Results , week 3

Down 1 lb!  I'm excited about that.  I did cheat some this week.  Cookies at small group, soy caramel brûlée latte on Thursday.  I pushed myself during work outs though.

Monday: RIPPED & Zumba

Tuesday: Zumba toning

Wednesday: Cardio Dance  & RIPPED

Thursday: Zumba + strength portion of RIPPED

Friday: 30 min Zumba toning + 60 min Zumba

Saturday: RIPPED & Zumba

Calorie burn from Wed

Steps from Sat

Here's to a zero change week ahead !  Whose with me???

Device I use and Love

So, I blogged a bit ago about my FitBit (find that post here)

Here's a picture of my Heart Rate Monitor after my work out at the Y.  I double up on classes a few days a week and today was a dance class followed by RIPPED.  Love getting my workout in on days like this!

What I like about the Heart Rate monitor is that it accounts for exertion, something the FitBit can't really do.  So, when I'm lifting weights, but not moving, the FitBit thinks I'm "inactive".  My heart rate says differently.  It's a more accurate calorie burn picture in my mind and also is a gage to me of when I can "push harder".  It does require a chest strap.  The one that comes with this is soft and has a removable node so it's easy to wash and care for.

Here's the FitBit that I have and I do still use it daily.  I love having the challenge of 10,000 steps, the social interaction of having friends there and compare stats between the two from time to time.  It's a nice daily reminder to be active throughout the day.  Here's a screen shot of what the app looks like.

It's super easy to use, tracks water, weight, foods and you can tell it what your goal weight is and it will adjust.  I like that it's so easy to use.  I don't use it much for food now but it's highly functional for that.

So what would I recommend?  Depends on your goals.  If it's simply to encourage more daily activity and you're motivated by goals like the FitBit provides, it's a great option and their customer service is awesome.  If you're working out a good amount and curious if that "calories burned" that your Zumba instructor or other fitness instructor cites is accurate for you, definitely go with the heart rate monitor.  I use both :)

Do you use a fitness device?  If so, what?

Birthday Week

It was my hudband's birthday  & a very busy week.  Between baking homemade cupcakes with buttercream & feeling like I needed 30 hours in every day , it was easy to let the eating slide.  The scale showed it- up a pound.

So I'm going back to being good this week.  Started again today which means resisting the urge to enjoy the BOGO at Starbucks today.  *sigh*

I'll be happy Sat but am craving a latte now!

Happy Sunday folks !

Cravings

One of my biggest cravings/ comfort foods is pizza.  Yum.

I wanted nothing more than to pick up a pizza on the way home from Zumba along with The Croods for movie night.

But, I stayed strong and we're eating the stuffed peppers I prepared earlier today.

I'm curious- what is your hardest to curb craving?  Do you have a healthy alternative or indulge sparingly? :)

Week 1 Results

I lost 3 pounds this week!

More important to me, I broke through a plateau!  I haven't been below 140 since I delivered my daughter almost 2 years ago.  It's like a whole new weight "decade".

So, needless to say, I'm happy with the results both with my weight & how I'm feeling!

What My First Paleo Week Was Like

Tomorrow will be my official weigh in.  Here are my thoughts on the past week.

1. I was the only one in my house to completely switch to paleo. (and that's ok.  I wasn't as tempted as I thought I would be.)
2. I could tell a big difference in my clarity of mind and ability to stay calm in situations that normally would have sent me over the edge.
3. I realized that one of my biggest concerns (being a picky girl with texture issues) was that I wouldn't have enough "ok" foods to be satisfied.  I'm still working on this one, BUT, I also realize that the foods I was putting in to my body otherwise weren't healthy or "ok" choices.  It's hard to explain, but it makes sense in my head. ;)
4. Even someone who doesn't like veggies and fruit can make a stab at this and see how it works out.
5. I am looking forward to date night tomorrow and my cheat meal.  I'm debating how much I want to "cheat' because I know that I'll feel cruddy after I do. 

So, what did I eat?

Everything we ate this week was great.  I'd put it all on the menu again.  Some of the meals were:

Pork Roast with Mashed Parsnips

Butternut Squash Soup (topped with walnuts) with Almond Biscuits

Pumpkin Muffins for Snacks & Breakfast

Rotissiere Chicken (used carcass for broth for the soup) and sweet potato rounds

Italian Sausage and Sweet Potato with peas (shown in photo above)

Definitely didn't go hungry and I felt way better serving my family real food again.  The kids are not on board yet, but I am hopeful that the more we just serve food in a "this is what you get" mentality, they'll eventually adapt.  I do add fruit and a carb to their plate to help transition them in to trying something new.

For me?  I pushed myself once or twice to do an apple dipped in almond butter.  That's WAY out of my zone!  And kept some Lara bars on hand.  I am planning to try and make my own for the upcoming week.

And tea.  I'm not cutting the sugar out completely at the moment so sometimes, during the day, instead of eating, I would just make tea.  I swapped out creamer with unsweetened vanilla almond milk.

What did I love about this week?  My energy level, how easy it was to fall asleep (and I was actually tired earlier in the evening) and not counting calories.

I hope that helps!  Do you have any favorite wheat & dairy free family meals?  I'd love the links!

Restarting

It's not so much a restart as an adjustment.  I have posted about my love of my FitBit and I do adore it.  The tracking is awesome and the Friends feature is such a motivator for me.

But I have a 22 month old who has been fighting serious asthma issues and I am looking at eliminating dairy to see if it helps.  I have a very active boy who I have considered an elimination diet for many reasons and for the past few years.  I have been edging our family more towards WHOLE eating as well...  So, of course, I started reading up on Paleo.

I'm not saying I'm going strict, cold turkey and agree with all the logic.  But I'm curious.  So started today with it.  This carb-loving, dairy addicted momma didn't have either today and I actually feel decent.  (Wait, I am sure that I had carbs, but I had no processed grains.)

I'm inspired by some of the transformations I have come across and also by the clear cut way to decipher whether something is "ok" to eat.  I am worried my palate is not going to allow me to eat the breadth of foods that I need to see the biggest benefit BUT, even doing anything is better than nothing, right?

Will post weigh in results on Saturday (I weigh and then I cheat- only way I can avoid binging!)

Have YOU tried Paleo?  Thoughts?