Saturday

Saturday, July 26, 2008

Good Morning!

It is going to be an absolutely beautiful weekend here in the Chicagoland area. I love the weekends. My DH and I have started making the most out of our free time and it's been amazing.

Today we are going to ride along the lake and go to Racine. They are having an Italian Festival. I'm not sure what it is and really don't care. As my DH has come to realize I really don't care where we go as long as I'm on that bike. So once we go check out Italian Fest we are going to check out what Racine's lakefront has to offer. Then we are going to check out Great Lakes Dragway. It is a very historic race track in our area. I can't wait to check it out. I want to get my picture taken by the sign or something. LOL Then the other guy we ride with wants to go to Blarney Island in Antioch because Girls Gone Wild are supposed to be there. Again, don't really care just glad to be out on the bike. If nothing else it will be a cool party!

Tonight is also Venetian Nights along Lake Michigan and there is a Cruise Night in Lansing. So we have plenty to keep us going today. I'm not sure how many of these things we will cram into our Saturday but we have options and a map. So off we go (in about 3 hours).

I still got up this morning (5am) and worked out. Instead of Pilates like I usually do on Saturday I added a cardio bike day. I always comment to my friend that I need to boost up my cardio but never seem to do it. So today seemed like a good day since my real exercise will be limited to sitting on the back of the bike for like 250 miles.

I did awful with my goals yesterday. I only had 16 oz of green tea but about 32 oz of water. That's better than I usually do so I'm happy with that. I measured all my portions for my lunch and snack. The part where I failed miserably was eating a very non-vegan brownie at work. I knew when I grabbed it and stuffed it into my mouth that I would guilt myself about it the rest of the day. But I still put my fat little fingers on it and shoved it in my mouth. Then I had to run to the cell phone store for my boss and thought as a treat I deserved a peanut butter cookie. Are you freakin' kidding me? Yes, I ate the whole thing. So obviously sweets are still haunting me and for some reason I just can't shake them.

I'm re-reading the book Breaking the Food Seduction. The only problem I have with the program is it relies heavily on fake meat and I just don't eat that stuff. I need to just give up the sugar. I know when I'm doing it that I shouldn't but still do. I guess it's kind of like an alcoholic or drug addict. They know they shouldn't but just can't stop themselves. What makes me different is that I can stop I just choose not to. This is so frustrating to me.

Moving on....today is going to be a great day. I'm going to pay attention to what I eat. I'll pack a few snacks for our little trip today. I've been pretty lucky finding something vegan to eat when we stop so I'm not too worried about that. I just need to be mindful of the snacking when everyone else wants a shake. My goal for today is to get plenty of water and to choose a healthy snack.

Have a great Saturday!
Kelly

  

TGIF

Friday, July 25, 2008

It's finally Friday! This weekend is supposed to be absolutely beautiful here. It will be a great riding weekend.

Today I pushed through the legs and shoulders workout. I really pushed myself again. I think the blog is helping me to stay honest. I don't want to have to admit I cheated or went easy on myself.

I did well with my goals yesterday. I had 32 oz of green tea (I love that stuff) and about 16 oz of water. Portions weren't a problem either. I haven't been entering my food into the nutrition tracker this week. I just don't have the time. I try to read every thread that is started and comment where I feel inclined but I can't spend a lot of time on the computer or I don't get anything else done. LOL

I'm going back to read the book Breaking the Food Seduction by Neal Barnard. My girlfriend also bought the book Becoming Vegan by Brenda Davis that I think I will pick up. You can't have too many reference books and I like the vegetarian one.

I'm not quite sure what we are doing this weekend. Saturday night we are doing a cruise night and maybe Venetian Nights by Lake Michigan. As for the Sunday ride, I'm not quite sure. I know we are going North but no destination has been agreed upon. I'll be checking that out today though.

Have a great day!
Kelly

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

IZZIEE_E 7/25/2008 11:09PM

I need to get a few books on vegan. I have none and leave everything to google. Great job on being honest in the blog. It is very self - revealing! Report Inappropriate Comment

Happy Birthday to me....well sort of

Thursday, July 24, 2008

This will be the only time I celebrate this milestone. Today marks one year since I quit smoking. I haven't cheated not even once. I have now been smoke free for one year. I will now consider myself a non-smoker and no longer put any emphasis on this topic. I don't miss it. I don't miss the way everything I own stinks. I don't miss the way I was out of breath just walking at a nice clip. I don't miss having to hide because it's not socially acceptable anymore. I don't miss spending lots of money supporting Cook County and the state of IL.

Today is cardio day and one of my favorite workout days. I am loving the HIIT program. I've been more tired this week though. Might need to boost the protein in my diet to compensate for the extra burning. I'm going to monitor what my body craves today.

I struggled with the water intake again yesterday. I got busy at work and just didn't drink it. I guess I need to make it a game or something.

I'm going to the Farmer's Market this morning to see if I can get some mushrooms for grilling this weekend. I promised my DH a nice steak so I need to have lots of veggies for myself.

