And then, A Cheesecake. I hate when that happens.

Remember my little rant about timing and trying to start a diet during the holidays? Yeah. Don't do it. This came to the office today:

I shouldn't even be tempted. I get sick from too much dairy. And yet - CHEESECAKE. Still, I think I can get away with just a small slice and feel satiated - because it's a treat, it's allowing me to have some, and again, a little bit probably won't make me sick. Plus, my horrible habit of "grazing" (as my dad charmingly called it) doesn't really kick in at work like it does when I'm at home, so it's going to be easier to stay away. It's not like it's a friggin snack food, you know?

Prepare for the End! (of excuses)

If you don't take the time & put in the effort to prep yourself for all the parts of your goals, you're going to have a much tougher time of it sticking to it and are more likely to fail. It's an integral part, really, but nobody seems to preach it. Sure, for the millions out there who have the vague but consistent yearn to "lose weight", all they hear is "diet", "exercise", or option three: "try this latest fad/pill/diet/food/juice/product/crap".

Nobody says, Prepare.

Diet? Maybe instead of focusing on getting the latest juicer or decrying the evils of bread (instead of spending needless dollars or jumping on a bandwagon who's science is murky or you don't understand, because it's probably hokum), you could try to sit down and do the following:

1. Plan your menu for the week. Simple. No, it really is. Breakfasts, Lunches, and Dinners. I sit down with my tea at breakfast every Sunday morning and decide what I'm/we're eating for the week, and then I go grocery shopping to get it. It keeps my food bills under control, and creates less stress around meal time. Great tip here: repetition may sound boring, but sticking with something that works & that's relatively easy to prepare ahead of time is something you will grow to love and depend on, especially for smaller meals like breakfast & lunch. So worry less about variety, that will find a way into your diet whether you like it or not, and this way you'll feel less guilty about it when it does. I tend to pack/prep breakfasts and most lunches Sunday night and pack them to bring into work with me Monday morning, so that my food is set and waiting for me for the rest of the week.
   
   Breakfasts: I tend to stick to high fiber, high protien, low sugar cereals in the morning with skim milk with a piece of fruit or two. I pre-pack into little Glad containers on Sunday night (dry).  I keep a small bottle of skim milk in my work fridge and buy a new one every week to replace it. That's 5 containers of cereal, and 5 bananas or apples or a box of clementines.
   
   Lunches: In the summer, I'm a fan of prepacking salads into these awesome Glad containers that even come with their own pop in dressing container. WORTH IT. Buy those bad boys. I usually would buy a pack of canned shredded chicken breast or tuna that I'd top the salad with to get some more protein and keep me fuller. Also, Bolthouse dressing is the way to go. Creamy, rich, delicious, good on EVERYTHING, and very low cal/low sugar. In the winter, I stick with soups, and just bring a couple cans into work and keep them in my drawer with a microwavable bowl. We have a microwave at work. They also have microwavable containers but two warnings: 1) those tend to hide 2 servings in one container which I think is cheap and mean and sneaky and 2) they have a lot of sodium so watch that.
   
   Dinners: This is where I need some variety, but I have become a huge fan of my crock pot. I can prep it the night before, pull it out of the fridge the morning off and plug that bad boy in. Done! And usually left-overs the next day to boot. Find some healthy recipes for it and you're set. Also a pack of chicken breasts or steaks and some steam-able veggies can never go wrong here.
   
   Snacks: This is hard, but don't even go into the chip or candy aisle. Don't. Don't do it. Pretend or actually bring your 4 year old with you and you won't even be tempted. Stick with fruits, veggies, hummus, yogurt, nuts, etc.
   
   I know the family situation complicates the numbers and prep time, but as a parent you've learned what is truly important usually finds a way of happening. So make this a priority, like anything that really needs to happen. Because you are important, your goals and what makes you happy are important. How would reaching those goals be any less so?
   
2. Go Shopping with the above in mind, then come home and prep as you're putting the food away. Make it part of the same chore. Done and done! 

Exercise? Same story - it's all about preparation. When you plan out when & where you'll be working out and what you'll be doing ahead of time, you're more likely to stay committed. If my gym bag is packed the night before with a change of clothes for work, shower things, & ipod; and my gym clothes laid out on top - I am out the door in 15 minutes after waking up. Lay out your exercise plan & appropriately stagger activities, so that you're not so sore after two days you don't want to go back. Plan time for stretching. A hot bath for me at the end of the day is a must when I'm in full training mode.

InfoGraphic Glory

I stumbled upon this beautiful thing. It's a great infographic full of tips geared towards all the prep and training needed for a half-marathon. I strongly suggest saving it and zooming in. Well worth it. 

So We Meet At Last...My Old Enemy. Stairs.

The title of this post was in every way inspired by the Kung Fu Panda marathon I watched last night. Those are the best types of marathons, IMO.

