Sincerely, Serious Slacker

Dear Readers, Stalkers, Facebookers and Friends,

   I have a giant confession and it's only September 29. There are no excuses, but there are reasons. The reasons are not great, but they are time-consuming, life-sucking reasons that have taken over my world. *deep breath* Here goes:

  I have fallen off the wagon.

  Yes... I managed to fall off a wagon that wasn't going super fast to begin with. Yep, I'm like that girl that trips over her own feet-- a clumsy turtle. I know you're interested in hearing my reasons for all this, though...

1. Work. I have been working late hours and it sucks every shred of energy. This nonsense is pretty new, so that's why it's such a drain. I know so many people that have children, full time jobs, etc., etc. So my job and that time commitment isn't really an excuse. However because it's a new adjustment and it's taking me time to learn best practices to be the most efficient person I can, it will take some time.

2. We're moving. Yes, people, we bought a house. A house that needs painting and yard work and extermination of the creepy, crawly current residents, appointments with water, cable and utilities people. Additionally, we have to PACK our lives that I feel like we just settled. If you've never moved before, I don't recommend. It ain't fun. In all my spare time from work, I'm prepping for The Move. (Yes, it's capitalized because it's THAT big of an event in my world)

As any good plan requires-- it needs constant attention and updating as necessary. I'm so transitional right now, I'm like a vagrant. All my tools are in marked boxes waiting to be taken to the new house. I cannot wait to be settled. CAN. NOT. WAIT.

WHY? Because I'll have a legit area in the new house to dedicate to working out. I am going to refrain from calling it a "gym" because I don't own weights. I don't have a bench. I don't have any machines. I have a yoga mat, an exercise ball, a TV and some Beachbody DVDs. What can I say? I like simplicity.

I'm also pretty pumped about exploring my new neighborhood by way of running. There are some trails nearby that I'm excited to jog on. My husband's leg has finally healed enough for him to run, so he may be my running partner for awhile.

LASTLY-- I promised you an update on the Pants Project a few days ago. These pants still fit, but they are getting baggy and uncomfortable. I can still wear them, regrettably, but I'm working towards not even being able to walk 2 steps without them falling down.

As you can see, they are getting baggier in the thighs (HOORAY!). I can't wait to never wear them ever again.

So, here's to a new house, my new job at work and a new look at this Fit and Free Before 30 Project. I can use all the encouragement and motivation you're willing to throw at me!

Sincerely,
Serious Slacker

Priorities in Consistency

A week is far too long, friends. I missed you! I last blogged on September 11 and since then, my life has been NON STOP.

Work, at the job that I absolutely love (and yes, I really mean that), has been keeping me busy all the time. I bring home work many nights and I still feel like I'm drowning in unread and unanswered emails. Each day brings fires to put out on almost a constant basis. That PILE that I wrote about in another entry is long gone but only to be replaced with more piles, consistent interruption.

Along with a few other issues, I've been busy and stressed to say the least. I haven't been consistent with blogging, it's true. But here's the deal--- when I have a free window of time, should I spend 30 minutes blogging or workin' on my fitness?

My friend and guest blogger from my post on Biblical Fitness, Bryan, commented that this journey isn't about how much I advertise it. It's a lifestyle change so it's going to have it's ups and downs. It's encouraging to hear that because I promised originally that I would blog daily. I guess I thought I was in the movie Julie and Julia or something. The fact is, that's not realistic. I get busy. I work a lot. That's my life. In the last week, I've been busy. BUT. I HAVE been consistent with workouts! 

I am proud to report a few really amazing things:

1. I have run so may miles, you guys. I have been challenged by my FitBit to keep walking, move more and chug water. But the running is therapeutic. I clear my head and I get some great ideas. It's my "me time" and I'm getting to the point that I kind of crave it.

2. Since August 1, the beginning of my challenge, I have lost 6 pounds. This may not be a big deal to some, who can lose weight by simply taking the stairs or something. This morning, I stepped on the scale and saw a number that I haven't seen since before my wedding. It's nowhere close to where I want to be, but this is EXCITING and MOTIVATING! I also know that the number on the scale is really nothing-- that's not what I should focus on. But you guys, this is uplifting. I'm pretty excited to report back on my Pants Project challenge on September 26!!

Thanks, Special K, for this great ad campaign!

Consistency is paying off in my world. While I use blogging for encouragement and accountability, it's not my first priority.

I will try to be more consistent with blogging, but no promises... I'm too busy over here being awesome. :)

Late Night Happy Dance, Early Morning

This will be a quick entry today as I'm rushing around this morning to get on the road for a meeting out of town. BUT. I have to share a HAPPY and a WIN with you!

up before the sun!

Happy-- Last night, I was packing my little suitcase for the aforementioned trip and I was standing in my closet doing the whole, "I have nothing to wear," bit. I know part of the time there will be very casual, so I looked to my pile of jeans and begrudgingly began to sift through them trying to find a pair that fits ( <--this is the worst, by the way). I came across a pair that I didn't really recognize so I thought I'd try 'em on. It didn't get off to a great start. The first leg hit mid thigh and I felt the familiar battle of the thighs vs. pants beginning. Magically, THEY HURDLED MY THIGHS. I felt like America Ferrara in Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants. The pants aren't what I'd wear in public just yet, but they FIT, BUTTON and ZIP. *cyber high fives, y'all!*

WIN-- It was cold last night and it was colder this morning. It's also really dark at 5:30am. But, because I can't sleep in or take my time this morning, I got up to run. In the cold, darkness. It was chilly, but I ran FASTER and HARDER and LONGER than I usually do. It was so dark, that I almost stepped on a live bunny, friends. That thing did not see me coming and I thought it was just a shadow of a bush. It almost got ugly. BUT-- we avoided a collision and I just kept joggin' along. Seriously, I feel SO GREAT already today!

