Just say no to Muffin Top!

Yes, I know...its been a LONG time since I last updated my fitness blog.

For those of you following me on Twitter and Facebook you know that I have a goal to lose 10 lbs by July 1st - Gotta get rid of this Muffin Top before my BF visits. ;)~

Well...the countdown has begun and I am back on track and hoping to also help support those of you who are trying to get inspired to jump on the bandwagon with me!

Over the last 2 days I have been back to following my Weight Watchers (WW) plan. I have also gotten myself on my treadmill 2x and walked approximately 5 miles each time which is approximately 500 calories burned.

FACT: Did you know that if you were to burn 500 calories a day (7 days straight) you would lose a pound of fat without having to alter your diet? Just think what you could do if you were to cut back your after dinner snack! ;)

Anyways, I'm drinking at least 64 oz of water each day, exercising 2 days on and 1 day off, and trying to make smart choices when it comes to eating. I'll keep you posted on my progress...would love to hear how you're doing. :)

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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An update on my back

Well...I'm still experiencing some pain in my neck/back. :(

I found this picture of the C5 and C6 Radiculopathy (whatever that means...lol). All I know is that on the last visit to my chiropractor my doctor was saying that I could quite possibly have a bulging disc in my neck that is causing this pain but without an MRI he can't properly label and/or diagnose this.

While some days are better than others I'm hoping that my recovery continues...I can handle the dull annoying pain (if I have to) but its this strong, gripping pain that just annoys me and makes me feel so miserable. :( I'm hoping to feel better soon so that I can get back into the gym...gotta work off some of the snacking habits I've aquired since being down...eek! lol

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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Recipe: Couscous Salad Greek Style

Couscous Salad Greek Style
Preparation Time: 6 minutes
Cooking Time: 12 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:
1 Cup - Dry Whole Wheat Couscous
3/4 Cup - Low-fat, low-sodium Chicken or Vegetable Stock
3/4 Cup - fresh squeezed Orange Juice
2 T. - Best-quality Oive Oil
1 T. - Lime Juice (that's the juice in 1 lime)
1/2 Cup - Grape Tomatoes, cut in half
1/4 Cup - Green Onions, chopped
1 Cup - Cucumber, chopped and seeded
1/4 Cup - Chopped Fresh Oregano
1/2 Cup - Feta Cheese
Sea Salt & Black Pepper to taste.

Directions:
Bring stock and orange juice to a boil. Add couscous and stir. Then turn off heat and cover pot tightly. Don't peek. Let stand.

Make dressing by combining oive oil and lime juice. Whisk and set aside.

Back to the couscous. Remove lid and fluff grains with a fork. Add chopped vegetable and drizzle with dressing. Add oregano and season with sea salt and ground black pepper.

My Comments: Loved this! Very favorable and colorful. Everyone loved it!

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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An update on my health...

I am so sorry that I haven't updated my blog in almost a week. I've been down with my neck/shoulder/back and OY have I been hurtin'. :(

I'm not really sure what I did to trigger it but when I was doing an exercise at the gym I ended up pulling something...or at least that's what it felt like. But did I slow down? Nope! I kept on going and then later paid the price...ACK!

I have basically been suffering from neck spasms and my shoulder feels like the bones are grinding on each other and it hurts down into the middle of my back, too. I did go see a chiropractor 2x this last week and I really think that it helped to relieve a lot of the pressure. I'm currently taking ibuprofen 3x a day as well as some heavier meds to relax my muscles and also take away some of the discomfort. Most of my pain comes at night when I can't find a comfortable position to sleep in and I end up wandering the house because standing is my only decent position...UGH!

I'm hoping to get back into the gym soon but for the time being my doctor wants me to lay off all exercising...especially anything that has to do with my abs or arms. I'm hoping to be on the mend soon and back in the gym sometime in April. *fingers are crossed*

Thank to everyone that has left me get well msgs on Facebook and in my inbox. I truly appreciate it. :)

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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Recipe: Zucchini Lasagna

Zucchini Lasagna
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 50 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:
1 - Large Onion, chopped
2 - Garlic Cloves, minced
1 - 24oz Jar low-fat, low-sodium Tomato Sauce
1 lb. extra-lean Ground Chicken or Turkey
Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste
1 - Egg
2 cups - low-fat Cottage Cheese
1 tsp. - Whole-Wheat Flower
1/2 cup - skim Mozarella Cheese, shreadded, divided
2 1/2 cups - Zucchini (about 2 medium), sliced into 1/4-inch thick pieces, divided

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large nonstick frying pan, saute onion and garlic over medium heat until tender. Add tomato sauce and ground meat, and bring all ingredients to consistent heat for 10 minutes (until browned). Season with salt nd pepper, to taste. Remove from heat.

