Week 2!

This is yesterday, week 2, of our "FIT for the 4th" challenge. It's amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it: I did a Turbo HIIT workout, Turbo abs, and then my wonderful husband helped me with an intense lift. I haven't d-lifted in months, and he tricked me into a heavier weight. A few circuits and I ended up deadlifting 185-5x for 7 sets. Whew! My back feels it today, that's for sure! The food pics: 2 post-workout shakes (one after turbo and one after lift), Ezekiel bread (gluten free!) with PB and a banana, and to increase my protein: cottage cheese with pink himalayan sea salt and cayenne pepper. Yumm!! 3 weeks left: 2 lbs down, 18 to go!

Day 4!

Day 4! Bailey got tuckered out from Turbo and our long walk :)

-Shakeo for breakfast

-Jalapeno lime shrimp for lunch

-Chobani for snack

-Seafood salad with spinach for dinner

Shakeology: the healthiest (tastiest) meal of the day!

Chocolate-Strawberry Cheesecake Shake!
This deserves a post of it's own: My beachbody coach Kelsey Shackley introduced me to it:
1 scoop chocolate Shakeology
4 strawberries
1/4 packet no-sugar no-fat cheesecake jello mix
8 oz Almond milk (unsweetened)
OMG to die for!

"Fit for the 4th!" Challenge

FIT for the 4th!

32oz bottle - trying to drink at LEAST 4 a day! (1 gallon)

Day 2!

Day 1 of my challenge, "FIT for the 4th!"

catch-up post

My new favorite snack: 1/4 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt with berries and dark chocolate chips!
I also added a little bit of stevia to sweeten it up :) SOOOO good!

AhMAZing sushi rolls I had the other night! Tom's parents took us out
for a fun day in the hills and dinner :) #solucky

OK so one of the girls in my challenge group posted this recipe, and I'm too curious not to try everything
at least once:
1/2 c cottage cheese
1 tbsp chocolate protein powder (shakeology)
2 tbsp of peanut butter
It wasn't half bad but the texture is sure something I'm going to have to get used to!

Bailey was tuckered out after TurboFire! She's my little workout buddy :)

Myths Debunked

Here is a great article on a few nutrition myths with research to back it up. So many people think that "low-fat" is all that matters when in reality, a higher calorie diet consisting of low carbs, high protein, and plenty of fruits and veggies is best. Interesting read :)

8 Ridiculous Nutrition Myths Debunked

Click the above link :)

Who's joining me in June??

I'm teaming up with BeachBody coach Kelsey Shackley in her June Challenge group.
I'm ready to take my fitness to the next level, and she's looking for a few
others to join her group! Are you with me?! I decided to do TurboFire since I
already run and lift and I really want a fun, effective cardio workout. I'm so excited to start.
Contact me if you're interested or look up Kelsey on Fbook! (fb.com/kjshackley) 

Food inspiration

How naughty does this look? It's actually breakfast and it's Tropical Strawberry Shakeology!
1/2 banana
1 c coconut milk
1/4 c raspberries
1 scoop TS Shakeo + ice!

One of my favorite "sweet treats!"
1/2 c plain NF Greek yogurt
1 tsp honey
1 small mango + raspberries

Lunch Salad with cherry tomatoes, celery, cucumbers, *ham, a spring mix with spinach, and
homemade honey mustard dressing: plain NF Greek yogurt + honey + mustard + parsley + cayenne pepper
*Most fitness experts caution against deli meats because of the high sodium content. I just wanted to add protein to my salad and I was in a hurry, so this was all I had. However, new research says that it can actually be harmful to not get enough salt/sodium daily, so I figured one piece of deli meat wasn't horrible :) 

All great things take time

I've been struggling lately to stay on track and to not get overwhelmed by how far I have yet to go. I've never been one for patience, so it's difficult for me to realize that all great things do take time. I'm not going to get my "dream body" or achieve my fitness goals overnight. I'm going to have to work for it every day for months, and then maintain my healthy lifestyle once I reach my goals. I got this. 

