A large slice of Pizza Hut pan pizza with pepperoni, sausage, jalapeno and pineapple

I ordered a large pan pizza from Pizza Hut tonight. They currently have a deal where you can get “Any Pizza, Any Size, Any Toppings” for just $10.  So, being the greedy piggies that we are, I ordered a large and piled on the toppings. Tim’s half was covered in mushrooms, diced tomatoes, onions, green peppers, and jalapenos.  I opted for pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, jalapenos and pineapple.

I know I’ve been talking a lot lately about working out and eating healthier. So why on earth did I order a pizza with slices that are about 430 calories each?  It’s because I know myself well enough to say confidently that if I put myself on a “diet” where I ate healthy all the time, I would never stick to it.  Being able to still eat what I want while making healthy choices most of the time is key for me.  With the exception of the 2 slices of pizza tonight, I made otherwise healthy eating choices today.

Additionally, today was a cardio day. On days where I work out intensely, I eat more carbs because I know my body needs the extra fuel. My body will use the energy created from those carbs and it’s not going to get stored as fat.  In the time it took the pizza to be delivered, I did the intense BodyRock.TV 20-minute HIIT cardio routine and a few targeted leg and butt exercises (15 reps, 3 sets of each).  Not only does the HIIT routine get your heart pounding and your sweat dripping, but it really works out your legs, and with the push-ups in round 2, your chest and arms get in on the action.  Tonight was my third time doing the full routine and it’s not getting any easier.  There’s such a great sense of accomplishment after I’m done.  I always begin with “I can’t believe I’m going to do this” and end with “Hell yeah! I just did that!”

After all my workouts, be it the HIIT, bench, callanetics or dance cardio, I make sure to have a glass of protein and simple sugar.  This is usually in the form of non-fat or low-fat chocolate milk or non-fat milk mixed with dextrose (a simple sugar also known as D-glucose or simply glucose).  I do this to quickly raise my blood sugar levels which in turn triggers the release of insulin.  Insulin is important for amino acid uptake and protein synthesis—processes that are essential for muscle growth, repair and recovery.  Furthermore, the insulin helps break down the newly introduce blood sugar to replenish the energy stores of my muscles and liver that may have been exhausted during my workout.  You can find a lot of post-workout shakes and drinks out there that have this same combination of simple carbs and protein, but I’ve read quite a few studies that have shown that chocolate milk is just as effective as the fancy stuff and much cheaper.

Further Reading

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) [Wikipedia]
My 20-Minute HIIT Cardio Routine [YouTube]

Chocolate Milk: The New Sports Drink? [CBS News, 2006]
Got Milk? Try Chocolate After Your Workout [Fitness Magazine Online]
Post-Workout Chocolate Milk [AskMen.com]

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