Tuesday's Rambling: The hand-weight dilemma, my awesome 5K, and back porch boot camp.

Well hello!

The last few days have been crazy and wonderful since I got back to NC. I don't even know where to begin.

I guess I'll start with an important lesson that I learned this week - when traveling on an airplane, don't put hand weights in your carry-on bag; it makes for quite a big deal in security.

I brought the Biggest Loser Boot Camp DVD home with me in case it was too cold to run outside (which it isn't but I've been doing it, anyway). But it's not the same workout without my trusty 3 lb (don't laugh at me!) hand weights. I couldn't bring the DVD and not the weights; that would be like bringing toothpaste but no toothbrush, they only work together. Put them in my checked bag? No way, Jose. The weight actually counts for that one.

Instead, I resolved to throw those bad boys in my little carry-on bag.

The problem with metal hand weights is this: the screener cannot see them when they go under the scanner. It's just a giant black object. So I immediately got flagged for a bag inspection, which I politely accepted (Happiness Commandment #4: Chill out). The guy grabbed my bag and told me to meet him over at a counter nearby. "It's just those hand weights, it's not a big deal," he assured me. "I've just got to run this swab through your bag and make sure there are no explosives inside." Ha! Go ahead, buddy. There are no explosives in this bag... you're wasting your time! And then it got really crazy when the machine that analyzed the swab turned red and starting beeping. I looked at the screen and saw "Explosives Detected" in big bold font. OMG. Everyone could see it. Check out the little blonde terrorist! everyone was thinking as they walked by. I was mortified.
And then the fun really started. I've got two guys pulling apart absolutely everything they can in my carry-on bag and purse - which was even more embarrassing due to the fact that I'm the most random packer in the world. I saw the entire contents of my belongings spread out for God and everyone to see:

Journal
GRE study book
Make-up bag
1 sports bra
1 pair of shoes
Hand weights (duh)
A pair of underwear (just in case!)
2 apples
Big grandma-style vitamin holder
2 pairs of headphones
Broken sunglasses that I just won't give up on
Etc, etc, etc!

And while this is happening, there is a female security agent giving me one of the most intimate pat-downs I've ever received in public... Awesome.

Finally, after 20 minutes and a little waterboarding, I was cleared. I couldn't get to the bar fast enough. I downed a spicy bloody Mary to cope with the traumatic experience before jumping on my plane.

Lesson: PUT YOUR HAND WEIGHTS IN YOUR CHECK BAG, YOU CHEAP SKATE!

In other, better news, I PR'd my 5K time yesterday.

Now that felt good.

To the average runner, a 32+ minute 5K, well, sucks. But to me, with my short legs and non-runner self, this was a phenomenal number. Just remember, my first 5K was about 44 minutes. So, uh, hell yes!

And, I accidentally ran across a film set. I think it's the next season of Revolution (which, by the way, is being filmed approximately 5 blocks from my house!) but it's hard to tell.

And today, after the boyfriend headed to work, I took my dog Nikki for a nice 2 mile walk. I wish I could take her running with me, but it's just not a good idea. Nikki's approaching her senior years (even though she's still a puppy in my book!) and she's kind of out of shape. The last time I took her running, we made it about .75 miles before she just absolutely quit and I thought I was going to have to carry her back to the house. But geez - how cute is she?
 

So after I got her back to the house with a big bowl of cold water, I decided to head out for a quick 1 mile run before the sun went down. It was quick but sweaty and I ended up with a pace of about 10:04 minutes/mile which is a great pace for me.

When I got back, the sun was still out so I decided to grab my yoga mat, computer, and the hand weights that almost got me arrested (not really!) and do some Biggest Loser Boot Camp on the back porch.

All in all, I burned 766 calories. And I'm in an awesome, productive mood!

Cheers to you, Tuesday!

