Enders_Shadow's Group - eating clean & getting lean - FULL (Page 5)

Kristen- congrats on your PR! Great way to start off the new year. 

It looks like everyone is off to a great start. 

1. Have you started eating clean? I've started cleaning up my diet and making better choices. I'm going to start eating my definition of clean tomorrow- Friday. Which basically means fueling my body properly throughout the day. Restricting or eliminating foods has never worked for me. If anything it just makes me crave those foods and sets me up for failure. I've always had better success adding healthy food choices

2. Success over the holiday. I was able to maintain my weight (128) without gaining over the holidays. Also during that time I enjoyed eating foods that we normally don't eat or have around. 

3. Goals for the year: Increasing sleep from 5-6 hours a night to 7-8 hours a night. Increase water intake and decrease Diet Dr. Pepper consumption. Take my vitamins and iron supplements on a daily basis. Track foods with MFP and sync with Fitbit. Get down to race weight (120-123) without compromising fueling needs for workouts in the process. Limit alcohol to 1 night per week- normally this is on Friday nights out with hubby. 1 cheat meal per week. Plan and prepare foods at home to decrease chances of eating out. Explore new recipes and foods. 

Race schedule: Jan-March- Running races and building for triathlon season. March- April- Sprint or OLY first race season. Texas 70.3 or NOLA 70.3, May-July- Sprint and Oly races, August- Age Group Nationals (need to qualify early season March-May), September- HIM, November- IMAZ

4. Monthly goals: Same as yearly goals with a few additions. Add in 5 fruits or veggies per day. Pack and cook all meals for the week. Plan menu's, Weigh daily to track water. Balance nutrient intake- use MFP. Drink 8-10 glasses of water a day. Workouts are determined by my coach. 

There is STILL so much junk food in my house.  I plan to take lots of it in to work to share with my coworkers, keep some of it as treats (husband put really good dark dark chocolate bars in my stocking) but still...so much of it!  AAACCKKK!!!!

there is still an alert, however i don't think everything works too well in internet explorer.  i use google chrome and have no issues since the change.  it should be in the upper right next to "hello chichitao" and if you click on it will take you to your newest inspire.

Marilyn - I've done the Carolina Double Sprint a few times before under a different name (Kure beach Double Sprint). You swim in the ocean for 400 yards parallel to beach, stop at T1 for shoes then run 1.5 miles to T2 for your bike, ride a 7 mile out and back twice, rack bike back at T2 and put your shoes back on again for a 1.5 mile run back to T1 where you grab your goggles and jump back in the ocean for 400 yards to the finish!  I do not generally like Sprints, but I LOVE this one!!!  I have some race reports for Kure Beach Double if you care to look.

Cathy - I'm with you on the pushups and pullups!  I saw your thread in the Strength Training forum.  I started the 100 pushup challenge yesterday.  I'm not as focused on the pullups, but would like to be able to do a few.  I'm also trying a burpee challenge!  As for your PR, I'm sure you can do it!  You're already pretty close to that 2 hour mark.

Michelle - Happy belated birthday!  I am interested in the links for the coconut four/almond flour tortillas.  I sometimes make a muffin out of Flax meal, but would like to try other variations.

I ate clean yesterday, did my dumbbells in the morning, and ran 4.5 miles in the evening.  I hope to spin a little after work and maybe do some yoga tonight to loosen up my tight muscles.

i think hunger is normal when you switch to cleaner foods.  you need to eat SO MUCH MORE food to get the same amount of calories.  this is one of the things i struggle with - preparing enough snacks/meals to get me through a work day.  i like to add more calorie/nutrient dense things like almonds or peanut butter, that don't take as much space in my lunch bag.  eat a good breakfast too, that helps!  i eat eggs EVERY DAY and generally can get through to lunch without too much hunger.

I've been using UCAN http://www.generationucan.com/ very successfully for the last 2+ years. I only use liquids for all of my races from Sprint to Ironman distances. For the run portion of  HIM or IM distances, I switch over to Roctane Gu diluted in a flask.  I would highly recommend trying UCAN. My favorite flavor is Blueberry Pomegranate. I rarely use nutrition on a sprint distance race. Before the sprint, I'll make sure to eat something for breakfast a few hours before but that will be it until after the race as far as calories/food. On the bike there's always an emergency stash of GU but I don't normally use it.

When I first started racing (HIM/IM) distances my fueling plan included bars, gels and Infinit nutrition. I never really had any significant problems but it also didn't work that well either. Hammer/ Heed Products have never worked well for me. Actually the bike club still tells the story of when I threw up Perpetulum in a bush on a bike ride and then got back on bike and finished the ride. That stuff if nasty (IMO) when it gets hot down here in Texas.

