Healthy Heart, Happy Heart

me on my run

This is me in all  my sun squinty glory!  You may not be able to tell, but I am pretty happy in this pic.  Ok, you can't tell but come on now, I'm blinded by the sun and trying to take a selfie while running. :)  I have made mention MANY times before (Running Along, Have running shoes, can travel, Re-program my run, Put my face on the milk carton!) my love of running.  I used to run multiple times a week...then the doc said no more when I was prego with mini me.  After that little ball of perfection came forth, I started again and things weren't quite right...but I muddled through.  Then I broke my foot (and didn't realize it) and after a year of on again off again pain, had to have surgery.  Since that point...I have been trying to find a show that didn't feel like it was basically killing my feet when I run/workout/etc.  I am hoping that the most recent order I made is my "knight in shining treads"...more on that is to come though in a later post. 

I decided to start the couch to 5K program, well I talked about it and the good ole hubs actually pushed me into finally starting...and I am LOVING it!  I forgot JUST how good that runners high can be.  I'm easing back in and just loving it.  It's my time for just me...and my kiddos are loving seeing me go!  Now, I've said before on my face book page that I have been lucky enough to join the ranks of three other AMAZING writers on another blog page as well, The Journey, and I hope you will check us out over there too!  Lots of great things happening!  Well last week to get ready to kick off Get Active America Week I talked about this whole "getting back into running thing."  I it has been go time ever since.

Something different this time around is where I am running.  To keep it as easy as possible to start, I am just running in my neighborhood.  I used to be a trail runner...and then was relegated to the treadmill when the weather didn't cooperate...but this time I am just hitting the pavement (literally)  which means no excuses!  C25K is a 3 day a week program, so as long as I check the forecast...I am good to go.  It rained and rained yesterday so as I was leaving work I bundles up in my raincoat, got on my rain boots and headed down the 3 flights of stairs...imagine my surprise when it was sunny and beautiful!  I mean, I went for a short walk at lunch and it was MISERABLE...so this was practically a miracle.  My first thought...I can run tonight!

So I am on track...and loving it.  I am making my heart happy and healthy and making time for me and being cheered on (literally) by my family!  What an amazing feeling.  I am so blessed.  On top of that...we are continuing our "get outside when you can" plans with the kids and being active and playing outdoors whenever the weather allows.  So after dinner last night and before family dog walk time...mini me and I got in some badminton, bubble mowing and chalk drawing.  Then it was dog walk, bath, treat and bed right before the storms rolled back in.  All this healthy activity is making my heart healthy yes...but this precious time with my family is what is REALLY making my heart happy!!

my beauty making something beautiful

Add on to ALL of this excitement the fact that I just found out yesterday that I was selected to be an I'm Fit Possible Ambassador!!!  I feel like this is the start of a wonderful windfall of good fortune due to good health!  How exciting! 

I like to move it, move it

Yesterday was a big day for me step wise.  I always laugh at how many more steps I get at home on the weekends as compares to during the week at work.  I laugh because my parking garage is a quarter mile walk from my building so I do that twice a day, I work on the 3rd floor so I do those stairs at least twice a day, I am up moving around to and from meetings, other offices, the restroom...and some days I am lucky to hit my goal of 11K.  Even with workouts, some nights I find myself jogging in place until I feel that sweet little vibration on my wrist saying that fitbit captured my 11K steps for the day. 

Yesterday was a perfect reminder of how much more active I am at home.  This badge is the one I earned yesterday.  I hit (and exceeded) 20K steps in one day.  It was a gorgeous day, sunny with a nice breeze, 78 degrees, so we set to spring cleaning and airing out the house, got the kiddos outside playing, did a lot of yard clean up from the winter...all for not as it is supposed to snow again tonight.  Don't even get me started on that one though. 

mini me enjoying the sandbox

my girls kicking the soccer ball around together

It was SO nice out.  We spent all day Saturday (another beautiful day) enjoying the big kid in 2 soccer games.  Mini me had a nice sideline game going herself with me for a bit, then Dadoo, then Papa...then another little girl who was there watching her big sister play.  After we got home though it was snack and bedtime, and my mini me was NOT happy.  She didn't get to do anything that SHE wanted to do, so we made a mental list and set to it Sunday morning.  Some things were added as we went along because she hadn't even thought of them.  How did I get 20K steps (outside of cleaning and laundry)...this is how:

