New Plan

So, this past week I have slacked, BIG TIME on both the exercise and eating front. I have been eating  like crap and not working out much. I blame part of it on being sick/tired/stressed, but I can feel myself slipping into the vicious cycle that is falling off the weight loss bandwagon. So, starting tomorrow I am upping the ante for myself. Here is what I'm gonna do:
1) Twice-a-days: i know this may seem extreme, but it's not what it sounds like. I have lots of time in the morning and am getting lazy only having to go into work at 10. SO I will be making myself actually wake up at a normal time (like 7am) and swimming from 7-8 and then getting ready and such from 8-9:30. Swimming isn't the most vigorous work out (at least when I do it), but I like the way it makes my body feel and it's a great full body work out. It's at least getting me up and active in the morning. And on days when I really can;t get motivated to leave that early then I will take cooper for a mile walk.

2) Drink more: But not in the alcoholic way (sadly). I was thinking today about how trying to eat more vegetables can be so boring, and a lot of times I feel like I just don't have the time to cook and either eat them raw or with hummus. But I LOVE smoothies, and a lot of times I put vegetables in my smoothies so I can sneak in an extra serving. Then while at Hannaford today I had the epiphany that I should just replace lunch with a veggie smoothie! I can do beats, spinach and cukes with a banana and almond milk and my Amazing Meal Protein powder for lunch with some gluten free crackers and hummus to munch on. That way I'll be getting my veggies in and it will be quick and easy! Something about drinking vegetables is just so much more fun than eating them.
3) As a short term goal, I'm going to do all of this everyday this week because this weekend I know that we are going to NH to see the Hinman Clan, and if I don't look like I've slimmed down or are in some kind of shape, Grandma will chew me a new one (as usual). So to avoid her death glare and weight ridicule I should really work hard this week and at least try and lose some of the puff. Then it will be on to the next short term goal!!
Two questions: What should teh next short term goal be? and How the F do you quickly get over a cold??
Kisses!
PS Everyone should watch this amazing lady gaga video! So inspiring

Update

Ok sorry it has been a while, this week has been fairly busy, and I seem to be coming down with a cold or just the typical first month into school sniffles/exhaustion. I've been teaching Family Interaction (Yay!) for the past few classes which has also kept me busy. SO here is a general update:

1) I have to admit, my eating has not been great the last 1.5 weeks. The stress has made me crave bad bad foods, and I seem to be in that phase where I'm just eating to eat; not really hungry, but just craving food. I think it's just out of boredom/stress, so if anyone has any suggestions for dealing with this and finding something to do besides eat, please let me know.
2) Last Sunday I hiked Cadillac Mtn in Acadia National Park. What a great hike! It was a gradual ascent but still a solid workout, and we took a different path down that required a fair amount of rock climbing, my arms were actually sore after the hike! I was really proud of myself for doing this hike, not because it is that difficult, but because as most people know you can just drive to the top of Cadillac, so there wasn't a whole lot of motivation to hike it. But we did and it felt really great, but was weird to get to the top with all these Euro and Asian tourists clamoring out of their tour buses. A far cry from the tranquility of the Bigelow hike, but a fun day none the less. However, I think the hike and gyming it and school caught up to me because I went to the gym and swam Monday, and afterwards I was completely exhausted. I almost couldn't make it through ASR. SO I took these past few days to chill out, and then hit the gym this morning and am going back tonight to swim/sauna.
3)Last weekend I also got to spend some time with the fabulous Kelsey and we had an active weekend of dancing (which I napped through), running, and tennis. Taking advantage of this fall weather to do outdoor activities is really great. I feel like i need to stock up on fresh air before winter sets in.
4) WEIGHT LOSS UPDATE: So while I haven't lost any pounds, I can tell that I am losing inches because a few of my pants and skirts and dresses that were tight before are beginning to fit better. Also my breathing stamina is getting better when I work out. I'm attributing my lack of pounds lost to the fact that my legs are more muscular then they have ever been. Almost to teh point of being too muscular. I have like, gladiator legs. Woof
5) Via recommendation of Kelsey's Mom I am now reading Spark by John Ratey about how exercise actually improves our brain function and can aid in preventing dementia, depression, and Alzheimers. Very interesting read, especially while at the gym.

