Health

I chose a word for the year to live by.  That word is Health.   I want to filter everything through Health.

• physical health
• mental health
• spiritual health
• emotional health

And right now I do not feel healthy.    Oh, there is nothing really wrong--nothing that I would call and make a doctor appointment for,  But I am not at a healthy weight and I know that affects me.

Me being overweight ripples down into my mental health, my spiritual health and my emotional health.

I need to be fit.  I need to be healthy.   I need to live.

struggles

I have been battling the same 10 pounds for the last 3 months.  I lose a few, then gain a few.  I  wish that I could just break the 10 pound barrier and set a new goal.

I am also struggling with sugar again.  I've come to the conclusion that it is best for me to just give it up completely.  I don't crave it when I don't have it.  
At work everyone is bringing in sweets and I just dive in.

I know I am being wishy washy.   I need to get serious.

Seasonal Fruit and Vegetables

Ever wonder why the clementines you bought yesterday just don't taste as delicious good as the ones you had a couple months ago?

The handy website Ripetrack helps let you know when specific fruit and vegetables come into season.

To use you type in the name of fruit or vegetable that you are curious for and hit go.  It will bring up a colorful scale.  Green areas of the scale mean it is ripe in season.  Yellow areas denote less ripe.  The red or pink areas of the scale show when it is not ripe at all.   Rolling your mouse over the scale will reveal months of the year to better help you read the scale.

If you just want to know what is currently in season, hit go with nothing in the search box.  It will bring up everything that is ripe in season right now.

This is a good way to get the best tasting produce at the right times which will help keep us following our meal plans.  It can also be  help for meal planning to see what should be available.  Fruit and vegetables in season are almost always less expensive too.

As you can see in the picture above strawberries, one of my favorite fruit,  are in the midst of their ripe season.  I'm enjoying this year's strawberry harvest.

What is your favorite fruit? 

Just Do It

I have a gym membership. I pay a monthly fee in order to use their equipment.   The plan when I enrolled in this membership was to carve out a time to visit and work-out.  That plan has not materialized.

When I joined the gym they were running a special and that is also one of the reasons I signed up-- knowing that I wanted to go, and it was now cheaper to go,-- and maybe if I knew I was paying the dues I would feel guilty enough to make myself go.  *sigh*

I have all the excuses.
I am too tired......
My schedule isn't consistent so it is hard to make a time.....
I don't want to have to change clothes.......
There is no good time........

But I also know that we do what we want to do.  If we want something bad enough we make it a priority.  So the truth must be that I really don't want to go to the gym. It is not a priority for me.

I need to change this mind-set.  I have had the right mind-set before, I know I can get it again.  What is stopping me?

I received an email this week stating my gym is getting some new equipment.  Maybe this can be my catalyst to getting back in the routine.  Maybe I need to go check out the new equipment.

Maybe this will get me out of this rut.  In the words of Nike, I need to "Just do it."


How do you get yourself out of a workout rut? 
  

Something I can change but haven't ...

This happens to me way too often.  I go to the grocery store and I don't even realize I am hungry.  I end up putting so much CRAP in my cart and I rationalize it.  Usually it is carb-laden and/or sweet things.
If only I would be more intentional and go with a list or go after I eat lunch.  
When will I learn?

Sad but True

Book and Bible Study for Weight Loss

I'm going to be reading the book Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst and and doing an online Bible Study with Proverbs 31 Ministries beginning January 19.

Made to Crave's premise is that we hunger after God because we are made to crave Him, yet we fill ourselves with other things.  We will only be satisfied when we turn to Him first.

Join me in doing this Bible Study !  There is no charge.  All you need is the book Made to Crave and a Bible.  A notebook or journal is helpful for writing down your thoughts.  Pictured above I also have the Made to Crave Devotional which is optional.

You can find the books anywhere books are sold including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, also at Proverbs 31 Ministries.  

