Better Pi"late"s than never!

Today I feel:

I wanted to do something low impact this morning (mostly because of a teensy tiny hangover... ;) ) so I decided to hit up some pilates.

For some reason people put pilates in the same category as yoga. It is true that they are both low impact workouts but I assure you they're not the same thing.

I, personally, enjoy pilates a bit more than yoga because it reeeally hits your core. It's ALL about the core and lengthening your limbs (not literally...just...stretching haha). Plus it kind of makes me feel like a ballerina when I do the straight leg stretch with my toes pointed and stuff.

If you are wanting to get into pilates I strongly recommend blogilates, she doesn't mess around and there are tons of free videos.

Beachbody is also coming out with a new program called PiYo which incorporates pilates and yoga but isn't your grandmas workout video so you'll sweat without killin' your knees.

Here's an update on my "maintenance"! This was super important to me because I have always gained weight back after following a "program".

As of today (a pretty cheat-full weekend) I weigh 119lb, which technically a 2lb gain from 2 weeks ago when I completed the 21 Day Fix, but with the way the body fluctuates I'm going to call this a successful maintenance!! Plus my stomach is still flat!

I am feeling that I'm gaining some strength but I honestly have not been following a strict gym plan. I have been alternating between gym days, 30-minute home workouts, and just being out and about walking outside more. This wasn't the plan but I'm pretty happy about my body and where I'm at physically so can't complain! Definitely wan't more definition though so will have to  commit to more gym days.

Case of the Thursdays

Today I feel:

I don't even know why I'm so sleepy! I started the day on the right foot, taking my pup for a walk through what felt like a giant cloud it was so foggy.

I did a circuit training class for the first time today. One of the ladies from Book Club invited me to join her and three of us ended up going after the Book Club meeting.

 I got it in my head that circuit training was strictly in the weight room, but it was actually a group class in the aerobics room. There was a nice super-happy Japanese man that led the class. He spoke some English but mostly just gestured and yelled at you if you were doing something he didn't like. There were 10 stations set up that each of us spent a minute doing and then went on to the next station. It was set up in a circle (duh, Iryna, circuit training). Mostly he had us using body-weight and resistance bands, there were a couple stations that used dumbbells. We did the circuit two times and then did a group workout.

I'm not gonna lie, I got a little cocky when he told me and the other new girl to grab the light weights because we are "new" and grabbed some heavy weights to "show him"....I don't necessarily regret it....my pride was at stake...but I will definitely not be reaching anything on the top shelf tomorrow morning.

This is an example of what a "circuit" might look like. I just found this one and I kind of like it so I'll probably be doing this for my morning work-out tomorrow.

If there is a class opening up at your local gym, try it out!

Weekends...oh you!

Today I feel:

I just came back from a long walk with my dog. It decided to pour right in the middle of it so we both came back soaked. I swear my dog thinks I made it rain....she kept giving me the "make it stop" look.

It has been a lovely sunny memorial day weekend. We didn't go to the gym (because it was closed) but did a loooot of walking. I'm also feeling pretty tan lately.

It is pretty refreshing having a "cheat" (there was definitely booze involved) without feeling guilty. Treating yourself is ok, as long as it's in moderation and doesn't become your lifestyle. I don't know how many times I freaked out about eating pizza in the past because "OMG my diet is ruined!!@#"...seriously, just eat well the next day and you're good to go. To gain 1 lb you need to overeat by 3,500 calories. The mistake I would make is "OMG my diet is ruined....might as well eat the rest of that pizza!!!". THAT's how I gained weight. You don't get insta-fat from a spoon-full of ice cream.

TREATCHOSELF!! (...in moderation)

Speaking of treat! Last night's dinner was da bommmmmmb (patting myself on the back).

Spicy Mustard-Glazed Salmon w/ Rice Noodle Stir-fry

1 salmon filet (1.5 red)

1 bunch bok choy (1 green)

1/2 cup mushrooms (1/2 green)

2/3 cup cooked rice noodles (2 yellow)

1 tsp sesame oil (1 tsp)

1/2 tsp spicy mustard (free)

garlic flakes (free)

seafood seasoning mix (free)

1 tsp soy (if you aren't doing the fix ;) )

If you want a little bit more flavor use a mix of spicy and honey mustard...it's seriously delish.

