Mid-Week Progress

Thanks to my husband's kindness I made it to the gym. I walked/ran 1.8 miles, alternating incline from 1-5%, burned 200 calories. The whole half hour I was wearing 2.5 lb strap weights on each arm.

I made 2 casseroles for lunch with my grandparents too!

I really need to change that tablecloth for Spring!

Cooking At Home

I'm using this week of college Spring Break to hone my casserole skills. Here's what I'm making:

Monday was Chicken Cordon Bleu Bake:

Today I made Southwestern Taco Pie

and prepped the Blueberry French Casserole for breakfast tomorrow:

Healthy Hair!

I got a haircut, and it has done wonders! The epidural caused me to lose a lot of hair for months 3-4 after the baby. Now that its finally stopped shedding, I REALLY needed some shape to it. My stylist at GreatClips, Debra, is so intuitive. She gave me EXACTLY what I wanted without even seeing a picture:

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Here's something I found that encouraged me this morning because I'm a trusting optimist: "In short, women who were optimistic and held the expectation that good things, as opposed to bad things, would happen to them were 30% less likely to die from heart disease than their pessimistic counterparts. The study also found that trusting women were 23% less likely to die of cancer than their cynically hostile or highly mistrustful counterparts. It appears that a pessimistic approach to life and hostile attitude toward people opens one up to illness and can shorten one’s life. This is a powerful lesson for those seeking peace of mind, good healthand longevity. So, I suggest you begin injecting a bit of hopefulness and positive thinking into your day and start reaping the wellness benefits of optimism." - Dr. Sklare

Spring Break Shake-Up

So, I was good today and did my resistance routine before showering and before breakfast. It was crucial that I did it then because we spent the rest of the morning at the Health Department waiting to get the baby's shots. I haven't made it to cardio yet today. I'm debating whether to get a babysitter and go to the gym or do Cardio Salsa with Netflix.

I stocked up on all the ingredients to make a new and different casserole every day. All of them are pasta and potato free, with fresh ingredients, albeit lots of cheese :)~ Yum! I did get low- or non-fat cheese though, so I'm not backsliding. I just need to use this week to polish up on my domestic skills. 

Here is what I'm going to do for cardio tomorrow: Cardio Salsa in the morning, and Treadmill Burst Training in the evening. This was my inspiration:

Break It Up. Finding it hard to fit your workout into your schedule? Breaking your cardio routine into two separate exercises actually promotes higher fat loss. "Two 15-minute sessions of high-intensity aerobics per day (before breakfast and after your last meal) is more than twice as effective as a single low-intensity 60-minute session," says Timothy Harris, Director of Athletic Development at Adaptagenix Biosciences. "Focus on brief, intense, and more frequent aerobic exercise for faster results."

If exercising more than once a day is out of the question, try strength/interval training. "Break up your [lifting] exercises and run on the treadmill for three minutes in between to keep your heart rate up and strengthen your muscles in the same amount of time," says Kevin Gianni, author of Lifestyle Fitness Points System. "You will spend less time in the gym and see better results."

New Toys!

As I have been experimenting with different workouts, I have found out what equipment I can use every day. Friday I walked with my mom on the track for 45 minutes. It was my light day after my amazing Thursday. I did find that if I don't do resistance training in the morning it probably won't happen (like a devotional).

 

Today I bought a pair of purple 5 lb dumbbells, 

jump rope and exercise bands.

While watching Burn Notice and Caprica (gotta love Hulu),

I used the dumbbells to work out my upper body, held a plank for 45 seconds, and did lunges and leg presses with the bands and dumbbells.

My baby was very entertained by my activity and got fussy whenever I would sit down. :) I have some Nutrisystem food and I ate one of those 250 cal meals. I snacked on Kroger CARBmaster yogurt. This yogurt is awesome because it is low in calories and carbs, but each one has 12g of protein (which I need to build muscle in me and supply my baby.

