Back in the saddle.

I have been tracking my meals on myfitnesspal again. I have really enjoyed it because this time more people I know are actively using it and I really cave to peer pressure.

My coworkers and I have been eating salads and/or soup at lunch. Some days I love my salad and some days it goes more like this:

Always a pleasure, Garfield Minus Garfield.

My husband and I have been supporting each other and again, that peer pressure makes all the difference.

Work to eat, eat to live, live to bike, bike to work!

Ok, so I think this is a fantastic mantra, but I do not follow it. I ride the bus.

Some great friends of mine and thousands of other Minneapolis commuters and commuters all over the world do though!

Here's a hip hip hooray for my friends, who not only bike to work, but keep encouraging ME to join them!(Postcard I have hanging in my desk from Todd, by beloved local artist Adam Turman.)

I have a bike and I am very close to having the nerve to bike to work. I am mostly afraid of biking on busy streets and being very smelly.

There is safety in numbers though, right? Right!?!?

PS: I have been walking and I went to the gym last night, so I have that going for me.

Oh hey there!

As you could probably guess, I have not been super engaged in my fitness mission as of late.

I just wanted to report that this weekend I took 3 long walks, 4 if you count a walk on Thursday.

(This is when my family and I climbed to the top of Crazy Horse. I did not walk that high or steep.)

They were nice walks out and about in the spring weather here. I hope to take more walks.

Care to join me?

Overshot!

My Health Coach just called for my monthly check in.

Admittedly, I signed up for this benefit for the opportunity for $$ if I complied. I am chatty, I like to answer questions, why not?

I am looking great! Beautiful posture and winning smile!

Well, I guess I am a sucker because I have long passed the required number of calls and I keep on trucking with my health coach. I always forget her name, but she lives in Ohio and is nice.

She has been very supportive of me and has given me credit (or slack) for the big stress in my life since May. I have listened to her and appreciated her rah-rah-rah attitude.

Last month she encouraged me to really minimize my goal for November. She talked me into making a goal of going to the gym or playing Wii intensely once per week. I was also supposed to do some mental health work.

The overachiever in me thought that was pretty lame, but I humored her.

I actually am taking Spanish and sort of polishing off my French.

She just called to check in with me and I blew that goal out of the water and I feel AWESOME!!

I went to the gym about 3 times a week and did several mental health care activities.

She is so smart. Set the bar low and feel amazing and motivated!

Off to sign up for fencing and physics classes now...

Heart troubles coming on...

First off, I just got home from the gym with my Todd. for the first time he had to find me because I was still exercising and he was ready to leave!

I am not going to guess how much the New Yorker article on
Wes Anderson influenced my getting there.

Nice.

Second, I have had more interaction with cardiologists, endocrinologists, and other metabolic experts in the last year than I care to count. I am grateful for all of them, I just wish I never had to meet them!

It is a love/hate relationship.

Unfortunatly, a loved one was treated for their 2nd heart attack/disturbance/major artery blockage today. I am grateful for those caring for them, for their choice to seek help, and for their health insurance. I am very grateful that they are recovering nicely and can continue this wonderful life.

I bring this up because as I waited for news and absorbed this reality today, I kept thinking about the elements of our health that we can control.

There are so many factors involved in our health: genetics, fate, environment, circumstance, HOWEVER, despite the efforts of public health professionals, public policy makers, and health care researchers, millions of us do not take control of the elements of our health that we can impact.

Remember: I am not a health professional or a graphic designer.
I urge you to seek professional advice for your health and promotional materials.

For me, I struggle with diet and exercise. I trust that what "they say" about a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and being physically active is true, but I struggle to live it.

Par exemple: This open faced Croque -monsieur was fantastic and had 3 dipping sauces! 3!
It was delicious with nearly zero nutritional value. Le sigh.

People spend a lot of energy worrying and discussing all the terrible health problems that occur in this life to ourselves and others, news media outlets make a killing feeding a culture of health care fears. People spend a lot of money trying to find the fitness secret that will save them, some find it but not without a lot of sacrifice and commitment to lifestyle change (the hard part).

Many sacrifice Oreos, for example.

I am still searching for my best game plan for a new normal of healthy foods and consistent exercise. I have been exploring cookbooks, changing how I shop, taking nutrition classes, trying nutritional supplements (ground flax seed and fish oil), and of course facing the gym. This blog is one of my personal attempts to stay on task- I think to myself: "tell the world, and then live it!". I also like to track what I have tried and to hear feedback from others.

There are so many ways to improve your diet and exercise and invaluable health related reasons why it is important to try, to explore, to think twice and to ask for help. Some are peer based, some are spiritual, some are fun, some are strict, some are social, some are free, some are expensive, some are sweaty, some are heavy, some require a surgeon, and some can be dangerous.

You are invaluable! Take care of yourself!

It is very overwhelming, but thankfully there are many others in the same boat and they can help you to get motivated and see results. Success stories can be found all over, like in books, online (some are linked in the right had nav), on tv, and at your local gym. I thank you and Google for this blog, it is not much to look at, but it does help me keep tabs on myself. Let me know if you would like to join me, or pipe in with your own ideas!

I wish you clarity and patience as you seek the best ways to stay healthy. Of course I wish you health!

Nobody's fault but my own.

Today on FML:
Today, it’s decided, I’m going a diet. For real. But I said that yesterday. And the day before. FML

I can relate, but cannot agree.No, this is not a "FML" worthy scenario. This is my fault, my lack of self control, my lack of commitment.

I believe in eating whole foods and I know that I need to overcome my sweet tooth, my habit of eating out, my resistance to exercise, and my sporadic cooking schedule.

I believe these are reasonable and feasible.

I can change, I can try again. I am doing the best I can, and I know I am not alone.

Todd and I are in a little competition to see who can lose 10 pounds first. I will post our method of tracking, etc once we get officially started. I am not so much motivated by the competition, but by my desire for him to be healthy and follow doctors orders, and he reminds me that he wants the same for me.

This weekend we tried to go to the gym together, but it was closed early. We went home and played SingStar together in duet mode.

Shake it!

We danced and sang, we broke a nice sweat.

We plugged in our neglected Wii controllers for future at home workouts together.

I was dragged to the gym!

My partner is starting to phase out of his highly monitored fitness classes, hooray for Todd!

Last night he made me go to the gym with him.

Well, he was assigned by his instructors to go on his own and earlier in the evening I was totally stoked to join him! I really was, ask him.

Wahoo, let's go to the gym!

But I had started working at home and fallen asleep (deep cat nap) by the time he was ready to go. I tried so hard in my half-awake state to get out of going to the gym. I think I put up a pretty great, really whiny fight.

Todd is the dragn. Missy is the kitteh.

He won. I reluctantly went to the gym.

Todd gloating because he got me to the gym OR me celebrating because I went to the gym?