healthy eating

Eating Challenges

Eating Challenges

I wish I knew why some eating challenges were harder for me than others. I’m still struggling with eat when I’m hungry and savor my food. I have a feeling these will be a life long issues for me. Currently, I have to make a conscious effort to think before I eat and take the time to enjoy each bite.eating Before we moved everything was clicking away and flowing smoothly, but the move and still being in temporary housing has disrupted my eating habits. And getting them back in place is taking longer than I anticipated. I have made progress since I blogged last week. More often I am eating when I’m hungry. I do well until late… Read More

Eating Out

eatingEating Out

I’ve spent the last month literally on the road between moving, a speaking engagement and a conference. I faced many eating challenges, but my greatest challenge was eating healthy when eating out.

Meals

Generally, when I’m traveling I eat out, but it’s only a couple of meals—usually dinner or lunch. Breakfast, I tend to bring food to eat and many times for lunch, too, but my last trip, I had no way to bring an ice chest.eating Not only is it expensive to eat all my meals out, but I find it difficult to eat healthy. There are only so many salads I can eat, and honestly, even those can… Read More

Starting Again

startingWeight loss seems to be one of those things I was always starting again until I wasn’t. For most of my adult life I was always on a diet, just finished a diet or starting again.

Losing Stubborn Pounds

startingThis all changed when I read The Checklist Diet by Rebecca Clark two years ago. Suddenly I was dropping off pounds I hadn’t been able to budge for several years. I was afraid I’d hit that over 40 group who just couldn’t lose weight, but when I followed two simple, yet incredibly hard steps the weight fell off—eat when I’m hungry and stop when I’m full. Read More

Passionate About Healthy Lifestyle

healthyThere was a break in the rain yesterday, so I went out to prune my wisteria. There is no way it could be termed ideal weather for gardening, but I’d been stuck inside most of the day, and I thought this was a great to get some fresh air and a little exercise.

Passionate About Healthy Lifestyle

While I was working, I asked myself why I was passionate about diet and exercise. My immediate response was that I wanted to keep my weight down so that I felt good about myself, but it goes deeper than that. I realized I’m on this weight loss quest to improve my quality of life, not just right now, but as I age. I want… Read More

Post Thanksgiving Review

Post Thanksgiving review starts with this quote, “The best laid plans of mice and men…”exercise

Cooking and Exercise

I had intended to try Rebecca J. Clark’s, author of The Checklist Diet suggestions for cooking and exercise.
  • Calf raises—whenever you're stirring something on the stove.
  • Side leg raises—while stirring/mixing away from the stove.
  • Stand on one leg—while washing your hands (don't forget to switch legs).
  • Arm circles—while waiting for the pot to boil.
  • Deep breathing—while chopping vegetables (in through the nose, pause, out through the mouth)
I’d also planned to play plenty of music and dance while I was cooking, but all I managed to do was a couple of calf raises. And the outdoor exercise I’d planned, never got off the ground. Of all… Read More

Holiday Weight Maintenance

savor Walnut trees turning color Tis the season when pounds start magically appearing. Exercising and maintaining my weight can be a challenge this time of year. My routine gets out of whack with guests to entertain and an abundance of food to eat. Suddenly, I’m not exercising regularly, overeating and not savoring my food or the holiday.   savor Cattle grazing under Mt. Shasta

New Traditions

This year in my quest for a healthier lifestyle, I am instituting some new traditions. Instead of vegging in front of the television the entire time, I will take a walk. If there’s snow, instead of cuddling up by the fire, I… Read More

Mental Clutter=Weight Loss

Mental Clutter

I started to blog about mental clutter=weight loss, but my enthusiasm fizzled. Why? Because I feel fat! mental Image courtesy of Okolaa at FreeDigitalPhotos.net My scale is being Sheila (the name I give it when I don’t like what she says). Sheila says I’m several pounds heavier than I want to be. To add insult to injury, my loose jeans feel tight today, and that’s all I can focused on! No matter what I’m doing these thoughts are in the back of my mind circling like a pack of rabid dogs taunting me, tormenting me. It makes me want to jump on the old diet wheel and get rid of that excess weight before I can pile… Read More

Setting Weight Loss Goals

Weight Loss Goals

I’ve always been a goal setter—from work to exercise to weight loss. I recently read a post by Diane Carbonell on are you focused on the right thing when losing weight. goals Crash mountain biking in Bend, Oregon. Good news the bike survived! Her blog was about goal setting, and it made me realize that setting a goal to just lose a certain amount of weight wasn’t enough to be successful. For me, it also included an attitude change. I was no longer just losing weight, but changing my lifestyle by eating when I was hungry, stopping when full and getting plenty of exercise—not just a set amount of exercise, and even challenging myself… Read More

Social Eating

victories Taking a new path on my lifestyle Sorry for the hiatus last week. I was at a writers conference and just ran out of time to blog. But I came home with a topic after being dependent on restaurants and conference meals. This has always been a real challenge for me, especially before my lifestyle changes.

Eating Challenges

That isn’t to say there weren’t challenges and that I didn’t overindulge, but I did so mindfully. I accepted that I was eating when I wasn’t hungry and with food I didn’t necessarily want. victories View from the plane flying into Seattle But, I didn’t stuff myself until I… Read More

Dieting Again

32639157_s Image courtesy of Okolaa at FreeDigitalPhotos.net I’m dieting again. The three most dreaded words in my vocabulary. Fortunately I haven’t used those words in almost two years, but they still haunt me. They lurk in the back of my mind. What if what I’m doing stops working and I start gaining weight again? Ever find those thoughts and fears becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy? In the past, that’s what it’s been for me, but I’m starting to feel more confident that what I’m doing is working, and will continue to work. I attribute much of this to the fact that I no longer deprive myself of foods I love until I lose weight or until I go off… Read More