Emotional Eating: A Constant Battle!

I usually get on here once a week and talk about how I am kicking @$$ at this whole weight-loss fitness journey. I thought I would switch it up a little and talk about a struggle I face. And not just the struggle to get up when my alarm goes off at 4am to go run, but let me tell you that's no easy feat either especially if Little Miss decides getting up in the middle of the night is the way to go.

Hello my name is Jenn, and I am an emotional eater. During pregnancy I justified my binge snacking and emotional eating but now that I am working on cutting down I have had to face the issue. One day I was researching the issue and read this article.  Now conquering this issue is a daily struggle. I started by recognizing what triggered the strong desire to graze the pantry and fridge, my biggest emotions that make me "hungry" are boredom/feeling of emptiness and stress. Now you might be thinking how can Jenn be bored since she has two kids? Well its the moments when they are both sleeping, its especially worse when Zack is at work during their nap times. But even times when the kids are awake and I get an empty feeling, like maybe I miss family in the States, it triggers the hunger pains. Keeping a food diary, like MyFitnessPal, made me so much more aware and helps keep me in check. When the "hunger" strikes I try to drink a glass of water, if I think I am still hungry I try starting a new task and if in 30min I am STILL hungry I reach for a healthy snack. I will have to say on days where my emotional cravings are bad, if I eat a meal I never feel full. That is where portion control has come in. I know what usually makes me full so I try (and usually succeed) to not eat more. Now that I am working on getting healither and learning to deal with my emotional eating I am feeling way less guilt! Let me tell you guilt is a heavy feeling that is so nice to be free of! Another tool in my journey is not rewarding myself with food, its tempting to go run extra just to eat a few more KitKats but that's only setting me backwards when I want to keep moving forward. I do however still do my modified version of "cheat days", its usually when we go off base to eat and I will watch the other two meals and adjust- for example if we do Ramen off base I limit my carbs and sodium for my other two meals.   

The journey to a healthier body is so much more of a mental game. It is having that self control when grocery shopping to not pick up your favorite sweet treat when its on sale, its that struggle when you have to give away your old favorite shirt cause it doesn't fit you, its going shopping and still grabbing the larger sizes. Just the other day I read words from a fellow ESC Sister that hit close to my heart,
 

"Keep moving forward. One step at a time. You will get there, I promise, if by running or by crawling." --Sarah Pagano Photography, read the whole blog post here.

 

Keep those words as a reminder that even when you don't think you are progressing, you are.

 

Until Next Time

XOXO

Jenn

Wooo Hoooo!!!!!!!!

Two really exciting things happened today, but before I get to that I will recap my fitness week!

 This last week I have not been doing 30 Day Shred due to continuing Knee issues. I did see the doctor though! He said its (my MCL) definitely not torn, and as many of you know recovering from a Sprain is a slow process! I really like Dr. S though for the fact that he gives me options of things to do to still be active. I do have knee braces to wear when I exercise now due to the position of my hips, I tend to put a lot of pressure on my joints making recovery a lot slower! I made it back out to Water Aerobics! Its such a fun and awesome workout, I'm thinking I may need to find a sitter when Zack is gone to continue going!

On my way to Water Aerobics

Working on getting my beach body back...

I only made it to the gym 3 times last week, seems like 3 is my magic number. Dr. S suggested the stair stepper to help build muscle to prevent me from having to go to physical therapy, but I have yet to brave that machine- maybe tomorrow if the gym isn't shut down by Tropical Storm Man-Yi! One goal is to do more miles than I did last month! In August I completed 30.4miles, so far I have completed 21.6miles - I think I got this!!! So Run for the Cure is 12 weeks away, I'm starting to feel the pressure since C25K was interrupted with my knee issues. I only have another 3 weeks until I truly NEED to start the program back up to be as ready as I can on Race Day.

Which leads me to the FIRST AWESOME milestone I reached today:

 

I RAN, yes the entire time, a whole 5k!!!!!

3.1 miles in 37:46

 

I decided on my way to the gym that I would try and run a 5k on the treadmill. To see how the knee brace helped, how slow I am, and how much I need to improve. I jogged to the gym to get warmed up, got up to the cardio room and set the treadmill on speed 5. Don't get me wrong there were a few times I want to turn it down and say well I tried, but I knew that would do me no good on my long term goal. It wasn't easy but I feel SOOOO good that I accomplished it! Now I am no where near my goal of running 9-10min miles, but its a start. As for my knee, its a bit sore and the real test will be to see how it feels tomorrow.

