Best Whole Chicken in a Crock-Pot

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2011/02/25/recipe-the-best-whole-chicken-in-a-crock-pot/

Working out while the baby is sleeping

Christmas 2013

My family had a wonderful Christmas. It was a "delicious" Christmas as well which means I at way too much but planned on doing it and am back on track now. I had Monday and Tuesday off so was up before 5am and ran over 4 miles each day. It is insane how quick your body and mind can revert back to its old ways if you are not very careful and don't plan and execute.

With weightloss aside this was my favorite Christmas so far because I was able to spend it with my family. With us adopting my son just a little under 6 months ago it was a Christmas I will never forget that is for sure!

Running Vlog

Gear for outside run

Lately I have been doing a lot of running outside here in Utah. As I am sure you have guessed it is freezing outside. There has only been one day above freezing since December 3, 2013. As long as there is not snow on the streets I go outside to run. To be comfortable though you will need warm clothes. This post is going to be about the gear I wear when outside running.
 
On 12/16/13 I woke up before 5am and ran. Before I started I checked the weather on my phone and it stated that it was only 9 degrees outside. I was a little weary of starting but decided that it was for the best. I stayed so warm that I even sweat a fair amount in freezing temperatures.

#1
 My favorite and most important part of the gear is the base layer. My choice is the Under Armour Cold Gear. It is a little pricey as it will run you about $50 for the top and another $50 for the bottoms but it is definately worth it. The pair that I have and wear are skin tight and keep you toasty warm. I use them throughout the year at different sporting events that are cold too so definately worth the money spent.



#2
For most people their feet freeze when it is cold out. I am lucky and I have never had that problem. Through snowboarding in highschool to sitting in snow at BYU football games my feet have always been nice and toasty. I am lucky enough to be able to wear ankle high socks in the cold. I do, however, wear wool ones in the winter. It adds just that little bit of cold protection that I need to stay warm. I will say that the difference between running socks and regular socks have made a difference. The support and little bit of extra cushion makes my feet feel a little bit better than usual.

#3







 

If you know me at all you will know that I am a huge BYU fan of all sports. This means that I have to support some kind of BYU gear when I am running. This Nike Jacket is the one that I generally wear (as long as it is clean). In my opinion it offers just enough wind resistance to keep me warm. It is light enough to not be a burden while running and doesnt get in the way. Every once in a while I like to vlog myself running as well and in that senario there is a front pocket to put my camera. Also a big thing to me is that my armband that my iphone sits in fits around the arm without any problem. It is thin enough to be able to do that.

#4

This is a definate must have. It keeps you so warm and is breatheable. It covers enough of your face to make it bearable in those 9 degree temperatures I was talking about earlier. I just wish there was a fix for my forehead sweating so bad because the sweat was running down to my eyes and getting on my eyelashes and then turning to ice. It wasn't a huge deal. Actually, it was kind of cool to tell people that I was working out hard enough to sweat outside in freezing temperatures and it would turn to ice. If you do not have one of these it is time to go invest in one stat.






#5

Gloves are a must have and are up with the base layer as being considered most important. While you run your hands are moving back and forth in the wind and can becoming freezing cold. This is something I don't go cheap with. I make sure to get a good pair of gloves that are not too bulky and are more importantly comfortable. Another thing that is important to me is that they are "smart" gloves so I can use them with my iphone to change the music or check how far I have ran with MapMyRun.









The fact of the matter though is dress as warm as you can but if you are dressed fairly warm and are still cold you just need to work out harder. Take it up that extra notch and get warm yourself. You can do it. If you have any other tips or recommendations feel free to leave a comment and let me know. I am always looking to become more prepared and a better runner.

Work giving me a fitbit for free

I heard my work is buying our while department any fitbit that we want. How cool is that? If it comes to fruition I may sell my beloved body media and get that money back and use the other one for free! Love my job!

5 mile run in 9 degree weather

It has been over a week since I last ran and worked out because it has been "too cold". What a great excuse! Also over the last 3-4 days I have not been eating all that well. There have been Christmas parties and family get togethers. The good thing is I think I have learned that every once in a while I can splurge just a little bit but get back on track immediately after. I work up bright and early and decided it was time for a run. When I took the covers off of me I could tell it was extra cold but I had slacked long enough. 

