Author: keepingupwithkate91

One Down…Two to Go

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I completed week 1 of the Clean Program (www.cleanprogram.com) Saturday night!  Following the program the first week wasn’t as hard as I thought.  The biggest challenge for me was getting my supplements in place, figuring out my dinner (you can check out my week 1 food log to see what I’ve been eating), no coffee & working out.

I figured out the supplements in a couple of days (if I had dug around on the www.my.cleanprogram.com a little more I would’ve figured it out sooner).  As you will recall dinner is liquid which means it can be a soup.  I’m not a huge soup fan, but I have enjoyed some…others not so much.  There is also timing on dinner too as the program recommends not eating anything for 12 hours after dinner.  I already posted a blog on how much I’ve missed my morning coffee.  And I’m still missing it…I enjoy the ritual…it is how I start my morning (not the first thing I do but pretty close)…I miss the taste (I enjoy mine with some light cream and sweetner – and yes I’ve been gradually getting off the sweet and low).  And lastly working out.  I made it to bootcamp on Day 2, but was plagued with terrible / lack of sleep last Tuesday and Thursday nights.  Thursday was the  worse…severe muscle pain on my shoulder…that eluded sleep (I slept about every 2 hours).  I ended week 1 on a high note…Saturday morning was beautiful and I got outside for a nice 45 minute walk…it felt great (and I got a little pool time in the afternoon).

I plan on focusing on the following during week 2:  mixing up my dinner options (I found a recipe for a cucumber / avocado gazpacho soup recipe I hope to try tonight…I’ll let you know) and moving around more (particularly on non bootcamp days as I’m hoping it will help me with my sleep) and getting a massage (and this is a recommended part of the program–this may be the toughest part of the program for me…NOT 🙂 )

Wish me luck!

Have a great Tuesday!

Observations – Week 1

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Observations from week 1 of my journey on the Clean program

Caffeine: Steady headache from Day 1 through Day 3. Day 4 slight in the morning but gone after that.

Cravings: Still seem to have them from 2:00 – 4:00 pm

Sleep: Slept fantastic the first 2 nights…since then it has been sporadic to very bad. Last night (thurs), I went to bed early (9:30 pm). I had a slight twinge of pain in my right shoulder…laying down made it worse. I pretty much woke up every two hours after midnight to refresh my cold herbal packs.  Feeling better during the day; should be interesting to see how tonight goes.

Mornings are the toughest because of the headaches

The liquid dinners are easier than I expected.  I just found a cantaloupe cold soup I like.  Thought  I’d like the cold cucumber soup but it was had tooooo much dill.  Next time I’ll try without the dill.

Coffee…oh how I miss you…

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As I suspected, my morning coffee(s) or lack there of have been the biggest challenge so far. Not only do I miss the caffeine, but I also miss the taste (I love light cream in mine) and the ritual. I’ve substituted Chai Green Tea…but it just isn’t the same. I’ve had a headache every day so far and I’m only on day 4. Thank goodness I have my herbal cold packs…they have helped. And I haven’t taken anything for the headaches…which is a huge positive. I do get migraines; however, I can tell the difference and the headaches I’ve been having are caffeine withdrawal.  Someone suggested CALM to me, so I’m going to try to see if drinking that helps.

There are other things on the program that you can’t have, but I’ve managed through it so far. I went to the Farmer’s Market Monday evening and of course the fresh corn, tomotoes and fresh peppers looked wonderful…but no can do right now. 😦

On a positive note, I had a board meeting last night where I usually have a few cocktails and order dinner. I planned everything out. Before I hoped on the train I drank my shake in the car, had some gobi green tea to sip on, raw cashews in case I had the urge to snack. I only had water at the meeting and didn’t need to use my cashews. The one thing I did learn is I can’t have green tea in the evening. I did not sleep well last night.

Looking forward to the caffeine adjustment…hope it is sooner rather than later! 🙂

Happy Hump Day!

Making a discovery…

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As some of you know I got to a bootcamp locally NJ.  I can’t say enough how much I LOVE the trainers, the ladies I workout with and the workouts.  Everyone is always very supportive and the workouts make you sweat.  I’ve learned a lot about what I put in my body and I’ve learned to listen to my body.  I’ve changed the way I think about food and what I eat (most of the time).  However, my brain gets in the ways sometimes (more times than I’d like to admit).