Mini Me's Nice Day Wishlist

• play Polly Pockets
• play Littlest Pet Shop
• play cots (aka school...she likes setting up for naptime)
• ride bike
• ride big wheel
• ride scooter
• build a fort
• play soccer in the front yard
• play in the sand box
• play in the yard
• do chalk drawings

By the end of the day we had dinner and a bath and were pretty tired out.  The past few nights bedtime ahs been a meltdown because we were at THAT point of overtired.  Last night, we hit the meltdown at bath time, so by the time we were jammied, teeth brushed, and ready to go...she snuggle next to me in bed and was out literally in 5 minutes.  I am excited that (sporadically) the nice weather is here and we will have many more days like yesterday.  I would say that Sunday was a success for both of us.

 

 

 

Not So Guilty Pleasures

Good bye guilt!  I can honestly say that I never thought I would be able think those words, let alone say them out loud.  I have always been an "all in" kind of gal, so when I make a plan of attack and it doesn't follow through 100% I always tended to chuck it all as a failure.  I would feel so guilty about missing a workout, or eating more calories then I allotted myself for a day that I would go on a bender and wallow in my guilt and depression over it.  I always come back to you though, my readers and I feel a sense of loyalty to you.  To explain why I failed or how I am going to succeed (fingers crossed) next time. 

So the hubs has been sick and I have just been feeling  out of sorts, so my workouts have been less then stellar, as in I remembered that counting taking the dog for a walk counts as SOMETHING!  food wise I have been okay though for the most part, a little over on a few days, but diligently  tracking.  Last night though I was in shock and a bit terrified to input my dinner.    We went to a new (to us) restaurant and the special was an Italian buffet.  As I have been avoiding gluten I was worried about my tummy first and foremost, but then all that cheese and sauce and deliciousness and quite frankly my mouth started to water at the thought of lasagna.

After trying (small GO ME) portions of various things, and devouring my salad, I ended up doing ok for the night.  It was the ice cream cone after my 12 year olds band concert that pushed my calories over the top for the day (totally worth it BTW).  What was most shocking was even while I was eating, I thought to myself...tomorrow is another day.  You don't have to be perfect all the time.

This line of thought s still new to me, but the fact that I am getting there makes me believe that this time the journey is different.  I think I will be MUCH more successful at my attempts this time.  We are back on track today calorie wise, have a few good workouts lined up for the next few days.  I'm ready to rock!

 

How do you handle guilt on your journey?

Gold Medal weekend

We are BIG fans of the Olympics in our house!  We were actually on vacation the last time the summer Olympics came on and raced to a stopping point for the night to make sure we got to see the opening ceremonies.  My oldest understands what the Olympics are all about and enjoys the ceremony of it...my mini is still figuring it out so to help...we took advantage of our snow days this week and made some Olympic themed crafts to get her into the spirit!  (Yeah, each colored ring has a different tactile bit of fun on it).

As I have been coming to grips with my new attitude on my own fitness, and that of my family, I have discovered a whole new importance to the Olympic games.  In the past I have sat in awe of the talent and artistry of these athletes...but for the first time that I can remember I am thinking about how I can use them to motivate myself and my family.  Do we need (or want) that level of discipline, no...but think of the power of fitness and good health.  (Yes, I am choosing to ignore anything artificial that may have helped some in the past rise to the top).

I can sit with my girls and explain to the mini how much practice and time goes into something, and now that she is involved in m ore activities we can draw comparisons,  Just last night while watching the figure skating qualifiers she said "Mom, its like ballet on ice."  YES!!!  It is...and she sees it.  So we talked about how you have to eat healthy to fuel your body and you have to exercise to be able to do the jumps and things.

I am looking forward to the Olympics because...well they are the OLYMPICS, but I am also looking forward to seeing how my girls react and comment on seeing these great athletes!

And now...the torch...

 

Will you be watching Team USA?  What is your favorite winter Olympic event?

