My Girl
1 day ago
Update the blog!
Per the last comment request to "update my blog"... yes, I shall indeed update my blog and write about the new "diet" plan I just started today!
I've started the weight watcher points eating plan, but I'm not attending any meetings and I'm not signing up online. If you need a diet plan that is maintained online by journal, food tracking and exercise routines, then go to sparkpeople.com. The site is awesome and free ;-)
I'm tracking my eating with the points plan, but also incorporating what is mentioned in the book You on a Diet by Dr. Oz. Which is getting enough fiber, limiting your menu choices for two meals everyday and getting at least 20 mins of exercise everyday. Then I also got for Christmas, My Fitness Coach for the Wii. I debated on getting this game or Jillian Michael's Fitness which I had originally wanted, but after reading some bad reviews opted against it. My Fitness Coach has so far been pretty actuate to what I've read about it, but after I play (exercise) it more I'll submit my own brilliant game review for all to see :-)
I also set some goals for myself. First, to just get through the first week. Then the second goal is to loose 15lbs by my son's birthday, which is February 12.
Wish me motivation. Wish me strength. Wish me encouragement!
Physically, Emotionally and Spiritually
I am so incredibly happy at the moment. Why? I have been given a wonderful gift. I got laid off!
Seriously, this is so easy for me to accept, yet people around me seem to want to offer up pity and the “oh, I’m so sorry for you.” No way, don’t give me your negative sad vibes; I am truly excited that I have been given this opportunity to take time for myself. To set my own daily schedule, to achieve my own set of personal goals, to have time to sit down and read while the weather is so incredibly beautiful outside. I am happy people, why can’t you be?
OK, so it’s a new month and I have a totally free mainframe. I am not going to let this time pass me by without taking full advantage of it. I plan to grown spiritually. I plan to shrink physically. I plan to open up emotionally. And I do have a plan for all three of these areas of my life.
Seriously, this is so easy for me to accept, yet people around me seem to want to offer up pity and the “oh, I’m so sorry for you.” No way, don’t give me your negative sad vibes; I am truly excited that I have been given this opportunity to take time for myself. To set my own daily schedule, to achieve my own set of personal goals, to have time to sit down and read while the weather is so incredibly beautiful outside. I am happy people, why can’t you be?
OK, so it’s a new month and I have a totally free mainframe. I am not going to let this time pass me by without taking full advantage of it. I plan to grown spiritually. I plan to shrink physically. I plan to open up emotionally. And I do have a plan for all three of these areas of my life. First physically I am going back to what worked before with eliminating soda and carbohydrates from my diet. Instead my focus will be water, meat, cheese, lettuce and the occasional glass of wine. I will savor each bite of food and appreciate it rather than devour it without thinking, then wonder, “where did my food go?”
After watching the Biggest Loser last night and seeing people much heavier than myself practically kill themselves in the gym; I realized I have the perfect opportunity to really step my exercise routine up about 5 notches. My goal is for every relaxing things I do during the day to counter it with some sort of exercise. For example today so far I’ve done 20 minutes of Pilates from a DVD, then played Mario kart. I did a load a laundry and then did 2 sets of 20 bench presses. I read a book for a half an hour and then jumped rope, which really got my heat pounding!
Now, I realize this is not something I will do continuously all day long; but I do think it’s a realistic plan for myself as far as allowing myself to relax and have fun during the day while still achieving my exercise goals.
Emotional and spiritual growth are probably inter related. I was born and raised a Christian and truly do value this up bringing; however, as I’ve gotten older I seem to question many things in life including my beliefs. Through knowledge gained from books, television programs and general conversations with others, I have come to believe that there is a higher power in life but it may be presented in different forms. God, energy, the universe… it’s basically all the same idea and Jesus, karma, Buddha and other forms of awakening an accepting love are just a few ways to reach this higher/clearer understanding for “the meaning of life”.
For myself I have decided to further examine the principles behind Buddhism. This statement is by no means a way of me declaring that I am a follower, or that I denounce Christianity. I am simply educating myself to have better understanding and to hopefully gain wisdom with hope of finding inner peace. So my book of choice at the moment… and don’t laugh, is Buddhism for Dummies.
First off, I love the fact that Buddha himself asks you not to believe what he teaches without first questioning how it could apply, or not apply towards your own life. I think this in one of the issues I do question with Christianity because as a child, teenager and young adult it has always been instilled towards me that you must accept that Jesus is the son of God and that basically denying this fact will keep you from the kingdom of heaven. I’m not saying I deny this fact, but I don’t believe it is the only way to reach “heaven”, and further more I don’t know that I believe that heaven is some destination you get to once your life here on earth expires. I like the idea that heaven is obtainable right now within each of us.
I read that Buddha said the secret to happiness is to want what you have and to not want what you don’t have. That it is your mental attitude that determines the quality of your life. Further more karma teaches us, and as Earl states in the show “My Name is Earl”, that if you do good things, good things will happen. In the book the Secret, it’s basically the law of attraction and that with positive thoughts and actions you will draw forth for positive things to happen in your life. Simply put, like attracts like.
So for emotional and spiritual growth I am practicing and reading more about these basis fundament teachings. I am clearing my mind through a few minutes of daily meditation and prayer. I am opening my heart to accept what is and to love unconditionally.
