Fitness Journey

Or in our case - Hurricane Matthew!

When I started this, I didn’t think I’d actually do Whole30 by the book, for 30 days. Well, here I am, one week left! I must say, it wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be. I think it’s because, doing this requires a lot of meal prepping and discipline and cooking at home. I was already doing all of this every week, 6 days on, 1 cheat day. But even with my “old ways”, I was consuming artificial sweetener, dairy, and grains every day, alcohol every weekend, and legumes probably almost every day as well. So while I didn’t “need” to Whole30, reading “It Starts With Food” really opened my eyes and motivated me to self-experiment and eliminate it all! And I’ve found some really AWESOME recipes in the process, which I’ll share!

I must say - I do feel pretty darn good! Confession, I don’t remember the last time I ever went 23 days without booze. So my liver is thanking me tremendously, I’m sure. I don’t feel bloated... ever anymore. I used to feel a little “blehhh, so full and ugh bloated” easily, every few days. I can almost guarantee that’s the grains and dairy. And finally, while weight loss was not my intention or goal, I lost water weight immediately. Which I know, is easy to put right back on if I “go back to my old ways” start of day 31, but that’s actually another benefit of this - it really does change your life, in that, I won’t ever look at food the same again. No, I won’t sustain a 100% Whole30 compliant lifestyle, that’s just not realistic, but I will constantly be more conscious of everything that’s in my food and will strive to make the better decisions most of the time. You learn SO much more than you ever thought you would about food label reading and additives! Like, I don’t need to buy tomato sauce that has Dextrose in it! Or canned tuna for tuna salad that has soy in it. =)

Recipe favorites, Whole30 or not:

Coconut Lime Chicken served on top of Cauliflower Rice - OMG I can’t get enough of this. I love spicy, so I used 2 chili peppers and extra red pepper flakes... oh and of course, extra cilantro.

Creamy Lemon Chicken w/Asparagus & Mushrooms - another amazing coconut milk recipe! Who knew coconut milk would be so fun to cook with?

Jalapeno Turkey Burgers - yum, I top them off with homemade guac and pico.

Steak Fajita Salad w/Cilantro Avocado Dressing - yum yum yum.

Buffalo Drumsticks

Chicken Salad - so far, I’ve made this with tuna and it wasn’t too bad! Going to try it with chicken next, but not the canned chicken because you can’t find canned chicken without non-compliant additives.

Healthier Tuna Salad

Paleo Meatloaf - ok, so this wasn’t bad. but I’d definitely go back to my old ways and use beef, veal and pork, not just all beef.

Well, I said I’d go all in. And so I did. I’m on Day 4 of Whole30. Honestly, I wasn’t going to mentally commit to 30 days, because I knew I didn’t “need” to do Whole30 by the book, and I just wanted to use a modified version as a self-experiment. And my excuse was going to be - I’ll be traveling up north while my husband is gone for work practically all of October, so we were going to go out and celebrate his birthday and I was going to be in NYC for football Sunday. BUT - I no longer have that “excuse” since I’m not flying up north anymore, and as with everything else, I’m an all-or-nothing kind, so my 30th day is October 11th... hooray!

So far so good, 4 days in :). I don’t miss grains, dairy, or booze.... yet. I also don’t feel much different, but I know that’ll come around week 2. If anything though, I do feel accomplished already, and what motivates me is that feeling alone. I will be super proud of myself and feel even more accomplished once I complete 30 days, because I know how challenging this is. I know I will miss my cheat day for the next month. I’m reminding myself there are TONS of foods I get to eat, which are all foods that I love... and I’m not focusing on what I “can’t” eat. I’m meal prepping like crazy... you literally have to in order to succeed... and I’m cooking extra at dinner so I have a good lunch the next day!

