Live the Life YOU want to Live

Live the Life YOU Want to Live.

Wait, hold the reins. Most people, including me who see stuff like this either think it's 'hippie shit' or think 'there's no way I can live the life I want to live right now, because of this, this, and this.' And you know what? It kind of is 'hippie shit' and we all do have multiple things on our plates, but, you know what. It's still the truth. We are the only ones in charge of our lives.

A few months ago I realized that I was allowing myself to feel like a victim of my circumstance. Now don't get me wrong. I did a really good job trying to get over my broken heart, I did everything I could to pull up my big girl panties and move on. But I realized that if I really wanted to be a victor and not a victim, I had to go the extra mile. I had to make my life exactly what I wanted, not just good enough to show that I had moved past everything.

In essence, I lived this "Then one day she decided to design a life she loved." I just realized that if I want what I want, then I have to do the work to get it.

I think that's where a lot of people fall short of these things, they don't do the work. I'm not saying that it's easy or that anything is completely within your reach at this moment, but it is within your reach. I think it's fairly clear now we now know that I want to loose weight. But you know what? That isn't really my overall goal.

My first and foremost goal is to be more of who I am and who I want to be. I want to be the things that make me happy. You know what makes me happy? Being healthy. Working out. Looking great in clothes. Accomplishing new tricks on the pole. A good spin class. Making people laugh. Inspiring people to be more than they are. Sharing quotes, recipes, inspirational things, that stuff makes me high! I LOVE it. So I figured out that I better just start doing it.

How did I do it?

1. I decided what was MOST important.

~For me this was exercise and diet.

Doesn't this looking amazing? Veggie spring rolls for lunch. Holla!

2. Learning new tricks on the pole.

~I really enjoy pole dance classes. I like the teachers, the students, the atomsphere. I do not thing I have a future in pole or in competitions, but I like the goal setting that comes with it. There is always something new to learn and some awesome way to challenge your body. It is a really great way to see how far you've come. I don't think I'll do pole forever, but I do really like it.

Here are my new pole shoes for inspiration. I keep joking that they come with an application to work at Deja Vu. I never thought I would ever be able to rock these and/or dance in them without dying.

3. Making people laugh

~I decided to take an improv class. I LOVE making people laugh. One of my favorite lines that completes me is in a song is from Rosie Thomas, These Friends of Mine "And when they laugh, it makes me high..." That's totally how I feel. So I decided to try improv. I was asked to join the company. It's so much fun!

4. Sharing and helping to inspire others

~ I spend a lot of time looking up quotes, shows, facts, life, and trying new things that in hopes.... It inspires other people to break out of their ruts and try things.

You can do this too. Don't think because you live in a small town in Podunk, WA that it's gotta keep you down. You have to make your life where you are. I could give you suggestions, but you need to do the work to make your own changes. You have to want to do the work. It's not easy. But it's possible. I'm just the same as you. I grew up with no money. I have a ton of student loans. I do have a great job, but I still have to make the choice everyday to go out and kick ass and that's hard when I have a super comfy couch to park it on.

It's all about #Hardwork #Dedication and just #GETTINGIT! :)

Heart Rate Monitors and why YOU should buy one

I shared awhile back that I started using a BodyMedia fit media arm band and I want you to know I am continuing to use it. Let me say really quickly, that I think this is a really GREAT tool for most people, but, I am now completely sold on heart rate monitors. Let me tell you why I love heart rate monitors and then in another post I'll go over the fit media arm band or the body bugg, they are essentially the same product branded differently. I'll let you know why I think it may really work out for you. But back to my new obsession, heart rate monitors.

So you know when you go to the gym and they have all those heart rate charts on the wall, like this?

