We made it to Friday! I know my blogging has been a little erratic the last few weeks and I apologize. I have a good reason, hopefully I will be able to tell you all soon! For now, enjoy my 5 things for Friday.
1.) Hair Help: Confession. I haven’t gotten my hair cut in about a year. I was determined to not “give in” to the frustrating and oppressive heat that usually causes me to chop my hair off in the summer. While I am happy to say I made it through the worst of it, my hair has seen better days. It is so thick, that on my first day back at boot camp on Monday, even with two ponytail holders in my hair, my ponytail kept sliding down the side of my head due to the weight. I had had enough. Even though I was sweaty and disgusting, I drove straight to the salon, got a trim, and asked her to thin the heck out of my hair. When she was done, it looked like a small dog was laying on the mat. I wish I would have taken a picture. Anyway, I feel much lighter and better now that I got some hair help. Anyone else have to get their hair thinned?
2.) Macros: My trainer at the gym convinced me to try out counting macros. I am usually NOT a fan of counting calories etc, it’s way too restrictive and time consuming for me and I would rather just go by how I feel, but after my last weigh in/body fat test last week I left feeling frustrated. I have lost 3 pounds since May, but my muscle mass has somehow gone done and my body fat is slightly elevated. I’m going to start lifting heavier, and she suggested I just try out counting macros for a bit so I’m giving it a whirl. What I have learned in two days is that I need to eat less fats and carbs but more protein, which I am finding difficult!
3.) Olympic Emotions: Wow. This week was such a heart breaker for my USA volleyball girls April and Kerri. I really thought they would get that gold. It’s so tough to lose any game, but I can’t imagine losing such a huge match that you have worked so hard for. However, I’m super happy for my gymnastics girls, and proud of how our marathon girls represented last weekend. So inspiring!
4.) Flood Relief: The national news media has done a TERRIBLE job of covering the flooding and devastation in south Louisiana just 45 minutes from where I grew up. Y’all, it’s bad. Over 40,000 homes destroyed, 11 people have died, over 10,000 people in shelters. So many have lost everything. I have had a couple people ask how they can help. If you are local, there are so many places taking up items. Tomorrow, our local Lowe’s is having a “fill a truck” drive all day, and our gym is collecting things like diapers, toiletries, and wipes. My church is also collecting every day, and sending out several relief teams on day trips if anyone is interested in going. Samaritan’s Purse (they do the Christmas child shoeboxes that I love), are sending disaster relief teams and supplies, and you can donate to them online here. Do a google search or go to nola.com to see pictures and other ways you can help.
5.) Happy Birthday: Emma Kate’s birthday is September 24th, but we have decided to have her party early, on Labor Day weekend. We will be having a Frozen themed party at our yogurt shop (get it, frozen yogurt? haha). We are going to keep it fairly simple, just a fun time to hang out and eat some snacks and yogurt with friends. Emma Kate loves princess Elsa so this should be fun!
QOTD: Any frozen party ideas? Thoughts on the Olympics so far? Do you count macros?
Heather thank you for the updates on the flooding. The news has NOT been telling the whole story. That is heartbreaking to say the least. I got back in to counting macros. I joined a group of athletes who lift and eat clean for a living. They also give a max/min calorie intake depending on what stage of building you are in, or for endurance athletes. It makes a huge difference. Calorie intake does not matter if you are eating the wrong things for your sport. 🙂 I have learned a lot from them, and it still takes a lot of work to figure it out in the beginning. But once you get dialed in, it can become second nature. I hope it works for you.
YES to the hair! I have to get mine thinned every time!
I’m not one to count calories, but I have been trying to increase my protein in take since I started PT in March. Even though I’m not going to anymore sessions, I’m still doing the exercises, almost daily, and I still need the protein to help boost my strength training.
What a fun birthday party idea for your little lady! Sending prayers to Louisiana!
Thanks!
Girl I am horrible about cutting my hair! I got it cut at the beginning of summer…and it most likely won’t happen again until next summer lol! Mine is super thick too so I always get it thinned. I’ve been loving the Olympics! SO sad it’s almost over! I’ve never counted macros…calorie counting works great for me. And EK’s party idea is so cute!!!!
Macros works well for me because it’s more about the right proportions of proteins, carbs, and fats than about calories (for muscle building, a lot of body builders do it). It’s tough to calculate, but I have seen people with great results, so I’m willing to try!
The news about LA is just devastating!
The Frozen theme party at the yogurt shop is clever!
I am about three months into counting macros and I absolutely love it. It can be tedious to weigh and track everything, but I am eating MORE and losing fat.
One tip to get protein in… Protein Coffee. Your regular cup of coffee with vanilla protein powder (I use a hand blender to blend it up) tastes like a vanilla latte.
How much do you put in per cup of coffee?
One way I get protein is by eating Clif bars! They’re super yummy and come in a huge variety of flavors. Hope you have a great weekend <3