Healthy Living

Yesterday I had a tough day. I did not give into every craving, but I came close. I went 300 calories over my goal, but I know that because I still tracked everything! That was the first time I have ever done that. In the past, I have usually stopped tracking and given up with an "all or nothing" mindset. "I'll start again on Monday," "I'll try again next week," "I'll wait until I have ___..." This could go on and on, but I'm sure you get the picture. This is another reason I have been so grateful for the Half Size Me Community and Podcast, as well as friends and family who have come out and shared that they, too, have struggled through this mindset. I had a bad day. I ate more than I have been eating and I let myself have more of what I have been trying to limit or eliminate. You know what, though? At the end of the day, I have still lost about 13lbs. I have made enough small changes over the last 3 weeks to know that this is...

It is amazing how we change as we grow older. In my late teens and early twenties, I was convinced that talk radio was pointless. I hated commercials and music was ever playing in the background of EVERYTHING I did: homework, driving, cleaning, working out... everything. As time has progressed, and hubby and I have decided to do the Ramsey plan for getting out of debt, I have needed the Dave Ramsey Podcast in order to help me with more motivation and encouragement from the successes. One podcast has led to another and another. Now, I find that when I'm cleaning, researching, driving, working out, i.e. walking and fitness training, I cannot listen to music. My mind works better and stays focused with, you guessed it, talk radio. I have about 10 podcasts in my iTunes radio, 6-7 that I listen to regularly. I have to say that I binge-cast on the Half Size Me show. The successes and uplifting messages and the intro music give me that little push that we all need. It is my "Eye ...

Today has been great as far as meals and preparation. I was ahead of schedule most of the morning, so I was able to get ahead on tracking, prepping for the babies, and looking up some home workout videos that I am considering. So, I spent a significant amount of time looking over the Beach Body website. I knew that they had a few dance programs others, but I was really excited to look into the dance ones. I am super excited about Country Heat and Cize. I would also like to try the 21 Day Fix. If anyone owns these videos, I would be ever so grateful if I could borrow one before I commit to the purchase. I don't know about Country Heat, but I am pretty sure that hubby would like to do Cize with me. I am prayerful for that. He is not as intense with his desires to change, but he is super supportive of me and is not complaining at all about the alterations I am making to our family meals. He also appreciates the fact that we are not eating out as much, if at all. In addition to o...

Every week, the weekend comes and it tries to psych me out with its sweet temptations. Long days, late nights, thoughts of how much easier it would be to grab something from the drive through or order a pizza... It all begins to add up, unless you're pushing the thoughts away and focusing on what you can control. If I want to workout, I need to start my day earlier than most people would like to on Saturday. I have to get up to feed babies who don't understand the concept of the weekend anyway, so I might as well do something to help me toward my goal while I'm at it! If I know that I'm waking up early to get some reading in before church, then I probably should not stay up until 10pm watching movies. It seems it would make more sense to turn off the tv at a reasonable time, get ready for bed and read a little in bed before going to sleep so that I'm refreshed and not groggy Sunday morning. Yes, you know what, it is easier to grab from a drive through or pick up a...

Last week I went to California Pizza Kitchen with a friend of mine, I shared about my choices there in a previous post if you would like to see what I ended up ordering. Beyond that, however, I wanted to share with you the mild anxiety that I faced in making those decisions. I've started the Time Management Course and was listening to Heather Robertson promote it when she was preparing its release last September. It dawned on me, as she shared her experience in prioritizing her own goals over others (not in selfishness, but in an effort to take care of herself), that I often feel the need to apologize for taking care of myself . Not only in managing my time, but also in my experience at CPK. Let me explain... I gave myself permission to take my time in looking at the menu. When I found a suitable meal that was going to limit my carb intake, I began to order. However, the lunch specials of the 7" pizzas were pre-made and I was not able to order it on glutton free crust. I a...

I am preparing to take the Time Management course on the Half Size Me Community website and have been listening to Heather Robertson's podcasts since I began this journey. She mentioned in a previous episode that time management is one of the top 5 reasons (excuses) that people have not to get their journey started. She shares about goal setting and keeping your time and energy focused on achieving your goals. One thing that really hangs us up in time management is the inability to tell people, "No." I have always struggled with this concept, not wanting to seem selfish or always feeling the need to explain myself if I did manage to say no. Whether it is to myself or others, it is a matter of self control that I know I need to have over my time. And, let's face it, self control is always a challenge. On the heels of my successful lunch the other day in saying, "No," to the side dish with my sandwich, I realized that this is a very empowering journey t...

