Day 10 - Eating Like a Dog

I am eating like my dog, which is actually a good thing. Napoleon has severe skin allergies so I only feed him duck and potatoes, unless I run out of food, then I boil rice, chicken and carrots for him. I would never give him chocolate, processed foods, pizza, booze, ice cream, or coffee. So why do I feed myself that?

I am eating cleaner than ever and today when Napoleon came begging for food, I realized I could actually share my baked chicken and yam with him.

Yesterday, I cheated with a quarter of a cantaloupe and 12 cashews. If it's not part of my meal plan it could throw off my body's ph balance or whatever Glen, my nutrition coach, keeps telling me. The first few days I was always full, dreading my next meal, but now I am getting hungrier. Because I am gaining muscle, my metabolism is picking up therefore I need more calories to maintain my weight. Since I am trying to get smaller, I am going to be in a constant state of hunger.

This morning I tried kale juice again, but I added lemon juice and an apple instead of beet root, which made it absolutely delicious. I can't wait to have it again, but I will need to save it for my second meal of the day. I feel hungry sooner in the day if I don't eat rice for my first meal.

Larissa, my workout buddy, and I focused on legs and shoulders today. I was exhausted afterward, but I knew I needed the cardio. The minimum I allow myself is 5 sprints, so I gave myself shorter rest periods to get through it.

Legs 4 sets of 15 reps, 3 different exercises.
Shoulders 4 sets of 12-15 reps, 2 different exercise.
Cardio: 1 min at 6mph, 1 min at 9.0 mph for 5 rounds.
 

At noon, I went to Aha Yoga. After class, I was so hungry I ran to Corsagna Deli to get a tuna salad packed with veggies. The plan was to go home and eat it, but I never made it. I plopped down on a small table with two chairs in front of the tiny shop and dug in.

This skinny brunette asked if she could share the space, and I just nodded as I stuffed a fork full of tuna and broccoli in my mouth. She slowly unwrapped a panini, oozing with mozzarella and a small bag of kettle chips. I started imagining what I would eat after the competition. Larissa and I already decided on an entire box of Ghiradelli chocolate chip brownies and Haagen-Daz ice cream, 3 different flavors. We said that would be our only bad food, but now I am envisioning melted cheese; melted cheese on pizza, in between toast, on tortilla chips, on soup, on a fork. In other news, my husband had pizza for dinner tonight while I chomped down on spaghetti squash and steak, again.


Glen called to see how the diet was coming along. I told him about my Texas troubles and he offered me a few alternatives. My new emergency food is 3-4 oz  of sodium, oil, and preservative free tuna or chicken, 2 rice cakes, and a few almonds. Why didn't he tell me this before the trip?

On a side note, I do feel amazing on this diet. Muscles are starting to show, my energy is at an all time high, and my skin is glowing. I remember when I would eat a burger, then crash immediately after. Your body reacts to what you eat, if you poison it you will feel drowsy or crave sugar because you've thrown of your balance.I think next week I will start posting photos of my progress.

Oh! Julia Walsh, an editor at PopSugar, wrote this amazing article about me: http://sf.popsugar.com/Linda-Niazi-AllyBod-Training-BodyLabSF-Cow-Hollow-18995807

Day 9 - Sabotage

Why is it when you want to change, the people closest to you hold you back? Instead of encouraging and reinforcing, you hear phrases like, "one dessert won't kill you", "it's healthy so it doesn't count", and my favorite, "you will work it off tomorrow". Why don't they tell you to be stronger, or take food away from you in an encouraging way, or remind you of your goals?

I love my mom more than anything in this world.

That said, she came over last night with moussaka, which is basically a Greek vegetable lasagna, and something I happen to love. I told her over the phone I couldn't eat it, but that I would serve it for dinner. She asked me about my new diet, so I told her I needed to eat 4 clean meals a day that were comprised of 30-40% protein, 30-40% carbohydrates (from vegetables or brown rice), and 20-30% fat. Without any hesitation she told me I was going to destroy my stomach lining.

When she arrived, she pulled the moussaka out of the trunk and said, "it's probably not that good, I made it very light." As soon as we entered the house, she took the lid off to make sure it was alright, but I know it was to tempt me with the smell.


She repeated a few more times the moussaka may not be good because it was light, so I finally asked her what that meant. She went on to explain that she didn't use any cheese or cream and that it was made with the leanest ground beef, eggplant, squash, homemade tomato sauce, and love. Since my last meal is lean red meat and vegetables anyway, I made the mistake of serving myself a small plate.

