What the???

I thought it was all figured out. Through my own self diagnosis, I thought I had issues with gluten.  WRONG!  Even without the gluten, I still had my issues.  So, here I am again, at a loss.  I have been trying to stay away from it now primarily for the fact that it usually just is a carrier of unnecessary carbs...so I still am watching my intake on that.

For about a week or so I had been on a paleo diet, which for the most part, is just eating clean and staying away from any type of grains.  Overall, it isn't really that difficult, but it can take quite a bit of planning.  I have a busy schedule so sometimes carving out a few hours on the weekend to prep food can be more than I can allow.  I try to keep my daughter busy outside doing something.  I hate to have her sit at home, bored, while I work in the kitchen.  Not fair to her, not good for me to not spend some time with her. But I go on.

Over the last few days I have allowed myself the occasional piece of bread.  I still grab the goldfish when I am looking for a quick to grab snack.  I have always known that an exercise routine won't do any good unless you eat healthy along with it.  Nutrition is just as important as the exercise is.  What we need to understand is that we need to find something that we can stick to long term rather than for a few days....because face it, if you can't last more than a week, is it really something you are going to stick to for a lifetime?  Start making healthier choices, grilled chicken rather than fried, parmesan cheese rather than cheese sauce.  The smallest of changes can start a whole world of difference in not only yourself, but those around you.  They will turn in to something you will do automatically sooner rather than later.

Be the positive change for you, your family and your friends.

GOOD LUCK!

What's the way?

Life is always so crazy.  And just when you think you have it all figured out, life throws something at you.  It usually isn't too big, just enough to slow you down just a tad.  Life is going good, and Hey!!! Where did that speed bump come in.  Right?

I am learning every day that as much as I think I have it together, there will be something that pops up.  And that is normal.  The house is clean-but i turn around, and it's a mess again.  The dishes are done.  No sooner are they put away and the sink is full again.  Time and time again, I tell myself, it isn't going to happen like this anymore.  Then I wake up the next morning and the cycle repeats itself.  Its the fun of being a full time working single parent to a busy little 6 yr old.  I try to keep her busy doing something rather than sitting in front of  the television-that usually means leaving the house a mess since we aren't in it to clean it up. How it gets messy under these circumstances still boggles my mind, but I guess that is meant for another post.

I started a new "diet"-or lifestyle-as I like to call it.  I have attempted a more Paleo/Primal way of eating.  Cutting out the grains and eliminating as much unnecessary sugars as possible.  What it comes down to is I am not eating the processed foods that I have gotten so use to.  From a lot of the reading that I have been doing, it has truly messed with my head.  As much as I have craved it over the last couple of days, I have been able to push past it.  My body is feeling better because of it as I enter in to the 3rd day here.  I did suffer from a headache (that I don't suffer from very often) that put a damper on my workouts that I had planned for last night and this morning, but I suppose that is normal when you rid your body of the junk, or so  I understand.   It's not really hard to understand that eating more natural diet is better for your body.  It's what it was designed for....not the potato chips we all dig in to at the family BBQ's.  Food today isn't what it use to be and it's actually kind of scary when you look at what you are actually eating when you think you are being good...even the low fat "healthier" version.  

I got off on a tangent there.  I wanted to share that, but also note that it take some time to plan out your meals.  Overall...fairly simple task, but it's not as easy normally as taking out the frozen dinner and popping it in the microwave or stopping for fast food on the way home.  

Life is about planning. You can't expect it just to fall in to place as much as you would like it to.  What are you willing to sacrifice in order to get what you want done? It certainly would be wonderful if the laundry got done , the floor vacuumed, or the house picked up and put away at the snap of the finger. My suggestion to you is:

1.)  Make a list of what you want? (clean home, financially stable future, new car)

2.)  Why is it important to you? 

3.)  Decide what you are willing to let go of in order to get you there?

It's the real world...we need to make it work the best we can.  It will. It always works out in the end.....or we likely wouldn't be here.

For now I can live with the cluttered unorganized home in order to get me where I want to be.  I am working towards a more financially secure future by working my Beachbody business in order to spend more time with my baby girl.  There will always be time later to get that stuff done, but my daughter will only be this age once, and before you know it....it's gone.

Independence

Today is my Independence Day of sorts.

I have been struggling with different things in my life for so long.  My weight.  My self esteem.  Other people's happiness. My relationship with food. My relationships with people. Today I am breaking free of that!

