chelseyjo

Guys! I’ve made it two weeks into SHRED without quitting! \o/

As you know, Monday is weigh-in day. If you recall last week, I had significant weight loss after week one. This week, I figured I wouldn’t lose as much since my body was starting to get used to the program. However, I did manage to lose about 1.5 pounds, which works for me! I don’t really have a goal as far as total weight loss goes during this program; I just want to feel and look as good as possible. However, I do have a particular number in my head that I’d like to reach one day, and I’m getting closer!

OH! I almost forgot! This weekend, I tweeted to Dr. Ian Smith and he replied! I feel like one of those teeny-boppers who gets RT’d by Justin Bieber. Except way cooler, obviously.

Awesome! Go hard!! RT @chelseyjo: My boyfriend and I are both doing #SHRED. We’re on week two, day five and have already seen great results!

— Dr. Ian (@doctoriansmith)

May 18, 2013

This week is the most difficult week of SHRED, known as “Transformation.” There are a lot of shakes, smoothies and soups this week. Now, I’m not sure how much of a “transformation” I’m going to see this week, but I plan to try as hard as I can. Wish me luck!

Today’s menu:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• 1 cup lemon water (hot or cold water with the juice from 1/2 a lemon)
  
• Pear
  
• Oatmeal

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Skipped – Still eating meal 1 at this time.
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Protein shake (vanilla bean GNC Lean Shake 25)
  
• Banana
  
• Green tea
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Fudge dipped coconut granola bar (mmm!)
  

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Dole fruit smoothie shaker (mixed berry)
• Coconut milk
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• Protein shake (key lime GNC Lean Shake 25)
  
• Bowl of soup (Trader Joe’s minestrone)
  
• Green beans
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• A couple multigrain Tostitos scoops with four tablespoons of hot salsa
  

Tonight’s workout plan is 30 minutes of cardio (most likely running outside) followed by an arms workout. I only made it to the gym twice last week, so I’m looking forward to completely dominating this week to make up for it. I also plan on adding 25 sit-ups and 10 push-ups to my daily routine, just because.

Only 31 days until summer! What are you doing to prepare?

I may have been on a little blog hiatus for the past few days, but don’t take that as a sign that I’ve fallen off the wagon! In fact, I’d like to think that I’ve been doing pretty well.

Let’s see … where did we leave off? Last Wednesday?! Damn. I suck at blogging sometimes ;)

Thursday and Friday were pretty normal. If you’ve been keeping track of my daily menus, you’ll notice that they’re pretty similar each day. Thursday was my favorite day of the week, because we got to have pancakes and bacon for breakfast and steak for dinner! My tummy was happy that day :)

[Since I forgot to blog the past few days, I don’t have menus for Thursday-Sunday. Sorry! You’ll just have to buy the book if you really want to know ;)]

Friday night was volleyball, and with that, several beers. I’d say two before the games and maybe four after? Obviously that’s more than the three I’m allowed per week. I plan to reduce my adult beverage intake for the last four weeks of the program, just to ensure that I get the best results possible!

On Saturday, Rick and I went to see Star Trek: Into Darkness. It was FABULOUS! (I am such a nerd.) Our friends Ryan and Katie joined us, too. Afterwards, we stopped at GNC to stock up on protein powder. They had quite the sale, so I ended up getting a bag of key lime-flavored protein powder, eight protein shakes and a Blender Bottle®. We also joined their membership program. If you join now, they waive the membership fee!

Sunday was beautiful, but also a heavy allergy day. I woke up with swollen, watery eyes and felt like complete sadness. I managed to feel a little better later in the afternoon, so Rick and I walked to the park and set up shop for about an hour. I used that time to plan out my meals for the following week!

Sunday night was full of grocery shopping and Mad Men. Do you watch Mad Men? This episode was beyond weird. I’m not even sure what to make of it. Oh well, I’m sure all will be explained soon enough!

I’m really looking forward to this upcoming week. I start softball league on Wednesday and get to travel to Chicago on Friday for work. Friday night is volleyball (again), and then it’s Memorial Day weekend!

What are you looking forward to this week?

