Tag Archives: exercise

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In the Sweet Spot

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Day 97 in my exciting adventure toward my date with Mickey

My plan for today was to meet with my Health Coach, and I did.  My two goals for the next four weeks are:

  1. Try out walking at the Lake Bluff Health and Fitness Center sprung track.  It is right on my way home from work, so no excuses to not drop in there.  The sprung track will make walking easier on my sore joints.
  2. Research and adjust my holiday recipes, so they are more nutritious and not so filled with empty calories.

Friendly little facts that are making my life exciting:

  • I always weigh myself before I talk to Alex, my heath coach.  And…tan-ta-ta-a-da…I made my 30 pounds this morning!!!  So exciting! I’m very happy about that.
  • OMGosh…Starbuck’s has a Skinny Peppermint Mocha.  I got one yesterday with decaf.  It might be my favorite treat EVER!
  • Jake & Emi (our kid)s, Eliza and James (their spouses), Mike (my amazing husband) and I are booked into Old Key West for our vacation in October.  I have our 5-day Park Hopper passes in hand.  And they are all connected up on “My Disney Experience.”

So right now, gentle readers, life is very good at the Jarvi household. Meet you the Kingdom!

BTW: Shout out to Chris, my wonderful work partner.  (Prayers coming your way, my friend! )  She fell and broke her wrist yesterday.  If you have a sec, offer up a quick prayer for her today.  Thanks, all y’all!

 

 

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A Bum Peg

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Day 95 as I sashay toward Mickey

Best laid plans, people, best laid plans…Last Sunday I spent 2 hours walking and shopping at Sam’s Club.  In the process I lifted some pretty big and heavy things into and then out of my cart.  (Aren’t most things that you buy at Sam’s Club big and heavy?)  Then on Monday I helped load up a minivan with food for a homeless shelter.  Again, some of that was very heavy stuff.

Well, yesterday the effort came home.  My left knee is pretty swollen and wracked up.  It wasn’t too bad when I left for work yesterday, so I left my cane at home.  By the time I got through the day and back home, I was in excruciating pain.  I popped some Alleve, plopped into my recliner and elevated my leg.  Mike waited on me all night, like the champion he is.

Thank God, the leg is not so sore today.  However, I brought my cane to work anyway and loaded up with Motrin before I left for work this morning.

So, here’s today’s plan: I will pamper my leg and not do anything too taxing today.  I will however do “sit down” Tai Chi when I get home.  It will help to alleviate the work-day stress, while not putting any pressure on my sore peg*.   (*See BTW below)

Meet you at the Kingdom!

BTW:  My great-grandfather had a peg-leg, because he lost a leg in WWI.  (The war to end all wars…really?)  That’s why my mother, whose given name was Elizabeth, was nicknamed Peggy.  She would walk around behind her grandfather imitating his walk.  Today, I am imitating them both.  🙂

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Pay Day–Weigh Day

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Day 94 in my Mickey-meeting journey

My plan for today was to weigh myself.  I keep trying to not have any expectations, so I won’t have any disappointment when I step on the scale.  After all, that’s why I’m only weighing myself once a month.  The scale depresses me, in general, so weighing less often is better for my psyche.

But let’s get real.  I was hoping to be 30 pounds down when I stepped on the scale today.  What I found when I stepped on the scale is that in the last 94 days, I have lost 28.6 pounds.  And instead of being elated that I’ve lost 28.6 pounds, I was a little disappointed that it was not 30 pounds.

I guess after 40+ years of dieting, it’s just my human nature to want more.  But here’s the thing: I already feeling the difference.  I feel it in the way my clothes fit and in my ability to be a better employee and in the improvements I see around my home.  I just plain have more energy.  I owe it all to nutritious foods and more movement.  I quit “dieting” and I am down 28.6 pounds.  Halle-j-lujah!

And so I press on, dear readers.  Thank you for taking this journey with me.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

BTW: I really owe “it all” to the God who loves me, who considers me precious and keeps me close.  A God who is the King, which makes me a princess…a princess who is 28.6 pounds down.  🙂

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Rewarding Manuel Labor

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Day 93 in making my way to a healthier me to meet up with Mickey

My plan for today is to help to load up the food for the PADS program at work/church.  PADS is a non-profit organization that provides temporary shelter for the homeless.  Once a month our church, St. James, takes on the task of providing the dinner meal, along with food for breakfast and a sack lunch the next day to a PADS site.  Today is PADS day, so I will:

  1. roll the cart with the non-perishables, out to our volunteer’s minivan
  2. unload the non-perishables
  3. roll the cart back through the building to the kitchen
  4. load up the perishables from the refrigerator and freezer
  5. roll the cart out to our volunteer’s minivan…again
  6. unload the perishables into the minivan
  7. give the volunteer a hug.