That's all for now, more updates to come!!

Sugarloaf and why it's amazing

So as a follow up to that last point, I had a lot of time to think while I was hiking why I wanted to do this in the first place. And every time I thought about it, more then wanting to get healthy/get back to nature/try something new, I was doing it because of Sugarloaf. For 23 years my family has had a condo on Wangans drive and our living room window looked right out across at Bigelow, and for 23 years I have stared at the mountain range and thought about what it would be like to hike it.
Once I was actually on the range, every time I felt scared or in pain or super tired I just kept reminding myself that Sugarloaf was just across the valley which was a very comforting thought because it's is my second home. I just kept having this feeling of safety and security wash over me whenever I caught a glimpse of the mountain through the trees or coming over a ridge. The best was sitting at the top of West peak, looking straight across at the spot that inspired this whole trip where I had sat in our swivel chair with a cup of tea for 23 years dreaming of this moment. It was truly an overwhelming experience.
The whole trip made me realize how lucky I am to have such an amazing place in my life. When I have a family I definitely plan on having my own place at Sugarloaf so that my children can continue to be inspired too.

Nut up or Shut up weekend Fall 2011

Wow, what a weekend. Having been an avid Sugarloafer all my life, I have always looked across the valley at the Bigelow mountain range and dreamed of hiking it. While I've done many hikes before, I've never done a big overnight hike (but I have done wilderness trips) so this was a first for me. I had also never hiked with a large pack before. Since I didn't need much for an overnight hike, my bag mostly consisted of sleeping gear, warm clothes, food and water.

In order to get some of the prehike jitters out, I went with my cousin and a friend to do chick hill, which is in east bumf*@k, Maine and it is a very short but steep hike. It was hard and I was seriously huffing and puffing, but it felt great and I knew I was ready for Bigelow....or so I thought.

We completely underestimated how much hiking we would have to do and how steep it was going to be. We ended up hiking about 14 miles in 2 days, and that was cutting out a major chunk of the end part of our hike. The real challenge of the hike was mentally moving past the pain and fatigue in my body. Hiking that much is hard on your legs anyway, but adding a 25lb bag to it really ups the ante. And it seemed like every time we came up out of the woods onto another peak we still had so far to go. I can't tell you though how amazing it was to reach the top of our final peak, see Sugarloaf in the distance, and see how far we had come in just one day.

In order to get through to our campsite we had to move at a fairly fast paced with a few short breaks after each steep (10 minutes max). I literally had to just block out every thought of pain or misery, get in the zone and barrel on. When we made it back to the car Sunday afternoon I can't even begin to describe the feeling of accomplishment. Even though we didn't do the entire loop we had originally planned we still did an insane amount of hiking in two days, especially since two of us hadn't done any hiking this summer.

The whole experience really just made me realize I can overcome any obstacle, mental or physical, if I just set my mind to it and truck on. It was also so amazing to connect back to nature, and it has definitely inspired me to do more hiking. This hike challenged me so much and pushed me so far out of my comfort zone that it really showed me what my true potential is. I truly feel like I can do anything right now. It has also inspired to keep working hard with my weight loss goals by challenging my self physically, eating healthy, and trying to get back to some of the things that keep me grounded.
I encourage everyone to get out there and do something that really pushes your boundaries. It will make you a better person.
And yes, because I know you're all wondering, I did shit in the woods.

<<Our water supply

<< From the dip in the
mountains to this spot in one day!

Coming out the >>>
woods on Sunday!!!

