Experiment-Cinnamon Coffee Cake

I REALLY should stay off of youtube.  I think I can kiss my dietbet challenge goodbye.  I've been in winter mode for a few weeks now and today's weather is just adding to my lazy chromosome.

I found this recipe on Divas Can Cook youtube channel.  What I liked about it was all the flavors of coffee cake in a simple pan form.  Mine didn't turn out as pretty as her's, but its still darn good.

I didn't use my mixer so it wasn't as whipped as her end batter.  I didn't really see that using a mixer was needed because the butter was melted so there wasn't the usual butter/sugar mixing until fluffy that is the baking rule in most recipes.  I added some nutmeg to the cake batter and didn't level off the cinnamon used for the cinnamon paste portion.  I love cinnamon and sometimes measured spices are somewhat weak.  I used more cream cheese (4 ounces) in the frosting cause it seemed too thin.

The end result was light, buttery and full of cinnamonie goodness!  I highly recommend it!

Experiment-Apple Cider Spiced Donuts

I really should stay off of youtube.  That has been my go to place for watching vlogs, looking up recipes and getting tips for just about anything that tickles my fancy.

I'm in love with Laura Vitale's channel at the moment.  She makes lots of yummy stuff and one that caught my eye is Apple Cider Spiced Donuts.  The only thing I don't like is that she makes you go to her website to get the actual measurements for the ingredients instead of placing them in the "about" section on youtube.

Here are some pics of the finished product in my fancy new donut pans.  One is mini and the other is regular sized.  The pic on the right shows the donuts frosted.












House Review:
The cake was good and light.  They did have a good flavor, but I think I will increase the spice mix if I make these again.  These totally needed the frosting.  The frosting really complimented and added to the overall flavor of the cake.  My frosting is thicker than on Laura's youtube channel.  If it turned out thinner I would've dipped the cake twice.

Food Experiment-Nature Box!

I found out about a deal on Nature Box online for which I basically just paid tax.  In exchange for my paltry sale I received a lovely cardboard box filled with 5 bags of snack goodness.  The items I received were fresh and very good.  So good that I took the bait and kept the subscription.

Chat about the products in this order.....
I am now holding an empty bag of Pistachio Power Clusters which are "nut squares with almonds, cashews and pistachios".  This was the only item I felt slighted because there should be more squares in this bag.

Masa Crisps-These are small sized corned chips with flax seeds.  The flax seeds are whole and everything I've read says to get the benefits they should be ground.  On this point I am unsure as I've seen them used whole in other snacks as well.  My only problem with these are that they are a bit salty.

Cherry Berry Bonanza-A mix of dried cherries, blueberries and cranberries.  I didn't try these, but my mom loved it.  So much I felt guilty placing another order and not including these so I had to go back and add on.

Vanilla Macaroon Granola-O.M.G.!  This is what granola should taste like.  Very flavorful with vanilla and shaved coconut.  I think this is my favorite out of the pack!  Well, this and the pistachio power clusters are neck and neck I think.

Roasted Kettle Kernels-Honey coated toasted corn.  I never had corn nuts and these were quite good.  I don't care for the ingredient maltodextrin so I won't be ordering these again.

My first order was a trial of preselected snacks.  Although I didn't get to pick my items I do not regret trying this service. 

If you'd like to try it out, please feel free to use my shareable coupon code for $10 off E8FDG

Oxygen Mag is Back!

My favorite magazine publication is back in action.  It went under with the death of Robert Kennedy. It was bought by a media group and has resumed publication.  I received my issue in the mail and was very shocked to see it.  Click on the image to go to the website.

This magazine got me started in appreciating weight lifting as well as a different physical form that I was used to seeing in magazines like Shape.

Off to read my issue!

Dietbet---Round 2!

I joined another dietbet using the winnings from the first one.  I thinks its kind of addictive to fight the odds and lose weight at the same time.  I actually joined two dietbets which start within two days of each other so it stands to reason if I win one I'll win the other too.  Can we say...moo money! 

