How do you begin your day???

What is the first thing you say when you wake up in the morning?
Is it a positive statement, or a negative one?

Now dont get me wrong, its really easy to fall into the negative comments (especially when the alarm goes off at 5.45am, and the thought of getting out of a nice warm bed just sends you into a mini depression), but when we start our day in the negative frame of mind, this can set us up to continue this pattern. And really, who wants to be the sour puss at the workplace.

So tomorrow, try something different. Instead of dragging your butt out of bed in a semi comatose state, take 1 minute to think about one good thing that's happening in your life at the moment. It doesnt have to be a huge life changing event, it could be something like the joy that you are feeling because you were organised yesterday and have a arranged fresh fruit & your favourite yoghurt for breakie today.

And while you are in a "thinking" mode, make a promise to yourself to do 1 task today, which will give you a positive "carrot" for tomorrow.

Life is all about choices, and I intend to live like a goddess whilst I am waiting for the rest of my world to catch up to my ideal "me" (aka reaching my goal weight - only another 9 kilos to go).



Stop the world, I want to get off..........

What do we want - MORE TIME - when do we want it - NOW....... should be my mantra at the moment LOL. Because like most people who juggle many different roles in their lives, life is just too busy. Take for example me, I am a mother, wife, daughter, sister, friend, nurse, clinical teacher, farmer, cook, cleaner, gardener and vegie grower, house renovator, asperger's support group participant, parent commitee school member, and head "fixer" for when anything goes wrong - from running out of milk, to finding extra money for nasty surprises (even when the bank account says no LOL), to working back past the end of my shift to manage a very ill patient.

Notice how I didnt put 12wbt participant in my list of roles?????? Thats because it seems that the "role" of "me" doesnt exsist as there is no time. What I am actually saying is, there is no time for ME. How sad is that.

There are two main reasons why there is no time for me. The first seems to be a lack of organisation (remember the "too much to do" whinge). So its back to the calendar to list everything that has to be done for the next month. Then to stop that sinking feeling of being overwhelmed, just look at tomorrows tasks. These tasks are then divided into group A (those tasks that must be done, eg  employed work commitments), group B ( those tasks that should be done, eg professional reading) and group C tasks (those that could be done, eg vacuum the rug daily). Now have a look at the list and see what can be delegated to others - can the kids / husband etc take care of some tasks in the "B & C" group?? And ask yourself, what would happen if task .....(insert B or C task) was not completed today???

The second problem for me is the need to please. A huge amount of stress is caused by the inability to say NO. And the result is that I end up running other peoples agendas. This leads to getting run down and risk of becoming ill. Worse, you get seriously fed up and frustrated because you have no time for you. This is a major issue for me, but in Elizabeth Wilson's book "Goddess - be the woman you want to be", she suggests that if you cant say no, try saying "I'm not sure, let me get back to you". The breather will give you time to stifen your resolve.

I have come to the realisation that there has to be a mindshift here - that the role of "me" has to be put in the A group and not the D one (eg the group that doesnt exsist). Although putting it into practice seems to be a challenge in my life. The block of "not worthy" seems to run a lot deeper than I first thought, but I am celebrating the fact that I am accepting this fact. Like Dr Phil says, you cannot change what you dont acknowledge.

 

Bless me michelle for I have sinned..........

This week has not been a good week as far as the 12wbt program goals. Bugger all exercise achieved, fast food pigouts and then...... I made cheesecake (and not the Michelle Bridges kind). And I find myself asking the question "Does being overweight really matter??" I mean we have all seen those older women who are really thin, but look at least ten years older with their hollow faces and flat bottoms. Does it really matter if I am a size 14??

I suppose the answer is what I really want.

You see I have this theory - when you turn 40, you have to reset the tape in your head of what your perception of self is. When I was 20, I was thin (size 8 thin), had long blonde hair and had very little responsibilities therefore my spare cash went on fashion, make-up, Clarins products and regular travel. But when you are 40, what worked 20 years ago, doesnt work now. In your head you picture your "happy" self  back then, and think that if only I was........ say size 8 again......... I would be "happy".

But life is no longer carefree, there is no spare cash (and even if there was I wouldnt want to spend money on fatty bombar size clothing), no oppertunity for travel, and the long blonde hair looks out of place on a 40 year old.  Does life really begin at forty???

So I consulted professor Goggle and asked for women who were over forty and still looked great. And these were some that I found. Maybe there is hope for me yet..........


Oh and a shot of Uma Thurman (age 42) to remind us that famous people can look like us as well


So what do I want????? - yeap I want to loose the weight.

Back to the walking and watching what I eat tomorrow.

