The past few days, I've had a lot of Tranquility, and I've Exercised. Some nights I've Slept well, but others I haven't. But I haven't been Eating healthy or drinking Water enough. But that's a usual unSWEETened life: most people accomplish a couple of the components easily, one of them sometimes, and a couple of them with difficulty. Living the SWEET Life involves paying attention and incorporating all five elements into your life consistently.
Sleep
Here it is 5:21 a.m. I've been up since 3:48 when Zoe woke me up. She fell back asleep quickly, but I did not. This has been happening a lot in the past couple months, and it's very discouraging for me. Why can't I get back to sleep? I had always prided myself in being able to sleep so well and so easily but not lately. :-(
Water
It's interesting how I can know in advance what and how much I'll be drinking, depending on where I will be. At my sister-in-law's house, there's always lots of free flowing wine. At my mother-in-law's house there's always wine, but no one drinks very much, despite it being the same group of people! There's also always tea and coffee. At my husband's aunt's house (my aunt-in-law?) there's always tea and juice and coffee in cute little cups. It seems the older generation uses small cups and the younger generation uses big tumblers. In an effort to drink 8-10 cups per day, I tend to use big tumblers and can't seem to get my fill of cute little cups. So, being at various people's houses for holiday meals and at Ano Nuevo yesterday hiking with a kid on and off my back, I haven't been drinking enough lately. It's hard when I'm out of the house so much.
Eating
I'm glad to know that I've gotten past stuffing myself silly at holiday meals. I used to, to the point where I'd notice I was the last one still eating. To the point where my dad, who was a large man, asked, "Why is Suzanne the only one who inherited my appetite?" I stopped stuffing myself silly because of . . . a combination of factors . . . for another day.
I didn't eat enough yesterday because we came out of the Christmas fog and realized we were short on food. Then, we were running late ("having a relaxing morning") and missed our friends having brunch before going to Ano Nuevo. We hardly had time to share a sandwich before getting to the "no food" zone there. We finished the rest of our lunch on the drive home from Ano Nuevo ~4:00, and I had to go straight to work, where I had my usual energy bar. Knowing Nick was going to the grocery store, I thought he and the girls would have a good, healthy dinner, but he just picked up a few things and dinner came from the freezer: potstickers and taquitos! Many would say those are just appetizers, but, sadly, that was our dinner.
Exercise
I have taken my own advice and exercised every day that Nick has been home, except Christmas day. Actually, his family usually takes a walk or hike on Christmas, and it was a beautiful day for it, but we hung out and enjoyed oursevles at the family home. Let's see, Sunday I think I went running, Monday I did a quick toning workout at home, and yesterday we hiked at Ano Nuevo where we saw the elephant seals. That was short but exhausting because I was with Zoe, and she was up and down and in and out of the baby backpack the whole time. I'd say not to take toddlers (1-4 yr.) there because they're heavy to carry so much, they want to get down and run around, and they're too young to understand what they are looking at.
Tranquility
I've had a lot of tranquility lately. Nick even gave me a Tranquility bath set for Christmas! It's been great having Nick home; that always relieves some stress of parenting. Spending time with friends and family for the holidays is always relaxing and wonderful. However, I feel like I never get enough time to catch up with people because I'm also watching the cute things my girls are doing and taking care of their needs.
How do I feel?
I want to get back to a regular schedule, which is strange because we've been in, I guess, vacation-mode and I don't like it?! We've just been so busy with various events that I haven't had time for the basics, like drinking water, eating healthy, grocery shopping, doing laundry, watering plants, keeping the house tidy, working on the SWEET Life business, etc. It's been great to have Nick around so much, and he does help out with those basics. I feel like I'm floating in a netherworld, but having to plow through my messy house to get in and out of it! It's hard to believe it was all clean and beautiful just 2 days ago on Xmas eve!
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Saturday, December 22, 2007
To Exercise Or Not To Exercise?
Sleep
I was woken up at 5:30 by a combination of uncomfortable factors which also prevented me from falling back asleep: the noise of Nick snoring a little, the crowded feeling of 4 of us in one bed(!), and the need to use the bathroom. So, unfortunately, once again, I didn't sleep enough last night. I'll try again tonight . . .
Water
Hmm, gotta get on the water bandwagon; I haven't drunk much yet today, even though I worked out! Fortunately, I still have plenty of time today to catch up on that.
Eating
Nick made waffles for breakfast -- yummy! I like to dip them in yogurt, instead of smothering them with syrup. Sometimes I dip them in applesauce, but we're out of it at the moment. Had leftover make-your-own-burritos for lunch. Burritos are one of those foods, like pizza and hamburgers, that seems so much healthier if you make them yourself than if you buy them anywhere. Homemade, I know exactly what's in them; I use fresh, healthy ingredients, etc. I ate a couple "little cuties" too; my family loves those little tangerines. . .
Exercise
Since I've been so bad about exercising this week, I did double duty today: I went on a walk with a friend, then did a toning workout. The walk isn't much of a workout; it doesn't get my heart pounding, but it does get my legs moving. But it was nice to catch up with a friend. Otherwise, this week, I did one cardio workout and one toning workout. I'll workout tomorrow too, something to get my heart pounding.
Tranquility
It's the Saturday before Christmas, and I 've finished my Christmas shopping, which was my goal. That means that now, while my girls are napping, I get to do fun Christmas preparations like wrapping gifts (which I really do enjoy), displaying the Christmas cards we've received, sorting out stocking stuffers, baking cookies, etc. I wish I had a week to do just those fun, Christmas things, but I only have 3 days. At least I have 3 days.
How do I feel?
I feel better for having exercised today. I'm happy that my husband is home for the next 4 days, through Christmas. I need to take advantage of Nick being home and exercise each of those days! Hmm, that'd be a good idea. I've been discouraged about my lack of exercise regime this month. . . Looking back, I have managed to exercise 4 days each week of this month, but I feel like it's been by the skin of my teeth. The main thing I'd say is that it's been a struggle to exercise this month, and it's always on my mind. In the past months, I was finished with exercise before I even had my morning coffee, so it was never an issue. Hmm, I guess waking up 0n the cold, dark mornings to exercise does have it's benefits: I was in better shape and never had to think about when I was going to exercise.
I was woken up at 5:30 by a combination of uncomfortable factors which also prevented me from falling back asleep: the noise of Nick snoring a little, the crowded feeling of 4 of us in one bed(!), and the need to use the bathroom. So, unfortunately, once again, I didn't sleep enough last night. I'll try again tonight . . .
Water
Hmm, gotta get on the water bandwagon; I haven't drunk much yet today, even though I worked out! Fortunately, I still have plenty of time today to catch up on that.
Eating
Nick made waffles for breakfast -- yummy! I like to dip them in yogurt, instead of smothering them with syrup. Sometimes I dip them in applesauce, but we're out of it at the moment. Had leftover make-your-own-burritos for lunch. Burritos are one of those foods, like pizza and hamburgers, that seems so much healthier if you make them yourself than if you buy them anywhere. Homemade, I know exactly what's in them; I use fresh, healthy ingredients, etc. I ate a couple "little cuties" too; my family loves those little tangerines. . .
Exercise
Since I've been so bad about exercising this week, I did double duty today: I went on a walk with a friend, then did a toning workout. The walk isn't much of a workout; it doesn't get my heart pounding, but it does get my legs moving. But it was nice to catch up with a friend. Otherwise, this week, I did one cardio workout and one toning workout. I'll workout tomorrow too, something to get my heart pounding.
Tranquility
It's the Saturday before Christmas, and I 've finished my Christmas shopping, which was my goal. That means that now, while my girls are napping, I get to do fun Christmas preparations like wrapping gifts (which I really do enjoy), displaying the Christmas cards we've received, sorting out stocking stuffers, baking cookies, etc. I wish I had a week to do just those fun, Christmas things, but I only have 3 days. At least I have 3 days.
How do I feel?
I feel better for having exercised today. I'm happy that my husband is home for the next 4 days, through Christmas. I need to take advantage of Nick being home and exercise each of those days! Hmm, that'd be a good idea. I've been discouraged about my lack of exercise regime this month. . . Looking back, I have managed to exercise 4 days each week of this month, but I feel like it's been by the skin of my teeth. The main thing I'd say is that it's been a struggle to exercise this month, and it's always on my mind. In the past months, I was finished with exercise before I even had my morning coffee, so it was never an issue. Hmm, I guess waking up 0n the cold, dark mornings to exercise does have it's benefits: I was in better shape and never had to think about when I was going to exercise.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Returning to Work
Sleep
Let's see, if I saw part of Letterman (a very old one at that), and I woke up to my 6:30 alarm, then I couldn't have slept 7 hours. But I was close, perhaps 6 1/2 to 6 3/4 hours, which I think I do often.
Water
I donated blood yesterday, so I had to drink extra water to make up for the loss of blood, or is it to help produce more blood?
Eating
I ate really healthy yesterday too because I donated blood and didn't want to pass out from lack of energy.
Exercise
I couldn't exercise after donating blood, and I didn't have time to do it beforehand, so I took the day off. Now I'm taking advantage of my girls' nap time, but I've decided to exercise after work at the health club tonight. I'll already be there, surrounded by exercise equipment. Too bad I can't exercise during work.
Tranquility
I got tranquility in the form of organization. I don't live well in chaos, though others do. I'm organizing my time and reprioritizing my daily things to do. Hopefully, I'll feel more satisfied with this reorganization of my time.
How do I feel?
Next year I'm going to embark on a grand adventure, so I'm a bit nervous about it but also excited. Well, no, it's not a really adventurous type of adventure, it's just uncharted territory for me. I'm going to work more than I ever have since becoming a mother. I definitely feel the need to have intellectual stimulation, and I'll be happy to earn some more income on my own. I think that's a big difference between today's Home Executive (a.k.a. stay-at-home-mom) and those of the past: In the past women might have gone to college, then married, had kids and raised them. Today, it's much more common for women to have careers, not just jobs, but careers of their choosing where they have built up a reputation and standing, before having kids. I think it's a great and difficult choice for mothers to change careers, mid-career, and decide to raise their children instead of earn an income. At the same time, I feel that the most important "career" I could have is to raise my own children and not have a nanny or daycare do it for me. So why am I going to work more? Because, sadly, mothering doesn't pay the bills. I'm trying to keep the most positive spin on this that I can: intellectual stimulation, income; those are good things. Spending less time with my kids will make me treasure the time we spend together more, right? Fortunately, it's only for 18 weeks; I can re-evaulate the situation after that. I tend to get more done when I have more to do, so I'm hoping that'll work for me.
Let's see, if I saw part of Letterman (a very old one at that), and I woke up to my 6:30 alarm, then I couldn't have slept 7 hours. But I was close, perhaps 6 1/2 to 6 3/4 hours, which I think I do often.
Water
I donated blood yesterday, so I had to drink extra water to make up for the loss of blood, or is it to help produce more blood?
Eating
I ate really healthy yesterday too because I donated blood and didn't want to pass out from lack of energy.
Exercise
I couldn't exercise after donating blood, and I didn't have time to do it beforehand, so I took the day off. Now I'm taking advantage of my girls' nap time, but I've decided to exercise after work at the health club tonight. I'll already be there, surrounded by exercise equipment. Too bad I can't exercise during work.
Tranquility
I got tranquility in the form of organization. I don't live well in chaos, though others do. I'm organizing my time and reprioritizing my daily things to do. Hopefully, I'll feel more satisfied with this reorganization of my time.