Another lovely day! Today was a little challenging, diet-wise, as I had an event in the evening that required me to be busy for quite a while. And being busy meant I wouldn’t be able to eat correctly or at the right time! I also had two glasses of wine. But other than that, I pretty much stuck to the plan.

Here’s today’s menu:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Pear
• Protein shake (vanilla protein powder, cocoa powder, agave syrup and soy milk)

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Snack
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Turkey sandwich with lettuce, cheese and mustard
• Small green salad with tomato
  
• Green tea
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Kashi® Peanutty Dark Chocolate Granola Bar

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• 5 oz chicken
• Brown rice
  
• Green beans
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m., Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• I was supposed to have a protein shake, banana and lemonade for dinner, and some string cheese for a snack, but I was at my event. When I got home around 9 p.m., I didn’t want to eat much but knew I had to eat something, so I had a few of my sweet mini peppers. Then I crashed. HARD.

If you’re wondering what the aforementioned “event” was this evening … I was asked to speak on a “Social Media for Startups” panel hosted by Startup Milwaukee. I talked about my social media experience both from within an agency setting and at a startup company (outside of my “day job,” I manage PR and social media for a startup). I joined Aaron Biebert from Attention Era Media, Jabril Faraj from sōsh and Katie Felten from Translator. It was a lot of fun!

{Above photos credit: Aaron Biebert}

Sometimes life gets in the way of things like a diet, or other scheduled routine. It’s just important to make good choices.

After my event, a friend offered me some pizza — he literally brought two slices over and set them in front of me. They looked and smelled delicious (mozzarella!), but I stayed strong and passed. I was already having wine (not to mention the fact that I didn’t get to hit up the gym), so I didn’t need to completely ruin my day.

How do you handle events and other activities that may “interrupt” your diet and fitness schedule?

Is spring finally here? It’s currently 75 degrees as I sit in my office, writing this post. I should be outside soaking up the sun, but there are allergies out there, yo! Hopefully the nice weather sticks around for good now. My apartment’s pool is set to open this Saturday and I’d love to check it out!

Anyway, here is today’s menu:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Pear
• Oatmeal
  
• 1 piece of whole grain toast
  
• 1/2 cup orange juice (Do you know how hard it is to leave the other half in the container?)
  

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• My coworker brought in whole wheat, carrot and raisin muffins today. I had one. It was tasty!
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Protein shake (The usual – Vanilla protein powder, cocoa powder, agave nectar and soy milk. Chalky.)
• Apple
  
• Green tea
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Two caramel rice cakes with a little peanut butter (I had no idea one serving of peanut butter is 190 calories. Yikes!)
  

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Green Machine Naked Juice
  
• Sweet mini peppers
  
• Soy milk

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• 5 oz chicken
• Green beans
  
• Lemonade
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• String cheese
  

Since it’s absolutely gorgeous outside, Rick and I plan to run outdoors this evening. We’ll head back into the gym for a leg workout.

This week is going by fast! I’m looking forward to the weekend. Star Trek: Into Darkness comes out, so we’re going to see that (nerds!). I also hope to get some cleaning done at the apartment. We’ve been thinking about re-arranging our living room, and I’d love to go through my clothes and clean up the bedroom.

Do you have any fun plans for the weekend?

Week two of SHRED started today. At the beginning of each week, you’re supposed to weigh yourself. This was the moment I had been fearing.

Every time I’ve tried to lose weight — whether by “detoxing,” exercising or eating healthier (or any combination of the three) — I wouldn’t lose a pound. Thankfully, I’ve maintained the same weight (within five pounds) since graduating high school. But when you make a conscious effort to lose some lbs., it’s pretty frustrating when you don’t!

So anyway … this morning I took out my scale, turned it on and took a deep breath. I stepped on the scale, and to my amazement …

I lost 4.2 pounds!

NOW I’m a believer in SHRED.

