Meals lately/ How to maximize the results in your workout

We are now into week 2 of the whole 30. Only (well, that's an understatement) 3 weeks to go! I've been reading a lot of other people's experiences on the program, and I relate to a lot of what they're reporting. Basically, I've read that many people say the first week is tough, and you start to feel a little discouraged by how restrictive the program is. I felt that way 100%. I also was dealing with feeling a constant sense of hunger in the evenings. I'd have a snack of an apple and almond butter most nights, but then worry that I was taking in too many calories. I'm not trying to lose weight, but I'm not trying to gain weight by any means. Matt has also been frustrated because he gained a pound in our first week (despite feeling like he's hungry)! He's going to stick with it and weigh in again next week. I know the program suggests to not weigh in, but that doesn't really work for Matt (who has been doing so well with his weight loss) and it also goes against how I maintain my weight.

This program can be tough if you're not a big meat eater, which I am not. I eat meat (not much red meat), but it's not something I crave, and I don't have large portions of it. That can make it hard to get full, especially at dinner. I've been eating sweet potatoes with a lot of our dinners to help get full.

I loved our dinner last night. We had fajita style chicken, peppers, and onions. Instead of cooking it in a grill pan like I usually do, I baked it in the oven. It was easy clean up, so I think I'll stick with this method.

I sliced up boneless/skinless chicken into strips, and sliced one (very) large onion and 3 bell peppers. Then I added cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and salt on top (just estimated amounts). I squeezed the juice of half a lime on top before baking at 400 for about 40 minutes.

Keeping it easy, I cubed avocado in the shell, juiced the other half of a lime on top, and added chopped cilantro. It was a VERY easy version of guacamole. We each had half of the avocado with our dinner. This was nice and filling!

 

On to a little workout stuff. One method I use in my classes to really get the most effective results is to pulse or hold a movement at the most challenging part.

 

For example, instead of doing a regular squat, try squatting low, pulsing up halfway up, bring it back down, and then come all the way up. You really get double the muscle work done in that one squat. Try that method with other simple exercises to get the idea down, and then you can move onto more complicated moves.

 

I always love to work total body instead of just one body part, so combine a lunge and curl with the pulse. Start low in the lunge, come up halfway with your legs (they will be working the entire time) as you do a bicep curl halfway. Pulse it back down as you lower your arms, and then come all the way up with legs extended straight and arms curled up. It's a great way to mix things up!