Turbulence Training Transformation Contest

Ends tomorrow! I saw a cryptic line in a Turbulence Training email about everyone getting to vote on the winners. Wish me luck! For any of you interested, there is a new contest starting May 1. I'll post more information on that when I get the details!

Eat Stop Now Eat

Yesterday went pretty well. I went home after work and made supper. (Classy Chicken from Gourmet Nutrition - see picture - yum yum yum) I didn't binge and go crazy with food. This morning I was down 2 pounds - which I know is not fat loss and is most likely water weight, but it's still good to see the scale going in the right direction. I will continue my Eat Stop Eat experiment for another couple weeks. I have 2 weeks remaining in my current 4-week TT program so I will fast 2 more times at minimum. Stay tuned!

In Case of Emergency, Break Glass...

...and bring a protein bar to work! I'm 19 hours into my fast and I have to admit I'm not near as hungry as I thought I would be. I'm not shaky, and I'm in a pretty darn good mood. Missing breakfast was no problem, even missing lunch was fine. I went to the cafeteria to get a diet soda and didn't dive headfirst into the condiment bar. But now it's that time of day when the afternoon munchies can creep in. This can be a hard part of the day even when not fasting. I still have my protein bar in my bag, just in case. There's something psychological about just having it there. It's power and control over food. It's saying, "I have it, but I choose not to eat it". It's the same way when not fasting. You can choose to eat the blueberry muffin, or not. Perhaps fasting will teach me to be more disciplined with my nutrition in general.

OK, OK, I'm gonna try it!

Everyone on the TT Member Forum has been raving about Brad Pilon's Eat Stop Eat Program. I never thought I would try it because I get irritable and shaky if miss just 1 meal, so fasting for longer than that seemed impossible. My husband thinks I'm crazy because he knows how I get! I read the Eat Stop Eat promo that came as a bonus when I ordered Turbulence Training and I like how the author has references for everything. I went to PubMed and looked up some of the articles to make sure a) they existed; and b) that they said what he said they did. As far as I could tell, they did! Some of the texts were a little dense, but I think I got the gist. So I'm going to give it a try...starting after dinner tonight! Stay tuned tomorrow for how it goes...

Mushrooms and Chocolate Muffins

Last Friday night I made the Portabella Mushroom Pizza from Gourmet Nutrition. I've never eaten a portabella mushroom in my life. So at least I'm trying new things! It looked really good, and it tasted pretty good. But the texture of the mushroom got to me. I ate about 2/3 of it before I had to give up. But if you like mushrooms, you'll probably like the recipe. I paired it with the Baked Chicken recipe. That was really good. And the kids liked it. We'll be having that again.

On Sunday, I made the Gooey Chocolate Chip Muffins. They were dense, like other protein muffins I have had. Even though I'm not a big chocolate cake fan, these were not too chocolatey. I did leave out the extra tablespoon of cocoa powder, though. I ate another one today - but first I popped it in the microwave for a few seconds. The chocolate chips melted and they were just as advertised - Gooey!

Turbulence Training vs. Body for Life

In 2005, a year after my son was born, I entered the annual Body for Life 12-week challenge and got pretty good results:

Then I got pregnant again and gained a lot of weight. About a year after my daughter was born, I competed in the 1st ever Turbulence Training transformation contest in early 2008. If I had to choose between TT and BFL, it would be TT all the way. BFL worked well, but with TT, I spent MUCH LESS time in the gym and I think my results are better! Even though I am heavier and more out of shape in my TT Before picture, I look BETTER in my TT After picture than in my BFL After picture. And that's with less time working out!

Roping cattle?

I made the Rancher's Omelet from Gourmet Nutrition last night. (Yes, for dinner. We often eat breakfast for dinner.) The book says it takes 5 minutes prep, and 10 minutes cooking time. I put the sausage in the pan at 4:56pm and was sitting down to eat at 5:08pm. Now, having said that, I did change the recipe a little bit. They say to cook the sausage and then dice it and then you add it back in later. Not sure if they use breakfast links or what, but I used the sausage that comes in a casing. I opened the casing and crumbled the sausage in the pan. Then I added the veggies, then the egg, and finally the cheese. I didn't use all the veggies they suggest so if I had it probably would have added about 2-4 minutes of chopping time. It was tasty! I think of cooking as a method. I don't always follow recipes exactly, but they give me great ideas. Oh, here's a picture of my omelet. I made the "small" serving. To keep with the breakfast theme, I added the grapefruit half.

B-A-N-A-N-A-S

I was reading my new Women's Health magazine last night and there was an article on what women say to themselves for motivation when they feel like quitting before they finish their workout. One woman's answer was to sing (to the tune of Gwen Stefani's Hollaback Girl) "This run (or hill, or whatever) is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S." Which means that I spent the rest of the night getting the kids' milk (This milk is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S), putting them into their pajamas (These pajamas are bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S), and doing the dishes (These dishes are bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S). I have to admit, it made loading the dishwasher more fun. I can't wait to try it in the gym! LOL

Guilty Pleasure of the Week

I did the Advanced TT for Women Workout B this morning, followed by interval training. I like to put my hand on my abs while running because my abs are engaged, which makes them feel strong and firm, which makes me feel like a supermodel. It's a little boost in my day!

Last week, we went to the Body Worlds Exhibition. It was really fascinating to see the muscles "in action". And now I know what my abs look like up close and personal. I hope to see them better in my own body very soon!

Moons Over My Hammies

I completed the first workout in the Advanced TT for Women program yesterday and today my hamstrings are so sore. It must have been from the Waiter's bow; that's the only thing I can think of that would cause my hamstrings to be sore. Overachiever that I am, I also did the optional torso work. I feel it in my abs today! It felt really good to be back working out after my rest week. I get grumpy and my nutrition goes haywire when I'm not working out. My husband is probably glad I'm working out again too!