As soon as I took the first couple bites, my mother adds that she did use some Parmesan cheese and potatoes. Please tell me your mom does this too?!

Long story short, I finished my plate and woke up with a stomach ache. Since I am not having dairy, I am sure the little amount in the dish, mixed with the starch and sodium, went straight to my gut.

My advice, stick to your plan and ignore all the little temptations. Trying to rationalize eating anything other than what you planned will hurt you in the long run.

I feel like I am in a cartoon fighting my way to some magical land and these little monsters come out to keep me awy. I'm not winning all the battles, but the more I go on, the stronger and more focused I become. I will win this war.






Today's workout was amazing. Larissa and I did chest and back super-sets and ended with quarter mile sprints with sets of abs in between. My hips are a little tight so we are going to 8 pm yoga tonight. I am very excited!

If your knees or ankles hurt, or you just want to switch up your cardio, try rowing. The goal is to go as fast as you can for 500 meters, with a minute rest in between sets. You can get water or make it an active recovery by performing low impact exercise. Try getting through 4 sets. It's a short workout, but if you really push it you will feel it the whole day.

My shortest time was 500 meters in 2:07 minutes. I've done better.

For breakfast today, I made a kale and beetroot juice and it was disgusting. It looked great but tasted like garbage. I will try kale and papaya tomorrow and let you know how it goes.

Days 5 and 6 - I Caved

Friday was rough. I tried, but not hard enough. Being away from home, not having my 4 meals readily available, and a lack of healthy options are wearing me down.

After lunch, I went 7 hours without food. By the time we sat down at Perry's Steakhouse, my judgement was slightly impaired. I split a salad, avoided the bread, sipped on iced tea, and ordered a petit fillet mignon with broccolini. I was satisfied, then the waiter came around and asked if we wanted dessert. I reluctantly said no, but he insisted I needed to hear about the decadent Godiva chocolate cake with molten center and melted white chocolate on top, served with a scoop of creamy vanilla bean ice scream. Anyone who knows me will tell you my weakness is chocolate and coffee. I would give up just about anything for a good chocolate. I said, "bring it on" without skipping a beat.


Luckily, it took 20 minutes for the dessert to be assembled, so I had time to reflect on my decision and text my coach, like a true chocoholic, for support. She sternly reminded me that I have 9 weeks till I parade around 500 people in a bikini and the sugar will show. I asked my husband to help me be stronger. I want to win more than I want chocolate (it's a close tie, but I would rather look amazing). He let me have two bites, then he devoured the rest. He blew up right away.


After dinner, we hit up town. My favorite cocktail was a sugar-free, virgin mojito. On a side note, the bartenders get confused when you ask for this so let them know you just want muddled lime and mint with soda water. They will still mess up, but it's yummy and you don't feel out of place at a bar with this mocktail hand. When I could find iced-tea, I would drink that instead. The wine is not mine, I promise.







What I learned the past two days, is that I should have packed/bought snacks to help me through the day. Most people binge on 2 meals a day. If I had protein bars, I would have maintained my 4-5 mini meals per day so that by lunch or dinner I was not famished. That was my biggest mistake.

I did my leg workout on Friday as scheduled, and planned to run sprints on Saturday, but never got to it since we drove to San Antonio after breakfast then walked all over town. I knew I burned enough calories, but nothing leans me out like sprints. For lunch, I had a chicken burrito without cheese or sour cream, but only ate the inside. I wanted the fajitas for the grilled veggies but was worried it would be soaked in oil. For dinner, I enjoyed fresh guacamole, made in front of us, herb crusted fish, and apple pie gum for dessert.

I wasn't perfect, but I avoided cheese, creams, alcohol, sugar, and processed foods. I drank so much water, I am sure I am flushing out most of the sodium. My stomach feels rock hard but my legs are swollen from the heat.

We had a blast on the River Walk. Check out my first magazine shoot. It was great motivation to stay on track ;)
















Today is my usual day off from exercise. I ordered breakfast in bed; fresh fruit, two egg scramble, coffee and water; best wake up call ever. I am going to be honest, I've had more coffee and gum this weekend than ever in my life. I am very full now, but it will be 6 hours till my next meal. We are invited to lunch, so I can't check out the menu before hand to pick the healthiest option. I will let you know how that goes.


- Posted from Linda's iPad.

Location:Congress Ave,Austin,United States