What a wonderful opportunity I have been given to develop my body and soul from being laid off from my job :-)
It’s been awhile…
...since I last wrote anything, but rest assure that I am still focused on my goals :-)
First I have to admit that I cheated over the weekend. But I think I may have figured out how to get around this problem! At least for me, it’s all in my mind. You have to choose to follow the plan or not, it’s pretty simple. Eat right and exercise. That’s the “key to weight loss”… not a big surprise, we have been reading this for years. Decrease the amount of food you consume and increase the amount of daily exercise. For me this means eliminating soda, carbohydrates and sugars (for now). What I have noticed for myself is that when I “cheat” early in the day, it only creates a snowball effect. Therefore, I must remain focused on my goals starting at the beginning of each day. If I walk in the morning, eat something good for breakfast and take my vitamins, I not only feel good but I also established a solid base for the remainder of the day that I don’t want to sabotage.
First I have to admit that I cheated over the weekend. But I think I may have figured out how to get around this problem! At least for me, it’s all in my mind. You have to choose to follow the plan or not, it’s pretty simple. Eat right and exercise. That’s the “key to weight loss”… not a big surprise, we have been reading this for years. Decrease the amount of food you consume and increase the amount of daily exercise. For me this means eliminating soda, carbohydrates and sugars (for now). What I have noticed for myself is that when I “cheat” early in the day, it only creates a snowball effect. Therefore, I must remain focused on my goals starting at the beginning of each day. If I walk in the morning, eat something good for breakfast and take my vitamins, I not only feel good but I also established a solid base for the remainder of the day that I don’t want to sabotage.
I also recently finished a book about karma, which I greatly enjoyed, and there was a section that talked about asking yourself if your action will create a positive or negative reaction. This principle idea can be asked on a variety of subjects, but for this purpose I have started asking it to food choices. Will that cookie create a positive or negative effect towards my goal? Will sneaking a few lays potato chips in my mouth while fixing lunches for the kids really hurt my diet? Should I hit snooze on the alarm clock and continuing sleeping for ten minutes, or should I just get up and jog around the block? Simple questions all reminding me to stay focused on the bigger picture that I have set for myself. Nike truly hit the jackpot with their slogan “just do it”. Just do what you know to be right… whatever that may be.
So even though I have lagged on my blogging, I have continued to take some pictures of my food. As I have stated before, this is merely to remind myself that there are tasty food choices available while trying to limit some of my daily options. More so I’m just a visual person... I like to see examples!
Back on Track
Getting back on track today with my diet, or should I say “healthier lifestyle”. They -they being magazines, books and really any media form- always say not to call it a “diet”. Even if that is what it truly is!
According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the word diet is defined as… a: food and drink regularly provided or consumed b: habitual nourishment c: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason d: a regimen of eating and drinking sparingly so as to reduce one's weight
So my diet is going well today. I got up at 6am and walked/jogged for 30 minutes around our neighborhood. My first goal is to be able to jog the entire 30 minutes; I’m about half way there. I prepared a nice breakfast which consisted of eggs, ham and some sliced tomatoes (see pic). Had a bowl of chicken and wild rice soup at my desk and then for lunch ended up taking another walk. However… now I’m hungry again!!! But I’m going to just push past the feeling and drink more water :-)
The other day I really wanted a coke, this was probably the first time in awhile I have really wanted one. I must say that I haven’t really craved soda much lately, and when I do I just recall that bloated feeling I always got afterwards and this usually makes the desire go away. But I am getting a bit bored of water all the time, so I bought myself some decaffeinated herbal tea to start having in the morning while at work. We’ll see how that goes tomorrow ;-)
How is your diet going?
That’s the question I have been trying to avoid lately. Why??? Oh the usual, I’ve fallen off course a tad :-(
We celebrated a birthday at our house, so I had some ice cream cake… a few times! Here and there I’ve had a couple carbs via chips or pasta, which is a no-no when I should be eliminating them altogether on this stage of the diet. And I haven’t walked much over the past few days due to rain.
So what now? Well… now I start over, get back on track. I’ve decided to go back and read the book from the beginning. Actually I’m only half way through the book but that because the first half walks you though each day for two weeks of stage 1, then it is weekly sections after that for stages 2 and 3. If you still have more than 10 lbs to loose in order to reach your “goal weight”, then it suggests you remain at stage 1 for awhile.
Why and I following some silly diet book? Because I love it! I think you have to find what works for you, whether that be a diet program, a motivational book, pictures, etc… if it helps you stay focus on achieving your desired goal, then again, do whatever works for you! I personally like this book because it’s down to earth; it’s similar to my own situation being the ladies are mothers and one is my exact height/weight. The women are both British which is obvious in parts of the writing style, which I find interesting. And it’s written very honest and blunt. They don’t sugar coat that you will have a bad day here and there, nor do they accept you skimming the recommendations and expect to loose inches. It’s as if they are saying “ok, you want to loose weight, it’s going to suck at first, but if you’re sincere about getting the pounds of then just shut up and do what you have to do.”
The book is: Neris and India's Idiot-Proof Diet: A Weight-Loss Plan for Real Women
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
