I'm Back! (for now....;P)

I cleaned most of my public rooms today. They have not been really cleaned, I'm sad to say, since I got sick last August. I've had women from church come in and pick up for me, but I can't even remember the last time the floors were swept, for example. So I picked up, and swept, and ran out of gas before I could mop. And I almost passed out only three times. (yeah, need to get back on that cardio ASAP) Tomorrow? Toy organization!
The Almighty Liz

Wednesday & Thursday

Wednesday I ran stairs for 20 minutes then I got totally bored of it and went outside for a 3 mile run. I had felt kind of semi barfy for several days. Not enough to keep me down, just working out sucked. I had to force myself to finish that workout, motion made it worse. Happily though, I can say that everyone in our family is officially well again. Yay! Nobody had better catch Todd's strep though!! We had strep and then a stomach virus that effected literally everyone in the family immediately following and on top of the strep. Justice got the stomach virus 3 separate times!!

Anyway, I ran 6 miles with the group on Thursday. My hip actually didn't hurt much before or after. It still feels weird and out of place, but oddly it doesn't hurt. I hope it stays good. I'm afraid that if I over do it, I'll be right back where I started.

Cooking Adventures!!!

Snack:

Fresh picked lettuce w/ hummus, tomatoes, pumpkin seeds along with gluten free crackers w/ goat cheese.

I loved it! One of my favorites of the week!

Breakfast:

Mango, Banana, Peach, blueberry Smoothie & Nettle Tea

I discovered a love for mangoes this week. I'd eaten them while vacationing in Cancun a few years ago but hadn't had them since to my knowledge. Oh my my! I was so delighted with this concoction. The Nettle tea wasn't the best but I will tolerate it for it's reputed health benefits.

Dinner:

Miso Chicken on Spring Mix Salad w/ Asparagus & Baked Sweet Potato

This was another homerun meal! I'd had Miso Soup while on my mission. One of my companions was half Japanese & Miso was a stable of her household. Miso is a wonderful, healthy, ingredient that pops with flavor. I'll probably eat it every single week from now on.

Breakfast

Dandelion Tea & Papaya, Mango, Pineapple, Lime, Carrot Juice

This is the first time I'd ever bought a papaya. I'd had it in Mexico & remembered liking it but I'd never taken the time to buy one. I loved this juice. I even saved a little & froze it til it was good & slushy & delicous!!!

Breakfast:

Pau d'Arco Tea & Strawberry, Raspberry, 2 Pear, 1 Apple smoothie

This wasn't a favorite despite the fact that I love every single thing that went into it. The texture was gritty due to the pear & I just didn't enjoy it. Maybe next time I'll put in less pear & more of everything else.

Dinner:

Adzuki Bean Casserole w/ Sweet Potatoes & Green Beans seared in olive oil with herbs

I really, really loved this one too! I'd never, ever had Adzuki beans which are a stable in Japanese homes. The casserole also includes onions, garlic, carrots, celery, & yellow squash. I'm making a salad with the remaining casserole for tomorrow's lunch.

Lunch:

Cucumber/Beet Salad w/ apple cider vinegar, alfalfa sprouts & sesame seeds along with a baked sweet potato

This is a dish that required the open mind I was talking about earlier. I'd never had steamed beets before. Honestly I can't remember ever eating a beet & as I mentioned earlier I despite cucumbers. Alfalfa sprouts aren't my favorite either. Yet this wasn't horrible. It was so/so but I consider it progress. I love sweet potatoes so that saved the day!

Lunch:

Cannellini Bean Soup & Avocado dip

I've eaten a lot of new foods this week. I am so proud of myself! I'd never had cannellini beans (also called white kidney beans) and I've never been a big fan of soup. I'm happy to report that it was awesome! I sauteed onion, garlic, & leek (another brand new food that I wasn't sure how to even slice) in olive oil & vegetable stock. Then I added the beans, simmered, & blended with a handheld blender. Even my mom wanted to try it because it smelled so good & tasted even better! The avocado dip was wonderful. It's just an avocado smashed up with lemon juice alongside black bean backed tortilla chips & veggies. I even stirred in some alfalfa sprouts!!

Breakfast:

Nettle Tea & Ginger Zinger Juice made of 6 carrots, 1 cucumber, 1 stick of celery, & 1 inch fresh ginger

OK so like I said earlier I despise cucumbers. I'm also not a fan of raw celery. Still this juice was pretty good. I drank the whole thing & my body loved me for it. I didn't love it as much as the Mango or Papaya smoothies but I know I'll have it again. This was the very first time I'd ever drank vegetable juice as an adult.

Breakfast:

Fruit salad with apples, pears, & apricots

An easy & fabulous salad. I had to use canned apricots because their not in season but it was still a good salad & a great way to start the morning. I followed it up with oats.

I've tried so many new things this week. Lots of herbal teas & exotic fruits & beans & veggies of all sorts. It's been a great adventure & I'm looking forward to more new things as the days goes by. All of the recipes so far have come from Dr. Gillian McKeith's cookbooks. I highly recommend them. My tastes are changing & I'm really excited about that. An open mind has been a requirement but I'm so pleased that I've enjoyed nearly everything I've tried including the stuff I absolutely hated before now. I'm having a lot of fun with this!

Exercise is all about protecting my fragile ankle. Lots of balance work. At home I play with the dogs & walk & clean house. That's enough for now. I'm confident that taking it slow is what my body needs. I'm so grateful to be off crutches. I'm plan to stay off of them. At least that's what I pray for on a daily basis. :)

Tuesday Strength Workout/Running in Place 40 minutes

Strength- 30 minutes, running in place 10 minutes. I wanted to run in place longer, but I did not eat as much as I should have before I worked out, so I got sick and had to stop.

