February ETL - Food and Fitness
Mihani
Posts: 4,123 Member
Hey y'all, couldn't really come up with a great title for February and then I thought about what I wanted to focus on this month, and I thought fitness and eating more closely ETL. So food and fitness it is. All are welcome to join in the monthly thread at any time. 
My main goal for this month is making time for fitness. Some sort of exercise every day even if it is just 15 minutes of yoga, do something. I start my Tai Chi class mid-month and I am excited to get going with that. I also want to tighten up the diet a bit. I've been mostly focused on eating a lot of nutrient dense food and not worrying so much about calories/quantities during January. I feel like I've got a pretty good handle on things now and just need to back down the starchy veggies and grains to get losing again.
My main goal for this month is making time for fitness. Some sort of exercise every day even if it is just 15 minutes of yoga, do something. I start my Tai Chi class mid-month and I am excited to get going with that. I also want to tighten up the diet a bit. I've been mostly focused on eating a lot of nutrient dense food and not worrying so much about calories/quantities during January. I feel like I've got a pretty good handle on things now and just need to back down the starchy veggies and grains to get losing again.
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Happy February! My diet/fitness goals for February are
(1) Lose 8 lbs
(2) Exercise 4x a week including at least 2 classes at my work gym
(3) Avoid almost all SAD food. I've been having about 1 (usually small) cheat per day for the last week, and I'd like to cut back on that.
I'm also hoping to get sleep, though I'm not making that a goal since it is too much out of my hands.
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Love this title!
My goals:
1. eat closer to the way I want. (avoiding almost all SAD foods, and hopefully losing 3Lbs)
2. be kinder to myself overall (stress, and responses to it)
3. 45 miles running, Pilates 2x a week, and weights at least 2x a week
4. try 4 new recipes
I'm starting with these two:
http://ohsheglows.com/2011/01/01/ultimate-vegan-lentil-walnut-loaf/
http://www.edibleperspective.com/home/2012/10/5/polenta-pizza.html0 -
Yay February!
I have been eyeballing that lentil walnut loaf, look forward to hearing how it turns out.
My hubby is on call this weekend, so no way to know if he will actually be home watching the superbowl or not, but in any event, coming up with dinner ideas that are in keeping with "superbowl Sunday" tradition but that won't make me sick! So I think we are having lentil sloppy joes, and I am going to make those cauliflower wings. I will probably also pick him up some "regular" wings, even though he is totally ok with trying out all vegan/vegetarian foods. He is a good sport.
This morning I made some banana/oat/pea protein "pancakes" that turned out really tasty in spite of my not putting it all in the blender first, so the banana was just thoroughly smooshed and the oats were still chunky. I told the kids they were "rustic", haha. So much for reading directions. Also, all I had was chocolate flavored pea protein, so, they were chocolate/banana/oat. Topped with homemade cinnamon applesauce, they came out very tasty, but not vegan. Lacto ovo, as they do have eggs and milk. But I bet we could figure out how to make them vegan.
I best get moving to town to pick up what I need for later, then get to the barn to ride. It is blowing snow and windy here today, not all that pleasant outdoors, for sure.0 -
hey everybody! I joined this group yesterday, and I've enjoyed reading in here. No one I know in real life even knows what ETL is, and all I hear is "Oh, I could never do that!" when I talk about it. Honestly, I haven't even told a lot of people, people seem to find it odd.
Right now, my focus is getting out of this restrictive 6 weeks! Today is my last day in Week 4, and I'll get to weigh in tomorrow, which is always fun. I haven't really slipped up at all, and I'm very proud of myself. I tend to try something out for a few days, and then give up. Honestly, I'm tired of the restrictions, but at this point, it's a matter of principle. I can't give up now!
I started a crude blog at the beginning of the 6 weeks, if anyone's interested. Just my ramblings, really!
http://canieattolive.blogspot.com/0 -
Hi Kelleman. Welcome!0
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Catching up on the end of the January thread…
Lia, time is flying and the wedding will be here before you know it. So exciting! Has the weather improved? How are you doing with avoiding sugar this weekend?
Jean, hope the doctor can get things adjusted for you. It appears the remodeling continues unabated? How were your sloppy joes? The pancakes sound really good, I make a lot of things that turn out rustic.
Karrie, totally get the do not care when sleep deprived comment. When I’m extra tired I am more hungry and have less resistance to cravings.
Jo, I’m absolutely going to try that eggplant. Nom. How was the gym?
