FAQ {Calorie Counting}

I’m 4 weeks into this “healthy lifestyle” change (which often you’ll hear me call the “d” word), and I keep getting some of the same questions asked via Twitter (@MonicaBenavidez) and e-mail. I thought it’d be cool to compile them into one post so you can have a quick and easy place to find answers to common questions. If you’re looking for my tips of calorie counting part 1 or part 2 <--- click here.

1.) What program are you following? Weight Watchers still? How do you know how many calories to eat?

-No, I am now just doing simple calorie counting + exercise. To track/log all my food and exercise, I am exclusively using My Fitness Pal. It’s free, it’s easy, it’s fab. I use it on any computer, and I also use the iPhone app. I try to eat healthy and stay within my calorie target, but other than that I don’t restrict carbs, protein, etc. I do try to limit my sodium and drink at least 80 oz. of water per day. I still eat ice cream, drink wine and have peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. In moderation. In regards to how many calories to eat, I used My Fitness Pal’s calorie target of 1200 for the first 4 weeks.  This week, I am going to try eating 1420 calories (www.loseit.com recommendation) to see if that helps shake things up a bit (you’ll read why later). This blog post does a great job explaining how to come up with a calorie target.

2.) Do you have a splurge day?

-Not really, well sorta. Every other Saturday I do a “whatever-I-want-for-lunch” kinda thing to keep my sanity. I do still log the calories for it, and often times I find I do it in smaller portions than usual just because it’s a habit now. I don’t binge or anything, and I haven’t at all the last 29 days- impressive. I don’t know if I will never, ever binge, but I am sincerely trying not to. Food is not a way to deal with emotions.

3.) So what’s this I hear that you exercise EVERY SINGLE DAY? Are you nuts?

-Yes. Yes, I am nuts. You see, I used to despise exercise. Not saying I love it now, but if I don’t do it, I feel guilty. Also, I know myself well enough that if I skip 1 or 2 days, it will take me a fortnight times ten to get back into the groove. That’s when I heard about the 100 days challenge, and I decided this is the perfect challenge to help me get into a groove of exercising regularly/daily. Bottom line- everyday I intentionally move for 30 minutes. I don’t count things like shopping, cleaning, cooking and the like. I ONLY count exercise. It’s not always strenuous, but it does help me become more fit.

4.) Do you count things like shopping, cleaning, cooking as exercises on My Fitness Pal?

-No. I personally don’t think any of those are substitutes for intentional exercise. Unless you go power walk at the mall, I think those activities can be a bonus calorie burn for your day, but I do not count them ever.

5.) Do you eat the calories burned from exercise?

-Yes. I try to make sure my net calories is around my calorie target for the day. If I only ate 1400 calories, but I burned 400, then my net would be 1000 calories. Too few calories can send your body into starvation mode, trust me, I know this. You will GAIN weight. Like I did this week. Curses! So, if my target is 1400, I burned 400, I will usually eat between 1700-1750 calories for a net of 1300-1350. I leave a few uneaten as buffer for miscalculations during the day.

6.) How do you KNOW how many calories you burned from exercise?

-I used to use the count My Fitness Pal gave me and knock off about 10%. Now I have a Polar FT7 ($85 on Amazon) and it tells me how many calories I burned. I use their number and it’s actually pretty close to the one My Fitness Pal gives me, just slightly less. Not by much though.

7.) What do you do for exercise?

-Turbo Jam, Just Dance 2 and Walk Away the Pounds= Cardio. I use Jackie Warner’s DVD for strength training. I probably do Turbo Jam about 5 times a week, and I sprinkle Just Dance 2 and WATP in there on my days off from Turbo Jam. Turbo Jam is a kickboxing type workout, and I adore it. I’m not a Beachbody Coach (they are rampant on Twitter…some are quite nice, some are quite pushy), so I am just saying this as an overweight girl who is seeing great results from Turbo Jam. You can do it low or high impact, so it truly can be done by anyone regardless of fitness level. WATP is an indoor walking workout that really helps get and keep you at the fat burning zone, and your legs will get toned. Just Dance 2 is so much fun to dance to, and I can do it for an hour and it feels like 10 minutes. I always break a sweat with that game. Bottom line- I do 30 minutes, minimum, daily of SOMETHING.

