I think the Devil is in my spin class teacher

No joke people. Last night I tried the Monday night spin class. I figured it was going to be much easier than the RPM spin class. I was wrong. I am positive this lady has some deal with the Devil. Or she hates every last one of us. I can usually tolerate most classes even if I don't like it. But this, I came close to getting up and walking out. She was crazy! I may be taking back my previous statements about starting to love spin class. 

She made us sprint the entire time. We did push ups on the handle bars as we kept spinning. She made us stand up, then sit down on our bikes 90x. Then we would have to crouch down and race but instead of holding handle bars you had to reach under the handle bar and hold the knob that tightens the handle bars. She also made us pedal with one leg a few times. There was a point she made us use so much resistance you literally could barely move. And during all this she is shouting and making you yell up/down and other things. I was so out of breath I couldn't even shout! Then to top it all off, at the end we got off our bikes and she made us do squats for about 4 minutes straight. I literally wanted to crawl out of the class. By the time I got home I was dead. I have never sweat so much my entire life at the gym, I actually smelled. I soaked in a bubble bath and thought Antonio was going to have to drag me out. 

I thought I was going to be way more sore today, so I am SO happy I am not! Now I can go torture myself some more and take Bodyflow and RPM spinning tonight. Hooray! I just keep thinking about the results and how I will not get them without the hard work! Here's some inspiration/motivation for the gym!!

oh oops that's my inspiration! ;)

Here's the real ones-

via pinterest

So get out there and as much as we may hate the gym, or feel tortured by Devil teachers, know the end result will be awesome! And as much as I despised this woman the whole hour, I know she was pushing me to my limits, something I probably would not do alone!

One last thing for this sunny Tuesday. Thank you all for your kind comments and emails. It means a lot to me and I am so glad I have you guys by my side during this! Love you all!

Your turn-

Have you ever had a class you hated, but liked? 

Ever had a teacher you thought was the Devil at the gym?

How is your workouts going? Have you pushed yourself lately?

I think this is winter?

Well I guess this weather is nice, but I don't like it for the fact that I know it is not winter weather! And now we are being spoiled and in 2 days it is going to drop again! This weather gets me in the mindset of spring, so to know that spring is not anywhere close, well that is aggravating! So as much as I enjoy this weather, I would like it to just be winter and be done and over with instead of continually teasing me and then reminding me HAH it's only January! SIKE! This is not nice, nor is it great for any of our health! I have never been so sick in winter before! So one or 2 days of this here and there is great, but this up and down stuff, no bueno. It's messing me up so much! But alas, prepare yourselves my friends, Friday brings back winter. So enjoy it while you can! Plus I am paying for a car port for all this snow.. I am wasting money! At least let me get my money's worth out of those suckers! Ok weather rant over. Onto more important things like running and diet!

Well I was doing quite well with our torture, I mean workouts, and I was kicking this cough which is still lingering here and there but for most part it's about gone. Then whammo, hit with the flu, and now this runners knee to contend with. So basically since Saturday, my diet and workouts have been a wash! Grr! But I am introducing other foods in today besides soup and crackers to see how things hold up. But easy things, like yogurt, an apple, cheese, ya know all those easy digestible things. No meats or veggies today, still want to make sure we can digest properly and I really don't want to push myself to become sick again. You have to give your body what it needs, so I am doing just so. Yes it is interfering with my diet plan but I would rather not feel like crap for a week vs 5 days.

It is hard when you are only trying to lose 10 lbs. Your weight can fluctuate up to 8 lbs in one day, so one day I look like I lost 4, then next it's only 2. It is quite aggravating! So I am trying not so much to focus on my weight, as I am toning up and losing fat, gaining muscle. Today my clothes are starting to fit a lot more loosely, which is a good sign! I know expelling half my body weight this weekend probably helped a little, but I can tell things are tightening up a lot! My stomach is shrinking and shaping in a new shape, which strikes my curiosity and makes me think maybe this actually will work to get a flat stomach. Everything I have tried before has not quite worked, so the fact that things are shrinking differently excites me. I can feel my back and legs tightening up. I am no where near as exhausted as I used to be since I was so dehydrated. If you want to do 1 thing, seriously, try drinking a gallon of water a day for a few weeks, see how your energy level changes! It is crazy! If I am tired, I start chugging water, not coffee. I think I have had coffee twice on this diet, and that was just to have it, not because I was tired. BTW ppl, starbucks has a sugar free peppermint+sugar free mocha! I would add two pumps of peppermint though, You can taste the lack of sugar for sure, but for sugar free, it is quite good!

