Kicking coffee

I have an addiction that I seriously need to get help for. I am addicted to my coffee. Multiple times now I have tried to kick this habit, I use to only drink tea, but I can’t seem to do it.  The problem isn’t the coffee, the problem is what I put in my coffee. You see, I don’t like any old coffee, I never stop at dunks or starbucks, I strictly want my coffee I make at home. I make starbucks house blend K cup and I put cinnabon coffee mate in it. < bad very very bad!

I know how bad the coffeemate crap is. I’ve read the ingredients. I am just so addicted. I know that this has been a factor in my weight gain. When I’m home I can easily drink 4 cups. I just love it. SO I have tried to kick this craving. As of right now my plan is to just treat myself on the weekends to a cup, during the week, Tea only! but I’m not going to lie…I’m exhausted. I didn’t think I depended so much on my caffeine fix during the day but I really must because the last two days I can’t hold my eyes open!

Anyways lets chat about my day yesterday. If you haven’t seen it yet I’ve posted my January “weigh in” I need to find a new name for that because I don’t like the idea of weighing in, I haven’t even stepped on a scale.

My Eats:

Breakfast: A cinnamon and raisen Ezekiel muffin with a tbsp of peanut butter. 1/2 cup of blueberries. and a cup of Lipton tea.

• Snack around 9am: a oikos lime greek yogurt.
• Lunch: Salad with grilled chicken, 1 hb egg, and balsamic vinegar.
• Snack around 1pm: pretzel crisps with humus
• Pre WOD: small banana dipped in pb
• Dinner: chicken stir fry over brown rice.

*I packed some really good food yesterday and I was satisfied but i’m struggling with the time between breakfast and lunch. I have my snack but then i’m still in need of more. I need to mess with this time slot a bit.

*More water. I need to make it a point to drink more!

Works out yesterday

I ran 1 mile before class with the other coach Kayla. She kept me at a good pace and didn’t stop once.

Then I worked front squats: 5X3 @ 15X2 (that means holding 5 seconds at the bottom and it was brutal)

Power cleans 4X1.1.1 @ 85% – I did these at 135 and they were a struggle.

3RFT

• 10Power snatches @65
• 9GHD situps

-3:48

It was a pretty great day yesterday 🙂 Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Starting Over-January measurements

Alright. Here we go…..

January 2014

• Weight: I do not actually know this….I currently don’t have a scale.
• Thigh: R-24.5 L- 24.5
• Calf: R-14 L-14
• Hips: 42
• Lower abs “pooch”- 40
• Stomach: 37
• Bust: 34

Looking at these numbers I’m happy to see i’m not where I started but certainly not at my best, but they are exactly what I need to get going!

Weekend Wrap up

Seriously, where did the weekend go? I feel like I just sat down and relaxed on Friday night, now it’s already Monday.

This weekend was a pretty good one. Nothing too exciting.

Friday night when CJ got home from work we had a little bit of celebrating to do so we cashed in our Smokey Bones loyalty card almost a free dinner! I got their new Chopped chicken salad, it was ok. I would have prefered it with grilled chicken rather than the chopped, almost canned-liked, chicken that they had on it. Plus two glasses of chardonnay.

Saturday morning was up bright and early to coach my 7am class. If it wasn’t for these people I’m not sure I’d be able to get up most Saturdays.

After class I did the programmed WOD and it was a DOOZY!

AMRAP 20

• 5 Toes to bar
• 10 Hand release push ups
• 15 Hang squat snatch.

I ended with a score of 206 (6 full rounds plus 11 snatches)

Then we had to rest a bit and then Row 20 minutes for distance. I got roughly 3894 meters.

I’m still sore today.

Then I came home and made myself a fantastic egg sandwich and had a lime greek yogurt on the side.

The egg came out perfectly runny. There is no other way to eat an egg sandwich

I tried really really hard to take a nap saturday afternoon but it just didn’t happen. Usually I have no problem napping but Lola thought playing was a better idea.

Saturday night I went to my nephew’s dance fundraiser and then to my sisters to watch the patriots play off game!

Sunday morning as much as I wanted to sleep in I had to get up and get some food in me before my run.

I had a cup of coffee and then an ezekiel muffin with 1tbsp of pb and 1 hardboiled egg.

