2015 Resolutions

Resolution- a formal expression of opinion or intention made.

After much prayerful discernment, I have decided on two resolutions for the 2015 year.

1) Talking positively about others. This year I discovered that certain family/friends were talking about me in a very negative way. I'm still very hurt by this but will learn to forgive and move on. While I wallowed in self pity, I realized that I need to make sure that I am not doing the same, very hurtful, thing. 

I know that this resolution may be tricky as we all, from time to time, need to vent when others are creating undo stress and frustration in our lives. Therefore I will be doing a lot of mindful journaling, prayer, and running to help refocus when those situations occur.

If you are reading this and are one of my close friends/ family, please do not draw me into gossip. I love to catch up with how people are doing and what others are up to but it's a slippery slope into negativity. 

2) Reach my personal goal weight by March 9th and commit to maintenance. I do have specific goals & benchmarks to ensure positive results. I am no longer keeping pop nor alcohol in my house, I'm not forbidding myself to have either, as this would be a quick path to failure, but if they are not readily available, it is much easier to avoid. Also consistent and diligent tracking will be a must. Following all my own advise will also be a big part of ensuring my own success! 

*If you are creating your own resolutions today, I found this great article about resolutions:

Top 10 Signs You'll Fail to Reach Your Resolutions

Wishing you all a safe and blessed New Year!

Reflection

Decisions, decision....

I LOVE this time of year because the snow is a beautiful reminder of the hope of new beginnings and fresh starts. I get excited when I get a new planner (received a great Wizard of Oz one from my mother in law this Christmas :) ) and am able to fill in dates with birthdays, events and goals. The bitter cold is also a reminder of a sense of anxiety with limitless goals to be made and a look back at resolutions that were not fulfilled in the prior year.

Goal making, for me, gives me a feeling of excitement mixed with stress. I've discovered that one thing that helps me to create a realistic resolution is to also create a detailed plan. Example, you can decide that you want to quit smoking but you aren't going to be able to wake up one morning and say, okay, I'm done, and never smoke again. There has to be steps in place, nicotine gum, patches, activities to replace all the time that used to be spent lighting up and people to support you. The same is true for any goal. It's just like building a house, you need a plan, the proper tools and support system.

I have a few resolutions/ goals in mind that I will put in tomorrow's post, however, I'm struggling with the details. There are so many great options out there for people trying to get in shape. I've tried MOST of them with great short term results. I'm very content with sticking with Weight Watchers, using myfitnesspal.com, my fitbit, working out at the Y, and using shakeology as a healthy supplement. I ran a great Holiday Survival group that's finishing up this week and kept me in check over the holidays. My local Y is running a weight loss challenge group starting next Monday and the stakes are high, money is a great motivator. I was 100% sure I was signing up for it until I ran across another money motivator (DietBet), it's an online weight loss challenge site where you can join a challenge with the potential of earning money by losing weight. Either of these will be a great motivator for me, having someone else holding me accountable with the potential of earning money, who couldn't use extra money!?!

Today I plan on doing some self reflection to not only help me to decide between the two motivators above but also to look back at past mistakes, steps to ensure said mistakes do not occur again, and how I can move forward to create a me that I can be proud of, not just in body, but in mind and soul.

Take a moment of reflection today~ think of a person that you look to as a role model? What characteristics to they encompass? How could you make changes to be more like that person?

**If you like my blog, please feel free to share it on FB, Twitter, Pinterest or any other social media! I'd love to have more readers and possibly more people to motivate!?Also PLEASE feel free to leave comments, I love hearing from all of you! :) **

Sunday Ponderings

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I had a blessed day celebrating the birth of our Savior and spending quality time with friends and family over the past few days.
I'm hoping that some of my tips helped you to get through the holidays. I wish I would have followed more of them myself but I did my best to fill up with water and binge on the veggie trays. I didn't get a workout in on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday but have decided that I'm okay with that. I am grateful for the time I spent with loved ones and now have a few days to get myself back on track. I'm looking forward to getting back into a routine and having a few days to clean house (focusing on the fridge and cupboards).

With New Year's Day coming in just a few short days, it's that time of the year to look back over the past few months, evaluate, and decide what your goals are for 2015. I spent our long car trip reflecting on this past year. I believe that I made a lot of steps in the correct path; I took charge of my health, joined WW and restarted my membership to the YMCA, I began running again and completed my first 10K, I spent more quality time with my children, and furthered my education. I am very proud and grateful for all these wonderful revisions I've made in my life, however I know that this is not a simple walk in the park, it's a journey on a windy, endless path. So here I am, looking behind at the uphill, rocky path and looking ahead at a similar path, perhaps not as steep but still with many obstacles awaiting me.

Over the next couple days I will create a plan for the upcoming year's resolutions and the best way to approach them (in my opinion). For now I'm going to assess 2014 and make a list of the positive experiences and the ones that I can learn from. Have a marvelous Monday!

Give Yourself the Gift of Health!