Peas, sorry to hear you’ve been feeling poorly. For me, sugary foods like baked goods, cereals and granola, chocolate, vegan ice cream, Luna bars, etc. lead to cravings. I try to stick to fruit, and here and there a little maple syrup or agave in cooking or baking. Sugary foods and starches like bread and pasta, even whole wheat, tend to make me crave more and more. Sometimes I can resist the cravings, but too often I don’t and it’s better if I just don’t start.
JCN, great goals for February! I am really focusing on exercise in the coming weeks too. I hope you can get more rest.
Sabine, stress is killer isn’t it? I am hoping the Tai Chi will help me with that. It’s supposed to be great for stress relief, it is sometimes called moving meditation. I’ve been looking at that lentil walnut loaf too. It sounds wonderful. I’ve made polenta pizza and it was really good. Satisfied my pizza craving. I was really happy to hear that your pilates class wasn’t cancelled after all. Yay!
About 2 inches of snow here today, then rain that melted some off and now it is snowing again so we should end up with lots of lovely crusty icy crap to make driving to work in the morning more fun. I’m not going to complain (much) though since they initially predicted up to 6” of snow and have backed that way down. I was glad I brought work home instead of planning to go to the office today. Wouldn’t have been much fun driving today.
I am going to work on a dinner plan for the week this evening. I am going to stick to fruit and chia seeds, possibly as a smoothie, for breakfast, salad with beans and sunflower seeds for lunch, and some combo of beans and greens for dinner. I’d like to avoid all starches for a week and see how that goes. I’d like to see some actual weight loss in February.
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Hi kelleman! Welcome to the group. Sounds like you are off to a great start, congrats on your loss so far! Enjoyed your blog. Sticking with it while cooking other food for your family is really tough, I'm impressed.0
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Thanks, Mihani and Sabine!
I didn't think it was fair to make my husband and 3 kids all do this diet, too. Quite frankly, not sure I could handle the whining, and it would be even more time consuming and expensive than it already is!!!
My husband wanted pizza today, so I made a frozen pizza for them, and made my own pizza with cauliflower vegan crust. The crust was kind of a fail, but I made it work. And it was really good, too!0 -
Made the polenta pizza with mushrooms and green peppers. Tasty! Holds together a bit better than cauliflower.0
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I'll have to try that sometime, Sabine.
I weighed in today, and have lost 17.2 pounds in 4 weeks. Not bad at all!
I'm curious to see what the next 2 weeks will bring, but if I lose nothing, it won't be a huge deal. I'm just ready to be finished with the restrictive part!0 -
HI kelleman and welcome to the goup. Great results for you first 4 weeks.
Everyone has really great goals this month. Ditto for me.
I make that walnut lentil loaf all the time it is delicious. It does work better if you let it set awhile and definitely better left over. I add fresh rosemary, thyme and sage. The Next time I serve it I will make it 1-2 days ahead of time. Serve with the cauliflower mashed "potatoes" and the white wine and mushroom gravy, green beans. So yummy.
DD is flying home today from Germany. Hope she will be able to land. We are getting another pretty good snowstorm today. On Tuesday, I Will be take my daughter back to college tomorrow and plan on spending the night in her dorm. Back home late on Wednesday.
Have been doing well with the exercise and eating etl mostly. I do need to tighten up a bit. Oh, that darn sweet tooth.
Made a big pot of vegetable soup and cooked the eggplant lasagna. That should hold us over till friday.
Everyone have a good day.
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Hi everyone,
My goals for February are to get on the treadmill more regularly, and to lose at least 6 lbs.
My son is still sick, although he is back at school today, and now I have a cold too. We are going through kleenex like crazy at our house...0 -
welcome kelleman; congrats on your loss.
great goals, everyone.
My goals for February are:
Walk 100 miles (total, per my fitbit flex). It's a bit ambitious, but before I got the flare-up last week, I was walking 6-9 miles per day most days. I am feeling much better, so I will be going hiking today for the first time since last Monday.
Find a vegan protein powder I like (I bought 10 single serving trial packages at Earth Bar yesterday, so hopefully I will find something.) Vega, Plant Fusion, Sunwarrior and Zen soy were all no's, but the Raw Fit was edible and the EAS smoothie is pretty good (but only 10 grams of protein and has 11 grams of carbohydrate plus artificial sweeteners and flavours). I wish I could get all my protein with whole foods, but I just don't have the calorie allowance I used to, so I need a more concentrated source. I am also trying to find vital wheat gluten so I can try my hand at making seitan.