Guest Post: Adventures in Paleo Dieting

Happy Monday from the great state of North Carolina! I just got back from Wyoming yesterday and although it is FREEZING here - I am loving it! Minus a hand-weight security breach at the Denver Airport (more on that later) traveling yesterday was quite smooth.But today isn't about the airport or North Carolina. Today, I'm giving the spotlight to a wonderful friend of mine, see Sam run. Sam has taken a dive into the world of paleo dieting and I e-mailed her last week to ask if she would guest post for Healthy Little Me. And she said yes! So here goes..

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Adventures in Paleo Dieting

It was a mystery. One I tried to figure out for years. After nearly every meal it would begin, first the indigestion, then the bloating, and sometimes even facial swelling. I became a vegetarian for about 4 months. I eliminated milk and actually that helped! But it didn't solve everything.  The doctor prescribed an antacid, it didn't work. I figured I was just one of those people who had a weird digestive system and I was forever doomed to live with these now infamous “stomach issues.” Then, by chance it seems, I overheard a professor talking about his intestinal issues (that once left him bed ridden, on New Year’s Eve no-less) and how he’d been to doctors and finally taken matters into his own hands. Enter the Paleo Diet. The concept is simple. For hundreds of thousands of years humans have eaten a diet that consisted of items that were either hunted or gathered: fruits, vegetables, roots, fungi, nuts, and meat. And it’s only in relatively modern times that we've added items like refined sugar, grains, processed oils, and dairy. Evolutionary processes have not had time to alter human digestive development enough to handle these types of post-agricultural food items. In short, these hunted and gathered foods are what humans have evolved to eat and most of our digestive ailments and the obesity epidemic are directly related to processed foods and grains.

You can read more here (http://thepaleodiet.com/published-research-about-the-paleo-diet/) if you’re interested in the science behind the Paleo Diet.

Being a paleontologist, this made a whole lot of sense to me. But how on earth can someone like me, on the edge of thirtyhood, live without grains?! I ate cereal every single morning. I had bread at least once a day most days! And don't even get me started on potatoes! But if it made me feel better, I would try it. I tried it for about a month and a half while my better half was away. I lost about 15lbs, I felt great! I had a ton of energy, I ran two 5k races with Ms. Healthy Little Me (she totally pushed me and I’m soooo glad she did, but that's a part of my own weird journey and maybe I'll get to tell you about that someday…)  Amazingly, I found I wasn't actually starving to death. Then my husband came home from geology field course and my diet gradually shifted back to including grains, sugars, and processed food. It all came back. The stomach issues came back and so did the weight. I was feeling sluggish, bloated, and uncomfortable. Was it worth it? Hell no! Back to the diet I went and so did my husband, though I'd say his effort is around 85% most days, but I'm not complaining! I've been on the diet pretty consistently for almost two months (with Christmas in between. Oy vey, lets not even discuss that). I've lost around 8lbs, I'm back to the gym pretty regular, and most importantly, I feel comfortable and more in tune with my body . I have a few friends that are trying it out for the first time and they're struggling. They find it difficult to maintain. They've altered what they eat, but they haven’t altered the way they shop. And to me, this is the key to being truly successful at the diet (I hate calling it a diet because it has such a negative connotation and it’s so much more than just a “diet”). The most helpful thing I've discovered with Paleo is planning. My husband and I pick six recipes per week, either online or out of our cookbook, “The Food Lovers Make it Paleo,”and we shop on Sunday or Monday for the ingredients. It's almost become a friendly contest to see whose recipe pick is the tastiest that week (lame you may say, but it helps us keep at it.) We leave one day open for going out, which sometimes ends up being a cheat day if I'm seriously craving something. Ah, the cheat day. Much controversy surrounds this one. Some people swear against a cheat day and some say it’s absolutely necessary to be overall successful. If I cheat on the “off” day it’s usually in the form of sugar. Even though there are some really great recipes for Paleo desserts, sugar is my Achilles heel. Hey, I'm human and I'm working on it! Below are some of my favorite recipes, I hope you enjoy if you decide the Paleo Diet is for you!

