A Case of the Mondays

So many Monday mornings people trying to get healthier, or thinner, or stronger, look back on their weekends and shudder.

Cue regret.  Cue self hate.  Cue a slew of things that wont help you at all.

Monday is THE day of the week most people PROMISE THEMSELVES they will...do better, restart, rebuild, make a change....just do something.

I am here to tell you, YOU CAN.  You just need a coupe of things to be successful...

1. A plan ( if you need help putting one together, message me, I am happy to help)
2. A goal NOT related to size or weight.
3. Support and accountability on the way.

I don't like the phrase "it is never too late" because honestly, if you don't take your health seriously there WILL come a point where it IS too late.  Not death, just being so badly damaged that you are trapped in a body that cant move and is a prison, and will drag you painfully to your demise.  ( so cheerful this morning...NOT!! )  Sometimes, some things happen with no warning and your body cant recover from them.  If you are NOT in that position as you read this, then you CAN start doing something.  Stop waiting, stop hoping you will slip through unscathed, and do something to help your body.  There are no guarantees, you could do all the right things and still have something in your body fail.  You will still die at some point.  We aren't avoiding death, we are just hoping to change the quality of the ride before we get there.  :)

YOU CONTROL NOW.  :)  So grab a friend or two who need to get working on this, and use this MONDAY!!

If you need help, message me here https://www.facebook.com/fighththefluff

I had that dream again last night....

no, no, no - not THAT dream about being under clothed and unprepared...I actually haven't ever had that dream!



I have a few recurring dreams, the flying like superman one - can't ever have that one enough!  I also have the dreams where something is out of place and I realize I am dreaming - at which point I then try to fly like superman!  But the one I am talking about today is the dream where I can do something physically that is virtually impossible to me in real life, and it is EASY.

The dream usually involves doing a pull up of some kind and not only can I do it, it is TOTALLY EFFORTLESS!!!  It is the best thing ever, just fantastic, and I get so happy about it.  ( I know I am strange!!)   This is VERY far from my real life, I can do about HALF of a single pull up.  I am constantly in awe of upper body strength, and working really hard at getting some, so I can do more fun things.  So when i can suddenly do it in my dreams it is like Christmas morning times 10!

So in last night's dream, I was near a ledge going down stairs in a house, and I grabbed the ledge and hung on it and it was easy, and I thought,

"wow this is really GREAT, I wonder if I can pull up".

So I tried it, and I did and it was SOOO easy.  I was actually able to pull up, and then keep going until I was actually pushing down on the ledge and was above it.  It is called a "muscle up" and it was magical - even if I could only do it in my dream!   THEN the funniest part was I looked around for something in the dream to be weird, or off, so that I knew I was dreaming....and I when I saw nothing out of place, I decided it was real and it was fantastic!!

Wish this was me!!




Of course, as with all good dreams, then next thing that happened could be typed like this....



...feeling REALLY happy and excited for a moment....but then the reality of my half pull up set back in!!  LOL

What is interesting to me is how my whole life is SOO different from 5 years ago.  I would never have had dreams of doing pull-ups back then.  I have always loved and admired physical skills and strength, but always thought it was too hard to achieve.

What changed?  I realized that all that time it would take to try to learn something - that would take TOO LONG was going to pass anyway.  It isnt like the clock stops when you think "well that would be nice but it would take to long".    I had NOTHING to lose by working a little on some things.  I either get there or not, but I am stronger, better and healthier for trying, not to mention the things I have picked seem REALLY fun to me.  So it all seems like fun!

FIND SOMETHING YOU LOVE, something physical, and chase after it!!  If you need ideas or help coming up with this - message me!  #fighttheflufffitness will get you to me, and FB, Google, Google+ Pinterest, and IG  :)  Just click the hashtag to get to FB and message me :)

Clearly my quest to learn and master those six moves from my last post,  is REALLY embedded in me!!  I have some progress reports to share later in the week, so stay tuned!!


:)

46 is coming....

So I am going to be 46 in November 2014.

Since reclaiming my health I get to do so many fantastic physical things that make me so happy.

Paddle boarding is my new found passion....love it!!!

Then, recently I started doing Silks 

And I also get to teach gymnastics to adults 3 times a week.  Gymnastics has always been something I LOOOOOOVED.   I was a gymnast for most of my childhood until college.  ( If you are local to Baltimore and want to take my class it is Monday nights from 6pm - 7:30pm  at  Urban Evolution )  It is for anyone who used to do gymnastics and wants to relive the fun - and for those who always wanted to give it a try and never had the chance.  