I see all those charts and all the numbers kinda make my brain want to throw up and shut down. I have always avoided looking at these things, because it's too much effort. I undersand their point. I understand the validity of them, but I just want to keep things more simple. Honestly, I'm just kind of lazy about it. Who wouldn't be? Those charts are for super freaks. ;)

However, I have been kicking my very own butt spinning 4 days a week and I just realized in order to do this weight loss, become an awesome athlete thing, I need to be more effective. The idea is this. If you're going to workout and drench yourself in sweat, why would you want to waste time not being effective? If you are committed, if you're doing the work, why not do the best work? Unfortunately, you are rarely a good judge of the BEST work for your body, exercise wise. Our brains are terrific liars, they says, slow down, relax, I can't do this... but you know what? You can. Then sometimes you can do TOO much. It's a tangled web.

Let me tell you in simple people terms what I want. If I want to burn fat, loose weight, I need to be in the 60-70% zone, and so do you. I could calculate this myself or you could. I could stop in the middle of intense exercise and take your pulse and then calculate it while you are pushing myself mentally and physically. I could make excel spreadsheets, I could figure this out all by my lone or you I just buy a heart rate monitor. See what I mean? Just buy a heart rate monitor!

Real quick, lets look at my goals for this year. My ultimate goal at this point is to loose weight right? My secondary goal is to become a good athlete. Then my third goal, to measure all this effort is to complete the Tough Mudder in December.

What I've learned about my body using a HRM

Spin class rarely keeps me in a fat burning zone, it burns a lot of calories, almost 500, but it only has about a 21% fat burn effect. Meaning that for my hour of working out... I'm only loosing 100 calories of fat. It burns through my glycogen stores, but it also helps to increase endurance and oxygen capacity. This is a GREAT zone to be in to become an athlete and to prep me for the 10 miles of running in the Tough Mudder. So I have no plans to stop, but for now, spin isn't the class I am making a priority, because it's not the big fat burner.

Where do I burn the most fat? Those classes are fast moving heated yoga classes, pole where I'm utilizing a lot of core and upper body strength and conditioning class where we do squats, push-ups, sit-ups and all that 'fun' stuff. Those classes are upwards of 50-60% fat burn. Even though overall, I burn less calories, they are more effective in working towards my first goal, which is weight loss.

The theory and evidence should work like this. If you are counting calories and you should be. You can go with lower impact classes to start and burn more fat and less calories, as long as you are still in a negative calorie deficit. Does that make sense? If you start your journey this way, you build more muscle, which burns calories throughout the day.

I would never have known any of this, without a heart rate monitor. You hear me? It's one of the best $100 you could ever spend.

I HIGHLY recommend you go with a heart rate monitor that has a chest strap. I was really weirded out by the idea of wearing a strap on my chest. You know what? It's not a big deal at all. The only time it's a lil' funky is when I'm laying flat on the ground, but that shouldn't happen a lot when you are exercising anyway. The thing with monitors that are JUST a watch, they may look better, but you have to STOP, insure good contact and get a measurement. Lets face it, you may look kinda tarded stopping in spin to measure your heart rate. Just get a chest strap, trust me on this, it's one less step. Real quick: You do have to slightly wet the chest strap when you put it on, so it gets a more accurate read. Don't freak out, you get used to it.

After reading a lot about HRM's I purchased the Polar Ft40F from Amazon. It's $110 and the one I kept coming across when looking up weight loss and heart rate monitors. I am in LOVE.

I also purchased the flow link from polar. This allows me to upload all my workout info to the polar website for free. It shows training zones, etc. The website is VERY thorough and I'm still not sure it's user friendly, it's one of those things that kinda makes my head spin, but I'm figuring it out. I really like having the data in front of me and figuring out what I can do. All of these numbers come in handy with my calorie counting.

So the point of this? GO BUY A HEART RATE MONITOR! If I was Oprah, I'd totally buy you one. I'm not though. But be your own Oprah. If you are really trying to loose weight through exercise and eating better, this is one of the best investments out there.

Another thought, I know a lot of runners talk and coo about their Garmins. These are even more fancy heart rate monitors. They can tell you the color of your hair, the exact location of the president, wind speed, chill, what toenail polish you wear, whatever. They are super cool.... for runners. If you're a runner, if you have a goal to be a runner, upgrade to this type. If you aren't, I don't know that they are really necessary. Unless you can't remember your toenail polish color.

