Drashnar

Hey everyone. I haven't been active here lately, but a recent Doctor visit gave me a wake up call. Below is something I posted on my Facebook page, to get input from my friends and family. Alas, there hasn't been much input yet. Some notes about me, I'm not paleo, and never really could be, if I understand paleo right. I consider cheese "free" (particularly mild cheddar and sliced american) because I love it so much. Please help me out with some lunch ideas! ---------------------------------- After my instructions from the Doctor to change my habits, I’m making a special effort to actually plan my Lunches (instead of winging it). Here is where you come in, I need everyone to give me lunch ideas. All ideas are welcome, though the ideal lunch will meet the below criteria: 1) Needs to be Low Carb a. No Bread or Pasta, but low carb alternatives (such as low carb tortillas) are fine. 2) Need prepare enough for a week a. I will likely be preparing this the Saturday before the week this will be eaten, so this needs to be able to be prepared ahead of time, and stay ok to eat all week. 3) Easy preparation is a bonus. Some notes: I do have a fridge, and Microwave available at work. Please give me feedback! Thanks!

Just prior to the holiday season of 2015, due to a variety of factors, I fell off the wagon. Now, with a new job starting, and stability finally in sight, I think I've decided that I'm ready. I have absolutely no plans to join a gym. What I DO plan to do though is find a martial arts dojo I can stick with. But most importantly, something I can have fun with. Getting in shape is secondary to all this. I want to have fun. I'm ready to do this for me. And if it gets me in better shape along the way, so be it. I'm sick and tired of failing every single time I try to make a positive change. Maybe, just maybe, if I find something that I enjoy and want to do, instead of slogging to the gym every other day, I'll be able to stick with a positive change for once. Wish me luck.

Thoughts It's official. I've fallen off the wagon. Yesterday my gf told me that she didn't like how busy I was after I told her about the gym time I was planning. Followed with my planned down/relaxation time before bed (which is required, as explained in my post in the general fitness forum) she got upset that my schedule was so full. What strikes me as odd is that I've set aside days where I'm not doing both my relaxation time, and gym time, but apparently she is against scheduling to that degree. I'm at a loss. I'm barely able to make a serious effort on being healthy with her support, but without it I'm just sunk. I haven't given up yet, but if her and I can't come to some sort of compromise, it won't be long before I end up back in my old bad habits. Again, planning some gym time after work today, but we will see what today brings.

Fri 11 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb Breakfast burrito o Lunch – Salad o Dinner – Don’t remember · Gym Summary o Skipped due to a crappy week. Sat & Sun · Meal Summary o Sat § Breakfast – McDonalds since I was out and about. § Lunch – Nothing (since gf ended up with the salad I was making for myself) § Dinner – Pizza o Sun § Breakfast – Coffee § Lunch – Don’t remember § Dinner – Don’t remember Mon 14 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Atkins meal bar o Lunch – small package of peanuts o Dinner – Breakfast burrito that I forgot at home, and a leftover hamburger helper · Gym Summary o Skipped, no excuse Thoughts Well I must say that I’ve destroyed any progress I’ve made so far. Between last week’s issues at work totally throwing me off, and then that same throw off continuing into this past weekend, I need to get up and really get back in my routine. I can already feel myself slipping into old habits and it is SO easy to do. I’m going to make a trip to the gym today. Yes, technically it’s an off day, but I need to re-establish the good habits. And spending 20 minutes or so on the elliptical will help. Though I’m tempted to try out the stair climber, or rowing machine just to change things up.

Thurs 10 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb breakfast burrito o Lunch – Catered by work. Chicken parm (x3), salad, pulled pork, green beans, and a tiny bit of cheesy potato stuff. o Dinner – Atkins frozen dinner with additional chicken added in. · Gym Summary o Off Thoughts Not much to say. I did the best I could with the catered lunch at work. This week has been pretty bad due to a variety of factors. I didn’t do the cooking I should have done over last weekend, and a fire (figuratively speaking) at work had me working overtime for several days this week. Things are looking good to me hopefully getting a workout in on Friday though, so we will see how that turns out. I’m just ready for this week to be done.

I maybe could do some stuff at home, but I'm locked into a contract until June of 2016 anyway. So if I'm going to be forced to pay for the gym membership, I'd rather use it. And I'm enjoying myself seriously trying out the treadmill for the first time ever.

Wed 9 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb Breakfast Burrito o Lunch – Work provided 1/2 Turkey & Ham sandwich, and my normal salad. o Dinner – Mac & Cheese · Gym Summary o Skipped Thoughts Well, this week is turning out to be a bit of a bust. With so much going on with work, combined with my lack of cooking this past weekend, things aren’t going very well. I’m pretty sure that it will stay this bad through the end of this week, though I’m hoping to get in a gym visit on Friday.

