Ali Vincent

So today was pretty awesome. Met Ali Vincent at Penrose main for a workout this morning and then got her autograph this afternoon in the book, which was free. I got some new asics. woohoo. Ali was just was awesome and even more down to earth than I thought. She offered some advice that I thought would be helpful for all of us. She suggested that we tell our friends and family exactly how we want to be supported in our journeys to get healthy, instead of assuming they know how to support us and we feel like they let us down when we think they aren't supporting us in the right way. IF that makes sense. I can be difficult but I seem to be having this discussion process with my mom right now. I want to support her in anyway I can and I am by making healthy easy meals for us to enjoy together, but I may step on her toes a bit when I confront her on any poor choices she makes sometimes. So it's just a communication thing that has actually brought us closer together.

on another note, I'm thinking of moving my blog over to a facebook page were discussions can be had because I'm getting little feedback here.

BL Ali Vincent

Ok so many of you know that I have a moderate to severe obsession with BL.

Tomorrow Ali Vincent, the first female biggest loser, will be doing a workout at Penrose in the morning and giving away free shoes in the afternoon. I have read her book, let me just say AWESOME. She has been through a lot and come out on the other side in shape and in control of her life. I'll let you know how it goes.

Sorry

Sorry for being absent for over a month. My internet didn't work for like 2 weeks and then we went out of town and life has just been crazy.

But as for this journey we call life...it's been good. I've been staying busy. I intern at a summer camp for elementary kids and run around with them three days a week and I have Alli the other two days during the week. Alli and I have gone swimming tons and to zoo a few times. She is getting more comfortable on her bike with training wheels.

I have been to the gym as much as I can but I have to say it's been more difficult than I expected.

ps in the time that I have been away I did complete the bolderBoulder which was amazing. I finished in just under 80 minutes, which is pretty good. I'm hoping for a better time next year. I have a feeling that it will become a routine event in my live. We also saw Dr. Oz there.

As for eating, well, it's been off and on. I can say that I have been listening to my body more so I stop when I'm full and I eat before I get super hungry. I eat pretty well during the week. I have found a delish breakfast that keeps me pretty full. I have a low fat whole grain natural frozen waffle and toast it, put some low fat cream cheese on it and put as many blueberries on it as I can. I pair this with a big cup of black coffee. yum! I have the coffee for the boost of caffeine and the whole grains totally keep me full. but watch out the eggo waffle have trans fat in them, I like the Van's ones.

what are your struggle and how can we help?

ps. YAY world cup!!

hapy hour

I think I just needed a little alcohol. I'm so grateful for those around me. We went to happy hour tonight and I truly love the people around me. Not just nursing school, which I'm sure I could not get through without the friends I have made, but also my family and my friends from Aurora. I love every single one of you. I sometimes lose sight of the important things in life when I focus too much on myself and my attitude towards life. Love without strings. night.

learning to trust

WARNING: personal disclosure Life seems to have a way of playing with our emotions and I know it's human, but it is also annoying at times. Like now, I'm in a mood to cry, but I'm not sure I have the energy to. I am feeling things and I know why, but I just don't want to deal right now. maybe that is cowardly, yes. I'm just tired of it all. I am developing me and growing and living. I'm confident in myself and all that I have to offer. I know I can, it more of a motivation issue. I recently read a quote, " motivation is not a feeling;motivation is a choice." I like it. although at this very moment I'm not super motivated, I am content. I do have a positive note, I did a headstand in yoga class today for the first time. It wasn't as hard as I thought, I was just fearful that I would not be able or I would fall. I was able and I did not fall. fear...I had a dream last night that made me really examine my fears. I think I afraid of being in a serious relationship. I have a deep fear that if I love someone deeper than I ever have before they are going to either, 1. abuse me or 2. leave me because I'm not good enough. I know that I would leave someone if they ever abused me, but I think it is more about having my heart broken in that way, I'm not sure I could survive that. I need to work on my confidence, if anyone were to leave me because I'm not good enough, They obviously aren't worth it. Those are both so close to my heart and I have justified them in my head, but I still have a touch of apprehension in my heart.

cherish.

Sorry I haven't blogged in awhile, life has been so busy and active, which is good. It's the end of the semester and I have 2 exams and a presentation left to do before the road trip of a life time with my best friends. I've been super busy and I really have learned to love the quiet time at home. Last night, because quest is stupid, our TV service was turned off and so I did some of the puzzle we have going with Alli, although she just matches the colors together, and we had a great time. I still have so much to do but it was nice to slow down for a few hours and just be present with those I love. We drank hot chocolate and enjoyed the time together. That's what life is all about. It doesn't matter what you are doing as long as you can remember that you love the person you are with. cherish your friends and family. It's been quite the year, looking forward to what is to come. 

4-20

What a weird day. first of all it's columbine, which really gets me. I can remember where I was and everything that happened that day. Secondly, it's my dad's birthday. I don't really talk about him much. Third, It's Hilter's birthday. whatever, not really important. Forth, Its the day that my mom went up to adams county to pick up Alli four years ago...and the rest is history. 

I remember being at Azusa when my mom called me to tell the she had gotten Alli and they didn't know if she could see or hear. My mom spent all night with her. Life is so interesting. 

Let's all remember to love. It's not as difficult as you may think. goodnight

emotions

lately I'm having several emotions all at the same time and it's driving me crazy. figuratively. It's been difficult to choose which emotions are the best to play on at the moment. It's super hard to know if and how others are going to respond to the feelings that I express. I am finding some people in my life are so much stronger than I thought they were and that makes me so happy. It also allows me to lean on them a bit more. Then there are others who are weaker than I thought and have little insight to how their actions effect others. I'm not blaming these people, but I honestly want to know why they cannot understand that we all have responsibilities and that each of us prioritize things differently. 

Thank you to everyone in my life. I have learned something from each of you. I know this life is about learning and discovering new things each and everyday. 

sleeping in.

Ok so last night I totally stayed up way too late just thinking about life and certain events that have brought me to this point. Too many emotions to talk about on here, but anyways, with that came me sleeping in until 1 pm today. I have not slept in that much since high school. it felt good. I didn't get much done today and I think that was a good thing. It was good to just slow down and just be. 

