burnout (and a habit kicked)

Hello pumpkins! I hope y’all had a super fantastic weekend. I spent mine at the first UVA football game of the season+kept up with my usual habit of partying at the beach. Amazing, fun, and sleepless as usual.

tailgating fun

One thing I gave up from Thursday-Sunday? THE GYM. Last Thursday I hit the gym and felt completely fatigued. After 10 minutes on the elliptical I felt hot and weird (almost feverish) and left the gym. I was so bummed on my walk home about my less than stellar workout and decided I’d give myself a scheduled break.

Four days in a row, no gym, no running, just living like (…the majority of Americans?..) do- without exercise. It felt GOOD. Monday morning I HIIT 😉 the gym for some intervals and heavy upper body weights with way more energy than I’ve had in AWHILE. I was proud of myself for really listening to my body and resting. Lately I’ve been working out M-F with weekends off from fitness but I really think four days seems to treat me better…Wednesday rest days it is..?

old rest day with courtney, captured on film.

Burnout sucks and I’d really like to prevent it. While I’m not one to compare myself to others much, I think that reading blogs has warped my idea of what an efficient exercise schedule can be. Some can hard every day- but I need more rest than that.

Something else I’ve officially given up? Counting calories.

As per conclusion to my kick the habit experiment:

I quit counting calories, and nothing awful happened (unless you count a hurricane and an earthquake..). My jeans still fit, I’m still a happy girl. I didn’t weight myself prior to quitting vs. now because I didn’t want it to be about that. I eat BETTER, more wholesome foods rather than junk to help me fill up an appropriate “number”. I (ALMOST) don’t think about food before my stomach does and I eat accordingly. (Unless you count a 2AM taco bell run..) All in -all, success feels good.

i am [not] a scientist

I’ve never, ever liked science. Cutting open a squid in tenth grade made me barf, and senior year of high school my health teacher sent me into the hallway when she had to discuss something that would make me “woozy”. Somehow I managed to take just once science class in college about Wildlife and my partner told me he’d do all the work and research on our semester long project if I presented it alone. (He hated public speaking, and I’m not shy.)

bio-whhhhat?

In contrast to my science-less past- I feel like a serious scientist right now. With this whole Kick the Habit thing (QUITTING the calorie counting) and the new addition of my ever-feared strength training I feel like I’m conducting some sort of experiment on my body…and I like it. 😉

Quitting The Counting And Adding Weight Lifting: Take One

1. Abstract: Prior to July 25th, 2011 I ran. Cardio queen (okay, princess) with a knack for counting calories, yet never knowing exactly how many I needed and frequently eating more calories than I desired. Objective- to quit the counting, listen to my stomach (hungry eat, full stop) and add in strength training while keeping up with the HIIT I enjoy and cutting out the long cardio sessions that I really never liked anyway.

2. Problem: Will doing this make me gain weight?

3. Hypothesis: Original hypothesis from the start of it all? I’ll “puff up”, hate the way I feel- and revert to my old calorie counting ways.

4. Hypothesis where I cheat and write a hypothesis towards the very end of my experiment: I will love the freedom that comes with NOT counting. I’ll eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner with one or two snacks and feel truly full off whole grains, low sugar, and high protein. I’ll start to love the way my stomach looks and kiss my new biceps on the regular. 😉

5. Materials: weights, treadmill (HIIT), ipod, protein, Alyssa, white wine..

moral support, photo stealing, gym partner in crime, of course

6. Procedures: Hiit, lift, make it fun. Smile and RELAX! Don’t be so SERIOUS.

7. Conclusion: TBA on September 1st. 😉

update on kickin’ those habits

HEY Y’ALL. Guess who’s flight was supposed to leave tonight but got canceled so I get to see her face for possibly two more nights?!

THIS GIRL!

Courtney is back in my arms and I’m never letting go. Just kidding..but Alyss maybe y’all can meet now?..