Find a doctor and try to get some lifestyle or other non-drug interventions for my sarcoidosis. I really miss training, but I don't want to go on prednisone if I can avoid it. I have heard that some people with COPD can exercise with supplemental oxygen, so I will ask about that.
Try the lentil walnut loaf :-P That sounds delicious!
Hope everyone has a great month
Edit: almost forgot the biggest one - going 100% vegan. I won't be buying any more honey after I use up what I have, and now that I have quit my whey protein and my latte habit, that's the last piece. I'm considering just throwing out the honey and going vegan on my birthday (the big 4-0 next monday), but I hate wasting food. Maybe I'll just try to use it up before then; I only have a couple of ounces anyway. I've tried and failed to go vegan before, but I think now that I have the support (and recipes) of ETL and MFP, I'll be able to do it.0 -
Terri, yay for your daughter’s happy homecoming!
Karrie, hope you and your son are both feeling better.
Peas, that is a lot of walking. I hope you can find a doctor who will work with you and come up with some good alternatives. Very cool goal to go vegan! I was vegan before I discovered ETL or really knew anything about the health benefits. I had been vegetarian for a long time and just decided it was the next logical step. I was pleasantly surprised at how much better I felt when I gave up dairy. I wish I could go back to the big 4-0… I hit the big 5-0 last February. I’m still wondering how I got to be in my 50’s and still don’t feel like a grown up lol.
Kelleman, awesome loss!!!
Today was nearly perfect. Went a little overboard on nuts at lunch, but other than that no snacks, no starches, lots of water and herbal tea, no caffeine (I did have my decaf coffee in the morning but didn’t have any of the high octane at work like I usually do). I had my smoothie for breakfast, salad and an orange for lunch, dinner was lentil soup from my freezer stash and an entire carton of strawberries. They were so good.
Didn’t get time for exercise. I had a big pile of work to do tonight and just got done, but I’m going to do a little yoga before I go to bed.
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Well the kids had their physicals yesterday. My son has bronchitis. Yay. So he's got an inhaler for the next couple of weeks. I'm still mowing through the kleenex, and I have that little tickle in my throat. But as long as I can move around, I'm going to!
Today's juice is a really muddy brown color (ugh), but it's watermelon and blueberries and chard, and it's really very yummy! I only did a half day of juicing yesterday, but I hope to get fully on board again today.
OK, so back to the physicals. My daughter is a big worrier. She started worrying about the needle as soon as she knew she had her appt. She cried all the way to the appt. Then the doctor confirmed that he needed bloodwork, so she cried and cried and cried. He suggested we see the nurse to get numbing cream. Good idea! So we did that (thank goodness!). My son was brave and went first to show her that it's not a big deal. Then it was her turn and she was nearly hyperventilating. So the nurse made her lay down. And I let her squeeze my hands and look into my eyes while I coached her on breathing nice & slow. She didn't even feel the poke when the nurse finally got to work. So then she was relieved and said "I want to use numbing cream every time". Good grief. BUT THE BEST PART was as we were getting our coats on to leave. She said "I feel like I'm forgetting something. No wait; it's just my dignity." OMG I laughed so hard!! Poor kid... The anticipation was WAY worse than the deed itself... But it was totally worth the entertainment value of that joke!
Anyway, I got my big lazy butt outta bed this morning, as much as I didn't really want to, so that I could get my treadmill workout out of the way before the kids got up. Because I have to face it; I NEVER have enough time in the rest of my day to get in a workout. The ONLY time I can be consistent is when I get out of my nice, cozy bed before everyone else.
But on the bright side, I'm already over my 10,000 and 5 mile step goal for the day on my fitbit. And that's actually going to help me stay on track with the juicing, too...
I have 17 more days until my physical, and 20 more days until my 42nd bday. I'd like to juice right up to then, if not longer. We'll see how long I can win my mind games...
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Well lia, how was T25 for you?
The cauliflower wings were very tasty...honestly, too hot. Next time I will use less sauce, and toss them more lightly with it. It was just too much. Very good on flavor, and a great way to get wings without having...wings, but just too hot. And I very much like spicy.
I have my workout in for today, had a later breakfast, will have a later lunch, then work from 3-11. I am not a big fan of these shifts, unless there is an open heart patient coming out of the OR after 3pm. It is nice to see some of our night shifters now and then, but it just seems really extra tiring.
The remodel continues. I had some peace til just 30 minutes ago, thankfully got my workout in. Now there is such a racket though, and I have studying to do. Sometimes I will go use the library at work, or one of our ICU offices, but seeing as I have to be there for work tonight, I don't want to spend the whole day there too. Argh. Does this guy really have to talk so loud????0 -
Hi All!