I also recently discovered that I have a gluten allergy. I'm hoping that I'll feel better and lose a little weight by getting my diet under wraps and not eating foods that hurt my body. However, it does make it hard to come up with meals and I've had to get a little creative. If anyone has any good gluten-free recipes, feel free to share :)

Alaskan salmon salad with raspberry dressing (and an espresso-coffee of course!)

I need to get some sprinkles to make my presentation better, but this is a cake batter protein shake!
Body By Vi + milk + NF plain Greek yogurt + butter/vanilla flavoring + honey

I love that fresh peppers can be cut up and frozen and used periodically for weeks. This makes it easy to throw them into recipes without taking time to cut them every time. I love fresh fruits and veggies, but it's so hard to use everything while it's fresh and I hate to see food go bad. Freezing fresh f&v helps ensure they'll be usable :)

Gluten-free corn enchiladas :)

Breakfast of champions: Chobani key lime yogurt (SOOOO delish!) and a gluten-free English muffin with organic blackberry preserves and a little softened Greek yogurt/cream cheese spread

Eat clean, train mean

Plain nonfat Greek yogurt with coconut sugar and raspberries

Body By Vi: orange flavoring and raspberries

Long run with my puppy!

Baked cinnamon apples

Coconut thai chicken and quinoa 

Rice bowl with spinach, cranberries, almonds, tomatoes, and smoked salmon with a sesame dressing

Cottage cheese with sea salt and cayenne pepper

Stir-fry veggies and mushrooms

Gluten free/Dairy free/Soy free brownies! 

Turkey burger and cucumbers 

Amazing lift!

Sunday Funday

Tom and I are setting up bird feeders in our yard and enjoying the lovely spring weather. Hoping to get at least a mile run in today with Bailey! Here is our delicious breakfast: a protein "ice cream" bowl.
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 cup whole milk
1 cup chopped mango, strawberries, and blueberries
1 scoop strawberry protein powder

May Challenge!

Since I got a little off track with finals and being super stressed, I decided to make a fitness challenge for May. I've found that having particular goals helps with accountability, so here's to a new month!

Every day, I'm going to make a point of:

Drinking a gallon of water
Eating a serving of fruits or vegetables
Avoid sugar as much as possible
Run at least 1 mile

Fit. Healthy. Happy. 

Catch-up

Being so stressed with final homework assignments, projects, and final tests, I've fallen behind in my posting. I have been taking pics of my food though, and I've been staying fairly accountable with the exception of the last 2 days. Ice cream just sounds so good when you're stressed and staying up all hours of the night :) 

Body Bi Vi: PB Shake

Stuffed Sole

Rooibos Sweet Tea

Body by Vi PB/banana protein ice cream

Grilled turkey burger & mushrooms

Grilled mahi mahi with broccoli

Mashed sweet potato

Mixed fruit & plain Greek yogurt w/ scrambled eggs

Blood orange sorbet: only 100 calories per serving

Chicken mole with asparagus 

Day 22

Lunch: Tom made a delicious scrambled egg, sausage dish with peppers and tomatoes :)

It was Lynsey's birthday, so we went to Applebee's for dinner. This was a Weight Watcher's
meal: Lemon Parmesan Shrimp, and under 550 calories. I'm sure the amount of sodium is less than ideal, but it was pretty good! 

Ok so I've been trying to avoid alcohol because it's pretty much empty calories and tons of carbs. But... it was my sister's birthday and I decided to get a wildberry mojito. I love the fresh taste of mint with fruit. So good, but so bad :/ 

Weekend: Day 20/21

Seriously my new favorite thing to eat. Like ever. Soooooo freaking yummy! I love black currant. And then add dark chocolate? Oh goodness! It also had almonds! So in moderation, this is probably a fairly decent sweet fix! (Dark chocolate is high in antioxidants and is healthier than milk chocolate. I'm sold!)

Tropical coconut Vi shake
1 cup coconut milk
1/4 chopped mango
2 chopped strawberries
2 scoops Body by Vi

I had to pick up my new computer in Rapid City today and since I had a lot of errands to run, I didn't have time to make a shake. For a "healthy" alternative to fast food, I got a Spinach Feta wrap from Starbucks. 240 cals, 10g fat, 29g carbs, 13g protein. Pretty delicious :)