Garbage That GOO!

30 Day Challenge - Day 8

Saturday was a hectic day. I had to get up, take measurements, get my meal plan in place (OK, I did most the night before, but then tweaked it in the morning), get my exercise and get showered and take photos. Then I had to convert the RAW photo files, crop and resize, create a composite and make my Saturday check-in post in order to stay in the challenge. And naturally, I wanted to see how everyone else was doing...

And in all of that, I also had to grocery shop. Which was poor planning on my part, because I ended up really tired yesterday and was very tempted by candy in the store! I actually picked up a piece at the checkout counter, but then changed my mind and put it back.

So my meal plan was not ideal... when I made it the night before, it included some turkey salads. By morning, I realized I was going to be a crazed person and substituted some shakes in instead. It was a smart move... after shopping, I was too tired to be on my feet to cook.

I will say this, printing the meal plan to paper was a lifesaver! I just crossed stuff off as I ate it. I'm liking the meal plan idea better and better. Dialing my food in SPECIFICALLY ahead of time will help me stay on target. And I am learning to weigh things by grams for more accuracy.

Nutrition:

Day 8 Meal Plan

Training: Cardio:

12:47 PM Nordic Track - 2 minutes on, 2 minutes off. 4 intervals.
22.5 minutes in all. 1.8 miles. Average speed 4.79 mph.
Average HR 79% Max HR 90%! 323 calories burned!

Actually, I had NOT planned to do intervals for the day... that was a change! My plan was to do my TRX trainer, using the TRX Express Workout DVD. That gives bodyweight resistance exercise, plus you get a decent cardio boost.

Plans changed abruptly however when just starting into the TRX warm-up (some squat rows) I had a bad pain in the side of my left thigh! I tried a few more gentle rows and a few regular assisted squats to see if the pain was momentary and might work out, but it got worse. So something is irritated there and for now... squats have left the building.

So, I was upset and irritated but I just decided I wanted to get some exercise. So I left the TRX hanging and jumped on the Nordic Track. I might have slightly over-cooked that... 90% of my heart rate is perhaps a bit too high right now, though it only got up there at the very last interval. Still, at the point I was cooled down enough to get off the NT, I nearly slipped the skis ahead of myself and had to grab the hip rest fast to stay upright. OTOH... I sure did burn some calories in a short space of time!

Training: Resistance:

Didn't really happen. I tried a few pushups using the TRX after, but I was not up to it. So then I just laid on my stomach on the floor and practiced some of the Pilates abs our water aerobics instructor has been teaching us in our "dry land" class. I was feeling that later in the day, so I guess I am starting to get the hang of it. Then I stretched for a good while.

30 Day Challenge - Check In

Stats for Saturday 10-25-2008!

Starting weight: 223.4 pounds
Height: 5'7"
Age: still 51
Current weight: 221.2 pounds.
Weight lost since start of challenge: 2.2 pounds!
Inches lost since start of challenge: 5.367 inches!

Don't you just LOVE the steep plunge in pounds since my Cheat To Lose re-feed day last Monday?!!! I admit, Tuesday's weigh-in was alarming, but it's all good now! My graph looks like the Alps!

The previous measurements were taken October 2nd, 2008.

Don't be fussed by the 3 digits after the decimal... I take three sets of measurements and average them to hopefully offset the fact that it is hard to get the tape measure not to slip about on my fat rolls.

Now for the pictures! I am linking the picture to a larger version.

I nearly had a panic attack after the first time I posted pictures... but that doesn't seem to be happening this time. Yet. It sure isn't fun doing them, sigh! Maybe one of these days that will change.

OK, that's it for my check in! I did do a meal plan today, and I've been following it, in spite of major temptation at the grocery store this afternoon. But nothing I wanted (Can we say Reese's Peanut Butter Cups?) was on my meal plan so I did not cave. I can't say my body is fond of this much of a calorie deficit, I've been hungry today, but wow, 2.2 pounds gone and some 5 inches! That's GOOD progress for me! So hopefully I can keep it up until the end of the challenge!

And while I don't feel up to posting the actual size of my panties publicly... my underwear is feeling baggy lately. I got an older pair in one size down out of my drawer this morning and they fit!

Fish Salad - the visual

I grabbed a shot of my 4th meal of the day with the very last dregs of my camera battery... so it may not be the very best shot.