Resources:
Proverbs 31 Ministries
P31 Online Bible Studies 

Gym Membership

Last year my son added me to his gym membership.  The gym we went to was close to my home and  farther away from his, but they said they were planning to open another location closer to his home in the near future.  It is open 24 hours a day although it is staffed from 8am to 7pm with an hour off in the afternoon for lunch.    I liked the convenience of being open whenever you want, but I did not always take advantage of going. 

My son's year was up and he decided not to continue at this gym because he really wants to find something closer to his home and the gym was no closer to opening a new location than they were a year prior.  When his year was up, so was my membership. 

So, I went to speak to them about continuing on myself.  However, to do so I would have to pay an enrollment fee in addition to the monthly fees.  This was because I was not the primary account holder on the gym membership before.  This did not make me happy.  I did discover that through my work I could get a discount- but it was for 50% of the enrollment fee and 10% of the monthly fee.  I still was not happy, because I really didn't want to pay the enrollment fee as I had been going to the gym for the past year.  So I left to think about it. 

The gym is currently running a summer special that ends July 31.  It is for 3 months - a higher rate, but no enrollment.  I know that they also occasionally run specials in the local coupon paper that eliminate the enrollment fee.  What should I do? What should I do?

In the next week or so, I made a phone call to the gym to clarify something and the phone went straight to an answering machine.  It was very frustrating.  With the end of the month approaching and my options going to be changing, I decided to go back in and talk to them again. I was going to bite the bullet, make a decision and just join because I really need to get back into the gym working out.

I drive up to the gym making sure I am not there during the hour lunch time.  Through the window, I see a few people on the treadmills.  I go to the door and  pull.  It is locked. Members have a key fob to get in.  The side window has a sign with the hours of staffing and I am clearly there during staffed hours.   I am so frustrated.   So I pull out my phone and call them thinking perhaps the staff member forgot to unlock the door.  Again, it goes to an answering machine. 

Slowly, I walk back to my car and get in.  Inside I am disappointed.  Why is this so difficult?   I make one last phone call back to the gym and this time I leave a message on the answering machine.  I let them know that I was there to sign up for a membership and their door was locked even though their door says they are staffed.  I suggested that they either change their sign or be sure they actual are staffed. 

So here I am.  Without a gym membership.  Yes, I could go back later and get one, but I am upset at the way they are doing business now. 

Do you have a gym membership?

Matter of Truth ~ Eat Well to Be Well

The Scare of Halloween

I hate this time of year when the Halloween candy is out at the store and candy is displayed all over the place.  It is so hard to keep my self control! 

I am expected to buy candy to hand out to little trick-or-treaters without dipping into the bowl myself. I try to get the kind of candy I do not like to pass out for that night, but I have to walk down the aisle to get it.  The aisle that is taller than I am jam-packed with sugary treats all tempting me to buy and eat them. 

I am torn between two weight-control philosophies. First one is to completely ignore all temptations do not eat candy no matter what.   The second is to give in to the temptation and have a little bit of candy to satiate my desire.  Then put it away. 

What strategies do you use to not gain weight as Halloween approaches? 

The Walk

I'm trying to walk daily in my neighborhood instead of walking on a treadmill in the gym.  But if I don't get up and get out there early enough, the daily chores around the house start calling to me or the errands that rule my day take me from it. 

I have a system.  I wear a pair of capris-type sweatpants that have pockets--very important to have the pockets! An old t-shirt tops it off.  I pull hair back into a pony-tail and put on a pair of small hoop earrings.  I hate going out without my earrings!  Anklet sweat socks and tennis shoes round out my fashion wear.

The equipment I take with me include my smartphone with headphones.  The phone is to call someone in case of emergency or to take any important calls that I may get during my time out.  The headphones are so that I can listen to either music from my playlist or a podcast from one of the few that I subscribe to.   As I walk, my smartphone is kept in one of my pockets.

