Day Four: Diet Tested

Thursday had to be one of the busiest days I have had in awhile; both personally and professionally. Interviews, errands, birthday parties, it was a busy day. Going home for a lunch was not an option, so I had to make some smart decisions and I believe I was successful.

For lunch, I went to Wendy’s and instead of the typical chicken sandwich and fries I got the BLT Cobb(no bacon or cheese) with the Italian Vinagrette. It was so yummy! Just enough to curb the hungry without being too full.

{cobb minus the cobb-ness}

(Enter super busy schedule)

On of my best friends turned 26 yesterday, so we celebrated at Incredible Pizza. It was some of the most fun I have had in a long time. Who knew playing arcade games could be so fun? It was the four of us, Kasey, her boyfriend, Luke, and Myself. Their 3D Ride Experience thing, don’t remember the name, was so much fun!! Picture quality stunk but when you were falling, it really felt like you were falling. As some of you may know, Incredible Pizza has a buffet with some terrible dieting decisions but suprisingly there was a really nice salad bar with fresh veggies. Took advantage of that and it was worth it and no guilt!

Overall the day taught me that even with a hectic schedule, I can still stick to my diet and not fall off the bandwagon. Really good, motivating feeling. Put that in the win column!

Tonight is my 5k at Silver Dollar City. Pretty excited and also nervous about starting a 5k at 10pm after a long day of work. Hopefully the anticipation of it will give me a nice boost of energy. But since I am working this morning as well, it’s looking like it’s going to be  a long day. Fingers crossed I beat my time from the last 5k-can’t wait!!

{SIlver Dollar City Christmas Lights}

Day Three:Victory in the AM

Day three started off with a bang. I hadn’t planned on weighing myself until after week one, but let’s face it, I am not what you would call patient. Jumped on that scale and was down 5.5lbs since I started on Monday. So excited to see results already!

This diet is really easy actually. Of course I get cravings for burgers and fries but after seeing what I have lost so far, it’s so not worth it. Looking forward to seeing a few more numbers drop down the next week.

Looking forward to the 5k on Friday, but a little nervous. This one is not competitive but I would really like to beat my time from the one I did in September. I am planning on doing another one on Thanksgiving, so for that one I do plan on training. Gotta keep up with my best friend on that one.

The thing I have always found the hardest is keeping up with drinking enough water. Who knew you could get excited about clear pee?! What are your tips to keeping up with your water intake? Keep in mind it has to be clear water, no additives. Have a great day!

17 Day Diet: Days One and Two

{17 Day Diet}

Earlier this year, my parents followed this diet and my dad was very successful. I’m starting to realize that if I don’t have strict guidelines, I will convince myself that a cheeseburger from Wendy’s isn’t really a lot of calories and would be perfectly ok to eat. So, yesterday I decided to start this new diet. I don’t normally like the word “diet” but after reading the book, I’m on board. There is no starvation, you are encouraged to eat yummy vegegtables, lean proteins, 2 servings of fruit and drinking lots of water each day. The way this is successful is that it never allows your body to plateau. In the first 17 days, cycle 1, you are limited to green vegetables, lean proteins, two servings of probiotics, and two servings of fruit. After 17 days, you enter cycle 2 which slowly starts integrating other foods into your diet including starchy vegetables and lean red meats. There are two more cycles after that and you can either choose to start over again or stop.

So far so good. Of course, when you can’t have something that’s when you want it. Chocolate cake….sounds so yummy. But instead I will eat an apple. That’s close right?

Got my next 5k this Friday at Silver Dollar City with my mom. I’m pretty excited about it. It’s the Run to the Lights 5k where we will get to play around the park and then once it gets dark, they throw on the Christmas Lights and we run/walk. If anything it’ll be asthetically pleasing. Haven’t been doing much training lately but I think it’ll be ok. Christmas lights make all things better.

Weekend Projects

{Love this pattern}

I saw this picture on YoungHouseLove and was instantly inspired. I’ve been uphappy with what I did in my living room, but I was just stuck on what I wanted it to look like. Once I saw what this woman did to her dining room, I knew exactly what I was going to do and you better believe I will be doing it this weekend-I have no patience whatsoever. I also have the rest of a previous project to finish up.

