Balance is something I have greatly struggled with my freshman year in college. Too much leisure vs. too little leisure. Dining hall vs. cooking in my grandparents' kitchen. Studying vs. going to the park. Going to the gym vs. taking a nap. I think college is the best time to grow in all four areas of my life and if I don't start keeping tabs on my progress now, how will I know what to do when life comes at me full force.
Each day (let's shoot for 6 days a week) I will track my physical progress (eating and training), my mental progress (school, work, extra reading) my spiritual self (religious and otherwise) and emotionally (happiness, self-esteem). There is no formal scale I have to judge myself by, just a thought here and there of how I am feeling and doing everyday.
Day 1
Physical: I trained incredibly hard today at American Health Centers with Josh. It was a leg day and I started with 30 incline sit ups with an increasing incline ever set. The highlight of my workout was completing a set of 12 plie squats with a 70 pound dumb bell. I didn't even know I could do that! Not long ago it was tough to do that many with 35 pounds! I felt like a total bad ass.
Nutrition Wise I have been following the Eat Clean Program. It basically includes foods found naturally with the emphasis on lean proteins, fruits and vegetables (mostly vegetables), whole grains in their truest form, and healthy fats. I started last Saturday and was off to a rough start. I limited myself to the strictest plan of the diet to begin with (bad idea). I was to eat only proteins, veggies and 1 apple/pear per day with one sweet potato also. Training as hard as I do (6 days a week for 1 or more hours) this was a nearly impossible immediate transition. So I have found a happy medium, including fewer carbohydrates than the more relaxed second plan but including dairy (greek yogurt) and healthy fats (peanut butter, coconut oil) to make sure my caloric needs are met. Today for instance I ate:
M1- oatmeal, protein powder, pumpkin
M2- Pear, Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip
M3- Salmon, Salad, 2 bites of Whole grain Penne
M4- Ezekial wrap w/ Peanut Butter and half an apple
M5- Eat clean almost fried rice (Protein+loads o veggies+brown rice+soysauce+egg white)
M6- Fage nonfat greek yogurt, berries.
Overall, a great day (although I did sneak in a nibble of cookie dough while making Calvin his favorite cookies, it was much better than the 1/4 a roll i would have typically eaten)
Spiritual: I must admit, I haven't been to church in months. I go on the rare occasion that I am home and that is all. I still believe, and I still pray but I have my doubts in the Catholic church and am working to better understand these doubts that I have. More details on this as I contemplate them. This is definitely my weakest corner.
Mental: I recently purchased an Amazon Kindle and it was beyond worth the investment. Books are cheaper and I can download them in seconds. I have been downloading memoirs and biographies constantly and without restraint as well as a few pieces of fiction. I started Always Looking Up By Michael J. Fox and was intrigued by the information on Parkinson's Disease and treatment options including stem cell research. This is an issue I have not learned enough to have an opinion on so when the book took a turn to Preacher town I had to put it down. The first 1/3 of the book was a testament to the strength of Parkinson's patients and a cry for help. After that it was all about stem cell research, how much Bush sucked (not...although it was definitely time for him to go after year 6) and Fox's intermingling with many senators. Since then I read a quick love story with a happy ending and have moved on to Three Weeks With My Brother
a memoir by Nicholas Sparks. I am enjoying it enormously and learning more about ancient cultures than I remember from world history. It's a great read.
Emotional: Honestly, it's sunny outside, I have an amazing boyfriend, the best family, and I'm spending most of my summer in an internship with White House Black Market, a fashion brand that I love. Honestly, I have it made in the shade. I'm spending a week or so with my dad, traveling to the Memphis in May Barbeque Championships, which we have both been wanting to go to for years. It's on our way(ish) to Fort Myers where my job is. After that I'll spend two weeks with Calvin on Siesta Key before the craziness starts.
Nutrition Wise I have been following the Eat Clean Program. It basically includes foods found naturally with the emphasis on lean proteins, fruits and vegetables (mostly vegetables), whole grains in their truest form, and healthy fats. I started last Saturday and was off to a rough start. I limited myself to the strictest plan of the diet to begin with (bad idea). I was to eat only proteins, veggies and 1 apple/pear per day with one sweet potato also. Training as hard as I do (6 days a week for 1 or more hours) this was a nearly impossible immediate transition. So I have found a happy medium, including fewer carbohydrates than the more relaxed second plan but including dairy (greek yogurt) and healthy fats (peanut butter, coconut oil) to make sure my caloric needs are met. Today for instance I ate:
M1- oatmeal, protein powder, pumpkin
M2- Pear, Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip
M3- Salmon, Salad, 2 bites of Whole grain Penne
M4- Ezekial wrap w/ Peanut Butter and half an apple
M5- Eat clean almost fried rice (Protein+loads o veggies+brown rice+soysauce+egg white)
M6- Fage nonfat greek yogurt, berries.
Overall, a great day (although I did sneak in a nibble of cookie dough while making Calvin his favorite cookies, it was much better than the 1/4 a roll i would have typically eaten)
Spiritual: I must admit, I haven't been to church in months. I go on the rare occasion that I am home and that is all. I still believe, and I still pray but I have my doubts in the Catholic church and am working to better understand these doubts that I have. More details on this as I contemplate them. This is definitely my weakest corner.
Mental: I recently purchased an Amazon Kindle and it was beyond worth the investment. Books are cheaper and I can download them in seconds. I have been downloading memoirs and biographies constantly and without restraint as well as a few pieces of fiction. I started Always Looking Up By Michael J. Fox and was intrigued by the information on Parkinson's Disease and treatment options including stem cell research. This is an issue I have not learned enough to have an opinion on so when the book took a turn to Preacher town I had to put it down. The first 1/3 of the book was a testament to the strength of Parkinson's patients and a cry for help. After that it was all about stem cell research, how much Bush sucked (not...although it was definitely time for him to go after year 6) and Fox's intermingling with many senators. Since then I read a quick love story with a happy ending and have moved on to Three Weeks With My Brother
a memoir by Nicholas Sparks. I am enjoying it enormously and learning more about ancient cultures than I remember from world history. It's a great read.
Emotional: Honestly, it's sunny outside, I have an amazing boyfriend, the best family, and I'm spending most of my summer in an internship with White House Black Market, a fashion brand that I love. Honestly, I have it made in the shade. I'm spending a week or so with my dad, traveling to the Memphis in May Barbeque Championships, which we have both been wanting to go to for years. It's on our way(ish) to Fort Myers where my job is. After that I'll spend two weeks with Calvin on Siesta Key before the craziness starts.
