Travelling Band

This weekend and next week I'm travelling which scares the heck out of me. I'm feeling almost frantic trying to get the details of menus and gyms all squared up before I go but so far I think I have everything under control. 

This weekend I am heading to another province, 6 hours away by car, to my company's Christmas party.  Crazy? Yes. Fun? Also yes. :) We leave Friday and come back on Sunday. Monday I leave for ANOTHER province, Quebec, for work related activities. This is the trip that scares me the most simply because I don't know what food I can bring on the plane.  I'm going to bring my protein powder of course because life does not exist without protein powder. lol  I'm thinking of bringing quick oats and using the coffee maker to make oatmeal which means then I NEED cinnamon.  Lack of cinnamon is also a life or death situation by the way. For the rest of it I guess we'll see. I've already asked for the name of the restaurant we're eating at on Tuesday night and I've looked at the menu. VERY good menu to navigate so I shouldn't have any issues there. I think I'll save my carbs for dinner so I can have a baked potato!

As for gym access I have everything planned out.  For this weekend there is a gym right across the parking lot from my hotel (the hotel gym, as usual, sucks) and they have day passes.  For Montreal they offer complimentary access to a wellness center across the highway because they know their onsite equipment isn't adequate. (2 treadmills and some handweights??)  I may or may not be able to get Tuesday's workout in however I have all day wednesday to catch up and I will just follow the schedule into the weekend.

While I know people are probably thinking I'm crazy for being slightly panicked about all of this but I know there are some of you who totally understand.  I NEED to be prepared, WELL in advance.  It makes me feel more at ease travelling since I'm slightly OCD when it comes to details. lol  However there's one detail being left out of next week's trip: Lunch. I have NO idea what our options are and there is no info.  As long as I can find a salad I'm good.  Hmmmm, maybe I should pack dressing and a can of tuna too.......

If I Had An Infomercial.......

With so many gimmicks and surgeries to help or pretend to help aid in weight and fat loss I finally cracked after reading about an aquaintance doing a shake diet. Seriously? You're excited your overly sugared shake tastes like rootbeer? Well probably but is this really a permanent fix? Me thinks not.  So after thinking for a moment I decided that if I had an infomercial it would go something like this:


We have finally found THE perfect fat loss program!!!! It's a 2 step process that will guarantee you the body you have always wanted. Step number 1 is called THE GYM where you lift weights, heavy ones, and get cardiovascular exercise. Step 2 is called THE KITCHEN where you cook clean food all by yourself. Join THE GYM and THE KITCHEN today and we'll give you MUSCLE as a free gift! Thousands of people have transformed their lives with this program and you can too!

Seriously people. Pick up a weight! What do you have to lose except....fat!

It's Getting Hot In The Kitchen!

Yesterday I sparked a heated discussion that stemmed from a story I shared which came from my boss and really good friend who is in Mexico currently on holiday. (so jealous)  Like me he enjoys going to the gym on vacation since it's a part of his every day routine and just because he's on holiday, doesn't mean he's not going to continue on with his routine. Anyway, while in the gym this very large man and his large wife poked their heads in to the gym (the reason is still unclear) took a look around and the man proceeded to say "Look at all these people waisting their vacation!  I wonder why they would spend all this money to be in the gym?!" Without skipping a beat my boss says a young girl piped up and said "So we don't look like you, you fat pig. Now get out so we can do our work!"

Obviously her response is on the rude side, I know this, however it should be expected that someone would get offended from him saying what he did.  After sharing the story I confessed that I wanted to high five the chick because you never hear about what we as fit people have to go through while living our lifestyle. My exact words were "you always hear about the ridicule over weight people receive but you never hear about the ridicule we receive".  My question is now, was I right in saying that? I don't need to be right but is it a fact that we as healthy eaters, 5am workouters, "No I can go for dinner"refusers, receive a decent amount of "flack" for the way we live our life?? I for one think so.  Should it be compared to the unfortunate bullying that over weight people receive, I'm not sure but this is what I'm attempting to do I suppose. 

