Joy and Matzos

This is for yesterday! 

I'm so sad I am a day behind posting these! My goal is to get back on track tonight!!!

I will do my best to keep this one short and to the point! =) 

If you're new to me welcome!!! I'm Lallenia!! I am doing a 21 day challenge of trying not to eat processed sugar... well if it has 2g or less that is. You can start by reading HERE if you'd like or just jump in! 

Today (saturday) I've had a bit of an obsession with PB! Not like I used to... now i can control it but I craved it ALL day! 

Breakfast:

One of my favorites!!!

1/2 cup rolled oats cooked

1 TBLSP natural PB

1 Scoop Protein Powder (usually I'd use chocolate but we didn't have any)

a splash of Coconut milk

SO GOOD! When I use chocolate protein (or mix in cocoa powder) it tastes like a PB chocolate cookies.... well I mean... kind of.. with imagination .... you get it. 

This was kind of a late breakfast.

a few hours later I was CRAVING PB again!!! On toast with coffee.... weird right? 

The other night when I was looking for bread without sugar in it..... Hey I know bread isn't the BEST choice but it's better than eating candy, cookies, or cake... well not BETTER... but it's better. 

I found that my husbands all time favorite bread (rotellas) had the least amount! Less than 1g for TWO. 

All the wheat breads, ryes and oatmeal based had 2-4g for ONE piece.... crazy. So he was excited to see it when he got home. 

I ate 2 1/2  pieces of toast, 1 with PB the others with just cinnamon and butter..... so freaking good. 

 I know many of you reading this are probably pointing your nose up at me as bread is like completely OFF limits, especially to my paleo friends.... I get that. and normally i don't eat it all that much... but for this challenge I'm not going to place it as "off limits". If you read about my struggle yesterday then this makes sense. =) 

Side note: for those of you who DO struggle with eating too much PB.... I started getting the natural kind (usually) because yes WAY less sugar but also because it satisfy my craving but it doesn't make me want to eat the whole jar like Skippy or Jif does. 

I was still wanting something sweet.... so I had a..... you guessed it! POMEGRANATE! 

Check out the health benefits:

I did eat the whole thing again.... it's SUPER good! If it weren't for how time consuming it is to getting the seeds out I'd probably eat 2 of these every day. 

I was going to go to the gym earlier but time got away from me and by the time I was about to Kids Club was to be closed (my husband was at work). When he got home i went for a 4 mile run.... Can I just say I REALLY LOVE to run..... I hate it because I know in order to build muscle and look tight I should be doing sprints and lifting heavy weights... I like those too but I REALLY get a joy from running 3-6 miles. It puts me in a happy place, a different one from strength training. 

This also gives me joy... my beautiful fat kitty sitting like this: 

how cute is she??? so funny!!!! 

Dinner time: 

Wyatt and I snacked on sweet baby bell peppers.... YUM!!!!!!! 

He sees me taking pictures of my food and asks Why.... I tell him it's because I am showing my friends the healthy choices I am trying to make. So wyatt said lets show them I eat healthy too!! Here you go folks =) 

my nose looks SOOOO long... well it kinda is ... oh well... 

I cooked up some grass fed ground beef with taco spices and was planning on having nachos. Then I found my salad that will go bad soon so I made a taco salad.... 

I used these Matzos things instead of chips... we didn't have any at the time.... it was good. This is so weird but i REALLY like the Matzos with PB and jelly on them as well if I'm not eating bread..... I'm also learning you can use these in substitute for a lot of other recipes like lasagna and cakes.... fun!!!!

I still wanted something sweet so my husband picked these up: 

Then I made this: 

It was ok.... it was creamy but not the same as using cow milk. If I didn't use the greek yogurt then it wouldn't have been creamy just watery. I found this on a weight watchers website =) 

1 Package of pistachio sugar free pudding (or any flavor you want)

1/2 cup greek yogurt

1/2 cup almond milk

That was my day =) 

This isn't diet or fitness related but I was sent this skin stuff  called Nerium to try from a girlfriend  in Cheyenne WY... I normally use Olay face lotion. 

I told her  I would take before pictures and after. I figured I'd share the results with you too.  Fresh out of the shower and NO make up on (no judging please) 

my face is SO red.... all the time. 

I am hoping this will take away the redness in my nose that i have to use makeup to cover up

Stop zooming in! Gross!! 

I'll keep you posted what I think of it! 

Ok I'm off to church and trying to talk my husband into going to the Movie Big Hero 6 again since he hasn't seen it ;-) It really is SOOOOO cute!!!! 

You all are awesome!!! 

Keep yourself Healthy, Fit and Fabulous!!! 

XoXo,

*Lallenia*

YUMMY "cookie" recipe and Chest workout video!