Anywho, Yesterday I finally got to meet my new personal trainer Jamie through Snap Fitness. I like her quite a bit! We are now tentatively scheduled to meet at 7:30am on Monday mornings which we have dedicated to strength training and a stretching focus since Mondays will be the rest after my long run days. We didn't push too much at our first meeting. Went over a few goals and she did a few very simple upper body free weight exercises (yay) and a calf machine (boo, and totally unnecessary in my opinion). Out of the 4 areas we worked on - shoulders, triceps, calves, and legs - I wasn't super pleased about the shoulders and calves. Have you seen me? Those don't need any work. At all. Never have. I played soccer for a decade and rode horses/worked in a stable through out my childhood. I have soccer calves and shoulders that can easily heft hay bales. I know I know, the point is to get a well rounded workout that spreads the focus to various muscle groups. But I would like to minimize time spent on those areas when there are others (hello core and fat ass) that are in much greater need of attention!

Because, as we all know:

Jamie also insisted that I need to up (that's right, I said UP) my caloric intake, to around 1500. I feel very tentative about that at best, but let's be honest - it's not like I was sticking to the 1200 cal/day limit anyway lol. So I decided to try it out at by aiming for 1400 (which means I'll likely fall just under 1500, I know me a little too well). We'll see how it works. 

I start running again today! Actually looking forward to it. 

One cool note: Jamie is sending her notes and each training program we do (which combinations, number of sets, and weight) to me via email. I'm printing them off and putting them together in a binder for future resources. She says I should come to the gym Mondays and Thursdays to focus on strength training. 

Right now, the tentative schedule is: 

Monday: No cardio (Rest), Strength Train & Stretching

Tuesday: Run, Stretch.

Wednesday: Run, Stretch

Thursday: Swim (upper body cross), Yoga at night. 

Friday: Run, Strength Train & stretch

Saturday: Long lower body Cross (30-60 min) of Elliptical or Bike

Sunday: Long Run, stretch. 

Like I said in the previous post, December will be focused on establishing my running schedule and getting myself back up to being able to run at least 3 miles. Might take till mid Jan for that. I'm using the couch to 5K program again since I had such success with it the first round; I'm just starting at week 4. 

The biggest downside? I can't risk getting injured and throwing off my training schedule so I'm probably not going to be able to do soccer. Given the big falling out with the controlling hypocritical lazy lying disgruntled-when-she-got-replaced pothead my ex-friend turned out to be who ran the the rec league I'd joined last summer, that might not be a bad thing but I'd JUST FOUND the best indoor team. Made up of people who actually care about showing up on time, who practice, who are decently skilled and have a blast! No drama. I like it a lot and they were impressed with my skills so I'm still on the fence about completely letting that go. 

Current stats: 25lbs away from minimum goal weight. Recording all food. Feeling hopeful about fitting more comfortably into my mediums and smaller sizes again. 

Losing My Mind; aka I Signed Up For A Half Marathon.

I guess every morning is a chance to try again. That attitude, combined with the shame/disgust over my failings this past week and the fact I let two very crazy people convince me that the world is indeed flat and that I can totally run the length of it - is probably what motivated me to take a big leap yesterday and register for the Bayshore Half Marathon in May.

This beast right here: http://www.bayshoremarathon.org/half-marathon

I know, dear reader, I know. I'm nuts. I have never run more than 4 or 5 miles in my life, and that was motivated in large part by getting lost in an unfamiliar city at night in a slightly dangerous downtown area. You may ask, How do I jump from that to a Half Marathon?

You know me. How else? A guy, naturally.

Grooaaannnn. How do I let this happen?? Oh wait I know. He smiled that damn charming boyish grin, and was very enthused, and I got caught right up in it.

Well I guess it's not the worst thing in the world - this is a healthy if slightly possibly most likely unrealistic goal. And it will be in a beautiful area, Traverse City. For those who've never been - fix that. Now. It's my Mecca; vineyards & wineries as far as the eye can see, plus beaches and fantastic food. Plus, my brother's girlfriend will be running the marathon (as well as the previously mentioned Mr. Charm) so I'll be up there with people I know and like. And it will be Memorial Day so it will be warm and sunny and...wait. That almost never works out in Michigan. Ah well, late May will still be above frigid and likely without snow.

All sarcasm and anxiety-related grouching aside? I'm honestly if tentatively excited about this. And without the support of Mr. Charm or the little bro's gf, I would never have pursued this let alone conceived it as a possibility. Their encouragement, support, advice, experience, suggestions and tips will be everything to the success of me sticking with this.

This goal has the distinct advantage of me needing to follow a rather frequent, active training schedule that incorporates strength training, flexibility, and cross training (swimming, biking, or elliptical). Finding the right schedule that balances all of that, doesn't over do it, and sticking to it will be something to watch (so enjoy the show).

The training plan for a half marathon is about 12 weeks long. Given my race date of May 24th, that gives me some lee-way. December's goals, thus, are to:

1. Establish a regular running schedule (same days/frequency as I'll need during the HM training) and using that to get back up to doing 3 miles comfortably again with good running form. I'm currently only at 1-2 miles. 
2. Build up my basic strength again - core, upper body, and leg.
3. Increase my flexibility by introducing regular morning and afternoon stretches, weekly yoga, and the dreaded foam rolling. 

That Plan Did NOT Come Together

I went full-on cookie monster this last Thanksgiving week and lost my mind over food.

Fairly accurate portrayal of last week:

That plan for moderation? I tried and crumbled in the face of my mom's signature stuffing & my dad's complex pumpkin pie custard. And about 20 other dishes as well - In case you forgot, I had two Turkey Days this week. Ugh. Workouts? Didn't happen.

Try, try again.