This is random, but today I had a tuna sandwich for lunch. Not that anyone cares about what I had for lunch, really, but there it is. The weird thing, though, is that I have always thought there had to be a side dish with sandwiches, I have even eaten chips I do not enjoy because there weren't any veggies or fruits around for me to eat alongside my delicious sandwich. (Chips aren't my weakness, I do enjoy soda, but those 2 items are usually the easiest for me to give up when I am deciding to set certain treats aside). Do you know what though? I am not stuffed, I am not still hungry, and I am totally satisfied with just having had that tuna sandwich for lunch. I have some sandwiches prepped for myself and hubby for quick grabs at lunch, and when I came home from working out and running errands today, I grabbed that tuna sandwich and enjoyed my grub. It did not have to be a 3 course meal, there did not need to be something sweat that followed it, a simple sandwich was enough ...

This morning felt like everything was trying to work against me... We woke up late after a rough morning, threw a decent breakfast together for the toddler, thankfully I had half my smoothie left from yesterday, so I was able to get my coffee ready and load up the car. It was really tempting, though, to consider just staying home and using this morning to nap and play games on my phone. Instead, though, I was out with my girls in the mall walking and doing my workout by 7:35! Boom :) This morning was a perfect opportunity to remind me of my why's. I almost used my littles as an excuse not to go workout this morning, instead I was reminded that they are 2 of my reasons TO go workout. They are the little girls who deserve a mommy who sets an healthy lifestyle example for them. They should have a mommy who displays a positive self image so they never question their beauty. When we came home, the toddler napped and the littler one and I did some mommy and baby yoga. I think that is...

Everyone hates Monday. That horrible fiend that steals away the joy of the weekend. Monday introduces a new week of work and stress and sometimes people who are tough to handle. Monday, however, is my best day! I am refreshed after a day of fellowship and encouragement with church family and rest with my honey. I feel ready to tackle a new week with new challenges. Waking up early, I get ready, make breakfast for my family, and am loading the cars with hubby as he heads off to work and I with the littles head off to the mall for our 3 to 4 mile walk. Tuesday is a mildly slowed, it takes an extra snooze to get out of bed, but as soon as we are, I am ready to go. Wednesday can be a little tougher, but then I remember: hubby is off tomorrow! So, that is something to look forward to. Thursday, I wake up and have the opportunity to go on my walk by myself while daddy takes the day with the girls to give me a small mommy break. After my workout, I get to go to Starbucks or somewhere to ref...

I am blessed with an incredible variety in our church family who have many talents, skills, and careers whom we can turn to in times of need. A wonderful woman at church is a nutritionist and is offering her assistance in my weight loss journey! We met together yesterday to discuss where I am coming from, what my goals are, and what our days look like so that she could put together a meal plan for me that I feel is going to be realistic to maintain through this journey so that I will continue to eat the same way when I reach the maintenance stage of my journey. It was a good reality check for me to use the correct terms when we discussed our struggle. Yes, our, she has wrestled with food addiction too! What?! A nutritionist who struggles? Yeah, no one finds it easy to trek through nature's valley (haha, see what I did there?) ;) We discussed the fact that food is our "drug of choice." Using those terms and understanding the celebratory milestones of one's anniversar...

Today on my walk, I listened to some new podcasts and I am excited about the positive encouragement I have found. The focus today was tracking and goals. I was considering the concept of my goals and exactly what I want to focus on working toward. Here are some of the things that I know that I want. I want to walk into a store and not have to ask the employees if they have plus sizes.  I want to pose for a photo without trying to hide behind someone.  I want to not fidget with my clothes and hair trying to alter my appearance as I walk passed windows and mirrors.  I want my daughters to see strong confidence and be encouraged by positive body image.  I want to play with my daughters at the park and be able to keep up with them.  I want my back not to ache from poor posture because it's too much of a strain to sit upright.  I want to take control and not be tempted by food. These are some of my desires for the future. They don't necessa...

I know what you're thinking, "This is a New Year's Resolution that will come to nothing." That has been my pattern and my past. I have spent the last 10 years telling myself that my healthy lifestyle can start later. That I would lose weight later. That by the time I got married, had children, etc. that, of course, I would be in a healthy place. Here I am, though, 2 years and 2 months into marriage with 2 children, and I am in the heaviest place I have ever been. There is no switch that flips and no magical spell that is cast upon you once you gain the things you were chasing, that changes your mindset about food, weight and a healthy lifestyle. That is what this is about. Today 1/9/2017 at 248lbs I have struggled with my body image and my weight ever since I can remember. I have yo-yoed in my weight in very unhealthy extremes and hoped that a doctor would scare me into changing my poor habits. The closest I ever approached in that regard was, "You are at r...