Keeping the Doing

This life long struggle with my physical body is tiring.  It takes so much effort for me to desire to eat right and to get myself downstairs to workout.  Then once I am in the exercise room to push myself to work hard.  (With the colder weather my running partner and I don’t run outside but move inside and it is me alone responsible to get myself to workout.) Why?  I want to be healthy, I want my clothes to look nice, I want to feel great!  Well, the body, actually the mind is very powerful.  It tells my body that it’s too much work,  it’s too hard to exercise.  The food will make you feel good, the food will fill your empty corners and provide the comfort you seek.  All lies!!!  BUT I do listen to those thoughts on occasion and then I feel less than great about my choices. 

Thankfully we can start over at any moment of time.  We don’t have to wait for tomorrow because now is the best time to start over.  This life is meant to be a test of us overcoming the trails of being a mortal being.  Each day we decide what kind of day it is going to be.  Let’s try to make each day our best day yet!  I have been doing better at not overeating the sweets and reaching more for healthier choices but I haven’t cut anything out.  I think that is really best.  You need to be able to be a part of celebrations and the food is a part of our culture. 

Now, don’t worry!  Just because it is hard doesn’t mean I have given up and have stopped eating well and exercising.  I still push through the days.  Some days are better than others and when life throws curve balls into my path which seems to be happening more and more frequently I mess up royally with my “healthy living plan” but the next day I begin again. All we can do keep doing what we know we need to do.

The hardest times for me to push myself is when I am grieving a loss.  Loss of a loved one, loss of a dream, loss of a job, loss of (fill in the blank). I am re-teaching my mind once again that the comfort I desire for the loss can’t be filled with food.  The only person to truly fill the emptiness is my Savior Jesus the Christ.  He is where I can find peace and strength to keep doing.  I have a few quotes to share here with you.  They aren’t really anything about health but simply about the struggles that life throws at us and keeping moving forward and finding strength in the Lord.

My cousin Eric Nordquist. 

Returned to his Heavenly home way too early. 

You are loved and you will be missed!

Running

The weather is turning cold but still each morning (M-F) at 6am I crawl out of my warm bed and head out into the chilly darkness to run. Why? I NEED to run.  It clears my mind, it gets my body moving and helps my soul to feel alive.  Most mornings it it’s easy. 3.75 miles at a 9:45 ish pace.  I love it. 

What makes me want to get up is really my running partner waiting for me.  We are good listeners for each other.  Women need other women!  I talked her ear off this morning and she just listened without judgment.  I love this time running!   Sadly I ‘m not losing weight running because I am eating whatever I want and my weight has climbed up again but I feel good and happy. A friend posted this quote on facebook yesterday and I thought I’d post it here because it rang true to me.

Sometimes you just need to…

dress up for the sake of feeling good about yourself.  Am I the only one that dresses up just for myself.  I walk taller and feel more confident when I know I took the extra effort to look nice.  Today was one of those days when I just needed to feel good about myself.  It is amazing how the clothes we wear can change how we feel and look.

I saw Rachel Ray the other day and she and Gretta as well as another fashion expert earlier in the week said to forget about the size on the tag and just worry about how the clothes fit.  That is so hard for me.  Rachel mentioned she had clothes in her closet from size 2 to 12.  If she can admit that on tv then I can buy the bigger size that fits too.  I wish all designers used the same sizing in their clothes. I really do have clothes ranging from size 6 to 14 in my closet.  Most are size 10 and I love that but I found this cute Gloria Vanderbelt jean skirt . It said size 14 on the tag.  I almost didn’t even try it on because I didn’t want that size.  Well, I tried it on and it fit great.

Today I wore a size 14 skirt, size 8 belt with it and a size XL top that I took in with the sewing machine to fit me.  I really need to get over the tag size because who else knows but me. (Unless I blab it to the whole world on my blog! ) I am trying to get away from numbers and just focus on health but it is hard!

Delivering the Prize Basket

The WINNER is….

#11 which is Lora!  I used a random number generator and you my dear were chosen!  Please go to my contact page and email me your address. CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I had a dream… NIGHTMARE

I startled awake this morning.  I went right to the mirror… it isn’t true… the weight isn’t all back!  This is the first time that I have dreamt of gaining it all back.  I have never really thought that it would happen because I know myself and my determination and drive.  However,  I have let many pounds back on and haven’t been vigilant enough with my eating to get those pounds off again.  The mind and dreams are very interesting.  Maybe I am more worried about the extra pounds I am carrying around than I thought. I better eat well this weekend since I have been splurging on sweets this week.

To be very specific in my dream I looked in the mirror and my mid section was ALL THERE!

  I need these pictures to help me keep fighting for the life I want to keep.  Yesterday the food yelled louder than the self restraint.

Thankfully this is my actual middle just 2 days ago. Maybe this is my subconscious warning me to do something now before I end up back there.  1 pound at a time is all it takes.  I am 15 pounds more than I really want to be so maybe I just need to find the strength to NOT EAT all the fluff and stick to just the REAL WHOLE FOODS! and in moderation!!! Not MAYBE, I HAVE TO!

Snack Ideas

I love pictures so here I will post pictures of some of my go-to snacks.  Yes they are mostly store bought and processed but when you need something quick and you don’t feel like fruit or veggie or you already ate all of the colorful foods in the house here is what I grab:

(This is a very thick yummy fruit drink.  1 small banana, 1 sugar-free drink packet whatever flavor you like (this was kiwi-strawberry) and 1 1/2 cups frozen strawberries blended together.)