Food & Fitness February? I love it!
My low back has been behaving with twice weekly yoga. I am going to a yoga and meditation retreat this weekend. Really really looking forward to it!
For FitFeb, I'd like to add:
(1) 2 more yoga classes per week, to bring me up to 4, and
(2) day-hike once a week with my dearest dear (and the dog) through a gorgeous state park near our home. We're carving out Wednesday mornings before work.
For FoodFeb, I hope to just keep on keeping on. It's working and I want to stay in my groove.
Let's enjoy this beautiful Feb!0 -
Karrie, great story about your daughter. I feel for her, I’m 50 and I still get faint every time I have to have blood drawn.
Jean, when do you think the remodeling will be done?
Elena, great to see you! Glad to hear your back is doing so well, and great goals for February.
I am still coping with an overabundance of stress and I feel like I’m never going to be able to stay on track until I learn to cope better. I am going to work on doing my yoga every day, that really helps to relax me.
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Karrie, great story about your daughter. I feel for her, I’m 50 and I still get faint every time I have to have blood drawn.
Jean, when do you think the remodeling will be done?
Elena, great to see you! Glad to hear your back is doing so well, and great goals for February.
I am still coping with an overabundance of stress and I feel like I’m never going to be able to stay on track until I learn to cope better. I am going to work on doing my yoga every day, that really helps to relax me.
I hear you on the stress.
Lately I feel like my resilience is so much less. I just don't handle stress like I used to. I guess, for me, that goes with menopause!0 -
Hi guys,
sounds like the food is going well for everybody.
W_H_N I'm so impressed you're still sticking to the juicing, even if it is only part time. I bought a few bottles of various raw juices at the farmers' market last week, and I don't think I could drink more than one or two servings of most of them a day. Also, is it just a time zone thing or did you actually get 10k steps by 7am?
Mihani, I always thought that somehow once I hit 50, I would have it together and feel like a grown up; apparently not, lol. Maybe 60? I guess since we are all going to live to 120 thanks to ETL, that would technically be middle age
Utah, thanks for the heads up on the cauliflower wings. My husband loves spicy foods but me, not so much. I guess I will make a mild version and a five alarm fire one.
I changed my tracking defaults today and removed fat and carbs. I feel like they were a distraction from my focus of getting maximum nutrients and still eating well. I am still tracking protein, and now also fibre, iron, sodium, calcium and vitamin C (no particular reason, just had to fill one more spot). I have been reading so many books on macronutrient ratios lately and all I have really been able to figure out is that no one agrees on anything, lol. Any ratio I picked would be purely arbitrary, so why bother?
I'm going to try to follow the ETL plan pretty closely for the month of February and see how I feel at the end of the month. I keep reading new books and making changes to my plan, and I never really get a chance to see if anything is working for me.0 -
MakePeasNotWar wrote: »
I'm going to try to follow the ETL plan pretty closely for the month of February and see how I feel at the end of the month. I keep reading new books and making changes to my plan, and I never really get a chance to see if anything is working for me.
Good for you for following it closely. I'm toying with doing the six week plan in March. I have to travel for work in late feb (which is always hard), and/but hubs is going to see his vegan parents at the end of feb, so March would be a good time (he always comes back a vegan from trips home, thought I could make use of that ha).0 -
W_H_N I'm so impressed you're still sticking to the juicing, even if it is only part time. I bought a few bottles of various raw juices at the farmers' market last week, and I don't think I could drink more than one or two servings of most of them a day. Also, is it just a time zone thing or did you actually get 10k steps by 7am?
Well I think my juicing mojo has run dry. I just can't seem to do it this week. *sigh*
And yes, I am getting up and getting on the treadmill by 5:30am. Gotta get serious about training for my half-marathon on May 31st. There are only 17 Sundays until race day!!
Alright, I have to get to it. Have a great day everyone!0 -
You did fabulously!whats_her_name wrote: »W_H_N I'm so impressed you're still sticking to the juicing, even if it is only part time. I bought a few bottles of various raw juices at the farmers' market last week, and I don't think I could drink more than one or two servings of most of them a day. Also, is it just a time zone thing or did you actually get 10k steps by 7am?
Well I think my juicing mojo has run dry. I just can't seem to do it this week. *sigh*
And yes, I am getting up and getting on the treadmill by 5:30am. Gotta get serious about training for my half-marathon on May 31st. There are only 17 Sundays until race day!!
Alright, I have to get to it. Have a great day everyone!
