PIYO Challenge Diary: Week 3 of 8

This week's workouts:
M: PIYO Define: Upper Body - Bright idea to arrange my 2 yoga mats in a '+' configuration, so when side plank series happens, I can swing sideways to face the TV and get a better view; hopefully that will help me get the hang of it.
T: PIYO Buns - Kicked my butt and I loved it!
W: PIYO Core - Not sure those side plank series + roll ups are getting any better?
F: PIYO Define: Lower Body - last time! Switched to Friday, because we met up with friends for dinner Thursday evening. Had a pretty frustrating workday on Friday, and this was the first time since starting PIYO that I really didn't want to do it, but I ignored my bad mood and got it done.
S: PIYO Sweat - Getting the hang of this one...which means I am working harder.
S: PIYO Strength Intervals - New one! Intense, but short. Had my shoes on for this one, and decided I had enough left in me for a short treadmill walk; may have been a mistake.


Let's talk about food...

JavaChick food facts:

• I prefer to eat vegetarian until dinner time; if I am on my own and don't have to worry about feeding Husband, there is a good chance that dinner will also be vegetarian. This is partly ethical, and partly personal preference (I don't like meat that much, and eating a lot of it doesn't sit well in my stomach).
• Breakfast is optional. For a long time I tried to force myself, because 'thou shalt eat breakfast' is one of the healthy living commandments. Thing is, I rarely feel hungry first thing in the morning and I don't like forcing myself to eat. Now I try to go with how I'm feeling.
• I am a picky eater. There are a lot of things I just don't like. Fortunately, I do love salad!

JavaChick and the official PIYO eating plan:

• Follow a formula to calculate a calorie range; from there you count servings of food. I like this idea in theory. 
• The food categories are Primary Vegetables, Secondary Vegetables and Grains, Fresh Fruit, Lean Protein and Healthy fats. 
• Secondary Vegetables and Grains is where I ran into trouble; in my calorie range, I get 2 servings. They include quinoa, beans and legumes in this category. Being vegetarian-ish, I tend to  consume these things with whole grains for protein (Fun Fact: if you read the Shakeology bag, they include Quinoa, Amaranth, and Pea Protein in their protein blend). Also? If you want almond or coconut milk in your smoothie, it comes from this category.
• This made me feel frustrated before I even started; possibly it is me just being whine-y, I don't know.
• The plan also has you eating 3 meals and 2 snacks - I've tried this before and I don't find it works for me, though I know many people swear by it.
• To be clear: I don't necessarily think this a bad eating plan, it's just difficult for me with all of my little food idiocyncrasies. I just want to dump quinoa on my salad and count it as a protein darnit!

JavaChick's main healthy eating goals:

• Cut out most of the processed stuff. There is a lot of snack food stocked in our work kitchen. When they first started with that, I avoided it...but gradually, over time, I gave in. I was finding that I am eating popcorn or chips (small bags) every day, whether I'm actually hungry or not. I know I can stop, because I have before; I just have to state with certainty that I am giving it up...So that's what I am doing at the moment.
• Still not loving the Shakeology, but sticking with it for a bit longer to see if it does anything for me.
• Lots of healthy stuff, watch the portions, pay attention to hunger cues.

Honestly, if I can stick to that last point, I have found that weight will start coming off - slowly, but without my feeling like I am on a diet. It's the paying attention that is not always easy.

How things are going:

Went into this plan just as I was coming off vacation. Toward the end of our vacation, we were eating a lot of crap. I felt ready to get back to normal eating. My weight was a couple of pounds higher than the high end of my usual range.

Week 1: I started with determination to make the PIYO plan work. I also wanted to make sure that I was not tempted to get into the snacks at work. So, I was bringing a shake for breakfast, salad + protein for lunch, and then fruit + nuts, veggies + hummus for a snack. I felt like I was eating all day. I felt stuffed all the time.  I realize to some people, that might not sound like it should be too much food, but it was definitely not working for me. Plus, the counting for the  plan was just not working for me. I can't get past the 2 Secondary Vegetables and Grains...

Week 2: No change in weight from Week 1. I'm feeling like I can't make the PIYO plan work as is. I look at calorie counts for things I would normally eat and see if I can swap some things around. But then, that's not really following the plan is it? Maybe I could log my food in myfitnesspal just to make sure I stay in the range...Basically, I was all over the place and ended up doing nothing! I just ate the way I would normally eat. I had shakes Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

Week 3: Weight is back down in normal range. I can see the difference in the mirror. I feel better! Had shakes for breakfast. Tracked in myfitnesspal, up until Thursday when we went out for dinner. Husband brought home Cheetos on Friday. I ate the Cheetos. I did secure agreement not to do that again next weekend.

I was really happy with the first part of this week, and it came easy. Things tend to go off track on the weekends, and I need to work on that.

So, goals for the coming week:

• Repeat first half of this past week!
• Stay on track as we roll into the weekend! 
• That might be a challenge, now that I think of it, as we do have friends coming to visit...
• No Cheetos for breakfast! How is that for a goal?