to do that! I am definitely getting stronger.

Today was feast day, so I was all about food, food, food.

Breakfast:


Lunch:


Dinner: I ate every last piece of seafood, but only about 1/3 of the pasta.


Snacks: the chocolate Shakeology was my favorite snack




How do you measure your strength?

Can you do a headstand?






Sunday, August 21, 2016

Shred Day 7: Interval Running and Lessons from a Marathon

You know it's a good day when...

Like my shoes

My workout for today called for run intervals ladder style: 1 minute run, 1 minute walk, 2 minute run, 2 minute walk...up to 6 minutes. Since my knee is still questionable, I kept it at a simple 20:30 run:walk interval.

I did a 5 minute walking warm-up. At 7:30 in the morning in Florida it was only 73 degrees, but sunny and humid. Even though I wasn't going very far, I still took water in my Simple Hydration bottle. ---> ask me how you can get a discount!


My route took me to the trail. The last time I was here I ran the whole 5K loop with mrC, but today I just ran a short loop in and out. I loved running on the soft surface.


When I got back to the house, I had run 26 intervals for a total of 2 miles! The last time I ran 2 miles was back in February and I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to run anymore. I was so happy with my run today, all I could do is smile. It's nothing like I used to do, but I told mrC that I would be thrilled if my knee let me run a 5K once in a while.


After showering, I watched the Olympic Men's Marathon and wow! It was a great day for the USA. Galen Rupp earned a Bronze Medal, Jarod Ward finished in 6th place, and Meb Keflezighi pushed through stomach issues to cross the line 33rd. 

Lesson 1: you don't have to be the most experienced runner to do well. Rupp ran only his second marathon today.


Lesson 2: If you want to stay in it, you have to dig deep. Jarod Ward dropped off the lead pack and with the gap widening he tapped into his reserve tank and started picking off runners to fight his way back.


Lesson 3: If you fall, get back up and do it with class ;) I love how Meb turned his fall at the finish into a flourish of good humor.


Regular calorie eats from today:

Breakfast: scrambled eggs with ham, fruit, GF toast, and coffee


Lunch: turkey breast, grapes, diet dew (but I only ate the grapes!)
Immediately after taking this photo, my dad told me we were going out for Mexican (yay!!) and then I snuck a handful of rice snacks.



Dinner: chicken quesadilla, chips and queso, water





What got you smiling today?
Did you watch the marathon?





Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Carb Cycling and Intermittent Fasting Results

Have you read about/seen an ad for a diet or training program and thought it's too good to be true?

When I first saw personal trainer Amanda Tress posting about her Carb Cycling and Intermittent Fasting Program that's what I thought. I also thought she looked AMAZING and was curious about her plan and how I could get back to a healthy weight.

But I wasn't brave enough to take the plunge and "buy" her program. So I sat on the sidelines and scrolled enviously through my Instagram feed reading posts from people doing the program and loving the results. 

Then my friend Nancy, Living the Dream, shared her amazing results on her blog. That got me thinking. I know Nancy! If Nancy can do it, I can do it! And just like that, I signed up.



For the last six weeks I've been following a food cycling program and completing workouts that match the way I'm eating. I was freaked out at first because the program started when we were still in the US visiting, then we traveled back to China as well as to Bali. There was fasting!! Many of my go-to foods were not appropriate every day of the cycle, so I had A LOT of learning to do.

And I did. 

So how did I do?  


I lost 4 pounds and 13.5 inches overall!

-1.5 from my bust
-1 from my hips
-3.5 from my waist!!!
-3 from thighs
-3 from calves
-1.5 from arms

I'm so excited by my results that I have signed up to do round 2 starting in two weeks! mrC is pretty excited too (remember he followed this program with me) because he lost 9 pounds and 9.5 inches. His biceps got bigger though! 

To celebrate our accomplishments and enjoy the sun that mrC brought back to Shenzhen, we went to the pool.


For the next two weeks, I will be enjoying lower intensity workouts and a IIFYM kind of diet.

Today I did some morning yoga. It was all about getting twisty. 


My eats from the day. We fasted until lunchtime and then enjoyed some treats! It all fit my macros.



Would you rather lose weight or inches?
What reward do you give yourself for hard work?











Monday, June 6, 2016

I'm Over the Rainy Weather and Final Feast Day

The weather has been literally raining on my fun parade.


