Health and Fitness

For anyone that knows me or spends any time on this blog you may have noticed I start some things (lipsense, exercise routines, essential oils...) but then you never hear anything more about them.


Update:
-completely stopped messing with lipsense, I have some lipsticks that are collecting dust (I'm low maintenance and low make up)
-essential oils: I still use them for myself, at home, and at the office but am not a big seller of items no matter how much I like them and use them
-exercise routines: I have started and stopped more times than anything and I foresee that I will continue with this behavior.  I've accepted this part of me :D


One thing that I am decent about is monitoring myself, diet and exercise, and when I feel things are not going well or I'm slacking in an area I change.  If I feel that I've been over indulging in unhealthy food, wine, cider, whatever I will scale back.  When I begin to notice that clothing is getting tighter or that my arms are flapping more than I'd like I start working out again.  I do NOT just go out and buy bigger clothing.  I guess it's a blessing for me that I hate shopping and I'd rather starting expending more energy than shop for clothing ;)


Which brings me to my latest attempt to try something and we will see how long it last.  Being back in the regular work force I tend to not work out as much or eat regularly or healthy.  I end up rushing in the morning and skipping breakfast.  At my last job I kept a stash of energy bars at work (cliff, luna, etc.), something I could grab for breakfast or lunch on the go without walking to the coffee shack or vending machines OR skipping out all together.  I've been keeping my eyes out for a meal replacement shake.  A few years back I was ordering  and drinking Shakeology.  At that time it was good for me, the taste wasn't bad, and I kept with that for a decent amount of time.  Things that I didn't like about it, that I can remember, was the automatic shipping.  I hate automatic shipping for ANYTHING!  I tend to not use whatever it is in the amount of time they think I'll need another order.  I understand it's usually cheaper to do the auto shipping but for me I don't like to waste and that is what ends up happening. 


So my latest and greatest "try out" is Huel.  It's a meal replacement shake.  I'm not sure how I came across it, maybe Facebook, but I took some time and read about it.  Reviewed some write ups and what people thought about it.  It seemed good enough to try out and I don't have to do the automatic shipping (pro).  I got my first shipment this past weekend.  I was going to start drinking it for breakfast over the weekend to make sure I wouldn't have any gut problems with it (most of these drinks have a good amount of fiber).  I didn't stick to that plan... it was Memorial Day weekend and there are other things to drink and eat that was more appealing to me! 

For your first order you get 2 bags of Huel, a shaker bottle, and a tshirt.  I also ordered a flavor boost, strawberry, just in case the vanilla wasn't the best tasting.  The shaker bottle made me a little nervous due to not having a mixing ball in it, just a weird screen thingy.  Back to the internet I go "does their bottle work to mix it well" "what is the screen thing".  Some of the reviews complained that it is lumpy so I was worried.  How is this going to mix well without an agitator of some sort?  The whole point of this is for easy, mix and go, if I have to use a blender I'm not going to be a fan?! 
There were mix responses to my questions, which were similar to others.  Oh and the screen thingy is an ice catcher.


First day going back to work and first try with Huel.  First off it has a pleasant smell when I opened the bag, slightly sweet (I got the vanilla one) and oaty.  Directions say to poor 400 ml in the mixer, add 3 scoops, mix, and then another 140 ml of water.  That seemed a lot of water to me so I started with about 300 ml of water, added the 3 scoops, and did a little shake.  Actually a good shake, it's like it's own mini workout :)  Then I added about 100 ml more through the drinking spout.  This allowed me to rinse some of the product that got stuck there.  I mixed again.  I then took the top off and added a few ice cubes and then the ice catcher.  Easy peasy!(pro) The taste, I was surprised how good it was! (pro) Seriously.  There is a slight chalk/grit feel but to me it's miniscle.  I tend to take my time drinking it, once I mix it I am usually walking out the door, walking into work I give it some more shakes/mixes, and when I get into work I start drinking it.  I casually drink it over an hour.  I also have a 10 min meeting I go to every morning and the Huel is camping out at my desk waiting for me. 


Yesterday after drinking it I felt content with the amount.  I didn't feel bogged down or overly full (pro).  Some have complained of stomach upset.  In the mornings after drinking it I do not have any stomach issues or bubble guts.  Once it starts to process out of my stomach into my intestine (per google that is around 6 hours) I start to get some gut issues.  As I type this (this is my second Huel day) I have bubble guts and feel like I have to go, is this the lunch I just wolfed down or the Huel getting into my GI track?  I could go either way I think :(  Per the blogs, this GI upset is "normal" and my body will eventually adjust to it.  I got it, went through this with Shakeology but it was more aggressive with that shake.  You have to keep in mind most of these shakes have a good amount of fiber, way more than most of us routinely have in our diets although we should.  I get it, it's par for the course.  I am working on increasing my water intake so that should help mitigate this transition. 


