4-5 frozen bananas blended with a small amount of water
Blend separately - 1 cup frozen or thawed strawberries with about 5 dates of your choice, little bit of water - drizzle on top! Enjoy!
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Dessert for breakfast...
Who doesn't love it?
Banana ice cream with a strawberry-date sauce, pinch of coconut sugar on the top.
4-5 frozen bananas blended with a small amount of water
Blend separately - 1 cup frozen or thawed strawberries with about 5 dates of your choice, little bit of water - drizzle on top! Enjoy!
4-5 frozen bananas blended with a small amount of water
Blend separately - 1 cup frozen or thawed strawberries with about 5 dates of your choice, little bit of water - drizzle on top! Enjoy!
Getting cold out there...
Well I guess it's officially time to put the shorts away.. I had to go out in pants and two long sleeved shirts for a run yesterday morning. It made me want to write about motivation and the colder weather. Because I know how much more difficult it is to get out there and run or do whatever movement your body might like to do. Not all of us can afford to or are interested in joining a gym in the colder months, and so I'm going to throw out some ideas for keeping a good exercise regimen during these times.
I'm going to attempt to run as often as I can in the cold weather, though I can certainly expect it at times to slow down a bit. So when that happens, I'm going to have a nice playlist of my favorite videos on YouTube queued up for me.
As it is now, on days where it rains, I don't prefer to run in the rain so I do some videos to get my exercise in. I really enjoy doing 15 minute high intensity interval training (HIIT) - like this one - if I can't run, I try to do this video 2-3 times a week. I don't go insane with the HIIT though, I don't personally want to do it every day and I think a couple times a week is fine. I'm also looking into getting a trampoline to do some rebounding, but I think I'll wait to get a job first before I make that purchase ;-).
Another great set of videos that I do three times a week are the 8 minute exercises, as I mentioned in the last post. There are several sets of them, I do all except the legs, which I'm not a big fan of, I feel like I get enough of a workout with the 8 minute buns and all the running I do. I really wanted to incorporate more strength training, as I think it is really important to have a well-balanced exercise regimen. I was focusing on cardio for a long time and just running, and essentially no strength training or stretching, and I don't think that was working for me.
On the days where I don't do the 8 minute exercises, I like to do a 30 minute vinyasa yoga video after my run/cardio session. Ever since taking a few really amazing yoga classes at the Woodstock Fruit Festival, I really wanted to find a way to regularly incorporate that into my exercise routine. I wanted to find the most cost-effective way to get a well-balanced exercise regimen, so I went in search of a good video, and I really really like this one a lot! You can certainly find longer, higher intensity sessions for sure, but this is the perfect amount of time and work out that I need, so I really like it.
Finally, also on non-8 minute exercises days, I like to add in 100 squats to my running and yoga routines. 100 squats can be intense, but they are a really great work out, depending on the speed and depth of your squats. For tips on good form and for motivation, I recommend checking out http://www.100squatsaday.com.
Well, so far that is my regimen, 5 days a week of running, yoga, squats, and strength training - and some HIIT here and there. I've been doing this for the past ~three weeks and I really feel a difference already. All I really need to devote is about an hour a day for these exercises, depending on how long I go running, but an hour is the average. That's really not that bad, even though my schedule is wide open at the moment, I think I could probably make this work with a busier schedule. I also prefer to start in the morning with my workouts, because if I wait until later in the day, I almost never want to do them! So we'll see how it goes and if I can still make it work when and if my schedule changes. I'm all about trying to keep it realistic and I totally get how impossible it can feel to fit exercise into our busy lives - for nearly 6 months I was working/commuting for 11 hours a day, so I definitely know how it is!!
I'm going to attempt to run as often as I can in the cold weather, though I can certainly expect it at times to slow down a bit. So when that happens, I'm going to have a nice playlist of my favorite videos on YouTube queued up for me.
As it is now, on days where it rains, I don't prefer to run in the rain so I do some videos to get my exercise in. I really enjoy doing 15 minute high intensity interval training (HIIT) - like this one - if I can't run, I try to do this video 2-3 times a week. I don't go insane with the HIIT though, I don't personally want to do it every day and I think a couple times a week is fine. I'm also looking into getting a trampoline to do some rebounding, but I think I'll wait to get a job first before I make that purchase ;-).
Another great set of videos that I do three times a week are the 8 minute exercises, as I mentioned in the last post. There are several sets of them, I do all except the legs, which I'm not a big fan of, I feel like I get enough of a workout with the 8 minute buns and all the running I do. I really wanted to incorporate more strength training, as I think it is really important to have a well-balanced exercise regimen. I was focusing on cardio for a long time and just running, and essentially no strength training or stretching, and I don't think that was working for me.
On the days where I don't do the 8 minute exercises, I like to do a 30 minute vinyasa yoga video after my run/cardio session. Ever since taking a few really amazing yoga classes at the Woodstock Fruit Festival, I really wanted to find a way to regularly incorporate that into my exercise routine. I wanted to find the most cost-effective way to get a well-balanced exercise regimen, so I went in search of a good video, and I really really like this one a lot! You can certainly find longer, higher intensity sessions for sure, but this is the perfect amount of time and work out that I need, so I really like it.