Ok so I for some reason didn't get this posted last week BUT I did write this last week! I just made this video and AMAZING  recipe I added in here for you so  enjoy! =)

11 weeks away! It seems so far yet SO close!!! 78  days away.... ( it's really 74 days away today)

(In case you're confused as to what I'm doing read this blog first )

It has only been since Monday, August 13th that I have kept my nutrition within a certain amount of Calories, Protein, Fat and Carbs.  (I am to aim for 2,029 calories, 67 grams fat, 190 protein and 167 carbs)

I cannot even begin to tell you the difference i am feeling in my body. It doesn't necessary LOOK different (I don't see it yet) but it FEELS different. I feel stronger and tighter, yes even during that time of the month... because I know you were wondering! ;-) OH before i forget I'm going to get measured this weekend due to girl time last week  we postponed it but yes I WILL post the results =) 

Here's the deal since I am a fitness trainer and have always had self image issues... weird combination right!?!? I pay attention to the small stuff. The difference is... this time it's not the scale I am focusing on, for once it is the way my body feels, looks, how strong i am getting, how food reacts to my body, and how my attitude is.

I am focusing on the positive changes, tracking my progresses in my workouts, nutrition and I have a realistic goal ahead to strive for each week. I understand this is not going to happen over night and I have to work to reach these goals. As I said earlier I may not SEE the changes yet but I know with time they will happen as long as I am consistent and persistent. 

A really good friend called to tell me congrats and how excited she is for me to take on this challenge.  She is so encouraging and refreshing!! She also reminded me about the compound effect.

When I train clients and teach boot camps people are always wanting to get results instantly. If they do not see them within a week or two they get discouraged and quit. What many people do not realize is to get results in fitness and health really is a compound effect.  Compounding means adding things together to get results over time.

 Just like saving money... you cannot save $1,000,000 overnight  (if so PLEASE PLEASE teach me!!!) You have to make deposits each week and watch your bank account grow if you make bigger deposits then you will see it grow faster than if you make smaller deposits..

This applies to your fitness goals... all of them.... to get faster, stronger, lose weight, gain weight, you have to make those small or big changes EVERY SINGLE DAY that will help you reach your goals in order to make changes. If you want to see results faster than you need to be willing to work a little harder, change habits and lifestyles faster also. If you just want to be healthy then start with the little changes first like logging your food and walking every day.

I can tell you overcoming my bulimia sure as heck didn't happen over night either and it is something i STILL am learning how to deal with. It's all about making positive and constant changes that have gotten me to where I am now and will help me further my progress even more in my recovery and in my fitness lifestyle.

Right now i struggle with the fact that I FEEL stronger than I ever have but do not see my muscles growing and developing the way I think they should. I have to keep reminding myself this is because I have not been lifting like this CONSISTENTLY for long periods at a time in order for my body to react. Also because i was not feeding my body properly in the past....IT TAKES TIME and the RIGHT FOODS. (and it is ANNOYING!)

So i have an AMAZING  "cookie" recipe I made this weekend... yes it's MINE I made it from my own little brain and it turned out AWESOME! I was so excited!!!!

A GREAT Pre workout or early morning meal with coffee.... YUMMMMY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chocolate Protein Oatmeal Coconut Cookies

2 ripe bananas mashed until creamy

1/2 cup Crunchy Nut Butter

1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce

4 tblsp unsweetened coconut flakes

1 1/2 cups quaker rolled oatmeal

3 scoops rich chocolate whey protein

2 tsp Vanilla flavoring

2 tblsp cocoa powder

*Optional* (I used these for one recipe but not the other)

1/4 cup chopped nuts

1/4  cups dried fruit of choice

1/4 cup carob chips
stevia to taste if want sweetener

Pre-Heat Oven to 350 degrees

In a large mixing bowl mix the mashed up bananas, unsweetened apple sauce, coconut flakes and nut butter. Then add chocolate protein powder, oats, vanilla flavoring and cocoa powder. Mix until completely combined. Then add optional items if you wish.

Let the dough rest for about 5-10 minutes then using a big spoon, drop spoonfuls onto wax paper. Should have about 12 cookies. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisped to your liking. These taste great out of the oven but even better the next day! 

Nutrition facts w/ out optional stuff:

Calories:180cal

Fat: 7.2g

Protein: 13g

Carbs: 18.1g

AND guess what else i did! I video taped a workout..... for some reason I am weird about posting my workouts but I guess in order to change and become better i need to step out of my comfort zone right? This is a day when I was mainly focusing on my chest. I sped the video up and condensed it because it's annoying watching those videos that take hours besides I know how busy everyone is. Please leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts!

Watching it, I realized boy do I have a lot of work to do still but that's cool because it will be fun to see my progress!!!!

Here ya go!!

Warm up:
Jump Rope 4 min
Band Pull Aparts 50 reps
Overhead squats 20 reps
Spider-mans 20 reps
Push ups with T-rotation

Workout:
1a. DB Fly w/ 20lbs 3 sets of 6-8
1b. Burpee Push ups 10 reps 5 sets (1st one was warm up)
2a. Bench Press 65lbs 10 reps, 80lbs 10 reps, 95lbs 5 reps, 95lbs 5 reps
2b. DB Seated Curls 20lbs 10 reps 4 sets
3a. Incline DB Bench 35lbs 4-6 reps 3 sets
3b. Standing curved bar curls 35lbs 10 reps 3 sets
3c. Med Ball alt push ups to fail 3 sets (12, 10, 10)
4. Knee Driver Push ups off bench 3 sets to fail (10, 10, 6)

Keep yourself Healthy, Fit, and Fabulous!!

*Lallenia*