In my other pocket is my garage door opener and a kleenex tissue.  If I leave through the garage, then I do not have to take my keys with me and worry about losing them or hearing them jingle.  All I have to do is stick my hand in my pocket and push the button to open or close the garage door.  I started keeping a kleenex in my pocket because sometimes I find my nose runs when I walk.  Does that happen to anyone else??

I try to walk at least 30 minutes a day and some days I walk more.  There are sprinklers, some cracked sidewalks, overhanging trees, and even some dog poo to avoid.    The terrain has some hills and some of it is flat regardless of which route I take.

What I have noticed over this month is that I have increased my natural pace a little bit and it is also a little easier to go up the hills.  I do not get quite out of breath as much.  I guess that means progress!

What progress are you noticing with what you are doing?  

Mid-Month Goal Update

Time is flying by! 

In a previous post I list these goals for September:

Journal Food honestly 

      I am doing this 95% of the time 

Strength train 2 - 3 times a week. 

      I have felt bloated and uncomfortable, so I have not been going to strength train.  I want to lose      a few more pounds before I get back to it. Perhaps next week I will start again.

Walk or other cardio 3 - 4 times a week

      I've been walking at least 3 times a week.  It helps to have the Step Challenge to motivate me and I will probably do more the last half of the month.

Join the Step Challenge

       This has started and I have joined.  Yeah!
 

Step Goal 9/17 - 10/1 daily average of 5000 steps

      It has just been a few days, but so far I have walked over 5000 steps per day.  


I also started attending Weight Watcher meetings.  I think the accountability and the support of meetings will help me stay on track with my weight loss.   I have little routine right now and it gives me too much opportunity to snack out of boredom & depression.  Once I start, I get on a binge and find it hard to stop.  I am hoping with these meetings, I will police myself better.   I also have 2 friends who are going with me.  One of them are also doing the step challenge with me. 

What strategies do you use to nudge you along when you are stalled in your journey?

Gym Time



 

Going to the gym....  

 

 

 

Getting on the Wagon

In my last post, I said I needed to get back on the wagon--

This is my plan for September.

• Journal Food honestly
• Strength train 2 - 3 times a week. ( 8 -12 times)
• Walk or other cardio 3 - 4 times a week (12 - 16 times)
• Join the Step Challenge (begins Sept 17 )
• Step Goal 9/17 - 10/1  daily average of 5000 steps

Climbing up on the wagon now.........

 

Slimdown Update

The Slimdown Challenge is over.  Midway through the summer and thus through the challenge, a family member of mine passed away and  I'm afraid that it knocked me off my feet a bit. 

In times of stress and emotion, I don't do well with watching what I am eating.  I guess I turn to food for comfort, although it doesn't really feel comfortable.  I just get this desire to chew when I am stressed.  It is like cracking knuckles.  I wish it were cracking knuckles-- it would easier on my diet!

I did go and officially weigh out at the end of the challenge and I had gained the weight that I had lost.  I came out about even.   My team mates did okay, not great.  Most lost between 1%  - 3%  of their weight.  Unfortunately, the winners of the challenge lost 23% of their weight.   The winning team lost an average of 12%.  All I can say is WOW and great for them. 

We didn't have a chance to win and to be honest that was never a goal of ours.  However, sad to say we were denied even the opportunity to win.  Thankfully our weightloss was so low or we might have been upset!   Our team and, therefore,  our individual numbers were all disqualified.  This was because two of our team members never officially weighed out.  

I have to say that I am a bit disappointed in them.  If they did not want to participate, they should not have signed up.   Perhaps they didn't lose weight-- but I didn't either.  As I said, our numbers were not that high, so we were never in the running for the top prizes - but what if one of had individually done well?  I also feel that somehow our team has failed.   In the grand scope of things, it doesn't matter.  But before I join another team, I want to know the members have some sense of commitment. 

