#fitnessfriday | this week's weigh-in

i am super excited to share my progress for the week! if it seems like i am only posting hair and fitness stuff, you're correct. i'm still getting my china posts together! #soonandverysoon

anywho, i met and surpassed my dietbet game goal (156.9 by april 8) and i am 22.4 lbs down since i began my anti-candida journey on march 1!

beyond weight loss, my body is actually feeling like it's starting to like me. i haven't gotten sick despite the disrespectfully drastic weather changes, which ALWAYS made me sick in the past. my bloating has decreased immensely and i feel much, much lighter. my feet also feel much better, and i can finally stand to be barefoot for around 30 minutes before the pain comes. i can breathe much better, and i am less winded when i take the stairs.

in pairing the diet with weigh down/intuitive eating principles (and now intermittent fasting! more on that later), i finally feel in control of my eating. even though the diet is really hard, i will eventually be able to reintroduce some old foods back. if i get the go from my doctor, i can start on april 15!

i also randomly took this quiz and a few others to verify, and i found out i am mostly mesomorphic (62%) and less endomorphic than i thought (38%). i always thought i was an endomorph based upon pictures, but i've actually been reading the descriptions for and viewing pictures of fit mesomorphs. both have been spot on for me when i'm in shape with the exception of a few characteristics i possess that are definitely endomorphic. the workout plan for promoting lean muscle mass for mesomorphs includes light cardio, yoga, and regular resistance training, which is absolutely perfect for me!

so my goal from now until the end of april is to walk 30 minutes in my fat-burning zone once per week; i will increase it to twice in may. this doesn't seem like much, but i haven't done any real exercise since my injury, so i want to ease into it.
slow and steady!

in pursuit of:

adopting a healthy way of eating that will heal my body

how is your journey coming along?

linking up with jill

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#fitnessfriday | this week's weigh-in

there have been a few times this month when i have lost complete hope in eating my diet. it's so incredibly strict (and i have been following it very strictly) and despite the fact that i have been experiencing so many benefits -- less bloating, no indigestion, shortened colds, etc -- it's just been hard sometimes to have to list off all of the things i can't eat.
today's weigh-in made it totally worth it.

as of today, i am less than 0.5 lbs from a 20-lb weight loss since march 1! whoop!
my goal for my dietbet game is 156.9 by april 8, so I will hopefully hit that tomorrow.

i have to say that dietbet has definitely played a huge role in my success, and no, i am not advertising for the site in any way. it's just nice to be in a group of people trying to reach literally the same goal (4% in 4 weeks) when no one around you is on a weight loss journey. and i have been ridiculously motivated to get my entry fees back. i refuse to throw away that money -- i'm a poor student!

in pursuit of:

adopting a healthy way of eating that will heal my body

how is your journey coming along?

linking up with jill

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favorites from last week

i was exhausted last week.
literally EXHAUSTED.
so much so that i found myself going to bed immediately after work or class every single night (and i have no doubts that i will likely do the same tonight!).
anyway, i have a hair post in the works for wednesday, but i decided to take time in between comas to whip up and share a few of my favorites from last week!

^ mastering the squatting toilet in the beijing airport without peeing on my shoes!
^ winning $44 in my dietbet game and making my way back into the 150s on saturday!
^ accepting a summer job offer in hong kong!
^ finding a wealth of recipe blogs for the autoimmune paleo lifestyle (AIP), which i will be following for life once this anti-candida diet ends. i am satisfied with the amount of chocolate i will be able to eat.
^ pretty much everything that was posted on everyday feminism.
^ freaks and geeks on netflix. why had no one told me about this show???? judd appatow is the man.
^ the unbreakable kimmy schmidt on netflix. yes, that's two series i watched on netflix either on the plane or in between comas. i'm not ashamed.
^ and speaking of tina fey, i finally finished bossypants!

solid life choices all around!
what were some of last week's highlights for you?

#fitnessfriday | the post-china weigh-in

ni hao!
i am back from china and still recovering (rather slowly) from the time change, crappy sleep schedule, and 8-hour drive home from new york.
just popping in to announce that i won my first diet bet game (yay!) and entered a new one that ends on april 7.
since i am still in rest and recovery mode, it totally slipped my mind that it was friday and that i was supposed to take a new weigh-in pic!
oops!
here's a screenshot from my dietbet game instead.

i am officially 16 pounds down today and very happy!
happy fitness friday!

in pursuit of:

adopting a healthy way of eating that will heal my body

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#fitnessfriday | the pre-china weigh-in

today's weigh-in after strictly following my doctor's prescribed, personal anti-candida/leaky gut diet* since sunday:

isn't my little travel scale so cute?
it makes my size 5.5 feet look godzilla-sized. now i know how all you larger specimen feel!
but beyond that, i've almost lost 10 pounds since the start of the dietbet game, and i am below my goal! the key will be keeping it off when i travel and hopefully not gaining my usual 3-5 TOM pounds.

the deets:
every morning or night, i have 1/4 tsp of bee pollen granules. i also have a tbsp or two of apple cider vinegar in warm water with or without cinnamon pretty often.
from there, i focus on getting meat (everything but beef and cured pork) and mostly green vegetables. i avoid nightshades as much as possible, though i did have some bell peppers with last night's fajitas. i've been craving and eating a lot of avocado lately, which is perfectly fine since i LOVE them!
i sometimes end the night with a cup of bamboo tea that i often cry into because i miss my nightly glass of red (i don't really cry... most times).

i can introduce other foods back in eventually, but i am focusing on healing for now, and i am willing to wait. i may never get back to daily wine again *tears*, but my doctor thinks i may be able to have a few glasses per week once I'm completely healed.

my doctor warned me that china is definitely not ideal for maintaining my diet, but that if i really focus on finding good options, i could be okay.
i plan to get most of my food on the street so that i can watch its preparation. i've seen lots of posts on chinese street food that includes meat and vegetable skewers, so those will likely be my bread and butter (ha) for the trip.

with that said, i will be mostly MIA from the blog until i return on march 17, but i will be back with lots to share!
love you all, and i will see you soon!

*my diet was prescribed particularly for me by my particular doctor. if you think you have symptoms of candida overgrowth and/or leaky gut, please seek out medical advice!


linking up with jill

in pursuit of:

adopting a healthy way of eating that will heal my body

how do you keep the pounds away during travel? any tips for TOM bloating?

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