FitforCompetition

So, I've toyed with the idea of doing a fitness competition. I am not sure I would EVER do one, but I would LOVE to be in competition shape. That's why, when I saw that my girl, Amber, from Mother Pumper, put together a fitness competition prep program, I was EXCITED to check it out!!!! Here is the link: http://motherpumper.com/fitforcompetition/, check it out & if you want to sign up, PLEASE remember to put down that Becki Allen sent you!! The price tag is a little overwhelming, but there are two payment plans you can choose from, you can sign up for a monthly payment or you can pay every other month. The price is SUPER fair when you consider you would be able to work one on one with THREE trainers!!! AMAZING!!! Seriously, this program ROCKS!!!

Exciting things ahead

You guys, I LOVE lifting!!! It is seriously my passion :) I am in Stage 3 of the New Rules of Lifting for Women & it has been amazing!! My body is continuing to change as I gain strength. I am also in a group for accountability with eating clean (MotherPumper14by2014 on FB-- join if you want to be part of this great group of ladies!). We started last week & I am down 2 pounds since we started!! I have been maintaining since the summer, not really losing but not gaining either. I haven't been focusing on my diet like I should be & I think it's showed. I am fine with my weight actually, but I definitely want to eat clean through the end of the year & hopefully burn fat. I can't wait to start the new year feeling my best! :) We are also going on a cruise at the beginning of December, so I want to be looking good for that too LOL

I have loved being a Train Dirty Fitness Ambassador. Crystal, the founder of Train Dirty Fitness, has given us a lot of opportunities to partner with companies as well as try new products or get discounts on products. I am SO excited to be meeting her on FRIDAY!!! I am driving to Wisconsin to be certified to teach a Train Dirty Fitness bootcamp :) I can't wait to bring TDF to Chicago!!! I am hoping to get classes started in a school or church. I am still praying for opportunities to hold classes in the area.

I am ALSO going to the Sweaty Betties' conference, Inspiration & Perspiration, this weekend. It is a fitness & motivational conference. I am hoping to come back with a focus on my goals for 2014. I am SO excited to meet some awesome ladies that I only know through FB as well as network & meet some of my awesome fitness idols!! Life is getting exciting for me & I can't wait to see what the next year holds!! I am hoping to go back to school & get certified as a personal trainer or wellness coach within the next year & maybe start working at a gym. Things are a little up in the air in that area though.

As far as life, I am loving the Y! I have made some friends in the weight room, I love lifting with the old guys in the morning! They certainly make me feel good about myself. One old guy stopped me on my way to the treadmill the other day & told me that I had the best figure there!! I am still feeling good about that one, even though that's not what it's all about. I have to say that it's OK to let a compliment make you feel good, even days after it's paid! :) I am also loving the Yoga class at the Y. Our yoga teacher is just so gentle & relaxing, even though she pushes us to try new things. I think my favorite poses she's had us do are handstands & birds of paradise. They are crazy hard poses, and I am still working on them, but it is fun to try new things :)

Eggs

On the Whole30 or paleo diet, eggs are pretty much a staple for breakfast, however they can get boring. In January, I started off making an old standby, the "Paleo pancake" which I found floating around the web. It's basically eggs & bananas mashed up together. I would fry that up in my coconut oil, since it left a sweet after taste & then top it with fruit, blueberries & strawberries were my favorite. After a few weeks of that, I got bored of it though & started making my sweet potato hash & topped it with a few scrambled eggs. That was good too and would keep me fuller, longer, so I continued that for breakfast through January & February.

Then I started seeing things on Pinterest &  people posted it to my wall a few times, of eggs cooked in a muffin tin with bacon wrapped around it. I am not doing bacon in March, just to try to cut out some fat from my diet, but I've also seen prosciutto used in place of bacon. I got the nerve up to try to make my own egg "muffins" on Sunday. I had found some prosciutto where the ingredients were only ham & salt. Those ingredients are even Whole30 compliant! I was excited to try something new in the way of eggs. Anyways, I covered the bottom of a few muffin tins with the meat & then mixed together some red pepper, onions & a few eggs in a bowl. I then poured the egg mixture into each "meat cup" & then baked it for about 15 minutes. I made some this morning too & I have to say, that it is a yummy, protein packed way to eat eggs in the morning. Plus, you can switch it up by using different veggies or even making it sweet by adding a banana & fruit in there (I wouldn't recommend wrapping that in bacon or prosciutto though!) Here are a few of my beauties from this morning.

I cheated

I cheated, I fell off the wagon, I am back on Day 1 of the Whole30 :( I ate some pizza last night. We went out to Piece Pizza yesterday and before we left, I looked at their menu, I saw a salad that looked decent & so we were out the door. Well, things didn't go as planned from there.

