The missing pieces of the puzzle

Regarding my health and well being lately, times have been tough. I reached my breaking point last night. Tuesday, I left with 2 coworkers to stay in Lafayette for a couple of days while we trained our sister clinic on our computer system that they will now use. I was materialistically prepared for this, but went in physically and mentally worn down; mostly because of the 2nd job adding to the craziness of this time of the year for me with evals. (BTW, if I didn't mention, I'm doing a little side work with the Census to help pay for our Disney trip and a few extras!) So, anyway...between the stress and the greasy food (feeding a group of 10-12 people, we needed to go cheap), I ended up sick before we left the clinic last night. I was throwing up and my stomach was in awful knots. After getting home and getting some rest today, I decided that I really needed to evaluate what key pieces are missing right now; not just the nutrition and exercise part.

#1 - Sleep. I hardly ever get 8 hours. I almost wish that I had a schedule with night shifts just so I could sleep in on nights that I stay up a little too late. I realize after about 2.5 seconds how dumb that would be for me considering the other convenient and wonderful aspects that a 9-5 schedule brings to my life. So, #1 - GET MORE SLEEP!

#2 - Water. Lots and lots of water. Like I said, I have a busy schedule right now (although, I know people who deal with worse - and you have a special place in Heaven!). Caffiene has been there for me more than water has. So, #2 - 80 ounces a day!

#3 - Vitamins. A daily multivitamin is so important. It's pretty much impossible for the average person to get the all of the proper nutrients that our body needs on food alone every day. Save yourself some headache, and get a good multivitamin. Today, I picked up GNC's Womens Ultra Mega Active Vitapack. It's specific to what I need, and it's in a convenient pack. I don't have to worry about remembering to go to all the vitamin bottles on my bathroom counter and pick out what I need anymore. Now, I just grab the packet with everything already there in the morning; and I can take it along with me if I need to. So much more convenient.

#4 - Meditation. Everyone should take some time out of their day to just relax. I plan to take at least 15 minutes everyday to just put on my headphones with some Enya or the like, close my eyes, and zone out. I need this more than ever right now, and definitely over the next couple of months.

#5 - Plan better meals. I never completely finished reading all of Master Your Metabolism, but I jumped around enough to get the gist of the ideas. What I was missing were recipes to help me figure out all of her advice. The last thing I have time for is to research all of her suggested foods and find specific recipes. Well, low and behold, Jillian has now come out with the MYM Cookbook (HALLELUJAH!). I picked that puppy up the other night, and have started flipping through to highlight what looks tasty for me (and Michael). Grocery shopping list has been started!

#6 - Proper recovery nutrition. Lately, when I have made it to the gym, my post-workout nutrition has been lacking. This has been because in the past I have been able to eat dinner within an hour of leaving the gym; so I started giving up the protein shake to cut unnecessary extra calories. Now, it has been more of a struggle to do that with everything going on. So, I also picked up some new protein powder today. It's a much higher quality than what I have purchased in the past, so I am excited to have something more specific to me.

Obviously, my workouts fit into the equation since they have been "missing" lately; even though I do not have them listed. Because of the upcoming 2nd Rocketchix Tri, I am going to be focusing on mostly cardio for the next couple of months. And, as I mentioned before, getting my Spin instructor certification is part of that. I feel much better having sat down and put a lot of thought into what I am missing in my overall well being. For me, as it should be for everyone, being healthy is not just about diet and excerise. It is a complete lifestyle.

...and it's been going straight to my ass!

I'm at least thankful that I have no ballooned up with the disaster of the last few weeks. My healthy lifestyle has taken a backseat to my workload. And, it's not going to get better this week...maybe next week.

I'm aggravated with myself, and my lack of energy. The thing is, I know that if I just make myself get back into my usual gym habits for a few days that I won't need to push myself anymore. I get addicted to the gym very easily, but I also fall out of habit very easily because I tend to lose track when things get busy. The hardest part of getting to the gym is the fact that I have not been able to plan ahead for it. I've been leaving work at random times (later that normal usually) in preparation for this trip to Lafayette to launch our EMR system. By the time I get out of the office, I'm mentally drained and/or don't have my gym bag packed up with me. I've been thinking more and more about switching to Anytime Fitness, just for convenience. They just don't have the classes that I enjoy, and that has been the deal breaker up to now.