Coconut Flour Pancakes: http://www.nourishingdays.com/2010/07/fluffy-coconut-flour-pancakes/

Mashed Cauliflower: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/mashed-cauliflower (we add fresh rosemary to ours; and I was super skeptical on this one, but I could probably eat this with every meal)

Bison Taco Salad: http://beta.primal-palate.com/recipe/taco-salad/

Jamaican Jerk Salmon: http://beta.primal-palate.com/recipe/jamaican-jerk-salmon/

Some pantry essentials:

Coconut Oil

Coconut or Almond Flour

Almond or Coconut Milk

And just FYI, you can roast most veggies with either olive oil or coconut oil with salt and pepper in a 375 degree oven and they're AMAZING!

I have to say The Food Lovers are my saving grace. They make all sorts of delicious Paleo recipes and they make them so simply that you just can’t fail. 

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Thanks, see Sam run! While I'm not a follower of the paleo diet, I am definitely intrigued by it. Eliminating processed food and refined sugars from our diet can only mean healthy changes for our bodies!

Want to follow Sam's blog? 

Head on over to http://seesamchange.blogspot.com/. 

Would you like to guest post on Healthy Little Me? 
Send me an e-mail! healthylittleme@gmail.com. 

I would love to hear what you'd like to share!

Happy Monday, people!

Hit Me Baby, One More Time..

I successfully kicked my biking goal's ass. 100+ miles, done.

Yesterday I completed the longest bike ride I've done all month. 15.76 miles. It was long. It took me over an hour (with a bathroom break right in the middle). But it was wonderful. And I have Pandora radio to thank.

I have some different iTunes playlists that I rock during specific cardio routines. I have a "Run!" playlist, a "Work it out" playlist, and a "Pedal!" playlist. But to be honest, they've been getting quite old to me this month. So yesterday I turned on Pandora and switched things up.

My radio station: Spice Girls.

Oh yeah, that's right. I had a blast from the past throughout my entire hour. The people on the bikes and elliptical's nearby must have thought I was on drugs. Every time a new song would come on, I'd break out a huge smile. I was silently singing along, giving myself a mental high five at every new mile. The Spice Girls/Backstreet Boys/Britney Spears collection probably seems cheesy to a lot of people. But to me, it reminds me of being a little girl.

Insert random anecdote:

In the 4th grade, four of my friends and I decided to dress up as Spice Girls for Halloween. It actually ended up being four of us, Gerry quit at the last minute (was that foreshadowing?). I, being the smallest and blondest in the group, took on the role of Baby Spice. My mom let me use colored hair spray to put blue streaks in my bangs and I wore sneaker high heels. I thought I was hot shit. We walked through our small neighborhood, crossing the street by holding out peace signs and yelling "Spice Crossing!" in the most British-like accent we could muster. One of the girls didn't really get the message across when she was crossing the street and got bumped by a car who didn't see her. It was over-dramatic and wonderful.
My playlist yesterday included the following: (Sing along if you know the words!)

• Who do you think you are - Spice Girls
• Lucky - Britney Spears
• Lady Marmalade - Moulin Rouge soundtrack
• I want you back - N'Sync
• Spice up your life - Spice Girls (I think I'm going to bring this back to my cardio list)
• Come on over - Christina Aguilera (This one was a BLAST)
• Quit playing games with my heart - Backstreet Boys
• I want it that way - Backstreet Boys
• Baby one more time - Britney Spears
• Kiss me - Sixpence None The Richer
• Bye bye bye - NSync
• Everybody (Backstreet's Back) - Backstreet Boys
• No scrubs - TLC (Has anyone seen the new T Boz show by the way?...)
• Say you'll be there - Spice Girls
• Tearin' up my heart - N'Sync
• Barbie girl - Aqua

And, in order to finish up one of the most random posts of Healthy Little Me, another random anecdote (this time about Britney Spears).

One day in the 5th grade, we were all lined up in the hallway doing a class change between periods. There was this kid named Ryan Smith* who was, by the way, the hottest guy I (or any other girl at John Dover* Elementary School) had ever laid eyes on. Every girl wanted him. And secretly, some of the guys probably did too. I remember passing him in the hallway when one of his guy friends shouted out "Ryan! Who's your new girlfriend?" He responded, "Britney Spears." Now, I had not heard of B Spears by then and thought she was a new girl at school I didn't know about. That bitch, I thought. Annnd then six months later I joined the rest of society when I saw her music video for Baby One More Time on Carson Daly. 

