Review: Manitoba Harvests' Hemp Hearts

I started exercising and eating clean as soon as my doctor gave me the green light. I was extremely ready to get back to my routine and get my body back. My plan was to increase my protein as I had done in the past. One difference was that now I was nursing my son.

In the past, I would normally add a whey or soy protein powder to my smoothies, but after research I found that I shouldn't supplement with either of those and that I should use a more natural source.

I eventually forgot about it and just added extra protein to my diet by eating more egg whites for breakfast and snack.

A few months later and after becoming a Sweat Pink Ambassador, I saw the opportunity to review Manitoba's Harvests' Hemp Hearts. I discovered this was safe while nursing. This was perfect as I am still nursing and still happen to be looking for a more natural protein source.  It's hemp seeds...a naturally high source of protein. 

As soon as I posted that I received this on my Instagram account, I received great feedback, so I knew it must be good.

I chose to try the hemp seeds in my smoothies. It was my intention to take more photos, but time and life took that away. Nonetheless, I did enjoy my smoothie as normal. 

I will admit the Hemp heeds looked funny, so I became skeptical of the taste, but I was so wrong. If you aren't a fan of overpowering tastes, you will love this. I don't know if it's because of the recipes that I chose, but I could hardly taste the hemp seeds. That's okay with me. As long as I am getting the nutrition I want from it.

I visited Whole Foods Market last week for other items, and happened to see Manitoba's Hemp Hearts Seeds on the end-cap (I used to work in retail, lol). I plan to use the rest of the seeds in my oatmeal in the morning, but I am glad I already know where they can be repurchased. 

*Manitoba Harvest sent me this package to review as part of my Sweat Pink Ambassadorship. This post is my true opinion.*

Do you add extra protein to your smoothies? Would you be interested in an Instagram giveaway?

Frugal Clean Eating: Meal Planning

Hope you haven't had to wait too long, but here's the second post in my new Frugal Clean Eating series or the step-by-step on what I do when it's time to go grocery shopping. Here's the first.

1. I look in the fridge and see what basic items need to be replaced. I can't stand going to the grocery store guessing at what we're out of. I usually don't get it because I guessed wrong and have to go back to the store.

2. I ask the hubs what he wants for dinner and his lunches. Usually his answer is "it doesn't matter". If I can't figure out what I want. I go Pinterest and scroll down my Eat to Live board for ideas. I forgot to mention I really don't like to cook. I cook because we have to eat. So I try to find SIMPLE and quick recipes that don't take hours. I just don't have time.

3. I create a meal list and mark off what I already have. I try to choose recipes based on items I already have when I can.

4. I create my grocery list by day and by meal. It's the best way I've found to stay organized.

This week's menu (Thursday through next Thursday)...

5. #5 is important. I try NOT to forget my list at home. It's happened.

6. The main reason why I am able to shop and save, I shop at Aldi's. Aldi's sells majority off brands, but still has name brands. But it's still quality items. They are able to offer their items at cheaper prices because they've cut costs in other areas. Most of the time I find everything I need. But in the event I don't, then I'll go to a place like Kroger's or Walmart, if I have to. For example, they don't sell baby formula, but they do sell Pampers brand diapers.

Stay tuned for the next post...my grocery haul and total spent post.

Where do you food shop?

Gone fishin'

Sorry to those who care that I've been m.i.a for a few weeks. From out of town trips, weddings, and other family gatherings, my son starting to walk, life has been crazy around here. I was supposed to post my second post in the Frugal Clean Eating series, but honestly I haven't gone grocery shopping. On top of that have not even worked out in over 2 weeks and have experienced a little trouble with my blog if you notice a lack of pics in my older posts. (I'll update my half marathon training status later in the week.)

Yesterday I was finally tired of NOT working out and was starting to feel that "I'm fat" feeling. You know that feeling in your stomach like it's a bottomless pit and look down to see that your stomach is hanging over your pants? Yea, that feeling. Around here, some things have to be sacrificed in order to do what I want. So yesterdays sacrifice was an early bedtime in order to get my workout in.

This tee definitely motivated me yesterday!

I was off for Columbus Day so I thought what better day to "start over". Side note: I miss being a SAHM. I got dressed, prepped the boy, and we were off to the gym for my favorite class, Body Works Plus Abs. 

