Feeling Claustrophobic about Life lately...

If I was to describe Time in 3 words, what would they be?

Relentless.
Determined.

Indifferent.

The coming back to this blog every two years and disappearing for another two has to stop. I miss having a routine. I miss having an agenda. 

However, I must acknowledge the irony. I detest the uncertainty, but I love the spontaneity that life has to offer me.

Let's just say, it's been a confusing time.

However, in the time that I have been away from this safe haven (aka blogaroo) of mine, much has happened.

I've travelled to 8 different countries in the last year.

I graduated from University.

I got slightly closer to my goal of losing weight, and I am still working on that. Apart from a few distractions, its still happening!

I had a fair few heartbreaks, hardships, challenges. There were moments where I thought I might not make it.

But here I am. In one piece. Still holding it together.

So this little post is just putting it out there that I am still alive and kicking.

After a lot of thinking, I've come up with some pretty cool ideas for some posts, and I promise they are coming.

With regards to that Diet, I did follow it through to the end, but it was a pretty inefficient, temporary plan. The results came, but they did not last. I will also touch on that journey soon, but for now, I really want to give my inner writer a chance to shine.

For anyone who may be out there reading this, going through a tough time, thinking you are all alone.. just remember you really are NOT alone.

If you look around hard enough, you will always find someone waiting for you. Someone to catch you before you fall. Someone to pick you up if you do fall. Someone to comfort you in your times of stress.

If you keep your eyes closed, your head down, your hopes buried, these angels that surround you will be hard to find.

This is why they say, keep your chin up!

If no one else, I'm here for you. Write to me, and I will listen.

Always remember your worth, you are priceless.

I have a lot to say, but I also have a lot to do. So until the next time, which will be very soon...

Hasta la-buh bye!

Challenges & Rainy Days

You know, I always say that I'm a winter baby, that I love winter...

But there is definitely a downside.

The day is too short, darkness comes too soon...

Anywho!

I can't believe its already Day 5 of my diet! I'm not saying it in a bad way, I'm surprised at how fast the days went by altogether actually! And guess what? I can proudly say, that today, I had no out-of-place hunger pangs at all! None in the whole day! And let me tell ya, just like yesterday, today's dietary requirements were going to be challenging for me! Let me explain in the usual way...

Day 5 of the diet calls for:
"Today is feast day. You will eat beef and tomatoes. Eat two 10 oz. portions of lean beef. Hamburger is OK. Combine this with six whole tomatoes. On day five you must increase your water intake by one quart. This is to cleanse your system of the uric acid you will be producing."

*Note: Now, before I tell you guys what I ate, I have to make a few things known. Being of the religion I am, I do not eat beef. However, the GM diet is flexible in that sense; chicken can be used as a substitute. There are also completely vegetarian options available. Beef has to be eaten as a source of protein, therefore for a vegetarian option, sprouts can be used.

Secondly, I really, really, really dislike tomatoes. But, I still sucked it up, and ate them by turning them into a soup. Let it be known that the tomatoes do not have to be consumed raw and/or uncooked. As long as you do not add lots of extra, unhealthy ingredients, you should be OK.

What I ate:
Food intake: Steamed sprouts with tomatoes, lemon & some garlic, tomato soup & chicken, pepper & onion skewers/kebabs.
Water intake: I'm at about 3.5 litres just now, I plan on consuming about 1-1.5 litres more.
I had no other beverages today.

*Shameful note: So remember how I said I really didn't like tomatoes? Well, the soup my mom made was absolutely delicious, but a bag of garlic & butter croutons caught my attention and I ended up adding a few of those to my soup. I will add an extra 15 minutes to the treadmill tomorrow morning for that, promise!

The Workout:
*Another *hangs head* kind of note: Today ended up being my second day off from the week where I didn't get a chance to hop on the treadmill. I ended up doing some work around the house and had to get done some studying. However, I will make up for it with an extra 10 minutes on the treadmill tomorrow.

Weight Change from Day 4: no change
Weight Change from Day 1: -6.5 pounds

How I felt:
Because I spent most of the day sitting and relaxing, today was OK. I wasn't tired or anything; maybe it was the extra work I did outside yesterday and the weather today that had me feeling sleepy. Also, there were no cravings for any other food outside the diet. I'm surprised that I am already 5 days into the diet, and that there are only 2 more days left!

Apart from that, my body actually feels a bit lighter today, to be honest. Getting on the scale, I saw that I was a few grams less than yesterday, but it wasn't a huge difference. Now, the diet says, there should be a noticeable difference in the way you look by Day 6, which is tomorrow, so let's see if that really is the case. I wish I'd measured my waist or my thighs to be able to compare, but I'll just try on an old pair of jeans that has been giving me a little trouble lately, they shall speak for me.

I'm almost a 100% sure that I will be doing this diet again, because I've seen it to be highly effective. It seems to work for me, and its not terribly difficult to adapt to. I just have to wait for a few religious days to pass in which we have been invited to people's houses for meals,and I'm not one to turn down that kinda food =P. Even through that though, I will be consistently exercising, and of course, eating in moderation. I do not wish to jump right back in to my old eating habits, otherwise all my efforts now will be wasted. Now, we did eat all new things today, so here are the recipes for y'all.

