Eating in Another Country

My Trip to Europe - 

I am getting a little anxiety about my upcoming trip!  I am going to travel for 18 days to Paris, London, Amsterdam, and hopefully Brussels.  

I am not very nervous about Paris, because I plan on walking everywhere and they serve such small portions.  I am still going to try to avoid wheat and cow cheese in most of my meals, but I do plan to have at least one of France's famous baguettes or pastries!

London I think will be easy because they seem to eat light and there should be lots of salads available.  Lots of tomato slices and egg whites I hope.

I have no idea what kind of food they eat in Holland???  I am thinking lamb maybe?...Anyone know?  I looked up a little on Google, and it worries me a lot.  Both websites say breakfast is usually a 'cheese sandwich and a cup of milk'...ummmmm the 3 things I don't want to eat.  Then lunch was usually break and cheese and maybe a pancake or crepe sort of thing....again all the foods I cant eat much of.  It sounds like they eat a lot of chicken and pork, so I might start to enjoy pork more :-/

One thing I think might be in my favor is that their animals (chickens, pigs, cows) are probably raised in a more natural way.  They are probably feed fewer hormones and chemicals, so hopefully the meat is cleaner in Europe then in the US.  I hope I hope I hope!!!

I will eat the local food obviously and just try to keep my portions small and limit my wheat and cow dairy at most meals so it will effect me less when I do eat it.

I am also worried about my coffee...they don't usually drink coffee 'to go', hahahaha...this was a problem in Italy too.  You might see me blogging from a coffee shop because I was forced to stay there.

Dairy vs. My Skin

My Skin is Freaking Out 

Ugh!!!!!   That should actually be the title of this post, but no one would know what it was about...for some reason my skin has an absolutely horrible reaction to Dairy (just cow dairy).  I break out in direct response to any dairy in my diet.

This might seem like a very simple thing to avoid and usually I do a good job (although I love cheese I just switched to Goat Cheeses, problem solved).  However, it has been increasingly difficult I have realized to give up my Venti Iced Americano with Half and Half and One Sugar.  I love this treat during a sunny day!!!!  I can sometimes find Almond Milk to take the place of half and half, however that is tricky when I am traveling and since Starbucks only has Coconut milk and Soy Milk I am usually out of luck there.

I have tried Soy milk and I don't like it, plus I have been hearing more and more that women are sometimes getting way too much soy.  (I eat a lot of soy beans so I try and avoid it everywhere else).  I have tried coconut milk and I don't like that either...not thick enough.  I also have thought about non-dairy creamers but they seem highly processed and not very healthy.  

• Do I just give up the drink completely?  
• Do I find a replacement...Berry Refresher (I like those)...they are not the same as a yummy iced coffee tho?
• Do I just deal with the skin reaction and try to keep it under control with topical treatments (so expensive)?

Still trying to decide what to do...what are your treats that you refuse to give up no matter the consequence?

Well since it has been sunny I have had the worst skin and that is the ONLY dairy I have added back into my diet:(  It is so frustrating!!!!!  I am now completely convinced that a lot of our 'ailments' and 'annoyances' are directly related to what we put in our bodies.  

I recently spent a couple days as a guest and of course eat what they had made and prepared for me...it was way off from my usual restrictions, but I would never refuse a meal that someone else has taken the time to put together.  The food was delicious, but my body was not the same afterwards.  I have been sluggish and my skin is breaking out like crazy.  I feel puffy and bloated, I cant wait for those things to get out of my system and feed my body the fresh whole foods it is used to.  Its like I put molasses in the engine of my car and went for a long drive.  UGH!!!!

All the food was filled with meat that wasn't fish, wheat, and dairy.  It is a constant struggle to just live a normal life and also be good to your body and brain.  It explains a lot of what is wrong with Americans and how hard it is for us to make good decisions with what we are surrounded with.

I am going to spend this week trying to clean my eating and add a little more water and tea to my day and make sure I go to my workouts each day.  That should get my skin back on track soon.

Can You Read the Ingredients -

Do You Know What is in your favorite bar?  

