Tweety, too!

Happy Friday afternoon. So much for my morning update. I'm late! Lots of action at TEDMED. If you're interested, search for #tedmed on Twitter.

Yesterday's Observations:

• Dinner was great and a welcome change from being out so often this week. All recipes from WholeFoods which is a great source of tasty meals. 
• Decided to take another long stroll with my dog after work last night. The Autumn weather was pretending it was summer so we went out to enjoy the warmth. 
• More green tea and less coffee yesterday. I slept more soundly. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning? 129.2 Gained 4 ounces since yesterday. Is it bad to get on the scale each morning? Most "experts" would say yes. And, it works for me. I get on the scale most mornings because I am collecting data on myself and being aware of the impact of my choices. I would much rather know about 4 ounces or 1 pound than be shocked by the 10 pounds like 2 weeks ago. I don't torture myself over 4 ounces, I simply consider listening to my body.  
• Haven't worked out yet today and am planning on doing so after work this evening. The day doesn't feel quite "in gear" without my morning exercise. Interesting....
• Am looking forward to Hearty Greens Soup with Bowtie Pasta and Tomatoes for dinner with some home-made bread. Do you have a bread maker gathering dust in a closet somewhere? Go find it! It is great during the cooler weather and the resulting bread is much better for you. 
• Am gathering data on eating organic. I know people say it is too expensive. And, yes it is more costly though I have a theory if we plan our meals well and reduce eating out, choosing organic is actually affordable. Stay tuned...

Have a lovely Friday afternoon and be sure to schedule some time for your health this weekend! 

My lead? Yes. My plan? No!

Update for this Thursday and 11 days into the "down with the pounds" project. To the update and then an explanation.

Yesterday's Observations:

• Had a great dinner meeting and meal. Raw oysters as a starter and a salad as my main. I was full and satisfied. Nobody else had a salad for dinner. Alas, sometimes you lead alone. 
• My other food for yesterday consisted of: banana, 1/2 blueberries, 4 strawberries, 1 ounce of almonds, 2 cups of arugula, 5 mushrooms. Not a great deal of food. It works for me and it may not work for you (see explanation below).
• I'm doing some core work every day and have noticed fewer back twinges. I think, perhaps, core work is the unappreciated exercise. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning: 128.6 pounds. 
• Busy day already. Breakfast meeting complete and off to lunch meeting soon. Breakfast? A cup of fresh fruit, whole wheat bread and tomato juice. Not as healthful as my home-prepared breakfast, mind you, and still pretty reasonable. 
• Did yoga, abs and lower body workout early this morning (still dark out, ugh). Had planned on 5 miles on the stationary bike and decided to take it slow, instead. My dog and I walked for nearly 2 miles. Yes, running and biking is a faster way to burn calories. And, sometimes our bodies need to slow down and enjoy the process of exercise. We walked briskly and enjoyed a very lovely autumn morning. 
• Am planning some additional exercise this evening after work and then a lovely home-cooked meal. Marinated and grilled portobello mushroom with avocado, black bean and mango on arugula (I love arugula, in case you haven't noticed). Can't wait!

Explanation:

I've been talking about leading by example and I encourage you to do so, too. You're more than welcome to follow my lead and eat at home more often, make better food choices when eating out and do some exercise (and even some core exercise) every day. If you take better care of yourself, the people around you will take better care of themselves. Do I have proof? Lots of anecdotal evidence and no double-blind clinical studies. Don't believe me? Try it! 

And there is a catch... you can follow my lead but you can't follow my plan. My plan is my plan and you can't have it. Why am I being so stingy all of the sudden? Because I care about you. The reason my plan works is because I invest the time and effort in learning what works for me. What works for me will, most likely, not work for you. Life-long, sustainable and easy health and wellness requires that each one of us find our own recipe for success. The latest diet fad is a waste of time and the newest fitness gadget is a waste of money. Are they mindless to follow? Perhaps. Will they last? Not likely. 

I want you to invest in you. I want you to learn how to take care of your own health, to find the kind of exercise you enjoy (and can sustain), to make better food choices (and get away from the trap of processed foods). I want you to create your own life well lived. Follow my lead!

Where is Wednesday Going?

Starting your morning with software updates is certainly an adventurous way to begin the day. Whew! Things appear to be functioning at the moment... fingers crossed! On to the update...

