Find What's Right for YOU

Ok. First let me say that I have been a super bad blogger. I'm still here, just don't have too much to say. 

That's a lie. 

I have a lot to say but it's not blog worthy. It's mostly rants about how the administration at the main campus of my school are making ridiculous changes to how the nationwide campuses work. Huge pain in the ass that not only makes things much harder for the students, but is causing our professors grief as well. But that is a long story that will bore most of you. 

Today I'm here to talk about my fitness journey. I announced several month ago, probably too soon, that my doctor put me on the Paleo diet. Yeeeaaahhh. About that. Firstly it was such bad timing to be put on such a restrictive diet. It was right before Thanksgiving and Christmas, plus we were going on a cruise the last week of December. Secondly, this particular diet isn't an easy one. After a conversation with my mom about my picky eating habits, we decided it wasn't something I would realistically be able to stick with for a long period of time. Thirdly (is that even a word?), I HATED every minute of it. H.A.T.E.D. I was a miserable, crabby, hungry-all-the-damn-time person that my husband was terrified of, therefore the Paleo diet was thrown out the window. 

Hubs and I discussed what was reasonable and doable for us, and made a plan of our own. I ordered a new Jawbone UP3 activity tracker and gave my UP24 to him.  I track my calories and nutrition with MyFitnessPal which links up with the UP app to calculate all that stuff. I bought new tupperware for meal planning and a water bottle with measurements on it to track my water intake. We try to workout for at least 30-40 mins about 4-5 times a week.

Using this plan, I've lost a total of 14 pounds in about a month. I'm much happier, and don't feel so deprived and hungry all the time. I am starting to get better, more quality sleep than I was before too. 

Lesson learned folks. Just because a doctor recommends a particular diet program for you, doesn't mean it's the right one for you. Especially if it's not a sustainable plan you can do for the rest of your life. 

Have you ever been recommended something by a doctor that just wasn't right for you?

P.S. I'm finding a new doctor.

It WILL Be Worth The Work

I was a pretty active kid. My bothers and I would play outside for hours and hours, running around, riding bikes, roller blades, jump ropes, you know, kid stuff. Then I had a bit of a rough patch emotionally with some family stuff right before and during middle school, and that's when the pounds started sticking. Ever since then I've had trouble losing and maintaining my weight. That totally made high school super fun... not. It was a slow build, the kind you don't notice until you're buying new jeans four sizes bigger than you remember. Yep, that was me Freshman year of high school, and it only went downhill up-scale (haha get it? just me? ok...) from there.

By the end of high school I was another 2 sizes bigger. I ate to make myself feel better, to bring my out of my slumps. I also ate because I was bored. I didn't really participate in extracurriculars that provided some sort of physical activity. Band Nerd and a member of the Art club, sexy right? Anywho, my health suffered. Emotionally and physically.

I attended one year of college right out of high school, and I totally gained those freshman fifteen. Because we had the best dining hall ever. People would come on Sundays after church and pay to eat our school food. Did I mention the DIY waffle bar and the soft serve ice cream machine? Anyway, after that year, my weight has yo-yoed over the past decade. Partly because I totally suck at sticking to a fitness routine. What? I just really don't like to sweat. It's stinky and sticky. Bleh.

If you follow me on Instagram, then you'll know that I had a doctors appointment on Monday. While she didn't tell me anything I didn't already know, she didn't hold back. I needed that honesty from her, someone other than my husband (who thinks I'm amazing no matter what, cue the awes) and my mom (cause who wants to hear that from their mom?). She put some things in perspective for me regarding our plans for the future, and to have a chance at those plans, some big changes need to be made.

The Biggest Change? I was put on the Paleo diet. Ok. I've read really great things about this plan and what it can do for your body. But, you guys, I really like cheese. And bread. And chocolate. And cereal with milk. I know there are variations of the Paleo diet that allow for some of that stuff, but the one she wants me to follow for at least these first thirty days doesn't. THE STRUGGLE IS REAL.