The Back Burner Pile

If you know me well, you know that I'm a fairly organized person. As I grow up (age? I don't really know when you stop growing up and start to age) I have discovered that I'm most organized at work and I tend slack a bit at home.

This week, I've been swamped at work. We are working on getting everything prepped for an event tomorrow. Simultaneously, I'm working on a massive project for a meeting on Monday. I've worked late nights and through lunches to make this happen. Don't misunderstand-- I love this job. I'm challenged almost every day and I'm learning a lot about management and task delegation. Sometimes though-- it gets a little crazy!

I have a large office; the space is used mainly for file storage. Since I moved into the office in May, I have started adding personal touches to make it my own space. Slowly, it's getting to be a great office. My office isn't spotless- far from it (especially at the moment) but I keep it tidy and I know what's what and where everything is.

Except for this PILE. There is a perpetual pile on my desk that's become my TO DO pile. Some people have a to do list, but not me... I have a pile. Go big or go home, right? These are typically things that are on the back burner that I promise myself I'll get to in my free time. The problem is, I don't typically have a lot of FREE TIME.

Drinkin' my Shakeology in my office!

This evening when I left the office, I was scurrying around trying to get everything together for the event tomorrow. For the last week, my desk has been cluttered with papers, etc. for this event. Tonight as I loaded it all in my car, I noticed how nice my office looked.

And then I spotted THE PILE. This thing is the bane of my work life existence. But then it struck me that the PILE is a great metaphor for things we all put on the back burner. We put them off to the side until it becomes such a problem that we dread tackling it.

I know this is how I feel about my weight loss. My health was not a priority for a long time. While I don't have any major health issues, I did take my good health for granted. It got to the point that I'd get winded climbing a few flights of stairs or tired just from walking around a mall. It crept up so slowly that I didn't realize how much I'd neglected myself.

This can be said for many people. We get busy with work, school, family, kids, church, etc., that we forget about ourselves. I'm here to tell you, you will be better at EVERYTHING YOU DO if you feel healthy. Guaranteed.

The pile on my desk will be sorted out next week, when I return after this event. I'm ready to get some organization in my office as well as the rest of my life. This most definitely includes my health! Who else is ready to make it a priority?!?!

Persistence is Paying Off

It's 9:30 and the end of a very busy day. Work today was spent scurrying around getting ready for an event later this week. It was after 4 pm before I even LOOKED at the clock. Realizing we had no food in our house except for some random cans of beans and cereal, I threw together a meal plan and a grocery list and went home.

My husband and I generally grocery shop together. We realize this probably won't always be the case, but for now we enjoy it and it turns into quality time for us. Usually in this situation, I would pick up the fella and we'd head to the store. However tonight, we took time to meal plan for the WHOLE MONTH together and budgeted around our pay days. We focused on making meals stretch for a few leftover dinners. We plotted our our journey tonight to include a discount market AND Wal-Mart. We even remembered to grab recyclable bags on our way out the door. In an effort to save money, we're definitely on the right track.

Our travels tonight served as a great opportunity to chat about our debt payoff and some strategies that we've started using in our lives that we could talk about in this blog. There WILL be some cool little debt tips comin' round the bend, friends! Get excited!

The thing I'm REALLY getting excited about is a new challenge group my sisters and I are hosting for the month of October! Our theme is HOCUS POCUS! Three Sanderson sisters in the movie, three Peterson sisters in real life-- get it?!

The Sanderson sisters sucked the life out of children-- WE will be sucking the life out of terrible eating habits, negative self-talk and lack of exercise!

We're equating the MAGIC POTION to Shakeology. I know-- it's not REALLY magic. But friends, this stuff WORKS and it has made me healthier and stronger. It WILL make a huge positive difference in your life.

Lastly, you'll need a SPELL BOOK! Beachbody's "spell books" are the workouts and there are LOTS to choose from! The best thing is this challenge group is 31 days long!

This will get you pumped and prepped for the holiday season and give you a good idea of what Beachbody is all about. You do NOT want to miss this!! Make sure you contact me if you're interested!

Finally-- an update on my Pants Project. I wore those wretched pants today and I had to keep adjusting them to fit. Definitely making progress! Persistence, healthy eating and BEACHBODY are all paying off!

Biblical Fitness

 Hello, Fit and Free Before 30 readers! It's my honor (and your unfortunate circumstance) to have been asked by Laura to write a guest post. I have known Laura for a number of years and have enjoyed reading of her journey here, as have you, I hope! I want to write to you all about a great topic of Laura's choosing - the spiritual and Biblical "why" of fitness. I could write for days on this, but I won't do that to you. I want you to keep coming back and reading Laura's blog!

   I think we can all pretty quickly identify cultural or physical reasons for exercise; lose weight, lower cholesterol, look better, build muscles, meet people, get skinny, and the list goes on. These are not bad reasons, but often we neglect the fact that our souls have desire in fitness, too. We, myself included, often mistake the feeling of satisfaction after a good workout to be one of a physical, even a chemical, reward for our work. Couldn't it also be that our souls, after receiving the care they need, also give us a similar feeling?

