2020 - We can be our BEST SELF every day!

Snooozie

Happy New Year my friends!

I just thought i'd start a new thread for this year but the title can be changed anytime so just let me know if you have another preference!

It sounded like we are all on board this year for focusing on (as Suzy posted) being a better you for YOU! Working on all aspects of enjoying our lives in many ways, and figuring out what we each need right now to live a happy and fulfilled life all around!! I think most of us plan to make our overall health the main focus this year - and i think we are also agreed that its also about learning all things that make us happy with ourselves and about choosing whats good FOR ourselves, and perhaps letting go of things that we know aren't good for us too! So I hope as we move forward this year, we will be able to share our plans and goals, experiences, enlightenments and anything else that we discover that let's us be our best self for US!!

suzyqholland

Okay! I’m in! Working on measurable goals and will share them as soon as I come up with them. This is my last year in my fifties and I am determined to be a healthier me by the end of the year. If taking care of my parents last year taught me anything, it’s that you absolutely HAVE to go into your final years as healthy as possible in order to continue enjoying your life while you still have it.

Be my best self every day so that I can live my best life until the end.

Snooozie

Suzy - i think i mentioned it actually scares me a little right now that I am not anywhere near as physically strong as i should be just in doing everyday things; even scrubbing the kitchen floor the other day i was almost afraid to get down on my hands and knees cause i was worried i wouldnt be able to get up... so i completely agree with you that we need to become the best we can right now to ensure we are okay as we age. I think i have convinced myelf there are things i just cant do because of this or that .. i.e. oh i cant lift that or my shoulder will go out... i can't do that because of my neck issues.. my back might go out if i try doing that.. yada yada.. and over christmas when all my parts were having problems especially i found myself getting a little down about it... like is this how its going to be from here on in? but i knew as soon as i was better i would be fin... but i think those thoughts are there and i dont think its even been conscious thoughts - but some have become ingrained in my head as "I can't do that".. and so i avoid activities, or use the issues as an excuse i guess to just do nothing. So I'm going to make a real effort this year to start thinking that i CAN do things instead of thinking i can't... I've signed up for 2 classes starting next week; one stretch and one the strength training one i blew off last fall.. and i am going to find things to do that will keep me moving.

Today is the official retirement date for me.. even tho i stopped working in August, i was using my sick leave and vacation to carry me thru so today I am officially retired and i think i'm a little worried too about that now... as far as being a couch potato. But i also know thats a choice on my part so i will have to make sure i find some other things to get involved in to keep me occupied. Right then - time to get off my butt and accomplish something today, right??!!

Snooozie

hi ho hatters

well i'm slowly moving towards being my best self; made a few not so good choices but thats ok.. i know it's going to take time and work - i made a big batch of the skinnytaste broccoli cheddar soup and froze it down in the hopes that having something easy and delish avail will help me make that better choice on a night when im lazy and dont wanna cook

im also going to try to some new recipes- try to do a meatless meal at least 2x a week that doesnt include pasta... its kinda neat that there are so many recipes online now instead of having to rely on a cookbook or go to the bookstore and b rowse... but if anyone has any tried and true yummers recipes of any kind they wanna share pls let me know! i have no probs poaching lol

suzyqholland

I’m always on the lookout for new recipes. I get so tired of the same old things. I actually bought a Skinnytaste cookbook. It was at the grocery store on the clearance table. I’ll let you know if I find some winners in there. I’m in search of the perfect white chicken chili recipe. I’ve tried a couple and they were just okay. I forgot that you recommended the broccoli cheddar soup. I’m going to look that one up.

I have not gotten off to a great start but things have yet to settle down here. I’m hoping next week will be better. You mentioned hurting your shoulder. I tried to lift a stupid fence and wrenched mine pretty bad. Hopefully it’s temporary.

11 weeks until my granddaughter arrives! Her name will be Peyton Elizabeth and we are so excited! I helped my daughter finish her nursery yesterday. I also cleaned her house to help her start the year on a positive note. Now I need someone to clean mine. 😂

suzyqholland

We went on our first hike of the year today...six miles in 3.5 hours with 98 (comparatively) flights of stairs. I did better than I thought I would. However, I was unable to wear my winter hiking pants because I can’t even zip them all the way up. Goal: get back into winter hiking pants!!

