Does Running Make You Fat? Information Overload

Foiled again.

So I lose all that weight, I give up lots of favorite foods along the way, make all these (what I think are) positive changes and then I get smacked in the face with this annoying article:

Does Cardio Make You Fat? Study Says Yes.

Now I would've just chuckled this off if it hadn't been for the battling of the bulge I've been dealing with lately, despite my kicking up the mileage, so I decide to click and read the article.

Aaarrrrrrgh. 

So the article says that not only will running make you fat but can kill you too. Terrific. I thought that mayonnaise was going to make me fat and kill me but apparently if you follow a paleo or Whole30 diet, mayo is your friend and now according to 'research' running the enemy.

My head is about to explode.

Somedays I miss the simple old days. I know some of the rules were wrong but for the most part everyone was on the same page. Eat less calories (even if it meant using a sweet and low or some other fraken food) and the more cardio the better. So simple. Not so much to wrap your head around. Not so much information to digest. It's just too much now-a-days. 

My addiction to reading health articles on line is ruining my life.

Here's just a few of the million thoughts I've had recently:

I want to eat more broccoli, but crap I didn't buy organic so the toxins will keep me fat.

I thought I would try agave but then I learned from 2 out of 4 sources that it's no better than sugar.

I tried Whole30 because that camp says it's great and I have a few friends who've benefitted - it was  just OK for me but maybe I need to try again but what about all that fat?

Oh, maybe I should go plant-based because...

Should I just go back to Weight Watchers and point counting? Or maybe stick to the Simply Filling plan?

Then there's Isagenix - nah don't think I could do that and give up coffee

But research says coffee is good for you!

But this research says coffee is bad... 

Ugh. Maybe I should switch to green tea - Yes! I'll have some green tea. Oh, but this isn't organic green tea. Wonder if it's OK? 

I want to do strength training because muscle eats fat (or something like that.) 

Oh I have to do core and hip strengthening because then my running will get better but...

I shouldn't run because it's going to back fire - and make me fat.

So there's the madness... It's just not simple.

For now I'm going to keep drinking coffee, loosely follow Weight Watchers, skip the mayo and keep the running because I'm happy there. Yeah, I'll add some strength training too. The broccoli may or may not be organic depending on my budget and the week. 

Does your head want to explode with all the 'research' too? 

XO

Jen 

It's a New Day

Why yes I have disappeared off the face of the earth for a bit.

Sorry about that.

It's been a time of reflection for me. I've been humbled by a gradual weight gain that I've been trying to nip in the bud.

My run has slowed, my jeans are a little bigger.

I have tried a few diets to get a kick-start loss but it seems I lose five and gain back 6. Kind of like how it seems to go for people. 

I guess the overall problem is I wasn't paying attention and I let a few bad habits come back.  I was in denial about that because I still exercise and eat pretty clean for the most part. This weight didn't come from all of a sudden scarfing a pint of ice cream every night or slopping mayo on everything. The weight has crept up because of the handful of potato chips a few times a week instead of salad with lunch. Or the extra piece of cheese on something instead of being cheese free. Oh and the nightly glass of wine after my son goes to sleep probably hasn't helped either. 

For a minute I felt doomed. I blamed my age and just kind of accepted that being 25 pounds overweight is the new me and I should just deal with it.

Ha. NO. I can't accept that. 

Right after eating about 10,000 calories worth of Chinese Food on Sunday night I get this.
Oh. Good news.

For a long time I thought to myself, "but I train now. I should be able to have a glass of wine or a slice of cheese." Yes. I should but only depending on how hard I'm training and how often I'm eating the foods. If I'm having one slice of cheese in the morning, a few chips at lunch and a glass of wine a night that's 350 extra calories a day -2,450 calories a week! Without thinking much about it, then add a nibble of chocolate or a healthy heaping of guacamole to dinner and well - this is how the weight creeps back. Something has to give (or be given up) so I'm buckling down and cleaning up my act. And I do not mean I'm hard-core dieting per se. I'm revisiting the idea of balance and moderation. I have to get on a scale once a week. I have to track my food. I've decided to go back to what helped me take the weight off originally and that was Weight Watchers. More specifically the "Simply Filling" technique.  Of course back when I was losing my weight it was called "The Core" program. 

