Category Archives: video

Time to Squat!

It was so dark this morning when I woke up and the flannel sheets were so comfy. It was really hard to get out of bed this morning! I contemplated either hitting the gym in the evening or going on Friday. Normally, I don’t do this. I just wake up and get up. So, I got up and had a protein drink, which meant I had to go lift!

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Barbell Squat 1 set of 10 with 65# bar
1 set of 8 with 70# bar
1 set of 6 with 75# bar
1 set of 4 with 80# bar1 set of 4 with 85# bar		 Lower Body
Seated Lat Row 3 sets of 10 at 50# Back
Stiff-legged Dead Lifts 3 sets of 10 with 65# bar Hamstrings and back
Decline sit ups 3 sets of 10 Core
Dumbbell Chest Fly 3 sets of 10 with 15# DBs Chest
Triceps Push Down 3 sets of 10 at 30# Triceps
Low Back Extension 3 sets of 10 at 90# Low Back
Upright Row 3 sets of 10 with 15# DBs Shoulders

The squats are tough for me. They are harder than they used to be and I can’t squat as heavy as I once did because it causes pain in my thigh.  I can’t seem to go heavier than this, but the lighter bar has been easier the last couple of times.

I have a bunch of new readers now according to my stats. Probably because of the First for Women article and another mention.  Anyway, I thought I would post my squat video so other ladies won’t be afraid to get in the squat cage and do them. Once you are squatting with 20# dumbbells in each hand, you can certainly get in the rack with an empty bar.

Love the iron gals and it will love you back!

I came home wondering what to have for breakfast and John had made something with pumpkin, so that made up my mind.  Pumpkin oats topped with craisins and toasted pecans.

Yum! I got right to work today, although I was finding it hard to concentrate.  You know those kind of days, close to the weekend and all that.  Pixie was doing her job guarding the bird feeder:

Lunch time was more protein.  I mixed up some peanut flour, which I get from netrition.com and put it on a toasted coconut biscuit.

I really like the peanut flour.  I just mix it with cinnamon, a touch of honey and a tiny pinch of salt with the water.  16 grams of protein and 110 calories per serving of it, which comes out to around 4 tablespoons or more.  I actually ate some off a spoon before spreading it on there.

I could barely wait for latte time today with the now functioning steamer wand!

Lots and lots of foam today.

Happy latte lady today 😀

Well, John won the football picks, so he wanted his dinner out tonight.  He chose the Fish Fry Cafe.

It’s about a mile and a half from our house.  Very small and homey feeling.

Complete with a huge grandfather clock.   😀

They have a mix and match section of the menu that I browsed through. I had the seafood chowder:

Very, very good!  This was my side item to my scallops. Served on a plastic fish-shaped plate.

With a name like Fish Fry Cafe, you would probably think most of the menu was fried, and you would be right.  These scallops were quite good.   And so were the little hushpuppies on the side.  We keep wondering why we don’t come here more often as the prices are very reasonable and the food is good.  Probably because it’s fried.

The lucky winner:

That is supposed to be a victory sign, but I think he looks like he is about to poke me in the eyes!  😯

Now to relax tonight and read some Wheat Belly.  But first, a ride on the bike trainer to burn off a couple of those hush puppies!

Lifting move and planning ahead.

How is the time change treating all of you? I am having a little trouble adjusting as I want to get up too early. At least it is light out going to the gym now! I had the forethought to write out my workout ahead of time.

(Those are my legs back there in the mirror, I see.)  😀

It really makes it easier when I do this, but I forget most times and write it down as I go.  I will use paper like this 4 times (each side of the folded paper) and I can refer to it to see what I did previously.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Full deadlifts 3 sets of 10 with 65# bar Lower Body
Seated Lat Row 3 sets of 10 at 50# Back
Incline Chest Fly 3 sets of 10 with 15# DBs (30# total) Chest
Reverse Crunch 3 sets of 12 Core
Reverse Lunge with Forward Reach 3 sets of 8 each side with 8# DBs (16# total) Full Body
Arnold Press 3 sets of 10 with 10# DBs (20# total) Shoulders
Kickbacks 3 sets of 10 with 15# DBs (30# total) Triceps
Standing calf raise 3 sets of 10 at 80# Calves
Lower Back Extension 3 sets of 10 at 80# Low back

The reverse lunge/forward reach is from New Rules of Lifting.

