Diary of a Sugar-aholic

So I told you guys that it's now been a month of no processed sugar for me.  By no, I mean, none to extremely low, I check all labels when I buy things and make sure it's under 3 grams per serving.  I still have my fruit and things, natural sugar like that is ok with me.  I am the kind of person that has always loved sugar.  Not so much soda(thank goodness I never cared for it), but baked goods(I love to bake), chocolate, candy.  I just love sugar.  I would always have some kind of sugar, if not a few times a day, then at least after dinner. I always had my dessert.  Well I decided it was time for a change and I had to get it under control.  Do I still crave it?  Yea I would like to have some, and maybe after a while longer and I can let myself have some here and there, but for now I know I would have a huge sugar binge if I gave in now.  I've been very proud of myself because I've had extreme will power.  Especially when I was in Chicago and went to native cafe twice and both times did not give in to the tasty vegan desserts, no matter how delicious they looked!!!  I've missed sugar for sure and I feel like I'm still getting it out of my system, but it's getting better.  When I first gave it up I felt awful!! People say you should feel better, but I did NOT!  I didn't have energy, i was cranky, you know, you're usual withdrawal stuff.  It's gotten better but I could still use it sometimes.  As for replacements, well, if you know about this stuff you can probably guess.  CARBS!  Your body turns carbs into sugar and boy did I want to eat anything and everything carb related!  4 bowls of cheerios here, a bagel there, sheesh!  That wasn't exactly healthy either, but one evil in exchange for another I suppose.  My body is getting used to no sugar so it has backed off the carb overloading at least.  I still have some here and there but at least it's not 4 times a day!!!  So that's pretty much my journey through this so far.  Like I said, I hope to one day be able to have some sugar here or there as an indulgence thing, I don't want to miss out on all the good stuff of life, and I feel it's important to indulge every once and a while as long as it's just that.  I'm feeling proud and good about all of this.  I miss it, all the time, but the feeling of overpowering that craving and being stronger than it makes me happy and gives me hope that spills into other areas of my life.  It's a good feeling!  So if you're struggling with something, just know it's possible to overcome it!  You can do anything you put your mind to.  I'm living proof of that right now.  I know no one that knows me would have ever guessed I could give up sugar, especially for as long as I have!

Back in black 2013

well, black is a slimming color....and well...it goes with almost everything.  I don't think I own a pair of gym pants that aren't black, let's face it...my ass looks great in some black workout pants, especially after deadlifts and good mornings....ok I'm over it.  How is everyone's new year going??? I hate new years resolutions, i prefer to set some specific goals throughout the year.  It's the middle of January and I've set a few already.  i will get to those after I talk about how my year ended.  For the most part HORRIBLE!!!  JUST AWFUL! I'm talking fitness wise here, my personal life shall remain that way so don't worry about that.  The holidays crept in, the winter break/terrible schedule arrived, the winter mood set in, and before you know it, I was on my couch watching tv and eating junk!  Now, I'm not a big person, I don't think I am, I have no doubt I'm a good size by anyone's standards, but let's be honest, I have specific goals here and just because I'm not obese doesn't mean I can slack on them!  Still looking ok after gaining 15 pounds in 2 weeks is not an excuse to keep going the route I was.  I am not a magic metabolism machine, my metabolism is terrible, thank you Duncan genes.  I stop eating healthy and it "normal" by America's standards, cut down to 2-3 days in the gym instead of 5-6 and bam, there I go, 15 pounds back on.  It was awful, I wanted to smack myself, and instead I ate a cookie and cried....well I didn't cry I just ate a cookie and thought what the hell am I doing with each bite.  Hello, my name is Chelsea and I'm a sugar-aholic.  My stress reliever/keep yourself busy thinking about other things is baking...terrible habit to have!  I'd lost about 5 of the pounds by the end of the year, but I still had a ways to go just to get back where I was, which was still not close to my goals.

Fast forward to today, I'm sitting here with my fruit, romaine lettuce with walnut oil, and left over tenderloin.  Feeling pretty great.  School is back in session and so I'm back into my routine.  I've been running again, lifting heavier, eating better, just all around doing well.  I've still got about 5 pounds to go to hit where I was before, but I don't know if I've mentioned before that I hate scales.  I absolutely hate them!! I used to step on one every morning and count my calories but you know what?  THAT'S CRAZY!!!!  I don't have "weight" to lose!  I have fat to lose and muscle to gain! and a pound is a pound! as long as I'm taking that pound of fat and replacing it with muscle, I could care less what the scale tells me.  I care about how I feel and how my body looks, i want to have muscle mass or at least just be lean(not that I'm not now, but hey, I'm the one seeing how I look naked, which is different from how well I can dress myself : P) I'm up at 17% body fat right now(I was 12% over the summer) and I'd like to be somewhere around 10% .  I want a six pack and muscles that jump out at you because they aren't hiding under that (tiny but still significant) layer of fat.  I have goals!  they aren't unhealthy(I'm not planning on walking around at that low of a body fat percentage all year long, even I understand there are off seasons), they are what I want, and it's ok that it's not what everyone wants.  We all have different goals and as long as we go about them the right way and they are healthy, then go for it!

