I tried

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm hoping to incorporate morning workouts into my daily routine from now until September. The one thing that I didn't plan for was how this affects my breakfast. I had originally planned to make my omelet muffins on Sunday and have a couple each morning for the week - however, I just don't feel like eating that much right before heading to the gym. I'd eat them afterwards, since they're a really good source of protein and vegetables, but I usually don't come back home after the gym (heading straight to work, doing errands, or just chillin') ... so I have to figure out something to eat right before my workout and then something for right after that will hold me over until lunch.

My morning workouts won't be super intense, but they will be complete workouts. I'm still saving my energy for my afternoon training sessions which will always be more intense (CrossFit, kickboxing, or boxing). At the same time, I don't want to take it easy in the mornings because if for some reason I can't/don't make it to my afternoon sessions, I don't want to feel like I didn't have a proper workout.

In terms of food, yesterday I had 3 dates before heading out to the gym and then I had a banana and 2 more dates after my workout. Today I had 2 dates before my workout, and since I had a bit of time before I needed to be at work, I stopped at the PQ (my regular haunt) and had an omelet (they're fantastic about catering to your dietary needs - cooked in olive oil, hold the sauces/cheese, and use egg whites) and some green tea.

So far, this has worked out well ... I'll just feel more comfortable if I have a more sustainable plan. I really don't want to be buying my breakfast each day. We'll see. For now, it's working.

This morning's workout was good - 20 minutes on the treadmill again. I'm slowly trying to increase my jogging so that I'm back to where I left off with the C25K. Although I know I completed the 10K a few weeks ago, I know I didn't run 5K straight, and that's something I still want to do (and then work up to 10K straight of course).

I followed this with 20 minutes of jump rope - with very little rest in between. I'm getting so much better at this. I can easily do 200 skips without stopping. I've also been working on doing one-leg skips as part of my boxing training which is also improving!

I then did 20 minutes of bag work. I didn't punch hard because I had forgotten my wraps/gloves [hadn't planned on boxing this morning] but I did focused on form and technique. I practiced some of my kicks as well.

I then went on to 20 minutes on the cross-trainer (increased the intensity a bit more than yesterday) and ended with 50 crunches, 50 Swiss ball crunches, and 100 leg raises (50 per leg).

I had a short but exhausting day at work and was absolutely starving by the time I got home. Luckily I had leftovers from last night's dinner (baked white fish with tomatoes & a crispy cauliflower, sweet potato, and kale salad).

After eating, however, I suddenly felt sick. I had been having cramps all day anyway, but this was different - it felt like food poisoning & my body reacted as if it was food poisoning.

It was terrible. I was bewildered because I ate exactly what I had last night - surely it couldn't have been food poisoning!

The thing that I was dreading most was not going to my planned CrossFit session in the afternoon. I've already missed so many classes with travel etc. that I really didn't want to miss another one.

I rested for a bit, took a 20 minute power nap with the hope that my stomach would settle down.

I felt a bit better but still quite queasy and definitely unsure about whether or not I should go to the class ... still, I forced myself to get dressed and go. If I felt really bad, I could always stop and come home. [I'm trying to keep that Plan for Success attitude at the forefront of my mind.]

As luck would have it, class was cancelled (due to a car accident and an injury - nothing too serious thankfully). The Coach had actually called me but I was in such a rush to get to the Box that I hadn't answered and thought I would just talk to him when I arrived ... the joke was on me!

Anyway. I guess it just wasn't meant to be. I was disappointed that there wasn't any class, but I was also a bit relieved that I didn't have to workout when I wasn't feeling 100%. Hopefully everything will fall into place next time!

Nine Days

So, there are 9 days left in the year and I really want to end the year on a very high note. It's been a positive year so far, but I know that I've been slacking a bit lately in terms of being careful with my eating. My workouts have been fine, but even they haven't been 100% on track because I've had to made do in between my travel schedule. In any case, this is no time to make excuses. It's time to get focused and make sure I do what needs to be done to feel good at the end of this year.

I was up at 4:30 a.m. and ready for my morning yoga by 5. I haven't done my morning yoga routine in a long time ... it's definitely time to get back into it. My body felt stiff but I know after a few days of practicing my poses I'll regain my flexibility.

I then headed to the gym at 6:30 a.m. Although I worked out while on vacation I still felt a bit out of sorts, especially given the exhaustion I've been feeling over the past 2 days. So, I decided that this morning would kinda be a warm-up workout - a few exercises for different parts of the body to get the ready for more intense workouts. I started with 20 minutes on the treadmill. I mainly walked, but I threw in a few 1-min jogs ... they weren't difficult, but they weren't easy either. As I said, my body has been feeling really stiff. I need to work on that because I don't want to lose all the progress I made so far with C25K.

I then did 20 minutes on the cross-trainer. This felt much better, and I was satisfyingly sweaty after the 20 minutes.

I followed this with a short weights circuit - 3 rounds, 6 reps each, empty bar (20 kg/45 lbs) - deadlifts, squats, dead rows, military press, cleans, and pull-ups on the assisted pull-up machine.

I then did 100 ab crunches & 100 oblique crunches.

