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Doing it All? (Guest Post)

By on March 24, 2011 in consistency/commitment, guest post, health, P90X, working out

Let me begin with an introduction.  I am:

A wife
A mommy of three little boys (ages 6, 3, & 1)
A full-time prosecuting attorney (felony domestic violence and child abuse cases)
A Jesus lover
A facilitator of an online classroom (internet teacher)
A Children’s Pastor
A daughter
A friend
An aunt

AND a person who REALLY wants to make being healthy a priority.

I recently told my husband that I’m AWESOME at juggling the balls when they’re all up in the air; it’s when one falls that it becomes difficult to keep the others going.  This is the truth of my busy life!

A lot of times when I first meet people, or I am chatting with someone I don’t know very well and I’m sharing about myself, many people ask:  how do you do it all?  The answer is simple:  I don’t.  The truth is, if I’m honest with myself, the challenges for me are the same as for others:  what’s important is recognizing my challenges and being inspired by them INSTEAD of being frustrated.

I am a very driven person!  I love to set goals, accomplish things, be busy, get lots of things done, finish to-do lists, etc.  Nothing excites me more than seeing my calendar FULL at the beginning of the day and shutting my computer down after a full day of work and getting everything done that I had in mind for the day.

Okay, enough with the self-promotion, right?  So after my third son was born, I was determined to “get my body back!”  I decided to make nutrition, weight loss, exercise, and general health a major priority in my life; just what I needed, right, one more thing “to do.”

For me, getting healthy included a few goals:  cutting out all sodas (I could write a whole OTHER blog about how much I love Coke.  It sounds ridiculous, but it’s true); getting to a weight that put me in a “healthy” BMI category; making working out/being active a daily part of my life; cutting out all artificial sweeteners; cutting out high fructose corn syrup; making daily choices that included foods that give me energy, not just satisfaction; and doing this all with the support/companionship of my husband.

I wanted to make the food changes because I want to have a healthy relationship with food:  no more emotional eating.  I wanted to make the active lifestyle changes because I have three small boys and nothing gives me more pleasure than the idea of being an “active” family together (swimming, biking, playing, hiking, whatever) for as long as we can.

I know my “journey” into becoming healthier is only beginning, but the biggest struggle for me at this point is fitting it in.  Right now, because of the ages of my kids, my work schedule, and the program I’m doing (I too am a P90X do-er), the time that works best is 5 a.m.  Gag. Me. With. A. Spoon.  I am NOT a morning person.  Keeping the motivation to “be healthy” is REALLY hard when it comes at five in the morning.

That being said, when I start my day with a workout, things are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much better for me.  I feel strong.  I feel good that I got my workout in.  I feel ready for my day.  The endorphin dump while I drive to work is a great plus in traffic!  Just like everything else I’m learning in this journey, so much of my struggle comes down to my ability to make the best choice for myself at that moment.  When my kids are sick and not sleeping, hitting snooze and fitting my workout in after their bedtime that night might be the best choice.  And if it’s NOT the best choice (I guarantee that when I’m working out at 9:30 p.m., I WILL wish I had just gotten up early), I can try again another day.

So from a full time working mama + [insert any other title above here], there is an answer to the eternal question:  “how do you do it all?”  The answer is that you can’t do it all, but you CAN DO what you CAN do for today to make the most of your life, your body, and your choices.  And if you struggle today, there’s always tomorrow!

Blessings to you all…

Comments { 4 }

Something to chew on…battling the winter blahs

By on February 21, 2011 in Betsy, consistency/commitment, guest post, working out

Without further ado, please enjoy today’s guest post from our friend Betsy!

Do any of you find it difficult to remain dedicated to your exercise routine during the winter months? I sure do and I’m here today seeking your input on what you do to keep your mind in the game during these dreary, grey, cold winter months. I realize, in hindsight, that I should have appealed to all of you back in November for your thoughts on this topic so that I would BEGIN the winter with a game plan. I had such high aspirations that I would emerge from this winter stronger and leaner, but now I find myself reeling from weeks of missed workouts and in need of an intervention. Help!

Comments { 8 }

Checking In

By on February 8, 2011 in blogging, consistency/commitment, working out

Hi friends!

Whew, every time I come to write lately I am blown away by how long its been since my last post.  I’m sorry for being MIA!  I am trying hard to stay caught up with your blogs and comment as much as I can, so hopefully that helps us feel connected.

Life is good but extremely busy.  As in, working-almost-every-weekend busy.  The firm I work for is growing and we are in the hiring process right now, but in the meantime, it’s all hands on deck to get the work done for our clients!  It’s actually really gratifying to see the hard work I’ve done over the last couple years pay off for this firm – I take credit for at least some of this growth, and it makes me happy!  I really can’t wait, though, until I get a whole weekend off with NOTHING planned…soon!

In the meantime, I am struggling with my workouts in the biggest way!  Whenever I work out, I feel great.  But with the long hours that I’m working and just feeling exhausted in general (probably due in part to working a lot), it’s a battle to get to the gym or get out for a run more than 2-3 times/week.  And that’s just not cutting it for me – I’m going stir crazy!  So I’m working on putting together a weekly workout schedule to help me get through this really busy time.  So far it looks something like this:

Sunday – Run 3 miles
Monday – Strength training
Tuesday – Zumba
Wednesday – Walk w/ a friend
Thursday – Strength training
Friday – Kickboxing
Saturday – Off

Now to actually EXECUTE the plan!

