Still trying to "work things out"...

Seriously, I had to share this pic. I think it is possibly the most accurate depiction of my thoughts on running. It made me laugh so hard I must have burned around 100 calories. I can't look at it and NOT smile.

Things are going ok here on the health front. I still feel that I have not achieved "habit" when it comes to working out and eating healthy. In fact, with the holidays I may have even taken a few giant steps backwards. I am learning new things daily though that will be key in making long-term changes.

My relationship with food for example. Always a touchy subject with me. I am starting to look at it differently. I take cooking healthy delish meals as a challenge now as opposed to a sentence. I am exploring how to use foods that I have despised in the past and even some that I have never heard of before despite my years of watching food network etc. I can't tell you how many times I have asked at the Asian or Indian market for a certain food and I honestly have no idea what they will hand me. It almost like a game in a sense. I like the challenge that it offers. I have discovered that a lot of these things are surprisingly delicious. Lotus root potato chips, quinoa for breakfast, cheese sauce made of cashews....ok, you may have to take my word for it. Again, it has been a learning experience.

I am trilled to learn how inexpensive healthy food REALLY is. Seriously, the dollar menu is a difficult thing to beat. Going through grad school I ate on an extremely small food budget. Luckily I dated a LOT so this helped with free dinners. I always figured that cheap healthy food consisted of raw veggies, rice and beans. Boy was I wrong. Healthy, inexpensive food can be so much more. A 4 lb bag of red lentils at the Indian market for $2.50 will make multiple dinners for us with a few additional ingredients.

I wanted to write today so those following can be assured I HAVE NOT GIVEN UP. A few set backs over the last month and a lot of worthless excuses as to why I can't stick with these healthy changes. I will hold myself accountable, pick myself up, and carry on. My gym back is packed so I can resume my 5 am mornings, breakfasts and lunches are packed for me and the Mr., IPOD is charged and my mind is set.

Bring. It. On.

Athletes have eternal perspectives....

It has been a while since I have had the chance to blog on here. My time away has been spent getting back into the gym (a gift from my supportive Mr.). I have been stopping there after ten hours at work I go for 60-90 minutes to try to forget the day. To remove the stressful thoughts that tend to stay with me long after they are welcome. At the end of all of this the LAST thing I want to do is be on a computer. Don't get me wrong, my therapy lies between the lines and letters here. The key is that it is not an additional "must do" on the daily checklist. Tonight I played volleyball with the Mormons. We have a good time. Turns out I am not as terrible as I remember being although I think wearing my glasses may help my case. The weightloss is so slow. I had the wonderful opportunity to listen to the leadership of my church in a worldwide conference last weekend. A few of the speakers spoke about trials and the way that we as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints view them. You see, we believe we are here on earth to improve and overcome barriers. We feel that because we are literal children of God that we can become like Him. I think this concept is unique in the Christian world. So what role do trials play in all of this you ask....they are meant to test us and prove us. If we are not strong enough to begin with, we will work to become stronger.  When I taught preschool years ago, we worked to modify the learning environment to increase opportunities for learning. I feel like this is a simplified version of what God does for us. He molds us and shapes us with these trials. They are required to help us develop the strengths we need to become more like Him. I think about this in terms of an athlete. When an athlete trains for something beyond their physical capacity, they work toward things that are just outside of their abilities. Over time, they rise to the task. I am going to try to embrace this concept of trial acceptance in my journey to athleticisim as well as other aspects of my life. Not an easy thing for me.

Water revelation....

I swim on saturdays. It's a water aerobics class...shhh...don't tell. My hubby laughs at me and believes that I am sitting around in the pool with a group of 80 somethings talking about grandkids and osteoperosis. Not even close. Most of the class are in there 30s and we are weight training, swimming laps, and listening to loud music. I love it! It reminded me how much I love the water. This class flies by unlike a lot of my other workout modalities. I think I just discovered the key behind how to increase my calorie burn....do something I enjoy. Such a simple concept but I am going to embrace it and see what happens. Wish me luck!