I think too often I'm afraid to feel that emotion that I just go through life without actually feeling anything. I'm working on that. I want to feel all of the emotions, emotions mean we are alive. I think I get more afraid of feeling anything when I have to actually express that feeling and almost defend it. and I know that is just an excuse that I have made up myself and those who I do talk to accept me just the way I am. it's something to work on. 

night. 

Water.

I have recently found a few ways to drink more water. 1. I am sick so I'm trying to flush some of the toxins out, which I should do all the time, but I have been able to drink tons and tons of water. 2. I have found flavorful ways to make water tasty sin calories. Like tea, my newest favorite is tangerine orange zinger by celestial seasonings, I also love love the sugarplum spice, it's one of the holiday blends. It's so good, full of cinnamon and some fruityness. YUM. 3. when I workout I go through one water bottle and before I leave the gym, I make sure to fill it up again. 

water is so vital for so many things, so let's drink up. I think that the more water I drink, the less food I eat. So that is so good too. 

I've been taking it easy the last few days because of this cold I have and I'm so bummed because I know that I am going to have to work so hard to get my endurance back again. It makes me so mad because I worked so hard to get it that far. 

Happy weekend! 

sick.

I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. I think I've had the same cold for 2 weeks now. It would get better for few days and then worse. argh. I have lots to do and little motivation or energy to do it. 

I've been trying to eat well and still workout because it's just in my head, not my chest, although tonight I began to lose my voice, that's always fun. NOT! I'm drinking tons of water, which makes me pee tons. oh well, I'm done complaining. 

I'm excited to see food revolution tomorrow. Now I have 2 nights of exciting, healthy reality TV. don't get me wrong, I love grey's, private practice, etc, but I can't watch them with Alli around so they are TIVO'ed and I watch them when I have time. I really am inspired by Jamie Oliver and his drive to help schools in America. I know it's difficult to change but he seems to be doing a pretty good job so far. Check it out! Jamie Oliver's food revolution on ABC. 

I'm ready for spring. I do love snow like today. It snows like 2-3 inches and it's all melted off the streets by the time I leave the house. I could do without the wind. 

I'm back from my mcnugget attack and doing well. I'm trying to figure out the great debate in my head. I've heard from a few sources that weight loss is easier when we don't eat carbs with dinner or after. I can understand that but I also know that the brain can only function on carbs. I'd love some input on this. I understand that the liver can use the glycogen stores but I feel like I'm already borderline hypoglycemic in the morning so I don't think I will try it. I also do most of my school work in the evening/night time so I need some carbs to get through that. and by carbs I mean rice, bread, fruit and that stuff, not veggies. 

chicken nuggets.

ok so in the last week I've had probably 30-40 mcdonalds chicken nuggets. I love them and the drive thru is easy, but I really need to get a grip. 

Sorry it's been such a long time since my last post. Let's just say life happened. I was on spring break and it wasn't a break even though I didn't have classes. I got a lot done so that feels good and I spent a lot of time with family which was wonderful, I don't what I would do without them. 

I'm back to healthy eating at least this morning. I'm trying. I have a cold so I'm not going to the gym today, I went yesterday and let's just say I shouldn't have. 

I am reading master your metabolism by jillian michaels, and it's been enlightening, somethings I agree with but others are just too much, but I do appreciate her clarifying the role that hormones play and the function of many of the hormones that may contribute to weight gain. again, I don't want to focus on the weight, that will come off in time, but I do want to focus on the way we live so we can have the best possible lives we can have without the worry of diabetes, heart disease and stroke. 

I will try to stay away from the nuggets. 

life.

food...it's what you make of it. It can either be a murderer or a nurse. (I was gonna say doctor but nurse is much better for this analogy). The cheese burger, fries and large chocolate shake can cause all of the health issues, but a grilled chicken salad and homemade lemonade provides nourishment to the body so it can function better. I'm not saying that grilled chicken salad is the super food of the month, but I want to stress the importance of the nutrient density of our food and what a difference it can make. 

When we feel sick what do we eat? chicken soup. it's low calorie, protein rich and it makes us feel better. So can we take that same idea and apply it to health. It don't want to feel sick today so I eat blueberries, bananas, strawberries and veggies. Maybe with your next food choice you can ask yourself "will this make be feel better or sicker?" 

nourish your body, nourish your life. 

mind/body

Happy birthday to Alli. I had way too much cake and processed food this weekend. I'm working on this week. We had hot dogs and pizza. and lots of cake. and well I did spin today to rid myself of a few of calories I had. I had a realization today, I am really learning to like my body, It's mine and as I am beginning to not compare myself to others, especially at the gym I am able to get in touch with my body and all I am able to do. I'm not super woman but I am able to do more yoga than I could when I started and I love the challenge I get when I push myself. I don't think I will ever be that size two cute butt person but I can laugh at myself when I fall out of a pose and really learn to trust my body and love it for all it does for me. The mind body connection has been made so clear to me lately and I truly hope I don't forget it. 

the mind is a powerful thing. use it wisely. 

workouts. time.

I am 4 for 4 working out days this week. and tomorrow we are going to yoga (Alli and I) then I think I'll do bodyflow. 

so 5 for 5. I'm pretty stoked about it, but I have learned this week that I can manage going to the gym and school and family and all of that just fine. I had a test this week and I studied all along and I really think that by going to the gym I was able to focus better and really relax when it was test time. I also hungout with my aunt and we had a blast, so it's just about planning time to do everything and making sure that those around us understand our goals. I think that by having them understand us they can either help us or hurt us in our journeys to our goals and being conscious about their intentions will help us to make better choices. I had class all week and it was st. patty's day and Alli's birthday so being organized with all of those things really helped me to do what I needed for me and everyone else. I'm sore now but it feels good to know that I am stronger and healthier because of the effort I put into loving me. 

love yourself. Happy spring break. 

Love yourself.

I am learning to love me for who I am, not who I think I should be. It's difficult because I want to so badly to be thinner or smarter or more extroverted. I am working on all of those things and trying to enjoy the journey. I'm trying to love others for what they are too, I think I struggle with that one even more because I think if I'm going to change me then others should change themselves too. I find it really hard to want something for someone else and them not wanting it as badly. That's probably the hardest thing for me. I try to lead by example and be that role model for Alli especially.

