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Books that changed my life in 2012

Reading is one of my favorite ways to spend my leisure time. Not only is it great entertainment but strangely sometimes it is my therapy. It amazes me how the right book comes along at the right time and is just what you need for that season. I did not plan on reading any of these books at the beginning of the year. As a matter of a fact, they were nowhere on my radar. However they each came into my life at the right time and made a remarkable difference in what I was going through.

Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way (Amazon)

I came across this book on a friend’s Facebook page this past summer shortly after my daughter passed away. My friend posted the following excerpts:

 

When I saw them, I knew I had to read this book. Looking back, this book started the healing process for me. I had been through a lot over the past six months and I became totally absorbed in Shauna’s stories while on a long train ride to and from my best friend’s bridal shower. I felt all of her ups, downs, joys and pain. I also highlighted almost every page! I remember hoping and praying at the end of the book that she had gotten her desire. So as soon as I finished the book, I hurried off to Google the rest of her story. Most importantly, the message in Bittersweet was simple: “when life is sweet, say thank you and celebrate. And when life is bitter, say thank you and grow.”

 Bloom: Finding Beauty in the Unexpected--A Memoir (Amazon)

A short while after reading Bittersweet, I came across Kelle Hampton’s blog Enjoying the Small Things. I had seen it once before while I was pregnant but this time her story touched me in a different way. I borrowed a copy of her book Bloom which tells the story of her daughter Nella who she discovered had Down Syndrome at birth. Boy oh boy, this one really brought back all the emotions that I had experienced in the past few months. I was amazed at how similar our grief process was even though our circumstances were different. This book truly did for me what no therapist, or my family and friends could. I also knew after reading Nella’s story that I had to write Karissa’s story. And so I did- the night before my surgery shelf no less. Sometimes you have to get some things out to move forward. If I had to assign a theme to the second half of this year in my life it would have to be love. I learned about love as I sat and talked with Hospice patients and their families, in church as my pastor labored with us in John 14 v. 34-35 and 1 Corinthians 13 for weeks, and even as I stepped outside the box to learn about faiths that were different than mine.

Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World (Amazon)

 A few weeks ago, I came across Bob Goff’s book Love Does on Amazon. As I read this book all I could think was this guy really does everything big (to the point of annoyance in some cases). By the time I was through however, I was left inspired to live a life that exemplifies Christ’s love by doing and not just saying, studying etc. Bob has done some daring things that I would never have been bold enough to try (seriously, who invites Heads of States to their houses?) but reading about them led me to ask myself, why not? Why not be bold and daring if it means doing something meaningful? So Bob, if you ever read this :-) I will definitely find a way to do something bold, daring and entirely unconventional in 2013.

Up Next:

 

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: How I Learned to Live a Better Story (Amazon)

I haven't read this last book as yet but I will be closing out the year with A Million Miles In A Thousand Years and I expect nothing less than to be left feeling inspired and ready to take on 2013.

Share: Did you read any great books in 2012? Please share!

Rocking the Runway

Recently I had the opportunity to model at a fashion show put on by our local SNMA Chapter. I had a blast but after the show I promised to never ever criticize another runway model again! It was so tiring and I was more sore after the show than I have been in quite a while. I had four outfit changes during two segments (two in each segment) separated by a break so I was rushing a lot. Check out the photos below. Outfits are courtesy of Black Cat Vintage.

 

Thank you to the photographer for these awesome photos.

This experience taught me to seize opportunities to have fun no matter what size or shape you are. Live your life to the fullest and remember, You are Beautiful!!

Shrimp and Grits (My remixed version)

This recipe is a favorite of mine when I am short on time. It packs a serious flavor punch!

The original recipes can be found here at Food Wishes and in the Cook Yourself Thin Faster Cookbook

Grits

3/4 cup quick 5-minute grits

3 cups water

Dash of salt 

 

Bring water to a boil and add grits and salt. Cook for about 5-6 minutes.

Shrimp

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

a handful of grape or cherry tomatoes

2 tsp Olive Oil

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

A dash of seasoning salt (I used Adobo)

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons minced green onions

1 tablespoon minced jalapeno

1 tablespoons chopped parsley

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons cream (I actually used some Soy Milk and yes, I know they are not equiv. but it worked!)

2 teaspoon lemon juice

dash of Worcestershire

Heat olive oil and add shrimp and tomatoes. Add in the other ingredients listed above and let simmer until the shrimp is cooked and the tomatoes have collapsed. 

