Category Archives: yoga torture

Counting up

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Sooo…April was kind of a bust in a lot of habit-keeping areas. One thing that fell by the wayside was counting my gifts. So while this list is short, with a lot missing in the middle, rest assured that I did not miss any of my gifts in the past 4 weeks. I just neglected to write them down ;)

248. Silly wisps of fog being chased away by the morning sun

249. Fluffy yellow dresses

250. Excellent customer service, via social media

251. A fresh, clean house

252. Measuring cups and spoons that click together!

253. This moment

254. A lunch bag full of healthy snacks for us

255. Flourless chocolate cookies

256. Quiet snuggles and Gravol

257. Sunshine and no jackets!!

258. Seeds planted, and waiting for the ground to thaw

259. Fuzzy soft puppy ears

260. Earth Day: celebrating the world around us

261. A return to bikram yoga…and surviving

262. Less pain than expected after a 15km run

263. When they sneak into our bed to snuggle

264. Playing for hours in the sunshine

265. Seeing friends, talking to friends, feeling love everywhere

266. Surprise visits from my parents

267. Freshly tilled earth

268. Their bathtub giggles

269. Good, real, healthy food for us, every day

270. +20 degree weather in the still-early spring

271. The chi weenie frolicking in the fresh air

272. A strong body, for running, yoga, yard work, playtime

273. Swinging in the sunshine

Wishes

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I wish that

…I had more time to blog here and here, and even right here
…my new treadmill would arrive sooner than next week
…I hadn’t eaten so much gluten-y junk this past weekend, because I’m paying for it dearly!
…the chiweenie pup cared more about housebreaking, instead of breaking my house…
…my kids would wake up covered in magical good-behaviour/quiet-voice dust!!
…I had time to Zumba with my favorite people, and spend more zen time at my Bikram home
…someone would please come and rescue me from laundry purgatory, aka, our guest bedroom
…I was actually asleep right now, as much as I love being awake ;)

But really? All that is minor in light of everything I truly have in my life. For fun’s sake, though: what do you wish for tonight??

April’s challenge

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I pondered aloud to Twitter last night about a new challenge. I love having little mini goals each month, be it going sugar-free, chopping my internet usage, or living without Starbucks. 

Yes, I am also the kind of person who fills notebooks with meaningless lists…

But whatever. I like having my little goals to focus on. They don’t need to turn into habits, or change my life forever. Sometimes, it’s just nice to have something manageable but challenging to work on.

The thing is, I’m pretty happy in my life right now. There’s not a lot I want to change or try. I’m very comfortable and satisfied, and it’s quite lovely after a year of drama…! So I decided that the best thing I can do for my next challenge is to keep taking care of myself, and when it boils down, there is one thing that I really need to be consistent about:

Exercise.

Not just being active, but actually training. I have a half marathon coming up in June, and while I’m halfway through my training, I have taken over 6 weeks off. Our Mexico trip threw me off course, and then I injured myself. I’m finally feeling good again, so it’s time to start training again! Back to walking, back to yoga, back to 5k runs and long runs. So here’s the challenge:

30 days of exercise

30 days. Like The 30-Day Shred, but not at all. Because, you know, I like to do things safely and properly…although truth be told, one of these months, I’m going to borrow that DVD from someone and actually try it from a professional viewpoint…but I digress.

30 days of structured activity, not just active living. EVERY day has to include one of the following:

  • 60 min walk
  • 5k run
  • Bikram yoga class, or
  • long run

Every day. Just like I was doing in November, December, January, February…

Every day.

Plus our daily walk to the mailbox, all the gardening that’s about to start, and the ballet class I teach. You know, the regular daily activity ;)

And my reward at the end of 30 days?? This:

image from Google images

A TRX Suspension Trainer. I’ve wanted one for years, but haven’t been able to justify spending $190. Thus, if I check off every day for 30 days, I am going to march my butt into Edmonton and buy myself one.

It will look so pretty next to the treadmill I’ve convinced Leith to let me buy with our tax refund dollars ;)

Freemotion 750. It has DECLINE options!