I say up to now, because I have a plan for the month of May. There is a Spin Instructor Orientation class on May 22nd (day before my birthday!). If I take that and get a job at Spectrum as a Spin instructor, then I will no longer pay to be a member. If that happens, then I can swing the Anytime membership. I know I've talked about doing this certification in the past, but the thing that motivates me for this time around is that it'd be like my birthday gift to myself and help get my back on track for the summer. It's $300 (after the discount code), so paying that kind of money is enough to motivate me alone! lol I want/need to talk to Ambrey and/or Ashley about it first, and I only have today or Thursday. I will be in Lafayette for Tuesday and Wednesday for sure, so those are out. *sigh*

I need a week of vacation to do absolutely nothing except worry with exercise and eating right! That would be amazing!!

Here's the dealio...

I am worn out, and it's only the beginning. I have 6 or 7 weeks left of this! :( I haven't been eating right or even tracking regularly for over a week now. And, even though my physical activity has been mild, I feel like I am running on empty.

Let's just say work might become the death of me! lol

Today, I am getting myself organized. Here is what I want to accomplish:

- Get my office into some sort of organized chaos (eval process starts next month - eek!)
- Write out my exercise plan for the next 2 1/2 weeks (I have to be out of the office and working nights on more than one occasion)
- Prepare a menu plan to stick to that will work with my crazy work schedule (I might have to look to some processed "diet" food for the time being just to keep my calories on point during this crazy time)

If I can get those three things accomplished, I won't feel so overwhelmed anymore. I mean, I will still feel overwhelmed, but it won't be quite as bad. ;) Just for an example, I came in on Tuesday and ended up finding out that I had to go do training in Lafayette that afternoon/night. It was a misunderstanding, and I just sucked it up. It's the little things like that I am worried about throwing off my best planning.

I just keep telling myself that everything will be ok. :)

Feeling pretty good.

Despite the obvious Easter candy setbacks, I have been doing pretty well. :) Last week was rough with work, so I didn't get in as many workouts as I would have liked. However, I am not letting any of those things derail me.

I think I am about to start my period soon. I have been irritable and exhausted regardless of how much sleep I get. Yesterday, I came home and took a 2-3 hour nap. I ate dinner, did P90x Arms & Shoulders, showered and went to bed by midnight. I also took a Melatonin, which may have been the problem. When my alarm went off at 7am, I turned it off accidentally and didn't get up until Michael was walking out the door. All in all, I had about 9 hours at least. But, I'm STILL dragging ass! It's right about time for Aunt Flo, so it makes sense. I guess I should get back on my birth control to see if it will help. I've been off for about 2 months or so. It hasn't necessarily been on purpose; I'm just absentminded sometimes.

Tonight, I am going to do chest & back with Melody. I really need to get some good cardio in, too. This Sunday is the Strawberry Strut 10k. We may also be doing a 5k the night before. So, I would like to get at least two runs in this week - maybe a 2/3 miler and a 4/5 miler. If I do the treadmill tonight, I would like to do a road run on Thursday.

So, I have decided that I want to plan a Bikini Day. This will be the day that I find my new summer suit (or at least start the hunt!). I want to use this as a mini goal/deadline. I haven't decided on the day, but I am looking at April 30th, May 7th and May 14th (at the latest). April 30th would give me a little over three weeks, and May 7th is right at a month. I want to check with Melody, but I think May 7th will be the day. Part of my goal is to post a pic of me in my new bikini to show my progress. The whole point of this is to get myself on the very brink of where I want to be, so that I can use the last 2-3 weeks before my birthday to chisel at the problem areas. I want to be in the low 120s by my birthday. More importantly, I want my body fat to be under 20% by then.

I know I can do it.

I got the feva...