'Tis the season for over indulgences; meat and cheese trays, cookies, dip and chips, etcetera. This is the last two weeks of holiday parties and we need to keep at the forefront of our minds that the most important thing is the time we get to spend with the people we love and NOT the food we're piling into our mouths. I am posting a list of ideas to help you maintain over the next few days. Remember that the most important gift you can give yourself is health (mental and physical)!

1. Drink lots of water (at least 8 glasses a day)!
2. Load up on the veggies from the veggie trays and lean proteins (and lighten up on the dip).
3. Don't avoid your favorite treats, cut them in half.
4. Let everyone else go through the line first.
5. Avoid mindless munching.
    a. Keep your hands busy by playing games or holding a glass of water in your hand.
    b. Get up and walk around (or go on a short walk outside, if it's nice out).
6. Wait 20 minutes before going back for seconds.
7. Determine whether the food is "worth" the calories. Take a bite, if it's not good, don't finish it! (The kids starving in Africa won't starve any more just because you threw away a partially eaten piece of pie- unless you were planning on shipping it there).
8. Bring gum to chew on while deciding if you really need that second plateful.
9. When not at a holiday party, eat healthy food (fruits, veggies, lots of fiber).
10. Pre-plan your exercise to make sure you stay active! Not only will it help to balance your eating, it will also help to relieve holiday stress.
11. Bring healthy dishes to share. Healthy doesn't mean it has to be bland!
(31 Days of Healthy Holiday Desserts)
12. Take time for yourself; a long walk, a good book, a bubble bath, etc.
13. Be a kid!
      a. Get down on the floor and play games with the young ones.
      b. Go outside and help build a snowman or snow fort.
      c. Look at this season with all its magic and joy.
      d. Go sledding or ice skating.
14. Lighten up on the adult beverages. Too many can not only make the next day not fun, it can also cause your self control to falter and over eating to ensue.
15. Get enough sleep.
16. Don't bring up politics or religion with your family! The less stress the better!
17. Pray. Take the time to center yourself and remember the true reason for the season, Jesus was born!

Hope these help some of you, I know I'm going to try my best to follow my own advise! ;)

Refusing to feel guilty!

Today at Weight Watchers we talked about determining which foods are worth eating (especially at holiday gatherings). I listened as many ladies talked about how other people would be hurt and possibly even angry if they didn't eat the food that the others had made. We talked about things that could be said to try to counter or avoid hurt feelings.

After thinking about this for a couple hours, I still feel really bothered by this conversation. Why should others take such offense when we don't eat their food? Shouldn't they be happy for us for making healthier life decisions? Perhaps even happy that we know their dish will taste so good we have to avoid it in fear of over eating. When did not accepting a plate full of food become an insult? Take a look around, one-third of U.S. adults are obese! (http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html) Why are we force feeding friends and family or making them feel guilty when they only take a small portion? I think, who cares if they are offended! That's an issue that they have to deal with, is their self-esteem so low that by me not eating a piece of their pumpkin pie it diminishes their self worth? Does my coming to spend quality time with you, visiting, playing games, etc. not show how much I value our relationship?

If you are hosting a gathering this holiday season or participating in a gathering by bringing a delicacy to share, please be mindful of others. You do not know the journey they are on or the internal demons they face. Would you offer a drink to a recovering alcoholic? I'd hope not, please consider those of us trying to make healthier choices as recovering junk food addicts (depending on if sugar or salt are our choice for binge eating). Don't belittle our goals or make us into the bad guys this holiday season. If you feel bad that someone isn't pigging out as much as you are at your next holiday gathering, take a look in the mirror, re-evaluate, are you really angry at the person making healthier choices or at yourself for not following suit?

Be kind, remember the reason for the season and enjoy the time with your family and friends!

Looking for the Humor

Sometimes it can be a struggle to find a reason to laugh when you are feeling stressed.Whether it's from a busy holiday schedule, overwhelmed at work or home, or just the general everyday stress of saying no to unhealthy temptations and fitting in fitness, it can get to be too much! This is the moment when you need to take a moment and laugh.

Yesterday I found more than a couple reasons to laugh at myself. One, I received a beautiful sweater from a friend. It has a cowl collar but it didn't look/ feel right when I put it on. My wonderful husband tried to help me figure out what I was doing wrong, but to no avail. It didn't look bad but I knew something was off so I went to school and found a coworker who I knew could help me out. She attempted to fix the collar and was looking at the collar and shirt and then started to laugh and said we needed to head the bathroom. Well, I had the shirt on upside down, I didn't even know you could do that with a shirt! I now know where my boys get their genetic predisposition to wearing their shirts backwards, ha! :)  Needless to say I was a little embarrassed but, more so, thought it was hilarious!

This past weekend I also got a little overwhelmed with my kids as we toured our state capitol and the beautiful Christmas tress that are set up inside. They were running around and climbing on things and when we finally got them outside they began to chase the geese. Typically, I'd be worried about what other visitors may think of my kids running after the geese or stress about all the goose poop that will be all over their shoes, instead I laughed to myself as I watched all three of them running, giggling, and having the time of their lives.