How do I feel?
Next year I'm going to embark on a grand adventure, so I'm a bit nervous about it but also excited. Well, no, it's not a really adventurous type of adventure, it's just uncharted territory for me. I'm going to work more than I ever have since becoming a mother. I definitely feel the need to have intellectual stimulation, and I'll be happy to earn some more income on my own. I think that's a big difference between today's Home Executive (a.k.a. stay-at-home-mom) and those of the past: In the past women might have gone to college, then married, had kids and raised them. Today, it's much more common for women to have careers, not just jobs, but careers of their choosing where they have built up a reputation and standing, before having kids. I think it's a great and difficult choice for mothers to change careers, mid-career, and decide to raise their children instead of earn an income. At the same time, I feel that the most important "career" I could have is to raise my own children and not have a nanny or daycare do it for me. So why am I going to work more? Because, sadly, mothering doesn't pay the bills. I'm trying to keep the most positive spin on this that I can: intellectual stimulation, income; those are good things. Spending less time with my kids will make me treasure the time we spend together more, right? Fortunately, it's only for 18 weeks; I can re-evaulate the situation after that. I tend to get more done when I have more to do, so I'm hoping that'll work for me.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Post-Weekend Trip
Sleep
Well, I guess it's been at least 4 nights since I had a good night's sleep. :-( I did not sleep well on our trip. The hotel pillows were too big and firm, believe it or not. Usually they are too small and squishy. Besides that, we played a lot of "musical beds" with the girls. I slept a lot on the drive home, which meant that I couldn't fall asleep once we got home! Aargh! Gotta focus on getting better sleep this week.
Water
I feel very dehydrated from the trip, so I made sure to fill my pitcher of water today and am happy to be drinking it. My lips are peeling, and the skin on my face feels rough. I'd say that the hardest thing about drinking a lot of water consistently is that my body adjusts to having a lot of water, so I feel dehydrated easily if I cut out the water for a few days. Fortunately, it's easy to make up for it too and get back on track.
Eating
Surprisingly, we hardly ate any fast food on the trip. We stopped at Subway for lunch on the way down, which is pretty healthy, as far as fast food goes. We did make an emergency pit stop at a Del Taco in L.A. where I ate a chicken burrito, but that was the only fast food we ate! Otherwise, Saturday breaky was at the hotel, which had a pretty extensive continental breaky. I ate a hard-boiled egg, banana, waffle dipped in yogurt (instead of syrup), juice, and coffee. For lunch, at a nice food court, I ate a chicken breast and salad, which, incidentally, Maya selected! I did eat some Christmas cookies as a snack at an afternoon party, which certainly was not healthy. Then, dinner was a simple party spread with sandwiches, veggie platter, fruit, cheeses, mini-quiches, wine, and a variety of desserts. So, I'd say I ate too many sweets, but they were party-sweets, rather than sitting-around-the-house-sweets.
Exercise
I generally haven't been exercising as much in the past few weeks as I had been previously. I had actually gotten to the point where I felt I was over-exercising, even though I wasn't exercising all that much (30-60 min, 5x/wk). However, now, after a few weeks of inconsistent exercise, I've started feeling like a blob. I miss the lean, healthy feeling I had when I exercised consistently. I haven't gained weight, but I think I've lost some tone. I wasn't really planning to exercise on our trip although I had expected to take some walks to see Christmas decorations in various places. Well, that didn't happen. Saturday morning, after so much sitting in the car the day before, I had to do something, so I did my "hotel" exercise routine in the hotel room. I hadn't brought a resistance band with me, but I could improvise exercises for every major muscle group, except my biceps, without any equipment. It felt good to use my body. With young kids with us, we ended up watching them run around a lot, rather than us adults doing any running around. Little kids just don't make much distance when they run around.
Tranquility
I certainly had a lot of tranquility this past weekend. The purpose of the trip was to visit my family for Christmas because I'll be with my in-laws for Christmas & Christmas Eve this year. We also went to see the Boat Parade. We did all of that and had a great time. We went with our friends, in their car, all 8 of us! Nick didn't like being dependent on others for transportation, but I enjoyed having extra time with people because they were giving us rides.
How do I feel?
I need to get more sleep, drink more water, and exercise more consistently. I mostly feel I need to be more serious again about getting consistent exercise. I just feel better about myself when I do. Also, I'm remembering one great benefit of exercising first thing in the morning: I don't have to think about it again the rest of the day. If I plan to exercise when the girls nap, and one of them doesn't nap, then it gets more complicated to exercise. Also, cardio in the house while my girls nap definitely feels like exercise just for the sake of exercise, whereas I used to run on the beach, which I enjoy much more. It's also a bit time-consuming to shower in the morning, then again in the middle of the afternoon. Right now is the middle of the day and my girls just went down for their naps, so now is the time for me to do it!
Well, I guess it's been at least 4 nights since I had a good night's sleep. :-( I did not sleep well on our trip. The hotel pillows were too big and firm, believe it or not. Usually they are too small and squishy. Besides that, we played a lot of "musical beds" with the girls. I slept a lot on the drive home, which meant that I couldn't fall asleep once we got home! Aargh! Gotta focus on getting better sleep this week.
Water
I feel very dehydrated from the trip, so I made sure to fill my pitcher of water today and am happy to be drinking it. My lips are peeling, and the skin on my face feels rough. I'd say that the hardest thing about drinking a lot of water consistently is that my body adjusts to having a lot of water, so I feel dehydrated easily if I cut out the water for a few days. Fortunately, it's easy to make up for it too and get back on track.
Eating
Surprisingly, we hardly ate any fast food on the trip. We stopped at Subway for lunch on the way down, which is pretty healthy, as far as fast food goes. We did make an emergency pit stop at a Del Taco in L.A. where I ate a chicken burrito, but that was the only fast food we ate! Otherwise, Saturday breaky was at the hotel, which had a pretty extensive continental breaky. I ate a hard-boiled egg, banana, waffle dipped in yogurt (instead of syrup), juice, and coffee. For lunch, at a nice food court, I ate a chicken breast and salad, which, incidentally, Maya selected! I did eat some Christmas cookies as a snack at an afternoon party, which certainly was not healthy. Then, dinner was a simple party spread with sandwiches, veggie platter, fruit, cheeses, mini-quiches, wine, and a variety of desserts. So, I'd say I ate too many sweets, but they were party-sweets, rather than sitting-around-the-house-sweets.
Exercise
I generally haven't been exercising as much in the past few weeks as I had been previously. I had actually gotten to the point where I felt I was over-exercising, even though I wasn't exercising all that much (30-60 min, 5x/wk). However, now, after a few weeks of inconsistent exercise, I've started feeling like a blob. I miss the lean, healthy feeling I had when I exercised consistently. I haven't gained weight, but I think I've lost some tone. I wasn't really planning to exercise on our trip although I had expected to take some walks to see Christmas decorations in various places. Well, that didn't happen. Saturday morning, after so much sitting in the car the day before, I had to do something, so I did my "hotel" exercise routine in the hotel room. I hadn't brought a resistance band with me, but I could improvise exercises for every major muscle group, except my biceps, without any equipment. It felt good to use my body. With young kids with us, we ended up watching them run around a lot, rather than us adults doing any running around. Little kids just don't make much distance when they run around.
Tranquility
I certainly had a lot of tranquility this past weekend. The purpose of the trip was to visit my family for Christmas because I'll be with my in-laws for Christmas & Christmas Eve this year. We also went to see the Boat Parade. We did all of that and had a great time. We went with our friends, in their car, all 8 of us! Nick didn't like being dependent on others for transportation, but I enjoyed having extra time with people because they were giving us rides.
How do I feel?
I need to get more sleep, drink more water, and exercise more consistently. I mostly feel I need to be more serious again about getting consistent exercise. I just feel better about myself when I do. Also, I'm remembering one great benefit of exercising first thing in the morning: I don't have to think about it again the rest of the day. If I plan to exercise when the girls nap, and one of them doesn't nap, then it gets more complicated to exercise. Also, cardio in the house while my girls nap definitely feels like exercise just for the sake of exercise, whereas I used to run on the beach, which I enjoy much more. It's also a bit time-consuming to shower in the morning, then again in the middle of the afternoon. Right now is the middle of the day and my girls just went down for their naps, so now is the time for me to do it!
Friday, December 14, 2007
Pre-Weekend Trip
Sleep
I think I've generally been sleeping better since I stopped trying to get myself up early to exercise. That's important because I'd consistently been cutting myself a bit short on sleep. Last night, however, I didn't get quite enough sleep because I had to get up early to finish preparing for a weekend trip. We'll see what happens this weekend on our trip; we'll be sleeping in a hotel, so who knows how well the girls will sleep. . .
Water
Today starts a weekend road trip, and I typically don't drink enough when I travel. In the car I get thirsty but don't want to drink in order to avoid too many pit stops. In So. Cal. the weather is always dry, so I tend to feel dried out.
Eating
All I can say is that I haven't been keeping very good track of my eating lately. I generally eat healthy, but I don't know if I've eaten well-balanced meals. On road trips we go to fast food; it's just about the only time I eat it, so that makes a few times a year. Because it's so rare, I look forward to it, even though afterward, it feels like a rock sitting in my stomach for the rest of the drive.
Exercise
I have not yet been very consistent about exercising while the girls are napping; I did it once this week. However, I did manage to exercise Tues. (toning), Wed. (cardio), Thurs. (stroller walk). The plan for this evening is to take a walk after our long drive down south. That always feels good after so much sitting.
Tranquility
In the past couple days I didn't get enough relaxation time because Wed. Maya didn't nap, and yesterday I was so busy preparing for the trip, that it wasn't very relaxing. I'm looking forward to our trip with family and friends. I should get a lot of tranquility this weekend.
How do I feel?
I feel ready for this trip. I've been experimenting with different ways of keeping track of my SWEET Life Cycle (i.e., success in each category over time), and I haven't been happy with the ways I've been trying, which is part of the reason why I haven't kept good track of my SWEET Life.
I think I've generally been sleeping better since I stopped trying to get myself up early to exercise. That's important because I'd consistently been cutting myself a bit short on sleep. Last night, however, I didn't get quite enough sleep because I had to get up early to finish preparing for a weekend trip. We'll see what happens this weekend on our trip; we'll be sleeping in a hotel, so who knows how well the girls will sleep. . .
Water
Today starts a weekend road trip, and I typically don't drink enough when I travel. In the car I get thirsty but don't want to drink in order to avoid too many pit stops. In So. Cal. the weather is always dry, so I tend to feel dried out.
Eating
All I can say is that I haven't been keeping very good track of my eating lately. I generally eat healthy, but I don't know if I've eaten well-balanced meals. On road trips we go to fast food; it's just about the only time I eat it, so that makes a few times a year. Because it's so rare, I look forward to it, even though afterward, it feels like a rock sitting in my stomach for the rest of the drive.
Exercise
I have not yet been very consistent about exercising while the girls are napping; I did it once this week. However, I did manage to exercise Tues. (toning), Wed. (cardio), Thurs. (stroller walk). The plan for this evening is to take a walk after our long drive down south. That always feels good after so much sitting.
Tranquility
In the past couple days I didn't get enough relaxation time because Wed. Maya didn't nap, and yesterday I was so busy preparing for the trip, that it wasn't very relaxing. I'm looking forward to our trip with family and friends. I should get a lot of tranquility this weekend.