I need to get a small workout in before bed tonight. I have eaten so badly the last couple of days and I really need to work some of it off. I hope you are enjoying my blog. I try to keep it interesting, let me know if you want an opinion on a certain topic. 

Terrific tuesday

BL. spin. yoga. and my aunt is in town, I will see her tomorrow. I'm so excited to just be with her and not have an agenda or anything. I still have tons of school work to do but I think I can manage. I'm looking forward to spring break even more now. so much to do so little energy. I could say I wish there were more hours in the day but I couldn't stay awake for any longer than I already do. 

hopefully I can get through spin and bodyflow tomorrow. I'm wiped today and I have tons to do tomorrow. I need to just focus. 

food journals? what happened to those? I had a mini bagel with reduced fat cream cheese and some strawberries for breakfast, then a turkey sandwich with tomato, a yogurt, a sugar free slurpee for lunch and a banana for snack. then spagettii and veggies and french bread for dinner and a donut for dessert. I have to have dessert, I wish I wasn't a sweets person but I am. 

ps- I think I'm in love with Sam from this season of BL. haha. 

long day

After doing half of my BL DVD Alli say's I wanna go to the club, ok so we pack up and go and i did yoga as well. I'm kind of tired from all of that. It's another long week. 

My aunt is coming to town and I'm afraid I will being eating horribly when she is here so I'm trying to hit the gym and watch what I eat a little bit closer. I'm also trying to live my life and enjoy every moment without being too obsessed with healthy living. I do think that I can be deeply joyous and healthy but sometimes in the moment unhealthy things bring me happiness. It's all about balance I guess. 

Emotional eating.

 I'm an expert. I recognize it and I just need to figure out what the deal is. I know that I crave carbs and salt and I know that carbs increase the serotonin in the brain. Just something that I need to deal with better. I love going to the gym and sweat it out, but when I have class and such I need a better way to deal. any one else do this? I need some better options. 

sun.

So this font is the same color as the shirt I'm wearing today:) 

I went for a bike ride today around my neighborhood today. It was awesome, super relaxing, no time constraints or anything. It was great. I'm working myself up to running outside, I don't know what it is that I'm afraid of but I am in some way. There are lots of hills around my house and they are challenging on a bike, I guess when I run I will be prepared for the hills of boulder. It felt so good to be outside today. It has been so so long. I'm so ready for summer when I can just be in shorts all the time and not even worry about it. I love the snow don't get me wrong, but I really loved the sun today. I'm sure I'm deficient in vitamin D or something and that's why I'm loving the sun so much. I don't know. I really am encouraged that I can keep a healthy lifestyle for ever and teach my family about health.

We had some baked BBQ chicken, asparagus, a salad and breadsticks for dinner tonight. I have this feeling that my mom is so sick and tired of veggies, but I'm not gonna stop, she stuck with it. 

Tomorrow I have clinical and hopefully I can control myself, when I'm super emotional I eat and last week I had a whole bag of M&M's and tootsie rolls before my test, oops. 

I still want a food journal from any readers....we are all on the same path and we have to be able to talk about. no judgement just some swaps. my newest swap has been instead of having like chips or fries, I order veggies or I bring blueberries, the blueberries really pop in your mouth I love them. I go through like 2-3 packs a week. yum. I put them on my cereal or yogurt or make desserts with them, pancakes are great with them. my favorite. what's yours? 

much better today.

Much much better today. I did yoga this morning. I love tuesdays. I ate pretty good all day. no horrible choices. we even went out to dinner with a bunch a friends, I was even good then, even though I really wanted a cookie, I need to do more cardio to deserve one of those. 

Biggest loser, so so good, but really would you not participate in the temptation challenge if you were at a place that was to help you lose weight and truly learn what it is that made you fat in the first place. I loved it. I missed it so much. it keeps me motivated for sure. 

I have a pretty free day tomorrow. I may even begin to run outside, I'm a little scared, but I'm also super excited that it's a little warmer. 

five a day. fruits and veggies. make it a competition with someone, could be a fun way to eat. 

work in progress.

I had yogurt and fresh fruit for breakfast, and went to the gym, then had a muffin, and pizza oops, then M&M's. shoot. I thought this week would better than this weekend. I'm not off to a good start. any suggestions? 

tomorrow is yoga and...BL. Yes, I've missed it so so much. maybe that's why I'm not eating as well as I should. there's another excuse, sorry. 

but on a good note I did see a cool new show with Jaime Oliver and obesity that is going to be on ABC soon. Looks pretty good. and besides a good english accent is always good, plus I may get some new healthy recipes. 

my work is done. well kinda.

So tonight we went out to dinner at red robin and I have to say I was super proud of Alli. She chose a corn dog, well not so good choice, and a salad on the side instead of fries. I'm so glad that they have that on the menu for one thing, but she actually ate it and enjoyed it. I'm so glad that I'm able to teach her those lessons and she is able to make smart choices about foods that will "make her big and strong and make her poopies come out" sorry to be so open about it. she gets constipated a lot and we have to give her foods with more fiber in them. 

I hope we all can make some good choices this week. I know I did not this weekend, but tomorrow is a new day and I hope I'm ready for it. 

my life in plus or minus 10 years.

I have decided to get my family nurse practitioner and an RN first assist. with the FNP you can do adults and peds, I'm leaning more towards adults but if i have both I more opportunity so why not get both in the amount of time. With the RNFA, I can be first assist in surgery and get the reimbursement as an NP. And as an NP I can really go into any specialty I want, ED,OR, medical/surgical or just a PCP office. 

I really want to bridge the gap between primary care providers and the acute care setting. I really think that if we care for ourselves we will not be in the hospital as much and if there is one provider, and yes I hope it to be a nurse, then the continuity of care is so so much better. 

I know I have so much work to do before I get there but I'm hopeful I can get there. I know that if we want to make this world a better and healthier place we have to put in the time and effort to serve others, but I know that if I do not take care of myself I cannot better the lives of others. Let's all decide to help others and better ourselves. I know it's hard but if we don't try nothing will ever change. Make one healthy choice today, baby steps is all it takes. 

