SW: Week 2 Report!

Six Weeks: Plant-based diet: no dairy, no meat, no processed foods, no beer.

Two weeks in, I feel FANTASTIC. At this point, the food choices feel so natural, and processed foods sound disgusting. I had simply Heinz ketchup last week and found it gross, sugary, and fake tasting. I'm craving whole, real foods, and my body is completely thanking me for the change! So far, I've lost about 7 lbs, and 1 inch around my belly (under belly button at widest place).. that inch is the biggest deal to me. In the past, no matter how much poundage I've dropped, I've always had that pesky inner-tube of belly fat. The more I study, the more I've learned that the tube is proof of unhealthy eating and non-ideal personal body fat.

Another big change for me is how I feel in my clothes. I'm not avoiding my more form-fitting shirts, and I feel comfortable to be wearing a tight-fitting tank top for the first time in a very long time. I have energy, I'm wanting more and more exercise and classes naturally. This is the best thing that has ever happened to me health-wise, and coupled with my love for teaching spin, I'm quite the happy fit-bug! I am actually excited for summer and bikini weather this year, and I don't ever want to stop eating this way because I feel so great. Everything just works when you properly nourish your body and DETOXIFY. If you think I'm crazy, try it. Commit to 6 weeks and then talk to me. Tell me you don't love yourself and your life after only a couple weeks, and I will be absolutely shocked. As for me, bring on the fruits and veggies!!!

♥AshPiece 

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Spin Playlist: Jump-Insanity Ride

There has been some interest from students for a blog in which I post my spin class playlists... I've felt this blog transform into a health-related space, so I've decided further the transformation and add some spin pieces!!

Here's my first playlist posting: It's a class that kicks butt in the opening with 3 intense out-of-the-saddle songs in a row before working on any climbs. Here are the tracks:

Jump-Insanity Ride!

Warm-up: Parachute -Ingrid Michaelson
SexyBack -Justin Timberlake (ft. Timbaland)
Ain't Nothing Wrong With That -Robert Randolph & The Family Band
Domino -Jessie J
Pass At Me -Timbaland (ft. Wisin & Yandel)
Take On Me -A-ha
5 O'clock -T Pain (ft. Wiz Khalifa & Lily Allen)
Halo / Walking on Sunshine -Glee Cast
Imma Be -Black Eyed Peas
Under Pressure -Boyz II Men
Yeah/Toxic mash-up -Britney Spears & Usher
Cool-down: Rhythm of Love -Plain White T's

Enjoy!!

♥AshPiece 

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SW: Day 1 Musings

source

Six Weeks: Day 1.....

Piece of cake (without the cake). It's not far off from what I've been doing, just a little added structure. I love the image above because it's exactly what I've discovered by actually living it. I exercise SO MUCH, and yet my body has not been at it's optimal place. What I really needed was KNOWLEDGE and motivation. I made a booklet for daily motivation and to keep track of my progress:

I was going to do weekly weigh-ins, which I still am, but today I'm already 2.5 lbs down from yesterday...! Probably water weight as I'm consuming WAY less salt (I've had a tortilla chip addiction as of late). I feel fantastic! I didn't eat nearly enough yesterday, so I'm going to buy more fruits and veggies today.  The biggest difference here from when I went "vegan" for a month in college is that I am avoiding processed foods all together. The salad (veggies) is always the main course, and fruits are my sweets! So far, so good!

p.s. I taught 2 spin classes yesterday and had more/as much energy as ever!

♥AshPiece 

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80% Diet: 20% Exercise

Nobody's lying when they give you a stat somewhere around there. I'm living proof. Since I've completely turned my life around and been an exercise fanatic AND spinning instructor, I've discovered some interesting things. I still have super-pudgy sections after over 10 MONTHS of regularly, and vigorously, exercising 4-7 times per week. At first, I lost about 15 lb, then gained back a few (probably muscle), and I've now plateaued around about 10lbs lower from starting weight. The old me would say, "Great, my body doesn't want to lose any more and I'm stuck here because of genetics and such..." W. R. O. N. G.

"As a good rule of thumb: for optimal health and longevity, a man should not have more than one-half inch of skin that he can pinch near his umbilicus (belly button) and a woman should not have more than one inch. Almost any fat on the body over this minimum is a health risk." 

-Eat to Live

I have beyond that^, and that is what scares me. I think there is a lot that goes into it for me, so I'm going on a structured 6-week plan/experiment to see what I can do to that inner-tube around my mid-section. I don't think this will be too difficult for me, because throughout Lent, I did do a lot of this (fruits and veggies), but I still included whatever I wanted on many occasions... however, when I was on a total Eat to Live day, I felt AMAZING. I just think I need some structure and a goal to really commit to developing the good habits. I'm in this for longevity and quality of life, and to adopt healthy habits NOW, as opposed to my 40's and on when I'll truly be paying for all that pizza and sugar.