Onto goals!I can do 1 pullup unassisted(I could do 2 in september, but use it or lose it, and I lost it) and 7 with 40% assistance.  i can do 2 chinups unassisted and right now I can do 10 with 40% assistance.  By the end of the summer I would like to be able to do 5 unassisted chinups and 3 unassisted pullups.  I may be lowballing my pullups, but I think those are reasonable and attainable goals!  they are SMART, specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely.  So with that said, I would like to add to it, that I would like to lose that extra 7% body fat in 6 months.  In reality, I'd like to lose it in a month or at least by the time it starts to be spring, but I'm going for 6 months because I don't want to push myself into a time constraint where I become unhealthy trying to reach my goal.  If it hit it before then, well all the better!  I will be eating healthy, working hard in the gym and on the streets(running guys, come on!), and keeping myself motivated!  So if you see me and I'm grumpy or unhappy, or down, or just plain being lazy or seem unmotivated then grab me and say, you are AWESOME!!! you have GOALS!! and you will GET THERE!!  If you see me eating unhealthy, remind me my body fat percentage isn't being helped by that meal.  And if you see sugar anywhere near my mouth, you have my permission to slap me and yell GET IT TOGETHER MAN!!!

So that's pretty much it.  I know I've been away for awhile, thinks have been crazy hectic, no excuse, but I will do better! I promise!!  I hope I've motivated you to make some goals of your own, and if not, then at least you know what mine are and you can all help me stay motivated and on the right track!!!! 

Paleo Fried Chicken

Sorry it took me so long to get this recipe posted.  I've been crazy busy!  In fact I had to impromptu my workouts this past week because I didn't have time to sit down and write up a new routine!  It's about that time again to switch it up, so I'm going to get working on that right after I post this and get some homework done.  So this dish is delicious!!!  And you won't feel bad about eating it either!

PALEO FRIED CHICKEN

ingredients:
2 tbsp sea salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 whole eggs
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup hot sauce
2 cups Almond flour(or just grind almonds into a fine meal in a food processor)
1 tsp black pepper
4 chicken breasts
coconut oil

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Warm enough coconut oil in a large skillet to cover about 1/3 inch.
3. While oil heats up, combine almond flour and 1 tsp black pepper in a large bowl
4. Combine sea salt, garlic powder, and 1/2 tsp black pepper in a small bowl.  use the blend to lightly season both sides of the chicken( you will have some left over)
5. Mix eggs, water, and hot sauce in a medium bowl. one by one put chicken through egg mixture, then dredge in almond flour mixture
6. Working in batches, place chicken in oil.  Fry on each side for 2 or so minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack set inside a shallow rimmed baking pan. sprinkle the rest of the garlic mixture on the chicken before baking.
7. Bake chicken for 30-45 minutes

ENJOY!!!!

Paleo Chocolate Cake

Ok so last night, I just couldn't take it! I needed my "sugar" fix.  So I tried to find something that I had all the ingredients for since paleo uses some different ingredients that will sometimes be more costly or harder to find in podunk illinois : (  Anyway, so I found this and said, Let's go for it!  I made this just a bit differently than the recipe itself and I have to say it was quite delicious!!  I used a 9x13 pan and I ate like 1/4 of it....oops  Great news though!! I didn't feel like a big pile of crap after eating it!  that's probably why i kept going back!  My stomach wasn't bogged down and I didn't have that shame that usually comes with me having sweets.  It was great!!!  It wasn't super sweet since it doesn't use sugar, but it was sweet enough to give me my fix.  So in love with this paleo right now!  From the results I've seen in my body and now with this dessert recipe, I am feeling great about the decision to try this!  Anyway, without any more delay here is the recipe I found(with a little tweaking I did)

Paleo Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chocolate chips (I used vegan carob chips...which don't melt well, they clump and crust up, but I just removed all the clump and used whatever melted into the oil which was great because it lowered the chocolate content and still turned out great!  Dark chocolate chips are also a great healthy alternative!)
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup raw honey
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Over low heat, melt the chocolate chips in coconut oil.
3. Allow this chocolate mixture to come to room temperature. (i cheated and stuck it in the freezer for a few minutes)
4. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, honey, vanilla, apple cider vinegar, and coconut milk.
5. Add cooled chocolate mixture to the egg mixture.
6. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
7. Add the coconut flour mixture to the egg mixture. Whisk together until the lumps are pretty well worked out.
8. Add to a well-greased 9×13 pan
9. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

The original recipe says to use a 9x9 pan and cook for 30 minutes but I just set a timer for 15 minutes because I figured, bigger pan, and 30 minutes is forever and I didn't want to burn it.  When it doubt, set a lower time limit.  I'd rather have to check it more often and get it perfect than ruin it!  It's so great, ENJOY!!!!