I also did laundry all day and baked two kinds of cookies (fiddly recipes too, with lots of hands on stuff to do!).

Monday Swimming 1 Hour

I also cleaned out closets for 2 hours (on my feet most of the time).

Note to self- maternity swim suits SUCK! My chest is outrageously big already, so I'm sure that was not helping :(

Breast stroke-15 minutes, freestyle 15 minutes, back stroke 20 minutes, kickboard 10 minutes.

Saturday Exercise Bike/ Yoga 45 minutes

Exercise bike 30 minutes, yoga 15 minutes.

Plus, 2 hours of Christmas shopping and 1 hour of wrapping presents.

I'm back... :)

Breakfast:

Nettle Tea

Strawberry, Blueberry, Pineapple Fruit Salad

Oatmeal with honey

Lunch & Dinner:

Spring Mix/Spinach Salad with chicken, goat cheese, peppers, & dill

I got really lazy today & just didn't feel like fixing anything else. :)

Snacks:

Bananas

Snow Peas

Carrots

Pumpkin Seeds

Millet & Flax Bread with natural peanut butter

Hi ya'll! For the past several months I've been on numerous rounds of steroids. That along with a lousy internet connection kept me from posting. Now I'm steroid free & I once again feel like taking the time to prepare my own food. I'm also happy to have my doctor's go-ahead to resume exercise with a few provisions. I have to start going to physical therapy to rehab my poor ankle, however, the therapy prescription goes further. I'll actually be under a physical therapist's supervision until I reach the body mass index considered healthy for my height. I didn't even know that physical therapists did that but apparently they do. Naturally I thought of all my Svelte girls & wanted to add blogging to my regime. :)

Strength Workout/Running in Place 45 minutes

Plus cleaning the house for an hour and shopping with two kids for an hour.

Strength workout- 30 minutes, running in place- 15 minutes. I think I will always run in place now with my strength workout since it gives me that aerobic "high" that makes it worth it to work out.

Thursday

I ran with the group today. 6 miles at just a shade over a 9 min. mile. It was harder than it used to be. I expected that though. We'll see how my hip does. It's a little sore right now, but not bad.

Wednesday Exercise Bike/ Marching in Place 45 minutes

Exercise bike- 35 minutes, marching in place, 10 minutes. I did not feel like working out at all since my cat died this afternoon, but I thought it might make me feel better.

I'm Still at It

I've just been too lazy / busy to post. Today I biked on the trainer. It's a lot harder with the tire aired all the way up! I only averaged 15.5 mph for 40 minutes, and that was hard.

Tuesday Strength Workout/Running in Place 50 minutes

I missed swimming last night because I only got 3-4 hours sleep the night before, and I was afraid I would actually fall asleep at the wheel either there or back. It was a good thing, though, because Vance and one of our older cats were both sick :(

Strength workout -30 minutes (arms, legs, abs) and running in place 20 minutes.

Saturday Strength Workout 30 minutes

Abs, arms, legs.

I wanted to go running, but it started raining just as I was about to go. I had my shoes on and everything! I figured running+getting over a sinus infection+pregnant=bad.

Friday Brisk Walking 30 minutes

And then 30 more minutes of heavy duty outdoor chores. I actually ran the first 5 minutes of the walk since my car battery was dead and I needed to pick Vance up from school (1 mile away). So, 2 miles total walk/running.

Wednesday Running in Place/ Marching in Place 45 minutes

Running in place 30 minutes, marching in place 15 minutes.

I wanted to go running outside this morning, but I woke up feeling really nasty. I did not start feeling better until the afternoon.

Tuesday Strength Workout 45 minutes

Arms, legs, abs, with some yoga mixed in.

Monday Swimming 1 Hour

Good swim!-- 15 minutes breast stroke, 20 minutes back, 20 minutes freestyle, 5 minutes kick board.

I also cleaned out my dirty old car for about an hour and did laundry off and on all day.

I did not mean to take a whole other week off for this nuisance of a sinus infection! The second round of antibiotics really kicked my butt AND I hurt my foot, so I was benched. I'm revving to go now though! (send happy thoughts my way that this second round of antibiotics really got rid of this stupid infection!).

Interesting...

I have nothing to report in the exercise arena. I'm having back/hip/leg problems, and my doc doesn't want me to do anything except walk in a pool. So I'm in the process of accessing a pool. I hate bureaucracy.
Anyway, the reason I'm posting is that I gained twenty pounds, freaked out, talked to some friends of mine in my area, and they put me in touch with a lady at church who is a fitness counselor/dietitian/ect ect to help me get a handle on my issues, and she told me something I didn't know, and maybe you guys do, but I thought I'd throw it out there. (How's THAT for a run-on sentence?!) She told me that when you hit a plateau in losing weight, OR a plateau in your work outs, that if you go back to where you started, it resets your body, and you break through the plateau. So like this (hypothetically):
I'm trying to lose twenty pounds, so I start walking. I can only walk a mile a day at first, but after six months, I can do three miles. I lost ten pounds, but that last ten just won't come off. What my instructor told me is that you should go back to one mile a day for a bit, and work your way back up to three miles, it won't take you six months obviously it will go way faster, and that resets your metabolism, and shazam! You break your plateau. The same for work out plateaus. If you just hit a brick wall and can't seem to plow through it, go back to your easier work outs for a bit, and work back up to where you were, and you should be able to bust through it then.
Anyway, cool huh? Another weapon in our arsenal against unhealthiness! Booyah!
The Almighty Liz

Tuesday

20 minutes stair running, 20 minutes on bike.