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For us parents out there
I am a teacher who finds himself surrounded by challenging, but also often delightful Gr. 8 students. Recently as part of our health class we had been discussing food choices and all the many decisions people make about what to eat. As part of a writing assignment I posed the question: "Why is it that most people, in spite…
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Joggin in the rain.
Today was that day. Waking up, 5:30 am and I can hear the pounding of heavy rain on the roof, hear the splatter of drops and the wind whipping the leaves on the maples outside the house. Ah yes, it all puts a smile on my face. With a grin I put my running shoes on, wave good bye to my sweetie (who is shaking her head a…
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Sometimes the universe conspires
Four months ago I was doing awesome. Great fitness routines, great shape, eating well, trimmed down, etc. Then, old familiar habits crept back in. Focusing too much on work, ignoring exercise to boost endorphins, blaming injuries for reducing activity levels, craving extra and then even more extra evenings snacks, larger…
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Out of the mouths of children..
I shall get to the point I am trying to make in a somewhat convoluted manner so bear with me:) So, back in March I had restarted my weightloss/fitness journey and been doing simply fabulous until around the end of July (first time in decades below 200 which would be close to my goal weight) and my children and sweetie were…
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Which rock are you moving first?
Was reading a book by David Gemmel (great British heroic fantasy writer) when I came across the following quote: "WHEN ASKED TO MOVE A MOUNTAIN, DO NOT LOOK UPON ITS SIZE. MERELY MOVE THE FIRST ROCK". And it occurred to me that our journey here can be much like it. Often when we look upon what we are about to embark on it…
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Complete this: IT is tough...
It is tough being an old cat in a neighbourhood of dogs. Oh yes:)
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Getting treated like a dog
No, my friends this is not a story of woe. On the contrary. What follows are some of my ponderings that made me realize that maybe it is about time we treat ourselves more like dogs (this assumes that we are responsible dog owners). So you got yourself a dog. Happily you head over to the local pet store to buy your first…
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Have you ever...?
...sat done to read some of the fine posts here, all about good nutrition and somebody's success with healthy eating, felt compelled to type a reply congratulating them on their success, encouraging to keep going, all this while you munch on a Magnum chocolate caramel ice cream bar in one hand while clumsily typing with…
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It is okay, no really... You had little choice:)
So you have been exercising well, you know, getting better at the running, stairs do not seem so hard any more, some muscles are showing up, some people are getting you the "Oh lalala" looks recently and you are feeling pretty good... most days anyway. But most importantly, following the often heard mantra of : Weightloss…
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How to get more exercise than planned. True story:)
This happened to me, partially b/c I tried to do the right thing and partially b/c I can be somewhat naive. So I had completed my morning run by 7:30 this morning, some 13 k in about 65 minutes and felt pretty satisfied with myself. Get home, some breakfast.. the day is looking good. Soon of course, Jake, our dog is…
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The dangers of weightloss and increased fitness:)
So you started your weight loss/fintess journey and things seem to be going as expected. You are feeling stronger, can run a goodly distance, your clothes fit so much better and you even had to give some of your XL shirts and pants to the Goodwill. You thought you were doing great. Ah what a fool you have been!. There are…
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120 days later. What really matters.
So today marks day 120 of my refocused fitness/weightloss journey and once again it is time to reflect on where I started and where I am at now. (Not that matters, but I am 49, 6 feet 1 in with a "large frame", just for reference.) Then (March 16th 2011). Decided to rededicate myself to a better/healthier life style. At…
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How to be inspired and get rid of the jealousy bug at the sa
This came to mind after my morning ride, sitting down and reading a brief blog written by one of my mfp friends this morning (Thank you Tazpooh). She describes how a "friend" of hers got jealous over the successful weightloss she experienced. Being jealous is such an easy thing to do, not even an elevated heart rate is…
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In spite of all our intelligence...
Dear fellow travelers Isn't it ironic that, although we claim to be the most intelligent species on our planet, we (and that includes me) still often do not realize that Junk food is NOT our Friend, in spite of its attractive outer skin, its "yummy in my tummy" attitude and sweetness on your tongue demeanor, while Sweat is…
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Warriordash Ontario
Someone posted a blog earlier about warrior dash and someone else wondered about Canadian events. For those of you in Ontario, not too far from Barrie, there is one planned for July 9th, deadline for registration, June 27th. 3.24 miles, with bales to climb, nets to navigate, fires to jump, mudslides to slither through..…
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Reflecting on the habits of snapping turtles:)
Last week, in a post, I reflected in the tenacious nature of weeds found in our gardens, their never they die attitude, how they send roots of hope deep so that they never may be eradicated, wishing that the hope that we carry could be a bit like that. Well, this morning, as I was cycling through the country side I came…
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How to win the war...:)
So this is what happened. Somehow some ice cream bars made it into my house.. 'Caramel milk chocolate with almonds and praline pecans'. Now, this by itself until recently would have been quite sufficient to get me grabbing one or two or even three of them. But someone must have informed them that I had developed some…
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90 days later....And that is what it took my friends.