This morning, I definitely missed my pre-workout and felt like I was dragging. But honestly, no matter what, it’s better for me to not have a pre-workout supplement because those things really aren’t good for anyone. I should’ve never started that habit! Other than that, I’m researching recipes that appeal to me, and I’m thoroughly enjoying the cooking! It’s actually pretty rewarding! I’m making hard boiled eggs - those are quite tasty as a snack. There’s a tuna salad recipe I found that’s super yummy (find tuna with no soy!), and RX Bar’s might be life saving. They’re better than Larabars, in my opinion, because they have more protein. I’m finally trying to not let the macros get to me... by that I mean, I need to come to terms that I might consume more carbs than protein in a day now :). And I’m making sure I’m eating enough of everything because... of course, now that my foot feels better, I’m training like a machine again!

Overall, I know I’ll definitely enjoy the challenge and it’ll be worth it to me, to have the sense of accomplishment at the end. Whatever motivates you... that’s key! Share recipes with me if you’ve got them! I’ll need a ton, otherwise I’ll just be plain ol’ boring and start eating similar things every day :). 

Now go get some fresh produce and enjoy!

I’m reading this book right now, “It Starts With Food” by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig, and literally - EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ IT. Get it here: https://www.amazon.com/Starts-Food-Discover-Whole30-Unexpected/dp/1628600543

This book is seriously phenomenal because it’s so true - we are so uneducated, or have simply forgotten the basics. The book uses metaphors to explain the science behind food, and relates to everyone... the average busy person who’s running around jobs, kids’ schedules, knows what they’re thinking, etc... It explains WHY we make the decisions we make, have the cravings we have, and why we feel the way we do. Do you ever feel like you need a nap... like, every day? Are you ever physically or mentally drained? Do you have mid-afternoon slumps? Are you groggy in the morning... or any time of the day? Can’t get up without snoozing 5 times? NEED coffee? NEED a snack a certain time of day every day while in between meetings? Seriously... read the book. Your relationship with food will change if you actually CARE and READ what it’s saying. 

I am never one to support elimination diets, because frankly, they aren’t realistic long-term; however, this book is changing my view on food altogether. While some people probably don’t need to do Whole30 by the book, it’s good for everyone to at least be conscious of what’s going in their body and how it’s impacting everything... your hormones, immune system, brain, literally... everything. And this program DOES, in fact, help change other people’s lives who need a reset and detox. It is a fact that people who are/have been diagnosed with Diabetes, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, Crohn's disease, Celiac disease.... all start practicing the Whole30 concept and have seen their symptoms completely reverse and in some cases, get COMPLETELY taken off medication, all because they changed what they put on their plate. Even people with allergies, asthma, and sporadic joint pain show complete improvement. You always hear “you are what you eat” - well, quite literally. Learning the simple science about food and how your body responds to it is crucial to actually having a healthy lifestyle.

So, why my sudden interest in this? I mean, what I’ve been doing obviously works some wonders, right? I’ve gotten results, I’ve made a ton of progress... why am I suddenly interested in more changes? I think a part of me has reached a plateau and I just need/want another personal challenge. I know I don’t need to lose weight. I know people probably think I don’t need to try Whole30 - probably right. But reading the book and learning what I’ve learned motivates me. That’s how you always improve and evolve as a better version of you. You stay motivated and find more things that are even better than what you’re doing now. Sure, I probably eat fairly healthy... but after what I’ve learned, I looked at my daily intake: 

I eat cheese and Greek Yogurt - dairy, Strike One.

I eat whole wheat almost every day at lunch because I’ll pair that with processed deli because it’s quick and easy - that’s like two strikes in one meal.

I consume protein powder (at least it’s with Unsweetened Almond Milk?), amino acids, a C4 pre-workout sometimes (which I probably should’ve never started to begin with), and Quest Bars - ALL have Suclarose, a MAJOR strike and I’ve already reached three. So as it turns out, I’m just a walking artificial sweetener and I don’t even drink diet drinks or put Splenda in my coffee!

I still drink alcohol often - every weekend; what is this, strike five?

And, despite the daily intake striking me out already, I still indulge in Sunday cheat day, which always includes added sugar/processed something or other.

