Happy Birthday to Me

So today is my 31st birthday...I don't feel any older, and quite frankly feel younger than I did when I was 21. I'm in a lot better shape, y'all I wish I had my old pics somewhere. I think around 2001 I gave up on dropping the weight and trashed all my old pictures. I'm glad I didn't give up, I don't know when it hit but in May of 2006 was when I had my weight loss epiphany. I never thought I could control my portion sizes...one day I said 'f' it and started going to 5-6 smaller meals a day. That did the trick for me, I stopped feeling hungry and overindulging. At the peak I know that I weighed 178lbs, this was in 2000. I could have weighed more but that is the highest I ever knew of. In 2001 I got down to 155lbs with exercise alone. But I couldn't ever break the plateau. Between 2001 and 2006 I hovered between 155 and 165lbs. On May 14, 2006 I weighed 165lbs. By late Summer 2006 I was down to 145lbs. PORTION CONTROL was my friend. In the Fall I got engaged to the hubs but I was feeling a plateau, I had lifted weights a lot in high school so I started adding weight training back into my routine.

By the time we were married I'd gotten down to 135lbs and felt great. I don't really consider myself to be in a 'maintenance' mode. I honestly don't want to necessarily lose weight. I want to get stronger. I want my muscles stronger for lifting and running. I want my mind stronger for learning. I try hard to keep my nutrition in line because I straight up feel better when I eat better. I know that the number hasn't really changed on the scale over the last 2.5 years but I see the differences, I feel the differences in my performance.

So yeah, that was one big useless tangent. LOL. I guess it was just a recap of where I am today...

For breakfast this morning I had a big Green Monster. Same ingredients as yesterday. I have a small sample of PB2, how should I use it? I was thinking in a Green Monster, or maybe mixed with some greek yogurt and puffins? Any ideas?

For my snack I had greek yogurt, pb puffins, kashi heart to heart, and strawberries.

For my lunch I am going to eat leftovers of the delicious cheesy chicken shells from last night.

I have an amazing workout planned for after work, I wrote it all out even! Here it is, obvi weights could change.

Cardio: 5 minute warm up on tread (varied speeds)

Dip assist machine 3x10 @ 30lbs
DB Shoulder press 3x10 @ 25lb dbs

Cardio: 5 minutes gradually increasing incline @ 7.0mph

Leaning lateral raises 3x10 @ 10lb db
Supine chest press 3x10 @ 25lb dbs

Cardio: 5 minutes of speed intervals (7.0 for 40 seconds/9.0 for 20 seconds repeat)

Frog crunches 3x15
Bicycle crunches 3x25

Cardio: 15 or 20 minutes of moderate running (7.0mph or so). Depending on how much time I have and how I feel.

I almost forgot! I have a couple of new songs on my little iPod Shuffle too, I love when a new song comes on. Here are my new faves:

• El Gitano Del Amor by Latin Soul Syndicate
• Love, Sex, and Magic by Ciara (feat. Justin Timberlake - yum)
• Whatcha Think About That by The Pussycat Dolls (feat. Missy Elliott)
  

Okay I'm going to go make my lunch in a few! Have a good afternoon all!