8.) Just Dance 2- seriously?

-I get this a lot. People don’t *think* it’s a true workout. Sure, if you’re like my little brother-in-law who just waves the Wiimote around without actually, well, DANCING…then yes, not a true workout. However, I do all the moves, and in between songs I walk/jog in place to keep my heart rate up. I sweat. I shake my ass. My arms are sore from it at times (that Bollywood one- HOLY COW). The Tina Turner song- WORK IT GIRL! Lots of good songs to get the body pumping. If it helps, you can do what I do. I pretend I am a popstar (perhaps Britney Spears) and that I am performing at the VMAs. And I gotta be perfect and give it my all! Lame, I know. But try it. It works. See? There I am at the VMAs with Britney- my Wiimote is in my clutch that is under my seat.

9.) Did you really go to the VMAs and meet Britney Spears?

Yes, in my dreams. See picture above.

10.) Is everyday easy for you? You seem so positive and upbeat on Twitter.

-Um, you didn’t log onto Twitter the 5 or so days in the past month that I was having a total meltdown did you? Or the day I was so hungry I wanted to eat a pencil? I try my best to be positive daily. Positivity motivates others, and on Twitter, lots of my tweeps are in the same boat I am in. No need to act like it’s sinking. There’s no use in looking at this whole healthy eating/exercise thing with as gloom and doom. It won’t help. However, there are days when gloom and doom is what you feel. That is ok. That is normal. Those are the days, in my opinion, when it is most important to keep at it. Do not binge, do not skip your workout. Remember your goals, realize that the scale is a frenemy and drink some water. Vent to someone. Cry. Scream. Do not eat massive amounts of donuts. As with anything in life, there are ups and downs. Don’t let the downs ruin you. Feel it and move on.

11.) Does it get easier?

-Yes and no. Healthy habits become more natural, so in essence it gets easier to just make healthy decisions. I used to eat 100 calorie packs a lot, now my snacks are mostly fruit, yogurt, cheese or nuts. I used to drink lots of diet soda and very little water. Now I drink lots of water and 1-2 servings of diet soda. I used to want fast food burgers and fries, now we make lean burgers and baked fries at home. I used to make excuses to not exercise, and now I refuse to miss my 30 minutes of exercise. On the flipside… It’s hard when you don’t see results on the scale and you feel sad. It’s hard when you’re the oddball eating salads and everyone else has pizza. The more you stick with it (exercise & healthy eating) the easier it will be because you simply know it’s what has to be done. Bottom line.

12.) How do you handle a gain?

-Short answer: Not well, hee hee. Long answer: Be honest, be accountable, be reflective. I gained this past week. I looked at my sodium- normal. I looked at my exercise- I bumped it up (possible culprit- muscle water retention? Maybe) I looked at my calories- lower than usual (helloooo starvation mode!). And then I knew it was likely the fact that I exercised too much and ate too little. This week, I am going to keep the intensity of my workouts, but add in an extra 220 calories. Also, I need to make sure I drink all my water- might increase that too. I also am NOT going to peek at the scale because it’ll be a gloom and doom day, which is detrimental to my morale. Weigh once a week, don’t worry about it any other time. Gaining weight in a week where I know I worked really hard is devastating, no doubt, but use it as a tool to reevaluate and shake things up. Our bodies adapt to routine. Also, make sure to take your starting measurements and measure again once a month to see your inches lost. I was up 1.2 this week on the scale, but it was time to take measurements again and I’ve lost 19.75 inches! YES!

Well, those are the things I get asked commonly, so I hope my little compilation helps someone out. I am always here for you all (all of you!) so please if you need further help or clarification, contact me at monicawantsit@gmail.com or tweet me @monicabenavidez

Good luck! YOU CAN DO THIS.