I like this program. It's based pretty much on clean eating and you don't have to count many calories or points. You base your meals around "power foods" (most lean proteins, veggies, fruits, whole grains, fat free dairy and a little healthy fat like olive oil) and then you get 49 'points' for the week and can earn even more points through activity. You use those points for treats - like if you want a glass of wine, some cheese or something that's not on the power food list (I like to try to use some of my points for healthy stuff that's a little more caloric like avocado in my salad.) 

FYI wine is 4 pts. for 5oz. :) 

You don't weigh or measure your food, you eat until satisfied. I am not sure why I haven't gone back to this sooner. I lost my weight with the core program. I like that I don't have to obsess about serving sizes and can eat if I'm hungry - it gave me structure without feeling suffocated. Anyway... 

This is what my day looked like yesterday: 

Breakfast - 2 scrambled eggs, 1/2 cup of black beans and salsa on a corn tortilla (certain corn tortillas like "Mission white corn" are considered a power food - so the whole breakfast was Simply Filling)

Snack - banana

lunch - steamed shrimp and broccoli with brown rice and a cup of egg drop soup (2 pts for the soup) 

pre-workout snack - small lean turkey burger (no bun) topped with salsa

Run 4 miles - (earned 6 activity points) 

Dinner - Lean pork chop, steamed broccoli with 2 tsp. of olive oil, sweet potato with 1 tsp. of ghee. (1 pt. for ghee).

snack - 1 tsp of cashew nut butter (licked off the spoon lol) 1 pt. 

= used 4 points for the day (And by the way if I was hungry during any part of this day I could've eaten more - and anything on the Power Foods list - like ff greek yogurt with fresh strawberries might've been another snack or a cup of homemade lentil soup - I could've also used points if I wanted a non power food treat.)

Now this day isn't "WW perfect" technically the plan calls for 2 servings of FF dairy to fulfill the guidelines they provide. 

You might remember that I did Whole30 earlier this year and some of you might wonder why I don't go back to that. Looking back I felt it was a bit restrictive for me. I think it's a decent plan and I know many who are successful on it. I enjoyed my journey while on it but it's a lifestyle too and not the lifestyle for me at this time. I lost a few pounds with Whole30 but because I felt a little deprived on it, gained the weight right back. 

I like the WW Simply Filling Program because I can strive to eat healthy most of the time but use a few points on indulgent foods and drinks too. I have kept a few of the habits I got from Whole30 like using ghee, eating avocados, using cashew nut butter, etc - I just don't use them without abandon and keep an eye on the servings. And even though WW considers fat free cheese and some other processed foods "power foods" I, myself, will be avoiding the few processed items that make the list. I'd rather spend the points on a real piece of cheese for taste and I try to avoid foods with ingredients that I cannot pronounce. 

I'm on day 3 of the program now and feel happy. I'm not hungry, I'm eating foods I enjoy and for the first time in a long time I feel like I'm truly back on a good tack. For the first time in a long time I'm not afraid about the future of my weight and feel positive again. 

In other news - I started day one of a new marathon training program. 24 weeks until race. 

24 weeks to go, 25 pounds to lose and 26 miles to run...

It's a new day. I'm back on my path and once again going 'From Fat To Finish Line.' ;)

XO
Jen

Whole30 Days 22, 23, and 24 - screw the scale

Yay!

It's been two weeks here in Kentucky and now I'm going home.

I'm so thankful that I've been able to manage this Whole30 while away. 

I shunned alcohol, figured out meals, ate out 3 times and went through a whole jar of Ghee but I did it. 

