Tag Archives: weight maintenance

Rotation Diet- Day 1

Posted in Health, Recipes by

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I don’t know about you, but every now and again I find myself in a situation where I have indulged more than I would have wanted to. It is one party or event after another and no matter how good I usually am I find yourself continuing to have a couple of drinks, a piece of dessert, or that late night slice of pizza. Since I eat healthy most of the time I can really feel it when I have eaten poorly too often and frequently. I start to feel lethargic, bloated, and it even affects how I sleep. After this last weekend celebrating the marriage of my best friend and binge eating more then I have in months, I decided I needed a re-boot.

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One of the benefits of having your boyfriend as a personal trainer, is your home is filled with interesting books on fitness and health. On a bored night a couple of weeks ago I picked up  the book “How to Eat, Move, and Be Healthy” by Paul Chek. Dustin raves about this book, so I thought why not take a look. In the very back of the book Paul describes a rotation diet, which was the first I had ever heard of this type of diet. Since I read so many books on nutrition I was surprised there was something completely new to me.

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The premise of a rotation diet is  you alternate the foods you eat daily for 4 days in order to help identify food intolerance’s, detoxify your body, help your digestive system get back on track, and can even help to lose weight. “To follow the rotation diet, eat only the foods listed on that particular day. You may have those foods as many times as you like on that particular day, but then you should not consume any of those foods.” Foods are grouped together based on  their food families and because they share similar protein structures and are therefore digested similarly by our bodies.

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The link here provides a good explanation of the Rotation Diet along with how each day breaks out in terms of food. I decided I can at least try this out for 1 full rotation, aka 4 days, and see how it goes. Today was day 1 for me. I have to say the hardest part so far has been the meal prep. Yesterday I had to go to the farmers market and then the grocery store to stock up on enough various fruits, veggies, and meats. Last night also required cooking meals in advance for today. Overall though I have to say so far so good. I have felt full and satisfied after each meal without that urge to snack out of control, which is something I always struggle with. I almost never eat red meat so eating it tonight tasted amazing and just what my body needed. I am excited to see how I sleep tonight and how I feel tomorrow morning. So I am sure you are wondering what  my meals consisted of today, well below breaks it all down. However I do want to note I am a grazer so there may have been some grapes or cherry tomatoes popped throughout the day outside of what I listed below.

Breakfast

  • 1 small banana
  • 1/2 cup of grapes
  • 1/2 cup of mango
  • Coffee with cream

Lunch

  • Half of an Eggplant baked with tomato sauce and mozzarella
  • 2 small red potatoes and eggplant baked with dill
  • 1 pan fried plantain

Snack

  • 1/2 cup of grapes
  • 1/2 cup of mango
  • 1 oz of cheese

Dinner

  • 5 oz Ground beef, bell pepper, lettuce tacos
  • 1 sliced tomato with sprinkled sea salt

Health & Fitness Articles of the Week – 9/21/14

Posted in Books and Articles by

Off the Drugs, Onto the Cupcakes– This article discusses how addicts when entering rehabilitation centers are comforted and eased off of their addiction through sweets and other highly palatable foods. Through this end up trading one addiction for another.  On the flip the article also touches on how when people want to lose weight  quickly they will start adding in stimulants like coffee in order to keep from over eating. With the new research coming out on how sugar affects the brain, some rehabilitation centers are looking at overhauling their nutrition program.  “But though sweets may have eased some people’s drug cravings, many ended up “transfer addicting” from their substance of choice to sugar.”

Walking, Biking to Work May Benefit Mental Health– This article is short and sweet. Essentially research is finding people have a much healthier state of mind when they either bike, walk, or use public transportation to get to work opposed to driving.

When You Can’t Afford Sleep– Personally I found this article very impactful. I think we can sometimes get so involoved with our own lives it is hard to stop and think about what some of America has to go through in order to just feed their family.  “Though Americans across the economic spectrum are sleeping less these days, people in the lowest income quintile, and people who never finished high school, are far more likely to get less than seven hours of shut-eye per night. About half of people in households making less than $30,000 sleep six or fewer hours per night, while only a third of those making $75,000 or more do.”

