Oh Happy Day :) 3/30/13

Hey there, hi there, ho there! I tell you what, I’m feeling great today! I’m not sure if it’s the beautiful weather we had in NKY today, the blooming flowers, the happy Easter holiday or what – but something’s working!

I decided today that it is time to lock it up. Again. I’m getting control of my nutrition and I am excited about it! I went to the grocery store and dominated the produce section! I got lots of delicious vittles for meal prep and options for healthy snacks. This is what I have planned for my meals this week (rotating):

Lunch/Dinner:

·         Roasted Cauliflower Steak with Smoky Tomato Sauce, Quinoa and Roasted Zucchini

·         Black Bean Burger, Quinoa and Roasted Asparagus

·         Roasted Vegetables with Chipotle Sauce, Quinoa

Breakfast (in addition to 2 scoops pea protein powder + water):

·         Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Tortilla, PB2 and Banana wrap

·         1 cup(cooked) Oatmeal with cinnamon, a few raisins and fresh blueberries

I must say, I’m pretty excited about all of it! I’ll post recipes for everything once I figure it out (though breakfast is pretty self-explanatory). J

I’ve noticed that I’m having a hard time keeping to my clean eating because I am letting outside influences take over. I’ve been blaming my work, my house, my schedule – everything. What it boils down to is just the simple fact that I haven’t been disciplined enough, but that’s changing as of now! It is beyond time for me to regain control of my life and my body. I know that getting to the gym is going to be a struggle for a while, due to the simple fact that I often work late (getting home between 11-1230 at night) and then have homework to do… which makes waking up at 5am quite difficult. I am going to do my best with it. Now that the weather is finally breaking and getting warmer, I plan to start running outdoors again, taking Nora for hilly walks etc… anything to get in as much exercise as possible.

I’ve been pretty down lately. Thus far, 2013 has introduced stress beyond my mental capacity and it has taken a huge toll on my health. I basically spent the first two months of the year sick – due to stress, lack of sleep and poor nutrition. I noticed myself getting on that routine again and got sick over the last few days but I am changing it all now. After being completely miserable yesterday with a migraine and feeling nauseas, I slept really great last night, ate better today and am doing something that is really important for my life: planning and preparing. With my schedule as crazy as it is, I know that if I am not adequately prepared, I’m screwed. SO, meals are planned and will be prepped tomorrow. My schedule is full this week but I plan to utilize my time as efficiently as possible to get good sleep every night. And I’m going to try not to get too stressed. I said try.

And now for a recipe!

 

Black Bean Burgers (adapted from Vegetarian Times magazine)

Ingredients:

1 ½ cans Black Beans, drained and rinsed (roughly 2 cups)

1 ½ cups Carrots, peeled and chopped fine or grated (roughly 4 carrots)

1 small onion, chopped (roughly 1 cup)

½ cup Rolled Oats (not instant)

¼ cup Fresh Cilantro, chopped

1 tsp Cumin

1 tsp Chile Powder

1 tsp Smoked Paprika

1 tbs Garlic, minced

1 tsp Kosher Salt

Pinch Black Pepper

Procedure:

·         Pulse beans, carrots, onion, oats, cilantro, spices, garlic, salt and pepper in food processor until combined (not completely pureed).

·         Pinch the mixture to see if it holds together; if not, add low sodium vegetable stock or water 1tbs at a time until it does.

·         Chill the mixture 30 minutes to overnight before forming patties.

·         Shape into patties – size is up to you, I was able to get 7 out of this recipe.

·         Heat skillet (I used non-stick) or griddle over medium heat. Spray with non-stick spray and carefully place patties onto cooking surface. Cook 3-5 minutes (until browned and crisp in places), flip and cook another 3-5 minutes.