 

Now MILESTONE #2 I hit today:



 

 

I 'm UNDER 165lbs!!!!

 

According to my RunKeeper, I am 25% of my way to my 30lb weight loss goal! At first I thought the new scale at the gym was off, figured it was crazy that I had lost almost 3lbs in a week. So when I got home I broke out my WiiFit and its not lying! Now how much of this is water weight that I will gain back once I start drinking more, I still suck at drinking water or anything for that matter during the day. I have about 10 more pounds before I am at Pre-Bristol weight and about 22 to go until I reach my goal!

 

Now its time to sit around and wait for this Tropical Storm to hit. Waiting on it is kind of like watching paint dry. TCCOR 4 was 48hours ago and it seems like a week ago. It just needs to come and go! I stumble upon a yummy fall-ish cookie recipe on one of my favorite sites (Skinnytaste)that I may try to make tonight: Skinny Pumpkin Spiced Snickerdoodles!

 

Until Next Time

 

XOXOXO

JENN



Proud of Myself This Week!

The first week of September as flown by, maybe its because I'm in Baby Shower mode, but I can truly say I am proud of myself.

On the Fitness Side of My Journey: I haven't stuck to my fitness calendar 100% but I haven't given up. I have come to realize I am not at the 3 workouts a day level yet, after putting my all into 2 I am spent. Wednesday ended up being a day of rest because Zack and I went on a date and time slipped away. Thursday I started the day with Jillian to get shredded then I did my first water aerobics that night, I went into it thinking it was going to be easy and wasn't expecting the workout I got! It was totally fun and man it worked my muscles good, I want to do it more! Its offered 2 nights a week and 2 mornings a week, with Zack's schedule I am hoping to catch it at least once a week. When I got home I was all set to do my Biggest Loser, yea that didn't happen my body was mush and that's when I realized if I push too hard I will hurt myself again. Friday I made it to the gym for a good 45 min Cardio workout then came home and did 30 Day Shred! Very pleasantly surprised when I went to weigh myself and it showed 167.8, since only a week before I weighed in at 170, I'd say 30 Day Shred is doing some work! The way I am doing shred is on 2 days off 1 day. Yes it will take me longer than 30 days to get shredded but gives my body recovery time! Now yesterday (Saturday) was another oops Rest Day. With Zack working it makes it hard to get to the gym kid free with their hours and I was doing Shower stuff. With that guilt of taking another day off that I was supposed to be getting my butt into gear I woke up at 4:20am this morning and pulled myself out of bed. Determined to do my first jog outside in almost a month, I tied up my shoes and made my way outside using the elevator as my stretching time. When I got outside it was drizzling, now my inner lazy bum said turn around and go back to bed but I'm not made of sugar so I decided to just enjoy the warm rain. This was my first non-gym cardio since I hurt my knee a few weeks ago, so I wasn't completely sure how far or long I could go. Now I'd like to be able to say I got out there and jogged the entire 26min but I would totally be lying! I'd say I jogged 85% of the time. My problem is breathing techniques while I run I tend to try and hold my breath and pacing myself- hopefully restarting C25K will help with that. Now I lasted 26 min I was shooting for around 30 cause Zack had to leave for work and Bristol slept through the night so I didn't want her screaming for a bottle as he was trying to get ready, I will take my 2.15 miles over 0 any day!

 Looking like a hot mess after my rainy jog

Kinda proud I could still pull of 12 min miles

Hoping to get more miles in this month than I did last month!



On the Food Side of My Journey: Other than our Italian Dinner we have stuck to our meal plan and haven't been bad this week. I am actually having a hard time eating enough calories in a day. Since I have 2 under 1 during the day in the week, sometimes I just cant find time to eat - which is a terrible excuse and I am working on it. I saw this on Pinterest and wanted to share it:

I remember this every time I think about eating cookies or cake after I work out. Just cause you burn X amount of calories doesn't mean you should reward that with eating something bad for you. Now this doesn't mean I will never eat cookies and cake, cause lets face it that is TOTALLY unrealistic *especially with the Baby Shower happening today*! My favorite meal I whipped up this week was a tie between my Chicken Avocado Wrap with Cottage Cheese:

 

Or my Mexi-Ranch Turkey Burgers (Protein Style for me) with Sweet Potato Fries.