Am I being a little too hard on myself? Maybe, but that’s the mindset you get in when you keep challenging and motivating yourself to continue to be a better you. I’ll write about my Whole30 experience, because you knew that was coming - I go all in, or not at all :). But first, let me get through the holiday and my friend’s 30th birthday - you know, my two excuses to delay my next goal achievement ;). 

And just remember:

The mistakes I made are pretty common sense if you really think about it, but if you start getting motivated and have goals, and get into a habit of just cross training all the time, it gets away from you that, “your body needs to recover,” especially if you’re feeling great!

Well, learn from my mistakes :). I almost sidelined myself for a lot longer and almost got a boot on my foot! Don’t ask me the medical terminology used, but I got the equivalent to a shin splint in my outer metatarsal in my right foot. Well, that stinks. At least I caught it early and it wasn’t a stress fracture, which is what I was afraid of.

How did this happen?! I felt fine! So, I got hooked on my CrossBarre classes, my Boot Camps, my running group that does a 5K on Sunday’s (and drinks mimosas, so that’s why I really go...ha), that’s what I was doing everyday, sometimes twice a day. I stopped focusing on actually running small distances 2x a week and a long distance on the weekend, and I stopped planning a rest day when I do NOTHING every week, or sometimes twice a week is needed. I just got so focused on my strength goals and wasn’t feeling fatigued or hurt, so I kept going. And what really set it over the top: I ran 10 miles when I hadn’t ran that far at a time in a few weeks and hadn’t really been running more than once a week for a few weeks. In my mind, “I’m still physically in half marathon shape. I’ve run more than 10 miles before. I’m in shape, I’ll be fine, especially since I can run/walk.” Felt fine during the run, then went to my normal class the next day, as you can imagine, after a long run, no recovery time is a bad idea. And so here we are. Injured foot.

For me, it took the injury to actually listen to my trainers and their subtle hints that this would happen :). So learn from my mistakes. Just like you plan your meals, plan your classes, plan everything else, PLAN your rest day, or rest DAYS. I’m doing modified exercise, not running for a couple weeks, and I should be good. I’m not forcing myself to get better before I can get better, realistically. Then, when I start running again, I’ll start with shorter distances and make sure I recover, and run throughout the week like I need to when training for races! Proper recovery right now is key for me, because I have a half marathon coming up on October 8 (Jacksonville Marine Corps Half Marathon)... another one November 13 (St. Augustine Half Marathon)... both less than 3 months away and then suddenly a month and a half later, my first marathon (Disney World Marathon) takes place. I really can’t afford to keep re-injuring my foot, or breaking it... and I mean, I don’t want a broken foot either. I do still need to be able to walk ;).

How’s the lifestyle change going? :) Are the Olympics inspiring you!? GO USA!

So you’ve started to eat healthier, you’re incorporating some working out... but how do you stay consistent and motivated? The beginning is always the hardest because it’s hard to break bad habits and develop new ones, and it’s quite deflating when you try a workout class, or starting challenging yourself with exercising on your own, and then you can’t move for 5 days! Remember, those feelings are temporary! Keep it up and it does get better and you will start to motivate yourself naturally, especially as you see results and realize how much better you start to feel!

I found myself setting goals - goals I NEVER thought I’d ever reach or even have the slightest interest in reaching. So today’s theme - never say never. If there’s something in mind that you think you want to try, GO FOR IT! Use that to challenge yourself and keep going!

Need an example or proof that what seems impossible is possible? Well I’ll use myself as an example again! Here’s how my last 7 months look:

January - where I was before I started:

I couldn’t run for a minute straight and I barely wanted to ever run/walk for 2 miles.

I couldn’t bend down and touch my toes without bending my knees.

I couldn’t do a handstand.

I couldn’t do a chin up (I still can’t do an unassisted pull-up... one of my goals).

I could barely squat... anything.

I could barely deadlift... anything.

So I could barely lift anything is the point, here.

August - what I’ve done since I started:

My first Boot Camp was January 5th.

I started CrossBarre a few months ago.

I ran my first 15K in March.

I ran my first half marathon in May.

