ME!

ME!
Holding my "before" favorite shirt after losing 125 pounds on my journey to better health.

Sunday, November 30, 2014

A gift of health

Many of you have asked me about ways to be motivated.  I wanted to share with you one of the "tools" that I use to keep me going.  When I decided to "fix" this mess of me I knew that it would not only involve food but also many other areas.  I needed to change everything.  I realized that I needed to move more.  At first I would just give myself a distance and walk that far. The corner was a good walk for me at one time. (I live in the middle of a block so not far.) I also got myself into a swimming suit and committed to  go to water aerobics.  All these commitments were made to MYSELF. I had created the unhealthy life that I had. I was the one who ate, and sat, and watched life leave me behind.   I didn't want the life I was living at the time and knew that change had to happen.  One of the most useful tools I have invested in has been some type of a movement  monitor.  I used one that could be used in the water for quite some time and loved it when I could light up all the lights with that one hour of intense exercise. It also monitored my steps.  I now use one that can not go in the water but it monitors a lot more and different types of movement I make.  I let it get me going and keep me going.  I realize that I am goal driven with the visual charts and happy faces I get when I reach my step goals. I know that I feel better when I move and I can keep better control of my weight.  There are movement  monitors starting at about $10 and going as high as you want to pay.  A pedometer is  an excellent way to start. The American Heart Association recommends 10,000 steps a day for heart health.  That would have killed me the first day if I had tried to do that at the start.   This holiday season I want to encourage you to evaluate your movement.  If someone is wanting a "hint" for a gift maybe the gift of a monitor for movement would be a great idea.  Start small and work up to one that fits your individual lifestyle.  What greater gift can you give to yourself or someone give to you that the gift of health.   Let's all get out and get moving more and something I love to tell others who are working on their own healthy journey is to, "just keep swimming!"

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Not gonna happen.

I have had a few of you ask me when I am going to write a post on my blog?  I have thought long and hard about that question.  When I started my blog I did it as a healing process for myself and hopefully in sharing  my journey I could  help some of you.  I never planed on posting on a regular basis.  I will get ideas in my head and they don't go away until I write them down.  Some of these ideas nag at me for quite a while.  They are little thoughts, worries, or concerns and they either grow until I write about them or they quietly slip away after a few days.  I walk a lot and that is the time that I can put these thoughts into the little file cabinet in my brain or not.  I know that some of my blogs are just ramblings but some of them have really helped me to focus and move on.   I continue to work on my healthy journey.  I try to walk everyday. I do not go to the gym at this time but plan to return soon.  I have had a little bout with depression and the old fibromyalgia has been trying to get my attention.  I know that I just need to continue moving, eating right, and doing the healthy things that I know will help.  Maybe it is just the colder weather and the seasonal changes.  I swear my body could be marketed as a great barometer for pressure changes and approaching storms.  I also have to remind myself to "just keep swimming," because this is just a minor annoyance and something I can handle right now.   I want to encourage you all to "keep swimming" as you continue working on your healthy journeys. So.....in response to the questions about a regular post to my blog my reply has to be....
Nope! Not gonna happen.