Tying into my theme of humor today, I loved the new Weight Watcher commercial. I read a lot of negative comments about the cute ad but truly enjoyed and related to the advertisement. It's true that many people eat their emotions and I know that it is very sad but as Micky Mouse said, "To laugh at yourself is to love yourself." We need to look at ourselves with joy and love and grow from our experiences. Watch the commercial, laugh, realize that you are NOT the only one that eats your emotions, and learn new and more meaningful ways to express your emotions. For me, I love to write or talk to a friend/ family member, read books with my kids, or play games... all of which require absolutely NO calorie consumption! :)

Enjoy the upcoming Hump Day and take a moment to laugh!

Weight Watchers Funny Commercial

You Do Not EARN a Piece of Cake!

While lifting weights this afternoon I was thinking about all the workouts I've done and how I should be well within my BMI. So what gives? I have people watched many times in the gym and every body is unique. What makes some look so thin and trim and others, that do the same amount of exercise or more, not? It all comes down to the kitchen and the mind.

I have heard countless times from regular class attendees that they come because they "like food too much." There is a fine line between enjoying a treat every once in awhile and treating yourself to a big mac, fries, and a diet coke because you "earned" it from that intense cycling class. The amount of calories being burned has to balance the amount being consumed, in truth, if you're trying to lose weight, the amount going in has to be less than the amount being burned. It doesn't matter how many miles you run in a week, if you aren't tracking your calorie intake those little treats that you believe you earned negate all your hard work.

Don't get me wrong, you can still create strong muscles and increase your metabolism through your intense cardio and/or strength training, but all that hard work will be camouflaged with the fat and excess weight. I believe that many people, including myself, give up so quickly on workout routines because they don't see instant results. Some continue to stick with it (me again) because they feel the difference mentally and physically but may eventually quit because those long hard workouts continue to reap no benefits.

The only way to stop this viscous cycle is to take a hard look at your diet. What are you consuming? Are you allowing yourself to have a little taste of this or just a couple little cookies? Do you finish a run and stop to pick up a bag of chips on the way home? Are you consuming enough protein for all muscle you are building? How about those fruits and veggies? They provide the nutrients your body craves. And water? I know when I start drinking more water my body reacts positively within a couple days!

Take the time to critically look at the food you have in your home, especially now with the holidays! Don't allow yourself to obliterate all your hard work with a chocolaty treat that satisfies for a few brief moments.

Be mindful!

Do as I Say and Not as I Do

Wow, I guess I let time and life just slip right past me! I have been running a Holiday Survival group and trying to motivate others to watch what they eat and get up and be active. The goal is to NOT gain and possibly to lose over the holidays. I have to say, however, that I'm totally failing as a role model.

I went into Thanksgiving feeling pretty good, started the day with the Turkey Trot 5K and followed it with a healthy protein shake... but that's where the healthy choices stopped. I broke the one rule that seems to be my ticket to healthy eating disasters... drinking alcohol. I won't lie, I love how relaxed alcohol makes me feel but, unfortunately, that lackadaisical attitude carries over into my eating habits. I don't think and just eat what tastes good. Needless to say, I gained some weight. The next day I did a lot better and got a workout in, drank a lot of water and even planned on facing the scale at WW the next day. Unfortunately, I also decided to have a "squat & plank off" with a 17 and 13 yr old. I won but definitely strained a hamstring and thus took some pain meds/ sleep meds and slept right through my WW meeting as well as my workout and straight into the middle of Saturday morning!

I'd love to tell you that I pulled myself up by the bootstraps and kicked it into high gear but that would be untrue. I DID go to step class on Sunday, Chisel Monday, treadmill Tuesday and Cycling/ Tabata today, despite that effort I did NOT watch what I ate and continued to not only clean up the unhealthy leftovers at the house but devoured the candy that was brought to the staff room at work and overindulged in the treats provided at the inservice today.

How can I fix this and move on?
1) Re-evaluate my goals... a) I REALLY want to be a WW leader, I believe in their mission and know it works. b) I want to get into the middle of my BMI range so I feel confident even when I have my slip ups (knowing I can get back down without too much difficulty). c) I want to help others on their healthy living transformation but cannot feel competent doing so unless I am doing my best 90% of the time!  d) I want to be a role model for my kids, showing not only healthy living but that they CAN achieve their goals and MAINTAIN/ inspire others!

2) I'm not going to give up, I'm going to brush myself off and reboot.

3) Focus on the positive, I've been working out, I beat two atheletic teens in a squat and plank competition, I am getting much fitter and fit into the smallest size since pre-puberty. :)

4) I will focus on my water intake and increase the fruits and veggies, decrease the carbs and dairy.

5) Pray. Anytime I get overwhelmed or stressed I need to take the time to pray about it and seek God's guidance.

Last Thoughts:
What are your health goals? Are you taking steps to not gain the dreaded holiday weight? Remember to focus on enjoying time with family and friends, the food is secondary. If it's nice out, go on a walk after a big holiday meal or play Just Dance or another fun Wii game with family & friends! Enjoy the season.

Plank Challenge (I'm in the blue)

Squat Challenge, I did a little over 300!