How do I feel?
I feel ready for this trip. I've been experimenting with different ways of keeping track of my SWEET Life Cycle (i.e., success in each category over time), and I haven't been happy with the ways I've been trying, which is part of the reason why I haven't kept good track of my SWEET Life.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Obligation vs. Desire
Sleep
I slept enough even though Zoe interrupted my sleep a lot. She kept Nick on the edge of the bed and I kept pulling her back towards me to give him more space. Stupid me, if she were in his way, he could have moved her out of it! Turns out, he didn't even know that he'd been obligated to sleep on the edge of the bed because of her desire to snuggle up with him!
Water
Today was a perfect example of how dehydration affects the body. I was out and about most of the day, doing various things, and I came home knowing I was dehydrated. But I felt more than thirsty; I felt sleepy, lacking in energy, short-tempered, and had parched lips. All because I didn't drink enough while I was out and about!
Eating
I certainly ate a lot of delicious, healthy food, but whether I fulfilled all my body's nutritional obligations, I don't know. I didn't keep track. Generally, I just try to think about what % of my eating was junk food, and if the % is low (10%) then I figure I ate well. I should probably keep better track of filling in my food circles on my SWEET Life Plan, if only I had the desire.
Exercise
Isn't it interesting that after a week of barely dragging myself out of bed to do my early morning exercises and after another week of coninually hitting "snooze" and not getting up to do my early morning exercises, once I decide to cancel the alarm and not exercise in the early morning, I wake up at 6:30 a.m. ready to exercise! It's amazing how desire is so much more motivating than obligation.
Tranquility
I got some tranquility but not enough. Maya slept well after our long day out and about, but it was cut short by the obligation to go pick up Zoe from daycare. Both Maya and I desired 1-2 hours more tranquility time before getting Zoe.
How do I feel?
I had a really fun day with Maya. We did this, that and the other, and she's just at a fun, capable age now (3 1/2). I don't need a diaper bag with her; we can do things rather quickly; she can run, obey and follow directions, etc. She's interested in knowing about the world and how it works in daily life, which means I can take her to fulfill some of my obligations and she has the desire to be there, learn about it, and help me in any way she can. It was great!
I slept enough even though Zoe interrupted my sleep a lot. She kept Nick on the edge of the bed and I kept pulling her back towards me to give him more space. Stupid me, if she were in his way, he could have moved her out of it! Turns out, he didn't even know that he'd been obligated to sleep on the edge of the bed because of her desire to snuggle up with him!
Water
Today was a perfect example of how dehydration affects the body. I was out and about most of the day, doing various things, and I came home knowing I was dehydrated. But I felt more than thirsty; I felt sleepy, lacking in energy, short-tempered, and had parched lips. All because I didn't drink enough while I was out and about!
Eating
I certainly ate a lot of delicious, healthy food, but whether I fulfilled all my body's nutritional obligations, I don't know. I didn't keep track. Generally, I just try to think about what % of my eating was junk food, and if the % is low (10%) then I figure I ate well. I should probably keep better track of filling in my food circles on my SWEET Life Plan, if only I had the desire.
Exercise
Isn't it interesting that after a week of barely dragging myself out of bed to do my early morning exercises and after another week of coninually hitting "snooze" and not getting up to do my early morning exercises, once I decide to cancel the alarm and not exercise in the early morning, I wake up at 6:30 a.m. ready to exercise! It's amazing how desire is so much more motivating than obligation.
Tranquility
I got some tranquility but not enough. Maya slept well after our long day out and about, but it was cut short by the obligation to go pick up Zoe from daycare. Both Maya and I desired 1-2 hours more tranquility time before getting Zoe.
How do I feel?
I had a really fun day with Maya. We did this, that and the other, and she's just at a fun, capable age now (3 1/2). I don't need a diaper bag with her; we can do things rather quickly; she can run, obey and follow directions, etc. She's interested in knowing about the world and how it works in daily life, which means I can take her to fulfill some of my obligations and she has the desire to be there, learn about it, and help me in any way she can. It was great!
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Life has gotten SWEETer!
Whenever I'm sick, I try to focus on living the SWEET Life even more, and sure enough, it's worked again and I feel much better today than I have in the past week. :-)
Sleep
I slept in (I mean, it IS the weekend!) and got plenty of sleep. Zoe didn't even wake up last night! Maya did, but she came into our room quietly and crawled, hardly waking me. In addition, I was happy to turn off my automatic exercise alarm! No more early morning workouts!
Water
I moved my pitcher to a location where I'll be more conscious of it, and that did help me make sure to drink it all today, by dinnertime.
Eating
I ate well today. Nick made French toast with strawberries for breakfast, yum! We ate leftovers for both lunch and dinner, but it ended up being quite a nice array of foods at each meal: grapes, burritos, chicken, quesadillas, stir-fried broccoli & snap peas, steamed rice, beef chow fun, artichoke, steak and salad. Hmm, perhaps I was a bit short on dairy products, but I was planning on having some ice cream for dessert!
Exercise
Although I don't usually exercise on the weekends, I skipped exercising 3 days last week, so I exercised both weekend days to make up for it. I also decided to change my workout schedule to do it during my girls' naps, which means I won't be able to leave the house, so I might as well plan for one weekend day when I can go out of the house and run.
Tranquility
I got a chance to catch up on some things, which always makes me feel good. Last week, I missed out on Tranquility a few days, so I really needed to make up for it this weekend, and I did. It was nothing very exciting to write about, but I just finished up some things that made me feel accomplished.
How do I feel?
I'm feeling healthier today than I have all week, and I feel a bit back on track. I've figured out my new exercise routine, which is important, and I'm happy to sleep in until the rest of the family gets up during the week, instead of getting up early to exercise. Really focusing on living the SWEET Life the past day or two has really helped everything fall nicely into place.
Sleep
I slept in (I mean, it IS the weekend!) and got plenty of sleep. Zoe didn't even wake up last night! Maya did, but she came into our room quietly and crawled, hardly waking me. In addition, I was happy to turn off my automatic exercise alarm! No more early morning workouts!
Water
I moved my pitcher to a location where I'll be more conscious of it, and that did help me make sure to drink it all today, by dinnertime.
Eating
I ate well today. Nick made French toast with strawberries for breakfast, yum! We ate leftovers for both lunch and dinner, but it ended up being quite a nice array of foods at each meal: grapes, burritos, chicken, quesadillas, stir-fried broccoli & snap peas, steamed rice, beef chow fun, artichoke, steak and salad. Hmm, perhaps I was a bit short on dairy products, but I was planning on having some ice cream for dessert!
Exercise
Although I don't usually exercise on the weekends, I skipped exercising 3 days last week, so I exercised both weekend days to make up for it. I also decided to change my workout schedule to do it during my girls' naps, which means I won't be able to leave the house, so I might as well plan for one weekend day when I can go out of the house and run.
Tranquility
I got a chance to catch up on some things, which always makes me feel good. Last week, I missed out on Tranquility a few days, so I really needed to make up for it this weekend, and I did. It was nothing very exciting to write about, but I just finished up some things that made me feel accomplished.
How do I feel?
I'm feeling healthier today than I have all week, and I feel a bit back on track. I've figured out my new exercise routine, which is important, and I'm happy to sleep in until the rest of the family gets up during the week, instead of getting up early to exercise. Really focusing on living the SWEET Life the past day or two has really helped everything fall nicely into place.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
An unSWEETened Life
I have not been very good at living the SWEET Life this week. I've been a little sick, which has been gradually building throughout the week. Usually, I try to focus more on the SWEET Life when I start to feel under the weather, and that will prevent me from getting very sick, but this week it just hasn't happened.
Sleep
I have had such a hard time waking up all week. I just haven't been able to drag myself out of bed to exercise. Have I been staying up too late? I think I need to pay more attention to when I go to bed. I've been so tired in the mornings, but not necessarily the rest of the day/evening. The morning fatigue is making me rethink my morning exercise routine. I think I need to change the time of day that I exercise, rather than fight myself trying to get out of bed in the mornings. It's easier to get up if I'm meeting someone to exercise, but I generally don't.
Water
I haven't been paying much attention to my water intake, although I'm trying to drink enough. Since I'm feeling a bit sick, staying hydrated is especially important. I think I need to try harder or remember to fill my pitcher of water to drink throughout the day.
Eating
I haven't been paying much attention to what I've been eating lately either. However, it helps that I stocked up on groceries this week because having healthy food around is the first step toward eating healthy foods.
Exercise
Every night this week I set out my workout clothes so I could just crawl out of bed and they would be waiting for me, but this week I just haven't been able to go out and exercise at 6:30 a.m. I actually got dressed to workout on Tuesday, but then realized I had a sore throat. I got undressed and went back to bed. The one day I did exercise was Wednesday, when I was meeting a friend. I took an athletic walk this morning to make up for missing so many workouts during the week, and I'll try to do some toning exercises when the girls nap today. After a week with minimal exercise, I'm starting to feel like a blob, like the lack of exercise is starting to have a negative effect on my body. I've worked hard for this body; I don't want to give it up to laziness!
Tranquility
I certainly haven't gotten my fill of tranquility this week. For example, yesterday, the girls did tag-team napping, which means that one kid is always awake, and I never get a break from being Mommy. Tuesday was such a busy day that poor Maya only had the opportunity to nap for 1/2 hr., which means that's all the free time I had, too. Wednesday the girls both napped and I had free time to relax, do my own thing and be tranquil, but I need that every day, not only once a week.
How do I feel?
Well, I haven't had a very SWEET Life this week. I've been personally unproductive, with a growing pile on my desk. At the same time, I've been trying really hard to keep my house tidy, dishes washed, and laundry folded and put away. By last night, after a terrible day, I was too tired to tidy up the house before bed, so this morning, I woke up to a few dishes in the sink, a few toys around the house, a few shoes and jackets here and there, etc. It made me realize that it's worth the 15 minutes it takes to tidy up the night before to wake up to a tidy house the next morning.
Sleep
I have had such a hard time waking up all week. I just haven't been able to drag myself out of bed to exercise. Have I been staying up too late? I think I need to pay more attention to when I go to bed. I've been so tired in the mornings, but not necessarily the rest of the day/evening. The morning fatigue is making me rethink my morning exercise routine. I think I need to change the time of day that I exercise, rather than fight myself trying to get out of bed in the mornings. It's easier to get up if I'm meeting someone to exercise, but I generally don't.
Water
I haven't been paying much attention to my water intake, although I'm trying to drink enough. Since I'm feeling a bit sick, staying hydrated is especially important. I think I need to try harder or remember to fill my pitcher of water to drink throughout the day.
Eating
I haven't been paying much attention to what I've been eating lately either. However, it helps that I stocked up on groceries this week because having healthy food around is the first step toward eating healthy foods.
Exercise
Every night this week I set out my workout clothes so I could just crawl out of bed and they would be waiting for me, but this week I just haven't been able to go out and exercise at 6:30 a.m. I actually got dressed to workout on Tuesday, but then realized I had a sore throat. I got undressed and went back to bed. The one day I did exercise was Wednesday, when I was meeting a friend. I took an athletic walk this morning to make up for missing so many workouts during the week, and I'll try to do some toning exercises when the girls nap today. After a week with minimal exercise, I'm starting to feel like a blob, like the lack of exercise is starting to have a negative effect on my body. I've worked hard for this body; I don't want to give it up to laziness!
