2012-12-24 SSuM: stay motivated

Personal Health
Taking time out to refresh yourself; mind, body or soul

24 Monday Day 10 Ab Challenge:
No workout.  {completed Tuesday}

25 Tuesday Day 11 Cardio: 
Warm up:
Elliptical 8:17 minutes
Resist 6 / Incline 7 / Calories 89 / Strides 1134

Bikini Body Momma Day 10
8 Count Body Builders for 10 mins

6 Rounds: completed with 8lb db
30 Rounds: completed with 3lb db

Bonus Ab Challenge: 
Goal: 1 minute of "Plank Taps" Each tap = 1 Rep
completed: 40 taps

cardio Completed 9pm
Elliptical: 45 mins / Incline 7 / Resistance 6 / Resistance 6624/ Calories 524

26 Wednesday Fit Test:
Bikini Body Momma Day 12
swapped Friday {rest day} and today's {fit test} Workout

27 Thursday Cardio:

Bikini Body Momma Day 13
Elliptical: 45 mins
Incline 7 / Resistance 6 / Resistance 6624/ Calories 524

28 Friday Bikini Body Momma Day 14
swapped Wednesday {fit test} and today's {rest day} Workout

Fit Test #2
  45r  speed squats    
  33r  high knees
  24r  push ups   {modified}
  23r  squat jumps
  15r  tricep dips
  09r  burpees
  13r  alternating lunges
  50s  elbow plank

22 Saturday:
Bikini Body Momma Day 15
Swapped Repeats -8- for Dancing / cardio

23  Sunday Cardio:
Bikini Body Momma Day 16
Swapped Elliptical cardio for Dancing

Staying Motivated...............................................................................

Working on ways to stay motivated over the next 60 days as I finish up the BBM 90-Day Challenge wihtout making my efforts voided by bad eating.  It's really a struggle, more than I would like to admit, to say no to foods that I know are bad for me.  So this week my challenge to myself and you is to create a motivation board, one that notes your inspirations, affirmations to quote each day to rebuild your mindset and ideals of who you are and who you will become.  If you need help finding affirmations, Sexy is Strong 5-week Challenge gives you one for each day to recite.

This weeks Challenge: create your own Motivational Board!!

SOURCE: TONE IT UP WEBSITE

{Weekend Organizer} Bedroom Overhaul

It seems like I've been living in chaos in my bedroom for months and finally Tuesday I managed to begin the process around 8:30pm Tuesday night.  Once I put away my overflowing laundry basket full of clothes I started clearing out of the room a few of the large items & some little things that were lying around the floor.  As spaced cleared I made sure to vacuum.   

On the second photo you can see that I forgot to snap the before photos before removing some of the main chaos.  I tried playing with my 3 lights and was having a hard time getting the photos to turn out without the light glare even after adjusting my camera phone options and the lighting.  Plus, there wasn't any natural light since it was about 9 at night when I took the photos.  However, I'm super excited about how my stuff animal collection photo turned out {no adjustments required}.

Yes, I'm ashamed to admit that I actually slept in this mess.

After taking a few minutes to sort through my boxes of frames I found a few that I liked for the wall and now I finally have hanging art and I feel like a grown up now.  Now that I found the frames it was time to lay them out to determine how I wanted them to look and then made paper templates that I hung on the wall with blue painters tape.  I also finally got around to wrapping my vintage t-shirt in my larger frame, but I'm not a fan of how it looked on the wall.  So my plan b is to use the tee as a pillow case for my living room since the colors are more on par with the scheme.  

After

I really liked where I had the dresser, but thought that I would try it between the windows, but after moving my bed out of the way I forget about the dresser and ended up liking how my TV looked there on top of my previous bed side table. 

My thrift store finds add a unique and feminine touch all of which I love, especially my $6 mcm jewelry box.  The headband, clear plastic turntable & make-up brushes are from Target.  I also have a gold shelf that will make it's way up on the wall above my workout schedule (where the red owl is currently), which will hold my milk-glass vase with the copper watch and two glass canisters with red lids (seen above in my large dresser photo).

 Plus, my dvd player fits perfectly on the bottom shelf and with the open back it allows the cord and back to stay cool.  I can't believe now how much room I have. 