Paleo venture, thus far

So I have not completely gone paleo, I've been having trouble giving up my morning oatmeal/ bagel....not at the same time, but those are my two go to breakfasts!  I am NOT a morning person, so being able to have something ready in 1 minute or less is great for me, plus the added bonus of some carbs for energy.  Other than that, the past week has been paleo.  I have to say, I can tell a difference in my body starting to show some more muscle, especially in my abs and backside.  The biggest problem I'm having is the slump of being tired throughout the day without my usual midday carb like brown rice.  Hopefully my body will adjust.  It's been SUPER hard for me to give up my sugar, especially my end of the day dessert, but so far I've done ok.  A couple nights ago I cooked some apples with cinnamon, a dash of sugar*yea yea I know but it needed something to counteract the cinnamon* and some pecans.  Turned out great!  And last night I had an orange and some walnuts.  Not as good as the apples but it worked.  I'm just going to have to continue to push on and try to develop a routine and hope that sooner or later(preferably sooner) I will get used to it and not crave sugar so much.  It's like my cryptonite!!!  It hasn't been to terrible awful cutting out other things.  I think I'm doing ok.  Still rough but hopefully I'll get it all together and get out of the beginner's slump!!  Well that's really all for now : )

Exciting little venture

So the more I go through my days and get frustrated with eating and having to pack meals or get meals or just plane have to deal with food at my house and the temptation to eat it all, the more I think I just need to get it together and make a change.  I've been reading a little more into the paleo lifestyle and I think I may just give this a whirl. Yes it will make some things harder, but I think that I will make this a family change.  No more crap in the house, no more temptation sitting in front of me because my kid or my husband likes to eat it.  Something that will be healthy and beneficial for all of us and will be good for all of us even though we don't all have the same specific goals(such as packing on the muscle and getting the body fat percentage down).  So I'm going to be working on a list and slowly getting things together and weeding all of the other stuff out.  It may take a month to get this all together considering I'm not just going to throw out food and spend a ton to buy new food all at once...because well, we don't have money to just toss around like that so it will happen, just not right away.  So yea, there it is!  Big decision, but I feel good about it.  It's going to be hard at first I'm sure, but I know I can do it and get into the groove.  I'm just going to have to get better at planning and packing meals and keeping my willpower in check, but hopefully I can find some baller recipes that will satisfy any cravings that come my way and keep me healthy!!  I would also like to have some herbs growing fresh to cook with and so I don't have to buy so much of it at the store and stuff.  So yea! when I'm up and running I will let you guys know.  And as for my updated pictures, sorry it's taken a while, I have been so crazy busy with work/midterms at school/ my sister's wedding is this weekend and I'm going to have a lot of company......but I promise I will try to have them up in a week or 2!  yay for good decisions!  I hope this will help me tremendously in my battle against the evil junk food and help me reach my goals.  That is all for now! : P

NEW WORKOUT ROUTINE

As I said in my last post, I felt that I needed to change my workout routine.  It's good to switch it up every so often so your body doesn't get used to the same routine and start to plateau.  I did the beginners body building workout for 4 weeks and saw awesome results but I felt that it was necessary to kick it up a notch and rearrange my days.  So here is a little breakdown of my days.  Monday-Back and shoulders and cardio.  Tuesday- Abs. Wednesday- glutes and hamstrings and cardio.  Thursday- chest, biceps, and triceps.  Friday- legs.  Saturday/Sunday-  I do cardio one of these days and the other is a rest day.  If you want to see a more detailed list of specific exercises you can look at my weighttraining.com page.  I havent "logged" a workout for a while but I made sure to log them for the first week of this new program so you could see it if you wanted to.
http://www.weighttraining.com/users/chelseakylene

This is not a premade workout like the beginner's bodybuilding plan I did, I just decided what days would be what and then looked up exercises on bodybuilding.com and made a list.  I can already tell you that after the first week, I can totally tell this is going to be some good stuff!!! Especially my glute and hamstring day!  And I'm trying to kick up my cardio too.  There are a few exercises that I may not have logged just because I couldn't find them, or there may be some that I did differently than what is described but that was the closest thing to it.  If you see resistance band...I don't use those, chances are I used a dumbbell.  I also am not a fan that the website doesn't have a "crossramp" machine on it's exercise list and that there is no resistance option when you log cardio.  My cardio looks a little sad just looking at the time and distance.  so here's a better breakdown.  Monday I did 30 minutes on a stationary bike, did 6.5 miles at a resistance of 8.  Wednesday I did the crossramp(not the stair stepper) for 20 minutes, 10 incline, and a resistance of 10.  I also did a 6 incline on a treadmill going 15 minute mile pace for 20 minutes.  I chose to do a little harder intensity and less time on wednesday.  I am going to try to keep some form of this in my cardio at least once a week.  So that is basically it for the new routine.

I will be taking some pictures here soon so we can compare them to my pictures from a year ago.  One year ago today I finished the 8 week rushfit program.  It helped me get started in my journey to a fit and healthy lifestyle.  So we will look at some pictures from before the program, after I finished, and me now!  I'm kind of excited to see the changes!  I'll try to post that in the next few days