Pink is Chic {Home Décor}

Tell me, when you think of the color pink, do you think of masculine or feminine styles?

Feminine, I know. I do, too. Until I was at Ethan Allen last week, and it made me rethink the color pink.

As soon as I walked in the door, I saw this lovely set-up and it was a design-gasm sort of moment.

My jaw literally dropped. It also dropped again…and again…once I saw the prices. That chandelier was about $1200+. The chair was $1800. The sofa was $2800. Insanity. But I’m not here to gawk at how expensive Ethan Allen is, because we all know it. I’m here to show how incorporating punches of pink doesn’t mean your home has to look like the inside of a Victoria’s Secret boutique.

Here are some more photos to drool over:

Immediately I started to think of ways I could incorporate pops of pink into our living room. We have the gray walls, the neutral sofa/carpet, the dark furniture and the crisp, white trim. I also wanted to think of a way to class up our living room.

My budget?

Nothing. Zilch. Nada. ZERO.

I wanted to just do a facelift without investing much time nor money. People, I had to get creative. Let’s start with the TV stand. Here’s how it looked before:

Our TV stand is one I won for free in a contest by Overstock. Can you guess what drives me absolutely insane about it?

Seeing all the clutter! The Wii, the DVDs. BONKERS!

I wanted to frost the glass, but didn’t have any of the spray to do so. Then I started thinking, what could I use to give the illusion of frosted glass. And I wanted to get rid of the dinky black knobs. I remembered I had solutions on hand for both.

Vellum + tape:

And knobs I bought on eBay for only $1.00 each almost 2 years ago and never used.

Isn’t MUCH nicer? All it took was about 10 minutes of time, plus 4 sheets of vellum, tape and 4 acrylic knobs.

And then I still had knobs leftover and switched out my console table knobs as well:

Now I had to bring in some pops of pink. But I also needed to bring in some other colors to tie it all together. I chose white and gray with a pop of lacquer red on the mantle. And again, I just went and ransacked my garage, closets, etc. to see what I could find. And here’s what I came up with…gosh, I’d really love an Ethan Allen sofa. A gal can dream.

I love it! With just a few high impact pieces of hot pink, plus a few touches of understated glam, I feel my living room got a mini facelift. Kinda like botox.

Have you pumped up your home/space lately to give it a fresh, new vibe? Do you love Ethan Allen? Overrated? Fab?

If you need something to spruce up your space, please enter my Cushion Source $50 gift certificate giveaway! RIGHT NOW!

Cushion Source {Giveaway- CLOSED}

This contest is now closed.

There are 2 things that I almost always, and I mean always, look at when I go to home décor stores: lamps and pillows.

Why? Well, because honestly, they often provide an easy, quick and affordable way to instantly update a room or a space. And can a person really have too many pillows? I think not people. I think not.

Recently, I was given the opportunity to receive a pair of throw pillows from Cushion Source, and I am going to do a review on my experience and the quality of the pillows/fabric/sewing. I have been compensated by getting 2 free throw pillows, but my opinions and pictures are my own.

A bit about Cushion Source:

Cushion Source treats every order with the highest attention to detail. With more than 2000 indoor/outdoor fabrics to choose from, Cushion Source manufactures beautiful throw pillows, patio cushions and indoor seat cushions for all of your decorating needs. From Martha Stewart to the Dr. Phil Show to Jimmy Buffet to Sunbrella corporate themselves, our customers rely on the service and performance of the custom solutions we provide. Our website is easy to use. Customers simply enter their cushion or pillow measurements, choose a fabric and options, enter their zip code for a shipping estimate and we handle the rest. Also, we allow customers to submit their own fabric for us to create their cushions and pillows. Best of all, our products are made here in the USA.

The process of ordering the pillows was a breeze. I looked through all the fabric choices, and I picked a fabric. I am not going to lie- I spent like an hour or more browsing through fabrics. You would have thought it was a life or death decision, but I took so long because they have so many fabulous choices. Anything you can imagine or want, they probably have. No joke.