I actually joined one early on and bailed.  I didn't feel like my head was all there and that group was kinda boring.  I encourage trash talk, suggestions, discussion, etc, but none of that was happening and I wasn't engaged.  The two that I'm in now are all of these things.  Strangely these bets will take me into early December which means they are going on during Thanksgiving.  I'm either going to have to exercise more or really limit what I eat.  Who does this during the holidays!!

Gettin' My Fitness On!

I broke my mental exercise barrier...yay!!  I did a fantastic workout on youtube by Keaira LaShae.  I've been looking at a lot of your workouts and even joined DailyBurn when I saw she was an instructor.  More on DailyBurn later. 

It amazes me how stiff I became after my three weeks of inactivity.  I probably was just loosening up when I suddenly stopped three weeks ago.  I guess this puts me back to square one.  If only we'd remember these feelings as its happening and not just in hindsight things would probably be given more rational consideration.  Anywho....Keaira is a fantastic dancer and has been doing it for years so I will never be flexible like her.  She is inspiring to watch, encouraging and just plain fun.  Give it a go!

Dietbet Update-Success!!

Be warned that this is a long post....

On September 22 I joined a Dietbet hosted by Jillian Michaels.  The bet was $30 to lose 4% body weight in 4 weeks.  If you are successful you split the pot with the rest of the winners.  If not, hopefully you've gained some insight into what is needed to be help you accomplish your goals.  Below is a screenshot of the amount of the pot and number of players.  If everyone is successful, we would break even....but that wasn't the case.  More on my winnings after the game is finalized.

Social weight loss.....
This platform was totally new to me.  The financial aspect was the driving force at first, but then you post whatever you would like to talk about and other people respond.  It can be a quick update or you could post that you are dying for a donut or that you are having an emotional trial.  Whatever it is, someone was always there to try to snap you back on course.  If you didn't want the world to read your response, you could post a note on someone else's personal board.  How awesome is that?! The biggest part is learning that you were never alone.  Participants had the opportunity to post via smartphone, iphones and a general internet browser.

The process....
You can join a dietbet, but you are unable to post until you process your payment.  After you join you complete your assessment which includes your starting weight, a few quick facts about yourself and the required pictures.  You must submit a full body shot picture with you on the scale and a picture of your feet on the scale with the secret word that is given to you.  So, you can not use a picture that you took earlier this year and claim that as your winning weight...nope!  You can lock your pictures if you don't want anyone on the boards to see them.

You can also invite people through facebook to join in on the dietbet.  I only joined facebook for coupons so I didn't have anyone to invite. 

As the days go by you are encouraged to submit a non-official weigh in.  It seems this is done to help you be aware of your progress or lack thereof. 

 My weight loss method.....
I learned about intermittent fasting by way of a youtube podcast from the Hodgetwins.  Now, before you go off looking for them on youtube just know that they have several channels and one of them is dedicated to intermittent fasting and and there's another for their gym workouts.  They are cut throat, use profanity, but mostly helpful.  From their channel I went out and learned a little more about intermittent fasting.  The format I chose is a 16 hour fast and a 8 hour eating window.  I did not calculate my calories, but I did eliminate certain items like soda, fried foods, breads, and most junk food.  My diet was not low fat or low carb.  I did make a point of eating mostly nutritious foods and by the end of my eating cycle I was full.

My take on intermittent fasting is that I wish I would've learned about it a while ago.  It is most definitely one of the most valuable tools I've come across in losing weight.  I feel that it allowed my body to thoroughly process the food that I gave it throughout the day.  TMI WARNING.....I was not gassy at all, bowel elimination was very productive and I didn't feel bogged down.  I could also tell when I didn't drink enough water as I felt not quite right.

My workout.....
I don't know about the masses, but calorie reduction along with exercise is the key for me in my body releasing its fat storage.  I took daily long walks at work. I finally started using my gym membership and took advantage of the many classes that are offered.  I went about 3-4 classes a week and each are about 50-60 minutes.  Ok, more 3x's a week than 4.  I burn mad calories during these classes...between 700-1000 calories.

My results.....
I started with a weight of 201.8 and finished with a weight of 191.8 in 4 weeks time. My goal weight was 193.7, but I passed that!  My bmi went from 32% to 30%...woohoo!

