just werking on my fitness

so i somewhat mentioned bill and i starting a project yesterday

and this is it

our wall of good intentions

bill and i are very similar in our ebb and flow of on again- off again fitness and health levels

we both make it a priority to eat well and get regular exercise

but sometimes we have fat days

and sometimes those fat days turn into a fat week

and before i knew what happen

i was out of shape and we were eating a lot more "beige" foods than usual.

what typically happens is one of us will go on a "kick" and the other doesn't latch on, and thus the other's "kick" burns in a fiery hole.



but when bill mentioned crafting our chalk wall to be a workout/diet/inspiration wall

i latched right on

once we're both committed to something we're both pretty headstrong

but we also need a few nudges from the other every once in awhile.

we recently purchased an elliptical -

which we've both been using regularly - a great win for the both of us.

however, i wasn't as religious about using it as bill was

i have no motivation to workout after work and my commute home

bill typically wakes up while i'm showering in the morning, but has an easier morning since his day doesn't start until 1 pm

bill is able to leisurely find time in the morning for a run, weights, or elliptical work out

back in the day i worked out in the morning and loved having it done and over with

but now i just want a few more minutes of sleep or to lay in bed



bill understands this, and has agreed to wake up in the morning with me (so i'm not the only one suffering at 5:45 am)

so to break it down in three parts:

THE WORKOUT

this week we have 2 alternating workouts up on the wall

i thought it would be fun to throw in "just dance" on the wii as a workout - which could be considered "easier" days.  trust me though - you work up quite a sweat!  and it's a lot of fun to well, just dance and be silly

the other workout we have utilizes the elliptical and weights - 30 minutes of one of the TOUGH pre-programmed workouts on the machine + a workout i found via pinterest via fitness magazine via bob harper - it involves lots of squats and lunges (which after monday's workout i can tell you it was pretty hard and my thighs are still burning)

saturday we've designated as a rest day

and sundays, weather permitting, we have planned to ride 15+ miles on the bikes.  i think we are both interested in riding further, so perhaps a progression schedule will be in the works.

the plan is to switch up the workouts a bit weekly - throw in a yoga dvd, throw in some body pump, do the elliptical with a new weights workout after - etc. (i also discovered Jillian Michaels workout dvds on amazon instant prime download last night and tried doing a few minutes of the 30 day shred (1.99 for 20 minute workout, not bad) - it burned so good and will definitely be in the rotation)





or...some prancercising


THE DIET

i don't think we need to do a complete overhaul in this area - for now we're writing up our daily meals on the wall

bill has decided to cut out the potato chips and cookies (i am proud to say there are zero potato chips in the house) - i would never eat the chips and somehow 2-3 bags a week would be consumed.  ahem... 



(i also just realized i have 2 potato dishes on this day i photographed - may be switching that up)

our biggest goal in this area is to make sure we have healthier snacking options

and bill has kindly offered to make my breakfast in the mornings while i shower after the workout.  my breakfast of choice is usually yogurt and fruit or oatmeal and fruit+nut butter

for lunches/dinners my aim is to keep it vegetarian.  many lunches will probably include a turkey sandwich, but on the nights i cook with leftovers to be had - i want to keep it vegetarian.

this used to be more of an issue, but over this past year bill has actually decided he likes pan fried tofu - which basically makes me jump for joy - because one of my most favorite vegan dishes is veggies +rice+ tofu dump.  i also love a sweet potato with beans.

 

this not only frees up my guilt of "what is bill going to eat?" but means bill can help and learn to prepare these dishes on his own - and we can share them together.

THE GOALS

for now we have short (ish) goals (3weeks)

our immediate goals are pretty much to workout and follow our meal plan

and trust me, waking up for the workout is trying enough

if we stick with the plan for 3 weeks

bill gets to see the new superman movie

and i get frozen yogurt

if we miss a workout our "prizes" get set back 1 week per 1 missed workout.

i know.

harsh.

my mini side challenge is to not have any sweets at work (seriously, there is every kind of candy imaginable in the cubical next to me, and there are always birthdays being celebrated.  birthdays=cake)

for every indulgence i make i have to do jump rope intervals at home.

i'm just going to avoid them all together.

we decided we would eventually create a long term goal (6 months +) but we haven't decided what it should be - a trip? a new camera? laptop? european bike tour? half marathon in a city we've never been to?

some of our "prizes" are pretty cash dependent so perhaps we need to create a way to save along with working out

i like the idea of setting "month-end" goals - it's just long enough without seeming too far away which helps me stay focused.

i'll try and do 1 post a week on our progress and the exercises we're doing that week (i'm all for some recommendations)

i also kind of want to picture what i'm eating daily to hold me accountable - i realize many of you could give a flying toothpick...

so i probably won't "advertise" when i post something like that - but feel free to check back to get some meal ideas

so that's our action plan and so far - 2.5 days in- bill and i are in the zone!

