Confession Time…

Alright, so here’s the deal… I need to get a couple things off my chest. What I’m about to tell you might be a little shocking, but bear with me… ready? Alright… here it goes… I hate going to the gym. Whew! There, I feel so much better now. Lol. All joking aside, I really have come to this realization that I just do not like going to the gym. I will do any and everything I can to make excuses to not go. Don’t get me wrong. I actually enjoy working out, but I have total gymtimidation. I feel like an idiot when I’m there because even though I really do know what I’m doing (for the most part), I just get up in my head convincing myself that other people are judging me. I realize this is ridiculous, and no one is probably even paying any attention to me, but I get so stressed out that I really think the negatives from the stress outweigh the positives of my workout!

As I said, I really do enjoy working out… (once I kick myself in the butt to do it, of course!) I’ve just come to the realization that I enjoy home based workouts much more than going to the gym. I love, love, love Pilates, yoga, cardio dance, toning workouts… you name it. If I can do it at my house with some handweights or other minimal equipment, I enjoy doing it. I think I would enjoy group workout classes too, but they just tend to be so expensive. I feel like I really can’t justify the cost of going to a group class when I can get the exact same type of workout for free at home. (Thanks youTube!)

So all that said… I’m giving up the gym for now and focusing on doing my workouts at home. I find the best way to keep yourself motivated is by finding something you enjoy doing, so it doesn’t feel like a chore but rather something you look forward to! I’m not quite at the looking forward to it stage, but I know that I’m much more likely to stick to daily workouts if I don’t try to make myself go to the gym, and that’s ok. Who knows? I might end up changing my mind again later and decide that I want to go to the gym again, and that’s ok too! All that really matters is that I’m doing something.

My second confession/realization is kind of in line with the first one… I don’t know why I keep trying to make myself be a runner… I just don’t enjoy it. I have exercise induced asthma, so when I run, my lungs feel like they’re pretty much useless. It’s weird because I can do a lot of other strenuous activity without an issue, but once I start running… it’s all over.

My goal for this year was to run a 5k a month and get faster with every race, but then I signed up for the Susan G Komen 3 Day Walk for the Cure, and I shifted my focus to walking long distance instead of running. My plan was to switch over my 5k goal to next year, but now that the end of the year is coming up pretty quickly, it’s just not something I want to do anymore. I’ve tried to get back into running a few times since the walk ended, but, again, it’s something I dread rather than look forward to. A part of me still really would like to be a runner, so this is one goal I will probably try to make happen a different time, but for right now, I’m just not going to force it.

My third confession for the night has to do with my diet… I had mentioned a couple different times that I was going to keep my Whole30 going until Thanksgiving, and then I gave in on day 31 and had some off plan foods. My new plan was to get right back into it the next day, but that also ended up not happening. I was on a major carb bender, and I decided I was going to start fresh on November 1 and commit to a whole 30 days instead of stopping on Thanksgiving. Well, November 1st I was on a little weekend trip to Milwaukee with the boy, and I really didn’t feel like trying to be compliant on our fun day, so I pushed it back another day. November 2 came, and I didn’t have any compliant food in my house because I usually go shopping on Friday nights, but because we were in Milwaukee, I obviously couldn’t go. I ended up pushing it back one more day, but this time I told myself that was absolutely the last day, and I was going to start the next day no matter what!

Well, long story short… I did, and today is day 3 of my second Whole30! I’m hoping this go around I really get the results I was hoping for with the first one. Sadly, I’m thinking that I’ve done so much damage to my insides with the crap I’ve been eating for so long that it’s going to take more than a Whole30 to make it happen. If I don’t get the results I want with this Whole30, I’m going to give a Whole60 a try probably at the beginning of next year.

I’m not going to bore you with the details of my daily diet for this Whole30 because it will probably be pretty much the same things as my last Whole30, but if I make a new recipe, and it turns out awesome, I’ll definitely let you know!

Tonight I made some coconut chicken nuggets which smell amazing but unfortunately tasted a bit meh… I used a pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut up into nugget sized pieces. I tossed them in a bag with some coconut flour and tossed them to coat. I then dunked them into some eggs followed by a coating of unsweetened coconut flakes mixed with a fiesta lime seasoning blend. They were then put on a lined baking sheet and into the oven for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes I flipped them and let them cook another 15.

If only you had smell-o-vision!

As I said they smelled amazing! However, I would tweak my recipe just a bit… Next time I will marinade the chicken breasts to give them a little moisture and some added flavor. I’m thinking maybe a coconut milk/lime/chili pepper sauce… Second, I forgot to grease the pan, so half the coating came off of some of them! Next time, I’ll spray a little oil on the foil before putting the chicken on it. Third, it needed some sort of sauce… Possibly a tangy pineapple sauce of some sort…

Whole 30-Days 6-7

Forgive me for my lack of post for the last couple days; I had a pretty busy weekend, and I just really didn’t have much time to sit down and write. Ok, that’s not entirely true. I probably could have written something yesterday, but after being busy all day Saturday and most of the morning on Sunday, I just wanted to veg out and watch some TV. We’re all entitled to that, right? Ok, now that that’s out of the way, what was it that was keeping me so busy?

