Anything in life is temporERI...

Hey old friends and new!  It has been so long since we had a chat.  School is kicking my butt.  I'm actually having a really tough time this semester.  We'll talk about that later, though.  How is every one's February?  It came up so fast.  The snow has come, come again, and now melted into gray days that make me long for spring and lush green trees.  Soon enough - but most likely when that gets here, I'll be ready for summer. 
Isn't it human nature to want what's next rather than what we have now?  I personally beg to differ.  I'm pretty sure it's just a norm in our society that has taught us to be this way. 

Have you been able to keep the changes or improvements that you set for yourself for the new year?  Here's a little update on me.  Since school has started, I've made study dates and gym dates with new and old friends, continued trying to find time to read a chunk of Pride & Prejudice, and have lost a consistent 4 lbs.  Not much, but on a large scale, it is nearly a fifth of my goal in a little over a month.  Hope you are doing just as well! 

So, as you can see, my soul and body are right on track.  Still having problems with my sleeping habits, but slowly improving.  But here's the problem that I want to talk about today.  I'm having a little trouble with my mind.  Have you ever set your mind on a goal, and were so ready to accomplish it, that you dove right in!  We all have at one point or another, right?!?  But what if you get nice and deep into accomplishing that goal, and realize that you don't want it anymore?  Even worse, what if you still want it with everything in you, and you just can't accomplish it?  This is the problem I'm having right now in school. I went back to work on some pre-requesites to go to Physical Theray school.  I thought I had it all figured out.  I wanted to work specifically as a physical therapist to professional and pre-professional dancers.  Well, I'm quite a few semesters in, and I am struggling.  Struggling with the material, desire, enjoyment, you name it.  I feel like i've already done so much and to suck it up, but on the other hand, I don't know if I should push myself to do something that I really don't think I'll enjoy.  What a dilemma! 

What's your opinion?  Do you think that it's okay to admit when you might have been wrong?  That maybe the goal that you were working towards just wasn't the right one?  It kind of stings.  I've been trying to be pretty systematic about it.  For example, what costs have I incurred thus far? But the worst of all questions: "If not this, then what???"  I feel like having a goal helped me define myself, and now that idea and plan being changed has sort of left me standng here naked, with my pride bruised.  Have you ever felt this way about something?  The best example I can think of is a relationship.  Like when you stay with your significant other even though you fight all the tme and know it's not going to work.  When you finally break up, you feel empty, even though you know it's the right choice. 

So I guess this situation only proves to me that most things in this life are temporary.  So if you're going to use your belongings, or careers, or goals to define who you are rather than enhance it, you'll never be the happy person that we are all seeking to be.

Not so ordinERI...

Hey, everyone!  Week one of school is now checked off the list.  I can never do it over.  It's written in history.  Huh.  It sure puts it in perspective when I think of it that way.  When I look back at the semester, the year, my twenties - will it all just be ordinary?  Now don't get me wrong, ordinary isn't necessarily bad.  But what if looking back, you just know that it could have been extraordinary, instead?!? 

A few years back, I tried to do as many things as I could.  Experience everything, volunteer for anything.  All that it led to was a worn out college student spread way too thin.  I couldn't give 100% to anything that way.  Isn't it funny how you hear something at one point, and it doesn't really mean anything to you, but a few years down the road, it makes perfect sense?  A very great man I once knew taught me that you have to balance your life  - personally, socially, and intellectually... In other words, mind, body, and soul.  Too bad I didn't get it until now. 

Here are some updates on where I'm at with my life improvement movement.  I'm still reading - the book is taking a little longer than I thought, especially with school starting.  You'll probably finish before me if you're reading along!  The healthy food is going great thanks to my food and exercise log.  I've also gotten together with a couple of friends throughout the week, and re-kindled a few old friendships.  It's so gratifying, even though they are probably weirded out by my contact out of the blue.  Working out with my grandpa is going great, too.  Except for the little mishap on the chin-up assist machine that I tried to warn him from, he's really taken to some of the machines.  Besides, I like just getting to spend time and talk with someone that I love.  When we get so busy, it becomes too easy to forget about those that really matter to us.  Have you gone out of your way this week to show someone that you love them this week?  The only goal I have been having trouble with is the relaxation ritual before bed.  It's tough to calm down after such busy days with classes and teaching.  I need to keep working on creating positive habits in that regard. 

