calories in calories out...how much

weight loss, the battle of the bulge, dieting, exercising, FOOD... how does it all work?? i am still in a huge weight lose rutt...that i created myself (part of me feels that i should have been better while i was laying in bed all day everyday for 5months straight...but i wasn't and now i'm paying for all the lost muscle and fat gained) bummer. so i'm still and will probably always be needing to get an extra 10lbs of my body. why?? because i don't feel good. i don't feel comfortable in my own skin. i miss feeling thin and fit, i miss feeling that i don't need to always be on a diet, i miss the control i use to have over eating...not crazy control just enough so i could fit in my jeans.

so i've been self-analyzing my eating habits, i've been trying to write everything down that i put in my mouth (but i know i sneak crackers here and there) so i'm getting better and more accountable about it. i'm trying to stick to my weightwatchers points...and some days i'm great and somedays i'm not so great. but i have been reading a lot about eating and i'm learning a lot. i knew this already but somehow i seem to need to be re-taught these principles every 2years. so here are the principles

1. calories in calories out. doesn't matter if you ate the cake at 7am or 10pm those calories will add up regardless of when you eat them.

2. there really is no fat-burning zone. again its all about calories in calories out, the more you exercise the more calories you will burn, which in turn will help lose fat. remember 1lb of fat is 3500calories.

3. 5mini meals is way better than 3 regular meals. i was absolutely flabbergasted to read that its actually not that much better for us. its great for those people who can portion control, and can monitor and record all that they eat. but for most of us, our 5mini meals end up being 5regular meals and again the calories add up and then bit us in the butt....literally.

so in review its all about the calories in vs. the calories out. to figure out exactly how many calories i should be eating everyday there is this amazing free website that will calculate your caloric needs specific for your ht, wt, age, gender and activity level. caloric intake

trim 10-15% off that total caloric number=weight loss. don't drop more than 500 calories a day or your body will go into starvation mode and hold onto everything. so i think once again i have figured out where i need to be. 2000calories a day to maintain...or since i'm still fighting the battle of the bulge i've got to stick to 1600 calories a day...i can do it, i can do it, i can do it!!

to read more exact info and learn more info about weight loss go here

confidence...even the pros like kara need to work on it

this is kara goucher. who is she...she is an amazing team USA runner. why i like her? cause she is fast...and she is like most of us. she runs cause she likes to push herself and because she feels it is her talent. she wants to compete because she is a fighter. i say she is like most of us, because she, an elite athlete she battles with self-confidence. i would too if i was running a 10,000meter race (thats a 10k on a track about 25 laps) with the fastest athletes in the world!! i am lucky the only person i'm running against is myself and even then i sometimes find it hard to tell myself that i can do it!!

Kara is an amazing athlete and has accomplished so much. you can learn more about her specific accomplishments here: http://www.usatf.org/athletes/bios/Goucher_kara.asp

i want to share a quick story about kara and how though she is a super athlete she is honest as well.

when kara was a senior in high school she was running a cross country meet and she was leading the pack by 25yards she was gaining on everyone. but there was one girl she just couldn't pull away from...right at her side, shoulder to shoulder was an eighth grader. and if that wasn't bad enough that eighth grader at her side was also her little sister. finally kara turned to her sister and said, "its ok, you can pass me." and her little sister did. that race killed kara's self-confidence. getting beat is hard, but always harder when you get beat my someone you know, and love, and how the rest of the community will say, "you let your little sister beat you?"

after that race, every time she lined up for a race she thought of her little sister beating her...it was a memory that took a long time to get over.

i have read several article about kara, and have become a fan. she is talented, strong, and an extreme competitor. but she is also like most us and battles those silly thoughts that come into our mind and tell us we can't do something, or that we aren't good enough. i know i battle those thoughts and more, but i also have thoughts that tell me 'i can do it, and that i am strong, and that if i work hard enough it will come.' so i enjoy reading that someone as athletic and as accomplished as kara has to tell herself she can do it! that sometimes she has good days/races, and sometimes she has bad days/races.

(yes thats paula radcliffe and kara, what amazing athletes)

this is another article that is titled, "mind games" as it refers to kara's mental focus and challenges of winning. http://www.runnersworld.com/article/1,7124,s6-243-297--13431-0,00.html

i share this with you, because i think it helps us to know that there are other people in the world that repeat a 'mantra' to keep the good thoughts and praises keeping us properly motivated. i know i feel better that kara with her rockin bod, and her rockin talents works with a sports psychologist to help keep her thoughts on positive. here is another recent article about kara, she may have had a bad race but she is ready to move on!

http://running.competitor.com/2011/01/features/the-benefit-of-a-%E2%80%9Cbad%E2%80%9D-race_20530

so the bottom line is...its normal to doubt yourself, but the important thing is, is to over come those thoughts and know deep down that you can be and do anything you want!!

good news and bad news, spot training

Fit Momma Question: Toning the Lower Half?

by TRAINERMOMMA on FEBRUARY 9, 2011

Our body works as a whole unit. To spot train is impossible. If you want to lose size and tone on your legs and butt, or anywhere for that matter, you’ve got to:

1. Drop some weight. Nutrition will have a huge impact on your results. (Fit Momma Challenge #5 comes in here — have you done it yet? ) In order to let the definition shine through, we’ve got to reduce the bulk and fat that’s on top of it.

2. Lift weights upper and lower body. Don’t ignore anything – ever. Also, having balanced, sculpted muscles is just plain beautiful and healthy. Lifting weights transforms your body into a calorie burning machine which will assist in the “dropping weight” category.

3. Do some sweaty, intense cardio at least 30 minutes most days a week. Also, don’t forget to throw in a few days of HIIT to those cardio workouts.

