Protein Challenge Week 1

Hey Everyone!

It's been several days since my last post. I've been busy with family time over the long Easter Weekend (four day weekend! Yay!).  We had a great time with visits from Katie, Josh, and Brandon, and celebrating Carol's birthday and Easter. How was your weekend?

from www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com

Some of you may remember from last week when I posted that I'd be participating in a 30 Day Protein Challenge. It's through www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com. Now that I'm a week in, I wanted to update everyone on how it's going.

The first five days of the challenge were all about data gathering. I recorded what I ate every day, specifically noting how many grams of protein I was consuming. I'm not counting calories, just protein. I'm also noting my mood and energy level, and how much exercise I'm doing. Day six of the challenge I was to review my food journal and identify where I may be able to shift my protein consumption. Day seven, today, is a "rest day," and I'm to eat normally and not worry about writing it down.

from proteinchallenge@beef.org email blast.

What did I learn from the first week?

On average, over six days of recording my consumption, I've been eating 81.7 grams of protein each day. According to the challenge website, a daily goal of protein consumption should be between 75-90 grams per day, so I'm right in the middle of that. Some days I was way over (*ahem*Easter*ahem) and some days I was way under. The meal where I have been consistently getting the least protein is breakfast, as it likely is for many people. But I'm still on track for my overall total protein consumption in a day, so what I lack in breakfast I make up for at lunch or dinner.

I also have been charting my mood, or "hangriness," as I've been thinking of it in my mind. I do get a little more irritable if I haven't eaten. First thing in the morning is a challenge for me, especially before I've eaten or had coffee. Not sure what to do about that since I don't want to eat a huge meal right before going to bed. Probably best to just keep warning people and try my best to not be grumpy out loud.

I'm also noticing that when I exercise, it seems to curb my hunger pangs and keep my mood positive. Maybe I need to jump out of bed and do some jumping jacks??? I feel less hungry longer during and right after exercise, but then it hits like a ton of bricks and I want to eat ALL OF THE FOOD like RIGHT NOW!

Here is a sample of a day from my food journal. 

I also struggle on the days I have track practice after school because it's a long time from lunch to dinner. School lunch is at noon, practice from 4-6, then half hour drive home, then maybe eat dinner by 7 or 7:30. Some days, I get my own workout in before track practice, too. Noon to 7:30 p.m. is a looooooooong time.

One other thing I have noticed is that I do a pretty good job of balancing proteins with fruits, vegetables and grains. I don't eat a ton of highly processed foods and do a pretty good job of eating produce. So that's good!

After reviewing my food journal and thoughtfully considering my eating, exercise, and emotion patterns from the past six days, here are some strategies I am going to try going forward throughout the challenge--

- Eat more protein during breakfast. I might have to do a little cooking ahead or having more protein options on hand, such as nuts and cheese.  

- Have a protein-centered snack in late afternoon to tie me over until dinner. Maybe consider having a small snack on hand for after practice on the drive home, too.

- Shift less protein from dinner time to keep balance throughout my day on days when I am having a higher protein breakfast and snacks.

For me, being on track with the total amount of protein I am getting is great. The learning and changing process is more pertaining to when I get my protein throughout the day and strategizing how best to fuel my active lifestyle. It would be good to research whether or not an active person requires more protein, and how much more.

Over the next week, I'm going to be attempting to put my new strategies of shifting protein consumption into play. Stay tuned in about a week to hear about my progress!

30 Day Protein Challenge

Every once in a while it's a good idea to take a step back and look at and think about what you're eating. About thirty minutes ago I learned about the Beef It's What's For Dinner 30 Day Protein Challenge and I decided rather spur of the moment to do it. This is not an April Fool's Day Joke.


Even though the challenge is being put on by Beef It's What's For Dinner, the challenge itself is not beef-specific. Rather, it's about simply eating a balanced diet that includes 25-30 grams of lean protein in each meal. I decided to do it for a few reasons. First, I really don't actually have an idea of how much protein I eat in a day, so it will be nice to simply learn more about my eating habits as they currently stand. Maybe I'll learn something and be able to make a smarter shift in my diet. Second, my family ranches, so I'm all about learning to find new ways to eat beef as part of a healthy, balanced diet. Third, I think it's a good idea to be mindful of what we are eating, so journaling on and off for a month will likely help with that.