This is a great move for the whole body and getting your heart rate up.  For some reason, reverse lunges are much easier on my knees than forward lunges.  I need to keep this move in more regularly.

After a bit on the treadmill, I headed off to home for a grain-free day! I started with coconut flour waffles.

I also found out when I got home that I won the football picks again this week!  Poor John. I have to say that I really am really feeling bad about how I keep winning, but not so bad that I am willing to give up my dinner choice.  😈

Lunch included some egg salad and an almond flour biscuit.  I will probably post the recipe for this tomorrow as it turned out pretty good.

Work was very busy today and I have busy couple of weeks coming up here.  My training for the literacy tutoring starts tomorrow and is Tues and Thurs nights for 3 hours for the next couple of weeks.  That eats up a lot of time during the week.  I have already planned out my workout schedule and eating plan (very important when doing grain-free days). Plus, I worked some on Saturday so I don’t have to stress about getting in all my lines with work those couple of days.  Planning ahead really can make a big difference in stress levels.  The only thing that might suffer is my guitar practicing on those 2 days.

John made up an almond milk latte for me this afternoon, which I paired with some dried pineapple.

That is a yummy snack!  I also went out for a walk in the afternoon to finish out my 3 miles.  It was so nice out and I didn’t want to wait until after dinner when it was dark out.

I cooked up a bunch of chicken to be used this week (part of planning!).  I will have to pack dinners for Tuesday and Thursday to bring with me.  This plate was large and satisfying for dinner.  4.5 ounces of chicken because it was a lifting day.

Yum!  Although, the strawberries were watery tasting.  I complained about that to John and he said, “You take that chance with out-of-season strawberries.”  Touche.  I should have had a pear.

I need to get practicing the guitar and actually write this week’s plan out.  I have it in my head, but it certainly would be a good idea to make it concrete!

Question:  Do you plan ahead when you know it will be busy?

Bring on the bagel

Hump Day! I was ready to lift today as I did not go on Monday. Bottom’s up on the protein!

I almost rode my bike to the gym today, but there was frost on the car window. That is a bit cold, even for me.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Stiff-legged deadlift/Row combo 3 sets of 10 at 55# Full Body
Dumbbell Pull Over 3 sets of 12 at 20# Back
Pliet Squat 3 sets of 12 with 35# DB Lower Body
Barbell chest press 3 sets 12 with 45# bar Chest
Decline Sit ups 3 sets of 10 Core
Face Pull 3 sets of 15 with at 30# Shoulders
Seated calf raise 3 sets of 12 at 140# Calves

I worked this hard today. The deadlift/row combo is one of my favorites.  It is a great full body move.  Old video here – bet long time readers remember this one:

Not sure why that ad pops up on this video.  Anyone know how to get rid of that? I did supersets with all the other exercises. I finished in 25 minutes with this workout!

Then I came home to get John and head out for Bagel Day jr. (Sunday is the original Bagel Day).  Maybe I should call it gluten day now LOL!

Whole wheat bagel with some Moose Crossing coffee, which I think is some sort of chocolate flavor.

The sun is out today and mid 40s coming up today.  Maybe it is getting to be spring.  Another sign of spring – no beard!

Lunch time!  I cooked up an omelet with broccoli and laughing cow.

Plus cantaloupe!  It was really good melon, too.  Melon is really hit or miss sometimes, so it was nice to have a hit 😀

Took a nice 2 mile walk to the bank and back this afternoon.  It felt good to get outside and see some sun! For real vitamin D instead of in pill form. The front garden is now all clear from snow.  Time to prune and trim.

The side garden will be buried for a little while longer.  I did shovel some snow off it, but it is all heavy and icy.

Afternoon snackage when I got back of an almond milk latte with more of the macaroon that John got me!

I must recreate the macaroon at home.

Had a quick dinner tonight of salad with chicken, feta and parmesan dressing.

I am going to work some more tonight while John is out and try to finishing catching up for the week.

