Just a Bump in the Road

SICK!!! Are you kidding me? A catch a cold maybe once year but rarely does it stop me from getting my workouts in unless it's this particular head cold causing difficulty breathing and an inability to stand up for long periods of time due to dizziness...Can you say discouraging?

I took the opprotunity to give my body a chance to rest for two days in hopes it would be gone over night. NEGATIVE! During this time I did thorough research on nutrition and meals for the next phase of my plan. I don't know how I will every be able to eat 30 oz of lean protein a day. Recently, I've been directing all my energy to bulking and building muscle mass, not a single day of cardio in a month. The biggest difficulty I have had is consuming enough calories, that and recent negativity from others.

I really have to define my reasons for pursuing this lifestyle and embarking on this journey to my first every NPC competition. As much encouragement as I have received, I have also received an equal amount of discouragement from those surrounding my life. "Don't be grandma, you can stay out late." "I like women who are more petite and don't have so much muscle." "If you're sick you shouldn't be working out." "Stick to bikini, you don't want to become a She-Man." "Let me watch you. That's too much weight for a little girl." It motivates me to want to prove those Debbie Downers wrong..."You don't think I can do it. Watch me!" People ask me all the time what motivates each day to wake up and not give up. I am motivated by the people who've told me I can't. My life has been about showing people I can.

On another note, I tried a sample of ON's AmiN.O.s. Too sweet for my liking but hopefully it produces good results. As usual, I'll make sure to post a review. In addition, I made Jamie Eason's  Orange Almond Biscotti. Can you say DELISH!?! With only 31 calories, 4 grams of fat and 4 grams of carbs per serving, these are a great treat. See below:

Ingredients:

2 cups Oat Flour

1 cup Splenda, Truvia, or Ideal

1 tsp Baking Powder

1 tbsp Orange Extract

tsp Salt
tbsp Almond Extract

4 Egg Whites

4oz baby food Applesauce

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix
dry ingredients (oat flour, baking powder, salt) together in a large bowl.

3. Mix
wet ingredients (egg whites, Splenda, Truvia, or Ideal, almond extract, orange
extract, baby food applesauce) together in a medium bowl.

4. Add
wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix together.

5. Spray
baking sheet with a non stick butter spray and spread mixture on sheet.

6. Bake
for 20 min on middle rack.

7. Remove
biscotti from oven and let cool for 10-15 minutes.

8. Cut
dough down the middle and cut into about 13 slices.

9. Bake
in oven for another 15-20 minutes.

Makes about 26 cookie