Protein Pumpkin Pankcakes

Alright ladies and Gentleman, I am so happy to introduce a new recipe to you! Pancakes! I have come across some GREAT alternatives to pancakes like egg white french toast and such, but when I saw a recipe for pancakes that had no flour in it I was as happy as a kid in a toy store! Now, I don't know about you but when I think of pancakes all I think about are carbs and more carbs. Flour, eggs, water with a pool of syrup! Don't even get me started on syrup. I won't touch it with a ten foot pole. The base of this recipe is from a guy I follow on Instagram (maityz). It consists of Oatmeal, egg whites, and banana. I've made both versions, the recipe just mentions and obviously the recipe I'm going to share with you. BOTH are very good! What I love about this simple basic recipe is it's sooo easy to alter, substitute. You can pretty much do what you want with it. Yay! This recipe is makes one portion.

Here's what you'll need:

Blender
 1/4 cup Oatmeal
3 Egg whites (Or whole eggs if you want)
1/4 cup Almond Milk ( Haven't tried regular milk, I don't see why it wouldn't work though)
3 tbsp Libby's pure pumpkin
Cinnamon
Non-stick spray

Directions:
1) Mix oatmeal, egg whites, almond milk, and pumpkin in blender.

2) Mix until smooth
3) Spray non-stick on a pan, pour mix in pan. When I made this mix I had to kinda pat the pancakes with a spatula to flatten them a little or spread them so they're larger.

4) Let cook till bubbles show throughout all the cake.
5) FLIP!

6) Let the other side cook.
7) TADA! ALL DONE!!

Note: For my last pancake I added some Cinnamon to the non-cooked side before flipping.

I make eggs and protein "frosting" to go with my pancakes. But top with whatever you want! :)

Frosting: 

Ingredients:
1/3 scoop Protein powder
1/2 tbsp Peanut butter
Almond milk

Directions for "frosting"

1) Mix peanut butter and powder together
2) add almond milk till consistency you like
3)TADA, all done!

So simple and quite delicious.

CALORIE COUNT: 385 calories, 17 g Fat, 21 g, Carbs, 41 g Protein

This is my weekend breakfast! If you guys try it tell me how you like it! I would love to hear some feedback.

Till next time, discover a new healthier version of food you miss and love!

Week 2 of 10 WK Challenge

Hey guys, I've been so busy with school and working out that I have not had time to make any posts. I'll try and make one this weekend. Here's my results from week 2 of my 10 Week Challenge. I lost 2 pounds also! Yay! I didn't reach my short term goal, but I'm still pushing hard and leaving the gym soaking wet. My cardio has been increased and I'm still seeing my trainer for weight training.

Start- 188 lbs

After week 1
Total lost- 1 lb

After week 2
Total lost- 3 lbs

Seeing little tiny changes. I'm happy with my results, because I know I'm working SUPER HARD to get where I want. That's all that matters to me now. Thank goodness. :) I can honestly say I'm doing this for me, and only me. It feels amazing.


Till next time, keep hydrated and do it for yourself. :)

Week 1 of 10 WK Challenge

Here to week two ladies and gentlemen. I increased my cardio, and calories. I'm happy with the results I see. I've been bloated this week so, weight loss is only at one lb. Ugh. Next week should be better, I'll push hard this week.

Start
 

After Week 1
 

I'll try and think of some recipes to post for you guys.

Till next time, keep pushing and celebrate the little changes.

Carbs and CALORIES

Hello again guys! It's been a great few weeks! Well, other than the fact that I've only lost 2 lbs in 2 weeks. A pound is a pound though, yay!

Today I've decided to explain possibly why I have only lost 2 lbs in 2 weeks. Too few carbs + too few calories= not a skinnier Kirsti.