6 Clean Weeks Start TODAY:
-As many fruit & vegetables as I can possibly consume
-No animal products (meat or dairy)
-NO BEER.

I think my new-found taste for beer has something to do with this too, so if I do want a drink, I'm gonna stick to my old-fave, red wine, but I'm still not drinking very much AT ALL on this. I have a lot to say about all of this, but I clearly have time to share (42 days!). For now, if you'd like to understand what it is I'm so adamant about, you can begin by watching this:

It's easier than asking you to read a whole book because... it's 90 minutes on Netflix instant. Just watch it to understand some things about food, I promise I'm not trying to make anyone into a crazy health-nut (unless you want to be), but I do think everyone deserves to know the truth about how these daily decisions affect your life and your health. It will give you the gist, so if you do become super-interested in this stuff like me, you can head on over to Eat to Live (and/or numerous other books) and read your little heart out!

More to come on my food journey...

♥AshPiece 

Back to the Blog with a Book!

I wrote an entire new blog post with all of my New Years resolutions, but didn't post it. I don't think it's that interesting... but I will say that goal-setting has served me well! I have a whole new set and just keep working at it here in NYC!

Something I am starting is eating HEALTHIER throughout lent. I have been reading this book:

...and it is seriously rocking my WORLD. I've grown up so confused and frustrated with nutrition because as a young ballerina, I became aware of my body at a young age, and never truly understood it all... there are so many LIES out there that we are taught by the media and even in SCHOOL. No wonder we are one of the least-healthy countries in the world. I have tried the stupidest things to get my body to where I know it should be. Dr. Fuhrman explains why diets fail, and why there's only one way out that makes your body lean, healthy, and defensive against illnesses and cancer. This is the real deal. No really... don't be fooled by the flashy phrases on the cover; this is a knowledgeable, scientific book all about nutrition (in depth). My scientist sister-in-law suggested it to me so there ya go. :) My biggest goal with this is not to focus on superficial gains, but that I am fueling my body in a way that it can function the way that God designed it to. I'm eating as much as I possibly can, and just making sure that most of it is all natural fruits and vegetables.. my biggest hurdle here is cutting back on cheese and grains. I love them.. AH! Here we go....!

♥AshPiece  

How to Love Moe?

My journey has continued a great deal, and I've been learning a lot... so why haven't I been blogging?? I have no idea...

I'm going to illustrate my thoughts today by telling a fictitious example story, because when imagining how to describe with he/she/them's I got really overwhelmed... :)

I have been friends, acquaintances, and even in deeply-close relationships with people like "Moe." Moe continuously goes through life expecting the worst to happen to him. Every day, saying that something awful will happen, and surprisingly (though not so much), it does! With these low expectations in life, one would expect Moe to be prepared and handle the hardships he asks the universe for well, however this is not the case. Moe is extremely shocked whenever life throws him a curve-ball, and *get this* blames everyone around him for his misfortune. It is a truly tragic story. Moe is unhappy. Moe chooses to stay unhappy. Moe makes everyone around him, strangers and loved ones alike, unhappy, and Moe cannot figure out why he returns, time and time again, to this miserable state of being.

Those who care about Moe can see this, but are completely helpless, because conditions like these can ONLY be truly resolved from within. Moe may find a good day, week, or few months in a new distraction, but the lack of true self-awareness, realization, and understanding will make any sense of happiness fleeting and unstable. The worst part about this is that in the process of hurting himself, Moe also hurts and pushes away all of the people near and dear to him. He lives a life of constant destruction, like the Tasmanian Devil, tearing through people (even innocent strangers) haphazardly, and ending up standing alone, in the middle of the bloody rubble, angry at his victims, and still completely clueless to his true problems.

We all have a little Moe in us from time to time, and I know we all know or have known and loved a Moe before in our journey. I haven't quite figured out how to handle the Moe's in my life yet. I truly believe that this is a lot of what I am meant to be exploring right now. The only conclusion I have right now is to continue to express love to them as best I can, without subjecting myself to their abuse. Unfortunately, I have a complete set of issues that directly clash with true Moe's, so I have a really hard time knowing how to handle them. One thing I do know is that everybody needs, deserves and desires love, and although Moe's don't express love well at all, they still need it. Love is about giving, and not expecting anything in return. When it is returned, that is true beauty, but even when it is not... it is good and right to love.

This is something I have to train and re-train myself over and over. It is so easy to get self-righteous and give up on people because they have wronged you and what-not, but true character is shown in the difficult times, not the easy.

love. love. LOVE.

♥AshPiece