Weekend Recap, Food, Vacation and Finding Peace!

Hey y'all!

Ugh, it's Monday again...

EXACTLY!

Hope you guys all had a lovely weekend.  If you live in the southeast, I hope you stayed out of the brutal, hotter than the hinges of hell heat this weekend.  I don't get the heat index/wind chill ordeal anyway.  Can we just say it's 110 degrees rather than say "well, it's really 90 degrees, but feels like 110!".  Am I right?  Does anyone else get annoyed with that?  Let's just call things what they are.  Who has time for that!?

I digress, but let's get back to the subject at hand.  Last week, I posted about my clean eating goals of bringing my lunch every day during the week.  I managed to stay true to that until Friday, so 4 outta 5 days ain't too shabby.  There was a yummy food truck onsite at my office.  Even so, I managed to order something remotely healthy.  

This is pernil, a Puerto Rican pulled pork shoulder, which has been cooking in yumminess and secret spices.  Also, salad and rice and beans.  It wound up being super filling and worth the $8 I spent.

The cool thing about bringing my own food is that I feel so much better than when I'm grabbing things on the go.  I tend to meal prep on Sundays, but last week was a little different while wrapping up J's birthday, planning to be out of town, and just trying to save a little $$$ in general.  J's grill has nicely contributed to some good meals though, so, that thing was an awesome investment.  I also made protein shakes and loved every drop of them.  Frozen bananas, PB2 and Chocolate Protein Powder are my jam.

Also, I did some online research (AKA, spent 7 hours on Google and WebMD) one evening and tried to look up any nutritional supplements that I may be missing.  I came upon a wealth of information, but after doing some reading,  I realized I'm not getting enough calcium anymore due to the fact that I stopped eating dairy about 2 months ago.  Now, I do have a tendency to self-diagnose myself at times, but I never considered myself lactose intolerant.  I love cheese and it loves me...except when I have bad gas, the bloats, and then major stomach pain.  Same happened with milk and especially ice cream.  Getting old sucks.

Back in May, my dermatologist started noticing broken blood vessels on my face and arms.  She asked me to scale back the dairy a great deal and since then, I've truly felt better.  But I didn't think about adding in a calcium supplement, so I've been sleeping horribly for 2 months and also having random muscles spasms.  Pair that with turning into a raging hormonal pyscho during lady time meant...I just needed to do something.  So I boned up (no pun intended) on a good multivitamin, calcium and vitamin D chews (so important for women anyway), and added in magnesium and evening primrose oil.  A week into that, I'm feeling a great deal better, more energetic and mentally more calm.  I'll report back in a month on updates with all the supplements, because I think I've been so frazzled and deprived of good nutrient absorption that it took a huge toll on my system.  Super excited to feel better!

Just ask Jarrett, he can let you know what my alter ego is like :)  

(PS-Could Christian Bale be any more of a genius in the movie?)

All of that being said, it was a great week, followed by a great weekend.  I spent some time with some girlfriends for my friend Keri's 32nd birthday.  We had great dinner and drinks and may have laughed so hard that we grew some abs without trying.  I love those kinds of nights!

What's on tap for this week? Well..................Chubby Spin Instructor is actually teaching twice this week after a very long hiatus from the spin room!  YAY!!!!!!!!!!!  I'm excited, nervous, but really happy to sub for a few classes to help out a fellow instructor.  I'm working my playlist for tomorrow's ride right now and it's going to rock, can't WAIT! I love teaching and have missed being on the bike, so prepare yourselves for lots of sweaty selfies.

Jarrett and I go on vacation this Sunday for a week to Madeira Beach, FL! We are so excited to have a real week-long vacation since our honeymoon in December.  It's going to to an amazing time to just chill, lay in the sun, and just become a hippie for a week.  I plan to not wear makeup and maybe not shave my armpits.

One last thought to leave you guys with on this hectic Monday.  Last night, I had some time to reflect on last week, the weekend, and how that all leads into another week.  It's like being on the dreadmill, it never stops. I saw so many folks posting about not wanting the weekend to end, which I totally get, because I dread Mondays.  But I thought about something as I was reading through the anti-Monday posts.  It's a chance to do it all over again and do it better.  It's a chance to bring yourself more peace each day as you lead into another.  I think nightly rituals are something that come to mind when thinking about enjoying the week.  I truly look forward to coming home every single day after work, putting the leash on Boone, lacing up my shoes, and going for a long walk/run.  Sometimes it's more of an interval run....run hard....pee, run hard again...pee break on some new bushes...run....oh we may have to poop this time, water break!  But in all seriousness, I find a sense of peace knowing that I'm completing his day and mine at the same time.  Even on the days where life seems the worst and you just don't think you can go anymore (and trust me, I can get there quickly), it's so important to go do something to relax.

