Know when to take a break

As hard as I've been pushing...and I think that's pretty hard...I need to also be aware when it's time to take a break. Working out very hard twice a day almost every day of the week is, well, let's just say taxing on one's body. It's important to recognize this and take a break accordingly.

I woke up this morning and dragged myself to the gym. Believe me my body was fighting all the way. I got on the treadmill and I just didn't have it in me. I did the minimum incline I could let myself get away with (10%) and the minimum speed (4.4) and I only lasted 23 minutes or so and I was done. That was it. I had a nice stretch session afterward as well as a little mental consultation with myself. I know my body well enough to know when it's time to take a break and it was screaming at me to take a break. So here I am home early and really unsure what to do since I'm always at the gym. So I'm taking a break for the rest of today, tomorrow and probably Sunday as well. I think I need it, both mentally and physically.

If your body is just not responding and you're pushing as hard as you can, you're probably in need of a desperate break. Of course you don't need to go crazy and go eat 50 gazillion calories and lie around like a slug. But you need to give your body and mind the rest it needs. I plan on eating a few meals that I don't cook and that might be off my plan a little but nothing terrible and I'll be back on 100% on Monday and probably better than ever since that's the way your body responds when you treat it kindly.

This week I was kind of tired all week, just not up to my usual self. I probably should have taken a break earlier in the week but I didn't. However, today I felt it and I knew. You know how you just know? Your body is screaming at you to take a break! Slow down! Relax! It's clearly saying that it needs a break. Some clear signs of this are things I experienced this week:
a) not waking up from your naps
b) tired all the time
c) kind of crabby and unhappy for no particular reason
d) disinterest in a lot of things
e) easily distracted

Of course there are other signs but your body always knows. Smart little machines we've got here. If only we would listen more often. They always seem to know what's really going on.

So, my plan for the weekend is to clean and organize my place, spend some time with some friends and just refuel body and mind. I need this very badly. After all my contest prep actually starts in just 3 weeks!!!! Wow! I can't believe it! And I need to be ready for that so it's time to take a break, sit back, unwind and enjoy my weekend. That's my plan so if I'm not on here much this weekend it's because I'm doing what I'm supposed to be - relaxing and enjoying!

How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then to rest afterward.

Have a great weekend! I'll definitely be back here Monday if not before!

Thai Shrimp Burgers...TO DIE FOR!!!

For bugers:

1 lb large shrimp, peeled

3 large garlic cloves, minced

2 T minced fresh ginger

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

6 T minced cilantro

3 green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup Thai peanut sauce (store bought or my version below*)

1/4 cup dry bread crumbs** (crumbs from 1 slice Ezekiel)

For slaw:

1-2 t fresh lime juice

1 T rice wine vinegar

1 T water

3-4 drops stevia

1 16 oz bag cole slaw mix (most carrots removed)

In a food processor, blend 1/3 of the shrimp into a paste. Add remaining shrimp, pulse until finely chopped. Transfer to a bowl. Add garlic, ginger, jalapeno, 4 tablespoons cilantro, 2 green onions, 1/4 cup peanut sauce, and bread crumbs. Combine with a fork. Divide into 4 portions. Pat with fingertips to flatten to about 4 inches wide.

Whisk remaining peanut sauce with lime juice, rice wine vinegar,stevia and water. Mix slaw with remaining onion and cilantro; toss with dressing. Refrigerate. Toss every once in a while as slaw will “wilt” a little as the sauce gets absorbed.

Heat pan on medium and spray with nonstick spray. Add patties to pan and cook about 4 minutes per side. If making shrimpballs, place in pan and turn to brown all sides about every 30-60 seconds. They need to cook longer than the burgers, about 10-12 minutes total.

For you lucky grill people: Put burgers on hot grill. Cover and cook, turning only once, until opaque throughout, about 3 1/2 to 4 minutes per side.

Put 1/4 of the slaw on/in dish and then place burger on top. Or you could serve the burger in a pita with slaw as condiment. Eat it up! Yummy!

I made half of this recipe into 2 burgers and the other half into about 12 shrimpballs. I plan on having them with maybe some shirtaki or kelp noodles. Not sure yet. But they sure are cute!

*Thai Peanut Sauce

3 T peanut butter

1 1/2 T rice wine vinegar

1 t garlic chile sauce

1 T sesame oil

4 drops stevia

1-3 T hot water

Mix all together but hot water. Add hot water 1 tablespoon at a time to incorporate. Using all 3 tablespoons makes exactly the right amount for the Thai shrimp burger recipe.

**For bread crumbs, leave a slice of bread out overnight or you can just leave it for a couple of hours or so in an unheated gas oven till dry. Grind in food processor or blender.

Sesame Kale with Tilapia

Sounds healthy, right? Well, it is but it is also VERY tasty. I'm actually surprised because I like my kale chips but other than that, not really a big kale fan. I'll post the recipe when I'm done eating.

1 bunch kale

1 t olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/8 - 1/4 t cayenne

2 t sesame oil

2 t sesame seeds

Cut kale off the stems. (You don't have to do this but it takes away a LOT of the bitterness.) Then cut in fairly equal size pieces. Put in salad spinner and wash and spin dry. If you don't have a salad spinner don't worry about it. Just wash really well in cool running water and shake dry.

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and cayenne and stir for about a minute. Add kale and stir again. Add 2-3 tablespoons of water. Stir again. Cover with lid. Let steam for about a minute or 2 until desired texture. Pour all into a bowl. Pour sesame oil over and sprinkle sesame seeds. Toss all together. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Again the salt takes away some of the bitterness. Eat. I ate this whole serving. I also used 1/4 t cayenne and it was a little too spicy even for me! Next time a little less.