During training I rarely use any nutrition products if the workout is less than 2 hours.Hence my  goal to eat properly throughout the day as to be able to fuel my workouts properly. For example I have 3 workouts today. Had to move a swim over to today because the pool was closed yesterday. Normally I wouldn't  bother to eat before swimming. But since I have a short run and then a hard bike workout today I went ahead and ate breakfast before the swim. Came home and ate some almonds and drank a fruit smoothie. That way I won't be behind nutritionally for the next 2 workouts.

I am not doing enough volume right now to need to 'fuel' my training.  Have always used just water for runs/rides up to about 90 minutes.  I have used Gatorade for runs if it is in the morning and I haven't eaten yet.  If I'm planning longer than 90 mins run or 2 hours cycle I will bring gels and and have 1/2 gel every 30 - 45 mins and drink water.  On long rides I will bring cliff bars sometimes.    For racing a sprint I would have water only, Olympic water and gels.  HIM I brought Gatorade, water and powergels on the bike, water and gel on the run.  I prefer the thicker consistency of powergel brand gels over gu but I find a whole gel packet is too much so will have only 1/2 at a time.

For people who are finding that eating 'clean' is leaving them hungry I would add a bit more protein/fat to your meals and snacks to keep you full longer.

i have been scouring pinterest for recipe ideas all week!  i have cooked so much food, and just stocked up the kitchen with good stuff.  just wanted to share with you guys my meal planning so you can hopefully be inspired!

for breakfast today i made this crustless spinach quiche - so delicious and filling, and easy too!  http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Crustless-Spinach-Quiche/Detail.aspx

for dinner tonight i had some leftover spaghetti squash so i made this dish:  http://www.thefirstmess.com/2013/03/06/spaghetti-squash-noodle-bowl-lime-peanut-sauce/

i cooked some chicken while i made dinner and will be making this simple clean chicken salad to eat for lunch at work all week:  http://becomingbetty.blogspot.com/2011/09/avocado-chicken-salad.html

monday carnitas are going in the crockpot.  i have corn tortillas to serve them with, but also might make my fake refried beans:  http://pinchofyum.com/easy-crockpot-carnitas

best thing is, none of these meals have "crazy" ingredients.  lots of citrus, standard seasonings, soy sauces.  was not really difficult to shop in my very bottom level grocery store (food lion for you mid-atlantic ppl) or already have a lot of stuff in the house.

BUON APPETIT!

Michelle - Thanks for the links!  I'd try both the tortilla and the naan bread.  Those would make good pizza disks.

George - I have a low tolerance for hunger pangs which usually derails me.  I find that drinking hot tea or hot chicken broth appeases me (often an entire carton of broth!).  Since it is hot, you are forced to sip it so it lasts longer and the amount of fluid fills my tummy. 

As for training and racing food, I use Lara Bars on long bike; sometimes Honey Stinger Waffles.  For liquid nutrition, I use a customized formula of Infinit for long bikes and runs.   Like Kristen said, it is difficult to train long without splurging on sports nutrition.  Like Rene, Anything less than 2 hrs is usually just Nuun water.  For protein powder (either before or after training, not during), I like Jay Robbs best.  It is pretty pure and natural.

Marilyn - A fellow every day egg eater!  Woot woot!  I have had them every day for years now and often again later in the day. I saw your quiche recipe; I LOVE me some spinach quiche!  I make my crustless too, but with feta cheese. Thanks for sharing your recipes.

Rene' - I have heard LOTS good things about UCAN!  Perhaps I'll give it a go.

Kriten - Sounds like you had a nice weekend celebrating your daughter's birthday! Here is a calculator to help you figure out your calorie needs for your Ironman (or any distance):  http://www.tri-talk.com/TriTalkNC/TriTalkNC.htm

I did good this weekend and the scale budged a tiny bit.  I'm going to log my weight on Mondays and also my blood sugar level.  I forgot I have a blood sugar monitor, so I thought it would be fun to see if/how it changes as I clean up my diet.  It was 92 today.

Yesterday, I did stretching and foam roller, then ran 9 miles.  Today I will just do some sort of core workout.  Tomorrow I am going back to my Body Pump class!  I haven't done Body Pump in several months, but hopefully my home dumbbell routine has kept me in good enough shape that it won't be too painful.

It is Sunday everyone.  Be sure to prepare your food and pack your training bags for the week!