If you’re interested in what BYU Education Week is all about, click the picture. 🙂
Yesterday I returned home after 10 days away to attend Education Week at Brigham Young University. It is 4-5 days (or any schedule you want, really) for kids and adults 14 and older to attend classes on a huge variety of subjects. It is open to anyone of any faith and background for a very reasonable price. I had an amazing time! (I highly recommend this experience to all!)
But…although this was my 4th or 5th time attending over the years, this time was different. Not only was it my first time going alone, it was also my first time going on ANY trip since entering the “maintenance phase” where I was on a schedule. When Eric and I went to Las Vegas in May, we had a fitness center at the hotel and we could create our own timeline each day. This time I was staying at a friend’s house–no gym– and my daily schedule was very full.
Tuesday through Friday I attended a series on..ahem…being a perfectionist…and it started at 8:30am each morning. I woke up at 5:30-5:45am each day, showered, made my shake (I brought our back-up Nutribullet and all the ingredients) and left the house around 7:15am. I’d get to campus around 7:30, walk from the parking lot to where I needed to be, usually ambling through the BYU Bookstore to browse/buy on my way.
Each day I ate lunch at the Cannon Center–my freshman cafeteria–an all-you-can-eat situation that gives you a ton of choices for under $10. Dinner was varied. Twice at the Cannon Center, once at Subway, once from a grocery store deli, and once at my friend’s house. While on the road I ate once at the hotel in Meridian, ID and once at the sushi place across the street.
Why is all this information important? Because I’m only human, I had a lot of choices, and some were better than others.
But I also learned a lot during this trip, and I don’t just mean from the classes I attended:
Wear the Fitbit, even when you know your day will be less active. Bottom line? Knowledge is power. If you tell yourself that you don’t need to wear the Fitbit because you’ll be sitting in class or driving all day, you’ll slowly find other excuses not to wear it. I learned a lot from wearing it this week. I know it took approximately 2000 steps to get from my parked car to the center of campus. I know that I hit 10,000 steps at 1pm on some days, and 3pm on others. I also learned that my daily average was 12,000-14,000 steps (I spent 10 hours on campus most days.) And even though I sat a lot, I still reached my calorie burn goal every day.
It’s OK to cheat when you’re on a trip. “Cheat” within reason. Tell yourself it’s ONLY for the trip. Lunch was a real treat for me each day. Why? The choices! The bounty! The desserts! No wonder the “Freshman 15” exists. I ate lunch each day at 12:30pm. I was pretty hungry by then after having my shake 5 hours earlier and then attending 3 classes each morning. Lunch usually consisted of a bowl of fruit (pineapple, cantaloupe, watermelon,) a side salad I made at the salad bar, and an entree. The entrees varied and they weren’t huge, but I didn’t show a lot of restraint either. Twice I had hamburgers, twice I had Asian-themed meals. Another lunch was a panini sandwich. And yes, I had dessert. They were all things I don’t buy at home anymore and still won’t. I indulged and enjoyed!
Cheating still has its limits. When you’re in a cafeteria like that, it’s hard not to notice everyone around you and watch their choices too. For the most part, people didn’t go overboard. Most people went for the salad bar–which was pretty impressive–and limited themselves to one dessert. A few did not, but it was rare. I did make it a point to stay away from the “build your own baked potato” area and heavy soups. At the end of the day, I was surprised by how accustomed I have become to “real” foods. The fruits and salads really did satisfy me the most. (Although that black-tie cake I had on Wednesday was Pretty Darn Satisfying too.)
If you’re kind to your body, it will be kind to you. This is probably the biggest lesson I learned in terms of eating on a trip where I couldn’t count calories, didn’t go to a gym, or weigh myself daily. By the end of the week I was feeling a little…”soft,” but my size 6 clothes all fit just fine. My weight, however, was a complete mystery. Thinking back to the way I had eaten during some of those meals I was certain I’d be up a few pounds, but I really had no idea what to expect. When I arrived home last night I had Quizno’s for dinner and THEN weighed myself out of morbid curiosity. 140.6lbs. This morning I weighed myself AFTER breakfast. 139lbs. No real change whatsoever. I was amazed! After months of working out each morning, my metabolism gave me the gift of being able to scale back on the exercise for a few days, eat with a little more abandon, and not punish me. That’s a really nice gift to get from your body! (A first for me.)
I only took photos of 3 meals, but you can see they are not exactly “meals of restraint:”
A simple chicken quesadilla and side salad at the Idaho Courtyard Marriott. The end of my first day traveling and I’d been to the gym that morning before leaving home. I was so proud of myself.
One week later after watching the film, The Hundred Foot Journey, we decided to have Indian food for dinner. Coconut shrimp, balsamic rice, naan flatbread, and mango ice cream at Bombay House in Provo, Utah. SO good! Calories? I have no idea. Guilt? Hmm..none!
Back in Idaho (2 nights ago,) I went to Sakana Sushi across the street from the hotel. Everyone on Yelp raved about their Hana Roll, so I tried it. A little heavy with the tempura inside, but good. Also seaweed salad and miso soup. After driving all day, I only had 3700 steps by 5pm. Yikes. I walked to the restaurant to get more. I reached 5000 after dinner, then I went to the gym, got on the treadmill, and made it to 14,000. My best number all week and my legs were so happy!
Today I gave myself one more gift and, gulp, slept in and didn’t go to the gym. My poor, tired body needed a day of rest with no driving, no classes, no alarm, and no obligations. I did get back to counting calories and went for a walk tonight just to get 10,000 steps. Tomorrow I’ll go to the gym, reacquaint myself with my favorite elliptical machine, and lift some weights.
Speaking of gifts, I can’t end this post without mentioning one last thing. Now that I’ve given myself the gift of being in good shape I was AMAZED at how easy it was to get around campus. I’ve always been a strong walker, but I was also carrying around an extra 50lbs. Last year I attended an average of 3 classes a day, huffed and puffed to my car each afternoon around 4pm, and caught a 24 hour cold virus on Friday. This year I went to 5 classes most days, zipped from one end of campus to another with minimal effort, and usually didn’t end my day until 6pm.
I know this is not a coincidence, but a result of losing the weight, staying active, and eating better all these months.
It was a wonderful week at BYU, fulfilling and educational in so many ways. In terms of my choices these last few months, it reaffirmed that I’ve made the right ones and to keep on going. (Eric too! He lost 7lbs while I was gone! I’m so proud of him!)
P.S. If BYU Education Week sounds like something you want to try, click the picture at the top. Next year’s dates are already set for August 17-21, 2015. It’s an experience like none other.
Health, Happiness & Almond Milk 
Excellent! Perhaps next year I will attend.