Make A Plan Monday {3}

Welcome to a new week!!

I am happy to report that I got my butt off the couch this weekend and am definitely reaping the rewards.  It's crazy how important it is to get moving, especially at this time of year when the winter blues come crashing in.  Check out this post from Peace, Love, & Oats about fighting the winter blues!

Cody is due home today, as are his Dad and brother who are coming down for a snowboarding trip and visit.  I am keeping my expectations of myself low this week as I know I'll feel busy with visiting and hostessing, so just want to focus on a few things:

• Keep healthy options available, and choose them over snacky/socializing foods
• Try to get out for walks or do some yoga (see below for my yoga discovery)
• Keep the house tidy and laundry caught up to help me feel calm and organized

And that's it!  Other than that I plan on visiting and hopefully going out for dinner one night.

Instead of structuring a menu plan for this week's dinners I just came up with a list of ideas and bought the ingredients, this way we can go with what everyone feels like that night:

Dinners for the week of January 27-31

Root Beer Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Quinoa Crusted Sole in Chili Lime Marinade

Barbeque Bacon Burger

Pedal and Tap

Butternut Squash Chipotle Chili

Quinoa Bowl with Tofu or Prawns

Remember to check out Food I'm Loving Friday for my fave eats from that week.

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In exercise news, although my week seemed off to a horrendous start I finished on a positive note.  

Saturday I got out for a great walk in the community forest with my pals Danielle and Kirsten which felt so great!!  Fresh air and conversation with friends is the best!  We walked for around an hour and then parted ways.  I then went to my parents house and they were just headed out for a neighborhood walk, so I joined them for another 45 mins or so.  It was icy on both of my walks which translates to some sore inner thighs from trying to hold myself up!  Luckily I managed to not bail, which is pretty rare for me :)

Sunday I had big plans of doing something but by the time I finished cleaning and organizing it was evening and I was beat!!  Danielle and  Kirsten had been talking about yoga the day before and that thought sent me to old faithful (Google) to see if I could find some sort of online class.  I found a great website called Do Yoga With Me that allows you to filter skill level and class length so I completed my first yoga class and loved it!!!

I hope your week is off to a positive start!!

XO - Michelle

Make A Plan Monday {2} & Fitness Choices

Good Morning!  Ugh back to Monday again?!  How come the weekend always goes so fast?!

This week I'm hoping to focus on:

• Following my workout plan (see below)
• Starting my next course in school - Anatomy and Physiology - yikes!
• Turning my electronics off at 9, except for a goodnight text to Cody
• Watching less TV - I'm thinking of eliminating Netflix for the next little while and only watching the shows I PVR after I've done my workout for the day

Meal Plan for Jan 20-24

Monday:  Vegetarian Butternut Squash Chili

Tuesday:  Cilantro Chili Chicken Burgers

Wednesday:  Quinoa Breaded Sole with Asparagus

Thursday:  Baked Tofu Quinoa Bowl

Friday:  Wing it

I wanted to say a little something about fitness.  As I mentioned on Friday, I haven't been working out nearly as much as I had been thinking I would.  I gave myself some time to think it over and figure out the why's, and here's what I've got:

I am all over the map when it comes to fitness.  My issue lately is that what I feel is the most productive and effective use of my workout time is not something I feel like doing.  I've always been a huge believer in weight lifting and no matter what the fitness goal I 100% believe that a program like James Wilson's Fitness Map fits the bill.  I lost almost all of my weight by circuit training with dumbbells, and it totally worked.  BUT I don't want to head down to my basement and lift.  It's not usual for me, but it's what's happening lately.

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With my new found knowledge of listening to myself and my body, I've been looking for alternatives.  I'm still hoping to get back to loving to lift, but for now I'm going to do something else.  I weighed my options and ultimately have decided to try using my Rip:60 (similar to the more commonly known TRX) for the next while.  It hooks up wherever which means I can workout in my loft which seems to be my area of choice lately, and while it isn't weight lifting it is using my body weight and trust me, it's freaking hard work.

I've been trying to decide what kind of program to follow, how many days per week to workout, etc. and have settled on doing three full body workouts per week, circuit style, plus outdoor activities or whatever else strikes my fancy.  I'll be posting my workouts from the previous week every Monday, so stay tuned.

XO - Michelle

Marvelous in my Monday {1}

As if it's Monday already!!  Weekends always seem so fly by so fast, I'm relieved to have Tuesdays off now as it breaks my work week up so nicely!!

I heard about a blog link-up called Marvelous in my Monday and decided to participate!!  Check out The Healthy Diva for more MIMM posts :)

Some marvelous things that happened this weekend that are brightening up my Monday:

• Dinner at my fave restaurant, Pedal and Tap, for a Friday night date night with Cody. YUMMMM.  Check out what I wrote about P&T on my Kootenay Love & Local Reviews page.
• A beautiful, but windy, Saturday morning neighborhood walk; and a nicer, warmer one on Sunday.
• Watching my cousin's hockey game and getting to visit with my Aunt and other cousin while we watched.  My uncle was coaching which was also pretty fun to witness!
• Late lunch at The Heid Out Restaurant and Brewhouse with my wonderful mom and dad, & Cody too!
• Grocery shopping.  I LOVE having a freshly stocked fridge and pantry.  So. Many. Options.  It seemed like everything on my list was on sale, how great is that!?
• I purchased my first bottle of essential oils (Lemon) that I plan to start using in home made cleaning and bath products.
• Completing my list of how I want to live in 2014, check it out here.

As I mentioned on Friday, there are a few ideas that I've come up with to hopefully keep me from being distracted from my health and fitness goals.  This is what I've done so far:

• I went through my closet and pulled out all of the clothes that don't fit properly at the moment.  I piled them all in a clear bin and labelled it "Goal Clothing".  As the clothing starts to fit again I can add items back into my closet.  I prefer to judge where my body is at by clothing fit rather than weight so this method resonates well with me.
• I put a picture on my fridge of an outfit I would like to wear to California (May/June).  The idea is that every time I open the fridge I see myself in the outfit and make a healthy food choice. 

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• Prep cooking!  I have been working on baking big batches of gluten free dairy free "treats" so when a craving strikes I have a better option available to me.  
• Setting up my basement work out area.  I want to organize all of my workout equipment so it's streamlined and easy to use.  I'm mostly done, but need to figure out where to set up my Rip:60 and resistance bands...  I also decorated with some inspirational posters, quotes, and pictures.

I hope you check out the Marvelous in my Monday link up and find some inspiration to light up the beginning of your week!

XO - Michelle

Outdoor Excitement

Happy 2014 & Happy Friday!!

How exciting that a fresh new year is finally upon us!  I am so thrilled at the prospect of 2014, a chance to rediscover what makes me happy and reaffirm my healthy lifestyle love.

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I have been lucky enough to spend the end of of Dec and beginning of Jan doing just that.  I had the opportunity to spend time cross country skiing, downhill skiing, and snowshoeing!  Enjoying the great outdoors was just what I needed and I think it's safe to say I have re-caught my childhood ski bug.

I went cross country skiing with my family and while I'm quite honestly a terrible cross country skier and fell about 6 times during our outing, there is no denying the beauty in getting outside and enjoying the fresh air and scenery... even if it is with gritted teeth and a snowy butt.

My downhill ski experience was much more positive and I easily fell back into the swooping turns that gave me such a thrill as a kid.  No literal falls for that day, what a relief!  I had so much fun with my friend Heather and was really happy to find out we are at a similar skill level which always makes for a more carefree day.  Riding the chairlift is always a fun time and we got to chat with some fellow skiers throughout the day, you never know who you'll end up meeting but I always find people so friendly and chatty and really enjoy talking with them.  Chairlifts = Love.  Kimberley Alpine Resort is a hop, skip, and a jump from my house and I plan to take advantage of that this season.

My friend Danielle and I got out for a snowshoe in the South Star Trails courtesy of our trail guide Dag (Danielle's mom).  Danielle and Dag happen to be in epic shape and I got my sweat on big time but was so proud that I didn't have to stop to catch my breath, what a change I'm seeing from previous years!  Danielle and I both got blisters so thankfully we turned around before going too far in, but my Wahoo GPS says we did over 5 km on our outing!  We lucked out with a gorgeously warm bluebird day and paired with the awesome workout my endorphins were sky-high!

I got back to the ski hill again yesterday for a night ski with Cody and some friends.  It was the perfect temp for night skiing and I think I got 5 runs in!  Cody hasn't snowboarded in 6 years so he did 2 runs and called it quits, but it meant so much to me that he came up and gave it another try.  I think if we get out a few more times together he will start enjoying it more.  Last time I skied my dad lent me his rad Atomic Blogs.  Last night I was back on an old pair of Rossignol's (I think Saphir) that I bought used in Grade 12... I have to say, upgrading my skis has just gone up on my wishlist.  No matter the gear, it was a great night and I'm already excited to get back on the hill!!

With all of this awesome outdoor excitement going on I have had the chance to think up a ton of positive ideas and get myself stoked on making this the year that I get my health and body to where I want to be; but while right now it seems SUPER attainable I also have so many fears about following through.  As someone who previously gained a lot of weight, then lost it, and am now gaining it back - see My Weight Loss Story - I'm quite frankly terrified!  When will the temptation stop and the full on healthy living begin again?! The fact that my personal choices are the answer to that question is both inspiring and intimidating.

I've come up with a few ideas on how to help keep my goals in the forefront and will be turning my plans into actions this weekend.  Stay tuned!

XO - Michelle