Hi and Happy National Nut Day (I kid you not)!
I always find random food holidays to be amusing, and this morning I found out about today’s holiday via Twitter. Cashews and almonds are my favorites! I love to top my yogurt bowls with them or eat nuts with fruit for a snack. On National Nut Day I can’t forget about my nut butter obsessions. Peanut butter, almond butter, hazelnut butter…. I never get sick of them!
I actually just bought cashew butter to try, and I’m a little afraid of how much I’ll probably love it given my fondness of cashews in general.
Week 1 Recap: Eats
Since talking about my plans to shed a couple of pounds last week, I decided that I’ll do a weekly recap as a way to share my journey with you all. I’m happy to say that my first week went really well. Since I usually eat lots of fruits, veggies, and whole grains, the big change has just been cutting down on portion sizes, sweets and wine.
I was down 2 1/2 pounds yesterday versus last Monday, which is on the high end of my weekly weight loss target of 1 1/2- 2 1/2 pounds a week. I ate between 1,300-1,400 calories a day, except for Saturday when I ate a couple hundred calories more. To keep things in moderation, I think I’ve got to have a bit of a “cheat” day every week or two!
Goals for the next week: Recently I kind of got out of the routine of making green juices. Last weekend I made my first juice in awhile, and I want to make an effort to drink them more often again. Goal #1: Make green monsters at least twice.
I recognize that this past week was great in terms of weight loss, and that I probably won’t continue losing 2 1/2 pounds every week, but I can certainly try! Goal #2: Lose another 2 pounds in the next week.
Week 1 Recap: Workouts
Since I’m already good about making exercise a priority, the main thing I can do to tone up is to step my workouts up a bit in terms of intensity. Maybe in a couple weeks once I get close to my goal, I’ll also step it up in terms of length of workouts, but for now I’m keeping it the same since I log in a lot of weekly exercise time already. Here are last week’s workouts:
- Sunday – 60 min cardio/conditioning at-home workout (while watching football of course)
- Monday – 45 mins of triceps & chest strength training & 20 mins of rowing
- Tuesday – 20 mins of stretching and abdominal conditioning & a 40 min interval rowing workout
- Wednesday – 20 mins of boxing in the AM & 60 mins of Vinyasa yoga in the PM
- Thursday – 40 min cycling interval workout & 20 mins stretching & conditioning
- Friday – 90 min hike
- Saturday – 45 mins easy yoga in the AM & 30 min easy bike ride in the PM
I never really lay out my workouts like this, and doing so made me think about how much time I exercise per week. The American Heart Association recommends that Americans get 150 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity a week, or 75 minutes per week of vigorous exercise. Last week, I logged in about 500 minutes! And that’s not even counting my usually daily 30-minute walks with Harley, as I wouldn’t define those as moderate intensity for me. Not all weeks are as consistently awesome as this, but I’m giving myself credit for making exercise such a priority. Snaps for me!
How many minutes would you estimate that you exercise per week?
What are your favorite kind of nuts?
Paula says
Awesome job! I admire your dedication to working out. I feel like I did good if I work out 3 days in a week!
FitBritt@MyOwnBalance says
Congrats on the weight loss! I love your goals. They seem very attainable. I am probably with you on the minutes of exercise I get a week. I actually have to be careful not to overtrain. I can’t help it, I love to exercise! I’m with you on the cashews and almonds but I also like pistachios and pecans are good for salads.
foodielovesfitness says
Thanks Brittany! I hear you, I am the exact same way. I know you’re coming off of an injury too, and I completely understand your desire to just fully get back out there because that’s how I am!
Oooh yeah, I really like pistachios but for some reason don’t buy them a lot.
mom says
I love all nuts! Of course I try to only eat a few here and there, because of the calorie and fat content. I don’t think I have a favorite. As for the exercise question, I have to think about it. I would say 1 1/2 to 2 hrs 3 or 4 times a week, so that adds up to… approximately 400 minutes per week, not counting daily stretching at home. Pretty good for an old gal!
foodielovesfitness says
Ahh yes, no wonder why I was scared of their fat content until a couple years ago! They have GOOD monounsaturated fats that are supposed to be beneficial for your heart and provide an anti-inflammatory effect, which can be good for people who constantly have inflammation going on in their bodies (cough cough!!!).
Nikki @ Nikki Rae Ink says
That’s great! I’ve seen so many green juice recipes, what do you put in yours?
I really need to up the amount I work out. I’m impressed with how much you exercise. I’m working on getting to that level.
foodielovesfitness says
Thanks, Nikki! I appreciate the compliment.
Usually my green juices include an apple and some sort of power greens like spinach & kale, and then I’ll add other stuff I have around. Lately my favorite is a green lemonade juice, which also has pear, cucumber, lemon & mint.