Preparing for the Super Bowl!

Super Bowl parties are amazing! I just got invited to one where the invitation read:

Pizza. Wings. Guacamole. Chips. Dip. Kelly Clarkson. Madonna. Commercials. Football. America.

Just reading the first five words on that invitation made me gain five lbs.

Here is a video from Brett Blumenthal on how to survive your Super Bowl Party

 

Back to Traveling

I realized on Thursday that I forgot to announce the winner of the Jillian Michaels' DVD that I wanted to give away....

And the winner is....(drum roll please)

Chance!!

(please email me on facebook and let me know the easiest way to get it to you)

Congrats! I am sure that Jenny will love the pain that it causes her muscles.

In other news....

The Traveling Season is upon us!

My traveling plans for the next few months are coming together nicely. This is what I am preparing for:

New York- February 18-20

Pittsburgh- March 11-13

San Diego- March 23-26

Gainesville/Miami- April 16-21

Deep Creek Lake- May 27-30

Barcelona/London/Paris- End of June through early August

When I started writing for this blog, part of what I wanted to contribute was the idea that traveling and sticking to your goals of "healthy living" was completely doable. Traveling is what I do, give me a destination and I am off. (I get that from my grandparents, who went to Europe twenty-something times). But I cannot be sidetracked by this thing that I love, like I was last week (I know, I know, it was a celebration...blah blah blah). 

So, as we embark upon the traveling season (my first trip starts on Friday!) I will fill you in on how I am able to get my exercise in and keep my eating habits in check (that includes getting all my fruits and veggies in and making sure not to over-eat!) 

I will also include a picture or two...

 

(Wouldn't it be great if we still put stamps on our luggage?)

Some Support...

In the past, we have talked about setting goals. We have talked about eating right and working out regularly. We have also mentioned setbacks and how to get back on track.

But my mother mentioned something to me that I don't think we have talked about.

Supporting each other.

Do you have a support group? Or at least someone to be there to be your cheerleader, your shoulder to cry on and your go-to-person for crazy ideas?

For some, the support group comes from a formal group, such as Weight Watchers or TOPS. For others, it is someone you run with, someone to just get you out the door. Others turn to blogging to get support, like Michelle, who is totally rocking the weight loss. I have even heard of people who use Twitter to lose weight and in an instant allow the world what they weight, what they ate, and how much they worked out. A world of people to support them.

But why do we need support groups (or people)? Is it the accountability? Is it the way they make us feel when we succeed...and when we are failing (we need them for both)?

For me, I find that I feel so much better when I can tell someone that I screwed up. It is a fresh start for me, a new beginning of possibilities. And the possibilities are that I will succeed this time. And my support group believes in me. They are there, cheering me on, and picking me up when I need it. Sometimes they can be a little harsh, but I know they do it because they know that I have the potential to do great things.

And when I tell them that I have succeeded in a goal...that is a fantastically wonderful feeling. Its like I am soaring. And it keeps me going...

Do you have that?

Another Day...

Continuing on the "A Day in the Life..." series...

5:40am- The first time my alarm goes off. I turn it off and turn on the timer on my iPhone for 20 minutes (I need an initial wake up before I actually get out of bed)

6:00 am- Finally drag myself out of bed to get ready for the day

6:30 am- Breakfast of Quaker Oats High Fiber Oatmeal (Cinnamon Swirl) with 1/2 a banana and 1/2 a cup of milk. AND 1/2 an English muffin with 1 Tbsp of Whipped Peanut Butter (much better choice than regular peanut butter)

6:45 am- Leave for school, making sure to bring my water, lunch and snack (and all the grading I failed to do the night before. It is a daily failure)

8:19 am- School starts. Panic ensues as my students realize they are having a pop quiz. I love creating that feeling

10:59 am- Lunch! Sandwich made of Nature's Own Double Fiber Wheat Bread, ham, Laughing Cow light spreadable cheese, a little bit of Miracle Whip, and mustard. A Yoplait yogurt (Boston Creme Pie), and an apple. Sit and gossip with other English teachers about Jersey Shore, Biggest Loser and Glee.

3:01 pm- School ends, and I quickly eat my snack of grapes before heading to the Cyber Cafe (a computer lab at my school) to monitor students staying after school (of course, my students follow me, asking why they had a pop quiz, and what they can do to recover the grade. I love 10th graders)

5:30 pm- Head home, bringing papers to grade...we all know what happens there... And for a snack I have string cheese (miraculously, papers are graded. Amazing!)