I’m running 2 more half marathons in the next 3 months.

I’m training for a full marathon that’s next January.

I’m running the Donna Half Challenge (10K, 5K Saturday, half marathon Sunday) on my 30th birthday weekend next February.

I’m running the 15K again next March and another half marathon next spring in April.

I can do a handstand... now I’m working on handstand push-up’s.

I can do an unassisted chin-up finally... still working on pull-up’s.

I’m WAY stronger - I go up in weight almost every week or every other week and have gained several pounds in just lean mass. I went from losing a bunch of weight to gaining some, but keeping my fat roughly the same, and my waist stayed the smallest its been since I’ve started weighing in.

Oh - and I can easily bend down and touch my toes without bending my knees. 

I continue with Boot Camp, semi-private training, and CrossBarre every week, and I run every week.

Feeling accomplished, pretty, and strong. Better than yesterday, and working towards a better tomorrow. Never thought having the fit look was something I’d be able to do. Well, never doubt yourself. Yes you can! Less than a year ago, I couldn't do regular push-up's.... Just sayin. Train your mind! Your body can do anything you want it to.

Hands down, MyFitnessPal is the best app out there. And it’s FREE. You don’t even need premium to get everything you expected out of the app and more. You’ve probably heard of the app and probably have downloaded it at some point. But do you use it consistently? Probably not. And even more rare - do you use ALL of the features at your disposal? That’s even more likely... a no answer. 

Let’s face it - logging everything you consume? Who has time for that? Yeah, it’s time consuming. But to continue with the ongoing theme here, habits form with consistency! It really does become second nature. If it doesn’t, then you’re not being consistent enough :). Here are some tips and features to MyFitnessPal to ensure you’re getting everything out of it and understand what you’re tracking! Utilizing some the app’s features will also save you time in the long run, especially as you log repeat food items and meals/recipes!

Actually set your goals properly. More > Goals: just by inputting this information accurately, MyFitnessPal auto adjusts goals that you can use AS A GUIDE. The key things I focus on are the starting weight, current weight, goal weight, weekly goal, and activity level. Set those items and the app adjusts and “guesses” what your daily nutritional intake should be. Based on your calorie deficit calculator I’ve listed before, you can adjust this! Here’s the link again: https://www.fitwatch.com/calculator/calorie-deficit When my goal was weight loss, I put my goals in the app first, then I went back and manually adjusted the calorie goal to my deficit amount! 

The next important feature, still under goals, Calorie & Macronutrient Goals. Macros are key!! This is where you’ll manually change your calorie goal to meet your needs, and change your macro percentages. By default, especially if you’re wanting to see weight loss, the app’s macros are too heavy on the carb side. I personally have mine set to 30%, 40%, 30%: Carb, Protein, Fat. Lower carb, higher protein... lean yourself out, build muscle... it works.

Now you’re ready to start logging. This is the part that’s a pain in the butt if you’re not used to it. It becomes super quick and easy, I promise, especially if you’re eating most of your meals at home and you’re cooking. There’s a barcode scanner feature. Just scan everything! If there’s recipes you frequent, go to More > My Recipes & Foods and add the recipe, either manually by scanning your ingredients and ensuring the right servings and portions are populated, OR add recipes from the web! A lot of times, the web-add method I do modify slightly. That just helps get the ingredients populated so I know what’s in it, then I can replace the ingredient list the app finds and scan my own I use at home! Everything you log is saved, so if there’s a breakfast you eat often, you can just copy it over from different days, or as you log one of the items, the app recognizes other items you’ve logged together in the past. So logging meals is definitely not a manual process every single time! 

LOG WATER! This will help you hold yourself accountable on getting enough water - I guarantee, almost no one gets enough water a day. Join me in the gallon challenge I’m part of with CrossBarre! It really does clean you out and make you feel awesome! Too much? Ok work your way up, but drink at LEAST 8-10 cups per day.