They even have a cool place to store your favorites, and they even have icons that show you whether it’s for indoor or outdoor use (or both!). The little sun above the green house in the “Use” column means it’s outdoor safe- none of the ones I loved were, which is fine. Just be aware of that if you intend to use them outdoors.

I eventually chose a fabric that was very me. You’ll see why in a bit. Then I picked my edging (knife, corded, fringe or braid). I chose a corded edge in a color that coordinated with the fabric I chose. I chose my size of throw pillow to be a standard 18” square. Overall, I wanted something that looked made just for me but was versatile enough to be used in my living room, master bedroom or guest room as my tastes/décor changes throughout time.

And that was it! Cushion Source did the rest for me, and might I say, they did a FABULOUS job. Let me show ya!

For starters, they came packaged very well. They were in a plastic bag, which was in a box that was protected from all 4-sides with extra cardboard packing-stuff inside. Major kudos on the packaging.

And here are my stunning, gorgeous, magnificent custom made pillows. They are GORG! GORG PEOPLE!!

They are perfect. I picked this bird pattern because of the pattern and the colors. I didn’t even think that they would match up the pattern on the pillows to be identical to one another, but they did. This to me shows they care about quality, presentation and aesthetics. They are so perfect! Even the back of the pillows matches up as well. The attention to detail was unexpected, but it is the company’s strongest asset. Your pillows will look custom made and of high quality. Trust me. And you can’t beat their prices either.

The corded edge is the icing on the cake. It really takes the pillows to another level. Very polished.

These pillows are part of the entire master plan for the master bedroom. They will be the centerpiece, inspiration and color palette for the entire bedroom. I’ll be posting about that this week, but now I’d like to share some even more awesome news.

You, yes YOU, can win $50 to Cushion Source so you can have some fabulous pillows for your home. I chose throw pillows, but they also make window seat cushions, pet beds (Pee Wee wants one!), ottoman cushions and so much more (even curtains- yay!!) Check out their website and swoon over all the affordable possibilities. I am already planning on purchasing curtains and some outdoor cushions/pillows for our backyard. I think what most excites me about Cushion Source is that they allow a person to create a completely custom item at a price that is reasonable and the quality is outstanding. The customer service is fantastic and I cannot recommend them enough. As someone who has no aspirations or talent in regards to sewing, they are a godsend to someone who likes custom stuff. At reasonable prices.

So, how can you win? Let me tell you the ways!

1.) Leave a comment telling me what you’d buy with your $50 gift certificate. New pillows for the living room? A cushy pad for your little dog? Dish!

2.) Follow my blog (if you already do, I love ya, and leave me a comment stating you already follow. If you’re new- welcome!)

3.) Become a fan of Cushion Source on Facebook- tell them Monica Wants It sent ya.

4.) Follow Cushion Source on Twitter and tweet this “Win a $50 gift cert to @CushionSource from @MonicaBenavidez over at http://bit.ly/geWtlI #giveaway #homedecor #diy” You must follow them AND tweet!

5.) Check out their blog and leave a comment on one of their entries. Leave me a link to the post you commented on.

That’s 5 chances to win! To get the 5 entries, make sure to leave me a comment for each entry. That’s 5 separate entries if you do all of the above. If you lump them all together, they’ll only count as 1, so please leave a comment for each one. Please? Thanks!

Contest ends on Sunday at 6 pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on the blog that evening. Ready, set, GO!

PS: I really, really love my pillows. <3

Hawaiian Pizza {Healthy Eating}

Can you guess what one of my favorite types of pizza is? Hint- look at the title of this post.

Hawaiian pizza= AMAZING

The pineapple, the cheese, the canadian bacon, the crust…mmm.

My favorite Hawaiian pizza hails from one of my favorite restaurants in the WHOLE world:

I think my ass just grew just thinking about the Cheesecake Factory. The red velvet cheesecake is TO DIE FOR.

