Week 2, Day 3....

Breakfast - Vega shake with fiber blend and bee pollen along with frozen strawberries, banana, spinach and milk

Snack - PB and apple

Lunch - Grilled chicken over spinach and a couple of sweet potato chia and spinach pancakes.

Snack - Greek yogurt, banana, Caco mix and walnuts

Dinner - Salmon over spring mix and fresh juice blend - beet, carrot, fennel, celery, lemon, ginger and cucumber

Treat - 85% dark chocolate!!! Yum :)

Week 2, Day 2 Food Blog....

I did well yesterday and I even treated myself with a small amount of dark chocolate and some light popcorn.

Morning - coffee along with the mango, banana mix I mentioned yesterday. It was incredible. Mango, banana, raspberries, the decadent blend from Spectrum....Caco, coconut and chia! Wow! All mixed with Greek yogurt and walnuts. I also had some of the pumpkin bake I made yesterday as well.

Lunch - Salad with salmon burger, tomatoes and cucumber. About 1/2 of an apple.

Snack - natural PB on a rice cake

Dinner - Steak with roasted veggies and a salad with blue cheese dressing :) I know...I know... It had to be done :)

After dinner - movie time treat :) a small amount of dark chocolate with Tea and light popcorn.

Off to a great start today!!!! Looking forward to posting pics of day 3 tomorrow!

Week 2, Day 1 Food Blog

Since I will be taking pics of my foods daily for the remaining days of my reset, I will be posting the photos here. For those of you not following my journey on FB, I am posting daily updates on my reset and my progress. Here is the link....

https://www.facebook.com/Jensfitjourney?ref=tn_tnmn

Breakfast - coffee and tea followed by my greens with a small smoothie with frozen Berries

Snack - coconut pancake - eggs, coconut flour and chia seeds.

Lunch - out to lunch with my husband :) I had a chicken salad with a small amount of bread and a latte.  A treat during my date :) They had this chili oil with garlic butter that I think might just be the best thing ever. Somehow a small amount of it made it to my mouth :) I also had a bite of my husbands ever so awesome lasagna. I could have had more but I was a good girl and resisted.

Snack 2 - Scrambled eggs with tomatoes and spinach

Dinner - pumpkin bake - canned pumpkin. Eggs, flaxseeds, chia seeds, coconut milk, almond flour and a bit more milk with olive oil and heather honey baked together. In addition I add some mango, banana, raspberries, a small amount of Greek yogurt with walnuts mixed with a cacao, coconut and chia mix from whole foods. I ate the same this morning it was so good!! I took pics of it this morning but failed to do so yesterday. I guess I was just too excited to eat it :) lol.

More food pics coming tomorrow. I am off to a great start today. The scale is down and I feel wonderful that I am really being consistent again with my program.

Marathon number 2!!!

After much thought, I finally made a decision on what would be my marathon for this year. I am registered and I booked the flights and the hotel, so I guess it is official :) On October 20th, Lord willing, I will be running the Amsterdam Marathon!

I am so very excited about my training this year. I am currently reading up on several new training plans, as well as checking out a few coaching sites for some personalized programs. I am hoping that through more strength training and a greater focus on cross training, I will have a stronger race and will be better prepared than last year.

I look forward to sharing my training with you all. Some of you have been apart of my journey for years now, ever since Russia back in 2006. Now, I am preparing for my second marathon!! Isn't God amazing! He will take you places and help you reach goals you never thought were possible.

The last time I was in Amsterdam was back in 2007 and my weight loss journey had just begun. Now, I will be going back a totally different person and I cannot wait to see what it feels like crossing that finish line!

Thank you for the years of support you have given me!!

Amsterdam....here I come!!!! :) 

Hitting the Reset Button...

Some of you from FB have asked about the Reset plan I am currently doing. This is a plan I made for myself based on my current needs and goals for this month. It is a simple, back to basics approach and one which I truly feel will help me get back on track. 

Why do I need this plan? Well, to be honest, I need it because I have failed to be consistent with my workouts and my strong nutrition and now, it is time I reach new goals and try to lose some weight in order to get back to where I was last year. 

The plan is from April 29th -  May 22nd as we are leaving for our vacation the 23rd. I am making my goals one week at a time. My focus for now is getting back to consistency and posting for accountability.  I cannot think about my long terms goals as of now as they can be overwhelming seeing where I am now compared to where I want to be. So for me, I am taking my goals day by day and only one week at a time to establish a fitness/nutrition routine once again. 

Week 1 - April 29th - May 5th 

Goals - The main goal for this week is to get back to posting. Every day, I will be posting my goals and a short recap of the day before. What did I do right, where did I go wrong. Evaluate, then move on to the next day! 

