Super quick from the plane guys. I have 5% battery and the slowest internet connection ever, but I wanted to share this video of my run this morning.
I don’t have time tell you more about my trip but I did post some photos on The UnWorldlyTravelers. Click here to check them out!
I’m off to watch the in flight movie. :)
Im awake.
Im coffee-free because it’s Yom Kippur and we’re not supposed to drink PERIOD let alone have the nectar of the G-ds which is the only thing that gets this woman out of bed at 4a.
So Im on the computer puttering around and checking my email.
Which, now that I consider it, is probably ALSO not ‘allowed’ on this day of atonement—-but I shall forgive myself this one transgression and assume you will as well.
I decided not to do a FITBLOGGIN recap.
Im a misfit that way and live the bulk of my life trying valiantly to ‘do unto others.’ My thought with this was I’d already tweeted, instagrammed and Facebooked my weekend so if you werent there you already got a big ole taste from me & the 250 other attendees.
My thought with this was if you DIDNT go this year you either decided NOT TO because you werent interested or you didnt because you COULDNT for one reason or another.
My thought with this was you were READY for the weekend to be done and hear no mo’ about the event.
Apparently I was incorrect.
My inbox has been filled with emails asking where the “live blogging” of sessions is housed and if my session (attracting traditional media and finding success as a freelance writer) was live blogged.
I saw this morning ALL THE SESSION TRANSCRIPTS are up at Fitbloggin.com.
My session specifically (live blogged by this amamamamazing woman) can be found here.
Now back to the title of this post—-which has everything and nothing to do with Fitbloggin.
Six years ago this was the tagline of my brand & my header was a smattering of red apples with one lone green apple sticking out like a sore….apple.
Little did I know then it was also foreshadowing to the fact Id turn 42 and my core MUSCLES would go all to hell.
I reflected a lot upon this over the weekend.
The fact branding can be fluid (Ill bet no one recalls that was my initial tagline and yet when I changed it I was so.very.NERVOUS. and it felt like a huge deal) & how all of us at the conference—at the core—-were exactly the same.
Stripped of our external trappings and deep in our core we are all the same.
Ive stared for a long time at the photo below (and not JUST because I covet this womans amazing style) for that very reason.
At first glance we appear as different as people (& bloggers) could be and yet, at the core, we are so similar it surprised even me.
Yes. The Tornado COVETS her dress….And with that Im off.
No proof-reading. No editing. And no caffeine to be certain this post isnt rougharoundtheedges.
Because it really doesnt matter, right?
Be you fancy-pants famous bookdeal/tvdeal blogger or newtotheblogworld with only yourself as reader:
…at the core we’re all the same.
;
MizFit is truly one of the stars of the blogging world, even if she is too modest to admit it. Every time I read her blog I am inspired to stay on track with my strength training and be a better person. Honestly.
I am so honored to share a tiny bit of my 150 pound weight loss experience on her blog today because like MizFit, I believe that when we share our struggles and our victories with each other, we become stronger people.
I gained over 100 pounds between year one and year four of my marriage. The first 50 were just from eating too much and being sedentary, and the other 75 were from a pregnancy. There I was, 25 years old and morbidly obese. It wasn’t a good place to be either physically or emotionally.
I struggled with morbid obesity for 10 years, finally hitting my highest recorded weight of 305 pounds. Although I had a great life externally, internally I struggled with feelings of inadequacy, failure, and frustration with myself. I tried every diet that came along – except for ones that were absolutely ridiculous or recommended using supplements. Nothing worked for long.
Finally, after the birth of my third child, I got to the point where I realized it was now or never for me. I did not want to leave my children early because of my food choices. I was tired of feeling exhausted, and I had the sense that the time was now.
I started on a 14 month journey that saw me go from a size 28 to a size 6 or 8. I moved from sitting on the couch as much as possible to running a 5K. But best of all, I was finally able to be present in a new and vital way to my family. And I did it on my own, without joining a group or eating weird food. Just healthy eating, reasonable exercise, and a commitment to dealing with the emotions I had surrounding food. This is what my book 150 Pounds Gone Forever is about – getting in control of your weight for life.
It has been 14 years since I got to my healthy weight and during that time I’ve had four more kids and experienced a lot of life’s challenges.
I encourage you to never give up on yourself and your goals. Whether you are striving to reach a healthy weight, want to compete in an upcoming event, or just be able to climb the stairs without getting out of breath, take that first step today. You never know where you will be 14 months or 14 years later.