I hung my copper frame on a nail I used to have my orange clock now located in the kitchen for now and at some point I'll figure out where it's real home will be. My mini fridge stayed in the same location, but found a few things on top. I also found some really amazing vintage curtain panels at the Salvation Army last week. Currently, they are hung, but they will be moving to my main windows, but I will need to go back this week to see if the matching pair is still there.

Check out how clear my floor is.  I even have enough space to workout without tripping over anything.   I'm glad to have repurposed my IKEA TV stand as a bedside bench where I can layout my gym clothes on each night. 

I love the lighting and angle of this photo and that it captures a few of my favorite stuffed animals including my beige GUNN bear {back left} that I've had since I was 4.   I can guarantee that this image will end up on one of my walls very soon.

Here are a few shots of my tall bookcase, which includes my thrifted retro table clock, teddy bear, and Japanese oriental dolls.  The large one was actually given to me from my principle when I attended Japanese school back in the early 80s.

2012-12-17 SSuM: It's a process

I have to keep reminding myself that everyday is part of the process and that each day I keep moving strong I will end up at my goal.

SOURCE

Personal Health
Taking time out to refresh yourself; mind, body or soul

17 Monday:
No workout - Grocery / Meal Prep Day

18 Tuesday: 
cardio
Elliptical - 25 minutes
3402 strides / 6 resistance / 8 incline / 259 calories

Reading:
It Starts with Food pp. 141-152
Tomorrow begins Ch. 14 Veggies and Fruit

Bikini Body Momma Day 4
Complete 1 round of 20 reps each exercise with 10 secs rest inbetween
Except after Exercise #4 and #8 rest 1 minute.

Set 1:
20r  Push Ups {mod.}
20r  High Knees {30sec}
15r  Push Ups {mod.}
19r  High Knees {30sec}

Set 2:
10r Alternating Lunges
12r  Tricep Dips
10r Alternating Lunges
10r  Tricep Dips

Set 3: 
12r Squat Jumps
       Elbow Planks {30 sec}
10r Squat Jumps
       Elbow Planks {30 sec}

19 Wednesday:
Bikini Body Momma Day 5
Today I was supposed to wake up early and complete Day 5, however, I was so zonked from doing a complete overhaul to my bedroom from 8pm - 12:30am that I slept right thr9ough my alarm. My Plan B was to complete it tonight, but I ended up shopping at two thrifty stores, make a return to Marshals, and hit the general store for some much needed household maintenance items. 

20 Thursday:

Today again I passed on working out in the morning.  I was zonked with another late night and thought I'll workout after my chiropractor appt.  I cleaned up a bit before heading upstairs and was really procrastinating the idea of working out since by then it was 8pm and it was getting close to bedtime.  I ended up laying in bed for 20 minutes thinking about working out and then when I saw 8:20pm I had felt a rush of instance to get up and just get dressed.  so I did.  I went downstairs and warmed up on the elliptical for about 10 minutes then headed to my room where I had loads of space {since my bedroom overhaul} to workout and so lead to completing Day AND ALSO writing my workout days on my dry erase calender board.  I even command stripped it to the wall above my dresser and left a dry erase marker close by so I can cross of each day.  

cardio Completed 8:20pm!
Elliptical: 10:40 mins / Incline 7 / Resistance 6 / Resistance 1490 / Calories112

Bikini Body Momma take 2 Day 5
3 Rounds with 10 secs rest in between each exercises, except after #4 rest 1 minute
I only completed 2 rounds.

Circuit 2 Rounds
10r / 10r  Alternating Lunges{full sets}
07r / 06r  Burpees
20r / 16r  Push Ups {mod.}
30s / 30s High Knees {30 seconds; completed 21r each time}
10r / 10r  Tricep Dips
20r / 20r Speed squats
10r / 10r  Squat Jumps
1 m / 1m  Elbow Planks

rest 2 minutes after each round

21 Friday Bikini Body Momma Day 6
45 MINS OF CARDIO
Elliptical: 50 minutes/ Incline 7 / Resistance 6 / Strides 6760 / Calories 520

Dancing

22 Saturday:
Bikini Body Momma Day 7
I took the lazy way and chose not to workout

23  Sunday:
Bikini Body Momma Day 8
I finally got to my workout around 7 tonight, but I completed my cardio day and even fit in yesterdays workout.