But back on topic…I believe you can have those yummy things like burgers, pizza and even french fries in a healthy way that won’t make you feel guilty, bloated or sad. And I’m here to show you how I made a low-calorie Hawaiian pizza using common ingredients and guess what? It ended up being low calorie, yummy and guilt-free.

There’s the cast:

-Bacon (for topping)

-Marinanra sauce

-Pineapple chunks

-Flatout Light Flatbread

-Ham

-Mozzarella Cheese

-Spinach

-Crushed red pepper & basil

Of course, your ingredients will vary based on your toppings and what you have on hand. Improvise!

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees and put your flatbread on a cookie sheet. Heat for about 10 minutes or until flatbread gets warm & slightly crispy.

Assemble/measure your toppings:

I used about 37 grams/5 chunks of pineapple and cut them into smaller pieces.

1/4 cup of sauce + a dash of spinach

Cut up my ham, bacon and mixed with pineapple. Measured out my 1 serving of cheese.

Take your flatbread out of the oven, turn over up to 350 degrees. Apply all the ingredients to your flatbread in pizza order (sauce, cheese/toppings, seasoning). Put back into the oven for about 10 minutes or until ingredients are fully heated/cheese is melted.

And then 15 minutes later, you have a yummy thin crust Hawaiian pizza like this:

Mmm, cheesy.

Here’s a calorie snapshot of the exact pizza I created (Calories, Carbs, Fat, Protein, Sodium, Fiber) Yikes, that’s a lot of sodium- I made sure to drink lots of water!

You could get creative with toppings- veggie pizza, mushroom pizza, chicken and alfredo sauce pizza…get creative!

What’s your fave comfort food/fast food recipe you’ve tried or come up with?

A Breakfast Nook {Luxe for Less}

Like I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I felt really inspired by Candice Olson’s first episode of her new show Candice Tells All. I loved the ideas so much, that I most definitely want to apply some of the same principles/colors/ideas to our breakfast nook. Here’s a little refresher of what her design looked like:

The items that most struck me in this makeover are the ikat curtains and the dining room table and chairs. She gives a shopping guide for the episode, but most of the items are still far too expensive or not available in the US.

Lucky for me (and you!), I’ve found similar online that you can definitely order and maybe even be able to afford. Yay!

Let’s look at the ikat curtains:

She lists the source as www.kravet.com but they don’t list prices. In my experience, if you have to ask, you probably can’t afford it. So let’s find some alternatives, shall we? If it’s the color/style that you want and you know how to sew, then these may be good options:

From Calico Corners, $20.00+ per yard.

From Fabric.com, $13.00 per yard.

From Hancocks of Paducah, $16.00 per yard.

Ok, but what if you’re like me and don’t know how to sew or have no aspiration to? Well, that’s cool, too. I couldn’t find curtains that look exactly the same, but lucky for all of us sewing-challenged people, there is a pattern (suzani) that is close enough. Bingo.

From World Market, $30.00 a panel.

From Urban Outfitters, $38.00 a panel.

From Pier 1 Imports, $35.00+ a panel.

The other elements I love are the industrial-inspired dining table and those awesome white chairs that remind me of little kid’s cafeteria chairs.

What I love about the table is the raw, earthiness of it. It seems classic and masculine, yet quite modern.

Industrial dining table from West Elm, $800+

From Urban Home, $199.00

Not quite the wood/steel look, but equally stunning. From Overstock, $294.00

And then there are those quirky chairs.

From Overstock, $151.00 for the pair.

From Overstock, $210.00 for the pair.

From Overstock, $176.00 for the pair.

And finally in the living room, these are a few things that jumped out at me:

The glass firescreen with pillars, the plush brown chair and comfy sofa .

From Woodland Direct, $343.00

From Overstock, $329

From Urban Home, $599

Hope these finds help you feel inspired to liven up a space in your home. What do you think? What’s your fave detail/aspect of Candice’s design in this room?