I also want to start working on projects for Halloween decorations, like this:

{LOVE this idea!}

I am in full fledged project mode. I’m sure it will pass. If not, I will start bedazzling some things-then you know I have gone way off the edge.

After my project extravaganza, I will post some before and afters…just you see what this girl can do in a weekend

New routine, new goals

 

{Me and Shanna holding up a One for our first 5k}

 

Sorry for the extended absence. When things get super busy in my life, the blog ends up on the back burner. I swear I am trying to get better!

I wanted to wait and see how it went before putting in print what I have been doing. The old routine wasn’t quite working out for me and while the weather is so gorgeous I have taken the workouts to the streets. Three times a week, I do a 5k. Yes that’s right. Me, Rachel, anti-running, is now doing 3 miles of walk/jog three times a week and I am actually enjoying it. I like that feeling you get when you run farther than you did the last time. You are competing against your former self so it’s a very satisfying experience. On my in between days, I hit the gym for some strength training and a little bike action. I’m on my second week of the new routine and I am enjoying it so far.

My biggest change has been when I am doing my workouts. Before, I would work out after work. But after awhile you just get burnt out getting home at 9 or 930 at night. Getting me up a couple hours hasn’t been too difficult suprisingly. It’s been a pretty smooth transistion. I also have a nice motivating factor in the form of my mom. I send her my workout each time I finish as a form of accountability and then she encourages me to keep going. Would be a lot more difficult if I didn’t have a supportive mother and boyfriend(I get a lot of “good job bebe” text messages after I work out).

In my absense from blogging, I did my first ever 5k. It was a really great 5k to start with since it was for something so close to my heart. It was also a bit more special since I did it with my mom, aunt, sister, and best friend. Made the experience a really great one. Even crossed the finish line with my sister which was pretty cool. My next 5k I am doing with my mom on November 12th then Turkey Trot on the 24th which will finish out the “5k season” for me. I think three is good for my first year. Next year, I plan on doing more and maybe work my way up to 10k and eventually my first half marathon. Yikes!

{Me, Shanna, Mom, and Carly at the Susan G. Komen 5k}

Just in the last week or so I have seen quite a few changes in my body and how healthy it starts to feel. I have been researching the Paleo diet, and while I like the idea I don’t think I can go full on in to the lifestyle but a modified version sounds do-able. I will keep you updated on how that goes.

 

Things are looking promising-fingers crossed the weather keeps looking gorgeous so I can continue to improve my time. It is now the family’s goal to beat whoever has the lowest time-all gunning for under 34 minutes!

Training, Tables, and Everything in Between

Wow! Where did the time go? I cannot believe so much time has passed since my last post. Sorry folks.

At the moment, my time is easily consumed by work, dogs, Luke, friends, mosiac table, and training for my first ever 5k. Seems like a completely random list of things right? So is my life.

When I went on my staycation a while back, I started on a project that ended up being the bain of my existence. Seriously, by the end I hated this damn table. It mocked me for weeks because of the state of incomplete it sat in. But thanks to hours of hard work between me and Luke, it is now complete and was christened on Sunday night when we had Sunday Night Dinnner:Fish Tacos Edition! Here is a picture of the table before:

{before tile, after the picket fence slabs were gone}

Now this is what we are using:

{ain't it beautiful Clark?}

 Next: Pups. Man are my dogs a financial suck this week. Dropped a couple hundi’s on them this week for grooming, vet visits, etc. Good thing they are cute in my book. Toby is looking pretty sharp nowadays with his new trimmed physique and his spiffy bandana thanks to my momma(aka his grandmama).

{IMPOSSIBLE to take a picture of a black dog}

 Poor Jack got chemical burn-most likely from a new toy. Who knew this was even possible. So now he is on two different meds and a topical cream. Poor little Jack Jack. They’ve been loving having a once a week play date with the ever so cute Jasper.

Friday nights are a treat for the puppies as well as the puppy moms!

