Week 7-Day 2

Oh my good glory blazes! It's week 7?! What have I been doing??? It's been this crazy on again off again hulabaloo and I only have 5 weeks left! BAH!!

GET A GRIP!!
 Well, this week has been better. There has been exercising and there has been water. Oh, there has been water. Let me just tell you, last night's dinner was a-freakin-mazing.  What made the difference? I went swimsuit shopping earlier in the week. Need I say more? Summer is coming people. You've been warned.

There is no way I would have taken the time to take a picture of the food we ate last night. It looked and tasted THAT good. You want recipes? Here you are....

I was looking for a recipe for shrimp. Shrimp Scampi has always intrigued me b/c I like how the name sounds, but I have never had it. I looked it up on this website and found a truly funny post. This woman can cook. And she is hilarious. I wanted to keep reading her blog rather than cook dinner because she was making me giggle. I loved her post on Shrimp Scampi but didn't end up making it. 

I made her Oven-Roasted Asparagus instead and just cooked my shrimp with garlic, olive oil, lemon and salt & pepper. YUM!  We also had a green salad with diced avocados, tomatoes, and topped with a spoonful of cottage cheese. And I busted out a side of roasted garlic new potatoes.

I can't even express to you how good that meal was.......mmmmmmm.

I'll weigh in tomorrow.

Week 5-part 2

I must be in a blogging mood...2 days in a row-what is going on?!

So I made breakfast this morning and then before taking a bite, I remembered that you & I talked about me weighing myself this morning. So off I went to the bathroom to strip down with fingers crossed. Ta-da!

Weight: 136.4 lbs
Hydration Level:60.8%
Body Fat: 19.5%

MUCH different than I anticipated! What a nice surprise!

So, I returned to my breakfast of multi-grain whole wheat toast topped with 1 egg/1egg white and, what else, an avocado. Delicious.

I've been on top of the water and it makes me feel fabulous! I went to the gym as early as possible and ran my little heart out for two 10 minute miles. Whew! And during said run I thought of a recent post of London's (my friend with a fitness blog I showed you, remember?) where she talks about getting through a bunch of little battles all day. That run was a battle for me and I slaughtered it. SO violent.....please, calm down.

Yesterday I did weights for my lower body. I've told you before about that workout sucking your energy dry. Well, I topped it off with a run (just under 2 miles) and succumbed to a nap in the afternoon. Who can blame me? I seriously felt like I COULD NOT move!

But as soon as I hopped up on the treadmill today my legs felt stronger and ready to go. It felt different, and it felt GOOD.

So far today I've eaten the breakfast we discussed. I also had a chocolate protein shake & a banana after my run. Just now I finished off this.

Leftovers from the Turkey Burgers I grilled up last night & served alongside some Sweet Potato Fries. Except last night we had buns & cilantro and a pickle and hummus. After taking this picture, I added some Tabasco sauce.

Now that was tasty.

I plan to eat some rice/seed crackers with cottage cheese/avocado when my kids get home from school. I also bought stuff to make shrimp (never cooked it before) stir fry with my healthy version of fried rice for dinner. I'm going to go to parent teacher conferences tonight smelling just wonderful. :) You get what you get people. I'll let you know how it goes....

Week 5

Forefront on my mind this week (thus far) has been the fact that nutrition counts for 80% of weight loss. My last free day easily turned into a free weekend and Clay asked if we were even doing this anymore. The answer is yes. Yesterday I was incredible with my eating. Do I just need to take it a day at a time? Or even one meal at a time? Maybe. I am easily overwhelmed.

Last night I made a pretty fantastic dinner amidst pure chaos. My husband was absent, the baby was screaming his demands, and while trying to focus on the recipe I was reading, I was also shouting out spelling words to quiz Brooklyn on.  But we made it through. I have never cooked with tofu before.  I think it was my kid's first time trying it possibly? They loved it. It was called Coconut Red Curry Sauce & Noodles. I saw it on Worst Cooks in America and it sounded downright delightful.

Oh-here's the recipe. Thank you Bobby Flay. There are no pictures. If you're wondering why, see previous paragraph. Maybe I'll take one of my lunch of leftovers today. Sure. Look forward to that.

Well, lucky you, you didn't have to wait for that very long at all!

Sidenote: Soy is pretty amazing. And think of all those different forms it comes in! I drink Silk, eat edamame, and tofu. Dramatically different.

Another tasty thing to try that I polished off before grabbing my camera, is cottage cheese with a mashed up avocado in it. Just eat away at a bowl of that with your rice/seed crackers. Pretty good. I eat an avocado every day.

For breakfast I had the usual, but the eggs were scrambled and we were out of raisins for the oatmeal.

My water intake is up and tomorrow I'll weigh in. Quite honestly, after my weekend of throwing caution to the wind, I haven't been all that anxious to remember to jump on the scale.

I did not exercise yesterday, but I'm on my way today.

Dinner tonight is yet to be determined....

Funny little tidbit. I felt a lump in my right leg above my knee while driving and pointed it out to Clay that evening. He felt it and said, "That's a muscle Lindsay." So things are happening I suppose. I was great on the gym last week & not so hot with eating. But things are going on! Maybe this week I can get a handle on myself and combine it all???? Won't that be lovely?

Another fitness blog

A great friend of mine is also keeping a fitness blog while she does a contest. You can read it here. Go London!!!

Week 4

Well, that was quite a lull we had there. Heh, heh.

Let me break down the past 2 weeks for you, if I may.

Week 2 was filled to the brim with a sick baby who wanted nothing but me. And when my life is in such a state, I grab anything I can to eat as fast as possible and don't really care what it is. And that sick week drove me to the peanut M&M's. Yes, it did.


Week 3 Clay was out of town and I fully intended to get myself back on plan. I went shopping for the week and picked up a large bag of those cheese sticks from Costco. I did not buy them for me, I bought them for my kids and kids who come to my house. But I ate them. I ate so very many of them. And I ate more peanut m&m's. And I made no bake cookies. Twice. And I ate a lot of them. And I only exercised twice.  And I felt completely dehydrated all week long since I wasn't on top of my water. My body felt terrible. And I missed Clay.

And now here we are at week 4.

At the beginning of week 2 I felt frustrated. It turns out I'm an impatient person and I'm interested in seeing results pronto. But, that's not exactly how it works. And I let it get me down. I kept thinking to myself as I looked in the mirror, is it ever really REALLY going to change? Do I just write myself & my body off at 30 years and look ahead to being a plump grandmother with a comfy lap and heavy snuggly arms?

Basically I needed a serious butt kicking.

I watched FatChef again and the girl on it was feeling the same exact way. Then she said, "Well, like they say, Rome wasn't built in a day, and I guess neither was my [butt]."