I'm pretty convinced I haven't lost a pound. My clothes feel exactly the same but I'm still happy I've done this program. It was exactly what I needed to get on the clean eating track again. I have plans of sticking to this style of eating more or less but will be adding back brown rice and bean probably. And I will definitely be adding occasional alcohol back. I am going to try not to drink more than 2 times a week. 

I would be lying if I didn't say I went in to this really wanting to lose weight. When I began to realize I wasn't going to shed the ten or fifteen pounds I was secretly hoping for I was momentarily disappointed. But then I started to think about it and believe it or not, if I never lose a pound again - I think I'm (at least for today) at peace with it.

I have been reflecting (not obsessing) about my weight lately. If I'm weighing about what I think I do - I am about 10 pounds higher than the weight I LOVED being at and 5 pounds above my general goal. 

But. 

I'm healthy. I eat well. I exercise regularly. I am a good person and a hard worker. I'm kind of tired of living and dying, loving or hating myself based on the number on the scale. No I don't want the scale to become a runaway train in the wrong direction but if I'm living healthfully and fitfully I just want to feel OK with it. And I think I do for now.

I have a friend who use to battle an eating disorder and has emphatically not been on a scale for years. In fact she refuses to even let the doctor weigh her. She's fit and healthy and eats right. She gave up the scale battle and the mental crap that comes with it. I don't think I'm quite at the point of never getting on it but it might become a goal for me. Something about never weighing myself terrifies me too.

What about you? Are you an obsessive weigher or do you hardly step on?

XO

Jen 

Whole30 Day 19, 20, and 21 Cocktails and Treadmills

I'm getting excited! I'm gonna make it thru Kentucky with this whole30 thing - I feel confident and can see the finish line!

Although I'm pretty sure that I haven't lost any weight, I'm feeling good and will likely keep eating this way.

Here's the highlights from the last few days -

On the 19th day I got to finally find a little time (and day light) to get out and run a little. Just one mile but boy was it good to get my sweat on!

Yesterday, we were pretty snowbound all day. I decided to have another Kombucha drink and served it up in a martini glass to feel fancy.

The best part of the Kombucha was the glass. This time I tried the trinity one. It was OK. Even though I said I kind of liked it the other day, on second thought maybe I don't. I'm pretty sure I'll never buy one again but we'll see. It is pretty vinegar-y tasting and still no buzz.

Today I roasted myself a chicken for dinner that was quite tasty and I'm so excited to report that Angela found a treadmill AND spin bike for a steal on Craigslist. YAY!! Exercise options!!

Treadmill in the basement :) 

spin bike in Angela's room but it's moveable

So all in all I'm making it through.

XO

Jen

Whole30 Day 17 and 18 - Kombucha review

I am very proud of myself for still remaining on track while here in KY. What I thought might be impossible has been totally possible even if it's been challenging here and there.

I'm on day 18 and have been feeling pretty good. Tummy is still a bit off in the morning but the rest of the day I feel good.

Sadly, it's been a week since I've really worked out and I'm missing that big time.

In the meantime, I've tried a new thing the other day.

Kombucha.

Why did I try Kombucha? Not because of the health claims or to help my gut heal with probiotics. Nope. It's a little sad actually the reason why I tried it. While perusing a Facebook page for Whole30 people I stumbled upon this post:

Wait! What!? TIPSY!!! Why hasn't someone filled me in on the tipsy part before? All this forgoing of wine and vodka and I can still be catching a buzz?

I am not proud of my Kombucha motives but it was time to relax with a big bottle of the 'booch.

I tried the Gingerade Kombucha one from GT and I have to say it wasn't bad. It took a few sips but by the end I really kind of liked it.

But no buzz. Not even a little.

And I guess that's a good thing. It's an expensive beverage to get into! I'm not sure about the rest of the country or at other stores but at the Whole Foods at Lexington it's $3.39 a bottle! I mean if you wanted one a day (like the bottle recommends) it would be a $101.70 per month expense! That's a lot when you think about it. I hemmed and hawed for months about joining the fancy gym with the great classes and pool that runs me $59 a month.