When we got home from the doctors, we looked up the site she gave us (cause she made a point to tell Hubs that he had to do it with me for support). Then we made a grocery list of things we can have. Next, we cleaned out the pantry, snack cabinet, and the fridge of all the items on the "don't" list. There was so much! We packed all of that food up and took it over to his parents house for them to have with instructions to donate what they don't want to the local food pantry. We did keep a few things from the "don't" list for the upcoming holidays though (because you can't have Thanksgiving without corn casserole or mashed potatoes, duh!).

It felt good. Like a juice cleanse for your kitchen. Until it didn't. After dinner that night, per the usual, I craved something sweet. Hubs had already moved the candy jar to his side of the couch to hold it hostage. I fought it. It was so hard. I just keep reminding myself that it will be worth it.

Have you tried the Paleo diet? Have any good recipes for sweets that are Paleo friendly?

#slacker

You read that right folks. I've been such a slacker lately, in so many things.

1. Fitness
2. Diet
3. Blogging
4. Sponsors
5. Laundry

I'm getting myself back on track here in the blog world this week while I've been ordered by my doctor and Hubs to take it easy. I have missed it a lot, but baby steps guys, this is my second post i this week and I haven't done more than one post in a week for about a month now. I'm hoping by Friday I'll be back on track with my sponsors too. It's my health I'm going to focus on today. Laundry... well that sorta speaks for itself.

While I may have a good excuse to not be moving around this week, it doesn't mean that I'm off the hook for the previous weeks. I need to get my jiggly butt back in gear. It's hard to keep myself motivated though. That's been my biggest problem for my whole life when it comes to fitness. I seriously dislike working out, so I tend to make every single excuse and justification to not go. I want to like it, to make it a lifestyle habit, but it just never sticks. 

I have a really good reason to workout and keep my healthier diet going, but I guess it just doesn't seem like it's enough to keep me going. It should be, but it doesn't. I do well for a few days, then I hop right off that wagon and sit in the lounger to work on my (non-existent) tan.

So I turn to you guys. How did you stay motivated in the beginning? What made you get off your butt and just do it already? How do you hold yourself accountable?

Check out my current Chestnut sponsor!

Making Fitness a Priority

Happy Wednesday. I wrote about priorities last week, and it kind of inspired me to really take charge and make the next step in other parts of my life. We've got a lot going for us: New promotion, new job, our cruise is coming up, and we're not getting any younger. We've made some significant changes in our diet over the past year or so (even if we fall off the wagon from time to time), but we haven't been able to stick to a regular fitness routine. 

We all know that I totally lack the motivation to work out. I don't like to sweat, I hate the heat, and I have some physical hurdles that keep me from doing as much as others can. BUT, one of the things that will help with those hurdles is losing some weight. I think my biggest issue is that I want some instant gratification, and with healthy weight loss that's just not going to happen. While I know this in my head, I still can't fully accept that I'm not doing it wrong and that the program I am doing really is working for me even though I haven't seen many changes in the first week.

What really got me to make this mental change is that I've given my husband a good reason to make some of the changes that we have made, but I haven't held myself to that same standard. 

"I want to live a long and happy life with you, and in order to do that we have to take care of ourselves now."

So, on Monday, we made a big decision. Hubs and I joined a gym. It's a local business run by a really great guy, plus I have a friend from school who goes there and has agreed to be our trainer for a little while. That is just what I need to get my butt back in gear. 

I am hoping that between MyFitnessPal, my Jawbone UP24, and the new gym membership, I can start living a healthier lifestyle and be happier with my body. What's more is that my amazing friends Kendra, Melissa, and Lora have started a new blogger fitness support challenge that starts next Wednesday, July 1 called Bloggers Give it 100. There's a hashtag and everything #BloggersGiveIt100, click here for more details.

How are you taking charge and keeping your priorities in line? 

P.S. The best way to kick off the opening of a friend's new Etsy Shop is a Giveaway! Help me support Ashely and enter to win a lovely piece from her shop.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


P.P.S. I know I'm slacking on the Blog front, but I'm trying not to disappear completely while I get myself together again. I do miss blogging, and I have a lot to say and a lot to catch up on, but right now is not the time to do it. Don't give up on me yet.

