Halloween Scare at the Doctors!

Just had to share:

A little Halloween scare! I went to the OB/GYN today for a check up and my nurse said I'm almost dead!!

Haha but it was because my BP was 94/64 which puts both my systolic and diastolic pressures in the low normal/athlete range! Last year, only my systolic was in that range. I like being here, as I feel I have little risk of dealing with TOO low a BP.

Also, I officially weighed in at 122 (after breakfast!) which is 9 pounds less than I weighed in May of 2012.

Feeling good and healthy and like I've been doing all the right things for myself (body and spirit) this year.

Happy Halloween!!!!!

This darling girl was left on my front porch last night!

Not a zombie anymore!

Last night I had my first good night of sleep in over a week. Amazing. I am so grateful! I will never take good sleep for granted again. I was starting to feel like a robot zombie or something, an irritable person just going through the motions, wanting the day to end so I could try and sleep again. Not ideal!

Woke up at 8 AM after 9 whole hours of steady sleep.. feeling happy, smiley and full of energy. Love!

Last night, I did cheat, and gained .2 pounds because of it - but it is probably bloating because my cheat was CHEESE. I should NOT have cheese (but oh heavenly delicious cheese!)... I am very lactose intolerant and it always makes my stomach upset. Always. But I can only seem to stay away for a month or so before I throw caution to the wind and give it another go. Bah.

So it wasn't paleo, but it wasn't garbage cheese (it was a gorgeous lovely smoked local cheddar) so if I wasn't lactose intolerant, I wouldn't even be feeling like I shouldn't have had it!

Oh well!

Hoping for a better performance from myself tonight. Friends are ordering the Phish show to stream on TV and having a bunch of people over in costumes to celebrate Halloween. I will not eat their processed candy (especially since my husband sent me beautiful truffles in the mail!... no reason to eat crap chocolate when I have handmade gourmet chocolate right here, muahahahaha). But I hope they don't put out much else to snack on just so I don't have to work so hard on avoiding temptation!!

One big positive this week: no alcohol!

I've been able to stick to that really well. We, obviously, drank on our honeymoon, whenever we wanted to! So it is really easy to abstain now and that does wonders for my metabolism and bloating issues. Alcohol is not my friend in health.

Might post a picture of me in costume tonight if I get a chance :)

Namaste <3

Tiredness > Hunger > Candy ???

I haven't been mentioning it here on the blog, but I am feeling really sleep deprived!! Things just haven't gone back to normal since I got home from Japan. Lots of weird nightmares and waking up not knowing where I am, waking up at 3 or 4 AM and not being able to fall back asleep, etc. This is leading to daytime naps and general fatigue. So weird!

I'm working on it: limiting caffeine, trying to fight naps, going to bed at a reasonable time, all that. But my system got screwy and it seems like it is going to take some time to get back on track.

Oh well!!

In the meantime, I am really fighting the HUNGER that comes with tiredness. (Man, that correlation sucks)

I've done a good job so far by drinking lots of water, as I am back down to 120.8 this morning but I worry about Halloween!! CANDY!

I don't bring candy into the house but I am hanging out with friends tonight and tomorrow who I know have huge bowls of crappy, processed, delicious, addictive candy in their houses.

Easy solution: don't go.

But not a good, healthy, sane decision! I need people in my life, especially because Chris is gone for the week. I need to socialize, chat, laugh, etc. I get sad when I'm alone for too many days. This is my third day at home with just the animals for company. I need humans!

So, what?

Well, I'm putting it out there on this blog that I will NOT eat any candy tonight or tomorrow. If I put it out there in the world then I have a better chance of success. I don't know if I'll be perfect or succeed, especially since I am battling with this tiredness and hunger but damn it I will try my best. I'm worth not filling my body with crap (and now I just have to really believe it!!!!).

I am where I want to be for Sunday, all I have to do is stay here!

I'm going to visualize myself on the tattoo table, in front of people, torso bared. I will visualize myself trim, not bloated, healthy and proud.

I watched some episodes of the Biggest Loser yesterday and Jillian said something to the effect of "If you have a WHY, the how won't matter." I really liked that. My WHY is comfort in front of people and pride in myself. I have up to 8 hours to get tattooed on Sunday, I really want to feel good in those hours (especially since its my MARRIAGE tattoo- I don't want bad feelings associated with that!!)

Okay, off to grab a yogurt and walk the dog! Start the day off right to end it right :)

Namaste!