I also made a batch of the coconut bread, only did them as biscuits.  I will revamp that page with the biscuit addition at some point.

You’ll be seeing these grain-free/gluten free beauties this week.

I have settled in with a sweet/salty snack to finish up work:

Have a great evening!

Lifting and lower carb day fun.

Hooray for Friday! Today is a lower carb experiment day. I am shooting for 100 grams of carbs. I went off to the gym for my dose of iron 😀

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Stiff-legged deadlift 3 sets of 10 at 75# Lower Body
Seated Lat Row 1 set of 12 at 40#

1 set of 10 at 55#

1 set of 8 at 70#

1 set of 5 at 85# (couldn’t squeak out 6!)

 Back
Captain’s Chair 3 sets of 10 Core
Seated Calf Raise 3 sets of 10 at 140# Calves
Barbell Bench Press 3 sets of 8 at 55# Chest
Pliet Squat 3 sets of 10 with 40# DB Lower Body
Prone Cuban Snatch 3 sets of 8 with 10# DBs (20# total) Shoulders
Good Mornings 3 sets of 10 at 55# Low back and hammies

It was very quiet at the gym today. Not sure if the cold is keeping people away or the January resolutions are petering out?

I pulled out an oldie, but goodie – the prone Cuban snatch from New Rules of Lifting!  Since we all just love to laugh at the name and I have a lot of new readers, here is the video for that again.  (Please turn your sound down) It’s a good move.  Basically you start with a row and then raise your hands so they are parallel with the floor.

Start with smaller weights on these.  The row part will feel super easy, but the raise will get you.

On to breakfast!  I planned out my day in advance last night on livestrong.com.  I put in the things that I wanted to have in there for carbs, which were 2 cups of milk and a pear, then worked backwards to fill in the meals.  I made a 1-minute pumpkin muffin, but left out the sugar.  I topped that with a full serving of the peanut flour mixed with cinnamon and a tiny bit of salt.

I made the muffin, then split it and skillet toasted it.  John said it looked like a cupcake, which it does. 😀

The taste was quite good, actually.  Many people would likely add splenda or stevia to this, but I just don’t go for the sweeteners (even stevia tastes a little funny to me).

This had staying power.  Let me tell you! I was full up until lunch.  I was amazed at the staying power of this.  When you reduce carbs, you have to replace them with something.  I already eat a lot of protein, so I replaced with fat.  Fat is filling.  It’s a little scary, but I am up for going out of my comfort zone on that.

Speaking of lunch –

I had a cheese omelet cooked in some butter.  I laid off the hot sauce a little bit to taste the cheese more. It was delicious.

And this cucumber was really sweet.  Every once in a while they are that way, wonder why?

Latte time!

Nutmeg sprinkled on top.

We make the lattes with whey protein isolate when we amp up the protein (we don’t always do this, but a lot of days).  This is really the only kind of protein that will readily dissolve and be almost undetectable.  BTW – whey isolate is what Starbucks uses when you ask them for a shot of protein in a latte, so you can try it sometime!

I popped some chicken breasts in the oven for dinner.  Emeril came to visit!

Gah’lic anyone? Dinner is served with sauteed brussel sprouts and a pear.  Yay – fruit!

So, the day has been interesting.  We shall see how I feel tomorrow.  This is as low as I want to go with carbs.  Personally, I believe the body needs carbs.  Yes, I know the body can make carbs via ketosis, but why make the body work harder when a system is already in place for it (not to mention the bad breath).  Note that this is not true paleo or primal with the dairy, although some primal people do eat dairy (thinking Mark Sisson people).  So maybe this experiment will be Lori-eo eating. :mrgreen:

Tonight will be fun.  As part of operation ‘do more things’ this month, we are going to a concert down at Skidmore.  On the program?

Janacek- Mládí
David Bruce – Steampunk
Beethoven – Septet in E-flat Major, Op. 20.

Evening snack is 1/2 ounce of toasted pecans.  I also budgeted in coffee with cream for the post concert out, bringing my grand carb total today to 83.  It wasn’t so bad!

Lifting Move of the Week: Good Morning!

I think I am still on mountain time or something. I overslept a little today. Normally I am at my gym by 7 am (no alarm) and today I woke up at 7:10! That’s pretty unusual.

