Tags
empty calories, home workout, Interval training, Made to Crave, PB & Banana, Salad, Shakology, Tennies
It’s The Weekend
Yay for the weekend! So glad it is finally here. Why? Because I get to spend time with my favorite person & best friend (aka = my sister, Ann)! We are starting off our weekend with a morning BodyPUMP workout at the YMCA! I am so pumped for it, obviously. I am counting down the hours. Hah! ~ I love when Ann is home to join us! It is always a super great workout on Saturday mornings because there is just so much ENERGY radiating through-out the room!
This Morning’s Workout
If you haven’t looked at the workout I posted today, you should ~ I stayed at home instead of going to the Y due to the weather conditions. But I still had an awesome workout! For two reasons: I was finally able to put back on my Pod & listen to my favorite playlist (something I hadn’t done all week since I had been attending classes at the Y). And I got to try out my new Tennies that just came in the mail yesterday…I absolutely LOVE them! ~ They were a Christmas gift from my parents & Ann. They definitely know what I like.
I used the treadmill and devised an interval workout that involved walking uphill, running, then getting off the treadmill to do a series of leg, arm, ab & cardio exercises. I repeated the series several times, only each time I increased the intensity and incline on the treadmill and varied the stationary exercises. Man, I loved it. I think I had so much FUN doing it because the whole time I pretended I was leading an entire class in all the exercises. So I was constantly shouting motivational phrases in my head & picturing myself in front of the group I was leading. LOL! After I finished, I thought to myself, “wow, I’m going to have to see about seriously leading a class like this at the Y because it was a kick-butt workout!” I’ll have to do some investigation into if there would be room to get on & off the treadmills at the Y quickly in order to incorporate the stationary exercises.
Today’s Eats & Tasks
After the morning workout, I showered before enjoy the same recovery breakfast as yesterday ~ Toast with a little PB & 1/2 a sliced Banana on top. I guess my metabolism was revved up from the great workout, because about 1.5 hours after I ate my toast I was feeling hungry again. I made sure I was hungry & not just thirsting by downing a big tervis tumbler of water and then waiting 10-15 minutes. When I still had the feeling of hunger, I opted for a few carrots dipped in fat free fiesta ranch dip! <– You can get this easy-peezy recipe from the ‘Must Make’ Recipe page!
I spent the morning going through all sorts of clothes in my room & then spent the afternoon driving to Btown to pick up my favorite person & pup…Ann & Lillian! I made a Shakeology shake for lunch & drank it on my way to Btown. It was delish!
When we got home a good 6 hours later, Ann & I whipped up some awesome salads for supper…but you would know, I forgot to snap a pick of it. I also ate a fourth of my Mom’s Salmon-patty with ketchup because I hadn’t eaten one in forever. The salmon was ‘eh’, but the salad hit the spot!
I didn’t have anything sweet tonight after dinner. Which is super unusual for me, but my mind-set has changed a bit this week. Which brings me to my next topic:
Made to Crave
Finally to the heart of this post….Made to Crave. It is an awesome book that I recommend anyone who struggles with over-eating, emotional eating, or just eating habits in general purchase & read. I’m only on the 4th chapter, but I have learned so much from it already. I have begun to look at food and daily eating habits in a totally different way.
For example: When I start thinking about food & walking into the kitchen to grab a snack, I stop and say to myself “Am I truly hungry? What was the last food(s) I ate? And how long ago was it? Could I just be thirsty for some water? or possibly not hungry or thirsty?” Once I come up with the answers to those questions, I can figure out if I should really be hungry, or if its just cravings. Then, before I head to the kitchen, I stop and pray. Always. By the time I finish, I’ve found that what I thought was hunger is usually just a craving for empty calories.
I’ve already shared with you the other new habit I’ve started at the end of each meal or snack. I’ve adopted this little prayer this week: “My meal has ended. I thank-you Father for allowing me to nourish my body with this healthy meal/snack. I pray that it gives me plenty of energy & satisfies me for the next several hours.” By saying this at the end of my meal or snack, it helps me appreciate the foods I just put into my body. It also provides me with “finality” and helps me keep in mind why I ate the foods I did ~ to give my body the nourishment it needs. I know all too well that chocolate (well, except XOCAI Healthy Chocolate), pita chips, pretzels, and other ‘snack’ type foods are just “empty calories” and have no nutrients in them that will provide my body with the nourishment it needs to function. Thinking about that has really made me not want to reach for them anymore. When the thought crosses my mind to reach for a ‘snack’ like food, I think “Why eat that? It will bring my body no nourishment. No benefit. It is pointless.” I haven’t hardly eaten one ‘snack’ food or piece of chocolate this entire week. And I think this book is the main reason why.
I’ll leave you with this short exert from a paragraph in the first chapter of ‘Made to Crave’ that I really liked:
“…we crave what we eat. If I make healthy choices over a period of time, it seems to reprogram my taste buds. The more veggies and fruit I eat, the more veggies and fruit I crave. However, if I eat brownies and chips, I crave brownies and chips in the worst kind of way. Eve craved what she focused on. We consume what we think about. And what we think about can consume us if we’re not careful.”
Don’t forget to check out the MI page for today’s great quotes & pics!!
Talk to you soon & be sure to enjoy your weekend ~ taking time to enjoy the little things.