   I use the word "soul" with some hesitation, because it has such an odd connotation in the culture of the U.S. It seems to carry a sense of divination and uneducated ways, as though I would like us all to be fearing evil spirits or voodoo priests taking our souls from us. When I speak of the soul, I mean to talk about the inner being who God made us to be. Psalm 139 states that God knows us, and formed us, even before we were born and that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. So often, though, we don't treat ourselves that way.



Photo courtesy of ELCA

   We tend to abuse ourselves, either by undervaluing ourselves or by overworking ourselves (and, unfortunately, both can happen simultaneously). Undervaluing ourselves means that any old food or habits will do, because we don't respect ourselves or our bodies. Would you serve some Little Debbie treat or fast food to someone you honor and respect? Overworking ourselves, on the other hand, is almost applauded in our culture. We congratulate overworking because it achieves things - promotions, weight loss, and adventures. However, it can mean that our expectations are too high and, if we're not careful, we will quickly find that our body is something to be conquered.

   I would suggest, however, that our body is not something to be conquered, but worked with. 1 Corinthians describes our body as a temple, not a battleground. And, although we don't always want to hear it, our bodies are not our own. We weren't put here just to enjoy life, although it can certainly be very enjoyable. Our bodies don't belong to us, but have been paid for, and should be used for the benefit of all. And that part is fun! That means that by being able to play with my kids, help a friend move, inspire someone to make changes in their life, and do all kinds of other things is an act of worship!

   So, whatever your reason for exercising (or not exercising), take a few moments and ponder where your soul is in all of the hustle and bustle of your life. We're all busy, we all have needs, and your soul is no different. Find something that rewards your soul and do it. It can be going for a run without your phone (gasp!), enjoying a cup of coffee, cleaning the house, sitting under a tree, reading a book, or simply taking a few moments at the beginning of a meal to take in the smells of the food. Find it, do it, and take care of yourself!

Read more about Bryan here!

Bryan lives in Mason City, IA with his beautiful wife and children. He's a seminary student, musician, and runner who strives to find God in every detail of life. He blogs at www.psucherunning.wordpress.com where you can read some of his insights, as well as his sermons and random running related stuff. You can also download a free EP of some of his music at http://noisetrade.com/bryanodeen/husbanddaddyson.

The Grass is Always Greener?

Comparison. This word can define the action that so many people do on a regular, daily and sometimes constant basis. Girls (only because that's the perspective I have) seem to be MASTERS at this.

She has a nicer car.
She gets paid more.
Her house is gorgeous!

The grass is always greener on the other side, it seems, and that's a HARD hurdle to jump sometimes. When it comes to physical traits, the grass fertilizing statements morph into self-deprecating phrases that effect your well-being and self-esteem. We, as women, have GOT to move past that.

I'm speaking to myself just as much as anyone reading this. Because of my weight gain in the last few years, I have become self-conscious and a little socially anxious. I'm always on the defensive, looking at others and thinking about how they see me. I tend to be more of a homebody. When I do go out, I am overly concerned about what I'm wearing and how I look. Just ask my husband. He's great at answering my incessant questions and saying the right thing.


For the record, I know this behavior is that of insecure, self-centered and vain girls. The size of my jeans DOES NOT MATTER. I know this. So, this begs the question, WHY DO I ACT THIS WAY?!?

Because I'm human and because I don't feel like the best version of myself.

However, I've decided to own it. My jeans are bigger than I'd like them to be and my hips are constantly knocking things off my desk at work. My arms jiggle like a lunch lady's and my thighs could start a small fire when I run. That's ok. I'm striving to change it because I don't feel like ME with how my body is now, but SKINNY isn't the answer and every woman needs to hear that.

If you're trying to lose weight because you want to look like someone else, you will most likely fail. You're never going to look like anyone else. You will only always look like you. Focus on looking like the best version of yourself. Do it JOYFULLY and not begrudgingly and you'll be more motivated and more successful.

Movin' at the Office

Yesterday was Labor Day and we had a day off work. It was AWESOME. I slept in until my husband woke me up to tell me some friends were coming to town and wanted to get lunch! I hustled up and got a good run in before getting ready to meet our good friends for lunch. 

Well-- you know how it goes... a great time at lunch turns into a trip to a whole afternoon EASILY. We didn't eat the healthiest. But we walked A LOT.An we had an incredible day with people we never see. The thing is, I'm not sorry. I have been working hard and I refuse to torture myself about what I eat just to lose a few pounds. I eat healthy, I exercise more often than most people and I'm healthy as a horse. I plan to stay that way, which is why I worked extra hard today! 

Part of my "September plan" is to move MORE. Two sessions of exercise, six days a week. WHHHATTTT. Yes. I'll be movin' A LOT. But this goal ain't gonna reach itself.  

It's no secret that the hubs and I each got a FitBit Flex for our August birthdays. This gizmo has been an awesome motivator for me and I love nothing more than to see all green lines on the dashboard. My daily step goal is 10,000 steps and I only reached that goal four times in the month of August. So, that's becoming part of the September plan-- making my dashboard turn green EVERY DAY. Think I can do that? 

Yeah, me too. 

A few people have also asked me how I get all the steps in when I work a desk job where I sit for most of the day. There are lots of ways, but mainly, it's because I want it. Here are a few tricks.

Take the long way. Check the mail? Refilling your water bottle? Running to the restroom? No matter what you're doing, take a longer route to get there. Obviously, don't take a half hour to check to see if your fax went through-- I don't want you to get in trouble with your boss! But if it's more steps, it's worth a few extra seconds.

Drink more water. This one's easy. When you drink more water, you have to do two things: 1. Go to the restroom frequently and 2. Refill your water bottle more. You know what that means? MORE MOVEMENT. No brainer, y'all.

Active breaks. Don't run to your nearest fast food joint for lunch. Instead, pack a healthy lunch (this may take a few extra minutes in the morning, so plan accordingly) and WALK on your lunch break. Either walk for all your break and eat at your desk, or split it and eat your healthy lunch and then take a quite 15 minute walk. I guarantee, you'll feel better. Did you know that walking increases creative brain activity which mean you will be more engaged and productive during your afternoon. I'm no scientist, but I'm willing to bet that fast food binge-eating does not do that. *note* If you do this, take walking shoes with you to keep in your office of in your car.

Walk to work. Obviously, this isn't possible for everyone, but I love it. I live 2.4 miles from my office and it takes 47 minutes for me to walk that. I put in my ear buds and jam all the way to work. Shakespeare wrote, "all the world's a stage..." Well, in this case, all the world's a catwalk. Music seriously makes me walk more briskly. Don't laugh if you ever see me strutting around on my way to or back from the office. If you do this, DEFINITELY take shoes. I also recommend taking a change of shirt (or your work stuff to change into) and make up, in case it melts off, if you're a sweat fountain like me.

Stand more.  If you can stand, you're burning more calories than when you sit. On the phone all day? Pace while you talk. Collating papers for a project? Stand up, foo'. Get movin'!
Do an extra workout. Weirdly, the more I move, the more I WANT to move. On my walk home tonight, all I could think about was rockin' out to my T-25 workout. Walking is GREAT, but it's not strength training, etc. Beachbody provides some amazing options for workouts and ALL of them have modifiers to make your transition to the program as seamless as possible. You can visit my page to check it out... there's a program comparison option on there to see what the best option for you is! 

Move it, friends. You won't be sorry!

September's Plan

SO. The last couple of days, I've been MIA. That's been partly because I have been BUSY. Work this week was outrageously productive, but I worked a few late nights and by the time I got home, I was too tired/lazy to type out any coherent thoughts. 

Today, I've got some time. Sundays are spent at worship and with family, but also it's a day of rest. I'm currently in my bathrobe watching an 80's movie marathon on VH1. It's 5:30 pm. I'm that cool. 

Tomorrow begins month 2 of my journey. If I had to give myself a grade on my first month, I'd give myself a C. I need to improve on CONSISTENCY... with working out and what I eat. But honestly, I can already feel some changes and I couldn't be happier. 

- When I wake up and run first thing, I have this amazing jolt of energy to my day. If I don't get up, I feel the effects on my energy and mood all day. I can also feel and see the muscles in my legs changing. 
- Shaun T. is a cruel Mistress (Mister?). He's a Beachbody trainer that leads the T25 workout. He's pushed me hard this month (although again, consistency is not my strong point) and I've been feeling some amazing differences in just about every aspect of my health. This includes my sleep, y'all. 
- My FitBit helps me track sleep, water and food intake, and daily active minutes. It's a constant reminder of my activity each day and it's helped to keep me accountable. 

Tomorrow is September first and I'm about to amp it up. The thing is, I'm a Beachbody coach as well. This means that I can talk to you about all those fun infomercials you've seen on TV... T25, 21 Day Fix, Insanity, P90X, and PiYo just to name a few. There are TONS. I can also talk to you about Shakeology. I've blogged about it about before, but this is one of the BEST purchases/decisions I've made in recent history. I'd love to chat with you about Beachbody products in general and how they can help you get to your goals. 

This means, I'll be more present on Facebook regarding Beachbody. I'm not sorry about that, but I DO promise that I'll be as charming and fun as possible. Not some salesy crazy person peddlin' my wares on social media.

Outside of the physical benefits and how Beachbody will help me get to my personal PHYSICAL goals, don't forget that my blog has a FINANCIAL aspect to it. Beachbody can help me, as a coach, reach some financial goals such as:
 -  Paying off my student loans and some other debt my husband and I have. 
 -  I have a personal financial goal of paying a mortgage each month When we buy a house.
 -  Increasing our savings account balance. 

Those are my basic goals for now- I plan to build on those. YOU can help me get to these goals! I know many of you are curious about Beachbody and the products we have. You guys, WHAT'S STOPPING YOU?! There's NOTHING BUT GOOD that can come from it and I'd love to speak with you!

Get ready September! I'm comin' for YOU!

Life is like a Box of Chocolates...

Hey everybody! It's 7:30 in the evening and I'm just getting started on today's post. Usually I work on it little by little but today has just been LONG. Today's one of those days that out of the ordinary things kept going on. All day. So, I guess "Mama" was right, "Life is like a box o' choc'lates. Ya never know what your gonna get."

I overslept this morning. Not because it was raining (for once) but because I'm pooped, y'all. Every muscle in my body is in shock from my double workouts the last several days. Oh, it's only Wednesday, you say? I know. It's only Wednesday and my body is screaming for help. It'll take some time to get to regular two-a-day workouts.

I did finally get up and moving. It was a process, but I thought, "Thank God for today! I'm looking FORWARD to this day! I'm THANKFUL that I woke up with the blessing of another day with a job and an amazing husband! Let's ROCK TODAY!"

At that point, I hobbled out of bed and got ready to run. Friends, my legs HATED me for this decision. But once I was out in the cool air that was mildy rainy, I got a strange surge of energy and I was in full on Forrest mode.