It's almost Tuesday! I hope you guys enjoy your evenings and unwind a little with your friends and family.  Get out, take a walk, spend time together, and maybe love on your best furry friend

Throwback Thursday....or Turn Back Time Thursday....Whatevs!

You guys for real seriously know that I thought that TBT stood for Turn Back Time like a few months back righhhhhhht??? Like Cher did? Like, woah, can I ride on a tank and sing? That would be fabulous.

Anyway, let's cut to the chase. I decided that today I would turn back the clock a little bit to show you guys some photos of lil' ole me before I became chubby.  Goal photos if you will, because I'd like to look like like some of theses photos again at some point. Now one thing I won't do yet is show a progress photo (because it's throwback Thursday, not throwFORWARD Thursday), but I'm on tap for that next week.

Good things are happening in the world of working out and eating clean :) Like looser pants.  Except when I decide to forgo underwear when I'm in a hurry, then I have to be careful bending over.  Truth!

This is how I feel right now and also how I feel looking back at some of these pictures.

SKINNY FACE AND ARMS! (but big boobs woo hoo!) OMG, I really think this is like 7 years ago.  I was so young! I went to spend a weekend with my friend Cass and her family before she moved and went to pharmacy school.  I literally cried like we had broken up after 10 years of dating when I waved goodbye and pulled away from our rental house.  It was for real a moment in forming a solid friendship forever. But we had an awesome time and were hotties back then.

Alaska Trip 2009 with my family.  I was seriously in good shape here and training for a half marathon that December.  And I loved my hair like this.  Total blast, want to go back, even if it does meaning that I hear my dad snore for a week (love you Dids)!  YES we all stayed in one room (4 of us)...because my dad  is pretty much Clark Griswold.

J and I had just started dating here in 2010.  This was literally one of our first football games together.  Look how skinny our mugs were!  I also dyed my hair koolaid red because J likes redheads. Oops!  This is way before we discovered craft beer and late night pizza.

Last but not least, Goosewing Ranch, Jackson Hole Wyoming 2011. LOVED this vacation and my hair color :)  At this point, I had discovered all the food and the reason you only see my face in this picture is it was honestly the only picture I felt good about. Pictures of me on horses that week, I won't show to anyone...170 pounds.  Ugh. Sad.

Now, here are a few things that I can glean from these pictures.  

First picture, WOW, so young, still a baby, and what a great time.  We get older, we change (hopefully for the better), but we all know that it's a struggle to look like you did 7 years ago.  I mean, I would give anything for my pant size during that time and the awesome thigh muscles I had, and I know I can get there now. But back then, I also still could go out all night, drink and eat bad, and not have a hangover hardly.

(And what I wouldn't give for no crows feet.  May Botox be your best friend in your 30s!)

I look at the second picture of myself in Alaska and man, that was an amazing time in my life.  I was really independent for the first time, had the greatest apartment ever, and was living the dream.  I was also eating super healthy, running 3-5 times a week and lifting weights.  I remember right after that trip going through a really awful break up, getting even skinnier from emotional strain, and then pushing myself to still run that half marathon because I truly wanted to prove to myself I could do big things.  And I did.

Third picture brings back so many great memories.  Meeting Jarrett truly was life changing. I had never met a man that was so compassionate and that just wanted to love me, not compete with me.  He was the rock to my craziness.  Still is.  (You guys really have no idea, he puts up with a lot).

What I remember about this photo is that we truly were having a ball and we were big time runners.  We would run every weekend that he came to visit me. (I can probably say stay now, I mean, my granny isn't on the Facebook).  We ran at night, we ran some pretty scenic routes in town, and we pushed each other.

AND THEN...life got in the way!

Just kidding, it really didn't, just food and beverage got in the way :) 

That last picture brings back so many memories.  While I had a great time with my parents on that trip, I remember being super self conscious of my body.  Lots of loose and flowy clothes.  Its funny, your family is your mirror sometimes.  I know that my parents truly would love me at any size.  But I LOVE MY DAD for saying to me "I think you can do better, this is the biggest you've ever been".  He was totally right.  I was teaching spin, getting bigger every day, and not even thinking twice about it.  I was in love for the first time in a really long time and I just let myself go.  I think it's funny that we call it gaining "happy" weight because ok yeah, all those good meals and snacks were awesome, but I wasn't happy after I ate them.  I sure as crap wasn't happy when I split my favorite pair of jeans in the crotch because my thighs had gotten too big.  I do love this picture, but the difference in my face in a few years speaks volumes to how I was treating my body.  All the chubbiness just continued to build up.  Amazingly enough, my now-husband still proposed to me in the midst of being on the larger side and loved me through it.  He's seen me go up and down and still watches me struggle.  I'm just glad that he loves me enough to not judge me.