warm up: Elliptical - 5:48
                 6 resistance / 7 incline
                 828 strides / 112 calories

Bikini Body Momma Day 9
8 Count Body Builder
Perform as many rounds (positions 1-8 = 1 rep) as you can
completed 42 rounds

yesterday's cardio: Elliptical - 45 min
                 6 resistance / 7 incline
                 6708 strides / 514 calories

2012-12-23 Paleo Delight

Yummy Breakfast Omelet

After having a delicious ham, sausage and veggie omelet at the Diner last Friday I decided this week I would add some meat to my veggie omelet and wow, what a difference it made in the flavor. I had purchased a lean Turkey Bacon from our Giant Grocer. My preference for Turkey sausage is Jeane-O's Turkey Sausage, but I can only purchase that at Wegman's and I wasn't heading in that direction on my grocery day. Pretty much this omelet has Turkey Sausage, Green peppers, tomatoes, black pepper, mushrooms, and a 1/2c liquid eggs {regular} and 1/2c liquid egg white {Mexican flavor}, because the Mexican liquid eggs were a bit much and so I thought I would tone them down by adding the regular mix. This serves 2. I also had a banana for a side. Very delicious and I would definitely make this combo again.

Slow Cooker Chicken Curry by Sweet Treats and More

This actually turned out pretty bland for me as I was expecting a bit more punch.  I even added more curry and some crushed red peppers, but that didn't help.  The funny thing was everyone at work was telling me how good it smelled and my roommate said our house smelled good for several hours after I made it, but I couldn't smell it until it was about 2" from my nose and even then it didn't smell of this amazing aroma everyone was telling me that smelled.   Though it may have been, because my curry was int eh slow cooker about 2-3 hours longer then the directions noted, but I wasn't getting up at 3am to shut it off.   I will attempt to make this one more time, but for now it's not really something I would make with excitement again. 

Burger Pattie with Side Salad

I wanted a simple dinner, so I purchased premade patties from the organic section {just to lazy to make them myself} and ate a side salad with cucumbers, mixed greens, broccoli, cauliflower, and Annie's Poppy Seed Dressing.  I'm sure the burgers and the poppy seed dressing are not on the Paleo approved list, but this week that 's what I wanted and it was yummy.  

Kitchen Progress & Vintage Finds

I'm so uber excited to show you my updated shot for this counter area, even though the counters have yet to be updated, because of my new-to-me canisters I scored at the Salvation Army last night for $6.  I couldn't believe my eyes last night when I saw these, it was love at first sight, seriously.  The more it was meant to be proven moment was that this wasn't even on our docet for the night.  We had actually planned on only going to the Community Aid, but traffic was ugly even at 6:45pm, so we detoured here and donated some our unwanted household items that we've been stacking up for the last month.

before post at  Kitchen State of Mind 

At the moment their empty and serve no other purpose, but looking amazing on my countertops, but I have some time to think about what I want to store in them.  I do have to be careful what I store in them, since they don't contain any seal so any dry ingredients that aren't individually wrapped will have to be stored inside a ziplock.   

Resources of Note:
paper towel holder: tj maxx
Venti -20- Mug: Marshalls
Towel rail: IKEA BYGOL

Thrifty Finds: 
Owl spoon rest
owl votive holder
measuring spoon / cups

{Weekend Organizer} Clean the Couch

Finally!  My large chase for my sectional has been cleaned! Ever since I came across a pinterest DIY for this I was like, YESSSS, totally need to clean it.  It took me a couple of months to gather the supplies, because I kept forgetting what I needed to pick up and then finding the time and energy to want to complete this hefty task.

COUCH: AFTER CLEANING

Though I have to say that my couch really wasn't that dirty, as it's been shampooed at least twice since we purchased it from another family off Craigslist back in March so it looked nothing like the stained couch in the pinterest posting.  Nonetheless, I still wanted to try this method....maybe, just maybe it would keep my dog from licking the couch and leaving wets huge spots, I know gross.  Plus, I wanted to stop using a sheet to cover the couch - looked totally tacky  - to keep him from doing so and I wanted to sell it so I could buy a loveseat that would fit better in the space as this piece is 7' long and 5' would be more appropriate.

