Zumba struggles

snack before subbing Zumba.

asparagus soup (with siracha squeezed in!)

oat cakes with aubergine pesto

 

these wheat free crackers don't really taste like anything but the hearty texture is starting to grow on me-- plus it just takes on whatever flavor is on its topping. 

Dinner:

sauteed broccoli and zuchinni

Bigham's sweet and sour chicken PLUS spinach

look ma no rice! I've been doing pretty well this week with not eating complex carbs at dinner. Who doesn't like a side of rice or potatoes with their meat? Its a habit I'm trying to kick! I have to admit though that I did have a glass of white wine after my horrific night yesterday. On the way to Zumba (pointlessly rushing to get there early) I spilled my drink all over my bag and got my new book, cds, and wallet SOAKED with sticky powerade grrrr. To top it off, I thought the class I subbed didn't enjoy my class. I'm trying my best to not be so dang sensitive.. its just hard! I'm only human :)

Breakfast

mmm.. I'm so glad coffee is back in my life :-)

Workout: POP pilates Bikini Workout @ http://www.blogilates.com/
Protein smoothie:

My package came today!! T ordered me a long distance lens for our my Nikon camera. Sweeeeet!!! I'm also enrolled in a master 2 hour photography class in a few weeks that will hopefully teach me how to use my camera @ http://www.vanitystudios.co.uk/
ha! I've sort of just been pointing and snapping. I'm assuming there's some sort of order to this photography business.

Agenda: read, teach, relax

The Big Book of Exercises

Day 2 and so far so good on sticking to the list of rules I made for myself :-P In all seriousness, the list isn't exactly written in stone but its definitely helping me make smarter eating choices.

after rehearsing some zumba routines, I had some sliced strawberries with cottage cheese and agave nectar. The agave syrup gave this the sweetness I was craving!

while making this concoction, I accidentally dropped the tub of cottage cheese on the floor. Sad face :(
Guess its no more cottage cheese for me until our next Ocado order!!

lunch was a huge plate of leftovers. Maybe I should have included something on my list regarding portion size, EEP!

I had my breakfast cookie prior to teaching zumba. It was good but I forgot to add in some sweetener the recipe calls for like stevia or maybe even honey. Whatever bite I had with raisins was perfectly sweet though!

After teaching and going to my salsa class, it was already 9:30 and I purposefully "accidently" stopped by Subway and got a turkey sub sandwich. I must've had a change of "no complex or refined carbs for dinner" heart because I made eggs (1 whole egg, 2 egg white) scramble with broccoli and hummus. The combination was really satisfying and delicious!

so glad I decided to go for this lighter meal except I forgot broccoli=fiber=tummy bloat. Today I have this little pudge in my tummy that won't go away.

Breakfast of champions this morning!

more of the usual w. a side of mangoes and blueberries

I made a morning trip out to Waterstones, a UK bookstore to pick up some more reading material.

I know I'm not a man but seriously, there was a lack of good female strength training books. The BIG BOOK of exercises has different moves to target each muscle in the body. It's quite comprehensive! In case you didn't know, I'm a fan of anything Men's (or Women's Health) and it doesn't hurt that there are colored pictures in there ;) ha ha ha.. I also picked up Patrick Holford's ONB-- The book is huge!! I'm going for an open house this Saturday to ION, the institute Holford founded in 1984. According to the book, it's the largest training school in the UK to offer degree-accredited training in nutritional therapy. I'm super excited to check it out!

Snack prior to PUNCH class:

I'm extra hungry these days that even breakfast won't keep me full til lunch!

I gobbled down my turkey sub from last night after class. As expected, the bread was soggy and the entire sandwich not very tasty but it did the job :)

 

 Agenda: read the ONB, substitute teach a Zumba class in Kentish town, RELAX!

Dogs need love too

Teriyaki beef for lunch

all those veggies come w. the Teriyaki beef-- makes my life so much more simpler :)

sauteed peppers w. evoo, salt and pepper. The sweetness of the peppers really shine through w. the minimal seasoning.

After lunch, I spent most of the rainy afternoon finishing The Help. It was such a GREAT book. I highly recommend it and btw.. grab some tissues. Either I'm PMS'ing or it really is that much of a tear jerker!

Dinner:

more Bighams..

I made sure to prepare lots and lots of veggies so I wouldn't feel a huge void of no carbs at dinner :( I usually eat something like pasta or brown rice w. my main but its time to change that rule!!

