Day 2

Yesterday was great!!! Everything I set out to accomplish, I accomplished. I ran three miles, I prayed and read the Bible, and I ate very healthy!!! Then I rested, something I haven't been doing a lot of. I was pleased with the way the day went. 

Today is church, grocery shopping and working out at the gym. I am looking forward to productivity today. The most important thing is getting started!!!! Lord, help!

Day 1

It is so hard to get motivated any more. I feel like I have so much on my plate, and I have goals in mind and they feel so hard to achieve. But the real problem I have is perfectionism. I am an all or nothing-type. I always feel as if I don't get do everything on the list, then I have failed. Or, I feel overwhelmed, lose motivation and then feel like a failure. I want to start today with three goals: daily devotions, running/workout and healthy eating. These are the areas that I feel the most defeated when I lose focus and motivation. Help, Lord!!  The most important thing is to take the first step. Prayerfully I will report back tomorrow with a positive report!!

Starting Again

Well, it has been quite a while...I have thought a lot about this blog, my life, the direction I would like to go, and the needs of my family.  What do I want this to be about?  What do I want to be the primary focus?

I think I should focus on goal-setting here.  In my life, I have a few important, personal goals (In no particular order):

1) Get out of debt.
2) Save money.
3)Maintain a certain ideal weight.
4) Daily spend time in the presence of the Lord

I think this blog should reflect those goals.  This means, that I will be showcasing the different means that I use to track my spending and saving.  I will focus on the frugal means I use daily to accomplish those goals.

Additionally, since not having to spend money on new (bigger!) clothes is important to me, I will also showcase how I maintain a certain weight so that I can keep the same wardrobe with very little additions :)

And prayerfully I will hold myself accountable in this space for my daily spiritual goals...prayer and reading should be documented here as well.

Enjoy!  I am going to add blogger to my phone to facilitate this process and hopefully deliver daily, consistent content.

April Fool's Sick Day

I am home today, dealing with a dramatic and sick child :)

I have committed to running every day in the month of April...and I have been up since 3 am, so it was so hard to do it this morning, but I did! 2.5 miles done before all the kids were up. I ran and stretched. I just had a nice cup of tea and I am about to sleep while the kids are napping:) 

Talk to you soon!

Trip of a Lifetime!

On the flight back home after a visit with my brother in the midwest! It was such a great trip and it strengthened my resolve to get back to running and caring for my health. I did not work out, nor did I restrict my diet. My sole promise was that  I would restart work on fitness as soon as we touch down. 

We had some amazing food! I enjoyed myself too much, but savored every bite that passed through my lips!

I get full just looking at the pictures!

And a bit of springtime was on deck to give those of us on the east coast a bit of hope that winter will indeed come to an end!

I have registered for a race:) I am racing at an autism awareness event next month! I am so excited :) Now I have to start that training process! 

My prayer is that I can regain the consistency and motivation that I had before I hurt my ankle. So, my training plan through this weekend is as follows:

Tonight: smoothie, vitamin and 32 oz of water. Rest.

Thursday: run 1 mile, walk 2 miles. 5 push-ups, 25 cruches, 1 pull up 3x. Smoothie and vitamin, salad, veg dinner.

Friday: run 2 miles, walk 1. Same as above.

Saturday: run 2 miles, walk 1. P90x3.

Sunday: run 3 miles. Stretch. Maybe pool workout?

I'll update my daily progress, as my goal is to PR next month. 5 weeks to get there!! Also, I will do a progressive training plan to eventually run a marathon in the fall :) Pray for me, and if you can, run with me!

Daniel Fast Day 2

Yesterday was the second day of the Daniel Fast and I must say, the eats weren't bad, but the spiritual part was hard (and still is!).  Coming to terms with certain things that have been weighing on my mind and putting them squarely before the Lord in prayer is not as easy as it sounds, or as easy as it should be.  Acknowledging sin, grappling with heavy things, and putting burdens on the altar should come naturally, but I am finding out during this time of prayer and fasting that I have been holding onto a lot of ugly stuff and it hasn't been easy even acknowledging that fact!

Yesterday I started the day off with prayer and Bible study.  I finished Hebrews and read the introduction to James.  Next was my usual Apple Cider Vinegar in hot water with lemon because the coughing at night has been terrible!

I finally ate half of a cantaloupe at work along with bananas and peanut butter

My lunch was unpictured but it was a roasted sweet potato and cabbage with avocado.  Dinner was roasted veggies with avocado

Hoping that today I can put some of those spiritual lessons that I am absorbing into some real heart action!!!

Daniel Fast

My pre-Zumba raisin and almond fuel!