*Names changed.

What playlists get you going? Happy Friday, ya'll.

Wednesday Weigh-In!

Oh, hey Thursday!

Yesterday was my weekly weigh-in day so I hit the gym hard. I'm heading East on Sunday which means that I've only got several days to cash in my biking goal so I'm really focused on that right now. My running goal has been accomplished, but I know that distance will grow when I get back to NC - I'm really looking forward to some beautiful outdoor runs once I get there.

I got on the bike for 50 minutes, did the elliptical stair climber (since the stair master was taken) for about 10 minutes, and then worked on weights and plyometrics for about 30 minutes. I've always tried to avoid weight training because of my size - I'm afraid I will turn into a stocky little meatball if I lift anything over 10 pounds. But I've been reading about the benefits of weight training in this month's Women's Health and saw a segment yesterday on the Today Show about it and now I'm not as convinced that moderate weight training will make me look like a meathead. But I'm still keeping it at an arm's distance.

Anyway, I got a good calorie burn in and got back home just in time to watch the Tarheels beat Georgia Tech (woo!). Pretty great day if you ask me.

Previous weight: 131 lbs. Current weight: 128.8 lbs. Not a show-stopping loss, but I'll take it!

Annnd an update of my January goals:

25 Miles of Running:
1.8 - 01/02
2.25 - 01/03
4.26 - 01/06
2.15 - 01/07
1.77 - 01/08
3.1 - 01/09
4.05 - 01/10
2.32 01/17
1.44 - 01/18
1.18 - 01/19
2.0 - 01/20
Total Miles so Far - 26.32

100 Miles of Biking
6.31 - 01/02
10.6 - 01/03
3.0 - 01/13
11.24 - 01/17
12.76 - 01/18
12.95 - 01/19
8.14 - 01/20
11.24 - 01/22
13.04 - 01/23
Total Miles so Far - 89.28 (So close!)

Have a great day, everyone!

Wednesday and Happiness

I just finished an amazing book. It's called The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. I loved it so much that I got upset when it was over. I wanted more. I read the last chapter on a plane last week, set the book down on my little tray table, and, with tears in my eyes, looked at the woman sitting beside me and said, "Damn, that was good."

The Happiness Project is a "memoir/self-help" book about a woman who spends an entire year trying to make positive changes in her life. If you haven't heard of it, look it up! And if you like the idea of happiness, read it. You won't be disappointed.

One of the things the author talked about, which I loved, was her twelve commandments. These were principals she directly or indirectly established about what was going to help her be happy.

These were hers:
1. Be Gretchen
2. Let it go.
3. Act the way I want to feel.
4. Do it now.
5. Be polite and be fair.
6. Enjoy the process.
7. Spend out.
8. Identify the problem.
9. Lighten up.
10. Do what ought to be done.
11. No calculation.
12. The is only love.

She describes these commandments in greater detail throughout her memoir. And they all work well for her. This was so inspiring, I decided to start a list of my own commandments. I don't have twelve yet, but I'm slowly working on them.

Mine:
1. Act the way I want to feel.
2. Believe you can do it.
3. Celebrate the small victories.
4. Chill out.
5. Let your failures motivate, not discourage.

Yes, I stole my first one from Gretchen Rubin herself. But I couldn't help it - it just struck such a chord with me.

Even though 80% of the time, I have my head on straight about my healthy new self, there are sometimes that I revert back to my old self. Pizza at 1:00 am? Why not? Mint chocolate chip ice cream? Sure! It's low-fat, right? I need to learn to act the way I want to feel.

I want to be skinny. I want to be healthy. I try to keep this in mind. When I go to grab some finger food at a party, I try to think what would the skinny-me eat? When I'm trying to talk myself out of going for a run when I don't really feel like it, I try to think the healthy-me would do it, anyway.