LAST CHANCE WORKOUT!

Cardio. Let's chat. 

I think that cardio has much more to offer than I ever thought possible. Runner's high, yes! with any cardio. I get it from spin or my last chance WO with my BFF Jill. I'm learning to love it. It burns calories faster and supports healthy hearts. we burn more calories at rest when we do cardio too. What's not to love. 

What gives you that high? if we can educate people and teach them to love cardio I predict that we can prevent a lot of premature death. We have to love it or we won't do it. 

PS i figured out what I'm going to do with my life. I'm pretty excited about. and yes it will always include exercise. 

BL DVD oh yes!

So I tried the DVD, it was a killer. I did it after I did bodyflow class and the ideas are great. It's a cardio interval mix of exercises and I loved that. The exercise changes every 30 seconds, but the one downer is that i think it i will get old really fast especially if I do it daily. I guess at that point i will just buy a new DVD. I realized how out of shape I really am. I finished it and didn't give up but it was difficult to do the weights. I used 5lb handweights and I should have started with threes. I will know for next time. I also loved that all muscle groups are used. you know. there are push up and abs and cardio so it's a true total body workout. if anyone wants to do it with me I'm happy to have a group session, could be fun. 

ps Alli started soccer this morning. she loves it. It think it will be hard to get her out of her new uniform. It starts when they are young. let's teach them well. 

BL DVD.

Am I a sucker for buying the BL last chance workout with Jillian Michaels? maybe, but it looks fun so I'm gonna try it out and see how it goes. it was only 9 bucks and that's probably about what I spend on coffee each week so it is money well spent. I miss the BL, but I am loving the olympics. shawn white. OMG. that's all I gotta say about it. 

do what you like. like what you do. life is good. yes i stole it but it's so good, it just needs to be said more. 

I'm going to mona lisa tonight, it's this fancy fondue place in manitou. I'm going to eat all that I want and not feel guilty about it. It's a treat and it's good to do that once in awhile. 

QUADS hurt. bad.

so Snowboarding was a good and bad idea. I missed the snow and quietness on the mountains but I can barely walk now. It's a good sore, but OMG, I need to slow it down just a bit. 

That's about all I have for today, maybe some inspiration will come later. keep it real. 

SPIN!

I missed it so much. I have had a small cold for the last couple weeks and I was finally able to do spin today. It was awesome as usual, but the best part was when the theme song to biggest loser was on. I almost had a heart attack, it made me so excited and motivated to push a little bit more. 

I also did yoga and my quads might just fall off. I'm a little hesitant to go snowboarding tomorrow but it will be a good day. I finally have my wednesdays back and I want to make the most of them. It's all about balance and I think that I need some space to just think away from the busyness of life. I'm really trying to be consciously aware of emotional eating and I'm sure that's where the cupcake thing came from. I knew this week we would be talking about suicide in mental health and it's obviously a touchy subject for me but I'm aware of this and working on not being so shut down with my emotions regarding it. 

Love you all and I hope that this is helping you to think about your health, physically, mentally and spiritually. You are loved. 

cupcakes craving.

So yesterday I fell so deep into temptation, I'm hesitant to admit it. I had two not one, but two cupcakes. not the little small cute ones, or even homemade. I had two store bought, transfat full, lots of frosting cupcakes. They were so so good, and now I regret it because I have not been to the gym today. I may go after school but we'll see what the day holds. I did a little yoga this morning, but I have not done any cardio in almost 2 weeks. my hips officially hate me. I've been good today so far, but I really need to keep in mind the whole calorie thing. 

count calories, it's the only way to really know what you are eating. The labels say a lot. I'm not saying you have to give up all your favorite foods, but just know when something is bad and compensate for it either with exercise or by decreasing intake of other foods during the day. It's hard but our whole society is facing a huge crisis of food and we are all dying of heart disease. please love yourself. 

grace.

during bodyflow class the instructor always says, when we are going into cobra pose from a high plank, "with strength and grace" lower half way down...and it really stands out to me. We all need a little more grace in our lives. I personally am trying to be kinder and more gracious with myself without lowering my standards. We can all be gentler with our own souls. I tend to expect the best from myself and if I fail I get angry and frustrated but I want to be able to learn and love myself for my imperfections. It's so hard though. I know that imperfections allow us to grow and love truly. True love is embracing the faults and seeing them as beauty. 

love with grace. 

eating out.

So I resisted the temptation for apps and dessert at lunch today and it was hard. Hopefully tomorrow I can make it to the gym. I just need to get rid of this cold, argh. It's all about the balance and loving yourself. It's difficult to truly and 100% take care of yourself first but I think that it is necessary to do to achieve the best life and be present. Love life and live right now. 

sick.

I have a small cold and it's making it difficult to workout. I didn't go on monday. I did do yoga today but I was so tired that I didn't really push myself like I usually do, so I'm a little upset about it but I know I'll get better and get back to it. I hate being sick and I thought that by working out I had boosted my immune system enough to get through this winter without getting sick. I'm not that sick and I and really just whining about it. Sorry. 

I did have my sugar snap peas with hummus today at lunch with a chicken wrap. it was pretty good. 

Loved BL btw. that chick from the red team is gone and it was in Colorado Springs. Way to represent. GOG, it was awesome. 

I'm so ready for it to not be freezing. and maybe I just have the chills with my sickness, but it has been so cold. usually in CO it warms up and gets cold but it has been freezing for the last month. I need a couple days where it gets in the 50s and then cools down again. 

btw, I am convinced that my cardio workout have gotten me a better test score on my test. I have read studies that say that doing cardio can improve focus and I'm sure that's that I did so well today. I did not study as much as I should have, but I'm feeling pretty good with 85. Yes, I always strive for better but I'm sick and I'm doing well in my other classes. I'm content and proud of myself. 

ps I still haven't seen anyones food journals, where are they? 

pps- don't over indulge in Chocolate just because it's valentines, give a hug. that makes everything better. 

super bowl. of chips.

It's super bowl Sunday, woohoo. It should be fun, I'm not super into it, but the fun gatherings of people who have something in common is always good. I'm not super into football, I had to watch enough of my brothers games as a kid and I'm kind of over it. I am excited to hangout with my friends and catch up on things. I am just not going to worry about the food today, I'll do spin class tomorrow to burn it off, besides I went to the gym 4 times last week. 