I dressed quick and jetted on over. I did some unweighted moves for a warm up and then lifted.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Barbell Squats 1 set of 10 at 65#

1 set of 8 at 75#

1 set of 8 at 85#

1 set of 6 at 90#

1 set of 4 at 100# !!!!!

 Lower body
Seated Lat Row 3 sets of 10 at 55# Back
Barbell Chest Press 3 sets of 8 at 60# Chest
Captain’s Chair 3 sets of 10 Core
Stationary Lunge 3 sets of 10 each leg with 35# plate Lower Body
YTWL 3 sets of 4 (each letter) with 8# DBs (16# total) Shoulders
Nosebreaker 3 sets of 12 at 25# Triceps
Good Morning 3 sets of 10 at 55# Hammies and low back

There were 3 new people at they gym today, and one was a woman who did some serious lifting! She looked amazing and like she could kick my ass multiple times and not break a sweat. One of those times where you just feel totally inadequate standing next to someone, you know? I went up to her and said how nice it was to have another woman lifting in the free weight section. They apparently are switching to my gym and work out every morning. I probably won’t be able to make any videos at they gym now if that is the case.

I finished my workout and picked up John. Sometimes he starts walking to the gym to meet me, but it was 12 degrees this morning….brrrrrr…..

Stopped at Adirondack Coffee Cafe. I had a wheat bagel with cream cheese.

I was in a hurry this morning and didn’t eat anything before leaving for the gym, so I was pretty hungry for this puppy.  I can get away with that on a lifting day, but not if I do cardio.

Now on to the Lifting Move of the Week! The Good Morning. I have been trying and trying to get this on video and none have worked out well (or I look terrible, truth be known). It is an awkward-looking move, so I doubt I will have more success – so here it is! This is great for the lower back and hamstrings. The key to this exercise is the pivot point you bend from. Always from the hips and not the waist. I show what not to do in the video as well.

I could probably straighten my legs a little more, but I tend to lock my knees, so I bend them a little more than other people might, FYI. The straighter your legs are, the more you feel it in the hammies.  Enjoy!

Remember yesterday was pantry staple day? I was so happy to get fresh fruits and veggies last night that I think I might have gone overboard.  Ooops!

I could not decide which fruit to have for lunch.  Finally decided on some clems!

I also tried a different tuna.  Chicken of the Sea.  Normally I get Bumblebee, but trying a different kind (less $$).  It seems more watery.

I finished with job #1 and job #2 didn’t have any work, so I was able to hop on the bike trainer and get in the cardio I missed from oversleeping today.  Gotta be flexible, right?

<insert unpictured latte here>

I think I made a mistake by buying some honey roasted peanuts at the store.  I had a couple handfuls while making dinner.

More fresh produce with dinner!  Well, the broccoli is frozen, but who’s counting?

I topped my pork burger with A1 instead of hot sauce to change things up.  I’ve never felt so alive!

I’ll be working some tonight with the work shortage in the afternoon.  While I appreciate the flexibility of my job, I kind of wish I had concrete hours.  I tend to snack more when I start and stop working a lot.

John made some wheat bread today.  I had to have a piece and put some eggnog creamed honey on it!

Yeah, good stuff.  I need to try making my own creamed honey.  I was going to make today a no-sugar day…. ooops.

Back to work for me!

Question:  If you eat tuna, what brand do you like?

Lifting Move of the Week – Bent Lateral Raise

Is this going to be a coherent post? We shall see. I ended up with 4 hours of sleep last night. Hello insomnia. I finally got up at 3:30 and just started working. I had a Zone bar and then some cinnamon raisin bread during the time before 6:30 😉 Then I went to the gym.

I started with a 2-mile jog on the treadmill, then the iron.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Barbell Deadlift to Row 3 set of 8 at 65# Full body
Close Grip Lat Pull Down 3 sets of 10 at 60# Back
Stationary Lunge 3 sets of 10 each leg with 25# plate Lower body
Horizontal Wood Chop 3 sets of 10 each side at 30# Core
Barbell Chest Press 3 sets of 8 at 60# Chest
Bent Lateral Raise 3 sets of 12 with 12# DBs (24# total) Shoulders
Good Mornings 3 sets of 10 at 55# Hammies and low back
Bench Dips 3 sets of 10 Triceps

Then I jogged another mile on the treadmill. That was a little tough, but I needed to get in a good sweat. I picked up John and then we met my mother for bagel day! I had a blueberry bagel today.