True. 

So, I ask you, why should I expect it to snap back to my 20 year old state when this body I'm rockin' has been 10 years in the making? Is that even logical?

Um, sidenote: I really wish SOMEONE would have warned me of the phenomenon that is the "Freshman 15." I had never even heard of that until about 3 years PAST my freshman year, and a nice 15 lbs. later, thank you very much.

Clay got back, and I ditched him to go watch a movie with a handful of girlfriends. The popcorn smelled delightful and everyone got a soda. But honestly, my body was like, "WATER!!! GET ME SOME FREAKIN' WATER!!!!" So I'm happy to say, I listened, and was happy I did.

And this week has gone rather well, if I do say so myself. And I do. I have a different outlook this week. I read more in the book. He explains there are two types of motivation, outward & inward. I have been focusing on the outward. That's where my frustration lies. The outward motivation focuses on a FUTURE reward whereas the inward motivation focuses more on changing things RIGHT NOW and enjoying the changes as we go and thus benefitting with the results of those changes later on.

If that made no sense to you, read about it in the book. He does a much better job explaining it. I'm now trying to focus on changing my lifestyle because I really want to rather than because it is the way a plan says to do things.

I've also been thinking about a conversation which my grandma had with my dad about his decision to finish college. He expressed that if he started out at that point, "I won't be finished until I'm 30!!" And she responded, "You'll be 30 anyway."

So, yes, this may be 12 weeks long. But the 12 weeks will come and go regardless of what I choose to do with them. So I may as well get at it and have something to look back on to be proud of, and a lifestyle change to move forward with, right?

So here are my weigh-in's for the past 3 days.

Monday
Weight: 141.4 lbs.
Hydration: 59.7%
Body Fat: 20.9%

Tuesday
Weight: 138.4 lbs.
Hydration: 60.4%
Body Fat: 20.0%


Wednesday
Weight: 137.6 lbs.
Hydration: 60.5%
Body Fat: 19.9%

I'm feeling better. And thus far, I have exercised every day this week.

transformation-day 8

Weigh In:
Weight: 137 lbs.
Hydration: 60.7%
Body Fat: 19.7%

Nutrition
The food plan during the transformation phase is made up of two key components, proteins & carbohydrates. The protein builds your muscles which in turn burn your fat. And the carbs give you energy. And we're supposed to have 5 meals in that context with an unlimited amount of veggies. Um, that's a LOT of food.

Exercise PUSH (upper body weights)
Bench: high was 25 lbs.
Flyes: high was 10 lbs.
Side Raises: high was 10 lbs.
Kickbacks: high was 12 lbs.
Curls: high was 15 lbs.
 *these are dumbbells I used, so it's per arm. 

And today, while eating my fantastic turkey sandwich that I can't seem to say enough about, I read in the book, Strength for Life. If you're thinking about doing this, please PROMISE me you're reading the book!!! I can't explain all the concepts & what not on here unless I write a book myself. Read it. Look it up online, check it out from the library. It's worth your time. Enough on that, this is what I came across today:

Eat for life.

He explains it so simply. I love that. He suggested that when we eat in "craving mode" we're satisfying our brain while we eat and pay little attention to how we feel afterwards. However, when we eat for life we choose to eat what will make our bodies perform better and feel better. He suggested I think about how my sandwich was making me feel, so I'll tell you.

My turkey sandwich made me happy. Yes, I was very happy with my choice. I didn't miss my full fat mayo (ex-lover) even one bit because I had 1/2 an avocado on there providing me with creaminess and a taste I LOVE. I got my fat, it was just a healthy fat. And my sandwich wasn't dry because of it. I feel energized, ready to clean the house and it's 2 p.m. On a normal day for me that would be a rarity. Two o' clock is typically when my body says, "Let's snooze, shall we?" And I don't.  I have to fight it, and drudge through. But not so today. Today I have energy!!! I also feel satisfied and full. But not the same kind of full I did after eating the burger and fries last week. I was full and heavy and wanted to nap. But today I feel ready to go & fresh. Hmmmmm, very nice.

Free Day-week 1

Now pay attention to this. When you get into the Transformation phase, be sure to pick one consistent day that is your free day. Don't pick a floating free day for the week. This will get you off track super fast. Before you know it, You'll end up having a free weekend beginning Friday night and lasting throughout Sunday. Believe me, we've been through it before. And it's completely ineffective that way. You've got to stick to one day. So make your decision with all factors involved before you choose a day, and then lock yourself in.

End of Week One Weigh In & Measurements:
 Weight: 135.8 lbs.
Hydration Level: 61%
Body Fat:19. 3%
Right Bicep (flexed): 11.5 in.
Bust: 32.75 in.
Waist: 29 in.
Hips: 39 in.
Thigh: 23 in.
Calf: 15.25 in.


Pre-Base Camp Weigh in & Measurements:
Weight: 139.4 lbs.
Hydration level: 60.1%
Fat percentage: 20.4%
Right Bicep (flexed): 12 in.
Bust: 33.5 in.
Waist: 28.75 in.
Hips: 39.75 in.
Thigh: 22.75 in.
Calf: 14.75 in.



Yay! There are some good improvements in there! I think I'm most excited to see the body fat dropping again. 






This morning I woke up knowing I could eat anything & everything I wanted. But when it came to breakfast, I'll be honest, I was really leaning towards eggs with avocados. And kind of craving another amazing turkey sandwich like the one we had last night for dinner, same as the one we had the other day. It's THAT good.

Here's what I ended up having:

2 slices of buttered whole wheat toast
1 DELICIOUS leftover slice of pizza with artichoke hearts, tomatoes, onions, and spinach on it from The Pie. (So good!)
1 pkg. of peanut m&m's (never disappoints)
a chicken burrito bowl from Chipotle (meh)
1/2 a pomegranate Jamba Juice
brinner for dinner (inc. bacon, scrambled eggs w/cheese & avocados, waffles, & coconut syrup)
Bacon-wrapped jalepeno thingies (pure tastiness)
another s-l-o-w-l-y enjoyed package of peanut m&m's
probably 2 glasses of water

How I feel:

Really, not too shabby. I had visions of sugary sweets dancing in my head throughout the end of the week. My mouth was watering at the thought of trying a maple & bacon doughnut. But when free day came, I was thinking about how doughnuts make me feel horrible, and opted for a fruity Jamba Juice instead. The burrito bowl was like a salad to me, really. And quite frankly, I like a healthy loaded salad BETTER. SO minus the m&m's, bacon, & butter, I feel like my choices this week leaned more toward healthy this week. Certainly not there yet-but there was leaning.

....and just so you know, this plan is pretty expensive for all the fresh produce and what not. So we go crazy on couponing for our free day.

