#fitnessfriday #fail | check-in #3

happy new year!!!!


i hope your celebrations (if you had any!) were as phenomenal as mine was with my favorite ladies!

unfortunately, as far as fitness and health goes, i honestly have nothing good to report minus the fact that i tried a bunch of new clean eating things in the kitchen.
and then i went crazy in the nature's marketplace at wegman's.

seafood "alfredo" with gluten-free spaghetti and asparagus

#allseasaltcarameleverything

                                                                                     
                                                                                         
                                                                             
                                                                           since i was struggling so much with being stopped up, i spent most of this week trying out a bunch of natural home remedies without counting a single thing. i needed relief so badly.
i finally gave in and took a dose of magnesium citrate and things seem to be ok for now, but i definitely didn't follow my plan.

this week's stats
daily bites: ???
pounds lost since last week: ??? i totally didn't weigh today because i overslept massively, and i likely gained.
pounds lost overall: 8.6 (from last week)
pounds to go: 45
workout completed: 1-hour 4-mile power walk

cocoa-glazed walnuts

what i'm trying this upcoming week:
*a more intuitive approach to eating. i know that i am satisfied after 20-24 bites depending upon what i am eating and the size of my bites, so instead of setting a daily limit, i am going to wait until my body tells me i am really hungry, and then eat 20-24 bites at that meal. and then i will wait for hunger again.
*lots of fish and other omega 3-rich foods!
*no red meat EVER again!


any fitness journey updates?
fitness resolutions for 2015?
let me know below!!!

An InLinkz Link-up

#fitnessfriday | 6-month challenge check-in #2

happy holidays!
yesterday's Christmas festivities were just amazing for my soul (until clean-up time, because then i was mad lol!).
i stuck to 70 bites all last week (even yesterday!), and the numbers are in.

this week's stats
daily bites: 70
pounds lost since last week: 1
pounds lost overall: 8.6

pounds to go: 45
workout completed: 40-minute aerobic work out and hours of shopping, cooking, and cleaning!

what was different this past week:

*i worked out for less than an hour, but i did lots more activity than i'm used to, so i don't think that accounts for the small loss. but i honestly don't know!

*i ate a lot of red meat, and my body doesn't seem to want to digest it at all! i didn't have any the previous week, and i was very "regular." when i weighed on sunday, i was down another 3 pounds, but gained 2 after i ate steaks for the past few days, and i haven't yet "gotten rid" of them.

what i'm trying this upcoming week:

*stick with 70 bites

*back to a full hour of exercise, not including daily activities

*no more red meat for a while to see if that's the issue

how was your holiday? did you stay on track?

An InLinkz Link-up

#fitnessfriday | 6-month challenge 3-week update

two words: epic fail.

the hair:
as i mentioned on wednesday,  this has gone completely out of the window! i am concentrating on trying to find out what works for my hair again, so i will post updates on my wash day posts.

the problem:
i have actually had to make changes with my eating plan as well.  since i live on campus and have to have a meal plan, it's been really difficult to try and get a lot of quality fats in my regular diet now that i can't have dairy. moreover, the first thing that went out the window during finals was calorie counting to determine macros, and i don't think that's something i could realistically keep up, considering how i've failed at calorie counting many times before.

the solution:

since i know i can't always ensure i can get what i need to stay in ketosis on campus, i did a ton of research on portion control instead and found out about bite counting and an app called 80 bites. i played around with the app for a couple of days to see how user-friendly it was and to track my current bites.
i was clocking in at over 200 bites many days!

there's a program attached to the app, but i am far too cheap to buy it, so i literally have just been sticking to 80 bites per day. this has been incredibly successful (more so than low carb) and i can literally eat exactly what i want. last night, i went out for happy hour with my best friends and had wine and gluten-free crepes. i also had a pumpkin spice latte from panera, and a yummy meal of lamb, rice, chickpeas, and salad from an amazing food truck in rosslyn for lunch and dinner (i ended up splitting it up).
but since i was counting each bite and swallow (of a calorie-containing beverage), i still lost weight.

i think it will be much easier to change the number of bites i take to lose more weight, slow weight loss down, and to eventually maintain once i've lost all i want. i've been using it everyday, and it's really a cinch. it's a pretty good app, and honestly, i know that i just have to make things as easy for myself as i can. similar to my workout commitment, there is absolutely no excuse to not use my bite counter because it takes absolutely no time or real effort to do.

so, i recommitted to my 6-month challenge using the app and working out at least one hour per week on sunday, december 14. my challenge will end on june 14th.
i will post every friday with bites, weight loss, and work-outs.

this week's stats
daily bites: 80
pounds lost since sunday: 7.6
pounds to go: 46
workout completed: 4-mile power walk

how's your fitness journey coming along?

linking up with yalanda

An InLinkz Link-up