Smart choices

So last night we went out for dinner with a friend and I made some smart choices about what I was eating. Eating out is always tricky and I don't want to be "that" person in the restaurant that is so picky or gives the server a bunch of directions on how to prepare my food. Luckily they had some great meat options and all I had to do was ask for my burger without the bun. I got a bison burger - grass fed without the bun. I left feeling happy about my choices and knowing i stayed the course.

I've been having a banana for breakfast and veggies/salad for my lunches.

I am preparing a red sauce w/paleo meatballs tonight or tomorrow.

I worked out on my elliptical for 30 minutes this morning even though I was tired and uninspired. I am so glad I did too.

We have a 3 day weekend for the July 4th holiday and I plan to make the most out of it. Working out, getting my projects done, preparing paleo meals and setting myself up for success for next week.

thanks for stopping by, have a great primal day!

Paleo Powered: Take 2

I am once again initiating a full paleo commitment. I have been on and off since starting this journal but after removing one thing at a time for the last few weeks, I feel I'm ready to give it my all again.
Sugar, wheat, grains, and (most) dairy, it's time to say so long. I felt so much better the last time I did this and I'm in a place where I feel i can do it again. It does take planning, yes, but I can and will do that. I am tired of being defeated every time I step on the scale. I am tired of being tired. I am tired of feeling like all my workouts are useless. I want to feel healthy, light and clear headed.
Today is the day to reclaim my commitment to my health and to find a balance in my life when it comes to my nutrition and fitness.

Breakfast today:
Coffee

Lunch today:
Arugula and lettuce from our garden
Snowpeas from our garden
Crimini mushrooms from TJs
shredded Parmesan
carrots from TJs

Dinner tonight:
Veggies
It's not how you start the race, it's how you finish. I plan on finishing strong, lean, healthy and with a renewed sense of who I am and where I want go.

Thanks for reading. Have a great primal day!

Frustration

So, after seeing some inspiring weightloss, working out every day, and eating right, i really thought I was doing well. Unfortunately, and for reasons I cannot explain, I gained back what I lost. I have been carefully counting calories, mindful of what I eat, and still the 5lbs i lost, showed back up. This has been a constant battle over the last 4 years. I am so tired of losing the same 8lbs and never seeing the progress I work so hard for. I went to see a doctor and he told me I had to work out 2 hrs a day and restrict my calories to 800-1000 calories and lectured me on obesity and how people are always making excuses. I was so insulted and completely hurt by his words, Especially when I had my food and workout journal with me and told him about my medical history, the medication that made me gain the weight and my committment to a healthy lifestyle. When I mentioned paleo living, he scoffed of course and told me it was fadish. When he sent my blood work results in the mail, there was even a note on the paper that said, everything was fine but could be improved if I lost weight. Now let me explain, I am by no means obese, yes I am overweight, I know this, but I am not huge. I am very tall and carry my weight pretty well without looking really heavy. I'm not round, but I am thick. So, to get a lecture on my weight and no real advice on how to combat it except for a super restrictive caloric plan, I was pretty pissed. even more pissed when i saw the bill for $400 for that lovely doctor visit.
Yes, I can restrict my diet to 800 calories and I can workout 2hrs a day, but I know that i will be a cranky, hungry mess. I would have to forgo any meaningful protein, consume all vegetables and cut out dairy, sugar, wine etc, and any social life that I have because well, you really can't eat out w/your friends with a limit like that.

If I ate tons of junk food or sugary drinks, I could totally understand this chastising lecture. But when I showed him my food journal, which is all lean proteins, veggies, fruit and almonds he just looked at me and said I must be doing something wrong - implying perhaps that I brought all this with me as a fabrication. Why the hell would I bother to see him at all then??? I don't eat junk food, I don't drink soda or sugary drinks, I am so carful w/what I eat because i workout so hard. I am so frustrated right now because I'm just not seeing the results from the work I'm putting in.

I am not going to give up, but it would be so easy to do. I am going to workout harder and continue my food journal and see if things start moving in the southward directions. Another setback like the one I had this week is just to painful to bear.

So, i'm off to the basement to put in yet another workout.

Observations on Obesity and how one small step can change (save) your life

Today the sun is shining and it's promising to be a lovely day outside. My plan this morning is to workout, make a delicious omelette w/eggs provided by my chickens and some dill and basil from my garden and some mushrooms and cheese from TJs. I know there's a lot of grey area regarding dairy and paleo but I am not at the point where i am willing to give up dairy. I've cut a lot out but not everything. I can't, I just love cheese too much. Everything in moderation, right? We are headed to a BBQ at one of my husband's shipmates houses. Taking my famous salmon mousse which is usually a big hit. This means I will have to buy bread. Ugh. Bread you are the devil. I really must learn to make that paleo "bread" i keep reading about.