Serve shrimp over the grits and enjoy!

Cheese "Fries"

Recipe found in Cook Yourself Thin Faster

1 Large Butternut Squash, peeled and seeded
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Teaspoon salt
1/4 Teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Cut squash into 1/4 inch fries. Toss with olive oil and spread onto foil lined pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 30 minutes until the fries are golden- toss and turn them about half way through. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and return to the oven for about 2 minutes. Enjoy!

A New Season

Photo Credit

Fall is here again.  I love this season not only because of the beautiful colors in nature at this time of year, but because it usually represents a time for re-commitment to my health and fitness goals. This is the time to think about what I want to accomplish before the end of the year and begin working on it. The heat and craziness of summer has gone and I can finally return to my kitchen to spend some quality time. I can also workout more comfortably at home.

My overall goal for weight loss is still the same. I have about 55 lbs that I would like to lose over the next few months. That being said, I would be happy with 45 or anywhere in that ballpark that my body decides to settle.

I am kicking off this new season with a 48 hr cleanse. I have eaten sooo much crap this year. It all originated in pregnancy cravings that just kept perpetuating themselves even after the pregnancy ended. Now I am at the point that I have consumed so much sugar, fast food and junk that I feel tired and crappy all the time and I am getting frequent headaches. Many of the healthy habits that I worked hard to develop have fallen by the wayside. I feel like I need a reset; a fresh start.

Today I went grocery shopping and picked up all the items I will need for the Dr. Oz 48 hr Weekend Cleanse. I have never done an official cleanse before but I am familiar with the concept from the "washouts" I got as a child. I am excited to see the results. From there I plan to get my eating back on track since hopefully I will have curbed some of my unhealthy cravings. I am also developing a rough plan for working out for the next few weeks. I have my eyes on a 5k on October 20th so I am going to try to get some runs in between now and then along with Yoga, Pilates and strength training. There might be another round of Turbofire coming up after that!

How do you plan to bring in this new season?

Starting Again

Hello friends! It's been a while but I am back and ready to get back on track with achieving my weight loss goal. The days of eating all kinds of crap and inactivity must come to an end. Regarding my last post... sigh. I will explain at a later time. So here I am six weeks post surgery, got the all clear from my doctor and I am ready to make it happen. I started with a 1.7 mile walk yesterday and a 3.4 mile walk this morning with our local Black Girls Run! group followed by some much needed stretching. My work hours will be much better for the next month so I should be able to fit in 4-5 workout days per week. On the food side, I have a raging sweet tooth as usual that I am trying to get under control. I am also working on eating healthier and watching my portion sizes. The main problem I have right now is that it is just too hot outside for me to want to turn my stove on, especially since I don't have AC. So tell me ladies, what are your workout plans for the summer and how do you continue to eat healthy during these warm summer days?

Our New Adventure

Hello Friends. This post has been a little while coming. I am sorry I abandoned the bloggie for a few months but I promise there is a good reason. I was not feeling well around Thanksgiving so there wasn't any working out going on over here. My diet was also pretty blah and it felt like survival mode all around. The holidays have come and gone and school has dominated my life for the last six weeks with 60+ hrs/ wk work weeks.  However, amidst all that came the wonderful news....

We're having a baby!!

Currently I am two weeks into the second trimester so things are moving along. In retrospect, I now know what was going on back in November :-). I will be writing all about first trimester changes and how that went as well as documenting as much as I can going forward. First on the agenda though is getting back on a workout schedule. I am a little scared since I haven't actually worked out in a few months. Hopefully it won't be too big of a readjustment. In addition, I won't be working out anywhere near the intensity that I did prior to pregnancy.

Thanks to everyone who stuck around during the hiatus and I hope you will join me on this new journey as well. I appreciate any advice as I figure out this new path in my life!

Hey Friends,

Hope your week is going well. Things are chugging along over here. Exercise went well last week; I did 5/7 days. I planned to do six but I ended up doing a strength/cardio interval workout one day so I did not feel too bad about the extra day off. I am doing three days of cardio, three days of strength training and an active rest day (Yoga). As I mentioned before, I am using Chalean Extreme for the strength training and the cardio is mostly TurboFire but I have allowed myself some flexibility there. I am on Week three of the Burn Circuit in Chalean Extreme. I also wrote down to the best of my memory what I ate every day for the week so I'm happy to be getting back on track with being accountable in those areas.

