Friday Feels FUN-omenal
This Friday the 13th superstition is a little absurd, don't you think? To me, Fridays are like Pizza, even the "bad" ones are still pretty hard to beat. I am fortunate to have a job where I don't work weekends, so Fridays feel like a holiday-waiting-to-happen for me. And on this particular Friday, I feel rejuvinated, awake, and very content.
Today was my first day of rest for the week, so I got to sleep an additional 40 minutes today. Honestly? I woke up at my nomal time feeling so well-rested and energized, but I indulged in the extra sleep anyway. And when I woke the second time, I felt good. A lot of my muscle soreness is starting to dissapate from the week's efforts, and I plan on doing a lot of stretching this weekend, to help elongate the muscles while they are at rest. Already, after just 5 days on this plan, my clothes are fitting better. I am really getting excited about the prospect of a new, cute wardrobe in fall, when I return to college. That has always been a driving factor for me, as shallow as it might be.
I mentioned in a previous entry that I usually read through other blogs before I write mine for the day, and one of them that I follow is making me a little...frustrated/sad/irritated. Not sure exactly what word hits the mark. This dear, sweet woman is having all kinds of trouble losing weight, along with a bunch of other issues, and has switched over to trying Primal/Paleo. I am not discounting the plan, I'm sure there is some great element of truth to what the authors have found, and there are millions of supporters of this way of life/weight loss. But to watch this woman scrutinize over every little issue is excruciating to me. Is wheat really the devil, or is it that we don't have a counter-balance built into our diets? No dairy, legumes, grains? It sounds absurd to me. But then again, I don't have a lot of the health issues that drive a lot of folks to take on such a strict, restricted way of eating. I don't get joint pain from eating a plate of brown rice. On the contrary, it makes me feel energetic and gives me a buzz when I balance it out with lean protein. And since I am actively burning fuel, my body readily uses those carbs to replenish me of what I have lost. In fact, other than processed foods/sugars I don't really see one individual food group or food as evil. It all comes down to balance. My husband, whom I consider a genius on the subject, was agreeing with me as I ranted about it this morning. Yes, inflammation is very bad for your body, but most of us have inflammation because we don't balance the easy-to-get omega 6 in our diet with the proper amount of omega 3's. Omega 3's are the anti-inflammatory that are ESSENTIAL for us to get, that's why they're called ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS. And, as I have found out by experience, if there isn't a balance in diet AND training, it's going to be an uphill battle. A tiny bit of leisurely activity doesn't make things happen too quickly, in fact most of the last year I spent yo-yoing up and down the 160's because weight training had all but disappeared from my life, and my cardio activity was spotty at best. And combined with my wild weekend eating patterns, it's no wonder I ended up back at 170. But what this week has really shown me is how good I feel when I eat the right things. Not just mentally, but physically. I know it sounds so cliche! I used to expect some sort of joy out of eating junk food, and it rarely ever rose to my expectations. Yes, junk food tastes good, I am still human, but it never NEVER gives me that buzz like I get when I'm eating clean. And worse yet, it usually leaves me bloated, uncomfortable, and a little bummed-out.
My husband, who is a model, has been getting ready for an important interview with two great talent agencies this weekend/week and an ad shoot for the agency he's already with, and has felt compelled to trim down his already fantastic physique. He has adjusted his diet slightly (he already eats really clean) and added more cardio to the mix. He lost 7 pounds in less than 2 weeks, but this morning he was complaining that he hasn't had a cheat meal in almost 2 weeks. While I knew it must be hard, I told him that I wasn't planning on having one in the four weeks it takes to complete this phase of my program. He was a little suprised at that, but I told him, honestly, it doesn't bother me. I can have chicken fajitas and just eat the chicken and veggies, we can still enjoy a nice meal together without eating junk. For me, it is very much mind-over-matter. I want to look good and be proud of my accomplishment. I want to wear cute clothes to school in fall, I want to have more energy and move easier. I want to be happy. When I eat the way I know I'm supposed to, everything seems to fall into place, and I don't have to obsess over food. It isn't I should have this or shouldn't have that, it is more like, this is what I'm having for lunch, this is what's for dinner, case closed. Less decisions at the time of hunger leads to greater success for me. And I don't have to obsess over this grain or that macronutrient, because I know if I eat clean and put the workout time in, I cannot fail.
I hope you feel as fantastic as I do this fine Friday! Anyone else doing the Live Fit Trainer? I'd love to hear how it's going!
Today was my first day of rest for the week, so I got to sleep an additional 40 minutes today. Honestly? I woke up at my nomal time feeling so well-rested and energized, but I indulged in the extra sleep anyway. And when I woke the second time, I felt good. A lot of my muscle soreness is starting to dissapate from the week's efforts, and I plan on doing a lot of stretching this weekend, to help elongate the muscles while they are at rest. Already, after just 5 days on this plan, my clothes are fitting better. I am really getting excited about the prospect of a new, cute wardrobe in fall, when I return to college. That has always been a driving factor for me, as shallow as it might be.