Preheat oven to 400F. Rub your salmon on the skin side with seafood seasoning and place skin-down in an oven-safe dish sprayed with pam. On top of the salmon spread the spicy mustard, season with seafood seasoning or whatever you have on hand (salt and pepper should do it!). I also sprinkled some garlic flakes on top. Bake for 15 minutes or until you can flake it with a fork (my oven usually does it in 20).

While the salmon is baking boil your noodles and get a pan out to sautee your bok choy and mushrooms. Warm up the sesame oil and throw the veggies in the pan (or wok if you have one), sautee until the bok choy wilts down (about 5 minutes). Throw in the noodles (they cook fast!) and stir fry together. Add garlic flakes and soy sauce, toss a couple more times, then serve!

Like I mentioned before, I'm eating a little bit more since I'm not trying to lose weight just maintain, but I'll keep posting recipes using 21 Day Fix measurements for those of you doing the program!

Hitting the Gym: Legs on FIRE

Today I feel:
Today was leg day which means I'll be learning to walk all over again tomorrow...or worse, the pain won't actually hit me for another day which means it'll last forEVER.

Here is what our routine looked like today:

Day 3: Legs

Barbell squats (video)

Leg extensions (video)

Leg curls (video)

Leg press (video)

One time at the gym my form was a little off on squats and one of the trainers came up to me and gave me this little piece of advice. "Just pretend your husbands face is right under you...and you have to fart really bad...so you have to hold it in so you don't fart in his face...." Her advice half worked because now I have to tighten up my body every time so I don't start cracking-up imagining that scenario.

I forgot to mention that before we actually get in the weight room we do 5 minutes on the treadmill just to warm up, usually just walking on an incline. And don't forget to stretch! (Now I just sound like your mother.)

For dinner I made some seasoned baked chicken with a side of roasted brussel sprouts and a boiled purple sweet potato. (sounds boring now that I read it)

Ingredients:

1 boneless skinless chicken breast

1 cup brussel sprouts

1 small purple sweet potato

garlic flakes

salt

pepper

2 tsp olive oil

chicken seasoning of your choice (I used half the spices in my spice cabinet lol)

Preheat oven to 350F. Rub a boneless, skinless, chicken breast with a tsp olive oil (ohhh yeahhhhh) and place in an oven-safe dish. Season on both sides with salt, pepper, or seasoning of your choice. Bake for 40-45 minutes depending on how thick the breast is (I don't play games with under-cooked chicken). (1 red)

Toss the brussel sprouts with a tsp of olive oil, garlic flakes, salt, and pepper. Baked in the oven at 350F for 40 minutes (because it's how long the chicken breast takes and I didn't feel like going to the oven an extra time...yup).  Make sure to rustle your brussels every once in a while so they get color on all sides.

Purple sweet potatoes are an Okinawan thing and they taste more dessert-y like they are flavored with something...anyway, they're good, try em. (1 yellow for you 21 Day Fix-ers). Boil em up and eat them plain, they don't need any seasoning!

Day 4 is REST DAY! Yoga and naps....allllll day.

Hitting the Gym: Day 1 & 2

Today I feel:

Time to kickoff my lifting routine! I gave myself a day off from blogging (you know, because its so hard and stuff) so today's post is a combo-post. 

The routine we are doing is push, pull, legs, rest, repeat. I will try my best to explain, but since I'm pretty much going with what my husband shows me how to do in the gym, I by no means know what I'm talking about.

Day 1 is "push", so we do lifts that require a pushing motion (I guess they wouldn't be "lifts" then..."pushers"?).

I did 3 sets of 8 repetitions (reps) of each exercise. This means you do the exercise 8 times without stopping, and that's one set.  Rest, do it again, rest, do it again. Before you do the 3 sets though you do a light warm-up set. For the warm-up set, choose a weight that you could comfortably complete 12 repetitions with.

When I first started going to the gym with my husband we did a 5x5 routine of compound lifts (squats, dead-lifts, bench press) to build up strength. John recommends doing this if you just started going to the gym because you'll work all your muscle groups and build up a good foundation.

So here's what we did the last 2 days!

Day 1: Push

Flat bench (video)

Overhead press (video)

Incline dumbbell press (video)

Tricep dips (video) (assisted for me!)

Cable flys (video)(I call them stupid faces...I might not like this one too much)

Day 2: Pull

Dead-lifts (video)

Pull-ups (assisted...shut up)(video)

Dumbbell rows (video)

Dumbbell pull-overs (video)

Barbell curls (video)

If you want to start this routine with me don't hesitate to post on the facebook page and I'll answ.... I'll get my husband to answer your questions (lol). I'm gonna be a pro soon I swear!!!

