Feeling good

A friend asked me how I was today, and my immediate response was "ok". But I immediately added. "No. Better than ok. I am exercising well and I feel GOOD!"

What a great feeling, to be feeding your body what it needs with food and exercise. Joints stop hurting, muscle aches go away faster, more energy, sleeping better. It's like a steam roller of good..... just getting better and better!

Starting fresh after an off week

Last week was a struggle. I struggled in workouts. I didn't eat well. I didn't drink my water! I have no idea why.... But I'm glad to know that having an off week doesn't mean it's over and done with. It simple means I need to give myself a new chance - starting fresh. It's so important to remember that I am making lifestyle choices - to feed my body what it needs, exercise my body to make it strong.

Week two progress

After 2 weeks of trying to put my health first, I am down 6 lbs. More importantly, I'm enjoying exercise again, and I've started making choices. If I have a meal I feel is not healthy, I balance it out with the rest of the day, with a little more cardio, and GOOD food the rest of the day.

I am trying to help another friend in her weightloss journey as well, and she was completely discouraged this morning to only see 1 lb off from last week. Her 2 week total is FIVE POUNDS! Which is fantastic! But she's already getting discouraged. I'm trying to help her understand that we are looking for long term lifestyle changes. Slow, steady weight loss, better choices. I also explained that every week will vary - and if in the long run, we are going in the right direction, that is what matters.

Shows like the Biggest Loser, and some of the talk shows like Dr. Oz have completely distorted our idea of what weight loss is, or should be.

It can't be 10 lbs a week like the biggest loser if you're not isolated on a ranch under complete control. We still have to feed our families. We have other commitments that don't allow us to work out for 4 hours or more a day.

And it shouldn't be a drastic 2 week diet that sheds 20 lbs.

We need to feed our bodies with the right fuel. With real food, veggies, fruits, whole grains... We need to drink water. We need to fit exercise into our daily regime. We need to choose activities with our family that are physically active. And we need balance. Good balance, that allows us to make those choices, enjoy life, and get healthier, one day at a time.

I will continue to try to help my friend understand her misconception. And retrain her thought process to understand that she is making steps to improve her health for LIFE. I wish that society would stress this as well. We need to live life as God intended us to... not a life of excess, or quick fixes.

Workouts continue

Really starting to get "into" my workouts again, and I'm so excited. I'm sleeping better, feeling better, more energy...

Still not drinking a ton of coffee - just a couple of cups a day. This is a big change for me, and one I am proud of. I've replaced it with water for most of the day - another bonus.

Workouts are doing really well. Four in this week already - and each one better than the last. Upped the resistance on my elliptical this week and over 4 workouts have been able to get back under 30 minutes for 2 miles - so I will continue the path of increasing resistance once a week, and then working to get under the 30 for 2 miles. But at some point I will want to increase to more than 2 miles, to begin building stamina. For now, I'm just trying to really get back into it.

Food has been OK. Not snacking much, and that is a big difference. I've been eating pretty "normal" foods - not doing anything drastic. If I have a big meal, or a meal out, I balance it with the other food for the day being mostly fruits and veggies.

And all of this seems to be working. As I said, I'm feeling great. Very proud of putting myself first!

Starting my day off right!

Started my day off with a hearty, healthy breakfast of oatmeal with dried cranberries and almonds. I love hot oatmeal, and have great memories of my mom making me oatmeal with raisins as a child. On a cold snowy day - there is nothing better.

We had about 8 inches of snow yesterday - so I began the day clearing the snow from the end of the driveway - good cardio on a cold morning. Only have half done, so I will be heading out again to finish. God's option for exercise today!

But the sun is shining, I have a good start to the day, and am hoping to continue!

The end of a good week!

It's been a good week of taking care of myself. The goal I put in front of myself was 2 hours of cardio, and I did that! I did 4 sessions - 30 minutes each. Today was the final one, and it was the first one I felt GOOD during. I was able to push myself a little more, not stop at all, and I enjoyed it. That makes me happy. It's been too long away from my elliptical! Looking forward to my progress this week, and then the following week Zumba will start again - although only one day a week, so I will supplement with my own exercise. But it will be sooo good to get my zumba on again!

Eating was ok this week - many good days, with little or no snacking, and even on the days when I "cheated" - it was minimal. I love that. It's from the cleanse. I don't crave those sweet and salty things nearly as much, and I think the more I stay away, the less I will crave them. Did a lot of good cooking this week - good salads, two veggies with meals, and changed up the veggies quite a bit. Overall, I'm happy with the week!

Looking forward to next week - continuing to feel better about myself, and taking care of ME!

progress!

I am really starting to feel amazing... The reduction of caffeine is obvious now  - as I am sleeping better, and have more energy. My dry skin is MUCH better as I'm back to drinking plenty of water. And I'm not snacking in between meals at all. Filling up with mostly vegetables at meals is doing great things... Starting to add in some great whole grains, which always makes me happy.