Now, back to my ordinary first week of the semester.  What if I took those steps to make my week something new?  What if I find joy in something that I previously found a pain on campus?  But you know what?  That very same man I just told you about caught me saying something very close to this a few years back.   I asked him, "What if I would have reacted this way?" or "What if I fail?" He looked at me plain as day and said, "What if you never said 'What if?' ever again?  Don't 'What if'' yourself!!!"  Just another one of those lessons that comes back around when you need it most.  So I guess the point that I'm trying to make is to get out there and stop what if-ing through life!  Make every minute, day, week, semester, year, whatever as extraordinary as possible by believing that it will be.

A night time sanctuERI...

Well, I know it's been a few days since I posted, but I've been really thinking about things lately.  I'm pretty anxious about this new semester starting because I know it's going to be one of the most challenging semesters to date -and for a professional student, that's saying something!  So I got to thinking, how am I going to keep the changes that I've instated thus far, and have the time to commit to continue?  But when something matters to you dearly, you make every effort to accommodate it.  So that's just it.  I have to continue.  No game of Angry Birds to relax for bed - instead I'll pick up a book and grow! I know what you're saying, "NO ANGRY BIRDS? This girl means business!!!" Speaking of the book, I still have not finished Pride and Prejudice (find the link to download for free to your kindle app in previous post), even though I have been reading diligently each day.  I can't wait to share my opinion of it with you when I'm done.  Did you finish it yet?  It's a tough read at some points, but some of the things that Elizabeth says are mind boggling, I tell you.  We'll talk more when I get there.

Let me tell you, http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ is amazing.  I really feel gratified when I take the time to plan what I eat, then log it all in, and know that I met my calorie and fitness goals for the day!  And what I really love is that with this commitment to get healthier in the last two weeks, I've already lost 4 pounds, as you can see by the ticker at the bottom of my posts.  Talk about a  jump start.  Woohoo!

Remember my idea to connect with someone in my life at least once a week?  I had a little get together with some great friends and it was awesome.  Great way to let off some steam - and the hot apple cider and Captain Morgan's didn't hurt one bit!!!

Adding the element of fitness to my body improvement list was a little hard in the motivation area, but knowing that I need to stay accountable to you helped a ton.  I got my grandpa to the gym three times this week!  We tackled the elliptical - although I had my reservations about getting a 70 year old on it for the first time.  His favorite is the recumbent bike though.  He says it makes his back hurt less.  Who did you take the time to include with some healthy activity?  Walking in the mall?  Go for a swim?  It's not a tangible object, so it's hard to realize it, but just these little steps with those we love are helping them live healthier, more fulfilling lives.  That's heavy stuff.

Now here's what up.  Over the last three weeks or so, I have developed the absolute worst sleeping habits.  I'm talking stay up till 5, sleep till noon type of habits.  That's not too good when you already have trouble sleeping as it is, and your boyfriend snores loud enough to hear two rooms over!  I've been trying to get back on track, especially since I have to be up early for school starting Tuesday.  Uh oh!  So here's what I'm going to do for my soul every night.  I've planned out a night time ritual so I can get in a relaxed mood and hopefully fall asleep faster and sleep better.  Leave a message for me below if you have trouble sleeping and have come up with any good solutions.  I need all the help I can get - suggestions for curing snoring is at the top of that list.  Here's what I have planned out so far.  About a half hour before bed time, I'll turn on my bedside lamp with a lavender oil diffuser in it.  So by the time I'm ready for bed, the room will smell nice and comforting.  And then, I'm going to run a hot bath.  After the tub is full, I'll put a few drops of lavender and lemon essential oils and swirl them around.  Then I'll just lay in the tub for about fifteen minutes and really focus my breathing on relaxing and calming myself down.  This is probably going to be the hardest part for me.  Whenever I hop into bed, I find myself thinking about what I have to do the next day, what needs cleaned, etc., etc.  How about you? Then I will hop out of the tub, wash my face, brush my teeth and hair, then head to bed.  I even found a chamomile pillow spray to use right before I lay down.  I'll try this nightly ritual everyday this week, and see if I can't get myself back on track, and better rested.  What's your nightly ritual?  Hope we sleep tight tonight!!!

JanuERI gym crawl...

