I have stocked the fridge with "go-to" foods so there is no reason to cruise out of here any morning for at least a week without bringing something breakfast-like along. I think my favorite so far is the butternut squash and pumpkin casserole I had a little of for lunch today. It is so good!
And so, already I've found that I want to zoom ahead and get stuff done, like be a size 8 by tomorrow; however, I know that kind of mentality isn't going to help me. That gung-ho woman at the start of this blog? She's not good for real results over a long period of time. I'm slowing down. I'm being more conscious. I'm making room for things I must.
It never ceases to amaze me that the world works in your favor when you choose a healthy option for your life. For instance, I decided this slow and steady approach to weight loss (pick a habit, make it my bitch, pick a new habit and so on) and along comes Suzanne, who I have followed for quite a while on twitter, and with a tweet that introduces me to Christine Hohlbaum, whose book is about finding ways to make change more like a permanent thing. So, yes, I am buying her book and yes, I am going to get in touch with her.
I am so going to take this introduction as proof of my readiness to employ this approach. I hope I don't bore you with my slug-like movement.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
AccountableMe
I'm making all sorts of decisions to secure a nicer day-to-day lifestyle for me and my family and part of that includes being more and more accountable to myself about diet and exercise.
I thought by letting go of two jobs I would be giving myself more time to get stuff done that I care about, like taking care of me, but guess what? Every ounce of that time I tried to give myself suddenly became filled with a bunch of other things. I'm not crying "victim" because I brought this on myself and I'm learning how to do things differently...so no harshness, just observation.
But, okay, I was with Ivana 2 weeks ago and we're due to meet again on Tuesday next. While with her, I made two important goals:
1) let go of my paper writing job
2) make breakfast at home and take it along (instead of getting drive thru junk).
The first was THE hardest thing I've had to do in a very long time, but I did it. And I've done what I can to make bringing breakfast from home an easier thing to do every day, too... like making an egg bake ahead of time and scrambling sausage with veggies and storing it in the fridge. i plan on making a "mash" from a recipe that calls for butternut squash and pumpkin, and i'm gonna steam asparagus, wrap individual wands in prosciutto and use those for snacks or an occasional breakfast. so, there you have 'em: plans.
I've decided small steps are best because I keep taking on too much at once and then I stall or give out or something happens to disrupt my routine and I lose momentum. I lose that "discipline" feeling that I see and admire of my father-in-law's daily do list. So, here's to change that I can manage well. Thanks, Ivana. :)
I thought by letting go of two jobs I would be giving myself more time to get stuff done that I care about, like taking care of me, but guess what? Every ounce of that time I tried to give myself suddenly became filled with a bunch of other things. I'm not crying "victim" because I brought this on myself and I'm learning how to do things differently...so no harshness, just observation.
But, okay, I was with Ivana 2 weeks ago and we're due to meet again on Tuesday next. While with her, I made two important goals:
1) let go of my paper writing job
2) make breakfast at home and take it along (instead of getting drive thru junk).
The first was THE hardest thing I've had to do in a very long time, but I did it. And I've done what I can to make bringing breakfast from home an easier thing to do every day, too... like making an egg bake ahead of time and scrambling sausage with veggies and storing it in the fridge. i plan on making a "mash" from a recipe that calls for butternut squash and pumpkin, and i'm gonna steam asparagus, wrap individual wands in prosciutto and use those for snacks or an occasional breakfast. so, there you have 'em: plans.
I've decided small steps are best because I keep taking on too much at once and then I stall or give out or something happens to disrupt my routine and I lose momentum. I lose that "discipline" feeling that I see and admire of my father-in-law's daily do list. So, here's to change that I can manage well. Thanks, Ivana. :)
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Down a Pound!
And I'm just about to "break a ten" - what I say when I bust through a tens spot on the scale and move down in weight (hopefully to never see those higher numbers again!) I hope to have broken it by next week. That will be stellar. STELLAR, I say. Do people still use "stellar"? Maybe I'm a dork.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Reduce, Reuse, ReTreadmill
So, I've significantly reduced the amount of work I do in a day. I want to make sure my decision gets the respect it deserves by making the time I've earned count for something. So, I had to ask myself what I want...and the answer was discipline.