Activity all day

So barring physical disabilities or other such maladies, there's not a ton of excuses for not fitting activity into your day in some way, shape or form!

For example, I had jury duty downtown this morning (where I am sitting as I type waiting for it to begin!) about 3 miles away from home. They have parking next door for 7 dollars or I could take the bus for about a dollar. But the fit person (and the cheap person!) inside me made me ride my bike :)

That was after I gave the dog his morning walk- the blood is moving, my muscles feel loosened, and my brain feels good! I really, really am not the type of person to set aside gym time (too much bother getting ready, getting there, doing it, cleaning up, getting home, blah). I am rather the type of person who will choose  any opportunity to be active within my daily life- with the dog, taking stairs instead of elevators, choosing to bike to work or errands, walking to a friends house for dinner. Better for the environment (no gas wasted!) and better for my body.

It's a big change from years ago. I drove everywhere, sat whenever I could, played fetch with the dog instead of walking him, etc.

I never could maintain a lower weight till I made this a part of life and not something to do on the side. Walking isn't something I have to "fit in" or make sure I get enough steps. I use these legs all day, often as I can. It's my body and I'm going to use it while I have it!!!

Back down to 121.4 after a day of clean eating. Wow, junk food makes me bloat fast! 

Hoping to be right at 120 on Sunday for my tattoo session. That means no drinking on Halloween, oh well :) I can still have a fun evening with friends!

Ok, off to jury duty (it's grand jury so I'm glad I don't have to decide anyone's final fate.. Big pressure there..)

Namaste, friends!!

Why are the Japanese trim?

Back in the US for less than a week and I am up a pound!! Ah, well. I know why. I have been EXHAUSTED and seriously jet-lagged. My exercise has dropped from walking about ten miles a day in Japan to almost nothing.

But I felt better this morning. Got a (mostly) normal night of sleep and feel I have normal energy again. Took the dog on his normal walk, ate a yogurt, had some coffee and was on with my day!

Before I share pictures with you, I wanted to share something I think I realized while in Japan.

Of course, I was going there wondering why the people are, for the most part, trim and don't have the same type of obesity problem we have here in the states.

Was it their diet?

I don't think it's the diet (though it IS rich with good omega fats in the fresh fish and has a ton of anti-oxidants). The food is pretty average as far as healthy goes, I think... there was noodles and rice and bread GALORE. Seriously. Finding a salad was a chore!

What I did notice was the WAY they eat. There was this unspoken societal rule that you only eat and drink when you are sitting down. I asked my tour guide about it when I noticed 1) there was rarely trash in the streets and 2) no one drinking even coffees in the street.

He said it was a matter of respect. You sat down and ate your meal or drank you drink. 

Awesome! I loved this. It made you so much more aware of what you were eating, how much you were eating AND it made certain that you were really hungry because if you are in a rush, you will probably only take time to sit and eat if you actually need it. Here, at home, we all can so easily shove snacks in our face as we run into work. But over there, I never saw anyone eating that way.

Also, the traditional dinners we were served had really normal portion sizes!

Big difference from home, for sure. I always felt satisfied and nourished after a traditional meal, but never really full. It was okay, I was fed and had energy, that's all that matters :)

So here's a look at my trip in pictures:

Wearing a traditional yukata to dinner in the ryokan in Takayama!

Traditional dinner served by the owner

Snow monkeys in Nagano!!

Matsumoto Castle :)

Golden Pavilion in Kyoto

Japanese lanterns at night :)

Some of the sushi we ate

Sake Brewery tour, yeah!

Climbed to the top of a little mountain in Takayama to get a look at the Japanese Alps in the distance!

And that is about 5% of my pictures and 5% of what I did in Japan. It was a whirlwind, full, amazing trip that I am incredibly happy with.

I'm happy I came home healthy and am really excited to resume normal life (nothing like a long trip in a foreign country to make you appreciate home!).

I want to lose this extra pound I gained over the weekend, especially because I am getting a tattoo on my ribs next Sunday and want to look my best when I show it off! So completely paleo and back to normal activity levels this week.

Namaste <3

Tokyo

I wanted to share some parts of our trip with you all, since I was missing for two weeks, I wanted to give you an idea of what I was up to!! I took about 3000 pictures and visited 7 cities (and many different sites IN those cities) so I am only going to give you a brief snapshot of my trip. Anything too detailed and I may bore you and it would take up WAY too much time. 

