Mile Markers on Road to Good Health

I don't know about you, but huge, looming goals on a distant horizon scare the bejeezus out of me. I'm working on an E-book for a client and I can't think about the total word count goal because I break out in hives. Instead, I have a goal for a set number of chapters every week. Sure, I still have to turn in all of the work to get it done on time, but these smaller, more manageable chunks don't trigger my anxiety.

When I used to think about getting fit and healthy, I used to look at my total weight loss goal. That was 70 pounds in June 2012, and 55 pounds in June 2014. To be fair, I did have a baby somewhere in there. Looking at a goal that's 50+ pounds away is really hard. You just can't see it, or visualize what you will look and feel like once you get there. That's why I set a few different milestones for myself along the way.

Milestone #1 - Pre-Pregnancy Weight

The first 25 pounds after Z was born pretty much fell off me. I was banking on breastfeeding to help me take off the rest, but the sleep deprivation led to some pretty wonky hormones, so in spite of damn near round-the-clock nursing, the extra weight stayed on until Z started sleeping through the night and I had the energy to start working it off.

15 down, 40 to go, reached in September 2014

Milestone #2 - Pre-Marital Weight

The early days in a relationship are awesome! But those early days also typically involve a lot of dining out and meeting for drinks. Oh, and it means less time at the gym because there's someone you'd rather be spending time with.

10 down, 25 to go, reached THIS WEEK!

Milestone #3 - Pre-Quit Smoking Weight

Obviously quitting smoking was a good life choice, but it came with a bunch of extra pounds. That was a decade ago, so it's really not a viable excuse any more.

Distance to milestone: 15 pounds; Target date: March 2015

Milestone #4 - The Final Goal

Inside the healthy range for my height and now something I look at as completely attainable.

Distance to goal: 25 pounds; Target date: June 2015

At every milestone there is something to celebrate and therefore a reward. For the first milestone it was a gym membership at a place that has child care so I can get some time to myself a few times a week. For the second milestone, it was a cute dress to wear out for my birthday dinner with The Husband in a couple of weeks. A cute dress in a MUCH smaller size.

What do YOU think I should do to celebrate the next milestone and the final goal?

When Doing Nothing Does Something

A Reasonable Facsimile

It was a Professional Development Day at M's school yesterday. Usually this fills me with a sense of "OMFG, what are we going to do all day?" but yesterday, I tried something a little different. Wait, I should back up a bit. Our daily routine is predictably a pretty busy one, and it goes something like this:

• Get up, pack M's lunch for school, help get her dressed, feed and dress Z, and then finally feed and dress myself. 
• Morning programs for Mommy & Z.
• Home for lunch, put Z down for nap and do some work until he wakes up. 
• Go pick up M at school, go to her after school programs a couple of times a week.
• Make dinner, put the kids to bed, do some more work and head to bed. 
• Wash, rinse, repeat. 

Somewhere in there the laundry and dishes get done. And sometimes I even have an evening off to hang out with The Husband. Imagine that!

Yesterday, however, was a little different. With both kids underfoot and The Husband at work all day, the idea of getting stuff done around here was laughable. So I didn't bother trying. I cleared the decks and took the kids to an indoor play centre in the morning to let them run around and blow off steam. When we got back, Z went for a nap and M and I did each other's nails and then curled up on the couch and watched The Book of Life together. 

Taking that time to do nothing and reconnect reminded me why I had these kids. There's actually a name for what happens when you take a day to reconnect, it's called filling the attachment tank. Yes, I spend a lot of time with the kids, but a lot of it spent in the midst of doing something else. Once in a while, the damn laundry can wait. Let's face facts, it's not going anywhere. Ever. But someday these kids won't have any interest in lengthy cuddles on the couch.

Have you tried taking a break from all the "stuff" that needs to get done, just to spend some time doing nothing with your little people? Tell me how it went! 

Textbook Follies

For some inexplicable reason, when I decided to go back to University, I also decided to take what I thought would be the most challenging course in my program first. It's only going to be challenging because in high school I took the absolute bare minimum of math courses before I ran screaming for the hills. This leaves me with some gaps in knowledge, like algebra. No big deal, right? Who needs algebra anyway?

My first course is Introductory Statistics. Naturally, that's one that involves a great deal of... ALGEBRA. Om nom nom. Those words are tasty! Was taking it first to get it out of the way a brilliant idea, or a profoundly stupid one? Only time will tell! I'm using my virtually non-existent spare time to catch up with some courses through the Khan Academy. 

So there I was, reading my textbook, when I had a WTF moment. It was describing how to use a protractor to determine the sizes of the pie pieces in a pie chart. But it went even further:

These COM-PU-TERS are amazing!

As I was reading the first paragraph, I was asking myself if they were fucking kidding me. Do they seriously think that anyone in this day and age would actually draw a pie chart by hand? Then I got to the next paragraph that helpfully pointed out that "many computers are programmed so that, once the data have been entered, a simple command will produce a pie chart." 