·         Serve with desired garnishes. (I ate mine without bun, topped with butter lettuce, sliced tomato and fresh black bean/corn salsa)

Black Bean Burger with Roasted Asparagus

 

Chill Out, Life! 3/26/13

Well kids, mama’s a little overwhelmed right now. The past sixish months have brought quite a lot to my life and it’s not slowing down any time soon. Brief re-cap: I’m in school full time (working to maintain my 4.0), working part to full time, taking care of Nora whenever I’m not doing those things, dealing with the ex and all of the nonsense that comes with him all while trying to maintain some sort of personal sanity. That last part has proven to be difficult. Unfortunately, with everything else that is going on, sticking to my fitness and nutrition plan has, well, not happened. Mostly due to the lack of time, I haven’t been going to the gym consistently, if at all, and my nutrition has had its ups and downs. I’m trying to get back into my gym routine and am consciously working on my nutrition (meal planning, prepping etc) but I am more or less maintaining at this point. I’ve continued to weigh myself and I seem to be maintaining between 230 and 240lbs. I’m not  necessarily happy with this (especially when it gets closer to 240) but I am glad that I’m not gaining it back – and I think I can give veganism a lot of credit for that.

I do have plans for myself: I plan to run a variety of 5ks throughout the summer and cap off the year with the Tough Mudder in October. I have quite a lot of training to do for all of these events but I am confident that I can prepare myself adequately, if I work hard to find the time to dedicate to the training.

Now, I certainly didn’t get back to my blogging just to complain the whole time… I am excited about some of the things going on right now! My culinary education is going really well and I am becoming all the more passionate about food and health. I’ll be sharing recipes again and look forward to creating some beautiful and healthy dishes to share! Today, a simple but delicious side dish:

Roasted Asparagus

Ingredients:

·         1 bunch Asparagus, ends trimmed

·         1-2 tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil

·         1 tsp Kosher Salt

·         ½ tsp Ground Pepper (black or white)

 

Prodedure:

·         Pre-heat oven to 400.

·         Lay asparagus in even layer on baking sheet; drizzle oil over and toss to coat

·         Sprinkle salt and pepper and roast in oven until tender-crisp (20-25 minutes)

·         Enjoy!  

Seen below, served aside a Black Bean Burger (to be shared at a later date :) )

So at this point, my goal for this blog is the same as it was when it began: document my weightloss and share recipes, workouts and tips for any and all interested readers.  The biggest changes lie in the fact that I don't have quite as much time to commit to it as I did when I started and my personal goal is now the progression of my body, and not simply weight loss. I am working to become stronger and more overall fit and healthy, not just lighter. I hope that you will continue to follow my progress and feel free to contact me with any questions you may have; food, exercise or otherwise! :)

Here is a current picture, comparison of 4 years ago:

BTW I'm also on Instagram now! @amcrowdus

Going Insane 10/11/12

Howdy folks! It's been an interesting past week or so, a LOT of stuff going on.
Fall is into full swing and I love it!!! Aside from Christmas, this is my favorite time of year :) The boots, scarves, smell of cinnamon and spice, family-time, pumpkin patches, changing colors of the leaves... I absolutely adore it all! However, this time of year is quite challenging for me, nutritionally. When it gets cold outside I just want to cuddle up in giant sweatpants and eat warm pumpkin bread and drink mulled cider. Trying to stay focused and on track proves to be rather difficult, but as I've said many-a-time, I fully intend to enjoy my life while on this Path, and I most certainly have been enjoying. :)
Moving on, my workouts have been going really great. I decided that what I was doing wasn't enough so I added Insanity to the mix! As described on their website, it's "10 INSANITY workout discs packed with plyometric drills on top of nonstop intervals of strength, power, resistance, and ab and core training moves." In lamence terms, it KICKS YOUR ASS. Or well, my ass currently. I don't love working out at home but I can't tell you how many times I have been working out out and said out loud "come on!", "let's go!" or just shouted while doing this workout. It's crazy hard but it's not super long (average around 41 minutes start to finish), you get rest periods between work periods and I feel really accomplished (and pretty badass) when I'm done! So I've been doing my regular workouts in the morning, going to school and doing Insanity when I get home. It seems to be working out pretty well this way. With the Insanity schedule, I have switched my rest-day from the gym to Sunday so my weekly schedule looks like this:

Monday: 60min Cardio & Long Ab workout; Insanity
Tuesday: Chest & Back(strength), Short Ab workout, 30min cardio; Insanity
Wednesday: 60min Cardio & Long Ab workout; Insanity
Thursday: Legs & Butt(strength), Short Ab workout, 30 min cardio; Insanity
Friday: 60min Cardio & Long Ab workout; Insanity
Saturday: Biceps & Triceps(strength), Short Ab workout, 30min cardio; Insanity
Sunday: Ressssst.