She speaks about acting happy to feel happy. And I think there's truth in that, too. We humans are such mental creatures. I know that I can convince myself to hate something, love something, laugh at something, no matter what it is. And I often do it without even meaning to.

This journey to healthiness isn't just about my physical ability. It's just as much, if not more, about my mental ability, too. My mental ability to believe I can accomplish something. My mental ability to not let the bad days ruin everything. My mental ability to say No! when I really want to say yes.

Today is Wednesday. And I'll be posting my weekly weigh-in either tonight or tomorrow morning. And, regardless of what happens, I am going to act happy, feel happy, and celebrate the small victories. And if I don't get the number I'm looking for, I'm going to chill out and believe that I can do it.

Happy Hump Day, everyone. Let me know if you have any commandments of your own.

My Awesome-Nerdy-Fitness Binder!

I have developed a recent addiction. You could call me a Fitness Magazine connoisseur. Fitness, Women’s Health, SHAPE, Health, I love them all. If it has a skinny girl with headlines like “Flat Abs Now!” or “Knockout Arms” or “500 Calorie Burn” on the cover, consider it SOLD.

I buy them, read them from cover to cover in about 30 minutes, and add them to my growing pile of magazines that have come before them. I’ve heard that I should surround myself with people of similar motivations and goals to help motivate myself, and nothing motivates me more than seeing Cindy Crawford’s daily leg work out or Jillian Michael’s eating habits. I feel like, for that 30 or so minutes of magazine reading, I’m sitting down with my fitness friends and sharing (or in my case absorbing) their habits and tricks. It keeps me inspired. It gives me ideas. And it reminds me that there are tons of women out there trying to live a healthy life like I am.

One problem that I have with this new habit is the stack of magazines that build up as a result. I want to take these recipes, routines, and tips with me to the gym – but how weird would it be if I lugged around a stack of magazines through my aerobics room? Where would I put them? Bringing one magazine along is no big deal, but what if I want to do the Skinny Jean workout from one issue PLUS an ab workout from a different one and maybe throw in last month’s pilates workout? I have developed a practical, yet somewhat nerdy, solution to my problem. I call it “The Fitness Binder”.

The Fitness Binder is a flimsy pink binder that I have put together with helpful articles torn out of different magazines. These articles are lovingly placed into a protective plastic sleeve and organized by subject. High intensity treadmill routines, body specific work outs, grocery shopping guide to healthy foods, recipes I find doable, etc.

I cart this binder to the gym and flip through it looking for which exercise(s) strikes my fancy that day. I’ll admit – I get some funny looks from other gym-goers when I whip out my plastic protected archive in the middle of the fitness room. But, another perk to living in a foreign place, I have no image to keep here. If I want to be that whacky girl with the hefty binder at the gym, I can. People might think it’s weird, but I say whatever! to them. I’m doing my thing over here – I’m working on goals and getting it done.

Does anyone else do this?

...

Oh, it's just me?

...

Well, that's cool.

Happy Sunday everyone!

 

Back in the Wild West!

I am BACK in action. And my return to Wyoming was a day full of amazingly good news.

1. I got a promotion at work.
2. The splinter, that has been in the bottom of my foot for two months, finally worked its way out! (Yeah, I know. The boyfriend tried to get it out when it first happened, but as soon as a needle got factored into the equation, this girl was DONE.)
3. I lost a pound being out of state. Which was really suprising because, minus the brief Tom's-gym situation, I got little or no gym time in for a week.
4. My favorite kind of yogurt was on sale at the grocery store. (It's the little things, right?)
5. My new ear buds came in the mail.

Yesterday was a beautiful day for Wyoming. It was sunny with minimal wind and 49 degrees outside. To my friends back home in North Carolina, this is a cold day. To the people of Wyoming, this was a pleasant spring afternoon. Everyone was in a wonderful mood! And I got inspired to run outside.. which turned out to be a not-so-great idea.