Yes, I have been struck with baby fever again!! It was so bad yesterday... While I was grocery shopping, I stood and stared at the pregnancy tests wondering if I should buy one or two knowing full well that I am NOT pregnant! I keep telling myself that once we go to Disney it's game on, buuut..... I still have races that I want to do. Shit, an Ironman at that! And, honestly, I would need to get pregnant in late August/early September at the latest to make sure I don't go into the Summer for my due date. I would love to have an April due date, but would need to conceive in like July for that to happen. Since we will be at Disney in October, that is not an option. I guess I could be pregnant in Disney, but I don't want to be. I want to be a kid in the parks and enjoy the food & wine festival that will be going on. I don't want to have to hold back because I'm pregnant. Also, I am really pressing for us to vacation in Europe before kids. If Michael gets this promotion, we might be able to wing it next Summer. A Mediterranean cruise would be superb. In my perfect world, we would do Disney this year, finish my Ironman and then get pregnant in Europe next year. However, I see us getting pregnant sooner than that simply because we are both aching for a baby. The only thing that helps me keep my "perfect world" goal in view is that once the baby comes, everything changes.

Well, that and the fact that my ass will probably double in size when I'm pregnant.

I have come to realize that there are no good times to lose weight. There will always be something going on. Last week was Andrea's bachelorette party, and this week I have the OLOL Gala and Daniel & Andrea's wedding. The next week is Bunco, and the list goes on. The point is that you have to be ready for these things. Even if you have a week where you don't think anything will sabotage you, something WILL come up. So, you have to do your absolute best everyday to prepare for those slip-up nights/events that you can't get out of. And, hey, if for some reason you really don't have anything going on, then you just did yourself an added favor. Look at each day as the day before your cheat day. Sacrifice now for later.

Day 1 - again, kind of.

So, last week was an overall success. I did not make the Fat Boy 5k because I made the mistake of staying out the night before. We had going-away party for one of our providers, and I did not plan to go until my boss called asking me about it. Two beers later, I was easily convinced by some co-workers to hang out downtown. It was fun, and I hadn't done that in a while. However, it cost me precious sleep for the run. I am so proud to say that Michael went on without me and finished the race in about 40 minutes! This was hit first race, and I am so proud of him!!! He wants to do the lakes with me soon - maybe Friday when he's off. :)

This week marks the start of tracking again. Ugh. It's a pain, but see my last Wednesday's post for the reasons why it's a necessity.

Yesterday, I had some bad stomach cramps that I had to fight through in order to finish my workout. Because I am following a plan, I refused to not get it done. I think the reason for my upset tummy was my sodium intake from the weekend. My stomach felt like it was full of gas, and if I could just fart or burp (sorry for sounding gross!), that I would feel so much better. I could even tell when I was working out that my body had extra water stored up. My arms were swelling to the point that I had to move my armband with my iPhone down because it was so uncomfortable. So, while most people stress out about carbs and fat, you should always watch your sodium intake. Too much salt causes you to retain water and is bad for your kidneys.

Day 4 - I wanna hit the floor.

I guess it could be worse. My arms were definitely not as sore as I expected them to be today. They are sore, but I was expecting to not be able to lift a pencil after yesterday! lol I know it only hurt so much because I was sore from chest and back.

Instead of Ab Ripper X and back today, Melody and I are going to do cardio and legs. Saturday, we have a 5k, so Thursday and Friday's routines are being switched to make Friday lighter. The last thing you want is to run on extremely sore legs!

I'm pretty proud of myself so far this week. My diet and exercise have been great! Last night, Melody and I made our own personal sized version of Papa Murphy's Herb Chicken Mediterranean pizza. It was phenomenal!! Healthy, too! I listed the recipe below.

Homemade Herb Chicken Mediterranean Pizza
- 1 Whole Wheat Pita (we used the all natural ones from Our Daily Bread)
- 1/2 Tbsp Extra virgin olive oil (optional)
- 1 tsp Fresh chopped garlic
- 1/4 cup Fresh chopped spinach
- 1/4 cup Fresh chopped basil
- 1/4 cup Fat free shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1.5 oz Goat cheese crumbles
- 1 Tbsp Sun dried tomatoes
- 4 oz of diced chicken breast

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook the chicken and garlic together until done (season with dried herbs of your choice). Drizzle olive oil on pita and lightly top with half of the shredded mozzarella. Add diced chicken and garlic, then cover with remaining ingredients. Bake for 10 minutes or until cheeses are melted.

Absolutely delish!!