Tranquility
I certainly haven't gotten my fill of tranquility this week. For example, yesterday, the girls did tag-team napping, which means that one kid is always awake, and I never get a break from being Mommy. Tuesday was such a busy day that poor Maya only had the opportunity to nap for 1/2 hr., which means that's all the free time I had, too. Wednesday the girls both napped and I had free time to relax, do my own thing and be tranquil, but I need that every day, not only once a week.
How do I feel?
Well, I haven't had a very SWEET Life this week. I've been personally unproductive, with a growing pile on my desk. At the same time, I've been trying really hard to keep my house tidy, dishes washed, and laundry folded and put away. By last night, after a terrible day, I was too tired to tidy up the house before bed, so this morning, I woke up to a few dishes in the sink, a few toys around the house, a few shoes and jackets here and there, etc. It made me realize that it's worth the 15 minutes it takes to tidy up the night before to wake up to a tidy house the next morning.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Monthly Review of November
I totaled up my SWEET Life for the month of November. Below are some of the details.
Sleep
I don't sleep well; I haven't slept well; I need to sleep well! Last month I only slept well (7-8 hours) 18 out of 28 nights! (There were a couple days when I didn't keep track.) I didn't realize how inconsistently I slept until I tallied it all up! The main problems are that I stay up too late and wake up early to exercise. I'm interrupted by my kids during the night, but how much that prevents me from sleeping varies. Sometimes the interruption is so brief that it doesn't really affect my sleep, but I seem to remember many times last month when I couldn't fall back asleep after being woken up during the night. It's a really difficult tug-of-war between going to bed at 10:00 and getting a few little things done before bed a little later.
Water
I generally drink plenty of water. Some days I don't fill my pitcher and drink it all, but I think about how often I filled a glass and drank it, and then I guess if it was enough.
Eating
Like water, I often guess how well I ate throughout the day, rather than keep track. I know that I generally eat healthy and don't eat junk food, but I think I probably need to eat more veggies.
Exercise
I had a good exercise plan going: running M, W, F and toning Tu, Th. The problem is that lately I've burned out. The early morning darkness and cold don't help. I need a new exercise plan, but I don't have it yet. I know I could go to the gym, but that seems like so much more hassle than just running out my door or toning in my family room. This is definitely an area where I've seen surprising improvement over the past few months, so I can't let it fall by the wayside now, even though there are no physical improvements I want to make to my body.
Tranquility
I often get tranquility during the day. My girls have been napping consistently during the week, and the weekends my husband is home, so I have time to myself. This is an area that has definitely improved in recent months. I used to really have to make the time for relaxation; but now it's pretty much built into my day.
How do I feel?
I'm just starting to get sick, a little sore throat, so I'm impressed that I've felt fine today, despite feeling run down this morning. However, I did not have a very SWEET Life today. I stayed up a little too late watching a TV show with my husband, even though I wanted to go to sleep, so I don't think I got quite enough sleep. I didn't pay attention to my water-consumption. I ate pretty well; going to Costco to stock up helps. I didn't exercise (and haven't since Saturday) because my throat was sore. And I didn't get any tranquility today because I've been busy all day. So now (10:00 p.m.) is the first time I've had to sit down and relax. I think I'm going to fall asleep very quickly tonight. I don't expect to feel better tomorrow, considering the day I had today (i.e., no chance to take care of my impending disease).
Sleep
I don't sleep well; I haven't slept well; I need to sleep well! Last month I only slept well (7-8 hours) 18 out of 28 nights! (There were a couple days when I didn't keep track.) I didn't realize how inconsistently I slept until I tallied it all up! The main problems are that I stay up too late and wake up early to exercise. I'm interrupted by my kids during the night, but how much that prevents me from sleeping varies. Sometimes the interruption is so brief that it doesn't really affect my sleep, but I seem to remember many times last month when I couldn't fall back asleep after being woken up during the night. It's a really difficult tug-of-war between going to bed at 10:00 and getting a few little things done before bed a little later.
Water
I generally drink plenty of water. Some days I don't fill my pitcher and drink it all, but I think about how often I filled a glass and drank it, and then I guess if it was enough.
Eating
Like water, I often guess how well I ate throughout the day, rather than keep track. I know that I generally eat healthy and don't eat junk food, but I think I probably need to eat more veggies.
Exercise
I had a good exercise plan going: running M, W, F and toning Tu, Th. The problem is that lately I've burned out. The early morning darkness and cold don't help. I need a new exercise plan, but I don't have it yet. I know I could go to the gym, but that seems like so much more hassle than just running out my door or toning in my family room. This is definitely an area where I've seen surprising improvement over the past few months, so I can't let it fall by the wayside now, even though there are no physical improvements I want to make to my body.
Tranquility
I often get tranquility during the day. My girls have been napping consistently during the week, and the weekends my husband is home, so I have time to myself. This is an area that has definitely improved in recent months. I used to really have to make the time for relaxation; but now it's pretty much built into my day.
How do I feel?
I'm just starting to get sick, a little sore throat, so I'm impressed that I've felt fine today, despite feeling run down this morning. However, I did not have a very SWEET Life today. I stayed up a little too late watching a TV show with my husband, even though I wanted to go to sleep, so I don't think I got quite enough sleep. I didn't pay attention to my water-consumption. I ate pretty well; going to Costco to stock up helps. I didn't exercise (and haven't since Saturday) because my throat was sore. And I didn't get any tranquility today because I've been busy all day. So now (10:00 p.m.) is the first time I've had to sit down and relax. I think I'm going to fall asleep very quickly tonight. I don't expect to feel better tomorrow, considering the day I had today (i.e., no chance to take care of my impending disease).
Friday, November 30, 2007
Tidying up Makes a Difference
Sleep
I think I slept 7 hr. last night. Zoe woke up at 2:45, but I got her quickly and we both drifted back to sleep easily.
Water
The weather has been really dry the past couple days, so I've been trying really hard to drink lots of water.
Eating
Nick cooked us a great breakfast: scrambled eggs with ham, cheese and bell peppers; 1/2 whole wheat bagel, coffee/milk (for the girls). Hmm, I guess we forgot to have fruit, but we usually do have fruit with breakfast. Trying to get all those food groups in! Had a tuna melt on whole wheat with an apple for lunch. . .
Exercise
Took a long walk with a friend this morning. We are running a 5k race tomorrow, so we took it easy today.
Tranquility
The girls napped well after a busy morning, so I had time to tidy up a bit, check email, blog, etc. I'm relaxed.
How do I feel?
I feel better when my house is tidy, which I've done the past couple days. I really should spend 15 min. every day tidying up, but it doesn't always happen. I'm looking forward to this weekend, which will be busy with fun plans, starting tonight.
I think I slept 7 hr. last night. Zoe woke up at 2:45, but I got her quickly and we both drifted back to sleep easily.
Water
The weather has been really dry the past couple days, so I've been trying really hard to drink lots of water.
Eating
Nick cooked us a great breakfast: scrambled eggs with ham, cheese and bell peppers; 1/2 whole wheat bagel, coffee/milk (for the girls). Hmm, I guess we forgot to have fruit, but we usually do have fruit with breakfast. Trying to get all those food groups in! Had a tuna melt on whole wheat with an apple for lunch. . .
Exercise
Took a long walk with a friend this morning. We are running a 5k race tomorrow, so we took it easy today.
Tranquility
The girls napped well after a busy morning, so I had time to tidy up a bit, check email, blog, etc. I'm relaxed.
How do I feel?
I feel better when my house is tidy, which I've done the past couple days. I really should spend 15 min. every day tidying up, but it doesn't always happen. I'm looking forward to this weekend, which will be busy with fun plans, starting tonight.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Sleepless Night
Sleep
I felt surprisingly awake yesterday evening, so I stayed up a bit later than I should have. However, the killer was Zoe waking up at 4:30 and crying so much that she woke up Maya. Suddenly there were 4 of us in our bed, which is too crowded. So I took Zoe with me into Maya's bed, but I couldn't fall back asleep. I almost got up at 5:30, figuring I might as well make good use of being awake, but then I drifted off to sleep. But that doesn't make for 7-8 hr sleep!
Water
I drank a tall glass of water with each meal, plus a few cups in between, so I'm good on water today.
Eating
I am more conscientious about making balanced meals, including as many food groups as possible. That's good, and it makes the meals more colorful!
Exercise
I got up and ran with a friend this morning. It really helps get me up and moving if there is someone I have to meet at a specific time. I wish I had a regular running partner.
Tranquility
The girls fell right to sleep at naptime, so I got some free time to get a few things done.
How do I feel?
I feel good. I don't feel tired, despite my lack of sleep last night.
I felt surprisingly awake yesterday evening, so I stayed up a bit later than I should have. However, the killer was Zoe waking up at 4:30 and crying so much that she woke up Maya. Suddenly there were 4 of us in our bed, which is too crowded. So I took Zoe with me into Maya's bed, but I couldn't fall back asleep. I almost got up at 5:30, figuring I might as well make good use of being awake, but then I drifted off to sleep. But that doesn't make for 7-8 hr sleep!
Water
I drank a tall glass of water with each meal, plus a few cups in between, so I'm good on water today.
Eating
I am more conscientious about making balanced meals, including as many food groups as possible. That's good, and it makes the meals more colorful!
Exercise
I got up and ran with a friend this morning. It really helps get me up and moving if there is someone I have to meet at a specific time. I wish I had a regular running partner.
Tranquility
The girls fell right to sleep at naptime, so I got some free time to get a few things done.
How do I feel?
I feel good. I don't feel tired, despite my lack of sleep last night.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Exercise Burn-Out
Sleep
I'm a bit fuzzy on how much sleep I got last night. I just remember feeling very sleepy last night after coming home from work at 9:30 and having a beer with my late dinner. Because of that I think I went to bed early, but I don't remember the time. Zoe, as usual, woke up screaming her pretty little head off in the middle of the night because she was cold. I brought her into my bed and she kicked around for a bit before falling asleep. This morning, I was too tired to get up and exercise (same thing yesterday), and we all slept in until about 7:30. It seems to me I must have gotten 7-8 hr sleep out of all that.
Water
I tried harder today to pay attention to how much water I drank. I hadn't been very good about keeping track for the past few days.
Eating
I'm also paying more attention and using the SWEET Life Plan to track my food intake these days because I hadn't been very consistent about doing that.
Exercise
Once again I was both too tired to get up and exercise, and I'm feeling a bit burned out on my workout. Both yesterday and today I found time during my girls' naps to exercise, fortunately. But that won't be a consistent, stable situation. If I'm burned out, then maybe I should change my workouts. It's getting really hard to get up in the cold, dark mornings. Last winter I had a couple friends whom I worked out with, so we motivated each other to get up. The winter before, I was pregnant and on bed rest. The winter before that I had a very portable baby who took a lot of jogs and walks with me during the daytime. Hmm, I'll have to think more about what will get me out of a nice, warm bed on a cold, dark morning to exercise. . .
Tranquility
I'm very motivated to get my website (livingthesweetlife.net) up and running. I spent 2 hours of my "free time" transferring info from documents to a website creator. It felt good to get 6 pages done, at least in rough draft form.
How do I feel?
I have a lot of little things to do to keep up with life, but I also need some time to think about how to revise my exercise plan so that I'll keep doing it.