I was planning on going to yoga tomorrow but now I have to take my mom to two different doctor appointments. I am determined to go back to the gym this week. I’m planning on Tuesday for some strength training with the machines and some stair climber work.

How is everyone else’s new year starting out?

Snooozie

Suzy - i dont know how i missed your first post from the 3rd cause i check every day... good luck with the chicken chili recipe i admit i tried a vegetarian one that was pretty good, but i still like my mom's original plain old chili recipe best.. omg on your shoulder i actually flinched when i read that - i hope its feeling better by now??? i watched a show on PBS tonite called 3 steps to living pain free.. basically says pretty much all pain a result of bad posture, shortening front chest muscles and lengthening back ones when shoulder are rounded etc.. since i have terrible posture im going to try a few of their suggestions as they are all easy.. i.e. simply clasping your hands behind your back automatically pulls the front muscles .. anyway tomoorw is my first of the 2 classes i signed up for its the same strength training with weights i took last fall but didnt finish.. and my hand is really sore of course right now so im hoping by tomorrow it will be ok and i can go.. the second one is a stretching class so we'll see how that goes.. and it doesnt have any mat work which is good because i have a very hard time getting up from a mat i admit..

Suzy how is your mom doing??? im assuming she was released from hospital but you have 2 apts for her so hope she is improving? omg on the hike... holy cow.. i couldnt do a mile to be honest right now so im impressed -

WOWSA on the little grand daughters arrival - so soon!!!! you must be so excited; how nice u cleaned your daughters place for her - i'll come clean yours for ya since you were so nice lol!

i dont weigh in again til wed but i think i'm doing ok - mainly because i dont have any crap in the house.. yup... i deliberately have nothing because every nite i've been rummaging in the cupbaords ... for ANYTHING... sothe only thing literally saving me is not having the stuff in the house.... i am jonesing for some potato chips tho .. so will try not to cave!

milove1029

Happy New Year Hatters,

Good for you Suzy on the hiking!!

Snoozie it is always frightening with change. It also sounds very adventurous.

I traveled to Houston this pass weekend for my boss's 50th birthday party and over did it on the food and drinks🙄.

I did have a good time.

Back to trying to be my best self everyday.

Time2LoseWeightNOW

Hi, everyone... Happy New Year!! I love the title.

Suzy , awesome hike. compares to 98 flights! Hope mom is doing better.

Snoozie, sorry you are hurting, your shoulder and all. I hope with retiring, it will heal and strengthen up.

Milove, good to hear from you.

Just a quick note to say hello...business is booming so back to work I go...

I am doing a 6 week challenge with Daughter law. hope to be able to complete it.
I not sure if I have mentioned it, but lab results say A1C is down from 11 to 7.5 in two months ,so looks like the meds are working...

love you girls.
Bye!!

Snooozie

Gail!!! OMG thats incredible news on the A1C !!! from 11 to 7.5 is amazing!!! congratulations!!! Love the challenge - what kind is it??? you absolutely CAN do it whatever it is!!! can't wait to hear!

Milove - lovely to hear from you as well; glad you had a good time in houston!

I went to the my first strength training class with the cardio and weights.. it wasn't pretty, people.. not pretty at all. But i made it through .. and tomorrow is the stretch class so as long as i can still move i'll be going.. right now im a little stiff in places one should not mention in public!! lol

Time2LoseWeightNOW

It a boot camp style fitness center. Where they try to get you to go beyond what you feel like you can do.....that means it is killing me!! and I only went for my fit test....which is seeing how many of each workout you can do....so you can see how you have improved in 6 weeks...I sadly had to put ZERO on a lot of mine. lol I can not do a push-up in any style...even if it would save the life of someone I loved...I'd have to say" ugh...it's been fun, but buh-bye!! "

In reality I probably won't make it to many of the fitness classes, due to working 2nd shift. I certainly can't work out like that and then go in at 1:00 or 2:00.....But they have a workout gym also, so I have to go there at least 3 times a week. should be fun. I didn't want DnL to have to go it alone. it is so much easier with someone else doing the tough stuff with you.

