"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

Monday Already?

Last week was so super busy it flew by.  I taught at Namaste with these fun women

I ate lots of good, healthy food....at least I tried.  Gluten free three cheese Ziti and a bomb salad of nuts, cranberries, tomatoes, feta cheese

Went out with the quad squad (my girls from the gym who have become some of my favorite friends) Saw the Rat Pack show on Fremont Street and danced in an Irish Pub.

And.....wait for it.....I took my first Locker room selfie!  AWKWARD moment of the week....lol

Finished the week out with a sweaty zumba class at TRUFUSION Yoga studio 

As well as a killer leg workout Saturday afternoon.  Then on to a "fiesta cumpleanos" with my chicas Latinas to celebrate Tomys birthday.  Six tacos later .....we took photos 

And all of a sudden it was Monday again!  

What a busy week.  All this on top of my regular workout schedule and taking care of my family.  I need a 48 hr day please.....

Eating is so tough on the weekend.  I feel like I loose control BUT I have a plan going into next weekend thanks to my NO EXCUSE MOMS group....I'm gonna plan my meals and snacks and try a preemptive attack on the weekend. So tired of doing well during the week and loosing my progress on the weekend.  So here's to a new week and the experiences that will come with it.

Busy Weekend

Weekends are always super busy and when it comes to eating, weekends are definitely the hardest for me.  This weekend I was asked to present at a womens conference about Physical Health & Wellness.  Most of the information I shared was from my experience and what Ive learned on my own journey.   It's a constant battle to stay focused and motivated.  I appreciate the support of friends who have similar goals and motivate me. 
I've been lifting weights in addition to my regular workout schedule and feel & like the results in just a week.  Last week I felt really successful.  Eating was good and workouts were productive.  Holding on to that momentum will be good going into this 2nd week of my NO JUNK CHALLENGE!

After some leg lifting at the gym, had a Saturday date night with the hubs!  I was really craving lettuce wraps from PFChangs but the wait was so long we hit up Chilis instead.  I haven't eaten there for years but knew I wanted healthy.  Even watching my food for the weekend I was close on calories.  I don't burn near as many calories on weekends as I do weekdays.
The MANGO CHILI TALAPIA looked amazing so I gave it a chance.  Loved the spiciness of the salsa and sauce on top and the fish was ok but still a bit "fishy" for me.  Broccoli and Rice Pilaf was delicious!  Total 550 calories = not too bad.  I added a house salad for another 150 calories.....yum!
It feels good to be in some control.  I'm highly motivated and hoping that stays with me while I adjust to healthier eating.  Today (Sunday) has been a little tougher.  Ive been hungry all day long, even though Im snacking.   AND Im craving a sweet ALL DAY LONG!  I even brought Ghirardelli chocolates to my choir members today and abstained.  The closest I came was yogurt with granola and cranberries, which was a good choice.  Looking forward to the coming week with a plan to succeed.

Keep calm and eat good

I'm becoming passionate about eating well.  Today I made an amazing salad. 
Spinach*Chicken*Feta Cheese (basil & tomatoe)*Purple Onion*Cranberries & Almonds*Strawberries*Light vinaigrette dressing.  It was filling and only about 400 calories for the entire thing.

The Ingredients

TA DA! 

The bottom of the salad is always the best part.  Where all the yumminess hangs out
 

So then as if my salad wasn't enough brilliance for one day, I got totally domesticated and made homemade green chili enchiladas for the fam bam tonight.  The two on the end are mine (wheat tortillas).  Good balance of protein & carbs.  Workout hard today so must. eat. good! 
I'm lovin where this week has taken me.  I'm feeling healthy, strong & lost 7lbs.  Going into the weekend ready to take the challenge.  Weekends are usually where I fall hard off the wagon so I'm holding tight to those reins and staying in control....at least that's the plan! 

Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas

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. 

Reset

So the new year has come and gone and as always, I have failed miserably on most of my 2013 resolutions. It seems like the pressure to succeed is enough to fail with those start of the year resolutions. I can't tell you how many times I've hit the reset button. It's usually on a Monday (start of the week that I love) or the start of a month. Well guess what? Tomorrow is Monday and the start of the the month of APRIL and BY GOSH I am gonna slay this resolution and start over....again!
Dont judge, you know you've been there. The great thing is, in the words of a famous little red-head, "the sun will come out tomorrow" yep there is always a do over when it comes to being healthy. It's never to late to reset. Now that spring break is over and my 10 hour drive to Idaho is done, all the junk food is GONE to my thighs and I am "burgered" out - I am resetting! Ok I tell a lie....I am resetting on Monday! Today is EASTER and I know I am going to eat chocolate - I will own the extra calories and the jiggle in the middle BUT I will hit it hard come Monday morning.

The plan....well I went shopping yesterday and here is what my fridge looks like.

Back to the basics....GREEN is my friend. A little fruit goes a long way, don't over do it Kim!
More Protein!!!! I've been using an app called "Lose It" It's good. I write down everything I eat and the calorie content. It keeps me focused during the day (not during spring break :)) but I notice that my carb content is always high, which makes me think I need to bump up the proteins and watch the fat/carb content in my diet! It gives a visual with a pie chart of how I'm doing. PLUS it's free!