So, Tokyo. AWESOME! I loved Tokyo. It wasn't too hard to find our way around on the train system and we got to visit all of the main neighborhoods in central Tokyo. We visited the Meiji shrine, saw the Harajuku neighborhood, crossed the busiest intersection in the world, walked through the Imperial gardens, visited the National Museum, and more!

It was very modern (mixed with the ancient in a really cool way) and was so interesting every single moment. I loved our hotel room (on the 23rd floor with a great view of the city AND Mt. Fuji) and just had a lot of fun. We traveled for about 42 hours to get there but I didn't feel TOO jet-lagged as I slept really hard the second we arrived, haha.

Here's a glimpse in pictures:

Our reflection in our hotel room window... you can see the city in the distance and our to-go meal :D

Me at a government building that has an observatory, 360 degree view of Tokyo

 

Zojoji Temple and Tokyo Tower

Costumed people in the train station

Gardens

Dinner!!

Yes, I bought a kimono :D

Street fair at Ueno Park

National Museum at Ueno Park

Buddhist Cemetery

We had two days in Tokyo... I wish I had more, I really loved it and felt really comfortable there. And there is SO MUCH to see and do and eat and drink :D But we had a lot more of Japan to visit!!!

I am finally feeling less jet-lagged today. The past two days, I took lots and lots of naps, had weird sleep at night, and couldn't seem to get on a normal schedule. I woke up at 5 AM today but am determined not to nap so I can get back to a normal schedule!

One more night at home with my husband before he starts traveling for work again, so off I go to enjoy!

Peace <3

Post Vacation Weigh In

First, here's a picture off at the Fushimi Inari shrine in Kyoto (they filmed parts of Memoirs of a Geisha here). This shrine was sooo beautiful, with thousands of orange Torii gates winding up and up and UP a hill (we were sweating by the time we got to the top) and tons of little shrines to see along the way.

But this was on our last day. I will do a post with some pictures from the start of our trip (Tokyo) soon. But I am still jet lagged and getting realllllllllly tired during the day. Lots of sleeping the past two days!

But anyway, I decided to weigh in, just to see how my weight was doing. Remember I said I wanted to maintain my weight while on vacation? I was scared I didn't because I ate a LOT. Lots of gluten products, too (bakeries are super common in Japan! They love their sweets). And bread/rice/noodles were a lot more common to find than a meat and veggie meal. I also drank my fair share of Asahi beer (mmm, new favorite beer).

I weighed in today at 6 PM, for some odd reason I just got the urge to, even though I usually weigh in around 8 AM after waking up, post-bathroom, pre-food.

But, still, I weighed exactly 121 pounds!!!!

Success!!

No weight gain (as I was weighing 120-121 consistently for the week leading up to vacation). :D

Feeling great. I thought I had eaten too much on vacation, but I was also insanely active (around 10 miles of walking a day!), so I guess it all evened out. I tried to eat salads when I could, but the lure of nice meals with my husband on honeymoon called to me. I'm glad to see that even though I indulged, I didn't go crazy and maintained my weight.

Just wanted to let you all know!

Namaste <3

The Return!

Wow.

Japan!

I'm home and SO GRATEFUL to be home. I loved Japan and had an amazing trip of a lifetime, but home is still the nicest place to be :)

I wanted to drop you all a quick line to let you know I am safe and home. I need a day of recovery time, though, because it was about 40 hours straight of traveling yesterday (and the day before I guess... with the time change, it was technically only the 23rd that I traveled, but the 23rd was 38 hours long for us because of the time zones!!).

I am healthy, happy and my spirit is full. Cleaning the house, giving affection to the animals, and just generally getting life back in order.

I ate tons of rice and noodles the last two weeks - I am SO excited to be eating paleo today. We ran to the grocery at 7 AM this morning (as we had literally NO food in the house) and ate eggs and veggies for breakfast :) Sweet potatoes are roasting up!

Pictures and stories and other stuff to come. I will catch up on some blogs tonight, sorry if I don't comment for a few days, I want to get caught up.

Namaste <3

Leaving on a Jet Plane...

All packed and ready for Japan! We are going to grab a few hours of sleep (hopefully) before heading to the airport around 3 AM (hahahaha oh man).

We will probably have wireless access here and there in a few places (especially the first few days when in Tokyo), but obviously won't be using that to blog a lot or anything (no offense, my friends!). I promised family and friends I would check in on social media to reassure them that we arrived safely, etc.

May be a picture or two posted from me in the next two weeks, but I don't expect much more. I won't be reading your blogs, either, so just know I hope everyone is thriving and happy!!!