Did you notice that I finally included a picture? I just thought I should point that out.

Transformation-Day 5

Yeah, I completely forgot to weigh in this morning. And last night I felt like I had struggled with not eating every sweet I could think of all day or stopping at any fast food while I was out & about. 

AAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!

So that exhausted me/put me in a grumpy mood, on top of cooking dinner and doing homework for way too long after it. Some days just need to end early, am I right? So when Clay asked me when I was going to the gym, I told him I was NOT.

Did I tell you how great dinner was? Because it was. And really when I was thinking about what I could buy at those fast food joints, I kept thinking about the turkey sandwich I ate earlier in the day that I think I said, "mmmmmmmmmmmmm...." the entire time I was eating it. There were avocados, red onions, mustard and of course bread & turkey involved. It was SO BLASTED GOOD!!!! Are we all doing the happy dance for the go-ahead to have bread now? Ahhh, yeah!

Chicken Noodle Soup

6 cans low sodium Swanson chicken broth

3 stalks celery, diced

1/2 yellow onion, finely diced

a handful of baby carrots, chopped

1 tsp. chopped garlic

1. 5 cups shredded chicken (I just broke up the rotisserie chicken we bought earlier in the week)

1/4 pkg. of whole wheat fettuccine noodles, broken up into little bits, cooked & drained

pepper to taste

1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 baked potatoes

Directions:  

1. saute onion & celery in frying pan with olive oil. Add garlic for last 2 min.
2. I just cooked the carrots right in with the pasta in a big pot
3. drain
4. add onions, celery, garlic mixture
5. keep simmering while adding broth, chicken & pepper
6. add in baked potato, all broken up
7. the end

What the yum on a cold day?

So anyway, I said "poo-poo" to the gym. Instead, I hopped in bed at 8:30 and watched FatChef. Inspiring. Made me feel like a slob. These people are making sweets and pure deliciousness all day. The chick was a single mom. She worked like 100 hours a week and was able to squeeze in workouts. The guy lost 100 freakin' pounds. And I laid in bed as a witness making eyes at all the food they were tempted by. Lovely. 

So today I woke up in a daze, managed to get my kids out the door. I did not remember to weigh myself and I did not cook a fantasmic breakfast for my husband or myself. BAD IDEAS!!! He wasn't too happy about it either. And then I ate some yogurt covered pretzels which I totally am not supposed to. Way to go.

BUT (and this is a big ol' mother lovin' BUT)....

I did not let that determine my actions for the rest of the day. Just because you slip up doesn't mean you're doomed for all time. Just get at it again. And get at it I did. Because I skipped yesterday's workout, I am now required to add it to today's. So not only did I go to the gym and waste my arms and back, I also just about died on the treadmill right after that. 

I'm not interested in doubling them up again. It kicked my butt, hard. Oh. My. Gosh. (Becky) On the other hand, I seriously LOVE the feeling I have after I'm done with a workout. I feel like I could fight someone and I kind of WANT to. Maybe I should take up boxing or cage fighting????

Tomorrow is our free day...

Where are the pictures lately? SHEESH!!! I'll get on that.

transformation-day 4

For the past three days my weigh in has remained the same.

Weight: 137.2 lbs
Body Fat: 19.7%
Hydration: 60.7%

My HIIT running (see Strength For Life book) went well on Tuesday. My peak was level 7. I felt like I pushed myself as hard as I needed to. I also worked my abs into a frenzy.  Yesterday I paid a lot of attention to proper form while I did the weight training. That is SO important to pay attention to.

#1 Getting injured is not in your best interest and
#2 If you're taking the time to do it, make sure you're doing it RIGHT so that you are able to experience the benefits.


SIDENOTE: I always struggle with the idea of correcting girls/women at the gym. SO many times I see a girl come in and kind of meander about, or glance at a paper with a plan on it, etc. and really not have a clue about how to do what she's supposed to. They're intimidated by grunting, dumbbell dropping, and frankly sometimes pushy & entitled males, & overwhelmed. Or there's a middle aged woman who shows up and thinks she's doing something great for her body when really she's not doing much at all but upping her chances for injury by about 75%. The sad thing is I hate for them not to be able to reach their goals because they were intimidated and lacked knowledge about the weight room. And I have never in the past found the nerve to say, "Try it like this."

But yesterday I became that person. Try not to hate me. I was totally well-meaning. I was doing lunges and watching a pair of middle-aged women kneel on a bench and swing around dumbbells while giggling with each other. It was an attempt to do kickbacks. I was quiet for awhile, debating within myself. Then I pulled my earphone out of my ear and said, "Do you mind if I help you out?" They laughed and then I showed them the proper way to do a kickback, keeping the elbow tucked in and stationary, pausing for a moment at each endpoint, & NOT using momentum. They were appreciative and I'm really really glad for that, because I did want to help. Do I think they were stupid? Definitely not! Everyone has had to learn at some point. Even turbo in the corner watching his pecs bounce in the mirror.

It was legs yesterday and I could barely walk down the stairs or home afterwards. The thing about working out your legs like that is it zaps your energy and you want to take a 5 hour nap as soon as you're done. The great news-those big muscles you work out do a serious number on burning fat the more you build them. I keep reminding myself of that.

And today the only thing that kept me away from a delicious looking nutty chocolate caramel thing was the price. I almost lost it! Oh-so help me!!!  Yesterday and today I have been craving sweets like some sort of sweet tooth beast. But....I prevailed.

(I better get a chest bump for that next time I see any of you.)

I also believe this makes the honorable mention list:

My son had a pack meeting this week. All the parents were asked to bring a batch of treats. Rice Krispy Treats came to mind. And then I thought about how difficult it was actually going to be to make those ooey gooey little delights without eating any myself. We went to the store and I asked what he thought of bringing something healthy, like strawberries. He said, "Oh yeah! I don't really want to get sick from a bunch of sugar. It gives me a stomachache." Problem solved. We told Clay our plan at dinner and he mentioned that a boy might get beat up for bringing that as a treat. But we did it anyway.  We brought an overflowing bowl of freshly-washed strawberries. And I admit I didn't feel like Supermom or a domestic goddess at that moment, so I made Brooklyn carry them in and quietly slip them on the table littered with cupcakes and brownies and more cupcakes and cookies. I didn't eat anything. At the very end, I walked up to retrieve my bowl and it was down to 2 strawberries. There were tons of sugary options leftover for people to take home and consume themselves. Turns out people appreciative a healthy alternative. 

Whaddayaknow?!

Before Photos

Lest you think I have forgotten entirely about this and fallen off the wagon, let me assure you....

Hi, Ho, Silver!! I am on it!!!


