Good afternoon! Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend so far!!
Yesterday ended up being a recovery day, so I went to the gym and walked for 25 minutes. It felt nice to do a little something (I hate being totally sedentary) but also take it easy. For lunch, I made a little feast from the leftover’s from our girl’s night dinner.
Some of Renee’s delicious bean salad (I’m going to re-create it this week– it was seriously delectable):
A pizza with 1/2 leftover chicken breast, crumbled Laughing Cow, sundried tomatoes, asparagus and no-sugar pasta sauce:
A few hours later, for a snack, I had my favorite Pure Protein bar and a baked peach:
The pilot and I were supposed to go out to eat with Jeni and her pilot (we both had company all week and didn’t feel like cooking) and last-minute the guys had a "squadron event" at the Officer’s Club. In other words, it was pilot drinking fest. So Jeni and I went to dinner without them 
We had Lornhorn Steakhouse (I had never been there before, but it’s kind of like an Outback). I had a glass of Merlot (no pic), some amazing fresh bread (god bless them for having wheat– I was hungry!), and the shrimp kabobs with no butter sauce, a dry baked sweet potato and some steamed veggies. It was fabulous.
After dinner, I came home to my inebriated husband (who got a ride, so I wouldn’t have to drive all the way to base and pick him up), watched the Soup (I love that show), Girls Next Door, and called it a night.
This morning, I was ready to run since it’s a cardio-only day (I’m doing weights 4x a week and cardio 6x per week in my new split). I added a new playlist to my ipod and I did 4.3 miles in 50 minutes, with a 3.5% incline. I was pretty happy with this, because I walked almost 4 minutes to warm up and 5 minutes at the end to cool down. Not too shabby
For my pre-run snack, I muched a whole wheat tortilla with 1 tbs pb walking out the door, and for breakfast (more like lunch since I got home at 1) I had some savory oats: 1/2 cup oats with Laughing Cow, a pop egg (that got a little crunchy) and some hot sauce and chives.
I have no clue what we’re doing yet today, so we shall see Hopefully a random adventure is in our future.
Have a great Saturday and I’ll see ya tonight!!
Peeeeeeace,
G
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Mmm, the bean salad, baked peach, and ESPECIALLY that sweet potato, look delicious!! Yum!!
Girls Next Door = guilty pleasure! That show is just too funny, haha :0)
Enjoy the rest of your Saturday!
you certainly got in lots of veggies!! i know what you mean about feeling sedentary – on my days off i’ll still go for a 2 or 3 mile walk or go shopping
that’s cardio right!? i love the SOUP and pretty much any show on E!
I can’t find these bars anywhere and just searched publix!! Where do you find then and what makes them so good do you think?
andrea- shopping is DEFINITELY cardio
it totally gets my heart rate up!
jenna- that’s so weird you couldn’t find them at publix! ours has them, but i can always find them at wal-mart and another girl found them at rite-aid or walgreens. i hope you can find some! i love these bars because i’m a texture girl (the texture is chewy and creamy) and the nutritional info is awesome (it does contain artificial sugar but there are 19g of protein –at least– per bar and 180-190 calories). it makes getting my daily protein a lot easier! also, the flavors are pretty amazing (especially the peanut butter mashmallow). if you do find some, i don’t recommend the blueberry or strawberry ones– go for the peanut butter/chocolatey ones. the fruity bars are pretty icky!
I totally hear ya on being sedentary… I get sluggish and sleepy if I’m off my feet for too long! Here’s a lifting question for you: in preparation for my wedding (not until May), I’ve been really focusing on toning my arms and back. I vary my lifting routine (2 – 3 X per week) but usually include the following: Lat pulldown, tricep press, assisted pull-ups and dips, the cable row machine, deltoid “fly”, and free weights for bicep curls. I’m concentrating on increasing either the weight or rep # to fatigue my muscles. Q: what other exercises/techniques would you recommend to work on these areas?
thanks!!! I will look around and also online. That marshmallow ones looks pretty amazing. Just curious, how much protein do you aim for daily?
Hi, I was just wondering if you counted calories? If so… how many do you eat a day?
hey lauren!!! in combination with cardio, weight training is definitely going to get your back and arms in great shape for the wedding! it’s awesome that you have a TON of time and aren’t trying to tone up at the last minute. those are all great exercises- have you checked out my workout page?? it’s http://www.fitnessistaworkout.blogspot.com
it includes quite a few of my favorite upper body moves. i’m updating it tomorrow, too:)
jenna- i hope you find some!!! usually it’s a good idea (if you’re trying to build lean muscle and burn fat) to go for .9g per pound of body weight. just take your weight and multiply it by .9
hey anon- i don’t like to divulge that info just to keep from influencing others to follow the same calorie-count. i definitely count calories as well as protein, fat and carbs. a great website that my old trainer gave me (who is a fitness competitor): http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2005/12/26/how_to_calculate_your_daily_calorie_needs.php
this is what i go by for calories and for proteins, fats, and carbs i aim for 40% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fats (the extra 10% is for areas i go over on). hope this helps!
That pizza and your dinner both look so tasty!!
Hi Gina,
You mention in your “about me” section that you lost 40 pounds and kept it off for 6 years. I was just wondering what motivated you initially to lose the weight and how you went about it. Thanks!
Ooh that shrimp skewer and sweet potato combo is calling my name!! Sounds like a fun night
)
Thanks for the reminder to try savory oats! Perhaps that will be tomorrow’s b-fast!! That or your cookie…it’s gonna be one of ‘em, methinks!
hey gina! update your blogroll, im the proud owner of http://www.seebriderun.com. And I gave your workout a lovely shout out!
hey anon- i’m planning on doing a weight loss section with the whole story when my madre sends the “before” pics. here it is in a nutshell: my family is mexican and lives off of the most delicious (and high-cal) food i’ve ever tasted. i’ve danced my entire lie but paired it with bad eating habits and this made me a little chubby throughout childhood into high school. i was never fat, just uncomfortable with my size and hated the way clothes fit and felt on me. freshman year of college, i just got sick of being chubby and decided to educate myself of losing weight and becoming healthier.
i tried a handful of diets (adkins, weight watchers, slim fast) and they didn’t work because i still didn’t know what kinds of food to eat and ended up failing. the only plan that worked for me was south beach– it taught me about healthy carbs, healthy fats, lean proteins and the importance of eating enough fruits and veggies. it was very easy for me to follow, i didn’t have to count calories, and the weight just started falling off. freshman year i had the “negative freshman 20″.
after i lost that weight, i comtemplated with working out (i think my body got used to the dance schedule i was on, and i wasn’t challening it anymore), so i started walking. at first i could only go about 15 minutes without dying, but each week i increased the time, then the speed, and before the end of sophomore year i was running. i had also lost 40 lbs within two years.
it took a while, but i was lucky enough to find a plan that wasn’t difficult for me to stick with long term. i’m in maintenance now, but still stick to a south beach-esque style of eating and attitude about food.
hope this helps!!!
hey caitlin- i will update my blogroll right now- that’s awesome! I SAW IT, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! i checked my email on my phone while we were driving to dinner and i told the hubby about how awesome you are
i’m so glad you liked it!!!!!!!
Thanks for the background on your weight loss!