Goodbye Sunday...here comes Monday

I just finished my last meal of the day. It was surprisingly delicious! Let me tell you. It's going to sound weird to almost all of you but it was "Mock Egg Fried Rice". Just look at it. And I also got to have some oil so I made keem (seaweed) toasted and brushed with sesame oil and sprinkled with sea salt. I used that as my "bread" to scoop up my fried rice. Look at it! Tasty or what!!!!

"Fried Rice Handroll"

Keem or Kim (THE Korean potato chip substitute)

Cauliflower Rice

Cauliflower Rice

1 red bell pepper

1 zucchini

6 mushrooms

fresh parsley

fresh oregano

1 head of cauliflower

garlic powder 

onion powder

Kroger's Zesty Herb Blend

sea salt

pepper

 

Chop all veggies except cauliflower by hand or (as I did) in the food processor. Process cauliflower in food processor with grater blade so it looks like rice. Heat pan and spray with cooking spray. Add all veggies, herbs, and seasonings except cauliflower. Stir briefly. Add cauliflower and salt and pepper to taste. Cook just until cauliflower is soft. 

Mock Egg Fried Rice

1-2 cups of Cauliflower Rice

4 egg whites

Heat pan and spray with cooking spray. Beat egg whites together and pour in pan. Let cook a minute or 2 then add Cauliflower Rice and keep stirring until all is mixed well.

That's about it. I had a good day but really didn't accomplish much at all. I did make some muffins though so that's good. Tomorrow's another day! I better hit the sack! Good night everyone!

Yummy! Breakfast!

That's right. That is bacon you see! (kind of a crappy photo) I get a singular piece of bacon! I already ate about half of it before deciding to take a picture of it. Now my home smells like bacon. I couldn't decide if I should just cook it all up at once or just one slice at a time. And then I had a realistic talk with myself and decided that if I cooked the whole package, there would be some cheating going on for sure! So, just the one slice. Delish!!

I'm up early as usual! I ate my first meal and I'm already hungry! It's only been about a half hour. Ugh! I got my first batches of laundry in and I'm waiting for them. In the meantime, I have to write a meal and workout plan for one of my friends. I also have to give this home a cleaning. And of course I need to buy some groceries and do a little food prep for the week ahead.

I'm not too sore this morning like I thought I would be. I thought I would be super sore. I'm sore but it's really not too bad. We'll see what happens as the day goes on. 

I also have an appointment at Apple to see if there's anything they can do about my nano. If there's not then I'm going to set up a fund where you all can donate so I can buy a new one! LOL!!! I'm just kidding of course!

Make it a great Sunday and I hope you enjoy/enjoyed your weekend. It's going to be a great day. And this last week of April is going to be FANTASTIC!!!

He enjoys true leisure who has time to improve his soul's estate. ~Henry David Thoreau, US Transcendentalist author (1817 - 1862)

Yummy! Kim (seaweed)

So delicious! I need to make my own. It lasts longer!

Oh my...NOW I've done it!

Yep, I sure have...I did my 45 minutes on the stepmill this morning with no problem!! Just plowed right through it. I think the key is to use the different workout buttons. I chose one (I think it was Fat Burner) for the beginning and then got bored of it about 30 minutes in. So I stopped it and restarted it on Speed Training. I think next time I may have to use Speed Training for the entire workout because it varies levels A LOT and often. Woohoo!

Later today I head back to the gym for a HEAVY hams and glutes workout. Yes, we're bringing the booty back and lifting it up. :-) Let's see how high we can get it!!!

Two meals down. First was Spelt Flakes with protein powder "milk". Delicious! I love that meal. Very easy. Second meal was 4 egg whites and oatmeal with cinnamon. Tasty too.

Oh, I have some BAD news! My iPod Nano has died. Frozen screen. Can't do anything. I'm going to take it to the store and see if there's anything they can do to reset it. Thankfully I still have my Shuffle so at least I have some music. Yeah!

I don't have much planned today so I'm going to take it easy. We'll see what the day brings. It's kind of a weird day weather wise. I should go nap. Yep, nap at 10am! I'm awesome!!

Friday's here! My LEGS are sore!

 High Five! It's Friday!!

Yesterday was my first LEG workout on my pre-pre program! It was killer! It was really great actually. I like working my legs so I enjoyed it a lot. And today I'm feeling it a lot! Yeah for me. My hamstrings are just super tight. Good thing I took the time to roll and stretch after the workout or I would be super duper sore.

After returning from my workout I was craving rice chips so guess what? I listened to that craving and ran right over to Whole Foods and bought my Lundberg Rice Chips with Sea Salt. I thought I would just have a serving or 2.

 Now, while that's an interesting IDEA, it's not very realistic when we're talking about me and chips. So, as I'm closing in on the last few crumbs in the bag I think, "Hey, I wonder how many calories are in a serving?" Oh, just 140. Great. "Hey, I wonder how many servings are in this bag?" Oh, just 6. That's great...later realizing that was just an extra 840 calories!!!! LOL! Oh well. That's the first "crazy" style binge I've had and at least it was a healthy one at that so I'm totally okay with that.

(from yesterday) Turkey Tacos...yum! 

 

Today I was back on point. I was up at the gym early this morning and got in 40 minutes on the treadmill at 15% incline between 4.4 and 4.6. I didn't go as fast as usual but that's okay. My hamstrings were really talking to me on that incline, let me tell you!