When trying to strengthen, tone, and reduce the size of the thighs and butt, you cannot miss when you use the “Fab Four” for the lower body:

lunges

squats

step ups

wall sits

***so there you have it peeps... i can't just wish my gutt and butt away, and as much as i wish i could spot train to get my bum tighter , or somehow move my bum fat up a little higher so i could have a B cup instead of a chubby 12yr old boy chest size:) oh well i guess for now i'll keep moving my body and trying to eat a little healthier.***

core strength

a couple years ago some friends and i were hanging out (kellie, kristy, heather, jo and rich) Rich at that time was getting his FIT on cause he was trying out for the FBI and had to be in top-notch killer shape. he had to do certain drills in a certain amount of time. so rich wanted to see if any of us could do it, so he timed us to see how many sit-ups we could do in 60secs. i think i did like 36, kristy of course won doing a million and a half. and then jo tried and she could only do like 3 sit-ups. (do you gals remember this) i was shocked jo is an athlete, runs marathons but couldn't do a sit-up?? well she had 4kids in less than 6years and her stomach muscles just weren't the same.

now that i have had the same privilege of having a prego-belly i realize that doing a sit-up after having a baby who has stretched all your stomach muscles to shreds, i too couldn't do a sit-up until about 3wks ago. sorry i made fun of you back then jo:)

so to all of us who have had, and will have a baby in the belly, getting our core strength back is a challenge but here are some great tips to get it back.

also just remember our core helps us do every movement we make. walking, standing upright, sitting, turning, jumping, etc. so if we don't have a strong core we lose our overall total strength. so keep in mind just 5min every other day may make all the difference in finally achieving that full sit-up. i know it has for me.

the new mac n'cheese

and just so ya know my picture taking skills don't give this meal justice...too bad it's not a scratch and sniff picture cause you would for sure want to get it. also i don't know how amazing "Gina" skinnytastes.com at skinny weight watcher recipe configures all the points, but i'm pretty sure 2cups=3pts.

ingredients

1/2 butternut squash

2tsp. olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 lb whole-wheat elbows

1 Tbs butter

1 Tbs flour

1 1/2 cups fat free milk

2 cups low-fat shredded cheddar cheese

directions

1. bake 1/2 of the butternut squash in over 350 degrees. i cut the squash in half length wise and drizzle a little olive oil on the squash. bake for 40min until tender with a fork. remove from oven and remove skin and chop into 1 inch cubes.

2. cook pasta as package directs. place noodles and squash in casserole dish together, mixing.

3. melt butter over low heat. whisk in flour: cook for 2min. slowly whisk in milk. bring mixture to a boil, then simmer cook an additional 3min. stir occasionally. add in cheese, stir until melted.

4. stir cheese sauce into pasta and squash.

and vavoom you have a healthy and still cheesy mac n'cheese, in little time. i really like the sweetness the squash adds and my hubby like to add cut up slices of ham to his plate. give this a try i promise you and your kiddos will love it!!

i know my twinners loved it...even if it got a little messy.:)

speed

lets be honest, who doesn't want to get faster???!!! even the guys running a 2:03 marathon are wanting to be the first to break 2hrs!!! isn't that wild. these above plyometric drills may take you back to high school track team, or even back to your high school pace:) i think they're a great option and i have honestly never tried the straight leg move until now. i'm hoping it helps. (click on the image to see the instructions better) i use these clips because #1 they're great 2# the model athletes are way cuter than i am..hince no need to edit out any cottage cheese:)

accountability...update

last week i posted my wonderful new idea of having my exercise goals on slips of paper and then removing them off my white board once i had done them. i have to say it went well. i don't know if i accomplished everything because of the white board or because i knew i would have to be accountable to all of you... it was also super interesting to feel the pressure as the week went by to get my workouts in. by thursday i didn't think i could do it, run 4miles, abs oh my!! but i did it, and by saturday when the white board was empty all except spin. i felt really good about myself and all that i had accomplished even though i really felt on tuesday i may have bit off more than i could chew. but i gradually did it!!!

i did all of this in one week!!:

run 3, abs, abs, abs, run 4, run 6, resistance, speed, run 3!! on the list but not done: spin

this week i had the same plan. except so far not so bueno! monday i was suppose to go to bodypump at the gym. my plan was to check in at 615p(get a slip cause the class fills up) run until the class started and kill myself with the barbell for 60min. well the hubs got slammed at the hosptial and didn't get home until 7p.(it normally kills him to walk through the door anytime before 615p) i didn't run earlier cause i thought i would just do it at the gym and it was cold outside for us Arizonians (a freezing 55degrees) and i didn't go to the gym when spence got home cause i hadn't seen him all day....blah.

then tuesday came and went and i still didn't make it to the gym. other obligations came up and again it was too cold to run outside with the littles.

however, today came and i snuck off the gym early 6a. .....oh its so nice spence has started a new rotation and doesn't have to leave til 745a!!! (he has been leaving at 520a....and i need sleep too much to go to the gym at 4a!!! i think that would be crazy) so i'm excited for this new month because i have a great schedule lined out, and spence will be a normal person and work 730-6p how nice i already fell so spoiled, and its today is the first day!!! so i have BIG hopes for this month...and once again i'll let you know how it goes.

first thing this month is to take my measurements again. sometimes the scale doesn't change but the thickness of my thunder thighs might just shrink, so every 2 months i measure: arms, chest, high waist, low waist, hips, thighs. a lot of the time it doesn't change but i really need to start fitting into some clothes other than sweat pants:) and i know that when i have a weigh in, or measurements that need to be taken i somehow discipline myself better.:)

so i say get get yourself a workout weekly schedule and view it often...and adjust as you need. it really helped me to see all the exercise i got in in a full week, instead of just a daily check off, its nice to see the whole week at a glance.:) good luck this week!!1