Week 2 - May 6th - May 12th 

Goals - Repeat goals from Week 1, then add in accountability for foods!! I will be taking photos of my meals to increase my accountability and to bring a focus back to proper nutrition and portion sizes 

Week 3 - May 13th - May 19th

Goals - Repeat goals from Week 1 and 2. New goals include listing details regarding my workouts. Number of pull ups, pushups, burpees etc... again, to bring focus on daily accountability. 

Week 4 - May 20th - May 22th ( only 2 days this week as we are leaving....) 

Goals - Repeat goals from Weeks 1,2 and 3....

*For Nutrition - 

My focus is on two things. Greens and lean proteins. I am limiting my carbs as of now, especially since I am not currently in full marathon training mode. There is no need for a large amount of carbs for me as of now. My carbs sources will be from sweet potatoes, some fruits, quinoa and occasionally some GF oats....but not too much. Oats are my weakness :) For now, for me....I do best without them. 

*For FItness - 

I am getting back to what I love most, running and circuit training. My body responds very well to running in combination with sprints/hill intervals with strength training ( Push ups, Burpees, Pullups, Rowing, TRX and Medicine Ball work ). 

*Small Daily Goals to focus on - 

1. Stress eating. This gets me every time!!! I need to THINK before I eat! :) 

I need to ask myself if I am really hungry or just eating to chill myself out or eating mindlessly while sitting at the computer. Before every meal, every snack -- THINK! Think about the quality of the food, the portion sizes....everything. ALL the little bites of this and that ADD UP throughout the day!!! Trust me on this one :) 

2. Make sure I am drinking enough water. Not from coffee....which I am really good at doing :) But good old fashioned WATER! 


As I mentioned in the beginning. This is a very straight forward plan. I have found through my years on this weight loss journey that it does not matter how simple a plan is, if you do not follow it, nothing in your life will change. Consistency has to be the foundation of ANY program. Regardless how you go about losing weight, consistency has to be key!!

In June, after we are back from our trip, I am starting another challenge, which will be 7 weeks long. 

I cannot tell you how much your support and encouragement is helping me!! Thank your for taking the time to cheer me along as I try to regain my fitness and reach these goals....Thank you all :) 

Day 3...

Reset Day 3....

Goals - Same as yesterday but with an additional ST session. I am not working at 100% right now as I still have a cold, but I can still give this day my all. I did well yesterday, but I can do better! I did not complete my PT work as I should have.

My goal every morning needs to be seeing where I can improve on the day before, allowing my weaknesses and mistakes to strengthen me! This is how we rise after falling. We gain wisdom, then we press on.....

Day 2...

Day 1 went well. I could have lightened up on the guacamole but overall, I did very well. I am still feeling sick so no running but I am going to be doing my PT work today and will strive to keep pretty strict on my foods.

Todays goal - LOTS of greens and making time for my PT work.

23 days before we leave for Paris...GOTTA STAY STRONG!!!

Ready. Set. Go!!

It is time to hit the reset button once again. Forget the mistakes of the past. Eyes forward. No looking back. It is going to be hard, and there is no doubt in my mind that I will have challenges before me which will test my commitment, but I know in my heart, I will NOT let anything stop me from reaching my ultimate goal.

Today I press on with a new sense of purpose and a strength in my heart knowing with God, ALL things are possible!!

Rejoice with me in the fact that we are blessed with another day to hit Reset and make the most of this life that God has given us!

Ready. Set. Go!!!!

35 days to go...

As of this morning I have 6.2 lbs left to go in order to meet my goal for our Paris trip in May. I have 35 days until we leave and I must do all I can to stay on track. This trip is so very important to me for so many reasons. Paris, like London is a special place for me as it was there where I had my big "before" photos and seeing these helped me make the change I needed in order to lose my weight. It will be my 5th vacation to Paris and really want to take some more before and after photos in some special places as it will also be my 36th birthday!!

That is all for now. A short, very short blog today as there is much to do around the house. It is a cold and rainy day....perfect for organizing :) I am also going to get in some good yoga and my PT work later when Kayla takes a nap. 

Starting off this morning strong with my VM green and then some greek yogurt with stewed prunes...which has become my favorite thing to eat...SO good!!  I also made some eggs with spinach to have later with some turkey breast and avocado. 

6.2 to go......I CAN DO THIS!!!! 

The weigh in...

It is right around the corner. My weigh in I have been dreading! I am giving myself until Monday then it is back to weighing in every morning and working as hard as I can for my trip coming up in May. I have from now until May 23rd to DO THIS THING!!! I need to get back. While I am ok with the fact I am heavier now than last year, I want so much to lean out again......but sitting here wishing will not make it happen. So, I am back to square one....once again.

This has been such a rough start to 2013 for me and my weight. Maybe when a year starts off hard it just means God has great things right around the corner!! I just need to keep holding on, keep smiling and doing all that I can....

Will report back on Monday....gulp!!!