21 Day Fix: Day 21

Today I feel:

It's day 21!!! YES! You know what that means, final PROGRESS pic!!!






Here are my results for WEEK 3!!! I went from 127 lb to 117lb! In the first week I lost 5lb, 2nd week I lost 2 lb, and 3rd week I kicked it up a notch and lost 3lb!

Here's a side view of week 1 through week 3. I lost the most inches in my stomach (3.5) and the rest came off my thighs (although I still have thunder thighs haha) and a bit off my arms and hips. It's AMAZING to me that I could do this in 3 weeks.

Thank you everyone who has been keeping up with the blog, every single "view" kept me accountable and kept me going.

This is only the beginning! I will be training in the gym with my husband starting TOMORROW! Check out tomorrow's post for our routine.

21 Day Fix: Day 20

Today I feel:

This gif is how I feel every time I try to do push-ups, bench press, or attempting a pull up ( I call em "hang outs") I will seriously throw a party the day that I can complete a pull-up...JUST ONE PLZ!

Today was another sunny day! We hit up the dog park and chilled with some dog bros, then after we properly wore out our dog we went out to eat!!!

Time for some honestly....I saved all my containers for this one meal....I just had to. John's week of vaca ends tomorrow and my 21 Day Fix ends on a SUNDAY so it had to go down.

We went to a Brazilian place called Bovinos. It's all you can eat (I KNOW ...I know...) and there is a buffet of little salads and side dishes...and....get this....skewers of MEAT...all kinds of meat. The servers come around with tasty meat skewers and shave some off for you at the table. Did I mention all you can eat!?

I was prepared to leave disappointed and hungry but honestly I didn't even chow down like I thought I would. John and I got a little bit of each side dish and then a couple servings of meat from the skewers and we were pretty full and satisfied. I was pretty proud of myself, because you better believe I would have destroyed that buffet a month ago. So here's where things get hilariously weird. We turn over our "no more meat" card that we got for when we are ready to leave, the meat server (who I think is actually the owner) comes over with a skewer anyway and asks if we want more of the steak....we say no and he goes to the back room....he comes back out and asks my husband "Do you not like pork sir?", seriously sounding offended! We both kind of sit there and look at each other for a second, and John says "Uhh no, we are actually just really full." So the dude says "More steak?"....We decline....He leaves the table, obviously bothered by the fact that we are not still stuffing our faces. THEN our server comes over and asks if we didn't like something or if we WANT MORE MEAT, or if we want something else. At this point this is hilarious and I literally couldn't wait to laugh about it once we got out of there. Lesson learned, if you go to a Brazilian restaurant you better eat until the owner decides you've had enough meat.

p.s. Final RESULT pics tomorrow!!!! WOO!!!

21 Day Fix: Day 19

Today I feel:

After days and days of depressing rain, we had a sunny day today!

John and I really needed to get out of the house so we went for a drive along the coast where the most scenic beaches are. The plan was to go to the zoo but we were dummies and forgot we didn't bring any cash, so we ended up adventuring instead!

There are so many beaches on the island that have no footprints in the sand and seem completely secluded, it's awesome.

I did go into full island mode and didn't really feel like working out, but did end up doing Upper Fix and 10 Minute Abs like...30 minutes ago...Hey, whatever I did 'em right!?

I noticed I had some bell peppers that have been chillin' in my fridge for a while so I decided to throw together a concoction. This is actually a trick I learned from my mom, if it's about to go bad throw it all together in a crock pot.

I got inspired by this recipe for "peperonata" , but here is my take on it!

Crock-pot-a Pepero-not-a 

3 bell peppers (3 different colors!), seeded sliced lengthwise

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

dried oregano (3 pinches)

garlic flakes (I put a bunch....so this one's "to taste")

salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp olive oil

(If you are doing the 21 Day Fix, I would put the mixture into 1 green and count it as 1 green and 1/2 teaspoon)

Directions: Drizzle the olive oil into the crock pot, throw in the onions, tomatoes, garlic, and peppers on top. Sprinkle all the seasoning on top and put a lid on it! Mine is on High and it's been stewing for about an hour and a half....I'm getting a lot of good smells so I'm thinking it'll be nice and soft and "saucy" in a couple more hours....lets say 4 hours cooking time? Lemme know if you disagree!

21 Day Fix: Day 18

Today I feel:

For 18 days now I have not had any sweets, no sugar in my coffee, and only 2 servings of fruit a day.