January: a month in review

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Detox 2012 already has one month in the bag! It’s been a good month, but it went by so quickly…I guess all my dreaming and wishing for Mexico has paid off ;)

  • I started running again – yay!
  • I registered for the Footstock 2012 half marathon in June
  • I went back to physio for some lovely IMS needles
  • I made it to 9 Bikram yoga classes!
  • I walked 15.5 hours –> that’s 54.25 miles!
  • I made it to 133lbs
  • I booked blood work to find out why I am so tired, instead of just ignoring it
  • I read Little Bee by Chris Cleave, How to Be an American Housewife by Margaret Dilloway, and started My Life in France by Julia Child (!!)
  • Spent a LOT less time yelling and more time breathing
  • We went on several family “dates” all together, since Leith was home until January 29 :)
  • I took care of myself first, so that I could give my family the best of me
  • I cooked and baked a myriad of tasty meals and snacks from scratch, exploring and expanding my creativity
  • I spent a weekend with my oldest, dearest friends celebrating milestones
  • I played outside with my bugz in this beautiful weather
  • I celebrated my mother-in-law’s birthday with our family
  • I enjoyed new tea flavours in my mug – a chance to unwind and reflect
  • I started counting all the things in my life that I am grateful for
  • I spent at least one day a week with friends, letting our kids run wild

And most importantly? I spent most of January as a very, very happy person :)

Worth the weight

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I haven’t blogged since LAST FRIDAY?? What the heck? I’ll make up for it today though :)

Running.
That’s why I haven’t been around much. I’m running again!!! It feels so delicious to be busting my tail, heart pounding, legs flying…well, legs turning over and over on the giant hamster wheel that is my 16-year old treadmill, anyway.
I hate such a love-hate for that treadmill. Love, because it gives me 60 minutes of good, solid cardio 5 days a week. Love, because I don’t have to drive into town so that I can run with my Chariot stroller (no shoulders to run on our country roads = not safe for stroller running). My bugz can play and watch a movie while I walk/run.
Hate, because it’s 16 years old, has a short (50″) deck, no cushioning, and is louder than a 747 taking off.
Love, because it was free from my mom.
Hate, because it would cost me $2,500 to get the treadmill I want to replace it.
But I’m running anyway. I am running, training for the Footstock 2012 half marathon in June. You may remember me kicking ass in my first duathlon at Footstock in 2009. I loved the whole event, and want to go back there for my first half marathon. I was supposed to do my first half in late 2009, but with acreage renovations and a broken foot, it didn’t happen.
Then I got fatter and busier, more injured, more stressed, more unbalanced. Half marathon training takes time, and I just didn’t have time. I barely had the time for a 5k once in a while. But fast-forward to this past summer/fall, and my body has learned to run when it’s told to. I’ve found my groove, where I can pick up and run 30 minutes without a break regardless of how long I’ve been “off”. 
After 10 weeks of walking 30-60 minutes a day, I picked up the pace on Friday and ran my first 30 minutes since October. 
It hurt like hell. My IT-band had been bugging me, and it was my first time running in my Vibrams on this ancient treadmill. I’d ran in my Vs before, both outdoors and on real treadmills, but not on my beast. I compensated too much by getting up on the balls of my feet, and my calves SCREAMED at me for days. I pushed through the last few minutes and finished, but thank goodness for my fabulous physiotherapist, Laurie.
She needled me up with a good dose of IMS on Monday, and I’ve been good to go since. No more pain.
***
Here’s my recipe for the good life right now:
*60 minutes of walking, twice a week
*30 minutes of running, followed by 30 minutes of walking, three times a week
*90 minutes of Bikram yoga, twice a week (three if I’m lucky!!!)
I’ve been walking 30-60 minutes/day since mid-November, and watching what I eat. In mid-December, I started going back to Bikram classes twice a week. I added running back into the mix on Friday. Nothing is crazy-intense or painful (other than the first run), and I’m not restricting anything in my diet. I write down what I eat, and I’m not hungry. 
I’ve lost over 15lbs since November 12, 2011. I’m wearing size 29 jeans, and everything else in my closet is falling off of me. I’m officially below my pre-pregnancy weight for the first time since August 2007. Four-and-a-half years. I’m 4 pounds away from my Edmonton Rush dance team body, and I have the most incredible, lean muscle tone from Bikram yoga.
I feel like a million bucks right now. And the best part is that I didn’t starve myself to get here. I took everything in moderation. I ate whatever I wanted between Christmas Eve and New Years’ (within reason), but kept exercising. I made sure that my exercise was moderate, but consistent. I have committed one short hour out of every 24 hours to my fitness. I am mindful of what I am eating, making things worthwhile so that I’m not sacrificing my love of food for short-term satisfaction. Making sure I am full, happy, and energized every day.
It’s worth it.
And I have before pics. I can’t wait to show you the “afters” :)
2012 is the year of kicking ass. I’m on track in so many areas of my life right now…it feels great!