Meals today:
1) 1/4 cup oatmeal, 2 eggs, 3 T yogurt with cinnamon
2) Zucchini & yam loaf - so tasty!
3) Salad with chicken, 1/2 Pink Lady apple, walnuts and dressing (balsamic vinegar, garlic mustard, stevia) - this was a delicious meal actually!
4) Chocolate protein muffins
5) Turkey taco salad with Ezekiel tortilla chips and salsa dressing (homemade tomatillo salsa, yuzu vinegar, stevia)
6) Chicken vegetable soup (homemade of course) with Shirataki fettucine noodles and garlic chili sauce

Carb Free Chicken Noodle Soup & sesame seeds

7) Pretty sure it's going to be my new addiction protein pancake w/ nut butter frosting

Workout today:
Dumbbell shoulder pressing (palms facing in) 3x15, 15 lbs
Side lateral raise (15 lbs) 3x15
Front dumbbell raise (10lbs) 3x15
Triceps dips off weight bench 3x15 superset with ab curl on bench 3x15
Skullcrushers with dumbbells (10lbs) 3x20 superset with decline ab crunch w/ 10lb plate  3x15
One arm overhead tricep extension (10lbs) 3x20 superset with seated knee raise
DONE! Until tomorrow!

Just getting ready to eat my final meal and then it's off to bed because 6am will be here before we know it. Have a great weekend everyone!

 

Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain. ~Author Unknown

Crazy Day!

Today was just a crazy day at work. And then I came home to relax. I made some...well...FOUR batches of chocolate protein muffins and GUESS WHAT?!? NOOOOO baking soda! Aargh!!!!! I could just scream. And yell. And cuss. And yell. And scream. Not only could I do that but that is EXACTLY what I did! As one of the kids I used to be a nanny for would say, I was HOPPIN' MAD!!!

“When angry, count to four. When very angry, swear.” ~Mark Twain

 Oh well. You know I'll eat them anyway. Just had to vent. Soooo not happy! Oh well. Four meals that won't be great. Won't be horrendous but they really won't be great! So, the lesson here? Don't talk on my phone while I'm making muffins. I mess them up every time I do that! Ugh! Okay...feel better now!

La la la! Life is wonderful! Please note fantastic tone of sarcasm! LOL!

No, really, I just have to feel better so on a positive note, I got to sleep in a little extra this morning and I had a good workout. Tomorrow morning I'm going to work extra hard to improve my relationship with the stepmill. We will be romantically involved by the middle of May. Oh, wait, that's right, not a romantic relationship! Well, anyway, I have determined that since my coach has me on that thing 3 times a week and it will probably be even more through my contest prep, I really need to find a way to enjoy it. I'm going to do my darnedest and I'll let you know what happens with that!!

Oh, one of my fine blog readers reminded me that I didn't let you know if I was sore after my new workout. Yes, my shoulders were sore the next day but not super sore. Tomorrow is my first day with my new LEGS workout so that may be a different story. Again, I'll keep you posted on my soreness factor.

I feel better just writing on my blog here. Thanks to all of you again for your support and reading my silly antics. It's quite cathartic to write about some sense and nonsense.

Forgive me my nonsense, as I also forgive the nonsense of those that think they talk sense. ~Robert Frost

Only two more days till the weekend. I can't wait. After today I'm just excited for the weekend. Two more days of work just waiting for me. I can do this. Workouts and work! Hope you all have a nice end to your week and have some fun things planned this weekend. Let me know what you're up to!

"The more intensely we feel about an idea or a goal, the more assuredly the idea, buried deep in our subconscious, will direct us along the path to its fulfillment.” ~Earl Nightingale (US motivational writer and author, 1921-1989)

 

Cruisin' along!

So, 2nd day out of the way. I really need to get to sleep early. I can see that I need more sleep so tonight's the night for that. I did get up this morning and headed to the gym but not as early as usual. I did my 45 minutes on the stepmill and decided that I really need to find a way to like the stepmill if we're going to spend so much time together. So my cardio was just all right. At times I really miss my aerobics and rollerblading.

Wouldn't ya know? The President of the U.S. was in L.A. this morning and decided to head to the airport at prime rush hour time so the streets were closed from about 7 till 8:30 or so. They closed the main artery (405 south) and then also closed Sepulveda. Not so bright, these people that plan how and when the president will move around.

So I got to work late and was just having a hard time at it all day long pretty much. I think I was tired, a little grumpy and also didn't feel so great about my a.m. cardio workout. So I thought I was in for it on my p.m. weight training but guess what? I actually had a really great weight workout. I tried some new exercises and kept some old and really liked the change. It was great. So yeah!

I'm going to make some zucchini loaf and call it a night. I must get my shut-eye tonight!

Meals:
1) 1/2 cup cooked oatmeal w/ 4 oz Voskos yogurt, agave, and cinnamon - sounds weird but it was really tasty!
2) 1 cup spelt flakes with protein shake and 5 walnut halves - later a snack of cucumber and red pepper
3) Thai Basil Chicken w/ green beans and red pepper; 1/2 cup strawberries for dessert
4) Spice Protein Muffins
5) 3 oz chicken, 2 oz pork w/ asparagus and broccoli
6) Turkey taco meat scramble with avocado then kale chips later
7) Protein pancake with some kind of nut butter I'm sure - speaking of that, last night I made a chocolate protein pancake and put some crunchy peanut butter mixed with some water and agave as topping...OMG! DELISH!!