There was a new instructor. She was pretty good and had us do sort of a circuit training style workout. I did waaaay better than I thought I would've. Especially on the arm exercises. Another side note: If you walked into a gym class and saw the instructor and noticed she doesn't "look" fit and may be on the overweight side, would you be able to take her serious? Just curious.

I'd plan to run on the "dread mill" afterwards, but was paged to get my son who had a surprise package for me to change. My gym doesn't change diapers. So yeah...

The next thing on my get back on track agenda is to finish meal planning and actually go to the grocery store this Thursday. I have a very informative post planned to show you how I will stick to my budget for the week so please stay tuned.

Do you take breaks in your fitness and healthy living journey? Do you ever get bored or burned out?

Time to Switch Gears

I'm thinking about making the "executive" decision to stop using the Nike+ Coach feature's half marathon training plan. As I previously posted, Week 5 did not go so well, and Week 6 hasn't gotten off to a great start because of that either. I've never missed a long run before.

As I sit here typing this at HOME, yes, at home on a Tuesday morning because my son caught pink eye from some grimy little kid at school, I am thinking I must not have been thinking well when I chose to try the Nike plan. 

I do like that I am already up to 8 miles by Week 5, well as of last week. So I felt like I would be ready for a 13.1 early, but the schedule is just not doable for me and my new lifestyle. The hubs agrees. My soon-to-be 11 mth old and I wake up by 5 am to be at work (also his school) by 6:30. I'm off by 2:30 and exhausted of course. Depending on the mileage and weather for that day, I run outdoors or on the treadmill. I then come home and cook dinner. Attempt to relax for a millisecond and then start prepping for the next day. I actually hate that I am devoting so much time to it and feel like it's taking time away from my son because those days I treadmill run he is in the Kid's Club when he JUST left daycare. So...yea, I think I just made my decision while typing.

I recently read a review on the Run Less, Run Faster plan that came right on time by Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC and I am thinking about giving that a try or using my real life running buddies training plan. I'll decide in the next few days. Her group is only up to 6 miles, I think.

Obviously I won't be running today because I really don't want to take my son out. His eye has started to clear up fast after we finally received the drops for his eyes. Omg, that's another story. I'm glad I am off today because I probably wouldn't of been any good to those kids this morning. There was an understandably long wait last night in urgent care.

In my self-diagnosed OCD fashion, I keep thinking about how a substitute teacher was supposed to start today to replace the other teacher in my class who is on maternity leave. I wonder is the class in shambles by now and how the are kids doing. I wonder if they are rambling through papers I already wanted to organize, as today is early dismissal for the kids so I the rest of the day was supposed to be my Teacher work day to get stuff together.

Well before this post gets anywhere else off topic, I'll just go ahead and end it here. I'll update my training by the end of the week. Hopefully I can get back on track. Usually a good Body Words Plus Abs class helps. Side note: I sooo wish I can go to one of my morning gym classes I used to go to when I was a SAHM.

Have you ever switched training plans mid training? 

Weight Maintenance Update

This type of post is something else new I've decided to formally keep up with on my blog. I've realized this is my personal weight maintenance blog, but I haven't posted anything about weight lately, just running. Running IS the way I keep the pounds off, though. Please read my weight loss journey if you haven't. I promise I tried to write it different than most. :-)

I did mention in an older post this year I lost all of my baby weight by the time my son was 6 months. Those 5 extra pounds took forever to lose, plus I was and still am breastfeeding (soon-to-be weaning).

Since then, I have loss another 10 lbs. As you know I run, go to Body Works plus Abs class at the gym, and I eat a balanced diet daily with indulgences in between (i.e. the Talenti coffee chocolate chip gelato) that had me up past bedtime the other day. I now toggle between 148 and 149. So yes, that means I've lost 50 lbs twice since I've started my whole new lifestyle in 2008.

At this point I am not trying to lose weight only fat. Tummy fat to be exact. I continue to eat clean or become consistent because I'll admit I keep taking "breaks". I'm on my feet all day at work and not snacking like I used to when I was a stay-at-home mom so that has been a major factor in the extra weight loss I wasn't even aiming for, I am sure.

Here is a very recent picture...

How are your fitness goals coming along?

Week 5 Recap

Week 5 was going so strong. I even ran that 6 miler I was so nervous about. Then all of a sudden I fell off...just yesterday. 