I would LOVE to hear from those of you who have been on both ends of the spectrum since I haven't.  Those who have been an over weight person, lost the weight, and are now living the fit lifestyle. Do you receive as much ridicule, and bullying now as you did when you were overweight? Let me know! :) 

Diet and Everyday Life

Good day Carbzombies!!!
I am 2 weeks into contest prep and surprisingly I'm doing ok! Last year I was highly stressed with family issues and it triggered my emotional eating urges almost every day.  This year my family and I are in a better emotional place which means I have a lot more control over my urges and cravings.  Sure I'm dying for a HUGE breakfast that rhymes with Beggs Penedict but I'm surpressing that. lol 

I plan on taking updated progress pictures either tonight or tomorrow to show what I've done over the last 2 weeks. I can't believe the difference to be honest. I truly think my muscle memory and the hard work I put in during my off season is to thank for my progress thus far.  I have my second assessment tomorrow and I'm looking forward to seeing the numbers!

In 3 weeks I'm attending my company Christmas party and not only is it tough enough to stick to dieting during the holidays but this Christmas party is taking place 6 hours from where I live.  I think I'm going to pre cook and pack food for my lunches for sure. Breakfasts and dinners are the easiest thing to work around I find but lunch, lunch can be tough. Lunch always leaves me tempted.  Breakfast I can bring oatmeal and find some egg whites. Supper is usually a HUGE salad and chicken. Both are easy enough to find at the buffet. But lunch, lunch is my Carb Zombie's kryptonite.

To add another twist in the road when I return from said Christmas party I am off to Montreal on a business related trip. It's only for a few days but like a pro I've already checked out the menus at the hotel and the gym amentities.  Fail to plan, plan to fail right??  All in all I hope those 6 days should be interesting.

What are your plans for sticking to your goals over the holidays? Avoiding the lunch room at work? Pre planning meals for functions? Let me know!

Consoling the Carb Zombie

This is what I have been doing alllllllllll week.  Mother Carb Zombie is HANGRY all the time. This is a good thing, I know, but it makes me dread when and if cheat meals come in to play.  I have officially agreed today that should cheat meals come in to the equation I will NOT choose sugary foods and I will NOT choose junk food. Bacon at breakfast doesn't count. lol However now that I think of it a FANTASTIC eggs benedict breakfast just might be the ticket!


Anyway the whole method behind this madness is I'm scared of triggering the intense cravings for junk and sweets that did me in last time.  I want to do this 100% and have no regrets so I can dance around on that stage while holding that plastic trophy. :)

The Brain Game

For those who are just starting to follow along you will notice I will mention "Carbzombie" alot. This is the name I gave myself last season during prep because my brain was screaming for carbs. Oh the life of a competitor!  Of course our brains make it seem ALOT worse than it is. Heck I've been "dieting" since March but it's been on MY terms. As soon as I decide to make a commitment and cut out the extra options it's like a switch is flipped and out comes the Carbzombie.
"What do you mean we can't have eggs with 12 grain bread on the weekend anymore???"

"What do you mean no yam fries????"

"Not the avocado!!! NOOOOOOOOO!!!"

It's not that my brain wants to eat junk food, it's that it wants feel like it has the freedom to choose. So this is what I'm going to do for the next 4 months. I'm going to have the mentality that I am choosing all of my meals. That I'm not following a plan and all of this is free will.  Technically it is but I know you see my point. 

All in all the next 4 months WILL be amazing. :)

Day 1 of prep - 138 days out!

After indulging in some Halloween candy last night I am ready to get down to business! I am officially 138 days out from my competition with no room for error.  This morning began at 5am after my new alarm clock went on when it was supposed to. I swear my other one had gremlins or something.  Seriously, little tiny gremlins messing around with the settings. Anyway, this morning started with fasted cardio but not the kind you're thinking. Nope! Like I mentioned before, new trainer, new way to do things! THIS morning started with jump squat intervals!!  1 minute of jump squats followed by 2 mins of rest, repeat 5 more times and you're done!  Now don't underestimate the difficulty of this exercise. The first time around after a 5 min warm up I got 7 squats in to the set and my legs were burning. After the 4th set things were getting better but this is definitely not easy.  This evening if a full body circut followed by 10 mins of interval cardio.  LOVE this prep already. Will I be saying this 30 days from now? Who knows.