I ate more of them than usual, but we had several events at work with TONS of free food and I find it hard to resist freebies! Especially as I am cutting down on work hours and going to be living like a poor student! So pasta, brownies etc. all found their way to me lol!
I promise that next week I will do better! I'm excited about reducing my work hours by the way- I will be doing more working out+ more college + blogging :)
And I've made the change from brunette to honey blonde for summer, I like it a lot!
Update: I'm trying to lose five more pounds to get to 115 (so I can see my ab muscles). This is proving difficult.
My body has settled into 120-122 pounds and is happy to be there. So I've got to start trying harder by doing more cardio rather than weights at the gym, and eating really well.
On Friday I did a grocery shop and got only healthy stuff (despite an intense craving to bake oatmeal raisins cookies! I resisted and didn't buy any of the ingredients)
These things are like crack to me lol
Instead, I got a ton of salad ingredients and fruits to snack on. My plan is to do my protein smoothie for breakfast, and then salads for lunch and dinner. So far I've stuck to that over the weekend- buuuuut my salads are getting out of control. There is a line with salad where it stops being healthy as you've added way to many things to it....eg. those Mexican 'salads' in a fried tortilla bowl topped with globs of sour cream, lol!
In my case? Adding waaay to much pan seared seitan (veggie chicken substituted) and GOATS CHEESE. Im kind of addicted to this creamy fresh goats cheese, and my 'sprinkle' on my salad has turned into slices...
mmm goat cheese!
Oh, and in the hot weather I've been drinking way too much orange juice. I caught myself and started diluting it with club soda but I probably added at least 600 extra calories to my days with several big glasses of icy cold,sugar filled OJ!
Its not only about eating healthy foods, its also about portion control :(
I may have to follow the four day diet again, just to make my salads correctly etc. Its sooo restrictive though so I'd like to see if I can get results on my own first!
Fireworks at St. Augustine
P.S. I hope you had a happy 4th of July!! I went to St. Augustine for it and watched fireworks in the bay, beautiful!
I was hoping to be a citizen by the 4th, but Im still in the process. My interview/test is next (I have a whole book of American history to study for the test! I wonder if most Americans know all this information lol!)
Nothing entirely new to report except that I'm continuing to go to the gym! I'm trying to get to 115 pounds but I self sabotaged by making Anzac cookies from Australia- I was missing them too much! I had a rather 'expat' breakfast on Saturday- Anzacs, marmite on toast (British), and Rooibos tea (we drank a lot of this in South Africa)
I did go to the gym that afternoon and workout though even if I felt entirely unmotivated haha. The thing that helps me get through a workout is- music, and the feeling afterwards (toned muscles, less back ache)
On an unrelated note, how awesome is this Aussie beach house? Look at that tree in the deck, the view, the windows!! My dream home <3
In an effort to find fitness related activities I enjoy I signed up for a beginners tennis class (the fact that the man in my life is into tennis could have also played a factor in my decision to sign up...ahem...lol) I was kind of nervous, being entirely nonathletic. However, I got in the car and made myself go ...and the first class was lots of fun!
We practised all sorts of shots and had drills were they threw balls at us and we had to hit them (with the rest of the class watching!!)
It was good workout because I was on my feet for an hour and a half, darting around, and for the next five days my forearm HURT. I guess I don't really use that muscle much!!
There were lots of people playing games around us at the courts having fun with friends, I'm looking forward to being able to join that world! I love socializing but it always seems to involve food and drink, tennis is a much healthier way to spend time together!
Maybe I can develop a Sharapova body? haha
My second class was supposed to be last night but it got rained out, so I hit the gym instead.
I'm feeling the need to do a week long detox soon. I've been eating 90% healthy, but I seem to have some kind of sugar every day. I'm on my last packet of Tim Tams from Australia (the BEST cookies!!)
and last bag of Aussie liquorice, so once those are gone I need to get off my sugar addiction and go sugar free for a bit! Every time I do I notice how much I'm like an addict coming off my drug, I crave it hard, and then a few days into the detox the cravings go away!
Have I told you guys that I dont really count calories anymore? I just kinda know where Im at and how well Ive eaten and what I can and cant really do for a day, its great. I do really suggest counting and tracking what you eat when you are starting out.
In other news, I loved this PETA campaign by Michael Duncan! Usually I find PETA to be too extreme and alienating to the general public, but if you look at the YouTube clip, it is a very rational and lovely explanation on how he doesn't like eating animals (He loves them- including his 6 cats and 2 dogs!) and that you CAN get enough protein on a veggie diet! (YAY for buff vegetarian men!) I loved him in the Green Mile, now I love him even more!
And in other totally unrelated news- I got some green contacts for fun! I love them, though its great being a brown eyed girl sometimes I like a change and its cheaper than changing my hair lol!