There is this huge wait when we got there & we ended up waiting for well over an hour, with 3 little kids. Yikes! Plus, there's really no "waiting" area, so we were amid all of the tables that were being delivered their delicious pizzas. The smell of pizza was everywhere & did I mention that I felt like I was going to faint b/c I was so hungry?! I told Nick a few times that we should just leave, I knew I wouldn't be able to withstand the pizza that we were going to order once we sat down.

FINALLY, we were seated. I DID order my salad, I asked for no cheese, but forgot to ask them to hold the candied walnuts (sugar everywhere I tell ya!), which I DIDN'T eat, Nick snacked on those. But the whole salad was covered in dressing. I could tell it was a sugary dressing too b/c the Whole30 has given me super sugar tasting abilities LOL So I was eating the salad, but I knew I had already eaten all this sugary dressing, so I figured I may as well eat the pizza too since I would have to start over today anyway.

Let me tell you, it was GLORIOUS!! The last time we ate at Piece Pizza, I remember not being too impressed, but this time it was delicious. I tasted everything, the cheese, the crust, the sauce, the pepperoni, it was all soooooo yummy. I have to say, I am happy that I ate it LOL The 2 times I ate pizza in February, when I was off the Whole30 challenge, I wasn't too impressed. It was good, but not like this pizza, which was what dreams are made of ;) To be fair, I do have to say that it sat like a lump in my stomach all night & I did gain 2 pounds in water weight from the carbs or whatever.

This time around, my experience with the Whole30 Challenge has been a lot different than it was in January. It.is.a.STRUGGLE! It has been so mentally hard this time around. I didn't go crazy in February when I was not doing the challenge, I basically ate the same as in January, but I did add in daily chocolate. I had pizza a few times & a couple sandwiches for lunch, but I didn't binge on anything. I was shocked that it has been so hard, BUT I think my body IS craving the sugary/carbs more because it HAS been so long since I've had them. I have been craving pastries like mad, I keep wanting donuts, but I can't even tell you the last time I even ate a donut! I don't eat those things regularly. It is insane.

I am back to Day 1 & I am so sad. This is a timeline that someone wrote up about the different phases while on the Whole30: Whole30 Timeline. I was in that Day 8-15 range where your food cravings rival that of pregnancy. I NEVER had that phase last time, at least that I remember, so if I did, it wasn't that bad. This time was cray cray BUT I was ALMOST to the freaking Tiger Blood stage. Oh, how I want to get to that Tiger Blood stage again LOL It is amazing, I KNOW how good it can feel to eat clean & have all of that energy, SO I will work hard, to get past all the yuckiness...AGAIN....to hopefully have a successful 30 days this time around. My only question is, am I on round 2 still or does this make me on Round 3??

Confession

OK friends, I have something to confess. I have not been eating clean the past few days :/ It all started on Saturday. My husband worked hard on the house all day, so I decided he should have a treat & should pick where he wanted to go for dinner. Turns out he wanted Chicago style deep dish pizza. UM, so NOT clean :( Sometimes we have to do things for other people though, right? I checked out the salad options & none of them piqued my interest. Not enough protein, or worse yet, FRIED protein & I hate paying for a salad at a restaurant that will leave me hungry. So I decided to have some pizza. WORST.DECISION.EVER!! I definitely paid for eating all of that cheese & grains!! It sat like a brick in my stomach for the rest of the night & even into the next day :( UGH!!

Today I gave into convenience & at a peanut butter & jelly sandwich and some corn chips. Ugh, now I don't know why I did that, but at the time, it just seemed easier than making anything, even a salad, I was just too hungry in the moment & to be honest, I've missed pb&j!! Anyways, it was good & didn't hurt my stomach as much as the pizza did. I am trying my hardest to be kind to myself and not beat myself up for a few poor choices. I will not be defeated by these slips & am choosing to continue on, eating clean. Besides, I am doing another Whole30 in March, and I don't want it to be a bad transition. I want it to be a pretty smooth adjustment since I am trying to continue on the Paleo diet.

Life is a struggle though isn't it? I mean there will always be falls & failures. We will never do everything perfectly. I am learning that I can't  beat myself up for that. Life will not be perfect or easy, this side of Heaven. I am beginning to think that how you react to your slips, screw ups, & falls determines how the rest of your journey will go. I think it can get into your head & make you give up, or it can spur you on to do better. It can actually strengthen any future resolve.

I have obviously learned that I will not be eating deep dish pizza again LOL I hated the way it made me feel. However, I think a sandwich here or there is OK. It will not be my normal lunch, but I can't let the fear of what may happen scare me away from starting over & from having grace with myself. I will admit that I began to think of where eating like that has gotten me. I was not happy with how I looked & I didn't have energy and I don't want to go back to that lifestyle. I would rather be eating clean & moving forward, I will hopefully be better prepared & have a lunch in mind when I am out and about in the morning.