Looks like I have joined the group "oops, I haven't blogged in a while."

Even though I haven't been keeping my blog updated I still have been good. I burn at least 300 calories every day with EA:MW which I absolutely love. I am keeping my calories under 1600 and been trying my very best to have 2-3 servings of fruit a day, keeping any bread product at a minimum and if I do eat "bread" or carbs I keep it whole grain. I also have been trying to get more protein in my diet so I eat 1 Quorn or Morning Star patty a day. I did try that Greek yogurt but I am yet to finish a cup of it. It is so gross.

While I was asleep last night/this morning I had a very vivid dream about sleeping in until 9:30 (back when I used to get up for my old job) and missing work and freaking out about it. So I woke up immediately and it was still dark and I thought about just going back to sleep but then decided to check my phone due to my paranoia about the dream and sure enough I missed my alarm that went off at 4:00. Luckily it was 5:30, which left enough time to get ready without working out. So that really sucked. I did workout when I got home though.

Me and a few women in my department are going to have a walking challenge starting next week. We are all buying pedometers and see who can walk the most. I am very excited about this and hope it will really boost my motivation to get moving!

Today was potluck day. Surprisingly, I resisted temptation very well. Being vegetarian makes it super easy, though :) and I didn't have any sweets. In fact, the only thing I had to eat was about 1 T of hummus with a few whole grain pita chips and a few piece of cheese. For lunch I had a whole grain pita with cucumber, tomato, onion and the previously mentioned cheese with 6 baby carrots. I was running late so for breakfast I just had an all natural fruit and nut bar (190 cals) and coffee. For dinner I had a bol from Chipotle. After work I went to the park w/ my sister and we rode our bikes for 8 miles... about 300 cals. That's it for today, tomorrow back to EA:MW in the morning. 

This morning my alarm went off at 4:00 am as planned. I was supposed to get up and work out. When I tried to get out of bed but was so sore I couldn't imagine doing a workout I set my alarm to sleep another hour. This was very disappointing. My knees, abs, arms and ankles hurt so bad. I am so achy, does this happen to anyone else? If so, what do you do to fix it?? I am going crazy here. I want to work out but I don't want to push it too far. So, today I took it easy: I didn't do an hour workout this morning, instead I did yoga and walked after work. I did take the stairs at work which I haven't done in a while and since I skipped the morning workout I watched my calorie intake very closely.

Tomorrow at work we are having a potluck. I typically would not participate as I loathe potlucks but since it is my 2nd week in this new position I feel I should bring something, so I made hummus. I will still bring my own lunch since it is not likely there will be many vegetarian friendly dishes. I also have plans after work tomorrow to meet up with my sister again  at the park and we will either walk the 4 mile path, or ride bikes around it 3 times. We'll see.

I got EA:MW and I love it! I really like all the ab exercies - mine are killing me today (but it feels great!). The Step Aerobics classes are amazing, I realllllly like how many calories I burn and how much I sweat. Yesterday I worked out for 54 mins and burned 382 cals.

Workout (today)...

Well it seems that I have run into a little bump in the road...

My knees hurt, really bad all the time. I tried pushing through it, but it just ins't getting better. Since my daily workout consists of high-impact routines on my knees such as squats and lunges I need to rethink my daily workout. This is difficult for me because I know lower body aerobic exercises are key to getting the results I want. I looked a bit online for ideas of what I could do and I mostly found: stationary bike, elliptical, swimming. I don't have access to any of that. If anyone has any ideas I would greatly appreciate it. Today I am going to go buy EA:MW and try to put together a routine that will not kill my knees. 

I feel as though I have been skipping a blog day here or there; with this new work schedule I am all out of whack. I am still doing the usual stuff everyday. I am keeping my calories under 1,600 and waking up at 4:30 every morning to workout. I took some time yesterday to put together an EA:SA custom routine that consists of exercises I like and feel that benefit me, that burns a good amount of calories in a short amount of time. I think I did pretty well, in 27 minutes I can burn around 200 calories. I have walked the stairs at least once a day and now that I am on the far opposite side of the building from the cafeteria at work, it is a good 10 minute walk to and from. I have taken the dogs on a 25 minute walk every evening. 

I am considering working out after work instead of before for the next few days. I figure I should at least try it. I can't believe how bored I am after work now. The only thing that is inconvenient about it is showering. I like to wake up, workout, shower and go about my day. Instead I would have to take 2 showers a day. We'll see. I will give it a whirl.