Happy Monday!

Happy Monday!  Hope you had a great weekend.  I know I did.  I made Saturday a rest day and thoroughly enjoyed giving my body the rest it needed to fight the cold I had been battling all week.  I am feeling much better after giving my body what it needed--rest, hydration, sleep, and family time.  It was back to work exercise-wise on Sunday so I took the boys in their jogging stroller for a 6 mile easy run.  It was a beautiful day and we thoroughly enjoyed the fresh air, sunshine and cooler weather.  The boys got to wear their jackets!  They were SO CUTE bundled up in their stroller.  Love them! 

Today, for my workout I checked out Jackie Warner's new DVD and LOVED it.  Her pyramid approach really gave me a good workout.  The 8 lb dumbbells that I thought might be too easy ended up being quite the challenge this morning.  Her workouts never seem to disappoint me.  She knows how to really fatigue the muscles for optimal gains and keep things interesting to fight boredom.  I highly recommend checking it out if you like a good challenge.  I rounded out the workout with 10 minutes of nonstop plyometic exercises like jump rope, jump squats, high knees, butt kicks, etc.  Since today's routine hit all my muscle groups, all I have to do tomorrow is cardio.  Hope the weather gives me another nice day for a run.  I'm loving being able to soak up the sunshine and 60 degree weather while so many others are dealing with WINTER.  Gotta love Florida.

On another note, this breastfeeding momma has been enjoying a license to eat but am realizing I'm going to have to start reigning in on my indulgences as the boys transition to eating more and more "real" food so starting today I am transitioning onto the Eat Clean Diet.  I'm not using it for weight loss, but just for healthy eating and hoping it can help me tighten my core even more.  Gotta give up the sweets, chicken wings, pizza, beer, ice cream, etc for a while.  It's going to take some self-control for a while at first I know, but I've done this plan before and it honestly gets easier after a couple of weeks.  I can do it and it will be so worth it in the end.  My boys need a healthy mommy!

Today's meals have included the following:

Breakfast:

• 2 egg whites and 1 egg scrambled with onions and garlic, topped with hot sauce of course
• 1/3 cup oats with  1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, 1 T flax seed and 1 T wheat germ, topped with 1 cup berries and half a starfruit

Morning snack:

• 1 scoop whey protein mixed with 1/2 cup pumpkin puree, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, unsweetened almond milk, 1/2 T agave, and 1 cup ice blended

Lunch:

• Mixed baby greens topped with 1/2 can tuna, 1/4 cup black beans and onions, 1 plum tomato, 5 green olives, balsamic vinegar and olive oil
• 1 1/2 wasa crisp breads with 1/3 cup lentil pate

Snack:

• Thin mint bar - made by combining dates, cocoa powder, walnuts, mint extract and vanilla extract in the food processor

And coming up tonight is...

Dinner:

• Slamon, lettuce, tomato, and wasabi in a whole wheat flatout wrap
• Sauteed garlic, onions, yellow squash and zucchini

Evening snack:

• Chunky monkey yogurt -- 1/2 cup nonfat greek yogurt mixed with 1 scoop chocolate protein powder, 1/2 banana, and 1 tsp almond butter mixed together and stuck in the freezer to get it extra cold

I hope I can stay on track and start noticing increased energy and health as well as increased gains in my fitness.  The nice thing is I get to continue eating a lot, especially since I'm still working out and nursing, but I'll just be making better choices.  Stay posted for updates....