I started Insanity last week but I was off schedule with the calendar that came with the DVDs SO I restarted on Monday to stay on track. Then I missed yesterday so I had to do 2 workouts today, plus my regular gym time this morning. Not gonna lie, mama's a little tired!
Like I said the other day:
"If you've got it, flaunt it. If you don't have it, go get it." The 'it' in that quote will of course vary as everyone has their own opinion of what is healthy/attractive; I know what I want, and I'm going for it. I joke around about it but I'm not aiming to be Olsen-twin skinny... I have a big head, a super skinny body would look ridiculous. I aim to be lean as far as body fat, but thick with muscle. I love muscle, always have and always will. The power of muscle has always fascinated me and I think it's absolutely beautiful on (in) the human body. I've been noticing some promising changes in my physical form... more defined quads, tighter and better defined calves, same with biceps and triceps... I love it!!
People make comments all the time like "I don't know how you do it!" "I wish I had your motivation!" I can honestly say that seeing these changes in my body has become my motivation. The reason I wake up at 4:30am to get to the gym, bust ass 6 days a week, sacrifice my social life... simply put, it's important to me. I realize that it may not be important to everyone else and my way certainly won't work for everyone but I do hope that more people start to see the importance of over-all health - and also understand what it means to be healthy.
I went to the doctor for a general check-up the other day and for some reason, was thoroughly shocked. I mentioned to the doctor that I was slightly concerned about my blood pressure being a bit high. Even after losing over 100lbs, it still tends to be a bit high. This is in thanks to heredity and too much stress in general. He immediately instructed me to "stay away from processed foods and canned soups... and to try to get some exercise, maybe try walking." I just sat there for a minute, I couldn't believe that he would assume that I would eat that shit or that I wasn't already busting ass. Then, I realized that most of the people that walk through his door DO eat that shit and DON'T move their asses... which is most likely one of the biggest reasons they're walking through his door in the first place! After leaving his office, I went to the pharmacy (within the grocery store) to pick up my birth control and ahead of me in line was a woman picking up a number of prescriptions, and I couldn't help but notice that her cart contained the following: white bread, boxed cookies, boxed pastries, lean cuisines and soda. HELLO? The ignorance (and sometimes just laziness) of the general population is depressing. I walked through the store to pick up some EVOO and every cart that I spied contained a generous portion of red meat, processed shit, soda, simple carbs and nearly NO produce or natural, healthy foods. It's frightening. I was sincerely upset when I left that store and immediately sent Branden a text message that read only as "We have to get Nora out of this place."
I am so beyond proud that my daughter will pick up junk food and say "We don't eat this because it has a lot of sugar and it's bad for our bodies." - and she isn't even 3 years old. She exercises with us and, honestly, has more knowledge of nutritional health than some adults I know. Of course, she is a toddler and will throw the occasional fit for a sweet treat but we make a point to let her know that although that treat isn't good for our bodies, it's okay to indulge on the occasion.
Some people criticize our parenting tacticts but honestly, I don't give a shit. Our goal is to raise the best person we can... and that's what I feel we're doing.

Okay, enough ranting... recipe time!
I made a new protein waffle the other day and it was delicious! I made a batch, froze them in zip loc bags (2per bag) and I've been toasting them and putting a little natural pnut butter on them for breakfast in the morning. I'm obsessed!

Protein Waffles
3/4 cup Whole Wheat Flour
2 scoops Chocolate Protein Powder (I use pea isolate, natural chocolate from www.truprotein.com)
2tbs baking powder
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/8tsp salt
1 cup strong coffee
2tbs - 1/4cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (use to find correct consistency)

Mix everything up until the almond milk together.
Batter will most likely be thick, use as much almond milk as necessary to get the right consistency for waffles.
Cook on waffle iron.
**MAKE SURE you spray your waffle iron with non-stick spray VERY well! There is no fat in these waffles so they will stick. Be patient, pry them gently off of the iron... they're great. :)

Alrighty, I think that's about all I have for today! (I'd say it's enough!) :)
Here are a couple of pictures from the Alumni night that I forgot to post!