One other thing I am noticing, I am still having cravings, not so much for sugar, but for carbs. I miss my pasta and my french fries! Plus the best ice cream for this diet, in moderation of course is either fat free, or no sugar added. That seems to be the smallest amount of sugars and carbs/calories combo I can find. It isn't sugar free but it's a nice treat here and there. You can also make sugar free jello on your own as a treat. I will try to mention things I find for those of you not on as strict of a diet as we are. Which I thought would be a good idea to show you. This is Antonio's diet, which he has to eat more calories then I do. So I am just trying not to eat as many eggs, because I tried, and I can not do it. I come close to throwing up every time. So I am trying to do 3, whenever it says 6, and he has to eat one more meal then I do. If he doesn't work out he eats 5 meals a day, I eat 4. If he works out he eats 6 meals a day, I eat 5. We are also allowed more sugar then normal RIGHT after a workout because we just burned so much sugar. So we have been making a strawberry protein shake with frozen berries and frozen strawberries and light cranberry juice. SUPER yummy! Ok here is the diet:

Meal 1: 
1/2 Cup Oats 
1 Cup berries
tbsp peanut butter (natural)
1 Scoop Protein Powder/ 6 egg whites-cooked how you like
Calories Carbs Protein Fat 
399 49g 33g 12g 


Meal 2: 
1 carb master
6 Egg Whites 
1/2 oz almonds
Calories Carbs Protein Fat 
420 34g 32g 8g 


Meal 3: 
1 Whole Wheat tortilla 
4oz Grilled Chicken 
1/4 cup b rice/ or comparable carb
Sliced Lettuce 
Sliced Tomato 
1/2oz Almonds 
Mustard To Taste 
Calories Carbs Protein Fat 
350 45g 34g 10g 


Meal 4: 
4 oz meat
Mustard 
1/2 Cup Cooked Quinoa 
1 Orange 
veggies
Calories Carbs Protein Fat 
395 45g 40g 7g 


Meal 5: 
veggies
4 oz meat
1/2 Cup Beans, lentils, hummous 
Balsamic Vinegar With Italian Seasoning +1 tbsp olive oil to add taste to beans
Calories Carbs Protein Fat 
347 38g 31g 9g 

If you workout:
Meal 6: 
9 Egg Whites 
1oz Reduced Fat Cheese 
1/2 cup oats
Calories Carbs Protein Fat 
374 30g 45g 9g

Let me guess you are thinking WOAH that's a lot of food.. ya well IT IS! Plus when you drink so much water, you are more full. So it actually is really hard to eat that much every day! Never thought  eating and drinking would be such a chore! But for real people, if you are interested in losing weight and looking for an awesome torturer I mean trainer, please let me know. I hate to admit this diet and stuff is working, but it is! And it is not a quick fix, it's shaping us into a lifestyle. Portion control is so key! But if you would like to work with Brent, let me know! My parents also train with him, my mom has been for 3 years. If you aren't sure and would like to come with antonio and I and test him out, it's $25 for a group drop in, which trust me people is an awesome deal! Most trainers are 80+ for 1 hr. And he is training to be a PA. So he has so much knowledge about the body and will tell you why you are doing that exercise, what it is affecting, and how to do it properly, which is important! If anything, come a few times or for a few months and learn some things to take back on your own!

We also started taking Vitamin B, C, D, and fish oil. They are also making a difference in energy levels and you just feel so much better over all! We don't feel so run down or almost jet lagged all the time. You don't want to go to bed at 8pm because you feel so blah. If anything you want to go to bed because you are exhausted from working out but still feel good! We are also both sleeping much better and much more soundly. Let me know if you need any help on your own diet/work out regime! 