I ran for the better part of an hour! I couldn't help it. I was so pumped to finally be running after several days off because of morning thunderstorms! I kept a solid pace and kept rhythm with my breathing. I hit a great stride and I was feeling AWESOME.

I love running in the suburbs. People rushing to work in their Audis. Parents waiting at the bus stop in the car with their kids because it was "raining." Seriously- it was a few drops of rain here and there. Ridiculous.

The most interesting thing I've observed on my runs is suburban dog owners. These people. I tell you what. There is no more spoiled animal in the universe than a lap dog in suburbia. Their owners are so accommodating. They carry the dogs on walks. What IS that?! There are people that have dog carriers! Baby carriers FOR A DOG. I'm actually, literally embarrassed for your dog. They have no control over that nonsense. Let your dog be a dog. You look like a crazy person. <end rant>Anyway, I ran about 2.5 miles, but I pushed myself hard today! I'm outrageously proud of myself. I take my phone with me on my run, for safety reasons but also because of my Audible app with which I listen to books while I run. Who needs music when you can focus that time on a little intellectual development? I realized it was getting pretty late in my morning, so I headed back.

Today at work I had a huge project I was working on. I love that creative focus I get when I'm working on something design related. I was so focused, I pretty much sat all day, didn't drink a lot of water and pretty much obsessed over this project until it was done at 7:00PM. I came home to my husband pulling dinner out of the oven. Seriously, I am so blessed. While I know I should workout, my brain actually hurts from staring at a computer all day (continuing into the evening). I'm going to snuggle up and spending some overdue quality time with my better half.

Before I go, let it be known that I got through this "Chocolate" Forrest Gump themed entry without once actually craving chocolate. Progress. Be proud. 

The Pants Project

I wear pants almost every day to work. I have lots and lots of dress pants hanging in my closet. To look in my closet, you would assume that I'm quite the professional. However, most of those pants are neglected, hanging and waiting to be worn.

Sorry, pants. I can't get you over my hips. They don't lie.
Anyway, today I pulled on a pair of my trusty gray slacks. They fit and can be passed off as business casual and those are about their only redeeming qualities.

Honestly, I hate them.

I have tons of clothes, but those that actually fit are a small portion of my wardrobe. I keep the others around so "when" I fit into them again, I will have a fresh wardrobe all over again even if they are a bit outdated. At this rate, by the time I can fit back into them, they'll be back in style again.

So, I'm working to change this nonsense. I want to wear cute things and not feel like a frumpy dump. I want to accidentally stumble into the maternity section at Target and find nothing that fits. I want people to genuinely compliment me or ask where I got my cute skirt or SOMETHING.

Yesterday while I was doing my T25 Lower Body Fix and I was squatting and lunging my life away, I decided I would start the Pants Project.

Remember those SlimFast or Weight Watchers commercials with thin people standing inside their formerly large and in charge pants? I'm taking my inspiration from those. I'm working my way towards this overly happy thumbs-up photo!

So, I had my husband take a photo of my pants this morning... I still am always shocked when a picture of any sort is taken of me. I still can't believe my size sometimes. I know that my size may not seem like a big deal to most of you and certainly some people deal with larger hurdles when it comes to weight loss, but I am the biggest I've ever been and it's my blog, so I'm allowed to talk about it. 

These are my pants. They are shapeless but comfortable. They are ugly but they fit. They WILL be too big for me by the time I revisit this subject. Today is August 26 and I will post again about this topic on September 26.

I also love hearing from all of you. Whether it be in private messages, Facebook notes or comments on the blog, it's wonderful to know that I have your support and encouragement. Keep 'em coming!

Learned Truths and Really (really) Salty Food

Today was sort of backwards. I didn't workout this morning because when I woke up at 6am, thunder and lighting were havin' it out. The last time there was lightning around here, Randy witnessed the field next to our apartment (yes, we live by cornfields #Iowa) being struck by lighting. No thanks.

So I got up and because I had a leadership meeting at work, I fixed a lovely Shakeology breakfast and started getting ready for my day.

I got home after work and immediately made dinner. I had an early lunch and because of the meeting, didn't get a snack when I normally do, so I was hungry. HUNGRY. So I made this little creation with some pork loin we had in the refrigerator. It was...interesting. Good, but since I made it up and it's the first time I made this, it could use some tweaking. (note: I'm not putting this in my recipes section because it's not perfect, but I will tell you how I made it below.)

Careful with my portions AND my carb intake, I wrapped my concoction in lettuce leaves! After eating, I waited a few minutes and THEN I worked out. I told you today was backwards! Today, I learned a few truths about myself, so of course, I want to share.

1. Running in the morning makes me a better person. I was restless all day without it.

2. Under no circumstances does any recipe that involves soy sauce require any additional salt. (please read this point again and commit it to memory. It's vital.)

3. Lettuce leaves instead of tortilla shells make that disgusting I'm-so-full-I-need-my-elastic-pants feeling non-existent.


Sweat is literally dripping of my face and Reba wants a belly rub. -_-

4. Yogurt is the best after dinner snack. It gives you the sweetness and creaminess of ice cream without the guilt. Again, I realize I'm late on the bandwagon, but whatever. I'll own it. I used to eat Yoplait, but decided I like AE (Anderson Erickson Dairy, for you non-local folks) better.

5. Yoga stretches after a Shaun T. workout are a-ma-zing. They are necessary, therapeutic and wonderful. But then, I'm a closet yogi. Also, a truth about Reba (my foster cat niece) is that she too, loves yoga. She does not, however love anything overly strenuous. She's actually quite lazy.

6. I actually LIKE lower body workouts. Guys. Really. This is truly amazing. Squats, lunges and the like are hard and my muscles are going to PAY for this tomorrow but I felt like I did some WORK today.

7. I crave my morning Shakeology. And water. Some people in the meeting got a can of pop in the afternoon for that after lunch pick me up. Usually the sound of a can of sugary carbonation fizzing open makes me crave it, but I totally didn't. I even surprised myself at the amount of water I drank. Bam. Changes are happening, y'all.

This journey is helping me learn many things about myself and I'm sure this topic will be recurring. The way to LEARN these things, however, is to actually be consistent enough to notice changes. :)



Ok-- here's my recipe. I really just threw some stuff together- there are no measurements here! I wanted to make Korean BBQ Pork lettuce wraps, but I didn't want to go to the store. So I took some flavors that I love in my sushi and made this delicacy.
Preheat oven to 350. Take 1 pound of pork loin with the fat trimmed and slice it into medallions. In a bowl, create a rub of pepper, garlic powder, ginger, (and I used salt. DO NOT do this.) Toss medallions in the rub, coating as well as you can. Add about 2 Tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce, 2 Tablespoons of brown and spicy mustard, 1 Tablespoon of olive oil and dash or two or sesame oil(this is powerful stuff, so you don't need much). Toss the medallions in that as well. Put the pork in baking dish large enough for the pork medallions to lay flat. On the top of the medallions, slice 1-2 apples (I just did one because that's all I had). Bake for about 25 minutes or until cooked. Once cooked, slice into smaller pieces.

I used a cheese grater to slice some cucumber and fresh ginger and made that into a slaw, of sorts.  (That actually helped balance some of the big flavors in this!). Additionally, I made a little sauce of Kraft low-fat Asian Sesame dressing (this is a serious must have in my house), spicy brown mustard and a LITTLE soy souce. I also had some basmati rice in my refrigerator that we had from a meal last week, so we used that in the wrap.

In a lettuce leaf, add a spooful of rice, the pork/apple mixture and cucumber mixture. Top with sauce and a few sesame seeds. Voila!

Quality of Life

Today's entry isn't about my fitness or my health. This isn't about me at all,  although it is about a woman that has had a huge impact on my life.

Today, I took the day off work. I didn't work out. My main focus was not on eating healthy. Instead, my mom and I took the day to go see my 92-year-old grandmother, who is my only surviving grandparent. She's recently been placed in hospice care and is being given incredible care around the clock to ensure that she is comfortable. She needs assistance for nearly everything.

She is not the grandmother that I knew growing up-- the one that fed us exactly one egg, one piece of bacon and a gulp of pulpy orange juice for breakfast while we listened to Paul Harvey on the radio before my grandfather read the daily devotion from The Daily Bread. She wasn't the same grandma that let me play on the staircase on rainy days with toys from my dad and uncles' childhoods. She wasn't the same grandma that made us chocolate malts after a day of running around chasing barn cats and playing in the timber. She wasn't the same grandma that laid my sister and I across the bathroom vanity to wash our hair in the sink. Today, she was a frail, changed woman.

Her condition now raised questions of her current quality of life. Is she getting real QUALITY of life? It's easy to think that she's not. But as I gave her a manicure this afternoon and talked to her about happier times with my grandpa or of her as a girl while I moisturized her frail, paper-like hands, I began to think differently. This woman has had quite a life.

Born in 1921, she was one of eight children in a Danish family. In 1940, her father had arranged for her to ride to California to see her sister and brother-in-law in a car that was being taken to California to be sold. In the car with her was a young Swedish guy from Stanton, Iowa. While the details of their courtship are a little fuzzy, the Danish girl and the Swedish boy were married in December of 1942.

In 1945, after my grandfather's discharge from the Army, they moved back to southwest Iowa to farm and remained there indefinitely. Those now frail, paper-like hands raised boys, opened and notated in her now well-worn Bible and prayed daily. Those hands managed a household for decades; maintaining a large garden year after year, hanging laundry on the line to dry and whipping up her famous brownies from scratch. Those hands made those chocolate malts that absolutely no malt in the universe can rival, gave hugs and clapped with joy when my siblings and I would sing songs we learned in chapel to her. Those hands wiped tears and held my
hands when I needed her most. To this day, those hands are still strong.
 
My grandparents have left quite a legacy. Seventy years of marriage. Four sons. Eighteen grandchildren. Twenty-two (almost 23) great-grandchildren. When my grandfather passed away last summer, there was time before the funeral that my grandma (who laments to anyone that will listen that she never had any daughters) was shuffled into a Sunday school room in the basement of the church by six of her granddaughters to make sure she looked just right on the day she had to bury her husband. During that time, we laughed, joked, cried and circled around as a family to pray. If that's not a testament to this woman's lasting legacy on her descendants, I don't know what is.

My grandfather has already passed away and my grandmother is 92. Neither will ever read this blog or probably really, fully, grasp the impact they've had on my life. If you know me, you know that I'm immensely proud of my family and how absolutely marvelous each member of it is. Carol and Mary Peterson are a huge part of that. They gave us memories to last forever. They gave us roots. They gave us heritage.

At the end of a person's life, sometimes, you can't take it for what it is at face value. You have to remember (and in some cases learn) how many amazing things they have done in their simple life to appreciate them. And to me, that's true quality of life.