Finally, also on non-8 minute exercises days, I like to add in 100 squats to my running and yoga routines. 100 squats can be intense, but they are a really great work out, depending on the speed and depth of your squats. For tips on good form and for motivation, I recommend checking out http://www.100squatsaday.com.
Well, so far that is my regimen, 5 days a week of running, yoga, squats, and strength training - and some HIIT here and there. I've been doing this for the past ~three weeks and I really feel a difference already. All I really need to devote is about an hour a day for these exercises, depending on how long I go running, but an hour is the average. That's really not that bad, even though my schedule is wide open at the moment, I think I could probably make this work with a busier schedule. I also prefer to start in the morning with my workouts, because if I wait until later in the day, I almost never want to do them! So we'll see how it goes and if I can still make it work when and if my schedule changes. I'm all about trying to keep it realistic and I totally get how impossible it can feel to fit exercise into our busy lives - for nearly 6 months I was working/commuting for 11 hours a day, so I definitely know how it is!!
Thursday, October 24, 2013
I'm way behind....
...But that's okay. Where to even start? I guess I have had some trouble making this blog a regular part of my daily activities. I'm hoping that I can kind of dust it off a little and get back into it. I guess I could focus this entry on getting caught up in the last six + months.. I had a pretty good stint working at a juice bar for awhile - I met some really friendly people that I still think about and miss, even though I left over two months ago already. I still from time to time think about my favorite regular customers, and miss my daily interactions with them. But ultimately it was my time to move on, I wasn't handling my stress levels well and I was angry a lot of the time, and so, so tired. But really I won't focus too much on the negative things, I just look back on it and am glad that I had the experience of working there.
I feel that I've been very consistent all year with my diet and even though I gave in to vegan junk food at work many times, I still remembered the fruit, I always remembered the fruit.
Summer pretty much went by in a flash - the weeks turned quickly into months.. And before I knew it, it was time to go to the Woodstock Fruit Fest in August!! I'll do another post more in detail about that, but I was very excited to go and finally be a part of it, it really was pretty amazing.
What am I doing now? Well, I'm trying to break into the dog-walking industry - at the moment that is what appeals to me, and am focusing still on a mostly raw diet. Since I haven't been working, I have been really trying to hone in on my fitness and step it up a lot. I have to say that aspect is doing really well. Other aspects of my life are lacking a bit - mainly because I don't have a regular routine of getting up, going to work, making money. I don't know why I feel that just because I am not working at a job making money that it means the rest of my life has to slow down. I can still lead a productive life, but why do I have so much trouble with that? I always have, in my past gaps of being in between jobs, had a really hard time focusing on what's really important in my life and how I want to develop as a person. So I feel like maybe this blog will help a little with keeping me focused and talking about what I really want to accomplish. I think if I can't find a job within a week, I am going to focus on a volunteer project, and that way I can still establish a routine of some sort. I am also going to post some more pictures of the food I'm eating and where I'm getting the recipes. In case anyone that reads this is interested.
I feel like I'm getting a little off topic. I mean this blog is meant to really be about raw food and its impact on me. So I want to take a little time now to focus on that, and to stop worrying about all the other inadequate areas of my life, which somehow, one day, I will maybe figure out. For now, I'm here, in the flesh, eating fruit and vegetables, and honestly I feel really good. I think that the stressors in my life would be affecting me in a completely different way if I were eating my former diet of mostly processed foods, high in salt and fat, etc. So I'm going to recap these past eight months (wow) since I last wrote and note some of the benefits.
1) Slimmer/fitter - My weight is down to about 130 pounds and I don't know if I will lose more or gain more, but I feel pretty good at this weight. I definitely have fluctuated around 130-135 for awhile and it all depends on how much I'm eating vs. expending for sure. If I stick to the program - which I mostly do - and keep the fat low and the carbs high, I wake up every morning with a flat stomach and feel pretty amazing.
2) More incentive to exercise - More than ever, especially with the more open schedule - I am really excited about the exercise program that I developed for myself. It really focuses on training for PR 5k's, which I've already reached another one - 27:54 - the other week. I'm excited, because I always struggled in the low 30's for years and now I'm finally starting to feel like I'm making progress. So four days a week I run a 5k, and the fifth day I try to run a little bit longer, like 4-6 miles. That's a challenge, so I typically take it really slow if I feel like I want to go beyond 3 miles, today I did a slow 5 miles and that felt good. I also wanted to incorporate strength training because I felt like I didn't focus enough on that at all - so three days a week (I might up it to four) I do the 8 minute exercises - 8 minute abs, buns, arms, and stretch. I really like those exercises a lot and I feel like I get a good work out every time. I've also started incorporating 30 minute vinyasa yoga sessions on the days where I'm not doing the 8 minutes. And twice a week I do 100 squats. Of course if I were working full time I would find it hard to adhere to this regimen, so we'll see how it goes when and if I finally find work again.