I don't care what you get, unless it's not a HRM with a chest strap! Do it! Change your life! Feel the love. Dedicate. Hardwork. Live better. It's so worth it!

~x~

misty

Update... Where I'm at right now.

Soooo let's see... It's been about a month of being vegan... I had about 5 days there where I just ate whatever I wanted, my mama was in town and let's just face it, one of the great things about stick to the plan at all. I did exercise though! I was able to spin everyday, that helped a lot!

Let me share with ya where I'm at and where I'm going.

Diet: Still Vegan.....95% of the time.

I've modified the Eat to Live plan. I just was not getting enough calories for the amount of time I was exercising. I don't have enough time at work to eat all those veggies and fruits, nor do I want to travel with an orchard. I'm sure this would be the best option, but I have opted to not worry about sodium content, other than to not add any to food I am cooking. I am still sticking to green smoothies in the morning and large salads at lunch for the most part. However, I've found Vegan Grilled Cheese a great comfort food after a long day at work. At 250 calories, it's not a bad deal at all. I'm really trying to stick to this vegan thing. One, because it seems so annoying and pretentious. Two, because it really does make sense for your heart and arteries.

Weight Loss:

This is a sore subject, kinda. I have lost 11 pounds in one month. I know, that's great for all that I was putting in it wasn't enough, which is the key point here. I was over training and under eating. Not purposefully, but just kinda by over zealousness. The cool thing is, though this isn't Biggest Looser status, it is within that really healthy, keep it off dieting range. Years ago I participated in a low-calorie diet, I am fairly certain that it whacked my metabolism for life. That plus a funky thyroid, that is now well managed, put me at a bit of a disadvantage. So I just have to keep modifying the plan to see what will work.

Pole:

I've been going. The last time I went to inversion class (which is exactly what it's about). I was able to get my foot on the pole by myself. Previously, I have never been able to do that myself. I've always had to have someone lift my ass in the air! Yeah! Getting there! The picture above is from lovely pole burn on my poor little foot. What does pole burn on your feet mean? It means I haven't been climbing enough... The only way to get over pole burn is to create more and kinda desensitize the nerves in the skin. Ugh... not looking forward to this!

Exercise:

Spin......Love

I've been going to spin about 4 days a week. (The days I work are just too much for me to exercise) I just switched to a new spin studio called RPM. I really like it. The ride is longer, which means more cardio, but I kinda miss the push-ups and sit-ups that we did at Lotus Kitty. Can I just stop and say I hate the name Lotus Kitty... Ugh. Just don't like it. Anyhow, what I really liked is that the instructor immediately corrected my form and gave me some tips on how I can sculpt better while on the bike. I could feel the burn immediately. I really liked this class and while I burned 456 calories, only 21% of it was fat. How do I know this? It's my heart rate monitor. I'll write another post about heart rate monitors. However, let me just tell you. I am in LOVE with mine. I kinda wanna kiss it.

Pilates

I am almost finished with all of my pilates groupons. Though it kinda makes me sad, I just know for the moment pilates and I have to part ways. Mostly, because I just don't have the money or time for everything. I really, really love Grace Anatomy Pilates. I knew I would love this place years ago, but it's on the high end of prices for pilates. I just can't fit it in.

Yoga

I'm moving into a season of yoga. I have two serious groupons for yoga. I started one at this place called Yoga Shelter. Most of the classes are heated, which I love. The workout is great. The class I took last night was intense and the one I took today was a lil' less intense. Both had similar fat burning qualities, about 50% fat calories. I think I'm just going to choose by what falls into my schedule easier. Yoga Shelter is kinda unique in how the practice their yoga, but I was really into the moment where we shoot our booties in chair pose and then danced around the room. My next groupon is for Corepower Yoga, which I have been drooling over and waited very patiently until they offered a groupon and I got it! Cannot wait to use it.