I headed over to my sister’s house for a run. We tackled a nice easy 2.74 miles in just about 30 minutes. Her neighborhood is super hilly so are always a bit slower when we run there

The rest of sunday was spent like every sunday, errands, laundry, and relaxing. We also took lola to finally get her nails trimmed. They were getting so long it sounded like she was wearing tap shoes all the time.

That about wraps up my weekend. Later on today I will be posting my new “before” pictures and my measurement. This was extremely hard for me to finally see the numbers and have to accept where I am but I think it was also the boost I needed to really kick this in gear.

Have a great Monday everyone!

Diets and Boyfriends

Alright, Here is where I need some advice blog world. If there anyone reading this, please let me know how you would handle this situation.

When I started dating CJ back in 2011 I had just spent two years losing 100lbs, I felt great and looked great and was out of long-term relationship so I was excited to have some fun with someone new. For the first six or so months of us dating I didn’t put too much thought into his or my diet. I kept up with my routine, I actually was in the middle of training for my half, but other than that we went out, and had fun. When I met him he was a mess, he smoked, and drank a case of beer every night, ate mcdonanalds everyday, multiple times a day, and was well over 300lbs.

I finally made the decision to talk to him and tell him that my diet and health and fitness were extremely important to me and that he needed to be on board or this wasn’t going to work. At the time he was willing to do what ever it took and right then and there he quit smoking, stopped eating like crap, and signed up for the gym.

Back then I was living in one town and he was living about an hour away in another. It was easy for me to keep up with my diet and routine because nothing really changed, I would work, come home and go to the gym, run on the weekend, and continue to cook for me and my mom the way I was. CJ would come down on the weekends and we would enjoy our time together before he went back to work on Monday (or I would stay up with him until he moved out of his place). He did amazing!He was eating healthy and going to the gym and he lost 80lbs was healthy and looked fantastic…..then we moved in together.

The plan was always when we moved in together he would be able to make it to crossfit everyday and I would be cooking so he would have an easy time staying healthy. But reality was, between stress of money, stress of driving an hour to work everyday, he never makes it into the box and he could care less about his diet. The worst of all is he has become this serious serious night binger. When I go to bed at night he stays up and eats..ALOT. When I get up in the morning there is multiple bags of food in the garbage.

I didn’t want to be the person that didn’t buy him food he liked. I’m not his mom and he’s a grown man, if he wants popcorn and chips then I’ll buy them. But he has lost ALL control. He never orders anything healthy when we go out anymore and has gone back to drinking regularly on week nights.

I know stress is the #1 issue here. He is beyond stress with work, and finances and I understand that. I don’t want to blame him for my weight gain or my unhealthy habits but I can’t help but think that if our household was healthy things would be different. It’s really easy to order out when your partner pushes for that to be it. It’s easy to sit and eat popcorn at night when your partner pops it and sits next to you….He never wants to work out with me or even go for a walk. He does NO physical activity what so ever.

This month he is supposed to be transferring jobs down closer to home, I’m hoping this will help. I keep making suggestions for fun things for him to do to get active, I understand crossfit isn’t for everyone, especially when it’s your girlfriend coaching you. The other night I suggested when he moves that he should put together a basketball league with some guys…couple nights a week, meet to play.

I’m just lost at what to do. I find myself really getting concerned on the way he eats and everyone tells me to mind my business because they are right, he is a grown man with his own mind. BUT this is important to me. Being healthy and fit is something I want established in my home. It’s something I want to teach my children some day….I just don’t know how to approach this issue any more. Any time I bring it up it becomes a fight, very similar to when I was over weight and my family wanted to talk about it…..

Like I said. ANY and ALL advice are welcome. If you’ve been in this situation please let me know how you handled it.

Fun Fact Friday

1. ITS FRIDAY! After two weeks of not working full weeks it was hard to make it all the way to friday this week. But it’s here and it’s glorious!

2. I really want to be a person who goes out on Friday nights, it always sounds like such a good idea. But by the time I get home on Fridays after getting up at 4am everyday, i’m pooped. It takes every ounce of effort to get a work out in before I crash. Anyone else feel like they are 80 instead of 24?!

3. My girlfriends and I have started to discuss plans for a mini vacation this year. One of the girl’s parents have a house down in FL so we are trying to find the best time to sneak down there for a few days and get away from it all! I ‘m ridiculously excited about this.

4. I finally got my new AgainFaster jump rope yesterday!! I’ve been needing to order a new RevropeX for some time and couldn’t pull the trigger, until they released their new neon line and I HAD to have the pink one!!