This meal is similar to Meal 3, only with some 69g of avocado added. Both meals were fixed at the same time, with the exception of the cut avocado. That was added right before I ate. I know, I know, the meal plan actually said 75g. But half of the avocado I bought just didn't quite make it. I saved a few fat calories, so sue me!

All prep and cooking time was about 20 minutes for TWO meals! If that isn't HEALTHY FAST FOOD, I don't know what is.

Ingredients:

• 60g of mixed organic salad greens.
  I get these at Safeway in a big tub.
• .25 cup of sliced green bell pepper
• .25 cup of canned kidney beans
• 6 ounces of cod fillet raw
• .5 of a medium avocado or approximately 70g
• .25 each lime. A quarter of a small lime yields close to 1 TBSP of juice

Wash and dry the fish fillets. Rub them with some salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a non-stick pan on medium heat. When hot, spray with a little olive oil spray. Add the fish. Cook 3-4 minutes per side for about a 1" thick fillet. Meanwhile, do your salad greens/veggies. Top with warm fish or cooled fish, squeeze the lime over it and enjoy!

This meal comes in at under 350 calories. You can see more of the nutrient breakdown on my Day 7 Meal Plan.

If preparing for a future meal, once the cooked fish is cool, then add it to the salad and cover with Saran Wrap. Or store in a re-sealable container in the fridge. I love it best warm, but it's great cold too! This is a very easy sort of meal to modify to your personal specs. OK, if you don't like fish... use lean ground turkey, chicken or something.

30 Day Challenge - Day 7

This morning I did a meal plan in my Crosstrainer 6 software. I "printed" it to HTML... and also trimmed out some of the excess columns for saturated fats, sodium, sugar and cholesterol to make it easier to read. My sat fats are never high... and as I don't have blood pressure or cholesterol issues, I don't worry much over sodium and dietary cholesterol. Actually, as I have an enlarged thyroid, doc wants me sprinkling my food with iodized salt at least some of the time. I use iodized sea salt.

I am on moderate GI/GL carbs for the next three days... as per CTL. Hence things like legumes and fruit and starchier veggies entering my meals. It tastes good too... I can use the carbs!

Note to self: Print meal plan to paper... had to turn on my computer to remember meal three!

Nutrition:

Day 7 Meal Plan

Fish oil cap or teaspoon w/every meal.
Multi-vitamin and Glucosamine Chondroitin w/MSM (for my bad knee)
BCAA's at the gym. (Xtreme Formulations ICE)

Water so far: 156 fluid ounces. Aiming for the usual 192 fl.oz. Might exceed it... I'm thirsty!

Back from the gym... I just whipped through fixing Meal 3... very tasty. Took me 18 minutes from arriving in my kitchen to sitting down with it to eat. Now that's FAST FOOD... but also HEALTHY FOOD!

Training: Cardio

10:27 AM Nordic Track - 14 minutes, 1.2 miles, 5.1 mph. Calories 130.
Average heart rate 79% Max heart rate 84%.

11:45 AM "Out of the Water" conditioning class w/dumbbells.
12:08 PM Instead of class aerobics, did exercise bike.
- 13.5 minutes, 3.6 miles, 16 mph. Calories 163.
Average HR 71% Max HR 76%. Returned to class.
(I sit on a swiss ball in class so I don't irritate feet.)

01:11 PM Walking - 3 mph for 9:49 minutes. Calories 93.
Average HR 64% Max HR 69%.

01:30 PM Bicycling - 15.7 mph, 17:30 minutes, 4.57 miles. Calories 225.
Average HR 74% Max HR 81%.

All heart rate data is from my well-used Polar F11. I love this gadget... I can set it up so that it records each of my little drib and drab exercises as a separate file for later perusal. I customized the "strong girl" logo off of a guy version on the Polar website. Constant reminder of my goals!

Note to self: Might skip second round of bicycling now that I can use class time for that. Leigh is saying we don't need to go too crazy on this kind of a calorie deficit. Given how ravenous I was when I got home, she is probably right.

Training: Resistance: MAX OUT PUSH UPS

In between stuff at the gym, I did 3 separate sets to max out on the counter push ups.

1st time - 9 reps
2nd time - 9 reps
3rd time - 5 reps

WEIGHT: 221.8 lbs (down 1.6 pounds from 223.4 on 10-17-2008)

30 Day Challenge - Day 6

Pretty much a wash. VERY SORE from the squats still... whatever I did Wednesday made it all worse. Left shoulder also feeling irritated. Had no energy, had bad headache, and was VERY COLD all day!