So what's the point of all this exercise? Mostly, it's because I can't stop buying groupon's and I'm always interested in trying new places. But I firmly believe that exercise is all about doing things you love, trying new things, and then pushing yourself to the limit. I keep telling my friend at work, it doesn't count if you look pretty at the end. I do have to be a little careful, because I teeter on the brink of overtraining. It's why when I have a day off, I rest as much as possible between workouts. I count work days as off days and then if I'm really not feeling it, I'll skip a class... Like I did with spin this morning. I really try to listen to my body and figure out when my brain is BSing me and when I need to take a break. You should do the same. Always opt to push yourself, because your brain will lie to you. Your brain is wired to save your body with minimal effort.... save your energy for catastrophes later kinda idea... But you will have a catastrophe later if you don't exercise now. :) So push it!

A few new tricks up my sleeve:

I'm wearing a body fit media band, it's like a body bugg. I bought it before I really dove into the Heart Rate Monitor research. I've opted to wear the body fit media band all the time and only wear the heart rate monitor for actual exercise classes. I'll go over the benefits for these in individual posts the next few days.

I'm counting calories using My Net Diary Pro. The app is $3.99 or you can use the lite version for free. I've opted to use this, because I was not eating enough. My body appears to be very sensitive to eating too much or too little. So I'm counting every single calorie. This app is super easy and what I really like is that it allows me to create custom exercise, so I can use the heart rate monitor to put in actual calorie burned for each particular exercise.

Sometimes I think this is all so convoluted. Loosing weight should be easier, but I've always had such a hard time. It's never worked out well, even when I feel like I have crazy effort. So I'm trying to keep track of all these things to see what really works. The other thing I figured out today is I'm still not getting enough protein. So when I really wanted ANOTHER vegan chocolate chip cookie, I had a protein shake instead. I'll have to write another post about protein and vegan options. So much research out there!

I hope this helps you guys. It's not easy, but I'm convinced this is sooo good for me. I love the feeling of working out a lot, so I just have to adjust the food and the protein to go with it!

p.s. I'm taking improv classes! They are super fun! I love my life. I love that I'm designing a life I love. Now... if only Dolvett would come marry me....

p.p.s. I hope this helps you. I'm learning so much about me. About health and what really matters. I hope it encourages you and pushes you and helps you grow!

~x~

misty

On being fierce & getting back on track

I saw this on pinterest not that long ago and I LOVED it. I whole heartedly LOVE the idea of being fierce. I just love this whole freaking poster. So I settled on being physically stronger. Emotionally braver. Kinder, because lets face it, we all need to be more kind. Unstoppable. That's amazing. Make a goal to become unstoppable. To not let that terrible night of sleep keep you from exercise. That big fight to not stress you out. To not have the lonely or bored direct your eating habits. But to be unstoppable in your goals and dreams. But what I really, really like? The idea of being fierce.

fierce/fi(ə)rs/

Adjective:

Having or displaying an intense or ferocious aggressiveness. (of a feeling, emotion, or action) Showing a heartfelt and powerful intensity.

I want to be that person who shows a heartfelt and powerful intensity, to keep myself going and to help motivate others. I want to be that person that you say, well crap, if Misty can do it, so I can I. In order to actually 'do it' I have to get on that game! I want you to know that if other people can do it. So can we! I am mostly talking about losing weight and become the the awesome athlete I want to be. But it could be for anything in your life. Resolve to find the thing you want to become FIERCE about. Let it be heartfelt. You can choose to share. You can choose to keep it in your heart. But find that one thing. Set your intention.

I have to be honest. I've failed twice at being Vegan in the past two days. I don't have a great excuse. My friend was in the hospital, having a baby, but I still went with the food that was easier and sounded good. That is how you get fat! That is how you stay fat. But it's okay. It's all about getting back on the bandwagon.

But it's cool. It's time to get back on track and go for what I really want. Which is not a cheeseburger and fries. (well, sometimes it is.....) But what I really, really want are those things far away and in the distance. I know they are coming. I just have to keep working at it!

Btw... my mom came to town... We went to work out with Richard Simmons! Always a blast!

Funny enough, the entire group I went with was from Washington! Nothing like old friends and a great workout!

Have a great weekend! Sorry I haven't blogged much in the past few weeks, it's been kinda nuts. But it should all be back on track now!

