Weekend in Review

Last week was a crazy week! I had training away from the class for 3 days and then Science Night in the middle of the week, so by Friday I was tired. I am so glad that I meal prep as it helps prevent me from having slip ups during stressful times, because the Lord knows this would have been the week for it. Sitting in trainings makes me want to snack the whole time and when I get stressed sometimes I want to sleep versus working out, but I went to the gym everyday that I had planned to.

Protein Muffins from Poppy's Baking with the Bear and Coffee

After I got off of work on Friday, Mountain Man took me to pick out my Easter dress at C.C. Belle, they were doing a pay it forward promotion where if you purchased a dress for Easter there then they will donate one to someone. We came home after that and made our traditional Friday Pizzas. We have really gotten to where we like Naan bread for the base. I then added a Garlic and Herb Spreadable Cheese (like Laughing Cow) as the sauce, topped it with my Buffalo Chicken I made in the crockpot and sprinkled cheese on top. I thought it was one of my best pizzas, even the Mountain Man tried it and really like it.

Saturday, we got up and packed some snacks to head out to Dollywood.

We had a gift card to Little River Trading Company that we needed to use and a doughnut place on the top 50 that is located in Maryville that we needed to knock off the list. So we headed towards Maryville and picked up a couple of doughnuts from Richie Kremes Do-Nuts. Their traditional glazed was the one on the list so we each got one of those to try, they were good but my heart still belongs to Sweet Smuckers when it comes to a traditional glazed doughnut. If you are ever in the area, please try them as they are sweet as can be and the doughnuts are good, they were selling out quick. After, doughnuts we stopped to use the gift card, it might be a little store but it is packed with all sorts of outdoor goods and a friendly staff. We looked around forever as they had a sale going on too.

Richie Kreme's Traditional Glazed

After, that we headed through Townsend into Pigeon Forge. It probably the most beautiful way to enter the area because you have the gorgeous, almost untouched mountains as the backdrop of your ride. We went straight to a packed Dollywood. We thought about turning around, but decided to go ahead and see what shows I wanted to and then we could leave. We grabbed a crepe, watched a few shows, and then left the park to do some quick shopping at the outlet mall. And after that is where I messed up with my macros. We went to Burgerfi to grab a late lunch and I went in without a plan. I knew we would split a burger and assumed we would split fries, which I had macros for. But the hubby wanted a Cry + Fry, which is like 1100 calories and I did not realize it until after the fact. Oh well, I sucked it up and moved on.

CEO Burger and Cry + Fry from Burgerfi

I have been too successful lately with weight loss and my workouts to let that bother me like it used to. So Sunday morning I was back at it with a healthy breakfast and hit my macros because it was a new day.

Love,

Jamie Lynn 

The Real World

I am so totally dating myself by the title of this post. Yes, I watched the MTV show and I to this day do not know how that was "The Real World". In my real world, things do tend to be a little crazy and not really as I want them planned. Take for instance my Spring Break daytrip, we got around early and grabbed doughnuts and a cinnamon roll from Sweet Smuckers Doughnuts.

Sweet Smucker's Cinnamon Roll and Weigel's Organic Nicaraguan Coffee

Sweet Smucker's Glazed Doughnut

Luckily, I packed my beanie, scarf, and winter coat because it was cold and getting colder.

Lake Junaluska

Despite the cold, we still had so much fun going into North Carolina. We walked around looking at the shops in Slyva and eating some good things.

Lulu's Burger and Fries

Lulu's Morsel's, one of the best things I have ever eaten!

Baxley's Chocolates

We actually left early because the snow was starting to fall more, and we did not want to get stuck up in those mountains.

Truth is that the night before this I ate half a candy bar that did not fit my macros, then I ate all that yummy food while loosely tracking macros. Then the next day I loosely tracked again when I enjoyed some homemade candy that we got at Yoders.

Homemade Peanut Butter Cup from Yoder's

Friday though I got back on track and ate correctly, because I have goals. I would like to drop about 5 more pounds before my half marathon that I am training for right now. So I sucked it up for Saturday's date eating tuna and drinking a protein shake, because I wanted Babula's and Coolato Gelato. I went and did arms, ran two miles, and did my core exercises. I felt so bloated after my three days of not being focused, but I told myself to get over because it was self-induced.

Weekly Gym Selfie

Ready for my date with my cute hubby.

Babula's Tacos: Chicken, Carne, and Carnita (my favorite)
Got happy that it was ready, and started eating before I took a picture.

When we get to the movie theater I notice that the times were different on my phone versus what the theater was saying. I decided while hubby was waiting in long line for entrance to Beauty and the the Beast that I would go ask to see if something was wrong.

YES! YES! This girl got tickets at the wrong theater. Facepalm! We could not make it to the correct theater in time and they were sold out for the time we wanted. So I went home with no Coolato Gelato and not having watched Beauty and the Beast. My wonderful hubby took me to Redbox were we rented movies instead and he did not make one single comment about me deleting the gelato out and replacing it with a WHOLE PINT of Red Velvet Halo Top. He knew better because I was upset that I had messed up. But that is life, it is full of mess ups. You mess up your macros or diet and you get back on track. You have snow on your Spring Break, you suck it up and look at how beautiful the mountains looks with snow on them! You get tickets at the wrong theater, you laugh it off and go rent movies and buy Halo Top with the money you save. That is the real world!