[begin Hogzilla alert]
Am I the last one to know about this? It’s a Hogzilla, ya’ll. Half wild hog, half wooly mammoth domestic pig.
According to Nat Geo, these feral beasts are growing in number, sprawling all across the States and even up into Canada. Hogzilla might even be found lurking in a backyard near you. Have you seen one yet?
I propose we put this Hogzilla epidemic to good use. This is more than bacon business. The tusks and hooves, when ground up properly, can be passed off as unicorn dust. You’ll fetch a good price for faux unicorn dust in any back alley business transaction.
As for Hogzilla’s hairy hyde, I’m thinking “throw rug”, or maybe weave the coarse hairs into a string for some homemade dental floss. The possibilities are plentiful.
[end Hogzilla alert]
Notice: Stay tuned for Natural Health Weekend tomorrow. I’ll be hitting you with a very important health warning on a product ingredient I’m willing to bet you have at home among your beauty stuff.
Sharpen the claws of your teeth and prepare your for chewing jaws for action. I fed this Warm Bella Burrito with its fiesta of fresh ingredients to my stomachs, and now I just gotta share it with you, too.
INGREDIENTS (serves 6 people, measurements are approximate)
warm Mission Tortillas2 packages baby Portobello mushrooms (sliced & sauteed)1.5 cups cooked brown rice1 mashed avocado1.5 cups shredded pepper jack cheese1.5 cups black beans (warmed)1.5 cups homemade salsa fresca (scroll down for the recipe)little bit of salsa verde (optional)DIRECTIONS: Prepare all individual ingredients and then build your burrito. Just wrap this baby up and begin to fro down. This is one of those recipes that you really can’t mess up. (Not unless you pack too much food on the tortilla, and then the whole damn thing breaks apart.)
Optionally, you can add cooked, diced chicken to your burrito as well. That’s what I had to do for the family because they wouldn’t stop whining unless I added meat to theirs.
Homemade Salsa Fresca (Pico de Gallo): Ingredients
Salsa Directions: Just slice, dice and mix it all up. Then add to your burrito. Greedy Kid #1 made the salsa fresca all by herself (give her some hand claps, everybody!). She did a dang good job.
There were enough prepped burrito ingredients leftover for me to pack tomorrow’s lunch. Make sure you’re thinking ahead and pre-planning your meals for optimal fat melting results! Have a great day, everybody. XO
Have you read the recent NaturalNews.com article about 10 cereal most likely to contain Monsanto’s GMOs? Get over there and read the entire thing for yourself.
Here’s a snippet from that piece to flame your fire of enragement over all this GMO (genetically modified organism) bullshit:
“…I visited a local grocery store in Austin, Texas and purchased 10 breakfast cereals made with high levels of non-organic corn…. You may also notice that most of the cereals most likely to contain GM corn are children’s cereals. It is the children in America who are being fed the most GMOs. This represents a highly unethical food experiment being conducted on an entire generation, and the long-term effects of human consumption of GMOs are simply not known… What we do know is that rats fed this very same Monsanto GM corn developed shockingly large cancer tumors.”
The 10 cereals listed in the article are:
Cocoa PuffsCorn ChexFrosted FlakesHoney Graham Oh’sHoney Nut ChexKashi Heart to HeartCorn FlakesCorn PopsKixPeanut Butter Puffins((sigh))
And then the article goes on to show some pretty terrible pictures of rats with tumors who were “fed a ‘lifetime’ of Monsanto’s GM corn”.
The author also states, “There is only one brand of breakfast cereal I know of that’s 100% non-GMO and 100% organic across their entire product line.” Find out which brand that is.
Proposition 37 is the push to label genetically modified foods (it’s being met with opposition by some big companies), so get informed about it and keep an eye on the #YesOn37 hashtag on Twitter.
If you’re not sold on the issue of GMO’s or it’s just not that important to you right now, at least think about your children, and your children’s children.
This is gonna get much uglier if we sit back and allow the Monsanto and DuPont beasts to breed more destruction into our food supply. I’d sure as hell love to get at those companies with many drop kicks to their proverbial balls.
Im sad this is over:
Summertime us!September came so swiftly and with it a return to this:
Ahh, first day…It was only AFTER school started I realized how off-track we’d gotten as a family.
Our sleep schedule was *way* outta whack.
Our foodstuff had, uh, welcomed a bit too much of this type of meal:
It IS Whole Foods pizza!And Id begun to take for granted all the active play time we had at our SUMMER DISPOSAL:
Summertime rocked!It took me a few weeks, but Ive realized it’s time for a BACK TO BASICS bootcamp of sorts for my family.