Soooo to that end - the point of my post, I am almost 46.  No matter how much I love gymnastics, there is only so much that is smart to do with my body.  As I retrain, I am getting stronger, so I will be able to reclaim much of what I used to do, but the super bendy spine stuff is not a good idea to do tons of when getting back into it.  

I decided in the realm of things I can still do easily....handstands, cartwheels, basic rolls, balances and a couple of flips I am going to work on control and strength, and as such, part of my blog is going to be to track my progress with things I want to learn....some are short term easier goals, and some are long term - at least a year away :)

Here is my list...

Hold a handstand for a minute or longer

Sloooooow controlled handstands and cartwheels

Floor straddle to handstand

Crow to handstand

Planche stand

What I am curious about is this....

Can a 46 year old woman learn to do these things?

Stay tuned!!  I am going to document my progress right here weekly.  :)

You are what you eat.....

... yes, yes I know, you have heard it.  I heard it my whole life and knew it just meant I needed to eat better....  then something happened.



I actually experienced what it was like to REALLY nourish my body, for a consistent amount of time, and it was like my body went from being an old junker car to a formula 1 racing car and I FINALLY got it.



In the space of 3 weeks my body changed.  Inside and out.  Inside my BP went from 118/72 to 99/68.  My Cholesterol from 183 to 127 in THREE WEEKS.  My liver levels from above normal ( bad) to normal.  Outside, my face and skin and hair and nails all looked younger and better.  I lost weight, I FELT AMAZING and I suddenly GOT IT....I am what I eat.  Before I was just surviving....now I was THRIVING.

Soooo I was recently on a day trip to the beach with my family.  This meant I was at the mercy of eating out.  I ate fruit for breakfast, but decided to enjoy some of these little beauties.  Nope, not at all healthy, but when you eat as cleanly as I do, the odd french fry here and there is an indulgence I allow....


Also in the interest of time and speed of eating with the family, I had cheeseless pizza.  Read here, picked the cheese off regular pizza and ate the sauce and crust....from a pretty decent pizza place ( small business, makes their own stuff from scratch).

Discovery...I dont actually like Thrashers any more.  Bit surprised, cos about once a month I do have a small serving of fries, which I generally enjoy.  But Thrashers were just icky to me and I USED to LOOOOOOOOOOOVE them.

So after the various deviations and making do with what was fast and available ..... Let me tell you, I felt WEAK.  Sooooo weak and sluggish.  I generally have 7 servings of fruit and veggies by the time breakfast is over.  It was just a day trip, so I didnt have my Shakeology and blender with me - which is how I start my day....

Vegan chocolate Shakeology with 7 strawberries, 1 banana, 1/4 cup raw almonds.

Then I move on to a snack of fruit.  Lunch is 2 cups of veggies and Non gmo tofu ( recent kick).  Another snack of PB and crackers, dinner is 2-4 cups various veggies and a protein of choice.

I was out of the house 48 hours and got home feeling like total crap - even though the only diversions were those fries, that pizza crust and some plain chips.  Tired, no energy, lethargic, and really WEAK!!  It STUNK.    It drove home the message, once more.  YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT.

My point?  So many of you reading this feel tired with no energy LOTS of the time.  You are caught up in how food tastes and you dont want to give it up.  I know.  I was there I lived it for 43 years.  3 things I want you to know....

1. If you change what you eat for a lifestyle you WONT always feel the same way as you do right now about "all those yummy foods" you wont be eating.  I promise what you want WILL change.  You will not always be pining for those cookies or cakes or cheese doodles or desserts.

2. YOU WANT TO THRIVE, not just survive.  Surviving ISNT living.  You thrive by focusing on putting GOOOD QUALITY nutritionally dense foods in your body, and that whole, being tired, no energy, feeling blah will GO AWAY!

3. Hear these words, and take in their meaning BEYOND "eat better"  You ARE what you eat.  Your life DEPENDS on what you put in your body.  Food is the SINGLE most important thing in your control as to your basic health.  Food, it is ALL FOOD.  

If this strikes a nerve for you and you want to change, but dont know how.  message me, email me, contact me, I am HAPPY to help you get started.  :)

Moments

90% of your life is lived in your imagination...

I read this about 3 weeks ago and it has stuck with me.  Initially I did a double take on it, then I thought about it, and it really is true. 

We live planning our great moments, dreaming of better moments, hoping for different moments, wishing moments away - but how much of our time do we actually focus on the moments RIGHT NOW, good or bad.  The moment of what you are doing now.   You know how time seems to FLY by, the older you get? Maybe this is why.