I woke up this morning and thought to myself; why have I constantly let so much control what makes me happy?  I guess in part it's always been my nature.  I like to see people happy, and that usually has meant putting a lot of my wants and needs on the back burner.  I have always chosen to let what others think of me influence what I do, and what I think of myself.  I can see that some of that was wanting to be part of something.  I know that in a past relationship, I let myself fall into what I thought he wanted me to be.  I ate the "wrong" foods because he made it, since he wouldn't eat the healthier food I made.  I realized it had to stop.  I had my issues with  food for a long time and what I was doing to myself wasn't making the situation any better.   I realized that if he wasn't happy with the person I was, was there really any hope for us to be together?  It was time to focus on getting healthier, and I started on the first part of the weight loss/fitness journey that I am on.

I have learned through reading, and through my own trial and error that my body responds better to certain foods.  I have learned that the better I eat, meaning clean and healthy, that my body works better.

There are 30 days in a month. There are 4 months left in 2012.  I am going to take full advantage of that time  in order to use what God has put in to my life. He has put certain people and opportunities in my life for a reason.

Listening To Your Body

Do you listen to what your body is telling you?  Do you think that certain things are just part of the normal day to day and something that you are just think you are going to have to get use to?

I think we are all guilty of that at some point.  I know I have been.  Some days I wake up in the morning in a bad mood.  I think it means nothing other than the start of what will likely be a bad day.  Or maybe you wake up with a sore back, and figure its time to pop another pill.  Or maybe its something that is happening to you throughout the day.  Your leg hurts, your head aches, your insides are constantly talking to you.

   RED FLAG!!!!  

Your body is telling you something....but usually we are just to blind, ignorant, or busy to see it.  You need to seriously look at what is going on in your body.  What can you do differently in your day to day that would make your body better.  We shouldn't always be reliant on pills and the quick fix to make us feel better.  Will they help you feel better-probably.  Will it be lasting?  Not likely.  So here comes the work!

1.  Sit down with paper and pen/pencil.

2.  What are the symptoms you are having? (Make this as extensive as you need to)

3.  What do think is causing them? (Again, make this as long as necessary)

4.  Is this something that you need to talk to you doctor about? 

5.  Get on the computer and start your research?

6.  What are the possible remedies?

7.  Get started to heal yourself!!!!!

For the longest time I had chosen to ignore what my body was telling me....but you have to remember, you body is a finely built machine.  This is what were given and where we will live for the rest of our lives.  We need to take care of it.  

Think about it this way-you wouldn't just pour water in the gas tank of your car because it would ruin it, and it won't run.  On that note, you shouldn't pour junk in to your body and expect it to operate in tip top performance.  Ever notice how you feel after a big lunch?   Probably ready to take a nap, right....should have stopped before when your body told you.

Over the last couple of years I have taken the opportunity to listen to my body.  I have ready up on what it needs, and should have.  I also know just by the packaging of certain things, what it doesn't need. (Doritos, Ranch Pretzels, butter loaded popcorn-you get the idea!)

Over probably the last year, I started noticing different things going on in my body.  I just wasn't feeling right.  I had been working out, but the energy was hardly there.  Getting out of bed was a struggle.  Digestion issues  were commonplace and something I embarrassingly thought I would have to live with.  Until I did just what I stated up above.  I started to notice that certain days were better than others.  I took those symptoms I was dealing with and started looking into the research I could find online, and have come to the conclusion that my body just can't handle the gluten like it had before.  Earlier this year I had tried a somewhat gluten free diet, but then I let the gluten back in, and low and behold, the symptoms returned.  I can't say that I will be perfect with this new lifestyle, but knowing how I feel today versus how I felt two days ago, I can say there is a vast difference.  Can't wait to see how  I feel in a couple more days.  

Luckily in today's world going gluten free doesn't mean no enjoyment from that which I used to eat.  It's a matter of adjustment.  If I know i am going to feel better, isn't it worth it instead of suffering through it?  Aren't I at least worth that?

The Guilt

I did try to keep up daily with my blog.  I swear I did.  And now I feel guilty because I didn't follow through.

 It's hard trying to work 2 jobs, work to push forward with my Beachbody business, raise a kid, fit in my workouts, and all the other good stuff that goes along with life.

I have been doing ChaLEAN Extreme-with some Turbo Fire, and some running to keep up the cardio aspect.  I hit the gym for the elliptical if I can't do anything else.  In the 4 weeks or so that I have been doing it, I have gotten sick, which took me out of commission for a couple of weeks.  And now, do I move on to the next phase, or stick with the Burn phase one more week.   Some times my work & sleep schedule don't give me a ton of time to get some things done.  I still manage to do them, just not at the schedule I would like.