I was supposed to run 8 miles yesterday morning. I just knew it would be a good run since I'd done so well during the week. The bipolar weather here was just too cool to take my son out as early as I needed to get started. Note to self: I will have to buy one of those stroller weather shields. It was PERFECT weather for running, too. 

Following that disappointment, the procrastination happened for the rest of the day. The hubs had something to do at 10:30 that morning which is why we couldn't just start later in the morning. I also needed to run a few errands including go to the library. The stroller friendly trail we usually run on is not one I will be running on solo anymore in light of too many recent bad news stories. I don't think I've ever missed a long run during any of my other times training for a half.

So what will I do? I'm just going to chalk it up as a lost and continue with my training plan as usual. I choose not to sulk. Life happens. I actually could of gone today, but honestly I was not motivated. I spent a little time after church at Bed Bath and Beyond and one of my favorite places, IKEA shopping for a bay window curtain rod. Exciting. I know!

I'm getting things together and decorating around my home before my son's first birthday party next month. The party will be at our house.

Tomorrow is a new day and a chance to start over. Enjoy your week.

Has 

this ever happened to you? Did you find it hard to recover on your next long run?

New Series: Frugal Clean Eating

*Let me start by saying I have not being paid by any of the stores or brands I may mention in this series.*

Photo credit: Myhomeless.wordpress.com

I have decided instead of posting an updated grocery haul like I said I would a couple of months ago, I have decided to start a new series called Frugal Clean/Healthy Eating. I, like everyone else wants the best for their family, but I rather do so as cheaply frugal as possible.

Through the course of this series I will share how I meal plan, what stores I shop at (although it's only one store majority of the time), and I will share some of the prices in comparison to other brands.

P.S. I don't think Walmart is the best on prices for food, especially meat most times.

I've had to find ways to save money on a consistent basis for my household and this series will show exactly that. I am an occasional Couponer. Meaning I coupon when I have time and when I hear about a really good deal. Lately I haven't had the time.

There will be a mixture of name and store brand items in my shopping haul(s). For some items I like the name brand quality better than the store, but I am definitely not afraid of the store brands when trying to save a little money. If you didn't know, some of them are made in the same factories, ijs.

All in all, I want to help bust the myth and actually show that eating healthy doesn't have to break the bank if you just keep it simple.

Oh, and this will be for my family of 2 adults and 1 infant.

#FirstWorldProblems

As I sit here at 1 a.m. to write this post, 3 hours from my alarm sounding off...I'm thinking about the mileage I have to run this week. First of all, I'm up because I just HAD to have gelato before bed. Not just any flavor, I ate the COFFEE chocolate chip! I didn't think it'd really have caffeine in it. I just thought it was coffee flavored. Fail. :-(

I sit here thinking, how in the heck am I going to stay motivated to get through this training week with all of my responsibility? I'm going to be so exhausted tomorrow. Please Jesus, keep me from snapping on someone.

It was SO much more motivating when my schedule allowed me to just jump up and go to a group run on any side of town I wished. Even when I didn't feel like running. Once I arrived at the group run, it's like something magical happened. I felt like it and I ran any distance my peer would "pressure" me into...within reason of course.

Don't get me wrong, I have no regrets on my current situation. I'm just at the point ALREADY in my training where I'm not feeling all of the "restrictions", if you will. Nike ain't playing games with it's training plan. I literally have 1 rest day this week. WTH? This better be worth it because I could be running my 2-3 times a week as originally planned. A group run to look forward to would make this a little easier.

One of my pet peeves is complaining and not doing anything to change it. I just needed to vent for a moment. I thought my proud 8-mile moment would have lasted at least more than 2 days. Uh, no. This is pretty hard. Like I've said over and over (too much probably), this is my first time half marathon training while working full-time AND caring for an infant, etc. Sigh. Woe is me. #firstworldproblems

Go ahead, vent. Tell me something you've been wanting to get off your chest.

Feeling Proud!

I woke up yesterday morning a little under the weather and I thought about sleeping in for a half of a second. The other day at work I kneeled down to speak to a kid and she straight up, no warning coughed in my face. I could feel every drop of germs just cover my entire face. And for the rest of the day I felt a twitch in my eye. For the 6 or 7 weeks we've been in school so far I've managed to not get sick. Can't say the same for my son. So to have this girl sneeze in my face was utterly disgusting. I didn't let that deter my plans though. I was hoping I could sweat the cold out or something.