Check out my current Chestnut sponsor!

Healthy Peanut Butter Coco-Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Between school, blogging, working out, and housework I've been a busy bee lately. That means meal prepping is very important in keeping up with a healthy diet. These cookies have become one of my favorite go-to snacks, especially in between my classes. And today, I'm going to share my recipe with you.

Here's what you need:

2 cups Old Fashioned Oats

2 Ripe Bananas

1/2 cup Creamy Peanut Butter

2 tbs Unsweetened Coco Powder

1/2 cup Dried Cranberries

2 tsp Unsweetened Apple Sauce

1/2 tsp Vanilla

1/4 - 1/2 tsp Salt

Makes: about 20 cookies

Calories per cookie: about 74

Prep:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 

I like to line my cookies sheets with aluminum foil because it cuts down on clean up time.

Very lightly grease your cookie sheets with non-stick cooking spray.

Make the cookies:

Step 1: In a large microwave safe bowl, mash the bananas into a liquidy goop.

Step 2: Add the peanut butter and microwave for 45-60 seconds and stir until well mixed.

Step 3: Mix in the coco powder, cranberries, apple sauce vanilla, and salt next.

Step 4: Mix in the oatmeal about 1/2 cup at a time. The "dough" will be thick and drier than you think it should be. That's ok!! It's supposed to be. 

Step 5: Dish out heaping teaspoon sized portions onto your cookie sheet and shape them up so they actually look like cookies.

Step 6: Bake for 8 mins. 

Step 7: Let them cool before you eat them and burn your tongue like I did.

Please note that you will need to store these in the fridge if you don't plan on eating them all in the next day or two.

I like to portion out these puppies in baggies for an easy grab in the mornings before class and for busy study sessions.

What's your go-to healthy snack?

In Your Face!

You guys know I've been struggling with my lack of motivation to get off my ass workout. Well, I think I've found a solution. You see, my mother-in-law purchased an elliptical a while back and ended up giving it to my sister-in-law several weeks later. Now that my sister-in-law is moving back to our po-dunk town, the elliptical made its way back into my mother-in-law's house. We all know this poor elliptical isn't going to have much space to move around in her house and seriously cannot compete with 11 cats (and her husband) for her attention, so Philip and I (mostly me) offered to adopt said elliptical.

Yep, this bad boy lives in our living room now. And it just stares at me, taunting me, daring me to use it every day. An in my face reminder to get off my ass workout. Now I don't have the excuse of it being hot and humid outside, and I guess that's a good thing. Another plus? I can watch TV (read: Netflix) or even read with my Kindle while chugging along in the comfort of my living room. Rain or shine, cold or hot, allergies or not, I have an option for cardio.

Also, I asked everyone in Friday's post what I should write about for my term paper in Psychology. Most of you guys said I should do Option 1: Motivation and Emotion in Psychology involving motivation to get healthy/lose weight and it's effects on one's emotions. And after consulting a few more people (specifically my mom), that's what I'm going with. Should be an interesting topic to explore since I, and many of you, are going through a similar journey.

I feel like the elliptical needs a name. Suggestions?

Commitment

I've been slacking big time in the past few weeks on the intentional exercise department. Other than the daily chores and fun activities I do with Philip, I haven't made an effort to move my body for the benefit of my health. And that needs to change.

Half-Ass It Out Tuesday

Via Google Images

Guys, I suck.

After last week's pity party, I thought I might hop back on the work-out train and step up my eating. Well, I only did half of that. My food intake has been pretty good, minus the three Sonic milkshakes over the weekend (they were half off!), but I cannot seem to get myself motivated to move my body. Honestly, that has always been my biggest challenge.

Sorry, I'm A Mess Right Now

via

Going to my mom's for a long weekend threw me off even more than I already was before I left. I am so disappointed in myself for getting so off course and I honestly don't even want to talk about it. I keep saying over and over, how I'm gonna get back on track and make it work. But something or other happens and I don't. Sometimes I wonder if it's really meant to be for me to lose the weight.