Now on to running. My friend Meggers is doing a hardcore challenge this year, and she is welcoming anyone to join. But you need a google+ account which is easy to sign up for. Basically it's a group of any people who have fitness goals and are helping pump each other up and keep each other accountable for the goals! My goals are lose 10 lbs by May, run a 10k, and run 365+ miles! So if you would like to join, pop over here to operation hardcore fit, read about it and then contact Megan if you would like to join the group! Think it's a great idea!  

To all you runners, if you have runners knee, what are some things you do to deal with it? Please let me know! I really want to accomplish my goals and would like for this not to hinder them!

One last thing, I was trying to not eat super bad while I was sick, so besides chicken noodle soup, I made a french onion soup-sugar, and crouton free! We sprinkled a little reduced fat mozerella cheese on top!

Ingredients:

1 BIG sweet onion, or 2 smaller ones

2 packets french onion soup mix

64 oz of water

1 tbsp of olive oil

2 cloves garlic minced

salt and pepper to taste

1 oz reduced fat cheese

Chop onions to your liking and put in large pot. Mince garlic and add to onions. Add olive oil. Sautee/reduce onions for at least a half hour at low. After a half hour, it's your preference how small onions are. Add first packet to onions and garlic and slowly stir in 32 oz cold water. Add second packet and slowly add another 32 oz cold water. Bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper to liking. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 10 minutes. Put soup in bowl and add cheese. Enjoy!

This was super easy to do and pretty good for a packet mix! It is great with wine, but wine has sugar!!

Hope everyone enjoys their Tuesday! Also make sure to watch Biggest Loser tonight to see our friend Buddy Shuh!! (red team)

Now for the outside!

Well as you may know, I have been currently working on my inner self lately and this is still and always will be a work in progress, but now I feel like I am getting off track on the outside! So between holidays and eating with my parents we managed to make our grocery shopping last a whole 4 weeks! We had to re stock on things that will need replenished like milk, cheese, eggs, etc. And had to get supplies for making meals for the holidays, but besides that we made our food last!

So for this next shopping trip, I have decided it's time to go back to healthy! And it's funny because I read all these websites with tips and shame on myself, because I ALREADY know ALL of these. I just haven't focused on implementing them. I used to work out like crazy and love the gym. But it was for the wrong reasons. So now I need to re-train myself to love the gym for the right reasons and for myself. Not to please anyone else, not to go socialize, and not to keep from being lonely! I know I am not "fat" but I just feel so much better when I am in shape and feel healthy. It seems silly to think working out could change your persona about yourself, but it really is true. Even if you aren't a size 2, working out still makes you feel better.

I know my body cannot physically go smaller then a 6, my bones and my butt won't allow it! So I am ok with not being any smaller then that. It really is just impossible. And when it comes to long sleeve shirts, I can't go below a medium because my arms are so long! They already are shorter then I would like with medium, but if I go large then it's all way too big! But I know smalls usually just can't fit because of my height! And I have a short torso so half the clothes in style right now look quite dumb on me because they are made for people with long torso's.

So this is where the be yourself mumbo jumbo comes in! I can't follow the fashion trends, they don't fit me! I have long legs-always need long pants. I have a sizeably large buttox, so therefore I can not fit into tiny pants or skinny jeans. I have a short torso, so long shirts look funny on me. This is not what the "fashion trend" is. It's you must be tall, super skinny, long torso, and abs. Well I got the tall thing! So this is why I need to stop looking at those pictures. I can't have a V or abs like I see because I don't have the same torso to get those abs! It's all about figuring out what looks best on YOU and what fits your body, not what's in or not! If you look cute, feel good, and things fit correctly, who cares if it's not couture or skinny jeans!

So don't wait till the new years to make a resolution about losing weight or working on your outer self. That is just an excuse. You can make that choice any day of the year! Fight those holiday myths of gaining weight and beat them! You can still indulge just do it in a smaller portion! I am not dieting, I am changing my life style. Diets don't work and they make you miserable!

Let's do this!