Needless to say due to the expense and lack of buzz I will not be developing a Kombucha habit. ;)

Have you ever drank Kombucha? Thoughts?

XO
Jen

Whole30 Day 15 and 16 - Not Winning

I've made it to the half way mark and am still remaining on track.

It's been FREAKIN' freezing here in Kentucky and I've been working outside all day. This Jersey girl went totally country yesterday and bought some carthartt gear from the tractor supply store. Those Carhartt bib/overall things are super warm and helped a bit today. Temperatures reached in the 20's but "felt like" the teens most of the day and it's been windy.

ready for the cold and to farm

I'm not hating this Whole30 plan and I'm finding it OK and mostly enjoyable. It was easier and I liked it better when I was at home and not working crazy long days but I'm managing.

A few annoying things though…

According to the "What to Expect and When" Whole30 thing - today I should have felt like I had "Tiger Blood" but instead of "winning" I felt like Charlie Sheen after a bender.  Last night I woke up in the middle of the night with a terrible pain in the center of my chest - it's a tight cramps feeling in my stomach I get rarely but it's a killer when it comes on and last night it came on and woke me up at 3 AM. Ugh. Also (and sorry for the TMI) the last few mornings have been a bit rough in the morning in the "loo" department.

By now I thought the digestive things should be sorted? It's very frustrating.  I also don't feel like my clothes are getting any looser but I don't know. I'm sticking it out and going through the process.  I do have good energy during the day in spite of getting less sleep than I like to get usually.

On the up side, I'm proud of my commitment and sticking to the plan.

Speaking of not winning, I was disappointed to hear from my husband this morning that he 'didn't really cheat' but had a "sip" of lemonade - which makes me suspect that it was really more than just the lemonade (I mean who cheats with lemonade?) and even if he's truthful and it was just a sip - it messes up the program for him and he should technically start from day 1 (which I told him but I know he won't.) Ugh. I'm disappointed but what can I do? We all have to decide what is best for our health and I can't make him do something. I just wish he wanted to really, truly, fully commit to the program.

I won't bore you with the details of my meals as they were standard foods and meals I've talked about before involving eggs, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, avocado, etc.

I'm hoping to get out and run this weekend. It's been non-stop work and I haven't had a chance to run this week at all. Luckily I've been hauling the camera and we've been running around in our work so we're getting movement in.

Have you ever had a weight-loss friend, spouse or 'partner in crime' for  a program and the partner gave up? How did you handle the situation?

XO
Jen

Whole30 Day 14: The roof is on fire

It's midnight, I've been up since five and I have to get up at 5AM again so this post will be short and sweet.

Today was a good day.

I'm getting in a groove here in KY with the food and my producing partners have been very supportive of what I'm doing.

I'm keeping it simple but effective

Today I started with eggs and avocado, had a banana for a snack, had a salad topped with hard boiled eggs, avocado, olives and pecans for lunch (yummy)

And butternut squash, salad and a pork chop for dinner.

I almost set the house on fire with my pork chop :/ I was broiling it and all of a sudden smoke was coming from the oven. Hmmm. I'm not used to the oven here and I guess the fat caught. There were actual flames in the oven and I was freaking out. I shut off the oven and called my friend up to help. In all the hoopla the flames died down. We aired out the house and I ate the pork chop.  It was delicious. 

In other news, I signed up for the Jersey Girl Triathlon on August 3rd! Looking forward to that :) 

Hope all is well in your world!! 

XO

Jen 

Whole30 Day 13 Being one of those people

Here I am on day 13 on the Whole30 and day 2 in Kenutcky.

Today was a bit smoother but not without a bump or two.

I started my day with eggs and sweet potatoes (blessedly easy and breezy and right on course…)

Snacked on some cashews and a banana.

Then came lunch.

The crew decided they wanted Wendy's.