I added some spinach to the Moroccan chicken tagine for more substance

sauteed veggies in evoo, sesame oil, soy sauce, and siracha

T's plate: I added some brown rice to his plate because I think its unwise for him since he's so big (in a good way) and he needs those extra calories!

The trick is to make yourself think you're eating a lot of food. Technically this is a big plate but half of it is veggies!

Dogs need love too yo!

don't mind that huge mess she's making on the couch, argh!!!

After dinner, I watched another movie.. I'm on some movie kick or somethin..

It was actually kind of enjoyable.. I wouldn't watch it again per say but I thought it was light hearted and cute!

I also made a breakfast cookie for a snack tomorrow before I teach zumba. Recipe courtesy of:
http://fitnessista.com/the-fitnessista-cookbook/the-breakfast-cookie/

• 1/3 scoop oats
• 1 tablespoon almond butter
• 1/2 scoop chocolate protein whey
• Mix together into a crumbly mixture then add----
• 1/8 skim milk
• Toppings: raisins, 2 squares of dark chocolate broken into little pieces

Spread evenly on a small plate and then pop it in the fridge overnight. I've tried this before last year and it was a nice sweet breakfast. Its even more perfect as an afternoon sweet treat.

T made me breakfast this morning because I slept in til almost 9!! I feel like I never do that.. Holy crap.

sunny side up with cinnamon and all spice. Yum!

Check out that duck egg! The yolk was definitely creamier and bigger than our usual eggs.

Agenda: zumba, take Noms to the park, zumba teach, salsa class

A new set of rules

So I've decided to make some new rules to follow. I'm a little tired of being so wishy washy when it comes to my eating habits. I know that things are easier to follow when they're written down and memorized understood. I also want to see some more definitive results in the gym. You know what they say- your body is made 80% in the kitchen and 20% in the gym.. or somethin like that.  So far, here is what I've come up with:

Eat right, get fit rules

No carbs at dinner, only veggies (does not pertain eating out)

Only one dessert per day and it must be eaten before dinner

Fast food, only once a week (occasionally T and I will have our fav junk food: Mc D's!)

Must eat breakfast (this is easy since its already an engrained habit)                  

If going out for dinner, skip carbs at lunch

Must eat vegetables for lunch and dinner

Either no bread at dinner table or if its a must have, eat only one piece

No drinking during the week

Cheese eaten sparingly

Approved Snackages

Nuts

Cottage cheese

Fruit

Vegetables

Hummus

Salsa

Protein bars (only before dinner)

Yogurt

Smoothies (homemade)

Edamame

Oatmeal

Cereal

Nut butters

By all means this list is not final but I think its pretty decent so far. I'll add more if I come up with anything else.

Last night's dinner was a huge success. Mostly because we received a free chicken in our Ocado delivery order. They must have made a mistake and included it on accident but hey I'm not complaining--- especially since the guy who dropped off our groceries this morning was an ASSHOLE!

this bad boy went into the oven for 45 minutes and voila: dinner in a cinch!

I sauteed some zuchinni and shrooms in a wok with evoo, salt, pepper, and siracha. Deliciousness..

god.. why did you have to make the bad chicken skin taste so good. Chicken skin is probably my biggest weakness when it comes to eating "healthy" chicken. There ain't anything healthy bout the skin!

with a side of brown rice

I spent most of my afternoon watching girly chick flicks on the couch w. little Noms.

I really enjoyed Going the Distance- such a cute and surprisingly** funny movie!

aaaand... I'm a little embarrassed to say I watched this because it sucked.. big donkey ballz.. It was really bad :-)

breakfast prior hitting the gym

obsessed fo sho!

I'm currently doing this plan that I stole from T. His men's health magazine came with these little booklets that specialize in different body parts. Each booklet comes with a 6 week program with Workouts A, B, C that contains 6 different exercises. You do workouts A,B,C on non consecutive days for Weeks 1&2, and then do a completely new set of A, B, C exercises for weeks 3&4, and 5&6. These booklets are especially good at compounding different muscle groups to most efficiently burn fat so that you can actually see some ABage!! Okay, I know its not a word but who says I'm trying to talk proper here.

• medicine ball lunge chop
• gym ball back extension
• rest 1 minute after each superset and do 2 more sets
• seated dumbbell shoulder press
• gym ball reverse flye
• cable side bend
• side bridge

Post gym snack: cottage cheese w. pineapple chunks (I rinsed off the juice from the pineapples). Yum- It was the perfect protein snack.

Agenda: shower, lunch, finish reading The Help (almost done, SO GOOD!), zoooooomba!, study Korean)