All of that being said, you have to find your own happiness and own it no matter what season of life you're in.   I'm echoing a fellow blogger today after reading about her struggle with happiness and I am so glad she addressed her own personal journey. I was happy in all of these pictures no matter what my size.  I struggled and I went up and down, but I truly was still having an amazing time in life.  I didn't let anything hold me back.  I went through 2 career changes, amazing trips across the country and to international spots, new friends, old friends, relationships, and changes in my family.  7 years ago, I couldn't handle what I can now.  

We get older, we get wiser, we get better.

Find yourselves some truth you guys.  Life is much better when you're living for you and throttling yourself towards an awesome existence.  It's the reason I stay motivated to work out, run, walk my dog, maybe even just power-walk through my hood like I'm the Prancercise Lady.  It doesn't matter what I'm doing, I just keep on going, even if I do look like a dingbat.

You know you are TRULY happy with yourself when you can be this confident in your camel toe and still put yourself out there in some ginormous pearls.  GET IT PRANCERCISE LADY!

Ugh, Monday!

Hey y'all.

So today was like a giant faceplant into the glass door called Monday.  This all started with me losing my work badge behind my nightstand, which caused me to be about 5 minutes behind schedule.

If you guys work for corporate 'Merica, you know that not having your badge is like the worst thing in the world.  There's no point in even going to work.  Access DENIED.

Ok so I get to work, literally like at 8:31, and there is no parking.  Yet another fail.

Followed by parking for our work shuttle in a cornfield with hay and cows and fire ants, which are the tiny ruin of all things good.

 Followed by finding out that that shuttle has broken down and that we all must walk to the office.  Imagine a caravan of people, with their nerdy backpacks trucking across a major intersection.  Big time nerd parade.

This is how I felt by around 9:03 AM

All of that aside, I did manage to make it to work, be productive, and even eat healthy all day. 

I usually meal prep a good bit on Sundays, but I didn't last night too far into the week because J was planning on busting out his new grill today and cooking up all the things.  He's an awesome grill master and takes his role very seriously. 

(This is his serious grill face while providing direction to his tailgating minions).

So now, I have more leftovers for the week.  YAY!  (Please ignore the half empty sweet tea and cream cheese icing, that was from J's birthday, but it's over now and so is the sugar rush).

I usually start off the week strong and then by Friday I'm like, yeah, ok I've done enough, I can slack.  My goal this week is to work out all 5 days and not wind up like this at 5 on Friday:

(Oh Kim Z, you are a piece of blonde wig work)

New goals, new mindset, all new blog posting schedule (let's not get jiggy, 5 days may not happen but I'm hopeful)....just all things new.  Kind of like a mid-year resolution.  

Because I am OCD and like to keep a list, here's my running list of things to do this week with regard to keeping it light and fit:

1. Eat all meals from home.  No takeout.  ZERO.

2. Eat all healthy snacks, fruit, smoothies and nuts only (no M&Ms, there is a girl on my team with jar full of them and they call my name twice a day)

3. Walk Boone/run/lift weights every single morning or night before or after work.  Maybe both!

4. Try to not lose my cool but maybe once this week because I'm in such a zen state of mind from aforementioned workouts.

5. No alkyhol until the weekend!

That's all for now guys.  It's been a heck of a Monday, but onto Tuesday and then eventually the weekend!

Weekend Recap and Plans for This Week

Happy Sunday y'all!!

I usually don't weekend recap until Mondays, but I know tomorrow is going to be crazy busy at work so, here you are, a weekend post.  

I really love the weekends after a really hard week at work.  Like yes, there's time for a little downtime, but most of the time, I like to keep myself busy.  So here's what I've done the past 2 days.

I got a massage! I had a gift certificate that I needed to use so yesterday was the day.  Massage is SOOOOOOOOOOO important.  I am guilty of not doing it enough, but it's really a good part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle.  Case in point, yesterday, the massage therapist was working on my shoulders and she was like "you have a great muscular structure, you should definitely have a massage once a month if you are working out a lot, it will help you recover faster".  DONE, sister, I'll be back in 4 weeks :)  I'm pretty sure that I can find a way in my budget to work this into my "Rebecca Fun" money.

Speaking of budgets, not to get all adult and all on a weekend, but ours was in need of some serious overhaul.  We just use our debit cards a lot and Mr. I Don't Like Leftovers definitely goes through a lot of drive-throughs.  Try being healthy around someone that eats at Taco Bell like 5 times a week.  UGH.  I digress... 