Here we are at the 3rd of April.  Am I where I want to be physically?  No.  Am I working on that?  Yup.  Could I be working harder, most definitely.  But lets face it, I have to sleep sometime-and wouldn't you know I feel guilty about that.  Stupid I know....but I do.  There are plenty of other things that could make me feel guilty, and to tell you the truth, they do. But, I am learning that sometimes what makes me feel guilty sometimes is what makes me a stronger person.  Give me something to think about.  Do I always make the right decision based on guilt.  Absolutely not.  At least not all of the time.  But it always does give me food for thought.  Something to build on to help me make a better decision.

It's like when you eat that cookie you know you shouldn't have eaten.  It makes you feel guilty. Right?  You worked so hard to push through that workout this morning, and poof-if you are me-you feel like it was all for nothing.  But I learn from that mistake, that guilty pleasure, and try to move past that, and remember that feeling for next time.  Is it really worth it?

Some of those things that make you feel guilty you have to remember are what help to keep you sane...that extra hour of sleep or that alone time (when you feel like you should be doing something else.)    Will I try to do a better job and keep this up....I am certainly going to try (and likely feel guilty when I get lax.)

The key is REMEMBER how you feel.  Was it worth it?

Do You Have the Power?

Thursday:  ChaLEAN Extreme Burn Circuit 3 (oh yah-I felt it)
                 Jogging-5 MPH: 30 minutes

Friday:  Turbo Fire 30

Bet you thought I forgot.

I didn't.  Put the kid to bed last night and "POOF"-fell asleep myself, for a much needed nights sleep, on the couch.  Not the best place to lay at night...to close to the kitchen on my way to bed. And its always for the sweets! So here in lies my next question.....how much will power do you have?

Some days-I'm all about the will power.  Unfortunately, some days, I am not.  The mornings/early afternoon are the best for me.  I can power past the donuts and all the sweets that they may have sitting around the office.   Once I hit about 3:00-4:00 in the afternoon, it starts to dwindle.  Certainly don't like it....but it is something I really do need to learn to come to terms with, otherwise, all the hard work I put in to my work outs and the beginning of the day are truly for nothing.

The concept of weight loss is simple:  What you take in needs to be less than what you put out.

I hear time and time again that people who sleep more weigh less.  And while that statistic may be true, I live in the real world, where time is a precious thing.  I work 2 jobs, I am an online coach with Beachbody, (something I truly believe in by the way) and I am a full time single mom.  If I tried to get the recommended 8 hours, there is a lot that won't get done in my life and in my home.

So, back to the initial problem, how do you fight the late night cravings?

Here are things I am willing to give a try (and I need to throw thanks to my friends that have helped with these-you know who you are.)
1.  A bowl of oatmeal
2.  Lots of Water
3.  Bowl of Multigrain Cheerios (the Peanut Butter are my new fave)
4.  Greek Yogurt-with some honey or agave and cinnamon
5.  A small dish of fruit
6.  Small portion of pretzels and Nutella (oh yum!!)
7.  Hot tea (Love a good peppermint or chamomile)
8. Frozen Bananas Slices (you'd be surprised how good that can be-and you can use them in a smoothie)
9.  A smoothie (low cal of course)

I also keep telling myself that perhaps a little late night yoga would be helpful in curbing those thoughts of snacking.  It's always high on the list until I get home and finally have that quiet time to relax and do nothing for a few minutes.

So-to all of you out there with the same problem, I would love to hear what you do.  And in the mean time-thanks for keeping me accountable.   This is something I am sure that  I get back on when I can finally win that will power battle.

What's Your Excuse?

Blah Blah Blah.

We all have our excuses as to why we don't follow through.  The one I like to use the most is that "I don't have the time."  I can legitimize that one in so many ways.  I have 2 jobs.  I work long hours.  I am a single mother.  I have to much other stuff going on.

While those are all true, the things that I have chosen to let consume my life, and give me the excuses that I use, are all about other people or things.  Granted, as a single mom, my family is and should be my number one priority.  The others, however, shouldn't be what I put before myself.  When did I stop becoming so important to me.  If I fall apart, everything I work so hard to do everyday will fall apart to.  Plain and simple, right?  But most of us fail to follow through with what we want to do.  It truly is a sad thing.

When did we stop being important to ourselves?

I saw something posted on Facebook yesterday.  A one hour workout is 4% of our day.  What is so hard about taking that little bit of time in order to become a healthier person?  Puts it into perspective.  I know that I have started on a change in my life-but I still am working to hurdle over the excuses stage, primarily in the morning when I can't drag my tired butt out of bed.

So-here I put forth this afternoon-

1.  I will  get up and work out every morning.  I won't be the one to use the excuse-I was to tired.

2.  I will blog about it to keep myself accountable.

This is the start to my accountability. Now, whats yours?