We completed the Base Camp portion of the plan and now we're on to the Transformation phase. (cue spanish trumpets) This is 12 weeks long. I have decided to weigh myself & take measurements on the 6th day of each week before we take our free day. So, I'll be back at the end of this week to do so.

My husband agreed to take Before & After pictures for me as long as I promised, cross-my-heart-hope-to-die style, not to post them on here. He thought it would be weird. It is actually something I've debated with myself over for the past week or so. Mainly I wanted to make a point. So I'm going to do that without pictures of me. Hmmm.... So I'm going to get wordsy instead.

SPOILER ALERT!!! 

You know those weight loss commercials that come on TV or pop out at you in a magazine? Typically you will see the "before" looking somewhat like this:

The woman stands like a slug.  If a slug could stand. Or they sit and let their body fold into itself. They face the camera straight on with their entire body. Their hair looks unkept. Their skin, typically pasty and unattended to. Rather than looking the best that can at that stage, they instead seem to try to look their worst. Complete with a grumpy expression.

Compare this to the "after" photo:

The person stands up straight, shoulders back, waist turned, hands strategically placed to emphasize waist and to thin legs. One leg placed forward to visually condense leg width. Body weight is placed on back leg, allowing the hips to drop which lengthens the torso and draws the navel inward.

 Either the head or shoulders are angled toward the camera, reducing excess skin around neck/jawline and making the shoulder breadth appear smaller. They've got a tan, a smile on their face, and their hair/make-up is done.

Granted-they probably FEEL better.

What can be learned from this?

When a quick fix diet pill/plan looks tempting & too good to be true with a woman like this front & center, take note. You can visually drop about 10 lbs. depending on how you stand in front of a camera. And I think we all know that tan fat looks better than white fat.

That's a helpful tip to you if you're having family pictures done also. Stand like the reformed woman even if you feel much less than reformed. You will look better no matter what, compared to standing like a slug, facing straight-on to the camera.

I suggest you make yourself look the best you possibly can (hair, make-up, body, EVERYTHING!!!) and then pick a way to stand (& smile). Either stand like a slug or stand like a body builder. Just be sure to do the same thing in both your before shot & your after shot. The results may not be as dramatic, but they will be truthful. And that's kind of the point, right?

Or maybe stand both ways? Just my thoughts. :)

Anyway, I read more in the book and he (Shawn Pillips) suggests taking photos each week so that you can watch yourself morph. Pretty cool? Yes.

Best thing I read in the book recently:

Progress made is progress measured.

Take note DAILY of your accomplishments. Even if it is  .1% reduced body fat. YAY!! Celebrate it!

Monday's Weigh in (the morning after my "free weekend")
Hydration: 50.9%
Body fat: 20.5%
Weight: 140.6 lbs.


Wowza! Right back up. SO READY to attack this week like I mean it!!!

extra days

Remember on Day 9 when I said our days were mixed up? Well, we were supposed to start on a Monday, but we didn't. So now we have 3 extra days tucked in here that we're dealing with. Wednesday, Thursday & Friday and then Saturday & Saturday are free days again. Messy. You should do it like the book says. We're treating our extra days like base camp days :) I found a couple more recipes for you to try, even if we haven't yet. This is one.

Basil Grilled Salmon with Spicy Corn Relish 

for the corn relish (which is hard to link to) I would improvise and put together the following

• 1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 can corn, drained
• 2 large tomatoes, diced
• 1 avocado diced
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce
• 1/4 red onion diced

Here's a similar alternative with different flavorings

Pacific Coast Salmon with Pan Roasted Corn Salsa

Free Day #1

What I did with my freedom:

Honey bunches of oats
+ buttered toast
+ a triple cheese grilled cheese sandwich
+ Peanut M&M's
+ a philly cheesesteak
+ Garden Salsa Sunchips
+ 1/2 a soda
+ a cinnamon roll
=a pounding headache, a stomachache, and blegh. Ohhhhh, blegh!!! My stomach is so angry!!

I was aching to eat the grapefruit in my fridge and still pounded water like it was going out of style. And I was actually really itching to go and exercise. But I resisted.

Clay believes in still eating healthy on his free day because he doesn't want to slide backwards. Boo! I got up and made him his oatmeal & eggs this morning.

the point is to feel as revolting & lethargic as possible to realize the effects different foods have on your body. Soon you realize that you don't want to eat ice cream because of the way you feel after eating it.

the point is not to get burnt out. So you should eat things you can't on the other days, if possible.

the point is not to feel like you can NEVER have the foods/drinks you LOVE for the rest of your life. If you want to try all 31 flavors on your free day, go right ahead. If you want to eat an entire pizza solo, feel free. Just do it once a week. Not really that restrictive once you think it through.

the point is to be excited to eat healthy & exercise through the upcoming week because you just took a crash course on how it feels to not be doing that stuff.

Bring it.

Base Camp-Day 12

Day 12. It is so hard knowing it is your last day. It's all I could think about really.

Water is one of the things I have come to find is the most helpful to get feeling better in a snap. Headache? You probably need water. Feeling "munchy"? Water helps. Need to wake up? Water. Even with drinking the required 7 glasses a day, I felt myself just c-r-a-v-i-n-g the stuff.

Weigh in
Weight: 135 lbs.
Hydration level: 61%
Body Fat: 19.2%


EXACT SAME as yesterday. But do you want to know something cool? My skinniest skinny jeans are too big now. Mmmmm-hmmm. Don't think that doesn't make me hap-hap-happy. I was thinking of something tonight as I walked back in the dark from the gym. I don't want you to think I'm not happy with my body. I am. I appreciate my body and I think a lot of that comes from the attitude that yoga teaches you to have about your body. I'm grateful for a body that can do lots of things. I'm grateful for my longer than long torso. I'm grateful to be as tall as I am. I like my eyes, I like my freckles, & I like my hair. I love many things about my body and I think that's healthy.

Most importantly, I like me. But wanting to make improvements upon what you have is healthy too. And I know that some of you think I'm skinny, but skinny girls need love too. And skinny girls need to firm things up. And skinny girls wish for things to be a little different also. I have a little sister that dressed as a stick figure for Halloween one year and pretty much, the girl didn't even need a costume. But I know that she'd appreciate having a butt and she wants some muscles. I just don't want you to think I'm down on myself in any way.


Breakfast

• oatmeal with raisins, cinnamon, & vanilla

Snacks

• raw almonds
• rice/seed crackers
• clementine

I ate a lot of those snacks.

Lunch

• baked sweet potato (white variety)

Dinner

• pan-seared chicken with Mrs. Dash
• green salad
• baked sweet potato (yep, 2 in one day)

Water 7 glasses

Exercise
rode a stationary bike for 10 min. while catching up on designer tips in Architectural Digest. Funny how they all say " I love to look off the beaten path" and then proceed to list the same exact list of stores as the others. Hmmmmmmm. Did my push-ups, squats, & crunches & 1/2 hour of yoga.