~ x ~

misty

Goals, Plans & How I got Here.

Update! I'm on Day 15 and I've lost 7lbs! For having a crappy thyroid, which I have to keep in check with medication, I'm pretty happy with this number. I have not felt deprived or sad or weird or anything. In fact, quite the opposite.

I have been trying to think why THIS TIME is different. Why right now? How did 2012 become the year in all of my 33 that I was bound and determined to do this and how could I not have done it before?

The answer, I'm still not exactly sure about, but I think it's kinda coming together. I'll share. I'll share almost anything if it helps someone else.

I've been overweight my ENTIRE life. I do not remember ever not being fat. Ugh. It took a turn around the time I was 8 or 9. My mom and I left my dad and moved to 'town.' I had a lot of time on my own, a lil' too old for daycare, but still a few hours before school left to burn. I also had access to a large jug of change and the store was only a few blocks away. So when I was bored from reading, because that was what I loved. I'd ride my bike or walk to the store and I'd buy crap. Hard core habit built in at 9 or 10. Bored? Eat food. = Bad idea. I'd snuggle up with a book and some Doritos.... oh how Doritos are not our friends.

I've tried various things over the years to loose weight and not much has worked, but I was never fully committed. One thing I did discover, I'm pretty good at exercise and I love working out. However, that whole thing 20% exercise, 80% food, I would say that is 100% true. So I've been that fat chick in the pool, at karate, at cardiobarre, at pole dance, running, kickboxing, spinning, playing tennis, I'm sure I've done other stuff. I KNOW this is what has kept me very healthy through my years. However, it hasn't allowed me to drop the weight. I would start a plan and quit. I wouldn't see results and I would quit.

I'm a quitter.

Wait, let's fix that.

I was a quitter.

A few things happened in the past few years to change that.

~I worked my butt off to finish 5 years of school in 4 and get my BSN in nursing.

~I met a guy I was madly in love with.

~He cheated. He tried to leave me a few times. I always wanted him to stay, because he 'loved' me.

~He went through a horrible court case that I financed emotionally and monetarily. I gained about 10lbs during that terrible time.

~He made a decision that would lead to a series of events that would forever alter our relationship and our lives. I finally had to make a decision for me. He didn't like it.

~I started working as PICU nurse in a great unit at a fabulous hospital. The learning curve of being a PICU nurse on days is stressful and rewarding. I found a career I loved that finally helped me make more than $30k per year!

~He started emotionally cheating and then ultimately left.

~My heart was a wreck.

That happened a year ago. January, 2011, ugh. Do not want to relive that.

I was a strong woman and a total mess. I don't know that I've ever cried as much as I did last year. I had so much hope and faith that he would see the error in his ways and come back. That it would all be magical again, that all was not lost. That everything I had done, would somehow 'pay' for all that I had lost. It didn't. At least not in the way I hoped.

I have had a crazy awesome year, it's been a really good journey for me. Some of the good things.

~ I lost 15lbs in our breakup, I lost all the emotional stress pounds from the courtcase.

~ I received a coveted per diem position at a local hospital that is notoriously hard to get into, I was able to pay a HUGE amount of my credit card debt.

~ I started dating a new guy, a personal trainer. He had completed a race called the "Tough Mudder." I knew immediately, I wanted to do it when he told me about it. I also realized, I like guys who workout a lot. And that meant I would need to do the same.

~ I started going to Pole Dance and developed an inner confidence that I don't know if you can get anywhere else, except spinning backward around a pole.

~ I decided to leave my first PICU job and start full time with the new hospital in their PICU.

~ I moved back into the VERY SAME apartment I lived in when I first moved to LA.

~ 11 months later, he married the girl he left me for.

~ And I finally just made the decision to be the girl, that I wish to be. I realized I had nothing and no ONE to stop me. That if I was going to do this, I needed to do it now and I wanted to do it now. I started working only one full time job and then I set goals and planned.

The goals:

1. Get healthy by loosing weight.

2. Destress my life.

3. Learn to be comfortable being bored without eating.

4. Complete a tough mudder.

5. Invert on a pole.

Goals in place. Plan came next.