WORKing out

I have mentioned in previous posts that I am participating in online challenge with The Journey, and this week one of our challenges was to get in 3-4 reps of 5 dead lifts on each leg.  Well, as I was summarizing my "dead lift experiences" I was actually laughing out loud at how ridiculous I must have looked trying to balance in these dead lifts with both children and pets trying to break my concentration.  It got to the point where I finally decided, forget it...I will do this at work.  You see, I have a traditional 9-5 job, but I get to work it in a 7-3 format instead.  What makes this so great (well besides being able to pick my kiddos up from school myself) is that many days I am in the office solo in the mornings for upwards of 2 -2.5 hours.  Perfect time for workouts! :)

Well, as many of you may remember this is not my first time using the office space as a gym.  No, I'm not talking about the fancy gym that we get the free week pass to twice a year, I am talking about the actual office as a gym space.  See I stumbled upon the POP Pilates series on YouTube back in July and it has been a life saver some days, as its the only moving I get.  I said it once and I'll say it again, These are ah-may-zing!  The ones I have tried so far are the Saddle Bag Shaver, the Call me Maybe Squat Challenge and the Slimmer Inner Thighs & Runners Calves Workouts. Between the dead lifts and these I have quite a routine going, bit it got me thinking, what else can I do while at my desk all day?!?!  Enter pinterest. ;)

Now, I will admit I have not tried all of these, but thought I would share what I found out there in the land of pinning with you. 

Going Well offers these easy exercises to do at the office, this one has great little stick figures to "show you the way", nothing too complex and it breaks it down by body area.

Infofit offers this office workout, including treatment for common office related injuries.

And one of my personal favs, office yoga from Yoga Relief Tips. 

I also like to take the stairs every day (my office is on the 3rd floor) and I tend to park on the 4th floor of the parking garage and take the steps there too.  What are you doing in your everyday work routine to help get yourself in better shape?

Not "flaking" out

As the weather gets colder and we distance ourselves from News Years's I know that in the past with the dropping of snow flakes came the dropping of resolutions, at least it always did for me in the past.  But this year I am not (snow) flaking out!  I can tell that this time around with my workouts and eating habits its different.  This time it feels like the stakes are higher, like we (the hubs and I) are REALLY going to commit to it.  Some of it is that we are realizing we aren't getting any younger (HA) but I think it all comes back to one conversation, one moment after a workout when my amazing hubs said he felt ALIVE!!  That made it all click into place.

Part of what spurred me to start this blog was the need for accountability out side of myself.  To know that there is a group of people who are looking for me to succeed, who are cheering me on from a distance.  I love that about this blog and about the facebook page, but it's more than that. I wanted to be a good role model for my kids and inspire them into being healthier.  And I have to say I am seeing it succeed!   My oldest has always been good, she is an athlete.  She is also now a pre-teen though which means a good chunk of her free time is supposed ton be dedicated to texting, instagraming, and pinning right? LOL  So when there are breaks in her sporting schedule we do need to nudge her some...this has been fun.  I did get her to join her sister in some Wii fit games last week and that was fun, after forcing her to do boot camp a few weeks ago (terrible Mom I know).  :)

My mini me, well she is a workout junky!  She loves her yoga, just "upgraded" (read more expensive) dance classes to one that includes acrobats along with tap and ballet, and we took the plunge (love my wordplay today) with swim lessons.  SHE is the one who asks the hubs and I everyday...when are you working out today?  Are you working out.  She likes to sit on the couch with the ipad and look up and cheer us on, or count down reps with the videos.  How awesome is that!

And yesterday, I caught the hubs tracking his food on myfitnesspal too!  We are finally becoming the family I had hoped we would become when this blog started!  And as we get closer to better health, I realize what seemed like such a HUGE step then is really just a baby step now.  This isn't about losing a few pounds anymore, this is about life style choices....and life in general.  I am proud to sit here and say how STRONG I am starting to feel.  Thin, no but strong YES!  And I can honestly say I'd rather be strong.  I am proud to see muscles toning and building, and I LOVE the way I feel.  Just as my hubby said almost 2 short months ago...I feel alive!

 

2014....this is OUR year!!