Workout:
Wide grip seated cable row - superset with hip lifts (sometimes called "rockets") for abs
Rope lat pulldown
Hammer Strength Lat Pulldown
Alternating bicep curls w/ dumbbell
Cable curl w/ rope - superset with ab crunch on decline bench w/ plate
Ab crunch on the floor
Knees to chest superset with Ab twist

I did lots of abs today because I felt like it. I don't know why. Just did. That's about it and now I'm off to cook and then it's quick to bed! Goodnight everyone!

“The spirit, the will to win and the will to excel --- these are the things what will endure and these are the qualities that are so much more important than any of the events themselves.” ~Vince Lombardi

Monday - New plan!!

So I started a new plan today. My coach gave me a plan that I'll be on until May 22nd when I start my contest prep! It's only 5 weeks away! Wow! Time flies, huh?

My food plan is basically the same, just a few tweaks here and there. As for my workouts I will be training heavier for my shoulders, hamstrings, and glutes. I'm excited for the change and just got home from my first new shoulder workout. It was good and hard. We'll see if I'm sore tomorrow.

Meals today:
1) 4 egg whites, 1/4 cup oatmeal
2) 1 cup spelt flakes, 1 scoop protein
3) 4 oz "turkey taco stew" w/ avocado, strawberries for dessert...yum!
4) protein muffins
5) 5 oz chicken, 1/2 c brown rice, broccoli
6) Chap chae with 4 oz pork and grilled asparagus - delicious!
7) Will be egg whites w/ avocado OR maybe protein pancakes w/ nut butter

Workout today (all 4 sets of 12)
Dumbbell shoulder press - 20 lbs
Front raise with 25lb plate
Single side lat raise - 20 lbs
Machine shoulder press - 40 lbs
Rear delt flies - 12 lbs
Arnold presses - 15 lbs

I have to make a few turkey patties tonight, wash my dishes and relax. I MUST get to bed early tonight since I sucked at that last night and went to sleep way too late last night. Tonight my bedtime is definitely  at 9:30!

Off to a great start for the week. I know I had written that I would be writing about EFAs and I will but I want to make sure I have time to write it with as much knowledge as I can get. So probably later this week or on the weekend.

Hope you all have a wonderful week and hope you are all making good decisions, eating well, working out, and getting enough mental breaks as well. Here we go!!

“Life takes on meaning when you become motivated, set goals and charge after them in an unstoppable manner.” ~Les Brown, (American Author, Entrepreneur and motivational speaker)

 

 

Good morning, good morning!!!

Are you up yet? Ready for an excellent Saturday? It looks like it's just going to be a gorgeous day! Just GORGEOUS!!!

I already hit the gym for my 35 minutes of elliptical 12-14 incline and 5 resistance. That seemed a little easy to me but I didn't want to push it too hard since I will be hitting the track later today for that workout and in the meantime I remember how my little friend (my knee) was feeling after my overdoing it last Saturday. I ate breakfast and I'm getting ready to put some laundry in and do a little housekeeping while that's going. It's going to be a great day, I'm telling you!!!

Later today I'm going to try to address Essential Fatty Acids (EFA's) and see what all of you think since I am no scientist and also no nutritionist. I'll just be supplying what info I can and would be interested to see if any of you know more or differently. It's a confusing topic to me.

Like a plant that starts up in showers and sunshine and does not know which has best helped it to grow, it is difficult to say whether the hard things or the pleasant things did me the most good. ~Lucy Larcam, American poet (1824-1893)

 

Feature - Getting Fit One Step at a Time - Los Angeles magazine

Feature - Getting Fit One Step at a Time - Los Angeles magazine

I found this article in Los Angeles Magazine and thought it might be of some interest to some of my readers in the Los Angeles area. If you run the Santa Monica stairs these might be a break from the norm. If I try any of these I'll let you know how they are. Enjoy!

Thursday - done and gone!

Got up this morning before my alarm so headed to the gym a little earlier than usual. So I actually got to stretch and roll on my balls a little longer than usual. It felt so good. So I did 35 minutes on the treadmill between 4.4 and 4.8 on 15% incline. It was a good, efficient workout and felt great.

I stopped at Whole Foods after work to pick up a couple of things. I found a new nut butter. It's called Nuttzo! Omega-3 Multi-Nut Butter. Oh, man, it is TASTY!! It has several nuts and also flax seed both ground and whole. I mean, c'mon! That's a great deal in a little package. I will say that it was not cheap! Not at all. But of course I won't be eating it everyday so I was okay with the little splurge. I like having some things like that around because they make eating more fun, don't you think?

Ingredients: Organic peanuts, organic cashews, organic flax seeds, organic hazelnuts, organic almonds, organic Brazil nuts, organic sunflower seeds, Kosher salt, Vitamin E natural tocopherols to preserve freshness

Nutrition Facts:
Size: 2T
Calories: 180
Fat: 16g 2g saturated
Sodium: 70mg
Carbs: 7g Dietary Fiber 3g Sugar 1g
Protein: 7g

Funny DJ on the radio early this morning talking about Tax Day. At the mention of the latest fact that 43.4% of the population pay no or negative taxes, he had this to say. "I think the the President of the United States (not necessarily this one) but some President should stand up on April 15th and say, 'Thank you. Thank you to all of you that pay your taxes. Thank you for paying your taxes.'" I laughed out loud because that is true. Without the 56.6% of us that DO pay our taxes, America wouldn't function and there certainly wouldn't be anyone running this country for free! LOL!