How I feel
Pretty incredible. I want yummy things but just because yummy things are, well, yummy. And I'm a fan of yumminess. But when I do have yummy food now it is going to be WORTH the effort it takes to get it gone. Ya know? Who wants to work off cheap waxy chocolate?


Three things I'm grateful for today

• Martin Luther King. What an incredible man with such a great dream and the drive to make it a reality.
• the transforming power of nail polish 
• snow????

Base Camp-Day 11

Well, let me tell ya, Day 11 just about sucked the life out of us. Clay and I both wanted to just go back to bed all day so that the next day would come. This is seriously ROUGH on the weekends. Probably because that's when we have the worst eating habits. This blog had a lot to do with me sticking to it. Otherwise, I think I might have spent the day baking pumpkin bread and devouring it by the loaf. However, I did not. I'm happy to say that we kept each other in check and we WILL make it through until Tuesday! Clay has also come to appreciate the fact that I'm doing this blog because it makes me be sure to actually make meals instead of defaulting to protein shakes for dinner while we're on this. :)

Weigh in
 Weight: 135 lbs.
Hydration level: 61%
Body Fat: 19.2%

Again, like I've mentioned previously, it's all going to fluctuate from day to day and we don't need to freak out about it. Think about how you feel instead.

How I Feel Today
I feel grumpy because I want to eat out of boredom & socially & for emotional reasons. But I'm trying to break myself of that. So I feel really proud of myself for that fact and encouraged that it's possible to do. My body feels great. Clay says he's surprised at how much tighter things are already and my energy level is fabulous. That makes such a big difference in my day.

Breakfast

• oatmeal with vanilla, cinnamon, & raisins (I know I've told you not to fall into the same routine with your food, but honestly, this breakfast makes us feel stellar & we can't help ourselves. It's the perfect start to a day.)
• omelet style eggs (1 whole/2 whites) with pico de gallo
• green tea with lemon (another superfood combo)

Lunch

• leftover Vegetable Beef Soup 
• 1/2 sweet potato

Snacks

• clementine
• raw almonds
• rice/seed crackers

Dinner (it was a bit weird, but good to have something different)

• Turkey burger with grilled onions, avocado, & tabasco
• side salad (romaine lettuce, kalamata olives, hard boiled egg, unsalted sunflower seeds, avocado)
• sweet potato fries (Cut 2 medium sweet potatoes into "steak fry size." Spray both sides with olive oil cooking spray. Toss around in brown paper bag with 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. chile powder, 1/2 tsp. salt. Cook in oven on broil (high) about 10 minutes, turning once.)

Water 7 glasses


Sleep 8.5 hours


Three things I'm grateful for today

• my oldest two got to go to the cabin with their cousins and grandma & grandpa
• so grateful Clay & I are doing this together
• Beatrice Potter books
  

Base Camp-Day 10

Day 10!!! Okay, can you believe it has been 10 days? The cool thing about doing this at the beginning of the program we're about to start is that we will never be required to go 12 straight days again. The most we'll go is 6. So it boosts your willpower when you actually finish this to realize that 6 days IS possible, since you've already done double that.

Weigh in
Weight: 133.4 lbs.
Hydration level: 61.3%
Body Fat:18.8%

Accomplishments

• Bought a treat for Brandt & Brooklyn to share. That thing winked at me and did a little dance. It smelled soooooooooo sweet. And even after all that, I said, "Sorry toots, not today." Brandt & Brooklyn ate it and after finishing, complained of headaches and that the frosting was just too sweet. Even Brandt. I thought nothing was too sweet for that little sugar addict. That made me feel better.

Breakfast

• oatmeal with cinnamon, vanilla, & raisins

Lunch

• loaded salad (romaine lettuce, olives, hard boiled egg, avocado, shredded chicken, roasted, tomato, unsalted sunflower seeds)

Snacks

• rice/seed crackers with fresh salsa

Dinner

• coconut curry chicken on brown basmati rice (tweaked recipe below)
• sauteed zucchini & yellow squash

Coconut Curry Chicken
• About 2 lbs. boneless skinless Chikcken Breast (cut into bite size cubes 
• 1 whole onion, peeled & quartered
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 whole small green pepper, seeded & quartered
• 4 Tbs. tomato paste
• 1 can coconut milk (about 14.5 oz.)
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbs. curry powder
• 1 Tbs. garam masala (indian spice mix)
• 1.5 tsp. roasted red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. coriander

1.  Place chicken cubes inside the slow cooker.
2. Place the rest of the ingredients (except red pepper flakes) in a food processor & mix together until smooth-ish. (I used a blender. So I put the coconut milk in first and made sure the bell pepper & onion were diced before they went in.) Pour sauce on top of chicken, mix well, & add pepper flakes. Then close lid. Cook on high 4 hours.
3. Serve on top of steaming rice. Decorate with chopped coriander if you'd like. 

  Water 7 glasses

Sleep 7.5 hours

Exercise
45 min. of yoga, 10 min. jog, push-ups, lunges, & crunches

How I feel
Seriously great!! I miss food because of what food is to me. It's enjoyable and comforting and just plain fun to eat. But today I thought of what Jennifer Aniston said in an interview, "I'm a realist. If I eat burgers & fries I won't get the parts I'm offered." If I eat everything I want to, I wont end up with the results I want either. And by the way, the yoga felt incredible. It has been way too long. I think it just helps things along as far as getting rid of toxins. I love yoga! You should fall in love with it too!

Three things I'm grateful for today

• Brandt's haircut
• the chance to go spend time alone with Brooklyn
• Nordstrom Rack took back my dress, even after it had been 30 days

Base Camp-Day 9

Can I just say that keeping this record is really helping me? It really is. The program is actually supposed to be started on a Monday but we didn't have our act together to start it until Wednesday. That really doesn't have much bearing on anything but our free days. 

After Base Camp, we do a 12 week transformation period of more intense exercise & different food plans. We get 6 days of specific eating guidelines and then one free day each week. Well, Base Camp is supposed to end and then you get 2 free days in a row and then you begin the 12 weeks. But now we have extra days in there that we don't know what to do with because we want to start our 12 weeks on a Monday. We still haven't made up our minds for sure what we're doing. I'll keep you posted on that...

So here we are on Day 9.

Tonight I wanted to go out (and order what we can eat) and Clay said absolutely not. He had just come home from a day of passing up yummy sandwiches someone brought into work and they always go out for wings & tots on Friday's. He didn't want to stare at and smell food he wanted but couldn't have anymore. Understandably.