Well, I mentioned on Friday that I had a mud run on Saturday morning. It was really cold, but ended up being really fun! When I first got there, we had to park and check in in this big open field, and it was rainy and windy and cold! I was really worried about how the race was going to go if I was already that miserable before the race even started. I knew I’d warm up a little bit once I got moving, but I was really nervous about being wet in the cold.

After about 30 minutes of standing around and getting myself situated, we headed over to the starting corral. We were about 15 minutes early for our wave, but they said we could just start anyway, so off we went. The very first obstacle was a giant hill. About halfway up I was really tempted to stop and rest because it was about 1/4 of a mile long and pretty steep, but I just kept going and eventually made it up to the top. After that, I wasn’t worried about the cold anymore! My heart was pumping, and I was actually pretty comfortable. It helped that most of the run was on wooded trails, so it was shielded from the wind and rain quite a bit.

Before…

I was determined to make it through all of the obstacles, but there were a couple that I ended up skipping. The first was an ice water pit. You could swim through it or just run through it, but I opted to go around because of the cold. I didn’t want to stick my feet in ice water when I knew it would only make me that much colder that much faster, so I skipped it. The second was monkey bars because I haven’t been able to do them since I was about 10. The third I only sort of skipped. It was a bar that was about chest high looped through a bunch of racing tires, so when you’d try and get up and over, there really wasn’t anything to hang onto, and the tires would rotate. I did try to get up and over it, but with my short legs I just couldn’t get a good foothold, so I just went under it through the mud.

I think my favorite obstacle was probably the slide. It was just tarps laid down on a big hill that they sprayed with soap and water. When it was your turn, the volunteers would squirt your belly with soap, and they told you to take a running start and basically bellyflop on the slide and go head first. The people in front of me would run until they got to the slide and then slow down and jump, but I just went for it. It was terrifying and exhilarating!

…After! Who wants a hug?

The whole thing was really fun, and I’d definitely do it again, but I’ll be left with a few reminders of the race for the next week or two. Since the race was held in a public park, all of the obstacles had to be brought in and set up, and the mud they used had a lot of rocks in it. I didn’t really notice the bruises as I was getting them because I was so numb from the cold, but once I warmed up later on, I looked down, and I have several large purple spots on my legs and arms.

After the race, I had to run home and get cleaned up quick before driving up to meet the boy for dinner. He just got a new job, so we were celebrating with a nice dinner. It was my first time going out to eat while on Whole30, so I was a little nervous. We didn’t decide where we were going ahead of time, so I couldn’t pre-plan my meal either like I try to do when going to new places. He wanted Italian, but I figured that was about the least likely place I’d be able to find something Whole30 approved.

We ended up going to a steakhouse, and even there I was surprised by how limited my options were. I could have all of their cuts, but all of their compositions had some kind of sugar or cream or alcohol in them. I ended up getting a flat iron steak with a peppercorn crust and a side of grilled asparagus tossed in olive oil and salt. I made sure to ask how it was prepared to make sure there weren’t any added ingredients not listed on the menu. I definitely felt like “that customer,” but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I imagined it would be.

On Sunday, I had a pretty low key day. I pretty much just cleaned and did my housework. I had to run to my parents’ house to do some laundry, and then I came home and cooked a chicken trying a new method. I was pretty happy with the way it turned out, and I made sure to save some of it to make some soup for tonight!

So what did I eat over the last two days? (This post was getting too long, so I will write about today in tomorrow’s post.)

Saturday-Day 6

Breakfast: 3 Baked Egg Nests, a banana, and 8 oz Gingerberry kombucha

Lunch: I didn’t really eat lunch because I was in such a hurry-shame on me! I did have an apple and a banana on the drive up to the boy’s house though.

Dinner: Side salad with oil and vinegar, 7 oz. Flat Iron Steak, and Grilled Asparagus in Olive Oil

Sunday-Day 7

Breakfast: Woke up pretty late, so I just had an apple and 8 oz original kombucha

Lunch: Ham, Apple, & Sweet Potato Scramble

Dinner: Spatchcocked Chicken with Roast Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, and Butternut Squash

Rubbed with ghee and sprinkled with salt and an herb garlic seasoning blend. Ready to go in the oven!

If you’ve never spatchcocked a chicken before, I highly recommend this method! You just cut out the backbone of a whole chicken with a good kitchen shears, score the breastbone from the inside, and lay the chicken out flat. You can season it however you would like, but it cooks so much faster than leaving it whole, so it comes out juicy and tender.

I forgot to take a picture before dismembering it… Roasted to perfection!

How did I feel?

