Diets...Self-Discipline...Curiousity

We took the boys for a bike ride the other night and along the way, we got to talking about diets...I know random for a bike ride, but it has been a hot topic for us lately, largely in part to my new found interest in a plant-based diet, what many people refer to as being vegan.  As I continued to share with him all the interesting things I had learned that day (I'm still trying to get through Forks Over Knives and browsing cookbooks, reading blogs, etc.), he continued to tell me reasons he didn't think it was a good idea, compromises he'd make without totally committing, and he cited some other very convincing diets we've looked at that rely very heavily on meat and animal products to achieve results.  It really can get quite confusing when you dig into all of the conflicting information that is out there.

We decided that you really choose the diet you commit to based on what you're hoping to accomplish, right?  Are you an animal activist?  Go Vegan!  Do you have a heart condition? Better choose a low sodium, low fat diet!  Trying to cut weight fast?  It seems Paleo is all the rage now in that department now.  Worried about pesticides and hormones? Watch labels for organic, grass-fed, free range, etc.  For me personally, I would like to be fantastically healthy, with nice muscle tone, lots of energy, glowing skin, and all the while, feel like I'm not "missing out" on all the good stuff.  Based on what I'm reading and my own opinions which have developed as a result of my research, it seems like going Vegan is the answer.  But what if I can't convince my mind and my heart to agree?

I don't think the diet is so much the issue, but the self-discipline that would go along with it seems like such an undertaking.  I'd have to have lots of self-control in a very tempting world.  I mean, how many restaurants can you think of that have an abundance of vegan options?  But then again, a little self-discipline never hurt anyone.  In fact, it seems that self-discipline could positively impact more that just my health.  It could improve my faith, my confidence, and my cooking skills, and increase my overall satisfaction in life.  That makes it a bit more tempting...but still VERY OVERWHELMING and even a bit scary.  I think it would be so much easier to commit if I was a huge animal rights advocate or if I had a medical condition that could seriously benefit from making the change, but a change in the spirit of overall health and an test of self-discipline, I have to admit that's a little less convincing, at least for me.  But then I came across this verse...

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7

Which reminded me of this...

As a result, I've been thinking a lot about this whole self-discipline thing too.  With two little toddlers at home, discipline is a daily challenge.  How do I teach them to follow the rules? Why don't they STOP CLIMBING ON THE TABLE when I've told them a million times?  When will it finally click that sitting on your brother is not a good idea?  No, you can't have your dessert until you eat your vegetables.  You can't just eat goldfish all the time, you need some balance on that high chair tray because I WANT YOU TO BE HEALTHY!  Funny, seems like exactly what I want for myself.  Maybe I should adopt the same rules for myself that I impose on my children.  We spend so much of our time as parents trying to teach discipline, good habits,  and self-control, obviously realizing that it is a necessary life skill, only for many of us, including ME, to ignore our conscience as adults, especially when it comes to food.

I used to follow the rules as a kid.  I'd eat dessert only after I'd finished my healthy meal.  I was taught to make healthy choices and only indulge occasionally, but I'm realizing that as an adult, I tend to ignore what I know I should be doing when it comes to food way too often.  Don't get me wrong, I eat a generally healthy diet, but I splurge way more often that I should and just tell myself I'll work out extra hard the next day.  It creates a viscious cycle.  If I'd have discipline and self-control in the first place, I wouldn't find myself beating myself up and feeling terrible about myself after my regular slip-ups.

I went back to the Bible to see what else it said about self discipline and found this little gem...
The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. Proverbs 13:4  YOWZA! I so do NOT want to be a sluggard!  If I choose listen to my conscience, and am diligent in my choices, I will be richly supplied.  Sounds like a bargain!  Why is it so hard to do it then? 

I think it will be a gradual process, just like training my children, but with awareness, persistance, determination, and prayer I think I can make some significant changes in my diet that can have far-reaching effects on all aspects of my life.  I'm going to start with cutting back on meat and processed foods as well as hold myself to an eating schedule to avoid all-day-eating as well as allowing myself to get too hungry.  This stay-at-home mom stuff is like a free for all with snacks and part of my problem.  It was much easier to stick to my plan when I had a set time for meals and snacks at work so I think a schedule will help me.  I'm hoping to work towards being a complete vegan by October.  My next step will be to eliminate dairy and meat while still eating fish and eggs.  I will eliminate those two things last.  Baby steps...