Blog of the Week and MORE vacation (is it possible)

Ellen Barrett Fusion Fitness



 

I am feeling the love this week!  As I said on Monday, the hubs got hit the motivation button and we are a go!  I started with my fav workout by Ellen Barrett, Fat Burning Pilates, it was like welcoming home an old friend.  I was a bit disgusted with how out of shape I have let myself become, but at the same time was flying high afterwards!  Gotta love those endorphins!!  I was "feeling the burn" yesterday when I woke up, but was still so happy I had done it.  I decided to ease myself back in with an every other day schedule, so yesterday it was.  Now Tuesdays in my house are a mess.  My girls come home from school then my oldest has her riding lesson from 5-6 and soccer from 615-8 (we are late to soccer), what this means for mini me is hanging with mom or dad from 5-6 and PLAYGROUND from 615-8.  Well, the hubs has 1 more week before his students come back so he was able to take the big girl to riding leaving me a big open time slot...what to do, what to do????  Mini me needed a snack to refuel after pre-k and get ready for the playground so I got her some water and grapes and asked her if Mommy could workout while she snacked and played on the computer. She was agreeable as long as I added more grapes to her bowl first so it was set. :)  I hit that FBP workout again and was SO happy I did!  Got a workout, a shower then we were off to meet Dadoo and Sissy at soccer (aka playground) and then we sent Dadoo home to workout while I waited for practice to end.  Win-win!! 

 

After everyone was in bed I decided to scan the Ellen Barrett site for more videos...and found her blog.  She is an amazing teacher and I love her DVD's so imagine how excited I was to  find that she has a blog with a good collection of workout vlogs on it!  Yet again win-win!!  If you like working out in the privacy of your own home (as I do most of the time), and are looking for a workout that will trim and tone you without the instructor being too over the top, I highly recommend you check out Ellen's site!

 

This resurgence in motivation ties in well to the second leg of our vacation too.  Mini me loves, I mean LOVES the beach!  So we thought it would be nice to spend a day at the ocean and celebrate in the sand with the girls!  We had found a few nice looking beaches (at least on their websites) not too far from DC.  After researching a bit and talking to friends we decided to take the girls to Bethany Beach in Delaware.  We had SO much fun!  It was perfect weather, about 80 with a nice breeze off the ocean.  It was crowded but not too crowded, we were able to set up our blanket right up towards the edge of the water so we had plenty of sand for castle building and were able to run back and forth to get water.  This gloriously relaxing day at the beach made us stop and consider a beach vacation for next year.  Both the girls had fun, the hubs and I got to just stop and chill, it was so nice.  We are always so busy on our vacations that we need a vacation from vacation by the end.  Since coming home we have debated postponing next year's trip to Disney World a year and maybe renting a place at a beach for a week...we have friends that do it and we could go the same time as them so the kids could all hang together some.  This is our driving force of motivation right now...a week of parading around in our bathing suits...literally, I haven't felt this strongly about a goal since I was engaged.  I don't' needed to be "wedding dress" fit but I could be tighter and toner in areas...this could be a great way to make a life style change (since we have a year to work on it). 

 

OOOHHHH and if you have a chance to go to Bethany, make sure you stop and check out Grotto's for lunch.  YUMMY!!  My finicky 11 year old declared them having the worlds best fries!!  We had pizza, fried, wings and salad...all VERY good!!

 

 

 

Food and Fitness Fun (+ a lil FMM)

Okay, so I have been talking a lot lately about how I want to and have been trying to change how I eat and get back on track with my workouts. If you have been reading my blog for a while now (thanks) you also know that I feel like there are many times that the universe sends me signals, many more since crossing the "mid thirties" line and the great metabolic slow down.  So I started this weekend of with some worry.  Despite all the miles I have been tracking with the old pedometer, I knew it was going to be tough.  We had Friday night cocktail festivities for the hub's bday with some of our closest BFF's, then we had the cake and yumminess festivities with just the girls Saturday which ends with leftover cake goodness Sunday, Monday...you get the picture.

