Total Pageviews

Friday, March 30, 2012

Teen week: words that heal.

I pray she never loses her self-love.

This is the first post for Teen Week: Words that Heal, written by Mara Glatzel of Medicinal Marzipan.  I adore, admire (& myriad other A-words) Mara.   I did before we met in person. I did even more so after that.  Please to consider joining her this week.

When I was a teen, I remember voraciously consuming any and every written word that would help me figure out what to do with my body. I was always trying to figure out what to do with my body – a body that was cumbersome, heartbreaking, and the source of daily ridicule.

I read what was available to me, and I made plans.

Plans to starve myself, trick myself, sculpt myself, change myself, show myself in the best possible light, cover up myself, and some how make body easier, more palatable.

Plans to make people like me.

Plans to make me cool(er).

Plans to get me a boyfriend.

Plans to make me the kind of queer girl that was socially acceptable, after it became apparent that I didn’t want a boyfriend.

Plans to make me feel less alone.

While I was busying myself reading and making plans, I was able to distract myself from the pain I felt about my body and how others treated me. I was a work in progress. I didn’t have to worry.

Someday I would show them.

If I was doing something about my body then the boy who told me he’d date me if I lost a hundred pounds didn’t matter or the feeling of trying on every pair of jeans in the store only to find out none of them fit or the pained look in my mother’s eyes when they settled on my thighs.

I didn’t have anyone in my life telling me that I was perfectly fine, just the way that I was.

I created Teen Week: Words that Heal, because as bloggers we have incredible reach. We blog about all the aspects of our adult lives – whether we feel carefully pulled together in our adulthood or still rough around the edges. However, many of us have teens in our audiences, waiting in the wings, looking up to us, and consuming our words.

I wanted to create a week where a 14-year-old who was scared and consumed with self-loathing could reach out into the internet and find a sea of vulnerable, honest, and inspirational hands to hold.

I believed that we could, collectively, use our reach to reinforce the hearts of those who are desperately looking for a happy ending.

I believed that, as adults, we could benefit from retelling our stories, turning the awkward and the ugly into something gorgeous by repurposing it for someone else.

Teen Week officially launches tomorrow, March 26, and will last until Friday, March 30th, during which time bloggers all over the world with take to their computers and fill-up the internet with their stories.

I hope that you will join us.

Get all of the details here.


View the original article here

It’s this simple and it’s this scary.

“Im sorry. You’re just not a priority right now.”

“Im sorry.  This just isnt a priority right not.”

I saw this post last night before I unplugged for Shabbat and it resonated with me.

And, since Ive rambled here about 2012 being the year I strive to live my priorities, I wanted to share.

The exercise they suggest is an uncomfortable one (the mere thought of turning down an event or experience with the words “Im sorry it isnt a priority right now” causes me to sweat a little.).

The exercise they suggest is one we all do daily when we pretend (to ourselves more than anything) turning something down is about time more than choice.**

I encourage you to read the post.

You know, unless it’s not a priority right now.

**Im sure my Freaky Follicled friend will have  a rant here about her lack of time and how she’d choose to do many things if she had the luxurious life I lead.  There.  Ive said it.   No need to comment.

Pin It

Tags: , ,


View the original article here

MizFit (SuRpRiSe!!) Commenter of the Month…

105 pounds gone!!

Oh how I love Lori.

Ive read her for YEARS.

Ive cheer on her victories.

Ive shared in her tears.

I admire her biking.

She badass. Hardcore.

Her he-bikes-too?! husband

His love for *her* I adore.

She’s a weightloss success.

With much more to offer

She’s always at the ready

With a kind word to proffer.

She’s a foodie weights-lover.

She’s focused and fit.

Yet her thoughtful blog-comments?

These TOP all of it!

Id imagine you know her.

You read her each day.

If you dont–please start now!

You may go!!! CLICK AWAY.

She has no idea she's waiting for you


View the original article here

Weekend Quote: The Picture In Your Head

I just need to blurt this one out. It’s that good…

What will mess you up most in life is the picture in your head of how it is supposed to be. -Unknown

I don’t know who said it. I saw it. I pinned it. I can’t get it out of my head!

There are lot of times I get angry or upset or depressed because things didn’t turn out like I expected. The husband didn’t act the way I wanted him to act. A job didn’t go how I expected it to go. For Pete’s sake, I spent half my life not happy because my body didn’t look how I thought it should look.


View the original article here

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Wednesday Weigh In: Checking In

weigh in -

The scale reading this week is pretty much what I expected. After a weekend of drinking green beer and eating birthday cake a slight increase is fine with me. :)

I’ve been feeling a little distant on the blogs recently. Most of my energy is being spent on the boys and the conference while trying to prioritize everything else.

There’s just SO much I want to do that I end up doing nothing at all.

At least that’s how it feels.

Does that make any sense?

It’s doesn’t. I know. I’m just babbling.

Speaking of babbling I recorded a podcast today! It’s a long one. I hope to post it this weekend. Other things I’m working on…

A Multisite Newsletter. Nothing fancy. Just something you can opt in on if you’d like to get 1-2 updates a month from across all my sites. I want to offer it as an option as I know not everyone’s an RSS fan and getting an email every time I post can be quite annoying. My plan is to showcase some of my better content while breathing life into my archives. I’m also thinking of doing fun daily menus using GreenLiteBites ideas and sharing some of my favorite posts from other blogs.

A Book Proposal. Carla and I are *this* close to finishing a traditional book proposal. We even have a literary agent! Not sure where this will all lead but I’m excited about the project and I love working with Mrs. MizFit. :)

New GreenLiteBites Features. SO excited to be partnering with ZipList to offer save recipe and shopping list features! Hopefully it will go live in a week or so.

Toddler Times. I may be stepping down from blogging on Babble. I’ve never really been a traditional "Mommy Blogger" in the sense that I can blog about parenting topics and kids over and over again. I love sharing stories and photos (*cough* did you see how many I posted of Bean eating cake?) but ever since they introduced the slide shows I feel like everyone is just writing list based top 10 crap for pageviews and that’s just not fun for me. I think this may be my last month there. I haven’t decided yet.

Posts a Brewing. I’ve started so many posts in my head recently but haven’t actually been able to get them out. It’s weird. I feel like I’m finding my way in this whole blogging thing yet again. It’s funny how I need to redefine it for myself every now and then. I read this amazing post and it lit a fire in me. I’ve always been a people pleaser to a fault and I think it’s held me back in a way. More on this later, I just really wanted to share that link. It’s a must read.

That’s all I’ve got tonight. Must head to bed, I have an early morning workout planned. :)


View the original article here

March Podcast: Food I Eat, Family Members and Weight Loss, Motivation, Starting to Run

Man I am chatty this month. I swear I could just talk and talk and talk! It was the questions. They were so good and, ummm, emotional. I almost lost it like 3 times. It’s pretty bad.

Topics this month include…

What’s my diet and how do I prefer meals.Dealing with Family Members who want you to lose weight.How to estimate Weight Watchers PointPlus.How I make popcorn and my favorite salad dressings.Are VitaMuffins a good option for lunch?How did I become a runner.

Links mentioned in video in order…

The Most Amazing Bowl of Oatmeal EVER! A Open Letter to my Dad My Reaction to PointsPlusPost where I mentioned the Cliff Bars My Hot Air Popcorn PopperHomemade Microwave Popcorn [video] Latest creamy salad dressing creation My winter salad Mini Apple PiesThe 3 Keys of Weight Loss for MeMy Vitalicious page – use the code RonisWeigh for 10% off! First time I ever ran 5k on the treadmil

View the original article here

Tough Mudder Training Week 5

Wow, I’m I already 5 weeks in? That’s crazy!

Remember what I said last week about not feeling like I’m making any progress? Well, I take it back. I’m really starting to feel and see (hello triceps!) results.This week I realized in the middle of my workout that I wasn’t tired, fatigued, or sore. I was just doing it and I felt strong, in shape, even energetic.