CrossFit Versus Yoga: Choose A Side– This video is just funny. It takes two workout’s that people have very strong affiliations with and talks about each of them. How does one choose which one to do? You are picking more then a workout, but an identity. Enjoy!

For Posterior’s Sake– Plain and simple this article focuses on the rear end, butt, or derriere along with the emerging popularity of enhancing it among women. Women are focusing in on their glutes like they never have before. “When I was growing up, everyone wanted to look like skinny, bony girls. Over time, butts have become a thing.”

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Photo from Huff Post

What is Healthy?

Posted in Health by

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What is healthy? I think the first thing that comes to most people’s minds with being healthy is wanting to lose weight. Maybe it is the last 10 lbs after just having a baby or getting back to your perceived ideal body weight before a big event. Being healthy can just be getting back on track with food and trying to eat more fruits and vegetables. It can also be just wanting to get into better shape, increase muscle mass, or just get into a regular exercise routine. Then there is striving to hit a goal like running your first marathon or climbing to the top of that 14er mountain you always wanted to. However my question is what if you are doing all of the right things, eating well, working out daily, getting enough sleep, but is it possible you could still not be healthy?

This is the new question I have been asking myself recently. I would say I eat healthy 80% of the time. I work out daily, sometimes even twice a day if I am being honest with everyone. I try to go to bed early every night  in order to get enough sleep. So why would I be questioning if I am healthy? Well let me explain. Over the last 6-9 months I found my life started to get a little stressful. We all run into this as adults right. Where all of a sudden things you were not expecting just smack you in the face and all of a sudden you feel like you are paddling upstream and are just doing your best to maintain a balance. We all figure out ways to cope with the added life stress, for some that is with food, others it may be shopping, but for me it is exercise. I exercise to relieve stress and to put me in a good mental state. The more stressed I become the more I want to move my body. This is not a bad thing, except you have to make sure you are balancing out your energy expenditure with enough food in order to sustain the new added activity.

Through the years I have become a lot better at balancing eating what I know my body needs with what my body craves in order to not binge. I am not perfect and I know learning this balancing act will be ongoing for me, but at least as long as I continue to make progress that is really what is important. So again, where am I going with this.  I found over the last 9  months the one thing I was not doing was eating enough to support my additional movement and exercise. Without trying to I ended up losing a few pounds.

What is a few pounds right? Well for someone already at the bottom of their weight range a few pounds can make a big difference. Once I lost the few pounds unintentionally  it created a viscous cycle in my head. For someone who has trained themselves for years that weight loss is a good thing and weight gain is bad, seeing a lower number on the scale felt like a new accomplishment even though I had gotten to a weight that I knew was not healthy for my body or sustainable.  I had a few close people in my life come and tell me that I had gotten to that “scary skinny” place and wanted to make sure I was aware. Let me just say now how much I love having people in my life that will tell me those hard things to hear.

So what does this all mean? It means we spend a lot of time focusing on how losing weight, eating healthy, and exercising more are all healthy things. Yes they are. Being healthy can also be listening to your body and learning when to pull it back. Right now for the first time in almost 4 years I am actually learning how to accept gaining weight as a good thing and that for me this is healthy. It continues to be interesting to me how much our mental state dictates our relationships with ourselves. Now having put back on those pounds I did not mean to lose I am more satisfied with my appearance. It is important to remind ourselves a number is only a number. At the end of the day it all comes down to how we feel. I am still a work in progress, but wanted to share my story.

Health & Fitness Articles of the Week – 8/31/14

Posted in Books and Articles by

 The Stationary Bike of the Soul– If you have ever been to a Soul Cycle Spinning class then you probably already know what the draw is to it. I for one never thought I would be a person that would pay $30+ dollars to be pushed through a hard workout, however once you do it you find how addictive these type of classes are. “Not much different from other cult-like exercise programs, or even branding in general—the most successful companies create a sense that their product is part of a lifestyle, like the choosy moms who choose Jif. The twist with SoulCycle is what it calls the “mind/body experience.”

Meet CrossFit’s Fittest Man on Earth– Rich Froning just secured his 4th year in a row being titled the Fittest Man on Earth at the CrossFit Games.  The competition is 4 day event where you do everything from running, to hand stand push-ups, to squats, and even rope climbs to just name a few. In this interview with Rich you find out what it takes to be a 4 time champion and what he likes about cross fit.