So I rested.

Ate my calories, but not in an ideal fashion... i.e. protein shakes all day, eaten in between lots of napping. Started in on a peanut butter binge, managed to stop and was still able to adjust food and make my calorie deficit and low carb macros.

30 Day Challenge - Day 5

No doubt about it, I was feeling Day 4's max out on TRX assisted squats. It got worse by afternoon/evening... very painful. The kitties didn't understand why their mom was making such noises every time they tromped across my sore thighs, LOL! And I was definitely retaining water.

Nutrition:

Egg/egg white omelet w/zucchini & mushroom
Protein shake w/MD (Metabolic Drive), hemp, flax, spinach
Jennie-O Lean Ground Turkey, onion, broccoli, almonds
Jennie-O Lean Ground Turkey, onion, green pepper, spinach
Jennie-O Lean Ground Turkey, onion, broccoli, spinach

Fish oil cap or teaspoon w/every meal.
(Biotest Flameout and Carlson Finest Fish Oil Lemon Flavor)

Multi-vitamin and Glucosamine Chondroitin w/MSM (for my bad knee)

I also use BCAA's at the gym.

Water: 192 fluid ounces.

Training: Cardio

08:30 AM Nordic Track - 20 minutes, 1.5 miles, 4.5 mph. Calories 264.
2 minutes on, 2 minutes off, total of 4 intervals

11:45 AM "Out of the Water" conditioning class. HRM not used.

01:00 PM Walking, slow, 2.5 mph for 16 minutes. Calories 90.

01:33 PM Bicycling, 15.6 mph, 18 minutes, 4.68 miles. Calories 170.

Calories burned are according to my Polar F11 heart rate monitor.

Training: Resistance: MAX OUT PULL UPS

In between stuff at the gym, I did 3 separate sets to max out on the assisted pull-up machine.

1st time - 8 reps
2nd time - 12 reps (used different grip)
3rd time - 9 reps (back to first grip used)

WEIGHT: 226.2 lbs (up 2.8 pounds from 223.4 on 10-17-2008)

30 Day Challenge - Day 4

The day went well... I had a protein shake for breakfast, later followed by a veggie omelet.

I warmed up a little with the TRX trainer and did some basic TRX assisted bodyweight squats, though I only did one session. 15 in all. I think it was enough! I tried a pistol... that REALLY didn't fly! Just trying to balance on one leg is too aggravating to my feet right now. I was also having trouble with assisted lunges, my bad right knee (cartilage ripped up from bicycle accident in the mid-1970s) gave a nasty twinge, so I settled on something I knew I *could* do.

Then I did some moderate intervals on the Nordic Track. 2 minutes on, 2 minutes off for 18 minutes. That's what's recommended in the "Cheat To Lose" book, especially on the low carb days following a cheat day. Given my pool is closed, 18 minutes is about all my feet can take on the Nordic Track anyway. So it works. The two minutes on is a challenge... I normally don't do my intervals that long. I definitely can't ramp up the speed and survive that, particularly right now while my feet are a bit aggravated, but it turned out that simply using the arm exerciser vs. just using my legs worked pretty darn well. Heart rate went from about 74% during the off portion to 87% during the on sections. Thanks to the squats before, I was barely able to stand on my feet after climbing off the NT. I kind of went and sat down sudden in my computer chair, LOL!

Forgot to stretch... that was stupid! Will have to do better! It's like automatic in the pool, but as it is more difficult to do out of the water, I sometimes just space it. Not smart though, and obviously I need to develop that into a nice entrenched habit whether I'm in or out of the water!

Anyway, for meals, I then fixed up a big batch of shrimp and some steamed broccoli. And a few toasted pecans. I had planned to make that into three meals, but I ended up making two meals out of it. So four meals on the day. Still maintaining the 1700 calorie deficit!

While "Cheat To Lose" normally goes 2 days low carb, then two days moderate, then two days high carb, in order to keep the calorie deficit this month I will probably do three days low carb, then three days moderate, then cheat. I think that will fit in with the challenge a little better. And it is one of the modifications listed in the "Cheat To Lose" book.

Boy, the cheat packed on the water... I boomed from 223.0 to 228.2! It is good that the scale doesn't upset me! However two pounds of that water is already off this morning. Which is surprising, considering how sore I am from the squats!