Beautiful Behaviors - March 2017

@trailgirl777 don't judge yourself any more harshly than you would judge any of us... which I suspect is not at all! Be kind to yourself. Every day is a new day and a fresh start.

There's almost nothing I enjoy more than being sleepy at the end of the day (my days start SO early, around 4:30 am), going through my evening routine of laying out tomorrow's clothes and packing my breakfast/lunch, washing my face, brushing my teeth, getting into bed and delude myself that I'm going to read but falling asleep two paragraphs in... bliss!

My dad's in the hospital. I was there all day yesterday. He will probably be in there most of this week. He has pneumonia, and his immune system is very weak due to having cancer, he doesn't have an esophagus, he has had a feeding tube since 2009, he has asthma, large rips in his aorta, diabetes, and much more. So when he gets sick - he gets sick and ends up in the ER sometimes. He still lives alone and gets around, he even goes on long motorcycle trips. 3 of my sisters and I live within about 10 or 15 minutes of him, so we definitely keep him in check He's doing pretty good and I expect him to be home by the end of this week.

Sooo... probably no workouts this week. I will still log my nutrition and eat healthy. The gym is like my therapy, so I will get back as soon as I can. I feel happy when I go to the gym.

I wish everyone a happy Tuesday.

Thought for the day: Life is short, do what makes you happy.

@CT0526 - yep! Good for us! It is having a mild positive impact on my ability to stay within calories.

@trailgirl777 - Good for you! Get back to tracking and logging and drinking water. What day are you on?

@Butts_Boys_and_Burgers_ohmy - First, I'm having trouble typing your screen name with a straight face! I love it. Welcome. Tell us how you intend to treat yourself well this week!

@rdevol - I'm a little envious of those who are able to do food prepping. It's a really good idea. hmmmm

@BradleysMommy22 - Have you done a beautiful behavior for this week?

@KimF0715 - How is it going? Prayers going up for your family.

@zzmdfh - We have something in common. I used to be 5'10" tall and 130 pounds. I thought I was fat! Ha! My metabolism was slightly faster than a jet engine. At the rate of weight loss I'm seeing now, I should be at 200 pounds in 2 years. You've lost 12 pounds! Yay!

@AlisalGal - the bike sounds like a great idea. In fact, you sound like a pretty cheerful spring lady! way to go!

@sisiirvin - Hey, I am impressed with a 5 pound weight loss! But it doesn't define who you are. What is in your heart defines what you are. When people get overwhelmed, it's because they care.

@happysherri - I still love your thoughts for the day!!!!... You're closer than you were yesterday! I carried that one and giggled for a whole day. Prayers going up for your father.

Jess - I'm so glad you are back to tracking and going to yoga. You pulled yourself out of that rut! Now, as for substituting iced tea for water.... I'm not sure. I count my water separate from my coffee and tea. I will say this, you have to make that decision based upon what your body is saying it needs. My body says "uh-uh. that ain't water". But I have found that decisions about wellness are really diverse and dependent on the individual. Be good to yourself.

The closer you get to retirement, the more you realize you cannot do this for the rest of your life. Hang in there for a few more years. You will make it.

Now, for me. I think my oxygen is low. I spent two days mostly in bed thinking about what I would rather be doing. Then, in desperation, ordered a pulse-ox device to measure my oxygen levels. I'm so thankful that I live where I live. It is a real gift from God. Well, if you don't believe in God, then just call it a "blessing". I can go outside when I'm blue and take off my shoes and feel mother earth and watch the bees and get visited by a cat... sigh. wonderful. a red-headed woodpecker serenaded me. They have a unique song.

Jess, the next time I'm down from this, I'll say a prayer for me and you both! Sounds like you went through something too.

My beautiful behavior for tomorrow:
Go outside, take off shoes, smile.

That's it. My love to you all!

Lea

We must be in day 6 of our water challenge. I'm sick of water and about to rebel with all coffee and tea. Bwahaha water! Body! Wait. That's my body I'm rebelling against. Shucks.

@aleahurst I do think it's been six days! We did it! I'm really not missing my diet coke and I just automatically reach for water. I did make some iced green tea yesterday. I like it plain with no sweetener or lemon. But I did get in all my water.

I've been able to stick with my goals this week for walking and calorie intake. The past two days I've found that I'm not hungry at all and am struggling to get to 1200 calories. My husband feels the same way. We know we need to eat the minimum. I'm guessing it will only happen for a couple of days and will sort itself out.

Today is a rest day so no treadmill, but I'll keep up with my water goal and tracking my calories

Have a great day!

@aleahurst - great job on the water and taking some time outdoors to enjoy the fresh air. I fail at the fresh air challenge a lot because I end up doing things indoors on the weekends (I don't know why).
@CT0526 - wonderful work on the water and mindfully eating. Yes, definitely get enough fuel for your body.
@trailgirl777 - Wowzers! Praying and sending good vibes your way. I say for now - allow yourself to eat what sounds good and just try and eat smaller portions because that is more than stressful!
@jessiquoi - I drink tap water, it's city water. I hardly ever buy bottled water, but I understand in certain areas tap water is not so good. Hope you get more water to drink lol I've been reading and see that you are doing a good job logging, which is inspirational to me. Keep it up
@kittens_info - girl, YES! I have those moments. FANTASTIC - you passed the test! The hardest part of the fitjourney is "falling" and picking yourself back up! ****Although, if you ate healthy all day and had 3 cookies, I don't think that's bad at all. It's called balance. Love your attitude!