WE had to clean out the fridge of the 'delectable"….except Son and I cooked up a tube of orange rolls today , so we wouldn't have to throw them away....lol WE didn't save any for Dnl….he said they would be a trigger for her....so it was all for her that we ate 2 apiece of them...lol

Great on the classes, snoozie!! I really need the strength part of getting fit. I lost a lot of muscle...if I had any.

Yea, I was very happy about the 7.5 cause you know how scared I was at hearing it at 11. I had no idea how long it could take to get it back down.

suzyqholland

Oh thank goodness our loved one’s lives don’t depend on our push up capabilities!!! Lol!!! That cracked me up! Good for you Gail for the exercise but especially the A1C drop! Your mention of the orange rolls reminded me that I have a pan of cinnamon rolls in the freezer left over from Christmas. Why oh why do I have a hard time throwing away food?!?!?!!! Logically I know that it’s a healthier decision. I need to clean out my cupboards and fridge.

My mom is holding her own. There are so many doctor appointments and my parents need a lot of help. They won’t admit to needing help (in fact they get defensive if you mention it) but we can’t just leave them to it. It’s a bad situation.

Snoozie, it may not have been pretty but you went!!! That’s awesome! You’ll only get stronger and healthier each time you go! Good for you!

Milove, celebrating a special occasion is something to enjoy! You have the right attitude though on getting back on track.

I think I’m coming down with something; stuffy head, sore throat, headache. My mom is immunosuppressed so I really hope I didn’t pass it on to her. Hopefully it’s just allergies and being tired. I really need to take down all my Christmas decorations and go grocery shopping. Gotta get up and going!

Time2LoseWeightNOW

Exactly my predicament, Suzy....I couldn't throw them away..lol
I think It's our ancestry genes of having gone through starvation in the early years...Irish potato famine on my side...lol I can hardly throw away a homemade French fry !

Remember to take of yourself first, to be there to help them . Sending you {{{{hugs}}} . I know it is so stressful.

suzyqholland

Snoozie, your broccoli cheddar soup recipe is in the skinny taste cookbook I bought! I’m going to try it this week. I know my hubby won’t eat it but I’ll make him something I won’t eat. Lol!!

suzyqholland

Tried this recipe tonight and it was a hit! I used mild Italian turkey sausage. It was a great comfort pasta dish and super easy to make. I used an immersion blender, much easier to clean.

https://www.skinnytaste.com/pasta-with-butternut-sauce-spicy/

Snooozie

Suzy - i have everything for that pasta dish except the spinach so i am going to pick it up and make it for Sunday - which pasta did you use? I'm thinking of linguini ... i love squash so very much looking forward to this one - thanks!

I am struggling a bit with being home all thetime in the evenings now - food wise.. i find myself foraging for anything and everything.. just out of boredom.. so i signed up for a couple of shows tomororw nite and sat nite - just to keep me from grazing lol..

i made a big pot of chili tonite; my mom's one with meat not vegetarian - and i've been rooting around trying to find some vegetarian meals that DONT have pasta... but there's a lot of weird stuff everywhere lol.. i dont want to use a meat subsitute i just want a nice dinner of all kinds of veggies but i cant seem to find anything that... will keep hunting tho as i want to try for at least 2 meals a week of the meatless variety

i did my first 2 classes this week.. omg... the tues one was brutal but GOOD.. i couldnt do everything and i struggled with a few things and i had trouble with stairs on wed cause my thighs were screaming.. we did so many wall squats i wanted to cry hahaha.. but the fact it was so hard for me makes me realize how badly i need them so i am aboslutely going to continue with them

suzyqholland

I used a penne pasta. Good for you for going veggie two meals a week. I wonder if I could get hubby to do that. I can’t believe he liked the pasta dish tonight. He’s definitely broadening his food horizons. Still won’t eat brussel sprouts though. 😂

I am so impressed with you going to the classes! That’s really fantastic! Let’s see if I can motivate myself to go to the gym tomorrow.

