(A picture of Quarry Rock, the place we hiked to from Deep Cove...I didn't take it, just found it online!)
PREPARATION:
I decided to take some time yesterday afternoon to do some inventive and industrious cooking, getting all my food preparation for the week done in one go! It felt so satisfying to purchase fresh produce, invent new recipes, organize myself in the kitchen, cook multiple dishes at once, package the final products up, stick them in the fridge/freezer, clean up all the dishes, and put a mental check mark beside a vital, weight-loss-necessitating task! I have learned from trial and error that food preparation is one of the “make it or break it” factors of weight loss success (and it also greatly affects the ole’ pocketbook!). I prepare food ahead of time now because I made the decision to treat myself fairly by being PREPARED for hunger and having healthy and delicious foods at the ready — it just makes sense, right? So, I made a quinoa salad for lunches Mon-Wed (see recipes category), a pot of dal for lunches Thurs-Sunday (see recipes category), and some roasted veggies that are ready to be made into soups or casseroles for next week! I also have an abundance of fruit and nuts on hand as snacks. I am awesome.
Oh and…
Dear hunger,
I’m going to keep you at bay this week, as I refuse to be tempted in unhealthy directions by letting you get out of hand! Let’s just pretend you are one of those games at the arcade where the hippos pop up out of a hole, and I am the kid with the padded mallet! SMASH! POING! K’DONK! That’s right, back to your hidey hole! Wha-pa-cha!
From Amber
PERSEVERANCE:
I went on a hike today with my SAWB (super awesome workout buddy — check out her super awesome blog) from Deep Cove up to Quarry Rock (see picture above, which, NO I did not take).
It was the first hike of the season, which is usually the most arduous, as all of your major muscles groups are being engaged at the same time and there are many intervals of stairs going up and down. The last time we did this hike consistently was in 2008, at which point it took us both at least 45 minutes to get to the top, on a good day. This time around, to our surprise, it only took us about 30 MINUTES! I guess working out for the past four months really HAS made a difference. I felt so proud of myself for making it all the way to the top feeling only slightly winded but totally invigorated! It’s all part of the new me that I’m getting used to — a me I am very VERY proud of, a me who is STRONG, FIT, ACTIVE, BEAUTIFUL and HAPPY. Perseverance, the “NEVER GONNA GIVE UP” quality, is what gets me to the top…always. 🙂
PERSPECTIVE:
Deb and I had a great conversation yesterday about perspective. As human beings we are, for the most part, the PRODUCT of our thought patterns and beliefs about ourselves. Every religion that I know of through history has brought to light the connection between what we THINK and what we ARE. It is a profound connection, one that should not be overlooked or unattended to. We have the choice to perceive ourselves differently and move in the direction of that new self perspective. I am not identified with being overweight and depressed anymore, even though there are still pounds for me to lose and moments of sadness and struggle, because, quite simply, I don’t want to be that person anymore. I am choosing to identify with health and balance, hard work and discipline, happiness and enjoyment of life because those are the realities I want to be living out. Each one of us has the power to make these kind of choices, and as I said in the introduction to this blog — CHOICES EQUAL CHANGE. I am going to make choices this week that fit with my new self perspective. Simple as that!
So, now for the weekly goals and mood/food update….
MOOD: Proud of myself. Feeling light and happy. Determined.
FOOD:
Breakfast: 6:30 am — greens powder; 7:40 am — one medium americano from JJ Bean; 8:20 am — one hardboiled egg, two mini bran muffins (c/o DEB’S AMAZING BAKING SKILLS! Thanks for bringing them over last night, doll face!).
Lunch: 11:10 am — eggs Benedict with smoked salmon and arugula, a few (didn’t eat many of them) friend potato hashbrowns, and one glass of water with lime.
Snack: 10:15 am (post hike) — one medium green tea and one half of a donut from Honey’s Donuts (quite honestly, and I’m not exaggerating at all, You. Have. Not. Lived. Until. You. Have Tried. One. Of. These. Donuts.); 1:40 pm — three pieces of fresh pineapple (got two whole pineapples on sale from Donald’s Market for $2 each, chopped them up and now I get to graze!!); 2:50 pm — one tall decaf americano from Starbucks.
Dinner: 5:00 pm — quinoa salad!
WEEKLY GOALS — April 12-19:
1. Go to Curves three times and fit in at least two extra exercise sessions on top of that (hiking, jogging, aquafit, etc).
2. Take my Greens Powder every morning.
3. Drink 8 to 10 glasses of water per day.
4. Bring packed lunches/snacks to work and spend money ONLY ON COFFEE and nothing else. (This one’s gonna be a challenge, but BRING IT ON!)
5. Do my morning pages.
I will update at the end of the week on my progress with these!
Thanks for reading.
Ovr’n’out!
Amb
5 foot 2 and shrinking 