One of my goals this year is to develop arm muscles. I started with VERY little muscle, but have now progressed to this:
You can see the mild definition there lol.
I've been doing about 15 minutes of arm exercises when I go to the gym. Ive noticed that I've gradually been able to use heavier and heavier weights. I do bicep curls with 15lb weights now, and hold a 30lb bar overhead while I do squats.
And this is just the beginning! These are the arms I aspire to, and the abs! I will always have more of a bottom than this model though haha, and Im ok with that :)
Another indicator of my slow but definite progress? I was able to get through Jillian Michael's Yoga Meltdown DVD!!
I hadn't even been able to complete the full 30 minutes of Level one before, as it is VERY arm muscle intensive. She has you in planks and downward dog most of the session, and my arms would just wobble and give out before. Not anymore :D It was great realizing Im stronger!!
One of my body builder friends said that it isnt so much about muscle, as that takes a while to build...its about cutting the fat over the muscle.
He said I already have abs and arm muscles (and its true, I can do full sit ups now nooooo problem!) but I need to get rid of the layer of fat over the muscle. I think if I can eat really clean for a month or so that will get me to 115 pounds and uncover some of these hidden muscles!
I eat pretty well, but I definitely don't do loads of vegetables and salads every day. It would be a good cleanse. I probably need to increase my cardio. Since I reached my goal weight of 120 I cut back to just 20 minutes or so on the Arc, as I have been focused more on toning.
Im starting tennis on Thursday so hopefully that contributes to my biceps goal :) I've never played before, I will let you know how much I suck at it haha
Kangaroos and Emus, cant get more Australian than that!
Sooooooo.....I have been missing in action for a while. I don't want to spill the beans on my personal life too much considering this is a fitness blog, but yes, I did go through heartbreak. I took some time off to recover. I was touched by the kindness of my friends and co-workers. And what doesn't kill you makes you stronger....
Sometimes things fall apart so better things can come together...thats all I'm going to say. But I'm feeling very happy right now and have some incredible people in my life ;)
In other news...I took a three week trip to Australia to see my family! It was AMAZING!!! (well, besides the 30 hours of travel time...)
I forgot how good Aussie food is! I ate a lot of yummy things (but made sure I walked alot of hills too!)
Haloumi cheese! YUM
SCONES!!
Family breakfast!
Bubble tea!
I still didnt put on too much weight though, love being fit!!
Sisters <3
I've been healthy this whole time though! I didn't drown my sorrows in tubs of ice cream LOL...the gym was a great place to keep my head together, and all I have in my house is healthy stuff to eat so thats what I did.
I'm at my super duper I didnt ever think I would get here goal weight of 120 pounds now!! And developing abs and arm muscles (not super visible yet but I can FEEL them!!)
I'm trying to get fit enough to join a boot camp class later this month (I'm kinda scared!) and a friend and I want to try belly dancing (will chronicle that for you if it all goes to plan!)
Eating lots of fruits and veggies may not only improve our overall health, but may actually make us more attractive, according to a new study published in the journal PLoS ONE.
That’s because the yellow-red pigments found in fruits and vegetables, called carotenoids, are associated with changes in skin color, the authors found. They also found that the skin pigment changes may be viewed as healthier and more attractive.
Researchers from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland monitored the fruit and vegetable intake of 35 Caucasians over a six-week period and measured skin color changes. In a separate experiment, they investigated how attractive people found the skin color changes associated with the increased intake of fruits and vegetables.
Increasing consumption of carotenoids is associated with a more yellowish skin tone, and the authors also found that eating more fruits and vegetables correlated with skin that appeared to have a healthy red tone.
“Such coloration is held to contribute beneficially to the appearance of health in human faces as is the case with skin yellowness,” the authors wrote.
The effects on skin color required only a moderately increased intake of fruits and vegetables, they said.
Carotenoids are made by plants. They are distributed through the bloodstream to various organs, including the skin. Previous studies have found that high levels of carotenoids offer protection against ultraviolet radiation by decreasing the skin’s sensitivity to redness caused by UV light.
But it’s the perception on attractiveness that the authors think could potentially be the key to encouraging people to eat more fruits and vegetables, something that adults in the U.S. and the U.K. don’t do very much.
“Such inadequate intake is estimated to precipitate 2.6 million premature deaths per year worldwide,” they wrote. “Fruit and vegetable consumption affects skin carotenoid levels; this may lead to skin color change in a fashion that is known to contribute to the appearance of health. It follows that dietary change may be motivated by illustrating to individuals these beneficial effects on appearance.”
The authors also add, however, that further research is needed to determine whether carotenoids affect non-Caucasians the same way.
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