Mini Milestone Week

Week 4 - I cant believe that its been one whole month since we leapt into the "business" side of the 12wbt program. And I am proud to say I have gone from 78.5kg to 75.3kg during this time. Whilst its not a loss of grand proportions, its still a loss. And I have to admit, when to take into consideration that I have just worked 9 days out of the last 12, I'm feeling pretty good at what I have achieved.

So what milestone's have I achieved??

Well I am eating better, more salad / veg and smaller portions of meat. In fact I have done some wonderful vegetarian meals (gasp - horror) which the family have enjoyed. I am also taking salads to work for lunch and actually liking them. I am eating more fruit and low fat yoghurt and adverage 1 serve of each per day. I have got back into cheese making and am on my 2nd batch of goats cheese feta as we speak. I have also cut down on the wine and beer indulgences, but not cut out completely.
The exercise part - well thats not so great, but I am walking more, and am heading off for a 12km horse-ride tomorrow. Just got to remember to pack a gym bag & throw it in the car for those days after work when I dont have to rush back to pick up the youngest child from school.

Yes there is still alot of things I can improve, like being more organised, drinking more water, and increasing my exercise quota, but today is about celebrating the good. And tonight I am heading for a facial (bliss) as part of my reward.

I have decided that I'm going to be the tortotise, and not a hare in this race. What about you????

How is your health - really????

Hows your health???  Have you ever really thought seriously about this question??? 
Now as a health professional, you would think I would be able to honestly answer these questions, but it appears I am like most people, and haven't really thought about it.......until now.
I had my wake up call the other day. I was teaching a group of 1st year nursing students the fine art of how to take a blood pressure, and of course let them use me as their guinea pig. Cut a long story short, I have high blood pressure. And probably high cholesterol (since I have xanthomas in my eyes). OMG - I am at risk of cardiovascular disease!!!!!! I am 44 years old, and it appears that I am no longer immortal.

You know the small changes such as exercising regularly and watching what you eat,................ sounds easy right!!! So why dont we make sure we book that pap smear, take those multi-vitamins / calcium supplements, throw those ciggies away.... why dont we look after ourselves better???

In my humble experience, we take our good health for granted, and it is only when a person has an adverse event, that we think about making those changes. But prevention is better than cure, and in some instances we do not get a second chance to make those changes.

So today, along with my commitment to the 12wbt program, I pledge to make my health a priority. How about you???

Capital "P" for Procrastination

Its been a busy week, and next week is gearing up to be a mother of one as well. And I find myself with the "so much to do, so little time" scenario. Get up an hour earlier....... am already getting up at 5.45am. Go to bed an hour later.... errgh the brain tends to stop being functional about 8pm, and I am hitting the matteress (to sleep - much to my partner's digust LOL) by 9pm. Be more organised............... yeap that must be it.

 But as you know, its those chores that you really dont want to do (I call them the CBF's) BUT if you dont do them, then things fall apart. Like laundry, food shopping, etc, yeap those annoying things that it ppears I am the only one in this household who can do these things. Delegate ????? I hear you say.......been there, tried that, have the emotional scars in the relationship to prove it.

 

But the other day, I found a copy of Elizabeth Wilson's book "Goddess - be the woman you want to be". She describes a method where you write down a list of your tasks for that morning, then against each item write 10, 20, 30. Start with the task that puts you off the most, then set the timer for 10 minutes. Do that task until the timer goes off then move onto the next one for ten minutes. Once you have completed ten minutes for each task, then go back to the first task and do it for 20 minutes, and so forth.

 

I tried it the other day, and it really works. Even though I didnt get through the 30 minute part of everything, I had a real sense of accomplishment and as you are only doing said task for 10 minutes, it helps overcome resistance. So I felt I could give myself some time off in the afternoon and went for a walk with a fellow 12wbt program friend. And had a wonderful gossip as well. After all isnt this what life's all about???

1st weigh in

 

Today was my first "Wee & Weigh Wednesday" - and the scales have shown a positive result. A loss of 1.3kg since pre-season started.

 

Its been a challenging week; having to incorparate a new job posistion as Clinical Nurse Educator amoungst my regular nursing shifts has meant I have had to increase my hours of paid work to nearly FT. Coupled with family / farm committments, (which now includes bottle feeding a 4 day old kid - the goat kind), trying to change poor dietary habits into better choices, and a partner who is just not helping with basic day to day stuff - well its been tough.

 

The exercise part has not been achieved, but the diet part has. And I am still trying to kick the mint addiction, however I have swapped the mints for mint gum, which is helping control those nasty cravings.

 

But a loss is a loss, and I am inspired by it. Just gotta get through today and tomorrow, then 3 days off to get my life back into some controllable order. And you never know, I might even see the inside of the local gym LOL.