New Year, New Me

Happy New Year!  Can you believe it's 2016 already?  Time flies.  This year, I'm determined to make it a great one.  Since finding out I had hypothyroidism, I gained a few extra pounds despite going to the gym 4 or 5 days a week.  I tried to eat healthier but I still wasn't losing any weight.  At least I didn't really gain much, only 4 pounds over the holidays.  I lost inches from working out even though my weight stayed even.

This is crazy!  At least I only gained 4 pounds.

Over the holiday break, I decided that I was going to make a lifestyle change.  I've never weighed this much, so I need to make a change.  I've gained about 30 pounds in the last two years.  Thanks to working out, at least I lost some inches despite the scale not changing.  Well they said losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise.  I have the exercise down thanks to having a personal trainer for the last year.  My contract ran out the end of December but I know what I need to be doing in the gym now.  I'll just have to push myself harder than I normally would on my own.  Maybe I can find myself a gym buddy to keep me motivated!


I'm going to exercise at least 3 times a week, hopefully more than that.  I'm also going mostly paleo or some may say primal, at least for now.  I've done a lot of research about hypothyroidism and because it's also associated with autoimmune diseases, many people have felt better and lost weight on gluten-free diets.  I decided to go paleo to kick start my diet.  I'll eventually allow some gluten-free grains back into my diet, but I want to see some results before I do that.

I started my lifestyle change on January 4th, 2016.  So far I've lost some of my holiday weight gain and I've had no grains whatsoever.  I think I could have lost more, but I had many lattes from Starbucks last week (I know - not so healthy).  This week I'm cutting out all dairy products to see what the effects will be.  I had many salads last week from Salata, Chick-fil-a, and Chipotle.  I learned how to make seared Ahi Tuna at home - so good!  I had apples or banana chips as snacks....but I had quite a bit of peanut butter with my apple.  I know the peanut butter isn't paleo, but it was so good.  I'm cutting out the peanut butter this week too.  I'm kind of playing trial and error with this diet.  That's why I said I'm doing mostly paleo.  I want to see how my body responds to different foods and adjust accordingly.

Last week's menu (1/4/16)
Breakfast - apples and peanut butter OR Advocare White Chocolate Peppermint Shake (not paleo)
Lunch - salads from Salata, Chipotle, Chickfila (no cheese, no croutons, no sour cream) OR Chicken Protein Plate from Zoe's Kitchen (no slaw sub roasted veggies).
Dinner - Seared Ahi Tuna, arugula mix, avocado, and sweet potato fries.
Snacks - apples (sometimes with peanut butter), banana chips, lots of 2 pump whole milk Chestnut Praline Grande lattes no whip no topping from Starbucks
Dessert (if needed) - dark chocolate, Dibs (almond milk ice cream covered in chocolate)

This week's menu (1/11/16)
Breakfast - Cantaloupe, hard boiled egg, apples
Lunch - not sure yet.  probably similar to last week.
Dinner - Chicken, side of homemade bbq sauce (for light dipping only), green beans and sweet potatoes. OR soft boiled eggs, paleo granola with almond milk.
Snacks - Cantaloupe, apples, banana chips, carrots

I'm on a mission to be in the best shape of my life and I will find a way to make it happen.

So for those of you who may just be starting or looking into a paleo/primal lifestyle or gluten free lifestyle, here's some information that may help you.

http://primalpalate.com/menus/30-day-paleomeal-plan/

I found the following information on SavingDinner.com

• Similarities between paleo and primal lifestyles include:
• • Eating tons of veggies
• • Eating lots of protein
• • Avoiding grains
• • Eliminating gluten
• • Doing away with corn
• • Avoiding high fructose corn syrup
• • Avoiding sugar
• • Eliminating processed foods
• • Enjoying the occasional wine and beer
• • Exercising regularly

I am by no means an expert, nor am I strictly following any of these diets.  My purpose is to find a lifestyle in which I feel my best and I'm at my idea weight.  In December, before the holidays, my BMI was 32.8, which categorizes me as Obese.  Ugh.  Hate that word.  "Normal Weight" BMI is 18.5-24.9.  So my goal is to hit in between those numbers.

Back on the Paleo bandwagon

So the Spring semester is over, I'm no longer an Enactus officer and I ate about a years worth of junk food on my vacation in the Smokies last week.  I feel like crap, super tired and a little too curvy at the moment.  It's time to get it right, get it tight!!  This chick is on a mission.  No more excuses, I just need to focus on willpower, focus on food as fuel and get back to eating right and working out.

I turn 30 (gasp!) in 3 weeks, my friend's bachelorette weekend at the river is in 3.5 weeks and I'm no where near ready to be in a bathing suit.  :/  I obviously don't expect to be bathing suit ready in 3 weeks but I plan on being in somewhat better shape by then.  My friend is getting married the last weekend in September and I want to be in MUCH better shape by then.  That's 4 months away and if I stayed focused, I can get into the shape I wanna be in.

I know there are other diets to lose weight and get in shape but I felt the best after following paleo before.  I just need to stick with it and meal plan.  It gets harder when you get busy and are on the go. 

I made myself and Chivo paleo granola last night.  It's really good and a great pick me up snack.  It doesn't have any grains.  It's made with nuts, seeds, coconut oil, shredded coconut and cinnamon.  Here's a link to the recipe that I used: Amee's Savory Dish: Paleo Cinnamon Crunch "Granola"  I used 3 TBS cinnamon, adjusted the different types of nuts/seeds to what I had or could find and I didn't use almond meal.

My Plan (A goal without a plan is just a wish)
FOOD:

*Strict paleo, but allowing brown rice once or twice a week for 3 weeks (until my birthday - I plan on eating some bday macaroons!).  It's nice that my boyfriend, Chivo, is into eating paleo and doing crossfit.  It makes it easier for me to stick with it and the support is nice.

*After my birthday, continue to eat paleo but allow 2 cheat meals a week and brown rice if I have an intense workout later in the day.  The cheat meals must be planned. 

EXERCISE:
*Weights - follow the plan from Jennifer Nicole Lee's Fitness Model book.  A full body workout each week.

*C25K - Couch to 5K app for the iphone.  Must follow this app, at least 3 times a week, whether is on the treadmill or at the park.


Today is Day 1.  It's going well so far.  Had a slight headache since I cut out my sugary sweet lattes and soda.

What is the paleo diet?

Here is my before pic from May 15th, 2013.  :/