I've increased my exercise regimen so much that the 1300-1400 calories I've been eating isn't fueling my body and is causing it to store all my food. Hence, no weight loss. It's quite frustrating, I've been leaving the gym dripping wet is sweat and it's not reflecting on the scale. So after the second week of disappointment, I took matters into my own hands and ask my trainer and nutrition teach (who's a registered dietitian) WHAT'S UP?! Okay, i didn't do it like that, but I really was wondering what was going on with my body.

My trainer first told me that I needed to increased my calories up to 1800 or even 2000! Let me tell you, that scared me so much! I've gone the last year eating less than 1500 calories, and to eat 2000, wow that's almost heart attack status. ( my thoughts were, "what if I start to gain weight?!") I asked my nutrition teacher what he thought and he said I need to think of my body as if I were an athlete, because I workout like I am. (Talk about confidence boost, I'm an athlete now) So, I've slowly increased my calories to 1600-1700 on light days and on intense days, I'm eating 1900-2000. I need to trust their knowledge and experience. I'll tell you guys if that helps or not on the next weigh in.

While I'm not eating enough calories my carb intake is way too low. I know that I need to eat on the lower end of the daily recommended carb amount because it's better for my body but it was way too low for how much exercise I do. Before talking to my teacher I was eating 100-120 grams of carbs a day, well, my body needs at least 150-170 a day. No wonder I was having headaches! Carbs fuel my body, which helps me burn calories.

So after every workout I need to eat carbs and protein. (PB sandwich, yum!) While I need to eat 150 or so grams of carbs 130 of them need to be eaten before my afternoon snack. Hello to carb loading before 2 pm.

Here are some good foods for carbs:
Oatmeal, of course
Whole grain bread
brown rice
Wheat tortilla
Fruit
Peanuts
BEANS- really good source of fiber.

To reach my 130 carbs in the morning I eat oatmeal, bread, rice, fruit, peanut butter. And for after my afternoon snack, for dinner I have beans, and veggies.

I know this was kinda a boring post but for some people they might be working out really hard, but depriving there body of fuel. You're not gunna lose weight if you don't fuel your body properly. Learn from my mistake and drop the pounds. :)

Side note: The detailed information referring to my daily caloric intake, and recommended carb intake are for me, please look at this post to determine the amount of calories you should eat. And the recommended amount of carb intake for a person is 46-65% of your daily calories. Please talk to a doctor or registered dietitian before considering anything less.

Till next time enjoy the good carbs and leave the gym with no regrets.

10 Week challenge

Alright ladies and gentlemen, I'm gunna get personal with you. REAL personal. But I think at this point in the game I need to lay it all on the line. As you can tell by my handy little short term goal tracker to the left of your screen. :) I am currently 186 lbs, 6 lbs away from losing 100 lbs! I want to be completely open with you guys as I lose the last 26 lbs. How am I going to do that you ask? Well, I'm going to show you what I look like, with just a sports bra and running shorts. Kinda sounds crazy to me, but it's what I gotta do.

 I'm not ashamed of what my body currently looks like. I've worked hard to have it look this way. I've lost 94 lbs, that's almost a whole adult human! That's not saying it's easy for me to post this, it's still quite reveling and very personal. I hope me being open with you guys helps you push harder and motivates you to want to reach your goal.

The reason for taking this photo in the first place is because I've started a 10 week challenge with someone on Instagram. I'm posting a photo every week till Christmas to show my results as I work hard and push myself. I'm going to continue to eat healthy and workout daily. My goal is to be down to 165 by the end of the 10 weeks.

If you have an instagram account follow me! kmcwold is the add. If you want to do the challenge just post your photo weekly and tag #illreachmygoal so we can motivate and inspire each other to keep pushing to reach our goals.

Till next time, push hard and drink lots of water! :D

Busy busy busy

Hello hello ladies and gentlemen! So I know it's been about a month since I posted something, but let me tell you a lot has happened in the last month and I've been super busy. I moved back to Washington for school, started school and am currently waiting to move from my grandparents into a friend's place. One of the biggest reason there has been no new posts is because, my grandparents have no Internet. Yes, I'm living without connection to the rest of the world. CRAZY. Hah.