Week two is pretty similar to week one, except soups, smoothies and shakes now have to be less than 250 calories instead of 300. There are also more of them. Here was today’s menu:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Banana
• Oatmeal
  
• 2 pieces of whole wheat toast
  

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Happy Squeeze fruit pouch
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Peach Guava + Coconut Water Naked Juice
• Raspberries
  
• Green tea
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• 30 Special K Savory Herb crackers
  

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Garden salad
• 4 oz chicken
  
• Cherry tomatoes
  
• Orange juice
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• Protein shake (vanilla protein powder, cocoa powder, agave syrup and soy milk)
• Peas
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• Skipped – wasn’t hungry.
  

I was supposed to have to work late, so I didn’t pack a bag for the gym. When my plans changed, I came home and did some laundry. All of a sudden, I was tired and didn’t feel like going down to the fitness center in my building (even though I told myself I would). Naughty me! I’ll have to make up for it later this week.

Speaking of this week, I already know it’s going to be tough. I am speaking on a panel Wednesday night and have volleyball Friday. That doesn’t leave much time for the gym! Hopefully the weather will be nice enough this weekend to spend time outside – Rick and I have only used our new rollerblades once this year!

Did you see it’s supposed to be in the 70s and 80s this week? FINALLY! What are your plans for when it’s finally nice outside?

As expected, I did not stick to my diet plan this weekend. However, I’d say I didn’t actually do that bad!

Here’s what was on the original menu:

Saturday:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Banana
• Oatmeal
  
• Orange juice
  

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Cereal bar
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Chicken noodle soup
• Green pepper
  
• Green tea
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• 40 Goldfish
  

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• 5 oz turkey
  
• Cheese
  
• Corn
  
• 1 cup brown rice
  

Snack 3 = 5:00 p.m.

• 14 almonds
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• Salad
• Chickpeas
  
• Soy milk
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• 8 carrots and hummus
  

Sunday:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Grapefruit
• Fat-free yogurt
  
• 1 piece of whole wheat toast
  
• Orange juice
  

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Blueberries
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Chicken noodle soup
• Apple
  
• Water
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Cereal bar

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Garden salad
• Fruit cup
  
• Soy milk
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• Turkey
  
• Green beans
  
• Soy milk
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• 12 chips and salsa
  

I won’t line item everything, but let’s just say my diet was not like what you see above. I tried, though — I even packed a cooler full of food to take with me on my trip!

During the car ride up, I had 1/2 of a chicken wrap with lettuce, tomato, onion and guacamole. I also enjoyed a grande coffee from Starbucks.

Once I got back to my hometown, my mom took me out to meet up with some family friends. I split a turkey wrap with her, and passed on the side of fries that came with (yay me!).

For dinner, we went to an Italian restaurant that specializes in pizzas, pastas and sandwiches. I had a side salad and two meatballs, but did also end up having two small pieces of pizza (whoops!).

On Sunday, we went out for Mother’s Day brunch. Everybody else went with the buffet, which looked mouth-watering and delicious! I passed and went with an egg white omelet, which wasn’t bad either.

On my way back to Milwaukee, I stopped at Starbucks (twice) for venti unsweetened green tea lemonades – always a good option! I also was ready for a snack, so I grabbed an organic fruit pouch. Those things rock!

Now, I know you’re wondering how I did with my adult beverages. And actually, it could have been MUCH worse. I decided to go with Miller 64 most of the weekend, which really doesn’t count as beer, anyway ;)

Week two starts tomorrow. I stopped at Woodman’s on my way back home today, spending a good two hours picking out food for the week! I got everything we’d need (and more) for just over $100. If you’ve never been to Woodman’s, GO! The prices are outstanding. (Now that I think of it, I should have added that store to my inexpensive healthy food store list.)

Tomorrow morning, I will weigh myself for the first time since starting SHRED. I’m not expecting any miracles; I just hope I didn’t GAIN weight. (Usually that’s what happens when I attempt any diet or workout regimens.) Wish me luck!

What do you do to stick to your diet on the weekends? Do you allow yourself a little wiggle room?