If you are looking to be healthy today and are worried about the food, you can either eat before you go and just have a small plate around dinner time, so you don't graze or you can just make sure you are hungry before you put the next handful of chips on your plate. And fat tuesday is coming too, so watch it there too, this is a lifestyle not a diet so try to  be conscious of why you are eating and try to think about what is missing that you are trying to fill with food. For me, I eat because I'm angry, usually, and I get anxious about stuff, so I eat and study, then eat some more. I know that it is a lack of self confidence and I'm working on that, I know I am able and I can, but sometimes this world is just so negative that it's hard to be proud of who I am all of the time. We all need to just be a little kinder, me included. 

Have a great day. You are strong. 

sugar snap peas.

I went to costco today and got sugar snap peas and salad. I'm so excited. still need to go the regular grocery store for a few things, but I'm just so excited. 

Tomorrow morning I'm making blueberry pancakes, oh yes. I want to read this book called french women don't get fat. it's not a diet, but it explains the lifestyle that can keep us healthy, i'll let you know how that goes as soon as I read it. It takes me awhile to read when I'm so busy so it may take until summer. better late than never. 

planning meals.

I have learned one lesson this week both the hard way and the right way. 

On Monday I went to a school function that was to provide lunch, I knew going into it, the lunch wouldn't be the healthiest but I had been to the gym and was feeling ok about having an unhealthy lunch, so when I arrive, I am right on time and all of the pizza that provided was gone. shoot, I was hungry too. So I had to suffer through an hour of stuff and got light headed because I had just come from the gym,( remember the calorie intake/workout one), and I had to wait even longer to eat because I chose not to make my lunch. 

So today, I made my lunch and I was able to resist the temptation of fast food, although I wanted it so badly. I feel very good about my food choices today, I did make it to the gym too. Alli tried spaghetti squash and asparagus at dinner. It was super healthy. I'm looking forward to grocery shopping tomorrow, sugar snap peas and hummus will be the snack of the week. I also want to just be more creative this week, I will have a little bit more free time. I am going to make homemade tortillas and make enchiladas with them, yum. I usually stuff them with sauteed onions and lots of veggies so I can use less cheese. I use the fire roasted tomato sauce by kroger, it's in a jar. It's pretty good. and a good sauce to have on hand. 

try to make good choices at your superbowl party. 

Chips.

I have this issue around chips. if I have one, I'll have a hundred. ok that's an exaggeration but I love chips and I've started to have peppers or sugar snap peas to get the crunch of the chips but I miss the salt so so much so I go back to chips after a few days. I don't really know why but I crave chips so badly. working on this whole thing all the time. I do know that I have lower than normal BP it's around 110/60 so I get light headed a lot but not when I have enough salt/calories. so I'm trying to balance my calories so I do burn all my sugars too quickly especially when I do spin class or any other intense cardio. 

I need some ideas for low cal salty crunchy snacks. and not fat free pringles -no good. 

registration.

I gotta make this quick my favorite show starts soon. woo hoo. 

I registered for the bolderboulder today. I'm proud that I'm doing this. I'm a little intimidated but I know that it will be so fun and make encourage me to do more races. I haven't been running much as you well know, but I think that this is what is going to motivate me to begin the real training that is involved with running. 

I did yoga today. awesome again and I was amazed with some of the moves again, it's so great that we can push our bodies so far and they still treat us so well. So thanks to God for that awesomeness of human. 

Gotta spend sometime with Bob and Jill now. 

a new month, new week, new me.

I made it through spin today. I wasn't sure I would but I did. I'm proud of myself. I'm proud of all of you who make time to take care of your  body. It's the only one you have. 

I'm kind at a loss for words right now. I have a lot to do and a lot on my mind that has nothing to do with fitness and wellbeing. So I guess that is where  I should start. How often are we preoccupied with something? I know I am a lot, and yoga has helped me to focus on something and just let the thoughts come and go. It's helping but I still get focused on something and it causes some anxiety for me until it's done or I can do something to change it and if I can't change it...that's when trouble starts, I dwell on things that I cannot change. It's so hard and sometimes it's good and I get crazy focused on the things that I can change, like cleaning, but sometimes it's bad and I should be doing something but I can't at that exact moment. LIke worrying about family when I'm at school and I need to do school but it's not a pressing school issue that needs to be done right then. It's hard to explain. I hope it makes some sense. 

So my point to all of this is to be in the moment. live right now. think right now. 

February.

How are we going to stay on track? 

I am going to continue going to the gym as much as I can. This is already becoming a problem because of school. not ok. I also saw a tae kwon do place today that offers cardio kickboxing, I might have to check that out. it sounds pretty awesome. I think I just need to keep things new and exciting. any suggestions? I like taking walks; I should do that more. Hopefully the gym will start to be more enjoyable. I love it don't get me wrong, but it's the new year and it's always packed, I used to go when there was no body there, but now i'm forced to go during rush hour so I'm not as excited to go. Like having 25-30 people in yoga compared with 5, it's just different. I think tomorrow is spin day, wish me luck, my back just a little sore, but I do feel stronger so that's a plus. happy sunday. 

failure.

So small switch in yesterdays post, the ratio is carbs to protein not protein to carbs. my bad. 

anyways, so I'm reading my mental health book and it says "If you aren't making mistakes, maybe you're not trying hard enough." sound familiar... my BFF Jillian said on BL "If you're not failing, you're not trying hard enough." I had it posted on my FB for awhile. I cannot believe that she is so on target even textbooks are saying the stuff she does. 

and maybe I'm just going crazy but I'm learning a lot about myself and others not only through this class but through conscious awareness in life. It's enlightening. I hope you are getting something out of this blog, I have few comments so I guess I'll keep going. 

122 days until the bolderboulder. I really need to start running more. ps- I did not go to the gym today, my back is sore. Too much bodyflow. It's a good sore, but I went to the gym like 7 or 8 days in a row. I think I need to take a step back. a very small step. 

Happy friday! almost. 

mocha latte/ chocolate milk.