Fortunately, I'm an awesome wife and had Vegetable Beef soup in the crock pot and sweet potatoes baking in the oven. So we had a night "in". And it was delicious!

Weigh in results

Weight: 135.6 lbs. (same as yesterday)

Hydration level: 61 % (same as yesterday)

Body Fat: 19.3% (improvement!)

Breakfast

• omelet style eggs with pepper (1 whole/2 whites)
• oatmeal with cinnamon, vanilla, & raisins

Lunch

• whole grain rotini pasta with leftover pasta sauce
• banana

Snacks

• raw almonds
• edamame (soybeans)

Sidenote: Edamame is a fantastically fast snack food (3 min.) that is high in protein and has a snacky quality that makes it fun, like popcorn. You know, where you're just sitting there doing some mindless eating? If you haven't tried it before, maybe today's your day! On the package it says to squeeze them out with your finger, but then they kind of shoot all over the place.  So we eat them like this, and do the job with our mouths, so that's where they end up. :) Don't eat the pod!!!

Dinner

• Vegetable Beef Soup (recipe below)
• plain sweet potato (white variety, wrapped in foil, bake in 400 degree oven for 1 hour)
• a glass of original Silk (soymilk)

    Vegetable Beef Soup

close to 1 lb. extra lean stew meat

2 cans low sodium beef broth

1 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp (or 2 cloves ) garlic

1 cup carrots, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

1/2 medium yellow onion, diced

Put all ingredients in crock pot. Cook on high 4 hours. Serves 4.
(you could also add green beans, some sweet potatoes, & I think even barley. Be inventive!)

Water 7 glasses

Exercise

• yoga, push-ups, lunges, & crunches

Three things I'm grateful for today

• that I got up early, stayed up, & ended up having time to squeeze in a quick 45 min. yoga session
• good friends
• root lifter-which I'm out of

How I feel 

SO MUCH ENERGY today!!! Love it!!

Base Camp-Day 8

Today's Q&A:

Q. Which probiotic/cleansing vitamins are you using? There are so many different kinds, I think I'd rather get an actual recommendation...not base my decision on web reviews.

A. These are what Clay & I have been using, from GNC. One box per person. They have a diet as well listed on the instructions inside which is very similar to the Base Camp food list. It is only a 7 day course.

I'll be straight up, Day 8 was hard for me.

Weigh in results:
Weight: 135.6 lbs.
Hydration level: 61%
Body Fat Percentage: 19.5%

So, a good range. But I was disappointed. And typically when I'm disappointed or having a bum moment for whatever reason, I find comfort in food. If I'm having a rough day with the kids, I run crying to the Peanut M&M's. I wanted the scale to tell me something amazing. I wanted my body in the shower to look suddenly different. But it didn't. I wanted results RIGHT NOW. And then I had breakfast, and changed my attitude. Muscle weighs more than fat. So, maybe my exercise started doing a tiny something? Hmmm...that's never bad.

I went to the store on Day 8 and wanted to buy cheeeeeeese and peanut m&m's really bad. But I bought stuff for a kickin' salad instead and have never had a better salad IN MY LIFE without dressing on it. Didn't even miss it. Yes, it would be greatly improved on with a generous helping of homemade ranch (I'm a ranch snob-it must be homemade), but I truly didn't miss it. Details below.

And I confess, Day 8 was probably hard because I did what I told you not to do. I've been "piecing" rather than making substantial food. So when you're running out of food and you're developing go-to fixes, that's where we run into boredom & problems. People! Why can't I just listen to my own blasted self!!!??

I did not mess up. Nothing is worth starting over. I looked at some Little Debbie Swiss Rolls (those aren't even good, right?!) and thought about my options, in my kitchen alone, no one knowing....
IF I were going to deviate from my plan (Let's get something clear right now-I don't like calling it "being bad." It's not BAD for heaven's sake! It's food.) it had better not be on a swiss roll. That's not even real chocolate!!! THINK IT THROUGH!!! Ridiculous that it even crossed my mind, in retrospect.

Here's the thing. On this Strength for Life plan you have "free days" where you are free & encouraged to eat whatever you want and however much you want of it.  I am purposely not telling you about it in detail because I want you to read the book if you actually decide to do this. Your commitment level and understanding of certain concepts will make a huge difference compared to if you were to try going by bits & pieces of what I say.

And if I were to go off plan, it would be like spoiling Christmas for myself by peeking at presents. It's never the same when you do it that way, is it? So instead, I'm going to make some serious plans for celebrating my free day. :)

Accomplishments

• turning my back on a swiss roll
• made peanut butter & honey sandwiches for the kids without "getting in" on the action

Breakfast

• oatmeal with vanilla, cinnamon, & raisins

Lunch

• rice & seed crackers with hummus
• banana

Dinner

• loaded green salad (romaine lettuce, boiled egg, black olives, shredded chicken, cucumbers, tomatoes, & avocados)
• I was all set & ready to have this creamy butternut squash soup too, but it got checked over by Clay & vetoed for containing evaporated cane juice-SO upsetting. The kids loved the stuff. Maybe we can have it when we reach the regular part of the program? I'll let you know. Believe me, I won't forget about it.

Water

• 7 glasses

How I feel

• more energy, good sleep, full for the most part.

Three things I'm grateful for today

• my mittens I wear when driving my car
• the warmth & privacy we're getting from our new shutters
• baby giggles

Base Camp-Day 7

So I have a couple of questions to answer today....

Q. How do you know your hydration level?

A. We bought a scale that gives you your weight, body fat, & hydration level. You program in your height & age. I believe Clay found it at Costco or Bed, Bath & Beyond.

Q. Would you share how you do your oatmeal? I love it raw in things...but have never loved cooked. Yours looks delish!

A. I toss 2/3 cup of old-fashioned rolled oats in a saucepan with 2 cups of water.
Add 1 tsp. good vanilla extract. Throw in a handful of organic raisins. Shake the cinnamon a couple times. Bring to boil. (Sorry-I'm not great at recipes, I eyeball things a lot instead.) When it reaches a boiling point, stir, then turn it down to simmer for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally, till it's creamy. (serves two)

 The recipes I put on here aren't particularly delicious. To be honest, some are just downright bland.  

The oatmeal would be 5,000 times better with a generous spoonful of brown sugar 

and can I just tell you that I hated the steamed broccoli the other night without salt?  

I'm putting them on here because I invariably get emergency phone calls from people giving this plan a whirl, desperate for ideas of what to eat.