Another reason I thought about sleeping in was my son was on his 10th or 11th hour of sleep from that night. Woo-freakin-hoo! I so didn't want to wake him. Well he awoke on his own 10 minutes later anyway...lol.

So we choose a spot to run and got started. The route was pretty flat, which is great because I hadn't run with the jogger in a while and didn't feel like even attempting hills with a jogger.

I pushed the boy for the first 4 miles until the hubs took over. I was amazed at my pace even while running with him because it had never been that fast before and especially because of the long break. I guess it was because of the flat terrain.

The last 4 miles had it's rough patches. I went from motivated, to wanting to stop, to needing to stretch during (and as I type this right now I notice I'm not nearly as sore as I'd normally be...no ice bath for me...yet.), and to using this old guy as my pacer.

The last 2 miles were more mentally painful then anything. This was an out and back route so I had to look at the same thing I'd already looked at. Good thing there were a lot of other folks out biking, walking, and running. I just imagined I was at a race and didn't want to let the onlookers down. Hey, it works!

When I finally finished, one of the most perfect ratchet songs was playing so I just had to do a little dance. The hubs and son (with his feet propped up in the jogger) were just finishing so we high fived...and then I was tired for the rest of the day. ;-)

I have another 8-miles scheduled for next Saturday. This whole week will be challenging as I start Week 5 of the Nike training plan. It has me down to run 6 miles on a weekday...ugh. We'll see how this goes. Wish me luck :)

What's your favorite recovery snack or drink after a long run?

How do YOU simulate outdoor running indoors?

Hope your day is going well. This post is more of a poll or question post rather than a express-my-opinion-or-experience post. Okay? :-)

Much like many other runners, I'd rather run outdoors than suffer through treadmill running. My music and mentality have to be just right to get through and to not constantly look at the numbers on the screen. Now since I have a young child I can't just drive downtown and run with run buddies like I used to or sometimes I don't feel like running with the jogger. That being said, most of the time I drop my son off at the Kids Club and do my Monday through Friday running on the treadmill.

I've Googled and searched Runner's World, but haven't really found a good answer for the following question (if you have a good link, please do share):

How do YOU simulate outdoor running on the treadmill?

What I normally do is run on the hill setting at least at level 3 and just pray my next outdoor run doesn't feel like I hadn't run at all. I'm curious as to whether this is really effective or could I be doing something else to help. I do feel a little slower after doing this. So what can I do to maintain my pace while switching back and forth? What do you do? Please, please, pleeeeease share below.

---

Meanwhile, I had 3 miles scheduled for today. I dropped my son off as usual and 27 minutes later at mile 2.80 as you can see, the attendant called for me to get my son because he needed a diaper change. Siiiiiiigh #momlife

Weeks 1-4 Brief Recap

It's been a month since I've last posted. I'm glad to report that I've finally found my groove or a routine that works while working full-time, caring for a 10-month old, and training for my first half marathon post baby. Waking at 4:30-5 a.m. is still challenging, but I just have to make sure I'm in bed and asleep by 9:30. Much respect to the moms who've been doing this for a while!

I'm on week 4 of my Nike+ half marathon training program. I chose the beginner's option since I'm training from "scratch" again. I would like to make a PR, but I don't want to add more pressure to myself than I have to. Although I will say, the difference between this training and my first time training for a half (which was my fastest half), is that I'm doing more consistent speed training this go 'round. Whereas for my first half, I just ran the miles Hal said while ignoring the other stuff, and I don't even remember cross-training much. Wow!

On the first 3 weeks of training, Nike had me focused on building my base and learning the fundamentals for the weeks that would come. As I start week 4, I am now focused on building my strength and endurance. I have an 8-mile long run scheduled for the end of this week that I will be trying my best to blog about. This will be a very meaningful run, as this is my longest run since having the baby and since my last half in January 2013. Knowing me, I'll probably be overwhelmed with emotions, lol. If you're a runner, I know you understand :-)

I'm so thankful that I have my husband with me on this journey. I know I've probably said that, but it makes a big difference when you have a running partner or a group.

I may not blog as much these days, but I do update my Instagram and Facebook pages more often if you're interested in following my journey more closely. Let's motivate each other!

