Making Time

My last post was about how little time I feel is in a day... but as usual, it was a lot of complaining with no solutions.  So I would like to share with you a few time saving tricks I use throughout my day.

Working out eats up almost over an hours worth of my time if I am doing P90X that day.  The water breaks are fairly long however; ranging from 30-60 seconds.  A minute is a LONG time when it comes to all the stuff parents need to accomplish during the day.  Trust me, I understand there is stuff that happens in our crazy lives where a minute can seem like f o r e v e r, or a minute can just slip between our fingers like nothing. I've had complete hours slip through my fingers, oh never mind, I've had months... but that's the past, and now I am rambling.  So what do I do with this 60 second water break anyway?  I sweep my living room, I pick up toys, sometimes I check in with my Challenge groups on Facebook, and then I have a tiny sip of water. HAHA  After a P90X workout, I actually have my living room entirely picked up usually.

To my stay-at-home parents out there... Are there any chores that your little one enjoys doing?  Mason is a little over 2, and he's at an age where he thinks it's very fun to help out.  Use this to your advantage!    I used to think I could only effectively and efficiently clean up while Mason was napping.  Now there are things that I save for when he is awake and it gives me a little more "me" time while he's sleeping! YES!  Loading and unloading the dishwasher, switching out laundry... Mason LOVES these things.  I just save them for him, we do them together, I let him take his time with it, and save the stress for somewhere else.  So when nap time comes I can workout...and pick up the living room. HA!


Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing up is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing. - Phyllis Diller
 

Time, Time, Time, Is On My Side... Yes, It Is?

Jerry Ragovoy (Norman Meade) wrote the song Time Is on My Side, made famous by The Rolling Stones, and I'd like to meet this man.  Although he is no longer living... I'm very curious where he got all this time.

I can never seem to find enough time in a day.  I believe this a partly due to being a stay-at-home mom. Of course, you might think I have all the time in the world... but if you are a stay-at-home parent yourself you can probably relate.  Every day I write out my to-do list.  I'm trying to get a business off the ground and there are key things that I believe are imperative to getting done on a daily basis, some of which only last about 10 to 15 minutes, yet the end of the day rolls around and I realize I haven't been able to get it done.  My time spent at home with Mason is so sporadic and choppy that no matter how much consistency I try to place in our schedule, even the smallest thing out of our routine throws off my ENTIRE day!

How do people ever get used to this life style, and better yet, how do some perfect it?

I would like to add a personal disclaimer to future blog posts now... I am not supermom.  I try to be, but I am nowhere close!  But I do have days where I accomplish a million more things than I do on others, and I feel like I am on top of the world.  So if in the future I or you ever find me bragging about these things, please remember that there are also days where I feel like I climbed Mt. Everest just if I am able to get Mason and myself bathed!

Daily Dose of Chocolate

So I know I told you guys in my last blog, my husband and I were going to Dallas for a sort of Personal Development type of training.  Well it ended up being way too last minute for us, and we're trying to save money for an upcoming move so we decided not to go.  Thank goodness we opted out considering everyone in my household now has a cold... it must be that time.

All things considered, this means I will definitely not be going to Denny's every day for the weekend, (THANK GOODNESS!) and I won't be able to report on eating clean while eating out.

I honestly have no idea what I'm even going to eat for breakfast yet since I need to go grocery shopping today.  I'll probably end up drinking a Shakeology smoothie for breakfast.  I really want to move that up to lunch time though considering it does really help me curb cravings through out the day...so I figured if I have it for lunch instead, it will help with those pesky nighttime cravings.

Speaking of cravings...

I used to be a chocolate craver for a long time... then I wasn't... now it's back!!! NOOO!!! BUT... studies do report chocolate being good for you; actually it's the alkaloid, theobromine, that is in the cacao plant, which is good for you.  Theobromine is actually the thing in chocolate that dogs are allergic to.  I studied holistic medicine for a little while, so I know about an ounce of information about this. Hehe...  Anyways, I'm allowing for some chocolate dosage in my daily diet, however, I do need some discipline when it comes to the chocolate department!  So I bought this little weekly pill case from the dollar store where I will put my daily dose of chocolate.

I found this article to back me up...11 Reasons Chocolate's Good for You... but I will give you the 11 basic reasons...