Yesterday we had a great time out in Port Orchard. I always enjoy taking the ferry and seeing the Sound. We watched UFC and soaked in the hot tub and we were pretty well spent by then. However, I started watching a show - Extreme Makeover, Weightloss Edition. It was unbelievable. They follow one perosn for a year, provide all the tools necessary for successful weightloss and then reveal their success at the end of the hour. It was amazing. Again proving that if you want to, you CAN lose weight w/diet and exercise and not surgery. I think for some people the surgery is necessary, but for others I really do see it as an easy answer. I've known people that weren't especially huge that somehow got approved for the surgery and I've known people that needed that surgery and couldn't get approved to literally save their lives. Gastric and Lap band surgery has increased in recent years and w/obesity at an all time high the stigma around the surgery is decreasing. but it's still dangerous and doesnt address the underlying problem, food addiction coupled w/unhealthy eating habits. Learning to exercise, eating healthy food and addressing the psychological issues surrounding that person's relationship w/food is key in being successful. I've always eaten pretty healthy because my mother didnt really let us eat fast food or junk food. She made most of our meals and was thoughtful about what she fed us.

It is possible to eat healthy and have delicious food. I wish more people could understand that. It doesnt mean you're eating bean sprouts and tofu. Especially on the paleo plan. Meat, veggies, fruit and nuts can be arranged in such a way that you'll never get bored and you'll actually look forward to your meals instead of dreading eating another frozen, microwavable diet meal.
We are responsible for keeping our bodies healthy and functioning at optimum levels. It's up to us to make that commitment to ourselves and to make good decisions. I know it's hard when you have so many companies marketing heart attacks to you.... Dominos Bread Bowl Pasta, IHOP's stuffed french toast and the one i just find vile and horrifying, the KFC Double Down,...and then we wonder why our country is morbidly obese. Because options like this are many, and healthy options seem to be fewer and fewer. The choice is ours though. We can choose to eat these body destroying, life shortening death traps or we can be cognizant of what's crossing our lips and how that is fuel for our bodies and what impact that food will have on our bodies, what it's purpose is for keeping us lean, clean, fat burning machines. If we think in terms of, will this make me feel sluggish and tired and be difficult for my body to break down or will this make me feel good and give me energy and be easy for my body to break down, really changes the way you make food choices.

I am not perfect but I am trying everyday to live better, to make the best decisions I can for myself and getting my body into a place that is healthier, efficient and clean burning so that I can live a long, healthy life. Paleo is definitely helping me do that. I know a lot of people aren't ready to go paleo, but just a few small adjustments and you can ease yourself into it....you can slowly become the person you always knew you could be.
I highly recommend the Kaizen way. It's how one small step can change your life and you can apply to so many areas of your life.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen

Keeping on keeping on

Working my way through Season 1 of True Blood again. It's 45 minutes of fantastic writing that totally distracts me from the higher resistance I've set for myself and the time thats slowly ticking away. I have been consistent all week w/my workouts in the morning, even today - Saturday. This post will be short because my husband is due home from duty and we're going to a BBQ that requires a ferry ride, so I have to shake it.
Thanks for reading and keep on keeping on my fit focused friends!

A small victory

Well, after working out nearly every day, the scale finally moved. I am down 5lbs since last week. I hope I can keep it off and keep slimming. After stepping on the scale this morning - twice to make sure the reading was accurate - I felt validated that these early morning workouts are really working and are worth the effort. It's always encouraging to see the weight come off, but when you don't it just feels like you're treading water for nothing.
Here's to a small victory and hopefully many more to come.
The power of Kaizen!

Early morning workouts

As I've said previously, I am NOT a morning person. But, because trying to workout after I get home from work has proved challenging, I am now getting up earlier so I can get 45 minutes on the elliptical before heading into the office. This is working for me. Not only do I get my exercise out of the way, but I feel energized too! That sluggish morning feeling disappears a few minutes after I'm on the machine and I'm powered up. I also have the option of working out again, if I want to, when I get home. So some days I workout twice and feel really great.
Can working out in the morning make me a morning person, maybe...but it can definitely make me a fitter person!

I'm still here

Sorry for the delay in posting. I'm still here. May was very busy and I just didnt make the time to write every day. I am on and off the paleo path, but more on than off. I am down a few pounds today, which is a wonderful surprise. I've also been hopping on my elliptical nearly every day for at least 45 minutes. I pop in a movie, or True Blood and the time flies by. I am not focusing on a date anymore...just a number and when I reach that number is when I reach that number. Trying to set goals by dates on the calendar just frustrates me and makes me feel more defeated when I don't hit my marks. So I am just taking each day on it's own and pushing forward the best way I know how in the hopes the results I want will be soon start appearing. And I'm not beating myself up about it anymore either. I'm 37 years old and I've made myself a wreck over my weight for 22 yrs. I've been thin most of my life, but I've always been so hard on myself even when I was 120lbs (I'm 5'9", so that's pretty skinny). I look back at pictures where I was so incredibly thin and I remember that even then I thought i was too heavy. Why are we never satisfied? Why do we always feel there's 5 more pounds to lose?? Why do we torture ourselves this way? No more! I will not do this to myself anymore. I am not going to let mood or happiness be dictated by a number on a scale.

My motivation now is to be healthy for me, not for someone else, not for a special event, just for me.
I want to be healthy and have a fit body that I can be proud of. I want to shine and be seen and turn heads when I walk in the room the way I once did. I can do it, I just need to be focused and forgiving of myself when I have a misstep. This is new territory for me, but I am adventuring into it with my eyes focused on the future, not the past.

Ginger Power!