Lifting Move of the Week:  The Bent Lateral Raise.

This is another shoulder move.  There are a lot of different muscles in the shoulder!  I actually really like this move.  I am not a fan of overhead shoulder stuff, but I love the lateral moves.  Filmed in our spare bedroom while baking bread this weekend!  I got up to all kinds of things on Saturday by myself :mrgreen:   The bent lateral raise is kind of like a chest fly only bent over instead of being supine.  It’s funny how just doing that makes you work different muscles.  Gravity is an interesting thing.

Another nice variation on this move is to lie on a stability ball (on your stomach) while doing this.  Or, lie prone on an incline bench.

I will say that I struggled with the eating today because of being so fatigued. I had some mint cups before lunch.  Then I made a fluffernutter pita for lunch.

Maybe a first in the blogosphere? It was good, too. Plus the last 2 clems. You know I always eat 3, but only had 2 left.

I then had a post lunch snack.  🙄

Hello bottomless pit.  I haven’t visited you for a while.

While I was working in the afternoon I was so tired that I couldn’t keep my eyes open.  I stopped working and took a nap.  I have to be very accurate with my job.  It’s very important to be accurate, so I took the time to refresh a bit.

When I awoke, John make lattes, which I had some bread with.

I have a lot to do today as we are leaving on Thursday for 5 days on a trip.  I will post a picture when we arrive and see if you can guess where we are. Not New Orleans LOL! Not anywhere really warm, either.  I hope to get in a post or 2 over the weekend, but will see if the internet is convenient.  So that means more working tonight (because of my nap), laundry, cleaning, packing, etc.  Phew.

Using up leftover stuff for dinner.  The last of the chicken and the last pear!

I have one piece of fruit left and that is  a banana for breakfast tomorrow.  Gotta start out travel day with a tummy full of custard oats!

I ended up eating probably an extra 600 calories I didn’t need today. said while snacking on chocolate chips. So hard to cut 500 calories from your diet, so easy to add…

I will leave you with  something to think about from reverb10.com:

December 8– Beautifully Different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful. (Author: Karen Walrond)

For me, I think it is my happiness and my sense of humor.

Lifting Move of the Week: Lunge with Forward Reach

Welcome to December! It really seems as thought the older I get, the faster time goes by. It’s kinda scary. I had a protein drink before heading out to the gym.

Kind of looks like John’s eggnog, doesn’t it? I wish that it was.

Pubsgal asked about what warmup I do before lifting. Normally I hit the treadmill for 10 minutes or so when I don’t bike, but don’t mention it here for boredom sake. I also will do some unweighted moves before I start loading up the weights on the first couple exercises.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Reverse lunge with forward reach 3 set of 10 with 8# DBs (16# total) Full body
Barbell Split Squats 3 sets of 10 at 65# Lower body
Dumbbell Pull Over 3 sets of 10 at 30# <—- increase Back
Horizontal Wood Chop 3 sets of 10 each side at 30# Core
Barbell Bench Press 3 sets of 10 at 60# <— increase Chest
Triceps Pull Down 3 sets of 15 at 30# Triceps
Upright Row 3 sets of 10 at 30# Shoulders
Good Mornings 3 sets of 10 at 35# Low Back and Hammies

Then I walked for a little more. Headed back to pick up John for Bagel Day! We were back at Cool Beans, which was all decked out for the holidays:

I had a sunflower bagel, which was oh-so-delicious!

It’s time for Lifting Move of the Week! It is the reverse lunge with forward reach.  This is from the New Rules of Lifting for Women. It will get your heart rate up, that is for sure.  The move is basically a reverse lunge while simultaneously reaching forward with your arms while stepping backwards.  Try this move without weights at first, because it also works on your balance and coordination.  Apologies for the fuzzy video.  Not sure why it uploaded like that.

