This Week's Plan and a Weekend Recap

Hey everyone!

How was your weekend?  Mine was pretty nice I must say!  :)

Friday was full of family time!  It started with a Kindergarten picnic for Faith.  I just love working at my girl's school and knowing I can see them or get hugs any time I want.

 Later that night, we celebrated Mom's birthday.  My newly married sis made the main dish and although I only had a small taste (gotta stay on track and I knew a cheat meal was destined for the weekend) it was delicious.  The other sis brought salad and bread and I of course made the dessert.  I think she enjoyed the yummy strawberry cake!  I must say she is one of the hottest moms I know. ;)   Happy Birthday Mom!  Love You!

Opening gifts with all the grandgirls

We didn't have candles, so we used a tea light  ;)

My beautiful sister (and chef) and mom

On Saturday I slept in somewhat (does laying in bed count?) until 10.  I then got dressed and headed to a crawfish boil with Mezzy.   It was a beautiful day and felt really nice to sit around and relax.  The crawfish were yummy too!  And of course, Starbucks on the way home.

Green Tea Latte, No Syrup, With Soy (Please get  Coconut Milk Starbucks!)

Sunday was such a beautiful day and I vowed to spend as much time outside as I could.  So off to the zoo it was and patio sipping (with chips and salsa of course) happened.  Remember that cheat meal I told ya'll was coming, well it happened! 

The day couldn't of ended any better then with a stop at my favorite yogurt place.  I love how pink and girly my fro-yo looks!  Underneath all of that was some spiced chai and coconut yogurt.

Mine is on the left!

This Week's Meal Plan and Fitness Schedule:

"I Work Out!" (hehe)

Monday:  Jog (Done 3 miles, BAM!)
Tuesday:  Full Body Circuits and Yoga in the Park
Wednesday:  Jog and Arm Day #1 (shoulders, chest, and triceps)
Thursday:  Full Body Circuits
Friday:  Jog
Saturday:  Arm Day #2 (back and biceps), Booty, and Abs
Sunday:  Rest

As for meals, I just plan out a few things I want to cook when making my grocery list and then decide that morning or night before what I'm going to make.  So here are our meal ideas:

Homemade Pizza (I'll share what I do with all of you, it's super easy and yummy) and Green Salad
Shrimp & Chicken Fajitas
Baked Tilapia and Roasted Green Beans and Red Potatoes
Chicken, Bell Pepper, and Zucchini Kabobs

I also plan on dehydrating some zucchini chips ala Fitnessista style!

This will be enough food for the girls and I to have leftovers for lunch and nights I don' t cook. 

I hope you all had a beautiful weekend!

What are your meal ideas or fitness plans this week?

Much Love,

~Ash

Figuring Out What Works For Me

Well hello bloggie friends ;)

Yes, we all know I officially suck at blogging and don’t do it nearly as often as I should!  But, to be honest, it’s my blog and I kinda like it that way.  It’s something I do for fun and if I don’t have anything to say, or if I feel pressured to blog EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. then what fun is that?

So, I have spent this past month, (since this last blogpost), trying out some new “diet” things and attempting to listen to my body and fuel it the best way I know how.

I read a lot, mostly fiction and health/fitness stuff.  So my attention was piqued when I ran across a website called Whole 9.  After scouring through and reading about it I realized they had a book called "It Starts With Food" which of course I bought and read cover to cover in like a day. 

In a gist, here is what they preach:

"It is 30 days of eating “the good stuff”  – proteins, vegetables, limited fruit and fats. It’s a serious program with no room for cheat days, or even cheat spoonfuls. There are no grains, legumes, sugar (natural or synthetic), alcohol, dairy or processed foods allowed."

Summary provided by Sara @ House Bella

So I gave it a shot, for about two weeks (didn’t do the Whole 30) and vowed not to have ANY sugar and increase my consumption of fats.  I upped my healthy fat intake by incorporating avocados, coconut oil/butter, EVOO, or nuts into each meal.  I have to admit I was pretty scared to do it.  I mean that seems like a lot of fat and calories and I was freaked it was going to cause me to gain weight. 

For the most part I stuck with it.  I did have a couple of beers one night when I went out with Mezzy (names changed to protect the innocent, of course) and then the next weekend I had sushi again with the aforementioned guy.  It was his fault and he pretty much twisted my arm and told me I had to.  I mean who has to be told twice to eat sushi? (Moral of the story – Nobody is perfect!)

At the end of my two week, sort of Whole 30 experience, here is what I learned:

>Incorporating healthy fats into your diet will NOT cause weight gain

>The opposite actually happened, I dropped about 5 pounds (even with the beer and sushi)

>I became more mindful of my sugar intake and have vowed to carry this over into my “lifestyle” of   healthy eating

>I am also more mindful of my fruit/carb consumption after lunch, I am not saying I’ll never have them after lunch, I just want to be more conscientious of it

>I already knew this, but it just affirmed it for me, I freaking love avocados and coconut

>Having some form of protein at every meal and snack is super important (I wan’t so good at that before this)

>I really missed my protein powder (I use either Vega or Sun Warrior) and green smoothies

>I didn't miss bread nearly as much as I thought I would

Although I don’t plan on following a Whole 30 lifestyle exclusively I am excited to incorporate some of the things it suggests into my everyday eats. 

I think it is so important for each of us to experiment with different ways of eating so that we are successful and not only feel comfortable with our way of eating, but excited about it to.

No one way of eating is perfect for everyone.  I HATE counting calories with a passion, but I know several people who are very successful doing so.  We have to listen to our bodies and incorporate what works best for us. 

Your turn :)

Have you ever tried Whole 30? What did you think?

How would you describe your “lifestyle” eating?

Much love,

~Ash