Body By Design Day # 42

Oh oh Sunday was total relax.  I read, watched movies, cooked and even took a nap!  The day was so cold and grey that I just didn't want to get out of the house to go to the gym.  So that's two workouts missed this week.  Not feeling bad about that at all.  And the lazy Sunday at home was sooo worth it!

Body By Design Day #41

On Saturday we went to the gym to do the feared "Phase Two, third day workout".  Ten exercises, most of them leg exercises. Four or five sets of ten each.  OUCH.  But we finished them.  Knowing we'd feel the pain the next day or even the day after.  Did not follow the program's schedule for meals but I've noticed that I just make much healthier choices out of conviction and not out of fear I'd get fat.  It was my mother in law's birthday and we were going to eat out.  Last minute, I decided to cook something simple (Roasted chicken, huge salad and curried quinoa).  This way, we'd be saving money and having 100% more control over what I eat and how much of it I eat.  This makes me proud.

Body By Design Day #40

Friday was a happy day.  I usually prepare the clothes I'm going to wear for work the night before.  So on Thursday night I got the jeans and sweater out of the bedroom (I hate turning on the light for my hubby while he's still sleeping).  And on Friday I realized the jeans I had taken were a pair that had been in my closet and not worn for about a year.  I had them there as a reminder that I had to get back in there as they are a size smaller than what I have been wearing.  Well I decided to try them on and: ta-da! they fit! they fit! they fit!!!  They were not loose and yes a bit snug, but I went from not being able to get them past my hips, to actually closing the zipper without loosing my breath!

Happy Day.  So I went to the gym that night.  Totally motivated :-)

Body By Design Day #39

Thursday was pretty uneventful.  Got my act together and put all that Valentine's Day candy out of my sight.  Someone brought in heart-shaped donuts and I just didn't want any.  I went for my lunch-time walk but took a break from the afternoon cardio to spend the evening reading at home.  Happy Day :-)

I am now starting to see that I could do this as a lifestyle and not a temporary thing.

Body By Design Day #38

Do you remember that cup full of candy I was so happy to show you for Valentines?
Let me remind you.  This one:

Well, Wednesday, I kept diggin into that cup of love demise.  I ate almost all of the chocolates (skipped the Sweet Tarts).  Then I went home and ate some tostitos.  I felt terrible.  I felt I had fallen of the wagon.  I felt like maybe this is too much, and I just won't be able to pull it off.  All of those thoughts crossing my mind while munching on Multigrain Tostitos (which are just like crack).  It was strength-training day and I wasn't feeling strong at all, but  I got ready and went to do it anyway.

On the way to the gym, my husband (who didn't know about the events of the day or what I was thinking), told me he had found a photo of me where I looked so fit.  "Me? fit?" "never", I said.  I don't remember feeling "fit" ever.  It goes to show how the image we have of ourselves is soooo different from what people see (which is probably closer to our real image).  Anyway, he said that he's always believed that I can do this and that after seeing that photo, there's no way I can say that I can't loose the weight and be fit.  Then I told him about my day, the chocolates, the tostitos and my sabotaging thoughts.  He looked at me like I was crazy!  "Whaaat?" he said, and then proceeded to tell me that if there's anyone he believes that can do it, it would be me.  That we had been doing this for a month and a half already and it just gets easier, not because any of it is easy, but because we are making it part of our lives.  Love this man.

Guys, a day when you eat that doughnut or that desert, or those chips, it's just another day in life.  The next day, the next moment,  you have another blank slate and YOU are in control.  Having those things occasionally does not mean you've lost control.  It means you are living.  You don't give into the doughnut, you ALLOW yourself to have it and enjoy it 100%.  Right now.  And then later, have fruit if you're craving something sweet.  I think this is the beginning of unlocking the secret to weight management.  It's not depriving yourself or having fear of being left alone in a room made of chocolate because you'll eat it all.  The secret is to be kind to yourself, to allow yourself to enjoy it because you know that YOU make the decisions.  And just as you decide to eat that chocolate today, YOU also decide to go for a walk, to eat some fruit or to drink more water.  You are in control.

By the way, this is the photo my husband was talking about.  It was taken on my birthday a few years ago.   I remember I was happy but definitely didn't feel fit.  What do you think?

Body By Design Day #37

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

I already knew what was coming on Valentine's Day: A delicious breakfast offered from one of our coworkers to the ladies in the company (which included heart-shaped-chocolate-covered donuts) and chocolate.  Lots of it and lots of different kinds...

I was mentally prepared to enjoy it all :-)  I mean, how could I not celebrate Love day?  And when I showed up at work and saw this:

How could I turn around and say "no thanks, I'll eat my green hemp pancake instead!".  I enjoyed everything you saw on that photo and even a couple of Kit Kats later in the day.  It felt good.  I have been so good with the Body By Design diet, even when I "cheated" was with fruit or overdoing the almonds or cashews.  I hadn't had chocolate in more than a month, much less biscuits...oh biscuits... I love the South...
So I considered all of this as a reward, allowing myself to enjoy, savor and be thankful for every bite.  Just that day though.

Of course I ran to the gym after work and tried to burn it all off.  Don't know if I succeeded, but I felt good.

Hope you had a nice Valentines, hope you indulged in something delicious and given with love!

Body By Design Day #36

We started Phase II of Body By Design on Monday.  I was very intimidated by the workout because of the intensity and because it would be longer.  We went last night even though we were kind of sleepy and finished the whole workout in 45 minutes!

People, it gets easier.  Even if the workouts intensify (which you need in order to see results).  By this time, you already know a thing or two about correct form, you are already familiar with a lot of the machines (even if you hate some of them... Hyperextensions...ugh) and you know a lot of the terms like curls, extensions, rows, etc.  We were going from exercise to exercise so fast and felt very accomplished (tired too) at the end.

We went straight to bed and this morning I felt I needed more sleep.  Probably from the intensity of the workout so I'm going to try to take a little nap on the days of the workout (Monday, Wednesday & Saturday) to see if it helps.

Can I just say how happy it makes me to get home and by able to read with daylight?  I LOVE IT!  Started reading "The Four Hour Body" by Tim Ferriss (he also wrote "The Four Hour Workweek").  The premise of the book is :

"An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman"