Firstly...I have been trying to post pics but they are posting sideways so I had a pic to share but decided not too because of this. Any tips?
OK so I did my first workout last night and it felt great. I also was weighed and measured and my body fat index was taken. Big sigh. Here goes...
Weight - over 200 pounds. Suffice to say that I'm heavier than I've ever been, even heavier than I was at the peak of both my pregnancies.
Height - 5'9"
Measurements: bust 46 inches, waist 40 inches, hips 46 inches.
So there we are. Yep, I'm overweight. And I won't even mention my body fax index...gah!
Onward and upward....or in this case downward :)
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
The journey begins
My weigh loss journey that is. I have a goal and that is to be fit by fourty. I have never been this heavy except for when I was 8 month pregnant. I want to be in the same shape I was 50 pounds ago, three years ago, 1 year after having my second child. I was doing yoga and pilates at least 3 times a week and walking 20 minutes a day. After going back to a sedintary job and also trying to manage the lives of two little ones and their schedules, I've have had little time for myself. The time I do have I spend on the couch or cleaning my house. We do get out and enjoy activities together but it's not enough for my 30 something metabolism. So tomorrow begins my journey as I've joined a program that gets me to the gym three times a week. It feels really good. And you know that book I'm reading? It has been a great motivator for me. And it advised to make your goals public so that you stick to them and so that you are accountable for them. So here I am world wide web, make me accountable! In 6 months I hope to drop at least 20 pounds and by next January be close to my goal. Go me! I'll post a "before" pic tomorrow as I'll be weighed, measured and ready to share more of the details.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Just a little update
Hello – I’m back, crazier than ever lol
Happy Holidays! I realize it’s been a while since I posted – we had three birthdays in November to celebrate and then the Christmas madness began. It’s Dec 20 and I finally feel inspired to write. I also have a few posts that I wrote throughout the month that I will be posting this week as well.
I just started reading this great book called The Power of Less and I’m excited about it. I’m inspired – which usually means that this book will probably inspire change in me. I really need to work on my Fit by Forty goal. My goal to streamline my possessions – imagine choosing only 200 items in your house to keep – what would you keep? And most importantly – I want to save money so that I can go back to school. More on these another time - and if you want to check out the author’s website its ZenHabits.net
And what are your thoughts on this: You see, over the summer a nice lady watched my girls, my three and seven year old girls. She has three kids herself and I realized this summer – has a very laid back way of supervising them. I’ve known her for three years, she is very active in the school my oldest attended and as I said before she is very nice. She mentioned to me before that she doesn’t “hover” over her kids when they play. She likes them to have their own experiences. And it got me thinking about how I hover around my kids while they play. I listen nearby, I find things to do in the room next to where they are playing, I watch cartoons with them, I don’t let them out of my sight when they are playing outside, these types of things. I mean, that’s what mom’s do right? But it got me wondering if we can over-supervise our kids. When I was a kid – probably from the age of 6 or 7, I was allowed to go outside and play on my own, unsupervised. Granted, we lived in a rural area where there was little or no traffic and lots of fields and tree’s. I would go out for hours and tromp through fields, abandoned barns, apple orchards and around the lake. Having that freedom was so amazing. I think I learned to be very independent and self-reliant by being unsupervised. I learned some life lessons – like never to tromp through ponds without rain boots if you wanted to stay comfortable, to never use the front brakes on my bike to slow down quickly and that once your toes were cold it was time to go home. Thankfully I was never mauled by a bear (something I would worry about now but never thought about back then), run over by a car travelling down our dirt road or hurt myself climbing fences and trees. But these days, especially in the city, you can just never be too careful. I remember picking my kids up at school one day. It was freezing cold and the kids were happily playing on the ice that had formed in the school yard. The lady that usually picked up the girls was chatting happily with her other mom friends while the kids slipped and slid on the ice – unsupervised. I hung back from the mom’s because I wanted to make sure the kids weren’t abducted by some passing stranger or hurt while sliding on the ice. I found it appalling that this nice lady who was to be supervising my kids wasn’t even looking at them! In fact, her view of them and her own children was obstructed by a line of trees. Gah! And herein is what I’m referring too. These questions run through my head. Am I being too paranoid? Am I not giving my children enough space? Will they come to expect someone to be there for them all the time and never learn to act or think independently? I’ve been there for them everyday of their lives, and I will continue to be there if they need me, but do I need to constantly supervise them even when they are in the house? Do I need to get my own life back so I can stop obsession about them (ahem, yes)? I’d love to live in a rural area again so I can let my girls have their own experiences and be back at “home base” in case they need me. I don’t think I’ll ever be the type of mom who can leave my kids unsupervised in a school yard. I feel more content watching them than not watching them. But I will pause and reflect on how much simpler my life would be if I just let it go and didn’t worry so much.
Happy Holidays! I realize it’s been a while since I posted – we had three birthdays in November to celebrate and then the Christmas madness began. It’s Dec 20 and I finally feel inspired to write. I also have a few posts that I wrote throughout the month that I will be posting this week as well.
I just started reading this great book called The Power of Less and I’m excited about it. I’m inspired – which usually means that this book will probably inspire change in me. I really need to work on my Fit by Forty goal. My goal to streamline my possessions – imagine choosing only 200 items in your house to keep – what would you keep? And most importantly – I want to save money so that I can go back to school. More on these another time - and if you want to check out the author’s website its ZenHabits.net
And what are your thoughts on this: You see, over the summer a nice lady watched my girls, my three and seven year old girls. She has three kids herself and I realized this summer – has a very laid back way of supervising them. I’ve known her for three years, she is very active in the school my oldest attended and as I said before she is very nice. She mentioned to me before that she doesn’t “hover” over her kids when they play. She likes them to have their own experiences. And it got me thinking about how I hover around my kids while they play. I listen nearby, I find things to do in the room next to where they are playing, I watch cartoons with them, I don’t let them out of my sight when they are playing outside, these types of things. I mean, that’s what mom’s do right? But it got me wondering if we can over-supervise our kids. When I was a kid – probably from the age of 6 or 7, I was allowed to go outside and play on my own, unsupervised. Granted, we lived in a rural area where there was little or no traffic and lots of fields and tree’s. I would go out for hours and tromp through fields, abandoned barns, apple orchards and around the lake. Having that freedom was so amazing. I think I learned to be very independent and self-reliant by being unsupervised. I learned some life lessons – like never to tromp through ponds without rain boots if you wanted to stay comfortable, to never use the front brakes on my bike to slow down quickly and that once your toes were cold it was time to go home. Thankfully I was never mauled by a bear (something I would worry about now but never thought about back then), run over by a car travelling down our dirt road or hurt myself climbing fences and trees. But these days, especially in the city, you can just never be too careful. I remember picking my kids up at school one day. It was freezing cold and the kids were happily playing on the ice that had formed in the school yard. The lady that usually picked up the girls was chatting happily with her other mom friends while the kids slipped and slid on the ice – unsupervised. I hung back from the mom’s because I wanted to make sure the kids weren’t abducted by some passing stranger or hurt while sliding on the ice. I found it appalling that this nice lady who was to be supervising my kids wasn’t even looking at them! In fact, her view of them and her own children was obstructed by a line of trees. Gah! And herein is what I’m referring too. These questions run through my head. Am I being too paranoid? Am I not giving my children enough space? Will they come to expect someone to be there for them all the time and never learn to act or think independently? I’ve been there for them everyday of their lives, and I will continue to be there if they need me, but do I need to constantly supervise them even when they are in the house? Do I need to get my own life back so I can stop obsession about them (ahem, yes)? I’d love to live in a rural area again so I can let my girls have their own experiences and be back at “home base” in case they need me. I don’t think I’ll ever be the type of mom who can leave my kids unsupervised in a school yard. I feel more content watching them than not watching them. But I will pause and reflect on how much simpler my life would be if I just let it go and didn’t worry so much.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Chicken chili soup
It's fall in Ontario and it's beautiful.
The summer heat has eased off and you can slow down on the whole shaving your legs and getting a pedicure thing.
And it's also soup season. I made this wonderful, hearty chili chicken soup today that I gleaned from a recipe and made my own:
6 cups low sodium chicken stock
1.5 cups (corn, kale, spinach, potatoes - your choice)
3 fifteen oz cans white beans
2 medium chopped onions
2 tbs olive oil
1.5 lbs chicken
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp ground cumin
1.5 tsp dried oregano1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
.5 tsp pepper
Place chicken broth, onions and beans in a large pot and bring to a boil
Reduce and simmer. Meanwhile, chop chicken into bite size pieces.
Heat large pan over medium-high heat and add olive oil.
Add onions and saute until tender.
Stir in chicken and saute until cooked through.
Add 1.5 cups (corn, kale, spinach, potatoes or a mixture of ), plus garlic, cumin, oregano, red pepper flakes
- stir until combined
Add mixture to stock pot, return to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.
Add more water or stock, if needed.