Intentionally Healthy

A few photos from my effortlessly thin days

For a long time, I was naturally thin and I didn't have to do much to stay that way. I didn't intentionally exercise and I didn't eat especially well. In fact, I ate like crap. After years of that and of working at jobs where I sat for the bulk of my day, I became overweight.

This kind of scenario is what a LOT of people deal with. They weren't brought up with intentional exercise or cravings for healthy foods. Instead, we live in a culture that loves binge-watching Netflix and fast food. Where speed eating pies will get you a medal and watching athletic events while huddled around a TV eating fried food is fun. We stock up on processed food "because it's on sale" and it's "easier" to buy/store/prepare than healthy food. And then, all of a sudden, we can fit into our favorite pants. And we have the audacity to wonder why! 
Don't misunderstand, I'm totally in this camp. Now I'm working like crazy to back pedal and lose a bunch of weight so I can feel like myself again. Conversely, I can't seem to stay on track. Consistency is key and if you know me, I always misplace my keys. We obviously can't do anything about our past decisions but what if we grabbed our health by the reigns and showed it who's boss?! What if we just DID what we needed to do to make sure that we were the best version of ourselves? What if we simply went after what we wanted?


Here's an example of intentionality. I didn't get married until I was 27. If you're familiar with Midwestern culture, that is on the far end of the age range for marriage here. I went through periods where all my friends were getting married at once and then had kids at once. During that time, I did some really cool things,  but I got to a point where I was back living at my mother's house and working at a place that employed and served mostly women. Any men I met there were married fathers and therefore, obviously, disqualified. I was sick of being single and seeing everyone move along with the milestones in their lives. When I complained, well-intentioned people would calm me down and try to figure out what the rush was and to calm me by saying that I "just haven't met him yet." Dating was hard when you worked all the time and only hung out with women. I couldn't wait around for some magical meet-cute at the grocery store or something.

I had a friend that had luck with online dating. She encouraged me to try it out because one site had a free 30 day trial. Up until and even during that experience, I thought online dating was just... weird. Unnatural. Something about it didn't sit right with me. Most the guys that messaged me were 50 year old weirdos that just wanted to "hang out." Then I met a guy whose profile said he was a Christian that goes to church every Sunday. Turns out, he was a solider currently deployed in Afghanistan. He wasn't coming back for another two months, so we got the opportunity to take our time and get to know each other. By the time we actually, physically met, it was like we had known each other for years.  We both had discussed a desire to get married and thought we should continue down the path towards that goal. We agreed that if at any time we felt like we weren't going to marry each other, we would end it.

That Christian soldier became my husband 2 years later and I've never doubted our dating process. We were not satisfied with where we were in our personal lives and we both made an intentional choice to change it. There was no nonsense moving into it-- we both knew what we wanted and the steps we needed to take to get there. It was just a matter of figuring out if this was the person we wanted to walk down that road with.

We had a goal. We intentionally went after achieving it. We met our goal and have never been happier.

Think of this example in health and fitness terms. You want to be healthier/skinnier but you are currently floundering between sometimes working out and having a flip/flop diet with lots of "cheat meals." Basically, you're not being consistent. It's like dating just to "see where it goes." Trust me, I did that since I was 15 and it got me nowhere. The moment I decided what I wanted and INTENTIONALLY went after it, I found what I was looking for.

What if you invested your time and energy into being intentional rather than flaky about your choice to be healthy? What if you started saying no to dessert and soda? What if you made a choice TODAY to be the best version of you and to not let any value meal get in the way?

That's my intention as of TODAY. Work towards it. Be proof that consistency in healthy diet and exercise WORK. Beachbody workouts and Shakeology do that, and if that's something you're interested in, I'd LOVE to talk to you. I know that these products are going to help me to get to the best version of myself and I plan to prove it to you.

WHAT IF you joined me?! This is my journey to 30 and I want to be in phenomenal shape on my 30th birthday. I know many of you are staring down the barrel of a milestone in your life-- want to look and feel freakin' awesome when you get there?

Wednesday (pt. 2)

Whhhhaaaaatt? Two posts in one day? I feel like I owe it to you, since I tend to be blog-lazy on the weekends!

So I felt like I left the last post off on a sour note. I told you from the beginning that I would try to be as positive as possible throughout this process, but not all the time. It's impossible.

I came home and found my T25 and completed it. I didn't complete it WELL, but I did complete it. It was a total body workout and it was hard (reference the grumpy cat picture from the last entry). I was dripping in sweat and winded. Shaun T. is the trainer for this workout and he gets all up in the camera and talks to you like he can see you. It pushes me for sure!

Anyway, here's my accountability photo post-workout. The lighting must have been pretty great because my face was BRIGHT RED. I looked like Bob the Tomato from VeggieTales.

Now I'm going to clean my house, do a little laundry and watch a few episodes of Who Do You Think You Are on TLC. I'm so cool. I'm feeling better about my day and I am looking forward to another successful day tomorrow! Bring it, Shaun T.!

Wednesday

This post is titled 'Wednesday' not only to continue with my super creative post titles this week, but also to remind that today is in fact, Wednesday. All day, I've kept thinking that it's Tuesday because it's just been one of those weeks, people.

I've been feeling pretty awesome lately. Planning healthy meals that we've been sticking to, the hubs and I have been keeping each other accountable in the diet department but also in the money department. We no longer use just any ol' excuse to eat out... we make it home and figure it out from there. I'm more consistent with my workouts and as a result, I have more energy and sleep better.