This is what we did…

~1/3 mile runRun up a short hill dragging a cinderblock behind with a rope. Repeat 4 times and then return all cinderblocks back to the bottom of the hill. ~1/3 mile run25 JackKnife on exercise ball on the hill. Jackknifes look like this. ~1/3 mile runSand bag pull like this..

Note: I would have more videos but it was raining. :(

~1/3 mile runPushup on tire, flip tire, repeat until I hit a certain distance (around 12-15 total I think)~1/3 mile runPull weighted sled (attached with harness to my back) out and back. (all distances were the length of the rope you see in the sandbag video)~1/3 mile run15 kettle bell swings (like this) with 3 different kettle bells (10lb, 15lb, 20lb)~1/3 mile runHit tire with a sledgehammer 15 times each hand~1/3 mile run

Insane right? I mean really.. I wasn’t tired after this workout either.. I could have kept going! I’m nodding in disbelief myself. It’s amazing how much progress your body can make if you actually challenge it. I don’t think I would have believed it without experiencing it for myself.

I did this routine with my friend Carrie (the Official FitBloggin’ Photographer by the way.) It was nice to have a partner. I asked Derrick to take our picture after we were finished all soaking wet from the rain and the sweat.

You know the first thing I noticed about myself in that shot? My arm and how fat it looks. Isn’t that stupid? Isn’t it utterly ridiculous? I’m crazy and so mad at myself for even letting the thought pop in my brain.

So many people ask me how to get over the body image issue of weight loss and my response is…

IGNORE YOUR INNER NEGATIVE VOICE.

Tell it to shut the hell up and DO what it is you want to do because at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter.

It doesn’t matter how you look before you do it, while you are doing it, or after you did it. It only matters that you did.

Sorry, I didn’t mean to get all preachy there at the end. I just know so many people are listening to inner criticism and letting it cripple them. I did for far too long. I refuse to listen to it anymore.

Anyway, I have some fun running news! I’ve registered for the Ocean City Half Marathon on April 28 which happens to be my 11th Year Wedding Anniversary! The husband and I (with our good friends) are going to make a weekend out of it. I’m super excited! It’s just 2 weeks before the tough mudder so I should be ready. I’m just going to keep doing what I’m doing!


View the original article here

Reebok Rocks!

I might have to start my weekly wrap-up post back up because, to be honest, I can’t remember what I have or have not told you. For example, did I announce my latest exciting FitBloggin’ news? I don’t think I have!

We’ve signed a new sponsor….

Reebok will be hosting a Crossfit class and the FitBliggin’ 5k run/1 mile walk!!

HOW FUN IS THAT?!

I really couldn’t be more excited about this opportunity to work with Reebok and have them at this event. My goal is to offer as many opportunities as possible for bloggers to experience new things (healthy foods, workouts, products, etc,) inspire readers and help spread a culture of health while having fun, making friends and networking.

That’s what FitBloggin’ is all about.

As the organizer of said event, I get a few perks like sneak peaks of products.

Get it SNEAK peeks?

Ok, bad joke, but seriously Reebok was nice enough to send me two pairs of the sneakers they will be showcasing at the conference.

The first was RealFlexTransition. Click here to check them out.

RealFlex Transition

Look how stinking cute they are! Believe me, I’m not a pink shoe type of person, but these things ROCK!

The shoe is designed to adapt to your movement making it perfect for cross training. Honestly, when I put them on, I felt like I was walking on a cloud. I never felt a shoe like this before. Responsive is the only way I can describe it. I will be wearing these for my crazy mudder training from now on. Not kidding.

The second was ZigNano Fly 2. Click here to check them out.