I had a good cool-down stretch, including some back extensions which I don't do nearly enough of, and then went on with my day.

Although I took it easy, my body immediately responded to the exercise, which makes me feel great.

I'm hoping that I can incorporate a morning workout from now on since my teaching schedule will be changing starting in January. I really enjoy hitting the gym first thing in the morning, especially because if something happens to come up, I don't feel bad because I already got my workout done.

Part of my errands today was to buy my groceries for the week. Now my fridge is stocked with lots of fresh vegetables and fish. The only day I won't be cooking at home this coming week is Christmas, but I've already made plans as to what and where I'll be eating on that day so it should be just fine :)

Success all Around

I spent 11 hours on my feet cooking and preparing for yesterday's dinner party. Usually, even before the guests have arrived and definitely by the time they have left, I am exhausted and my feet, legs, and back feel like they're on fire ...

Not last night. I was really surprised at how relaxed and good I felt even after doing all the tidying up etc. after the night was over. I'm sure it has to do with both the weight I've lost and the strength I've gained.

It was just great to see/feel yet one more aspect of my life that has been positively affected by all the effort I've been putting in to taking care of my health. I mean, I know that all the changes have been good for me, but it just gives a bit of extra validation when you see/feel it in action.

So, the belated Thanksgiving feast was a success. My friends' reaction to the spread, especially the 24 lb. turkey, was one of completely surprise and awe - just like me during my first Thanksgiving celebration. It was something that we had only really ever seen on TV ... and then to experience it ... well, I'm glad that I was able to share that joy with others.

The dinner featured turkey, sweet potatoes (just baked with olive oil, salt, and pepper), string beans (lightly sautéed in olive oil and garlic, chick peas in tomato sauce (a touch of Bangladesh), quinoa stuffing (made with zucchini and mushrooms), and a few other dishes.

I did my best to keep it healthy and guilt free, and I do think I did a good job :)

I didn't make it to the gym yesterday, so I wanted to make sure I did some exercise today.
I headed to my regular gym (The Palms) for a cardio session. It felt really, really good to just put my music on, get on the cross-trainer, and move. I didn't have to worry about weights or punching anything -- my upper body got some much needed rest. It felt great :)

Stronger Legs

I started writing a blog post yesterday but got distracted and didn't complete or post it. Oh well - it happens. Things have just been so busy around here. Even though it's a holiday I've got a bunch of research and writing to do. It really hasn't been much of a break, but just the fact that I don't have to go to work and deal with any lesson prep/marking is a blessing.

I've been feeling a bit stressed with things that I need to get done so before I started my day yesterday I took 45 minutes for myself and had a great yoga session. I was totally calm, relaxed, and focused. I took my time with the different positions and just enjoyed feeling my body loosen up. I wish I could do that every morning, but 15 minutes will have to do!

Later on in the day I hit the gym. After a 30-min cardio session (including 15 minutes of running in intervals) I went up to the spinning studio for RPM class. It felt so good to get on that bike and pedal. What felt even better was that I was able to put the resistance to a much higher resistance than I ever had before. My legs felt nice and strong. It felt AMAZING! I definitely want to try to fit in at least 1 RPM session a week -- scheduling is always the issue.

Today I did a bunch of different cardio exercises. I've been doing some running everyday as part of this week's specific challenge in the Whole Life Challenge. While the running has been going well, it has also been a bit draining and I'm kinda tired of the treadmill.

So today I did something a bit different. I did 2 km on the treadmill (including 10 minutes of straight running - legs definitely felt nice and strong during this run too! So happy!!). Then I moved to the rowing machine, which totally kicked my ass! I managed to do 2 km in just under 10 minutes. I then got on the bike and cycled for 2 km. I didn't like the bike at all. The pedals didn't have any straps so my feet were just resting on the top. Plus the seat was at a slightly downward angle so I kept slipping forward and having to slow down/stop to readjust. Luckily 2 km didn't take me very long to complete (I think it was 5 minutes or just under). I ended with the cross-trainer and did 4 km on that to complete 10 km of movement for the day. I ended with 15 minutes of good stretching.

So things are good on the movement front for me.

My appetite is back. Yesterday I had a crazy craving for meat -- so I had some grilled lamb kebabs for dinner. Then I did something that totally surprised myself. I ate chicken! I haven't had chicken in 5 years! For some reason I was just ravenous -- so I ate! It was all lean, all grilled, definitely all Whole Life Challenge friendly! I think I just needed a change of taste. I've been eating so much fish lately - I was tired of it. The change was appreciated.

I was a bit worried that I would feel terrible after eating so much chicken & meat after such a long time ... but luckily I didn't. I was definitely full after eating, but I didn't feel bad or over-stuffed. I felt a bit heavy ... but by morning I was ready to eat again!

I guess that's just the way it goes sometimes!


I'll end with a recent pic -- The first ClubFit t-shirt I bought was an XL, but what I ended up wearing was a Medium -- that's how deep body image distortion goes. Hope I can get over it!

Supporting Club Fit (Kuwait) [proceeds of t-shirt sales go towards breast cancer research]