Yesterday my husband ate a blueberry muffin and I WASN'T EVEN JELLY! (maybe a little jelly)

It is very weird for me not to crave sugar, but I really don't! If there was cake right in front of me right now I would pass (unless it was Oreo ice cream cake...there are exceptions people).

There is definitely a detox process that happens when you give up sugar. At first you get mad about it, feel a little weak, after a few days your energy skyrockets and STAYS there. I still get sugar btw, just from fruit. If for nothing else, try eating clean for 2 weeks just to see how much sugar affects (its affects right? effects didn't sound right...I always get those two mixed up) your system.

I did another 2 workouts today, Pilates Fix and Dirty 30. My husband got his workout in with puppy-curls and tricep-tugs. If you have a small dog I recommend adding weight (maybe make it wear a sandbag vest), and if you have cats I would use them as dumbbells instead (please post pics).

Here's what we had for dinner!

Baked Chicken Tenders w/ Whole Grain Rotini and Broccoli Mushroom Sautee

It is very easy to make, just bake up a couple chicken tenders, boil some whole grain rotini, and sautee (with pam) a half cup of mushrooms with a half cup of broccoli. Season to taste and enjoy! The 2 tenders are 1 red , veggies 1 green, pasta 1 yellow, and I used 1 tsp just because I sprayed a lot of pam (lol).

Hope you are inspired to eat something healthy and delicious today! 

21 Day Fix: Day 17

Today I feel:

I did 2 challenging workout videos today, Plyo Fix and Total Body Cardio Fix, and feel pretty unstoppable!

I also skipped one of my yellow containers (carbs) and still don't feel hungry.

What is this sorcery!?!?

I only have a few days left and I REALLY want to lose a few more pounds before I take my "after" pictures.

"What are you going to do next?" you might be wondering (I might be wondering). Well, the answer is....I'm going to go straight to the beach and strutt around in a bikini....then I'm going to have some pizza/beer/double cheeseburger....and then I'm going to get by butt right back in gear and do some heavy lifting!

I reeeally want to start building some strength and muscle (especially my booty and arms!) and there's just no way to do that at home so I'm going to be hitting the gym! As far as what program I'm going to use, I'm still researching, but most likely I will just work out with my husband who knows what he's doing.

Most of all, I'm so excited that I'm excited about what I'm going to do NEXT not "omg when will this be over!?!". The truth is, its NEVER over. You can't just do a quick fix and then get back on the couch, you have to KEEP working to maintain the sexy. Does that mean no more pizza? Heck to the no! It means pizza is a treat not a part of your every day meal plan.

Now if you guys wanna kick your workouts up a notch and be "strong like Russian farmer", you should give kettlebell workouts a try! Kettlebell swings are my favorite because I can do a couple sets and work up a sweat in a short period of time. Here are some other ideas.

The stuff they tell you about endorphins and being happy-go-lucky if you work out is so true BTW...I feel like rainbows and sunshine these days.

Now go get you some kettlebells!

21 Day Fix: Day 16

Today I feel:

I threw together a beef stew this morning and the apartment has been smelling delicious all day!

I'm pretty proud of myself because I didn't open the lid obsessively like I usually do when I cook something in the crock pot. Apparently that's why most of what I cook takes such a long time since I keep letting the steam out. Oh well!

It isn't a 100% clean recipe because I used a can of tomatoes, but there is no flour or butter in it and I even skipped beef broth and potatoes (I'm starting to miss potatoes, but they're really only good when buttered up, mashed up, or fried). I did google "clean eating canned tomatoes" (because that's how I roll) and a lot of scary stuff about how I'm poisoning my body...so...I'll let you know tomorrow if we made it.

Low-carb Beef Stew

I used this recipe for the stew but omitted flour, potatoes, and beef broth. Instead of the broth I added a can of stewed tomatoes and a cup of water. I also added mushrooms. Because I didn't add flour it didn't come out as stew-y and more soup-y but it was still very delicious. For those of you who are not on the 21 Day Fix feel free to make it according to the recipe!

My husband is on leave for a week and I wanted to have a drink with him tonight but failed miserably in the taste department. I really didn't want to cheat (at least not too badly) so I just added a shot of vodka to my strawberry shakeology smoothie....Guys....if you ever think it's a good idea to experiment with protein shakes and booze...just...don't. That teaches me to try to get my drank on while on a diet program.

