Day 26 of 100 Days of Health

It was bound to happen.

I'm posting this from bed at 7:30 pm. My Cowboy has strep and I've had an awesome migraine all day. Now I think I'm getting his strep. I'm loading up on Vit. C and G.S.E and going to sleep. Lord willing tomorrow I can try to make up for lost steps tomorrow.
Today I can go no further.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Black Bean Chicken (a crock pot meal)

Don't you just love crock-pot cooking? It is my favorite, for sure! Well, this is one awesome recipe. You have just got to try it.

I found it on Spark Recipes
They also have a great iPhone app. Check it out!

Black Bean Chicken (my version)

2 Cans of Black Bean (get the low sodium if possible)

1 16 ounce Salsa

1/2 Cup Brown Rice

1 can of Rotel

1 1/2 pounds of chicken breast (I used chicken breast tenders , they were on sale)

Throw it all in and cook on low for 7-8 hours.

I cooked it on high for 5 (my chicken was thawed)

Watch it and don't let it dry out.

Fabulous!

This would be awesome in a flour tortilla, whole wheat of course, with some shredded lettuce. We had it with chips, cheese and sour cream.

Try it, you will love it! The family does not have to know that it is healthy! :)

Day 25 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Let me go ahead an tell you this. I love my new habits....... six days a week. After this 100 days I will not be exercising on Sunday! Man, what is it about that Sunday afternoon nap? I never sleep hard, but on Sundays I sleep like a rock. I meld into that bed and sleep hard. So, that leaves me two choices, get up early (you know how I feel about that)  and workout or do it after church. Do you see what time this post is done? Yes, almost midnight. I just barely got in those steps before the fitbit resets at midnight.

Also, lest you think I am some super woman who has just found her inner fitness guru, let me be perfectly honest about how the last few days have been. I have noticed a pattern with me. I get all gung ho at a new "project" and then I fizzle. That is me in a nutshell. With weight loss I want to see the scale move rapidly. I have worked hard and ate right! What do you mean that I have not lost 25 pounds yet? (Said to the scale)

I am learning patience. Had it not been for this challenge this would have been where I start getting slack and not tracking calories and skipping on workouts. Why? Because the new has worn off. Remember what I said about sticktoittiveness in an earlier post? With this challenge laid out for all the world (or my couple of readers) to see. It has  held me accountable and I am so glad. This all began because I was sick of wasting my life overweight and unhealthy. I am mature enough to know that I am not going to lose 50 pounds in a month, but I have a hard, hard time waiting for a payoff. I really like instant gratification. However, I really like feeling like I have gained some control over those bad habits and character traits and with the Lord's help I will press on.

Steps: 10079

Calories tracked and in range!

Day 24 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Oh no!

Guess what I did......

Oh, sometime around 3:00 pm I went to the closet to put up some laundry and what was hanging on my nightgown?  MY FITBIT!!!

Are you laughing at me?

Well, I was so disappointed because I would not have my step number for today. It's the first day since starting my challenge that I have done that. 

Well, I did hang out 2 loads of clothes and did a  workout. I logged my calories and stayed in range. (actually almost did not eat enough....imagine that) 

So as Scarlet would say...."Tomorrow is another day"

If the Lord blesses me to see it, I hope I remember all my gadgets that  help keep me motivated!

Good night!

Oh my....Can't wait for fresh fruit!

A recipe. A healthy one too! We love muffins around here, but they can pack a lot of calories. I love that has flaxseed in it.

Day 23 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Some days are easier than others.

Steps: 10,000. No more. No Less. Need I say more?
Calories tracked and in range.


Read the into to this 100 Days here.

Day 22 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Well you will never believe how I got in a lot of extra steps today!

Are you ready for it?

There is an 18 year story behind that clothesline. When dear hubby and I returned from our honeymoon I was shopping at the local dollar store and grabbed up a bundle of line for him to use to build my clothesline. Well, I waited. And I waited....until......