Good ol Glory Days! :)

On the Run 9/29/12

Holy legs, Batman! So Thursday was my legs strength training day and that went really well! The new rep/set structure (see below) is working out great. It's kicking my ass but I think it's going to get the job done. :)
New Structure:
Set 1: 15 Reps
Set 2: 15 Reps
Set 3: 20 Reps (drop weight)
Set 4: 20 Reps
Set 5: 20 Reps
Set 6: Burnout (drop weight)
For those that aren't familiar, 'Burnout' just means to do as many reps as possible until muscle failure. It's probably my favorite set, I like lifting to failure because then I know I've exhausted my muscles to their max, thus giving them a good workout.
I completed week 1 with this new structure and I really liked it, so I'll keep it at least until after I get back from Phoenix. The only downfall with doing things this way is that it takes a LONG time to get through 1 circuit... like at least 30 minutes. Before, I was completing 3-4 circuits but now I really only have time for 2, so I'm having to decide which exercises are the most effective and cut out some of the others. I'm okay with it.
The structure of my lower body strength training is different than that of my upper body because I'm still lifting more for strength with the lower body, so lower reps with higher weights and no burnout.
Here's an example of my Thursday workout:

DAY THURS		DATE 9/27
	SET 1		SET 2		SET 3		SET 4
EXERCISE	REP	LBS	REP	LBS	REP	LBS	REP	LBS
LEG EXTENSION	20	90	15	115	15	115	15	115
LEG PRESS	20	180	15	210	15	210	15	210
SEATED CALF RAISE	20	45	15	70	15	70	-	-
DEADLIFT	20	75	15	95	15	95	15	95
STANDING GLUTE KICKBACK	20	50	15	70	15	70	15	70
BIKE - RESISTANCE INTERVALS	30 MIN
ABS - MEDICINE BALL TOSS	25	7LB BALL	25	7LB BALL
AB COASTER	25 FRONT	20	25 RT	20	25 LT	20

Twas a good workout. I'm still kind of playing with the weights and I make note on my workout sheet while I'm in the gym of whether I need to increase/decrease/maintain for the next workout.

So after a good strength day on Thursday, Friday was cardio day. I was feeling a little burned out on the typical gym cardio stuff... elliptical/bike/treadmill, so I decided it was time to hit the streets! I did my old 5mile trail; I walked 4 times for approximately 1/4 mile each time so in total I ran about 4 miles. I felt pretty good for the most part! Later in the day, my hips were hurting pretty badly which tells me that I obviously need new running shoes. Unfortunately, they're not in the budget at this time but I'll get some soon. I proposed to my immediate family that we should all train for the Yuengling Shamrock Run in Virginia Beach that I was supposed to do with my brother last year! I think it will be a great opportunity for the family to work on our health and have a lot of fun together!

Nutritionally, I have been trying to stay on track. Yesterday (Friday) wasn't the most successful day but other than that, I think I've been doing relatively well.

My goal for this week is to focus on nutrition. Now that my workouts are more organized and I'm feeling better about those, I'm going to focus on keeping my nutrition in line.
I've noticed this week that I've been lacking water. My finger tips have been extremely dry, I've been a little puffy and just thirsty all the time. So, another goal is definitely to be conscious of how much water I'm drinking this week!

As far as my actual weight, I haven't lost any this week. I'm totally fine with that, I can see my body changing in the mirror and I can feel how differently my clothes are fitting and I'm perfectly content with that :)

Well that's about all I have today! I hope everyone has a happy and healthy weekend :)

Until next time...