It’s OPERATION BACK TO BASICS and Im chatting about that today over at Attune Foods.
Did you , too, get wonky over the summer?Did you succeed in emerging from the summer unscathed? (!!!)Id love to hear your thoughts…
I work with Attune Foods as a brand ambassador. The fact I let my fam get all wonky and sleep deprived this summer is all my own.
Tags: Attune Foods, school starting hecticnessment
No more excuses, everybody. It’s time to workout!
If the gym isn’t your thing, you now have a new go-to option with Gaiam TV. I remember the frustration when I tried searching for quality workout videos on Netflix. Talk about a major letdown.
Gaiam TV has done what Netflix failed to do. They’ve stepped up to provide us health-conscious peeps with access to online streaming of fitness and Yoga videos, with a huge variety to choose from. We no longer have to sink hundreds of dollars into buying workout DVDs or paying for classes. Gaiam TV has over 2,000 titles with unlimited 24/7 streaming access from your computer, smartphone or iPad.
The service is user friendly, giving you the ability to create playlists, preview videos, and also rate & review. It’s flexible and simple to use, granting you the superpowers to filter your search and customize workouts for weight loss, total body sculpting or increased energy, and narrow down your options based on level, style, instructor and amount of available time.
GAIAM TV ROLLED OUT THE RED CARPET
We’re not talking about some no frills, econo-brand kind of thing. There’s strength & cardio workouts, Pilates, and online Yoga from powerhouse instructors like Rodney Yee (dear gawd, you know I love him), Mari Windsor, Jillian Michaels and Leslie Sansone to name a few.
It’s all very magical. I have my suspicions that Gaiam created their service with sprinklings of unicorn dust to provide us with an extra splenduperful experience. But it’s not just exercise that you’ll get. There’s also a robust library of health & wellness and personal development videos, too.
ARE YOU READY TO TRY OUT GAIAM TV FOR FREE?
It’s pretty dang affordable to get access to Gaiam’s smorgasbord of fitness videos & stuff. You get a 10-day free trial, then it’s only $9.95 a month, and the first 25 people that sign up for Gaiam TV using this link will get a free yoga mat with their subscription. Emm, hellooo! FREE stuff!
You’ll also get zero hassles from Gaiam, because there’s no long term commitments. You can cancel anytime.
This year is coming to a close really fast and 2013 will be here before you know it. How about you kick some booty this fall with the help of Gaiam TV?
This is a sponsored post for Gaiam TV. May thanks to Gaiam for inviting me to try out their service and spread the good news to all the lovely people out there like YOU.
Call it fate or call it misfortune. Call it 21 Levels of Torture?
Call it whatever the hells ya want, but I’ve crossed paths with this bad boy and I’m not backing down.
I’m all signed up for the American Lung Association’s “Fight For Air” stair climbing event this November. Yeee-haaaa! Greedy Kid #2 has agreed to climb with me.
The event is being held to raise awareness of children with asthma, lung cancer, teens who are pressured to smoke, and other situations related to lung disease. Greedy Kid #1 was terribly asthmatic as a youngster. There were many emergency visits to the hospital when she was small. Watching your child struggle to breathe is such a scary thing. ![\"icon](/iconsad.gif "\\"Holy")
Yet Delaware’s tallest building isn’t THAT tall. It’s 21 flights (500 steps). But the event’s “Kilo Climbers”, as they call it, will be climbing the building twice, so that’s 42 flights for 1,000 steps.
I’m registered as a Kilo Climber, of course. That’s how beastmode does it.
This is the building I’ll be climbing… 
I sometimes climb stairs at my job in the winter months as an alternative to lunchtime power walks in the freezing cold. I don’t want my booty cheeks to go numb from the frostbites, ya know. My winter program involves re-climbing the same 4 flights of stairs (there’s obviously a lot of up & down going on), so I’ve easily climbed over 1,000 steps in any given day. But whoa — I’ve never done that in a straight shot up 21 flights before.
I think I’m gonna be fine. I got this, right? I’m gonna make those stairs my beyotch, you say? Well golly gee, thanks for your encouragement.
**All climbers are required to raise a minimum of $100 prior to event day to benefit the American Lung Association. Won’t you be one of my lovely sponsors? Please visit my Fight For Air page to make a tax deductible donation. I appreciate your sponsorific generosity of any amount. ![\"icon](/iconsmile.gif "\\"Holy")
…and now I’m suddenly hyperventilating with increased heartbeats over the thought of 1,000 steps. Somebody slap me.