3) (Generally) happier - I feel like, on a good day, I have everything in the world to look forward to. And I really think that I can attribute this attitude to eating a clean diet free of additives and processed, refined garbage. I don't know, maybe it's just silly talk, saying that, but I really do feel a difference in my attitude, so how could I not say that it's because of my diet?
4) Digestion is pretty awesome most of the time - unless I eat a high fat meal or a gourmet raw meal, that can slow things down, but otherwise that feels pretty good.
A lot of people talk about changes in hair, skin, and nails, but I'm not sure I've really noticed those changes, I think possibly my hair grows faster, but it's really hard to tell, so I'm not going to really go there. I'm going for the more obvious changes.
Well I guess I'll end it on this note - I'm coming up on my one year mark as mostly raw - when I think of it in terms of my diet, it feels like a fast year, otherwise, time has really felt weird for the most part! I only left Vermont 13 months ago which feels very, very weird, it feels like 13 years ago!!
Here's a few pics from the year, mostly summer -
I feel that I've been very consistent all year with my diet and even though I gave in to vegan junk food at work many times, I still remembered the fruit, I always remembered the fruit.
Summer pretty much went by in a flash - the weeks turned quickly into months.. And before I knew it, it was time to go to the Woodstock Fruit Fest in August!! I'll do another post more in detail about that, but I was very excited to go and finally be a part of it, it really was pretty amazing.
What am I doing now? Well, I'm trying to break into the dog-walking industry - at the moment that is what appeals to me, and am focusing still on a mostly raw diet. Since I haven't been working, I have been really trying to hone in on my fitness and step it up a lot. I have to say that aspect is doing really well. Other aspects of my life are lacking a bit - mainly because I don't have a regular routine of getting up, going to work, making money. I don't know why I feel that just because I am not working at a job making money that it means the rest of my life has to slow down. I can still lead a productive life, but why do I have so much trouble with that? I always have, in my past gaps of being in between jobs, had a really hard time focusing on what's really important in my life and how I want to develop as a person. So I feel like maybe this blog will help a little with keeping me focused and talking about what I really want to accomplish. I think if I can't find a job within a week, I am going to focus on a volunteer project, and that way I can still establish a routine of some sort. I am also going to post some more pictures of the food I'm eating and where I'm getting the recipes. In case anyone that reads this is interested.
I feel like I'm getting a little off topic. I mean this blog is meant to really be about raw food and its impact on me. So I want to take a little time now to focus on that, and to stop worrying about all the other inadequate areas of my life, which somehow, one day, I will maybe figure out. For now, I'm here, in the flesh, eating fruit and vegetables, and honestly I feel really good. I think that the stressors in my life would be affecting me in a completely different way if I were eating my former diet of mostly processed foods, high in salt and fat, etc. So I'm going to recap these past eight months (wow) since I last wrote and note some of the benefits.
1) Slimmer/fitter - My weight is down to about 130 pounds and I don't know if I will lose more or gain more, but I feel pretty good at this weight. I definitely have fluctuated around 130-135 for awhile and it all depends on how much I'm eating vs. expending for sure. If I stick to the program - which I mostly do - and keep the fat low and the carbs high, I wake up every morning with a flat stomach and feel pretty amazing.
2) More incentive to exercise - More than ever, especially with the more open schedule - I am really excited about the exercise program that I developed for myself. It really focuses on training for PR 5k's, which I've already reached another one - 27:54 - the other week. I'm excited, because I always struggled in the low 30's for years and now I'm finally starting to feel like I'm making progress. So four days a week I run a 5k, and the fifth day I try to run a little bit longer, like 4-6 miles. That's a challenge, so I typically take it really slow if I feel like I want to go beyond 3 miles, today I did a slow 5 miles and that felt good. I also wanted to incorporate strength training because I felt like I didn't focus enough on that at all - so three days a week (I might up it to four) I do the 8 minute exercises - 8 minute abs, buns, arms, and stretch. I really like those exercises a lot and I feel like I get a good work out every time. I've also started incorporating 30 minute vinyasa yoga sessions on the days where I'm not doing the 8 minutes. And twice a week I do 100 squats. Of course if I were working full time I would find it hard to adhere to this regimen, so we'll see how it goes when and if I finally find work again.
3) (Generally) happier - I feel like, on a good day, I have everything in the world to look forward to. And I really think that I can attribute this attitude to eating a clean diet free of additives and processed, refined garbage. I don't know, maybe it's just silly talk, saying that, but I really do feel a difference in my attitude, so how could I not say that it's because of my diet?
4) Digestion is pretty awesome most of the time - unless I eat a high fat meal or a gourmet raw meal, that can slow things down, but otherwise that feels pretty good.
A lot of people talk about changes in hair, skin, and nails, but I'm not sure I've really noticed those changes, I think possibly my hair grows faster, but it's really hard to tell, so I'm not going to really go there. I'm going for the more obvious changes.
Well I guess I'll end it on this note - I'm coming up on my one year mark as mostly raw - when I think of it in terms of my diet, it feels like a fast year, otherwise, time has really felt weird for the most part! I only left Vermont 13 months ago which feels very, very weird, it feels like 13 years ago!!
Here's a few pics from the year, mostly summer -
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