Vailara

Fantastic news about your A1C results, Gail! I hope you're getting on well with the fitness challenge - it certainly does sound challenging! It does sound good to do it with somebody else though. I bet your DnL is glad of the moral support. Pushups are so hard - I had a brief period where I was able to do a sort of pushup a few years ago - haven't managed before or since. And so many exercises seem to go for that pushup position (mountain climbers, etc.), which I think is tough.

Your classes sound hard too, Snoozie! I suppose that after the first one your thighs will get used to it. I often get sore if I do new exercises or ones I haven't done for a while.

I have been back to the gym. I still have a membership so will try to go a bit more regularly after work, if I can get away on time for the class. I'm also back at my dance class. It's so difficult! But I feel it's good for me. And I walk to the class and back, so that's some extra exercise.

Food wise - well, I'm making lots of healthy food, and then eating it as well as lots of unhealthy food. I was so hungry last night and started snacking ... I've realised that I haven't actually let myself get hungry in a long time. Which is showing on the scales. So for the billionth time I have to remind myself that if I want to lose weight or even not gain it, then I need to not eat as much. It's so simple, but in weak moments, I don't seem to get it!

suzyqholland

Vail, I didn’t eat lunch yesterday and was busy taking down Christmas stuff and my stomach growled. I realized that I hadn’t actually felt an empty stomach in a very long time. I need to make a huge sign for my kitchen that simply says, “EAT LESS!”

Snooozie

Same here ladies - I’m thinking Of making one that says Are you actually hungry ???😛

suzyqholland

Have any of y’all used an air fryer? I tried it tonight with a Panko crusted chicken breast. Just wondering if you have any tips?

Snooozie

No help here Suzy sorry .... maybe there’s a thread on mfp?

milove1029

Gail great news with your A1C dropping!!

Hang in there Snoozie with them classes, your stamina will kick in. I don't like meat substitute I use either meat or vegetables.

Vail, I am with you, I know the eating less is what works, but it is very difficult to have that will power.

I been good with the will power this week but it is so difficult to fall of the wagon, I have taken off some of the pounds that I put on since the holidays.

Suzy I want to buy an air fryer everyone that I know that owns one they love it.

milove1029

Correction for above: It is so easy to fall off the wagon.

Snooozie

Yes that wagon is very slippery!!!!

I made a pasta primavera tonite with linguini - i cheated and used the Jamie oliver way of putting the pasta on to boil for 8 min, then tossing in the raw broccoli and cauli and baby carrots which i had slivered.... all in the same pot for the last 3 min... then i drained it into the colander where i had the spinach washed and ready so it would wilt a bit from the heat.. i used an envelope of alfredo sauce as way less cals and altho my mushrooms were sadly too far gone to toss in, i got 4 of my 5 veggies in one meal lol.. and enuf left for lunch toororw. there would have been enuf left for dinner cept i was a piggie and went back for a bit more... (hello wagon)! If i had stuck to one serving i would have been fine lol.. anyway it was a ncie warm comfort food dinner (meatless!) for a cold winter night

Vailara

Is that the Jamie Oliver way? I don't think I've ever done it any other way! Sounds lovely. Not a huge amount of protein, etc., though ... I feel a bit confused with this at the moment, especially after I did that NHS diet a while back which was very keen on protein at every meal, and B vitamins, etc. I am eating less meat, and wanting to make sure I get the right balance. So I always feel I need to add something like beans, eggs, etc., if I'm not using meat. But maybe I don't. I tend to use frozen peas in a primavera (in the same pot, of course!). Just thinking aloud for myself here, not criticising your meal which sounds delicious and filling!

No, I don't have an air fryer. I have been tempted, but I feel it is a kitchen gadget too far for me. But I know people rave about them.

Lol at the slippery wagon! I think mine is coated in butter!