ZigNano Fly 2

As you can see, I was a little hesitant at 5 AM this morning. I was preparing for my Thursday run to the gym and decided to give these a shot. According to Reebok, the ZigTech Nano is designed for running, walking or hiking with "responsive cushioning." They were comfortable but I would need some time to get used to the "Zig." The sole felt much thicker then the running shoes I’m used to. However, the "spring" concept is definitely there. I really felt light on my feet. Almost like I was bouncing. It’s a really cool shoe.

As I said, Reebok did send me these products free of charge and they are sponsoring the FitBloggin’ conference but I was not paid (or even asked) to write these reviews. That was my decision.

Click here to visit the FitBloggin’ page. I’ve been a little slow on announcements but rest assure we are working feverishly in the background, negotiating with sponsors and planning the event. I hope to see you there! Tickets are on sale now.


View the original article here

Little Bean Not So Little Anymore!

One year ago today…

Today…

It’s crazy how fast it went. Unbelievable really. Fastest year of my life.

Let’s not dwell. We had the BEST birthday/St. Patrick’s day! Here’s some of my favorite pictures of the day…

With a houseful of old and new friends, family and KIDS (OMG there were so MANY!) It was a whirlwind in a good way. And yes.. I enjoyed my green beer…

and birthday cake. :)

Hope you had a great St. Paddy’s!


View the original article here

Tough Mudder Training Week 4

Fourth week of Tough Mudder Training complete! I’m feeling good but not great. Honestly, it doesn’t feel like I’m making any progress. I guess I am. The runs are getting a little easier and I’m able to transition from run to drill pretty seamlessly but time seems to moving faster then I am. If that makes sense.

Anyway, just letting you know what I’m feeling. On to this week’s mudder workout…

~1/3 mile Run3 sets of squat presses and bicep curls with calf raises. ~1/3 mile RunSand bag flipping in seated position and a jump back (like the second half of a burpee) (not sure I’m explaining this one correctly) ~1/3 mile RunStraight Leg Dead Lifts with 35lb kettle bell and then sprint in place (repeat 3 times)~1/3 mile RunThe tires! Repeat this..

5 times and then flip tire back to starting position.

~1/3 mile RunRepeat this…

3 times

~1/3 mile Run

Now that I wrote all that out I’m reconsidering. Maybe I am making progress afterall. :)


View the original article here

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Craptastic Fitness Demands a Spring Cleaning

I was bitchy. Moody. Even feeling a little evil. Almost had a meltdown, too.

“Well, what the hell was your freaking problem, Josie?”

Thank you for asking. It turns out my fitness was staring into the face of Craptastic. I wasn’t getting enough sleep awhile back, and it was causing me all sorts of problems.

I wanted to slap somebody, starting with all the stupid people. I wanted to drop kick the ice cream man in the throat for not driving down my street. I wanted to tell the husband, “wash your own damn clothes!” (might still do that), and I started to slightly not give a damn if I ate too much popcorn and other forms of tantalizing carbohydrates.

Did I mention I almost had a meltdown? All because I wasn’t getting enough sleep.

That’s Craptastic Fitness, ya’ll. You ever teeter on the lines of Craptastic?

I do possess a magical solution that healed me of this ailment. Spring Cleaning! You know, clear out the fitness cobwebs — get rid of shoddy tactics that aren’t working, but you haven’t changed yet. Spruce up the place a bit. Bring some freshness into your fitness so it doesn’t suffer instead. When summer gets here I don’t wanna hear you boo-hooing because your Craptastic ratio is still elevated.

Craptastic Fitness includes but is not limited to…

Not enough sleep.No change in fitness routine to keep the body guessing.Not pushing yourself to the next level.Too lazy to commit to anything beyond easy.Lack of improved food choices (at some point, you just gotta start doing better).Other people/things/situations always taking precedence over YOU.Other Craptastic stuff my brain cells can’t think of right now.

Got any fitness cobwebs hanging? Craptastic is NOT the hot look for summer, so take care of it right now while there’s still plenty of time. If you’re desperate for spring cleaning supplies I’ve got a crusty mop out back you can rent.


View the original article here

Six fitness lessons Ive learned from my child.

Last week was heaven.