Update: Dad is home from the hospital and doing well. I went to dinner with my son last night and couldn't finish my meal - that never happens. I am looking forward to going to the gym tomorrow, since this past week has been hectic.

***** Guess what??!!! - I weighed myself this morning and am down 2.2 lbs from my last weigh in! I was at a plateau for about 3 weeks, then went down a half a pound, then hit another plateau for a couple of weeks and then boom! So this is a good thing. However, I thought to myself "I'd rather see more muscle definition than any number on a scale going up or down." So, this weight loss is just the sprinkles on an already awesome dessert!!!! LOL

Thought for the day: 3 months from now you will Thank yourself. *Goes back to - if you eat that cookie or skip that workout, you just have to keep on going and never give up! We may crawl, we may walk or we may run but we will all get there!!! I completely believe this.

Wow. My emotional health has been a rollercoaster ride for several days.

One of the things that keeps me on goal is to come here and confess what I did. Really. Do I want to let the public know that I stopped 15 footsteps short of my steps goal? I put the bad attitude aside and walk to my garden and back. There. 53 steps. Goal met.

I'm writing this from a chair in the backyard. Bare feet. Feeding my sense of touch.

Thank you for all the encouragement. Today is a "just me and God" day. I feel fragile.

I am full of gratitude to have found all of you. So, there is joy in this day.

Lea

As an attempt to eat less bread I tried making Cauliflower Pizza. It actually was awesome.
http://damndelicious.net/2016/07/13/best-cauliflower-pizza-crust/

I've never been very good at self care. Throughout my life other people, whether they be friend or family, have always been put before me by myself. I don't know why this has always been, but maybe a little motivation could help break the mold. Add me!!

@trailgirl777 good news, yay
@aleahurst confess it and keep pushing. You're doing wonderful
@CT0526 Whew, tired just reading your workout, stupendous job
@kevinf2380 I like cauliflower pizza, I'm gonna check that out. ♡♡
@KimF0715 hugs and sending good vibes. I lost my mom about 3 years ago to cancer, she was the center of our family, we all gravitated around her. She was the type that saw good in everyone.
@romade188 I use to put everyone before myself and was running on empty, glad you recognize this and we can work on ourselves. Welcome
@jessiquoi thanks. Well water, that explains it. My friend had that growing up, I remember.

Update: Had Mexican food last night and a Margarita. I'm such a light weight, I hardly ever drink, 1 drink and I was tipsy. Delicious and well earned splurge meal. Today I start back at the gym, leg day! Then probably a lazy day after that.

Thought of the day: You are worth it! You are worth the healthy good food you eat, you are worth the time you take for yourself, you are worth the happiness you receive and you are worth all the hard work.

Yesterday, I took a day off from taking care of myself. Not that I planned it. I just wore out. I took my mother and my son to dinner. It was my son's birthday. We sat at a table where we watched buzzard hawks soaring over about ten miles of rocky deep valley. We looked down over the waterfalls. We walked the boardwalk. Mom wasn't up to the 12.5 mile hike around the falls. I wasn't quite that energetic either.

I met my step goal. I met my water goal. Then Mom bought us an all-natural chocolate bar to split for desert. It was soooo good. It contained raw sugar, instead of natural sugar. It had raw vanilla. It had raw cacao nibs. mmmmm. I didn't log a thing and I have no idea how I would re-create it!

So, I start over today! And, I'll keep my feet away from Jess! Yes I am ticklish!

@romade188 - Welcome! We will sure encourage you to be good to you! You need to come here about once a day and talk to us, we will respond. We're like that.

@happysherri - I love the new pic! wooo!

@trailgirl777 - okay! good news! Now.... Take good care of you.

@KimF0715 - What an event. I'm so sorry for your family. I'll keep you and yours in prayer for a while, okay?

@kittens_info - What you described is quite common. Me and so many others have those kinds of moments. You don't have to make it through a month of dieting. You don't have to make it through a week. You don't even have to make it through a day! You only have to make it through right now. So, take care of yourself in this moment. Make a decision to live as though right now is meaningful. Because in the end, "right now" is the pivotal moment when all things matter. Now, there will come a day when I'll need you to preach that back at me!

@CT0526 - Good job of staying active! wooo!

Okay. my next challenge is to prep food for six days. I'm not sure what this means for me. I have ingredients and will have to wander about the house and yard and just make decisions. I rarely prep food. So, this is a very new challenge!

I'm bored already. Six days of prepping food? ugh!

Who here is willing to hold me accountable? I secretly hope nobody wants to and I still know it is the right thing....

Love to all

Lea