I'm trying to convince myself that it's ok that I have lattes all the time because all the fitness magazines say that to recover better after a workout drinking something that is a ratio of 2-6: 1, protein and carbs it's good for you, so there is this great debate whether chocolate milk is of of those things because it's ratio is 3:1, and it is rich in calcium. All the fitness protein drinks are about the same so read your labels if you think that your choice is better than any other because it probably isn't. so my argument is that since a mocha latte is chocolate milk with a shot of espresso is it just as good? I'm hoping it is because caffeine is good for weight loss but I've heard that the caffeine in coffee/espresso is processes differently in our bodies making it not as effective as the caffeine found in other sources such as tea, guarana sp? and other things. just something to think about. 

but do keep in mind if you are going to drink you calories they still count toward you daily intake so be careful. Have a great day. 

Biggest loser/yoga tuesday.

I look forward to every tuesday because of biggest loser and awesome yoga before class. 

I actually bought a yoga mat today, so I'm officially a yogi and I'm proud of it. I'm taking it to bodyflow class tomorrow. I'm very much looking forward to it. I chose today to have veggies instead of a protein bar today based on calories, does that make me a super health freak or what. I really wanted the lara bar but it had 230 calories in it and I was super hungary. I guess those are the good choices that I need to make more often but I think I may be taking it to the extreme. I also passed on girl scout cookies, which i know is a good choice. if I order thin mints I could eat the whole thing in on sitting. I love them. Especially frozen. ok I've had my day dream about girl scout cookies and I have imagined all the hours in spin class I no longer want them. btw, the spin classes seem to be increasingly harder at the gym, and maybe it's me and i'm pushing myself, but the instructors are pushing us up these hills that I am almost dying going up and then they say "turn it up again" like it's no big deal. I love the rush so I'm not complaining but holy moly, hard and awesome workout. That's all I got today, let me know what you want to hear about. Ps tonight was taco night, sauted chicken in little evoo, corn, guac, lettuce, tomato, onion, peppers on whole wheat tortillas. They were good. 

Productive day.

I got lots done early in the day and I'm hoping tomorrow can be the same. I have tons of reading and researching to do. I am really understanding how I used to gain weight and be clueless as to why. I am learning and tweaking my ways of planning meals and snacks so I can be happier and healthier. There is less anxiety when I know what I am going to eat all day and when so when I do feel hungary I can reach for a healthy snack in my bag rather than go to the vending machine or to a drive thru. I also have the chance to have a snack during the breaks in class instead of waiting until the end of class when I'm starving and I go to a drive thru and order so much more than I should. Slowly but surely I'm getting healthy and discovering new and unique things about me, it's been fun. 

Just keep trucking. It's a new day and a new you. You can be anything you want. 

distracted

I should be studying but this will be quick. 

I went to yin yoga today and the instructor is awesome. she said something today that really stood out. she said trust that you are where you need to be in your life and she emphasized that we are all unique and our bodies are all different so we cannot compare ourselves with each other but we must just focus on our bodies in each pose. I really liked that. I know all too often I compare myself to others at the gym who I don't even know and wish that I had their body or was more in shape like them and I'm trying to really rid myself of this false sense that I'm not good enough. I know I am good enough and I can achieve my goals if I focus and plan. I am trying to be present in the now and know I am who I need to be. 

Be yourself. Be free to be. 

Staying motivated

"Every choice is a personally defining moment where you have the ability to get closer to your goals" -my BFF Jill. 

I like this quote it gives me some motivation and it makes it personal. I want to be the best that I can be and I know that I have the control over what I do whether it be eating or exercising or school or parenting, it's up to me. 

Let's be in control and do what will make us better human beings. None of us are immortal and I am learning this through my life right now. It's difficult to digest that my life may not be what I want it to be in 20 years unless it is what I want it to be now. I am trying to live in the moment by sharing thoughts and feelings about current issues with those around me. It has been a long road and I believe that I am finally able to have that openness with others. It feels good. Thank you to everyone around me for this and I continue to be challenged by being open so I hope you can push me to be better. 

missing yoga.

I had ice cream and french fries today. It was a stressful week and I know I should learn to deal with my stress by doing other things besides eat, but I did go to bodyflow today after a very long day of mental health.

I'm convinced that I am going to be crazy by the end of that class, if I was not already. To be perfectly honest, I was really on edge all day today, just dealing with the BS of nursing school and after I went to the gym and did that bodyflow class I felt so much better. So to all of you who have not tried yoga or ever had a savasana, sp? It is super restorative to the spirit. It gets me through the day and refocuses my energy. I love it. and I know I sound like such a hippie/yogi. I like it. I usually do bodyflow on wednesday but this week I didn't because I watched my nieces, which I would not trade, but it was just a long week. I also do yoga on tuesday and I didn't do that because I took Alli to school and it just took us too long to get out of the house so I did not have time and I had a thing at school I volunteered for. I know these are all excuses and I know we are all busy but I am hoping next week I can have a better schedule of working out and doing yoga. I did do spin twice this week so I'm not feeling too bad but I think I just missed my personal timeout during bodyflow and yoga class.

keep your body strong and your spirit wise.

lean cuisine day.

Georgia font and purple dedicated to my best friend. feel better soon. love you. 

I had two lean cuisines today and lots for fruits and veggies. and a slice of cake. and a mocha. I was good for the most part and the fact that I did spin today and almost died counts for something. I'm not feeling too guilty, but I do want to watch greys and have a sweet snack. 

So I'm interested in what fruits and veggies everyone likes. I love all of the above. My newest favorite is sweet potato, it's so sweet and I can just eat it baked without anything else and feel satisfied. On my way home from class at 7 pm today, I have cucumbers and carrot and an apple and they were fine, nothing special. I was so hungary and now that i'm eating my lean cuisine, I don't think I will finish it because I'm full, I guess it is helpful to eat an apple 20 minutes before a meal. I also had some sliced bell peppers earlier today.

Let's aim for 5 a day, it will keep us full and healthy. I got homework to do. let's me know how you are doing. 

Salad.

I'm so tired of simple salad. We have it almost every night at dinner. Green leaf lettuce, cucumbers, tomato. I need some new exciting cool fresh veggie ideas to serve to my family. I bought some bell peppers and we had those tonight but I'm just tired of the same thing over and over again. 