My goals: have the time of my life!, make memories that will last a lifetime with my husband, and come home just as healthy and happy as I leave it :)

Peace and Love to you all <3

Routine Walks

Busy day ahead. Getting the last things ready for our trip, a meeting to go to, a welcome home party for a friend, spending quality time with Koda before we leave!

Isn't he handsome?? :)

I REALLY love the routine I have with him. Walking almost three miles at the start of my day is awesome. Really, really awesome. Sets me up really nicely for a great day.

Ten years ago I would have LAUGHED and LAUGHED if someone tried to tell me I would really enjoy waking up and hitting the pavement to walk for an hour, rain or shine, cold or warm.

But it's my favorite part of the day, usually, now.

Getting my blood moving, getting fresh air in my lungs, spending nice times with my furry buddy, seeing people and animals about in the morning? Love.

I feel so connected to my body, to my dog, to my neighborhood, to the changing of the seasons.

All because of a little routine walk. And that's really the key, isn't it? Routine, habit. I don't think twice about getting dressed and prepping for the walk. I just do it. And almost always come home with a smile on my face!

It took a lot of changes to get where I am - the level of activity, the way I eat, etc. Changes that happened over years and years. But here I am (weighing 120.4 this morning) finding this way of life easy and natural.

Again, I would have laughed if you told me I'd live this way and LIKE it ten years ago.

But I do :)

Namaste, friends.

My eats for the day:

I had jury duty today (and every Tuesday till the end of the year- excluding my vacation!).

It was my first day and I was sort of rushed- had to get my dog walk in early, snarf some breakfast, throw a lunch together and bike ride 3 miles downtown (to avoid parking issues!).

Not used to early days, haha - love me some sleeping in!

But even with being rushed in the morning and not being home all day, I had a great day of eating:

My calorie "goal" of 1235 you see isn't really my real goal. It's the amount of calories I'd have to eat to hit 119 by Friday. It's unrealistic. When I change to goal to, say 119 by three Fridays from now, it will say my goal is more like 1650. I try to stay within 1500-1800 calories per day in reality!

Small, rushed breakfast!

Ate an early dinner and then yogurt and chocolate more towards real dinner time! The banana was eaten around 11AM because my breakfast was small.

Great percentages for me! Try to stay around 50 or less% carbs and 25% each protein and fat!

More packing/prepping for Japan tomorrow!

Namaste :)

Hitting goal before Japan

Weigh in today: 120.2

I hadn't told you I had made another goal, and that was to be back at 119 by the time I left for Japan (this coming Friday). It wasn't a hard goal, but 119 is the low end of my weight range and a little more difficult to achieve - it requires more effort and planning on my part.

I want to be at the low end of my range so I can feel rockstar going on vacation and, the better I feel about myself? Well, the better I treat myself. It's weird - it is easier to have healthy behaviors when I am already healthy! (I guess that's not weird, but I wish it wasn't so true, haha).

But if I am feeling strong, healthy and trim, I know I will be more moderate in Japan than if I felt like "why bother, it's too hard!"

I came home the same weight on my last big two week trip to British Columbia, I also didn't gain weight on my wedding weekend - I am sure I can come back from Japan around 119-121! There is a couple days of hiking and one day with a bike ride in the vacation, and the rest of the days include lots of walking! My ideal situation :)

So, yeah, Japan! There will OBVIOUSLY be radio silence from me starting Friday, since I am not risking any crazy charges on my phone from using it in Asia.

I'm really lucky that I have a roommate right now, we waived his rent for the month and he is watching our dog, cat and house for us while we are gone. Relieves a lot of anxiety about worrying about the pets and the house.

We will be flying into Tokyo, staying for a couple days, heading up to Nagano, then Matsumoto, then Takayama, then Kurashiki then Kyoto. Highlights are the Zenkoji temple, watching snow monkeys bathe in hot springs and going to the town where women still practice traditional geisha arts!

I also intend to eat completely traditional food (no stopping at an Americanized fast food place in Tokyo for me!).. definitely not paleo but Japanese people are so trim and small, I have hopes that if I eat like them, perhaps I will not come back ten pounds heavier, haha :)

So this week will be full of nerves while I wait to go!

Namaste, friends <3

Hiking, paleo dinner party and dessert!

