I had hoped to make it to the gym this evening, but I ended up working from 10am to 9:30pm and I’m just too exhausted to squeeze any more into this day.
I cheated and had a little candy today (bad!), but managed to offset it with a healthy dinner and a couple of walking breaks at work.
Here’s how I did:
Not too shabby! Although, it’s probably not a good thing that I’ve had beef jerky for lunch two days in a row. Whoops!
Bon appetit, my friends!
Tori
Thanks to DirectTV at the gym, I KILLED it in cardio tonight. Over 100 minutes logged on the elliptical!
Tomorrow I will squeeze in some strength training, but I’m happy to report I burned off more than I consumed today:
Not a bad Hump Day!
~ Tori
OK, with 52 days left until my 30th birthday and the clock counting down, here’s my very first weigh-in/measurement on my DIRTY THIRTY CRUNCH plan:
Right Thigh: 21″
Left Thigh: 20.5″
Right Arm: 9.75″
Left Arm: 10.25″
Hips: 34.5″
I’m not sure what my ideal measurements are at this time (perhaps measuring my arms is pointless, but it seemed important), but I do know I want to be solidly in a size two by my 30th birthday. And under 119 pounds. I’m 5’3″, so that’s a HEALTHY number and very attainable.
Wish me luck!
Bon appetit, my friends!
I had class tonight, so I wasn’t able to start my Monday off at the gym as I would’ve liked.
That being said, I was EXTRA diligent about my diet. Check out today’s calorie summary:
Unintentionally lower than planned for calories, but the high protein nature of my meals today REALLY filled me up!
Check out the nutritional breakdown:
Not too shabby! I’m hoping to hit the gym hard tomorrow and I will post photos/measurements on Wednesday.
Total exposure, total accountability.
Hope everyone has a great evening and, if it’s dinner time for you: Bon appetit!
~ Tori
As of today, I’m officially 54 days from my birthday.
This is the big one, the birthday I’ve been dreading for years: THIRTY.
This is the birthday that officially says goodbye to the naivete and excuses of youth and slams me smack-dab into the center of adulthood. I’m old enough to know better and yet young enough (at heart) to recognize what I’m missing out on.
I envisioned my life to be very different by 30. When I was a teenager, I imagined that with my 30th birthday came children, a minivan stocked with soccer equipment, and the body of a fitness model.
(For some reason, I always thought a minivan was cool – perhaps because I was the only one of my friends that didn’t have siblings and I found the conveniences of a minivan to be luxurious beyond measure. Broaching 30, I’m kind of excited I don’t have a minivan.)
While 54 days isn’t enough time to pop out a football team (hallelujah!), it is enough time to recommit to my fitness goals and see tangible results. Since my fitness/nutrition/health is the one thing I am in control of in this crazy, hectic world, I’m dedicating myself to it for the next two months.
Today’s starting weight: 131.2
Current jean size: 26/27 (between sizes 4-6, depending on brand)
Diet plan: Mostly Paleo, but allowing dairy.
Fitness plan: 60 minutes elliptical/5 days per week. Walk 60 minutes per day. Strength training 3/week.
So, there it is. Here’s my Monday Manifesto, my public declaration of goals in the hopes that all of you can help me stay focused, stay centered, and stay motivated.
On that note… bon appetit, my friends!
~ Tori
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On the left: 16 years old, pushing 190 lbs.
On the right: 29 years old, 130 pounds.
It’s been more than a decade of evolution and change, but I’m feeling good about this transformation!
Bon appetit, friends!
Tori
In case anyone has been questioning the radio silence on this blog, I wanted to let you know that I’ve just returned from a week long vacation out of town during which I attempted to fully disconnect from work, from school, and from dieting.
Other than a few emails to and from my Director, checking my final grades for the spring term, and the occasional moment of guilt as I walked past the hotel gym eating popcorn, I managed to do all three.
I took a total hiatus from calorie-counting, carb-watching, and Paleo-adherence and enjoyed a week of eating what I wanted, when I wanted, and savoring the local delights of a new city.
I’m pleased to say that I LOST weight. Yep, you read that correctly: I ate freely and lost weight.
I was 133.2 the morning I left for the trip (Wednesday) and returned home on Sunday night (yes, an evening weigh-in!) at 131.8.
Walking the city instead of using public transport helped, plus I tended to savor each delicacy I tried – thus consuming less because I ate slowly and allowed myself to feel full naturally.
I had a great trip and enjoyed the detachment, but I must admit I’m glad to be home. I missed my regimen!
Although, I can’t lie: this pizza alone makes me want to move north:
Yum!! Stuffed pizza, as if regular pizza wasn’t bad enough! Haha.
It’s good to be back, my friends. Bon appetit!
-Tori
I’m trying to keep myself calm. I’m trying NOT to freak out. I got on the scale this morning and it’s WAAAAY up.
I’ve done a lot of exercise lately (I ran for 2 hours, 45 minutes on Friday alone) and a lot of strength training, so I know most of the weight is the result of muscle fatigue and lactic acid back-up.
