I hope I don’t disappoint you all when I say that I am giving up tweaking this meatless challenge. Before you go off judging me, I want to explain my reasoning! It has officially been a week since I started this challenge of mine and I can honestly say I didn’t feel my best.  

Throughout the week I was constantly bloated, gassy, and had the endless munchies! Now, I know it’s not just because I stopped eating meat, part of it was mental and part of it was adding in more fiber from lentils and grains – but I just found myself never fully satisfied, so I turned to late-night snacking to fulfill my cravings. However, the positive side to this was that I incorporated  more veggies into each meal.  

In regard to going vegetarian, I wanted to bring up my experience – as short-lived as it was – to show that no one diet works for everyone. Some people thrive on only fruits and veggies, some need meat and dairy etc.  You know yourself better than anyone and know what foods work best with you – the key, and I’ve said this before, is to try different approaches and see how they affect you. With that said, since I know myself very well, I know that a well-balanced diet is what I thrive on. Cutting out food groups all together has never really worked for me (I’ve had plenty of trials with that) – and sugar should not be considered a food group btw We’re not talking about fad diets here, were talking about healthy lifestyles – ones that are realistic and sustainable.

I may have failed at going 100% meatless, however I am continuing this sugar-free, processed foods free challenge and vowing to cut down on my meat intake. I also want to note that in general eating less meat is obviously a better choice than eating it three times a day, but instead of cutting foods out, it’s best – and easier –  to crowd them out by adding in more of the good-for- you foods such as; vegetables, fruits, some grains and healthy fats.  Figuring out your body and mind is a continuous journey and something you will always have to work at no matter the circumstance. Don’t give up because one thing doesn’t work for you, instead take that as a lesson and keep trying to figure out what does!

When the world says, “Give up,”
Hope whispers, “Try it one more time.”
~Author Unknown

Alright, so week 1 of October has gone by – already!! I guess I can’t complain at how I did considering my circumstances (friendly monthly visitor symptoms, busy weekend etc. etc.) Last week I accomplished a few of my stated goals: workout most days of the week – I was hoping for 5, but 4 is still most days of the week Cook more meals at home – I brought my lunch to work every day but Friday last week, and also to wake up before work and get an early workout in. I’ll be honest, it’s really really hard to stay as motivated as you were in the beginning, but I think that’s where self-discipline comes in (which I have zero when it comes to food – still a work in progress.)

Whether your goal is to lose weight, tone up, eat better or exercise more, they all require consistency and discipline.

Here are some tips I like to use to help keep me in check:

• Robo-mode trick
• Focus on the goal: weight – loss, run time etc etc.
• Write down your plan and stick to it
• Switch up the routine so you don’t get bored
• Buddy system – find a friend to join you on your quest
• Register for a race – that will definitely kick up your motivation!!

Speaking of race, my friend Georgia and I are going to registered for the 10K Turkey Trot. I don’t know how wise this is given Chicago weather, but I guess I might as well get some exercise in before I stuff my face!

We are going to follow Hal Higdon’s 10K Training Program: (Meeting up for the long runs)

http://www.halhigdon.com/10ktraining/10knovice.htm

This excites me and helps keep me motivated. Plus, it gives me an excuse to go and buy new running shoes. Yay!

Let’s talk about weight-loss since we’re on the goals topic. I know weight-loss is a common theme for most people. We always need to lose “5 or 10 more lbs” because we’re never satisfied. The body works really hard to maintain its weight, so if weight-loss is your ultimate goal you need to work that much harder.  Keep in mind, weight-loss is 80% diet and 20% workout, but you already knew that my brilliant readers! Don’t be afraid to step on the scale because denial will only hold you back, but don’t go scale happy either and weigh yourself 3 times a day because the body fluctuates all the time and it’s easy to get discouraged.

How often should you weigh yourself?