Recipes:

• For the Tomato Soup: First we boiled 10 large tomatoes, 2 onions, 4 big garlic cloves, about an inch of ginger and 5-6 cloves. Then instead of mashing them, we turned them into a thick paste by putting it all in the blender. Then we drained it all in case of any excess peels & such were left in the thick gravy, added about half a litre of water and brought it to a boil. We were able to consume 4 big bowls between the two of us.
• For the Sprouts: The beans I used were mung (green gram), moth beans and lentil beans. They were wrapped in a cloth over 2 nights so they could grow sprouts. First I steamed them, then added a mixture of green chillies & coriander along with a 2-3 cloves of garlic. A tomato was also diced and added to the salad. You may chop and add a small onion too.
• For the Skewers: I used the same recipe as mentioned before. Only the timer was a few extra minutes so that the chicken would cook and become crispy on the outside, but tender on the inside. Keep in mind, the olive oil used for this "marination" should be used in moderation.

This was it for Day 5! I thought the food was actually slightly heavier than compared to other days, but like I mentioned before, I'll just exercise it off. Also, I know I needn't worry too much because it was all healthy.

I definitely recommend this diet to anyone who is looking to lose weight in a healthy, natural way.

As always, if y'all have any questions, comments, concerns, etc. feel free to leave me a message below, and share this blog with your friends to spread a little health! ;-)

I'll be back tomorrow with more updates.

Stay out of the rain y'all!

Hasta la-buh bye!

Bananas & Bonkers

*giggles*

Tell me that title didn't make you laugh a little, heh...

Anywho! How's it going, y'all!?

I'm back with another entry for today :-)

My mom is taking me out this evening for some fun, so I'm going to try to make this entry a little short & to-the-point. Let's see how I manage that :-P

Now, today was Day 4 of the diet, and according to "them", today should have gone by easier than we would think. However, that wasn't exactly the case for me...

I shall explain, but let me follow the usual procedure.

Day 4 of the diet calls for:
"Bananas and milk. Today you will eat as many as eight bananas and drink three glasses of milk. This will be combined with the special soup which may be eaten in limited quantities."

What I ate:
Food intake: 3 bananas so far, and I plan to eat 1 or maybe 2 more, 2 bowls of the G.M.'S Wonder Soup, the recipe for which I've posted previously, and two glasses of milk with 1 tbsp of sugar in them.
Water intake: I'm at 3.5 litres so far, and hopefully I'll gulp down another litre.
I had no other beverages today.

Food for the day!

The Workout:

• 15 minutes on the stationary bike
• 2 hours of outdoor activity (leaf-raking, walking around, etc.)

Weight Change from Day 3: -3.1 pounds

Weight Change from Day 1: -6.5 pounds

*I was so incredibly happy when I got on the scale this morning. Let it be known that I am not inflating any of these values; I get on the scale every morning, so all the measurements have been done at the same time.

How I felt:

Now, like I mentioned before, although the diet claimed that you will be surprised how easy this day goes, it wasn't exactly easy for me. However, I do not think at all that it was because of the diet. If you all remember, I mentioned on the first day that I do not have a sweet tooth, and the dietary requirements for today were all sweet! That is why today was hard. I wasn't craving junk food, I was only craving something spicy; I was actually craving the skewers we made last night, in the spirit of honesty! However, due to the fact that we were allowed a bit of the Wonder Soup, I survived the day.

But the food apart, body-wise I am as energetic as ever. I don't feel tired, nor have I had any headaches or muscle pains (which are some of the predicted side effects of the diet). I was able to do a lot of yard work today, and only stopped when I ran out of energy. But I still managed to get 2 whole hours in, which would not have been possible a couple of weeks ago, I guarantee you that.

What I realize this diet is doing is definitely increasing my awareness about healthy food. I'm not looking forward to this diet ending, because I'm actually enjoying the menu, the eating styles and habits. Believe me, getting out of a healthy lifestyle is very simple, its the consistency that is hard to maintain for the first few days. I feel like if I do 2 or 3 more repetitions of this diet, I will automatically start eating healthier in my every day life. Just today I had a thought - after this diet ends, I should have a "fruit day" or a "only veggies day" in my week every once in a while. I'm impressed with this diet only because its making me lose weight in a totally natural way.

For today, there aren't any new recipes to post, just the soup we had in the afternoon, but the recipe for that has been posted under the post called "Testing my consistency...".

Anyway! 

This is it for today's entry. I know its a little shorter than the last few entries, but along with being excited to go out, I'm in a bit of a rush. Tomorrow is a different day in the diet, and I will let you guys know why then as well!

If you guys have any questions, comments, experiences to share, please comment below and/or share this post with your friends! I will appreciate any motivation, inspiration & positive thoughts :-)

Until tomorrow, oh Friday-night-lovers...

Hasta la-buh bye!