and the fun part......

I don't have a hard time getting to the gym....well I work there....but I love it!  Love the feeling of pushing my body to a limit and feeling & seeing results.  I've starting lifting weights separately from BodyPump.  Free weights, with "the BIG BOYS" as I say.  I'm still using lighter weight with 10-15 reps per exercise (sets of 4).  My friend has been helping me and I'm learning a lot.  Here are some pictures we took on "back day"   I see more definition than every before.  My goals now are to lower my bodyfat from 21% to 18% and to lean out.  I know I am getting stronger after only 3 weeks.
Hoping as I work harder on a clean diet, the hard work Im putting in at the gym will be accelerated.

Monday....how I Love thee

MONDAY is groundhog day for me.....DO OVER every....single....week!  I love it though because its a fresh start, I feel motivated, charged, ready to go and get it right this time.
My focus this week is FOOD.  Im going to make sure I track really good and watch what and how I eat, making sure to fuel before the gym and recover after my workouts, with some help from my protein shakes.  Today for the first time I made egg whites.  For some reason they just look so "snotty" without the yellow mixed in so I took a tip from my friend to mix 3 egg whites with 1 egg yolk.  They were good.  I added a little goat cheese and avocado with a side of yummy ripe calamari tomatoes and I'm full.

The NO EXCUSE MOMS challenge is going good.  It is not easy on top of my regular workouts but Ive been consistent with the challenge each day except for yesterday. I was sooooo tired, I couldn't bring myself to do it so today (9th & 10th) I've got 60 crunches, 245 jacks and 45 squats. My legs definitely feel tighter *and sore* I like how the jumping jacks make me feel, strong and tight.  Squats are the best exercise for the booty so I'll do what is required and hope to see a physical difference at the end of the month. 

Eating out *insert eeeeek face*

I've pretty much started taking pictures of everything I eat.....the obsession is real! 
Its one thing to eat healthy in my home, with food I buy and plan on eating....a whole other thing when I'm eating out!  I feel like I deserve to eat whatever I want BUT I don't feel good when I go all nutso and order almost everything on the menu. 
Smart eating is happy eating.....choose wisely my friends.

Met up with a friend of mine for breakfast, keeping in mind I was trying to make healthy choices, I ordered the white scrambled eggs with artichoke and spinach, Feta cheese crumbled on top which is quickly become my favorite kind.    WAS AHMAZING......I did have the potatoes but I swear they were baked (at least I think they were....lol).

Then This.....mmmhmmmm......buffet with the family!  STOP THE MADNESS.....

Beautiful, colorful salad....super yummy!  Good choice AND I even went for Italian dressing, which is probably a first for me.

They had roasted squash and eggplant (also new fav) beside a yummy penne pasta.  I left out the sausage and just had a small portion of the pasta.  Super tasty, super yummy and I'm feelin good....

And....on to desert....well....first I stopped at the Mexican section and grabbed a "SOPES?"  Never had one of these before.  It felt like a splurge BUT the bottom was corn and with beans, chicken and a wee bit o' cheese, I felt deserving of the splurge due to me "killing" my legs with weights 4 hours earlier! 
I do have to admit that I had a scoop of NO SUGAR ADDED Carmel Gelato (and omitted taking a picture) HA..... 
Overall.....for me.....success at the buffet.  It's normally super hard for me to control my portions let alone my appetite.  Note to self.....limit the number of times to come to a buffet per month!

"Go To" snack

This has become one of my favorite GO TO snacks while trying to eat clean.  I usually don't use this yogurt  - I like the Danon Light N Fit better but today this was all I had.  I dump yogurt into a bowl, toss in a handful of granola and a handful of dried cranberries.  Yum Yum Yum.....
I calculate approx. 200 calories for the whole thing

confessions of an OCD fitness instructor with a food addiction.....

Tonight I'm feeling two things.....like a major failure & highly motivated to be better. 
It's been about a week since I was on point with my challenge.  We had an amazing event here in Vegas and now hold the record for the largest Zumbathon in the USA.  It was a complete success and we had so much fun.  Unfortunately since then my "healthy eating"/ challenge has gone out the door.  I've mulled it over in my mind a million times, beating myself up for having white rice and Naan bread, which seems totally ridiculous BUT since then I've thrown all sense out the window when it comes to eating clean and healthy.
So enough about the problem, on to the solution......thankful for a new week tomorrow.  I have a plan to prep my food for the week and excited about working out.  I've been thinking about running and swimming but not sure where to squeeze those in with teaching pump & Zumba. 

Cinco de Abs

Day 5 and Im obsessed with getting some great looking abs.  After Zumba today I tried some new exercises for abs and I LOVE THEM.....If you don't already know, I tend to have an addictive personality and I can feel myself being sucked into the vortex of ab obsession!  haha....not really but I love the feeling when you've worked hard and feel tighter.  I must say thought that the picture above is definitely true.  You can do crunches and sit-ups all day long but if you eat junk food and over eat carbs, you will never see those abs you've worked so hard for. 
Which leads me to my next picture....stay away from these....my lovely daughter Baili likes to bake trays of cookies at random and just leave them sitting in the kitchen tempting me.  I'm still in the withdrawal stage so I begin to salivate even looking at this picture let alone smelling the chocolate chips melting. 

I'm feeling strong though.  I accidently gave in to a half eaten bag of sour cream and onion chips sitting on my couch.  I didn't eat the whole thing, I just put two chips in my mouth and then was like UMM 911 what the heck am I doing.....I totally spit it into the trash can and didn't swallow it.  That was a huge accomplishment for me. 
Here's what we had for dinner.  Salmon, which I never liked but have found a taste for it, spicy baked sweet potato fries (gluten free for our son that has Celiacs Disease) and beautiful asparagus. 
I'm finding my taste and tolerance is changing and Im enjoying eating good things. 
Working hard to get these abs made in my kitchen.

Super Bowl Sunday

We're not a big football family but despite the game being a total blowout....Broncos were slaughtered, we did have some goodies to eat.  I was prepared with healthy goodies for me.  These eggs were amazing.  I haven't had deviled eggs in years.  I mixed the egg yellow with some avocado, little mayo, mustard and paprika....sprinkled bacon bits on top. 
Baili made jello so I had some of that along with frozen fruit with yogurt poured on top!  I was stuffed from overeating the eggs but I felt satisfied and like I didn't miss out on super bowl treats.
Day 2...touchdown!

Back in the Saddle

Im back to bloging.....*applause*! 
I started a new "NO JUNK" challenge and decided a good way to stay accountable and on track would be to post how its going, on this blog.  I completed 19 days of the 21 day challenge over Thanksgiving, of all times of the year to start a good eating challenge, but I did really well until I fell victim to a Whopper burger from Burger King, which nearly killed me.  I learned that your body definitely adjusts to eating well and when you put back in the bad stuff, there WILL be a reaction! 

 

So this is the challenge!  It's simple and straight to the point!   No junk....... easier said than done but I know its doable.  I started this for the second time today.  I'm excited but mostly motivated because Im so FED UP of going to bed each nigh feeling sick (literally physically sick) from the stuff I've eaten and waking up each morning trying to recommit.   I find when I abstain from sweets, I just turn to carbs.....um BREAD....and I binge on that.
They say when you reach a breaking point, its then you're ready for a change. 
So on we go......wish me luck!