"As part of a balanced diet..."

How often have you heard the phrase "... As part of a balanced diet." Perhaps from a commercial?

There does happen to be a reason for this saying. Seriously!

Balance.

We all talk about balancing all of our activities in our lives but do we actually talk about balance in other areas of our lives. And even more, when do we actually live them?

We have reasons for eating the way we do. If you know your diet isn't good (i.e. too much sugar or alcohol or carbs), then perhaps your reason is shame or comfort or pain or because it is easier to not eat well. If your diet is good and your diet is clean, and if you don't under stand what that means please email me :), then maybe your reason is because you are training or are attempting to better your life.

I began to feel my life come into balance tonight. As part of a wise mind and heart, I eat the way I do to bring my body to its perfect balance. I eat to keep my body in balance. To function well and gain strength. To operate in peace. For the ability to move my body the way I ask it to, rigorous or not. And why not?! Why not make a logical choice about nutrition instead of attaching emotions to food?

Such as balance goes, I need to balance my mind and body equally. I often feel that I need to continually work on my mind as I continue into competitions. Constantly think about balance and invite it into my life.

Perfect peace and perfect balance.

Now, my boss is taking us out to lunch. Let's see if I can hold my balance in the face of temptation. :)

Day 3 Yoga Challenge & My New Loves

I have two new loves in my life:

Philly Cooking Creme!

You can buy this stuff at any grocery store. The macros speak for this product in a major way...
The suggested serving size is 1/4 c:
Cals: 110, Protein: 4g, Carbs: 3g, Fat: 9g
But since we all know that when dieting, you can't always give away 110 calories on something if it doesn't fit in with your meal plan. SO! What happens since there are days where I'm really needing my dinner chicken breast to be tasty, check it out if you break it down a little:
For 1 tbsp: Cals: 27.5, Protein: 1g, Carb: 0.75g, Fat: 2.25g (Seriously, 1 tablespoon can satisfy so much)
For 1 tsp:  Cals: 9.16, Protein: 0g, Carb: 0g, Fat: 0.75g

They come in 4 flavors: Savory Garlic, Original, Santa Fe Blend, and Italian Herb & Cheese.

My Other Love:

Coconut Oil!

You can buy this stuff at any health food store, and you can even find it in Wal-Mart in the supplements section. The macros are about the same as Olive Oil:
1 tbsp  Cals: 120, Prot: 0g, Carb: 0g, Fat: 14g     BUT! The flavor of it is incredible! It isn't sweet whatsoever and the flavor is subtle but makes a huge difference in the overall flavor.
It looks like this when you try to scoop it out, so don't let that phase you...

Its kinda chunky, but don't be scared off! It will melt, and since it is so dense you won't be tempted to use too much of it. And give you this incredible flavor you may have been missing! Again, it isn't sweet at all, but you can't miss how much it tastes like coconut.

I will go into the nutrition aspect of this stuff in my next blog because honestly, its too much to list in this post! :)

Stay Tuned In Next Week for... Fat Doesn't Always Make You Fat!

Side Note: I'm on Day 4 of my Yoga Challenge... The last couple days have been a roller coaster! I keep getting little muscle twinges in my high stress muscles (right side back) but I think they'll work themselves out as I continue. Stress has become less, so I'm certain they will. :) But its fun seeing the changes my body makes, it is definitely a ton of core work and lower ab activation. My quads are very sore from certain postures and surprisingly, my triceps are sore from activation.
Last night in class I got into a conversation with myself regarding missing lifting this week. But the more I went along, the more I realized why this is so necessary. Maybe others in the figure arena do not feel this way (totally fine!) but I realize that with a pre-existing injury (like my broken back) that doing everything to take care of my muscles is essential. The static stretching, compression, and extension is so important to make sure I do not exacerbate any existing issues in my body and more importantly, do not create any new ones. Yoga is essential to my weight lifting.

New Eating Disorders: Are They For Real?

This has GOT to be a joke.

I'm sorry but if chosing an apple over a muffin-thingy (it looks like a hamburger donut... I can't really tell what that chick is holding) is wrong... Mark me as dead wrong.

WTF? If you haven't read this yet, well, friends... Almost all of you that I know, directly involved in the fitness or yoga or even those of you I know that are committed to leading a healthy life, are going to be surprised. This article goes into new eating disorders and one particularly scratched my buzzer.