Hey all!  Happy Monday! Bet you just love to hear that, huh?  Maybe if we thought of Monday as the start of another weekly adventure instead of a weekly struggle, it wouldn't be so bad!  To me, this Monday comes with a price - as it's the last week I have until my spring semester starts.  But hey, I guess I could look at it as just another new experience! 

Now on to the updates!  Have you been following along with last weeks goals?  Each week I pick one way to improve myself on three different planes.  Here's a little recap for you:

                  Mind: Read classic literature - Pride and Prejudiceby Jane Austen               Body: Meal plan and check in at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/
                  Soul: Socially reconnect with someone once a week

How have you been doing with any of these ideas?  Write me some comments of obstacles you've come across, or advice for anyone going down this road with me.  I'm almost done with the book - should be finished by this week so I can start a new project for my  mind, but that's a whole other blog!  The meal planning has been great, and I'm really learning how to maximize my food intake within adequate calorie needs.  Just look at my little weight ticker at the bottom of the page. Progress feels great, doesn't it?  And last but not least, I had a great time with my friend last week, and already have a gym date and a party to attend to this week.  These accomlishments make me feel great, especially on a Monday!

But what about the blog today?  I've been reading a few facebook statuses that have been irking me, even though they are sadly true.  I've been a member to a Planet Fitness gym in the city that I live in for the last four months or so, and I really enjoy it there.  In January though, what do almost everyone's resolutions entail?   A loss of weight.  A healthy lifestyle transition.  A new you, right?  Except, I've been reading status updates like, "I can't wait for all these people to fail at their new year's resolutions, so I can have my treadmill back."  Well, pardon me.  Why does success through another's failure make sense?  When I was working on my first undergrad degree, I was in this group called the Emerging Leaders Program where I learned this amazingly simple, thought provoking exercise.  You start with a line between two people facing eachother.  You look at one person and say, "You're job is to get to the other side of the line."  Then you look at the other person and say the exact same thing.  Tell them to grab hands, and GO.  What do you think is the first thing to happen?  An all out tug of war, battle of strength, play dirty struggle.  Now where was it ever mentioned that it was a competition in any way?  What on earth has our minds hard-wired for winning?  They each could have easily crossed the line and both succeeded.  That's my point.  Why do we feel the need to be mutually exclusive?  Can't we find ways that empower everyone, and raise both parties up?  So yeah, I go to the gym, and I have to park four businesses down, and I can't find a treadmill.  But I guess those are the days that someone else can be proud of the work they accomplished at the gym, and I get to experience a new piece of equipment!

So this brings me around to my work towards bodily self improvement of the week.  I thought about my desire to work on a healthier lifestyle.  It made me reflect a lot about my family and the condition that my relatives are in.  Most of my family is overweight, and very inactive.  That's when I realized - why not use my goal to work with someone else and accomplish their goal, too?  What am I getting at?  To improve my body this week, not only am I logging my meals, but this week starts a low level gym regimen.  I want to get to the gym three times a week, and work to burn atleast 350 calories each session.  But the catch - I got my grandpa to join me!  Today I introduced him to the arc trainer for 20 minutes!  It was an easy thing for me to get into, but man was I proud of him.  He's never used anything more than a stationary bike, but he trusted me enough to try something new.  What a compliment!  I even showed him a few upper body machines, then we both jumped on a bike for a few miles.  I know I could have woked harder, but the work we did together was better than anything I would have accomplished on my own.  So why don't you try?  Get a hold of your mom or brother or whoever, and go to the mall and walk for a half hour.  Let's help each other this year, and in turn help ourselves.  Beyond that, I heard about a study at Cambridge the other day that showed a positive relationship between the aging population walking 6+ miles a week and new brain cell growth. What's this mean?  That there may quite possibly be a link between excerise and things like lower significance of Alzheimer's!!!  I'm still looking for the exact study that was quoted on the radio show, but boy have I stumbled over a ton of other studies worth reading.  Go look some up, then get our parents and grandparents moving!

In a connectionERI manner...

Wow.  Isn't day three supposed to be the worst?  Like when I got my lovely pain in the butt wisdom teeth out, the nurse said, "Don't worry, the third day is the worst, then you'll be over the hump!" It was a tiring day, I've been on the fence as to what I was going to write to you today, aaannnddd all I can think about is food!  I'm not hungry, I just want to eat because I know I shouldn't.  So please, nurse from my dentistry past, please be right when you said the third day was the worst!  I guess past precedence is at work here, because in all honesty, that third day with the wisdom teeth truly was mouth misery...