1. Get healthy by loosing weight.

- I decided that I really liked the idea of doing it as naturally as possible and have always thought I'd be better vegan. It's where the Eat to Live plan came into place. It made sense for me.

- I decided to keep going to pole, 3 days a week, 2 classes per day. This is a total investment for me. It's only 20 miles away, but with traffic I have to allow an 1 hour and 15 mins for traffic.

- I do some sort of exercise on my own in the morning. Pilates, Spin, or kettle bells. Since I work 3 days a week, roughly 14 hrs away from home. I double up on my workouts.

- I also purchased a Body Fit Media band, more on this in a different post.

2. Destress my life.

- I decided to only work one job, though I had the ability to work two and make a ton of mula. The stress was not worth it and stress increases belly fat.

- I just had to let it go.

- I am working on finishing up the last bit of my credit cards.

3. Learn to be comfortable being bored without eating.

- I just faced this head on. I decided to stop running crazy errands, doing lots of projects. I'm just learning to chill when I'm at home. It feels good. I think having cable helps too. :)

- I ask myself every time I think I'm hungry if I'm really hungry. Interestingly enough, this diet has allowed me to know very easily when I'm hungry and when I'm not.

4. Complete a Tough Mudder

-Even though trainer boy and I aren't seeing each other anymore, I'm completely into the Tough Mudder.

- I'm planning to run it December 1st in Tampa, Fl.

- I'll start Crossfit in Aprilish, when I'm done with all these spin classes and groupons. I think 7 months of Crossfit will get me in enough shape, along with weight loss. I should be good to go.

5. Invert on a pole

This is all about the weight loss and the strength. Going to pole 6x per week is bringing that back big time!

And lastly, I just decided to stop being a victim of him and his decisions.

I don't know who that girl was and I don't like it. I really think I was trying to do the right thing and stand by him and support him, but I lost myself in the process. Losing yourself makes you very unattractive. We both had so much to learn. What I learned though, is that no matter what, no matter what is going on with your family, with the love of your life, your friends. No matter what, don't loose yourself. Do not give up yourself to please them. They won't appreciate it. It won't pay off. I'm not saying to not be kind and generous, do those things, do them with love. But take care of yourself first, because ultimately, you have to answer to you, if they are there are not.

I've been watching the Biggest Looser on hulu. It's the overriding theme, especially with women, they get lost. Please don't get lost. It's not worth it. If you have gotten lost, it's okay. You can find it. There is a shimmer of light. There is glitter in your veins. You can find it. I did.

~x~

misty

Absolutely!

Eat to Live - 12 things I've learned

Holy mole. I've made it to day 13! Yeah! I wish I could tell you that it has been agonizingly hard and act like I'm such a super woman for doing this, but... honestly it hasn't been that bad. Okay, I have to admit, one day after I came home from a particularly busy, very sick kid day, at work the thought of making myself a green smoothie and salad for the next day, kinda made me want to cry... but that's the worst it's been.

I don't know how much I've lost this second week, I"ll weigh myself on Wednesday, hope it's a killer number.

A few things I've learned.

1. Green smoothies... make them double the size and save one half in a quart size mason jar. Eat it the next day, less work and portable!

2. Salad - Put all the funky, more weigh ingredients on the bottom and then your lettuce on top. It doesn't get as wilty when you go to work.

3. Beets! If you like beets, throw them in there. Not only are they good for you, when I use canned beets, I don't even need to use salad dressing! Genius. However, if you're watching out for your sodium, they are canned in it. If you find canned beats w/out sodium, can you let me know please?

4. Prep - It makes the world go round. Seriously, you just need to set aside an hour to rinse, store, prep, etc. Then if you are in a hurry or just feel lazy you can put it all together pretty easy.

5. Vegan Restaurants - Just because a place is Vegan doesn't mean it's good for you. I found a joint I really wanted to try. But all the Yelp reviews called it a vegan greesy spoon. Be careful!