I decided to treat today like a traditional Sensational Sunday. After an event like FitBloggin’ I could easily find myself in funkville.
So once Little Guy got on the bus I made myself a fun breakfast and grabbed the camera..
Click here to see what I made, a Thai Inspired Basil and Melon Salad with Peanuts. It felt SO good to make my own meal and play around with fun flavors.
Then Little Bean and I had some fun deconstruction the arrangement.
It was a bit of "back to reality" in my messy house with a grumpy toddler.
But we forged ahead and started the laundry.
He’s not really as useful as his Big Brother, YET!
Late morning snack.
I had some yogurt topped with granola and honey.
I also had the BEST company!
When Little Bean went to nap I worked a bit (hey, someone has to plan FitBloggin’13!) and had lunch with The Husband.
I had some leftover pork roast with potatoes and carrots that I made the night before FitBloggin.
Ahhh babies. You clean. They Mess.
It’s a viscous cycle.
Watermelon and Email Snack Break!
Big Brother home from school!
Lawn Mower Races.
Fun afternoon treat!
Little Bean’s Favorite chore!
Loving the Fall weather!
Dinner was a quick Fish Stick plate with peas, broccoli and cauliflower.
That picture CRACKS ME Up! Ryan loves doing fake poses anymore and this was the only one I had all 3 looking at me.
Bath post haircuts.
This will probably be the last bath shot I share. Someone’s getting too old but they were just so cute!
Stories and bed..
Now I’m watching The Revolution (not sold yet) and contemplating going to the gym early tomorrow. I really want to go to bed but sleep sounds so good right now. I’m going to try to get this up asap so I’m well rested. 5:30AM comes awfully fast!
The next 9 Days are going to be INSANE!
Here’s the deal…
Tomorrow I’m juggling The Toddler, conference planning, laundry and Ryan’s first swimming class. Oh and I have a hair appointment. Not quite sure how all that’s gonna work out just yet. yikes!
Saturday, EARLY morning, I’m hoping on a plane and heading to Portland, OR.
Sunday, I’m hoping on a plane and heading home from Portland.
Monday and Tuesday I’ll be putting out FitBloggin’ fires; picking up printed signs, getting back with sponsors, etc., etc., etc., At least I have childcare on Tuesday.
Wednesday is get-the-swag-bags-to-the-hotel day.
Thursday, the fun begins.
Friday and Saturday will be a blur.
Sunday I’ll be breathing a big of sigh of relief and hanging with my babies.
phew!
All I can do is take a deep breath and do what I can, when I can, the best I can.
Right now I’m just trying to keep my butt out of the pantry. I have a huge case of stress munchies happening.
Yes. That’s my “dress” jumpsuit.and what feels like a lifetime later—-we’ve got Listen To Your Mother show videos!
Much like going to Fitbloggin last week the opportunity to be a part of a group of women who just “got” me was amazing.
Powerful.
We were an eclectic group who had little in common outside of the fact we all use the written word as our way to best express ourselves.
Not all of us were mothers. Not all of us were bloggers. Not all of us were performers.
Some of our writings were funny (as in laugh out loud. some of the best writing Ive heard.).
Some of our writings were powerfully sad (as in I choked up. as in it’s very very hard to make me do that with words.)
Some of our writings were both. Rollercoaster rides in three short minutes of happy to despondent to elation (as in that’s a gift I covet.).
I remember coming home from our first table-read, waking Ren Man and telling him:
These women are UNBELIEVABLE. Their writing is stunning. Breathtaking. I cannot believe Im part of this group.
He harumphed and rolled over and went back to sleep.
I know he didn’t ‘get’ what I was saying until the night of the show when he was able to hear for himself. (He thinks Im the best writing he knows. He’s sweet that way.)
I share these videos knowing how much we—the royal—dont much love videos.
Theyre just time consuming in a way blog reading is not.
Still, I urge you to bookmark Wendi’s post for later.
For the weekend or an evening/afternoon when you have a little YOU-time.
Mother, sister, aunt, friend, cousin, nanny, babysitter WOMAN I promise you’ll find a story in there to which you *entirely* relate.
Fantastic time.
Met so many newoldforever friends.
Airplane awaits.
OM feeling more….ME than I have in a while.
OM happy.
OM off to stretch & muddle through some grounding poses on my *own* before packing.
Who am ?!
Our. Tribe. Rocks.