I waiting all of 20 seconds before I had it measured and ready to cut so I could use it for last nights WOD.

5. Speaking of last nights WOD. my arms were SMOKED! I did the WOD that was actually programmed for Wednesday because I missed it and it was brutal. I am trying to make it a point to Row 3k before at least 2-3 WODs a week. Where I’m not running as much I like to get in a really good warm up.

Yesterdays WOD was:

AMRAP5

• 2 Clean and Jerks at 95lbs
• 10DUBs

I got 7 rounds of this

Then rest 3m

21-15-9

• Wall balls (14lbs)
• BB OH lunges in place
• HR push ups

By the time I got to 15 push ups I just laid on the ground contemplating if my arms were ever going to work again! lol

6. I am trying to decide if I want to head in for a WOD tonight or go for a run. I’m planning on running on Sunday because the temps are supposed to be in the high 40s low 50s (much better than the 3 degrees it’s been)

7. I have a post planned for later today about my struggles with getting my boyfriend on board with weighloss and how I’m having a hard time with him falling so far off the wagon lately. It’s been a difficult post for me to write but I could use some advice.

Have a great Friday everyone!!!!

Have you heard it’s cold outside

I don’t know if you’ve heard the news or been on social media the last couple of days but it’s been C-O-L-D the last few days. Yesterday was so downright painfully cold that being outside was just torture. I thank god I don’t live in a city that requires me to walk every where I need to go. I just go from my heated house, to my heated car, to my heated office lol

It’s sad that it’s 25 outside today and it actually feels “warm” lol

Yesterday was one of the craziest days I’ve had in a long time. I have begun to split my time between two groups at work and at the same time my normal team is at a workshop at a hotel across the street this week all day. Yesterday involved a whole lot of running around and bouncing between groups.

Even with the crazyness I am making it a point to stay good with my eats. Here is how yesterday looked.

• Breakfast: Same as the day before sweet potatoes with 2 hardboiled eggs.
• Snack: Lime greek yogurt
• Lunch: Grilled chicken salad and some stacys pita chips
• Snack: pretzel crisps (I’m starting to think I have an addiction)
• Dinner: heres the winner Roasted spagetti squash, topped with ground meat and spinach in tomato sauce.

This was down right delicious!

I get a lot of questions on how I make spaghetti squash. It’s so darn easy!

All I do is cut the squash down the middle and scoop out the insides (seeds and goop)

I lay them face up on a cookie sheet and brush them with EVOO, salt and pepper. I then bake it at 400 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour.  You know its done when its tender and soft. Take it out, let it cool for a bit and then scrape it with a fork to make the “spaghetti” into a bowl. I add more seasoning at this point depending on what I want. Yesterday I added more S&P, basil, oregano, and a little bit of parmesan cheese. I had to stop myself from eating it out of the bowl before dinner!

This is what they look like when they are done. Golden and delicious.

As for work outs yesterday. I chose to move my rest day from Sunday to yesterday strictly because of the weather. This weekend the temperatures are supposed to go back up to 50s and I’d much rather get my run in then, than in 13 degrees! So I stretched and rolled and relaxed with this adorable dog of mine

I could have laid like this with her all day.

Alright back I go to my workshop. I have to give myself a little pat on the back, the whole group is ordering lunch on the company this week everyday and I’ve stayed strong with getting a salad or packing my own lunch, no matter how good a club sandwich sounds!

What I ate Wednesday

*Currently I am in a workshop for my job that is taking up my entire day. I am throwing this post together and promise to come back with something with a little more meat and potatoes when I have more time*

Breakfast: Coffee. I showed you guys the delicious breakfast I was having yesterday it was SO GOOD! and kept me full most of the morning.

All it is a sweet potato sautéed with garlic, peppers, onions and seasoning. I heated it up when I got to work and tossed in 2 hardboiled eggs! (I also ate this today it was so good)

Snack: During my workshop I snacked on 2 tablespoons of trail mix I brought from home

Lunch: We ordered out for lunch and I got a grilled chicken salad with their homemade dressing (some sort of balsamic/italian situation)

Snack: pretzel crisps and humus. I have a seriously seriously addiction

Pre WOD: Before I headed to the gym to work out and coached I had a cup of coffee and snacked on a little more trail mix

Dinner: Grilled chicken, brown rice and broccoli. Easy peasy for a late night.

