The Original Superwoman

I interact with people all day long and it never ceases to amaze me how strange things are. Sometimes things just happen, and at other times it feels as though we are being "gifted" and all the right things are happening for all the right reasons at exactly the right time.

Recently, a friend stumbled "further" into my life and I couldn't be more thankful. She has been so inspirational to me at a time when I needed it most. She probably doesn't know it, but she has taught me a great lesson. There comes a point when we are more important than our past and we must draw upon an untapped future-changing superpower! (This doesn't mean that she encouraged me to run around in Underoos and capes.) Maria helped me to see that we have the ability to change our future by simply including ourself in the priority list- and by valuing this, we are able to love our families more deeply, become more authentic with our friends, and respectful of ourselves when faced with tough decisions.

She continues to be a light in my week- if even by the light of my cell phone as she sends a text reminding me that I really didn't want to eat a tub of frosting because gas prices were on the rise. (Yes, I am quite capable of coming up with all kinds of excuses!) Our short Starbucks visits are sometimes worth their weight in gold... because she gets it. She gets how hard this struggle is and how badly I want to get there. She gets it because she has been there and embraces and learns from all the imperfections along the way.

I am so excited to say that Maria truly is Superwoman- She made lifetime this week! Although, we have yet to celebrate (damn her for running off for a 1/2 marathon!) I know it won't be long before we get to! She looks absolutely amazing!

Congrats my friend- I am happy for you! OP-4LFer!

Recently Mike and I took a trip to San Diego with our friend Maria. I've been meaning to blog about it- because this "Activity-cation" was definitely worth repeating! We basically decided to go last minute and although time was tight, we were resolute on fitting as much activity into our time as possible. Hmmmm... let me re-phrase that, Maria and I were resolute. Mike, on the other hand, committed to showing us some of the best food in San Diego! (It's all about balance!)

We left Saturday morning and arrived about 10am. We biked along the boardwalk, climbed the tallest peak in San Diego, and ran 6 miles along the beach only to leave by 2pm the following day. All in all, we got in a great amount of activity- but we gained so much more along the way. Almost instantly, we felt empowered and renewed. There were no doubts, no excuses... Just twitching muscles itching for more.

It was while I was jogging along the beach that I got to thinking about excuses. Exhaustion and sleep deprivation were beginning to set in - and it would have been fairly easy to quit, but I kept telling myself that I was looking for an excuse and that isn't who I am anymore. Prior to starting this journey, there were so many times in my life where I made up an excuse in order to NOT complete an activity. Hell, for that matter, I would say I was darn proficient in finding excuses to never START an activity. And if I'm being completely honest, it wasn't just activity- it was risks, goals, challenges, wants, needs, you name it! For me, all these excuses made it impossible to see what my priorities were. It clouded who I was and who I wanted to be. I became some fowl mixture of angry, embarrassed, and hopeless.

It's funny, people always ask me, "What made you want to lose the weight?" Apparently being 401 pounds and depressed wasn't reason enough? I never knew how to answer that until very recently. I ran out of excuses.

So in Jen style, I am typically haunted by a topic over and over again until I admit that I've learned the lesson... and scream from the mountain high that "Yes, I get it!" So this weeks haunting comes to me through a book called, "Hot Sweaty Mamas - Five Secrets to Life as a Fit Mom," by Kara Thom and Larae Kocanda.

It is an amazing book- and I highly recommend it. I don't want to spoil it for those who want to give it a read- but chapter 5 talks about eradicating excuses. In summary, it explains that there are differences between excuses and reasons. Since reasons are positive forces in decision making and excuses are negative forces, it becomes easier to differenciate the feelings that might result from each.

There was something that I loved written in Chapter 5:

Reasons are succinct; excuses take explaining.
Reasons don't leave room for second-guessing; excuses do.
Reasons are truth; excuses are half-truths at best
Reasons don't crumble on examination; excuses do.
Reasons are not driven by fear; excuses are
Reasons allow us to reach our potential; excuses help us cheat.

I know I have a lot of friends who are struggling with the same topic and I'm pretty busy dealing with my own excuses- so I definitely can't promise to save you from yours. But, I'm always more than happy to help you find a reason to be healthy. You know where to find me.

I'm in this for good- No Excuses.

My Reunion with Aunt Flo

Wow- this week was a toughie! My daughter was away at camp, work involved a gauntlet of hour long meetings, and I had the "stay in bed" cramps that coincided with the worst menstrual period of the year.

I have to say that since I have started exercising, my battle with bad periods has eased a bit, but this month anemia set in- and I was down for the count. Still looking back at the week, my new healthy habits held strong and I can walk away holding my head high as I near the end of it all.