it's required coffee on my part (which i had quit for a few months)



but other than that it's been really fun to workout with bill - it's another excuse to spend time together and get something accomplished as well

did you read any of that or just scroll through for the gifs?  i completely understand.

meal plan friday

tgif!

finally!

anyone else catch the office last night?

anyone else still scratching?









since finishing bill's scarf i've been trying to decide what to knit next.  i bought a beautiful ball of cherry red wool that i was eager to make myself a hat with

but then i couldn't for the life of me find my needle gauge.  i cast on to a pair of needles i thought was close.

it was a disaster.

i'm pretty sure the needles were too big and i was going to have a hat big enough for an elephant.  or the pattern was way way off.

so i frogged it

and i'll be headed out on lunch to pick up another gauge...maybe some new yarn too.

other than knitting, i've been busy coming up with my meal plan for the next 7 days.

and learning from last week i knew to leave a few days unplanned to leave room for eating leftovers.

so week 2 of january meal plan:

Saturday
B:  smoothie
L:  originally we had planned to be in cincinnati for the day - that plan is scrapped, so we'll still plan on a late lunch early dinner out
D: snack- popcorn, pretzels, cereal and almond milk

Sunday
B:  pancakes
L:  smoothie
D: Potato Soup - it just sounds good for a rainy weekend

Monday
B:  smoothie
L:  leftover soup
D:  skillet parmesean and zucchini with salad

Tuesday
B:  smoothie
L:  PB&J with carrots
D:  bean burritos (recipe from week 1 that never got made)

Wednesday
B:  smoothie
L: leftovers
D:  big ol' salad
 
Thursday
B: smoothie
L:  romaine salad
D:  tuna noodle casserole with veggies

Friday
B:  smoothie
L:  leftovers
D:  my night to cook with bill and i've come up with something new to try

i ordered a new to me cookbook full of italian recipes.

bill and i both love italian food.

so i thought it would be fun to learn how to cook authentic italian food together

and our first dish will be

giusi's ragu

not exactly veggie friendly - but since it's our one night to really cook together i'm all for it.

i think for our first attempt we'll serve it over spaghetti -  and since it takes 3 hours to simmer, i'm thinking i'll have some hummus and veggies to snack on - as well as a bottle of wine ready to help us cook :)

this recipe can be doubled/quadrupled so if all goes well we can make ahead and freeze since there are a couple other recipes that use this sauce in them.

my goal is to cook one recipe from this book once a week (tuesday or friday nights)

here's to happy forks!

meal plan friday

it's friday

but all i can think about is that next week is going to be a full week of work

the first full week in like 4 weeks.

it's going to be tough.

but right now i'm going to focus on the fact that it's friday.

and i have 2 uninterrupted days at home to be with my woodford and bill.

i also have a fresh loaf of bread courtesy of my breadmaker

and my favorite recipe

i keep it on my fridge since it's pretty much the only bread i ever bake

and at one point i had all measurements memorized since i made it weekly.

i'm promising to get back to doing that.

i've also promised to cook more meals

and that means i need a plan.

my goal is to keep my favorite recipes in rotation in my coupon binder

that way i always have the recipes on me if i'm at the grocery and need to reference them

i thought i would share my meal plan for the next 7 days. my goal by the end of the next couple of months is to find some great recipes that are keepers and build a nice reference cookbook to always have something different to fix each week - instead of the same 3 meals.

my other goal is to weed out the culinary flops on my pinterest boards.  so many things are either loaded with fat or completely flavorless;i'm wondering how they keep getting repinned - pretty pictures of foods =/ great tasting food.

so week 1 of my commitment to cooking:

Friday:
Dinner - taco pasta salad with romaine salad (this was a pinterest find)

Saturday:
B: steel cut oats
L: chickpea salad sandwiches - also a pinterest find
D: DINE OUT (we've allowed ourselves one night a week)

Sunday:
B: pancakes and fruit (the one morning bill and i both have off and eating a big breakfast is fun to cook together)
L: smoothie
D: homemade pizzas

Monday:
B: smoothie
L: romaine salad
D: leftover chickpea salad

Tuesday:
B: smoothie
L: pb&j with carrot sticks  (tuesdays are lunch dates with bill - maybe we can picnic)
D: 15 bean soup with cornbread (basic recipe on the bag of beans)

Wednesday:
B: banana oatmeal
L: leftover bean soup
D: bean burritos

Thursday:
B: oatmeal
L: broccoli pasta salad or leftovers
D: leftovers/ broccoli pasta salad

Friday:
B: smoothie
L: broccoli pasta salad
D: layered eggplant parmigiana - one of my other goals is to cook with my husband - and cooking dishes that are new to us both means we both have to learn and help.  i've never cooked eggplant and this recipe seems easy enough with a few different steps so that we can both participate.

do you pin tested recipes on pinterest? have any that i could try and blog about?  let me know!