I'm a bit fuzzy on how much sleep I got last night. I just remember feeling very sleepy last night after coming home from work at 9:30 and having a beer with my late dinner. Because of that I think I went to bed early, but I don't remember the time. Zoe, as usual, woke up screaming her pretty little head off in the middle of the night because she was cold. I brought her into my bed and she kicked around for a bit before falling asleep. This morning, I was too tired to get up and exercise (same thing yesterday), and we all slept in until about 7:30. It seems to me I must have gotten 7-8 hr sleep out of all that.
Water
I tried harder today to pay attention to how much water I drank. I hadn't been very good about keeping track for the past few days.
Eating
I'm also paying more attention and using the SWEET Life Plan to track my food intake these days because I hadn't been very consistent about doing that.
Exercise
Once again I was both too tired to get up and exercise, and I'm feeling a bit burned out on my workout. Both yesterday and today I found time during my girls' naps to exercise, fortunately. But that won't be a consistent, stable situation. If I'm burned out, then maybe I should change my workouts. It's getting really hard to get up in the cold, dark mornings. Last winter I had a couple friends whom I worked out with, so we motivated each other to get up. The winter before, I was pregnant and on bed rest. The winter before that I had a very portable baby who took a lot of jogs and walks with me during the daytime. Hmm, I'll have to think more about what will get me out of a nice, warm bed on a cold, dark morning to exercise. . .
Tranquility
I'm very motivated to get my website (livingthesweetlife.net) up and running. I spent 2 hours of my "free time" transferring info from documents to a website creator. It felt good to get 6 pages done, at least in rough draft form.
How do I feel?
I have a lot of little things to do to keep up with life, but I also need some time to think about how to revise my exercise plan so that I'll keep doing it.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Post-Thanksgiving
Sleep
I love 4-day weekends! I've been sleeping well because I can sleep in, even if I'm awoken during the night.
Water
I don't think I drank enough water on Thanksgiving, but I've been trying to be more conscientious about it since.
Eating
On Thanksgiving day, I made sure to eat small, healthy meals throughout the day. For the big dinner, I did eat a lot, but I tried to just take a few bites-worth of each dish so that I didn't totally over-indulge. The day after, I made sure to eat small, healthy meals. However, today, I didn't eat very healthy: a burger for lunch, pizza for dinner; boy, were they good! But not very healthy. The other snacks and meals were healthy, at least.
Exercise
I ran for an hour the day after Thanksgiving to burn off some of the extra calories I'd consumed. Today, I did my morning toning exercises (because I'd skipped Thanksgiving morning), and my family went biking with some friends. Participating in a fun, family & friends activity is definitely a funner way to get exercise than just exercising for the sake of exercise.
Tranquility
Thanksgiving ran really smoothly because of all my advanced planning . I had a great day and was not a frazzled hostess. The past few days it's been great to hang out with friends and family.
How Do I Feel?
I feel that now that Thanksgiving is over, I can get back to focusing on other things in life. I don't usually think much about Christmas until after Thanksgiving, and now my family is asking me for Wish Lists, so I need to think about that. I look forward to getting back on track with other things in life.
I love 4-day weekends! I've been sleeping well because I can sleep in, even if I'm awoken during the night.
Water
I don't think I drank enough water on Thanksgiving, but I've been trying to be more conscientious about it since.
Eating
On Thanksgiving day, I made sure to eat small, healthy meals throughout the day. For the big dinner, I did eat a lot, but I tried to just take a few bites-worth of each dish so that I didn't totally over-indulge. The day after, I made sure to eat small, healthy meals. However, today, I didn't eat very healthy: a burger for lunch, pizza for dinner; boy, were they good! But not very healthy. The other snacks and meals were healthy, at least.
Exercise
I ran for an hour the day after Thanksgiving to burn off some of the extra calories I'd consumed. Today, I did my morning toning exercises (because I'd skipped Thanksgiving morning), and my family went biking with some friends. Participating in a fun, family & friends activity is definitely a funner way to get exercise than just exercising for the sake of exercise.
Tranquility
Thanksgiving ran really smoothly because of all my advanced planning . I had a great day and was not a frazzled hostess. The past few days it's been great to hang out with friends and family.
How Do I Feel?
I feel that now that Thanksgiving is over, I can get back to focusing on other things in life. I don't usually think much about Christmas until after Thanksgiving, and now my family is asking me for Wish Lists, so I need to think about that. I look forward to getting back on track with other things in life.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
The Holiday Stress is Building . . .
Sleep
I slept well the past couple nights. It always helps when the rest of the family sleeps through the night, too.
Water
I've been drinking enough water.
Eating
I've been trying to keep track of my eating on the SWEET Life Plan. Sometimes I'm impressed with how well I fill in the amounts for each food category, but sometimes I'm surprised at the holes in my eating, especially veggies.
Exercise
I woke up and did my toning exercises yesterday morning, as usual on Tuesdays, and I ran down the beach and back, as usual on Monday and Wednesday. This morning was particularly cold. That's when I really appreciate having good quality winter workout clothes.
Tranquility
I started cooking for Thanksgiving, yesterday, and I enjoyed it. I enjoy coordinating all the elements of a big family party: planning, cleaning, shopping, cooking, decorating, etc.
How do I feel?
I feel stressed. Last night I came up with a list of 11 things to do after I got home from work at 9 p.m. and before bed. Some were just daily things to do; some were leftover from previous days; some were special Thanksgiving things. My Thanksgiving things are taking longer than I had anticipated, so I've fallen behind on my schedule. Now, it's the day before, so I may be up late tonight getting stuff done.
It's really hard for me to accomplish things while raising my 2 daughters. I don't know how other parents manage to maintain a train of thought while being constantly interrupted by toddlers, and I don't know how other parents manage to ignore the constant noise and pleas for attention. Somehow, around my husband, my kids play quietly by themselves, but not around me. The minute I try to do anything, they need my undivided attention. Sometimes I try to involve them in what I'm doing, but it typically takes twice as long with them "helping" me. At the same time, it's also fun to do things together.
I slept well the past couple nights. It always helps when the rest of the family sleeps through the night, too.
Water
I've been drinking enough water.
Eating
I've been trying to keep track of my eating on the SWEET Life Plan. Sometimes I'm impressed with how well I fill in the amounts for each food category, but sometimes I'm surprised at the holes in my eating, especially veggies.
Exercise
I woke up and did my toning exercises yesterday morning, as usual on Tuesdays, and I ran down the beach and back, as usual on Monday and Wednesday. This morning was particularly cold. That's when I really appreciate having good quality winter workout clothes.
Tranquility
I started cooking for Thanksgiving, yesterday, and I enjoyed it. I enjoy coordinating all the elements of a big family party: planning, cleaning, shopping, cooking, decorating, etc.
How do I feel?
I feel stressed. Last night I came up with a list of 11 things to do after I got home from work at 9 p.m. and before bed. Some were just daily things to do; some were leftover from previous days; some were special Thanksgiving things. My Thanksgiving things are taking longer than I had anticipated, so I've fallen behind on my schedule. Now, it's the day before, so I may be up late tonight getting stuff done.
It's really hard for me to accomplish things while raising my 2 daughters. I don't know how other parents manage to maintain a train of thought while being constantly interrupted by toddlers, and I don't know how other parents manage to ignore the constant noise and pleas for attention. Somehow, around my husband, my kids play quietly by themselves, but not around me. The minute I try to do anything, they need my undivided attention. Sometimes I try to involve them in what I'm doing, but it typically takes twice as long with them "helping" me. At the same time, it's also fun to do things together.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Finding Tranquility in House Cleaning?
Sleep
I slept in luxuriously late this morning, as did both my girls. It was nice to lay around in bed and not have to go anywhere right away.
Water
I drank 2 qt. although my pitcher still has a quart left in it. Sometimes I drink from elsewhere; for instance, if I'm thirsty while I'm in the bathroom anyway, I'll drink from a cup in there. That confuses me on my quantities, so I just guess if I've come out right.
Eating
I think I ate well today, although I've been a bit lazy about keeping track of my food intake on the SWEET Life Plan. I should because I'll make sure to eat a better balanced combination of foods if I do.
Exercise
Today is a day off of exercise; however, I did spend hours cleaning the house in preparation for Thanksgiving. Does that count? My feeling about exercise is that if it tires you out, it's exercise. Surprisingly, despite the number of hours I spent cleaning, it didn't tire me out.
Tranquility
I find it amazing that women can find tranquility in house cleaning. There are so many women I know who are so happy when they send their husbands off to the park with the kids, so they can stay home alone and clean. If the situation were reversed (the mom taking the kids to the park), the husbands would never spend their alone-time cleaning, or even, more traditionally, doing yardwork. They'd probably watch football.
Why are women contented by a clean house? For me, it just feels right and hygenic to be in a clean house. We are between housekeepers right now, so I'm not used to cleaning my house. There are good and bad things about cleaning my own house: I do a more thorough job because I know what we dirty the most. I put away things that a housekeeper wouldn't know to put away. I get distracted by extra dirty spots and take the time to clean them because I'll notice them every day if I don't. However, because of all this, I take longer than a housekeeper would. But now I'm content to be in my clean, guest-ready house. I just have to enforce cleanliness with my family for the next few days until Thanksgiving!
How do I feel?
I feel better today, health-wise; I'd been feeling low energy, nauseous and headachy for the previous few days. I made my Thanksgiving plan a week ago, and today I started implementing it. The first steps were to clean the house and clean out the fridge to accommodate all the food. I'm happy to have my plan in motion, and anticipate smooth sailing for the next few days.
I slept in luxuriously late this morning, as did both my girls. It was nice to lay around in bed and not have to go anywhere right away.
Water
I drank 2 qt. although my pitcher still has a quart left in it. Sometimes I drink from elsewhere; for instance, if I'm thirsty while I'm in the bathroom anyway, I'll drink from a cup in there. That confuses me on my quantities, so I just guess if I've come out right.
Eating
I think I ate well today, although I've been a bit lazy about keeping track of my food intake on the SWEET Life Plan. I should because I'll make sure to eat a better balanced combination of foods if I do.
Exercise
Today is a day off of exercise; however, I did spend hours cleaning the house in preparation for Thanksgiving. Does that count? My feeling about exercise is that if it tires you out, it's exercise. Surprisingly, despite the number of hours I spent cleaning, it didn't tire me out.
Tranquility
I find it amazing that women can find tranquility in house cleaning. There are so many women I know who are so happy when they send their husbands off to the park with the kids, so they can stay home alone and clean. If the situation were reversed (the mom taking the kids to the park), the husbands would never spend their alone-time cleaning, or even, more traditionally, doing yardwork. They'd probably watch football.
Why are women contented by a clean house? For me, it just feels right and hygenic to be in a clean house. We are between housekeepers right now, so I'm not used to cleaning my house. There are good and bad things about cleaning my own house: I do a more thorough job because I know what we dirty the most. I put away things that a housekeeper wouldn't know to put away. I get distracted by extra dirty spots and take the time to clean them because I'll notice them every day if I don't. However, because of all this, I take longer than a housekeeper would. But now I'm content to be in my clean, guest-ready house. I just have to enforce cleanliness with my family for the next few days until Thanksgiving!
How do I feel?