I expressed my needs. I felt a little high-maintenance I'm a 'go with the flow' type of gal. But on second thought - F THAT. That's why half of us have weight problems - we don't prioritize ourselves. We let ourselves eat the crap or give in to pressure because we don't want to be "one of those people." But we deserve to be one of those people. We are worth being fussy and particular for. I'm on a journey and I don't want to be knocked off of it.

Fighting for your right to Whole30 is kinda empowering actually.

Anyway...

So I waited for the car to come back and while they lunched on Wendy's I found a small luncheonette up the road that had 100% beef burgers (they promised nothing in them) and I had a burger patty over greens and a squeeze of lemon.

Of course this lunch didn't come easy. The lady at the counter couldn't quite understand what I wanted - even though I didn't think it was all that complicated.

I'm becoming the, "hold the croutons, cheese, dressing, bun, bacon" girl. "Just the burger." "Just a lemon wedge…" And I'm feeling eye rolling from the peanut gallery behind me.

But I deserve it. Fighting for my right…

I finally got my order and began to leave. I decided to open up the takeout box because I saw some hot sauce on the table and figured I'd add a dash on my burger.

Thankfully, I did peek. No burger. Nope. They gave my some kind of bbq beef brisket.

ugh.

So now I had to go back to the counter and fight for my right to Whole30 again. (There was no fight, they were actually very nice and apologetic about the error.)

Finally I had my food and was on my way.

It was NOT the most amazing lunch ever (no that was yesterday's meal) but it was tasty enough and fulfilled the issue of lunch.

We hit a grocery store on the way home and got a few more staples.

I'm becoming "one of the those people" and you know, I'm pretty OK with that.

Are you one of those people or do you find yourself "going with the flow" and sometimes putting up with food that you don't really want.

XO
Jen

Whole30 Day 5 - a hodge podge

Day 5 was yesterday but I didn't get to post because I was working late.

The big challenge with this program is always having enough food on hand to get something together.

Yesterday I felt a little struggling to figure out what to eat.

Breakfast was fine - the usual of eggs and sweet potatoes (I think I threw in a few slices of avocado too).

I brought lunch to work which was a hodgepodge. I brought the roasted butternut squash soup (which is just about gone OH NO), two grape leaves, a half of cucumber, a quarter of an avocado and a hard boiled egg. (I wound up not eating the egg.)

The avocado looks rough but it was good

I also had this cute little bottle of olive oil that I forgot I had. My mom gave it to me - got it in Italy on a train ride or something? Not sure why she thought she'd gift that to me but it definitely came in handy and I'll be refiling that little sucker!

By the time I got home from work I was pretty starving. I had the grape leaves with my lunch but I'm thinking that while I did a good job with healthy fats (avocado and the drizzle of EVOO on the cucumbers) Maybe the little bit of lamb in the grape leaves just wasn't enough protein.

But, I didn't really have time to eat when I got home I had more work to do. I ate the hardboiled egg I didn't eat at lunch and a handful of cashews. But I was still hungry. After a few hours of work, bathing Ben and getting him to sleep, I finally wound up making eggs and then sautéing sweet potato, compliant sausage, and red onions in a little ghee and having that around 9PM. It was tasty. I made it through another day. :) 

Somehow I haven't worked out since Friday so I'm going to try to get a work out in today.  

How's it going for you?

Are you freezing your ass off today in ridiculous weather?

XO

Jen

Whole30 Day 4 - A special day

A year ago at this time I ran the Ragnar Relay - Miami to Key West FL. It was an incredible 200 mile journey that I shared with 11 others - all with amazing and inspiring stories of their own. Our team, team Fat To Finish Line, consisted of 12 people all whom at one time or another had an average of 100 extra pounds on them. We were all overweight and far from runners. Each one of us, on our own journeys found a path of healthy eating and running. We joined forces a year ago and ran as a team to the finish line.

My producing partner and I decided that this should be a story told and we filmed the journey and are making a documentary film. We are still busily editing but here is a sneak peek of some of the film and a look at my motivational teammates:  



You can read the blog posts about my Ragnar journey here.

