Tuesday, July 22th 2008

Meal One
handful of fresh raspberries before working out at 6am

Meal Two
1 1/2 eggs w/mushrooms, red bell peppers
handful of raspberries
handful of strawberries
finger full of cashews raw

Meal Three
grilled orange roughy homemade
asparagus
red bell pepper diced
cashew nuts

Meal Four
snacked on a few teaspoons of coconut milk chilled

Meal Five
grilled salmon homemade
about a cup of pineapple diced, fresh
red bell pepper sliced


I was feeling the effects of the sugar withdrawal yesterday. But, I seem to be recovering pretty quickly. Last night I felt great. I was very alert and I had a ton of energy. This is unusual for me late at night, after chasing two kids around all day. Today, I am still craving some kind of sugar. I feel like I should be eating bread or oatmeal or something like that. I almost caved in when serving my kids fresh hot oatmeal for breakfast!

Tomorrow I have to take Sophia and her friend Luca out for lunch. I keep thinking that I have to disconnect my emotions from food. It is helping. Food is so deeply rooted in how I feel, especially in social situations.

Eric took my body fat measurements today. I am at about 20% bodyfat, which is the lowest I've been since before I had my kids. My lean body mass is 95lbs. And my weight with clothes and shoes on is 119. I am curious how this diet is going to affect my body fat and lean body mass as well. I am eating whenever I am hungry. But, I am only eating meats, veggies, nuts, seeds, and fruit. I am not eating any sugar, processed foods, or grains (this includes legumes).

I will post some photos soon to compare before and after.

I am still feeling pretty good. I was also able to deal with a lot of stress today without succumbing to anxiety. It was great. I didn't feel like a slave to any mood swings. And as a result, I didn't say things that I regretted or wished I could take back.

I did a feel a little tired around 6pm; but I think this is because I hadn't eaten dinner yet. The last meal was lunch around 12pm. I do notice that I can go for 4 to 5 hours without any real feelings of hunger. Sometimes I want to eat more out of habit or being momentarily bored or stressed.

I said no to fresh homemade coffee (offered by my hubby), chocolate chips (offered by my kiddos), cheese and crackers (offered by a friend at the kids' playdate), and don't forget saying no to the delicious homemade oatmeal I fed my kids for breakfast!

I hope tomorrow, I can succeed again. It is much easier to resist temptation when I disconnect my emotions from the food in front of me. It is amazing how food can "talk"! But, when I take the emotions away, the food loses its voice.

Monday, July 21th 2008

Today I am starting on a new diet I was exposed to during the Crossfit Level I Nutrition Certification in San Francisco this past weekend. It is basically a diet that consists of eating only the following:

meat
vegetables
nuts
seeds
fruit

No sugar
No grains
No processed foods

This means that for the next 30 days, my life is going to take an interesting turn. I am not going to worry about being in the Zone since I want to focus more on the quality of food I am eating versus the quantity of food I am eating. But, I am going to pay attention to the portions I consume based on how hungry I feel. If I am hungry, I am going to eat from the list mentioned above: meat, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and fruit. I am going to have to give up some of my favorite foods for the next 30 days: raw honey, dairy, protein shakes, and even Ezekiel bread. I want to experiment with this diet mainly to see how much insulin resistance I am dealing with even after eating a fairly steady diet of zone favorable meals.
Also, I am going to measure my body fat percentage today and at the end of 30 days. Thirty days from now is...August 19th. I am not sure I have the will power to do this experiment, but I will try.

Meal One
1/3 mango
1/2 avocado
small handful of nuts

Meal Two
eggs
mushrooms
olive oil
red peppers
salt, pepper, garlic, onion, ginger to taste

Snack
Handful of cashew nuts (raw)
bottle of water

Meal Three
about 3 oz of tuna w/mayo
handful of strawberries
handful of green grapes

Meal Five
1/2 chicken breast sauteed in olive oil and spices
1/2 cup sauteed baby spinach in olive oil and spices
1 cup broccoli w/butter and salt
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper raw

I have to get groceries today; I did not eat meat because I am out of eggs, and I opted out of cottage cheese since it is a dairy product. Here are some photos of my trip.

O.K. I got the groceries: vegetables, fruit, nuts, and chicken and fish. I ate like a queen today. I took the time to cook everything with much love and tenderness. It was a wonderful day as far as eating. As far as my physical body, it wasn't so good. I felt the cravings for sweets and bread. I know this is mostly coming off of a crazy weekend traveling to San Fran. And I almost threw up during my work out. It was nasty. But, tonight I feel much better. I am sooooo glad I made it through the first day without "cheating". I will try again tomorrow: stick to a daily intake of meat, veggies, nuts, seeds, fruit; and I will try not to have even one milligram of sugar, processed foods, grains or dairy. The longest I've ever gone without my faves: bread, desserts, honey, coffee, etc. is two weeks. Can I go a full 30 days without cheating? Let's just take it one day at a time...

