Working out while the boy is napping

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. 

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

Thanksgiving Point Pilgrim 5k

About a week before Thanksgiving I decided I wanted to run another 5K. It had been almost 2 years since I ran my first 5k. The first one was also at Thanksgiving point but it was by the water tower where this one was by the gardens and the golf course. This course was a lot harder because of the elevation difference. I ran the whole thing without stopping. It is such a gratifying feeling to finish an actual race rather than running outside all by yourself. My favorite part is that my wife and son did the 5k with me. It was her very first 5k. I am so proud of her of completing it. We have decided that we want to make this a tradition every year. 

Eating like crap=weight gain

The past 2 days I have eaten straight crap. Don't ask me why but for some reason I did. After weighing in this morning I found that I gained about 6 lbs. It is so frustrating knowing that all of the work I put in to get down was lost in 2 days of eating. I know I can and will be better. One of the main reasons is I have not worked out the last several days because my wife has been working nights which in turn means that I have been in charge of watching my son each night. I am thinking of going and buying a jogging stroller so I can get out and run with him. He loves being outside and so do I. Wish me luck in this journey as I wish you luck in your own personal journey.

30 days and 31 lbs

Yesterday I hit 30 days in a row logging into myfitnesspal. Myfitnesspal has been an integral part of me being healthy. Holding myself accountable for everything I put in my mouth is what makes me successful. The cool thing is I hit 31 lbs lost this morning when I jumped on the scale. I am so proud of myself but still have a long way to go. 

Put your fork down between bites

I have always devoured all of my food so quick that I almost don't even taste it. This has gotten me into trouble because I used to shovel it into my face so quick that I would get so sick and always eat way too much food. I have found that if I put my fork down in between bites I chew my food slower and enjoy the food. In turn, my stomach can tell me when it is full rather and just filling it way more than I should. If it is something I eat with my hands I have been making a concious effort to put the food down inbetween bites as well. I don't pick the food back up until I have completely chewed the food and swallowed. I read somewhere that most of us can eat a meal in 10 minutes, yet it takes our stomachs at least 20 minutes after we're done eating to signal our brains that we're no longer hungry. When we slow down we give our stomach just enough time to catch up with our brain, which in turn helps us eat less. So, next time you eat try it and see how it works out for you because it certainly works for me.

Green smoothies

Last night we decided our cheap blender just was not cutting it Anymore so we ran to the store and grabbed a Ninja blender. It was a little pricy but we have heard over and over that you get what you pay for when it comes to blenders! It works incredibly well. Shaileen was nice enough to get up and make me a green smoothie made with fruit and kale. It was so good and extremely healthy too. I counted the calories and it came out to be around 250ish but I think that is great with the amount of nutrition it had in it. If you have never tried one before I would recommend it. You can not taste the kale or spinach that you put in it at all. Try it!

Valentines Dinner

 Usually for valentines day we go out to dinner which turns out bad for my nutrition. I decided yesterday after work I would stop at the grocery store and grab some food and I would make Shaileen dinner for Valentines day. I just have to say that I have the best wife on the face of the planet. I can assure this because she has put up and stayed married to be for the past 4 years. :) I love her.

As you can tell I grilled up some chicken breast in a Hawaiian marinade.I also found some Brown Whole Wheat Rice that comes in little baggies. I usually suck at cooking rice but all you have to do is throw it in a pan with 4 cups of water and let it boil for 10 minutes. It cooked perfectly (in my opinion at least, Shaileen may have another opinion though, haha) I then cut up some Romaine Lettuce and put some seasoning on the top, not sure what it is called though but really good. Light Italian dressing on the lettuce is what finished it up. I ate it as shown on the first picture but shaileen mixed it all up and made it into a salad with rice and chicken.

I would definately recommend the rice baggies, check em out.

WHY

THESE PAST 2-3 WEEKS I HAVE BEEN STRUGGLING WITH MY LIFECHANGE AND MY DIET TO GETTING MY LIFE BACK. IT SEEMS SO EASY THAT I SHOULD JUST BE ABLE TO DO IT EASY BUT IT ISNT. I HAVE LIVED LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE AND IT IS A HABIT THAT IS HARD TO BREAK BUT I CAN AND I WILL DO IT. IT MAY TAKE A WHILE BUT I CAN. THE FUNNY THING ABOUT FAILING IS THAT I KNOW AND MY BODY KNOWS THAT I FEEL SO MUCH BETTER WHEN I AM EATING HEALTHY AND WORKING OUT. I HAVE THE MOTIVATION TO GET HEALTHY BUT I MAY HAVE SOME SKIP UPS ALONG THE WAY. ITS HOW I HANDLE THESE IS WHAT IS IMPORTANT.

Starting to feel different

Man it feels good to start bring healthy. I can feel a bit of difference in the size if my stomach and can definitely feel a difference already in my strength from weight training! I really don't know why I have struggled in the past with making it to the gym and being healthy and eating well. I LOVE MY BODY

Bountiful baskets

We went and picked up our bountiful basket this morning! We got some pretty decent stuff! Especially for only $15! I am not sure how often we will do bountiful baskets but I am excited to eat what we got!

Nice dinner

Tonight I was home alone because Shaileen went to a baby shower with my mom and sisters! This left me to making dinner for myself tonight! Not much sounded good and I was searching through the kitchen for about 15-20 minutes until I remembered that I bought some broccoli stuffed chicken from Harmons last week that is not breaded! It was delicious and hit the spot. I also had a salad with lite Italian dressing that is only 35 calories for 2 tablespoons and some kind of topping that we found at the store but I don't really know what it is! Of course I had a big glass of ice water too!

I'm excited for tomorrow morning because we ordered a bountiful basket and we have not gotten one for several months. I will definately do a post on what I get. I am a little nervous though cause it is getting to the season where not much is being produced.

How I spend my time

The hour or so spent

in the gym is important...

But the key to results is

how you spend the other 23!

Getting healthy in more than one way!

This past weekend was LDS General Conference! This is where our general authorities of our church speak to us specifically about our life on earth today to make us more successful and happy. To just become the best person we can be when it comes time for Christ to return again. Instead if sitting in front if the tv for hours I got up and went to the gym and did an hour of weight lifting focusing on my chest and biceps, and then put in just over 5 miles doing cardio while I was listening to the morning session of conference! I decided that why just sit there. I may as well burn some calories while I am doing it so I can get my life back!

Heathy eating and football

If you remember my post about a week ago I said that I had fallen off track a little because of college football and the eating that comes with it. My mindset has changed completely lately after the blog I posted recently where I have decided that I just don't eat certain things to make my body as healthy as possible. At the byu game in Friday night Shaileen and I went to a healthy stand and I got a fruit bowl. It was a little out of season but was still delicious! I am so proud of myself with these small steps that I have been making towards a life full of healthy happiness.

Presidential Debate while working out.

Last night I was having a hard time getting up to go to the gym because I was watching the presidential debate. I am not a political person at all but thought it was interesting what each of them were saying and could not get myself to get up and go. Then I remembered that I could steam KSL radio through my phone and listen to it so I jumped up and went. It was a leg day and I killed my legs and then did some cardio. It was a good workout, not as hard of cardio as I have done recently but still good.

Hair Swap