See below taken directly from the article listed above "New Eating Disorders: Are They For Real?" By Lisa Collier Cool

• What is orthorexia? Identified in 1997 by Colorado physician Steven Bratman, MD, orthorexia is Latin for “correct eating.” Here, too, the focus isn’t on losing weight. Instead, sufferers increasingly restrict their diets to foods they consider pure, natural and healthful. Some researchers say that orthorexia may combine a touch of obsessive compulsive disorder with anxiety and warn that severely limited “healthy” diets may be a stepping stone to anorexia nervosa, the most severe - and potentially life-threatening - eating disorder.

Really. I find it only slightly humorous (sarcasm) that because 3/4 of our population is overweight or obese that suddenly doctors are basically saying that Clean Eaters are now the odd-ball's out. And because that is true, the Clean Eaters have something wrong with them.

• Orthorexics: Those affected may start by eliminating processed foods, anything with artificial colorings or flavorings as well as foods that have come into contact with pesticides. Beyond that, orthorexics may also shun caffeine, alcohol, sugar, salt, wheat and dairy foods. Some limit themselves to raw foods.

Again, really. Is elminiating foods really that bad? No. It's just diet preference.

• Treating Orthorexia: Cognitive behavior therapy designed to change obsessive thought patterns regarding food is usually recommended.

I'm sure we've gathered enough in this article from just these 3 paragraphs; I feel like I'm a moving target now. Good thing I'm a fast moving target.
 
Side Note: 30 Day Yoga Challenge is going awesome. I can feel the metabolic shift into Ketosis happening and my brain suddenly feels clear, I have energy even when I didn't sleep much and even on Day 3 I feel like I could do this forever. I feel like I look tighter already but my muscles are smaller (to be expected when your muscles lack glycogen) and will be excited to start lifting again next week.

Yoga Challenge Day 1

Yep, I started early. Admittedly, I'm selectively OCD and like to start all things on Mondays.


I will have this dude's quads.

Today is my first day doing 2 things. And I have a reason for both. So, I started my 30 day yesterday. My yoga bff, Mona, had mentioned she would start yesterday and well... I like having a buddy and support system so I figured, "Hey! Why not?!" in addition to my selective OCD.

Secondly, I'm starting a trial run of a competition diet. During my first trial run of carb cycling, I knew that wasn't for me. First of all, I can't handle only tuna & lettuce on some days and have lots of brown rice on another. I can't cycle. Period.

What am I good at? Doing the same thing over and over. Yes, insanity. Hence my repetitive diet plans and my love for a yoga that repeats the same class everytime. Same postures, different experience. :)

I'm trying a version of a Ketogenic diet that will hopefully help me from losing muscle during my 30 Day Yoga Challenge whilst burning fat. Again, I'm also continuing my lifting and training in the AM starting next week- I'm leaving this week to yoga only to let my body adjust. And yesterday, I was actually really excited about this! Until today when the brain fog set in. I keep wondering when that and the headache will go away. On the other side of it, I'm positive that if I can put in 30 days of it while doing the Yoga Challenge then it will be the correct diet for prep in a couple months. I'm also positive that if I can get through 30 days of yoga while on this diet I will have no problem completing 100 classes during Teacher Training.

Ahhhh for the love of goals. :)

What Your Fitness Speaks

Just a thought. And I will refrain from specifics as it does include and/or is about an indirect boss of mine.

I happened to be doing some stairmill work last week for FMC and as sweat was pouring down my face I glanced to my left and who should be working with a trainer but this indirect boss. Now, he is a physician and someone I have great respect for. His thought processes are always thorough and he handles a workload beyond what any above-average person does.

That being said, he was all Dr. Complainy Pants. Seeing at him around the hospital I would have thought he was an active man (normal active, not competitor active). And since he is such a hard worker around there, I would have expected the same in all areas of his life.

Not so. Dr. Complainy Pants happened to whine the whole time about balance, pains, how hard it is, and truly only put in minimal work. Now, we do not all go to the gym to impress others or watch someones workout. But lets be honest, you can tell a lot by a person in how they workout. Truly Dr. Complainy Pants is also Dr. Smarty Pants. But I will give him credit that he was there at 5am and doing kettlebell work.