I started by pouring the alcohol into a spray bottle and then moved the sectional to an open space.  I then removed all the cushion and began to clean the back of the couch,  the very back of the couch, the seat cushion, and lastly the back cushions.  Overall the cleaning wasn't to bad, but the smell of alcohol did permeate in the main floor for a while.  I was pretty content with the end results, and overall it took about it an hour to complete.  Next time I think I'm going to use a white or beige colored sponge that doesn't have an abrasive side so that I can see more of the dirt.  It was a bit hard to see any dirt on the purple sponge, or it could have been that it wasn't as dirty as I thought it would be.

Eventually, I would like to sew a cover for my couch, but at the present time I don't have any sewing skills to even try to attempt this task so cleaning it for now is at least a step forward.  Plus, the cover will help to add some contrast to my very neutral living space.

{60 Minute} DONATED

It feels so good to finally clear out a few more things and here is about a months' worth of stuff that we donated to the Salvation Army.  There is still more to go through and either donate or sell as part of our Remove the unused to Improve the quality of our life Project. 

2012-12-17 SSuM: Beleive In Yourself

Sorry for the late posting this week, but I've been trying to figure out what I really want to do with this feature and I'm still kind of unsure. I know I want it to be a way to motivate with quotes and things that I know that I struggle with lately like staying active, eating well, and going to bed early so I can rise early. However, I also thought it would be nice to have one place where I can track my workouts for the week. Whatever this feature ends up being I want it be simple since I have so many other to-do's that I also need to get done during the week.

Reviewing from last weeks SSuM I talked about getting up early and for about half of the week I accomplished that goal, but a few of the nights I headed to bed way to late and skipped my morning workout.  Though Thursday I started a 90-Day Challenge at Bikini Body Momma and so far it's a bit much for my fitness level, but I'm breaking it down so it's not overkill for me.   I love that she has each day posted on fb as a jpg so You can just copy each day into work and print out 2 days on one sheet and be ready to take it wherever you go.  They are mostly interval workouts that so far has only required your body, a chair and a workbench which is helpful for  dips, but a chair would be sufficient. 

I know I need to set a bed time and stick to it.  I remember reading a post about someone turning off all electronics by 9pm so she could be in bed by 10pm, which would be great if I can get myself to do the same.  I think my main issue is just not believing in myself, that 1) I can be healthy 2) I can do this and succeed and 3) I can be my version of skinny {135lbs & toned}.  So here is a poster I found today that's bright and simple.  I plan on posting this in on my fridge and in my bedroom.

SOURCE

Personal Health:

Monday:
No workout

Tuesday:
No workout

Wednesday:
Bikini Body Momma Day 1 Fit Test
  50 sec x 10 sec rest complete 1 round then repeat 2 x
  It kicked my butt so I only completed 2 rounds.  Plus, I knew I didn't want to overkill
  since I   haven't done much in plyometic workouts in a few months.

  40r  speed squats    
  28r  high knees
  18r  push ups   {modified}
  11r  squat jumps
  14r  tricep dips
  08r  burpees
  10r  alternating lunges
  40s  elbow plank

Elliptical   7:22 min
                 966 strides
                 5 resistance 7 incline 75 calories

Thursday:
Bikini Body Momma Day  2

I missed my morning workout and slept in, so I completed an 30-minute elliptical workout {3962 strides 7 resistance 8 incline 220 calories} sometime after 7pm and finally got to this workout closer to 8pm.  The workout called for 3 rounds, but at the designated reps there was no way I was going to finish so I cut down the reps to what I could handle and at only 2 rounds.  By doing this I was able to not overdue it and still get my morning run in tomorrow without being so sore that I c wont want to move.

20r / 20r  speed squats {20r}
30s / 30s  elbow plank {30 sec}
15r / 10r  push-ups {20r}
06r / 06r  burpees {10r}
10r / 06r  alternative lunges {20r}
30s / 30s  elbow plank {30 sec}
10r / 10r  tricep dips {20r}
10r / 10r  squat jumps {20r}

Friday:
Bikini Body Day 3 Cardio 
  Run {4 min} Walk {2 min} Intervals
  24:39 255 cal {12:16 avg mile} 2.01 miles
  I ran out of time to do the full 45 minutes, but I still managed to get a short run in,
  and not bad for still getting up early and doing brisk air run.