The Dark Side of Almond Use– This article is interesting because it not only talks about the health benefits from Almonds, but also the rise in popularity of the nut and the farming practices of it. “The only state that produces almonds commercially is California, where cool winter and mild springs let almond trees bloom. Eighty-two percent of the world’s almonds come from California. ”

The Perils of Clean Eating– I for one have been quoted as saying I need to eat cleaner. In fact I said it this morning as a response to this last week of over indulging due to my family being in town, moving, and get together’s with friends. This lead me to look into an article on clean eating and is it really that good for you?

Why Junk Food Makes You Fat, NOT Fat or Carbs– This article shows the correlation between obesity and caloric intake. As a country we started to see this uptick in 1980 with the addition of more highly processed foods. It also touches on how our brain reacts to junk food.

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Image from Huff Post

Easy Turkey Potato Salad Recipe

Posted in Recipes by

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Over the 4th of July weekend Dustin and I went up to Shasta Trinity National Forrest  to go camping with some of our closest friends for the weekend. Over the trip a debate started with the group on whether or not our generation still eat’s potato salad. I mean yes, if potato salad is at a picnic we will eat it. However if there was going to be a pot luck or party would this be a dish we would think to bring? In a generation where we are being over saturated with new grains like quiona, farro, barley and trendy leafy greens like Kale, have we forgotten about a classic dish like potato salad? After discussing this topic the only solution I could come up with was I was craving potato salad and decided I needed to make a healthy version at home. This recipe was not from a cookbook or found online, I simply made it up. So feel free to tweak and add to suit your liking.

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Ingredients

  • 2-3 Large Carrots diced
  • 2-3 Large Celery Sticks diced
  • 1/2 Chopped Onion diced
  • 1 Large Bell Pepper diced
  • 1 1/2 Cups of grapes
  • 2 Medium potatoes cooked (also can use 5-6 small russet potatoes)
  • 1 Cup diced turkey (I used the Trader Joes pre-cut version)
  • 1 Cup Non-Fat Greek Yogurt (Fage is my favorite)
  • 2 Tablespoons of honey mustard
  • Splash of salt, pepper, and garlic salt
  • Option to add a tablespoon of curry

Makes about 6 servings. Mix everything together and enjoy!

Snacking or Meals- What do you prefer?

Posted in Uncategorized by

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Snacking……what can I say about it. I am obsessed. I hate sitting down to eat a full meal. I would much rather graze and eat all day. I love eating, who doesn’t right.  So the idea of taking long extended breaks from it throughout the day just does not seem to work for me. I wake up in the morning and before the hunger hits I feel normal. I go to the gym, get ready, grab my coffee, down a bottle of water, and I am able to start my day worry free. Then mid morning the hunger starts to set in and then that is when it all begins.

I typically eat the same thing for breakfast everyday. Some might find this boring or even monotonous. Not me. Every morning I still get excited for what meal is in store for me. Now this is not to say I never switch it up. I try to vary things on the weekend or when I travel, but for the most part I am usually good with eating the same thing most days. Right now my breakfast of choice is overnight oats. If you have never made them then you are missing out! They are sweet, creamy, filling, and amazing. A couple of hours later if I can hold out that long is when the snacking starts.

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Sometimes I make a full on meal for lunch. Usually it is when I know I have a packed afternoon and I will have to eat quickly. However if I know I will have time to enjoy lunch then I snack. I vary it up everyday, but some of my favorites are roasted or cut up veggies, dips like hummus or eggplant pesto, crackers, fruit in season, homemade breads, baked tofu, side salads, etc. I like little things that I can just continue to eat throughout the afternoon. One thing I hate is that really full feeling, especially at work. So snacking seems to keep me energized all day.

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I would like to say that is the end of my snacking, but oh no. It continues. Next I come home and usually grab some nuts, crackers, and cheese first thing upon entering the door. There are days when my purse does not even make it off of my shoulder before a snack is in hand. Dinner is when I eat my most filling meal of the day. I like feeling full and relaxed at the end of the day. This is also where I like to splurge if I am going to eat something more un-healthy. However I try to save that for going out to eat with friends and just use dinner at home as a time to eat healthy. But let’s be honest, it does not always work.