In other news, it's day 4 of the Whole30 everyone! I'm still feeling pretty good - no big withdrawal symptoms or anything. My poor hubby got up shaky and cranky today and then proceeded to slip on the ice and nearly break his ass. Even so, he's hanging in there like a champ and I'm very proud of him.

We visited a friend of ours today and I brought some leftover grape leaves and she put out a veggie platter (she knows of our Whole30 thing - so nice of her!) We noshed on that and then ordered steamed shrimp and broccoli from a chinese place and used Coconut Aminos that I brought along.  The visit was fine. I thought I was going to be bummed and miss the wine and cheese that usually happens during these visits but it wasn't the case. I might've thought about it for a second but I didn't lament on it.

The day was pretty low fuss (especially compared to yesterday). Pretty much my standard breakfast of eggs and sweet potato. I had a snack of some grape leaves, a hard boiled egg and some veggies - lunch was steamed shrimp with broccoli and dinner was a leftover hodgepodge of stuff.

Hope you are doing well too!!

XO
jen

The Whole30 Program Day 3: OPA!

Things are going well for me. So far so good.

My poor hubby was pretty crabby today - I think he might be in the hungover/angry phase.

I realize that I am possibly a little ahead of the game because I kicked my diet coke, artificial sweetener, most sugar and gluten habits long ago. I was off dairy for quite a while too, I'm hoping all that experience will keep this program going along smoothly.

I do however miss a drink! Tonight as I was cooking all I wanted was a glass of wine or perhaps a martini to look forward to. It wasn't a bad craving, more of, "gee it would be soooo nice right about now" but it's out of the question.

Anyway, the meals were tasty - breakfast was eggs, a sweet potato and some avocado.

For lunch I made egg salad that I wrapped in lettuce leaves and had with the butternut squash soup.

And for dinner…

I made the epic of all dinners.

One of our favorite things to do on a Saturday night is to catch up on our DVR and pick up Greek food. There is an awesome greek place by us but since we are Whole30'ing it I knew that I'd have to get creative so I decided to do Greek night.

Grape leaf and baba ganoush prep

Well. The good news, It came out very tasty! OPA!

salad, cauliflower rice, baba ganoush, gyro meat and grape leaves

The bad news? It took me hours. It was a very lofty goal and ambitious and now I'm exhausted. :-) I probably won't be doing Greek night again very soon - at least not all of it.

We had:

Homemade grape leaves (Dolmades) RECIPE HERE
Homemade gyro meat RECIPE HERE
Homemade Baba Ganoush RECIPE HERE
Homemade Cauliflower Rice RECIPE HERE
and a little cucumber, tomato and red onion salad with a simple dressing of lemon juice and EVOO

And no wine.

Hope you are doing well!

XO
Jen

Happy New Year! A Healthy Kick off and getting Whole30 ready

This morning I decided to kick off the New Year right by running with Moms In Motion. I usually wouldn't drag myself out in 23-feels-like-15-degree weather but I have missed the group and I figured that doing a bad-assed cold weather run was exactly what I needed to get moving in the right direction.

The group had a great turn-out and we were chilly but happy to be there.

Can't miss me with my bright pink gloves bottom left

Funny thing about running in the cold. I always build it up in my mind to be this horrible thing but the truth is, is that by the end of the run it could be 50 degrees out. I get so warmed up! I was actually sweating.  Another thing that did help a lot are these amazing cold-weather fleece-lined tights that my hubby got me for Christmas from Athleta. I have to say that Athleta is expensive but worth every penny. I don't have a lot from them but everything I do have rocks. Here are the pants I got in case you are interested.