21 Day Fix: Day 15

Today I feel:

Add caption

It's SUCH a muggy day today. Nothing more gross then working out when you are already sticky sweaty. GAH!

I'm doing a plyometrics workout tonight (Plyo Fix) which is essentially a lot of squatting, jumping, and wheezing and half-dying and....I mean...its not that bad! I swear!

I have not done it yet because I'm scared. Last week after I did the plyo workout I was sore until Thursday. So that's gonna be fun!

I had a very satisfying protein oatmeal for breakfast (with a teaspoon of peanut butter!) and a turkey wrap for lunch. Snacks today were an apple and some baby carrots.

 We did go shopping today so I made chicken pitas for dinner! I am a little miffed though because I wanted to make Gyros but the Commissary on base was out of plain Greek yogurt which I DON'T GET since there was EVERY kind of Greek yogurt....fruit on the bottom...fruit on top....mixed fruit....chocolate...asparagus...BUT NO PLAIN...can someone exPLAIN that to me!?! I just wanna put some Greek yogurt in my pita can a girl catch a break! I "pita" the fool that has to eat a Gyro without Greek yogurt!

...I'm sorry I'm passionate about my yogurt today.

Anyway, the chicken pita was still delicious!!! I used 1/2 whole grain pita and stuffed it with a tablespoon of hummus, baby greens, roasted red pepper, and 2 baked chicken tenders. Here is the breakdown!

Not-a-Cheata-Chicken-Pita

(because I didn't cheat on my diet, get it?)

baby greens (.5 green)

roasted red pepper (.5 green)

2 chicken tenders (1 red)

1 tbsp hummus (1 orange/ .5 blue)

1/2 whole grain pita bread (1 yellow)

The roasted red pepper is actually out of a jar (make sure to get the ones in water not with any additives). I got it from the deli if that helps at all. You can also roast your own in the oven, just spray em down with pam and throw on a cooking sheet for 400F (not sure how long though...probably around 20-30 minutes). Anyway, just throw all the ingredients into the pita pocket and enjoy! 

'Til tomorrow folks, I'm out.

21 Day Fix: Day 14

Today I feel:

As usual, weekend cravings are kicking in!

John and I went out for sushi today and it took a LOT not to get the tempura and the fried rolls....why is fried food so dang delicious!?! I left the restaurant surprisingly satisfied after the meal though, and I know if I had more food I would feel bloated and crappy.

I have a similar relationship with McDonalds; it's delicious when I'm stuffing down a Big Mac but then I just feel sloppy, bloated and gross for the rest of the day.

I also did some clothes shopping today....at a JAPANESE store!!! If you live here you know that's a big deal because fitting into Japanese sizes ain't easy.

Oh yeah and here is my Week 2 progress! (I know, I know, I'm overdoing it on the exclamation points but how else are you gonna know I'm excited?!)

As of today I have lost 7lbs and 3 inches off my waist. That's 2 weeks folks!!!

Here's a bonus pic of my sexy kitten tights and new workout shirt!

I thought this shirt was hilarious. In no way am I endorsing being hungry folks. I want you to stay hungry for them GOALS! Eat right, work out, rinse, and repeat. Happy Mothers Day!

21 Day Fix: Day 13

Today I feel:

Motivated by my super-late workout last night, I decided to do my workout of the day a bit earlier. So now I'm sitting here high-5in myself because now I can spend the rest of the day on the couch! (jaykayyyy)

It has been a pretty productive Saturday morning, so I decided to blog earlier too (I'm just on a roll aren't I?!).

We loosely planned to go to the farmers market but its raining and gross so we might end up staying home and playing video games. Did I mention it's Saturday? Yep.


To change it up a bit, here's my breakfast!:

Choco-PB Protein Oatmeal

1 scoop protein powder of your choice (1 red)

1/3 cup of oatmeal (1 yellow)

1 cup water (freeee!)

1 teaspoon peanut butter (1 teaspoon)

Bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Stir in your oatmeal until it all soaks up and starts bubbling, then turn down the heat to low. Stir in your protein powder until its well incorporated into the mix. Serve in a bowl with 1 teaspoon of peanut butter and let it meeeellllllttttt (so good...seriously). If you want to be a healthy-Heather you can use PB2, which is a powdered peanut butter so it has no added oils. 

This is a breakfast that keeps on giving. The fiber in the oatmeal and the added protein will keep you full for EVAAA (ok maybe 'til lunch).

Enjoy and please post some of your oatmeal ideas on the facebook page!