As for me?   It is back to the drawing board.  Get back on the horse.  Time to get busy.   I've got some weight I want to drop! 

Weigh-In Week 6

Another gain this week. 

I have had cravings and I have given in to them.  I haven't had a good plan thought out for what I am going to eat for the day -- I am just winging it  I think it is better to plan out in advance your menu.  You can be flexible, but at least know what you might eat.  

Because I have no plan, I also have very little food in my refrigerator.  So when it is time to eat, I have to think hard about what to eat and what healthy high- nutrition, low-fat meal I can make.  Usually, I grab something not-so-healthy  or not-so-low-fat.    I have also gone out and picked food up more this week. 

These are all choices that have consequences that lead to weight gain  for me.  They are also choices that can be changed.

It is a cycle of bad news for me. I eat haphazardly. It makes me feel bad- I get sluggish and I physically can tell the difference.  It makes me not want to exercise or move much.  I get lazier. That makes me even more tired.  My sleep habits have been changing --probably due to the food & exercise changes.  I'll share some interesting things about sleep and weight in a few days.  When I weigh myself, I see that I gain a little and that depresses me and I respond by wanting to just give up and eat.  And the cycle starts all over again.  

Next week there will be a loss.  I am going to STOP the cycle!

Weight change for Week 6 :  + 1.6

A Visit with Ali

To motivate the participants of the Slimdown Challenge, the organizers brought in Ali Vincent - winner of season 5 on the Biggest Loser. Currently Vincent is a motivational speaker who touts staying committed and how to follow through on your goals.  She is quite energetic and very funny. 

Friday Stats Update

Another week gone by and I am a bit discouraged. I need to get motivated!   I seem to gain and lose the same 2 -3 pounds over and over.  I don't know if it is hormone related, stress related, or just the ebbs & flow of weight related.  I weigh myself  nearly everyday, so I see the scale go up, then down, then up and down again. 
Our stats continue to go down in the standings.  As a team, there are still only 4 of the 6 of us weighing in thus far.  Also--for some reason, the total players has again increased by one this week.  I really don't understand that.    But down to business:

Team Standings 
From Week 4: 444 out of 656
From Week 5: 479 out of 656

Individual Standings 
From Week 4: 1109 out of 3585
From Week 5: 1527 out of 3586   


Facts from the Week

• Total pounds lost in the challenge so far is 15,263
• First place team has lost an average of 9% (our team has lost an avg of 1.14%)
• First place individual has lost an average of 15.25%

Weigh-In Week 5

Weighed in today and was disappointed to see a one pound gain from last week.  I'll post later on some of the reasons  I think this might be, but it just makes me want to throw it all out & go eat. 
*sigh*   That makes my total weight loss for the month of May at 6.1 pounds -- and that is for 5 weeks.
Double sigh. 

Weight change for Week 5:  + 1.4

Friday Stats Update

Last week with our family wedding festivities, I did not have a moment to check the stats.  So my plan of reporting weekly has not fared well seeing as I have only a 50% rate.

After four weeks our team is slipping down in the ranks!  Some of this may have to do to the fact that we still have only 4 of our 6 people weighing in. They may start weighing in after Memorial Day as their schedules permit or it may be that they just haven't lost anything and they do not want to go weigh.  Another possibility is that this is a strategic move-- wait until the end, then BAM! Jump into a higher place. 

Team Standings
From Week 2 :  321 out of 656 teams avg lost 1008%
Today Week 4 : 444 out of 656 teams avg lost 1.151%

Individual Standings
From Week 2:  703 out of 3584
Today Week 4: 1109 out of 3585

Observations

• I'm still a bit confused at how the number of players are increasing since the rules stated no one was to be added after May1
• The 1st place team has lost an avg of 8% (compared to our 1%)
• The top individual has lost an avg of 14.22%  It is a female.  The top three are all over 12% - that is a lot for one month in my opinion
• There are 67 days left until the end of the challenge