Muscle Recovery & a Product Review

Lately I've been trying very hard to listen to my body, particularly in the areas of exercise and muscle recovery. It's really easy to get caught up in your goal of exercising 6X a week and forget to give your body some rest. I still haven't learned exactly what my body needs as far as recovery yet, but I am getting much closer to figuring it out. So far I've learned that I better plan on at least two easy days after a Jillian Michaels workout, and one for weight lifting. If I'm to sore to walk down my stairs I take that as a resting day. It's all about listening to your body. Once I've started doing this I've noticed a huge improvement in my workouts. I feel like I get much more out of them and they are much more enjoyable.

Many people who go through rapid weight loss have the unfortunate side effect of muscle atrophy. This is why protein is SO important in a weight loss diet. When your body is starved for protein it can start to breakdown your muscles as a last resort. I have been told to try to get in 75 grams of protein each day. It's a difficult task but I know that not only will it prevent atrophy, but it will help promote the rebuilding of muscles after exercise and strength training. The only way I come close to getting my recommended amount of protein in is by supplementing with protein shakes. I have been using UNJURY medical quality protein powders.

 They have a few flavors to choose from which include chocolate splendor, strawberry sorbet, vanilla, and unflavored. I have tried all the flavors and by far my favorite is chocolate splendor. When mixed with 8oz of milk it really tastes just like chocolate milk! It really doesn't have that proteiny taste and blends very well in my blenderball shaker. I try to get in at least one of these shakes a day, especially if I've had a good workout. The unflavored is actually pretty unflavored. I've added it to things like pudding, mashed potatoes, and milk for my cereal. You can tell it's there, but barely. The strawberry and vanilla are ok, but I love my chocolate. :-)

Here are some nutrition facts: One scoop + 8oz skim milk (IGA brand)

Calories: 190

Carbs: 17

Fat: 0

Protein: 29

Sodium: 185

Sugar: 15

Also here is the breakdown. You could cut down a lot of the sugar and calories by replacing the milk with something like unsweetened almond or soymilk. 

In other news, I'm seriously considering getting a Fitbit. I'm leaning toward the Fibit Flex but i'm not so sure. Does anybody have experience with one? Do you love it? Also are there any other fitness trackers that I should consider? 

Happy Monday! 

The 40lb difference

It's incredible what 40 lbs can do for your body. My resting heart rate has decreased about 10 bpm, my body has WAY less aches and pains, and I am less out of breath walking up flights of stairs. To be honest the best thing about the 40 lb difference is that I am so much more confident in myself. This confidence boost has perfectly coincided with the start of student teaching. I was able to go shopping for 'teacher clothes' and fit into sizes that I haven't been able to fit into for years!

If you're going through this journey with me, just keep pushing! It's amazing how your own body can motivate you once you start seeing results. 

~Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.

-Lou Holtz

Those NSVs or Non-Scale Victories

Anyone who has ever followed any type of weight loss program knows that there will be a point where you will stall. In the past those stalls have been devastating for me. If I had a week with no loss or if it went up I automatically felt like a failure. As an emotional eater this threw me right back in the cycle of depression, eating, and gaining back all the weight. This time as I approach a stall I know I need to put away that evil scale and focus on those non-scale victories. A NSV can be anything from getting a compliment at work to fitting in your clothes better. These victories can be GREAT motivation when the scale isn't. After all this journey is about much more than losing weight, it's about getting healthy. If you are struggling with a stall or anticipate one coming up in the future I strongly encourage you to focus on those NSVs with me, and if you can try putting the scale away for a few weeks.

My NSV this week came from going to the gym when I knew I didn't have much time before I had to go to work. I didn't have enough time to do my planned C25K workout so I decided to attempt to run a mile and time it. I have had a goal to run a mile without stopping for a while now. I have been about to do it in the past, but it was always at a speed where I felt like I was doing more of a bouncy walk than a run. I  never remember having a timed mile of under 15 minutes. To my amazement not only was I able to run a mile, but I was able to do it in 13:37. A new personal record for me! How many morbidly obese people can run a mile in 13 minutes ;-) I am very proud of this victory. I am now able to cross off #1 on my fitness goals page. #2 is running a mile under 10 minutes, which is something I hope to accomplish by the time I hit my goal weight.

~Don't be afraid to push yourself, you may be surprised about what you can accomplish.

