Back On Track & Back On The Trails…

I decided to eat off plan this week. I haven’t done that in ages, not for several days in a row at least – in close to 10 months or more.

Why? Because I was really unhappy with how I looked over New Years Weekend in the photos I shared with you, and just decided to step back and regroup.

Of course eating carbs is not the answer, and my goal for 2017 remains the same: to build healthy, attractive muscle weight and continue eating low carb. And so I got right back on track yesterday, including my very first “winter hike” of the season for some good exercise. 🙂

Being out of ketosis, plus the freezing weather, made for a lot less energy than I usually have on my hikes. But I still got in some solid exercise!

I also ate low carb of course, which means I’ll have Keto Flu to deal with in a few days. 😛 I missed breakfast because I was busy writing this post for you, so I grabbed a low carb burger on the way out to my hike.

I got a Low Carb Frisco Burger from Hardee’s. It’s just the Frisco Burger on the menu in a lettuce wrap instead of a bun. They’ll make anything on the menu low carb for you if you ask. 😉

It was well below freezing yesterday, with a high of only 18 degrees, so these hand warmers came in extremely handy! 😉 This is the first time I’ve used them, and I’ll definitely be taking them on every hike this season:

My first stop on the hike was the top of a smaller waterfall on the way to Foster Falls. I say “smaller” – I discovered later it was MUCH higher, just less water volume…

Of course I jumped the fence as usual, because I like the BEST view of any waterfall: the very top. 🙂 🙂

To give you an idea how high up I was on a straight drop, here’s a view of where I was standing above – from the opposite bluff:

Wow 😯 lol

Here’s a quick video I took from that bluff too:

Before I got over to that other bluff though, I took a detour off-trail and hike downriver (literally) to the top of Foster Falls.

Here I am at the top of Foster Falls. 🙂

And yes it was slick – I had to be especially cautious with the frozen spots!

Part of the trail was over a very slick pile of fallen icicles. Taking photos proved challenging in the chilling temps with the bitter wind. Instead of taking off my two pairs of gloves (with handwarmers inside), I framed the photo… then touched the screen with my nose to take the shot. 😛 🙂

Did I mention my friend Caroline is over again this weekend? 🙂

By special request, we had one of her famous omelets for dinner! YUM…

It was FULL of ham, spinach, onion & cheeses. 🙂 Delicious!

Here’s my MyFitnessPal food diary for yesterday:

My hike was a short one, considering how cold it was and how bad I was feeling. In addition to being out of ketosis, I’ve felt like I had a cold coming on all week… and had a NyQuil hangover. 😛

I still got in some good steps for the day though:

I learned a lot on my first “winter hike” in super cold temps…

Wearing several layers of clothing, a bulky outer coat, scarf, hat and two pairs of gloves made me feel very confined and a bit clumsy. It definitely slowed me down. It also restricted my range of view, in addition to my range of motion.

I also discovered the type of hat & scarf I wore, which was super warm!… was not ideal for off-trail hiking, lol. It kept getting snagged on tree branches and briars through some of my more adventurous climbs, which was really just annoying – but could easily be dangerous. So I’ll keep that in mind for future hikes this winter. 😉

I was going to go on another short hike again today, but I ended up staying in to take it easy – and stay warm. The cold weather yesterday just made my cough even worse. 😛

It’s great to be back on track though, and back to my fitness goals!

I forgot how miserable it feels to eat off plan, between the bloating and the unhappy tummy – blah. It gave me a chance to step back and get my head on straight though, and was a great reminder why I continue to eat a healthy ketogenic diet… and what my TRUE goals are for the year: to build shapely muscle.

How are things going with you?

I would love to hear how your first week of the year went, and how you’re doing with your 2017 goals so far. I would also love to hear if you’re exercising as part of your goals, and if so – what is your favorite exercise during the winter months??

Best,
Lynn Terry,
aka @LowCarbTraveler

p.s. I love LOVE love my new Keen Hiking Boots! 🙂 That plus the Smart Wool socks kept my feet dry and warm through the entire hike!