I went just about a couple months without any processed foods, and in all honesty it is just not possible for me to live that way.  Now I eat ‘bars’ and some chips, but I am just careful about what is in them, especially ‘Nutrition’ Bars'.  Some of them have some very strange ingredients that I cant pronounce and cant figure out what they are.

I recently found a replacement breakfast at Starbucks (I used to eat the Spinach and Feta Wrap).  It is now a banana and a Kind Bar.  I am in love with these bars; they have the simplest ingredients ever!!!  They are also only 180 calories….a nutritionist once told me that snacks should be under 220 calories for a person with my build and energy output.  (In order to maintain where I was…about a 1600/ day calorie plan).

Kind Bar –

Mixed Nuts, (peanuts, almonds, brazil nuts, walnuts), dried fruit (raisins, apricots, vegetable based glycerol, pectin, citrus fiber, citric acid, dates, honey, chicory fiber, Non GMO Glucose, puffed rice, flax seeds, soy lecithin

They also claim to be...

• All Natural
• Gluten & Wheat Free
• Low Glycemic Index
• Dairy Free
• Low Sodium
• No Sugar

These are all buzz-words, and I rarely trust the front of any package (marketing tricks), but the back of this item seems to match the front, so I feel good about them.  I still only eat them a couple times a week in an emergency, but they are fabulous for fast or in the car…or like yesterday, at the Airport.

Food at an Airport at 530am..,.

Trying to find something without Dairy or Wheat at an airport is impossible!  The cases are filled with sweat treats and sandwiches made of all simple carbs (aka, sugar).

The only places open are serving begals or sandwiches... Eventhough the airport is packed!  I did find oatmeal, but that is tricky to eat at the gate or with all your bags.  

I did anticipate this problem, so I have apple slices from home and I got a Kind Bar and black coffee.  

I realized on my last trip that there are only 2 items on the flight menu that I can eat as well... And they have been out of those items twice now.  One is Cashews and the other is a salad, I just have to pick around the cheese and weird meat cubes (I think they labeled it as chicken).  

Hopefully I will just sleep on this flight and hold out till an early lunch!   'Doing lunch' in LA is always a fun time with a million healthy fresh local options:). 

Core Class - My Humble Opinion

Core Workout Class

I went to a ‘Core Class’ at Columbia Athletic Club the other day with my husband.  It is just 25 minutes long, but the whole class is focused on core strength and abs. 

I was skeptical of course, because I am a firm believer in the idea that you can't ‘spot reduce’, but I wanted to try to give it a chance.   I feel like the people who go to this class are thinking it will give them a flat tummy or abs.  It will not!!!!  If your intention is to just engage your core as a focus then I suppose it is worth it as a suppliment to another workout...still not really sure.

There was a 5 min ‘warm up’ to kind of stretch and get your muscles warm…there isn’t really time for much more then that so it was a good attempt, but sort of pointless in my opinion.

Then we did some floor work…

• ·      Legs lifted a few inches off the ground and fluttering the hands up and down similar to what they do in Pilates
• ·      Single leg V-Ups or Scissor Kicks kind of, again it was a little hard for me to figure out what these moves were really doing for me…but I tried to follow
• ·      Push up position…knees to opposite elbow – the only exercise that really felt like it was working me hard to the point of fatigue
  
• ·      Rest - Stretch
• ·      Into Circuit 2 which was very similar to circuit 1 it just was bicycles and plank rocks for 30 seconds or so each

Here is my frustration to classes like this…it is not actually doing anything.  Just movement camouflaged as a workout to try and convince its participants that they will see some kind of result.  I don’t even think that anyone would leave that class with a stronger core in any way and they certainly wont leave with a flat stomach or abs.

It is a shame, because I think that is one of the biggest problems with all these fitness ‘trends’…it is often just a way to pretend you are working out without actually having to workout. 

The best measure to a good workout is what do the people who are doing it look like and what does your trainer do for a workout?  If it isn’t that class or that particular workout, then it is time to save your money and your time and do what they are doing.

