The Beginning of Something New

Today is the beginning of something new.

I asked my husband, who's very health conscious, to help me come up with a new eating plan so that I wouldn't have to think about food so much, and so that I would know that I was eating the right things. Also, I want to drop some more weight, and this is the best possible way (coupled with regular exercise). It's not a "diet," it's a new way of looking at food.

Here's the plan:

5 am

Breakfast

-3 egg whites

-peppers, tomatoes, spinach

-blueberries (1 serving)

7-8 am

Snack #1

-small tuna pack

-small apple

10-11 am

Lunch

-4 oz. poultry

-veggies

1-2 pm

Snack #2

-almonds (1 serving)

4-5 pm

Dinner

-4 oz. poultry or fish

-veggies

7-8 pm

Snack #3

-cottage cheese (1 serving)

-celery

All of this should be coupled with at least 8 cups of water a day (thank goodness for my 32 oz. Nalgene water bottle!). Also, I still get my delicious post-workout fruit and protein smoothie. I forgot to mention before that I'm also allowed coffee and tea on this plan, as long as I don't add any sweeteners (I don't want to add sugar-substitutes because of possible negative health effects). I can, however, add a little milk (which is delicious in coffee and some tea!). This plan, coupled with the multivitamin I already take, and my workout schedule (which is becoming more solid, finally) I know will give me the results I want. 

I want to be able to wear shorts, or a bathing suit, or a tank top, and not feel uncomfortable. I don't wanna go around in clothes that are inappropriate, but I do want to be able to wear summer clothes without feeling like everyone's staring, thinking, She should not be wearing that.

I want to be healthy, fit, and comfortable in my own skin. So, when I say this is the beginning of something new, I mean to stick to it so that those things can be possible.

Breakfast today! It was delicious, 

and I didn't feel like

crap after I ate it. Success!

*UPDATE!*

Yesterday was my first day on the new diet, and it was great! Every time I started to feel a little hungry, it was time for another snack or meal! I used my Fitness Pal on my phone, and my daily calories were almost exactly 1200! The smoothie (strawberry banana from Starbucks) was 300 calories, but I burned 203 calories on the elliptical and did weights for my arms yesterday. Without the smoothie (and without the exercise), I would've come in at just under 1200 calories for the day (I think). I'll be able to tell for sure this weekend, as I don't go to the gym on Saturdays or Sundays, so my calorie count will only include food.

When I told Vince the plan he came up with was almost right at 1200 calories (my goal, not his), he said he was gonna do a little dance. (I'm still waiting for said dance.) I also told him that a few people were thinking about doing this menu (or one like it) too! If anyone else gave this a shot, I'd love to hear about it, and so would he. Thanks to everyone for all the love and support!

Every Journey Starts Somewhere

This is Vince

Every journey starts somewhere. Mine began when I met the man who would be my husband, Vince (you'll be hearing a lot about him).

For 25 years, I ate what I wanted and exercised sporadically. I spent a majority of my time drinking sweet things, eating crunchy things, and enjoying activities that required that I use my hands, eyes, and brain (and which I could sit on my butt to do).

When I met Vince, all that changed. See, I'm the kind of person who mimics the people around them. I don't mean to do it, but I'm always so scared that they'll reject me, that I try to fit in with them by being similar to them. Meeting Vince was no exception. When I met him, my world was turned on its head. He was like no one I'd ever met. So when I discovered how aware he was of the foods he ate and the way he treated his body, I started to be aware of those things to.

This is Juno

We started hanging out (sitting up until 3 or 4 in the morning singing and talking) in December of 2010. Somewhere between there and February of 2011, we started dating, and we got a dog. She was a one-year-old red doberman that was being abused by the other dogs in her family. We took her without hesitation.

In December, I started thinking about what I ate. I ate what Vince ate, and tried when we were apart (which wasn't often) to eat healthy foods. In February, after we got our wonderful pup, I had to start thinking about fitness.

We walked Juno every day at least once. We wanted to walk her for an hour if we could. In just a couple of months (from December to April or so) I dropped quite a few pounds and inches. It felt great.

Our Wedding Day

In July of 2011, just a few months after we announced officially to the world that we were an item, we decided to go ahead and get married. We gave ourselves plenty of time to get in shape for the wedding...just over two weeks. (Lots of people thought that I was pregnant, but we were just really, really excited, and really, really sure.)

In those two weeks, my old roommate, Lydia (who's expecting her first baby in October!) made us a workout plan. She's a personal trainer, so I knew it would be tough. And let me tell you, it was tough! I don't think I've ever been so sore in my entire life than after a few days of her workout.

In two weeks you don't see much of a difference, but it was the workout series that kickstarted the journey I'm on now.

After we got married, we decided that we would pay to be members of a gym here in Richmond (the Richmond Athletic Club). There, I started taking Zumba, running/jogging on the elliptical, and using free weights (mainly for my arms), and most recently, I started taking Yoga and doing the abs workout used in P90x videos.

In the 11 months since we've been married, I've seen definite improvement in my muscle tone (meaning, there is starting to actually be muscle tone), but I'm nowhere close to being where I want to be.

My plan is to dedicate this blog to my weight loss/muscle toning/fitness journey. I titled it I Want to Be a Tree because of a blog post I wrote on my other blog, Love is the Key to Everything (if you wanna check it out, there's a tab link at the top of the page!). I hope using this blog to document my successes and failures will help keep me motivated to keep going. I'll share my struggles, my weaknesses, and my victories for anyone who wants to read it. My hope is that at least one person will benefit from my story, and maybe add to it with their own.