I’ve decided. It feels fabulous to love the gym. Well, in relative terms.
Here’s what I love, and I find this great motivation to sweat my lazy buttock at least 4 days a week. These are reasons beyond the usual – “endorphins!” and “looser jeans!” explanation. (It’s hard to imagine, only 2 months ago, I considered 3 days at the gym pushing myself beyond the “superwoman threshold”.)
These are my cheap thrills! (Not just cheap, it’s all FREE!!)
- Bright pink cheeks! Without having to attribute it to “the Asian glow”!
- Feeling the little donut (a.k.a love handles) turn into, currently – a “two-pack”
- Definition, definition, definition. Otherwise knows as, discovering my biceps and all the other -ceps that are starting to introduce themselves to me.
- Regularity!!!!!!! (If you know what I mean…)
- Fully appreciating how good rest days feel knowing I worked hard all the other days!
- The hot shower.
- Knowing that my mental strength and perseverance has reached a newer, higher level every time I’ve pushed myself beyond what I thought was possible.
- Secretly checking myself out in the mirror and noticing how much straighter and more confident I stand!
With all this being said though…I still can’t bring myself to get on a scale. I haven’t been on one since 6 months ago. Yeah, I still have some issues and I’m not quite sure what it takes for me to be ready for it. OK. Moving on.
Tuesday
To be honest, it feels kind of nice to be taking a break from pumpkin in my oats. Here we have regular Quaker oats, half a banana, frozen grapes & blackberries, Yoplait Boston Cream Pie yogurt, and a sprinkling of yogurt & berry special K. Yummy!!
Pumpkin-less Oats.
The satisfying oatmeal eliminated the need for a mid-morning snack, but I’m always happy when lunch time rolls around!! I packed a giant salad with hummus (giant because it filled a 6L tupperware. Muhahahah), toasted a Thomas WW English Muffin and spread one with my TJ’s horseradish hummus and the other I topped with less hummus and 3 slices of smoked salmon –> a Winning combo!!
Smoked Salmon & Hummus on Muffin SCORES!!
For dessert, I whipped out my brand new, never been tested Trader Joe’s Pomegranate Greek Yogurt! So far, I’ve had 3 experiences with Greek yogurt. Fage 0% plain drizzled with honey rocked my world, while Stonyfield’s Organic Vanilla Greek by itself made me upset – I recall feeling like I was eating tart cream cheese. THIS yogurt though…was different.
Dessert!
Much more tart and much less creamy than all the others, TJ’s has created a satisfying yogurt that I personally wouldn’t classify as “greek”. Good thing the color won me over! There was also a nice, subtle pomegranate flavor that wasn’t overpowering. It’s also cheaper than all the other guys, weighing in at $1.19 for one. It held me over until 4:30 and I was starving for a Fuji apple (no picture) and some roasted rice tea from Taiwan.
Roasted Rice Tea! My Favorite!
By 6, I had hopped on my shuttle bus back down to Chicago for my 2nd spin class. To fuel my workout (because I remembered sweating like a pig last week), I had one of these Special K protein bars.
Work-out Fuel
The Special K double chocolate protein “meal” bar was unfortunately less satisfying than I had hoped. All I can say is, this tasted pretty much like a chocolate candy bar that had a nice chewy consistency. The bar tasted overwhelmingly sweet, and by the end of it I wanted something to distract my tastebuds AND frankly, to feel fuller. At 170 calories & 10g of protein, this isn’t a poor choice…but somehow this bar just radiates “artificial” to me.
Dinner was at 8:30 for me, and I craved something hearty! Eggs Benedict minus the Hollandaise. I made two different types. On the left, you have Canadian Bacon, Cheese, and an egg; On the right, you have smoked salmon and a runny egg all served atop a WW English muffin. (Can you tell I heart English muffins???)
Breakfast for Dinner!
Just for fun, I wanted to share my random “kick for the day”. My bathtub has desperately been in need of resealing/repainting since forever and FINALLY my landlord has found a funny handyman to do the job. Here’s what he left on my shower rail along with 80 miles of RED TAPE. (hahaha)
Being a science dork (I was pre-dental in college and suffered through my chem, calc, organic, bio, physics…etc.) I fully appreciated the “+ or – 10AM” approximation. Apart from his interesting way of spelling things, I especially loved how he chose to impart his wisdom in print after he had completely demolished covered my tub in red tape. (think CSI crime scene).
THANKS to everyone who gave awesome advice to how you explain food photography to curious folks. I’ve now developed my own explanation and can’t wait until someone asks!!! Now, I have a much more personal and serious question that I’d love to hear what you have to say. Do you feel like the number your scale displays completely screws with your head??
I do. And I know an undesirable number in the morning will mess up how I feel about myself for the rest of the day (or week), which is why I’ve stopped weighing since August. Call it low self-confidence or fear of facing the truth if you wish. I really don’t think this is healthy, but I don’t know how to dig myself out of the rutt. What are your thoughts on this?
I think you are just realizing that the scale doesn’t matter! Whenever I actually give in and step on the scale, I feel like I am setting myself up for disappointment because I feel so good.
Love all the smoked salmon!
I weigh myself weekly, but I don’t get too worked up over the number. It just a tangible way for me to monitor progress other than just how I feel or how clothes fit.
the one reason i like the scale is because it lets you know about those few pounds in advance. but you can tell that in your clothes anyway…when the scale is low, its a great feeling, but be sure to use cautiously LOL.
that salmon looks YUM!
cookingwithkate.wordpress.com
First off…love you reason to love going to the gym! Awesome!