I feel better today, health-wise; I'd been feeling low energy, nauseous and headachy for the previous few days. I made my Thanksgiving plan a week ago, and today I started implementing it. The first steps were to clean the house and clean out the fridge to accommodate all the food. I'm happy to have my plan in motion, and anticipate smooth sailing for the next few days.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Feeling Under Par
Sleep
After a few nights of very poor sleep at the beginning of the week, I've slept better the past few nights. I even slept in Friday, instead of going running, and ran, instead, this morning (Sat.) after sleeping in again. Well, it's not quite "sleeping in;" it's more like waking without an alarm, but it's still within the six o'clock hour. However, even after sleeping well, I've felt tired all week.
Water
I've been filling my 2 qt. pitcher and focusing on drinking a lot of water because I haven't been feeling well the past few days, and I don't want dehydration to be a contributing factor.
Eating
Because I had planned out my dinners and shopped last weekend, we've eaten good dinners this week. I've also been trying to eat nutritiously because I haven't been feeling well the past few days.
Exercise
I've been doing my usual exercise this week: running down the beach and back (4 mi.) Monday, Wednesday and today, and toning exercises Tuesday and Thursday. I'm concerned about my shoulders getting too muscular; my shirts are feeling too tight in the shoulders. Everyone in my family is very broad-shouldered, so it's in my genes. Because of that, I've decided to cut out the weights in my shoulder exercises. I'm still doing the motions to stay toned, but without weight.
Tranquility
I've gotten a lot of tranquility the past few days in the form of catching up on TV shows I like, online. ABC.com allows you to watch full episodes of their shows online, which is great because I always miss the shows I like. I hope, someday, that they will allow users to follow one character's story-line, rather than watching the episode as edited.
How do I feel?
I haven't been feeling well this week, which is part of why I haven't blogged for a few days. I've had low energy, felt nauseous, and had headaches. I don't know why I'm not feeling well, but it's led me to be rather unproductive the past few days. When I start to feel under the weather, I focus more on the SWEET Life in the hopes of nipping any illness in the bud. I really don't want to be sick just before Thanksgiving! I'm hoping a restful weekend will help me feel better.
After a few nights of very poor sleep at the beginning of the week, I've slept better the past few nights. I even slept in Friday, instead of going running, and ran, instead, this morning (Sat.) after sleeping in again. Well, it's not quite "sleeping in;" it's more like waking without an alarm, but it's still within the six o'clock hour. However, even after sleeping well, I've felt tired all week.
Water
I've been filling my 2 qt. pitcher and focusing on drinking a lot of water because I haven't been feeling well the past few days, and I don't want dehydration to be a contributing factor.
Eating
Because I had planned out my dinners and shopped last weekend, we've eaten good dinners this week. I've also been trying to eat nutritiously because I haven't been feeling well the past few days.
Exercise
I've been doing my usual exercise this week: running down the beach and back (4 mi.) Monday, Wednesday and today, and toning exercises Tuesday and Thursday. I'm concerned about my shoulders getting too muscular; my shirts are feeling too tight in the shoulders. Everyone in my family is very broad-shouldered, so it's in my genes. Because of that, I've decided to cut out the weights in my shoulder exercises. I'm still doing the motions to stay toned, but without weight.
Tranquility
I've gotten a lot of tranquility the past few days in the form of catching up on TV shows I like, online. ABC.com allows you to watch full episodes of their shows online, which is great because I always miss the shows I like. I hope, someday, that they will allow users to follow one character's story-line, rather than watching the episode as edited.
How do I feel?
I haven't been feeling well this week, which is part of why I haven't blogged for a few days. I've had low energy, felt nauseous, and had headaches. I don't know why I'm not feeling well, but it's led me to be rather unproductive the past few days. When I start to feel under the weather, I focus more on the SWEET Life in the hopes of nipping any illness in the bud. I really don't want to be sick just before Thanksgiving! I'm hoping a restful weekend will help me feel better.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
New Workout Clothes
Sleep
I got enough sleep last night, finally, but Zoe woke up early on (12:30) and slept with us the rest of the night. I've got to break that cycle for her (i.e., let her cry it out), but I lose a lot of sleep and feel a lot of stress doing that. On the other hand, losing a little sleep and having a little stress, with her waking up then sleeping with us, is easier.
Water
I drank enough water today.
Eating
I kept better track today and ate better because of it. I always seem to need to catch up on veggie intake by the evening. I wish I could get my girls to eat more veggies too.
Exercise
I did my usual Wednesday run along the beach, but today I had a new, winter white sweat suit. I felt great because I looked great, and it's very warm! As much as any old sweats/t-shirt will do for a workout, it's good to buy workout clothes because you'll feel better about yourself if you look good when you work out. Also, high tech fabrics make a huge difference! They'll keep you much more comfortable (warm, dry, cool, wind-proof, etc.) than old cotton sweats. Also, if you workout often, you really will get a lot more use out of them than those other clothes you spend a lot of money on! The more you workout, the more worthwhile it is to spend money on good quality workout clothes.
Tranquility
I got two new personal training clients! I'm looking forward to working with these two new clients and teaching them the benefits of living the SWEET Life!
How do I feel?
The day ended with a bang: the two new clients, so that leaves a good impression of the day.
I got enough sleep last night, finally, but Zoe woke up early on (12:30) and slept with us the rest of the night. I've got to break that cycle for her (i.e., let her cry it out), but I lose a lot of sleep and feel a lot of stress doing that. On the other hand, losing a little sleep and having a little stress, with her waking up then sleeping with us, is easier.
Water
I drank enough water today.
Eating
I kept better track today and ate better because of it. I always seem to need to catch up on veggie intake by the evening. I wish I could get my girls to eat more veggies too.
Exercise
I did my usual Wednesday run along the beach, but today I had a new, winter white sweat suit. I felt great because I looked great, and it's very warm! As much as any old sweats/t-shirt will do for a workout, it's good to buy workout clothes because you'll feel better about yourself if you look good when you work out. Also, high tech fabrics make a huge difference! They'll keep you much more comfortable (warm, dry, cool, wind-proof, etc.) than old cotton sweats. Also, if you workout often, you really will get a lot more use out of them than those other clothes you spend a lot of money on! The more you workout, the more worthwhile it is to spend money on good quality workout clothes.
Tranquility
I got two new personal training clients! I'm looking forward to working with these two new clients and teaching them the benefits of living the SWEET Life!
How do I feel?
The day ended with a bang: the two new clients, so that leaves a good impression of the day.
Monday, November 12, 2007
By Planning Ahead I Eat Better All Week
Sleep
Sleep continues to elude me, despite my best efforts. I went to bed at 10:00, but didn't fall asleep until after 11:00. Zoe woke me up at 3:30 and I didn't get back to sleep until 4:00. It was hard to get up at 6:00, even though I'd given myself 8 full hours to sleep! It's very frustrating because it's out of my control.
Water
I'm back to the 2 qt. pitcher of water. It helps me to have a physical reminder of how much I need to drink. Then, I'm more certain to drink it all.
Eating
For the first time in a couple weeks, I made up weekly dinner menus, and it really makes a positive difference. I feel less stress about what we are going to eat all week. I don't have to ask myself, every late afternoon, what we are going to have for dinner. I just look at the schedule. I just need to remember to defrost things, if necessary. Last night, because of my planning, I used up old produce before it went bad, and today, I went to the store to buy fresh stuff to eat the rest of the week (along with some Thanksgiving non-perishables). Cooking Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday works the best for me. I cook enough so that my family can have leftovers on the nights that I work (Monday & Wednesday), and I just plan to have quick, heat & eat meals the other couple days, which might end up getting replaced by eating out or with friends at the last minute.
Exercise
I ran my usual trek down the beach and back, 4 miles, and I did my ab exercises.
Tranquility
I experimented with a Thanksgiving idea today: I wanted to make individual, edible cornucopias. I tried to make them out of breadstick dough, wrapped around a cone of aluminum foil. It was really fun and ended up being a success! I’ll repeat them on Turkey Day, filled with a colorful, fall salad.
How do I feel?
I feel happy about my menu planning, grocery shopping ahead of time for some Thanksgiving staples, and cornucopia experimentation. However, I’m tired of not sleeping well.
Sleep continues to elude me, despite my best efforts. I went to bed at 10:00, but didn't fall asleep until after 11:00. Zoe woke me up at 3:30 and I didn't get back to sleep until 4:00. It was hard to get up at 6:00, even though I'd given myself 8 full hours to sleep! It's very frustrating because it's out of my control.
Water
I'm back to the 2 qt. pitcher of water. It helps me to have a physical reminder of how much I need to drink. Then, I'm more certain to drink it all.
Eating
For the first time in a couple weeks, I made up weekly dinner menus, and it really makes a positive difference. I feel less stress about what we are going to eat all week. I don't have to ask myself, every late afternoon, what we are going to have for dinner. I just look at the schedule. I just need to remember to defrost things, if necessary. Last night, because of my planning, I used up old produce before it went bad, and today, I went to the store to buy fresh stuff to eat the rest of the week (along with some Thanksgiving non-perishables). Cooking Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday works the best for me. I cook enough so that my family can have leftovers on the nights that I work (Monday & Wednesday), and I just plan to have quick, heat & eat meals the other couple days, which might end up getting replaced by eating out or with friends at the last minute.
Exercise
I ran my usual trek down the beach and back, 4 miles, and I did my ab exercises.
Tranquility
I experimented with a Thanksgiving idea today: I wanted to make individual, edible cornucopias. I tried to make them out of breadstick dough, wrapped around a cone of aluminum foil. It was really fun and ended up being a success! I’ll repeat them on Turkey Day, filled with a colorful, fall salad.
How do I feel?
I feel happy about my menu planning, grocery shopping ahead of time for some Thanksgiving staples, and cornucopia experimentation. However, I’m tired of not sleeping well.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Ah, the Weekend!
Sleep
Since I get up at 6 a.m. all week, I really look forward to staying up late and sleeping in on the weekends. So, yes, I got 8 hr sleep last night. Of course, it wasn't without interruptions. Zoe woke up screaming, so Nick brought her into bed with us. Later, Maya came into our room and wanted to join us, but the bed just isn't big enough for all four of us. It's better if I take her back to her room and sleep with her in her bed.
Water
Yes, I drank enough water today.
Eating
I definitely didn't eat enough vegies today, but I did eat a good variety of grains, protein, dairy and fruit. Hmm, almost makes me want to go eat some salad right now . . .
Exercise
My goal is to exercise every week day. If I do, then I look forward to not exercising on the weekends. So, no, I did not exercise today. It was rainy and I hardly left the house.
Tranquility
My tranquility came today in the form of planning for Thanksgiving. We are hosting the family, and I enjoyed pouring over recipes, and figuring out some technicalities of the preparation process: Which recipes can I prepare ahead of time? How long does each recipe take to cook? What method of cooking does each require (i.e., oven, stove, etc.)? How much involvement is there (for example, a turkey takes a long time, but there's little involvement from me)? What type of serving dish/utensil will I need? I also figured out the shopping/preparation/cooking timeline for the few days leading up to and including Thanksgiving. Now, I'm really looking forward to it!
How do I feel?
I feel good having gotten Thanksgiving planned. I still have to make my grocery list, but I have to do that anyway for next week's meals, tomorrow.
Reviewing the past week's SWEET Life Cycle, my results are:
Since I get up at 6 a.m. all week, I really look forward to staying up late and sleeping in on the weekends. So, yes, I got 8 hr sleep last night. Of course, it wasn't without interruptions. Zoe woke up screaming, so Nick brought her into bed with us. Later, Maya came into our room and wanted to join us, but the bed just isn't big enough for all four of us. It's better if I take her back to her room and sleep with her in her bed.