The trick is to make sure you have really warm workout clothes (I will probably post on that in the next day or two). As you can see from the first 2 photos It was FREEZING. 9 degrees does not feel all that great especially with snow on the ground. You know I was working hard when you are sweating in 9 degree weather. My forehead was completely wet and then turned to ice on my eyelashes. The best part of the whole thing is I ran just under 5 miles and it felt great. I think I could have gone for another 1-2 miles for sure. Isn't it incredible how our bodies respond to us when we want them too. It is even more true when we train them accordingly. Let this be the motivation you need to get out and do the little that you need to get your life back on track. It really is simple. Eat better and move more. Do your body a favor and take care of it.  

What to eat on graveyards

It has been weird and a little tough to determine what to eat and when while on my graveyard shift. It would be different if I worked this shift consistently but that is not the case. What I decided is that I would not eat anything very filling while working so my body didn't get way confused on why I was eating. To fill myself up I have been eating oatmeal, apples and oranges. Not only does it keep me full but it also gives me more energy so I can stay awake. I say this all the time, isn't it crazy how good healthy eating makes you feel.

40 Pounds lost

Before I came into work tonight I jumped on the scale and hit 40 lbs lost. Crazy feeling! I am hoping to hit 50 lbs lost by the end of the year. I think I can hit that goal. I will just have to stay consistent with my diet and workouts. It has been several days since I have worked out hard, I plan tomorrow to run about 4 miles outside since it is finally good enough weather to get out. The nice thing is my wife is off work tomorrow and is taking our son with her to have a girls day so I can get some good sleep when I get home from the graveyard shift and then get a good workout in. It is crazy how great I feel. There is so much energy inside and I feel like I can do anything. There have been several times that I have had a cheat day and I feel like absolute crap after eating. Don't get me wrong, the food tastes delicious and all but the bad type of calories puts my body into a slump.

Healthy eating while on graveyards

On a graveyard shift this week here at work. In times past when I have done a grave it has been a complete binge fest. I prepared and bought fruit, veggies and low sodium chicken noodle soup. The trick is I didn't bring anything else to tempt me. The 1st day is always the hardest to get through but tonight hasn't been bad at all I guess sugar coma effects you just a little bit. 

Winner winner salad dinner

Got the email today that I am an official winner of round 1 of the November-May dietbet. It isn't a huge amount of money but I think it is awesome that I can win money while getting healthy. Best hung ever. The part of dietbet that I love most however is the community there. Is is wonderful how everybody is cheering others on. 

Winner of Round 1 Dietbet

 I won the first round of the dietbet. I am so proud of myself. This dietbet is exactly what I needed to push myself to get healthy. Not only for this time but for my lifetime. I need to take care of what was given to me. We are on day 2 of round #2 of the dietbet and since I lost so much weight in the first round I only have to lose 2.6lbs to make the goal for this next round. I am kind of excited to see how much money I am going to win also from round #1. The cool thing about this group of people on the dietbet is each and every person is cheering eachother on to get healthy. You would think that with money involved people would want to win for the prize but it is a little community where people are there to care about and for each other. I have met and talked to several people that motivate me and push me to do more every day. I am down to 297.2 lbs and have lost a total of 38.6 so far. My goal is to get down to at least 220 lbs but it all depends on how 220 is on my frame.                                                                                                


 

 Wanna know what is extra cool? This morning while I was at work I was walking around doing some things that I do every morning. One of my coworkers stopped me and said "you are losing weight aren't you." This is the first person that has said anything so far. Dang it feels good to know that others are starting to notice the difference. I can't wait until I am down even more weight and see someone that I have not seen for a long time. That will be so cool.

Thanks for all of you guys that have followed and helped me out throughout this process by encouragement and support. It has certainly helped me push harder and harder each day.



End of round 1

Tomorrow is the weigh in day for the 1st month of the November - May dietbet transformer. I am under goal and almost to 100% of round number 2. Excited to see what I am finally at tomorrow morning. :) Wish me luck

Break Walk

Today was one of the first snowstorms here in Utah.  I was pretty sad just because it will make it harder to workout outside. During work today I decided that why is the weather stopping me. It was time for my break here at work and I went outside and walked just under 1 mile. It was cold and it was still snowing but it felt so good to get in some movement. Hopefully it is good enough weather to go running tonight. I just love my life

 

12-2-13 3.22 mile run