Happy Friday! We made it! :)

I’m not sure if it’s due to exercising or my new, healthy diet (or a combination of both), but I’ve been getting up SUPER early lately. Normally, you have to pry me out of bed with a crowbar around 7:45 a.m., otherwise I’d be late for work. This week, I’ve found myself waking up (sans alarm) around 5:45 a.m. This morning, I woke up at 5:15! I feel really good in the mornings now. Usually I feel groggy, super tired and cranky. If this is a symptom of living and eating healthier, that’s fine with me!

Here’s today’s meal plan:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Apple
• Oatmeal
  
• Orange juice
  

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Blueberries (skipped – still eating breakfast at this time.)
  

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Protein shake (two scoops vanilla protein powder, one tablespoon cocoa powder, one tablespoon peanut butter, strawberries and soy milk. Definitely leaving out the peanut butter next time.)
• Blueberries (the ones I should have had earlier)
  
• Green tea
  

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• 21 almonds (habanero BBQ flavor – mmm!)

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Garden salad
• Soup
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• 5 oz chicken
• Corn
  
• Soy milk
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• Cereal bar (a perfect, portable post-volleyball snack!)
  

Exercise: No gym tonight. I play volleyball on Fridays with some of my old coworkers. That’s a pretty good workout in and of itself!

This evening is when the adult beverages start to come into play. I know I’m going to have a beer before volleyball (it helps me play better, haha!) and we’ll most likely end up ordering a pitcher or two afterward. As mentioned before, I’m traveling back to my hometown this weekend to spend time with my mom for Mother’s Day. I know we’ll be drinking Saturday night, and we’ll probably have a bloody Mary or something on Sunday. I figure as long as I stick as close to the plan as possible, and make sure to get some sort of exercise in while I’m up there … I won’t completely ruin all of my progress.

Do you have any fun plans for the weekend? What, if anything, are you doing for Mother’s Day?

I’m getting a little bored with blogging about my food every day, but then I think maybe there’s someone out there who plans to use this as a guide. Maybe that person is you! So … here’s today:

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m. (I actually ended up eating this at 7:15 a.m. because I had a client meeting from 8-10 this morning.)

• Whole wheat pancakes with a little syup
  
• Two pieces of bacon
• Orange juice

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Special K bar (This was the perfect snack to eat in the car on my way back to the office.)

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Small green salad with a little Italian dressing
  
• Bowl of soup
• Green tea

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Two hard-boiled eggs

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Protein shake (I forgot to bring one to work. Thankfully, my coworker and office-mate Jessie said I could have the protein shake she brought but didn’t want. It had strawberries, peanut butter, almond milk and 1/2 a packet of Perfect Fit protein powder in it. Yum!)

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• 5 oz beef (We made steaks! Finally! This was a joyous event.)
  
• Green beans
  
• 1/2 baked sweet potato (Rick doesn’t like sweet potatoes all that much, but he tried it anyway.)
  
• Soy milk
  

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• 10 carrots with 2 TBSP hummus (skipped – late dinner, again.)
  

The gym tonight consisted of 30 minutes of cardio and a leg workout. I decided to stay in the gym for my cardio, instead of running outside. My shins and calves hurt quite a bit after the past few days running on the streets!

(Speaking of running … yesterday’s was only for 2 miles, but I did it in a little under 19 minutes, which made me really happy!)

I am pretty happy with myself for sticking to this diet as much as I have. There was breakfast at this morning’s meeting (including bagels, muffins, etc.), but I passed on everything. We had an all-agency meeting during lunch where pizza and cookies were provided, but I passed on that, too. It was SUPER difficult to say “no” to a big, gooey chocolate chip cookie … that’s for sure! I think the main reason for my “good behavior” is the fact that I know I’m going to drink more than three beers this weekend. If I’m going to cheat once, I shouldn’t continue to do so! That’s what makes diets NOT work.

All day, I found myself staring at the treat jar on my desk (currently, it’s filled with Cadbury’s Mini Eggs). I tried not to have any, but they were staring at me. Finally, I had one. Okay, three. But that’s it. And I’m not upset about it, either. I’d rather do that on occasion than be so strict that I break down and eat a whole cake!

How do you deal with “bad” cravings? Do you eat the cookie or say “thanks, but no thanks”? I’d love some tips to stay on track!