Weekly dose of randomness:

-I am seriously considering purchasing a Bikram Yoga package especially since they gave me a discount on my first one. The weather has cooled off so now is a good time to get back into it.

-I really should own shares in Kashi considering how many of their products I bought lately.

-It's time I set some non-scale goals (NSGs). First will be to do the crow pose. Second, a flat stomach (can't remember it really being flat… ever. I blame my sugar situation.)

-I think I am gonna re-read A Course in Weight Loss. Still don't plan on doing the rituals/altar and all that but I do respect the fact that weight loss and staying fit is as much a mental challenge as it is a physical one.

-I am currently rotating through Adolescent Psychiatry and it is fun but emotionally exhausting. Exercise has been a good coping mechanism. Yeah for endorphins!

-I tried Kale chips last week and I liked them (recipe to come). Will try it in a smoothie and salad soon.

-I discovered that I can bench press 75 lbs yesterday :-)

Something to talk about:

Have you all seen the personal trainer who went from Fit to Fat and will be going back to fit? He gained 75+ lbs in 6 months.  Any thoughts? I will be tuned in for the journey back to fit.

Also, November is here! Any goals for the month or strategies to survive the holidays? Almost time to revisit those resolutions from last year. 

Mini Website Round up

Source

Have you checked out the body rock movement as yet? Bodyrock.tv has great workouts that you can do at home. They are short, effective, and best of all FREE! They will also be adding more recipes on a regular basis in the near future.

I have also been spending some time on the YogaJournal YouTube channel lately. They have an array of free yoga videos. I tried the one on Arm Balances the other day and the instructions were pretty good. I am excited to learn these seemingly impossible poses.

Side notes:

I saw two things on FB this week that stayed with me long after I viewed them so I thought I would share. The first is a video in which Oprah describes the beauty of surrendering. Amazing insight on how to get what you what in life :-)

Finally, an associate of mine share this photo with the following quote on his page:

"Be yourself because everyone else is taken."

I was reading a blog recently and caught myself almost wanting to be like the writer because of their experiences and things they had accomplished. This quote came back to me and was a nice reality check.

Have a great and productive week :-)

Back at it/ Updates

A nice reminder :-)

Hey Friends :-). It's been a looong time but hopefully this post puts an end to yet another unintended hiatus. The past few months I've been focused on mostly on school (taking one major exam and a few not so major ones, and transitioning to a clinical learning environment i.e. working way too much at times.). I am somewhat settled in now but life is still busy as usual. On the weight loss front, I have not been consistent with eating healthy or working out all summer so my weight has fluctuated but it has mostly stayed within 6-8 lbs of my lowest weight. I haven't lost sight of my goal though so I have recommitted to getting it done. I plan on starting by being consistent with the basics:

-Eating right (more fruits and veges, three meals and one snack per day)
All I can say about this one is that I am a work in progress. At one point I had incorporated just about everything I worked on cutting out/reducing back into my diet on a regular basis. Sugar... just ridiculous how much I have been having. Weight loss is 85% diet for me though so I will keep working on this "lifestyle change" goal.

-Drinking water (eight or more glasses per day)
Unfortunately, drinking water makes you pee. I am usually too busy to pee multiple times or to sip water throughout the day so I try to drink more in the evenings at home rather than earlier in the day. On the days when I come home and pass out, I usually end up more on the dehydrated side. Not sure how to fix this though...

-Working out five to six days per week
I started Chalean Extreme again last week and I am doing a modified version of the hybrid with TurboFire. I am usually good about getting my workouts in on strength training day but I've been lazy on cardio days. Maybe because a part of me feels like I do a lot of walking at work and my feet hurt by the time I get home. I have been working on getting up earlier to work out in the mornings but when earlier means 4:30am...ummm, yeah... Next week when I have more normal hours hopefully I can get into the habit.

For those that are still out there, how have things been going and what are your fall/winter fitness plans?

Today's Breakfast: Baked Omelet

I've been eyeing this recipe over at Yes, Divas Can Cook for a while and so when she re-posted it as a Mother's Day breakfast option I was inspired to give it a try. You can find the recipe and video here. Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers in the blogosphere!

Step One: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Whisk 1/2 cup milk and 1/4 cup all purpose flour together. Add 4 eggs, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp salt and whisk until smooth (you may also use a blender to get rid of lumps). Add mixture to a well greased (using butter or non-stick spray) 9x13 dish and bake for 5-7 minutes until firm.