Doughnut Date

I got to be out of school for 4 whole days a couple of  weeks ago due to illness and I was miserable loved every minute of it! It allowed me to have a date with this handsome fellow.

The Village: One of our favorite parts of Gatlinburg
 

We got to just drive around the area enjoying the mountains and eat, two of our favorite things. We went to Alamo to get a steak for lunch. I know I have said this before but it is one of the best steaks I have had, I would put it up against a dry aged one any day. I did good and got a sweet potato and broccoli as my sides, I was actually craving them and it allowed me to eat the whole steak and have doughnuts.



I saved both my doughnuts for my nightly treat. I love having a sweet to end by day and Mad Dog's Doughnuts was a great way to do it.

Maple Glazed Yeast, Chocolate Glazed Yeast, and Coconut Cram Pie Yeast

I hope you and your family are healthy right now!

Love,

 

Jamie Lynn



Saturdate: Double Date

This weekend we went out with the In-Laws, I am so blessed to have such great In-Laws! We went to Greenbrier Restaurant in Gatlinburg because the hubby was craving one of their steaks with Maitre d'Butter and their loaded baked potatoes. I have to say that their steaks are definitely one of my favorites in the area.

I thought this statue was too cute! 

After dinner, we stopped at Mad Dogs for doughnuts and ice-cream. I got the Red Velvet Cake and the Devil's Food with Peanut Butter Icing. I preferred Matt's Maple Yeast Doughnut over my cake doughnuts. We also got this monster of a cinnamon roll to try.

Mad Dogs Cinnamon Roll

We saved it until Sunday since I was out of macros and neither one of us wanted a sugar coma.
It was crazy good warmed up and with a tand more icing that we made, since we like it slathered.

Love, 

Jamie Lynn 

Motivitation Monday

I take like hundreds of pictures a month. I take pictures of my sweet Lulu and Charlie, doughnuts places with a sample of their doughnuts, pictures of the Mountain Man and me, and pictures of random things. Sometimes those pictures stay on my phone for when I need them and sometimes they end up a favorite of mine.

And then there are times that they motivate me and show me how strong that I really am. Like these pictures....

 

The bottom picture is right when I decided I was tired of being "overweight", the top right I felt so happy because I was losing some of the weight, and the left one is when we went to Lake Lure both of us had lost weight and I felt so much more confident. Looking back my first thought is that I should not have felt that happy with the way I looked, but then I remind myself I deserved to feel some sort of accomplishment with the way I looked. I had worked for that, I had sweat for that, I had made healthier eating choices, and I was a better person.

 

These pictures were taken June 2016 (Our 8 year Anniversary) to December 2016. I feel like I look so much happier because I am so much energetic and stronger. I maybe a smaller person in size, but I am a bigger person in my strength. I have done so many things I never thought I would and in these pictures I see a healthier, more tenacious, and happier couple because of the journey we have gone through.

 

 

I say all this to say that when I am having a day; I do not want to give up that doughnut, I do not want to work out, or I do not want to go for a walk. I remind myself to not give up my journey yet because I am not at my finish line.

 

So I leave you with this...

Are you at your finish line? What is your motivation to keep going?

 

Love,

Jamie Lynn

I am back....

Hello! I apologize I have been gone forever! For the past couple of years I had a lot of work roles on my plate and while I loved them it did not allow for much time to blog. With some recent family needs I have stepped down from those roles which is allowing me more time with my family and more time to focus on my health, two very important things in my life.

Not teaching Summer School allowed me to hike to Clingman's Dome with my hubby and my momma.

 

 

 

Go to the Isle of Palms with my husband's family and get to see these two enjoy the beach.

 

 

It allowed me to spend some time with Baby C and do fun aunt things like the Sky Lift in Gatlinburg and take her on the tubing adventure of a lifetime, no seriously I lost my tube trying to help a little girl and got beat up by the rocks. Fun Times! I always have fun with her though and wait with baited breath to see what she says or does next.

 

 Not having so much on my plate has allowed me to focus more on my health and right before Christmas I got down to being 5 pounds away from my original Goal Weight, I got a little off track during Christmas and I am in a reverse so I am up a little. I will start cutting again in March to get ready for the summer. I am starting to lift weights more and have started following macros. I love following the macro diet lifestyle only because there are no "off limit foods" and I can tell my relationship with food is so much better.

Lifting and deadmills have made a dramatic difference in my pace with my 5ks. My pace used to be about 15 to 14 minutes per mile and this last race I ran was 10:24 and it was below 30 degrees during the entire run. I feel like this was great time, especially since I not only hate the cold but one minute I was cold because of the shade of the buildings and the next minute I was warm because I was out in the sun.

 

I feel like I not only smaller, but I feel so much stronger since the very first race. When I first started my journey I ran because it was convenient and personal, then I started some circuit classes, and now I do a mix of lifting, running, and my Saturday Body Sculpting Class. I feel like all this combined has made me a stronger person and is helping me to better reach my goal of better health.


As I move forward into 2017 I plan on keeping my health a priority and reaching my goals.

Love,

Jamie Lynn