On Friday, August 5th my day did not start as planned (and it has some help from the prio night). I was up later than normal on Thursday night as I had some company coming on Saturday and a big event on Sunday. However, I decided to give myself some relaxation time and read one chapter of a book…an hour later I was still reading.  I finally put the book down after an hour and went to sleep.  I work up before my alarm, decided not to go to bootcamp, then I got up and I was going…I had this awful nagging feeling in me and I couldn’t figure out what it was.  In the end I didn’t go to bootcamp that day; however, I did learn something about myself.  I discovered that because I knew I didn’t get enough sleep the night before and I was a little stressed about getting everything done for my company and my big event on Sunday (which was a huge success) that I didn’t want to let anyone down at bootcamp…I didn’t want to fail and I didn’t want to let the other ladies and my trainer down by not being able to keep up with the class.  I let my mind take over what in the end my body probably craved.

My fitness guru, Lindsay and I discussed this last week…I don’t know the underlying cause except that I always want to be good at everything I do and when things don’t come naturally my mind makes excuses.  So we talked about a concept of a turnstyle…let the negative thoughts go through the turnstyle quick and the positive ones stay awhile.

Today was my first bootcamp while on the Clean program.  I was a little anxious / scared last night when I went to sleep (about how my body would react to the workout).  I slept ok last night.  I woke up around 4:30 am…I don’t get up for bootcamp until about 5:10 am.  I put the turnstyle into practice along with a little meditation (something I read from the book yesterday)…and between the two really helped me relax and get to bootcamp this morning.  I was the first one there and boy was it a great workout.  I feel energized and that nagging headache I had this morning is gone!

Happy Monday!

The journey has begun…

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Day 1

Yesterday, I sat down and finally read Clean by Alejandro Junger, MD. Previously, I had reviewed information online: the manuals, the recipes, the elimination foods (that I can and can not eat), even some of the posts by others who had already started the program. However, I didn’t really understand the ‘WHY’ the program had started and what it could mean to me.

I know I’ve written previously that my ‘fitness guru’ and I had discussed trying this program to find my ‘X’ factor and I agreed…I was all in.  However, I needed a definition for the ‘X’ factor and by reading the book (finally), I understand what she meant.  The whole premise of the program is to remove toxins from your body that have built up over years and give your intestine back its flora.  You do this by eating two liquid meals (breakfast and dinner) a day and one larger meal at lunch from the elimination food list (the foods you can eat).  And your first meal of the day must be 12 hours after your last meal of the day.

There are many examples or ideas in the book that I can get my head around.  This first thing I read (and it wasn’t until this morning…thankfully a very rainy day here in NJ allowed me to read up to chapter 8 (which is post clean) that grabbed my attention was the following, “There is a bloating around the body, and sometimes there are extra pounds that won’t budge, even if the person counts calories and exercises.”  I read this and instantly connected…this is ME! (whenever I look at myself I’ve often wondered if I look bloated) I’ve been working out and eating whole foods (most of the time) on a pretty regular basis with no real weight loss.  I think the most I’ve ever lost was six pounds (and this is a knat’s eyelash in the whole scheme of things for me).  This ‘bloating’ is caused by mucus (gross I know) throughout your body and as you detox your body, the mucus is released and expelled from your body (yes, I wrote that and yes that is what it means…you get the picture without me specifically putting it out there).  And once finished with clean and you add foods back to your diet, you can figure out what the causes were and adjust accordingly.

So I guess you are wondering how I’m doing today?  I feel good.  I had an awesome shake for breakfast and a great salad for lunch (all posted on my week 1 food journal post).  I did have a slight headache this afternoon and took a 30 minute nap with a cold herbal pack on my head (and had a cup of goji berry green tea prior) and it seems to have subsided mostly (they advise not taking any OTCs for headaches; although if I get a migraine during this journey I will be taking my proper medication) (this was a headache not a migraine).  Around 4:15, I was quite hungry and I had a handful of almonds.  I’ll be eating my dinner shortly.  And by reading the book, I discovered that soups are a good option for dinner and highly suggested if you plan on working out during the program.   Dinner will be soup and a small spinach salad.

There are lots of optional support activities that are suggested as part of the program.  I plan on trying many of them and will share them with you once I’ve tried them.  One of the activities suggests taking a picture of yourself every day so you can judge your progress.  I’m altering it a bit.  I plan on taking a picture at the beginning of each week and at the end of the 3 week journey.  Attached is a self-portrait (taken by a HTC View) from last night before I went out with some friends…I need longer arms. 🙂  I’m looking forward to the positive changes!