Five full Tornado & Me days which were reminiscent of all our time before Kinder started.

We laughed, we cried (seriously. all that one-on-one time was NOT without its bickering!) it was better than Cats.

What I loved most was the fact we didn’t travel.

We hung here & just spent time together.  Time which caused me to marvel at how she’s matured & reflect back on all Ive learned *from* her the past six years.

In chronological order please to enjoy.

1.  Cardio can be creative. You, oh Tornado, were a crier.  All the time.  Needed or not.  You cried till you became red in the face and (as we searched for late night levity) we joked you appeared to be winded from the workout.  What did I learn from that? Anything done long enough & with enough tenacity/focus (hello bubblewrap!) can be cardio!  You taught me to skip (it) the traditional & let my imagination soar.

Getting your workout on.

2 . Pull-ups are fun!   Back in the day, before you were The Tornado, we referred to you as Toddler Freaky Strong.  The moment I’d dump you in the pack and play so I could finally shower set you in the P&P so I could work you’d commence pulling upward along the side.  Happily.  You’d smile, giggle, do pull-ups to fatigue never once complaining or shouting “Hey!! can I get a spot up in herre?!”  What did I learn from that? Pull-ups dont have to be a dreaded to-do on my back workout schedule.  The mere challenge of them & the faces I make as I struggle upward can!be!fun!

Practicing pull-ups poolside.

3.  Eat mindfully!  Now, to be clear, I discovered the importance of mindful eating long before you hit the scene.  With the addition of you, however, I began to rush through my self-care (fitness to food) in order to return to you-care.  Then you turned three.  You began to express a clear opinion as to what you wanted to eat & when you wanted to eat it.  You’d share these thoughts (slowly) and happily (slowly) ate what you ‘ordered.’  What did I re-learn from this? You weren’t annoyingingly slow at all—merely mindful.  You *paused* to ask yourself if you were hungry.  You s-l-o-w-l-y ate your food savoring, tasting, touching, EMBRACING each bite.  You reminded me to be more mindful.

The inexplicable chop sticks phase.

4. Wind-down routines ROCK.  I’ve always lamented the fact Im a poor sleeper.  I’d go to bed different times each night with absolutely, positively no method to my nighttime madness.  Id watch TV in bed.  I’d check email from bed.  I was a wind-down mess.  Then you came along.  You thrived on routine & practically demanded a strict nighttime regimen.   One small deviation from this plan and you’d not fall asleep.  What did I learn from this?  I need to sleep like a child, too.  Ive never slept better.

Pink princess PJs help.

5.  If at first you dont succeed—QUIT.  I’d known this at one point & somehow forgotten until you dancingly reminded me.  You “just knew” you wanted to take ballet.   You longed to learn to dance like the ‘pretty ladies.’  You tried, you loathed, you quit, you never looked back.  After two classes (the class leaped delicately as instructed over a stuffed bunny. you stopped, KICKED SAID BUNNY, and leaped away) you declared yourself done.  You informed me you’d prefer soccer and you’ve never looked back.  What did I learn? I re-learned there’s no percentage in sticking with something I know is not a fit for me.  I reminded myself I *know* when I long to quit out of fear and when I’m merely banging my head against the wall kicking a bunny.

Kicking encouraged.

6. Read the wall.  This is one we learned together over spring break.  Somehow Id forgotten all the lessons Id learned from climbing and needed you to remind me of them.  Life can be overwhelming and, at times, I plunge ahead without looking, scanning, planning or preparing.  In fitness I’m slowly learning I need to have a plan, too.   Spontaneous is great—but only goes so far.   I need to look ahead, read the wall, and prepare for what I want to achieve down the road.  Muscling my way through works—-but only in the short-term.

"Watch and remember, Mama."

In the moment I couldn’t see any of these concepts being “taught.”  It’s only with hindsight I see my greatest teacher is a six year old Tornado.

Have you, too, learned healthy living lessons in surprising places?