Not much to write about today. Still chuggin’ along, trying to eat all of the food listed below. It was nearly impossible to finish my breakfast in a short amount of time this morning, as I had a lot of calls to make for work. But we’re getting there!

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Grapefruit
• Fat-free yogurt (I went with plain Greek yogurt and added chia seeds, cinnamon and a little honey – otherwise it would have been disgusting.)
• Orange juice

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• Special K bar (skipped – was still eating Meal 1 at this time!)

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Bowl of soup
• Apple
• Green tea

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Green pepper with balsamic vinegar (This was DELICIOUS!)

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cheese and mustard
• Small garden salad with < 3 tbsp dressing (skipped – was full from the sandwich.)
  

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• 5 oz chicken
• 1/2 cup brown rice (ended up being closer to 1 cup because Chelsey doesn’t know how to cook.)
  
• Corn
• Soy milk

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• String cheese (Skipped – dinner ran late and I wasn’t hungry at this time.)
  

{Here’s my yogurt. Mmm!}

Exercise: Tonight’s plan is to run another three miles (most likely outside), followed up by an arm workout. I’m really looking forward to dinner, because we got some awesome lemon pepper seasoning to put on our chicken. We used it last night and it was glorious!

I keep thinking about this weekend. I’m going to be driving 2 1/2 hours on Saturday and Sunday, and I’ll be with my mom. You know how moms are – always wanting to feed you and make you happy! It’s going to be a challenge to stick with the plan. Especially the exercise part. We’ll see what happens!

What do you do when plans get in the way of your diet? How do you compromise or make adjustments? Help!

Day two of SHRED. Last night, as I was putting today’s meals together, I noticed something. I was craving food. That doesn’t normally happen with me. I was really looking forward to the fact that I would get a piece of toast with my 8:30 meal!

The thing I’m continuing to notice about this diet is the fact that there is ALWAYS food to eat. I’ll finish my breakfast and it’ll be time for my first snack. I’ll finish that, and then it’s time for lunch. I think the cause of this is the fact that I try to work on other things while eating. I’m a multitasker by nature, so it’s hard for me to just stop and focus on one thing. This will be something I have to work on over the next few weeks.

Now, I’m not sure if sharing my food every day is something that you’re interested in, but I’m going to do it anyway. Feel free to skip ahead ;) This way, if you’re interested in giving SHRED a try, you can see the types of foods Dr. Smith recommends.

Meal 1 = 8:30 a.m.

• Apple
• 1 1/2 cups oatmeal
• One piece of 100% whole grain toast
• Orange juice

Snack 1 = 10:00 a.m.

• 1/4 cup granola

Meal 2 = 11:30 a.m.

• Turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cheese and mustard
• Carrots
• Green tea

Snack 2 = 1:00 p.m.

• Peanut butter and jelly on 1/2 whole grain English muffin

Meal 3 = 3:30 p.m.

• Protein shake (The one I made was GROSS! Note to self: Include more flavors next time.)
• Apple
• Water

Meal 4 = 7:00 p.m.

• 5 oz chicken
• 2 servings of green beans
• Lemonade

Snack 3 = 8:30 p.m.

• 40 goldfish (I skipped this one, because I forgot to buy Goldfish. And then I realized that I didn’t necessarily want processed food before bed. So I don’t plan on buying Goldfish at all anymore.)

Our workout was much better today. I felt a lot more energized – probably because I actually had calories to burn! We ran 3 miles in 30 minutes, followed by a leg workout.

Looking ahead to this weekend, I know I’m going to face some challenges. I’m heading back to my hometown to spend Mother’s Day with my lovely mother, and I know there will be times when we go out to eat. We’ll also be visiting my brother, who is DJ-ing Saturday night, so I’m sure I’ll see a few adult beverages. But thankfully, this diet allows you to still have an occasional drink or two! (Technically it’s two mixed drinks, OR three “light” beers, OR three glasses of wine per week.)

I know I’ll probably end up having more than the “allowed” number of drinks, but I’ve been doing pretty well with everything else. So that’s my justification ;)

What are your plans for Mother’s Day? Any gifts you recommend I get for my wonderful mom?