I did spin today, and hopefully tomorrow as well, it's going to be a long day so I really want to start it off well. Here's to a new year and a new me. 

It's going to be a long week, fun, but long.

It's the sunday before the semester starts and I'm dog sitting this week. I am trying to plan out my meals for this week so I'm not caught being super hungary and busy-this will lead to drive-thru syndrome and once I catch it, it's very hard to get rid of. I have Alli tomorrow so we'll go to the gym and make dinner together, should be fun. On tuesday I start classes and have to watch Elliot, super cute dog. Wednesday, the day I'm most worried about. I'm watching both nieces that day so I'm trying to plan a fun/healthy lunch that all of us can be a part of. Then I'm going to sushi with a friend. Thursday should be alright. and Friday will be just plain long. 

I can do this. Let's be proactive, not reactive. Good luck this week. 

calorie fail.

So btw I hate that the default font on here is times. yuck. 

anyways, I was good all day yesterday until I met up with some friends at Old Chicago and totally ate way too many nachos and cookie with ice cream. shoot. today has been much better. I had a protein drink and a banana before going to bodyflow and then a lean cuisine and now I'm having an apple and a string cheese. I think we are having spagettii and salad for dinner. not too bad. although I might make a cake with Alli. 

let's chat about motivation, I am really surprised about how many people aren't motivated by the health risks that are known to reduce life expectancy and quality. I personally want to challenge us to make goals for ourselves and allow our friends and family to hold us to them. It takes a lot to trust someone enough to allow them to speak truth into your life, but I know that it develops those honest relationships that can never be broken. I am motivated by the way my body now works so much better since I really started doing yoga about 6 months ago. I feel stronger physically and that has translated to having more confidence and being stronger emotionally because I know I can. The doubt that I had about things is much less than it was. 

Okay it's not the holidays anymore so it's time to start sharing some of your food choices. I have this app on my phone called myfitnesspal, it was free and it helps you set a goal and put in the foods you ate and the exercise you did to calculate your daily calorie needs to meet your goal. It has many of the foods at restaurants and you can put in your own homemade foods too. It has opened my eyes to the calories in some of the foods I eat and I thought were much healthier. It has allowed me to plan my meals better too because I always have my phone with me I can't make the excuse of forgetting my food journal. If a small little notebook works better for you great. I have really enjoyed knowing the total calories I eat everyday so I am better able to stay in control of my health and my goals. I tend to snack less when I have to put it into my food journal because I know that the two handfuls for chips could put me over my calories. 

School starts in few day so no promises about postings. sorry, I will do the best I can. 

stay strong. 

good day.

So far I have had a good day, calorie wise, I mean. I had a smoothie for breakfast and a wrap at rock bottom for lunch, and grilled steak and salad for dinner. and a skinny latte and a mini scone in the afternoon. not too bad. 

I did bodyflow today and it was the newest release. OMG super hard but so so good. The tai chi was a little different but the rest was so awesome, hardcore strength moves, very challenging. 

I'm ready for school to start and life to become for routine again. It has been kind of all over the place. I'm not excited for school to start but I do miss the scheduled things. I think they help me get motivated to do more things. I worked out a ton over break but I also watched a whole lotta TV. 

BTW, BL is so freaking awesome. Can someone get inside my head and make me workout and become a better person? I love that. And how funny was it when the mom on the white team smashed her face into the ground. anyway, we should all attempt to conquer our fears. I'm afraid of losing control of my mind and I'm finding that by doing yoga that I can control my thoughts and I feel more in control. I'm have this fear of no being good enough and this fear really pushes me to do well in school so that's good but sometimes I have this expectation of myself that is unrealistic so I'm working on lowering my expectations while still having high goals. I'm trying to enjoy the journey and not focus on the destination. it's hard when others have already graduated and I'm still in school. Life is hard, but let's live like we mean it. 

love yourself. 

no more days. I suck at counting.

I hope you have been good this week. Sorry for no postings, I was on vacation with my family and I discovered that while I did eat many bad foods, I also ate many good foods and I was able to sleep a lot. 

Walking, we can all walk. Let's all try to walk more. I'm thinking we start by parking farther away when going to the store and not driving around to fine a better parking space. We walked a ton this last week and it was good to be moving. but I have to say my hips are killing me. I haven't done any yoga in the last week and now I'm realizing why I love it so much. my hamstrings are also  so tight, OMG. Tomorrow at the gym will be a killer, but it shouldn't take too long to get back in the groove of things. 

I hope no one takes offense to what I'm about to say, but I was shocked my how many obese people there were in disneyland and many of them in wheelchairs. I'm amazing that we have allowed this to happen. I know that we are all working on it and we say that we will start next week. I really think that we all need to just help one person make a better choice with what they eat and we can change to world. I also think that it's so much easier if that tempting food is not available. With Alli we make sure she has veggies with dinner every night and she likes them so when it is time for dessert she usually will have a few bites and she's done. I also love letting her pick out which veggie we have with dinner. I think giving her more control now will allow her to make healthy choices for her children and her friends when they come over to our house. 

Veg Out. 

17.

With a heavy heart, I have to say that my uncle passed away yesterday evening. He had a long battle with Parkinson's disease. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. 

But on a good note, Alli and I went to family yoga today. It was super fun with songs and running around. She had a great time. If I get organized enough after our vacation and school, we will sign up and go again. 

Life is so complicated. Live in control. You have the power to say no when you need to. You also have the power to love.  "No" doesn't not mean without love. 

day 16. Sweet 16.

I made it through spin class and bodyflow. My legs are jello. 

How are your goals coming along? I feel stronger and leaner, but my endurance needs a little work. It's much better than it used to be, but I still have a long way to go before memorial day. Hopefully by then it won't be -5 degrees outside and I can run outside. 

Do you drink enough water? I know I don't. I probably drink like maybe 50 ounces a day, when it should be closer to twice that. I drink a lot while I'm working out but not in the mean time. I think I will work on that. I know that water, zero calories, helps to speed up the bodies metabolism, which means less weight. The body can burn more calories at rest. The workouts also help the body burn more calories at rest. 

Keep your chin up. Do NOT give up. 