I felt amazing! I had so much energy and stamina during the race. I think if it was a little warmer out and not quite so hilly, I could have done a lot more running. Yesterday I was a bit tired, but I’m sure that had more to do with the crazy workout I got from the race than anything diet related. I’m still going strong and defintely feeling like I can keep this up for the whole 3o days of my Whole3o!

Whole30-Day 5

It seems way too soon for my tastes to be changing already, but I actually found myself thinking this morning that I wish I had more vegetables to pack in my lunch. Who am I?!? I’ve also noticed that they are tasting a lot better to me, too.

I’m sure a big part of it is because I’m trying to shop seasonally, so the veggies I’m picking are at peak flavor right now. I’m also learning to cook them in different ways, too. I had always relied on frozen veggies to get my servings in because that’s what’s easiest, but when you eat frozen, the texture isn’t great, and there’s really only so many ways you can prepare them. My go to was always putting it in a microwave bowl and steaming them for a few minutes. Sure I’d add a few spices to kind of mimic whatever else I was making, but that only goes so far. By buying fresh veggies, I can do so many different things with them. So if you’re like me, and you have been stuck in a veggie rut, try cooking them differently and see how different they can be!

What I ate: Sorry, no pictures today. It was all leftovers. 🙂

Breakfast: 2 Baked Egg Nests, an apple, and 8 oz Gingerberry kombucha

Lunch: Leftover Mustard Chicken and Oven Roasted Broccoli, a salad with balsamic vinaigrette, and some sauerkraut

Dinner: Chocolate Chili, Sauteed Zucchini and Summer Squash, and an apple

I still felt pretty good today. I had a bit of a headache and a slight bout of nausea last night before bed, but I think that was more due to not drinking enough water than the Whole30. The cravings were still really strong today, but they’re already starting to get better. Passing over the candy bowl at the front desk is becoming more like second nature, something I’ve always done, instead of looking at it longingly wishing I could have just one piece.

---

Tomorrow morning is the mud run I’m running walking in (let’s be honest here 😉 ), and I still don’t really have an outfit. I’m going to run out tonight to try and find something, but I’m thinking I’m going to keep it pretty simple. It’s supposed to be really cold and rainy tomorrow morning, so I don’t want to wear anything that’s going to get too weighed down or cold. …I just looked at the weather forecast, and it says 38 degrees with a rain/SNOW(!!!) mixture, and a feels like temp of 30. What?!? I really don’t know how I feel about this! It’s going to be coooooold! Man, if I hadn’t paid $50 to do it, I’d be really tempted to bail right now. Oh well, guess I’m dressing warm tomorrow! Just more motivation to move fast! 😉

Whole30-Day 3

I’m going to start sounding like a broken record here pretty soon, but today was really rather uneventful. I’m on day 3 of my Whole30, and I still feel pretty good. I had a bit of a headache earlier this morning, but I think that was probably caused by other things. I did cut back on my fruit intake today, so maybe I’ll start feeling the withdrawals tomorrow. I hope not, but who knows? If I could continue going along with minimal negative side effects, that would be fantastic!

One thing I did start to notice today was the cravings are starting to kick in. I was craving everything from a chocolate bar to potato chips to cheese curds, you name it! If it was junk, I was probably craving it today. I made the mistake of walking down the candy aisle at the drugstore after work, but I put my blinders on and didn’t even pay attention. I could smell the chocolate though… It was rough!

I definitely planned ahead a lot better today than the first 2 days. I had leftovers for breakfast and lunch and crock pot chili for dinner. I didn’t take any pictures of breakfast or lunch since they are just repeats.

Breakfast: Leftover Ham, Apple & Sweet Potato Scramble and 8 oz Gingerade kombucha

Lunch: Leftover Mustard Chicken Thighs and Spaghetti Squash with Sauteed Asparagus and Garlic

Dinner: Chocolate Chili from The Clothes Make the Girl. I was definitely in the mood for some nice, hearty chili after the last couple cold, dreary days, and this recipe definitely hit the spot. I made the crock pot version so it would be ready to go when I got home.

For someone who wanted to be a food photographer, I take some crappy pics. Lol

I was also going to do a quick tutorial for how to easily dice an onion with minimal tears, but I didn’t think of it until after the onions were already in the pot. I learned the trick a couple years ago, and it has changed my life. 😉 So next time I make a recipe with onions, I’ll be sure to include it. If you don’t already know it, it will be revolutionary.

On Saturday I’ll be doing a 5k mud run to benefit a local domestic abuse shelter. It’s called the Warrior Princess Mud Run, and I want to dress up in some sort of costume. I’m thinking of dressing as a princess, but I’d like to be one that’s not some wussy woman who needs to be saved by her prince (I’m looking at you, Snow White…). I’m kind of stumped on ideas though. Maybe I’ll just go generic and wear a skirt and a tiara and call it a day. If you have any ideas, I’d love to hear them!