I’ve also consumed a lot of salt lately, polishing off a gigantic bowl of Vietnamese Pho on Saturday like it was my job:
This was a picture taken HALFWAY through the bowl. Yeaaaaah, I finished it.
I’m trying not to believe that these five pounds are real, but the numbers terrified the snot out of me this morning.
I haven’t limited myself to one Cadbury egg this week; I’ve had 2-3 daily most of this week. I believed my extra workouts entitled me to it (which they did, I guess, if my goal was to cancel out my exercise with food) and now I’m trying to assure myself that I haven’t gained five pounds from chocolate.
Right?
I’m guzzling water and coffee today. I’m avoiding salt. I’m praying for a miracle tomorrow.
~ Tori
Keeping up with my resolutions for the new year, I’ve been doing no less than one 5k per month since January. I’ve tried to pace them out every 2-3 weeks, as getting up at 5:30am on a Saturday morning is not something I’m able to do on a daily basis (without massacring a small village).
Fortunately for me, with the month of April comes a lot of EVENING 5ks! YES!
As the Florida days get longer and the evenings are still cool, several events are moving to PM-time slots. I don’t know about you, but running at 6:30pm is a LOT better than running at 7am – my legs are already warm, I’m well fed and watered, and chances are I’ve got some steam to burn off from a stressful day at work.
Excited for all of the evening possibilities, I accidentally signed up for FOUR runs this month. Whoops! Looks like it’s going to be a busy, running-filled April!
Here’s my calendar —
The Tijuana Flats Just in Queso Super You 5k!
Where: Baldwin Park, FL.
When: Thursday, April 3rd @ 6:30pm
What I’m Most Excited About: I GET TO WEAR MY SUPER HERO TUTU, SOCKS, AND CAPE!
SuperMom 5K Orlando
Where: Baldwin Park, FL.
When: Saturday, April 12th @ 8am (will need coffee, but this is reasonable!)
What I’m Most Excited About: I’m running in place of my sister-in-law, Lindsey Perez, one of the coolest moms I know!
IOA Corporate 5K
Where: Lake Eola, FL
When: Thursday, April 17th @ 7:15pm
What I’m Most Excited About: Racing with the Full Sail University team!
Run for the Trees Memorial 5K
Where: Winter Park, FL
When: Saturday, April 26th @ 7:30am (feed me coffee!)
What I’m Most Excited About: I get a free tree at the end of the run! Too bad I kill every plant I touch. 😦
WHEW! I’m exhausted just LOOKING at this schedule. I’ve got a run every single week! This is the best time of year to be a runner in Florida (dry season + longer days of sunshine + the temperature doesn’t match the pits of Hell yet) so I plan to capitalize on the climate and get out there as much as possible.
Not really FAST (is that false advertising?), but I’m committed!
Who wants to join me? 🙂 There’s still plenty of time to sign up!
Bon appetit, my friends, and happy running!
~ Tori
Like many of you, I own an iPhone. It is practically always in hand (literally in my hand, versus my purse or pocket) and I’m on it basically 24/7. You are too – don’t lie.
As I bemoaned a weight plateau last year, I struggled to come up with creative ideas to boost my weight loss and keep myself on track.
Then it dawned on me: I’m on my iPhone all day – why not use it to help me?
I’ve talked about some of the apps I use on here before (MyFitnessPal and GymPact), but a relatively new one I started using (with great success) is RunKeeper.
As you can see, I’ve only been using the app since November 2013 and I’ve already logged over 70 activities. I have a personal goal to do at least 15 miles per week – but this can consist of walking, running, biking, skating, or a plethora of other activities.
The application is VERY simple to use – just pick your activity, make sure you have good GPS (outdoors is always best), and click start!
I’ve always been pretty good about hitting the gym 3-4 days per week, but RunKeeper helps me sneak in additional calorie-burn throughout the day. My office is situated on a beautiful lake and, using RunKeeper to track it, I try to take two or three 10-minute walks around the lake every day. It doesn’t seem like much, but it adds up to be about 1.5 miles I do on TOP of the other stuff in my day. Add to that my thrice-daily puppy walks and I average almost 3 miles per day without really trying!
I love using RunKeeper on my bike rides, as it helps me keep a pace, track my distance on long trails, and gauge the appropriate time to turn back around.
If you’ve stalled out lately with your weight loss or just want to get an idea for how much you’re actually walking/running/biking per week, I strongly suggest downloading the RunKeeper app. It’s free, easy to use, and really motivating!
Proof is in the pudding: my weight is down to 129.8 and the ONLY difference is that I’m aiming to hit 15 miles per week on RunKeeper on top of my 4 workouts per week in the gym. You burn roughly 100 calories for every 1 mile you walk/run, so it’s not a surprise to see that adding this goal to my workout regimen has helped to push my weight down with very little attention on my part. Yay!
On that note… it’s time for a walk!
Bon appetit, my friends!
~ Tori
The Memoirs of a Yo-Yo Dieter 