Why was I unsure of what to write today you ask?  Well, even if you didn't ask, I'll tell you anyways!!!  You know how I'm doing the whole mind, body, soul improvement theme right?  Here's the thing.  I've been having a hell of a time deciding what the mind vs. body means to me.  According to http://www.dictionary.com/, the mind is intellect or understanding, as distinguished from the faculties of feeling and willing; intelligence; whereas the soul is the emotional part of human nature; the seat of the feelings or sentiments.  To me, that for the most part makes sense.  But isn't it all entwined?  The more I thought about it, the more mixed my opinions were.  For example, couldn't the way you feel about something influence your desire to understand something more?  And what if our intelligences become to define our human nature?  For example, where would morals fit into this scheme?  When I was little, my mom made me say please and thank you and excuse me.  I was ignorant of them until I was taught.  But now, when someone doesn't say thank you or your welcome in return to me, it evokes a small rebellion inside that they are mean rather than unknowing, a bad person instead of, oh I don't know, a dumb one.  See the blur, people?

So here's what I decided.  They are related.  The mind feeds off the soul feeds off the mind, get it?  And for the record, the body is probably mixed in there too!  For the purpose of simplicity, we'll say the mind deals with intelligence, the body with health, while the soul deals with feelings and spirituality.  This week, I already hit the body with meal planning - which by the way, even though it's tough, reduces stress because I already know what I'm making and how much time I need, and actually makes me proud because at the end of each day I check my log (at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ -hint, hint - you should get one, too) and feel accomplished!  I'm working on my mind by reading some classical literature (read along and tell me what you think: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen free on Kindle here).  So all that's left is my soul, which finally brings us to today's blog!


If the soul pertains to our feelings and our spirituality, what are some ways that you would improve yours?  This week, I met for a movie and some late night drinks with a good friend of mine.  First I asked him about my whole mind vs. soul conflict, and then I remembered he has a degree in Philosophy!  So after a little explanational existential perspective blah blah blah (just kidding!) I was able to form my opinion on the whole situation.  Then I thought, well wait, I don't do this enough.  Make plans, set time aside, and go meet a friend!  I feel like we get so bogged down with everyday responsibilities, that we forget that we are social creatures.  So here is my proposal for soul improvement.  Each week, I am going to set aside some time to connect with someone in my life.  A friendly, "How you doin'?" Wendy style phone call, a message on Facebook, some coffee, or a lunch.  Something - anything!  Just to sit and talk with my friend the other day was so rewarding.  It rejuvenates you.  It makes you a compassionate and caring person, and spending time on another person will invariably pay it forward to you in the long run.  So, won't you join me in this step of reconnecting with the true idea of people and friendship?  Call someone you haven't talked to in a while just to hear their voice, and genuinely wonder about their life. 


Remember, the story of each of our lives is really just a thread in the blanket of humanity.


Did you like that?  I came up with it all by myself!

Life is just a mockumentERI...

I've started to devise a little plan - to organize my thoughts and endeavors a little better I guess.  Each week, I'll do one think to improve each of my areas of interest - Mind, body, and soul.  That way, I have enough time to invest in a change, before adding on another layer the next week. 

So we all know that this week I started to watch what I was eating.  With the help of http://www.myfitnesspal.com/, I think I've really gotten an understanding of where I can cut back, or let go.  It's still tough though; It's like when I don't care about food, I'm not particularly hungry, but as soon as I tell myself no, that's all I can think of!!!  That's okay.  Perseverance will prevail in this instance!  Keep the end in sight. When I'm standing on a tropical beach paradise in six months, it's going to be in a skimpy bikini, with a damn good level of confidence and pride.  Where will you be in six months?  How will you feel?  I sincerely hope that you can find your own kind of paradise...

Now, enough about me talking about food! I swear it only makes me hungry.  In this blog, I want to tell you about my latest foray into the improvement of my mind.  I was playing around with my kindle app on my iphone (which I love unbelievably) and found some free classic books to download.  So I thought to myself, why not read all these books that you hear about so often with movies made from them?  At the top of my list is Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice."  Here's where I'll start, and if you'd like to join, you can download the book for free to your kindle, kindle app on the computer, or kindle app on your phone here.  I'm about seven chapters in, and I've got to be straight with you - it's pretty tough to read.  Maybe it's just because I'm comparing it to the smut that I usually read (not that that's a bad thing), but I actually have to concentrate on what I'm reading!!! And although the film version of Pride & Prejudicewith Keira Knightley was delicious, even that, what with the language and all, seems a bit watered down compared to the real thing.  If you're following along with me, and try picking up the book, please, share your opinion of it with me in the comments below.