Tuesday, July 15th 2008

Meal One
1/4 cup cottage cheese
1/4 cup strawberries
6 oz whole milk w/ instant coffee
1/2 teaspoon honey

Meal Two
2 oz sliced turkey
1 slice baby swiss
1 slice Ezekiel bread
1 teaspoon mayo expeller pressed
1/2 cup blueberries

Meal Three
2 oz grilled hamburger homemade
1 slice Ezekiel bread
1 teaspoon mayo
1/2 tomato sliced (small)
1/2 cup raw veggies (bell peppers, spinach)
1/4 cup sauteed mushrooms and onions

Meal Four
1/4 scoop protein powder (Sci-Fit)
6 oz Naked protein drink

I have been swamped with kids' activities this week and preparing meals for a MyFoodNanny.com client. I haven't had a lot of time to journal other than jot down my meals. But, I would like to take some time tomorrow and go over step by step, the grilling process.

Monday, July 14th 2008

Meal One
1/4 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup fresh strawberries
1/2 slice ezekiel bread w/butter
3 cashew nuts
Water w/multi vitamin

Meal Two
2 Scrambled eggs
1 cup zucchini, mushrooms and onions
1 medium tomato
cilantro

Meal Three
8 oz whole milk
w/ coffee

Meal Four
1/2 Naked Protein Drink
1/4 scoop protein powder
1/2 slice ezekiel bread w/butter

Meal Five
2 oz grilled burger
1 cup raw veggies (broccoli, bell peppers, baby spinach)
1 teaspoon mayo
1 tablespoon ketchup

Friday, July 11th 2008

Meal One
1 hard boiled egg
1/4 cup salsa
3 raw almonds

WOD (6am)
Nancy
400 meter run
15 overhead squats (55lbs)
5 rounds for time

Meal Two
1 1/2 scrambled eggs w/ 1/4 cup salsa
1 small pancake (Bob's Red Mill Brand)
4 oz whole milk w/instant coffee

Meal Three
2 oz chicken
1 cup of steamed broccoli w/butter and salt
1/2 oz of raw cheese

Meal Four
1/2 slice cheese pizza from Uncle Vinny's Pizza
2 oz side order of grilled BBQ chicken from Uncle Vinny's
Water

Meal Five
2 oz grilled chicken homemade
2 tablespoons Claude's BBQ sauce
1 whole red bell pepper
6 cashew nuts
1/4 Kashi Blueberry waffle

Ever since that Dallas trip I haven't been able to get into my groove. I am going to have to go back to square one.
So here are my steps for getting into the Zone and staying on it:

1. Choose a menu for the week
2. Make a shopping list based on the menu
3. Grill meats to have ready by Monday morning
4. Cut up veggies and put in tupperware ready to serve
5. Prepare salsa to eat for breakfast
6. Have ready supply of tupperware and ziplocks bags for to-go meals
7. Get at least 8 hours of sleep--lack of sleep makes me crave coffee and sweets
8. Get at least 2 5k runs in the week (5k's help me recover quicker from the Crossfit wods)
9. Drink lots of water, and remember to take my vitamins.

This is my plan for this weekend. Then by Monday I'll be ready go get in the zone and be strict. Hopefully, life will not throw too many fast balls at me!

O.k., I got my groceries, menu, and my meats thawing...
First curve ball: I've got a girls' night out tonight, and it's to celebrate a friend's birthday. We're going to a concert first and then out for a light snack and dessert. I will have to do some careful navigating to be able to stay in the zone. I'll post the results tomorrow or Sunday!

Thursday, July 10th 2008

Meal One
2 scrambled eggs
1/4 cup salsa
1/4 cup sweet potatoes

Meal Two
8oz latte w/whole milk

Meal Three
8 oz whole milk
1/2 scoop protein powder
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon raw pumpkin seeds

Meal Four
Quizno's sub
4" Turkey sub w/veggies
8 oz raspberry lemonade

Meal Five
1 zone bar

Meal Six
8 oz whole milk
1/4 protein powder

I was so sore today. I thought I had rhabdo. I felt like I had a fever. I was weak and I ached all over. I took two naps. I think I was sore from the kettlebell workout since I rarely workout with kettlebells. Being so weak made it even harder to eat well. Ironically, today is probably a day when I needed to eat good foods more than any other day. I did not work out and I went to bed at 8:30pm. I am writing this on Friday, and I can say I feel much better today. All I needed was some rest and some good zone meals to help me recover. Nothing compares to 9 solid hours of sleep!

Wednesday, July 9th 2008

Meal One
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup strawberries
Earl Grey Tea w/ one teaspoon honey and cream

Meal Two
Lunch w/friends at Riverwalk Italian restaurant
2 oz grilled chicken
plate of greens, zucchini, asparagus
6 kalamata olives
Balsamic Dressing

Meal Three
Latte w/whole milk (8 oz)
No sweetener

Meal Five
Left over salad from lunch

Meal Six
8 oz whole milk
1/4 scoop protein powder (7g protein)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon raw pumpkin seeds

WOD (refer to www.nextgenerationcrossfit.com)
One round of each:
Helen
Kelly
Annie
19:08

The last few weeks I have been trying to stick with the zone as much as possible. I haven't been super strict; but I hope to get back to a more strict menu from now on...