Water
Yes, I drank enough water today.
Eating
I definitely didn't eat enough vegies today, but I did eat a good variety of grains, protein, dairy and fruit. Hmm, almost makes me want to go eat some salad right now . . .
Exercise
My goal is to exercise every week day. If I do, then I look forward to not exercising on the weekends. So, no, I did not exercise today. It was rainy and I hardly left the house.
Tranquility
My tranquility came today in the form of planning for Thanksgiving. We are hosting the family, and I enjoyed pouring over recipes, and figuring out some technicalities of the preparation process: Which recipes can I prepare ahead of time? How long does each recipe take to cook? What method of cooking does each require (i.e., oven, stove, etc.)? How much involvement is there (for example, a turkey takes a long time, but there's little involvement from me)? What type of serving dish/utensil will I need? I also figured out the shopping/preparation/cooking timeline for the few days leading up to and including Thanksgiving. Now, I'm really looking forward to it!
How do I feel?
I feel good having gotten Thanksgiving planned. I still have to make my grocery list, but I have to do that anyway for next week's meals, tomorrow.
Reviewing the past week's SWEET Life Cycle, my results are:
- Sleep - 4 out of 7 days
- Water - 6 out of 7 days
- Eating - 4 out of 7 days (if I do go and eat some salad right now)
- Exercise - 5 out of 7 days
- Tranquility - 7 out of 7 days
Friday, November 9, 2007
Reactive vs. Proactive
Sleep
I stayed up too late last night, knowing I'd get up at 6 a.m., to get enough sleep. I got about 6 1/2 hr.
Water
Nick found my pitcher and was kind enough to fill it to 2 quarts for me today. I still have 3 cups to go at 11 p.m., but I drank a few glasses of wine tonight with friends. It would be in my best interest to finish it off before going to bed even though I might have to get up in the middle of the night for a potty run.
Eating
I hate keeping food journals, like everyone does, which is why the SWEET Life has a SWEET Life Plan which charts everything you need in a day to live the SWEET Life. All you have to do is to mark off the quantities that you complete for each aspect of the SWEET Life; i.e., not much to write down. Today, I didn't really keep track of what I ate, but I know that I generally ate healthy foods. I only ate 1-2 Halloween candies; I didn't eat much junk food (only chips with guacamole come to mind). I did have dessert after a healthy dinner with friends. But generally, I'd say I ate pretty well, even though I didn't keep track of the details.
Exercise
This morning I ran with my friend Maureen, whom I hadn't run with in a long time. It was nice to catch up with her. I got home and had time to do my ab exercises before the girls woke up.
Tranquility
The girls took a long nap today, >3 hr! I decided I need to set my timer before doing anything, and sure enough, I got a lot done this afternoon! It's such a good feeling! I just set my timer for either the amount of time I thought something would take or the amount of time I wanted to spend on a project and off I went, rushing to finish before the timer went off. I'm so much more productive when I do that, but I need to do that more often. (Right now I have 10 minutes to finish this blog.)
How do I feel?
I feel very accomplished today. It's good to cross a lot of things off my To Do List, and many of them don't take very long. It's just a matter of doing it! I tend to spend too much time checking and responding to email and yahoo groups that I belong to. What I mean is, I tend to spend too much time being reactive instead of being proactive; I I respond to other people's inquiries rather than completing what I want to complete. I wrote myself a big note on my computer, that I might make into my computer desktop. It says, "1. Set the timer. 2. Check To Do List." I might decide that I'm going to spend 5 min. checking my To Do List, but the tick-tick-tick of the timer helps me remember to stay focused and not spend too much time on it. It works well with my kids too. I'll set the timer for 5 min. and say we are going to put away all the books and toys. Then, I'll give specific tasks to Maya, like putting all the books in the book shelf, while I do something else to tidy up. It works well; we usually finish within 5 minutes. Then we'll move on to another room that needs tidying.
I stayed up too late last night, knowing I'd get up at 6 a.m., to get enough sleep. I got about 6 1/2 hr.
Water
Nick found my pitcher and was kind enough to fill it to 2 quarts for me today. I still have 3 cups to go at 11 p.m., but I drank a few glasses of wine tonight with friends. It would be in my best interest to finish it off before going to bed even though I might have to get up in the middle of the night for a potty run.
Eating
I hate keeping food journals, like everyone does, which is why the SWEET Life has a SWEET Life Plan which charts everything you need in a day to live the SWEET Life. All you have to do is to mark off the quantities that you complete for each aspect of the SWEET Life; i.e., not much to write down. Today, I didn't really keep track of what I ate, but I know that I generally ate healthy foods. I only ate 1-2 Halloween candies; I didn't eat much junk food (only chips with guacamole come to mind). I did have dessert after a healthy dinner with friends. But generally, I'd say I ate pretty well, even though I didn't keep track of the details.
Exercise
This morning I ran with my friend Maureen, whom I hadn't run with in a long time. It was nice to catch up with her. I got home and had time to do my ab exercises before the girls woke up.
Tranquility
The girls took a long nap today, >3 hr! I decided I need to set my timer before doing anything, and sure enough, I got a lot done this afternoon! It's such a good feeling! I just set my timer for either the amount of time I thought something would take or the amount of time I wanted to spend on a project and off I went, rushing to finish before the timer went off. I'm so much more productive when I do that, but I need to do that more often. (Right now I have 10 minutes to finish this blog.)
How do I feel?
I feel very accomplished today. It's good to cross a lot of things off my To Do List, and many of them don't take very long. It's just a matter of doing it! I tend to spend too much time checking and responding to email and yahoo groups that I belong to. What I mean is, I tend to spend too much time being reactive instead of being proactive; I I respond to other people's inquiries rather than completing what I want to complete. I wrote myself a big note on my computer, that I might make into my computer desktop. It says, "1. Set the timer. 2. Check To Do List." I might decide that I'm going to spend 5 min. checking my To Do List, but the tick-tick-tick of the timer helps me remember to stay focused and not spend too much time on it. It works well with my kids too. I'll set the timer for 5 min. and say we are going to put away all the books and toys. Then, I'll give specific tasks to Maya, like putting all the books in the book shelf, while I do something else to tidy up. It works well; we usually finish within 5 minutes. Then we'll move on to another room that needs tidying.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Sleep Makes Me a New Woman
Sleep
I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day. What happened? I hadn't felt that good in the morning in a long time. Ah! There were no children in my bed! The girls didn't wake up at all during the night! Maya didn't crawl into our bed at 3 a.m.! All four of us woke up happy and rested. How wonderful!
Water
I drank at least 8 cups of water throughout the day.
Eating
Despite Nick going to the grocery store last night, I didn't eat well today. I started off well enough with oatmeal with raisins and coffee. Lunch was at La Pinata: half a big, chicken burrito. Not bad, but it lacked fruit. The problem was that I also finished of Maya & Zoe's quesadilla, a large tortilla with cheese, folded in half, and I ate half of it! Then I was stuffed. Despite that, later in the afternoon, I finished off my burrito and was stuffed again! Then I had dinner, chicken-mozarella raviolis with sauce and a big spinach salad with raisins, almonds and dressing and a beer. After that I was once again stuffed and uncomfortable! Looking at my SWEET Life chart, I crossed out the amounts pretty well, just a bit lacking in dairy products, but I over-ate, and I've felt uncomfortably stuffed for much of the day.
Exercise
Thursday is my quick and dirty strength training day, so I did my exercises for each major muscle group while watching the news. Maya came in near the end and asked what I was doing with her soccer ball. Since it's a new month, I was trying some new ab exercises (I try to change them every month), which involved a medicine ball, which I don't have, so I used her soccer ball instead. One was to balance on your butt and pass the ball over and under each leg. You get so involved in passing the ball that you forget how much it's working your abs! The other one was to balance on your butt, hold the ball with both hands, and tap it to one side and the other to work your obliques. They are good ones!
Tranquility
After a very busy morning, my girls and I finally had our "quiet time" at 2:30. Surprisingly, I fell asleep, despite having slept so well last night, but after my little nap, I had my tranquility time to get a few things done for myself.
How do I feel?
I feel bloated and uncomfortable. I'm surprisingly awake for 10:30 p.m. on a Thursday, but I need to get to bed.
I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day. What happened? I hadn't felt that good in the morning in a long time. Ah! There were no children in my bed! The girls didn't wake up at all during the night! Maya didn't crawl into our bed at 3 a.m.! All four of us woke up happy and rested. How wonderful!
Water
I drank at least 8 cups of water throughout the day.
Eating
Despite Nick going to the grocery store last night, I didn't eat well today. I started off well enough with oatmeal with raisins and coffee. Lunch was at La Pinata: half a big, chicken burrito. Not bad, but it lacked fruit. The problem was that I also finished of Maya & Zoe's quesadilla, a large tortilla with cheese, folded in half, and I ate half of it! Then I was stuffed. Despite that, later in the afternoon, I finished off my burrito and was stuffed again! Then I had dinner, chicken-mozarella raviolis with sauce and a big spinach salad with raisins, almonds and dressing and a beer. After that I was once again stuffed and uncomfortable! Looking at my SWEET Life chart, I crossed out the amounts pretty well, just a bit lacking in dairy products, but I over-ate, and I've felt uncomfortably stuffed for much of the day.
Exercise
Thursday is my quick and dirty strength training day, so I did my exercises for each major muscle group while watching the news. Maya came in near the end and asked what I was doing with her soccer ball. Since it's a new month, I was trying some new ab exercises (I try to change them every month), which involved a medicine ball, which I don't have, so I used her soccer ball instead. One was to balance on your butt and pass the ball over and under each leg. You get so involved in passing the ball that you forget how much it's working your abs! The other one was to balance on your butt, hold the ball with both hands, and tap it to one side and the other to work your obliques. They are good ones!
Tranquility
After a very busy morning, my girls and I finally had our "quiet time" at 2:30. Surprisingly, I fell asleep, despite having slept so well last night, but after my little nap, I had my tranquility time to get a few things done for myself.
How do I feel?
I feel bloated and uncomfortable. I'm surprisingly awake for 10:30 p.m. on a Thursday, but I need to get to bed.
Time is of the Essence
Yesterday, Wednesday, I forgot to blog, and I would skip it except that I did live the SWEET Life! I slept; I drank water; I ate well; I exercised; and I got some tranquility. No interesting details, but I did it!
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Preschool's Effect on the SWEET Life
I only lived three of the five aspects of the SWEET Life today, so I'll need to focus on the other two more tomorrow.
Sleep
Monday nights it's really hard for me to get enough sleep because my sleep is squeezed at both ends. I work until 9 p.m. Monday nights and come home and do as much as I can to prepare for Tuesday mornings. Tuesdays we all have to be up, ready and out of the house by 8:30, which is new for us. So, no, I didn't sleep enough, again, but I napped today with Maya and will try harder to go to bed earlier tonight.
Water
I forgot to drink a tall glass with each meal, but made up for it, so I'm on track.