After the run I came home and decided to get some more food prepped for the Whole30 challenge. I hard-boiled some eggs and then cooked up some chicken. I got a bag of peeled garlic from BJs so I dumped about 20 cloves into a crock pot along with a sliced onion and a little chicken stock and topped that with four big bone-in (with skin) organic chicken thighs. I seasoned those with some salt, pepper and tyme and let them cook all day. They smell heavenly. 

crock pot chicken

While that was cooking I went to the grocery store and stocked up on a bunch of veggies and stuff. I'm super excited to get started.

Then, I made some homemade mayonnaise for the first time! Holy crap I'm so proud of my mayo. I feel like Julia fricken Childs and it's delicious.  Here's the mayo recipe I used. (I wound up squeezing a lemon and measuring it out - all the bottled lemon juices I saw had sulfites in it to preserve.)

Look at that pretty mayo! 

Tonight I will have my final dirty martini until the program is complete. You will be missed.

For those of you who like dirty martinis and not saying goodbye - Dirty Sue is the best martini mix ever.

Hope you had a healthy kick off to your New Year!

Do anything special last night or today? How did you prep for some of your resolutions?

XO

Jen

Embracing 2014 and how I'm ringing in the New Year

So I've decided to ring in the New Year by getting some of the goals and resolutions that I spoke about in this post yesterday - (I know, right? Two blog posts in a row!) rolling in the right direction.

The first thing I did this morning was to renew my membership with the Moms In Motion! They are an awesome group of women and a tremendous support - I feel lucky to be a part of the group.

MIMS! I'm bottom left with the arm warmers

Secondly, I took a bold leap and also joined the RTA (Ridgewood Tri Club). It seems like a very friendly (though very accomplished) Tri club and I have been stalking admiring them from afar for a while now. From the looks of the talent and caliber of athlete there I am a little nervous that I could be way out of my league. But I exchanged emails with the owner and she assured me that they are welcoming to beginners. Stepping out of your comfort zone is where you grow - right?

I then began to build my Whole30 pantry with some staples. For those of you who missed it, I'll be doing a clean eating detox program for 30 days beginning on Jan 2. It looks like a great program and it's based on the book "It Starts With Food." The program eliminates sugar, alcohol, legumes, grains, dairy, processed foods and gluten leaving you with all the organic meat, fish, eggs, coconut milk, veggies, fruits, (most) nuts, ghee, sweet potatoes, butternut squash and olives that you want!

I totally bought a cheap food processor (the one below was only $35 at Target) because I don't own one and a lot of good recipes for this plan includes using one. I also bought some vegetable peeler thing that will make zucchini into ribbons for this recipe I plan on making and also some homemade mayo.

Some of the other things I got was coconut aminos (reportedly tastes like soy sauce), coconut milk, coconut flour for thickening stuff, cashews, ghee, coconut oil, kalamata olives and a bag of sweet potatoes. Not pictured are a ton of eggs and some organic meats and veggies.

And in the spirit of Whole30 I made my favorite butternut squash soup that is totally made to fit the plan. It's yummy. If you are interested the Whole30 Butternut Squash soup recipe is here.

I've been hydrating with my very fancy Mom in Motion pink cup - my favorite!

Then I will head to the gym (when hubby gets home so I have someone to watch Ben) I will run my last run of 2013.

A few unhealthy things I'm doing today - I am polishing off some leftover pad thai as we speak and I'll be swilling in a martini or two as I watch the ball drop from the warm coziness of my couch!

Have a very happy, safe and healthy New Year!!

Are you doing any New Year prep today?

XO
Jen

Reviewing 2013 goals and looking ahead to the New Year

Happy New Year! 

Fat to finish line on The Today Show! I'm in the hat bottom rt

In January 2013 I ran Ragnar Miami with team Fat To Finish Line and we were even featured on The Today Show! But even with how awesome that experience was (It was one of the best events of my life), I seriously cramped and couldn't complete the 10 mile run during my second leg and that bummed me out. That first experience of 2013 kind of summed up the year - one of extreme highs and lows. 