Even though I am enjoying reading this book to improve my mind, I got to thinking.  If the version that we get now is so simplified, what's to say that everything else isn't simplified too, and we just don't know it?  Have we unknowingly taken the easy way out in most aspects of our lives and settled for Facebook updates and e-mails instead of gatherings and calls just to say, "Hello"? Are we taking the simplified version of thanx in a text, and forgetting about our mother's careful instructions to always hand write thank-you cards?  I can't help but think the easier life gets, the easier it becomes to forget our personal lives, their impact on the world around us, and the depth of history that we are invariably woven into.  The life that we are living, so fast and fleeting, can really only be viewed as a mockery of true life.  I don't know about you, but I am ready to dig deeper under this surface of dissatisfaction.

A legendERI proposal...

Now that I've decided to take the step forward and reorganize my life, where on earth do I start? I guess it can start kind of how I started my first blog. I'll just jump right in and see where it all ends up. I'm going to try to keep true to my idea of mind, body, and soul, so if you notice me straying on one more than another after a while, check me on it!

Although I am feeling super ready to get going, I'll focus on one principle per post. Today, let's go with the body. Here's where I am, and maybe this scenario sounds familiar to you. When I was in high school, I was super active and never thought much about my weight. Don't get me wrong, I didn't flaunt my body around (much - you know how roaring teenage hormones are...) but I knew I wasn't in a bad place. But after years of college and binge eating and skipping meals and McDonald's Monopoly - What? You've gotta get the large fries then! I just look down and realize I'm not what I used to be. Yes I go up stairs and get out of breath a little, and no, I'm not proud of it. Most days I prefer sweats because they don't make me face the jeans that are just too tight and uncomfortable all day long. But you know what gets me the most?!? I'm a dance teacher for crying out loud! I teach kids that look up to me and follow everything I do. I should be a positive role model showing them how creating great physical habits now can translate into a long, healthy life.

It's so easy to say, "I should be," but what happens now? Now on to my legendary proposal as alluded by my title today.

The first thing that I'm going to do this year to improve myself is help my body. I guess you could look at it this way. Our bodies are cars, and when we put high quality fuel into it, we get higher mileage and less build up in our engines, or something like that. This week, I'm turning around my eating. I made meal plans that are healthy, homemade, and easy. I'm not that great of a cook (Bless my boyfriend's soul for putting up with it), so I found recipes that have only a few ingredients or can be put in a crock pot and forgotten about. Premixed packets are amazing time savers, like the absolutely delicious McCormick Slow Cookers Hearty Beef StewI made yesterday! I really found some great recipes in this Martha Stewart Everyday Food: Great Food Fastcook book, too. But the bottom line is, if we don't stick to it, nothing is gonna happen!!! Let's work together and get rid of all the processed foods, fast foods, and junk foods that we turn to so easily.  How about a homemade meal and time with those we love, instead? Yup, I think this is a great first change in the makeover of my life.  Who's with me?!?

Oh, and check out this website that I found. It's called My Fitness Pal (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/) and you can log food that you ate and exercise you did (that'll be next week's big change) to basically keep yourself in check. What I like about it is the little ticker that I got at the bottom of this screen. As I update my food intake and weigh-ins, my ticker will show the progress right on the website!  My personal goal is to lose thirty pounds.  Not by a certain time frame, but eventually.  How did I decide on thirty pounds you ask?  Well, after looking at my BMI  > the Body Mass Index (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/), I was ranked in the high end of overweight, almost obese!  If I lose thirty pounds, I'll be back in the healhy range and not just look better, but feel better, and more importantly, function better!  You should get an account at My Fitness Pal, too!  Keep me posted on your progress, and include your ticker in the comments so we can accomplish our goals together!  And for you tech-savvy, phone freaks, they have an app so you can update on the go.  Don't worry, I'm one of those phone freaks, too.

So, what do you say?  Let's make these changes now and stick with them! Improve my body - CHECK!