This morning, I was determined to get up early and go for a long run. I was up at 5. That's right-- 5 AM. It was pitch black out and I heard thunder. For me, hearing thunder when I'm still in bed is like getting permission to hit the snooze button and pull the blankets up for another cozy 20 minutes of rest. But not today!

I stepped out on my deck to check out the weather situation.. it was dark and thundery and it had obviously just rained pretty hard. I decided not to run because I didn't want to get struck by lightning and because I could tell it was going to storm again. (<---a benefit of living in Iowa is that you just know when some things are going to happen with the weather. We can "feel" rain and "smell" snow coming.) Luckily though, I witnessed a beautiful sunrise before the clouds covered it again. A benefit of waking up early, y'all.


So I didn't run this morning. We are in the process of moving a bunch of crap around our apartment and I couldn't find my T25 DVD set either-- only the cardio I did yesterday. So, I decided to try a little experiment. I'm on Pinterest quite a bit (did you know I have a page for my Beachbody stuff? Because I do) and I find these adorable little workout memes all the time. I've pinned a few in the past, so I thought, why not? I'll do a little circuit to get my blood pumping and that'll be a nice morning workout.
I haven't really focused on ab workouts at all lately. Just mostly focusing on cardio to drop a few pounds, as you well know. So I came across this little gem and decided to try it out. How hard could I be?

Hard. It was like the universe said, "Good morning, feel like dying today?"

Ok, so it wasn't THAT bad, but it was hard. My abs are pretty soft so it was a big challenge for me. Planking sucks. Burpees suck. Mountain climbers are even worse.

WAAAAAA! Working out is HARD.

I have to do this to get to my goal and YES. It's super hard for me. I don't think I'm ever going to be one of those people that will choose exercise for fun if given a choice between a run and say, a movie date with a big bowl of popcorn. I just don't think I'm at that point yet.

I wasn't always like this-- I enjoyed exercise and saw fast results when I committed to something. That's not the case now and it's easy to get discouraged and frustrated. For now, I exercise as a way to get to my goals, lofty as they may be. I think once I truly start seeing results, I'll get some momentum rolling and be more excited about it.

Until then, I really would love to lose five freakin' pounds. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK??!

Tonight I'll try to find my T25 workouts and sweat my life away for 25 minutes and I know I'll be back to feeling awesome. :)





 

Tuesday.

Me as a RA. Check the old computer!

I was an Resident Assistant (RA) in college for one semester. I went to a college where it was required to live on campus during freshman year. After that, most people either moved into one of the new "suites" or "apartments" or they found a place off campus. Needless to say, there were mostly freshman in our residence hall. In a building of mostly freshmen, I lucked out and got the floor with upperclassmen.

Each week, the RAs on staff got together and hashed out issues that occurred or were ongoing and planned for the week ahead. In a building of mostly 18 and 19 year old college students, we had our fair share of issues. (Some highlights I remember were hunting down a guy we *know* we heard on a girl's floor after hours only to find him cowering in a girls' closet. Another was a guy from top floor that had a habit of throwing food he didn't want or was finished eating out the window. He hit someone with a plate of nachos once. WHAT. IN. THE. WORLD.) It was a weird job that didn't prepare me in the least for "the real world" but it was free room and board and it was a lot of fun.
Anyway, in an effort to balance the otherwise stressful and unnecessary hard work that was babysitting young adults full time, the Residence Hall staff would start each meeting with "Happies and Crappies." This was always my favorite part because you got to learn about other things happening in a person's life outside of work and sometimes things got a little silly.

So, in an effort to relive that weird time in college and show you some of what I balance. I try to be as positive as possible on social media (including blogs) because negativity isn't worth broadcasting, but hey-- sometimes crappy things are going on. That's life, right? Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Tuesday's Happies and Crappies:

+  Happy: I slept like a ROCK last night. At least, I felt like I did! My Fitbit tells me I was awake once last night and restless 13 times. Whatever. I woke up totally refreshed. Win.
- Crappy: I slept SO well, that I slept through my alarm, which means I woke up too late to run this morning.
+ Happy: I have my own office at work, you guys. It's my first ever and I'm thankful for it every day. I can spread things out and get a ton of work done without being interrupted too much. It's awesome.
- Crappy: I didn't drink enough water today. I did get to come home and do a T25 workout, but I struggled. Badly.
+ Happy: My workout this afternoon (cardio), while a smidge dehydrated, was awesome. I was drenched and winded. I feel a true sense of accomplishment when I finish one of those workouts.
+ Happy: Dinner tonight was AMAZING. Check the recipes tab for crock pot tacos... it's seriously so delicious. It makes a ton and is arguably even better reheated. We will have leftovers for a couple of days.
+ Happy: I started a new book tonight. I'm all about personal development books lately. I'm listening to How The World Sees You by Sally Hogshead on Audible during my morning runs (highly recommend, btw) but tonight, I started in on the book my husband got me for our first wedding anniversary in June. It's called Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship and Life Together by Mark and Grace Driscoll. SO good so far, you guys. It's a Christian book writtenby a minister, but it's not jsut throwing Bible verses at you... it offers real life issues that even people in a Christian marriage struggle with. Get it. Read it. Tell yo' friends.  

So as you can see, my day was generally HAPPY. As most my days are. I don't have much to complain about because really, life is good. My big discouragement today was missing my morning run. And you'll always find discouragement during a journey like this. The lesson here is to focus on all the good.. trivial as it may seem. Your life is pretty stinkin' awesome. Admit it to yourself and the "bad" things will start rolling off a little easier.