Small Steps

The pounds might not be melting off like I had visioned, but with a few lifestyle changes here and there it will happen! I am confident! I just can't find the motivation to make all the lifestyle changes at once that eventually need to happen.  I know what I need to do, I know what works best for me but it has to be when I am ready! All the support and encouragement that I do have is definitely helping though!

Last week, I decided to try out this new ab workout.  Let. Me. Tell. You...It was not easy and I was in so much pain a few days that I just wanted to cry.  I did take a day or two off but I am back at it and I can STILL feel the muscles I didn't know existed.  I am yet to complete the complete workout but like I said, small steps.  The complete workout is 10 exercises with 25 reps and one exercise with 50 which equals 300 abdominal exercises!! THREE-HUNDRED! Try it.  Try just one and let me know how you feel. I have been doing 6 or 7 of the exercises and about 20-25 reps of each.  I will get there, just have to keep pushing through.  The link I provided explains each exercise very clearly and provides multiple pictures.  After {my} one week of doing these exercises I can tell a difference, imagine what you would feel like after a month, or two months... I will be adding pictures of the progress soon!! Make sure you are subscribed so you don't miss any updates :)

The other thing I tried a few days last week was making smoothies for breakfast.  It actually was very filling, taste great, was easy to make and didn't take a long time. 

First, I take a grind up 2 Tablespoons of oats and 2 Tablespoons of protein powder...

Then I added 1 Cup of Almond Milk (use your favorite though) and as much frozen fruit until it was the consistency that I wanted.  I used a tropical blend because it was what I had and needed to use but once again use your favorite fruits.  {Smoothies are a great and EASY way to sneak in vegetables because you will get all the vitamins but the fruit will be your flavor.  Kale and spinach are wonderful in smoothies...don't knock it until you try it.}

This smoothie got me through until lunch without feeling hungry. What are your favorite smoothie recipes?  I also have many more and would be willing to share if anyone is interested.

This past week I also set a goal of drinking 100oz of water daily.  Drinking the water not only keeps me full and from snacking on unwanted calories but also keeps my system flushed out and healthy.  I can definitely tell a difference in skin and just my overall well being when I increase my water intake.  With the Waterlogged app on iPhone it makes it easy to track.  There is also a great app on android but I am not recalling at the moment.  How much water to you drink daily?

Life is a journey, enjoy the ride...This is Stephanie see you next time.

Best Friend Chats Over Dinner

Just me today...

For dinner while Lesley was visiting I made a Baked Cheesy Chicken Penne.  You can find the original recipe {here}.  This was super easy, I was able to make it ahead of time and put in the refrigerator until we were ready to bake and eat, but I did make a few changes...(I guess I have a little of my mother in me).  First, I used 1/2 of everything that the recipe called for since I was only making it for two people, but this still would have been plenty for four people.  I also used almond milk instead of whole milk.  I never have whole milk, I don't even like it.  Honestly, I do not drink much milk at all.  I keep almond, coconut or soy milk around just to have for my morning cup of tea and smoothies.  Ever since I switched I can tell a difference and I prefer the "milk substitutes" {I guess you can take this as a warning if I ever cook for you}

Ok, we took a little detour from dinner, are you back with me? 

The sauce did not become thick like it was suppose to because of the almond milk, but I figured after mixing the pasta in the sauce and baking it would still taste great.  I didn't tell Lesley about my substitution {secret} until she tasted the dinner.  Right away she says, "this is awesome and I am not just saying that." She did ask what the sweeter taste was though and when I explained I used almond milk, she wasn't turned off but agreed that it still turned out very good.

 We added garlic bread and best friend chats and it equaled a great evening.  In hindsight I should have made a vegetable too, I need to get better at this :) Probably not the best dinner for counting calories but also not the worst.  I am all about eating what you want in moderation.  Don't deprive yourself of something but also don't eat the entire row of cookies in one sitting.  You can be healthy and lose weight while still treating yourself from time to time. Be conscious of what you eat and  be honest to yourself hence the importance of keeping a food journal.  

Life is a journey, enjoy the ride...This is Stephanie see you next time.

Best Friends with a Plan

Lesley and Stephanie here for your reading pleasure entertainment {that sounded a little too Fifty Shades for us....let's keep it PG}.  We are super stoked about our new blog that we are starting together.  We hope to share with you {or the world, because we are going to be famous one day}, our adventures in the kitchen, in the gym, and as two best friends, through new recipes, butts and guts, and lots of candid photos.

Our friendship started 10 years ago as freshmen at USI. I was roommates with Lesley's hometown friends and Lesley would stop by to visit and catch up with her buddies.  Right off the bat, Lesley and I had something in common - our major in college, which was Biology.  However, at this point, we were only acquaintances.  It wasn't until our junior year of college that we reconnected in a psychology class-over a play-dough vagina {Yep, that's right, a play-dough vagina, thanks to the bizarre antics of our Human Sexuality Professor.  But no worries, we both have sexy men in our lives!}  This re-connection was not only where our real friendship began, it was also a unique happening because we both changed our majors to Psychology without knowing the other one changed as well.  Basically the rest is history, but through our future posts you will experience our struggles and victories with us, and see what makes us the best of friends today!

Our Pinterest addiction fueled this best friend blog idea because of all the new recipes we wanted to try and share with each other.  We also have a very good friend getting married in less than three months which motivated both of us to drop some poundage.  So what better than to talk about food and gettin' skinny.  Since we do not live in the same town we thought a blog would be another way to keep in touch and hold each other accountable by sharing it with the world cellulite and all!  So buckle your seat-belts and get ready to share in our weekly weight updates, kitchen disasters and laughable moments along the way.  Feel free to leave comments and encouragement to keep us going!

Blogging at the gym is a good start, right?!

Life is a journey, enjoy the ride...This is Stephanie and Lesley see you next time.