Sunday, February 17, 2013

Sweets

My sweet-tooth is taking over my life and infringing on my workouts. Just thought I would let you know. Its the carmels that have been getting me lately..cravings that just won't stop! Our Valentine's day was good. First Valentine's day as a married couple :). We kept it lowkey, but waking up to a refrigerator that contains beautiful daisies and chocolate covered strawberries with a card addressed to "wife"....melted me :). Love that guy. I just hope he knows how much...Every.Single.Day.
I've been semi-better at getting to my workouts. This week it's only been 2 days, but better than no days right? Now to tackle the better diet. *help me*

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

State of Being


Did I mention I'm all married now? He's my favorite.





Curry Chicken

Yesterday I made steak on our stovetop since we didn't feel like getting the BBQ all fired up. I haven't done that before without making the steak taste gross and dry. Have to say it turned out much better than I expected! So today I'm trying out a Curry Chicken recipe! It smells so good, I have high hopes. We will see how it turns out. Here's the recipe I used:

2 chicken breasts cubed, salted the chicken with garlic salt and browned it on the stovetop on medium-high heat.
1 can of coconut milk
1.5 tsp ground curry
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp tumeric
2 green onions
1/2 onion chopped
1 tsp garlic salt

After I browned the chicken I placed it in my slow-cooker along with the combo of spices and coconut milk and onions. I'm letting it cook for 4-5 hours on low. Then I will turn it up to high after adding 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of cold water to thicken the sauce, then stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons of lime juice. Cook up 3 cups of rice & yummmmmmmm!

I found the recipe by a simple google search :), modified it a little..we will see how it turns out!

Sunday, February 3, 2013

New ways to motivate

For the last month, okay maybe two months, I have been going back and forth trying to motivate myself to get back into the swing of things and train for another half marathon and eventually a marathon. January felt too cliche, like a new resolution that I was bound to break. So here we are at February and I'm realizing that time isn't moving any slower, I'm not getting any closer to reaching my goals and it's time to just buck up, put on my big girl panties and get out there.

Pinterest has been my friend.

Myfitnesspal App on my iPod/computer/kindle. 
Getting back into the habit of writing everything that goes in down, otherwise I just don't remember what I've eaten!


Reminding myself that Exercise is a Stress reliever too. 
Life these days feels so focused on just getting through the day at work. A lot of times, I get home and I just don't want to do anything but eat, drink a glass of wine, go to bed, watch TV and just NOT move. It's really hard when I feel so exhausted and burnt out to just get out and go for a run, or go to the gym. Lately its been working for me to tell myself...instead of thinking about running, just go. All I am doing is making myself feel guilty for Not making it there, which is adding to my stress.


Providing a reward system. 
While I was doing my treadmill workout today I was thinking of rewards that would be a good incentive for me. Getting a massage, going out to a movie with my man, buying myself a new workout shirt or pair of pants. I'm sure this isn't new to you but it seemed like a good idea today---having a jar whether it contains marbles or quarters or dollars or whatever, something that counts how many workouts you do. And then make a rule- for every workout you do (must be over 30 minutes) you can put a marble in it and when you reach a certain number you get something for it. Or maybe its for every mile you run you get a point. Either way, its holding yourself accountable & rewarding yourself for your good efforts!


Focus on the number of workouts 
Find out whats holding you back. For me, I feel pressured by the fact that I'm only running 1 or 2 miles in a workout, or I'm only burning 250 calories instead of 500. I feel like I'm not meeting expectations. And because of that it makes me want to sit down in the middle of the road and give up instead of just continuing on. So I'm taking it week by week. This week I'm focusing on just getting to the gym and putting the time in. It doesnt matter what I am doing. I could be walking for 45 minutes, I could be doing 10 minutes of this, 10 minutes of that and 10 minutes of something else. All that matters is... I'm there. I am taking the time to do it. Eventually I will graduate to the mode where I can see that my efforts are paying off and at that point I get motivated to work harder and be stronger. But for now, I need the extra push to just be there and not have that extra weight on my shoulders making me feel guilty for not doing enough.

Find Healthy Living blogs that motivate you
Tina's blog- Carrots N Cake, has been a long time motivator for me. Its fun to read about other people's lives and how they deal with their own struggles with healthy living. Plus it makes me want to do better, gives me ideas for myself and it's always nice when they are enjoyable to read. 


My pact for the week is to just get the workouts in. 30 minutes at a time, til I feel like I'm getting somewhere. :) Wish me luck.