I’ve been having a BLAST with my best friend. Seriously. So much of a blast that I’ve totally forgotten about Freely Be’s Kick The Habit.. where I’ve promised myself to finally quit counting calories once and for all. By forgotten… I mean I’ve QUIT without stress.

Now, I’m not sure if the excitement of my 24th birthday, Court’s visit, and a raise at my job (WHAT) have taken over my brain allowing it to no longer be temporarily consumed by calorie counting.. but honestly. I am a beast at quitting this- mainly because it is SO EASY to just eat and not add. I’m a writer, hello! Numbers were never my deal anyway.

ALSO- quitting has led me to consuming WAY healthier foods. I don’t add a brownie up for a nice lunch total and call it a meal. I eat quinoa, tomatoes, and goat cheese for lunch. Then I’m full, and I’ve forgotten about food until my stomach strikes again.

life is just more fun this way..

Once again- it’s ONLY been two weeks. (I started a week before the first.)  I know that things can change, but as of now I’m happy and I like this life. In addition to quitting calorie counting I’ve decided to do a double whammy and combat my fear of lifting weights.

So until August 31st.. no counting, and bringin’ back that strength training! Really.. the worst that can happen is I decide that I “looked better” on my old plan and I revert back to that. What I’m striving for though is releasing myself from all “fears” left over from my old distorted body image days and to fully embrace myself.. and maybe some muscles too. So far..so good.

kick the habit: confessions of a calorie counter

This morning Gracie (love her style!) posted about “Kick the Habit” (I’ll let you research on your own…the name really says it all!)

An August challenge to give up a negative habit? This really couldn’t have come at a better time, and I am PUMPED to participate. My challenge? I want to quit counting calories for once, and for all.

This is not to say that counting calories is a “bad” habit, but it is to say that counting calories is a bad habit for ME. I’m a closet calorie counter. Courtney knows of my habit because I think I’d notify her if I even changed toothpaste..(nope..still using vivid white Court) and I’ve briefly mentioned it to Danny who didn’t seem to understand.

nope, don't get it..

But counting calories is a process I’ve gone in and out of for…years. I can’t even tell you how long I’ve been tracking. I’m not necessarily obsessed with hitting a certain number, and if I’m hungry and above the limit I wanted to originally stay at, I EAT. There are some prominent reasons that I’d like to give it up, though. And here they are:

1. It’s possible that calorie counting has sometimes made me GAIN weight. This is because there are days when I’m really not hungry but at night I see a couple hundred more calories “allowed” in my future.. so I eat. While I’m not hungry, just because a number says I can. Why stuff my face when my body is clearly satisfied?

2. I’m not getting the nutrients I need. As posted in my last WIAW, I ate lots and lots of sugar. It’s obviously cool to have treats here and there, but I am currently subbing brownies or froyo for actual veggies and grains, just because they fit within my daily limit. This may keep my waistline the same, but it’s not helping my insides.

3. It creates negative feelings about my day. If I go well over the “number” I wanted to stay within, I feel guilty. If I stay under, I am happy. This is also unhealthy for my mind. I don’t need to associate my happiness with food.

4. I’m a fitness fanatic. I need to fuel my body and listen to it. My body needs more than the bodies of those who chill on the couch all day. I want to really LISTEN to it. This includes eating when hungry, and stopping when full. The basic principles of following my appetite.

Whew. I’ve realized that while this post may have made me sound neurotic… I’m really not. I don’t necessarily think about food or calories all day.. I simply tack on the numbers of what I’ve eaten as a guideline. BUT, I don’t think it’s unnecessary. And for the reasons I’ve stated, I want to QUIT.

I think having a month of quitting rather than thinking I need to quit for life will allow me to chill out about it. Hopefully by the 31st of August I will see that NO, I did not gain ninety pounds and YES, I feel great and free.

imma tell you one time

Sorry, just wanted to lighten the mood around here.

I QUIT!

Expect lots of progress updates. I have nothing to hide.