Second….I usually don’t freeze my muffins unless it’s a batch I lnow only I’ll eat. I keep them in a ziploc bag in the fridge to the family to comsume throughtout the week.
Third…GREAT eats in this post! WOW!
Finally….the scale screws with my head, yes. It’s better now. I used to get on that damn thing 3 times a day! I kid you not. Now, I’m good about getting on only once a week. I still get upset if I see a number I don’t want to, though! 🙂
The scale can definitely screw with my head! I am trying to cut back to weighing myself just once a week.
I have been scared to step on the scale too! Last time it really did play with my emotions when I was 5 pounds more than usual. It seriously gets me so depressed even if my clothes still fit fine. I know it could be muscle but it is hard to see in numbers!
i tried weighing myself every day, but fluctuations tend to happen so often, so i decided to weigh myself in on mondays once a week. i chose monday because then i will hopefully not go too crazy on the weekends so i feel better during the weigh in.
yummy, lovely eats! i especially liked the TJ’s greek yogurt review and the eggs benedict (one of my old favs!)
as far as weighing yourself goes — you dont HAVE to do it! there’s no reason why you should feel like you have to if you’re not ready to see whatever number it lands on. but thats the thing — its JUST A NUMBER. if you feel good (which you must! as evidenced by that awesome opening to your post!) and are engaging in healthy behaviors, then the number is just a number. don’t worry about it girl!
thanks for such a nice comment, i appreciate it!
Yes, the scale is screwy. I try to just ignore the fact that I have one, but when I remember then I have to weigh myself. The thing is, even if it’s down I feel screwy – because then I eat a bunch of crap!!
you are SO CUTE!!!!!! thanks for sending me that info. i am going to post and see if this works!!!
also, i use a casio exilim ex s880 model. i really like it, except it doesn’t focus very well for extreme closeups. not sure if it’s because i haven’t figured that out yet tho 🙂
I must say, I love how you placed the exclamation marks for regularity!!!!!!!! LOL!
I used to weight myself every morning to keep in track (like 5-6 years ago) and you’re right, that number totally governed my day/week. But now, I don’t weight anymore (once a month probably? or whenever I remember) which is more healthy psychologically I guess. You can tell if you gain or loose weight by feeling in your cloth, right? which is somehow more accurate than a number.
thanks for the advice darlin 🙂 haha you’re gonna laugh, but i actually use my iphone for all my pics! the only ones that were with a camera were the botanical garden pics! other than that i use my trusty iphone !
I love your list of gym bunny benefits 😉 Haha-regularity…you are so funny (yet sadly so true!). It really does feel great to feel stronger, I agree. Yay YOU!
Your gym benefits *almost* make me want to go work out… almost…
The number on the scale completely messes with me. I had an amazing food/workout week last week, but when I got on the scale, I was UP in weight. It totally made me feel like garbage.
Haha that sign is great! I need to pick up some horseradish hummus, sounds yummy 🙂
I never weigh myself. I go by how my clothes fit – getting hung up on a number is never good! Gotta love the definition from pumping iron 🙂
Hey girl! Wonderful oats! I can’t believe you had a ten hour art exam once!! Anyways, I need to hit up the gym more (Thanks for the inspiration!)…..School gets in the way of soooo many things!
delicious eats girlie!
lovin the yogurt!
Ooh, what great reasons to go to the gym! Though I still need to actually do things that will give me some definition.
I try to only weigh myself about once a week, but it doesn’t really bother me that much. If I gain, I’m mildly upset, but never SO upset that I don’t eat a lot over the weekend. FAILURE.
I think if you’re content not weighing yourself, you should stick with to that system. Everyone says that using clothes as a measurement is much more reliable anyway.
oh man, your list makes me feel guilty for skipping the gym the past like four months straight.
you eat so healthy and work out. you’re gonna live forever.
ARGH you just reminded me that I really have to go on a strict diet as the big day is in less than 2 months! The last time I went on a scale was 6 months ago and I’ve been avoiding ever since =(
of course you know which meal is my favorite…your breakfasty eggy dinner! YUM!! with all the goodness of a runny egg, who needs hollaindese sauce?
I am so with you on the bright pink cheeks! I feel like my face just looks better after I have been working out.
And I agree about the scale, I really like that number on the scale can really mess you. It is about feeling comfortable in your body and not about some crazy number.
Thanks so much for the sweet comment on my blog girl, you are the best, and Im so glad that I found your blog, im pretty sure im in love with it 😉
Dont be stressed about the scale! I’m scared of it too but no matter what it says you know yourself if you’re feeling or looking better 🙂 It’s taken me a long time to figure that out so stick with it! You’re already doing great just by getting to the gym. Btw the TJs pom yogurt is soooooo good. 🙂
Aww, screw the scale. It’s about how you feel! Good for you for enjoying so many reasons to work out.
umm – yes! the scale really messes with my head – its a total mind game with me, because a couple pounds of a difference is really only water weight, but for some reason it really gets to me – I say the hell with the scale =)
I’ve been kinda so-so on my gym going lately. I need to be better at it- and I’m noticing at work that I could benefit from some upper body strength training. Hoisting trays, 50lbs bags of flour, lifting heavy mixer bowls, &c would be a lot less work if I did a bit of weights.
Fage has some yogurt cups that come with “dipping sauce” in the side- my favorite is the cherry. The “sauces” add just the right amount of sweetness. Delish!