Monday (Day 8)

So I didn't update...
:)

I figured it would be boring to continuously read about what I'm eating! I am still eating 4 'meals' a day...and monitoring it closely. I'm trying not to consume fast food and if I do I am picking the best possible scenario!

I did eat at the Olive Garden on Friday night...soup (minestrone), salad, and two breadsticks so even though I wasn't scheduled to workout on Saturday I got up and walked/jogged/sprinted to make up for the little splurge.

Today I had to do a new crazy Jillian workout. She wanted 20 scorpion push-ups...if you don't know what those are you can youtube it! I also did some jump squats and woodchops...and the last of my circuits consisted of me running at 9 mph/30 sec on, 30 sec off for 5 minutes!

Tomorrow's workout looks even more challenging...plus I'm starting it off by walking outdoors for 30 minutes before I begin!

Keep you posted!

Day 4

YAY!!
I have lost 3.4 pounds in one week!
Yippee :)

Today for breakfast I had two scrambled eggs and water!
Went to the gym and did Jillian's day 4 circuit workout and 15 min of cardio at the end!

(will update at the end of the day!)

Day 3

Seriously...I really tried to eat cottage cheese. I don't like cottage cheese. I don't like the way it looks or smells and I most certainly do not enjoy the texture! Needless to say that breakfast ended up in the garbage can and I opted for the cereal instead!!

Went to the gym but today was an "off" day so I did 45 minutes of cardio and no weights. I walked, ran at incline, and sprinted on and off for the entire time. (I also managed to watch a bit of Iron Man).

For lunch I fixed a roast beef philly cheese wrap. It was pretty good. I used lean roast beef, spinach leaves, slice of tomato, non-fat cream cheese and rolled it all together in a low fat/low card wrap.

Snack consisted of 20 almonds...which were surprisingly filling.

For dinner, I cooked a fillet of salmon and a broccoli and cauliflower steamed medley.

I will weigh tomorrow at the gym since it's been a week since I've started paying attention to what I eat!

Day 2

Today consisted of another bowl of Kashi Go Lean cereal and two scrambled eggs for breakfast. I headed to the gym and did about an hour workout. Her workouts are not easy and today I was thankful that the women's gym section was not full. I had to crab walk both frontward and backward! I also ran at 5.5 mph @ a 10% incline as well as the 7 mph sprint in addition to the weights. By the way, I was supposed to do hammer curls until muscle failure...so I chose 10 pound weights and ended up doing at least 35 reps! I shall pick a little bit of a heavier weight next time!

Lunch was a baby spinach salad with carrots, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and grilled chicken with the olive oil vinaigrette dressing. I followed this up an hour or two later with a 8oz glass of BIOSLIM. (Learn more about that here: http://www.takeitfromanrd.com/) I ate wasa crackers with natural peanut butter for a snack...they are the crunchiest crackers on the planet but they were pretty good :).

About 15 minutes before dinner I drank another serving of BIOSLIM. We modified our dinner menu and ate chicken sauteed in olive oil and rotel and I had a small portion of that over wild rice.

My drinks today consisted of all water and one cup of coffee!

Day 1 (Officially)

I started this morning by eating a bowl of Kashi Go Lean cereal with skim milk and I actually scrambled two eggs. After taking Kolton to school I headed to the gym with my handy dandy note cards. I sat at the table last night and wrote out the exercises/circuits so I didn't have to carry Jillian's book around the gym :). It was definitely a hard workout as I'm not one much for "burpies" and "mountain climbers" BUT I am looking forward to tomorrow.

I followed the menu plan for lunch, snack, and dinner. Needless to say, my husband did not join in the experiment! The only thing I could have done without is the crushed cloves I added to the chicken marinade...but now I know!

So day one is a success...let's see if I can keep it going!

a picture...

of the author of the book...Jillian Michaels.

This is why...