6. I'm not as hungry - Now this is crazy. I thought I would be starving all the time, but I'm not. I usually eat a regular dinner after work and the past few days I've found popcorn is enough. It's much easier to ascertain when I'm hungry, when I'm bored, and when I don't really need to eat.

7. Lentil Loaf - I don't have photos of this recipe yet, but I made it and it freaking rocks! I'll make another and do pictures. It's really good and lentils are sooo good for you!

8. Un-tuna salad - This stuff is amazing! Seriously, it is so good and really good for you. I'll post the recipe today.

9. Coffee - I haven't needed it. I've had about 4 cups of coffee in 13 days. I used to have at least 2 cups a day. I do find that I actually really like soy lattes now, whereas before I hated any latte made with milk. Kinda interesting.

10. Sleep - I sleep so much better. So deeply. I haven't slept this well in over a year. I had a lot of sleep issues after my broken heart. I've tried lots of natural remedies. Nothing has worked as well as this.

11. Nuts - If you cut nuts into small pieces and eat them slowly, they last longer and you feel satiated faster. I'm convinced it's because your tongue call taste the fat before your teeth chomp it down. That's my theory anyway...

12. Eating Out - It can be done. But you have to pay attention, be willing to possibly sacrifice taste and be very aware. I had the oatmeal at the top after pilates the other day. Great way to have breakfast with a friend out! p.s. I really wanted to use that sugar on the plate, but didn't touch it! Behavior changes and the desire lessens.... I think it's actually true!

~x~

misty

How to Pop Your Corn

On this whole vegan/diet quest I've really missed having something I can I pop in my mouth that is crunchy, besides veggies. Sometimes, you just don't want a freaking carrot. :)

So... I started thinking yesterday. I decided that popcorn would NOT kill me and even if I had popcorn everyday, the fiber + the calories wouldn't be that big of deal. However, I've only had popcorn a few ways. On the stove top, made with oil, microwave, or made in an air popper. I hate gadgets. I knew that microwave popcorn wouldn't fit in my goals and then I remembered something.... Making your own popcorn, in the microwave, in a bag!

Okay, once you do it this way, I bet you won't want to do it any other way. It's so easy AND it's so cheap! Yeah for saving money and easy. A few stats before I tell you the coolness.

1 cup of air popped popcorn = 30 calories

1/2 cup of kernels = roughly 6 cups of air popped popcorn (this really isn't that much)

If you buy your microwave popcorn at target, you'll pay roughly $0.60 a bag

If you make your own, you'll pay about $0.12 a bag... minus any sort of toping you may put on it!

How cool!!!! 1/2 the cost, total control and WAY less chemicals, genius!

Are you in?

Step 1 - Gather your materials

Step 2 - Measure your corn. 1/2 cup

Step 3 - Put it in your lunch bag... seriously, just a kids lunch bag, fold it over a few times

Step 4 - Put it in your microwave! Anywhere between 230 - 3 minutes. I would start at 3 and listen the first few times, once the popcorn takes 1-3 seconds between popping, stop the microwave or the popcorn will start to burn.

Step 5 - Eat your corn! You can add whatever you want!

Okay... so if you are a crazy observer, you might notice I had some white cheddar popcorn seasoning in my first photo. Yup, you're right, totally not vegan, totally has some salt in it. Guess what? just not perfect enough. However, this stuff has virtually no calories and I'm assuming very little dairy. Sometimes, you just have to compromise.

So what I do? What you can do to save calories. Use the cooking spray on the popcorn, then sprinkle whatever seasoning you like and shake yo' bag. Works pretty well and saves a ton of calories.

Please, do not call these guys:

Wanna watch a funny video about the vegan police? :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw549u-ELBY&feature=related

~x~

misty

eating like a vegan

Day 6. Eat to Live.

So far, it's been going pretty well. I've had a few tempting moments, Disneyland was the worst. Yesterday at work I really wanted something hot and savory and I had nothing hot and savory. Ugh. There were doritos, tortilla chips and someone put out cream cheese and salsa. I just kept telling myself.. this is how you got fat, eating all that stuff. NOT eating all that stuff will make you unfat! Yeah! It wasn't easy, I didn't like it, but I did it. Which means, YOU can do it too! Even if I wasn't loosing weight, it's just the healthier option.