Would I do it again....
It is nice to be involved in a stream where everyone has a common goal.  It is beneficial when people make use of the social function of the board and take the time to post.  You can mark people as friends or make personal notes for their eyes only.  I really liked all of these features and I think this helped in keeping me focused.  I would surely do it again in the near future.  Many other bets have been started by some of the members of the dietbet that I was in, but I feel I need a time to relax a bit.  The dietbet is indeed a bit
 stressful because if you slack too much before you know it time is up and you've not lost anything.  I do highly recommend it for anyone that's on the fence of testing the waters.

My winnings.....
I'll complete this later when the game finalizes.  People have until midnight to post and they have 48 hours which will be by Friday-Saturday.  I guess if weekend days aren't counted then its by Monday.

Drum roll.....
For a bet of $30 my total winnings are $49.32!  So 49.32-30.00=19.32
Out of  7,625 participants that joined the bet 3,624 won and 3,999 lost.  Dietbet will get a cut of the overall bet as well as the host.

I've already joined another bet for November using my winnings!!

Work dem abs!

This is a short and sweet post.
Working my abs is the last thing I do, if I work them at all.
I found this instruction video on youtube which sheds light on the actual muscle contraction.
I found this most helpful then aimlessly doing situps.

Intermittent Fasting Review

So yesterday was the first day of my intermittent fasting.  I've concluded that I can't do it everyday.  I think I'll do it on the days that I'm not exercising or exercise in the morning.  By the afternoon I felt famished.  It was like a void that I couldn't fill.  I ate a hearty lunch and then proceeded to snack on almonds.  It ended up being more than one serving.  I will say there was definitely a digestive benefit as I didn't feel weighed down.  And a bit of t.m.i. here, but elimination seemed to increase.  That's a strange benefit.  Although, I had nothing but water the first part of the day so maybe that was it.

Today I'm going to zumba this evening and decided I needed the calorie energy so no fast today.  Although since I stopped eating at 5pm yesterday and didn't eat again until 10am this morning that can be considered my fasting time.  I ended up not eating dinner because with all my snacking at work I felt full so I didn't have a desire to eat dinner. 

I'm actually looking forward to my zumba class tonite.

DietBet-Jillian Michaels.....

The contest starts today!  Yay!!  I joined a few weeks ago and have been impatiently waiting for the start date.  As of this morning the pot is $200,850 with 6,695 players!  That is crazy high compared to the other dietbets that have been held.  It is statistically unlikely that everyone will reach the goal of losing 4% in 4weeks.  I like the format in that your able to post a thought or comment on someone else's post right on the dietbet website.  What I don't like is my job has the dietbet website blocked because it has the word "bet".....boohissss!  So if I want to check it out during my workday I have to use my phone.

Let the games begin.....
I officially submitted my full body picture and my scale weight picture.  We also had to submit our beginning weight and the game tells you how much 4% is.  My beginning weight is 201.8 and my winning weight would be 193.7.  The game also reports the current BMI and has marked me as clinically obese at 32%.  It also has a daily calorie goal based on your weight.

Before I joined dietbet I started on my own workout journey and changed my eating habits.  Eliminating items such as soda and next will be fruit juice.  Actually, I haven't eliminated much but I will be sporadically eating things I deem not on the healthy side....ex. fried chicken.  I did have some last week and didn't eat much of it.  I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would.  I guess my taste buds are changing already.

Last night I went to the movies and didn't have ANY popcorn, soda or candy.  Ok, so my friends and I sat there eating our chinese take out, but still no junk food whatsoever.  Not having popcorn is huge for me when I'm at the cinema so I gave myself a congrats pat on the back for that one.

Ok, so from dinner last night I'm feeling a little bloated today.  I've been researching intermittent fasting and with this bloated feeling it seems like the perfect day to start.  I'm going to do this for the remainder of this week and see how it goes.  Hmm, maybe I'll do a video log because there doesn't seem to be many of my size on youtube.  Food for thought.

Fitness is a #@%.....