Friday 9/21/12

Well, hello friends!
It's finally Friday and I am pleased as punch to see the weekend!
Things have been going pretty well, I've stayed pretty committed to my workouts and working on the nutrition. (on-going battle, obviously) Up until this week I've been doing Sunday - Friday workouts, taking Saturday as a rest day. Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday are lift days w/ 30 minutes of cardio and Monday, Wednesday Friday are strictly cardio days; every day doing abs. I'm loving this rotation! I've been doing some heavier weights but I just talked to Mike (my trainer/coach/friend) and we re-worked my workouts so starting this week I'm going to be doing higher reps and lower weights... trying to keep my heart rate up as much as possible and burn some calories! I'm going to Phoenix in a month and want to look my best. :)
School and scheduling has made it pretty difficult to blog. I either don't have the time or don't have the energy, so I apologize for the lack of posts.
I've been trying to track my weight weekly and honestly, there hasn't been much change. I'm hovering right around 239 (+/- 1lb), but I'm okay with it. As long as I'm not gaining, I don't mind maintaining the number on the scale because I'm able to see (and feel!) the change in my body! All too often I think people (especially women) get fixated on the number shown on the scale and don't consider what actually happens to your body when you introduce exercise. Keep in mind: muscle weighs 1 1/2 x's the weight of fat so when you start to build muscle, you may actually gain weight. It's important to take pictures to document your progress, measure yourself (something I always forget to do) and just take note of the fit of your clothes... these are all more important than the scale.
I took a picture in August and then again 2 days ago for September. I actually had the same clothes on in the pictures (not planned) but you couldn't see much of a difference from the front. The back, however, I was able to see quite a difference in my body, and only over the course of a month! I'm excited to continue with my workouts (the new ones will be harder :) ) and see where I am for October!

Here's the picture:

I don't know why the above picture won't upload in the right direction? Oy, that's annoying.

Anyway, you can still see the difference. The bottom picture is from September, top from October.

Progress as of September, 2012
239lbs

 

Well tonight we have the Alumni Game for my high school cheerleading! I'm so excited. I looked at the pictures from last year and although my weight was actually almost the same, I feel like my body looks better. When we were practicing the other night, my flyer said that the stunts felt stronger than they did last time and I was happy to hear that! :) I'll post some pictures from the evening's excitement with my next post.

Aside from the game tonight, I have a workout with Mike and his daughter, Mikayla tomorrow morning and then I'm going out with a friend Saturday night. Sunday I've committed to homework but I may try to go to the gym and get a swim or something... my 'rest days' usually involve some sort of activity.

 

Well, that's about all I have for you dear readers today. I know I haven't posted any recipes in a long time and I've got a million up my sleeve here... Any in particular you'd like to see or any 'bad' foods you'd like to see have a clean makeover?? I'm always up for the challenge :)

 

Have a happy and healthy weekend, friends!

Happy Labor Day :) 9/3/12

Hello friends!
Well the past week and a half(ish) has been pretty crazy and stressful. I started school and, man, I didn't realize how painfully unprepared I was for the experience. Logistically, I am apparently a collegiate dummy. Financial Aid and everything that goes along with it just totally blows my brain and I've been having a lot of issues with it. Aside from that, lingering emotions from the Branden situation has had me kind of down this week but I'm working on getting back up and staying there.
Beyond the emotional/stress issues, my new workout plan has, well, worked out! Here's the schedule I set up for myself:
Sunday: Weights (Biceps and Triceps) and 30min higher intensity Cardio (short ab session)
Monday: 60min Cardio and long ab session
Tuesday: Weights (Chest and Back) and 30min higher intensity Cardio (short ab session)
Wednesday: 60min Cardio and long ab session
Thursday: Weights (Legs and Butt) and 30min higher intensity Cardio (short ab session)
Friday: 60min Cardio and long ab session
Saturday: Active rest day