Now here is the whole point of my blog. I have found an eating routine that works for me. I can’t recommend it for everyone, but through a lot of trial and error I have finally learned how to keep myself happy, healthy, not starving or deprived, and overall just satisfied. I highly recommend everyone spend sometime thinking about their eating routine and really focusing in on what makes you happy. Eating is not just a meal to me, it is so much more then just making my hunger go away. It is the experience of it. Now the only thing I need to work on is learning how not to snack after dinner…….I guess none of us are perfect right 🙂

Health & Fitness Articles of the Week – 6/1/14

Posted in Books and Articles by

Can Diet Drinks Aid Weight Loss?– I personally find the diet soda controversy very interesting. For me personally I can honestly say diet soda was sometimes a savior during my weight loss and I do not know if I would have been able to accomplish my results as quickly without it.  Diet drinks allowed me to get a sweet fix in the afternoon without turning to sugar and were a huge help in social events when wanting to avoid alcohol.  I did end up giving up diet soda two and a half years ago when I went into weight maintenance and since then my sweet tooth has diminished substantially.

Fitness Crazed– This article asks the question are trendy workouts really better then classic exercise? “The human body is an adaptation machine. If you force it to do something a little harder than it has had to do recently, it will respond — afterward, while you rest — by changing enough to be able to do that new hard task more comfortably next time. This is known as the progressive overload principle. All athletic training involves manipulating that principle through small, steady increases in weight, speed, distance or whatever.”

30 Percent of World Is Now Fat, No Country Immune- “Researchers found more than 2 billion people worldwide are now overweight or obese. The highest rates were in the Middle East and North Africa, where nearly 60 percent of men and 65 percent of women are heavy. The U.S. has about 13 percent of the world’s fat population, a greater percentage than any other country. China and India combined have about 15 percent.”

Mental Illness Can Shorten Lives More Than Chain-Smoking– This is an interesting perspective I have never thought about. Something to keep in mind. “About 20 percent of people in the United States and the U.K. smoke, he adds — around the same percentage of people who suffer from mental illness.”

Mastering the Art of Self-Negotiation– This article is not as much research based as tips and tricks to help you stick to your plan. I thought the advice was good, so thought I would share. “For every positive choice that affects our health and well-being, there’s at least one counter-argument that – in the murky waters of our mental workings can dissuade us from our good intentions.”

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Photo from Huff Post

 

Food Is Bringing Sexy Back

Posted in Food and Drinks by

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I love food. Everything about it. The experience of walking into a restaurant, breathing in the ambiance, sitting down to look over the menu, and imagining how each dish will taste.  I love the presentation of the food upon it’s arrival, the plate it is served on, and the utensil used to enjoy it. Then of course there is the obvious, how good the food tastes. Nothing beats the first bite of a dish. No matter how many bites come after, it will not taste the same. Therefore I try to savor that first bite every time and stay present in the moment. With that said I wanted to share some of the delicious meals I have had the pleasure of enjoying over the last couple of months. These meals span from Los Angeles up to the Bay area and instead of describing each meal in length, I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

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 One of my favorite neighborhood mexican restaurants. Everything is organic, local, and delightful.

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Homemade Moscow Mules from my best friend, served in authentic copper mugs

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Los Angeles knows how to serve a good chicken salad sandwich. Made with Truffle oil. Need I say more

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Grilled fish tacos, perfect paired with summer sun and a cold beer

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Quinoa, beets, and curry eggplant. Perfect combination

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Brunch with avocado toast and a poached egg

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A light and refreshing simple salad

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Strawberry Rhubarb scones. A treat upon arriving and sitting down at what will now be my new favorite brunch spot in the city

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Arepas, probably my favorite food on the planet. One filled with eggs, one with potatoes, and one with pork, black beans, and plantains. Perfectly split with a friend

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Two words, Shishito Peppers

Wanderlust- A day of bending, stretching, and yoga in the park

Posted in San Francisco, Working Out by

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Saturday one of my dear friends Jaclyn arranged a day of fun and yoga in the sun at the Wanderlust Yoga in the City Festival down on the Marina Green in San Francisco. Now you might be asking yourself what is Wanderlust? Wanderlust is a yoga festival where the core mission is to create a community around mindful living and leading a healthy life. This is done through focusing on practicing yoga first and foremost, eating well, building purpose, mindfulness, and self awareness while also enjoying music and art. The festivals are offered in 4 day retreats, single day retreats, or the city experience where it brings a taste of the festival to us city dwellers for an afternoon.