And you know what? Have you ever hung out with skinny people? In their 20's and 30's? They generally eat really well. It's not like they have a magic wand to wave over their trouble spots, the keep at it.

So with that, I'm sticking with it.

Breakfast = Green Smoothie

Here's a little trick I figured out today, I really like to have bananas in my smoothies, but I'm not good at keeping them around. So I did this, I'm going to put them in a ziploc and freeze 'em. Genius.

Lunch = Vegan Salsa Salad

1 whole romaine heart chopped into tiny pieces

1 handful fresh baby spinach

3 tbsp of purple onion

1/2 cup black beans

1/2 cup corn

1 yellow pepper

1/2 avocado

4 olives, sliced

3 tbsp of salsa, all mixed up.

I ate the whole thing! But here's the thing. You have to. When you aren't eating much as far as high calories food options, you've gotta eat a lot of veggies to make it work.

Great workout at Pilates Plus this morning. I bought a groupon there awhile back. I don't think it's the place for me, but I have four more workouts to use. I really love groupon for getting to try different gyms and such. I kept thinking of Jillian Michaels saying "You can do it, you're choosing not to..." I love/hate her. But It kept me going, even through hip spasms. You can do it!

Eat to Live - Day 4

Whew! I've made it four days following the eat to live plan. It's not so bad at all. But then, I really want this, so I don't even care. I want other things more. If you decide to follow this plan, going to Disneyland is a terrible idea. I've never noticed all the smells there. All I noticed yesterday was how good everything smelled... Seriously, it smells flipping fantastic.

Trust me. Stay home as much as possible in the beginning, just get this on track, because even though I am determined, smells kill me right now! What did help, is that I kept looking at all the fat people at Disneyland and I remembered how we all got fat.. giving into those smells! Lame, but true. I also reminded myself behavior changes and the desire lessens. I remember that when I gave up Diet Coke. I wanted it soooo bad, but I just didn't do it. I didn't drink it for over a year, I've had it in small moderation this past year, but decided again I just didn't like the idea of it and it's been easy to stop. Behavior changes and the desire lessens.

By the way, I absolutely do not feel deprived or hungry. I actually notice when I'm really hungry and I save the nuts I can eat for later in the day when I'm hungry. I slowly nibble on them as I'm cooking or prepping. It helps! This isn't that hard to do. I've found a mix of things I can microwave and cook. I bought some healthy bean soups to fall back on in case it's been a rough day or frozen steamer veggies. No excuses.

So far I'm really big on the green smoothies. I've added 2 tbsp flax seeds and 2 scoops whey protein powder to each, because I'm going to start working out again this week. I wouldn't need it if I wasn't planning 2 workouts a day.

I've made a lot of salads when I go out to do things. I also started using Dr. Braggs Salad Dressing, called Braggberry, this stuff rocks! Seriously, go buy this... amazing! Oh and a nifty trick I learned from a friend.... Buy yourself the little travel shampoo bottles. If they are clean, they are a very effective weapon in carrying around some salad dressing.

I also have used the Rice Medley from trader joes. It has brown rice, red rice, and black barley and it's pretty darn good. Half of one pouch is one cup... Makes my 1 cup of whole grains a day, easy. Today I sliced brussel spouts and roasted them in the oven with no oil and a mixed seasoning w/ low sodium. I added it to the rice medley. Seriously. So good and I couldn't even eat it all.

Then today, I did this:

I did a pinup photo shoot. I don't have the pics back yet, but this is a small taste of what happened. I am so happy to do this before and I'll do it after. Some of the photos looks great! Can't wait to share. If you are looking for pinup or boudoir pics and you are in the LA area, Iconic Pinups is so great! It's a team of two ladies, they do the shoot in one of their houses. Stacey does makeup and Carol takes the photos. You will not be disappointed by these gals.

Can't wait to share the photos when I'm a smaller size!

My thought for today, from the man of men, Nelson Mandela... "It always seems impossible until it's done."

-x-

misty