Counting up

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Another week gone by so quickly! While I try to pause for the little moments, I really am appreciating taking the time to actually write down the little things that make my life so full. Heather had a great quote on her blog this week, from Ann Voskamp’s book, One Thousand Gifts:
I discover that slapping a sloppy brush of thanksgiving over everything in my life leaves me deeply thankful for very few things in my life. A lifetime of sermons on “thanks in all things” and the shelves sagging with books on these things and I testify: life-changing gratitude does not fasten to a life unless nailed through with one very specific nail at a time.
It really made me think: it’s one thing to say you’re grateful, but it is another thing completely to be aware and focused on all the millions of tiny blessings that make up each day. There are so many that I miss while I am racing through my life that I am so grateful that I took the time to write down these special moments in my week:

24. How committed he is to putting his kids and family first, willingly, without complaint_uacct = “UA-4888259-1″;urchinTracker();

25. Weekly photo messages of Erin’s growing baby belly!!
26. Watching him taking care of his health, getting lots of exercise this winter, finally having time
27. Making a blanket tent in bed in the morning, and hearing their stories
28. A balanced cheque book, even between pay days
29. A roaring fire in the wood stove
30. When he gets home early, and I can make it to the last yoga class of the day
31. Sliding my wedding rings back on after class, and being so grateful for love
32. Letting them jump on the furniture!
33. Fresh orange zest
34. Hot baked oatmeal when the temperatures are frigid
35. Sun shining on a very, VERY cold day
36. That he knows the names of all their princesses :)
37. So much fresh water
38. How clean and white the road through our subdivision still is, even after the traffic has been through. No sand or dirt!
39. Finding them colouring quietly together
40. Seeing the seeds of their self-efficacy take root when their swimming teacher praises them
41. Peaceful drives home in the still darkness
42. Heated car seats on sore muscles

This n that

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  • Minus 20 and snow. I guess winter came back?
  • The bugz have been playing nicely by themselves for almost 2 hours. I’m not about to step in
  • Coffee. Yes, coffee :)
  • My yoga plans were derailed today because Leith is on call. We blame the weather for that one…
  • No yoga = 90 minutes on the treadmill. Not running though…
  • Two wood stoves means that our furnace isn’t blasting even though it’s frightful outside :)
  • My husband’s bacon pancakes rock.
  • I wish I was lazy enough to get groceries delivered…maybe we can make it a fun, family outing tonight, right??
  • I found a frozen banana in my freezer (obvious place) just when I was mourning how boring my lunch shake was going to be today!
  • I’m down 13lbs in my “What is fat, what is twin-skin” journey! I’m 7lbs from my goal weight, just in time for Mexico!! ¡Arriba!
  • I’m already planning my garden this year. Last year’s “put planted pots in the garden box” was pathetic, so this year I will be churning up a new plot and bringing in good soil and fertilizer! The old plot will become a flower garden…
  • C-boo found my old English riding hat somewhere in the basement. I’m surprised I still have it 18 years later, and wondering where she was that she shouldn’t have been…!
  • Leith went ice climbing yesterday with a stranger he met on the internet. True story. He came back alive and everything.
  • I reeeeeeally need to clean up my office again. There’s an avalanche waiting to happen.
  • Twitter. My tweeps save my sanity sometimes. I love you guys :) :) :)
  • I am slightly REALLY excited to road-trip with Cheryl next weekend to see SKU!!! 
That’s about it for now. Just killin’ time until I can make lunch. And avoid cleaning my house ;)

Counting up

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After a week of counting gratitudes, here is my first post on my way to One Thousand Gifts!_uacct = “UA-4888259-1″;urchinTracker();

thank you to Ann at www.aholyexperience.com
(even though it isn’t Monday…)
1. Sneaking back into bed for a half hour nap :)
2. Watching them perform “ballu-et” every day…not *just* ballet lol
3. A washing machine with a sanitize cycle when tummies are upset!
4. The hum of the furnace, lulling me back to sleep
5. Coconut oil – as a hair mask, face moisturizer, oil for cooking, spread on bread…
6. Hot tea
7. Bright blue skies and sunshine in January
8. Grocery shopping all. by. my. self.
9. Homemade guacamole
10. Fresh cinnamon biscuits, using Gramma’s biscuit recipe
11. Shirley Temples and sparkling princess gowns :)
12. Finding bed-bugz in my bed!
13. Hearing compliments about how well-behaved our little girls are
14. Early morning tickle fights
15. The chance to work out every day and feel strong
Bonus gratitude: that my parent’s 16-year old treadmill still works!
16. Listening to the songs they make up together
17. Their first dance class
18. Feeling waves of heat wash over my body in the yoga studio
19. Brushing their soft, blonde curls
20. Cafe O Play dates!
21. Watching movies on the couch with him
22. Listening to their excited voices carry across the pool while I watch
23. First swimming lessons

2012: Detox

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Here we are, five days into a new year and I haven’t posted once! I’ve been soaking up 2012, finding my ground, doing lots of yoga and spending time on me. I’m in the middle of a three-day stretch with no kids, and I am just breathing life._uacct = “UA-4888259-1″;urchinTracker();