Step Two: Chop 1/3 cup onions, 1/2 green pepper and about 1 cup smoked turkey sausage and then saute in a little bit of olive oil. Spread over the baked egg mixture and top with 1 cup cheddar cheese (I used 3/4 cup Mexican). Bake 1-2 minutes until cheese melts.

Step Three: Use a spatula to free the edges from the dish and roll up into a log keeping it tight as you go along. Be careful, the omelet will be hot! Slice and serve with a dollop of sour cream (I substituted Greek yogurt) and salsa. Garnish with parsley and Enjoy!

Yum-Yum!

I also had Strawberry and Blueberries with Strawberry cream cheese dip with my omelet.

Something to read: Check out this post by Erica at BGG2WL on 5 Different Days to Enjoy Greek Yogurt.

One Reason Why I Love the Blogging Community

A few hours ago I really wanted a slice of cake. My sweet tooth has been rearing it's head for the past day or so and my pecan cracker with dark chocolate almond butter fix was not cutting it. Since it was dinner time, I decided to make a Hawaiian Pizza using this recipe that I have been all but living off for the last few days. It works very well for those days when you have little time to prepare a well rounded meal. The first two times I made it was under conditions of extreme hunger so they were quickly devoured. Today I waited long enough to snap a pic :-).

Hawaiian Pizza

The cure for my sweet tooth came from these Amazeballz. Gina (the fitnessista) swears by them and I must agree with her. They definitely taste like cookie dough and provided the baked goods taste I was craving without all the sugar. Another quick and easy winning recipe.

Amazeball!

If it were not for these and other health and fitness bloggers, this weight loss journey could have been a lot harder. I am always copying tasty healthy recipes into my OneNote program for easy referencing. This recipe for Maple Glazed Salmon changed my life. It makes a yummy dinner with veges on the side in less than 15 minutes. Check out the Resources page for more websites with great recipes.

Something to read: 101 Revolutionary Ways to be Healthy (scroll over each one for a description or view the full list here.) My favorite is #16: "Learn the skills Healthy, fit people have learned how to be healthy. Learn those skills, practice them, and you’ll be healthy, too." What's your favorite?

Quote of the Day

Source

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." – John Quincy Adams

Spring in2 Action Challenge Wrap up

This challenge went by in a flash but I am proud to say that Team Unstoppable rocked it! I missed last week's update but I will put the numbers in this post. The last two weeks have been busy as usual. I finished up TF/CE and entered the Beachbody Million Dollar body contest (pls. cross your fingers that I make it to the voting round). After that I took a few days off of working out. They were not planned, I was just too tired and my feet hurt too much at the end of those days to get a workout in. I got back into it on Sunday and became a Yogi again :-). I went to Bikram on Sunday, then did Zumba on Monday, and yesterday was a rest day.  Today I did Hip Hop Yoga and Zumba. I love getting out of the house for workouts after a six month long program at home. The weather is also becoming warmer so that make it even nicer. The only disappointment so far is that I planned to start running last week and that hasn't happened because I am still having shin pain. I decided to take it easy for a while rather than risk aggravating my old stress fractures.

My eating is still so-so. My appetite has been weird and I've been eating outside the house more often because I haven't made time to cook. I need to get back on track in this area. The only other notable thing I can think of is that I have been extremely achy these past few weeks. Between muscle soreness, tiredness and bone pain, I was hurting much more than usual. I had another foam roller session a few days ago so hopefully all this pain will go away soon.

Okay now for the numbers:

Beginning of Challenge: 199
Week 5: 194.2 (+ .8 from previous week, probably due to stress)
Week 6: 193.0 (-1.2 from previous week)
Total for the challenge: -6.0 lbs!!


Woo-hoo! I think this is the most I've lost in a Shrinking Jeans Challenge so far. As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, my teammate Kristy also did an awesome job. She lost over 10 lbs! Way to go Team Unstoppable!!

Hip Hop Yoga and Foam Rolling

Happy Sunday everyone and welcome to my new readers!