I mentioned in a previous entry that I usually read through other blogs before I write mine for the day, and one of them that I follow is making me a little...frustrated/sad/irritated. Not sure exactly what word hits the mark. This dear, sweet woman is having all kinds of trouble losing weight, along with a bunch of other issues, and has switched over to trying Primal/Paleo. I am not discounting the plan, I'm sure there is some great element of truth to what the authors have found, and there are millions of supporters of this way of life/weight loss. But to watch this woman scrutinize over every little issue is excruciating to me. Is wheat really the devil, or is it that we don't have a counter-balance built into our diets? No dairy, legumes, grains? It sounds absurd to me. But then again, I don't have a lot of the health issues that drive a lot of folks to take on such a strict, restricted way of eating. I don't get joint pain from eating a plate of brown rice. On the contrary, it makes me feel energetic and gives me a buzz when I balance it out with lean protein. And since I am actively burning fuel, my body readily uses those carbs to replenish me of what I have lost. In fact, other than processed foods/sugars I don't really see one individual food group or food as evil. It all comes down to balance. My husband, whom I consider a genius on the subject, was agreeing with me as I ranted about it this morning. Yes, inflammation is very bad for your body, but most of us have inflammation because we don't balance the easy-to-get omega 6 in our diet with the proper amount of omega 3's. Omega 3's are the anti-inflammatory that are ESSENTIAL for us to get, that's why they're called ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS. And, as I have found out by experience, if there isn't a balance in diet AND training, it's going to be an uphill battle. A tiny bit of leisurely activity doesn't make things happen too quickly, in fact most of the last year I spent yo-yoing up and down the 160's because weight training had all but disappeared from my life, and my cardio activity was spotty at best. And combined with my wild weekend eating patterns, it's no wonder I ended up back at 170. But what this week has really shown me is how good I feel when I eat the right things. Not just mentally, but physically. I know it sounds so cliche! I used to expect some sort of joy out of eating junk food, and it rarely ever rose to my expectations. Yes, junk food tastes good, I am still human, but it never NEVER gives me that buzz like I get when I'm eating clean. And worse yet, it usually leaves me bloated, uncomfortable, and a little bummed-out.
My husband, who is a model, has been getting ready for an important interview with two great talent agencies this weekend/week and an ad shoot for the agency he's already with, and has felt compelled to trim down his already fantastic physique. He has adjusted his diet slightly (he already eats really clean) and added more cardio to the mix. He lost 7 pounds in less than 2 weeks, but this morning he was complaining that he hasn't had a cheat meal in almost 2 weeks. While I knew it must be hard, I told him that I wasn't planning on having one in the four weeks it takes to complete this phase of my program. He was a little suprised at that, but I told him, honestly, it doesn't bother me. I can have chicken fajitas and just eat the chicken and veggies, we can still enjoy a nice meal together without eating junk. For me, it is very much mind-over-matter. I want to look good and be proud of my accomplishment. I want to wear cute clothes to school in fall, I want to have more energy and move easier. I want to be happy. When I eat the way I know I'm supposed to, everything seems to fall into place, and I don't have to obsess over food. It isn't I should have this or shouldn't have that, it is more like, this is what I'm having for lunch, this is what's for dinner, case closed. Less decisions at the time of hunger leads to greater success for me. And I don't have to obsess over this grain or that macronutrient, because I know if I eat clean and put the workout time in, I cannot fail.
I hope you feel as fantastic as I do this fine Friday! Anyone else doing the Live Fit Trainer? I'd love to hear how it's going!
We're gonna need updated photos soon. :-)
ReplyDeleteFeels good, doesn't it? I go to yoga three times a week when the weather (there's a nine-block walk that can get iffy) lets me. Today, for example, is supposed to get up to 97 with a head index of 114 or so. Do I walk to yoga in that?!
Pearl
p.s. THank you so much for the kind comment the other day. I'm not sponsored or anything like that, but if you have suggestions/know people, I'm all ears! :-)
Whew! That's too hot to be walking! And you're welcome, it's all true!
DeleteI found a short article at sheknows.com/parenting/articles/955-247/5-ways-to-make-money-online there are also tools on Blogger. Also, I see you follow Simple Dude, he is sponsored, you might want to connect with him and ask a few questions. I have heard of Social Spark and One2one, which are sites that match you up to a prospective advertisers. I haven't tried any of them, but I had Google ads for a while before they kicked me off for "suspicious click activity". (My bestie was only trying to help):) Hope it helps!