I like the idea of being helpful, rather than sitting at my desk and typing while she does all the heavy lifting.  It’s good to have some energy to be able to help.  Thank you, Lord, for nutritious foods, and thank you for the ability to be moving more!

Meet you at the Kingdom!

 

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My Crush on Bill Curtis

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Day 91 in my waltz toward the land of Walt and my favorite mouse Mickey My plan for today is to take a walk.  We are going to the local high school for a 4:00 pm event put on as a fundraiser for the local historical society.  The event will feature a Q & A with Bill Curtis and his lovely wife Donna La Pietra.  Now those of you who have lived in Chicagoland for long enough will remember that Bill was the anchor of the channel 2 news for a while.  My personal favorite anchor ever.  And Donna was the producer of their broadcast.  They have worked together ever since and have produced some amazing in-depth programming. I kind of hope to redeem myself by remaining cool, calm and collected.  When Mike (my main man) had some of his pieces featured in an art show at Navy Pier, Mike’s boss threw a lovely dinner event in his honor.  Bill Curtis was one of the attendees.  He came over to our table to chat with Mike.  He said, “Hello, I’m Bill Curtis.”  I could have been so cool and acted above this situation.  But being me,  I blurted out, “Yeah, you are!”  Then I promptly turned 50 shades of…red! So today I will remain a safe distance away from Bill and Donna.  And I will reign in my “groupie” tendencies.  🙂 Then when we get back to the farm, I will walk home…in the dark…in the cold…just because I can. Meet you at the Kingdom! BTW: I’ve decided to walk outside until it gets too icy to manage.  Then Lake Bluff Health and Fitness, here I come.

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Errand Girl…Errant Girl?

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Day 84 in my mission to mingle with Mickey

Errant Girl: My Pumpkin Spice Latte and my Pina Colada cupcake yesterday were yummy!  So tasty.   BUT I definitely experienced the inevitable post sugar-ingesting crash.  The sugar from the latte contributed to an early afternoon sugar coma/nap.  The sugar, from the cupcake at dinner, helped keep me up until 1:00 am.  I felt sluggish and and listless this morning.

So today’s plan was to get a bunch of errands done…Errand Girl.  And I did!  Here’s the list:

  1. shower and wash my hair
  2. clip my nails
  3. pluck my chin hairs (I hate this part of aging!)
  4. do some laundry
  5. pick up a few groceries
  6. input the music for a new Lamb of God on “Sybelius” for the congregation and for Damascus Road to use during Advent through Lent
  7. write bills for this pay period
  8. go to the post office, buy stamps and mail said bills
  9. figure out our tithe for 2015 and prepare our pledge card for Commitment Sunday (November 9)
  10. plan our menu for the week
  11. write a store list for grocery shopping tomorrow
  12. help prepare dinner
  13. do the dishes.

Whew!  Sure beats sitting in my chair all day, eating junk food and slipping in and out of simple-carb comas/naps.  Winning!!

So, gentle readers, there is progress being made.  And by the grace of God,  I have left sugar behind me again until Thanksgiving Day.  I will most likely have another sugary latte and a piece of pumpkin pie.  But I will follow it with a 5K walk on the following Saturday.  (Well, as far as I can make it anyway…)  🙂

Meet you at the Kingdom!

 

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Ode to the Pumpkin Spice Latte on Halloween

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Day 83 in my destiny to dance with Mickey

“O Pumpkin Spice Latte, I love you.  I do.  When October winds blow, my mind turns to you.  When I’m freezing my patootie off, you warm me right through.  O Pumpkin Spice Latte, I love you.  I do.

O Pumpkin Spice Latte, I love you.  I do.  You’re a cinnamony, gingery pumpkin delight, with just enough sugar to give me a fright.  Today I savor you without any fear, then leave you behind until Thanksgiving is here.

O Pumpkin Spice Latte, I love you I do.  And to your sweet taste I will always be true.  I can’t drink too many, my blood sugar is the cue, but Pumpkin Spice Latte, I love you.  I do.”

Ahhh…I am enjoying my first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the year.  (I ordered a venti decaf skim Pumpkin Spice Latte with no whip.  Yum!   Starbucks could make a fortune if they would just create a “Skinny Pumpkin Spice Latte.”  Their “Skinny” drinks are made with skim milk and sugar-free syrups.  I have tried Skinny Vanilla Lattes, Skinny Hazelnut Lattes, Skinny Caramel Lattes and my personal favorite Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Lattes.  They are delicious!  Come on, geniuses, invent!!!  How hard can it be to take the sugar out???

Anyway my plan for today is to savor my drink and pick up a cupcake for Mike and I for our Halloween treat tonight.  And I really do want to get out there and take that walk on the wild side.  It is freezing here in Lake Bluff with gale force winds, but no snow accumulation yet.  PTL!  Pray I don’t blow away, or become the victim of a “Widow Maker.”