 

{the cute and every so tiny Jasper}

 

Last but not least, training for the 5k. That has been super tough these last few weeks. I have been hitting the gym for an hour a day but the C25K training has been tough to keep up. Mainly because I can only do it outside. Something with running and being on the treadmill seriously kills so in an effort to not turn into an old lady too soon, I have decided to do that outdoors. I’ve gone a couple times now with the Giantess Tobias but the rain kept us from going out this morning. I’ve got almost a month to the date to get into shape to complete the 5K-I don’t think there will be any problems. Really proud to see my Aunt and Mom get prepared as well. It’s really cool to see the three of us work to get healthy for a 5K sponsored by Susan Komen in honor of my Mimi who passed from breast cancer. I am really looking forward to finishing with them as well as my best friend. And you know I will be rocking as much pink I can get on me without being too tacky. It’s just going to happen. The hunt for cute pink shoe laces begins!

 

Besides work, which I won’t bore you with, that sums up the last few weeks for me. Hopefully we will be finding out who my boss is so we can finally get out of this limbo and start working on things! I’m going to have to set up my Outlook to remind me to post-because let’s face it, this girls lives off her Outlook!

5k? I think so

{soon to be my first 5k}

One goal that I have always wanted to achieve is to complete a half marathon. Before I do that, I will have to take some baby steps and one of those is the 5k. I was going to do one a while back but it ended up not working out since my mom was going to be having surgery on her ankle and I quit training for it. Now that I am in a running routine, I decided to look up some 5k’s that might be happening in the area in the next couple months. Due to the massive heat that we are experiencing, the later the better. As fate would have it, there is a 5k in Septemeber(time to train and cooler outside) in Columbia, MO(2 hours from home) for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Awareness Charity. This is a cause that is very close to my heart.

{my Mimi}

When I was a freshman in high school, my Mimi(mother’s mother) passed away unexpectedly. It came as a huge shock to us all to learn that she had been dealing with untreated breast cancer. Knowing how many people are affected by this disease and knowing that it now runs in your family makes it a bit more real. Needless to say I am very excited that my first 5k will be something that I am passionate about.

Now that I have decided on a 5k and have a timeline, I really need to get this training going. I have been working on running for about a month now and I have hit a stumbling block. I am getting shin splints like crazy which freaks me out to keep going, in fear that I will hurt myself worse. I have talked to a lot of friends who are runners and have gotten a lot of good tips. One of them is from my best friend Jess and that is to purchase a foam roller, so of course I jumped on to amazon and purchased one. Another suggestion, and by far the strangest, is to drink pickle juice. I have never heard of doing this but apparently some coaches swear by it. It has to be dill pickle juice, which is a relief since bread and butter pickles are gross-if I am going to drink pickle juice, I am going to at least enjoy the flavor dammit. At this points, I will give anythign a try. I’ll let you know how it works.

The diet is still going pretty well, staying below my 1,200 calorie limit and getting really good about drinking water. I’m down about 10lbs which is good considering the working out I am doing is beginning to build muscle. I don’t take to much stock in the number of pounds I am. I look at how my clothes fit and at this point in time I am a size smaller, so HAZAAH for that! I’ve got a goal to meet-Cali here I come! And you know I am going to rock to this song while I am there…

Back in Business Baby

{my form of exercise on staycation-laughter}

You might have noticed a serious gap from my last post to today. Main reason for that was my “staycation” that I took this last week. In my opinion, a staycation is much better than a vacation for the simple fact that you actually have time to do nothing! When people go on vacation, they plan a million activites, travel stress, forgetting items, you name it. On my staycation, I got projects done that I have been wanting to do for months and most importantly I stayed in and enjoyed the AC and some television. I also got a new book, which I have pictured above. If you want a quick read-pick this up! It is so hilarious!

I didn’t end up getting in any work out time. Unfortunately, all of my projects using paint wreaked havic on my lungs resulting in me not being able to breathe. Not exactly wise to go run on the treadmill when you can’t breathe in the resting position. Luckily, my routine is back to normal. Finished week one of Couch25K yesterday; will be starting week two today. I have started this program a few times and this is the first time I have made it to week two, quite sad I know.