Saturday:
Active Rest Day

Sunday:
Rest Day

2012-12-16 Paleo Delight

Paleo Cranberry Muffins by Easy Peasy

I'm very glad at how these turned out even though I forgot to add the cranberries and pumpkin seeds before baking them.  I really did have all good intentions to add them, but I got distracted working on some other recipes and realized half way through baking that I had missed adding them so I ended up with almond meal coconut muffins instead.  These were pretty basic to make and the outcome was very tasty and evenly baked.  My last muffins turned out awlful so i was glad to see such perfection in the visual outcome and almost taste (since I didn't have the cranberries)

Zucchini Salad by Delighted Momma
paired with Salmone Burgers from The Healthy Chef

A pretty simple recipe to make, especially if you're not in the mood to cook.  Just wash, remove the skin and julienne your zucchini and then blend the sauce ingredients in your blender and chow down.   I don't eat much zucchini, and usually it's baked so I wasn't sure how it would taste, but I definitely enjoyed this for my lunch this week and the sauce despite how it looks is rather tasty.

For the Salmon patties I used canned Wild Caught Salmon mainly because I had it on hand and I forgot to thaw my frozen Salmon.   I had actually made these for last weeks dinner, but ended up eating something else, which worked great because they were a great compliment to the Zucchini salad.   I also topped it with some of my favorite salsa from our Giant Grocer. 

Spaghetti Squash Salad from Sydney Franics make Zine

This, also was super easy and made for a quick dinner for the week and lunch on Friday.  Basically, the only cooking required was baking the squash, after cutting it in half, at 375 degrees for 50 minutes.  This recipe was pretty vague and being that I've not baked spaghetti squash before I did have to do some extra research to know what temperature and how long to cook it.  Once it's done you can add your spices,olive oil and sliced cherry tomatoes and yum.

2912-12-12 Missing Mortar

After almost a year we finally decided to tackle the basement.  Though I wish I could say that our reasoning was because we were ready to tackle this project, but it was based on seeing a 4 legged fuzz ball racing across the floor.  On day 1 it took us 8 hours to sort through half of the basement, which included sweeping up mouse droppings, lose concrete and dust from the eroding mortar between the brick foundation then sending everything through into the shop vac.  

On day 2 we added our extra toiletries into 15 shoeboxes we purchased from Walmart for 97 cents each.  I would normally buy the same color lid and bin to keep it cohesive, but I really liked the look of the white lids with the blue transparent boxes.  I wanted to use pretty labels, but for now I have to settle for index cards and scotch tape.  

We were able to clean up most of the mouse droppings and mop up most of the remaining dust, but there is still much work to be done in order to keep the dust from building up again.  Plus, during our clean up we realized that the mortar between the brick foundation was pretty much non-existent and the next major project on our list.  I was told a professional would have to repoint it, so I contacted my handy man who was able to tackle the stair wall Saturday.  It took him 11 hours {2 days} to remorter the wall and fill in the broken and cut out area of concrete on the floor. 

 Here is a small section of the nonexistant mortar in our brick foundation for the side walls that connect to the outside townhomes.   

Here is an upclose of the the holes that some of the mice came through.

Here is a section of concrete that was left open.  My handy man said it looked like their had been a wall here that had been taken down when the city did their renovations prior to the previous owner, who I purchased the townhome from.  This area really needed to be filled in, because it's right in the middle of where I want my workbench and I didn't want to twist my ankle.  there were also a few missing bricks on the floor base that he brought in some extra bricks he had on hand to fill in the space

Now that he's tackeled the hard part, I'll be taking care of painting on the drylock, an estimated 2 coats before it's done and then we can move everything back against the wall and in January work on the other wall.  Between now and then well be dusting up in the ceiling to take care of the dust build up there before we add clear plastic tarts to the ceiling.  We hope that in doing this will be able to keep the dust down and not have to keep everything in plastic tubs to keep it from getting dirty. 

p.s.
I keep forgetting to take after photos.  I will post them sometime next week, as I would like to catch some daylight time maybe Saturday for a better photo without flash since the lighting is not so great.