This week went well, I just have to work on taking shorter rest periods during my strength days so I can make sure to fit everything in! I get to the gym at 5am and have to be out of there no later than 650am so I have to bust it! I swear, if I had the availability, I would easily spend like 5 hours in the gym everyday! I freakin love it.
I've been lifting in circuits, which has felt good and I've noticed my strength increasing. If you're not familiar with circuits, essentially I choose a group of different exercises (usually 3) and rotate through them. So, for instance, for one circuit I do Tricep Pushdown, Chest Flye and Rear Delt Flye.
So it goes like this:
Circuit 1; Rotation 1:
Tricep Pushdown: 20 Reps
Chest Flye: 20 Reps
Rear Delt Flye: 20 Reps
Circuit 1; Rotation 2:
Tricep Pushdown: 15 Reps
Chest Flye: 15 Reps
Rear Delt Flye: 15 Reps
Circuit 1; Rotation 3: (repeat twice for total of 3 rotations at 10 reps)
Tricep Pushdown: 10 Reps
Chest Flye: 10 Reps
Rear Delt Flye: 10 Reps

I like doing it this way but it has posed an annoying issue: interruptions. If the gym is crowded, it's pretty much guaranteed that someone is going to jump in and interrupt my circuit without realizing it. Whether it's jumping on a machine I need, changing the grip on the cable or whatever... it's an annoyance and slows me down. I'll usually wait for a minute to see if they finish quickly, otherwise I try to 'adapt and overcome' and just use a comparable machine or I'll move on with the rest of my circuit and come back to that particular exercise later.
I've noticed that since getting back into the strength training, I've gotten a lot more disciplined with it. I always finish the total set, even if I have to take a break before that last rep... I don't move on until I do that last rep. I think part of the reason I enjoy weight lifting so much is that it kind of feels like therapy. I love strength and muscles and my brain just feels like it's in the right place when I'm lifting weights. I've always felt like that, which is not the most common thing for girls I guess. When I was a sophomore in high school I tossed around the idea of getting into pro weightlifting... but cheerleading won the coin toss, so I stuck with that.
Speaking of cheerleading, I just received word that our Alumni night is coming up! Anyone who knows me knows that I look forward to this night all year! Every time I mention it my sister just says "Glory days." and I'm totally okay with that lol. I am really excited, mostly just to stunt, of course. I'll be sure to post some pictures :)

Nutritionally (up until yesterday) I've done pretty well. Yesterday was kind of a carb free-for-all so I can't say that I'm 100% proud of my choices. Aside from that, I've been having my banana sandwich for breakfast, snacking on almonds while at school, grilled veggies/rice/quinoa for lunch at home, something a bit lighter for dinner. Unfortunately, I have to pay for my school books out of pocket so I don't have a big budget for groceries right now and I can't do the work that I want with lowering my carb intake slightly, but it's working in my brain. I want to start replacing carbs with other clean options, but we'll see.

So I thought that it would be easy to jump back into my blog or that I was in better control of my emotions, but that's not the case. The whole marriage separation/on-going situation with Branden has proven to be the hardest thing I've had to handle. It's kind of like a roller coaster of fuckery and I'm just having a hard time trying to stay level-headed. I get depressed, I get angry, I'm sad, I'm tired... and then I feel better about things and then I realize how lonely I am and it all goes back to negative town. I'm trying to just stay busy with homework (not much of a problem there) and just focus on the present. I never really considered how much mental health plays into the pursuit of physical health. I always thought to myself that I could just push that shit aside and, if nothing else, use it to fuel my gym fire, but it doesn't always work that way. My goal is still the same: get healthy(er), not just for myself but for my little girl. I'm just trying to build strength of mind... mind over matter, right? Something like that.

Anyway, I know this has been kind of all over the place... that's about where my brain is right now (or always?) :)

Keep on keepin on, friends!

Here's the Deal...