Dessert: I had a little bit of time to sit and watch some TV with CJ last night so I enjoyed that and a little more trail mix (finished the bag).

There ya have it! Simple day and simple eats!

 

Letter to My Former Self

Dear former, unhappy, unfit, Angela,

I first would like to start this letter with a hug, I know how badly you need one right about now. Then I want you to suck it up, the way you feel like right, it is not going to last.

Where you are right now and the way you are feeling is temporary. You are going to pull out of this. I know you feel alone, and unhappy is an understatement. You’re working a job you hate and you spend the time you’re not at working eating fast food, or sneaking chips and diet coke into your room and I know your so ashamed of the habits you’ve created and you want so bad to be fit, and happy, and healthy, I know.

Something wonderful will happen though, you are going to meet someone. Now I know it’s so cliché to say you are going to find your strength and lose the weight for someone else but it’s the truth. Your going to meet a man who gives you that strength and the power to get out there and take what you want. Not only that you’re going to get a new job that you LOVE, this will give you the routine and the stability to get to the gym and have a diet that is stable. All of this will make for the perfect formula to get your shit together.

Now I don’t mean to burst your bubble here but the man and the job don’t last, they were great for the short time you had them but it just wasn’t meant to be. You are going to find a new love of your life and you get a new job, not a job you like but I think it’s going to build character and shape the road for the future. But beyond all that, your going to find happiness. Your going to get involved in Crossfit and find the best friends and support system you could ever ask for. Your going to build an amazing relationship with your sisters and your family that you always wanted and your paving the road for a really amazing future.

I know things will get tough at times but you and me both know how strong you are, you will pull through and be better. I am so proud of hard you work and what an awesome person you are turning out to be. I know all you want in life is to make people proud, your family, your friends, your clients, and trust me, you do!

So my little lady, just keep trucking on. I know sometimes you feel like your running in quick sand but I see great things in our future!

Olympic Athlete Survey

I am running around like a maniac this morning (it’s only 7am) so I’m going to link up to the amazing Tina over at Carrots N’ Cake and take the Survey she posted this morning!

What do you do regularly to feel good about your body?
Not to take the words right out of Tina’s mouth but Crossfit. and Running. My family knows when I’ve missed a work out or two because I’m a grouch, many times I’ve been close to tears and CJ will say “why don’t you go for a run” My body and my mind are in a better place after.

Have you ever taken part in a fad diet or workout?
Fad diet? I wouldn’t say I’ve gone that route at all. I lost all my weight just eating clean and then when I got into crossfit I dabble in Paleo and am finding a balance between that and what works for me and I’ve done 3 Whole30s but that’s it.

Do you use fitness apps?

I try to make it a point to always use my Run Keeper app when I run. I get really bummed if I forget to put it on because I love being able to keep all my stats in one place.

What’s a go-to race-day meal?

Every race I’ve ever done has always started with an Ezekiel english muffin with PB. It fills me up and doesn’t sit in my stomach like some things will.

Do you listen to music to get pumped up before races?
Not before but I always have good tunes blasting during and it’s not unheard of for me to dance a little and sing to keep my motivation up!

Any good luck charms or pre-race rituals?
It’s a random thing but my sister picture. All of my races (except my half) were run with my sister and we always take a before picture and then wish each other luck.

When do you feel sexiest?

After a work out or getting my hair done.

 

Real quick before I go I want to tell you about the delicious breakfast I’m currently shoveling in my mouth. I threw this together last night and it is really really good.

All it is is Sweet potatoes, peppers, and onions with seasonings and I cut 2 hardboiled eggs over it this morning.

i’ll be back a little later when things calm down with a better post!

Failure…

I never wanted to think I would fail at this. I was so proud of the hard work I had done. Every time someone I know would say “do you know Angela lost 100lbs” I would glow….

Today my gym posted a video of a work out we did last week and I sat and I cried as I watched it. I hated how I looked. I look puffy and back to a person I remember all too well…..a person I don’t want to be again.

I’m far from where I was I know that. But I’m not where I wanted to be by now…..I don’t know exactly when I failed, when I let go and messed up. But I do know January 2014 will be the year I got back on track. I remember November 2009 very vividly as the year I decided to change. I remember being so proud, and I will feel that way again. I’m determined……

file this under random brain dump.