'Core & More' Fitness Class

Welp, I actually did it! I went to (and survived) a group fitness class... A REAL class with REAL fit people. There were even 4 varsity volleyball players in there and of course they had to be wearing their super short tight shorts things. I'm pretty sure not even an inch of those girls jiggled one bit... With that being said I did feel awfully out of place in the beginning. There were huge mirrors covering the walls and I almost turned right around when I realized I would have to watch myself bounce around like an uncoordinated idiot.  Luckily I found my place in the newbie corner and started feeling much more comfortable after that :-)

The class was about 50 minutes around and starts with 30 minutes of aerobic 'warm ups' followed by a 20 minute toning session. I felt like I did pretty well during the first part. There was music being played as I found that as long as I kept to the beat I was able to keep up and not fall over myself. The last 20 minutes were HARD! I did modified versions of all the exercises and still died a little each time the lovely words "One more time" came out of that beautiful woman's mouth. Seriously she was drop dead gorgeous. Talk about motivation! Overall I really enjoyed myself but am not looking forward to the soreness tomorrow morning. It seems my body is taking longer to recover with less calories. Next class is Wednesday night! Wish me luck!

Week 6 updates

Weight Update:
I went to the doctor's Wednesday for my 6 week check-up. Apparently they couldn't be happier with my progress! I'm about 35lbs down from my high weight and am feeling great. I have more energy and my joints are feeling better. Also I am now cleared to workout as much and as hard as I want. As excited as I am to get back in the pool I'm still feeling pretty self-conscious about getting in a bathing suit (if it even fits!)

Nutrition Update:
My appointment with my nutritionist went great as well! She is such an amazing woman and I honestly love meeting with her. She is SO supportive and is really invested in her patients. Since I have been doing so well she has advanced my diet early! The stage 3 diet which I have been on for the last few weeks has consisted of foods that are soft enough to be squished with a fork. It also included a minimal amount of crackers and toast. When I told her that I hadn't had any problems and that I felt like I was eating too many crackers (what my husband now calls the world's longest lasting box of wheat thins) she asked me if I felt like I was ready to  semi-advance to stage 4! The stage 4 diet is what is considered to be the 'life-long' bariatric diet. On it you can basically test any food, but need to make smart choices and stay away from things with super high fat and sugar. I'm not completely on this stage yet because she wants me to stay away from pasta, bread, and other starchy carbohydrates, but it means I can have raw fruits, veggies, and nuts! I have to be careful how many veggies I eat though because if I filled my tummy with them all day I would never meet my protein goals. The order of importance goes hydration first (64oz), protein (75-80g), then everything else. I am still struggling a bit with my hydration goals but it has been much easier to hit my protein now that I am off the all liquid diet.

Fitness Update:
I have started another couch to 5K program! I actually ran my first 5k last fall but it was a mixture of pride and disappointment. I was able to run the whole thing but was so far behind that they started taking the signs down before I finished. I am really looking forward to doing another 5k with less weight on my body and more consistent training before hand! I have already found a race in April that I would like to sign up for. Maybe I can convince my husband to run too?! I have been tracking all my running on http://www.dailymile.com . If anybody else uses this site I would love to friend you!

On top of the C25K program I have started to do some light weights and have signed up for a 'core and more' fitness class. The class seems pretty intimidating, but I really think I can learn a lot. I can figure out my arms and legs but the core is still a mystery to me. Also, with my history of back problems I feel like my body can really benefit from it! I have read countless articles about how important weight training can be with weight loss. This could have been one of the main things I was missing in all my past attempts! Not only can lean muscle mass help you burn more calories just sitting around, but it could help fill in any potential lose skin that can result from dramatic weight loss. (I'm terrified of lose skin!) Plus, strong is the new sexy right? ;-)

God Bless!

2014: A New Year a New Lifestyle

As this year rolls around I find myself thinking about all my past failed new years resolutions. I am determined that this year will finally be my year of change; my year of successes. This 'project' of heath and fitness has turned into so much more. It is not just a project because projects have endings. I want so much for this to be lifelong and I plan on working my ass off (literally!) to make it so. I have been so encouraged by everyone around me and had so much more support than I could ever have imagined. This year as I write out my health and fitness goals, I am not doing so expecting to fail. I am so blessed and couldn't thank you all enough. 

2014

1. Hit my 100lb loss mark. (67 to go!) 

2. Run a mile without stopping

3. Run a mile under 10 minutes 

4. 365 miles for 365 days

5. Run 5 miles without stopping

6. Race another 5K

7. Race my first 10K  

8. Complete Jillian Michaels 30-day shred

9. Backpack Pictured Rocks

Here's to a new year and a new lifestyle! God bless!