View the original article here

The Best Day of Your Life Could be Today

LOVE this. Couldn’t wait for the weekend to post. :)

Found on MotivationIntoHabit.tumblr.com

Sorry, I could not read the content fromt this page.

View the original article here

Post-Party Sunday-ness

It all started with my tough mudder training. I’m proud of myself this week. I had to do a little shifting of the schedule but I completed all workouts except a run that I plan on doing tomorrow. Basically I swapped my Monday rest day for this past Friday to prepare for the party.

I’ll post more details tomorrow but here’s a peak at the stations we set up…

When I got home I made myself a smoothie for breakfast. After yesterday’s food-fest it seemed like a nice light way to start the day.

I used banana, frozen blueberries, spinach, almond milk, cocoa powder and protein powder.

After breakfast I decided a warm bath was in in order.

It was GLORIOUS.

A few laundry bombs to kick start our chores.

Notice Grandpa in the doorway. :)

New birthday toys to play with.

Lunch time!

I made the boys grilled cheeses.

And I made myself a fun wrap using this new yumminess…

Click here to check out my Sweet Cinnamon and Pear Chicken Wrap.

After lunch we were ALL tired.

Baby went down for nap and we decided to relax and watch some golf.

It was my idea. I knew it would knock me right out and it did.

I had the bed head to prove it.

Post-nap we cleaned up, kept the laundry moving and I made The Little Guy lunch for tomorrow.

I’ve been slacking on the lunch box ideas. I think I just needed a week off. I’ll start posting again this week.

Dinner was homemade pizza again.

It’s really the perfect meal for our Sunday night picnics.

We ate, we watched and someone practiced their walking. :)

It was a low key day/night ending with the family putting away laundry, baths and stories.

I really had one of the best weekends ever. I’m going to bed with a big smile on my face ready to tackle another week of craziness!


View the original article here

Sensational Sunday-ness at its Best

Actually this whole weekend ROCKED. Friday night we cleaned the garage, ordered pizza and watched a movie. I know.. nothing spectacular but it really kicked off a fun productive weekend.

Saturday started with my Tough Mudder Training. More on that tomorrow. It was awesome. I also took the Little Guy rock wall climbing. We had a blast. I can see myself REALLY getting into it. Little Guy’s a bit more like his Dad in the scared of heights department but I’m working on building his confidence. He almost made it half way up this trip!

Today started off early with a little reading.

I don’t get sucked into books often but this one’s got me. After I saw the movie I needed to read the books.

We were going to have breakfast but with no eggs in the house we were out of ideas except… an early trip to the grocery store!

Notice the reusable shopping bags. We remembered!

Also notice the soda, *sigh* If it wasn’t for the husband I’d run a soda free house.

My breakfast…

1 egg omelet with ham and red peppers and a whole wheat English muffin on the side.

Then the boys played…

while I put away the groceries…

and framed our new family photos.

In 6 years we went from one 1 year old to one 1 year old and an almost 7 year old. :)

With a little argument I finally got the laundry moving.

Then I made lunch.

We clean the fridge of leftovers. :)

Then goofball…

… and I went to the see the Lorax in 3D.

It was ok. Not my favorite animated flick and I’m a huge Seuss fan. I thought Horton was better.

When we got back The Husband swept Little Guy away to the driving range. Bean and I kept the laundy moving…

… annoyed the cat…

… had snack on a walk…

… and hit the park.

I got one-on-one time with each one of my babies today. How awesome is that!

Dinner was a grill-fest!

Cabbage wedges, turkey burgers and sugar snap peas.

While I cooked the boys played, again. :)

Dinner time!

Dessert time!

The boy who doesn’t like fruit struck again but I’m not giving up that easy. ;)

After dinner it was Return of the Jedi time!

Oh.. and Chocolate time.

I’ve been quite obsessed.

I didn’t run today. I traded my rest day for tomorrow and plan on 7 miles then. I have some more fun running news but it will have to wait until tomorrow. Once Upon a Time.. Mad Men.. It’s time to spend time with my other baby. :)


View the original article here