If you are here, your eyes are flitting across a screen, but where are you?  What do you hear?  What do you smell?  Can you taste something? Are you killing time before something?  Waiting for something? 

One of my more recent tags on my fitness posts is "add life to your life"  or #addlifetoyourlife because the LIFE I have added to mine after getting healthy enough to go and do anything I want is FANTASTIC.  But I often find myself "waiting" to be leaner, stronger, to the next time I can go on holiday, or paddle board, or have some me time.  

What I realized is that so many of my moments were just being shoved aside as I waded through the mundane to get to enjoy the lovely.  BIIIIIG WASTE OF MOMENTS.  ( We only have, but so many we are allotted).

Soooo my NEWLY invented tag is going to be MORE MOMENTS #moremoments to remind us that we need to stop pushing the "mundane" ( Monday morning, no coffee late to work, boss is mad) moments and just getting through them and look around and see where we are, what the world is doing.  While I agree some moments in life are profoundly painful and perhaps you dont want to soak in every detail of that one, but the rest of them....LOOOK at where you are, experience the moments.  If you are out of shape hoping for moments to come when you will be healthier, start really looking at the moments on your journey.  Yeah, it is hot and sweaty, and your muscles burn, and you are fighting your inner voices that say the couch might be comfier right now, and maybe you should start tomorrow.  But these are MOMENTS that will never ever come back - this is your life passing before your very eyes, RIGHT NOW.  If you look in these moments, maybe you will see more about yourself than you realized.  Maybe with practice you will learn to make the most of every moment - not just the lovely ones.  Maybe time will slow down a little.

I am not a person who is prone to stress.  I was blessed with a very laid back disposition, but since I started doing this, I smile even more, I have found myself just stopping and looking at leaves and branches swaying in the wind (like just 2 seconds ago as I looked up, out of my window to type this)

( yes those trees right there!!)

I find time going more slowly, I find myself enjoying the ride more, and noticing even more.  It is a lovely thing. 

I'm 45 and decided that I am not going to live 90% of my life in my head.  I am going to live in my MOMENTS :)  Anyone care to join me?

Dont just sit there!

In the last 5 years I have gone from my main activity being channel surfing, to a fitness trainer and it all started with ONE hobby.   If I can YOU CAN....

Get ACTIVE!!!  The easiest way to do this is to think about something that seems FUN to you.  Maybe something you always wanted to try?  Or learn to do.

Girls, I can tell you there is nothing more empowering than learning self defense or a martial art.  At Christmas I will earn my black belt in Shotokan Karate.  I will be 46.    Shotokan is a great form of karate because there are no tournaments or hard sparring, so you can take it up at any age or fitness level.  If you are in the Baltimore area, and want to know where I study, message me, $25 per YEAR.  Inexpensive, a great way to be active,  and you learn how to defend yourself, should the need ever arise.

Live near the water?  How about a water sport?  Paddleboarding, kayaking, surfing, body boarding, fishing, shell collecting, metal detecting, beach volley ball etc.  (that is my and my 10 yr old below)

Inland?  check out geocaching ( your kids will LOVE it) river tubing, hiking, biking, ropes courses, archery, shooting, golf, horse riding.
https://www.geocaching.com/

Dont like outside?  Yoga, dancing, bowling, exercise groups.

Find something, or remember the things you loved most as a kid.  Start with one thing, the list will grow.

My life before kids was work, playing pool and pinball, tv and movies.....that is how I started to get unhealthy.  It went downhill from there.  After kids I ate, slept, watched tv and was a parent.  My health really went downhill at that point.  I know, after kids, it gets hard, your life is not your own for a decade, but YOU have time for 1 thing for you.  YOU CAN MAKE TIME for one thing.  My girls are 10 and 14 now, so they dont need constant supervision, so it affords me some time to go and do things.  My awesome job, also affords me time to go and do things when I want.

I know when you are a busy parent, you can have very little energy.  When you haven't been active it is hard to get active.  Just find something small and fun to start with, you will gain strength and endurance along the way and you will be able to do more and WANT to do more. You wont be a 24/7 parent forever, and having something, some TIME, carved out for you will add life to your years, and make you happier all round.

My current hobby list started with one thing.  Swimming.  From there it became, swimming, karate, horse riding, paddleboarding, indo boarding, exercising.  I do these things multiple times each week.  On the "when i get a chance to"  I like to body board, geocache, do ropes courses, river tubing, play Bunco and other board games.