21 Day Fix: Day 12

Today I feel:

I've been watching a Russian girl group singing competition all afternoon (while doing things around the house of course ;) ) and it put me in a "diva" mood today.

I threw on some make-up and straightened my hair just because!

Do any of you guys still play dress up when there's no one home and pretend you're famous and sing into the hairbrush?!...yeah me neither...who does that whaaatttt...

Anywho! John and I will be checking out some farmers markets this weekend and I'm SO excited because I really want to stock up on some different kinds of fruits and veg. We are eating too much of the same stuff lately, gotta switch it up.

Here is what we had for dinner tonight:

Guess which one is mine!? Yeah I had to go a little light on dinner because I wanted more snacks throughout the day. No biggie though, I'm actually not hungry and the wrap was pretty filling. My wrap consisted of a baked chicken tender, baby romaine lettuce, and a slice of onion. I also added a dash of hot sauce and a half teaspoon of Catalina dressing (the low-something or other kind). The dressing isn't really 21DayFix material but I haven't used my orange dressing containers like...at all...so I figured I was entitled! Feel free to call me out on that though....I understand. Since the chicken tender makes up half my red container I threw in a hard boiled egg and sprinkled it with a bit of paprika. Not bad at all!

John's plate is chicken tenders, brown rice, and sauteed (with 1 tsp olive oil) green beans, onion, and broccoli. He goes through our veggies like a machine since he can have 6 containers per day.

Oh yeah, about that workout today. It's 11pm at night here and I'm literally just now about to do the Cardio Fix. I KNOW, I'm a terrible fitness blogger setting a horrible example but you bet your buttcheeks I'm about to get it done!

TGIF!

21 Day Fix: Day 11

Today I feel:

Today I had a pretty active day. I felt SOOO good this morning, so I spent half of it running around with my dog (she loved that).

I've been trying to figure out how to work with my fresh veggies. I have never had so much fresh food in my fridge so I really don't know what goes bad first and when I should cook what. That's been a struggle the last few days because we will buy a bunch of vegetables and then they're gone in two days....but if we buy more of everything stuff ends up going bad..  AAHHHH...I need to google this stuff.

Brekkie, lunch and dinner were all repeats today so no cool pics! I did just join a cool Facebook group called 21 Day Fix Recipe/Meal Swap so I can't wait to try some stuff out from there.

Today was Lower Fix Day! Squats, lunges, leg lifts oh my. This is definitely the one that I grunt, whine, and collapse to. But somehow I still look forward to it the most! Is that weird?..

This is going to be a short and sweet post because I am really into this random show "My Cat From Hell"...who the heck names their cat "Minibar"?

21 Day Fix: Day 10

Today I feel:

I messed up guys! I, somehow, miscalculated how much I should eat this morning and ended up eating all the "good stuff" before noon :(. This pretty much left me with a protein shake and vegetables for dinner....IM STAHVIN.

I will need to plan a little better tomorrow.

Oh, and I still had to cook John a nice dinner since HE didn't mess up.

Did I mention I get grumpy when I'm hungry?

Well...since I can't show you a picture of my dinner, here's what John had:

Baked Chicken Breast w/ Green Beans and Whole Grain Rotini

Looks good doesn't it? Yeah, it smelled good too. This super simple meal ended up being 2 greens, 2 yellows, and 2 reds.

You will need:

1 chicken breast

2 cups green beans

2/3 cup rotini

garlic flakes

seasoning of your choice

 Just season and bake your chicken breast (with pam) for 40 minutes on 350, meanwhile prepare some plain whole grain pasta of your choice and sautee 2 cups of green beans with some garlic and olive oil. For some flavor I used salt and pepper on the rotini. I can almost taste it!!! AHH...lesson learned.

We did  pilates today because my calves were seriously hurting (I was walking around like a penguin this morning) so we are saving Lower Fix for tomorrow when we can go to the gym and get some heavy weights onnnnn.

Have a happy hump day!

21 Day Fix: Day 9

Today I feel:

I've always had a love-hate relationship with working out. I would love the idea of it....and the feeling I get afterward, but I would dread the "during".

I find myself looking forward to workouts these days and actually getting excited about them. I think half the reason for this is because my amazing support system, my husband, works out with me and I love when we can sweat together and encourage each other to keep going. It is really important to have someone there for you, even if they aren't doing the workouts with you, even if they are in another country (Liz!).