So, my second day down drinking Huel.  I'm liking it thus far and I'm looking to trying out other flavors with it and even cooking with it!  As of today I have no complaints about it either but I'm a pretty laid back person.  I'll attempt to keep you all updated with how this Huel thing works out for me.  Oh, some people do meal replacement shakes for weight loss and some for weight gain.  I'm neither.  I'm comfortable with my weight but I would like to tone up some and get in better shape.  I am watching my caloric intake and a meal replacement is a great way for me to monitor the calories better.

Clean eating

This coming week, Joe and I will be doing a 24-Day Challenge. Not any challenge but the Advocare one.  Now I've seen post about Advocare on my FB page from another friend, and Joe did the challenge last year in getting ready for his PT test.  He researched it and liked what he read, it's simple, and it helps you get back to eating healthy foods.  The goal is to do the challenge and then maintain the healthy eating.
Joe and I eat pretty well as it is, we keep things in moderation, but we do enjoy our wines and craft beers ;)  Now living in FL we have access to great seafood so that's a bonus from living in NC... a lot of fried foods :(  Joe's annual fitness test is coming up and I told him I'd do the challenge with him.  So he ordered two challenge packages and on Tuesday it's game on!  
I'm a little hesitant, not for the diet change but for the supplements that are part of the challenge and the cleanse.  I've done some reading on it and some people, mainly women of small frames, have some issues.  Which makes sense.  Most medications and supplements are "tested" on an adult male, so if one is a petite female..well, there could be issues.  I explained this to Joe and he understands where I'm coming from and I told him I will try it out and if my body seems to have a reaction then I'll cut back on some of the supplements and/or the energy drink.  
I am not a distributor of Advocare, Joe is, so I am gaining nothing by talking about it so I'll keep it real in regards to how things go for me.  I haven't weighed myself yet but just for a frame of reference I'm about 120 lbs, 5'3".  I'm not doing this to loose weight, but to get back on track with healthy eating and tone up.
From what I can tell the challenge has two major parts, and you can watch a video and read up on it here.  The first 10 days are the cleanse phase and then it's the "max phase".  It's a pretty strict schedule with taking/drinking stuff 30 minutes before eating. Now I am NOT good with this sort of schedule, planning ahead and doing something 30 minutes before or after I'm "scheduled" to eat. So I was happy to find that they have an app that will help you stay on schedule with these reminders.  Joe said he didn't like the app too much but he does good with the 30 min before eating thing, he's done it before so he's fine.  He uses a different health app to track his exercise and diet.  I'm going to use the Advocare app!  
So when you get the pack, it comes with a daily guide, which I'm assuming follows the app.  It has what you do every day, what type of food you should be eating, and a place to write down your physical activity.  
Now, normally when you do some sort of program like this, not that I have a lot of exposure, but most will give you a meal plan with actual menus/recipes to follow.  That's been my experience with the Beachbody work out programs.  With Advocare they give you food suggestions for proteins, vegetables, complex carbs, snacks, and what to limit or avoid.  This makes eating, in my mind, easier.  The recipes and menus tend to be complex, or you get a lot of food, and with just one or two people doing the challenge this opens the door to a lot of diversity in how we do these foods, and control in the amount of what to make.  Additionally the physical activity portion is all up to me.  If I want to run on the treadmill, or do one of my Beachbody programs I can do whatever... as long as I DO SOMETHING!  Again this is cool for me because I get bored with workouts and I like not have to stick to a certain workout program during this whole time.  I can go running, do some T25, and then some PiYO.... whatever floats my boat on that day!
The no "menu" just what to eat appeals to me because Joe and I tend to shop like Europeans ;) We don't stock up on a lot of food, we buy what we need.  For example the other night I swung by the store and picked up some stuffed chicken breast and asparagus, we already had a "side" at home, and for a little over $10 had a delicious pretty healthy meal with little to no waste, and some left overs.
We are starting on Tuesday.  Monday is my first day of work/orientation and I don't want to play the figure out food on that day especially since they are giving us breakfast and lunch!  So, come Tuesday it's game on for us!
I'll try and post on a regular, so if anyone is interested in this whole thing :P