I also participated in my first of two triathlons, (getting back in the water and on a bike) and managed to keep moving forward. I had some tough days - I've struggled with weight and running as far/fast as I might want.  Here's the overall gist on the year: 

These were the set of goals I wanted to focus on last year - here is how I did:
1. Run more miles this year. In 2012 I ran 721 miles - my goal for 2013 is to run 722. - Ugh. Somehow I only ran 520 this year. I chalk that up to running a few less half marathons this past year and also training for my first triathlons - instead of always running many workouts became swimming or biking focused. Still - this is pretty weak - I'm aiming for 722 in 2014 again! 

2. Run faster?  No way - not even close. But to be fair I didn't focus on speed and didn't make it a priority. 

3. Cross train seriously. I will be taking yoga, boot camp and incorporating more strength training into my regime. I consider this somewhat successful. I did make a better attempt at boot camp, yoga and stretching - I will continue to focus on this and this is a big goal of mine in the new year. 

4. Maintain my goal weight. Total fail - I struggled with weight this year and am over goal as of right now. It's been making me feel really low and yucky about myself but I'm working on shaking off the feelings of failure and getting my groove back - this topic is it's own blog. 

5. DRINK MORE WATER! Seriously. I have such a hard time with this but in 2013, hydration will be my bitch. Up and down - had some really great "water" streaks and had some times where I was woefully under-hydrated. Hydration is huge for me -- must continue to work on it. 

6. Keep this blog going. Yup. 

7. Eat even cleaner. Nope. Probably ate dirtier but will be cleaning up my act for 2014 

8. Track my food at least one week a month (will help me with #4 and #7 and keep me on my game) - this would've been a great idea if I remembered even making this a goal!  So, no this didn't happen. 

9. Run 4 half marathons and at least 2 5k races - to keep training for stuff. - I didn't run four half marathons I ran two halfs, 1 10 miler, 2 sprint triathlons and a few 5Ks - I'm OK with my race schedule. 

10. Run another full marathon? Maybe. Once again I will throw my hat in the ring for NYC marathon. If I get in, I will train. I have no other plans to run a full right now - with a new TV show in the works and the film -- I don't want to fully commit yet… (I know that's lame.) Nope. But I'm re-entered in the NYC marathon lottery so maybe that will happen this year. 

11. And I know this is lame too. I still really want to try a tri. I am still struggling to figure out a bike and pool solution. The gyms with pools are literally 3 and 4 times more expensive than my gym and way out of my budget. Now if some of these projects we are working on generate some money, maybe I can afford to take that plunge - sometime. We'll see. Still putting it out there in the universe just in case I can make something happen. I did this!! Finally something I can proudly check off! I did this twice - I sucked up the expense, joined the better gym and trained. I'm going for it again in 2014 and am already signed up for REV3 OLY Poconos! 

Looking ahead to 2014 here are my top goals:

1. Get back to my goal weight and clean up the bad eating habits I fell into over the course of 2013 - I plan on achieving both by doing the Whole30 program as outlined in "It Starts With Food" 

2. Run / Swim / bike more miles and take training more seriously - I'd like to run at least 2 halfs and do at least 2 triathlons. 

3. Continue to cross train / boot camp / strengthen up

4. Continue to blog

5. Continue to focus on water

6. Be more kind to myself. The last few months I've struggled with weight, food, running and training for various reasons. I am realizing that because of this it's easy for me to slip into feelings of shame, depression, beating myself up, feeling failure, etc. It's not even consciously most of the time. I have to believe I'm not a good or bad person because I've had a perfect food or workout day. And these feelings don't really lead to anything productive. 

Even though it was a far from perfect year I am grateful for it all. It was still an overall successful year. My son is improving, our finances are taking a turn for the better, my company sold and aired it first television show (that has a series pick-up!), I made a goal to TRI and did it. So even though there were some tough times I still can consider 2013 a great year!   

How was your year? What are some of your goals for 2014?

XO
Jen

PS: Beginning on Jan 2 I am going to attempt to blog for 30 days in a row as I document my journey doing the Whole30 program. I talk about the program in my last post found here.