 If you want to lose weight TELL EVERYONE! You will get so much support and motivation and recipes and tips...it's amazing how much people WANT you to succeed. No one is sitting there betting against you (and if they are they just want their own insecurities validated).

If you want to start going to the gym, talk to someone who goes regularly. If you see someone who also wants to start working out and eating healthy, TALK to them and ask them to be buddies. And always remember that you can message me, whether you want to do the program that I am doing or if you just want to talk about how we both can stay on track.

On that note! Here's dinner!

2 chicken tenders[1 red]

quinoa spaghetti, one serving (as per box) [2 yellow]

1/2 cup mushrooms [1/2 green]

1/2 cup alfalfa sprouts [1/2 green]

1 teaspoon olive oil

salt, pepper, other seasoning (free!)

Directions: Preheat oven to 360F, spray an oven safe dish with pam and place the chicken tenders inside. Season with salt, pepper, and whatever spices you like (cajun spices for me today). Bake tenders for 35 minutes. While chicken tenders are in the oven, prepare the quinoa spaghetti using the directions on the box. Heat up the olive oil in a nonstick pan, throw the mushrooms and sprouts on there! When the spaghetti is done, throw that in there as well to coat everything and season with salt and pepper (and garlic flakes!).

This came out extra delicious so I hope you enjoy it! Quinoa spaghetti was a lucky find (since I had no idea of its existance). It's gluten free and all that good stuff!

The workout today was Upper Fix again, and surprisingly easy. I must go up in weight next time. Never fear going heavier (I'm talkin' to you ladies).

Have a great day/night, wherever in the world you may be.

21 Day Fix: Day 8

Today I feel:

It's the beginning of the rainy season here on Okinawa and I HATE IT. It rained hard all morning so I couldn't take the dog out for a walk or do anything outside. I don't know about you guys but my mood reflects the weather. This is why I think I was born to live in warmer climates.

I did get a lot done around the house, and planned some meals for the rest of the week. I am going to hit week 2 hard and try to get in as many extra workouts as I can.

Instead of doing the Total Body Fix, my husband and I popped in the Plyo Fix bonus DVD. I kid you not, it was the hardest workout so far. We were out of breath after each round. If you don't know what plyometrics is....its ....evil...pure squat-jumping-burpee-doing evil! I'm just kidding it was awesome. At least when it was over ;)

Here's tonight's dinner: Crockpot Beef Stew w/ Sweet Potato

I wish I could post the recipe for this but I don't remember the cooking time! Next time I make it I will break everything down. Either way I don't think it's extremely 21DayFix friendly, but there is no flour or white potatoes so it's definitely a healthy take on a stew. 

Tomorrow will be a very busy day for me with possible great news!!! 

21 Day Fix: Day 7

Today I feel:

It's weigh-in day! I couldn't be happier about my week 1 results. In just a week I learned how to eat the right portions, reduced my sugar cravings, worked out EVERY DAY, and lost 5 lbs! That's right 5 lbs! Most of this came off my waist, which is even more fantastic.

I felt so good I even walked around in my sports bra all morning. Here is my progress so far. I honestly don't see too much difference in the photos, compared to how much better I feel, but there is definitely a slight difference in my middle section.

I am still gunning for that 15 lb total at the end of week 3, but I will be thrilled to lose even 5 more lb. So excited to start week 2!

For dinner tonight I made those quinoa stuffed peppers I mentioned the other day. Here's what my portion looked like.

Look at all dat marketing yo. Just tryin' to get some blog views NBD.

The chicken recipe is from this post and the portion above is 1 red and 1/3 green. 
Here is the recipe for the pepper!

Quinoa Stuffed Pepper

1 bell pepper (1 green)

1/3 cup cooked quinoa (1 yellow)

1/2 onion, chopped (1/3 green)

2 button mushrooms, chopped (1/3 green)

1/4 cup cheddar (1 blue)

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil (1 tsp)

spices of your choice 

Preheat oven to 400F (I think it said 350 on the original recipe but we were hungry...) While you prepare the quinoa, sautee the mushrooms and onions in 1 tsp of oil. Mix the prepared quinoa in with the mushroom and onion in the pan. Season it with salt, pepper, and whatever spices you like. I used a cajun spice mix. Cut the top off the bell pepper and get all the seeds and little white parts out. Stuff the pepper with the quinoa mixture. Spray any oven-safe dish or pan with pam and place the stuffed pepper inside. Bake for....well honestly I just kind of kept checking back on it until I saw that the pepper looked soft....I'm really bad at this whole recipe thing, I should really start following the directions more carefully. Anyway, I think it took about 20 minutes, plus another 5 to melt the cheese. You should probably look up another recipe online though, this one's a hot mess. ;)

If you attempt to make this recipe please post pics on the facebook page! 