I bought some new expensive gym leggings on impulse yesterday. I was passing the shop - one of those with no prices in the window - said I wasn't there to buy, tried on a couple of pairs and ended up buying. Anyway, it turns out I have bought those sculpting leggings which are meant to "shape" you. They have their work cut out trying to sculpt my flab, I can tell you! I carry most of my fat in my lower half. I'm going to feel embarrassed wearing sculpting leggings at the gym, but I love the high waist and I think the sculpting/compression part might be good for varicose veins! Will be trying them out tonight!

Snooozie

Darn it Vail - I TOTALLY meant to throw in a handful of frozen peas too LOLOLOL.. i almost forgot the spinach cause it was still in the fridge!! As for the "jamie" way; I always used to do the veggies in a separate pot until i saw one of his shows where he just tossed em all in with the pasta lol.. hence why i call it jamies way now!

And i completely understand about the protein aspect... i've been told im supposed to make sure there is protein at every meal because basically my dinner last night was ALL carbs - right down to the veggies.. i should have tested my blood sugar after that dinner just out of curiousity..

GOOD on you for buying those pants and do NOT be embarrased at all!! I can honestly say i never look at what anyone else is wearing because im so damn busy just trying to keep up with the moves and the exercies and stuff.. i couldnt tell you if you paid me what anyone was wearing... so you put them on and enjoy every minute in em! and i bet you're right about the compression vein bonus!

i have started wearing my travel pants to play pickleball instead of my leggings.. ibought them before i went to italy on a friends recommendation.. they are kinda made of a parachute material that dry quick and are very comfy... and i thot well what am i gonna do with them after lol.. but turns out they are great for pb cause they are very comfy and move easily. i have tried on a few leggings but cant seem to find a pair that actually fit without either being too tight or falling off... i have learned to buy patterened ones tho.. i feel more comfortable in them as the bits and pieces that tend to bulge out are less visible in a pattern (in my mind anyway lol)

Time2LoseWeightNOW

YUM!!! on that pasta dish , Snoozie. I can't wait to try it when we get through these 6 weeks!!

Vail, I feel you on the pants, but you have me wanting to look for some for the compression part of it. I agree with Snoozie, I am trying too hard to try and not look completely foolish with noticing what someone is wearing...You strut those pants!

Milove, Suzy, my wagon is always ready and buttered! I just slip right in and out as the need be. We just had blackberry cobbler and peach cobbler this weekend!! OMG!!!

Working LATE TONIGHT. SEE YA ON THE FLIP SIDE! bye!!

Snooozie

omg peach cobbler... Gail my absolute most favourite thing in the summer here is a peach and blueberry cobbler.... now i want some!! wahhh.. I have been on some kind of eating binge... honestly i dont know whats going on its like im HUNGRY all the time! even after eating nice, normal meals i seem to be constantly looking for food.. maybe its an evolutionary thing? with winter coming in full swing its the "eat or starve" mode ?? ya well i can dream lol.. last nite i had a nice dinner of scalloped potatoes with some leftover ham diced in it.. then later in the evening had 2 cookies and a orange .. and then around 10pm i heated up MORE of the scallop.. what the hellllllllllll

tonight im going to see Little Women with some friends so hopefully that will keep my face out of the feedbag for a few hours! The class yesterday kicked my butt again.. which is GOOD because im so bad its obvious i need it badly.. we upped the weights but did a lot of leg work on the hamstrings and glutes and calves and this morning im a little sore all over... not as bad as i thought i would be.. but i'm a little intimidated by today's class coming up lol... i think i had a nightmare about all those wall squats i know are c oming!!

Snooozie

suzyqholland

Now that’s really funny, Snoozie! 😂

I haven’t motivated myself into the gym yet. I’ve been taking small steps with my eating. For some reason I just haven’t gotten that AHA! awakening moment that pushes me into wanting to get back on my wagon. I just have the blahs.

We’re flying to Kansas City this weekend to see my mother in law. She turned 92 just after Christmas and her mind is slipping even more now. We’ll get to meet our new great niece, too! My mom’s last “chemo” treatment is today. They’re using a chemo drug to fight the autoimmune disease. It appears to be working as her kidney levels are looking better. I’m hosting a baby shower for my daughter February 9th, so I need to get to working on that. Lots going on!

By the way, peach and blueberry cobbler sounds like heaven in a dish!