That's about it. I'm going to watch a movie and head to bed early as always! Hope you all have a fine evening. Tomorrow's Friday! Woohoo! Another week has yet gone away. The weekend looms in the distance! Enjoy the funny quotes. Mark Twain is funny.

Mark Twain  

(American Humorist, Writer and Lecturer. 1835-1910)

 

“Be good and you will be lonely” 

 

“The trouble ain't that there is too many fools, but that the lightning ain't distributed right.”

Outstanding Wednesday is almost over!

So to sum up my meals today in one fine entry, here they are:
1) 4 egg whites, 1/2 cup oatmeal, 1/2 small apple
2) lemon blueberry protein muffins, 1/2 cup oatmeal
3) Turkey taco meat, beans, Ezekiel tortilla, tomatoes, salsa
4) 4 oz shrimp, 1/4 cup forbidden rice, cucumber
5) protein shake, 1/2 cup oatmeal, tomatoes
6) 6 egg white veggies scramble rolled up in romaine leaves and topped with kochuchung (spicy Korean bean paste)
7) some kind of protein tea but not sure what yet

I coudlnt' help myself and I gave into temptation and ate a Think Thin Bite, just one. I was just in the mood and it was so tasty. So there's another 100 calories I wasn't really planning on having but it's okay. I enjoyed every little morsel of it! :-)

Workout today:
Standing hamstring curl - 3x15 - 15 lbs
Leg pressdown on assisted pullup machine - 3x15 - 80 lbs
Butt blaster using hamstring curl machine - 3x15 - 30 lbs (LOVE this exercise)
Leg Press - 3x20 - 50 lbs
Squats on Smith Machine - low 3x30 - 20 lbs
Deadlift with cable - 3x20 - 57.5 lbs
     Superset with Bulgarian split squat - 3x10 - 10 lb plate

Great workout and I feel good. I'm tired and hoping to sleep better tonight. Last night I went to bed really on time but woke up at about midnight thinking it was almost time to get up! Yeah...not quite! Went back to sleep and slept well the rest of the night. Tonight should be an even better sleep.

Sweet dreams everyone. Get ready to have a phenomenal day tomorrow. (That's not the word of the day, by the way, but I'll find a great one for tomorrow.) Goodnight!

Have an OUTSTANDING Wednesday!

Okay, the word was slow coming this morning but it's here and what a great word! I feel like I accomplish something just by saying it. How excellent is that? So, use it loudly and proudly...OUTSTANDING!!

I had an outstanding early morning workout and did my 45 minutes on the stepmill mostly at levels 4 and 6. Level 4 for single step and 6 for every other step. I didn't want to get too crazy since I was in a little pain after my last stepmill workout. I'm feeling good, walking tall.

I've had 2 meals already. 1st meal was 1/2 cup oatmeal with 1/2 an apple grated into it, 4 egg whites. 2nd meal was lemon blueberry protein muffins and 1/2 cup oatmeal. Just finished that. My next meal will be in a couple of hours and it's going to be tasty. I made some turkey taco meat and I'll be having that with 1/4 cup beans, tomatoes, salsa and an Ezekiel tortilla. Yummy!

A couple of outstanding quotes are below.  I have never heard of Mayor Taylor so I looked him up and he has a fascinating story and was an incredible athlete. If you would like to read more about him, here's the Wikipedia link: Major Taylor

 “The higher your energy level, the more efficient your body The more efficient your body, the better you feel and the more you will use your talent to produce outstanding results.” ~Anthony Robbins, American Advisor to Leaders

_________________________________________________

 "Clean living is the cardinal principle in the lives of the world's greatest athletes, as the phenomenal performances of these outstanding characters will obviously show." ~ Marshall Walter "Major" Taylor (1878-1932, American cyclist)

Tuesday coming to a close!

I have to be in bed soon so this is just going to be a short entry. I had a good workout this morning and tonight. I'm pretty tired though and DETERMINED to get in bed by 9:30. So until tomorrow I'm just going to have my shake, nuts and head to bed! I'll write more tomorrow.

GOODNIGHT!!

Chap Chae (Korean glass noodle dish) made with Kelp Noodles

Good Evening! Monday is almost over. It was a really great day today. I'm a little tired but it went well. I ate well, had good workouts and I'm almost completely done with my day. Even got a few minutes of relaxation in tonight! Yes!

As mentioned in my previous post I was up early for my cardio on the treadmill. This evening back at the gym for shoulders, upper chest, and rear delts. Great workout.

Workout:
Shoulder Press - 4x12 - 20lbs - 4 different grips
Side leaning lat raise - 3x15 - 20 lbs
Front delt raise (chest to bench at angle) - 3x15 with 5 second hold at end! - 10lbs
Pushups off 15lb dumbbell (3x12) superset with incline chest press - 3x10 - 15lbs
Rear delt fly (chest to bench at angle) - 3x15
Rear delt squeeze on machine, standing - unilateral - 3x15 - 85 lbs
DONE!!

Meals:
1)  2/3 cup nasty crockpot oatmeal w/ apples and walnuts
2) Chai spice protein muffins, 15 almonds
3) Egg white salad (not recipe worthy) and 2 small Ezekiel tortillas
4) Protein shake & 1 T almond butter
5) 4 oz Asian pork tenderloin, cucumber slices
6) Salad w/ broiled shrimp and balsamic vinaigrette dressing
7) Will be protein tea, probably something tropical like my Zinzibar Ginger Coconut with 1 t flaxseed oil

New recipe that I just made and am patiently waiting to tomorrow to eat up with whatever protein I end up having, probably chicken for dinner. I hope you try it. You can always use regular glass noodles if you're not trying to watch your carbs but this is really delicious with the Kelp Noodles too! Tastes like the real thing. The kelp noodles soften up once they hit the heat and soy sauce. Yummy!