I Cheat

The things I struggle with most about getting healthy and losing weight is the dieting. I love food. I love to eat food. So restricting myself to celery, salads, and fruit is a huge challenge for my chocolate and bread addiction. My mom has some crazy will power to resist that stuff on a more long term basis. I cannot do that, so this is where Sir Cheat Meal rides in on his noble horse and saves the dieting damsel that is me.

I mean, who wouldn't want to be saved by this hunk of man meat? - via

30 before 30

I woke up this morning and realized that I didn't have a post written for today. I opened a new draft, positioned my fingers over the keys, and just stared at the blank page. Nothing was coming to me. I checked my planner for unused blog ideas I like to scribble down on post-its, but there wasn't anything there that inspired me to start banging out words on the keyboard. So I started looking through the documents on my computer hoping to find something interesting or funny to share with you from my past (I have had this laptop for about 6 years now, there's no telling what's saved here). A few minutes later, I came across a bucket list. Most of the items were silly and irrelevant to me now, but there are a number of them that still apply.

In just over two years, I will turn 30. THIRTY. In TWO years. This realization led me to make some adjustments to my old list that reflect my current life and turn it into a 30 before 30 list.

Current Age: 27
Birthday: August 15

1. Get to my ideal weight and fitness level

2. Have a beautiful wedding

3. Go on a cruise

4. Apply for and get accepted into school again

5. Learn American Sign Language

6. Pass all my classes

7. Grow my hair out for the wedding

8. Convince Philip we need a doggy

9. Read a book before it's even rumored to be a movie

10. Learn a Regency Dance from the 18th and 19th centuries

11. Re-decorate our house

12. Make a new friend

13. Help Philip make a new friend

14. Make better food choices

15. Have a white Christmas

16. Start a new tradition

17. Go zip lining

18. Meet another celebrity

19. Take a cross country road trip

20. Live in a home for longer than a year

21. Become a regular at a local restaurant

22. Pay off debt

23. Grow my blog to 1000 readers/followers

24. Take a trip to visit bloggy friends

25. Monetize my blog

26. Pet a giraffe

27. Fly first class

28. Learn photoshop better
29. Stop complaining about household chores

30. Actually complete this list

There you have it folks! My 30 before 30 list. Hopefully I'll be able to do all or most of these things before the deadline and I'll be sure to keep you posted.

Do you have a 30 before 30 or Bucket List?

Are You There Motivation? It's Me, Amanda.

As always linking up with my Snicklefritz (Kay) and Allie for Tough It Out Tuesday!

Motivation and will power have escaped me recently. After a gloriously productive Easter weekend, I thought I'd stay on track and keep things going. Nope. Didn't happen. I got lazy and started craving Dill Pickle chips and M&Ms mixed with Reeces Pieces. And I ate them. An entire bag of chips and half of my candy mixture later, I felt awful.

Then the weather started getting moody and thwarted every attempt I made to go for a walk. I did a few video workouts and some stuff with my exercise ball, but not as much as I should have. Philip is working a lot and has been so tired, which makes me feel bad cause he'll always workout with me if I say I'm going to. That sounds like an excuse. But if your person has a physically demanding job, you kinda get where I'm coming from in not wanting to add to their body pain and fatigue.

Sunday wasn't any different. I checked my bloggy stuff, then laid around watching HBO and dreaming of an ice cream and cookie binge. I didn't binge, but I wanted to. Really, really bad.

Despite all the crappy food I ate and my lack of motivation to move my body, I ended up losing another three pounds bringing my total to TEN pounds. Which totally surprised me, and has kinda kicked my butt back into gear a bit. I really wish I had a workout buddy who lived close to me so I don't always have to rely on Philip so much (read: so I can let him rest when he comes home from work). Someone move here!

Here's hoping this week is better than last week, especially now that the junk is out of the house.

Also linking up with Keep Calm and Blog On for Tea Party Tuesday.

Tulips, Paint, Cabinets, and Eureka Springs

As always linking up with my Snicklefritz (Kay) and Allie for Tough It Out Tuesday! Let me say that last week started out like any other week, but by the end of the holiday weekend, it was crazy productive!