Okay, I know, I lied. I'm having a hard time staying committed to this thing right now and I'm about to start school next week so I'm going to have even less free time on my hands so I will post when I can!
Here's a little catch up...
I've started working out at Urban Active with a friend of the family who happens to be an incredibly accomplished Shot Put-er and Weightlifter. He's acting as a mentor/trainer/coach for me right now and it has been great! I've been working out like crazy and loving every (well, almost every) minute of it! I can feel and see my body changing and transforming back towards a lean(ish), mean(sometimes) fighting machine! I've re-discovered my true love for lifting weights and building my physical strength and I am beyond excited to be back in the gym environment. Mike (my coach/trainer/friend) continues to preach that I need to focus on cardio and use lifting as a means to tone as I lose weight, but I'm having a hard time with that... because I realllly love being strong lol. I've been weighing myself weekly, though I'm not all that concerned by the number on the scale. Frankly, as much as I'm lifting I'm happy that it's going down at all. Last week I lost about 2lbs and the week before I lost about 3lbs. Muscle weighs 1.5x's more than fat so as Mike described it, I'm just transitioning the weight from fat to muscle. Oh, hey muscle. :) Oh and speaking momentarily on Urban Active - I love it. It's so nice to be in a well-equipped facility with a knowledgeable staff! It's more expensive that Fitworks, and rightfully so, but I certainly don't mind paying the extra considering the amount of extras that come with it. I was always intimidated to go into Urban Active because I always saw it as kind of a Barbie and Ken gym... skinny little scantily-clad girls with a full face of makeup and giant men grunting all over the place. Not so! It's a bunch of normal people gettin their sweat on! I love it.
Anywho.. beyond the exercising part, I've been trying to stay disciplined with my nutrition. I emphasize trying. Food has always been my pitfall and I know that it's a struggle I will have my entire life... it starts in my brain and lord knows there's a mess of problems surrounding it. BUT I have been doing really great with the drinking/smoking part. I've almost cut alcohol completely and I haven't had a cigarette in about 3 weeks. I just don't see the point in going to the gym and busting my ass and then filling my body with toxins. Per the direction of Mike, I've been trying to make lunch my largest meal of the day and dinner the smallest. I've also been trying to not eat past 7pm, so I start dinner at around 4:30 or 5 each day and eating by 6 or 6:30pm. It seems to work out well. I've also gotten back into the habit of going to bed earlier so the eating earlier/food cut-off time doesn't seem to bother me quite as much. When I stay up late, that's when I get in trouble... I like to snack. I still have my junk food (or as I like to call it, shit food) cravings but I try to handle business as necessary. This week my big splurges were a small fry at McDonald's and I had lunch at Olive Garden which was really carb heavy. I still luck out being Vegan because I don't every have to worry about the extra fat/saturated fat/cholesterol that dairy and meat loads onto things so typically even when I eat shit food... it's not THAT bad. OH and a BIG thing for me... I've almost completely cut out chips and salsa! Not that I really tried to do it but I think I just kind of burned myself out and I don't really long for it anymore.
Anyway, here's some examples of what I've been doing in the gym:
Some days I do 2 workouts, cardio in the morning and lifting at night... these days go like this:
AM - 1 hour of cardio... consisting of any combination of: Elliptical / Running / Rowing / Biking / Swimming
PM - 1 1/2 - 2hrs of lifting (in circuits of 3 exercises - reps are: Set 1 - 20 reps, Set 2 - 15 reps, Sets 3-5 - 10 reps). I increase the weight for sets 1-3 and then remain at the same weight for 3-5. Although this week I've been adding some weight and increasing weight with each set on some exercises.
30 minutes cardio
1 workout days go like this:
1 1/2 - 2hrs of lifting (same as above) followed by 45 minutes - 1hr of cardio
Every workout I add abs and do about 10 minutes of stretching.

I love my gym time :)

Here's an example of daily menu:
Breakfast:
Protein shake w/ unsweetened almond milk immediately following workout
Sandwich of organic peanut butter and banana on toasted sprouted grain bread

Snack - anything from crackers/carrots and hummus, almonds, grapefruit, grilled veggies... just depends on what we have

Lunch - usually a rice and veggie combination of some sort... sometimes pasta, yesterday I had grilled pizza

Snack - same as above

Dinner - Smaller portion, keeping the carbs a bit lower. Larger veggie to carb ratio, about 1/2 portion compared to lunch

That's about it! As usual, not any secret remedy.. just some good, hard work!

I'll be honest, I'm a bit concerned about the change of pace when school starts next week. I want to make sure that I still have time/energy to get my workouts in every day. I'll just see how it goes and make sacrifices where necessary. :)

Anyway, here's a picture of my current self:

Roughly 241 lbs...