1.  Chocolate decreases stroke risk.
2.  Chocolate decreases the likelihood of heart attack.
3.  Chocolate protects against blood inflammation.
4.  Chocolate helps with math. (I'm calling bullshit.)
5.  Chocolate may prevent cancer.
6.  Chocolate reduces the risk of diabetes.
7.  Chocolate is good for your skin.
8.  Chocolate can control coughs. (yay!)
9.  Chocolate improves blood flow.
10.  Chocolate strengthens your brain.
11.  Chocolate makes you live longer.

ALRIGHT! Take this with a grain of salted chocolate considering this article was probably written by Hershey, but I believe there's enough support to say that in moderation chocolate isn't all that bad for you.  I would highly suggest sticking as close to the source as possible with dark chocolate and cacao for highest levels of theobromine.

*Update*
Here is what I did eat for breakfast... not my proudest inner chef moment but at least I ate something...

And yes... I need that ridiculous knife to cut my fruit!

Radical Diet?

Why is it so hard to eat clean, good food, and why do people attack us for it?  If you were looking for me to answer this question, then you're reading the wrong blog.  ;)  Honestly, I don't have a clue why it's so hard... of course there are a million surface reasons why... it's inconvenient, takes time, effort, and dedication, and it's a strait pain in the ass sometimes.  On top of all this your friends and loved ones will usually mock you and give you a real hard time for it.  Why?  Because it's inconvenient, takes time, effort, and dedication, and it's a strait pain in the ass... and you can do it, and they can't, moreover, WON'T.

I'm not going to make up some BS story and say how I have discovered the secret to always eating a clean diet, because I am NOWHERE close to that.  My schedule is more like for 2 weeks I will eat a nice, balanced, healthy diet, and then BAM! something happens and it goes out the window...and usually it's not just for a day or 2.  It's for a whole week!  This last weekend before Thanksgiving I flew to Dallas with my husband for a personal development class.  The only restaurant near by was a Denny's.  UGH!  Now of course, I know what I could have done to eat clean, the right things to order... and I just don't.

Now, if you're reading this for the tips and tricks, I know I already said I don't have them... but I'm trying, and I'm learning.  I want you all to know that I struggle with the same problems you have, I want to  figure out how to overcome those struggles, and then help you also overcome.  Well, I am headed back to Dallas next weekend for another course and will be there Friday through Sunday, and I will ONLY eat clean, whole foods.

WHOLE FOODS: Nothing processed... just strait meat (however, I do not eat meat, but if you're a meat eater, have at it), fish, eggs, veggies, fruit, nuts, some grains, and herbs/spices.  That's a variety, right?  Should be easy...

I will record EVERYTHING I eat, when I eat it, and how I feel throughout the day.  I will also try to note at what times I'm craving the most junk, and see if there might be any defining reasons WHY.
Until then, when you're feeling too tired or lazy to make yourself a good, clean meal, remind yourself that in the end it's always worth it.  Clean, whole food meals are delicious, AND filling.

My breakfast consisted of egg whites, avocado, pomegranate, and raw almonds.  Clean protein, clean fat.  For extra flavor I always add a super large dose of pepper to my avocado and eggs.  

Why You Should Blog

OK… Chances are if you start blogging, your life won't suddenly become as glamourous as you hope. You won't become a famous blogger overnight, and you won't get rich. You probably won't be at Starbucks everyday typing your little heart out and enjoying your Carmel Macchiato with soy milk and no whip.  More than likely if you decide to start blogging, words will not just come to you.  Unless you have a LOT to say then you might even find yourself at a total loss for words, and wondering if everyone else finds you just as boring as you're discovering yourself to be.  In fact… a productive blog takes way more work than you even imagine at first.  It's something  you have to work on even when you are not actively working on it.  For example…when I think of something funny I write it down RIGHT AWAY, otherwise it will be forgotten and never make it to my cyber thoughts.  I am constantly capturing moments, thoughts, ideas, words, and pictures.  

So why in the *bleep* would you want to do this?

I'm learning a lot more about myself than I imagined. 

It might be possible you don't even want to learn about yourself… if that's your case, then that is very sad, but very relatable, so I can't judge.

It's giving me a better relationship with my husband. 