How are you all doing?  Anyone feeling the post-holiday slump?

I’m off to motor through work – I have to leave early today for a doctor’s appointment, and then I’m going to take advantage of the extra time and hit up the gym on my way home.  Or maybe go out for a run since the sun is shining in Seattle!

Comments { 7 }

Something to Chew on…Time for Tough Love

By on February 4, 2011 in Betsy, consistency/commitment, eating, End of Overeating, food, goals, guest post, health, plan, Uncategorized

Without further ado, please enjoy today’s guest post from our friend Betsy!

I’ve tried being gentle and loving with myself when it comes to my weight loss and healthy-living efforts, but all that has gotten me is a warm-fuzzy feeling coupled with bouts of self-loathing and desperation, so the hell with that. I’m resorting to tough love. To help guide me on this never-before-traversed-tough-love path I’ve created and implemented a plan based on the advice outlined in the two books (Kessler and Beck) I discussed in my last post.

What are the goals of this plan?

  1. To eliminate the chaos that surrounds mealtimes.
  2. To break my desire for, and emotional dependence on hyperpalatable foods.
  3. To reframe my relationship with food: i.e. food is for fuel (family, friends and activity are for reward and comfort).

What is the plan? It’s pretty basic because if I set too many rules I tend to forget about them or lose track of them or mix them up and reverse them and return to my habitual eating. So “don’t eat after 8PM” becomes “eat with abandon after 8PM.” So my plan goes like this:

  1. ELIMINATE all sugar, white flours, pastas, junk food, cakes, chips, processed foods, and fast food.
  2. Set mealtimes in advance and eat ONLY at those times.
  3. Spend a few minutes each day creating the next day’s meal plan.
  4. Select a few meal options for each meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack) and eat them again and again and again.
  5. Complete Beck’s Success Skills (Stage 1) for seven consecutive days and then assess. (I need to assess today!)

I have to tell you that I am VERY proud of myself for including the word and action “ELIMINATE” in my plan because I usually lean towards the healthy living camp that frowns upon eliminating food types as it is said that can lead to a nasty mentality of deprivation thus leading to cravings and overindulgence. But alas, I’ve tried (and tried and tried and tried) to keep all foods fair game, in moderation, and that has not worked for me. At all. So in a moment of bravery and tough love, I have given up those foods that have comforted me for 30+ years. I have finally admitted to myself that reaching my goal (of being a fit, healthy person) will not be attained by consuming my trigger foods. It just isn’t gonna happen that way for me.

In preparation for launching my new plan I held a multi-day event called The Great Food Funerals of 2011. During this time I enjoyed my go-to comfort foods, thanked them for the years of support, told them I no longer needed them, and released them and asked them to release me. I realize this sounds ridiculous but I am one for grand gestures when it comes to life changing moments, and this farewell to my food faves deserved a proper send off.

It’s day eight since I implemented this plan and I’m finding Beck’s whole “NO CHOICE” approach a huge relief. The moment my mind starts going down that road of trying to justify giving into a food craving that isn’t in my day’s eating plan, I take a deep breath and say, “NO CHOICE.” And then there is a blissful silence. My mind doesn’t try to tell me I deserve it, or just this once won’t be a big deal, or that I should eat it because I want it and I’m an adult and get to make my own decisions so just go ahead and enjoy it. When I say, “NO CHOICE” all of that chatter evaporates. It’s so simplistic that I’m amazed it’s working for me.

I’m also amazed because I found this approach tedious and difficult just a few months ago. Obviously, I wasn’t ready to make these changes and so I resisted them with fervor akin to a televangelist. But today I’m ready because I am tired of expending all of my energy fighting with myself in a battle over food. It’s just so darn tedious to constantly be engaged in a battle of wills with myself. It’s also quite absurd and such a self-centered use of my precious life energy. So enough. Enough.

Comments { 9 }

I’m Here…

By on January 18, 2011 in 4-Hour Body, blogging, consistency/commitment

…and am going through a “dry spell” regarding what to write about.  I don’t want to write just to write since I don’t really have this blog to blabber on about nothing.  I’m keeping up with you all (finally!) and your blogs, and otherwise am working enough that it feels like I’m just keeping my head above water!  So here’s the bullet-point version of what’s going on in my world:

  • Work is extremely busy and we desperately need to hire someone to help us catch up/keep up.  In the meantime, I foresee many Saturdays spent at work and a string of 50-60 hour workweeks in my future.
  • Lest you think this is all bad, the reason we’re so busy is because our firm is growing, which is exactly what we want.  I’ve been working really hard both to bill my hours but also grow the business, so I’m excited to see the fruits of my labors!
  • My workouts haven’t been the most consistent thing in the last week, but my schedule for the next four days (training today, running with Sharla tomorrow, training Thursday, and CrossFit on Friday) should jump-start a return to more regular workouts!
  • Eating has been fantastic.  I’m working on a post about the 4-Hour Body slow carb diet, my first cheat day, and my general observations about all of that.  It’s taking longer than I’d like (see above) but I’ll get it up soon, I hope!
  • I got to hang out with Tara and Sharla last week for girl’s night, which included mani/pedi time and dinner out.  It was awesome!

So that’s me in a nutshell right now…how are things with you?  I’m sorry I’m not here more, but I guess when faced with the choice between writing less-than-meaningful stuff or reading your blogs and staying connected that way, I’m choosing the latter!

Comments { 11 }