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Jaclyn and I decided to do the first class of the day which started at 12:30. Two local yoga teachers alternated teaching through the hour long class, with one instructing the first 30 minutes followed by the second.  Staring across the green grass yogi’s and their mats were lined up in rows upon rows facing towards the front of the stage.  The instructor would speak into the microphone overhead giving out commands and directing us into the desired poses. Tranquil music played in the background creating a relaxing environment.

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Now it has been a little while since I have practiced yoga and with the wind from the bay stronger then ever it created a whole new challenge. Let’s just say I found holding my poses to be not as graceful as I would have hoped.  Our teacher kept encouraging us to be in the moment, to embrace the outdoors, and be one with our environment. I tried my best, but when your mat keeps flying up and hitting you in the leg it makes mindfulness a little more difficult.

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When the hour class was all said and done and I was lying on my back, my arms and legs spread out, eyes closed, and was breathing deeply in the marina air, I finally felt relaxed and one in the moment. So ultimately I think I achieved what Wanderlust had set out for it’s intention, a day of focusing on myself and enjoying being outside.

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After we finally made our way up from Shavasana we decided to go check out the vendor’s and sponsor’s booths. Now let me just say I love swag. Any kind of free stuff whether it is a key chain, t-shirt, or sample of food it will always makes me happy. This event had some great sponsor’s who really went all out. Kashi was offering bowls of cereal and milk (which we know I am addicted to) along with granola bars for an after yoga food fix, Health had free magazines of their latest issue for everyone to take, and resource water had huge bottles of water and very soft and stylish t-shirts. All in all I made out like a bandit!

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Wanderlust in the city is not exclusive to San Francisco, so I highly recommend going and checking their website out to see if there is an event coming near you. It is a free and you cant beat a day in the sun with like minded people, all serving a purpose of connecting with yourself and nature.

 

To Eat or Not to Eat, That is the Question

Posted in Food and Drinks, San Francisco by

To eat or not to eat, that is the question. I have stated before one of the challenges faced with getting your morning coffee at a donut shop is temptation is always looking you right in the eye. I am always good at avoiding the sugary delights on my own, but sometimes it will happen.  One of my fellow patrons bestows me with a gift. Now what can one say to a free treat. It has to be one of the best ways to start your day. Someone gives you a gift for no reason except to put a smile on your face and to just give you something truly enjoyable. I am all of a sudden filled with pure gratitude at how thoughtful people can be, but I am now I am faced with a morning struggle I was not anticipating.

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This morning the Sticky Bun was the gift given to me. Now I have never really been a sticky bun fan, however dynamo donuts version looks to be a in a whole different ball park.  Dynamo makes their sticky bun from leftover donut dough and then it is baked in a sticky sauce. My eyes start to tell me I want it, however my mind knows eating it would completely derail the hour long spin class I just did. After how torturous getting through spin was this morning there is no way I can negate all of those calories I just burned for one pleasurable moment. Yes it will taste delicious for a minute, but then after the sugar spike wears off the sick feeling and tiredness will start to creep in.  However to pass up something so good would also be a sin.

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Here is the compromise I made with myself. I cut off a small sliver of the bun so I can try the sweet, sticky, doughy, goodness. I then decided to surprise a close friend at work with the rest of the sticky bun. Now I am careful as I would not want to put someone else in this same morning dilemma. Therefore I had to pick a friend who loves sweets and would feel truly excited about the early morning indulgence.  Now I have been able to pass on the feeling I just received of enjoyment from being surprised with an early morning gift to kick off  their day.  Hope everyone can pass on a surprise to someone else this Wednesday morning!