It didnt happen all at once.  Find just ONE thing.  For me it was swimming.  At the time I hated to sweat, and knew that swimming was low impact.  So I started swimming through a parks and rec program.  I got better, faster, stronger until I could swim a mile in the hour I swam.  Then could swim it in 52 minutes, then 45 minutes.  My best time ever was 38 minutes.   It all came from being curious about what i could do, and finding something that worked for me.

FIND SOMETHING THAT WORKS FOR YOU!!!  It will add life to you years, and years to your life.  Having hobbies will pad the empty nest when it happens.  It will give you a bigger social circle, it will engage your mind and keep your brain younger, and if your hobby is active, it will make you stronger and healthier.

We have a local swim area with a fun slide near us.  There is a fellow who must be about 70.  Every day at 2pm he walks to the pool, then spends an hour climbing the 30 steps to the top of the slide, and sliding down.  This is his hobby and exercise, every day, all summer.  Find YOUR VERSION OF FUN and do that!!
( yes that is THE slide in the picture)

If I can do this ( I was 40, fat, and at the time had a 9 and 5 yr olds)  YOU CAN DO THIS.    From there I added karate WITH my kids, we did it together....after that, there was no stopping me, as my health improved, my energy went up, and now I am a force of nature!  YOU CAN BE TOO!!!

If you need any help, you are always welcome to message me.  I have a fitness community on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/fighththefluff you can message me there any time.

Pure joy......

Really, pure joy.

So I was recently lucky enough to go on a holiday/vacation.  

On May 8th (so in 4 days) it will be 2 years I have been plant strong, and sugar, chemical, meat and dairy free.  In that time I went from being somewhat healthy in terms of how I ate and exercised; to MUCH healthier and stronger.  But it has had SOOO many additional bonuses that I had to blog just how WORTH getting fit and healthy is....

So I just spent 9 lovely days on this cruise ship ...

...and didnt even look at the desserts once.  REALLY!  It was magical.  You have to understand where I can from....I LOOOOOOVED eating and dessert and all food.  I used to battle with myself about how I would have just 1 and 6 cupcakes later STILL want more.  To honestly not care about dessert anymore has been the ultimate freedom.  Yes even better than dropping 40lbs and looking better - to not be a slave to food and cravings is the ultimate liberation :)  (If you want to know how I did it, or if I can help you, the answer is, I'd be delighted to help you and just email me: fightthefluff@gmail.com :) )

What was EVEN BETTER than not caring about dessert?  (and the point of this blog-isode) is that being fitter and healthier changes everything about how you experience your life.  We had a few lovely stops.  We went to Bermuda, to this lovely spot called Jobson's Cove where you have to walk up and down a steep hill to get to it, plus you can see amazing things if you are strong enough to climb some rocks...the hill was nothing, I wasn't even out of breath at the top.

 Jobson's Cove

 If you climb you can see some rock arches

 from the top you can see amazing clear water

2 years ago I exercised, so I could have climbed the rocks.  But I was 40lbs heavier, my endurance was not good, and the extra weight I was carrying made things hard on my knees - I would have made it, but not felt good at the top.  I would have been out of breath and tired.  This trip, everything I did was effortless physically.  To me, that trumps any cake or chocolate or 2 minute taste of any food EVER!!

We also stopped at a couple of Islands where I took my own ( inflatable) paddle board and got to enjoy the pretty water while basically standing on it.  

The last stop was Labadee ( Haiti) and in 6 hours I got to paddle board for about 2 hours, (with my 60lb child riding along!!)

swim for about 3 hours, 

walked a total of 8 miles the entire day,  and ride down one of the world's longest zip lines.  

At the end of it all I wasn't even tired.  THAT is MAGICAL.

I know if you want to lose weight, it is mostly about looking better and feeling better, but the REAL prize of it all is, honestly, the feeling better and the possibilities it opens up to you.  It is AMAZING what good nutrition and just 30 minutes of exercise a day can do for you...it can literally open up an entire WORLD of possibilities.

You only go around once in this life.....don't you want to make it a life full of EVERYTHING you can possibly do and experience?

As always, if you want help - I coach people for FREE.  :)  I want to inspire you to get fit and healthy and be able to do ANYTHING you want - it is FANTASTIC - and I think even sweeter, if you are coming from a place where there were things your size and weight were preventing you from doing or enjoying.

I'm 45, I have 2 children, and I can out run and outlast BOTH of them :)  Come and join me on the healthy side of things!!!!  :)

Debi