Work life is a little stressful right now as I will be boss-less starting Friday. No word on who the new boss will be but until then things are going to be a little weird. I am hoping my schedule doesn’t change too much from what it is now. What has always doomed me in my past with a successful weightloss program is that my schedule changes so I quit working out. Now that I am paying for a gym membership, my ass is going to the gym no matter how crappy my schedule is. Not sure what a new boss will bring. Part of me is totally freaked out and the other part of me is excited for change. I guess time will tell.

Still doing very well with my iPhone app that monitors what I eat. I really depend on that thing to tell me how I am doing for the day. It’s a food journal for the digital age and I love it. Luckily I was so busy with staycation projects that I wasn’t able to be a bad girl and consume all kinds of junk while not working out. I’m looking forward to my routine getting back to normal and watching the lb’s drop like it’s hot. Which it is. It is ridiculously hot. Just saying.

Holiday Weekend

I hope everyone had a great July 4th weekend! I know I did. Staying on track with my diet was surprisingly easy ever since I got my new iPhone app that counts my calories for me. I just logged everything after I ate it so that I could see how I was pacing for the day. It was great! Yesterday was my only day that I went over my limit-had it not been for the homemade ice cream from Luke’s grandparents I would have been fine. But really, how do you turn down homemade ice cream when a sweet older lady made it for you? The answer is, you don’t.

Had a great time with friends on Sunday night. Our friends Carrie and Ryan brought their english bulldog Widget and their other dog Jasper with them to have a great playdate with Jack. I don’t think it could have possibly been smoother. The dogs instantly bonded and wanted to run around with each other. It was a great night-only downer was the bad weather so no fireworks.

Last night we took Jack to Luke’s parents house to watch the fireworks. Their house is positioned very well- you can see the Twin Oaks Country Club fireworks show plus they are in a rich neighborhood and let’s face it, rich people spend a lot on fireworks! It was almost like watching a competition on who had the biggest and baddest fireworks display. I was perfectly ok with this competition mainly because I didn’t have to pay a dime for the show.

Still having a difficult time drinking enough water when I am at home. When I am at work, I just drink water because there is nothing else to drink. At home, there is tea. And tea is super yummy and very cheap to make which is a great combination. Any tips on how to stay on track with water intake when you are at home with sooo many different options?

Technology is a wonder for weight loss

As you might have read on my previous blog, my best friend Jess told me about an app she has on her iphone that tracks her calories. Being a curious person, I thought, I’ll check it out. Boy am I glad that I did. Not only did I find an app to track my caloric intake daily but I also found one to track my water intake which is by far where I struggle.

In today’s world, keeping a hand-written journal is just not efficient. For a young professional who keeps a busy schedule, carrying around a journal is not conducive. Keeping everything I need in my iPhone(product placement!) just makes things easier and my load smaller. I’m really excited to start using both of these apps to track my progress.

I’ve done many stints of dieting since I was in high school and something just feels different about this time around. I have a lot more motiviation and this zen-like attitude about it. I haven’t become crazy obsessive girl who works out constantly and hardly eats, then fades out after a couple months. It’s more of an overall change in behavior and habits and understanding that I will not be perfect in some of my decisions so if I do cave on a craving, it’s not the end of the world. Another motiviating factor is my facebook stalking that I did the other night. I saw a lot of girls from middle school and high school that were the “other fat girls”-if you were overweight in school you know who I am talking about. The girls that you used to justify your bad behaviors or ones that would go along with you on bad behaviors because they were fat too. Well, most of them have lost lots of weight and are cute and small. “Damn” was my first thought and the next thought I had was that I cannot let them look at my facebook and say “wow, she’s gotten bigger”. You know what I am talking about. It’s that flashback of high school insecurity where you are worried every little thing you do because people might make fun of you or think something bad about you. As an adult, it doesn’t cross my mind because I am confident in the person I am, but that high school girl is still in there. Just have to change what they will say to “damn, she got really cute”.

If you have an iPhone and are interested in the apps I referred to, search for myfitnesspal for the calorie tracker and watertracker for your water intake.

Here’s one of my songs right now that gets me moving…