Tues 8 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Coffee, Banana, and Atkins Bar. o Lunch – Salad without chicken o Dinner – Cheeseburger with lowcarb tortilla as bread, and a salad. · Gym Summary – Off Thoughts Meals went fine, but I feel guilty about missing Monday’s Gym time. I’ve been pretty busy this week, so it’s not as bad as it normally is, but still in the back of my mind. Like an itch that I can’t scratch. Got my stuff for today, though work has been hectic. Not sure what I plan for today. I find myself in the mood for something different I think, so I might change it up.

Mon 7 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – small bag of peanuts & an Atkins meal bar o Lunch (late) – small bag of peanuts & an Atkins meal bar. o Dinner – Atkins frozen dinner crustless pot pie + added chicken (x2) · Gym Summary o Skipped due to issues. Thoughts Well yesterday is the direct result of having not cooked on Sunday. You see, my gf got cheaper chicken breasts than I normally get. This caused me to get extremely frustrated with all the extra trimming and preparation steps just in order to cook the chicken. There were other things that contributed to the frustration, but it boils down to that I still have not done my cooking for this week. If anything, I can at least use this to show myself how much actually cooking on Sunday helps.

Fri 4 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb Breakfast Burrito o Lunch – Salad with chicken & cheese tossed with ranch o Dinner – Double Cheeseburger using low carb tortillas as bread. · Gym Summary o 1 Circuit Beginner Bodyweight Workout § Notes: See previous post. o Treadmill Interval program § Notes: See previous post. Weekend Let me just sum up and say that I was bad. I had pizza on Saturday night and Sunday night, and was a sloth all weekend. I will say that is the last time I let my GF go grocery shopping for me again. I probably could have been clearer about what I needed, but when it comes to food, if I can afford it, give me good quality please. Thoughts I’m really pleased with how things went on Friday. Saturday and Sunday could have gone better (cough: pizza), but my pleasure at my progress in my workout won out. I didn’t do the cooking I needed to, so I will be pretty busy tonight playing catch up.

I'm very excited about my progress I'm making an extra entry here (normally I just wait and report all on Monday). On Friday I did what I've been doing; 1 circuit of the beginner bodyweight workout before moving to my interval treadmill program with the increased "fast" speed forcing me to a jog. This time I went to failure on the treadmill (unintentionally). I was in the middle of the jog portion and just had to slow down or risk falling off the treadmill completely. When I first did this workout on Monday, I was pretty sore for the next couple of days. I ended up skipping gym for personal reasons on Wednesday, and ended up doing this for the 2nd time on Friday. I was able to extend my time by a few mins, so that's good. But the part that blows me away is that it is now Saturday and I'm not sore at all. Onward and upward.

I'm open to a few. In this case it was Kempo and Isshin Ryu Karate. I took Kempo as a teen and really liked it, especially the Katas. I'm looking for something similar, weather that is Kempo or something else. Arts like Akido & similar have their place, but I really enjoyed the almost meditative feel of just running through a kata, so I'm looking to re-capture that feeling.

Thurs 3 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb breakfast burrito o Lunch – Salad with chicken, cheese , & bacon tossed with ranch. o Dinner – Double Cheese burger with low carb tortilla as bread, and cheese hotdogs. o Snack – Atkins low carb snack bar. · Gym Summary – Off Thoughts Didn’t do gym to compensate, I decided to just stick to my schedule. I did go check out the location for a dojo listed on dojo.info, but when I got there during the posted class time, the place was dark and parking lot full of bad pot holes. Looks like I get to keep looking for a dojo that sings to me. I’m looking forward to today’s workout. I’m definitely going to do either a circuit of the beginner bodyweight workout, or I might try some weights. I don’t want to get bored and/or burnt out doing the same thing over and over.

Ah I see. Well as much as I'd like to, I can't help with boredom. I'm the kind of person that once I find something I like, I have a tendency to stick with it. What I eat will vary based on my mood, but only between a relatively small set of foods.

Wed 2 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb breakfast burrito o Lunch – Salad with Chicken, cheese, bacon and ranch. o Cheese hotdogs and cheddar cheese o Misc – Had the rest of the Rum left from Thanksgiving weekend. · Gym Summary o Skipped Thoughts Personal issues had me skipping my Gym time yesterday. For better or worse, done is done. I’m not sure if I’m going to go today to offset, or just wait until tomorrow. Based on how I’m feeling, I’m leaning towards taking it easy today then get back at it tomorrow.

I have the same problem as you. Convenience is king, which in turn saves time. I found that the key for me was bulk cooking on the weekend. If I have all my meals planned and ready then all I need to do is pop it in the microwave and start eating. The hardest part of that is finding recipies and food ideas that are tasty, store/keep well, and still fit your eating plan.

Tues 2 Dec · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb Breakfast Burrito o Lunch – Cheeseburger with chili § Note: forgot my salad(s) at home yesterday, grrrr o Dinner – Salad Chicken, Bacon and Cheese tossed with ranch · Gym Summary – Off Thoughts Quiet day. I was/am sore from the workout Monday, we will see how well I do today. Forgot my salads for work at home yesterday, so I ended up eating what I had prepared for Thursday instead. Onward.