I'd love to hear you thoughts/experiences with any of this.  Feel free to chime in.

Is It Winter Yet?

Is it winter yet?  I am SOOO over this heat.  This morning, while doing my usual routine of drinking coffee, checking e-mails, and checking facebook, I decided also to head over to my weather app and check the weather.  UGH, high of 94!  But it was only 79 degrees out there at 8:30 so I figured I'd get my run in right away.  I'm hard core enough for running in 80 degree weather, right?  I was in for a surprise...

My high hopes of logging at least 7 miles quickly faded as I stepped outside.  I almost immediately started mentally bargaining with myself..."Just keep moving for an hour; it doesn't matter if you run or walk, just log an hour on your feet."  "Just finish 4 miles."  "I'll settle for just 3 and then walk the rest of the way home."  It kept getting worse.  I must have missed my 3 mile alert because when the lady on MapMyRun announced I had hit the 4 mile mark, I was surprised, yet thought, "good enough; I'm over this!"  and decided to take a walk break.  I would have been totally ok with just walking the rest of the way home, but after a quick stop in the Y to refill my water bottle and the boys sippy cups, I came out with a renewed sense of energy.  Must have been seeing all those "lazy" people working out in the AC.  Just kidding!  After a few deep breaths in the AC, some cold water in my bottle, and a renewed spirit, I decided to see if I could make it just one more mile.  I surprised myself by being able to stick to my original plan of logging an hour on my feet and made it 6.5 miles in one hour and 36 seconds.  PHEW!

At the end of my run, I decided to check the weather again.  84 degrees...that's it???  Why did I feel like I was dying of heat exhaustion?  Maybe because of that little bit of information to the side of the temperature where it says "feels like."  I agree--it felt like it was AT LEAST 94 degrees...IN THE SHADE!  Yuck!  Too bad there was no cloud cover to be seen any where and palm trees provide very little shade when you really need it.  On the flip side, it was nice and clear, a welcome change after a couple of gloomy days.  


It was not my best run by any means and it might have been one of the hardest and hottest 6.5 miles of my life but I don't regret one minute of it.  It always seems better once it's over, right?  I definitely found some mental strength on my run but also learned I have got to log my miles earlier in the day or else settle for the dreaded treadmill. 

Off to the pool.  I earned it!  Tomorrow, that air-conditioned fitness center is calling my name, and I won't be too proud to give in to it. 

In a FUNK and my mission to SHAKE IT!

Ever since I got back from vacation, I've found myself in a funk that I just can't seem to shake. At first, I tried to ignore it with all the usual excuses...it's just quieter around here without the extra people around and constant activities going on, the boys are having a hard time getting back to their routine, I'm just tired, I don't have the extra helpers around that I had while out of town, etc. Well, it's been two weeks now and I realizing there's more to this funk than I originally thought. It's not just the post-vacation blues, especially since said vacation was not the most relaxing of vacations and one I was actually quite happy to return home from. Don't get me wrong, family time is a wonderful thing and I wish I got to see my parents and siblings more, but days in the car and scary plane trips with two very active toddler boys was not my idea of relaxation. I'm not sure when I'll be ready to agree to another "vacation." Haha
But I digress... There's more to this funk and I'm on a mission today to pinpoint the issues and get my life back on track. I don't like mopey me!

One issue I became aware of today is in the area of fitness. I have been feeling a little uninspired in the workout department, partly as a result of going into maintenance mode while out of town. I took advantage of hotel gyms when I could, but my workouts were definitely less than stellar and I lost some momentum towards my fitness goals. My maintenance mode, which was intended to last for 10 days during vacation, turned into the whole month of July. After a month of not doing any intense workouts, I was huffing and puffing trying to get through my INSANITY workout today.  That is NOT typical for me and I definitely going to make some changes in the workout department. Time to get refocused! Maybe I need to sign up for a half marathon in the future and work towards setting a PR?? I think so!!!