When it comes to my own thoughts, and words, I'm way more self-conscious about what my friends and family think than I am about what strangers think.  Reading my entries to him before publishing is very intimate for me.  It's opening myself up, and allowing him to learn even more about me than he already knows.  I say things in my blogs in a different way than I would normally tell him out loud, so it gives us something to talk about in a light way.  He also gets super excited when he hears that he's in my blogs even though I've given him the role of the "dumb man" (his words), but he says that's ok because he "plays the role well". (Again…his words.)

Time management…I suck at it, but I'm getting better.

I am absolutely awful at managing my time!  I have the hardest time finding a schedule for myself and sticking to it.  But I am finding the more "responsibilities" I give myself, the better I am at finding time for them.  I have turned my blogging into a "responsibility" therefore I have to find time for it, making it so that I have to manage my other activities better as well.

I'm trying to be more interesting.

Is that weird?  I don't necessarily think I am boring… but I don't always think I'm fun.  And who wants to read from or about someone that's not having any fun?  I wouldn't.

Might I add that I currently am sitting at Starbucks, drinking tea, and blogging (obviously)… and it's not as great as it sounds.  I now know all the words to Louis Armstrong's, "I Ain't Got Nobody".  What's the big deal?  The big deal is that there are only a handful of words in the song, and it's about 10 minutes long, and plays almost every 10 minutes.  

Anyways… my point is that you shouldn't expect to be the next Carrie Bradshaw (although I believe she was a newspaper columnist…and then a write for Vogue…not a blogger)…but you just might discover that you have your very own inner Carrie Bradshaw.

"As we drive along this road called life, occasionally a gal will find herself a little lost.  And when that happens, I guess she has to let go of the coulda, shoulda, woulda, buckle up and just keep going." Carrie Bradshaw

Personal Development

Personal Development might be something that's difficult for you to get into at first.  Only if you beat around it though; the trick is to just dive on in with it all.  

Why do I think it might be hard?  

For some odd reason, to most people, Personal Development may seem silly.  For instance, yesterday evening I bought John C. Maxwell's The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth: Live Them and Reach Your Potential.  Leaving the bookstore I was literally giddy, and said to my husband, "I feel like such a grown up…hehe".  Yes, I believe that's exactly how it came out.  He told me just for saying that I did not sound very grown up. <sad face> Oh well.  

I think the main reason people have this silly feeling about Personal Development is they are perhaps terrified of it.  Why be scared of growing?  For most of us, it's out of our comfort zone. It is something you actually have to set out to do.  The biggest example of this, is what Maxwell describes as "The Assumption Gap --  I Assume That I Will Automatically Grow".  I'll give a little more from this since this particular paragraph was my "a-ha!" moment.

"When we are children, our bodies grow automatically.  A year goes by, and we become taller, stronger, more capable of doing new things and facing new challenges.  I think many people carry into adulthood a subconscious belief that mental, spiritual, and emotional growth follows a similar pattern.  Time goes by, and we simply get better.  We're like Charlie Brown in Charles Schulz's Peanuts comic strip, who said once, "I think I've discovered the secret to life -- you just hang around until you get used to it."  The problem is that we don't improve by simply living. We have to be intentional about it." (Maxwell)

We get so used to simply living, that before you know it 5 years go by and you realize you've been on auto-pilot for exactly that long, and maybe even longer.  This has happened to me already, and it was only by having something bad happen that I realized what was happening with my life (or not happening).  I don't want to just "simply live".  I want to DO things, and be more AWARE of what I'm doing, as I'm doing them.

So now I am "diving on in with it all" and growing.  Well… learning how to grow, anyways.  Unless you've read a book, or attended a seminar on Personal Development, you might be saying, "Whatever…" about it, but I really feel like the author is speaking to me personally.  It's as if he wrote this book just for me, came to my front door, and handed me an autographed copy and said, "Here, this is for you!".  Now you might be thinking, 'Clearly this chick needs this.' <HA HA> but I truly believe this is something we can ALL benefit from! 

Laying in bed, reading my new book, I'm wanting to write down practically everything.  (I own the book… it's mine… I probably don't need to write it down.)  Every other sentence I'm thinking to myself, 'WOW! Why didn't I read this years ago???'.  (Probably because it was just published this year…) Every other paragraph, I'm bugging Brandon in the middle of reading his Toyota 4x4 magazine, "You HAVE to listen to this!"  (He's probably not...)

