Yoga Sculpt

First of all, I'm not at the point of doing this position yet ha. I took another class at Barre Bliss, this time Yoga Sculpt. Now this was my kind class! It was a combination of yoga, cardio, calisthenics and weight training.  Parts of it were challenging, but otherwise it was great and I felt great afterwards. I was sore the next day but not incredibly sore. I'm not sure if this class was better because of the content, or the instructor, or both. Either way I am looking forward to taking more classes! Friday morning I'm taking a Ballet Barre class, which focuses more on ballet than the pilates we did in the Barre Bliss class. I also went for a walk around Lake Harriet yesterday instead of taking a class since it was RIDICULOUSLY nice out here. 

I've still been struggling with eating well. I still crave sweets like crazy and it's really hard to cut them out all together. I did discover a delicious flavor of Stonyfield organic yogurt called Chocolate Underground. It's low-fat and filled with protein (and some sugar). I had it as a snack with strawberries and almonds the other day and it was perfect. 

The biggest thing besides sugar that I have been struggling with is portion control. One thing that has really helped is a book I found called 400 Calorie Fix. It is a diet book from the editors of Prevention magazine, but it's full of delicious recipes. It really helps you think about the portions you're eating and how much you really need. It also has great tips about eating out and making quick meals. For a person my size who is moderately active they say I should eat between 3-4 400 calorie meals a day. They have a quick slim 2 week plan where you only eat 3 meals a day... which has been hard for me because I love to snack! It's also been hard trying to schedule meals around work and whether that means eating one meal in the morning, one in the late afternoon and then one after work... It's been a process. I've been trying to buckle down and just do this for 2 weeks but it also just seems like not enough food. So I think I'm going to stick with the 1600 limit and see how that goes. 

I'll keep you updated on how this week is going! 

Be well,

Willpower

Eating healthy is so much more difficult than you think it would be. I like fruits and vegetables as much as, if not more than the next person... but it's hard when your options are salad or spaghetti and meatballs. So usually I will try and compromise and have a salad and whatever I really want. It's all about portion control. This is the way that I think I should eat for the rest of my life, however, it's not helping me lose weight right now.

Which is why right now I need to focus on eating completely healthy, and it's difficult. I know that it won't always be like this, and that I will be able to enjoy all my favorites (chocolate, baked goods, pizza) again in moderation. It's just so hard for me to control myself! I'm not bingeing by any means, but it's hard not to have a bite or two. I look at these women, of course mostly in Hollywood, who seem to possess a huge amount of self-control and willpower and I don't know how they do it. I just want to get through one day without craving something sugary and I can't. And I know that I shouldn't restrict myself like this, but in order to cut calories and lose weight it's obviously best to cut down on the non-essential nutrients. I know that losing weight isn't easy and I need to remember that. How do you practice self-control? I need some tips!

So back to my attempt at losing weight. I am at least not gaining any weight right now, but I'm also not losing. I've still been going over my calorie limit and it's just way too difficult to count calories. I've decided to go back to what has worked for me before, which is the Portion Teller Plan... basically you have set numbers of servings for each type of food per day that you eat, and that's it. No counting each little calorie, no giving up carbs or saying no to a slice of pizza if you really want one. I think this will help keep me in check. I will know that I already a sandwich for lunch, so I should lean towards veggies and lean protein for dinner etc.

I'm also stepping up the workouts. This weekend I did some kickboxing and that was crazy hard! But it was also really fun... until I realized I couldn't find my inhaler and I was having some chest tightness. Whoops. I lived obviously. Tomorrow I'm either going to the gym or going ice skating! The boyfriend and I have a pretty exciting little Valentine's Day planned-- grocery shopping, article writing, some kind of workout activity, and then I'm cooking dinner at home. We might also go see Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, which I've been dying to see. Do you have any super exciting plans?

Be well,