Rain on my parade

Today was a first folks, I actually ran in the rain! Usually it's hard for me to even get to the gym in the rain, but I went to the gym and like an idiot forgot my sports bra, so I drove home. And then when I got home I was like "Sarah, Nut up or Shut up. You've got a big hike this weekend!!" So I threw on a sports bra, put my iphone in a ziplock bag and ran the mile loop around my house and it felt great!

That is the after shot. Not too bad! Also found these sweet rice chips that are gluten and fat free and they come in honey dijon and are sooooo good with hummus! Now I'm ready for my double blindish date tonight and my cousin is coming up for a couple of days so I'm pumped to hang with him, maybe take him to chick hill for a little warm up hike!
PEACE

Delish Side Dish recipe

One thing I have become obsessed with is sliced tomatoes with cheese on top broiled in the oven so it's melty and delicious, and it has been made even better with our home grown tomatoes and my dad's homemade pesto. There are two varieties for the recipe: healthy and more healthy.

Ingredients-
1 to 3 tomatoes, cut into 1/2 in slices
3/4 cup non fat ricotta cheese (healthy) or Tofutti cream cheese (healthier)
1/2 cup grated extra sharp cheddar (healthy) or 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (healthier)
Pesto
Salt and pepper

First, slice the ends of the tomatoes and then slice the tomatoes in 1/2" thick slices and lay on cookie sheet (covered with aluminum foil)
Next, mix together the soft and shredded cheeses of your choice and season with a little salt and a lot of pepper
Scoop a heaping tablespoon of the mixture onto each slice
Top the scoop with a dollop of pesto
Put the sheet under the broiler (set to high) and keep an eye on the slices. It should take about 8 minutes, but make sure to watch it and pull it out when it gets bubbly and brown, otherwise you may burn them.
Eat and enjoy!

It will look similar to this,minus the bread, and the pesto will be on top

The importance of snacks and running dogs

Today was a good lesson learning day.
Lesson #1: Always make sure to give your dog exercise, otherwise he will be full of piss and vinegar and will royally piss you off by keeping you awake and dumping out the garbage can. By running him, you are not only burning off his energy but also getting some good exercise yourself. I took Cooper for a 1.83 (according to Walkjogrun.net) run and it was so motivating! I ran for a while, and then would walk to catch my breath, but he would keep tugging on the leash so I was like "Oh ya you little shit? You wanna tug on the leash? Well then we're running again!". I would say I ran a solid mile, if not more, and it was all on pure spite. Afterwards I felt like I still had energy and needed to do more so I hit the gym and did some weighted squats/lunges and then did a quick 10 minute walking cool down. By the time we got back to the apartment though Cooper STILL had energy so I took him for our short .25 mile loop around the block, except we ran it HARD cause no way was that little bastard barking at me at 3am again. That felt really good, especially since I am gearing up for an overnight hike this weekend on Bigelow Mountain Range.
Lesson #2: Snacks are soooooo important for eating healthy! I had a healthy breakfast this morning and came home for a healthy lunch (around 1:30) and figured that would last me until class got out at 6pm. WRONG. By the time class started and 4pm I was hungry, and by 5pm I was cross eyed with hunger. All I could think about was poutine and Blue zones from OHOP and everything bad that I'm trying to avoid (although I will say I haven't been craving chocolate that much. ?) and I caved and stpped at KFC/Taco bell on the way home to get a side of mashed potatoes and a taco because I just couldnt even stand to wait the extra two minutes to drive home and microwave a tofu pup or something. So, lesson learned. I will from now on head to class with an arsenal of snacks like trail mix, yogurt, fruit with cheese, or veggies with hummus. After the work out I resisted the urge to eat anything else and just drank a mix of my Get Lost iced tea and Trader Joe's Beet and Purple Carrot Juice and then a SkinnyGirlDaily cleanse packet.
This week/weekend will definitely be all about nutting up or shutting up because I need to get in gear for this hike!! More posts to come on that, can't wait to post pictures!
Here is where I'm going:

 I have stared across at that range from Sugarloaf for 24 years of my life and now I will finally get the chance to conquer that bitch!