Chap Chae 

Chap Chae

1/2 package Kelp Noodles (although could have easily used the whole package)

2 teaspoons sesame oil

1 T canola oil

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1 zucchini, cut into matchsticks

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

3 stalks green onion, cut into 1" lengths diagonally

4 med/large mushrooms (shitake or wood ear but I just used regular since that's what I had)

1 pkg spinach (6 oz)

2 T soy sauce

5 drops stevia

1 T sesame seeds, optional

Rinse noodles well. Mix with 1 teaspoon sesame oil. Cut to desired length with scissors.

Mix soy sauce and stevia together. Set aside.

Heat canola oil in LARGE saute pan or wok on med high heat, swirling to coat. When oil is hot but not smoking, fry onions and zucchini until just softened, about 1 minute. Add garlic, green onions and mushrooms and fry 30 seconds. Add spinach soy sauce & stevia and noodles. Fry 2-3 minutes till all is heated through. Take off heat and add remaining teaspoon sesame oil and sesame seeds if using.

That's it. So easy and yummy! It's quite traditional too except Koreans usually use carrot instead of zucchini. Of course you could put ANY veggie that appeals to you in. You can add shredded chicken or whatever protein you want and you're set. Hope you like it!

That's about it. Hope you all have a wonderful and relaxing evening and I'll be back on here tomorrow. Going to try my brown rice couscous tomorrow. I'll give you my review. Hope it's as delicious as regular couscous because I love couscous. It's so versatile!

My reward for my early morning workout

I got rewarded this morning for waking up at 5:15 and getting to the gym. When I came out there was a beautiful HUGE rainbow!! So pretty. I just love the wonders and magic of nature and that is one I don't get to see too often. I did 45 minutes on the treadmill this morning at 15% incline and between 4.4 and 4.6. I had 4 egg whites and crockpot oatmeal (yeah, not so much!) with apples and walnuts. I thought that recipe sounded good but I don't like really mushy oatmeal and that was basically what that was so like I said...not so much!

Tomorrow is Thomas Jefferson's birthday so I'll leave you with this quote until later today.

“Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.” ~Thomas Jefferson (American 3rd US President (1801-09). Author of the Declaration of Independence, 1762-1826)

I've got noodles for legs!!

Well, I guess I must feel really bad about not getting back to the gym yesterday because I really made up for it today. I got up fairly early (6:30 or so) and got to the gym. For once there was an available stepmill. So I hopped on it for 45 minutes at Level 5 for single step and Level 7 for every other step. I've increased my level and I was feeling it. I got home and couldn't get warm so I thought it would be best to take a nap to warm up! LOL! It worked. I was warm and comfy. I knew I had another workout to face so I got up and ate Meal 2:

4 egg whites with salsa, 1 slice toast, 1/2 cup strawberries

After that I talked myself into going to the track. It was a hard conversation!! The weather was overcast so it really wasn't very motivating. But I did my track workout and it felt good except my knee started to hurt a little. Do you think it was complaining about the activity? Yeah, I think so. Note to self: No stepmill on the same day as track workout!!

I met a friend for dinner and to go see "Date Night". I really enjoyed the movie. It was just light and funny and a nice escape from reality. Dinner was also quite good - chicken with salad and roasted veggies. Yummy! And best of all is that I didn't have to cook it!

On my way home I wanted frozen yogurt but resisted the temptation. I went to Trader Joe's to pick up some zucchini and ended up with some of these Think Thin Bites. Oh, yes, tasty indeed! Good thing they're portion controlled for me. I just wanted a little something sweet and this did it for me. They have no sugar and they are low calorie and gluten free!

Once bitten...well, twice!

Nutrition Info: 100 calories, 4 g fat, 7 g carbs, 6 g protein

That's about it for today. I have much baking to do tomorrow and some shopping so I'll keep you posted as to what happens. And, yeah! Tomorrow is a REST day! Can't wait to do nothing physically. Should be great. And I'll be ready for Monday.

 

“Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging.” ~Joseph Campbell

Friday Meals

Okay, so I got a little late start today because I was tired and wanted to sleep in a little. I woke up at 7 or so. I ate my breakfast around 7:30/7:45 which is kind of late for me. My meals were as follows:

1) Spelt flakes with "milk"
2) Lemon blueberry flats (I would say muffins but these were from when I forgot the baking soda!)
3) Mochi Pork Stir Fry
4) Salad with chicken & dressing (sesame oil, yuzu rice vinegar, chili garlic sauce, stevia, garlic, ginger)
5) Chocolate protein pancakes
6) Not sure yet - something a little bigger than usual since I'm not having a 7th meal today

I didn't make it back to the gym but I'm okay with that. There's always next week and then those 16 weeks in the summer! I think I'll more than make up for it. Back on the wagon tomorrow anyway.

Oh! By the way, I guess FedEx are not liars after all! They really did try to deliver my protein but it was after the office was closed for the day (8 minutes after to be exact!) I just thought I would clear their name! LOL!!

Lunch! Mochi Stir-Fry!

I just made a yummy lunch and thought I would post it. My family left today and it left me with some time to make something delicious and fresh for lunch. I finally got around to making the mochi as a chewy savory main dish instead of a baked crunchy-chewy sweet dish. It was soooo delicious and totally reminds me of the Korean dish that is basically the same with what they call tok (sweet rice cakes).