Today's weigh in results

Weight:136.4 lbs.
Hydration Level: 60.4%
Body Fat:19.5%

Do you see how things took a dip? How everything seemed to head the wrong direction? Well, as much as we'd all like to see the numbers tick away on a descending scale until they disappear into an oblivion, that's just not how it's going to roll. So, instead of bawling your eyes out or giving up all together and sitting down to a breakfast of cookie dough, just KEEP GOING!!!
Typically there are reasons for it. My cold probably has something (not sure what) to do with it. I'm also FEMALE (I'll let you figure that out on your own). Sorry. And as I've said the past couple of days, I haven't been very hungry. Did you know that when you don't eat, your body kind of freaks out a bit and holds onto stuff, unsure of when it will be fed again? True story. So maybe that. Whatever it is, I'm really not all that concerned. My pants are easier to get on now without a whole jumping & sucking in routine. That's awesome, yes?

And today marks a week, so I did measurements as well...

right bicep (flexed):11.5 in. (lost 1/2 in.)
chest: 33.5 in. (same)
waist:28.5 in. (lost 1/4 in.)
hips:39.25 in. (lost 1/2 in.)
thigh:22.5 in. (lost 1/4 in.)
calf: 14.75 in. (same)

Accomplishments

• I WON an intense stare down contest between me & an open bag of fruit snacks. I told you I'm not craving sweets, but if they're right there, it's kind of hard not to want them.

Breakfast

• grapefruit
• probiotic blend (last day of that- can I get a HALLELUJAH?!?!?!)

Snacks

• rice/seed crackers with hummus

Lunch

• Leftover chicken with brown rice

Dinner

• Fettucine with homemade marinara (recipe below), added browned ground turkey to that
• grilled zucchini (yummy)
• fresh spinach salad w/ tomatoes & avocados

Exercise I rode a stationary bike for two miles in 10 minutes while flipping through Traditional Home. Then I did my push-ups, squats, & crunches.

Water 7 glasses

3 things I'm grateful for today

• so grateful to be feeling better!!!!
• my mom helping me out
• Brayden took decent naps
  

Recipe for basic pasta sauce:


3 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. chopped garlic or 1 clove

2 14.5 oz. cans organic tomatoes, drained. (If you can find italian style, get those. Make sure there's no sugar/syrups listed in the ingredients)
1 tsp. dried oregano

1 or 2 fresh tomatoes, with the juicy part removed
4-6 leaves fresh basil, roughly chopped
pepper to taste
a hint of salt


Directions: place tomatoes (canned & fresh) in blender with salt, pepper & oregano, blend till smooth.
Heat olive oil in large skillet over med heat. Add garlic and cook 1 min. Add tomato sauce and cook/stir until olive oil is incorporated into the tomatoes. Add basil and remove from heat.

-That's an incredibly basic healthy sauce & you can work your magic from there. Add 1/2 a chopped onion in with the garlic. Throw in mushrooms, browned meat, vegetables, etc. Go wild! :)

Base Camp-Day 6

Day 6, that's HALF WAY!!!

I felt positively wretched with this head cold today. But we needed to go grocery shopping and I decided to man up & do it anyway. It is really hard to go to a grocery store early in the morning, right after they've pulled out all the bread, and it's so warm & fresh.....when you can't have bread. I almost cried.

And when I packed the kid's lunches for the day I threw in a couple of starburst & realized it would totally be my habit to pop one (or 5) in my mouth at the same time usually. But I caught myself, and didn't. Go me! Cause I kinda like those too.

WEIGH IN:
(same exact as yesterday)

As far as food goes, since I was sick, I really wasn't hungry at all.

Breakfast

• 1 completely naked leftover white sweet potato  (Yeah, for breakfast. And it was sooooooooo good with nothing on it.)
• probiotic blend (So chunky this morning. Wanted to die.)

Lunch

• leftover chicken noodle soup 

Snacks

• banana
• raw almonds

Dinner 

• pan-seared chicken with salt-free Mrs. Dash & grilled onions
• steamed spinach
• 1/2 large orange sweet potato
• 
  

Total water for the day: 7 glasses

Three things I'm grateful for today:

• my sweet thoughtful kids
• a good nap
• finally cleared off the clutter magnet dresser. YESSSSSS!!!
  

Base Camp-Day 5

This is DAY 5.

Weigh in results:

Weight: 134.2 lbs
Hydration level: 61.2% (What?! Awesome!)
Body fat: 19%

Kind of shocking & TOTALLY exciting/motivating to me! I'm so glad I 'm keeping track of this!

Will this cold be the death of me? Oh my! I got up early, made Clay breakfast, and threw myself back in bed.  When the baby finally crowed like a rooster, I dragged myself through the motions today. I was all proud of myself for throwing dinner into the crock pot so we'd be prepared. I wasn't really hungry at all. So my menu looked like this:

Breakfast

• grapefruit
• probiotic blend
  

Lunch

• my own personal veggie/hummus tray
  

Dinner

• Chicken noodle soup (reduced sodium chicken broth, 3 chicken breasts, 2 cups whole-grain pasta, 1 cup celery , 1/2 onion, 1 cup carrots, some pepper)
• Baked sweet potato (The whiter variety. Is it a yam, is it a sweet potato, we had that discussion, & even looked it up over dinner. But seriously, my mind is so foggy right now I can't even tell you the answer.)
  

Total water for the day: 7 glasses

Exercise: Clay says I should take some Alka-Seltzer, go to bed, and go to the gym tomorrow instead. I started to cry and he didn't have to tell me twice!

Three things I 'm grateful for today:

• My sweet mom calling to chat & check up on everyone to see if she could help out with anything.
• Brayden's l---------o-----------n------------g afternoon nap.
• The fantastic camera Clay got me for my birthday.
• And my bed. Can I do four?

Base Camp-Day 4

We've all got some sort of cold thing going on here at our house on Day 4. So I can't say my 8 hours of sleep were particularly restful, but they did happen. My head is just a foggy heavy mess. Blegh. A couple of side notes about doing this particular plan....

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

I feel like I am constantly cooking a meal, preparing food for later, or cleaning up in my kitchen. That's fine with me, but it's a heads up for you to be aware of should you give it a go. Also, you have to start cooking before you get hungry. Getting hungry is rare, but once it hits you, you want something NOW or you become severely GRUMPY. (in our experience) Or you may find it easier to veer off your plan.

When you make a meal, try to include a protein & a carbohydrate so that you do stay full & energized. If you're going to spend all that time in the kitchen, make a good meal so it's worth your while, rather than just piecing here & there to keep the edge off.

 

My weigh in this morning went well:

Weight: 135.2 lbs.
Hydration Level: 60.8%
Body Fat: 19.5%

Woohoo! Everything is headed in the right direction! And that is actually the most hydrated I've ever seen myself. So that's exciting! It's important to weigh in at the same time every day. I do so on an empty stomach, in my skivvies, right after I wake up. Otherwise I forget, & end up doing it after I've eaten.  That can alter your body fat some.