So, let us get the unimportant stuff out of the way first. 90 days ago, I realized that I needed to do something to become fit again and drop some pounds. So here I am, 90 days later and 44 pounds lighter (250 to 206) with maybe around 10 more pounds to lose. SO WHAT? The much more interesting story is how I got there. So…
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Be the weed
My garden has taught me many things. Among other things, how to remain optimistic and positive in the face of adversity. Let me explain. Like every gardener knows there are plants that you would like to see thrive and others that you'd rather not see. We like to call them weeds, not b/c there is anything bad about them,…
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All hills come to an end
Early this morning, with my clan still asleep, as a gift to myself on father's day I decided to jump on my bike once more and cycle the country side. Along the way, besides the sounds of so many song birds, the wind rustling through the trees, the happy lolling of cows I also encountered two long steep hills. How does one…
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I do not care what you weigh.. what can you do now that you
Hello everyone.. Very often I see many fine posts of the amazing or agonizing weight loss that folks have achieved or how now smaller the pants are now that we fit into.. But what really inspires and motivates me (and I admit my bias here b/c I like the benefits of exercise although not always the exercising) is hearing…
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The many faces of food. Which one do you look at?:)
Saw a program the other day (X-weighted, a fabulous program us Canadians get to watch) and it got me thinking about the many faces of food. So I wondered, which face do you see when you look at or think about food: - The 'I will be your entertainment for the night" face. Need some excitement, some spice? Well let me be the…
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60 days and lots to celebrate.
They have been good, these last 60 days. Let us take a look. I restarted this journey into better, fitter living on March 18th this year and thus far: - Continue to eat well, with lots of fruit, veggies every meal. - Successfully (mostly) ignored the pleas of ice cream, pizzas and chocolate bars, demanding to be eaten by…
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Sometimes those around us need support
True story. So I have been exercising and eating better for a few weeks now and as a result I do indeed look trimmer and lost some pounds. This morning in the kitchen with my sweetie of 25 years and I tell her: "I love you". Her reply was: "Well that is a relief". I smiled and responded: " Why, do you doubt my love for…
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A little bit silly and a little bit sad.
These are some of the thoughts that occurred to me whilst walking at the dog park for 50 minutes. -Once upon a time I would be walking in the meadows hunting for frogs and grasshoppers. -Now I record walking as "walking, brisk pace, 30 minutes" -Once I would play for hours on the soccer filed after school with friends of…
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The support of strangers you will never meet.
This little post of mine was inspired by an earlier post I just read under success stories regarding "the runner's high". This will get philosophical (and I make no apologies:)) For many of us, we might be the only ones in our family trying to get more fit, maybe losing some weight, etc. (This is so for me at least). So…
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How do you know you are serious about getting fit and exerci
Well for me it was an epiphany today. Normally I do my exercising in private, whether going for a run early in the morning, or throwing some free weights around while my clan is still asleep. I need no prying/judging/laughing eyes:) Yet recently I bought the P90X series to do after work. So today started on 4th CD, all…
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How to not take certain predictions to seriously:)
THis is just a whimsical thought experiment. Well, we all know this wonderful little button at the bottom of our food diary entries. When we complete our food intake for the day, we click "Food entries complete" and out pops that little red sentence that tell us: "In 5 weeks you will weigh X amounts of pounds". This got me…
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From many to few to one:)
So I am sure many of you have been through this experience. Some one suggest a cool challenge for the week/month, whatever. Many folks join in, all excited, pick me, pick me. I too want to do this....:) A few days go buy, a week goes by. The number of folks "reporting back" dwindles, first 9, then 5, then 3.. until it is…
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Just 30 days in and so many successes
Hello there folks. 30 days (since March 18 when I joined here) it has been since I rededicated myself to a healthier life style and looking back it has been a good month. Now for some mini mile stones: -Exercised every day for at least 30 minutes (mostly cardio (5 k runs, some TM, but also some punching bags and resistance…