If you think reading a few pages from this book has made me sound like a crazy woman, and you would like to feel like a crazy woman... or man, too, then check it out!

$25.99 new at the bookstore... or $28.99 for all my Canadian folk

$17.05 new on Amazon.com

$12.99 on Kindle

"What great accomplishments we'd have in the world if everybody had done what they intended to do." Frank Clark

Which Workout Program I'm Rocking, and Why I Think You'd Love It!

So, as you have read I have lost a lot of weight in the last two years.  I weigh less NOW than I did BEFORE I got pregnant!  So what's the problem?!  I have "mom body"... my weight is redistributed in all of these funky places, and it lays on me like a wet blanket.  Well, I'm just not OK with that.  I am DETERMINED to change the social definition of "mom body" to SMOKIN' HOT!

I'm really bad at coming up with my own workout regimen and sticking with it!  I mean, awful!  I will come up with this amazing schedule for myself.. run 5 days a week, abs 3 days a week, all the other muscle groups thrown in there somewhere. Yaaaddddaa Yaaaadddaa...
I find I can just never stick with this... so I decided I needed something even more structured.  Something that told you exactly what you needed to do, and when you needed to do it.  

Of course I've seen a million before & after photos and videos of people who have completed P90X (who hasn't???).  I finally decided I wanted to BE one of those people.  

October 15 I STOPPED WANTING and STARTED DOING!

Why do I think YOU will LOVE P90X???

It's doable!
OK, please don't get me wrong! It is HARD! (duh) However, the actual exercises themselves are fairly easy.  They're simple, easy to follow, and you're able to catch on quickly.  
If you've ever been in the military, or law enforcement I think you will especially like them considering it's stuff your body knows, or has programmed somewhere inside of it.  If it's been a while since you've exercised and you don't think your body will remember what to do... take it slow, but KEEP GOING!  I promise, YOU WILL SEE RESULTS... and probably very quickly. 

Tony Horton is silly and fun.  He's slightly cocky, but not to the point where you dislike him for it.  He'll help motivate you and push you through the workout.  Also, he just knows what he's talking about.

The co-instructors look like real people.  Yes, they are beautiful... they are fit, muscular, and sexy, but they DON'T look like porn stars.  I find sometimes that it can be a little off-putting and discouraging when workout video instructors are dolled up and wearing underwear for shorts.  Let's get real here for a minute.  We have busy lives and most of us are either exercising first thing in the morning before we've even brushed our teeth or hair, or you're working out after you've had a long, exhausting day at work.  While sometimes hot people CAN BE motivating, I'm sure at times, it's the last thing you want to look at while you're sweat is rolling onto the ground. 

Daniel Haas.

Why don't all P90X workouts include this man?

What I DISLIKE about P90X...

YogaX is super. duper. HARD.  You get through your first 3 days of P90X, and then you realize day 4 is yoga, and you get REALLY EXCITED!  Woo! Yoga!  You're thinking, well this will be nice.  It's not.  Ok, it's not, not nice... but it's a workout!  Don't let the Yoga facade fool you.  

Well... that's about the only thing I don't like about P90x.  

EDIT:

*I forgot to mention time.  The workouts are a little long.  Most workouts are over an hour long plus about 20 minutes for the Ab RipperX.  I believe if you adjust your time you CAN fit it into your schedule.  However... My suggestion is to pick a time when you know you can get it done (wake up earlier and get it done before work, do it on your lunch break if there's time, after work, or during your child's nap time), and DO IT AT THAT TIME!  Considering the length of time of the workouts, if you put it off, you might have a very hard time getting it done later in the day.  This is my personal experience with it though, and we're all different.*

As I get a little further into the program, I will go a little more into my personal experience with it.  

PERSONAL DISCLAIMER:  While I am not where I want to be yet with my physical capabilities, I have been at this for a while.  Exercise is not new to me.  So if you are doing P90X, decide to try it, or any other workout program, don't be discouraged if you struggle with it!  I can promise you, we ALL struggle in the beginning of something new!  Also if you would like more personalized help, send me an email or check out my Beachbody Coach website.

NEXT...

I'll keep you guessing, since I'm not quite sure myself.  Maybe something more personal.