OR

 

 

Anyway, I want to get you guys caught up. Like I said a lot has happened. Let me start with my first disappointment/ reality. I came home and weighed myself on my scale, and wadduya know the scale said 195! I was sooo confused and disappointed. How could one scale say 195 and the other say 180?! That's a 15 lb difference, not a few pounds. So, I decided that my scale is junk. When I got to school I weighed myself on the DIGITAL scale (normally the most accurate) and I was 191. Better than 195 but not as good as 180. So I'm going to be basing my weight off of the scale at the gym, and ditch my scale at home. (I might do a post later about how digital is better than analog.)

Something else new is I got a trainer! Yes! I'm very excited and super stoked. I'll be seeing them once a week until the end of the quarter. Side note related to my consultation earlier this week, my trainer tested me to see what my physical capabilities are(push-ups, lunges, squats, planks) and I was astounded with my results. I did 12 push ups, I worked super hard for the last 2 and did a 2 minute plank! It was awesome! In January I was only able to do a 45 second plank!  (I'll keep you posted on how the visits go.)

 

 

Next, mainly a large part of why I got a trainer is because I'm going to Las Vegas for my birthday! I wanna be at my goal weight when I go, this is my new motivation! I'm turning 21 so I might as well spend it in Vegas, right? That gives me 3 months to lost 28 lbs.

I think this might be the last thing that's new for me, I'm starting to train for a 10K. The race is Dec. 15th in Seattle. Ill post how that training is going too.

There's a lot to tell you this quarter, I'll try to post as often as I can. It will become more regular when I move and actually have Internet!

Till then, work hard, it's the only way you're gunna get the body you want! :)

Exercie exercise exercise

Hello beautiful people! I am excited about this post. I'm really excited about any post because it means I get to help you change your life. :) Today is a post following my post The Good Foods but it's going to focus on..... working out. The variety of workout you can do to burn calories is endless, so I'm not going to be telling you what exercises to do. I'm going to give you resources so you can choose what you kind of exercise suites your personality. I'm going to share what I've done from the beginning, all the different places I have found random exercises and routines.What I can remember, that is.  WARNING: this list may be long. Hah.

Couch to 5K: I still use this app to this day. I really like it. Starting out I was not able to even think of running for 5 minutes... I was dying after about 30 seconds. With this app I can now run a few miles. It trains based on interval training. Ex: run 2 minutes, walk 3 minutes working you up to running an entire 5K. This app is what made me love running. Not only does it help you get off the couch, but in 8 weeks you'll be able to run your first 5K. Let me tell you running across the finish line of your first 5K is the most amazing feeling, it's indescribable.

Next: For a while I did a variation of my own collection of workouts, and surprisingly I still have the list on my iPhone, LUCKY YOU. :)

Home workout: You'll need hand weights.... and eventually ankle weights.

I did 12 reps of each exercise and repeated the workout 3 times. It's important to do three times.

Bicep Curls
Side Lifts

Back Lifts

Then bend arms to a 90% angle.

Overhead Lifts

Push Ups- Remember to keep your hands below your shoulders and if you need to you can rest your knees on the ground.
Leg back lift

Fire Hydrant

Side ankle raise

30 crunches- Any form of crunch works, just remember not to hold the back of your head.
jumping squat- Focus on getting your legs to be as close to a 90% angle as possible, and your knee behind your ankle.
calf raises- If you don't have stairs no worry, just hold some weights in your hands and lift your heels off the ground.

I did this every other day of the week and when it was no challenging for me to finish my rep count I would ad a couple pounds to my weights. But if it's too challenging to finish the rep count (the right form is being altered) move to the next workout, but repeat to complete the three cycles.

Another App I found was Nike Training

This app IS AWESOME. You can choose what you want to work on, and really gets your sweating. I love it. It has a count down timer  for the entire workout and a count down timer for each exercise.