..... Once upon a time a man and woman who was very much in love was blessed to have a baby boy. That baby boy would grow into the strong, strapping young man that would one day hear the plea of his mother for a clothesline. He, being the determined young man, pressed his loving father to call a certain family member who had an unused clothesline. In no time that hard working lad had plucked the poles from the ground and was ready to make his mothers dream come true...... :))))

And that is the story of how I hung clothes and listened to roosters crow and got many chances to go OUTSIDE (which is something I sometimes never do.....for days) It was AWESOME!!!

So with all of these steps I got today I took the time to do something different tonight.

Abs.....oh my.....
But on that ball it does not hurt my back! Yay!

Of course the kiddos think that is one cool ball.
I'll admit I was scared to sit on it. But the Amazon reviewers declared that it really was anti-burst! :)

What a fun day! (except for the poison oak now on my hand....)

Steps: 11,258
Calories tracked and in range!

Day 21 of 100 Days of Health Habit

21 Days!! Woohoo!!!

Can I just say that I really do feel better and already can feel a difference in myself. I really wish I had taken my measurements before I started.

Well, this has been a day. I have one child that is  eat up in poison oak. After a trip to the Urgent Care and drug store, I hope that she will get some relief. And listen to this, when we came out of the doctor's office we walked (across the street) to the drug store. Normally we would not have done that. Every little step counts and at the end of the day I only had 5600 steps....even with all that running and church and grocery store.....5600. See, we really do need to incorporate more activity.

So after a 45 min. workout tonight I am at: 10,304 steps

We had fast food ( have not done that in a while) and I still stayed in my calorie range!

Goodnight!

Day 20 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Boy, the days just fly by.

It is so hard managing time and all that I need to do as a wife, mother, homeschool mom, daughter and whatever else I may need to be. My greatest excuse for years has been time, not having enough time to exercise. In all honesty, if I tracked the time that I have blown on Facebook alone I cannot say with a clear conscience that I do not have time for health. Here I will quote from my favorite book....again....☺

 "I don’t really want more time; I Just want enough time.” 

“I just want time to do my one life well.”

-Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts

Yes, time blurs by. I don't want to come to the end of my life and have regrets. Yes, everyone will regret something. But to have to regret a lazy life. A life lived not fully using what God blessed me with. A life lived tired and frustrated by not feeling well. A life lived with sickness brought on by bad choices. Many, many people live with disabilities and they have no choice. They press on. I have been blessed and have not lived out my life like I appreciate what God has given me. My health may leave tomorrow but at least I can say that I did what I could today to make it count. And, I don't want to over spiritualize this 100 Day thing but frankly my weight has hindered my service for God. When you get up on Sunday morning and nothing fits and your back aches from 90 extra pounds and sitting on the piano stool hurts....that does affect how I worship. I am not a vain person, I don't know the latest fashion trends. I avoid the mall at all cost. I go to Dollar General with no make-up! I just want to feel good. I want to not be ill because I hurt or my clothes feel like a tent on me. I hope that is clear  here. 

I want to share a site that I have found extremely helpful. For the last year I have been a paying member of Weight Watchers. I love the plan. I loved going to the meetings, but I hated leaving the house just as soon as my tired hubby came home. I know it was just one night a week, but it was hard and if I could not go then I did not do well. This time I have decided to do this on my own, for me. Not for my WW leader. This site is free and has all of the perks of WW. Perhaps more. 

I am finally getting used to it and like it a lot. It has a huge recipe section and a place where you can input your own recipes and see the nutritional content of them. There are tons of health articles as well.

Well, its getting late. Perhaps my next challenge should be set bedtimes and waking times....you know this free spirit can only do so much at a time. :)

Steps: 11615
Calories tracked and in range!

Time

Thanksgiving makes time. 

Give thanks, slow time down with all your attention, 

& time multiplies.

........Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts.

Day 19 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Happy Monday everyone!

Day 19....almost three weeks! I can assure you that I have never exercised every day for 3 weeks.
Tonights workout was a little interesting because of the calorie burn that my Polar F6 was reporting. I have talked a little about it taking a little more intensity to get my heart rate up. Well tonight I did a 5 mile workout using 3 and 5 pound weights. Last night I did 4 miles in 54 minutes and burned 338 calories. I was tired and did NOT put my all into the workout. I just wanted to get it over. Tonight I did 5 miles in about 1:05 minutes with weights on 2 of the miles and the burn was 652 calories for that session. Wow! The weights instantly bump the heart rate up and make it well worth the effort!
It really is exciting to see just what your body can do. The more I study on nutrition and fitness the more I stand amazed at the body that God created. I am ashamed of how I have treated it. I am thankful that I still have enough health to try and turn around the damage I may have already done.