So I basically hid like a coward from MFP and the scale all weekend.  It was cowardly I know, but at the same time ok.  I enjoyed not thinking about the scale at least.  So, last night my big kid was out playing with friends and the little one was stir crazy, so I asked her if she wanted to hit the playground.  OF COURSE!!  Duh mom, right?!?!  So I asked the hubs to go with but he actually made us some homemade (aka YUMMY with a capital YUM) bread and needed to let it finish baking and then do a cooling process.  So I went to get the mini me ready and he says that he wants to work out.  Awesome!  Whenever her gets motivated and started he is SO good about staying on track and he tends to motivate me.  SO, good wife that I am, I say well I will take mini to the playground and she can ride her bike there and back (she needs to practice her pedaling) and that will take some time then I can give her a half an hour at the playground so he should all in all that should take about 45-60 so he should be able to work out while we are gone.  And like that, it's a plan!

So mini me and I grabber her shoes and helmet and were off.  now this may not seem like a big deal, but my sweet little bear generally pedals up and down the drive way and then calls it quits, so the fact that she agreed to ride all the way to the playground is pretty fantastic...the fact that she DID it was off the charts awesome!  She did great by the way!  She was so proud of herself for doing it.  I'm so proud of her too!  She did about a .75 mile ride in her own sweet time (and I got the benefit of the walk since I was beside her in case she fell or needing help steering-which she hardly needed). 

When I got home hubby had worked out and showered all ready (guess we were gone longer then I realized) then he quickly took mini me for a bath and started dinner with the prompt "You're turn."  So, feeling motivated already by his good example, I got in a GREAT workout!  It was painful, sweaty and gross...but felt SO good!

I also took this weekend as an opportunity to try something new and good for me food wise.  While at Earthfare on Saturday, I saw almond milk on the shelf in the dairy case.  I have been reading a lot about the health benefits of choosing almond milk over cow milk and have been wanting to try it, but didn't want to get a full sized carton for fear of it been "yucky."  So while at the store the hubs and the big girl found me this:

How cute is this little single serving sized almond milk!  It was perfect for a taste test...and guess what...Momma likey!  My hubs tasted it and was not as impressed, he will stick with the very vanilla soy milk that we buy for him and the big kid...the big kid refused to try therefore the little kid refused to try.  I have a feeling though that I can get the little one to try it with me when we are alone!  :)  Baby steps to better health!

What are some foods that you have switched to on the quest to better health?

 

 

A few more DC pics to enjoy:

and now some Friend Making Monday!!

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section at: http://www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

School Days

1.  What was your favorite subject in school?  I always loved English, although history was a very close second.

2. Did you attend elementary school and high school in the same town? No, I did K-2 in a bigger city and then we moved the summer between 2-3, but from grade 3-12 I was in the same town.

3.  Are you still friends with anyone that you met during school?  I still have a few people from grade school that I am close to.

4. What activities were you involved in as a student? I was in wind ensemble, was a majorette, soccer, track and dance.

5. Did you bring your lunch, or did you get it at school?  I bought my lunch every day.  We actually had a cute little salad bar and I hit that most of the time.

6. Did you enjoy shopping for clothing and school supplies?  I loved it…still do, it’s a whole new experience doing it as the parent.

7. Name a song or a band that reminds you of high school.  Toad the Wet Sprocket. <3

8. Did you like school?  I loved school, I work for a university now and love that!  I plan to go back and get my Masters at some point! 

9. How long have you been out of school?  Do I have to admit this????

10.  What did you like most about school?  What did you dislike most about school?  My high school was very small so I guess at times I disliked that…everyone knows you and knows your business…at the same time I loved going to a small school and have a hard time wrapping my head around how big the district is that we live in now for my own kids experiences.

 

 



Vacation Recap: DC plus BOTW

Okay, so I have been promising to update about vacation for over a week now so I thought I'd give you a little taste of the fun today.  Sadly, the only pics I have access to right now are the ones from my phone...so I apologize now for "graininess". 

For our family vacation this year we decided to visit DC, Bethany Beach, DE and Kennywood Amusement Park (Pittsburgh, PA).  Washington DC because its a short drive and we love it.  It's great for kids with all of the (free) museums, landmarks and overall sense of wonder.  Bethany Beach, because we have never taken our girls to the ocean and with little bear loving the beach so much, it seemed like the right time to do it, and Kennywood because it was on the way home and seriously...who doesn't love a few good roller coasters?!?!