My father-in-law is a retired U.S. Major. He's happy and motivated by taking care of himself. His routine is so established that it is predictable down to the orange juice he has to have with breakfast and the cup of soup he enjoys with every lunch. He exercises daily. He sets out to do things and completes them. He doesn't take on things he doesn't feel he can commit to. I believe he is a good example of personal success because he is happy and comfortable with his self-care, and he can do it in a way that serves others but that doesn't compromise his happiness and comfort.
His way of doing things has been on my mind because I'd like to achieve some of the same things he has - especially the personal commitment to taking care of myself.
As you know, I've made some immediate changes in order to treat myself (and others!) better, be less hard on myself, less taxing on someone else...so I feel I am on my way.
This morning, I woke with the idea that I would make a list of things I want to be disciplined about. I even went to Google for others' examples of living a life of discipline - and wow, I am glad I did!
I found this site written by a Zen practitioner to be really helpful. At first, I wanted to argue that discipline is no illusion - I see my dad in law stick to it. I see others around me, like Jay at work, stick to it...and I want to, too.
After reading the "discipline is an illusion" post, I had to admit the content makes sense. Not only that, but it makes 'discipline' accessible and lends to the appearance of PROBABLE, should I go ahead and apply the principles of discipline I admire so much of others in the controlled environment the zen piece describes.
Ultimately, I know the decision and the exertion is mine alone. I know that nobody wakes my father-in-law up and tells him to exercise today. Nobody shakes Jay out of bed and says he has to pray and spend the day celebrating everyone he meets. But they do it. Because they want to.
It feels right to think about what I want to do...and that zen-writer piece seems like a good reference to use again and again until I do feel disciplined. To me, there is admirable strength in making healthy choices for oneself...and I, of course, want to live admirably.
So, I'm going to think about this and jot down wants for myself until I can form a list that I'm happy with and eager to go ahead with. And I'm going to meet Barb at the gym today, as planned, because I really like to be there and I really like her company and I really like the feeling I get when I've accomplished that hour of self-care.
My father-in-law is a retired U.S. Major. He's happy and motivated by taking care of himself. His routine is so established that it is predictable down to the orange juice he has to have with breakfast and the cup of soup he enjoys with every lunch. He exercises daily. He sets out to do things and completes them. He doesn't take on things he doesn't feel he can commit to. I believe he is a good example of personal success because he is happy and comfortable with his self-care, and he can do it in a way that serves others but that doesn't compromise his happiness and comfort.
His way of doing things has been on my mind because I'd like to achieve some of the same things he has - especially the personal commitment to taking care of myself.
As you know, I've made some immediate changes in order to treat myself (and others!) better, be less hard on myself, less taxing on someone else...so I feel I am on my way.
This morning, I woke with the idea that I would make a list of things I want to be disciplined about. I even went to Google for others' examples of living a life of discipline - and wow, I am glad I did!
I found this site written by a Zen practitioner to be really helpful. At first, I wanted to argue that discipline is no illusion - I see my dad in law stick to it. I see others around me, like Jay at work, stick to it...and I want to, too.
After reading the "discipline is an illusion" post, I had to admit the content makes sense. Not only that, but it makes 'discipline' accessible and lends to the appearance of PROBABLE, should I go ahead and apply the principles of discipline I admire so much of others in the controlled environment the zen piece describes.
Ultimately, I know the decision and the exertion is mine alone. I know that nobody wakes my father-in-law up and tells him to exercise today. Nobody shakes Jay out of bed and says he has to pray and spend the day celebrating everyone he meets. But they do it. Because they want to.
It feels right to think about what I want to do...and that zen-writer piece seems like a good reference to use again and again until I do feel disciplined. To me, there is admirable strength in making healthy choices for oneself...and I, of course, want to live admirably.
So, I'm going to think about this and jot down wants for myself until I can form a list that I'm happy with and eager to go ahead with. And I'm going to meet Barb at the gym today, as planned, because I really like to be there and I really like her company and I really like the feeling I get when I've accomplished that hour of self-care.
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