Instead of riding my bike in the rain to the fitness center, I did my final full body workout here in the apartment. It's nice that I can do it at home, but I'm starting to enjoy my gym time.

The full body workout had two circuits: arms and legs. I still have to modify both. I can't yet do 10 sets of 10 push-ups. I can do 5 and then I go to failure each time. I modify some of the leg exercises so I don't aggravate my knee. I also add a couple of my PT moves at the end. 


I even did my cool down inside (just like it said on the first picture). I just walked around the apartment for 10 minutes. I posted a video on snapchat (I'm on there now). You can find me @runningescapade


After my workouts, I spray my gear with an eco-friendly, gluten free sports spray. It freshens and deodorizes my gear, like my Saucony Jazz, so that they smell like jasmine instead of a gym. It's very nice.


What I ate on my final feast day

Breakfast: Big. Protein pancakes, one apple, and 2 eggs with half a slice of ham.


Snacks (no lunch): I was craving some Honey Nut Cheerios (yes I use a measuring cup for my serving) and I splurged on some cheese and crackers. I also had another apple.



Dinner: leftover bbq chicken, green beans, and some rice.


Macros: Even though it feels like I ate a ton today, I still had room for more calories to meet the feast day goal of 50% more and I was a little low on the net carb goal of 200g. 


I did not like ending with a feast day. Eating all that food when I didn't fast the day before is making me feel bloated.

Tomorrow I will take my measurements for the official end of carb cycling update. Up until today I've been feeling really good about my body, feeling leaner, and toned. Today is just an off day or nerves about the results.

Stay tuned!









Friday, June 3, 2016

Lower Body Exercises, a Survey, and Eats

I really liked the video workout combination I did on my last regular calorie day, so I did a repeat today. My hips and thighs still need some toning up and I like the exercises in the videos for the lower body.

Most of the exercises are combo moves. 

Side lunge with double jump in the middle. Switch to other side.


Skater jumps with reverse lunges.


The hardest exercise is a combo of warrior 3 and reverse tricep curl. It's really hard to keep my balance while trying to stay parallel to the floor.


I added on the same exercises I learned during PT again because they are good lower body exercises. I really felt these afterwards the last time I did them. I do three sets of lateral band walks. 10 steps one way, 10 steps back. 3x. Then hamstring curls on the balance ball (no picture).


I've been seeing a lot of surveys on social media lately and this one is my favorite because I love emojis!

Can you do it? Only emojis!

 Current mood: 😍
 Relationship status: 👫
 Kids: 👩🏼👱🏻👩🏼
 Pets: 🐶
 Favorite color: 💙
 Favorite food: 🍕🍉🍷
 Favorite Animal: 🐕🐈
 Favorite season: 👙☀️⛱🕶
 Favorite holiday: 🎄
 Favorite sport: ⚽️🏈🏃🏻
 Most Used emoji(s): 😘❤️😉
 Occupation: 🏡🍎📚

What I ate for regular calorie day

Breakfast: not as fun when mrC isn't here to join me.


Lunch: plus some sweet potatoe chips


Dinner: That was a bowl of chicken noodle soup...plus some Baked Lays potato chips



Macros: I did pretty well today, even with all the chip eating and the mini Oreos I snacked on. That's the thing about IIFYM (if it fits your macros) diets...you don't HAVE TO give up your favorite foods. You just have to eat in moderation.


Do you like to repeat the same workouts?
What was the last survey you did?



Thursday, May 26, 2016

Feast Day: New Ab Exercise and Eating All the Fruit!

Today I rode my bike to the fitness center prepared to do the killer full body feast day workout. It was shorter than the previous feast days, but it still challenged me. Today I was able to do ALL of the push-ups. Upper body strength is my weak area.


Day 25 of the plank challenge and I'm getting better at challenging myself. Really focusing on keeping my body still makes the planks harder and I'm feeling the work. Which is the point right? 


Ab vacuum exercises. I first heard of this when I attended the Shenzhen Health and Wellness Fair 
last year and took part in a Body Flex session. The instructor mentioned this type of breathing being good for weightloss and I thought she was crazy. Now I'm thinking, why not? It's only 1 minute of my day.