Were you juicing or smoothie-ing?
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Hi guys!! Sorry for being MIA for the first few days of February. I have been having problems with my back again... it's really getting my down actually. I felt awesome up til Saturday, and then spent about 4 hours in the kitchen on Sunday doing food prep and after that, I was in so much pain. I did T25 anyway on Monday, and I actually really enjoyed it!! Followed it by shovelling though.... so then my back was badly seized again. How dumb. Anyway, just taking it easy. I'm so eager to try out T25 and so motivated too that it really is terrible timing. I'm not totally sure what's causing the problem... I keep wallowing and thinking that if I was lighter, I might not be having these problems!
Elena, I might get back with some yoga too, so great that the consistency has been helping your back!
Jean, glad you tried the cauli wings!! I love them, but also learned that the hard way too. I like spice but have found it better to dunk the wings rather than douse them too much. They have a nice flavour though.
Terri, your recipe and food creations always sound delish! Hope you had a nice visit with your daughter
Great job about treadmill, Karrie! Also your daughter's comment made me laugh out loud!! lol.
Welcome, kelleman!! 17bs is AMAZING!!!!! What a dream. Your success is motivating I have trouble sticking to anything really lol. But I think like Sabine, I should give the 6 weeks another go. I really need to be strict.
Mihani, to answer your question, I had some sugar sneak in on the weekend. I think I have a handle on it, but am sort of kicking myself for not being more strict. I think my goal for next weekend will be absolutely no alcohol/wine and no sugar. Maybe the no wine will help the no sugar.. Sounds like you are off to a running start this month!
Peas, I totally agree!! There is SO much information out there about what is right, and what matters, that I get totally bogged down. Mihani, I think your aim to just eat nutrient dense is the simplest and smartest way to achieve overall health. I'll try and keep that in mind this week
Sorry for the novel, I think I caught up with everyone. Hope you all have a great Wednesday 0 -
whats_her_name wrote: »And yes, I am getting up and getting on the treadmill by 5:30am. Gotta get serious about training for my half-marathon on May 31st. There are only 17 Sundays until race day!!
Wow! 4+ months to a half marathon! I used to do these kinds of events. Exciting, scary, exhilarating -- all at the same time. Plus so many wonderful people to meet along the way.
Good luck. Good training. Have fun!0 -
Hey everyone!
Sorry for not checking in sooner, had a bad couple of days as both my girls were ill, I've had dental surgery & thus have fallen off the wagon! But I can still see the wagon so will be catching up on the posts in this thread then jumping back on board!!!
Hoping for a healthful February!!
Much love to you awesome bunch
Xx0 -
Posted this in the wrong thread.I went out on a date with the husband last night. Made good choices, but had to send my food back because they brought me a meat patty instead of a veggie patty. I feel for people who have legitimate food issues, they mess up special orders a lot. I did end up having some fries, which I won't feel bad about. However, my body was not happy with that choice later on. I never reacted to food like that in the past, I'm just guessing it was because I haven't had stuff like that in over 4 weeks. I had a salad, and edamame, too. Everything was free for a special event, and I almost wanted to full on cheat. They even brought us popcorn and nachos that we didn't ask for because they messed up our order. However, I did not indulge. there weren't any desserts I could have, so I didn't have any of that, either. Places need more vegan options!
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I need to catch up on everyone, but cauliflower wings definitely sound interesting!0
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Sabine, I went through menopause early, I was completely done a few years ago. I was actually doing better with stress for a while, without the hormones taking over every month lol. Now it is getting bad again, but I believe it to be mostly external. Work has been really rough the past year or so. I’ve always been a hard worker and busy, but I just don’t have the energy anymore for these 60+ hour weeks. I’m tired!
Peas, I like your theory about middle age!
Karrie, the marathon is a great goal to keep you motivated on the treadmill. I think your body probably needs more than juice with all that calorie burn.
Lia, so sorry to hear your back is acting up again. Try to take it easy and make sure it heals.
Jo, we all have bad days! Your image of still being able to see the wagon made me laugh.
Kelleman, it can be hard to eat out being vegan. I have found that more places seem to be aware lately and will gladly make something for me if the menu isn’t vegan friendly. I’ve had restaurants come up with some pretty cool things.
Today was a not very hungry day which makes things easier, but being tired and grumpy is not really a diet plan I wish to continue.
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You've got that right, Mihani! I haven't eaten out much since I started the 6 weeks, but when we do, I always have to look ahead and see what they have. Some vegetarian items are also vegan, so that helps.0
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