Bad at Math

Have you ever had one of those moments where you decide how you are going to move forward with a diet or exercise plan and you throw yourself in whole hog without doing ALL the research first.  Well friends, that is me.  Sometimes I get SO excited about starting something new that I am hoping will be the thing that "sticks" the thing that gives me the results I want to see, that I glaze over the details.  I think its one of the things my hubby loves about me, well, I am hoping that it is.  ;)

So we have been "low carbing" at our house for about a month now and are very happy with our results.  I am very excited to share too that once I got over the initial funk of how do I energize my body when I'm not loafing (Freudian) loading up on breads, pastas, chips...etc.  too that I really was able to embrace the results and add in a steady exercise program again too!  I even was mature enough to acknowledge that adding in exercise (especially my weight training) may stall the decline on the scale, but that was OK since I was toning my guns back up!

But then last Friday I had a palette problem.  Nothing tasted right.  My egg salad (made with mayo GROSS not miracle whip) tasted almost fishy...my Coke zero tasted overly sugary...what was happening!  I had to break down an eat...an apple.  WHAT!  Crisis, holy smokes!  Sadly, that was my honest reaction to start.  Apples are not going to help me stay under 20 carbs a day.  Did you just read that?  Under 20 carbs a day. What is wrong with that statement.  Until I went home and started playing with my carb tracker app and realizing the errors of my ways, nothing was wrong with that....but you see I had missed, in my overzealous nature one very important word...NET. 

You see, to get things started, I should be aiming to stay under 20 NET carbs a day.  That is a much different thing then 20 carbs.  How did I miss this?  Alas, accept it and move on with adjustment.  This for some reason made me think...OK, I can REALLY do this and be a little more forgiving.  You see take my nutrition drink I had this morning with breakfast.

Label says 5 under carbs...but that is a bit misleading.  With the low carb approach you have to do math...my arch nemesis...so what I needed to do was:

Total Carbohydrates
- Dietary Fiber
- Sugar alcohol
= Net carbs

Now my nice little drink is a mere 2carbs.  Whoo hoo!  Thank you carb tracker app, and I can't believe I am going to say it...but thank you math!

Feel Good Friday, so many good things

 It has been quite a while since I did a Feel Good Friday post, and this week I feel like there are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO many things to feel good about!  I don't even know where to start. 

Okay, so first I guess I'll start with the actual FGF icon I use.  I had accidentally deleted the cute little Feel Good Friday logo that I found on Google so this morning I was like, "duh, you need to try and find it again."  I enter it into Google and the first pic that comes up is the one above, and when I clicked on it..it linked back to MY BLOG!!!  How cool is that?!?!?!  I have been trying to read up on how to better promote this sweet little blog-o-mine, and was just so excited when I saw it connected to my blog. 

This amazing discovery was after a killer workout!  Today is a half day at work, so I did in fact get to sleep in and snuggle with my baby bear (which was the very best possible way to start my day), then I got to head over to the gym and get in a nice workout on my own.  Do you ever have those days where you just want to clear your head and workout alone?  Not to negate how fun the classes I have been talking with my boss are, but I needed a day to just be me.  I did 30 minutes on the elliptical

and sliced through 412 calories!  Then to cool down and stretch some, I did an additional 10 on the treadmill and burned another 55 or so.  I'm hoping to get a little Just Dance 4 in tonight with the girls...so despite thinking yesterday that I may get an hour to an hour and a half in the gym today...it was MUCH better snuggling a little longer and then playing later with the kiddos.  I was so happy with my workout that I even did the unprecedented and took a post work out pic.

All sweaty and gross and high on endorphins getting ready to hit the shower.  note I'm sporting my sweet workout top I got from Kelly G over at No Thanks to Cake.  I definitely did sweat like a pig today too.  Felt ah-may-zing!!!

The coolest part of the past 24 hours was when I checked my mail last night.  I have a friend who is just one of the most awesome people you could ever have the privilege to meet and she works for the DNC in Washington DC.  She added my husband and myself to a very elite list, and look what we got in the mail

That's right, and invite to the INAUGURATION!!!  What?!?!?!  Now granted, its only a commemorative invite and not an actual ticket to the event, but how cool to have that arrive in my mail yesterday.  I was feeling pretty important.