Have you ever run outside in the cold? It causes your lungs to be quite upset with you. I got about a mile and a half done and have been coughing ever since. Something about that cold air running down your wind pipe kind of makes your chest tickle. But it's not a funny tickle; it's a wierd unconfomfortable scratchy-type of tickle.

After the run, I went to the gym.

I've got to make up for some MAJOR lost time with respect to my biking goal. My goal this month is to bike 100 miles. And with no access to the gym or an exercise bike for the past two weeks, my goal has been quite ignored. But the month of January in young. And I'm going to so kick this goal's ass. So off to the gym I went, and I finished up a nice 12.76 mile hill-interval ride.

And now on to my new earbuds. I am super excited about these. I have gone through about 5 different pair of ear buds in the past 6 months. And I always have the same problem with every. single. pair.

• They fall out of my ears when I get sweaty.
• They fill up with sweat (gross, I know) after minutes of trying to push them back in and then don't work. I went for a run when I was home in NC, and the last mile I had to listen to Justin Bieber with HALF of a functioning ear bud. Do you know how awkward that feels?
• Because they all lack any kind of clipping mechanism when I can attach them to my shirt, the chord obnoxiously jiggles about the entire time I'm working out.

Photo courtesy of Amazon.com

But, alas, I now have a solution.  Enter Phillips ActionFit.

These babys are SWEAT PROOF. And they have an anti-bacterial agent that helps kill germs! And they sit in my ears perfectly. I wore these to the gym and my cold run yesterday and SO FAR, SO GOOD! Did I also mention they have a CLIP? So I can attach them to my shirt? Annnnd I bought them on Amazon.com for about $12. Yes, yes, yes.

Happy Saturday, readers. I'm going to sit back, watch some Dr. Phil, drink some black hazelnut coffee, and get ready for the day.

Sneakerless

So right now I'm stuck in a different state working until this weekend. It's really not bad (the weather is MUCH warmer than it is in Wyoming) except for the fact that I came unprepared.

I brought almost everything I needed - my gym clothes, sports bras, headphones, even my Polar FT7 - but what was the one thing I totally forgot about? My running shoes. Or anything that remotely resembles a pair of sneakers, for that matter.

What do I have? A pair of Tom's. That's right - little canvas flats with no arch support or cushioning.

I'll just let you laugh for a second while you imagine me, at the small YMCA in town, biking and elipticalling (?) in a pair of flats. I got some funny looks for sure. But I didn't let it stop me.

I biked about 3 miles and did the elliptical for about 20 minutes. Nothing too fancy. But I did finish it off with a few plank/push ups/crunches circuits. 

This goes to show: the only bad workout is the one that didn't exist. I might not have gotten my usual sweat session in, but I did something. Sometimes you've just got to walk into a gym with small canvas flats and go with it.

I'll sure be glad when I get back to Wyoming, my running shoes, and my gym.

Back in Action!

My blog has been on the back burner lately, and for a decent reason. I unexpectedly got some extra days off and went home to hang with the boyfriend in NC. I wanted to update Healthy Little Me in NC but had to rush my computer off to the computer hospital to get the blah blah wiring blah blah part fixed. So I was left with just me, the boyfriend, and a pair of running shoes.

I'll be honest. Going home always puts a kink in the road for me. I lose my perfect routine - my 12 hour workday, 8 hour sleeping schedule, and 2 hour gym time. But it's a challenge I need to face. One day, I won't be working in the middle of nowhere with no distractions. One day, I'll have an office job with an 8 hour shift and less than perfect schedule. One day I'll go back to facing the distractions that got me to my fat point. And I need to learn how to deal with it.

Remembering the 5 pounds I gained last time I went home helped. So did my Polar FT7. So did finding an almost new pair of Mizuno running shoes under my bed that I had forgotten about. Because with no gym membership and sunny weather, I relied on running to get me through the week.

And I ran. A lot.

While I can't do a weekly weigh in until I get back to my gym and my scale (I'm working in a different state right now, but that's not important), I wanted to update you on my January goals. 