Yesterday's Observations:

• I am saving a great deal of time and money by planning and preparing my own meals. Meal time is now a welcome break from work because I don't have to forage for something to make. Try it!!
• After extra lower body and back stretching my knee felt better and I had my time on the treadmill. 
• Dinner meeting was tapas and I ordered the starters for our group of eight: tuna tartare, ceviche, edamame, olives and bruschetta. I thought my choices were relatively healthy. Someone else ordered fried calamari. The calamari? Gone. My choices? Some left on every plate. I had a salad as my main. Yes, people look at you funny when you order a starter salad as a entree. Yes, I ordered first. Yes, I am leading by example. Best of all, I didn't leave dinner sluggish and weighed down by a heavy entree. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Traded coffee for green tea today. 
• Have another dinner meeting this evening. Will also experiment with leading my example. Stay tuned...
• I did my strength training work before my run this morning. Was an interesting way to change things up and I had more energy for Lower Body II (15 M). 
• I want the weekend. 
• I'm going to do Total Body Stretch (10 M) before lunch to counteract spending too much time hunched over my computer. 

Until tomorrow!

Tuesday Tips

Really quick update.... off to a meeting!

Yesterday's Observations:

• I'm glad I took it easy exercise-wise yesterday. I enjoyed the walk with my dog and the bedtime yoga and stretching.
• I really enjoy the first cup of coffee. The second one, I really want to enjoy but it is just not that good. One cup of coffee going forward

Today's Thoughts:

• Lighter breakfast and lunch meals today. I have a dinner meeting tonight.
• I felt a twinge in my right knee during yoga this morning. Hopped on the treadmill for a quick run and decided to stop for now and will give it another go this afternoon. Don't want to push it and cause a real injury.

All for now. Happy Tuesday and remember to do two things for your health today!

Monday Morning Update

Week 2 has begun with a long list of things to do. Let's get on with it:

Yesterday's Observations:

• No cake. One M&M and, I have to say, it wasn't that good. Plus, one mini-scoop of homemade coconut, chocolate, minty ice cream. Very tasty and five bites was a perfect amount. 
• Drank too much tea at the birthday party... had a restless night of sleep.
• Creating my Move.Eat.Be. plan for this week took much less time than last week. It was very helpful to plan around three restaurant meals I have this week for business meetings. To see those commitments on a schedule and to understand I may eat less healthfully for those meals allowed me to plan extra-healthy for my other meals. 

Today's Thoughts:

• I didn't feel well when the alarm rang at 6 AM this morning perhaps from a bad night of sleep. I opted to stay in bed for another hour and delay my workout until later today. 
• When I did get out of bed, still not feeling great, my conscious (who has apparently taken up residence inside my partner) suggested I should listen to my body and take it easy today. I grumbled. I have work to do, workouts to do and much to accomplish. He again reminded me to follow my own advice. I commented how it is sometimes annoying to hear your own good advice repeated to you. And, I thanked him. 
• I'm going to skip the intense cardio today and opt for taking my dog for a walk this afternoon. I'll combine that with some yoga and stretching and make this a generally easy workout day. 
• I'll limit myself to two cups of coffee today and plan to get to bed early for a good night of sleep. 

I hope you spent some time working on your Move.Eat.Be. plan for your own week. It is really helpful! Have a terrific Monday!

Sunday Funday!

Quicker update:

Yesterday's Observations:

• 2 mile run outside in the beautiful fall weather was lovely. Must further train my dog to not stop and mark every other bush, tree, leaf, weed...
• Didn't do any strength training yesterday. Must do so on weekends, even if only a small amount.
• Made a terrific butternut squash, kale and white bean stew for dinner. Very tasty, very easy and great for fall. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning. 131. Seems the positive trend was short lived. Ugh. 
• Did yoga, 6 miles on the stationary bike, a few ab exercises and Arms I (10 M). 
• Birthday party today. To cake or not to cake...?
• Will devote 30 minutes this evening to create Move.Eat.Be. plan for next week.

Enjoy your Sunday! 

Happy Saturday and Day 6

A quick update this morning. It is the weekend!

Yesterday's Observations:

• I still had plenty of food from my grocery shopping on Monday. I spent about $150 on organic fruits, vegetables, a few cans of beans, eggs and some nuts. Five to six days of organic food can be affordable. 
• Drank too much coffee again. Weakness!
• Very much enjoyed red wine and dinner last night at a local tapas restaurant. I noticed I was coughing after eating... perhaps something in the food that didn't quite agree with my system. And, it was very tasty. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning? 129.8. I'm astounded. Yes, I've been eating very well this week and exercising at least 60 minutes a day. I expected last night's dinner out and wine would have prevented such drastic results. And, I am pleased!
• Morning yoga has been done and now off to the great outdoors for a run!

Enjoy your Saturday!