Happy Halloween, dear readers!  Meet you at the Kingdom!

BTW: Mike worked at a sawmill for a bit when he was working his way through college.  They called very windy days Widow Makers, because in the woods limbs could snap off at any time and come crashing down on the workers, thus making their wives widows.  How’s that for a macabre Halloweeny thought?  🙂

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Salad and Conversation

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Day 82 in my attempt to accomplish something everyday to be as healthy as I possibly can be when I go to the Magic Kingdom to meet Mickey next October

This evening, after a full day of work and before a contemporary band rehearsal tonight, I get to meet up with some dear friends at the Silo, our local watering hole.  Some of these friends I blessedly get to see often, and some of these friends I seldom get to see.  What a treat!!  What a joy!!

So here’s my 2-part plan for today:

  1. Rather than ordering pizza (the best deep-dish pizza in Chicagoland in my very prejudiced opinion), I will order a salad.  Now before you feel too sorry for me, this salad has spinach, romaine lettuce, steak, roasted garlic, red onions and bleu cheese crumbles.  Huh?  And it comes with warm bread.  I will either split this with my honey, or take half of it home (if Mike wants pizza or a something else).  Ahhh…YUM!
  2. I will focus on the conversation and the company, rather than my usual pattern of zoning in on the food (and making the company second best).

So today’s plan is very do-able, and I need that today.  Tomorrow we are predicted to have gale-force winds, rain, and snow flurries.  Instead of cowering inside, I want to take a walk on the wild side and get out there in the elements.  It may be one of the shortest walks in history, but it will be a walk.  Stay tuned to see details on how that turns out.  🙂 And due to the weather, I may put my celebratory Halloween cupcake off for a day.  I hate driving far in nasty weather!

Thank you for taking the time to read this, dear friends, and thank you for your support.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

 

 

 

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Harsh Realities and Happy Planning

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Day 81 in my migration toward meeting Mickey

Well, I danced like no one was watching last night.  It was fun…and tiring, but it was good to do it.

I don’t know how hard is too hard to push myself physically.  As soon as I push through the pain to walk further, my hip starts aching something fierce, my knees start snapping at me, my back throws in the towel and my upset stomach rears up.   I end up so sore and feeling so lousy that I am absolutely discouraged, so I end up taking several days to recover enough to be able to do it again.  I haven’t “listened” to my body for years.  Now I am hearing it loud clear.  And it is saying, “Slow and easy wins the race.  Rome (nor this gargantuan body) wasn’t built in a day.  Patience is a virtue.”  I know, right?  My body speaks in clichés…who knew?  But it is very clear to me that I need to take it slowly.

So today’s plan is to spend some time putting together our dates for the trip to Walt Disney World.

  1. What date can I call and book our rooms at Old Key West (11 months prior to check-in)?
  2. What date do I make our dinner/lunch reservations?  (180 days prior to check-in)?
  3. What date do I book Mickey’s-Not-So-Scary Halloween tickets?
  4. What date do I reserve our Magical Express ride from the airport to Old Key West and back?
  5. When do I purchase my Tables in Wonderland discount card?  (A discount dining perk that saves 20% on most meals)
  6. When do I register for my Fastpass+ choices? (60 days prior to check-in?)
  7. When shall I book our flights?

Much to do, but it’ll be fun research while I wait for my spine to quick clicking when I walk.  This getting older is not for the faint of heart.  🙂

Meet you at the Kingdom!

 

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Best Laid Plans…

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Day 80 in my journey to join up with my favorite mouse, Mickey

Confession time again: I did not dance when I got home yesterday.  I barely walked when I got home yesterday.  It was a crap day!  Everything I touched turned to ashes.  It was a difficult day at work.  Then I preheated the oven last night to cook my brown rice and mushroom casserole.  When the casserole was ready for the oven, I slipped it inside and promptly turned my oven off.  Of course, I didn’t realize I had done this until about 45 minutes later when I went to give it a stir.  ARGH!  x#2@t*s!m=%!!!  (Think Charlie Brown swear-speak!)  So we had dinner an hour late last night.  I was in such a bad mood when I got home, that I stress ate my banana with almond butter and some Skinny Pop popcorn, then I sat and cursed the darkness.

I know what you’re thinking.  “If you had danced, it would have improved your mood and beaten back some of the stress.”  I know…I know, but I was too PO’d to do the right thing.  Does that ever happen to you?  The good news is I didn’t stress eat candy and chips.  That is progress.

Today’s plan is to try again.  I want to dance today.  So no excuses.  I’ve planned a quick and easy dinner (Salmon filets, a Starbuck’s brown rice salad, with a cup of Mexican bean soup).  I can dance with abandon, and shake what my momma gave me.  🙂

Meet you at the Kingdom!