PEOPLE don't follow these diets...
I went grocery shopping today for 2 days...2 DAYS...worth of food for the "Making the Cut" eating plan. I spent over a hundred dollars and it'll mostly just be me eating this stuff. I do have to factor in spices I had to buy because I don't own them...so I won't have to do that again for a while (unless of course I need different ones for later recipes). But seriously...Matt is going to have a heart attack! I may just need to follow the general rule of my carb/protein/fat ratio and still record what I eat...but maybe it could be a little more realistic! Are we not in economic crisis??

So...I start tomorrow! I will do exactly as it says for Monday and Tuesday...the rest may have to be altered but I will do the work outs as written!

Thursday...leg day!

Yesterday, at the gym, I worked my shoulders. I thought maybe I wasn't doing enough weight but seeing how sore I am today I'm guessing the weight was about right. I ended the evening eating a fillet of salmon with mixed vegetables (red pepper, green pepper, yellow onion, squash, and zucchini) sauteed in olive oil.

I went to the gym today a little later than I normally do. It is "leg" day...and it's not my favorite. I did lunges, squats, sumo squats, side planks, planks, leg curls etc. I alternated those exercises by running on the treadmill at 7mph for one minute sprints and also 5.5mph at a 10% incline. I'm guessing I may be a little sore tomorrow...but I won't complain!

I've eaten a clif bar for breakfast and a DD Veggie Egg White flatbread and a coffee for lunch! I'm already hungry again! But it is almost time for a snack!

Wednesday thoughts...

It's interesting how when trying to eat better it is still easy to self sabotage! I was out and about today and needed to get lunch (since I'm not supposed to skip meals) so I opted for the chargrilled chicken sandwich (no bun) and a small fruit cup at Chickfila. Mind you...I should've chosen the bottle of water over the sprite. Even though that was probably the best scenario of food choices I am already a little over my sugar intake for the entire day. I still have to eat some sort of snack and dinner!!!

Tuesday menu...

So here is the food I've eaten today...(before being able to start program)

BREAKFAST (9:00 a.m.):
Clif Bar
Water
(WORK OUT)
Starbucks Grande Skinny Caramel Latte

LUNCH (12:15 p.m.):
Salad with carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes with Olive Oil Vinigrette
2 Tbsp Peanut Butter
Water

SNACK (3:15 p.m.):
20 Grapes
2 Tbsp Peanut Butter

DINNER (7:00 p.m.):
Palm Size Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
Fresh Steamed Broccoli and Cauliflower Medley with pepper and Smart Balance Butter
1/4 cup Lipton's Veggie Sides (Vegetable Fried Rice)
Water

Beginning Measurements and Weight

Weight on 11-11-08:
148.4 pounds

BMR = 1468.7 (caloric intake)
I'm going to decrease this by 100...so my daily calorie intake will be 1368.7.

% of Body Fat = 21.7

Measurements:
Bust = 39"
Chest = 33"
Waist = 31.5"
Hips = 38.5"
L Thigh = 22"
R Thigh = 22"
L Arm = 11"
R Arm = 11"

STEP TEST
3 Minute Step Test
Pulse = 138 (Poor)

MILITARY STYLE PUSH-UPS
8 complete (Below Average)

SIT UPS
44 completed in 1 minute (Excellent)

WALL SIT
60 Seconds (Great)

Deciding to Commit!

Blogging this challenge is a HUGE step for me because I've never "gone public" with the desire to get in shape physically. I've been going to the gym five days a week for almost a year and while I can tell some difference I KNOW there can be more. I decided a few days ago to buy "Making the Cut" by Jillian Michaels (from the Biggest Loser). She is scary even in text form but she is also in awesome physical shape. I've read the entire book and am going to start the entire 30 day menu and workout regimen on Monday the 17th of November. These next few days I am going to incorporate some of her exercises into my own routine and am going to consciously make healthier food choices.
I will track my progress in this blog.
I will post my starting weights and measurements.
I am not sure yet if I will post beginning photos...maybe I'll post those at the end when I can tell a difference :).

Your support means a ton!