An app flaw - adjustments it makes when you log exercise. It auto adjusts and tells you have calories remaining, grams of carbs remaining, everything expands. Hit your goals BEFORE you log the calories you’ve burned. If you pay for premium, I believe there’s an option to turn this off, but it’s not worth paying for premium :).

Now what does this all mean? How do I even read what I’m tracking to know if it’s good or bad? So you logged your day - breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, water. You can go to your diary and tap the area where it shows your calories. This takes you to the nutrition. Look at the protein versus carbs. A good target is for the protein number to be higher than the carb number. Also look at net carbs. You’re consuming more whole grains now, right? Your fiber’s gone up and you can subtract that from the carbs and you get your net carbs. Keeping that low is key, also. Look at the sugar - this needs to be as low as possible. Well under 50g per day. There are days I haven’t even hit 30g. Low low low sugar! And finally fat. Fat gets a bad reputation. Society is too low-fat focused. Fat is not the enemy. Your body needs fat... healthy fats! Extra virgin olive oil, flax seed oil (I slug a teaspoon of that a day; try cooking with healthier oils... not canola or vegetable), avocados, chia seeds, nuts.... trying to buy everything fat free, low fat, can actually be worse for you. Look at the goal the app set for you. You can eat more fat than you think you can, it just needs to be the right fats! My goal per day is 2000 calories and there are days I’ve had 75g of fat. So eat healthy fats and focus on getting sugars down and carbs down! 

Check out your view by week, too. Look at the different charts - you can see net average. Are under for the week, week over week? That includes logging your cheat day and going over for that day... you can still average out to be under for the week! 

Information overload? Probably. Ask me anything! Add me on MyFitnessPal - apeers31 is my username and my diary is public! Here’s some screen shots of the features I mentioned and how they look for me!

Here are some questions I’ve received - I’ve done my best to provide (lengthy) answers!

What program are you on?

I’m not! I personally don’t believe in any certain “program”. Works for many, just not for me. I went with an entire lifestyle change. I guess you could categorize some of the stuff I do as a “program”, but there’s no time limit or TONS of specifics. I just do what I do day after day, week after week, month after month, and what will be year after year :).

What do you eat?

Um - TONS of stuff. I still love carbs like anyone else... and yes, I still eat carbs! Sunday’s (cheat day) aside, I just keep it to complex carbs and before dinner (as with any human, there are occasions when I’ll do a complex carb other than just veggies at dinner... *gasp*!). Dinner’s are lean proteins and vegetables... fish, chicken, sometimes pork tenderloin, turkey, salads, asparagus, zucchini, squash, bell peppers and onions, broccoli... my go-to’s. Carbs I eat are whole grains, black beans, and quinoa. Sometimes brown rice. I personally am not a fan of sweet potatoes, but that would be another good one to throw in at lunch! One thing I’m currently trying to do is weed out processed deli. My go-to lunch includes a deli sandwich, bleh, while good, not totally great :). I eat eggs, spinach, and dairy. Some people don’t do dairy and gluten, but I’m fine with it. 0% Greek Yogurt and I love my cheese in small quantities! While I get enough protein in my actual food, I do love my Quest protein bars: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Cookies and Cream, and Oatmeal Chocolate Chip are life changing. Those are a go-to snack of mine, as are bananas, hummus, and cottage cheese. So really, the only things I “limit” myself on are anything sugar added/processed and simple carbs. And now, I don’t even purposely limit myself of those things anymore, it’s just become second nature to not choose those items. AND - I feel MUCH better because I’m properly fueling my body! Oh, and I eat constantly throughout the day, and anywhere from 1850-2200 calories per day!

You eat HOW MUCH? And you still lost weight! HOW?

YEP! Think about it, for your body to give you the results you want, you need to properly fuel it. So part of your problem might be - you’re not eating ENOUGH. If you’re not eating enough, your body is holding on to every little thing you consume, top that off with what you’re consuming. You NEED the proper fuel. Small snacks and smaller meals throughout the entire day will help boost your metabolism and give you the fuel you need. As stated previously, calculate your calorie intake and deficit: https://www.fitwatch.com/calculator/calorie-deficit it will help give you a much better idea of how much you should be eating! Starving yourself will likely make you gain weight before lose weight.