 



 I got the idea for the burgers off Pinterest but then ended up just making my own recipe, they were amazing, even Sawyer gobbled his up in no time. I did top the boys burgers with cheese and added Jalapenos to Zack's, but just served mine on lettuce with Avocado! Here is how I made them:

1 lb. Ground Turkey
1/2 packet or 1 1/2 TBSP of Ranch Seasoning
1 TBSP Mrs. Dash Southwest Seasoning
1/2 tsp Cumin

Mix well, then divide into 4 equal patties.
Grill or Cook in Pan until done.

Nutrition Facts. Serving Size 1 Patty:

236

Calories, 1 Carb,

17g Fat,

199 Protein,

261mg sodium

0g sugar

I'm still on the quest to drink more water, not sure how something so easy can be so hard to do! I will get this down though!

Well it is time to get ready to go decorate the rec room, be watching for a Baby Shower post cause I am totally excited about how all our stuff came out! Until Next Time~

XOXO
Jenn

 

That Little Voice Gets Really Annoying and Lies!

Jillian kicked my BOOTY twice today, 30 Day Shred Level 1 Day 2 this morning and Biggest Loser Wii Lower Body workout tonight. For as sore as my booty is, I better have a fine&toned back side soon!
Here it is only September 3rd, my body feels like it should be at least mid-September. Its a good feeling once the workout is over but during more times than not its a struggle to push through- not physically, mentally! That inner bum in me likes to say things like: "Just rest. No need to keep going. Eat Cookies. Get on Pinterest. No one is watching just sit there and watch the video but don't do anything". Or when I'm mid circuit and my legs are burning and my heart rate is up, I think "Sitting down not feeling the burn would be nice" but I WONT QUIT. I CANT QUIT. Bristol will be 3 months old in a few weeks, sometimes when I look at myself I still look/feel preggo. The pooch has got to GO! To help keep me motivated and focused on this Biggest Louser Challenge (and getting my pre-Bristol body back) I decided to make a Fitness Calendar.

I  have dedicated Sunday as my day of REST and I have been doing 2 "workouts" a day, usually ends up being about 1 hour of strength/cardio/circuit training.

In the eating portion of this journey, I would say as a family we are doing quite well! As always with Pinterest as my guide I have been able to whip up a weekly meal plan of "Skinny" recipes that my whole family likes! Here is this weeks menu:
Sunday:  Malibu Chicken with Acorn Squash
Monday: Beef & Broccoli Stir Fry --out of the p90x nutrition book!

Tuesday: Pizzadillas with Salad (or leaves as Sawyer calls them)
Wednesday: Turkey Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries
Thursday: Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin with Salad
Friday: Chicken Taco Chili
Saturday: Skinny Slow Cooker Beef Curry

All work and no play makes me a little crazy so I got my inner crafty Momma on and made a new wreath! I love going down to the Daiso (100Yen Store here, would be like a Dollar Store in the States but much better stuff!!!) After browsing Pins I decided a yarn wreath would be my next décor, so the kids and I watched a movie while I wrapped the noodle.

Then once the kids went to bed I got the hot glue gun out and finished making it pretty. I used and old wood letter from a previous craft project, glued burlap (left overs from my last wreath but it was only 200Yen at Cainz for a HUGE roll I still have lots left!) to the letter, glued on my flowers from the Daiso and BAM a simple and cute wreath to welcome Fall in. Total Cost to make it was only about $6! (Pool Noodle $1, Yarn 100Yen, Flowers 200Yen, Burlap 200Yen) 

 

 I've kept busy the last few days but it that sore feeling means I am making progress. Still need to work on drinking more water but my knee isn't giving me too many issues. Hoping by the end of this week that little voice simmers down and realizes that I am committed to getting fit, I can't keep wearing maternity pants and I'm tired of being flabby!

I wrote it on my calendar and I will leave you with this quote as it has motivated me the past three days:

"The voice in your head that says that you can't do this...

IS A LIAR" 

Until Next Time!
XOXO
Jenn

If you don't already follow me on Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jsmith032310