The recipe calls for more salt and pepper so season to taste. Enjoy!
The summer heat has eased off and you can slow down on the whole shaving your legs and getting a pedicure thing.
And it's also soup season. I made this wonderful, hearty chili chicken soup today that I gleaned from a recipe and made my own:
6 cups low sodium chicken stock
1.5 cups (corn, kale, spinach, potatoes - your choice)
3 fifteen oz cans white beans
2 medium chopped onions
2 tbs olive oil
1.5 lbs chicken
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp ground cumin
1.5 tsp dried oregano1 tsp salt
.5 tsp pepper
Place chicken broth, onions and beans in a large pot and bring to a boil
Reduce and simmer. Meanwhile, chop chicken into bite size pieces.
Heat large pan over medium-high heat and add olive oil.
Add onions and saute until tender.
Stir in chicken and saute until cooked through.
Add 1.5 cups (corn, kale, spinach, potatoes or a mixture of ), plus garlic, cumin, oregano, red pepper flakes
- stir until combined
Add mixture to stock pot, return to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.
Add more water or stock, if needed.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
To dream a dream
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Super Mom
My husband has been sick for two weeks. He has been told to stay off his feet and needs a lot of rest. Enter Super Mom. My role in the home on a regular basis - is "doing my best mom". I get home from work and make sure everyone is fed, homework is done, lunches are emptied and re-made, counters are wiped, dishes are done, garbage is put where garbage goes, after work/school commitments are met, groceries are got and so on. But when my other half is sick, I have no breaks. I have all my responsibilities plus my spouses such as taking out the recycling, giving baths, doing laundry and providing all the necessities of bedtime. And instead of feeling resentful or tired - well ok, I'm a little bit of both - but I carry through. Why? Because I'm Super Mom and I know what it's like to power through fatigue and a need for a break. I get up in the morning at 6:30 am so that I may shower and get dressed prior to getting up my children and ensuring that they are fed, brushed and dressed and if I have time I may have a bite to eat before I head out the door. I take the kiddo's to school, drive to work, park, walk 7 mins to the coffee shop, grab myself a coffee and walk another 5 minutes to my work. Once I'm there I finally sit down, open my coffee and relax. Yes, I'm at work and I'm relaxing - or sitting if you will. I work an 8 hour day and it starts all over again and for the last two weeks it includes all the little things my husband usually does...make dinner, give baths, put the girls to bed, make sure teeth are brushed, take out the recycling and so on. But I won't wait for praise or thanks, because, like all of us, I'm Super Mom. Impervious to fatigue and temper tantrums, carrying my cape humbly I carry on.
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| The Tea Chick.com image |
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
I do love a good quote/proverb/tidbit of wisdom.
I find quotes very inspiring. When I need to motivate myself I often look up quotes and post them where I'll see them to remind myself of my goals. For example, I came across this quote today while blog surfing and it really spoke to me about something I’ve been thinking about for a while now. The quote is “The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything they have." The happiest people don’t have the best of everything. Really? I’m sure at least some of the happiest people have the best of everything. But I think the point of this statement is that you don’t need to have the best of everything to be happy just make the most of what you have and happiness with follow. The happiest I’ve been in life was when I was making the most of what I had - which was time. When I was on mat leave I was exercising every day had all the time in the world to do whatever I wanted. I wasn’t confined by a 9-5 job or a five day work week. I went to the park, I went for walks, I visited with friends, I talked to my friends online…it was like an extended vacation...sort of. But quitting my job is not an option so I have to make the most of what I have. The difficult part is finding the time for myself. How can I make the best of what I have when I don’t have time to do it? The weekends are too short and the evenings go by so quickly. Being a mom that works outside the home is tough because my work never ends. Just when I sit down and think I can relax for a few minutes there is something else that needs to get done. What I’m going to take from that inspiring quote is that I’m just going to make the most of what I have - my kids, a supportive family, my health, my job, my husband and be happy. Just be happy.
I’ve also been thinking a lot about the quote “money doesn’t buy happiness”. For many years I thought that it did. I thought this because I had a single mom who didn’t have money and I always thought that money would make things easier for us. But the happiest I was during those times was when I was doing things that didn’t cost any money at all, so this quote has always stuck with me. Money does not buy happiness. Money buys stuff. Stuff you use for a short time and eventually throw away or give away. Making the most of what we have and making good memories is what is going to get a family through a tough time and any hardship.