These newfangled computer thingies can do it all, my friends! I don't know about you, but I totally read that in a Mitch McConnell-esque turtle voice. One where every syl-la-ble of COM-PU-TER was enunciated very slowly and deliberately. Then I realized I was going to be graded on my ability to actually do this shit and not my epic snarking talents, and promptly went back to reading. But seriously!

Did YOU Know the Vinegar Trick for Preserving Berries?

I like to think of myself as one who is pretty handy in the kitchen, but every once in a while I learn something new that makes me smack myself in the forehead for not learning it sooner. These little life hacks are awesome. Like the one about soaking berries in a vinegar and water solution to help them last longer. This video describes the process in detail. I was sceptical (as born cynics are wont to be) but decided to give it a whirl. You see my little people LOVE berries. I think Little Cat Z would forsake all other foods for his berries. Great! What's the problem? Well...

With temps like these, you don't see a lot of fresh berries. The ones we get in the store only last a day or two before they turn to sludge. You can buy organic vegetable washes, but a small bottle of it is around $8. Sure, you'll make that back pretty quickly in berry savings, but let's not bring logic to the party. Out of season berries are too expensive to buy only to throw them out on day three when they have liquefied and started to ooze out of the container. Hungry now? Neither am I. Anyway, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Are you also wondering if it works? I went grocery shopping on Sunday morning and spent a grand total of 15 minutes doing the vinegar and water soak. As instructed in the video I left them to dry completely and put them back in the washed containers with a paper towel liner. Here's how they looked earlier today, four days later. They still only lasted a few days, but this time it's because we ate them all. And by we, I mean my berry-loving kids. 

Foodie on a Diet

I love food. If you really think about it, the significant occasions in our lives are usually centred around a meal. As I pack M's lunch every day, I have realized that food is my love language. But here's the thing... I'm on a quest to find optimal health, and losing weight is one piece of the puzzle. Where I have failed in the past, and indeed where a lot of us probably fail, is in trying to cut out the things we love completely. That makes life really boring, especially for the foodies among us.

For example, I simply *adore* this recipe for Dragon Noodles from Budget Bytes. I literally salivate while I'm making it. Gross, but true. I feel like a real grown up when I'm eating it because it's WAY too spicy for my kids and I like it like that. However, it's not remotely compatible with the Insanity Max:30 nutrition plan. I could go eight weeks without my spicy fix, or I could come up with an alternative.

Now, because I am, well, me, there are a few things I always have on hand like cooked chicken and sliced bell peppers. Here are the ingredients I used for my version:

Instead of the recipe directions for noodles
1/2 cup thinly sliced bell peppers
1/2 cup thinly sliced onion
1/2 cup cooked chicken breast, cut in to small, thin strips
1/3 cup cooked chow mein noodles

Sauce (See original recipe for directions, HELLO copyright. Also, I am lazy!)
1 large egg
2 tsp butter
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp sriracha hot sauce
1 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce

First, I started the onions and peppers in a non-stick pan. Then I started the sauce in a separate non-stick pan. I added the chicken and the noodles just long enough to heat them up and mixed it all together for something truly delightful. According to the FitBit food tracker, here's the difference:

The Original

Calories	Fat	Fiber	Carbs	Sodium	Protein
555	14.5	3.7	93.5	700.3	9.9

My Version

Calories	Fat	Fiber	Carbs	Sodium	Protein
466	19.2	2.8	33.5	1315.4	38.9

So, the sodium goes up quite a bit, but a lot of that is naturally occurring in the food. For example, the chicken brings 435mg to the party. And look what happens to the protein and the carbs. Anyway, I'm not suggesting this as an every day food, more like an indulgence here and there. If you're following the Insanity Max:30 or 21 Day Fix meal plans, this works out to 1.5 red, 1 green, 1 yellow and 2 tsps. 

When all is said and done, it looks like this:

And it tastes like this:

And it makes my belly feel like this:

Disclaimer: This post was not sponsored by any of the sites linked. I receive no compensation if you click a link or buy a product. I have provided links so you know the actual products that I use. 

Back to School

It should come as no surprise to my regular readers that I'm at my best when I'm busy. REALLY busy. Just in case life as a full-time mom to two small children and a small business owner wasn't challenging enough, I decided to add something else to the mix. Because I'm CRAZY like that.

Back story... My University days were tumultuous. I didn't have a lot of structure growing up so I was a little unaccustomed to the notion of study habits and setting realistic goals. Predictably, as I was fumbling my way through post-secondary life with no idea what I was doing, the results were pretty far from spectacular.

However, the fact that I have allowed that failure to bother me for nearly 20 years (holy shit!) is all on me. I can continue to feel like a failure, OR I can do something constructive to address the problem. Thus far ignoring my feelings on the matter hasn't been working out for me, so I guess I'll have to give the latter a shot. 

Today, my first class as a distance learning student at a very prestigious University is officially under way. Because I am only able to manage a very small course load until Z starts school, it's probably going to take me five years to upgrade my degree to something that gives me a sense of pride rather than one of shame and defeat. And that's fine, because when something is worth the reward, it's worth the work. 

I'm asking your for your help, my dear readers. If I haven't given any updates on the state of school in a while, I need you to give me a little nudge, OK? Thanks!