 Mochi Pork Tenderloin Stir Fry

1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
12 small mushrooms, sliced
1 green onion, chopped
5 oz Asian pork tenderloin, cut into bite-size pieces
1/4 package Sesame-Garlic Mochi, cut into about little rectangle "sticks" (20-30 pieces?)

Sauce: 2 t soy sauce, 3 drops stevia, 1 clove garlic (minced), dash of sesame oil - Mix sauce ingredients together and set aside.

Heat pan w/ small amount of oil (I used olive oil). Add onions and celery. Saute for a minute or 2. Add bell pepper and mushrooms. Saute again for a minute or 2. Add mochi. Stir and cover with lid for a minute or 2. Add green onion, pork tenderloin, and sauce and stir. Put on plate and eat! Yum! 

 I did my morning workout a little later this morning but did get in there and get it done. I have a lot to do around my place since I have the day off so I better get to it. I'm also supposed to do another workout today but I'll let you know if that happens or not. I'm NOT holding myself to it. If it doesn't happen, I'm okay with that and if it does that's even better!!

Have a great Friday and I'll catch you up on my week later today or over the weekend!! Hope you are all doing well!

Tuesday night!

Yesterday and today I was up and at 'em early in the morning, at the gym at 5:30 on the treadmill yesterday. And this morning I was headed to the stepmill but of course the only one left was broken and I nearly fell off and hurt myself. Luckily I didn't but I had to do the elliptical since that wasn't an option. 45 minutes both days and I felt pretty good. Today I HAD to take a nap at lunch though. I was very tired!

Meals:
1) Spelt flakes with walnuts and protein shake as "milk"
2) Chocolate protein muffins w/ peanut butter
3) Tilapia (ooh, I must post that recipe) and wild rice and red pepper
4) 6 egg whites with tabouleh
5) 1/2 container Voskos yogurt w/ protein powder & cinnamon! Oh! Also some cucumber
6) Salad w/ grilled chicken
7) Will be chocolate mint protein w/ flaxseed oil

Workout:
Wide grip lat pulldowns - warm up set & 2 drop sets
One arm cable row - warm up set & 1 drop set
One arm DB row - 3x15 with 25 lbs
Hammer Strength Lat pulldown - 3x12 with 70 lbs
Bicep DB curls - 3x12 supersetted with decline ab curl w/ 25 plate - 3x20
Cable bicep curl with rope - 3x15
Roman chair - straight legs 15 then bent legs 2x15

Good workout. Yesterday was a GREAT workout and super fast. I was in and out of that gym in about 40 minutes total time including warm up!

My family's still in town so I'm trying to add time with them in my usual mix. It's a little hard to balance it all but I think I'm doing all right. It's just so great to have family in town. It's the best!

I ordered protein powder that was supposed to arrive today but for some reason it didn't show up. FedEx Ground claims they tried to deliver it but couldn't. That's odd. We were at the office all day! I'm not saying they're liars. I'm just saying...

Delicious Fish Marinade

1/3 cup lemon juice

1 tsp lemon rind

2 tsp horseradish

1 clove garlic

1/2 tsp oregano (dried)

1/2 tsp basil (dried)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/3 cup olive oil

Combine first 8 ingredients in a blender for a few seconds. Very gradually add the olive oil with blender 

running. Pour marinade over fish, turning to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours. Grill, broil or pan fry any way you like. (I broiled mine about 2-3 minutes per side.) Pour remaining marinade over cooked fish if desired. 

So that's about it. I'll post more tomorrow probably! Have a great evening and let's have a MARVELOUS Wednesday!

“I believe life is constantly testing us for our level of commitment, and life's greatest rewards are reserved for those who demonstrate a never-ending commitment to act until they achieve. This level of resolve can move mountains, but it must be constant and consistent. As simplistic as this may sound, it is still the common denominator separating those who live their dreams from those who live in regret.” ~Anthony Robbins

“The truth of the matter is that there's nothing you can't accomplish if: (1) You clearly decide what it is that you're absolutely committed to achieving, (2) You're willing to take massive action, (3) You notice what's working or not, and (4) You continue to change your approach until you achieve what you want, using whatever life gives you along the way.” ~Anthony Robbins

Sunday Update

So I got busy doing some cooking today. :-) I made some Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies. Delicious! Unfortunately on my plan I can only eat 2 at a time. But that's good enough for me! Better than nothing. Don't they look like the real thing?

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup natural peanut butter (NOT Skippy or Jif, etc)

1/2 cup Splenda

1 egg or 2 egg whites

Combine egg and sugar first then add peanut butter with a spoon. (I actually just put all in a food processor.) Put in freezer for about 30 minutes.

Next, get your mini Ice cream scooper out.. and scoop onto your parchment paper, take a fork and make an impression onto the cookie and flatten. You want to do this in a "T" shape .Bake at 350 degrees for approx. 12 minutes. (Next time I will definitely cook at lower temperature for longer since these burned a little on the bottom.)

I have 3 things marinating right now. I have fish in a olive oil, lemon & herb marinade. I also have my famous Asian Pork Tenderloin that I'll cook tomorrow night. And, finally, I have some chicken tenders in lime, rosemary and garlic. After I see how the fish and chicken turn out I'll decide if I should post the recipes or not so stay tuned.

For dinner I had Top Sirloin w/ Mushrooms & Mashed Cauliflower...yummy! So easy too!