7:00 pm- Dinner!! 1 cup of brown rice and 4 oz of chicken, mixed together with a curry sauce from Trader Joe's. I always have extra, which works well for lunch the next day. Dessert consisted of a Weight Watchers dessert.

11 pm: Collapse in bed (dreaming of my students and the darn pop quiz)

Things to improve on:
1. EXERCISE!! I am thinking that I need to go to the gym right after work, because once I am home, I am done.
2. Lack of veggies in my diet. I love fruit, but veggies and I don't really mix that well.
3. Sleep. I need more.
4. Organization with grading papers. Its only going to get worse.

Any other suggesting??

Fit For the Road

With summer in our house come road trips galore. The hubs and I are hitting the road soon for a vacation. On top of packing, cleaning (I hate coming home to an unclean house), and work…I also need to pack some healthy snacks for the road.

Because I know I often have a hard time thinking of snacks, I thought I’d share my list of items to munch on:

#1) Frozen Ranier Cherries (Only available this time of year and totally delicious!). Frozen grapes and regular cherries are good replacements when those delightful yellow and orange cherries go out of season.
#2) Trail Mix
#3) Bottled water
#4) Granola Bars
#5) Mini carrots with dip
#6) Healthy baked muffins
#7) Sliced fruit in Tupperware (kiwis, grapefruit, strawberries, etc)
#8) Hershey’s Cookies and Cream bar (what? A girl has got to eat!) ☺


Links to Health:

Stylish and Sporty One-Piece Swimsuits

Most Obese States of 2010

Keep Your Marriage From Ruining Your Health

New Site Focuses on Health and Wellness for Pregnant Women, Moms, Babies, and Families

Courtyard by Marriott Starts Listing Calorie-Counts to Menu Items
for those who don't know, the new health care bill will require chain restaurants to do this as well

The weekly menu plan

Not to beat a dead horse, but as promised, this week I’m all about menu planning. Yawn, right? But no! Hear me out (errr, read me out?).

I’m not one to sit down with all the coupon books and websites, search out the deals, and plan my menu accordingly. I know many who do that and they do save a lot of money. But to me that takes way too much time and it makes me resent the menu-planning task.

I cook what I want to eat. All week, I surf different food blogs and bookmark along the way. At the end of the week, I pull a few recipes I want to try (or the ones I know I love) and sit down to make a plan.

Let's get started.

First thing’s first, get your goods together. Whatever you need to make a menu and grocery list, round it up. For me, this includes my computer, a few copies of Everyday Food, a pen, and paper.

(Right now is when I would insert a picture, but we’re moving in two days and the camera is packed. Just imagination some super cute, well composed, brilliantly lit photo.)

Next for the fun part, what sounds good this week? You do have a couple things to consider when picking your recipes.

Obviously, who’s eating? Are you hosting any friends or family this week? Any picky eaters? Children? Anyone with allergies?

Another thing to consider, what’s your week look like? If you’re super busy, plan quick dinners or arrange your leftover nights accordingly.

Alright, you’ve got an idea of what to cook, now it’s time to make the grocery list. I do this all at once, leaving stars next to the ingredients I think I may have. After I’m done with my list, I check the kitchen.

Once I’m done, I head to the store and get what I need. I mentioned I don’t make a plan to save money, however I end up saving a lot. I don’t get all the random things that look good, I stick to my list and get what I know will get used and not thrown away. I save a lot of time during the week, because I’m not having to run to the store to get something forgotten.

A typical weekly menu in our house:

Monday – Stirfry Beef and Snow Peas

Tuesday – Country-Fried Steak with Green Beans and Rice

Wednesday – Leftovers

Thursday – Pasta with Roasted Garlic, White Cheddar, & Wine Sauce

Friday – Curry Chicken Pot Pie

Saturday – Leftovers

Sunday – Baked Ziti with Ground Turkey Meat Sauce

Doesn’t all sound healthy up front, right? That’s where the doctoring comes in… milk for cream, low-sodium chicken broth for wine (we don’t drink and I’m certainly not buying a bottle to cook with), olive or canola oil for butter. But I’ll talk more about that in another post.

Happy planning!