So we began our trip in DC.  I love going to DC.  We always stay in the same hotel which is a short walk to the mall so once we get there we can park our car and just hoof it through the capital.  LOVE that!  We arrived at dinnertime on Friday, so we ate then of course needed to walk off some dinner (awesome buffet at the hotel and bonus...kids eat free!!!)  So after dinner we headed over to the mall.  Took a few pictures (see above).  We were equidistant between the Capitol Building and the Washington Monument.  The monument is still closed for repair due to the earthquake on 8/23/11, so it is lit up but completely surrounded with scaffolding.

 

We decided to head towards the monument because my hubby wanted to see the WWII Memorial at night with all the lights, and let me just say he was dead on with that idea.  The memorial itself is beautiful and impressive, but all lit up at night just made it breathtaking.

The girls LOVED it.  They danced around and we got pics under the Ohio wreath and sat and just enjoyed the beauty if it all for a few.  It's cool to be able to look off into the distance as well and see Mr. Lincoln sitting there in all his glory watching over DC.  We enjoyed the cool evening walk back to the hotel and all quickly crashed for the night.

The next morning we were up and at 'em early.  We had a list of things we wanted to do, which included seeing Mr. Lincoln.  My oldest was set on it.  So we started our trek and our first stop as at the Sculpture Garden, then off to one of our favs the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.  Both my girls love the history museum at home, so this stop was a no brainer.  It's an amazing museum if you haven't been there...GO!

 

 

We then stopped and took pics by the castle which is an impressive site to behold from the outside, but tell a 3 year old little girl that she is about to go inside a castle and, well, if you have ever been you know what a let down it was for her. :)

Our next stop was at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.  This museum is amazing!  So beautiful.  So glad we decided to give it  look-see!  The whole thing is just gorgeous inside and out and they had a fabulous interactive kids area.

Our evening is a whole other post so I will leave you in suspense for that.  I want to make sure I get to this weeks Blog of the Week as well.

Coffee Cake and Cardio

 

There are a few things I look forward to each morning at my desk at work, my cup of coffee and reading the latest installment from Ashley over at Coffee Cake and Cardio. 

Ashley is amazing!  She is a fitness inspiration to me.  It seems she is always on the ball with making sure she gets in some sort of workout daily.  She is the center for the DC Divas, the professional women football team in DC, she is training for a 10K, and she has just revamped her view on food and what she eats.  She actually is one of the key people that got me thinking more about what foods I eat and how they furl my body rather then how many calories are in them. 

Ashley lives in the greater DC area, and while my pics are a bit too pixilated, she just had a great post today Weigh-In Wednesday: A Monumental Run, and she has some great pictures of places I just mentioned above.  Maybe next time I am in the DC area I will be able to meet up with her IRL.  We found a great little place to eat near the Capitol, but that is for another post.  All I can say is YUMMY!!!

Ashley is a blogger extraordinaire and if you haven't yet, you really MUST stop by her page!

Starting point

I know, I know I made promises about vacation updates...trust me they are coming.  I'm hoping if I leave you in suspense it will guarantee your return to my blog. :)  That and I need to finish my photo uploads so I can share  some good pics with you. 

I have been planning my triumphant return to my workout/healthy eating schedule, and with that comes the question which comes first.  If the hubs and I have learned nothing else from various diets and workout plans its that you can't do it all at once.  I think many people probably aren't as successful (note: not fail) when first starting out because they think they have to do everything at once.  They think, I want to lose weight and be healthy so I have to cut all of my fav foods out and exercise 7 days a week.  For those that actually CAN do this, I applaud you.  I wish I had enough time in my day to workout everyday...but with two kiddos and a job and pets and a social life it's not always the case.  I used to feel awful if I missed a workout.  I would feel guilty and ashamed of myself for failing.  No more!  I mean after all...

I love how I feel after a good workout, but its not better then how I feel after some QT with my hubby and kiddos.  I have been trying to find activities that we can do together.  Our local neighborhood rec was offering a Zumba class that was a parent-child one so I'm hoping that comes back in the fall.  I think my little mini me would LOVE Zumba! 