The Amazing Day

Ok, so it didn't start out amazing. But it got there. I managed to do a Plank before I left for class at 8 am. I got some homework done that was due today and took a test. No thrills yet, but I ate well. So after tutoring and Biology Lab, I finally got the chance to go to the gym! I considered putting it off til my husband got home, but boy that wouldn't have worked!

I got to the gym and found out about Spring Break group fitness classes for next week. Then I hopped on the treadmill. I took it easy on the incline today.
I warmed up for 10 minutes at around 3.5 mph. (While reading my anatomy study guide)
Then I ran for 5 minutes at 5 mph and I was amazed that no part of me was hurting and I wasn't even out of breath! My heart is getting stronger! That made me excited.
I walked at 3.5 mph for 2 minutes before raising the incline to 4% for the next 3 minutes.
The second burst was more difficult because I picked up the pace and walked 5 minutes at 4.0 mph at 4%, then lowered it to 3.5 mph keeping the incline for the next 3 min. 4.0 just REALLY hurts my shins!
After that I dropped the incline to 2%, walked 5 min, then ran for - get this - 8 MINUTES(!) at 5.0! That's the longest duration I've EVER done straight-through!
At that point I took the incline all the way down to zero and walked it out to the 45 minute mark.

Stats:
Kept HR (Heart Rate) between 140-160
2.6 miles
300 calories burned
45 minute workout

Can you say "ENDORPHINS"?!? :)

Finding a Balanced Routine I Can Live With

Today I'm ironing out my plan and trying to get it organized. I've been pulling together resources from different fitness articles and I'm trying to incorporate what I have available. I may have to buy some 5 and 8 lb dumbbells though because my video uses them. I'm using my wrist/ankle 2.5 lb weights right now and that makes me tired, so I'll get more comfortable with them and wait to spend money on dumbbells until I'm in the habit of resistance training. (Yay, Dave Ramsey thought-process!)'



 Today I wore the ankle weights as I walked around campus. I felt like Marley from "A Christmas Carol".
I felt much lighter once I took them off.
So remember, when you're having a down day, if you carry some weights for awhile and then take them off, maybe you can psych yourself out and have a great day after all. :)

Here are my healthy lifestyle priorities:

1. Proper nutrition

2. High intensity resistance training

3. High intensity interval or "burst" cardiovascular training

4. Strong support network for accountability and motivation

5. Proper rest and recovery

- List courtesy of http://www.dustinmaherfitness.com/

1. For my nutrition regulation, I take Prenatals and a cod liver oil supplement.
I have Crunchy Raisin Bran with skim milk every morning with a Slimfast for breakfast.
For supper I'm going to cook something with lean meats, maybe use Progresso light soups. (Richard likes to smile when I'm suckered in by advertising. Such as Biggest Loser endorsements of Extra sugar-free gum.)
I have changed my snacks to cucumber sandwiches or carrots with glazed walnuts (instead of chocolate). (I have been eating A LOT of chocolate recently! This is strange for me because I never even liked chocolate until after my baby was born in October. Weird.)

I just read about diet foods that are deceptively unhealthy, such as ground turkey that has a high fat content. It is important to cook with meats that have low fat content. Non-fat foods can be deceptive because their sugar or carbohydrate count can be high. This is something that diabetics have to be especially conscious about. I actually developed Gestational Diabetes and it has just now gone away, thanks to diet and exercise.

2. My Resistance Workout
Plus some other simple plank exercises because my obliques are pathetic ;)

3. My burst training is the Treadmill routine that I posted in the last blog entry. I will do that routine 5 days a week or two days in a row, resistance train at home, then repeat. If something comes up and I can't make it to the treadmill, I will use a cardio video at home in my living room. That way I will be without excuse.
4. Accountability: That is what this blog is for. My husband is also a strong motivator for me.
5. Rest and recovery: taking a day off of burst training every two days. Also, I MUST get enough sleep every night (6-8 hrs).