2012 is the year of detox for me: mind, body and soul. It is the year of me, first. I started this little practice in December, because I am not one for New Year’s resolutions. If you can’t do it before Christmas, what makes January 1st so special? No, I started this little experiment while Leith was away, beginning with food and exercise and bringing it up to a higher level with my last post. So here I am, detoxing my entire self for the year:
Mind:
  • Fighting those dragons, taking care of my mental health. Not slipping into complacency or false security. Fighting, and winning.
  • Spending time at the Bikram yoga studio that I love, so that for 90 minutes, I am in a peaceful and meditative safe zone, only aware of my body and breath at that moment.
  • Being mindful of my temper, and also of my heart. Learning to breathe in between action and reaction. Something I was very good at a couple years ago that I have let slip.
  • Reading, always reading.
Body:
  • I’m down 10lbs since mid-November. Time find that healthy body weight this year, okay? It’s only been 4 years…!
  • Food-tracking, because over-eating and unconscious eating is not mindful, and it’s wasteful. 6 weeks (7?) have opened up my eyes to many unnecessary and unhealthy habits and behaviours.
  • Exercise, every day. I’ve been walking 60 minutes every day that I’m not at the Bikram studio. Every day. No excuses. Hop on the hamster wheel and go.
  • Bikram. Healing my body, opening my body, strengthening my body. Purging the toxins, improving circulation, massaging organs, cleansing.
  • Once Kit-kat’s biopsy is done, transitioning our house to a wheat-free zone. Maybe not for Leith, but for me and the bugz. It’s harder to take wheat out of his daytime-diet, and we don’t want him to get sick when he is forced to go away and eat restaurant food in small-town diners. But the house will be healthier than it already is, and the diet will follow us everywhere we go.
  • Water, and tea. Two small pleasures to be grateful for :)
Soul:
  • Healing.
  • No more drama. No one has permission to bring me their drama. Yes, there is some residual drama in my life, but no one (including me) is allowed to bring me any more drama. Keep it to yourselves, because I am not getting involved.
  • Did I mention no drama? Good.
  • Learning to trust again, which means building relationships with new people, which means being scared but doing it anyway. Knowing that there must be some good people out there.
  • Meditation, reconnecting with God and all the goodness that comes with letting go and following the path laid out for me. I don’t have to do anything this year; I just have to be
So raise your glass of water and join me in this detox. No weird drinks or fasting, I promise ;) Let 2012 be the year of taking care of yourself first, like I am doing. Do it for you so that everything else falls into place.
Healthy. Happy. Whole.

Spirited Gratitudes

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It’s +5 on Christmas Eve. Really, my entire list of gratitudes should just stop there. The weather is beautiful, the sun is shining (for a few more minutes…), and there is just enough snow on the ground to cover up the mud._uacct = “UA-4888259-1″;urchinTracker();

Perfect, really :)
But in addition to that, I really must give thanks for:
  • husbands who come home
  • last-minute miracles at Walmart, in the form of Princess flashlights – these have been requested with dire need, and I had no freaking idea where to find them. Then, in a flurry of Christmas Eve shopping for tampons and ribbon at Walmart, I found them: smiling up at me from the bottom rack of the impulse shelves in the checkout line. I may have squee’d a little :)
  • sledding on our hill. I love that we have a hill on our acreage that is perfect for sledding!
  • (most) gifts wrapped and ready to roll
  • honey-roasted peanuts, despite their atrocious calorie count. Why?? Whyyyy?
  • the Glee Christmas album, even though I’m not a big Glee fan…
  • reading about all the people preparing for the real Christmas celebration, and not just some overinflated consumer holiday
  • overcoming the urge to give in to buying things “just because” I have to, and instead only buying things that would be important and appreciated by their receiver
  • snuggling with warm, fuzzy-footed bugz in my bed, or their bed, or on the couch watching movies :)
  • virtual hugs and encouragement
  • lighting candles in the low afternoon light
  • stories before bedtime
  • yoga passes and meditation
  • hot coffee and handsome husbands ;)
  • brown paper packages tied up with string ribbon, waiting for little eyes to close tonight
  • a date booked for Kit-kat’s GI scope and biopsy, even if it’s two months later than we expected – it means we can eat “normally” for a little while longer ;)
  • no one barfing in the past 36 hours…
  • books to read, so many books to read!
  • Christmas humour:
  • friends, family and being together
  • homemade gifts, despite my lack of “crafty”
  • the thought of warm cinnamon buns for breakfast tomorrow…although then I should also be prepared to be grateful for a trip to Superstore, since I just remembered I have no flour…never mind that plan…
  • homemade hot cocoa and little hands gripping mugs
Peace, love and happiness to you and your family this Christmas. May you be blessed with the goodness that you put out into the world in 2011, and get everything your heart deserves.
xoxo