Okay people, one of my best friends for probably my first 30 lbs was.... the bike. The STATIONARY bike. Oh, if you walked into my house around 8 pm you would see me riding furiously on a bike watching TV and trying to talk with my mom. That last bit didn't work to well but lets just say I was dripping wet every night, I worked for my shower. :)

Yep it's an old school looking one, just like this. At first I hated those moving arms, but then I realized that it was an upper arm workout and I fell in love with it. :)

I did all these exercises till I went to school and after that I started going to the gym where I fell in love with a few pieces of exercise equipment, consisting of:



Tread Mill

Rowing Machine

Bosu Ball (great for squats)

 

 

Weight Balls

 





Right now I'm doing the insanity program and am almost done with it.

 

Here is what I have mostly done. While I have listed all this for you, I want you to know that any form of activity is good. Bike riding, hiking, swimming, dancing... anything is great. So, get out and move.

 

Have any questions, leave a comment. :)

 

Adios

Catch up!

I finally reached my Short term goal... almost 2 weeks late. Dang. But, hey I kept going and reached it. I am so proud of myself for still pushing. I'm also so proud/happy/ecstatic/joyous/(Insert word for happy here) I have lost 100 lbs! It feels soo good. I love how my body is looking and I think people can notice. Yay!



Before

Minus 100 lbs 20 to go. :)



Something else exciting that has happened in the last week: I bought a dress before I left for California for the summer that I wasn't even able to think of zipping. Earlier this week, I wore it to the post office, zipped and everything!! Yay!! I was ecstatic. I was so happy I was jumping up and down.

Oh dear, that photo quality is horrible. Sorry!

I hope you are enjoying the new addition to the blog, photos of food I eat, and when you click on it I have listed what's in it. If you want to know how I made it, comment on the photo and I will gladly tell you how I did it. :)

Speaking of the new food photos... you guys are probably thinking I don't eat that much of a variety... I know I know. I need to work on it, I promise I'm going to start now. You guys want to know how to make yummy healthy food, not how to have a boring food life like me. Gotcha. :)

My new short term goal is to lose 5 lbs in 3 weeks. So be at 175 by 9-27-12.

And lastly if you have any questions just leave it in a comment. I would love to share what knowledge I have learned with you. :)

The good foods!

Alrighty my fellow friends and weight loss buddies. It's time to get down to business. I have read many places online that while it take working out and eating right to live healthy and lose weight, it really matters what you are putting in your body. It's not about eating the amount of calories you're suppose to and saying "Yay I didn't gorge my  mouth with way too many calories!" it's about filling your body full of nutrients so you can feel healthy, look healthy and be healthy. Isn't that what we all want? I know it's what I want. I once read "abs are made in the kitchen not the gym." I think it's true. Today I'm going to tell you a boat load of different kinds of food you can eat to start your road to success. Yay!

Veggies

Okay I know the whole heart picture of veggies is a little much, but I recommend having a good relationship with veggies, you'll be eating a lot of them. Here is a short list of the endless veggies that are good to eat:

• Spinach
• Zucchini
• Squash
• Carrot
• Avocado
• Broccoli
• Mushrooms
• Peas
• Celery
• Cucumber
• Cauliflower
• any other veggies you may want. :)

Fruits

 

Oh how I love fruit! Really when it comes to eating healthy it's the easiest when I can eat fruit, I just love it. But unfortunately I love it so much I have to watch how much I eat so I don't consume too much sugar. Ugh. Everything in moderation... remember that about everything. Anyway fruit is pretty much just like veggies you can eat anything you want. But I think you have to watch the amount of sugar you consume.

• Apple
• Banana
• Grapes
• Strawberry
• Blueberry
• Raspberry
• Mango
• Orange
• Pear
• Anything not listed... list here. Like coconut, or cantaloupe... you got the idea. :P



Legumes

 

This list isn't so long, but there are still some that I have found to be yummy.