So I can eat chips, or dessert? I don’t get enough calories and I’m supposed to eat more!

Nope - wouldn’t that be great? :) unfortunately that’s not how our bodies see it. The fuel you need has to come from the right calories. When you start to work your way up to clean eating and properly fueling yourself, your body eventually just craves healthier food and eating the junk will actually make you feel a little off. Nutrition changes are the hardest part to maintaining a healthy lifestyle, so as I stress, challenge yourself and work your way up!

Tips to clean eating?

No candy / soda / things with added sugar / refined sugar

No alcohol (or limit drastically, I say this because I can’t provide a tip for no alcohol when I still drink alcohol myself... ha!)

No pre-packaged / processed foods

No fried or fast food

Drink tons of water!!! I’m part of the gallon challenge and it works wonders!

One of those bottles is still about half full. The rest are empty. There’s an idea of a gallon. Work your way up to that! In any case, regardless you should drink at least 8-10 cups a day.

Life is short, why do you restrict yourself to only have what you want on Sunday’s!?

I CRAVE healthier foods now. It’s not even really a choice for me anymore, it’s what I want. I feel SO much better because of it, too. And, as you get used to it, during the time period it is a choice you’re working up to, it helps develop a good habit, and excellent discipline. 

What workouts do you do?

I run and will be running more as my first attempt at a marathon nears, and I attend boot camp classes (HIIT high intensity interval training style and weight lifting) and CrossBarre classes! I change it up from day to day - it’s great to cross train! You look forward to the variety! I have goals like, unassisted pull-up’s, so I love strength training, but I also love the HIIT style - great for calorie burn and your heart rate! And barre classes incorporates some strength training with weights, as well as isometric moves - super hard, but in a much different, lower intense fashion. I thoroughly enjoy everything I do... that’s key. Find what you love best. Cardio? Strength and cardio? Dance? Barre? Yoga? Try it all!

How often do you work out?

Basically every day, but that’s just me. I enjoy it a lot and have goals I want to reach quickly, and it’s just a habit for me I’ve really gotten into. If I wake up one morning and I’m not working out, I feel like I missed something in my day.

Where do you work out?

Train local! 

River City Personal Fitness - http://www.rcityfitness.com and CrossBarre - http://www.crossbarre.com have changed my life. If you’re local to this area, they can change yours, too.

Got any workout must-haves?

I’m very organized and routine... I do the SAME THING every morning before class. And I have MUST-HAVE gear. Gotta have the right shoes and GOOD shoes... take care of your feet. I need awesome, comfy socks, and headbands galore - because I sweat buckets and it’s not cute, especially if it won’t stop running down my entire face.... um, ew.

Favorite gear?

A no brainer for those who know me :) lululemon, basically everything. It’s a real problem, actually. But for me, they really do make THE BEST of everything. Athleta is a close second. And like I’ve said before, if you look good and feel good, you perform better. I can’t ever WAIT to put on my new gear and outfits! lululemon make the best crops and shorts - Wunder Under Crops, and Speed Track Shorts are my favorite. They literally do not move and feel like a second skin. Wild Tanks, and any draped back tanks - love. Energy Bra, Splendour Bra, and Free to Be Wild bras - personal faves. Speed Shorts - to run in or to just wear to the store. Swift Tech Racerback tanks, 5mm reversible yoga mat, small towels... So... basically everything they make. =)

Athleta is no joke either. Any Fastest Track gear and Chaturanga crops! They have some awesome draped tanks as well, with the shelf bra included - great support! Full Force tank from Athleta is one of my favorite tanks I own. And Athleta, being owned by Gap, has way better sales and variety of everything than lulu.

Oh, and finally for fun - give me any funny workout tank. I LOVE those. Endless options are on Etsy.com. The latest one I just ordered? “I do it for Chipotle”. So funny, because it’s so true. :)

That’s all folks - enjoy your Sunday “cheat day”! :)