Fit my 30 minutes of cardio in today also - even though I had tons to do. Need to remember to put myself first - my health IS important. I AM important.

eating raw

Ok. Eating raw - not for me. I think I am just too much of a foodie. Vegan for an entire MONTH was easier than this because I got to cook - try new ingredients and recipes - etc. I guess I am on here to admit failure. Although the fast and first couple of days were an excellent jolt for my body. The cravings are diminished, I have much less hunger, and I'm eating so much better. And I do feel better - including my sleeping. I've only had a half a cup of coffee this morning (before this I was drinking more than a pot a day), had some fresh fruit for breakfast, and am making grilled pork with a huge veggie stir fry for lunch.

I'm disappointed in myself - that I didn't follow through with the 5-7 days - but it really isn't for me. But I also realized I have nothing to prove to anyone with it. And I'd rather just make healthy choices all the time than try to cleanse. I do see the need to reduce all refined carbs and fats in my diet. So that's what I'll concentrate on. Easy with a fridge full of veggies!!!

So I can probably call the experiment both a failure and a success. I'll go with that.

Day one - prepping and fasting!

First, I have to apologize. I realized today that we do indeed have a holiday party next Monday, which means I will not be doing the cleanse for an entire week. I'm disappointed in myself for not remembering, and then considered putting it off for a few days. But a few factors are making me move forward with a 4 day cleanse instead:

• I already did the weaning of the caffeine and was half way through the fast
• Yesterday I purchased 40$ of fresh produce
• I'm thinking that maybe doing a 4 day cleanse is a good first try. 

I am doing this raw food cleanse at absolutely the wrong time of year. Buying  GOOD produce in Wisconsin during the winter is near to impossible, and what I did find was so crazy expensive. (Green bell peppers were .89 EACH - something I get 3/1.00 during the summer!) Depending on how this goes, I can see myself doing more raw food eating during the summer. Or at minimum adding raw food days to my diet. We will see!

So I am 15 hours into the 24-hour fast. I am hungry, with a tiny (caffeine) headache, and I am peeing constantly. (Sorry for the TMI.) To keep myself busy, I've been prepping fruits and vegetables like crazy. While good - it is keeping me very busy - it is also bad - as I handle the scrumptious fruits and veggies that can not be touched for another 9 hours. sigh

So here is how I spent my morning...

These are only the things needing prep. The fruit bowl is full of apples, bananas, and pears. The fridge has two kinds of sprouts, greens, and cabbage to boot! So I'm ready to embark on this experiment. I'll keep you posted!

T minus 8 hours until my first meal!

Early shopping done

I get very frustrated at how expensive fresh produce is!!! Eating healthy can be very expensive. In the past, I've countered the expense of produce by using whole grains, dried beans, etc., which are very cheap. This whole raw food cleanse is going to cost me a pretty penny. 45$ spent on produce today - I am hoping they will last me the first 3 days? My family will eat some of them as well... so hard to tell.

I will spend the rest of the afternoon prepping veggies and fruit. Planning to start the pre-cleanse 24 hr fast tonight after dinner. Which means tomorrow is fasting, first "meal" of fresh fruit will be tomorrow night, and then fruits and veggies starting Saturday.

I have mixed feelings. I LOVE fruits and veggies, so that is not an issue. I just need to realize what the next 7-10 days will entail.

I only had 1 cup of coffee today - hoping that it will help with the caffeine headache I forsee tomorrow. I am glad I decided to do it tonight - the fast - so that I can deal with any detox side effects alone tomorrow, rather than with the family home.

Here we go!

Starting the year off with a cleanse

Yep. Seems drastic, I know. But I've done cleanses before - and really loved how they make me feel. They tend to break my bad habit cycle and allow me to make some changes. I've decided that this time I'm going to try a raw food cleanse. I've done a bit of research - planning on starting the cleanse on Saturday - which means that I need to start prepping immediately, cutting down on my caffeine, sweets, and fatty foods and meat. I'll eat lightly over the next two days - eating bland foods to prepare me.

The cleanse will begin with a 24 hr fast starting after dinner Friday night. I will hopefully do the cleanse for 7-10 days, eating raw, whole fruits and vegetables. I'll post my findings over the next few days, and my luck either good or bad!

2014, another year to improve!

What would a blog changing one's life be without a new year's post?

I am of course thinking of my "resolutions", though I prefer not to call them that. I prefer to think of the beginning of  a new year as just that - a beginning, a NEW beginning. A chance to start fresh!

And for my health - that is simple. Because I'm so bad at putting myself first, and I do not take care of myself like I should.

I want to focus on:

• drinking water LOTS of water
• getting zumba back into my life
• cooking more grains and veggies for my family
• creating family time around physical activities like hiking, biking, etc. 

I want to focus this year on making choices that feed my body, just like I feed my soul, treating it like the gift it is from God.

Here's to living a good life in 2014!