• Lentils (any form)
• Black beans
• Pinto beans

 

Meat

 



I'm sorry if you find the above photo to be gross... what photo of raw meat isn't. Anyway, next is meat, meaaat. All kinds of meat, correction lean meat. Every time I type the word 'meat' I say it like a big bulky guy MEAT! Hah. I think one of the most crucial things to know about choosing a meat is, make sure its lean. No fat, skin, or anything that isn't red... or white or whatever color the meat is.

Fish:

• Salmon
• swordfish
• Shrimp
• Scallop
• Talapia
• etc

Other meats:

• Chicken (skinless, fat removed, boneless is good too)
• Pork- lean
• Red meat (fat removed)
• Veil
• Lamb

Grains/carbs



 

 

Yummy yummy yummy carbs, yummy! Hah. I love any form of carb, so delicious. Rolls, bread, noodles, potatoes, all so good. Here are some that are actually the good kind.

• Whole grain anything. (pasta, tortilla, roll, etc.)
• Oatmeal
• Brown Rice
• Couscous
• Sweet potato

 

Nuts

 

Nuts are the easiest snack! Lots of healthy fat and protein, some of my favorites words!

• Almond
• Peanuts
• Peanut butter
• Walnuts
• Pistachio
• etc.

 

 

There's the basics, some other things I would note that I have found to be quite important are:

• Measuring cups/spoon are your friend! Use them like you use a spoon or fork. Proportions are extremely important.
• I have learned while visiting friends or family, it's hard to say "I can't eat that" or stark hacking away at your steak to take all the meat off... so instead it a very limited amount, nothing you will regret later. Also about cutting the fat off... well just tell them that you don't like the fat, and at least your eating the meat! :)
• Always look at the nutrition label, specially for grains and carbs, you'll have more control if you're aware of what you're putting in your mouth.
• If you don't know the nutritional or caloric value of something look it up. Here are a few sites I like to use:

nutritiondata.self.com

myfitnesspal.com

 

Have any questions leave a comment! Till next time, work hard, work long! :) Adios.

 



 

 



How to set a long term goal

I've been inspired to write a new post. An old friend of mine recently asked me to help her get the ball rolling on her weight loss journey. I was more than glad to, I was actually really really excited I could help someone first hand. Anyway, while I've been pouring all my secrets, tricks, and beginning step on her it made me think "I should share this with everyone. Make a post!" Its the hardest to get started, so I wanna make it as easy as possible.

Courtesy of google

First, I'll go back to my first post on this blog, to get started you have to have the motivation to want to lose weight.

Second, Determine your BMI (Body Mass Index). Which is based on current weight and height. This is to determine what your weight should be. (Goal weight)

Third, Calculate your caloric needs to maintain weight. So that later you can adjust to lose weight. I got this formula from the INSANITY program.

For woman: 655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - ( 4.7 x age in years)

For men: 66 + (6.23 x weight in pounds) + (12.7 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years)

This equation is based on the Harris Benedict Equation

Fourth, Now that you know how much calories your body needs to maintain your weight you need to determine how many calories to eat based on how often/hard you workout. Take the number you received from the third section and multiply by your level of exercise below.

From my iPhone

After calculating this number this is the amount of calories you have to eat to maintain your weight while working out. So to lose weight you want to subtract 500-700 calories from your final calculation. That 500-700 calories is equivalent to 1-1.5 lbs a week of weight lost.

Fifth, Based on your BMI and the amount of weight you lose a week you are now able to calculate a long term weight loss goal. Just divide the amount of weight you want to lose by how much you will lose a week and in that many weeks you will reach your goal weight.

EX: To lose 45 lbs at 1.5 lbs a week March 16th is when the goal will be met. (45/1.5= 30) Add 30 weeks from the current date.

I know that losing 1.5 lbs a week sounds like so little but, it's better to reach a goal early than late. I know that far too well. :) You can subtract more calories depending on how your body is responding to the amount of calories you are eating, just never go below 1200 calories. Personally I would never go below 1500 because I workout daily and my body needs the extra calories for energy.