Breakfast

• eggs, whipped up & cooked omelet style (2 whole eggs/2 whites) with avocados, cilantro, & pico de gallo
• oatmeal with organic raisins, cinnamon, & vanilla (so full now)
• probiotic drink that today wasn't that bad (gasp!)

Have you every heard of a Superfood? Eating avocados alongside salsa is a superfood combination that lowers your risk of cancer. If you're interested in learning more combinations, this is a good place to do that. Or this.

Snacks

• raw almonds
• sugar snap peas

Lunch 

• leftover quinoa

Dinner

• Coconut Curry Chicken over brown rice (We get our big bag of rice from Costco. This brand is the best brown rice we've come by. I know they do also sell it in smaller bags in regular grocery stores.)
• steamed broccoli

Unlike the rest of my family, I didn't LOVE the recipe for the chicken. So I'll be tweaking it a bit before I post it on here.

Total water for the day: 7 glasses

Three things I'm grateful for today

• helpful kids
• that there are nice & good people to be found no matter where you go
• my dishwasher
  

Base Camp-Day 3

I know that diet & exercise go hand in hand & that is really the best way to achieve the healthiest "you." But I saw this today & found it interesting....

Nutrition accounts for  

 80% 

of weight loss 

and exercise accounts for  

20%. 

I would've thought it was more like a 50/50 split. So much for my "well, I exercised today, so I pretty much deserve that brownie" attitude that ends up making me wonder why nothing's changing.

Today is Day 3. Hello, hello. Are you ready for it? I got 8 hours of sleep last night people. Mmmmm, Saturday mornings. Here are the results of my weigh in this morning:
Weight: 136.2 lbs.
Hydration Level: 60.8%
Body Fat: 19.5%

SO motivating for me to track it & see results!!!! The most important thing, to me, is how I feel in my clothes, not so much my weight. But that body fat percentage is pretty dang important to watch too.

I have looked at all the charts and tried to set my goals off of them in a healthy way. I look for my ideal weight/body fat percentage based on my height, body frame, & age. But every time I've done that in the past, it has shown me passing with flying colors, sometimes even pushing the underweight side of things. And I look at my hips & butt and say, "That can't be right."

But TODAY I think I finally figured out why, oh WHY.  Hallelujah!

I'm gonna get right down to it, I am an A cup on a good day. Like when I'm pregnant or nursing. I looked up the average breast size and found it to be B.  AA cupped women roll in at 2%.

Q. Now, why do women have more fat than men?
A. For babies & because they've got boobs.

And since I don't really, it would make sense that when my average sized boobs (accounted for on an ideal weight/body fat chart) are misplaced and instead are on my butt, that the charts are telling me I'm right where I should be, when the mirror & my pants say,"um,....no." Hope you followed that crazy train of thought. I'm no expert but it makes sense to me in that light. Maybe they should start accounting for breast size on those charts? Maybe I'll write a letter to someone important about it...
Clay refuses to discuss it with me for fear of sleeping on the couch. Haha! What a breakthrough to figure that out though! It makes me so happy and gives me some direction.


Breakfast

• 2 fried eggs (no butter, just cooking spray on the pan) with pepper
• sliced avocado
• 1 banana
• Probiotic mix (Clay tried to convince me it tastes like orange candy???? Maybe it's in my head how nasty it is b/c of the chunks. Still regarding it as nothing less than vile, myself.)

 Snacks 

• whey protein mixed with water
• grapefruit

 Lunch

• Leftover salmon on crackers (Clay found some that we can have called Mary's Gone Crackers-we like the Black Pepper variety the best)
• Veggie tray with homemade hummus (the greek pita bread was for the kids)

Hummus Recipe: (Courtesy of my friend Mindy who grew up with it as a staple in her house, they used it instead of mayo. How's that for a healthy alternative?)

2 cans plus 3/4 can of garbanzo beans- 15oz. (drain and reserve liquid, no need to rinse beans.)
3 cloves garlic
1/4 c plus 1/8 c (turns out to be a little under a 1/3 cup)Tahini (sesame paste) I buy my tahini paste at the Sunflower Market across the street from the Fashion Place Mall, it comes in an aluminum can, brand name "Joyva" (it's in a brown, orange and white can-creamy puree of roasted sesame seeds.) You can buy Tahini anywhere in grocery stores and any brand but I've always used this brand, I like the consistency of it and it's easier to work with compared to other brands. Make sure you stir the tahini first to get the oil mixed in before you measure.
1/4 c plus 1/8 c fresh or bottle lemon juice (turns out to be a little under a 1/3 cup).
1 t. Salt
1 t. Cayanne Pepper or as spicy as you want it.
1 t. Cumin or as much as you wish

Combine everything together in food processor. Add juice from beans a little at a time as you blend to achieve desired consistency. I like my hummus really smooth (not thick) so I blend it for about 5minutes sometimes longer and keep adding liquid from the beans as I go while it's blending. I don't use all of the liquid just enough to make it smooth and not thick.

Pour hummus into a long shallow dish and sprinkle paprika on the top, then drizzle olive oil over the top to finish it off. Garnish the sides/edges with curly parsley. Serve at room temp.

Serve with Greek pita bread cut in wedges, red bell pepper strips, feta cheese, Mediterranean olives, whole green onions, blanched green beans, bell peppers, cucumbers, or anything you want.

Dinner (I'm insistent that we all sit down to the same meal except for anyone still eating baby food)

• Southwestern Chicken Salad (romaine lettuce, shredded chicken, 1/2 onion sliced and sauteed with a handful of red pepper slices, black beans, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp red cayenne pepper, a squrt of lime juice, a pinch of cilantro, avocado, and some pico de gallo. Voila!)

Total water for the day: 7 glasses. I now LIVE in the bathroom, I swear.

As far as the Base Camp 12 days are concerned, Clay misses the yogurt & bread the most. I miss the bread & the cottage cheese. I just want cottage cheese on my green salad to make it more wet is all. And bread really just makes meals easier. A tortilla to put chicken & veggies in, a bun to throw a turkey burger on, etc.

Surprisingly, I'm not missing sugar or cheese. And I la-la-love cheese. When you're not having any refined sugars, it catches you off guard just how sweet & delicious unaltered natural fruit is. So I haven't been craving sugar at all.

Exercise:
10 min jog, push-ups (I was so sore I could barely do the first one, but I made it through all 36), lunges, & crunches. I forgot to explain that we only exercise every other day. Seriously so minimal. It's a perfect program for getting started or back into a routine after a long break.

Three things I'm grateful for today:

• It snowed!!!
• The gym is a 3 minute walk from my house.
• Brooklyn is catching on more & more with reading! I'm so proud of her for her hard work, good attitude, & determination!