Top Sirloin w/ Mushrooms

6 oz top sirloin, sliced

Salt & pepper

Olive oil spray

1 tsp garlic

Heat pan on medium high and spray with olive oil spray. Add top sirloin and cook till browned. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute.

Mashed Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower

3 cloves garlic

Salt

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray

Steam cauliflower and garlic cloves for about 10 minutes or until very soft. Put in food processor with salt and Fake Butter Spray to taste. Puree to preferred texture. It still tastes like cauliflower but has the texture of mashed potatoes and has NO carbs! Great substitute for mashed potatoes!

I still have some more cooking to do and then it's off to bed as tomorrow starts another work week. Get some good sleep and let's make this week a really excellent one!

Happy Easter!!

Did the Easter Bunny visit you last night? Just wondering because he didn't visit me! But maybe he knows I wouldn't eat any of the things he would leave me anyway. LOL!! Hope you all have a fantastic Easter. The weather is kind of weird here. It's supposed to rain overnight tonight and it's just cool and cloudy today.

I've been eating all right with family in town. Nothing too terrible. The other night I probably ate way too much white rice for my body to handle but that's okay. I enjoyed it and it's nice to be out with people you enjoy. I finally got to watch The Blind Side. What a great movie and amazing story. Like I was saying to my family it sure makes me feel like I give nothing of myself and my time. It was like watching the CNN Heroes show. It's just a reminder that I need to do more to help those in need. I really do. I will do that more when I have more time after the competition.

Yesterday I got in a quick workout before meeting up with the family. I worked shoulders, tris, abs and did a quick HIIT workout on the elliptical. I don't usually do weights in the morning and I can't say that I really enjoyed it either. It was kind of weird to do it in the morning. I felt weak and less flexible so I won't normally be doing that. Really my best workout time is mid afternoon I think. I am getting more used to morning cardio but I doubt that will remain my schedule post-competition but I'll let you know.

Have a great Easter and I'll be back here tomorrow! Wow! Monday already!

An optimist is someone who falls off the Empire State Building, and after 50 floors says, 'So far so good!'

Friday! Superb Friday!

So how's everyone's Friday so far? Enjoying it? Do you feel superb? I hope so! I got up early as usual and hopped on the treadmill at the gym, easily did my 35 minutes at 15% between 4.6 and 4.8! So great. That's faster than usual for me and it felt really good. I really enjoyed my cardio today. My body feels good and that makes all the difference. I took my myo-ball to the gym with me so I rolled on that when I was finished with my cardio. It felt great!

I made apple walnut pancakes this morning for breakfast! Soooo delicious. Simply mix 1/2 an apple (grated), 1/4 cup oat flour, 1/4 cup protein powder, 2 egg whites, pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon, 3/4 t baking soda, water to texture. So easy! Not the greatest picture but you get the idea. I got to eat SIX pancakes. I was in heaven!!

Now I think I'm going to eat some apple oat protein muffins and then later have some more of my Thai Basil Chicken from last night. I'm also going to make some more muffins to carry with me today. I'm going to be out and about so I better be prepared. I'll also take some nuts and some protein powder, just in case!

It looks like it's going to be a beautiful day. It was only 48 degrees this morning when I went to workout so I'm hoping for some kind of warm up as the day goes on. Have a SUPERB Friday and I'll be checking back in later!

Fantastic Thursday!

So it's the end of the work week for me! Yippee! I just get to play now for a few days. Well...play and work out and play and work out...but more playing than if I had to work, right?

My coach posted something on her website, a link to this site that discusses domestic violence. I'm going to try to raise some awareness right now. Here's the article: Domestic Violence Article I'm going to post the copy of the article in a separate post. It's just disturbing how many people are involved in domestic violence. I think it's really important to educate young girls and boys about domestic violence. Explain the cycle of abuse so you can recognize you're in it way before you're in danger and hopefully get out before it's too late. I'm very passionate about this and I've decided that one of my goals once my competition is over will be to volunteer at a battered women's shelter or help in some capacity with domestic violence. I've tried to do this before but it's really hard to get involved as an individual volunteer compared to a group of some sort (work, church, organization). So if any of you have any ideas, please let me know because I really want to do this - help raise awareness and get through to young girls particularly about how to take control of their own lives and NEVER let others control and/or manipulate them or their lives!

I didn't do my workout this morning. I slept in! Yummy! I love sleeping in. Then I went to work and it was kind of a crazy day at work. I got off work early and went to my 9th of 10 Structural Integration sessions. I feel good. I definitely feel like it has helped me significantly. My practitioner was reminding me to always go for length in my body, stretching up with the top of my head and pressing down with my feet. I'm practicing it right now...well, not my feet so much since I'm sitting on my couch but you get the concept. This will ultimately help me with my posing practice when that all starts up in May!

Speaking of posing practice...guess what?!? I got my hooker heels for my show so I can start practicing walking in them! Yes, 5 inches! Wow! Yes, I'm a HO!!! Here's a picture of them! But, guess what? They're actually SURPRISINGLY comfortable considering how cheap they are and that they're made out of plastic! They should make all soles of high heels so cushiony! Check 'em out!

WOOHOO! I'M A HO!!

I'll write more tomorrow. Family's coming in town. How great it will be to see them! Can't wait! Off to bed because I still have to get up early tomorrow to workout! I'll keep you posted on workout, meals and eating with others (welcome to the real world, huh?)! LOL!

Have a great weekend and a good GOOD FRIDAY for all those that celebrate that!

A cause may be inconvenient, but it's magnificent. It's like champagne or high heels, and one must be prepared to suffer for it. ~Arnold Bennett

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