Let's get Started.

Can't believe it's already Wednesday night. My life is so hectic and busy these days! Halloween was relatively painless and I made it through with out much of a problem. The house is still filled with candy and so far I've resisted temptation.   The kids had a great time trick-or-treating. Of course what's not ot love about running around the neighborhood in the dark and getting free candy.

Tuesday was difficult to get the kids around, but eventually I was able to get them off to school. I attended TKD class twice on Tuesday. Great day for diet and fitness. I have about a month until my purple belt test.  Lots to do and get ready for. We'll be gone the whole week of Thanksgiving and that means I have to get as many classes in as I can. It feels really good to be able to exercise that much. Two hours in one day!  Not something I could've done in any sense of my imagination a year ago.

Today, I had a session with my trainer. We did a lot of work for my core today. Reverse crunches, lunges, squats, etc. The worst was one leg weighted squats. That is freaking hard! My legs and but are sore and burning tonight and tomorrow will probably suck. But that's what ibuprofen is for, right?   Tomorrow I plan on 2 more TKD classes.

I just can't emphasize enough how important it is to find an exercise you enjoy and love. Something that challenges you. Something that you look forward to doing. I never thought I'd have that. I never understood "runner's high" even though I knew all about the physiology. Now I've experienced it myself.  I was telling a patient that exercise was never my thing, but after doing it regularly for a while, I look forward to it. I get upset when I can't workout. She looked at me with the same expression that I used to get when people told me I needed to exercise. The glazed over, "here we go again" one.  Oh how I wish I had listened before now.

I have decreased the amount of carbs in my diet significantly. I have been reading the book Wheat Belly and I find the ideas there interesting. I certainly know that the more of these foods I eat, the more I want. It cannot be a mistake to limit them. I have been eating only carbs from fruit and even then, I am sticking to few and lower glycemic index fruits. Luckily it's apple season. And pears. Yummy. Nanny baked some apples with just cinammon and a little splenda last night. It was so tasty. Like apple pie and I didn't miss the crust at all.

Tonight she make pizza for the kids. Of course my instinct was to dive in head first. But, I didn't eat any. instead I warmed up chicken breast from the night before, steamed veggies and water. I was full and happy. Still am. Evening is a problem for me. It's my snacky time so I have to be on guard. I have been tracking my food. I still track my exercise, but I don't eat back any calories. I am starting to see the scale move down again and it is a welcome sight.

That is an accomplishment considering I'm still on steroids and I had gained a few pounds from that.  Staying away from carbs has been a struggle while on this med. It sure messes with you, but the more I avoid them, the easier it gets.  It seems like I keep learning. As time goes on and things happen, I have to make adjustments, role with the punches. That's life after all and this is a lifelong journey.

I bought the new fitbit ultra. I couldn't stand it anymore after my old one got washed twice it died.  I've missed it ever since.  The new version is purple and black and has some new features that I haven't figured out yet. I will start using it tonight.

My goal is to exercise every day this month.  Whether it is true workouts or a walk with the kids, I really want to see if I can do this. We did this in June as part of a challenge. I've found that when I work out or exercise, I'm much more likely to eat right. 

I hope all of you are staying on track. We have to steel ourselves against the oncoming onslaught that we call the holidays. This is a very dangerous time of year for healthy living. Been on guard. Give some serious thought how you're going to navigate yourself through. Planning ahead will save some serious damage. Have you thought about how you'll handle the holiday season? If not, get started.