I like to twist the weights so they are horizontal to the floor because that just feels more natural to me. You also don’t want to go too heavy on the arm weights.  This move is much harder than it looks.  For a super challenge, do this from a step.

Today was a challenge to stay around 1500 calories.  Tomorrow I will talk about why I chose that number, so come on by for that.  I like to eat bread (duh) and that really is where a good chunk of daily calories come in.  Most times I can lower my calories in a day just by ditching a bread item from the day.  Well, not today!  Good thing the Cool Beans bagels are small, but still doing a bit of guestimation on calories here.   It’s all relative.

I would have liked a piece of bread with lunch, but I refrained and ate my tuna with lemon pepper straight up.

I always eat my clementines in sets of 3.  I don’t know why that is, but I rarely vary from that.  Guess I am just showcasing some odd habits this week. 😳

While I am sipping on my unpictured latte with some protein added, I will entertain you with my December goals.

  • Keep an eye on my portions.  Even when I finish up this 1500 calorie week, I am going to really pay attention to portion sizes (also known as snacking) and keep the creep from happening.  I plan on really enjoying the Christmas feast, but it is only a couple of days and not 4 weeks, you know?
  • Relax!  I am very go-go-go and forget to just chill out.  That means more reading and listening to music.
  • I will barbell squat 105 pounds with 6 reps by the end of the month.  I am at 95 right now, so I should make it.
  • Reflect on this past year.  Another reason why I love blogging – I can do that easily LOL!

That’s enough for December.  It’s hectic enough as is.

Today has been pouring rain and incredibly windy.  The temps got to about 60 degrees, which is amazing.  I keep thinking about how much snow this would be if it was colder.  I think we would be talking feet!

I wanted some eggs for dinner, so it was time for an omelet!  This had laughing cow and sauteed broccoli in it.  I love this combo.

Snack time tonight will be this:

It’s sitting in the fridge waiting for me! This is a mix of fat free ricotta, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, stevia and 1 tbsp of cranberry sauce.  Surprisingly tasty!

Calorie tally:  Preworkout:  110, Breakfast: 526, Lunch: 350, Snack:  165, Dinner: 282,  Evening snack:  95. Grand total: 1528

Question:  Do you have any December goals?

Lifting Move of the Week: Lateral Raise

It was pouring rain this morning, and the sound actually woke me up early! Booo. I just got up and drank some protein drink and headed out to the gym. Since I was early, I could take my time today.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Barbell Split Squat 3 sets of 10 (each leg) at 65# Lower body
Seated Lat Row 1 sets of 10 at 45#

1 set of 10 at 55#

1 set of 8 at 70#

1 set of 6 at 85# <—- sweeet

 Back
Seated Calf Raise 3 sets of 10 at 140# Calves
Plank 2 sets at 75 seconds

1 set at 60 seconds

 Core
Barbell Chest Press 3 sets of 10 at 55# Chest
Chin ups 2-1/2 Upper body
Lateral Raise 3 sets of 10 with 10# DBs (20# total) Shoulders
Nosebreaker 3 sets of 10 at 30# Triceps
Good Mornings 3 sets of 10 at 45# Hammies and Low back

Yeah, I tried some chins.  I have not done those in months and it shows. I could not even knock out 2 in a row – I had to rest in between and could not do the third. I can’t believe how fast I lost strength in those!
After a bit of a treadmill walk, I then picked up John and we headed out to a new coffee shop that just opened up last week called North Country Coffee Cafe:

Cute inside:

Lots of coffees to choose from:

I had a wheat bagel and cream cheese and some Peruvian coffee, which was quite good.

Little skimpy on the cream cheese, but the bagel was nice and fresh.  Best of luck to the new cafe!

Lifting Move of the Week: The Lateral Raise. Okay, this video was shot differently just for the heck of it. 😀 This move is for your shoulder. Similar to the front raise I did a few weeks ago, only you raise your arms directly up from your sides, keeping the weights horizontal. Again, start light.

You can see I have a little hitch with this move where I shrug my shoulders a bit near the top, and that is because it caused me some discomfort with the issue I am having with my shoulder/biceps.  So don’t do that. (Needless to say, this move is out for a while).