Yesterday I branched out again and tried the Zumba Toning class at the gym.  I have only done Zumba one other time, with my best friend at her gym.  This was a little more intense, using hand weights in coordinated steps with the music.  I was probably the youngest person there...the class was packed with senior citizens.  But can I just say how awesome they were?  These people were using weights and staying in time to the music with no problem.  I was truly in awe.  I mean, they were mostly old enough to be my grandparents, but they were encouraging ME with their level of fitness!! I did enjoy the class, but if I go back, I will use heavier weights.  The instructor suggested I start out with 1 pound weights to get used to the steps.  It was a great workout, though.  I also did an ab circuit afterwards.

After the workout, I did my grocery shopping to prepare for the Daniel Fast that our church's Children's Ministry leaders are doing together.  While at the local grocery store, I took notice of the magazine rack at the check-out, and I wondered why?  Why does anyone care about the lies lives of these people who really have no substantive importance in our own lives?  Why do we invest so much in these publications?  And why are some of these highly inappropriate magazines so readily displayed in a place where my (advanced-reading) six year old can see?  Its disturbing, really.

Sorry for the rant!  Post work-out I enjoyed the rest of the balsamic roasted veggies with rice and avocado.

I also sautéed cabage from my Dad's garden with onion and curry powder, made apple chips that were immediately devoured, had an apple and two slices of pizza.

This morning, in dedication to the fast, I enjoyed some Bible reading in Hebrews

with a side of banana.

Breakfast was savory:

Baked sweet potato, avocado and sautéed cabbage.

You can find more information about the fast at ultimatedanielfast.com.  There is a wealth of information about how the fast is done and the Biblical source for the fast.  I have done it before and am so happy to be involved again.  I know that I want to focus on the word SURRENDER during this fast and during this year!  Reading my Bible today and yesterday I realized that in order to surrender, I have to also focus on faith...having the faith that God is who He says He is and will do what He said He will do!! Its easy to surrender to God when I remind myself of these things!

Right now, my body is in considerable pain from two days of classes and weight circuits. I will find a way to move myself that is comfortable and easy, all while preparing for the new work week!!  

Enjoy your Sunday!

Spinning

New year, new fitness goals. I want to make some real strides (no pun intended) with running, but those goals have to wait until my ankle heals. ( I fell and hurt my ankle a coule of weeks ago while running). But, to build on the base that I created by running so much in recent months, I decided to actually use my gym membership! Yesterday that meant trying out a spin class.

Now, I am not an introvert, but I am also not one that likes to try new things. I stick to what is comfortable to me, and that is one of the reasons why my running progress was so slow (I stayed in my comfort zone and rarely pushed myself). So yesterday was somewhat of a big deal, as I branched out all by myself and exercised in a way that was completely new to me.

The class was 45 minutes, and like most spinning classes, it was done in the dark with little black lights outlining the room. The music was high energy and the instructions changed constantly so there was no time to get bored or to really relax. In the first two minutes, my thighs were burning so bad that I wondered how I was going to be able to finish! Also, I learned the importance of tension when changing positions the hard way...needless to say, my shin won't forget the feeling of being smacked by the pedal when the tension was too low in third! But, I will be going back...it was a lot of fun and an awesome workout.

For some eats:

I started off the day with Celestial Seasonings tea steeped with hot water and a little bit of Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar. Can I just say how awesome this ACV is? I use it for so many things, but the early morning tea really helps with digestion and clears the way for whatever I eat the rest of the day. 

Breakfast was apples with cinnamon, 2 roasted sweet potatoes, and half an avocado.

Lunch was balsamic roasted veggies, brown rice and the rest of the avocado.

Dinner was a (unpictured) snack plate of hummus, rice cakes, apple slices, raisins, almonds and peanuts. And a hot cup of apple cinnamon tea for dessert :)

Today I plan to go to a Zumba class and do some weight training after. 

Enjoy your Saturday and don't forget to move something!

Happy 2015!!

Organically grown broccoli from my Dad's garden.

Happy New Year! I am sitting on my couch, on a rare day off, contemplating food, exercise, diets, weight loss, weight gain and all of the other things that are normally at the forefront of our minds at the turn of the year.  Yesterday, I gorged myself at an all-day brunch with my family and today I am ready to finally start anew.  I have some weight to shed, some running goals to reach and some food cravings to eliminate, so this January 1 came right on time!

Why is it so hard to start doing the right thing?  It is so easy to stay in bed rather than go to the gym, to eat chips rather than cut up some veggies, to order take-out rather than make a healthy dinner.  Discipline is so hard!! I fully understand Paul when he said "For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.  For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do, this I keep on doing." (Romans 7:18-19).  He (rightfully) says that this is a sin problem!  And this makes so much sense!! Knowing what is best for us, healthiest for us and what is God's will for us to keep us healthy and then doing otherwise sure sounds like sin to me :)

So, today, I am committing myself to moving something, eating better, and consulting the Lord when things seem outside of my control.  There are so many things that I would like to accomplish this year and each goal is going to require focus, discipline and healthy habits!  I am looking forward to documenting my progress in this space and holding myself accountable.