Our bodies are designed to do movements that simulate hunting and gathering and working for our food and shelter….so use your body that way.  ‘Athletic Ability’ has very little to do with it…balance, coordination, and endurance are all achievable skills.  Some have better natural abilities then others, however everyone has the ability to have it at some level if they are WILLING TO WORK FOR IT!!!

Favorite Meals at Restaurants

Favorite Places to Eat and Stay on Track - 

I work downtown Kirkland and I live in Juanita, so I have found a few restaurants with a favorite dish that I can get without getting too far off of my nutrition  and eating regiment.  Learning to eat out and modify what is on the menu is a really important skill and it will help you stay on track.

I was a little embarrassed at first to make so many adjustments to a menu item, however it is worth it and enough people start to demand healthy options then we can change an industry!

If there is one thing I hate more than anything it is 'restarting' something after loosing my way.  It is so much harder then just sticking to it.  My changes and choices are meant to be lifelong (not a diet), and I have to be able to eat out and enjoy myself...so it will only work if I can find a way to make adjustments.

Here is what I would recommend....

Hectors - 

1. Seared Tuna Bites
2. Salmon Salad (this has goat cheese and beats in it so it is super filling and colorful)
3. Hummus Platter - No Pita, Ask for Extra Veggies (cucumber, carrots, celery, tomatoes)

Milagro - (limit your chips and salsa intake...put some on a plate and ask the waitress to take the rest away)

1. Shrimp and Avocado Salad - dressing on the side and no avocado paste (it comes with way too much and everything looses its flavor)

Qdoba - (this is a really good one, because it is fast and inexpensive)

1. Naked Burrito - comes in a little bowl, no tortilla - I only get wild rice, sauteed veggies, black beans, just a little guacamole, pico de gallo, medium salsa)

Joeys - (I love this place, because I dont have to make any adjustments to the menu...there are several things I can order)

1. Spicey Edamame
2. Ahi Tuna Salad 

Brix - 

1. Hummus Platter (this is enough to share with 2 people or more) ask for all veggies
2. Beet Salad (add prawns)

Tried a New Workout

I Cheated!!!

My girlfriend was brave and came with me to my Crossfit class so I decided to join her at her favorite workout at Baseline Fitness in Kirkland.  

I have to admit that I was worried I wouldn't get a good enough workout so I did go to Crossfit in the morning, but went to the noon class at Baseline.  The class was totally full, so it is super popular!  It was a combination of Treadmill and TRX and some calisthenics.    

The treadmill was a reminder of why I dont run as much anymore...haven't run in like a year, so that was crazy.  I had really bad IT band and Hip problems, so I had to limit my runs to just a couple times a month.   It was a lot of cardio, which ironically I was used to do for fitness and I never gained the results that I wanted.  As my husband always tells me...I need to be working smarter not harder!  That is what Crossfit has seemed to do for me, since I am in the best shape of my life and I workout way less then I ever have before.

The workout...

15 min on the treadmill range between 'energy output of level 6 - 10'  Energy output is like a 1 on the couch and level 10 sprint at an incline.  The interval training I am always a fan of, because it is a great fat burner.

Then we would switch with the other group and use a sandbag for squats and hop over the bag for legs.  Side lunges holding the sandbag (these are awful, always been very weak in that area).
Surfer jumps which are kind of like Burpees but you jump up into a surfing position.
A few arm exercises with the TRX band and knee to elbow jumps.

Most of the workout was cardio, which would have been my favorite kind in the past, but since I have experienced the improvement from intense weight lifting over the last year, I am totally sold on weights vs cardio.

I would probably go back for a few classes in the future, but it is not enough strength for me...and I honestly didn't realize what great shape I was in until I tried other workouts!!!  I am still fiercely loyal to Crossfit and have the results to prove it..both in body changes and in overall stamina and strength.

I really should be doing some more cardio maybe, because I have a weakness....My worst enemy is wine, and with this nice weather...I have been having drinks on the patio almost everyday!

Thats all for now!  Gonna get in bed and ready for Crossfit tomorrow morning:)