Here are a few pics I've snapped so far. I'll get better... And, oh yeah, I turned 30 along the way, too. :)

How are you goals coming along?

A New Chapter: No Longer a SAHM

Well, although it hasn't been that long since my last post, so much has changed within the last 9 days.  I started a full-time teaching job, which means my son is now attending daycare full-time. All of that before the weekend we spent out of town, which means I fell off of Week 2 of the 4 Week Shape Up Plan easily. And to top it off, last week was stressful in it self because of a few unexpected things and to top it off, today is day 1 of my half marathon training. Everyone's excited except me. Everyone meaning my husband; probably because this is his first.

I'll back up. On the last post I was headed out of town to visit the in-laws and had packed all of these healthy treats. I did great eating-wise for the most part while out of town until the following Friday. Eating bad, plus no previous good workouts equals no bueno. All I did last week was 4-miles of speed training on the treadmill and a sorry attempt (in my opinion) at a leg and shoulder workout.

So here it is Day 1 of my 12-week half marathon training plan and I'm not very motivated because I feel like crap physically. I wanted to spend time between now and my last race building strength, but I fell off in the last week and a half. It doesn't sound that bad as I type this out, but I was on a roll for a minute to let one week stop me sucks.

When I tell you I went IN with the eating yesterday in honor of it being my "last" day to go overboard on indulgences, I went IN. I'm talking Krispy Kreme DoughnutS after church, oatmeal cookies at home, juice, and one of my favorite fried chicken spots...POPEYES. I feel so sluggish because of it, too.

Fortunately the hubs and I reactivated our mighty team work powers (lol) and planned our week out. He cooked the meals and I prepped me and the baby's clothes for the week. The only thing we may have to fix is our breakfasts and that will most likely be overnight oats.

Planning will definitely be KEY! 

The past few days and upcoming weeks are filled with major 'firsts'. My first time being a full-time working mom and first time training for a half marathon as a mom. 

My training plan only calls for 2 runs and 2 cross-training days during the week. I think this is doable. There are a few trails between my home and work so I've already started planning. I get off work kind of early, so I'll have to determine if the weather is too hot for my son to tag a long with me.

For my long runs, I have my husband, a friend, and we all have a few running groups we can join on Saturday mornings for extra motivation. Honestly, I do not want to run with a stroller unless I have to. So I'll be summoning my wonderful family members to babysit for long run days once I get up to 6 miles, maybe?

My dinner tonight was this smoothie. Let me tell you. I sat in the sauna this evening after my body works class and I started to feel sick...like the donuts were re-cooking in my stomach. Bleh! I couldn't eat anything solid if I tried. This will suffice. I'm hoping for a good first week. This journey will be interesting.

Do you have any fall fitness goals? How do you fit family and training for a major race in?

Road Trip Snacking

I was determined to stay on track on my 5.5 hour road trip. Of course, I went straight to Pinterest and found a related blog that I was able to copy some of the snacks she suggested, but I also have some of my own suggestions.

Now my goal is not only to not eat junk food, but also not to spend hella money to and fro our destination. I hate wasting money. 

So here's a few cheap and fast road trips snack suggestions that'll keep money IN your wallet so you can enjoy your trip.

-mixed vegetables

-fruit

-granola

-Greek yogurt

-air popped popcorn

-rice cakes

-water

-raisins

Can you think of any more?

Meanwhile, it's leg and shoulder day. I cheated the other day and did a couple glute exercises and forgot to stretch right afterwards, now my hamstrings are so sore. I'm still looking forward to working out tonight. It will be interesting and I'm hoping that I can stick to the plan as much as possible in the space I'll have available. I brought my resistance band and will modify all moves accordingly. I'll miss the cardio portion tonight and tomorrow my cardio will have to just be walking since we have a few places we plan to visit with the fam while away.

How do you stay on track while on vacation?

WIAW: Pinterest Wins

I've had a pretty boring day eating-wise so far, so I decided to share a little of what I ate yesterday, too. Plus, I thought my eggs were pretty. :-)

Thanks to a pin on Pinterest this was my first time adding avocado to my eggs and first time choosing a ripe avocado. Avocado is a healthier way to add the same creamy texture as cheese. It tasted okay to me. I let the boy child taste some and he was not a fan.