Until next time…enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Food Journal – Week 1

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This is my food journal from August 14th – August 20th.

Day 7 (8/20):  Oh Sunny Day

Breakfast:  Shake:  Unsweetened coconut milk / water, frozen peaches, vanilla extract, organic coconut, scoop of protein and 1 tsp maca powder (can taste it today…will only add to a shake now that has raw cocoa).  I was hoping for a peachy ‘orange julius’ and all I can taste is maca powder.

45 minute walk this morning

Lunch:  Monteray Chicken with broccoli, carrots, zucchini & onions.  Cucumber Salad & a peach

A little pool time this afternoon

Snack:  2 TBS forty spice hummus (yummy) with 3 large celery sticks and almonds

Dinner:  Shake:  Reese’s Power Cup

Water:  under 80 ozs today

All normal supplements taken

Day 6 (8/19):  Very sore right shoulder – not sure how I did it & No Green Tea!

Supplements: 6 Fiber capsules (1/2 hr before breakfast)

Breakfast:  Reese’s Power Cup Shake same as day 2

Lunch:  Salad with 1/2 Cup garbanzo beans, radishes, beets, cauliflower, mushrooms with Spinach.  Olive Oil and Pomagrante Vinegar.  Supplements:  Milk Thistle, Daily Vitamin, Probiotic

Supplements:  3 Fiber capsules with 8 ozs water

Snack:  Raw Cashews

Dinner: Cold Cantaloupe Soup:  Lemon Water, Almond Milk, Protein Mix, 2 Slices cantaloupe (in chunks), 2 tsp flaxmeal and himalayan sea salt. (I like this)!

Supplements:  Daily Vitamin, Vitamin D & Probiotic

Water:  Over 80 ozs.

Day 5 (8/18):  Headache free day

Supplements: 6 Fiber capsules (1/2 hr before breakfast)

Breakfast:  Reese’s Power Cup Shake same as day 2 (minus protein mix…I forogt it).  1 cup of Chai Green Tea

Lunch:  Salad with Grilled Salmon, Radishes with Romaine.  Olive Oil and Pomagrante Vinegar.  Supplements:  Milk Thistle, Daily Vitamin, Probiotic

Snack:  Peach / Raw Cashews

Dinner: Apple / Squash Bisque Soup

Supplements:  Daily Vitamin, Vitamin D & Probiotic

Water:  Over 80 ozs.

Day 4 (8/17):  Feeling the pressure of no coffee

Supplements:  3 Fiber capsules (1/2 hr before breakfast)

Breakfast:  Shake:  Almond Milk, Frozen Cherries, Raw Cocoa. Maca Powder (a superfood; only need 1 tsp; smells funny but you can’t taste it), Protein Mix and Almond Butter.  Supplements:  Krill Oil and Daily Vitamin

Lunch:  Salad with Grilled Chicken, Grilled Peaches, 1/2 Avocado with Romaine.  Olive Oil and Pomagrante Vinegar.  Supplements:  Milk Thistle, Daily Vitamin, Probiotic

Snack:  Raw Cashews

Dinner:  Cold Kirby Cucumber Soup:  Kirby Cucumbers, Water, Lemon, Olive Oil, Himalayan Sea Salt, Cashews and Dill (too much dill)

An hour after dinner ate 1/2 avocado as I couldn’t finish the cucumber soup

Water:  Closing in on 80 ozs.

Day 3 (8/16):  Evening Activity

Supplements:  3 Fiber capsules (1/2 before breakfast)

Breakfast:  Reese’s Power Cup Shake same as day 2.  Supplements:  Krill Oil and Daily Vitamin

Lunch:  Tuna, Broccoli and Brown Rice.  Supplements:  Milk Thistle, Daily Vitamin, Probiotic

Snack:  Raw Cashews (not as sweet a roasted cashews)

Dinner:  Same as breakfast. Iced Gobi Green Tea  Supplements: Daily Vitamin, Garlic and Vit D

Evening Event:  Lemon Water only

Water:  Over 80 ozs

Evening:  2 T Organic Olive Oil and Lemon Water

Day 2 (8/15):  Bootcamp Day

Pre-workout:  1 scoop of prograde pre work mix and water (10 ozs) (not too great but got me through my workout…need to check label to make sure it doesn’t have whey in it).