Now to the exercise....this is not a problem for me because I love it!  Zumba makes it easy - burn 800+ calories per class.  Pump at least twice a week.  Gonna throw in 8strikes on Tuesday and maybe if I get totally wild hit P.I.T. on Friday and see if I can get in the room without a black eye (that's another story).  I really want to start running and swimming again.  It's been 3 years since I did the RAGE triathalon at Lake Mead.  I learned when I was training that I actually can run and I like it.  I think it works parts of your body you can't hit with classes & weights.  Plus this junk in the trunk needs to bobble its way off my bootay! Swimming would be great but probably not gonna happen so I'm not going to plan on it.

I'm motivated and positive - and that's where I want to stay.  I know it wont be easy changing the habits of recent weeks (ahem... of my life....) but I KNOW FOR SURE it will be worth it.  My goal is May.  That gives me two months to be disciplined and hopefully see good (realistic) results. Wish me luck....

In the mood

Finally I feel somewhat motivated to blog again.  Life is just like that, don't ya think?  For me it is anyway, I get on these "up hills" of doing things and then plummet to the valley of nothing-ness.....
I found myself in the diet pill section of Sam's Club, desperate for a quick fix after three weeks of gorging myself in Florida (vacation - why?) and a road trip to Yellowstone that was filled with snacks, rich food, cakes, chips and soda, which I don't even normally drink.  All reason had gone out the door and I was spiraling into the valley of nothing-ness aforementioned.  Don't judge me......I am human and have a hard time finding balance when it comes to food.
In that oh so familiar moment, I yet again talked myself out of buying some "cheap shot" that doesn't work and talked myself into getting back on the wagon that I'd fallen of over summer vacation.  Whooohoooo...bottom is hit, motivation sets in, vegetables are bought, and a workout schedule for the upcoming week planned.
All of that went wonderfully until the weekend.  Weekends are the worst for me but I'm not going to whine and moan about that.  I am going to tell you what worked.
PREPARE
A serious key for me!  If I don't have good food & snacks to turn to, I will eat anything in sight, including nasty tasting candy or those cheap Walmart knock off snacks.  I find when I load my fridge up with vegetables (corn doesn't really count) and fruit (but take it easy on the fruit), I am actually more likely to eat them.  Another tip I learned during Weight Watchers is to wash, divide, measure...whatever you have to do to your fruits & veggies and put them in baggies.  Then they're ready to go.  My new favorite is slicing up green, red, yellow peppers and mixing them with snap peas.  I've also thrown tons of red cabbage into stir fry's and its super yummy!
SCHEDULE
If you didn't know already, I LOVE to workout.  It just makes me feel so good and I have energy (for a few hours anyway) after.  Teaching Zumba is a blast and I sweat buckets so that covers the cardio, but cardio alone will not cut it.  I find the best results when I partner cardio workouts with weight training of some sort.  Please refer to a previous post about Pump class.  You will not end up like a bodybuilder from pump class.....I promise.
I haven't taken a spin class for months and haven't been regularly cycling (indoors) since February.  From my experience, NOTHING makes you're legs look better.  Cycle class should be a good combination of cardio endurance and strength building.  My endorphins soar when I'm done with a cycle class.  It's exhilerating and wonderful.
BUT my new obsession is 8 Strikes, a cardio kickbox class at LVAC.  Kicks my tail - in a good way.  Sweaty doesn't even describe what I look like when I'm done, more like I just got out of the pool. It is a complete body workout, arms, legs, butt and core!  AMAZING.....try it. 
TRACK
One of the most vital keys in Weight Watchers is to track what you eat and the points value of every item you put in your mouth.  Whether you do weight watchers or not, you should track your food and your activity.  Just write it in a journal or ask me about a tracking app for your phone.  You will be amazed how many things you eat that you're not even aware of.....left overs from the kids, the samples at the store, tasting the frosting from your kids birthday cake just to make sure its yummy - guilty.  If we get in the habit of thinking before we eat, we will make better choices with what we eat.  THIS IS TRUE!!!  Tried and tested......  Tracking activity makes you feel good about the work you've done and allows you some more calories to eat if you want.
CONSISTANCE
This one is my least favorite and the least fun.  So the first two weeks of my brave new world went pretty good.  I try not to judge progress by the scale but its hard not to.  I didn't loose much weight, a pound or two of my 6 vacation lbs.  I definitely felt better and feel a difference in my body and strength and energy.  This week (week 3) not so hot!  New things are always exciting.......then they loose their sparkle.  Hmmm what to do?  Do what works......start over.....go buy veggies, make a workout plan, track, be positive.  That's what I'm going to do.

Wellness Challenge

Wanna be part of something to kick start better health for yourself or be a better you by Christmas?

Some of my girlfriends are doing this wellness challenge and I love the idea, so I'm joining them. It's kinda like a little game but you are mostly competing with yourself.
Below is the link for the blog with rules and information about how it will work.  This is a great opportunity to exercise, eat better, be healthier and begin some great new habits in your life.  Email me if you have questions @ Zumbachicalv@gmail.com  If you look to the right on my blog there is a link to the wellness challenge blog.

Anyone is welcome to join so spread the word and take the challenge!!!
THE WELLNESS CHALLENGE