Tags: Fitbloggin blog friends restorative thank you DA Active
This post was written with tears streaming down my face so lets just get that out of the way now.
FitBloggin’12 was nothing short of amazing. I don’t even know where to begin. The last 5 days are a complete blur.
You know what?
I can’t even recap. I just can’t. My brain is mush. I’m an emotional mess. I’m humbled and honored, overwhelmed and and even anxious, in a weird way.
For 3 days I was on the verge of tears. I want to tell you why but it’s so hard to put into words. I held myself together, allowing only my eyes to well, while watching reunions, first time in-person hugs, people going out of their comfort zones, trying new things, experiencing new things, and being truly themselves all in a supportive, welcoming, accepting environment.
And I did hold it together, for the most part. Thankfully I was distracted by all the logistics of actually running the conference! I was too busy to take it all in, until this morning.
That’s when I saw Robby holding this sign after the 5k…
(She was holding it for the Reebok photo booth but I can’t find the actual photo) :(
I lost it.
Tears flowing.
Hard to breathe.
Everything hit me in that moment.
That sign.
That message.
I feel like it’s something I’m teaching and learning all at the same time.
I picked up the sign, found her and all the emotions of the last 3 days just. came. out.
I couldn’t hold it back any longer.
So many people have been thanking me for organizing the conference but they have it wrong.
I need to thank them.
I can’t do what I’m doing without their support or yours! I feel honored and grateful that I am able blog and bring such a community of supportive people together.
I have to admit.
I don’t feel worthy.
I’m not sure where the self-doubt and insecurity comes from. Thankfully, it’s not crippling. I no longer need to feed it by binging on obscene amounts of food just so I feel a sense of fullness instead of the self-induced loneliness.
Instead, I ignore the negative inner voice and move forward despite it. I have taken baby steps that have not only helped me to reach my own weight loss goals but have literally changed my body, my health, my relationships, my career, and my life.
It’s so overwhelming to even think about right now.
So I’m not. :)
Instead I’ll share this photo…
The Husband had an Edible Arrangement sent to the house this afternoon. The card…
How nice was that?!
I spent my Sensational Sunday playing with my kids, napping and being fed strawberries by this Little Guy…
I also added some new inspiration to my office wall…
Note: I’m note sure who wrote the "If I don’t start, I can’t finish!" banner but when I saw it I had to grab it. It captures how I felt at that very moment about the conference and, well, all my accomplishments.
I promise to share more about the conference without getting so deep or emotional. In the mean time you may want to check out these links….
I need to end this post with my expression of gratitude. As I said, so many thanked me and I need to thank so many. So here goes my Emmy’s style thank you.. :)
Thank you Mom for always being my hero. I wouldn’t be here (literally and figuratively) if it wasn’t for you. Thank you Jen for always being there for me. You support me in so many ways that I can’t even explain. Thank you Erin for the amazing work. This year would not have happened without you. Thank you Carrie for being so much more than a photographer and allowing me to take over your house for 2 months.Thank you Jimmy for allowing me not to worry about the 5k or the Swag.Thank you Carla for thinking of me when I was too busy to think of you. I’m sorry.Thank you April, Bill and Miko for just being SO AWESOME. Thank you Sammy for all the help you didn’t think you gave. Thank you Carmen for stepping up and being there for me. Oh! and dealing with my teams craziness. Thank you Bob and Terri for watching the boys during the madness. Thank you Bill for, well, everything. You always support me and I’m so thankful I have you to experience this world with. Oh! and your welcome for the 2 days off work, quiet hotel room and long mornings. ;)OMG I could do this all day! There are just so many people who have supported me and this conference. Thank you everyone who came, spoke, volunteered, and supported the conference this year (including the sponsors!) There are literally too many of you to list! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!
To be honest, I’m a wee bit overwhelmed… distracted… stressed.
In 2 days I’ll be hosting 300 people at FitBloggin’12.
TWO DAYS.
There is a part of me that continuously asks,
“Who do you think you are?”
Why am I doing this? I’m just a mom. A mediocre blogger. A naive, average, regular girl that still doesn’t know what she wants to be or do when she grows up.
I saw the above quote in Portland this weekend and it really stuck with me.
I don’t think there is anything wrong with “Regular,” except when the only thing that holds you back from dreams/goals/accomplishments is your confidence and fear of being “Extraordinary.”
I have felt that fear for a long time.
I’m not claiming I am extraordinary, but I refuse not to give myself the chance simply out of fear and a lack of confidence.