Enjoy your day!
Kelly

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

LILLIAN364 7/24/2008 11:28AM

Congratulation on being smoke free. It's no small accomplishment. Report Inappropriate Comment

BELIEVINGISEING 7/24/2008 11:10AM

congratulations. You should be proud. It is very hard to quit smoking. My hubby has been smoke free, for just over 13 months. It took him a long time since he had been smoking since he was about 15 and is now 59. He just decided one day, he had enough, and he quit. I think it is easier to quit cold turkey because he had tried to cut down by the week and that didn't work. Have a great day and enjoy your grilled veggies. Pam Report Inappropriate Comment

RATSAMONGUS 7/24/2008 11:07AM

Kelly, that is owe of the biggest accomplishments ever and I am so proud of you for quitting and moving on! Look how far you've come and now you're enjoying HIIT! Woohoo! Good for you girl! For the water, I find that if you try and drink a cup an hour average you will be good, stopping a bit before bed of course. I got sick in March and bumped up my water to double what I was drinking and it truly helped me recover I believe. I continued with the increased intake ever since and now when I drink less than 8-10 cups, I feel it. I's so happy things are going well on the health front, you have come so far and it will keep getting better. :) Nancy Report Inappropriate Comment

Wednesday

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Happy Hump Day!!

It is going to be another beautiful day here in the Chicagoland area. The storms have passed and the sky's are clear. That's kind of how my mind feels today...clear. LOL

Not a lot rolling around in the ole noggin today. My workout was great though. It's back & biceps day. I find it hard to boost the intensity on this series due to the fact that the heaviest dumbbells I have are 15 lbs but I do the best I can with increasing the reps.

I didn't do well with my water intake yesterday. I find that I have to always think about drinking water or else I just forget and then try to gulp down 32 oz to make up for it. I did have 32 oz of green tea and about 12 oz of water. I will make a better effort today.

I did very well on my portions though. Last night I only had a single serving of pasta but extra sauce. After one of the threads yesterday I'm giving up my nightly snack. Again, I eat dinner about 7 or 7:30pm there is no need for a snack seeing that I go to bed about 9 or 9:30pm. So my treats will be on the weekend only. The thread talked about if you convert to a vegan diet gradually or cold turkey. With the gradual way you are just holding onto that last thing for dear life and using it as a reward. Those weren't the exact words but that's what I took from it. I've been holding onto that nightly snack like I'm addicted (which I probably am). So I'm ripping off the bandaid all in one yank starting today!

I hope it is beautiful where you are today.
Kelly

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

RATSAMONGUS 7/23/2008 10:55AM

Hi Kelly, I just read that very same thing recently but can't remember where? Anyway, it does make a lot of sense. I guess some just have different experiences than others, or it's just a different way of looking at things. I tend to think about the reason why I wanted to be Vegan in the beginning and it keeps everything in check for me. Sounds like you are doing well. Keep up the good work with the exercise and eating. Consistency is so important in this journey. :) Nancy Report Inappropriate Comment

Tuesday

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

What an awesome workout today!! I started week 3 of HIIT training. I feel amazing today. Today is my cardio only day and I increased to 30 minutes and added an extra interval. Maybe I like the game I play with myself while I'm riding; whatever it passes the time while I'm on there. I really pushed myself and it feels great.

I tried something new for breakfast this morning. Most people probably call it muesli. I put 1/2 c of rolled oats in 1/2 c of almond milk and added assorted dried fruits. I had cranberries, strawberries, blueberries and raisins. Then this morning I added walnuts and almonds. Most recipes call for some sort of added sugar whether it's maple syrup or honey or whatever. I didn't add any of that and it was wonderful. If you are looking for a cold cereal that doesn't cost a fortune make it yourself.

I've been thinking a lot about things that I can make myself that cost a lot in the store. I probably spend a mint on bread alone. I like healthy bread so of course it's not $1.50. It's more like $5 per loaf. So I'm on the hunt for a great bread recipe. I need to just start experimenting and find something I like. My family used to make just about everything we ate. I'm just getting back to that as an adult. It's funny how life comes full circle.

I did pretty well with my goals for the week. I drank 2 16 oz green teas without any sweetner and probably 30 of the 36 oz mug at work. Then I came home and probably drank another 12 oz of water. For a snack last night I had a scoop of tropical sorbet. The only thing I didn't measure was my left over mushroom. God, it was so good. So all in all I think I did pretty well with my goals.

Yesterday I started reading about what to eat when. What is best to eat post workout? How should I eat throughout the day? Everyone has their own opinion on this subject. It's interesting to see the differences. Although most body building sites don't have any information for vegans it's still interesting to read their thoughts. I used to be into body building and protein loading etc. So I'm no stranger to the topic. Now I just have more knowledge about my body and being healthier.

Anyway, that is what is rolling around in my little head this morning.

Have a GREAT day!!
Kelly