Trainers don't need to hear our excuses and complaints. Seriously! I tell my trainer "I'm easy on myself all the time, I don't need you to be easy on me. In fact, I pay you not to be." Is it any wonder that those competitors on The Biggest Loser lose so much weight when they have Jillian Michaels yelling at them all day? Our commitment to fitness or the betterment of our own bodies speaks to others. We do try not to judge each other and I hold no judgement against people who are overweight, as I have been there and know it is NOT easy to pull yourself out of it... But does a person with a toned physique not tell others that they are a hard worker or dedicated?

Beyond Dr. Complainy Pants, I saw our CEO at the gym a few months ago. SHE is 5'2" and is probably in her late 50s (I'm guessing, she could be older and look awesome).... DEADLIFTING 215 lbs.

Can you guess what I think about her now? :)

30 Day Yoga Challenge

If anyone can recall, one of my goals in 2011 was to complete a 30 day yoga challenge. And I'm doing the Bikram style yoga so it is always the same: 90 minutes of the same sequence of 26 yoga postures in a room at 105 degrees & 40% humidity. If you've never experienced a session of Bikram...

It freaking rocks.

What The???

I recommend it to anyone (which is why I'm going to be a teacher full-time [someday]). In May, I will complete 30 days straight of yoga. And actually, I'm starting a week from today, April 27th, so I end May 26th. It occurred to me that Memorial Day is coming and we'll probably head out of town; I think Handsome will appreciate that I decided to plan my fitness goals around our personal life for once, instead of the other way around. :)

Why Am I Doing This?!

• I want to levitate. Not literally, emotionally. I'd like to balance myself and work out my insecurities before going into contest prep mid-July (see below). Yoga got me through a divorce, I'm positive it can strengthen my heart during this season of my life.
• I plan on becoming a yoga teacher in the fall, and one must complete at least a 30 day challenge beforehand. PS-Teacher training includes 60 days of straight yoga and most days are 2 classes a day. :)
• May is the only time I can fit it in before competing in October and beginning teacher training around the same time.

What is my plan of action regarding competing?????

• Yes, I did make the decision to compete! :) I have decided on an October show as my first.
• I plan to continue lifting in the mornings (M-F yoga classes will always be at 4, and Sat-Sun will always be at 930am), I plan to continue on creatine on my lifting days, and I plan on adjusting my diet slightly to intake some more protein so as to pro-actively ensure I do not lose any muscle mass during this time.

Am I afraid of anything regarding this???

• Although I have been afraid in the past, I am making the decision to not be afraid and just do it.
• I will, however, admit that I am afraid concerned on how this will affect my muscles. I've been working really hard for my muscle size and am concerned this may bring a stringy-lengthy look to my muscles. (If any figure competitor out there has any suggestions on what I can do to prevent this, please PLEASE tell me! :)

Where am I doing this at?

• Yarrow Yoga Hot Yoga & Wellness Studio in Spokane. Check out their website if you like!

PS: I'd love friends to join me during this 30 days! If you've ever wanted to try it, please let me know so we can make plans to hot yoga it up during May!

Here's to strength, vitality, and beauty! Bring it on, yoga.

Blonde vs. Brunette

So, this blog is absolutely not about trends. This blog is not about hair styles. And this blog is certainly not about celebrities. With that being said, this post IS about hair color... If any of you know me, you know I'm an absolute wuss in changing my appearance because I'm one of those "stick with what works" sort of girls.

So, here's to those girls who can just change... And my votes. :)

Ashley Tisdale: Brunette




Jessica Alba: Brunette



Britney Spears: Blonde



Brittany Snow: Blonde




Cameron Diaz: Blonde



Denise Richards: Blonde

Isla Fisher: ? Um, they kinda look the same... but I like the lighter one..



Jessica Biel: BRUNETTE! Blonde is not your look sweetie!



Katherine Heigl: Blonde.

Scarlett Johannson: Blonde

Victoria Beckham: BRUNETTE! You look like Malibu Barbie, but in a bad way.

And lastly....

Me. :) Needed something new... Thoughts?

PS-For those who are curious about the results of my body fat test... Last time I was 125 lbs with 23.2% bf. Today I am 123 with 21.8% bf... AND I gained 2 lbs of muscle. :) The more I stay in the 120's, the more I am noticing that my body is becoming increasingly efficient at turning fat into muscle. Which is what I like to see!