Day 22 - Green Smoothie. My tried and true strawberry banana. That will always be my go to.

Simple spinach salad with hard boiled eggs, one yolk

After a very rough night, this next item is all I could think of. I didn't care if this was on my "plan" or not. If I was going to get through my workout and the day period, I needed caffeine. So I made this iced coffee with chocolate creamer and soy milk.

Time to paint my nails

Equipment used: resistance band, 10, & 15 lb weights

Today I worked my back and biceps and after I walked past the mirror and noticed my butt, I decided to add in a few sumo squats and dead lifts. Do you see the sweat?

Thank goodness I prepared my oats the night before. I ate this post workout. My schedule was off because I was up late, so by the time I had this, it was around 11 am.

Bad presentation, I know. :-)

This was a snack later... my tried and true strawberry banana, except this time I added a little Greek yogurt.

For dinner tonight, I tried a recipe for my rotisserie chicken I found on Pinterest that sucked. I won't be using Italian seasoning for this again. Or maybe there were other factors involved, because my chicken came out dry. I slow cooked it for 6-7 hours on low. Maybe I added too much water? I don't know. After adding a little BBQ sauce it was fine (a clean eating no-no).

The roasted zucchini was on point! A Pinterest win. I drizzled olive oil, sprinkled garlic powder, salt, and pepper on top and roasted for 15 minutes. Everyone liked it.

Later in the evening I snacked on granola and finished my half gallon jug of water.

Do you create your own recipes or do you heavily use Pinterest like me, lol?

Training for My Training: Starting a 4 Week Shape Up Plan

While I still have time before my half marathon training starts on August 18th and for the extra motivation to not become a slacker until then, I volunteered to try out a new work out plan designed by one of my SPASisters. Angelena is a mom and certified personal trainer who offers online personal training plans. Please check out her blog at On Fire Fitness Healthy Living.

An online trainer is something I've wanted to try for a while. I am okay with working out alone and don't necessarily need a person staring at me when I make that "this ish is hard face". I'm pretty good at pushing myself, as long as I have a plan.

So, for the next four weeks I will be skipping my usual body works plus abs class at the gym and will opt for the 4 Week Shape Up Plan. The plan includes 

• docs that allow you to track your goals (i.e. starting measurements, weight, and other goals)
• a food guide with sample meals and a shopping list
• meal and snack guidelines
• 4 weeks of weight and cardio workouts
• a doc to track your successes and struggles
• and lastly, many ways to stay connected if you should need her assistance or motivation

Week 1, Day 1

I won't be providing a day to day update, but since I've already gotten a taste of the plan I figured I'd let ya know how it's going so far. 

I had a rough night with my son (sleep training attempt #345, lol) so I was a little off my rocker this morning. I was finally able to complete workout day 1 in the afternoon while he napped. Almost half way through the workout he woke up, but thankfully he hung out without wanting to be picked up while I finished up. I did modify my cardio choice at the end of the weight training because I needed something quick I could finish up while he was still okay. I did a jump rope Tabata workout instead of choosing one of the Tabata workouts or HIIT treadmill workouts provided. I knew the jump rope would be visually interesting to him, therefore I would be able to get through.

I finished day 1 in about 45-50 minutes. I completed all exercises, the entire duration with the heaviest weights I own. I will probably have to go to the gym for most of the program where I will have access to heavier weights.

I've taken my before shots, but I may post them when I've completed the plan. Also, I will follow the meal plan almost exactly after I go grocery shopping again next week. For now, I am still eating clean, just not organic. Good news is, I've found a closer farmer's market so I can become more consistent with purchasing grass fed meats and organic produce.

Have you ever thought about online personal training? Are you a workout plan type of person, or do you like to wing it?

Thanks for reading,

Tiffany :-)

*Disclaimer: I received this training plan for free in exchange for my blog review. All opinions are my own.

How to NOT Become Obsessed with the Scale

*Disclaimer: I am not a fitness professional nor a nutritionist. I share about topics based on MY results from MY research and experience. Everyone's results will be different. 

Chances are if you have found yourself already obsessed with weighing yourself everyday, after every work out, or after every meal, then you probably can't quit cold turkey. Don't feel bad because I was that way and so are many others.

As I try to switch my focus from weight loss to fat loss, I'm trying my hardest not to rely on the scale. The difference between now and then is now I choose to measure my progress with my pictures and body fat percentage. I like using before and after or then and now pictures the most because I don't know how accurate my scale is in measuring body fat percentage.