So, now that you have an idea of when you are going to reach your goal weight, and how many calories you need to eat you need to know how to divide them up.

Eat at least 5 times a day; 3 meals and 2 snacks.

EX: For someone who needs to eat 1800 calories a day 400 calories for a meal and 300 calories for snacks OR 500 for meals and 130 for snacks.

A little tip I have to go along with this post is:

Make sure you eat after working out, some lean protein like skinless boneless chicken breast, beef, pork, fish (just remember to remove the fat), whey protein shake, protein bar. Complex carbs are okay too. You want to eat protein to rebuild your muscles up and re-energize your body. Also watch how much sugar is in the protein powder or bar. You want it as low as possible.

I think that's all for now. Have question leave a comment. :)



Touch on a Little Bit of EVERYTHING

What I Want From My Blog:
The first post to my new blog, kinda scary. I have such a long list that I want this blog to cover. I want you to be able to get as much out of it as I have put into it. I want it to cover my detailed weight loss, including how I got to where I'm at now and of course how I'm going to keep losing weight. I want it to act as a personal food diary, sharing photos and recipes (if you want them). I also want it to cover bits of information that I run across and find useful or interesting. While my expectations are high I also want you to ask me questions. I pretty much want this blog to act as a open book for anything that relates to my weight loss. I want it to be a inspiration for you, the reader.

My View on Losing Weight:
 Losing weight is really REALLY hard. But the good thing is, once you get started and have seen some results it gets really easy. I know, it sounds crazy for me to say it gets really easy, but for me it did. I think it's because of two principles: motivation and determination. For me motivations is the most important though, if you don't have it you have nothing, literally. If you don't have the motivation to start then you're not going to get anywhere. You have to have a reason you want to change your body and life. Once you have that fire you most likely will be determined to reach your goal. I have known many people who say they need to lose weight but never do because they don't have the motivation to WANT to. Something else I have learned through my journey that it is also crucial to lose weight for YOURSELF no one else, do it for you. Do it because you want to look good. Do it because you want to be healthy. Do it because its all about you in weight loss, it's personal and you're the most important person. You're the one that's going to get up in the morning to run and workout. You're the one that's going to count the calories, skip the fatty foods and enjoy the veggies. No one else is going to do it for you, its all about you and how YOU do it. While losing weight IS all about you it's also extremely important to have a support system. There is no way I would be where I am right now if I didn't have my family and friends cheering me on. When it got hard and I wanted to give up their words of support are what showed me I can really do it. Not only did their words help motivate me but it showed me I didn't want to let them down. I wanted to show them that they weren't wasting their time supporting me. Find a few close friends and family and tell them about your goals and share your successes with them. You need people you can go to when you need a boost to keep going.

So what's crucial to losing weight?

• motivation
• determination
• losing weight for YOURSELF
• and a support system

Ask yourself: WHY do I want to lose weight? HOW am I going to lose weight? WHO am I losing weight for? and who am I going to SHARE my weight loss journey with so I can have support?

My BEFORE and CURRENT photos:
So you're probably thinking wow, she really has a point of view on weight loss. I wanna see if its really worked for her. Well here's one of your first chances. But first a little background knowledge. I started losing weight in August of 2011, my starting weight was 280 pounds. Currently I have lost 83 pounds and weight 197 pounds.

The photo on the left is taken in Sept of 2010 I consistently stayed at 280 lbs until August of 2011 and the photo on the right was taken after I completed my first 5K in May of 2012.

My Goals:
I have recently started setting short-term goals. I have always had a long term goal but never determined when I wanted to reach that goal, but now I have! Yay!
Currently my short-term goal is to reach 190 lbs by August 25th.
My long term goal is to reach 160 lbs by Jan 15th 2013.
I will keep you updated on my success to reaching these goals as I post regularly.

This is an idea of what is to come for A Thinner Me. If you have any questions go ahead and ask! :)

Till my next post... Adios.