I've read so many things I swear it's like my eyes wore the words of the screen/pages. That being said though, I'm not a personal trainer, or anything fancy like that, though my mother is. Everything that I say or advice that I give is from my personal experience, and is not professional advice, always check with your doctor, etc, etc. I used to be that way, until my activity level plummeted but my big eating habits didn't change at all. Was in football, then joined the military, then got out into the private sector. When I left the military, my activity level hit rock bottom, but my eating habits didn't change, and I ballooned up by like 60 lbs or so. Anyway, I find that for me, planning, and pre-cooking are the absolute key to eating right. It's this simple, convenience is KING. I hate taking time to cook anything, especially during the week when I'm pretty busy anyway. And with 4 kids in the house (13, 13, 9, & 2 months), I have my hands full. So what food I have ready, I will eat. If that happens to be crap from Taco Bell because it's right down the road, then that's what I'll get. So I plan everything on Sunday. For me, that particularly means Breakfast and Lunch, since I eat both of those meals at work 5 days per week. I get the plastic containers, that I will put plain romaine lettuce and pre-shredded cheese in, and have a bottle of dressing at work. I cook a huge amount of chicken every sunday and cube it then put it all in a big container that sits in the fridge. That way I have fresh chicken for my salad ready to grab. I buy a huge bag of angus hamburger patties and cook them all and do the same thing so I have easy access to a cheeseburger (that I can put on low carb bread or low carb tortillas) whenever I need. Top that all off with having snacks handy (NEVER, NEVER, EVER, run out of healthy snacks, or you shoot yourself in the foot), and you're good to go. Everybody is different, and what works for me might not be the best thing for you. But for me, having the food ready to grab and eat with no prep was key. And that means taking a big chunk of my Sunday to plan and cook what I need for the following week. For example, here is what I cooked this past Sunday: Two 9x13 cassarole dishes full of bonless skinless chicken breast (bought fresh, cooks better than frozen). 28 Sausage links 22 eggs (scrambled) 16 hamburger patties Breakfast burritos, chicken for salads and misc, and burger patties all cooked and ready to toss in the microwave when I need something quick. I'm rambling, sorry. What is your goal? Weight loss? Less flab, more muscle? You have to know where you're going before you take your first step. Just don't let the planning stage stop you from taking that first step.

Thanks! Here's yesterday's summary: Mon 30 Nov · Meal Summary o Breakfast – Low Carb Breakfast Burrito o Lunch – Cheeseburger covered with Chili o Dinner – Cheeseburger with quartered low carb tortilla as bread. · Gym Summary o Beginner Bodyweight Workout § Notes: Did a FULL set, even the lunges! Lunges were noticeably easier, and while not “easy†per se, it was to the point where I actually felt that I could finish. o Treadmill Interval program § Notes: Was intensely more difficult when done after 1 circuit of the Beginner Bodyweight workout. I still did the fast speed that forces me to a jog, but at the end of my time, I was breathing very hard (arguably too hard), and my goal of going longer just wasn’t going to happen. Thoughts Well yesterday was an interesting gym visit. I had been wondering how to turn it up a bit, particularly after this past weekend. I was toying with the idea of going to the gym every day this week, but the increased laundry, and time investment was a bit of a turn off to that idea. In the end, I decided to do at least 1 full circuit of the Beginner Bodyweight Workout, before my normal treadmill interval program. Wow, what a challenge! I made it, barely. Legs are a little sore today, but I’m pretty happy with being able to properly do a full circuit of the Bodyweight workout, and then my normal treadmill on top of that. I think that it might be a good idea to shift my workout a bit. Up until this point I’ve been doing one thing. Either the Beginner Bodyweight Workout, or Cardio of some kind, usually the Treadmill. Well I think it might be time to try doing both on a more consistent basis. I’m looking forward to more progress, but at the same time I need to remember to pace myself. Go me!

Welcome! First I want to say something that I'm sure you already know...You just had a baby, give yourself the time and flexiblity to understand that you won't be perfect on this journey. Roll with the punches and just keep doing one small change for a couple weeks, then another small change, etc. Personally, especially given your (I assume) hectic schedule, the Beginner Bodyweight Workout might be a good place to start. It's something you can do at home on your own time. Don't let the word "Beginner" fool you though, that workout is tough. I'm still working on being able to do that fully myself. Just get a gallon jug of water or milk for your rows, and you're good to go. But remember that proper eating is 80% of getting healthy. A workout is just the icing on the cake to help along your calorie in take. Good luck and don't hesitate to ask if you have questions! *wave*

Welcome! Sounds to me like you might benefit from planning your week ahead of time. I take an hour or so on Sunday to plan my meals for the week, and where I'm going to eat them. Having stuff ready and down on paper, or on your calendar on your phone, can be a huge help. Good luck!

Nice idea, but it's wall mounted for space, so not really possible.