So I sat down last night, instead of throwing back shots (not like I'd normally be doing that), and I revamped our $$$ and decided we're going to try an envelope system for a bit.  We definitely need to use it for things like gas, groceries, eating out, and just small things like "oh, I want some new mascara".  As for Mr. Drive Through, I mentioned this concept. "So you'll get x amount of dollars each week and then when you run out, you can take turkey sandwiches and pretzels to lunch that I buy anyway each week! Doesn't that sound awesome?".  Queue the side eye :)

Just kidding, J is pretty good about letting me handle the money matters, but we needed some more self-control.  And we're getting rid of cable, something I've wanted to do FOREVER.   I think it's a good change though, we need more money in the bank account.

I cooked some yummy food!  Summer pasta with squash, goat cheese, basil and garlic.  OH and let's not forget the turkey bacon.  Which makes everything better.

This one is red curry veggies and will be my lunch for a few days over rice. 

I walked the dog...A LOT.  So since Boone has been feeling so much better, he LOVES a long walk.  And he like stares at me in the face from the floor until a I take him some days.  And I can't say no to this face.

Anyway, we walked the neighborhood twice yesterday, so that was about 4 miles.  And then I lifted some weights and did a small circuit on my porch in the morning and then this afternoon.  It was good times.

Right now, he just ate some rice from the trash and has rice all over his face and is twirling in a circle for no reason.  Meaning, must take the dog out before he twirls himself to death.

What do you guys do to keep sane on the weekends?  Do you totally chillax and veg out or do you keep yourselves busy, see all your friends and just keep on trucking right into Monday?

Upcoming plans for this week will be some updates on running, why it's important to lift weights, and just healthy eating and staying on track.  Until next time, enjoy your last few hours of freedom!

Did you miss me?

Hi.........................................

Did you guys ever think I would post again? Probably not, but alas, here I am, staying up and feeling inspired to start posting again after a long 6 month hiatus.  I just couldn't stay away. 

Since my last post back in 2007 :) lots has been going on.  I think I mentioned to you guys that I started a new position at work.  It's been super challenging every day of my life and I have traveled some over the summer to support some clients.  While it was fun to be in another city for a week, there's just no place like home.  And nothing beats an ocean breeze every day of my life!

For those that follow me on IG, you'll probably notice that I obsessively post pictures of my dog, because I'm biased that he's the cutest thing EVER.  He really is an awesome dog (when he's not howling or trying to eat whatever we leave on the counters).   Not sure if I explained much about his health story when we first got him, but he was heart worm positive and a little underweight and just very lethargic.  He scared us to death with his coughing fits at night.  We started treating him every month, and since he came to be in our lives, he's gained 13 pounds and can now go on 1-2 mile walks with me.  He LOVES to be outdoors and he's just a big ole baby.  We heart Boone.  I mean, this picture melts my heart every time.

Tink has been booted as the main pet...but we still love her and let her sleep in the bed at night.  She bites our toes out of spite for replacing her.

Fitness wise, I'm still trying to work out and not be a Chubby Spin Instructor :)  Truth be told, I haven't taught in months, but, I did ask to start subbing again this month.  Like writing this blog, Spinning is a huge part of who I am and I truly miss it.  I miss teaching and coaching people.  And it's SUCH an amazing workout.  I noticed another fellow blogger purchased shoes the other day and that is the true sign that you're hooked.  Because it's like the heavens open up and an angelic light shines on your bike and your feet say THANK YOU FOR SAVING ME!!!

J and I both started running again, which is great because we were enjoying too many craft beers and duck fat fries this summer.  We were eating all the things.  All. The. Things. Time to get skinny in time for winter :) 

Married life is good!  Now I will say, everyone told us the first year is the hardest.  And it's like someone told me that in Arabic, I was like "Ok yeah, I don't know what that means, but thanks for sharing bro".  But I quickly learned that year 1 is a big ole transition.  I learned that if you fight, you can't like go run home or hit up your BFF because chances are, they are probably fighting with their spouse too and they can't come to the phone right now :)  Just kidding, but in all seriousness, things like a new dog and job changes are great, but stressful experiences and a total adjustment.  Yesterday, I looked at my calendar and realized that 7 months had gone by.  I was SO surprised.  I feel like I walked down the aisle yesterday!  Where does the time go?  

That's pretty much all that's going on! Job, marriage, and life is rolling along at an amazingly fast pace.  I have missed sharing and quite honestly, posting has helped me be accountable! So......I'm back!

Tune in next time for some workout FUN! Even though I can go to my gym down the road, I've taken great pleasure in working out on my back porch most nights during the summer.  All you need are some weights and a little motivation!

See you guys real soon!