My waning fitness gains have brought my weight loss to a standstill. In fact, if I'm really honest with myself, I've probably even gained a couple of pounds. Not good for the self esteem or the mojo AT ALL! I find myself back at the old vacay excuses again...it's too hard to eat healthily on vacation; vacation is a time to splurge a little; I'll work it off when I get back home; etc. Well, what do you know, my 10 days of "relaxed" eating turned into a month of ignoring my typically better eating habits. I've found myself having a daily splurge or two rather than the occasional treat here or there.  Wine or dessert?  Why choose?  Doing that too often catches up to me especially when I'm not exercising as hard as I used to.  On top of it all, I'm working towards weaning the boys, which means my body is needing fewer and fewer calories.  Time to get more intentional with my eating and not graze all day long.  I'm going to watch my portion sizes, eat healthy meals at regular intervals, cut back on the snacking, and limit the splurges.  I CAN DO THIS!  I feel SOOO much better all around when I do.

Sorry for the rambling but sometimes it helps to put it out there, vent a bit, and hold myself accountable.  I think it's also good for us all to remind ourselves that EVERYONE struggles from time to time, even the most fit of us, but it's not an excuse to throw in the towel.  It's a chance to refocus, recommit, and start seeing results again.  Not a bad way to go into my 4th year of marriage.  Happy 3rd anniversary to us tomorrow!!!!

What do you do when you find yourself in a funk?  I'd love to hear your solutions.

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Full Body Pyramid Dumbbell Workout

This week I've gotten in some great workouts, including today's (Friday) 5 mile stroller-free run which I finished in less than 41 minutes.  Talk about a nice way to start the day!  To top it all off my husband had breakfast waiting for me when I got back and he'd filled up the boys as well.  Score!

I was glad this run felt easier than Sunday's 7 mile easy run.  (It didn't feel as easy as I hoped it would.)  The heat really got to me that day and I struggled pushing the stroller over the bridges.  I'm still glad I did it though. 

My favorite workout this week took place on Monday and I've been meaning to let you in on this great workout ever since, but as you all know...life gets in the way sometimes.  Anyways, I came up with a new pyramid workout which I thoroughly enjoyed.  I completed the lower body portion as well as the back and chest exercises using 20 pound dumbbells.  I used 15 pounders for the biceps, triceps and shoulders.  Feel the burn!

Full Body Pyramid Dumbbell Workout

Complete 6 sets of the circuit, using the following number of reps for each exercise:

• Set 1: 25 reps
• Set 2: 20 reps
• Set 3: 15 reps
• Set 4: 10 reps
• Set 5: 5 reps (Don't let this set fool you.  It's kind of a rest period for the next set.)
• Set 6: 25 reps (KILLER!)

Complete the following exercises:

• Overhead press (Shoulders)
• Hammer curls  (Biceps)
• Triceps kickbacks (Triceps :-) )
• Dumbbell bench press (Chest)
• Bent over rows (Back)
• Squats (Glutes and Quads)
• Deadlifts (Glutes and Hamstrings)
• Lunges (Quads)
• Plie Squat Pulses (Inner thighs - I used one 20 lb dumbbell held in between my legs for these)

You'll notice the reps add up to 100.  Nice, huh?  I rested for a minute or so after each set but didn't rest in between exercises. Keep that navel pulled in to the spine on every rep and you'll be sure to engage your core as well.   

Another great workout I tried this week came from the Peanut Butter Fingers blog.   It's called the burpee sandwich and it was a great addition to my plyometrics workout on Tuesday.  It looks like this: 

Since I was stuck at home, I jogged in place for 5 minutes before and after the burpee intervals.  I also tacked on one minute of each of the following exercises:

• Jumping Jacks
• High Knees
• Jump Ropes
• Mountain climbers
• Butt kicks
• Heismans
• Jump squats
• Up-down planks
• Switchkicks 
• Mummy kicks

Wednesday, I got in a great little 3 mile run, some plank work, and did a quickie arm workout.


Thursday, I did some intervals on the elliptical and did my dropset legs workout.  

The plan for Saturday is active REST!!! I earned it.  We're hoping to take the boys on a bike ride and maybe take a walk downtown sometime if the weather cooperates.  Might be more of a pool day if it's too hot.  I'm good with whatever happens.  Hope your weekend is wonderful!