I've already taken the first step toward completing the challenge. I printed off the calendar they have on their website and I'm starting this first week with simply journaling about what I'm eating, noting how much protein, and noting how I feel after I eat what I eat.  Since I also love fitness, and fitness and fuel go hand in hand, I'm also going to journal about my fitness activities and how/if they are being affected by what I am eating.

Throughout the challenge, I'll be blogging about my progress and what I've learned, as well as hopefully posting some images of protein-rich balanced meals I'm eating, and how I'm fueling my fitness and recovery. You can follow along here on the blog, or on my FB page, or on my Instagram, which is (at)katie(dot)r(dot)bangs. I'm excited to give this challenge a try and to share what I'm learning with each of you!

Think you're interested in participating in the 30 Day Protein Challenge, too? Click on over to Beef It's What's For Dinner to get started! There's no cost to participate. Just like anything else, you'll get out of it what you put into it.

November Fitness Challenges Recap

Now that December is half way finished, it's probably about time that I recap the November fitness challenges that I did, don't you think!?

If you remember back a ways, I had decided to participate in two 30 day fitness challenges, one that called for doing planks every day, and the other asked for running a total of 48 miles in November. You can read about them in THIS POST I did in early November.

I know all three of my faithful readers have been just waiting in agony, wondering how I did on those challenges! Ha!

Well, here's my hand-written calendar that I filled in along the way, to show my results:

30 days closer to being a Badass!

It took me the full month to get all my miles in;  I actually didn't get the full 48 in until my very last run on November 30. But hey, I did it! It was also really great for me to see my mileage written out in a calendar like this. It gave me a visual of how much running I had done and when I could have done more. It's something I'm thinking about continuing. Does anyone else use a calendar or journal to track exercise? If so, what do you like to use?

Both challenges were fun and challenging but not deathly hard to accomplish. I am really noticing the benefits of the planking challenge in my overall posture, both running and non-running. And, the added core strength has helped my running form overall, in addition to just becoming stronger.

The 48 mile in a month challenge was really good for me, too. 48 miles in a month is more running than I had been accustomed to doing, and really helped me train and get in shape for the 10K I did on Thanksgiving, Huffing For Stuffing.

The running challenge was one that I actually paid money to do and came with great prizes. It's all on the honor system, so I just tracked my miles in a spreadsheet and emailed it to the race organizers at the end of the month. About a week later, I received my goodie bag:

The t-shirt is great, and the medal is nice too. The necklace was completely unexpected. I don't know if that's something they give everyone, or only some people depending on the event they do, or only women, or just at random, or what, but I got one. I never saw anything about receiving a necklace in the event description or anywhere on their website, but hey, it's cool.

Funk~N~Run events are all put on by these people who call themselves Flower Child Productions. The necklace is actually a little flower charm with stones (I'm assuming they're crystals of some sort or maybe even CZ).

The necklace was a nice surprise, but it's not really my style, and since I'm thinking it's not worth anything anyway, I'll probably donate it to the Prize Bin in my classroom at school. Some little second-grader would probably love that thing to death and would wear it more than I would.

All in all, the challenges were a great success and I'd definitely do another 30 day challenge in the future. I would also strongly consider doing a Funk~N~Run challenge again the next time I want to train for a specific race distance. It was fun, and the fact that I paid a little money and was going to earn some prizes helped keep me honest and consistent in training for the HFS 10K.

No races or events are on my horizon right now, although I'm thinking about doing a virtual run or two in the long winter months of January and February, just to keep myself motivated. Have any of you ever done a virtual run? Shape Up Montana starts in February, too, so that will help. I'm travelling to Wichita, KS in March and have already checked to see that they have a St. Patrick's Day run, so that might be the next actual race that I do.  Besides all that, well... SKI SEASON is upon us!!! Can't wait to go play in the snow! :)

What are you doing for winter fitness?