If you've read my weight loss journey you've seen that I met a 50 lb weight loss goal in 2010. I haven't really provided consistent updates about my weight loss after the baby, but to date I have lost my original goal of 50 lbs. I gained 40 lbs during my pregnancy, so I've lost an extra 10 since. :-)

How to NOT become obsessed with the scale:

1. Choose ONE day a week that you will allow yourself to check your weight. Mondays are usually my weigh-in days. I weigh myself first thing in the morning after using the restroom.
2. For the rest of the week, hide the scale. Seriously. Mine is underneath the sink. Sure, I could easily bend down and get if I want it still, but for the most part, out of sight, out of mind.
3. Remember that our weight fluctuates throughout the week, so don't waste time putting yourself down if you see you're up 1-2 lbs in the next 2 days. Chances are if you've been eating healthy and burning more calories than you take in, then it's probably water weight.
   
4. Choose a smaller sized pair of jeans or other clothing item as a goal. I had a size 8, low rise pair of pants that I used as my goal to get back into after having my baby. I'm proud to say I am back in them and my 6's, too.
   
5. Muscle weighs more than fat. 120 lbs on a 5'4 tall person looks different on a 5'11 tall person. 
   
6. Lastly, skinny doesn't equal healthy. According to some sites and my BMI, "they" say I should be 125-130 lbs. Honestly, I think I'd look sick. I'm comfortable with the way I look right now. Just working on those abs and muscle definition.

Please feel free to add to my list in the comment section. What are other ways to NOT become obsessed, if you own a scale?

WIAW: What did I do and eat today?

This morning I woke up well rested and kid free. My son spent last night and will spend tonight with my mom while I handle some business (his first time away 2 nights in a row :-( ). I didn't know what to do with myself. I didn't know whether I should relax until my appointment and workout later or vice versa. Thanks to my Facebook peeps, I chose to get it in early. So I quickly made a green smoothie (I'm on Day 16 of the Simple Green Smoothie Challenge) and I was out the door for a 'dreadmill' run and a body works plus abs class at my gym.

Selfies with my smoothie

I arrived at the gym and to my surprise it smelled lemony fresh. I can really appreciate them doing that because I can be a germaphobe at times. All the machines had noticeably been wiped down...hooray!

I ran 3-miles on the hill setting, alternating between levels 1-5. The first mile was kind of slow and hard and reminded me of my bad run from last Saturday. I almost thought I would burn out earlier, but I focused on the really ratchet music in my earbuds and that helped me push through. I gotsta have my Southern Rap when I do cardio on a machine!

After my run I joined my fav instructor for a body works plus abs class. As I mentioned before, she does her class a little different. Today's workout was the start of another 6-week series. We did a little HIIT the first half of class and finished with circuit training. By the end of both workouts my cheap dri-fit shirt was soak and WET! It was pretty disgusting but I worked HARD today!

Had a quick post work out snack of Greek yogurt with a little honey and a banana before I had to get ready for an appointment.

I didn't plan for lunch, but knew I had to go food shopping later. I was starving. Have you heard the saying don't go grocery shopping when you're hungry? Let's just say a package or two was opened on the ride home.

I had to have those Kettle chips...I craved the salt. ;)

When I finally got home, I took pictures of my purchases for my upcoming updated grocery haul post and I drank the rest of my green smoothie from this morning. I made this smoothie for the first time using soy milk instead of cows milk. It was really good and filling.

my go-to: strawberries, banana, Greek yogurt, soy milk

For dinner, I cooked a taco salad without the shell for me (still striving for abs). I'm enjoying my fun, but semi-healthy meals as of late, because I know once August 18th comes around, it's back to the same meals every day with one cheat day a week. Why? Because I can tell a big difference in my performance when I eat super clean.

Oh yeah! Remember at the end of one of my posts, I said Nike and I had to have a talk? Well, I got my replacement in the mail for my broken watch. I was like a kid on Christmas Day! Yes, I'm ready to take "her" out for a run!

For the non- cows milk drinkers, do you prefer soy, coconut milk, or something else as a milk replacement? I have a nut allergy, so I don't think I'll be trying almond milk.

Hope you had a good day!

-Tiffany