I knew I was out of shape but goodness grief.  Yesterday I took a dance class and after I bailed at the 30 minute mark I got on the elliptical for a few minutes.  Today my body feels like it used to when I did a new weight workout.  My lats feel worked, my booty feels worked and I'm remembered of the soreness every time I get up from my office chair or reach for something.  This alone should make me remember why I should always move forward instead of repeating this story.  Meaning, getting in shape and slacking and eventually stopping and repeat.

On my way.....

Happy Monday!

Workouts.....
I tried a cardio jam class today.  The warm up had moves from turbo jam so I think this is a spin off of that format.  It was way more intense than the beachbody program I'm used to.  The class lasted an hour and I bailed after 30 minutes.  The format of the class I can grow with, but the instructor had the music much too loud.  I was chatting with a student and she tells me that the Wednesday zumba class is highly recommended. There's a body work class that I want to try.  It's a weight class and I like weights more than cardio so I want to give this class a try.

Diet....
Is on point!  I made a couple of meals yesterday, bought veggies which is broccoli slaw and salad mix to have with my roasted chicken.  I also made beef cubes which I can have with either potato or brown rice.

Dietbet....
The start date is close.  I can not wait to officially start simply because I've been reading the posts and anxiety level is up.

Off to chill and finish watching The Dome.

Fitness Renewed!

Soooo.......
Today I went to the gym!!  I've been paying for a membership for months and had never been.  I took a zumba class and OMG!!  I thought I was gonna do some fun dancing, smile a lot with some fun music and just get a mild glistening on my skin from these cutey moves.  The ten minute warmup had me wondering if the workout had actually started, but nope.  We paused and grabbed water and then she said get the weights if you want to use them.  Ummm, weights?  For dance class?  We did some upper body basic strength moves.  Okay, so I know this for next time.  Them we went back to dancing and the music got fast....faster and (let me just walk in place till the next song) fastest song.  There was this one girl that totally stopped when she didn't want to do the moves, but I did not take that stance.  I kept moving throughout the whole workout.  Yes, I'm giving myself a high five!


What I learned from today's zumba experience is that I have no rhythm and two left feet.  I haven't ruled it out of my routine because I like to dance...even with my two left feet.  Tomorrow's class is kickbox cardio.

Stay tuned!

So......

I've been on a long hiatus from this blog.  I'm not even sure why.  I did find it therapeutic to write my thoughts so I'm not sure why I strayed.

Lately, I've been thinking about my health, lack of movement, feeling older than what I am and my food choices.  It hit me about two weeks ago.  I'm not sure what I was doing, but I remember thinking "I feel old and I don't want to feel this way".  So, right then and there is where my thought of how I wanted to live changed.

I've read other blogs that say you shouldn't get your motivation from others or depend on others for support.  However, I do like that added element.  I realize what I just said..."added".  I realized today that I can't look to my best friend as she picked up some candy while we were in a convenience store this morning.  Not that I'm the healthiest person, but we (she and I) had mirrored conversations about getting healthy.  When someone says "moderation" or 'I've been good so I can have it" these phrases don't fly for me especially if you haven't been on your program for that long to determine these things.  So I've realized that I'm on my own with this.

Fast forward two weeks and I get an email form my fav fitness personality, Jillian Michaels.  Its a newsletter introducing her dietbet program. You bet 30 and lose 4% of your body weight in 30 days and the winners split the pot.  The pot has grown over the past few days and I'm actually excited to start.  I'll be posting my journey here.  If I can stick with this then I will be well on my way to a great start in my goal of reducing body fat.  The game starts on the September 22 and runs until October 22.  One blog I read this lady wrote in her mind its like giving the money away to a stranger and that was unacceptable to her.  She worked hard and won the game based on that principal alone.  The financial part is an incentive, but the health benefits outweighs this for sure.

I've been paying for a gym membership since February I think.  Ask me how often I've been there...answer is a big fat ZERO!  I have many things at home where a gym membership is not needed, but I joined to get out of the house.  I'm gonna work on this.  I do take walks, but I know in my heart that is not enough.  I also know I'm capable of doing more.  Writing this down for all to see is my therapy for the day on this.

Moving forward......