In a small bowl, slightly beat the egg. Stir in cottage cheese, flour and 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese.

Pour 1/2 of meat-tomato sauce mixture into a 1 1/2-quart roasting pan. Top with 1 1/4 cups zucchini slices and cottage cheese mixture. Then cover with remaining meat-tomato sauce mixture and zucchini.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and bake 10 minute longer. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

My Comments: I thought this was really yummy for a healthy lasagna recipe. I would definitely make this again. Even my 10 year old ate it! :)

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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I'm getting sleeeeepy!

Holy cow! Sleepiness has finally caught up with me, I think!

I have been complaining for some time now that my sleeping habits are a bit screwy. I've basically been averaging between 4-6 hours of RESTLESS sleep at night (such as waking up every hour or so thinking that its time to get up when its not!). Could it be that through all the good eating and exercise my body doesn't need a large amount of hours to function like it once did? Hmmm! I'm thinking this is!

Well, last night I got in at least 8 hours of pretty much restful sleep and I have been draggin' butt all day. :( I am sitting here trying my hardest to resist a nap since I know that tonight we need to "Spring Ahead" with the clocks and stuff but I honestly don't know how much longer I can hold out. OY! I think its fair to say that at this point...sleeping is for the birds! LOL

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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I met Helen today!

An update for:
Thursday, March 5th, 2009

Dear Blog Journal,
Today I met Helen! Helen is a benchmark workout that I'm proud to say I made it through...even with my achin' shoulder! Woohoo!

Here is what we did for the Workout:
Warm Up:

• Band Walks
  
• Band Squats
  
• Monster Walks
• Lunge Walks
• Little Skip
• Big Skip
• Lateral hand walk
• Bear Crawl
• Frog Hop
• Inchworm
  

Skill was: 5 rounds

• 1 arm kb push press 3x each side
  
• pistol squats 5x each side
  
• spiderman 5 each side
  

Workout was: Helen

• Run 2 laps (I rowed 500 m)
• 21 KB swings
• 12 ring rows - tabletop
  

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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Oops! I'm turning pink!

An update for:
Wednesday, March 4th, 2009

Dear Blog Journal,
Today was the first day back in the gym for me after taking a little bit of time off with my neck/shoulder pain so I took it really easy on the workout. It's now evening and my neck/shoulder don't feel any better or worse so I suppose that's a good thing, right?

Other than that I started some tanning sessions this week and as of tonight I think I'm a little pink...eek! LOL Oh well. At least I'm on the verge of having some color again. YAY!

Here is what we did for the Workout:
Warm Up: x3

• 10 2 hand swings
  
• 10 wall squats
  
• 10 pushups
  

Skill was: 3-4

• 6 heavy medball squats & carry
  
• 10 powerwheel rollouts
  
• 10 cross chop to halo
• TGU x3 each side
• sandbag half moon x 12
• run 1x around the block (I did 250m row)
  

Workout was: 7 1/2 minute Test

• KB hi-pull / snatch
  

My food intake:
Breakfast: 1/2 cup Oatmeal w/ 1 scoop Glutamine & 3/4 scoop Max Pro Vanilla, 1 oz Max Ultra 100 Vitamins
Snack: Tall Pumpkin Spice N/F no whip Latte
Lunch: Chili
Snack: Granola Mix, Grande Pumpkin Spice N/F no whip Latte
Other: 4oz Monavie
Dinner: 2 slices pizza
Snack:
Water intake: Not enough!

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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A fitness update!

It's been another month of working out hard!

Just wanted to show you where I'm at after 3 months of working out at Recreate Fitness. I had hoped to get into the gym today so that my muscles would've been pumped for this picture but didn't get the chance. (see my prior post)

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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Ow...!

An update for:
Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

Dear Blog Journal,
I woke up super sore in my back and shoulders today and even though I started out feeling good...meaning I was feeling like my muscles were bustin' out like I was the Incredible Hulk or something - ha! As the day wore on I noticed that my right shoulder/back started hurting more and more...sorta like it felt when I was laid up this past August. It aches a bit in general but it really gets worse when I drive....OY! So, I'm on the couch with a heat patch and some ibuprofin hoping it won't get any worse. Guess we'll see! Eek!

So, no workout for me today. :(

My food intake:
Breakfast: 1/2 cup Oatmeal w/ 1 scoop Glutamine & 3/4 scoop Max Pro Vanilla, 1 oz Max Ultra 100 Vitamins
Snack:
Lunch: CPK Chicken Waldorf Salad
Snack: Ritz Crackers
Other: 4oz Monavie
Dinner: Goulash
Snack:
Water intake: Not enough

Determined to look fine in 2009 -
~Shannon ;)~
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