Why are these abdominal vacuum exercises so hard for me tonight?!?! Maybe it's because I'm 2200 calories and a gallon of water deep for the day? Or maybe I just need to do them more often!! 😩 What are vacuum exercises? When done properly they can help SCULPT and SHRINK the size of your waistline in just weeks. How? By engaging some of the most neglected muscles in the body: the transversus abdominus and the lumbar motifidus. These are the muscles BENEATH the rectus abdominus and the obliques (the muscles we tend to work!), and I will venture to say they are THE most important group of ab muscles to work! The how-to is actually simple and can be done nearly anywhere. Simply inhale deeply, and exhale COMPLETELY. When all air is deflated from your lungs, draw your belly in as far as possible. Try thinking about pulling your belly button in towards your spine. Then HOLD. I will vacuum in front of the mirror with @realchrispowell, in the car while stuck in traffic, in bed at night, standing at the counter paying bills...you name it, I've vacuumed doing it. Try 3 sets of 20 seconds to start with, and build up to set of 40 and even 60 seconds. Your waistline will thank you!! #MyKindOfVacuuming #CouplesThatVacuumTogether #AbdominalMuscles #Abs #swolemates
A photo posted by Heidi Powell (@realheidipowell) on

What I ate: it was all about the fruit today!

Breakfast
We totally took advantage of the buffet at the Hilton again. No cooking, no clean up, the view, the fruit.


Snack
I love loading up on carbs with sweet potato chips!


Lunch:
Left overs and more fruit. 


Dinner:
Went out with friends to a new place in Sea World, Baia Burger. It was so good and I love sweet potato fries.


Dessert
Chocolate almond protein shake. Recipe --> 1 scoop chocolate protein, 1 tbsp almond butter, 1/2 cup almond milk, and ice. Oh, wow. This hit the spot.


Macros: I splurged a little today on gluten and dairy. It is a lifestyle choice for me, so when a GF/DF option is not available I'm not always going to pass on the food. I did a pretty good job consuming the carbs, but feel short of the goal mark by about 40g along with fewer calories than I'd like for feast day.  


Ever tried abdominal vacuum exercise?
Favorite fruits?






Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Workout Wednesday: Mixing Things Up & Low Carb Day

It is good to mix things up every once in awhile.

It gives you a new perspective 
Prevents boredom
Keeps you on your toes

These were all of things I was trying to convince myself as we headed to the fitness center for low carb day #2 workout: sprints again...but in a different form from yesterday. Coach wanted us to mix it up. Why? It's good to change up your fitness routine for several reasons:

1) to continue to challenge your body
2) improve strength and conditioning
3) to keep exercises effective

Since I always do my sprints on the elliptical and I'm not running, that left me with the bike. Then I had to decide which bike: recumbent or upright? I chose the upright because it imitates an outdoor bike and I thought would provide a harder workout.


I definitely got a good cardio workout doing 20 sets of 20:20 sprints, but my legs did not "feel the burn" the same way they do on the elliptical. It was my first time, so I probably need to play around with the incline choices more (I ended up on level 8) and figure out the whole standing up thing.

Side note: after doing some reading for this blog post, it seems as if both types of bikes can produce a good caloric burn (although some argue that you work harder on the upright so you burn more calories than the same workout on the recumbent), but the recumbent provides more protection for the lower back during the workout. Both bikes require quads, hamstrings, and glutes to do the work.

I posted a video to my Instagram, but here are some of the faces I make when doing bike sprints. Pretty funny!


After a 30 minute cool down walk on the treadmill, it was plank time. For my plank challenge I really tried to keep my body stationary while doing the full plank with arm reach. It's a lot harder than when you let yourself rock back and forth.


Since we were already there, we hit the pool again for a little post workout chill time.


We thought we'd mix things up at dinner a little too and ate out on our balcony. It was still near 90 degrees, but in the shade and with the breeze, it was very nice.



What I ate on low card day (repeat)

Brunch: scrambled eggs with ham, pb&j rice cakes and gf sausage patty 


Snack: celery and humus 


Dinner: crockpot chicken, greens beans, salad


I still crave something cold after dinner on low carb days (usually I would have fruit or yogurt), so I've been using pb&j rice cakes as a substitute. It's not the same. At all.

Macros: another good low carb day, but I'm ready to eat all the fruit!


How do you mix things up lately?
Which bike do you prefer?
What is your favorite dessert?













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