Another quote that comes to mind regarding money is “waste not, want not.” I love this quote. In four simple words it states that you shouldn’t waste (food) and you will never want for (food). At least that’s the context I always think of as it always comes to mind when I’m cooking or throwing food into the compost bin. I will frequently take the kids leftover’s and put them into a container to take for my own lunch the next day and I’ll recite this quote in my head. Of course this quote could have other meanings. Waste not your time and you will want not for success! Don’t waste your money and you will have saved it for another time when it’s really needed! Indeed a great quote and a wonderful reminder that it’s not wise to be wasteful.
I think the reason I’m thinking a lot lately about money and happiness is because I’ve realized that for years I took money for granted. I bought and bought and bought anything my heart desired and I ended up with a lot of waste. This has changed recently and I’m being more mindful of what is coming into my house. Moving ten years worth of crap will do this to you. I’m buying what I need only and I’m mulling over my purchases much more thoroughly. Not because I’m worried about spending, it’s more that I don’t want to clutter up my house with stuff I don’t need. I have given away a lot of things in this last month in an effort to purge out all unnecessary items out of my home and my life. The next thing on my list is a room half full of boxes – of toys, games, cd’s, and VHS video tapes. What a big waste of money to buy toys on a Saturday at the toy store instead of going out for a walk. I'm not doing that anymore, money will be saved and although we will always have waste, at least I'm being mindful of how much I produce. You can really live without so many things if you really think about it and that's how I'm starting my new journey.
I find quotes very inspiring. When I need to motivate myself I often look up quotes and post them where I'll see them to remind myself of my goals. For example, I came across this quote today while blog surfing and it really spoke to me about something I’ve been thinking about for a while now. The quote is “The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything they have." The happiest people don’t have the best of everything. Really? I’m sure at least some of the happiest people have the best of everything. But I think the point of this statement is that you don’t need to have the best of everything to be happy just make the most of what you have and happiness with follow. The happiest I’ve been in life was when I was making the most of what I had - which was time. When I was on mat leave I was exercising every day had all the time in the world to do whatever I wanted. I wasn’t confined by a 9-5 job or a five day work week. I went to the park, I went for walks, I visited with friends, I talked to my friends online…it was like an extended vacation...sort of. But quitting my job is not an option so I have to make the most of what I have. The difficult part is finding the time for myself. How can I make the best of what I have when I don’t have time to do it? The weekends are too short and the evenings go by so quickly. Being a mom that works outside the home is tough because my work never ends. Just when I sit down and think I can relax for a few minutes there is something else that needs to get done. What I’m going to take from that inspiring quote is that I’m just going to make the most of what I have - my kids, a supportive family, my health, my job, my husband and be happy. Just be happy.
I’ve also been thinking a lot about the quote “money doesn’t buy happiness”. For many years I thought that it did. I thought this because I had a single mom who didn’t have money and I always thought that money would make things easier for us. But the happiest I was during those times was when I was doing things that didn’t cost any money at all, so this quote has always stuck with me. Money does not buy happiness. Money buys stuff. Stuff you use for a short time and eventually throw away or give away. Making the most of what we have and making good memories is what is going to get a family through a tough time and any hardship.
Another quote that comes to mind regarding money is “waste not, want not.” I love this quote. In four simple words it states that you shouldn’t waste (food) and you will never want for (food). At least that’s the context I always think of as it always comes to mind when I’m cooking or throwing food into the compost bin. I will frequently take the kids leftover’s and put them into a container to take for my own lunch the next day and I’ll recite this quote in my head. Of course this quote could have other meanings. Waste not your time and you will want not for success! Don’t waste your money and you will have saved it for another time when it’s really needed! Indeed a great quote and a wonderful reminder that it’s not wise to be wasteful.
I think the reason I’m thinking a lot lately about money and happiness is because I’ve realized that for years I took money for granted. I bought and bought and bought anything my heart desired and I ended up with a lot of waste. This has changed recently and I’m being more mindful of what is coming into my house. Moving ten years worth of crap will do this to you. I’m buying what I need only and I’m mulling over my purchases much more thoroughly. Not because I’m worried about spending, it’s more that I don’t want to clutter up my house with stuff I don’t need. I have given away a lot of things in this last month in an effort to purge out all unnecessary items out of my home and my life. The next thing on my list is a room half full of boxes – of toys, games, cd’s, and VHS video tapes. What a big waste of money to buy toys on a Saturday at the toy store instead of going out for a walk. I'm not doing that anymore, money will be saved and although we will always have waste, at least I'm being mindful of how much I produce. You can really live without so many things if you really think about it and that's how I'm starting my new journey.
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