So in deciding where to start I have opted for getting back to healthy foods first.  Hearing my little one ask for salads on vacation reminded me how our bodies not only need certain foods, but will actually crave them.  We ALWAYS have fruits and veggies on hand at home for snacks...that wasn't the case on vacation and her little body was craving the healthy, wonderful taste of veggies (bursting with pride about that by the way)! 

I have been researching and am looking for input from you now.  I have heard and read both sides of the coin with the Dirty Dozen list.  I love that there is an emphasis on what is best to eat organically, I'm sad that people think if they can't get those foods they cant eat them at all. I think my "winner winner (skinless) chicken dinner for right now is the Prevention magazine  25 Ridiculously Healthy Foods.  I love seeing a list of foods (not judged by their organic or inorganic qualities) that are good for you with a brief reasoning as to why you should eat them.  It's also a list that is reasonable and easy to do with kids.  I can honestly say that my kids eat about 95% of the things on this list...many without even knowing it. :)  My big girl is harder.  She has her dad's sensitive taste buds with a very basic palette.  I can't really hide avocado in her food, but I can sneak flax seed oil in.  It's a give and take.

After coming home from vacation we need to do some grocery shopping and I have decided that this list, these 25 "superfoods" are going to be in my cart at some point or other.  I want to keep a healthy rotation going.  will they all be always, no.  I am a realist.   Do I wish we could keep salmon in the house to have whenever the mood struck, yes...but truth be told fish tastes better fresh so that is a buy today eat today or tomorrow item.  It's also not native to my area so its priced higher, so maybe we do some tilapia or orange roughy instead.  As long as we are getting some fish in every once in awhile.  My little one likes fish sticks...so I am planning a panko fish stick dinner soon.  She liked my homemade chicken strips...so we shall see.

You may be asking how I decided to start with food first, well like I said we need to grocery shop.  But all kidding aside, since I have been doing this step challenge at work I have realized that I actually do move a lot more then I thought I did.  Surprising since I have a desk job...but with just my everyday moving around (dog walks included) I am averaging 5-6 miles a day, so I KNOW I am already doing something physical that is good for me.  Going with food first seemed like the logical choice.

 

What are some of your "must have" food items to keep you going?  Or what are some good substitutions you have found/made for some of your not-so-healthy cravings?

Blog of the Week

Isn't it funny that the people you knew and were close to in your childhood tend to be the ones you come back to?  You may not reconnect on the same level, but you still reach out to them and have such high hopes for them and their families.  This weeks Blog of the Week is written by that kind of friend. 

When I was in 10th-11th grade I had a close knit group of friends that were a year ahead of me in school which meant I always had that fear in my hear of "What will I do when they graduate and leave me?"  One of those friends was Kate.  Kate was and is amazing!  A heart so open and sweet that you couldn't help but just love her.  It was the same with her family...I remember sleeping over on yoga mats in their living room and just smiling. 

Kate also opened my eyes to fitness and health on a different level.  I was active with dance, soccer and track...but outside of regular practice times and classes I didn't think much about my own good health.  For me that changed on March 25, 1993 when my Dad had a heart attack on the way to a dinner at our church.  He was (at the time) 46.  He had a triple bypass and is now doing well, but it made me stop and think. 

In the fall of that year I began to really know Kate.  She taught aerobics at the Y and encouraged me to take a class.  I LOVED her step aerobics class.  To this day I credit her for my mad step skills when I bust out the Wii fit and school my family in step. :)    We had so many great times together and when she graduated I was so sad.  As with people of that age...we drifted apart.

Fast forward almost 20 years later (holy cow really...are we THAT old) and welcome to Facebook.  Thanks to social media I have been able to catch up with Kate and see pics of her beautiful family.  And this year, born out of similar circumstances, Kate has started her own blog as well The Well Balanced Family, and has her own facebook page for her blog as well.  Kate is still an inspiration to me, and is on her won crazy journey to find a better, healthier life style for her and her family.  I encourage you wholeheartedly to check out her blog!!