Last Wednesday I tried out a new class that I wanted to tell you all about. I bought a Living Social deal for a local Yoga studio and while perusing the class schedule, I saw a listing for Hip-Hop Yoga. I just had to see what the class was all about. I got to the class a little late but at the beginning we were just going through various Yoga poses. The instructor had a R&B, Pop, Rap mix playing in the background so that was the first thing that was different. It definitely gave the class a more upbeat vibe. As we progressed, we still did poses but instead we were now holding them for shorter periods of time. We would get into a stretch and alternate between two different positions. There were a couple of finger snaps and "hands in the air" thrown in there and the poses were slowed down versions of popular hip hop dance moves. The class ended with a long savasana. Overall I liked the class and I will go back (I have four more classes left in the deal that I bought). It kept my interest and got my heart rate up quite a bit during some of the moves. There was just one problem...

The next day my legs hurt soooo bad. Now, this class seemed very harmless; as I said before, my heart rate increased, I got my sweat on a little but nothing seemed super challenging or painful so why on earth were my calves and hamstrings DONE the following day? I mean, I was doing some cardio and I was hurting so bad I was praying for the DVD to be done. The only reason I didn't quit was that I was too determined to finish it. I followed that cardio session up with a date with this bad boy:

My Foam Roller

I bought this foam roller a few months ago and had never used it until last week. I went to You Tube to look up some exercises for calves and hamstrings and then threw in the IT band exercise for good measure. I cannot tell you how much this helped. I mean I was dang near crying while I was rolling out the different muscle groups (especially my IT band which I didn't even know was tight) but the next day I was good to go and had minimal pain. After a second session, I am now pain free. This foam roller is truly like having a masseur/masseuse on hand- I think we will become great friends.

Learn more about Foam Rolling or Self Myofascial Release here.

Have you tried or considered using a foam roller? Have you been to a Hip-Hop Yoga class? Please share your experience below.

My South of the Border inspired (Breakfast for) Dinner

Huevos Rancheros w/ Blue Corn Tortilla Chips and Guacamole

Ever since my visit to Max Brenner's in NYC and having that foodgasmic Huevos Rancheros scramble, I've been seriously craving a repeat performance.  When I saw this post by the fitnessista the other day, I though I would give it a shot. I combined that recipe with Chef Emeril's version and I now present to you the remix. While it was not the same as Max Brenner's, the results were quite tasty!

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 large onion, diced

1/4 cup chopped red and green bell peppers

1/2 cup diced tomatoes

1/2 cup black beans

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/8- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1 tablespoon minced jalapeno

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon dried cilantro

1/4 cup water (can substitute chicken stock)

Salt and pepper to taste

 2 large eggs

Pepper jack cheese (optional)

2 tablespoons Guacamole

1. To make the Ranchero Sauce: In a medium pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and bell peppers, and cook, stirring, for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the black beans, cumin, salt, cayenne, jalapeno, and garlic, and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the water and simmer until thickened, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the cilantro. Adjust the seasoning, to taste, and cover to keep warm.

 2. Spray a frying pan with non-stick spray and fry eggs  until they begin to set, about 1 minute.  (You can sprinkle cheese on top here if you choose.)

3. Place the eggs on a plate, top with the warm Ranchero Sauce and guacamole and serve with tortillas or tortilla chips.   

4. Enjoy!

Let me know if you give it a try. Until next time...

Spring In2 Action Challenge - Weeks 3 and 4 Recap

Where has time gone? This challenge is almost over! I missed last week's update because I had a major final exam on the brain. Now that that's over I am enjoying a little rest and relaxation. So, what's new?

-Well first, I didn't exercise for most of the last week (all except yesterday actually). First I was tired and then I didn't feel up to it. This doesn't really happen very often but maybe it was my body telling me to take it easy. I was having some shin pain and I knew I needed to get new shoes. I got that taken care of on Monday and jumped back into it yesterday.

-My eating habits were so-so. As usual, they could be better. What I've been eating hasn't been too bad but I need to include more veges. The sugar reduction for Lent is also going okay. I had ice cream from Coldstone and chocolate in the last couple of days (blame it on the hormones), and two sugary coffee drinks during exam week but overall I haven't been going too crazy with the sugar. By the way, the sugar in that ice cream messed me up so bad, I became sooooo tired after eating it and swore I was running a temperature. I won't be doing that again any time soon.

-I still need to get back on track with breakfast but now it's more because of laziness rather than being busy.

Let's have a look at the numbers:

Beginning of Challenge: 199
Week 3: 194.8 (-2 from previous week)
Week 4: 193.8 (-1)
Total: -5.2

Edited to add* - How could I forget to mention? Team Unstoppable kicked major booty last week and made our debut on the Leaderboard at position 8. Check it out!

How was your week?

Until next time...