Breakfast:  Reese’s Power Cup Shake same as day 1 except used Plant Fusion protein vs. Prograde (since it has whey in it).  Supplements:  Krill Oil and Daily Vitamin

AM Snack:  4 slices of canteloupe with himalayan sea salt

Lunch:  Salmon, porcini mushrooms, 1/2 avocado, radishes, romaine with homemade dressing from day 1.  Supplements:  Milk Thistle and Daily Vitamin

PM Snack:  1/2 avocado

Dinner:  Berry Protein Shake (more like a sorbet):  1 cup almond milk, frozen mango, frozen blueberries, frozen dark cherries, 1 scoop of Plant Fusion protein powder, 1 T acai powder, 1 T flaxmeal and added water.  Probably won’t make this anymore…didn’t taste like anything.

Water:  Over 80 ozs

Evening:  2 T Organic Olive Oil and Lemon Water

Day 1 (8/14)
Breakfast:  Reese’s Power Cups for Breakfast (a recipe from my fitness guru)! (time:  10:00 am):

  • 2 Tbsp Almond Butter (I like Justin’s)
  • 1 scoop of protein powder (I like Prograde Vanilla)
  • 1 heaping Tbsp raw cocoa powder (a superfood) (Navitas Naturals from Wegman’s…it is in the vitamin aisle at the Princeton Wegman’s)
  • 1 Cup of Almond Milk (I use Almond Dream unsweetened original) (I use this as it has calcium citrate in it vs. calcium carbonate; I’m susceptible to kidney stones and I’ve been advised to stay away from calcium carbonate in my calcium supplements)
  • 1 Tbsp of flax seed oil (for a dose of Omega-3) (the original recipe calls for a squeeze…which is what I would recommend…I think I used too much) (I used the serving size…a bit too much)
  • Ice (I’ve been making it without ice though and it still tastes great).

Cup of Chai Green Tea, Multi-Vitamin and Krill Oil

Lunch (12:45 pm):

Grilled Chicken, grilled peaches, roasted beets and cauliflower on a bed of romaine.  Homemade dressing of EVOO, EVOO with meyer lemon (yummy…available at Weaver’s at the West Shore Farmer’s Market in Lemoyne, PA), Balsalmic & Red Wine Vinegar, freshly grated pepper,  freshly grated Pink Sea Salt with Garlic and a couple of squeezes of flax oil.  Apple.

Water Intake:  80 ozs

Snack (4:15 pm):  Handful of raw almonds (note: headache around 3:20 pm…drank a cup of goji berry green tea, took a nap with a cold herbal pack).

Dinner (5:30 pm):  1 cup of Apple/Squash bisque and 1 small spinach side salad with dressing from above.

Evening:  2 T Organic Olive Oil and Lemon Water

Countdown is on…

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Sorry, I’ve been MIA this past week.  It was a crazy week.  I have some posts have written that I hope to post tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning is the official start to my journey on The Clean Program (http://www.cleanprogram.com/).  I’m anxious, nervous and scared all at once.  I’m anxious as I just want to get started, I’m nervous and scared on how my body is going to react (and I don’t deal well with the unknown).  And I’m scared how my mind will react.  I’m afraid if it isn’t going the way I want it to go or if it gets hard that I will throw in the towel (and I don’t want to do that…so putting it in writing should help me keep myself accountable) (and it is only 21 days…in a lifetime…it is a knat’s eyelash).

I’ve put some things in place to make sure my first week is a GREAT one.  I ordered my lunches from Madeline’s Table (http://madelinestable.com/) (if you are in the Princeton, NJ area I would highly recommend you trying it out).  I was able to get my glutein free items and made some special requests (no cheese on my ceasar salad and sauces on the the side).  I know this will be a great help for me this first week as I know I will love the food I’m eating.

I’m still up in the air about doing the full cleanse (Shake for Breakfast & Dinner and a nice size lunch) or the rebuild portion (Shake for Breakfast, nice size lunch, shake in the afternoon and a small dinner).  I may end up alternating between the two to see how my energy level is.  I want to continue going to bootcamp 3 days a week; however, I’ve been warned my energy levels will be low and to listen to my body (so I’m a little scared).  I need to figure it out tomorrow, so I have a good plan for the week (it is supposed to be a rainy Sunday tomorrow so I should have the time).