Day 15. Skiing fail again.

So highway 6 (loveland pass) was closed and we were gonna go to Abasin. so we didn't go. One of these days, people, one of these days. 

Instead we went ice skating. It was awesome. Inside, and not freezing. I burned a few calories and it was only 9 bucks. That's like going to a movie. 

I ate pretty good up until dinner. Five pieces of pizza and a cupcake later, I'm feeling pretty guilty. I need to work on the whole dinner thing. It seems to be getting to me. I spent some awesome time with friends and I'm really glad I did. 

It's super late. Gotta go. 

Day 15. I think.

Happy First Wednesday of the year. The gym was packed. I was good today. I did 15 minutes on the bike and then did bodyflow class. Slowly but surely I'm adding cardio. 

How is the new year going so far? My new year has been good. I thought I had my life all planned out and it was looking good and life happens so my plans are tentative based on certain timing of events. I'm not go at that. I love having plan B (not the day after pill) but I just want things to be one way or another. I don't like the in between feeling. I'm not sure why I don't like it. Things will turn out fine either way. I'm sure it's a control thing and that's why I love working out so much. I have control of my body. I have control over the food that goes in my mouth. I also have control over the people I choose to surround myself with. I think that we should all look at the people around us and decide if they are going to be a good influence on us or not. Make a conscious choice to be around people you love and who have the same goals and interests as you. I went to my brothers house last night to watch BL, we all want to lose weight and be more active so I was an awesome time to get together where the focus was not food. Although we all enjoy a good meal together often times, it was so fun. I really need to push myself and my mom to be more social because we can be homebodies and never go out. It's a healthy part of human nature to interact with others, but try to make them healthy interactions. 

"Love yourself as much as I do" Dr. Oz, but it's true; we have to love ourselves before we can truly change who we are into who we want to be. 

ps tomorrow I'm trying skiing. I'll let you how it goes after I take a few advil. I have a feeling I will be super sore. 

I forgot the day again. Shoot.

So I need to find motivation to do more cardio exercise. I love yoga and bodyflow but I seem to be falling off the wagon with spin and other cardio activities. 

I did yoga this morning(awesome instructor btw), but I had Alli so I can only do one class at the gym. Maybe I'll try some of the walk away the pounds DVD we have. That way Alli can get involved. As I said before we did the yoga thing on fitTV, she was so cute last night she asked can we do this again and went into triangle pose, it was awesome, I knew exactly what she wanted to do. 

So maybe a walk with my dogs later? We'll see. 

Day 13.

It's just another manic monday. I heard that song while I was out shopping today. It's actually be a pretty relaxing day so far. I went to the gym and did a bodyflow class. 

I have been really thinking about our society and I'm just shocked at how many fast food places there are. I'm not surprised that our children are obese and type 2 diabetes is on the rise. I don't know what to do about this. I keep saying educate the kids and show them right from wrong but I'm not sure this will work. I think the economy has shown us a lot in the last few months. It is cheaper to eat more veggies/fruit than it is to eat more protein. So to save money and our waist lines lets eat more veggies. I'm so tired of people saying they are so expensive. Buy the frozen ones. They are usually less than a dollar for a big bag. (King soopers). I also saw on fitTV some info on the zone diet, and it is portion controlled and allows for very small portions of whole grains which allows the body to use the fat as energy-hence weight loss. It also suggests that in every meal and snack there should be a carb(fruits/veggies) and a protein which will help to keep blood sugar stable. I'm not suggesting you follow the zone diet but the little tips I thought would be helpful. 

Tomorrow is yoga day. I'm excited. Let me know how this new year is going so far. 

Day 12.

I went to the gym with my mom today and she tried the bodyvive class. I'm so glad she came. I've been trying for awhile to get her to come and she did it. I'm super proud of her. It takes some courage to try new things and go outside of your comfort zone. YAY mom. Courage is a funny thing, you know. I wish I had a bit more of it. Not the silly risk taking attitude but the adventurous mind set. It's okay to make mistakes but I think it takes courage to learn from them and continue pushing through life even though it's difficult. 

Go, be courageous. be curious. 

Day 11.

So Alli and I did the yoga show on fit TV. It was fun I guess. Seeing Alli try to follow along was very entertaining. 

I was super hungry today, no good. We went to five guys, no good at all. and had ice cream. shoot. I'm awful. 

Hopefully I can start controlling myself better. We actually had a pretty healthy dinner of Tacos with lots of veggies, corn, guac, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, on whole wheat tortillas. They were delicious. It one of the staples in our house. We have tacos at least once a week. I love that we are introducing Alli to whole grain food at a young age. The other day she asked "why is the pasta brown? " Because it's good for you and it makes you big and strong. She is so cute. She knows that candy "makes you little" but she stills treats herself every so often. I really love getting in the kitchen and cooking with the kids and teaching them about the food they eat. Alli's favorite thing during the summer is to go to the farmers markets with me and eat fresh peaches or tomatoes. I know right, who eats tomatoes plain. I love them and when they are from the farmers markets they are cheaper and fresher. I absolutely love the farmers markets. Look for them in the gazette in mid May and it tells you when and where they are. It's good for you and the environment. 

Eat and teach fresh. 

I don't know what day it is.

We went snowshoeing today. It was super fun. It's as easy as walking, but it's beautiful and it involves snow. 

I am now realizing the importance of sleep. I hope that you get enough of it. I find that when I don't I tend to eat more and more food means more weight. (I was trying to avoid that because I don't want this to be about the numbers) When I weight more actually feel that I can't do things and I have the bloated feeling that I cannot stand. Anyways, sleep. It's important and I think that we should also keep each other accountable for how much sleep we are getting. We need sleep for our bodies to function, to heal and be revived for the next day. It is an important element of immune strength so I think that with Swine flu going around we should be giving ourselves at least 6-7 hours of sleep a night. If you cannot do that then I really think that something in your life needs to change. Whether that changes means getting the kids to be earlier or just reorganizing your life, I think it is needed for your sake. I usually go to be around 10 and get up around 8, so I'm getting plenty of sleep, I love it. When school starts I may get up earlier to get a workout in before school but right this second when I have the chance to sleep that much I am. 

Get your beauty sleep.