What I did right:

• Went to bed by 10pm (6 out of 7 nights)
• Continued to attempt workouts; if only to walk/swim casually after experiencing dizziness
• Demonstrated self understanding and compassion
• Spent some time with my husband/family/friends
• Put some thought into workout schedule change (Allison goes back to school in one week)
  

What I could have done better:

• Resisted some of the emotional eating
• Blogged more (Next week I'll carry around a notebook so I can start writing during free time)
• Tracked more (Only did 4 full days)
  

I think what I am most proud of is that I was "self aware" this week. I maintained my emotions and knowingly made choices. I gave into some physical/emotional urges but never ate past my point of satisfaction. I continued to stay as active as possible given the conditions, and understood when my body wouldn't tolerate it. In other words, I embraced the "life" part of the program- which has definitely been my personal challenge. It's nice to know that my S didn't disappear off of my chest- I'm still pretty super!

Past Due Assignment -10 points!

So two weeks ago we were given a green index card and asked to identify an 8 week "New Years in July" goal.

Since I tend to be an over achiever, I worried and panicked as potential goals popped in and out of my head.

My gut instantly went to time management, as quite honestly I'm in a pretty good groove right now with the (eating right + activity = loss thing) but it is the (work + blogging + chores/errands = life thing) that keeps throwing me the curve balls.

In the perfect world I would: Go to bed early, get up and work out, get ready for work, then take Allison to school, work intently for 8 hours, come home make dinner while keeping up with my friends, help with homework while doing the dishes, walk the dog while listening to the news, shag a bit (news and politics make me randy!) rinse and repeat. (Sorry but I'm married now and have to be honest we shag on the rare occasion - since it is activity I think it applies!)

I could come up with a mild goal like track even better... but I know I would be cheating myself. So calling upon a previous "life lesson," I chose to pick one or two key goals... and focus on the tough stuff.

After ruminating for a week, I finally identified the 2 items and I've just completed week 1. Let's just call it what it was; a stretching and warm up week.

The first goal: Go to bed earlier. (Aim for 10:00pm)
I went to bed early 2 nights last week. Next week we are aiming for 4 weeknights! Should be easier since Allison is out of town. I also worked on my prerequisites. I spoke with Mike and together we will work to reduce bedtime TV and other late night non-activity activities.

The second goal: Blog Already!
I know blogging helps me figure things out and really helps me to see where I have been and where I am going. I've decided that rather than look for a topic to blog about- I'll actually just blog about whatever it is going on. After all, this blog is about journaling- not necessarily entertaining my giant audience of... 6 :) I'm hoping that the blogging thing will subsequently help me with the ruminating thing I seem to be very proficient at! Good thing we have hidden (or not so hidden) talents! So I'll aim for 2 blogs a week.

Alright- 12 minutes till bed time and it is seriously storming out! (Seriously afraid of lightening- so under the covers it is!)

Kid Gives Speech After Learning To Ride A Bike

I felt like this kid this week! Broken, bruised, and battered... but darn it, I feel happy! No more training wheels... Just me and the wind on my face as I hurdle over obstacles. I know it won't be the last time I take a spill (can't do anything about pot holes or other drivers not being observant) but each time I get up it seems to get just a bit easier.

Battery is fully charged!

What a weekend! (I am now thoroughly convinced that every weekend should be three days long!)

• Enjoyed a starlight picnic with the best daughter (and salad) ever!
• Watched a hot mother-runner beat her personal record!
• Dosed up on Vitamin D pool-side
• Celebrated the holiday with family, good friends, and fish tacos (yes, not your standard memorial day fattening-fare!)
• Had a great introspective dream!
• Slept in with a snuggly puppy
• Tested out my green thumb
• Completed a high intensity workout at the gym
• Had lunch with my husband and daughter (even skipped the tortilla!)
• Washed the car
• Took an inner city drive with the family
• Super-Insane Healthy Dinner with an amazing friend who gets me completely
• Fell asleep snuggling with my munchkin and one pooped puppy after a game of chase the wiffle ball in the backyard.
• Woke up at 4:30 for a great hike/run @ South Mountain
• Scooped up some protein power
• Lost a bet
• Cleaned the bathroom (to pay for debt) and scrubbed the kitchen floors
• Topped the night off with a family dinner affair (Allison mastered the food processor!)

Ultimately a weekend spent with those I love, doing things I love... consider me charged and ready to face the week.















Allison in Hidden Valley- Fat Man Pass

Late night rendezvous with the treadmill. It almost didn't happen, but if I was forced to do the Bollywood video again, I was going to lose it!

Zoinks!

Let's try this blogging thing again!

Short Version:

• Celebrated the holidays
  
• Lost some more weight - Yay!
• Got married - Super-Yay!
• Got distracted and plateaued a bit - Boo Hiss
  
• Got real....again.
• Lost more weight!