I'm having a great weekend with my little family! Cozy, happy, healthy :)

6 mile hike on Saturday:

We also had a paleo dinner with friends (smoked brisket and coleslaw) last night and I made a paleo dessert: apples coated in honey and cinnamon/nutmeg and sautéed in coconut oil and maple syrup, tossed with pecans/shredded coconut/currants.

Needless to say, it was a huge hit :D

Weight is at 121 today- maintaining is coming along well! No deprivation but definitely some restraint involved.

We are taking a walk with Koda and a friend soon, stopping at a harvest festival and starting to pack for Japan!

Hope everyone is savoring family, friends, pets and/or nature this weekend!!!!

The day didn't start off so well....

Woken up by the dog barking because he had pooped on the floor (still has accidents, but it's obvious he didn't WANT to poop inside), the cat puked, it is raining and cold and all the things seem to be going wrong...

Payment for the MOST beautiful and perfect and idyllic past few days??

Maybe, haha. Ah, well. Took the dog on a slightly shorter and much wetter walk, anyway. Going to hunker down and chill out inside with a warm cup of coffee and inside tasks for the rest of the day (super glad I did the painting earlier in the week!).

My eats so far:

Breakfast - lots of water and coconut milk yogurt

Lunch - about 4 ounces roasted chicken and a cup of roasted sweet potatoes/carrots/onions

My weight is up a little to 122. Expected since I've been struggling a little with eating paleo (though still eating almost completely clean - no processed junk food for me, that's really off the table at this point).

Not stressed about it. I know how to get back in control and I will. And I still really like my body and my weight here :) The only reason 122 makes me want to pull the reins back is because that can very easily morph into 125, then 130, then 133, then 137 and so on till I am right back where I started a couple years ago!

My long term goal is to stay between 118 and 122. Still there today, will be there tomorrow :) (Can you tell I am trying very hard to be positive? It is difficult when it is gloomy out, you know?)

Short term goal: come back from Japan without having gained weight - especially because I am getting a huge tattoo on my ribs that I will want to show people in November (and it would be nice to look fit and healthy when I pull my shirt up!).

So, the day didn't start off so well. But will end well if I have anything to say about it!

Have a good day, friends. Namaste <3

Yeah, I'm crazy, so?

So I panicked for no reason really about being able to have children yesterday. I don't know why. I always thought that if I had kids, I did. If I didn't, I didn't. I'd still enjoy life no matter what.

But everyone around me is getting pregnant and I'm a woman and I have that biological clock and all - so I have a mini panic attack (which was fun for Chris when he came home and I almost demanded we immediately make a baby ^.^ hahaha).

Came to my senses, going to wait another year, try to get established in a job, have some good income and good savings and get a little more settled here in the house (I'd like to get new windows and do a little more painting before we get pregnant!).

ANYWAY

Other life news: having a hard time staying paleo. I'd say I'm more at around 75-80% paleo during the day/week at this point. Going to try and detox a little (got a little sugar addicted and I just want MORE MORE MORE all the time).

We have a social night for a hiking group we are in tonight - it's at a local bar, but I think I am going to order seltzers and abstain from alcohol. I need to give my body a longer break from those sugars/grains.

Weighed in at 121.2 today and still loving my body!

Even though I have strayed a little from strict paleo (90ish%), I am staying REALLY active because this weather is AMAZING. Ah.Maz.Ing. Seriously. It's been 50ish at night, 70ish during the day, the wind is cool, the sun is warm, the leaves are turning. I have to be outside all the time. Walks with the dog, walks with Chris, walking to a friend's house, walking to the coffee shop, etc. Lots of pleasant yoga times, as well.

Here is a picture of our newly painted porch (it used to be a peeling, dingy maroon color - LOVING this bright, full-of-life green!). I also painted our flower boxes BRIGHT yellow :D :D :D They are still drying, but will be mounted back onto the porch today.

Peace and Love, my friends.

October

Well! October, you came up fast! (Above picture is the first Halloween decorations put up in my neighborhood, haha)

The year is flying by. In some ways, I've gotten a lot done and life is better (lost the last bit of weight, spruced up the house, trained the dog, got married).

In some ways, life is stagnant (can't seem to get work done on my dissertation, no full time job).

But, that's life? I guess! 

I am just getting nervous- that I will never have kids, that I waited too long (I'm 31) and if I do manage to have kids, that I won't be able to support them!

Sigh.

I don't know how to live, not really! I'm trying all the time though :)

Short post today- I'm kind of in an anxious spiral and just wanted to get some thoughts out!

Namaste, friends.