As I’ve mentioned before this is an elimination program.  Some key things I’m eliminating are:  coffee (and all other sources of caffeine), dairy, eggs, strawberries, bread, pasta, seafood, beef, pork, cold cuts, chocolate, alcohol, sushi, refined sugar, sweet and low and some other things.  I know that caffeine will be my biggest challenge, so I’ve been trying to slowly reduce my intake…can you say headache city for me lately.  I broke down this afternoon and got an iced tea! (I’m drinking it slowly).  Some things will be hard to eliminate some note as much.  It will be interesting to see if I crave any of the items I’ve eliminated.

Have I mentioned the GREAT things I get to eat on this program?  I get to enjoy chicken (and looking forward to trying a Hummus Chicken recipe from their website), radishes (have always loved these and don’t always think to buy them), avocados (and fresh guac!!), hummus, salmon, raw cocoa, nuts/seeds, almond butter and lots of fresh veggies (hitting the local farmer’s market Monday night).

Stay tuned for updates this week on how I’m doing.

Have a great Saturday!!

 

 

 

Workout ‘High’

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Good Morning!  Happy Wednesday!! 🙂

Letter to my Monday morning self when I let the negative self talk get the better of me when I roll over and go back to sleep…getting up is half the battle and the workout ‘HIGH’ is so worth it!

Why did I write to my Monday morning self?  One of the challenges I persistently have is not being able to get up on Monday mornings to make my work-outs. This Monday was a perfect example. Now I did have a migraine when I went to bed (and the medicine I take gets rid of the migraine, but I don’t sleep well) Sunday night so that could’ve been the cause of the ‘I just don’t have it in me today’ thought. If this was the only Monday it happened I wouldn’t worry about it. However, it is a trend (that I don’t like)…this is one of the things I’m going to try to figure out.

Does anyone else have this challenge?  If so, what have you done to help yourself?  Would love your thoughts!

PS:  We did an obstacle course workout today…FUN!!

 

I think I’m in love…

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with my Vitamix blender! I broke down and purchased my Vitamix a couple of months ago. However, I never had a chance to open the box and try it. About a week ago, I finally opened up the box and reviewed the menu book. I got excited all over again as to why I made the purchase in the first place.

Today, I finally used it. First of all it is easier to keep clean then a blender. I had some fruit that I just didn’t feel like eating…so I put a cup of water and about a cup of chopped fruit in the vitamix…and in about 90 seconds or less…I had a nice, shake (as the consistency was more like a shake than juice). Yummy!

This will be my ‘go to’ appliance for my morning / afternoon protein shakes!

Motivation

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What do you do when you are lacking in motivation?

Last year, I wrote the following on an internal fitness blog.  I find that I go to it when I need motivation – to prove to myself that I can DO IT and that I OWN it!  Hope you enjoy it.  Please share what you do to help motivate yourself!

I am STRONG and PROUD! (From: 10/27/10)

The 6 week transformation was a re-start of boot camp for me. I took the summer off due to an injury. As I reflect on the last six weeks…there are things that have remained the same; but many things have changed.

 Things that are the same:

  • Great trainers–a special thanks to Lindsay, Jessyca and Carrie for pushing us each and every day!
  • Great fellow boot campers
  • Class is still @ 6 am (for me)

Things that have changed (in no particular order…and I’m sure I’ve forgotten some things):

  • My head is in the game (as I reflect on previous challenges / transformations at boot camp, I wonder if I was all in…I think not)
  • I’m accountable. I could make any excuse previously to roll back over and go back to sleep. I only missed two boot camps (I was out of town one day and had a migraine the other day). And I sent in my emails.
  • New workouts: I’ve pushed myself…mind muscle connection…I’m here for me and no one else!!
  • I used this forum to see that I’m not alone
  • I did a much better job with my food journal (although I have room for improvement)
  • I haven’t had fast food in 6 weeks
  • I’ve corrected people when they’ve said I’m on a diet
  • I’ve done the HIIT workouts on off days (although again an opportunity for improvement)
  • I’ve learned lots on how I shop and cook my food
    • Reduced diet soda intake
    • Cut back my sugar intake
    • And found new foods that I love
    • Did I mention I haven’t had fast food in 6 weeks? 🙂
    • And I haven’t felt deprived (I still enjoy a cocktail when out with friends) 🙂
  • I’ve lost 8 lbs (the most ever for me at bootcamp)
  • I’ve lost 6.5 inches and 1.2% bodyfat
  • I completed the 1000 challenge today with 600 reps a 36% improvement from September
  • And finally I’m ready to see what I can do in the next 6 weeks.

I’m feeling STRONG and PROUD!! I hope you are too!