Steps today: 10,240
Calories tracked and in range.

Now for a bath!!

Day 18 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Today was a challenge. 

I have never been good at keeping commitments to myself. I can't recall purposely letting down a friend or family, but I have never been good at keeping a promise to myself.

I wanted so bad to come home and go to bed and not do my steps.

I really wanted to eat a huge bowl of Brunswick stew and a big BBQ sandwich .

I did neither.

I am glad.....now.

I made a commitment to myself to prove that I can take care of me so that I can take care of my family.

Day 18 is coming to a close. One more day that I can say I was successful.

Steps:

10,394

Calories tracked and in range.

Day 17 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Today was just beautiful. These health habit post may turn into a daily journal of more than just how well I stayed on "plan" because the healthy lifestyle is becoming more and more a way of life.

Here is a little video of how I got in my last 5000 steps today.


Yep, I am pulling those two (about 80 pounds) in that wagon! Janie would yell "Run Mommy!" Oh yeah, like I could run very far hauling that thing. After a few laps around the place they jumped out and I thought that instead of going inside that I would download some of Leslie Sansone's walking music. It is the same music that she has on her DVDs. The pace keeps you walking at a fast enough rate to keep your heart rate up. It was really nice to walk outside. iTunes has a lot to choose from. It is by far not my favorite type of beat, but it did keep me walking very fast!

Well, I am tired! I'm going to turn in with a good book on the iPhone.

Steps today:  11,095
Calories tracked and in  range.

Day 16 of 100 Days of Health Habit

            

Walking is man's best medicine.
Hippocrates, Greek physician (460 BC - 377 BC)

           

Wow, he was way ahead of the times! Can you imagine what Hippocrates would think of our lifestyle today?  While counting steps one comes to learn that although she thinks she is one busy momma, she really is very, very sedentary. Even the routine of laundry, housekeeping and keeping up with 4 blessings equals out to very little movement and none of that gets the heart rate up and into aerobic activity. (unless you count the times that the little precious ones do something that causes you to run at break-neck speed)

So today was good and busy, but in the end I did a 5 mile (1:00) workout to get the steps in.

Total steps today: 11,264
Calories tracked and in range.

Want to learn more about getting fit? I found a great Podcast called Fat to Fit. Here is a link to their site where you will find various ways to subscribe. It's free. Click here: Fat to Fit 

Snapshot of beautiful days

 Preschool fun

Beautiful books

Loving to learn

Blonde hair in the sun.

Music coming from the room.

The kitchen window

A little princess.

Ahhh.... coffee.

Sweet Jenna 

His hands.

...and the look on his face when I want to photograph them.

The cook!

Her little looks.

Can I really be living this life?
It is more than I could ever have known to ask for.
Truly Treasures Unseen are made even sweeter by the little daily things.

Day 15 of 100 Days of Health Habit

Moving right along.

This is really fun!

Who would have ever thought that I would have admitted that? {Mom?}

One thing that I have not been doing the last few days is early movement, and boy is it getting me. Tonight after dinner I had to go meet with Leslie and she just wore me out. I got this new 3 mile DVD  and let me tell you, it was a sweat-fest!

So after that I go dripping through the house to log my activity and sync the FitBit I get the shocking news that I have only logged 7700 steps!!!

Can you say UGH?!?!?!

So, I turn right around and go back and do a very easy, fast paced two mile workout from her website.

So here I sit thinking that tomorrow I will walk early......

Steps today 10,172 (and it will be a while before I turn in)

Calories tracked and in range (despite that FedEx package that contained 3 boxes of new Archway cookies that my dear sweet man will be selling) I mean, I quit buying junk food and they start shipping it to my door! 

Did I tell you that one of the boxes were Shortbread Cookies.....my all time FAVORITE? ☺

Good evening!