Eating
Because of the morning rush, we typically have cold cereal, fruit and coffee on Tuesdays. After dropping the girls off at daycare and preschool, I felt I needed some protein and I was at a cafe. What do cafes have with protein? Ham and cheese croissant, mmm! But not so healthy. Maya and I went out to lunch at a new cafe (the Little House Cafe at the corner of Blanding and Oak St.), which was delicious! We shared a croque monsieur (grilled cheese with ham) and some of the best fruit salad I've ever had. It also came with a green salad, and I had a natural grape soda. We each had a delicious, fudgey cookie as a reward for eating well. Unfortunately, the sandwich was sadly small, about half the size of a regular sandwich because of the bread used, so I was still hungry. At home, I snacked on a small handful of peanuts (all we had), and since I still haven't gone to the grocery store, the only other thing I could find to eat was . . . Halloween candy. Ooohhh, too much candy. I was better at dinner. We were invited over to my mother-in-law's house where we had chicken, potatoes, couscous and persimmons. A bit lacking in vegies, but I was a guest, so the food choices were not mine.
Exercise
Tuesday & Thursday are my quick and dirty strength training days. This started a couple months ago when Maya started preschool, which meant that I didn't have much time to exercise in the morning. However, early morning is still the best time for me to get it done. So I throw on some clothes, go to the family room and do toning exercises, one minute per muscle group. It took about 40 minutes when I started, but now that I'm used to it, it takes less than 30 minutes. I was afraid that 30 minutes only twice a week wouldn't be enough to make a difference; however, I've noticed that in the past two months I've gotten stronger and my muscles look more toned. In the end, I'm really happy that such a short workout can create a noticeable improvement.
Tranquility
Again, Maya napped, so I got my tranquility. However, there were things I should have been doing around my house, rather than sitting at the computer.
How do I feel?
Strangely, my shins feel tight, in front, just above the ankles. I think it was the plie squats with a calf raise, although I hadn't really thought of that as working the shin muscles. I keep straightening my feet down to try to stretch them out. Otherwise, today was not a stellar day sleep-wise or food-wise. Fortunately, we're all tired and going to bed early. Tomorrow I'll try to eat healthier.
Sleep
Monday nights it's really hard for me to get enough sleep because my sleep is squeezed at both ends. I work until 9 p.m. Monday nights and come home and do as much as I can to prepare for Tuesday mornings. Tuesdays we all have to be up, ready and out of the house by 8:30, which is new for us. So, no, I didn't sleep enough, again, but I napped today with Maya and will try harder to go to bed earlier tonight.
Water
I forgot to drink a tall glass with each meal, but made up for it, so I'm on track.
Eating
Because of the morning rush, we typically have cold cereal, fruit and coffee on Tuesdays. After dropping the girls off at daycare and preschool, I felt I needed some protein and I was at a cafe. What do cafes have with protein? Ham and cheese croissant, mmm! But not so healthy. Maya and I went out to lunch at a new cafe (the Little House Cafe at the corner of Blanding and Oak St.), which was delicious! We shared a croque monsieur (grilled cheese with ham) and some of the best fruit salad I've ever had. It also came with a green salad, and I had a natural grape soda. We each had a delicious, fudgey cookie as a reward for eating well. Unfortunately, the sandwich was sadly small, about half the size of a regular sandwich because of the bread used, so I was still hungry. At home, I snacked on a small handful of peanuts (all we had), and since I still haven't gone to the grocery store, the only other thing I could find to eat was . . . Halloween candy. Ooohhh, too much candy. I was better at dinner. We were invited over to my mother-in-law's house where we had chicken, potatoes, couscous and persimmons. A bit lacking in vegies, but I was a guest, so the food choices were not mine.
Exercise
Tuesday & Thursday are my quick and dirty strength training days. This started a couple months ago when Maya started preschool, which meant that I didn't have much time to exercise in the morning. However, early morning is still the best time for me to get it done. So I throw on some clothes, go to the family room and do toning exercises, one minute per muscle group. It took about 40 minutes when I started, but now that I'm used to it, it takes less than 30 minutes. I was afraid that 30 minutes only twice a week wouldn't be enough to make a difference; however, I've noticed that in the past two months I've gotten stronger and my muscles look more toned. In the end, I'm really happy that such a short workout can create a noticeable improvement.
Tranquility
Again, Maya napped, so I got my tranquility. However, there were things I should have been doing around my house, rather than sitting at the computer.
How do I feel?
Strangely, my shins feel tight, in front, just above the ankles. I think it was the plie squats with a calf raise, although I hadn't really thought of that as working the shin muscles. I keep straightening my feet down to try to stretch them out. Otherwise, today was not a stellar day sleep-wise or food-wise. Fortunately, we're all tired and going to bed early. Tomorrow I'll try to eat healthier.
Monday, November 5, 2007
After a Weekend Away
I decided to start a blog as an example of one person living the SWEET Life and to keep me honest about practicing what I preach. I'll cover each aspect of the SWEET Life and any conclusions I come to about living the SWEET Life each day.
Sleep
I went to bed at 10:30 but didn't go to sleep until 11:30. My alarm went off at 6:00 but I didn't get up until 6:15. So that makes 7 1/2 hr. attempted sleep, but only 6 3/4 hr. actual sleep. Bummer, I didn't quite make my sleep goal of 7-8 hr.
Water
I had been filling a pitcher with 2 quarts water and drinking from it all day, but I haven't been consistent. So this month, I decided tdo try drinking a tall glass of water with each meal, plus a couple others throughout the day. So far, so good. I reached my goal of 8-10 cups today.
Eating
After a wonderful weekend away, filled with restaurant and party foods and drinks, it was nice to be home and eat basic foods from my fridge and pantry. Unfortunately, because we were away, the fridge is looking pretty bare. For breaky I mustered up a whole wheat English muffin with peanut butter and Nutella (I know, not so healthy, but boy is it good!), grapes and coffee.
By lunch I was really hungry. I ate a whole wheat tortilla wrap with turkey and corned beef, cheese and hummus; some fiesta bean salad; baby carrots & broccoli florets dipped in hummus; and yogurt. My daughters and I had Halloween candy for dessert as a reward for eating a good lunch. Again, not healthy but I'd rather my girls eat 3 baby carrots and one piece of Halloween andy than 0 carrots and 0 candy. As for my candy-eating, read about my Exercise below.
Before work, I ate a handful or two of peanuts. I work 5-9:00 p.m. as a Personal Trainer at a health club, so I always snack beforehand and bring an energy bar. I always make sure to eat it so that I'm not ravenously hungry when I get home. When I got home at 9:15, I could smell a delicious dinner, so I was really disappointed to find out it had all been eaten! Bummer! I was hungry and just wanted to eat and do the fifteen things I needed to do before bed. I already mentioned that our fridge was empty, so what to do? . . . Unfortunately, in this situation I succumbed to the temptation of the 5-minute, frozen mac & cheese. Mmm, it's good, but a lot of calories, fat and sodium! I sort of made up for that by eating some more baby carrots and broccoli florets. Overall, I actually ate pretty well today, although it would have been better to have traded in the candy for vegetables. Gotta go to the store first; that's the key to eating well!
Exercise
I typically run down Alameda beach and back on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Today was a bit different because I felt "polluted" after my vacation/party weekend. I also happened to read this great article on post-party exercising, so I took the article's advice: I did interval training. I ran about 10 min. as a warm up; then I ran as hard as possible for one min., then jogged slowly to recover for one min., repeating that 8 times. I'd never done interval training before, and it was hard! After a few intervals, I could feel that my legs were moving much slower (during the fast intervals) but my heart was racing! What a way to burn extra calories and challenge my cardio. system! The last 10 min. I ran my regular pace home, where I did a little stretching and some new ab exercises. I've come to realize that I always need to do abs, and I like to change exercises every month for interest and a challenge.
Tranquility
This basically always depends on whether my toddlers nap. They did, so I got some alone time. It's not that I did anything very interesting: email, web surfing, organizing my day, but I really need some time to relax and think.
How do I feel?
I felt back on track after my intense run to burn off the weekend's "pollutants" and getting back to my usual eating/drinking/kid-rearing schedule. However, the late night mac & cheese is sitting in a mass in my stomach.
Overall, this was a pretty SWEET day. I was a bit shy on sleep, and probably consumed more fat than I should have, but it's a pretty good example of how the SWEET Life can work in real life.
Sleep
I went to bed at 10:30 but didn't go to sleep until 11:30. My alarm went off at 6:00 but I didn't get up until 6:15. So that makes 7 1/2 hr. attempted sleep, but only 6 3/4 hr. actual sleep. Bummer, I didn't quite make my sleep goal of 7-8 hr.
Water
I had been filling a pitcher with 2 quarts water and drinking from it all day, but I haven't been consistent. So this month, I decided tdo try drinking a tall glass of water with each meal, plus a couple others throughout the day. So far, so good. I reached my goal of 8-10 cups today.
Eating
After a wonderful weekend away, filled with restaurant and party foods and drinks, it was nice to be home and eat basic foods from my fridge and pantry. Unfortunately, because we were away, the fridge is looking pretty bare. For breaky I mustered up a whole wheat English muffin with peanut butter and Nutella (I know, not so healthy, but boy is it good!), grapes and coffee.
By lunch I was really hungry. I ate a whole wheat tortilla wrap with turkey and corned beef, cheese and hummus; some fiesta bean salad; baby carrots & broccoli florets dipped in hummus; and yogurt. My daughters and I had Halloween candy for dessert as a reward for eating a good lunch. Again, not healthy but I'd rather my girls eat 3 baby carrots and one piece of Halloween andy than 0 carrots and 0 candy. As for my candy-eating, read about my Exercise below.
Before work, I ate a handful or two of peanuts. I work 5-9:00 p.m. as a Personal Trainer at a health club, so I always snack beforehand and bring an energy bar. I always make sure to eat it so that I'm not ravenously hungry when I get home. When I got home at 9:15, I could smell a delicious dinner, so I was really disappointed to find out it had all been eaten! Bummer! I was hungry and just wanted to eat and do the fifteen things I needed to do before bed. I already mentioned that our fridge was empty, so what to do? . . . Unfortunately, in this situation I succumbed to the temptation of the 5-minute, frozen mac & cheese. Mmm, it's good, but a lot of calories, fat and sodium! I sort of made up for that by eating some more baby carrots and broccoli florets. Overall, I actually ate pretty well today, although it would have been better to have traded in the candy for vegetables. Gotta go to the store first; that's the key to eating well!
Exercise
I typically run down Alameda beach and back on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Today was a bit different because I felt "polluted" after my vacation/party weekend. I also happened to read this great article on post-party exercising, so I took the article's advice: I did interval training. I ran about 10 min. as a warm up; then I ran as hard as possible for one min., then jogged slowly to recover for one min., repeating that 8 times. I'd never done interval training before, and it was hard! After a few intervals, I could feel that my legs were moving much slower (during the fast intervals) but my heart was racing! What a way to burn extra calories and challenge my cardio. system! The last 10 min. I ran my regular pace home, where I did a little stretching and some new ab exercises. I've come to realize that I always need to do abs, and I like to change exercises every month for interest and a challenge.
Tranquility
This basically always depends on whether my toddlers nap. They did, so I got some alone time. It's not that I did anything very interesting: email, web surfing, organizing my day, but I really need some time to relax and think.
How do I feel?
I felt back on track after my intense run to burn off the weekend's "pollutants" and getting back to my usual eating/drinking/kid-rearing schedule. However, the late night mac & cheese is sitting in a mass in my stomach.
Overall, this was a pretty SWEET day. I was a bit shy on sleep, and probably consumed more fat than I should have, but it's a pretty good example of how the SWEET Life can work in real life.
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