That all depends on what your goals are. For weight-loss, I have found that weighing myself once or twice a week has worked best because it keeps me motivated before the “weigh-in” and sometimes keeps me from cheating too

Here’s a good article on it:

http://www.fitsugar.com/How-Often-Should-You-Weigh-Yourself-19475333

A lot of times we are our own worst enemy and criticize our every flaw. The truth is, most people don’t notice half of the things that we notice about ourselves, and if they do then they have way too much time on their hands. If we spent half of the time we bitched about our extra 5lbs on something meaningful the world would be a better place

With that said, I want you to start being thankful for everything you have and everything that you have accomplished. Start noticing all the qualities you possess instead of all the flaws. Sometimes the trick to weight-loss is simply being positive and happy with yourself. A positive mental attitude really goes a long way!!!

I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes:

“I am still determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.”
- Martha Washington

AMEN!

I’m a snacker. Period. The end. I prefer to graze like a cow than to sit down and eat a decent meal. While some argue that eating 5 small meals a day is the best way to eat, I completely disagree. For me, the more often I eat the hungrier I get. I go from 5 “snacks” to 5 “meals” a day which immediately turns into 5 extra pounds where it should’t be – must be the 5 theme, I don’t know!

A lot of people, including personal trainers, will tell you to eat 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day – as this is supposed to speed up your metabolism. The problem with this theory is that it’s targeted toward people who are extremely active (and by extremely, I don’t mean 1 hour on the elliptical.) So, this way of eating -if you’re not extremely active- will essentially make you gain weight.  Now, if you’re eating celery or veggies as your snacks you clearly will not be gaining weight, but most people turn to processed foods like the “100 calorie packs” because they are portioned and incredibly easy. The problem with these snack foods (regardless of the organic title) is that, firstly, they are extremely processed and secondly, they have absolutely no nutritional value. Which also leads me to the whole calorie counting – as a form of dieting – thing. You can eat 1200 calories worth of “100 calorie pack” snack foods and probably still lose weight, but I can guarantee you that you’ll be starving in the process and you will be starving your body of nutrients. The key is to incorporate nutrient dense foods in your diet!

If you look at the way Europeans eat you’ll notice that they rarely – if ever- snack. They eat three meals a day – the second is the largest- and they are also walking everywhere. So, if you have a 9-5 office job and you’re munching all day long – I’m sorry to break it to you, but if losing weight is your goal you probably wont succeed unless you really amp up your workout routine. Basic Ayurvedic principles for weight-loss state that the first -and most important- goal is to get yourself to eat three meals a day. This means you need to eat enough for breakfast to get you through lunch and enough for lunch to get you to dinner without snacking. I’m borderline hypoglycemic so I always believed that I needed to eat smaller meals more frequently to stabilize my blood sugar, but I decided to put this Ayurvedic theory (also states that this way of eating helps reverse hypoglycemia) to the test to see how it would affect me. Well, ladies and gents, I must say that it’s a winner and I think I’m gonna keep it!

I will never forget my good friend, snacking. She will always be there, but I’m gonna try and keep her for social gatherings only! In fact, this past Wednesday my cousin threw a “Bridesmaids” viewing party which consisted of a lot of delicious snack foods – some healthy, some not – and you better believe I had plenty of both! That was my third time watching that movie and I laughed just as hard as the first time. Seriously- one of my favorites, ever!!

Here are some pics from the party: (we actually paused half-way through the movie to go for seconds – or thirds in my case)

The healthy set of snacks:

The not so healthy set of snacks:

I really believe the best times in life are ones spent with your family and good friends. It really doesn’t get any better than that

We are now in the lovely month of October – Breast Cancer Awareness month. I’m sure many of you know someone – friend or family-  who has been affected. If there are any 5k’s in your area supporting this cause – or any cause-  I encourage you to sign up and rock it!

PS: Shout out to my mama and Ms. Fabulous Rita for being rock-star survivors

*I only got two stars this week because this weekend was super busy, but I did have a full day of moving so that probably counts for something. Also, there was a lot of food involved this weekend… pics will be up soon!