25 Miles of Running:
1.8 - 01/02
2.25 - 01/03
4.26 - 01/06
2.15 - 01/07
1.77 - 01/08
3.1 - 01/09 (This was also my fastest 5K, yet! 34 minutes! I felt so legit.)
4.05 - 01/10
Total Miles so Far - 19.38

100 Miles of Biking
6.31 - 01/02
10.6 - 01/03
Total Miles so Far - 16.91 

As you can see, I definitely worked on my running goal. But without the gym and the bike, my biking goal is in need of work! But it will happen...

On a side note, I decided during one of my runs that I'm definitely doing a 10k this year. I also decided later that, hell, I could do a half marathon, too. But I'm pretty sure that last run was just runner's high of the brain.

Next week's weigh in is going to be painful. I'm actually really nervous about it. While I made a great effort to make healthy decisions, I definitely consumed my fair share of red wine and a few brownies. Hopefully I'll make up for it.

It's all about accountability, I guess, for better or worse.

Weekly Weigh In - January 2nd

This blog is officially one week old. And that can only mean one thing: it's time for a weigh in.

Can I get a drum roll?

Today's weight: 131.0 lbs

Now, I'm not AWESOME at math, but I know what this means. I've lost 4.1 lbs this week.

I'm really excited to be back on track after falling off the wagon on my visit home. I feel like I have a ton of momentum! And (don't tell anyone, okay?) I think I'm starting to like the treadmill. Instead of just statically running at one setting, I've been changing the speed and incline and it's starting to feel more natural. But it sure as heck doesn't beat a beautiful outdoor run. 

Today I worked on January's goals. If you'll remember, I want to run another 25 miles and bike 100 miles this month. So far, I'm doing well.

Running goal (25 miles)

1.8 miles - 01/02

23.2 miles to go!

Biking goal (100 miles)

6.31 miles - 01/02

93.69 miles to go!

I'll be keeping track of this and updating on my weekly weigh ins. Wanna join me? Do it! Whether you want to set the exact same goal as me or something completely different - let me know what you're doing and how it's going.

Today's gym summary: 

25 minute run
23 minute bike ride on hill interval

Short circuit training:

15 jump squats

15 jump lunges

1 minute plank (why does this seem like the longest minute EVER?)

50 bicycle crunches

16 wiper planks

15 leg lifts

10 push ups (that's right - TEN REAL PUSH UPS!)

And according to my new friend, the Polar FT7, I burned over 600 calories. Yippee!

I'll talk more about the Polar FT7 later. Today was my first time using it so I'm still figuring it out, but so far so good!

Drink lots of water today! Catch ya'll later.

Starting the day/year off right!

Well, time flies when you're having fun. And apparently, it's now 2013. 

I decided to start my day/year off with a healthy Spanish-inspired egg scramble for breakfast. I took some chopped red bell pepper, chopped avocado, one whole egg, and five egg whites and mixed it all together before scrambling it in a pan. After it was finished, I dropped 3 teaspoons of hot salsa and VOILÀ! 

One delicious way to kick off 2013! And for a whopping 303 calories (with black coffee).

• 1 whole egg = 53 calories
• 5 egg whites = 85 calories (about 17 calories each)
• chopped red pepper = 30 calories
• chopped avocado = 100 calories
• hot chunky salsa = 30 calories (10 calories per spoonful)
• black cinnamon hazelnut coffee = 5 calories
• WATER = 0 calories

I read a few excerpts from Bob Harper's The Skinny Rules on Amazon.com the other night and one of the first rules is to drink a big glass of water as soon as you wake up everyday and before every  meal. This isn't something I'm used to, but after reading that, I'm now making a concious effort to consume more water at every meal. Have you had your daily dose of water today?

No gym for me today - today's my relaxation day. So it's super important I keep tabs on the food I'm eating since I'm not burning any extra calories. I did get my Polar FT7 and after reading through the manual, I think I know how to use it. I can't wait to break it out tomorrow at the gym and see how it does. I'll keep you guys posted.

Happy New Years, ya'll. May 2013 be our best year, yet!