My food intake was pretty much on point. I didn't go over my calorie budget, and I ate mostly healthy foods. My exercise was just OK. I managed to do a few video workouts and my abs were sore for a few days after doing crunches on my exercise ball, Holy Jeeze! are they harder to do on that ball!

DIY Workout Tanktop

You've probably seen these on Pinterest, but have you actually tried to make one yourself? No? Why not?! They are super easy and take only minutes to complete. But seriously, if I can do it and not screw it up (or hurt myself in the process), so can you! Plus, my adorable Snicklefritz (aka Kay) from The Best of Intentions said she wanted a DIY post, so I figured why not! If you haven't checked out her EPIC LIST OF BLOG IDEAS you should, it's got some great stuff.

What you need:

An old T-shirt - preferably cute and slightly loose fitting.
Scissors
Pen or Marker
A workout/regular tank you bought and like the style and fit
A furry assistant

Here's what you do:

Turn the T-shirt inside out so the pen marks are on the inside. I turned my tank inside out as well incase my pen decided to take a detour. Then slide the T-shirt in the tank top (pictured below) and trace the neck and arm holes on the front and back of the shirt.

Separate the T-shirt and Tank. Ok here's where the furry assistant comes in to play. Let her/him inspect the tracings and hold them down for a few mins, you never know when a huge gust of wind will blow through your bedroom! Don't worry, once she's moved out of the way, you can cut along those lines you traced and turn the T-shirt right side out again.

I hope you enjoyed that project and I'd love see your lovely new Workout Tank Top!

Attack of the Purple Hand Weights!

It's Tuesday, and as usual, I'm linking up with Kay and Allie for Tough It Out Tuesday.

See those purple weights in the background?
One of those puppies rolled right off onto my foot!

Last week was not very good for me in the Get Fit Department. One of my hand weights dropped on my bare foot when I was trying to move the coffee table back into place. It hurt so badly, but surprisingly, it didn't bruise. I rested it one day and it seemed ok, so I tried to work out again. Then I hurt my back and was out for the count another day. Not to mention I didn't eat as well as I had been the previous weeks. I braved the scale, but there was no change, up or down. Then I took measurements and I only lost an inch in my waist. Not too bad.

My foot is finally feeling back to normal (for the most part) and so is my back. I've enlisted Philip to help me kick my butt back into my eating and workout routine. I'm hoping for better results when I weigh and measure in two weeks. I was able to find yoga blocks for decent price which makes things much easier on me until my flexibility and balance are up to par.

Ha Ha Tonka State Park

Ha Ha Tonka Castle Ruins

Last Sunday Philip and I were bored. I started Googling things to do in our area because none of my usual go-to things are available here. I came across a park that a friend of his recommended to us once. Ha Ha Tonka State Park in Camdenton, MO. It's about a 45 minute drive from us, but the day was too nice to pass up a chance to get out and Philip had never really been hiking.

A Make-Up-For-A-Cheat-Meal Smoothie

Linking up once again with Kay and Allie for Tough It Out Tuesday!

Saturday I had a cheat meal. Ugh! It was the first time I've ever gone over my allotted calorie plan for the day and I felt a little guilty. Just a little though, because that chicken burrito swimming in white queso was sooooo very delicious. Anywho. Sunday I felt like I needed to make up for this overindulgence and made us a smoothie for lunch.

I Have Weak Ankles and Other Things

My first two weeks of this new lifestyle I've implemented went pretty well. I discovered a lot about myself, but I still have a long way to go. Philip even joined in and is providing lots of motivation, specifically to workout. Knowing that he's doing this with and for me is a huge help and is making me hold myself more accountable, because I want him to get healthy and fit too.

Tough It Out Tuesday: A Fresh Start

I'm trading my TMI Tuesday posts for Tough It Out Tuesday Posts. 

Sorry TMI Tuesday Blog! I love you, but I think TIOT will be a better fit for my blog and lifestyle at the moment. Plus, Allie and Kay are huge inspirations for me lately.