Lunch time today.  I made another pita, only this time stuffed it 😀  Lemon pepper tuna and spring mix inside.

These are Joseph’s Pitas and only 60 calories per pita.  I do like their lavash, as well.  They make all kinds of good bread stuff that is high-fiber, high-protein.

Made more soap today.

In my old retail shop days, I could have cranked out this order in 1 day, but with my home set up, it has to be done over 4 days for space and equipment reasons.  Today’s agenda was frankincense and myrrh, gingerbread, and lilac.  I adore the F&M.

After finishing up those, it was time for a snack:

Plus a latte with protein.

Today is a no-added sugar day, so just cinnamon sprinkled on top.

Today was really a struggle to not have sweet stuff.  Normally it doesn’t bother me, but today I wanted sweet stuff – and not just fruit!  It’s been tough going.

Feeling so busy right now, but at least by tomorrow it will ease off.  I still have a bunch of work to do tonight as well.  😀  At least I am earning money!

Because of being busy, needed a quick dinner.  I had bought some of this at the store because I like paneer:

10 minute dinner with some couscous and broccoli:

It was decent.  You all know how I love my Indian food.  I probably would not buy this again.  It was a little bland for me, which you wouldn’t expect from Indian food, right?

Red pear snack coming up later.  This one I will cut up, but I just wanted to show you all the pear deliciousness!  They are so good this time of year:

Question:  Have you tried Joseph’s products?

Lifting Move of the Week: Decline Sit Ups

Up early and headed out to the gym to get a little more of a workout in. I ended up having a little binge on peanuts and chocolate chips last night and I felt like sweating it out today.

I started off with a 1.5 mile jog on the treadmill, then hit the iron.

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Barbell Stiff-legged deadlift 3 set of 10 at 85# Lower body
Decline Sit ups 3 sets of 10 Core
Front Raise 3 sets of 10 with 10# DBs (20# total) Shoulders
Cable Squat-to-Row 3 sets of 12 at 60# Full body
Barbell Chest Press 3 sets of 10 at 55# Chest
Seated Calf Raise 3 sets of 10 at 140# Calves
Triceps Pull down 3 sets of 15 at 30# Triceps
Low Back Extension 3 sets of 10 at 100# Low back

Then I hopped back on the treadmill and jogged for another 1.5 miles. I normally don’t run and lift so close together, but it wasn’t so bad today. John was walking to the gym during this time and was just about there when I left. We headed out for bagel day! Don’t you love this sign by the coffee?

Now *that* is some indulgence! (come on Thanksgiving, I want nog!).

I got a poppyseed bagel today. I was hangry! My protein drink didn’t last all the way through the last run.

Today’s Lifting Move of the Week. The decline sit up! It’s a serious core challenge today. All you need is a bench that you can do set up for a decline and hook your feet, although I suppose you could hang off of pretty much anything to do this LOL! I have seen people do these in the air, but post herniated disk – I am not about to mess with that. You want to keep your abs in and don’t clasp your hands behind your head or you will pull up on your neck. Keep them by your ears.  Or you could cross them in front of your chest.  ** Note before viewing the video, if the mute box isn’t checked, you will hear Eye of the Tiger LOL **

I have read that you should not let your back touch all the way to the bench, but cannot find out why.  Any ideas?  I thought maybe it was to keep the tension in the abs, but I don’t know.

Nice move, eh? You can vary the incline for more challenge.

Lunch time today included a new-to-me product.  Normally I buy Cedar’s hummus, but I had a coupon for this:

It’s quite good and they make it look real purty, too.

I mixed some with tuna:

I have to admit that I have been in a bit of a funk for the last few days.  When the AOL article came out, I was shocked at some of the absolutely mean-spirited comments that came my way, via email and that site like I needed a boob job, I was still fat, and that my skin was like a sharpei after losing 100 pounds.  Some real mature people there.  Thank goodness the really mean ones were taken down, but they still hurt, you know?  And then with weenus’ comment about my lower half the other day, it sort of just piled on.   I’ll get over it, but John was saying how I was finally getting to feel good about my body image and then to have all that happen.