So you see how a Feel Good Friday post wasn't just a passing thought today, it was a must.  I feel good about dear friends, mind clearing workouts, building my "ePresence" and snuggling.

What are you Feeling Good about this Friday?

Take a sec and tell us your Feel Good Friday story on your blog and link it back up here in the comments section! Invite your readers to share as well.

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

I can't believe it!  It's already 2013!  What a whirlwind 2012 was for me.  I started this little blog-o-mine, began really working towards a healthier lifestyle, and grew overall as a person (in my personal character not my size luckily).

Tomorrow marks one year of blogging...I have to admit.  I was worried that with so many things that I start...that I would start this blog with a fire and it would fizzle within a few weeks...maybe months if I was lucky.  But I can say with great pride that it's something else I focused on and kept with. 

I started scrolling through some of my posts from the past year and wanted to highlight some of my favs...some I had forgotten about.  For those of you that are new to my blog, this will give you a better idea of what kind of craziness I enjoy :)

Here are my top 12 of 2012:

January:  While, it should be my very first post, I think it would have to be the Down with UADD post.  The idea behind UADD has been a long running joke in my family, and honestly...the clip art is too much.

February:  This one was hard, I highlighted some of my fav Crunch videos in February, and told you all about how much I enjoyed Ellen Barrett as a fitness genius, I think my fav was actually compliments of Kenlie over at All the Weigh with a Friend Making Monday post she did on travel.  Not only was it a fun way to share memories of great family va-cays, but it also got me thinking more globally (literally) in places I would like to see and experience. 

March: Sunshine on my Shoulders Makes me Happy was a fav for sure!  Sunshine, baby bear, great workout...what's not to love!!!  I wonder what the weather will hold for us this March...

April: ok, so I still have this deep seeded wish...this hope that one day, this will happen.  Fav post, hands down Like a Flash.  I mean, really...take a look and tell me you have never at least thought about how awesome it would be to have a flash mob at your disposal. :)

May: May was a hard month.  I had foot surgery in May and didn't really get to do as much as I had hoped because it was a much harder recovery than I had anticipated.  It's a toss up which post was my fav in May....either Get Active! because of it's integration of fitness with the little one, or  Moving Forward because to me, on a personal level, it signifies how far I had come already in my journey that I was planning for any and all possibilities with my foot.  Can we say proactive?!?!  :)

June: On the Road Again was my fav post in June.  Being back out in the sun, working out, showing my kiddos how important it is to have a healthy routine...discussing it with the little bear.  It's always good to go back to the very basics I try to understand why we do things...that's the only way to change and better ourselves!

July: Slow month on the blog front...only 4.  What a bum I was!  Speaking of bums...fav post of July...The Royal Flush!  The pride I shared with my little bear when she mastered the potty.  This was a major accomplishment and made the top 5 of great things that happened in our house for 2012! 

August:  I had a lot to be proud of in August.  Home organization, lots of cooking and meal planning started, but I think the post Don't Quit was my fav.  It wasn't even something I wrote, just a reminder.  Sometimes we need those little reminders to keep us focused. 

September: September is always a busy month in our house.  Three birthdays, school starting back, soccer starting back up...AHHHHH!  This year the birthday was a biggie, 35.  Instead of letting it get me down though, I think I did a fairly good job embracing it.  and on the cusp of the big event I focused in on things that help keep me motivated and going in I APPsolutely Love These. 

October: I love to talk about my kids.  It's a give in.  I am THAT parent, which is why Sweet Tooth is the top pick for October for me. I also liked that I tried something new with my post by adding  some additional info that I thought was informative.  What did you think?  Is it worth trying out again?

November: Well, well, wellness.  Taking responsibility for my health!

December: That love of talking about my kids...it extends to the whole fam and that is why I am loving A Family Affair.  Take time for what is important!

What have been some of your favorite posts?  What would you like to see more of?  Less of?