The workout today was an active rest day with Yoga Fix! I am a yoga beginner but it was easy to follow the moves and it really loosened up our muscles (my husband's first yoga experience!). 

Sorry, no downward dog from the dog.

Hope your day was as fantastic as mine.

NAMASTE!

(p.s. my friend Nicole was helpful and fixed my form for this pose! You can print this out and circle all my mistakes as a little yoga game!)

21 Day Fix: Day 6

Today I feel:

We did so many activities today! First we we went to the dog park (with our dog, otherwise it would be weird), then we went to the gym and did the Dirty 30 in their aerobics room. It's pretty awesome to have one of those to ourselves. We had no idea what today's 21 Day Fix workout, Dirty 30, was going to be like, but it ended up being a mix of lower and upper body workouts with weights and some ab work.

After that my husband had the awesome idea to go snorkeling since it got so warm. It was my FIRST TIME snorkeling! I loved it! I struggled a lot with the whole not breathing salt water in thing, and i definitely kept fogging up my goggles, but overall it was a lot of fun and amazing to see all the colorful fish. For those of you who don't know, we live on Okinawa so it's amazing I have been here this long without going snorkeling.

We kept breakfast simple today with Shakeology "smoothies". I just mixed upstrawberry Shakeology with one purple container of frozen strawberries. It's my favorite right now. For lunch we had (can you guess!?) spicy chicken wraps. For dinner we really wanted to get out of the house again so we decided to eat out!

I know what you're thinking....did Iryna give in and get pizza!? The answer is WHY YOU DOUBT ME MAN!? We went to a sushi-go-round so we can portion out exactly how much we can eat. This is our favorite one called Hamazushi.

I had 3 plates similar to the ones pictured with no extras like sauces or mayo (they love mayo here) and I also had 2 plates of sashimi without any rice. My sushi dinner equaled to 2 red (fish), 1 yellow (rice), and 1 green (veggies).

The last time we came to this restaurant our table was COVERED with those little plates. We just kept grabbing without realizing we are already full. Next time we come here we I definitely eat more than I had today (don't get me wrong, I didn't go hungry, but I'm still trying to lose weight) but there's no way I can go back to mindless eating without listening to what my body actually needs.

It really didn't help that the table next to us seemed to be professional sushi speed-eaters and  we could hardly see their faces behind towers of plates. We were a little jelly.

Now it's time to end this awesome Saturday night with a booze-free-Mario-party-scary-movie-extravaganza!

It's Yoga Fix day tomorrow! Grab a mat and get your zen on with me. :)

21 Day Fix: Day 5

Today I feel:

Ok, so it caught up with me today. I'm hungry. THERE, I said it! I realized an hour after dinner that my snack box had a serving of celery sticks left...and that's it :(. You can mark down Friday as "cravings day".

It's also usually booze day (but not this month!), and that paired with the fact that there won't be any pizza had...is just depressing.

I was soooo motivated all day, I even did an extra work out on top of my Cardio Fix. My floor has seen much sweat today (sorry, gross).

Of course I won't be cheating, because that's cheating. And I'm going to enjoy every damn bite of those celery sticks!!!

Here's what John and I had for dinner. His looks prettier than mine so I took a picture of it. It's the mustard salmon recipe from my second post, roasted brussel sprouts, and rice noodles.

This plate has 2 green, 2 red, and 2 yellow, 2 teaspoons. Mine is about half of this minus noodles. The brussels were roasted in pam and the rice noodles are seasoned with salt and pepper.

I also made some delish chicken taco meat in the crock pot. I'll be using that tomorrow for my quinoa and chicken stuffed peppers.

Shredded Taco Chicken

3 skinless chicken breasts (3 red)

1 can of diced tomatoes (2.5 green)

taco spice mix (free)

I'm pretty excited about those stuffed peppers so I'll be posting the full recipe tomorrow!

Overall today was a good day, not fantastic, but still good. I am not discouraged and I am seeing changes in my body which is what this is what's important. I have also noticed that when I use the containers to portion out my food I already know how much is going on the plate! I am very excited about this because it means I am learning how much my body really needs rather than just piling on food to see how much I can chow down. Progress!