Anyhoo – enough of that stuff!  John won the football picks for the first time in weeks.  He wanted to go back to Denny’s!  I was thinking the custom omelet again, but they didn’t have that choice on the menu anymore.  However, never be afraid to ask for what you want.  I got an egg white omelet with cheese, wheat toast and asked to swap out fresh fruit for hash browns.

My fruit was all prettied up:

My omelet actually came out as a regular one, and I almost ate it (cause I do love whole eggs).   However, that is not what I ordered, and I ordered that for a reason.  The server brought the correct one right out and I was happy 😀  We were saying how this particular Denny’s has really great service, unlike pretty much every other one we have been to.  Nice change, and I gave our server a good tip.

Pixie was also happy because we brought home food and a new catnip toy for her.  I  spoiled Chloe for 18 years, and Pixie is following in that trend!

I hope to catch up on some blogs tonight.  I haven’t even opened up my reader 😯   Where does the day go, anyway?

Lifting Move of the Week: Dumbbell Row

Geez it is dark when on my way to the gym now. I had a protein drink and drove there. The sun was making a beautiful arrival during my workout.

It was about 25 degrees out.  Winter is a comin’!

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Stiff-legged Deadlift 3 set of 10 at 85# Lower body
Dumbbell Bent Over Row 3 sets of 8 at 25# (50# total) Back
Barbell Bench Press 3 set of 8 at 55# Chest
Captain’s Chair 3 sets of 15 Core
Bent Lateral Raise 3 sets of 10 with 12# DBs (24# total) Shoulders
Triceps pull down 3 sets of 15 at 30# Triceps
Stationary Lunges 3 sets of 10 each leg with 35# plate Lower body
Standing single leg calf raise 3 sets of 10 each leg with 20# DBs (40# total) Calves and balance
Good Mornings 3 sets of 10 at 45# Low back and hammies

I worked very efficiently today and did supersets so I could get through the workout with a consistently elevated heart rate. Then it was time to pick up John and go for bagels! We went back to an old place to give it a try again. Lox of Bagels. It is a lot farther away, and we had some bad service there a few times, so it was in the dog house for a while. I had a multi grain bagel and we split a container of maple walnut cream cheese.

Tasty.

Now on to the Lifting Move of The Week! The dumbbell row:

This move is for your back.  I will do it with one dumbell and then other times with 2.   Keep your abs in when you pull up.  You should feel this along the back and sides.  Also called your lats!

Hope you can view this video as it is on photobucket instead of youtube.  For those of you who want a smaller looking waist – this is the move for you.  It helps give you the V taper by filling out the upper back, making your waist appear smaller. Yay!

I was hungry for lunch today.  I had made up some bread last night, and you can almost see it under the eggs LOL!

Work was a little on the frustrating side today.  Just one of those days.  I had to take a break and head out for a brisk 2 mile walk (and got to deposit a paycheck while doing so, which certainly cheered me up!).

There was a latte waiting for me when I got back 😀

You can almost see the little dark chocolate mint cup there in front.  What you don’t see is the other one I already ate.  :mrgreen:

Been really on point with eating this week.  Sometimes the zone is easily had and other times it is not – so I will enjoy this ride while it lasts.  It definitely is easier to control my appetite when I am not doing so much exercise.  Isn’t that funny how that works?

I realized I was veggie deficient today, so I decided on a big spinach salad for dinner.  I have found that I like baby spinach much, much better than adult spinach, or whatever you call it.  It seems much more mild.  Maybe I would like the green smoothies better with the baby?

Anyway, I had cooked up some honey mustard chicken and was going to have that on top of the spinach.  Then I remembered Debby making a yummy looking salad with a pear.  So, I chopped up half a pear and added 1 tablespoon of feta cheese and 1 tablespoon of chopped craisins.


Very bistro, if I do say so myself!  This was tasty.  It’s funny how I have really gotten so I don’t eat dressing on my salads.  If the toppings are flavorful enough, I don’t need it.

Snack time because I was making nut butter after dinner:

Cashews – my very favorite nut!

Another favorite nut?

Interesting fact of the day.  Did you know that any breed of cat can be a calico, but calicos are only female?  It is an X chromosome thing.  If there does happen to be a rare male calico, they are always sterile and usually have other health issues.  Now you all are ready for Jeopardy! 😀