Today was one of those mixed bag kind of days. I got some things done, let some things slide. You’ll have those.

I’ve noticed that my “rest days” tend to follow that pattern. I think the exercise endorphins fuel me on the more productive days. Maybe I’ll set aside that hour of rest days for something equally enjoyable that doesn’t involve sweating a lot. Or cupcakes.

Oh, and speaking of cupcakes, according to this article, cupcakes may be losing their cool factor. I’m hoping this is just another case of irresponsible journalism. (Assuming yahoo Shine can be considered journalism. They did make up for the ugly article, a little, with this article about wellness-promoting iphone apps.)

Anyway, back to rest days…when I was first starting this fitness quest and was exercising vigorously, I followed the must-exercise-every-single-day path that so many neophytes choose. I was afraid if I missed a day, I’d lose my momentum, plus I was convinced I was helping myself by burning extra calories. After about the fifth week of that, my body rebelled. I was sore, fatigued, and stalled in my weight loss. That’s when I listened to the folks who had been telling me I needed the rest day (sorry, trainers, you were right; I was wrong. But I already told you that.)

Today’s rest day replacement activity was time spent with my parents and grandmother. While enjoyable, to say the least, it didn’t fire me up the way exercise does. :) There was some excitement, when my grandmother (Memaw) showed off her first watermelon of the season:

watermelon and small black dog

Memaw's First Watermelon, admired by Daisy Dog

This thing was so huge that Memaw had trouble lifting it (she’s 90, after all, and I think it was the girth as much as the weight), so she rolled it into her gardening wagon for transport. She’s so proud of it as she’s never had luck raising watermelons. I felt bad when she challenged me to “try to lift it” and I, of course, picked it right up. In retrospect, I think I should have pretended to struggle a little. It IS a heavy melon, but for someone 40 years younger, not too heavy to lift. Oh well, she still invited me to come down this weekend for the grand cutting. No matter how it tastes, it will be the best watermelon I ever had. ;)

And tomorrow it’s back to the gym. I’ve had two 1-hour gym workouts this week and two 1-hour walks. I usually like to vary the workout times, mixing shorter workouts and longer ones to keep my body wondering what’s next, but for some reason, this week has been all even-steven. Tomorrow I may try splitting the workout with a half-hour on the weights and a half-hour (or so) on the walking path. Sounds like a plan!

Oh, and exciting news for Memphis peeps: Have you heard about Yo-Lo?

yolo logo
It’s a frozen yogurt shop opening soon on Poplar at Erin (and one out in Collierville) and will feature locally-sourced yogurt and toppings. (They mentioned “local bakers” in a Flyer article. Be still my heart.) It’s all gluten-free and low- or no-fat and some of the flavors sound scrumptious. Oh, and it’s one of those serve yourself places, where you serve yourself and pay by the ounce. I love that, because if my decadent nature gets out of control, my wallet will reel me back in. :) Anyway, I can’t wait to try them out. (Note: No compensation received. Just spreading the joyous news. Logo used with permission.)

And that, my friends, is my scintillating commentary for the day. How was your day? Are you taking your rest days? Or are you taking too many rest days? I can nag for either. Enthusiastically even. :)

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Whew! I apparently needed that “talking to” yesterday. After a somewhat shaky start to the day, I kicked it into gear and Got! Stuff! Done! Today has been more of the same. Not as much as I’d like, but I wore myself out with pats on the back for just getting a foot on the mountain.

One thing I wanted to clarify from yesterday’s post on goal slacking, with a nod to Lori for helping me see that I may have been a little fuzzy. In her comment, Lori wisely mentioned the category of goals that require more than we currently have in our possession to achieve. It might be finances, a certain educational level, a particular career, etc. For me, those types of goals fall more into the realm of dreams. Achievable dreams, definitely, but only after a long series of stepping stone goals are met. Those stepping stone goals are what I was fussing about yesterday and encouraging (or trying to) us to take action on, because goals are things we CAN take action on but sometimes, um, just don’t.

As an example, one of the things I did this morning was to arrange to have some professional photos taken of myself. A few of my in-the-works projects (a couple that fall into the “dream” arena) will require a photo, a simple task that I’ve been ignoring (thus costing myself two hours outside on the hottest day of the year trying to do a halfway decent self-timer photo for a small surprise to be announced in September). In a wonderful moment of serendipity, this deal popped up on Groupon:

$59 for a One-Hour On-Location or In-Studio Photo Session Plus Full Access and Reproduction Rights to 25 Digital Photos from LJJ Studios ($495 Value)

I checked out the website of the studio, liked their work, and signed up for the deal. I have a year to use my certificate, but I’ve put it on my calendar for September, when the air will be cooler and my hair has an iota of a chance of not looking like fermented spaghetti.

Anyway, there were more little steps like that over the past two days, nothing monumental, but items I can take care of now, if only I will buckle down and DO THEM. Not just talk about them or write about them, but DO THE WORK necessary to achieve them. I lost 100 pounds tippy toeing along similar stepping stones, which is all the proof I need that I can achieve some of my other goals, too. And those will lead me to my dreams.

Speaking of dreams, it’s time to begin my bedtime ritual (proper sleep being another personal goal.) See? I just can’t stop achieving all of a sudden. :)

Wishing you ALL success in achieving your goals and fulfilling your dreams!

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Hah! Try getting that catchy little tune out of your head! (You can thank me later.) Need a brain scrub now? This version is a little more palatable.

I knew when I went to bed last night what I wanted to post about this morning. Luckily, I even remembered it! But even if I hadn’t, this morning’s reader feed of What’s Keeping You from Climbing Kilimanjaro? from the folks at Unclutterer would have reminded me. In her post, Erin Doland tells about her aunt, an avid traveler who once climbed Mount Kilimanjaro.

Seeing the world is at the top of her list of what matters most to her, and she has made it a real priority. She doesn’t let distractions (clutter) get in the way of the life she wants to lead. When she wanted to climb Kilimanjaro, she planned and made the trip a reality. She didn’t make excuses or let her fears keep her from achieving something that was important to her.

I contributed the bolded text part. I’m just helpful that way.

Having heard or read or, perhaps, used every explanation under the sun for NOT eating healthier, NOT exercising, NOT working on a more positive attitude, or just generally NOT doing what we say we want to do, well, it’s getting kind of old, to tell you the truth. I don’t mean the little blips and bumps that arise as we fuddle our way through, because those are an expected part of growth and change. No, I’m talking about the “I’m too (hot)(hungry)(tired) (broke) (busy)(uncomfortable)(etc.)” kind of reasoning we use to avoid doing what we say needs doing. The time has come to turn things around.

When something is truly important to us, we FIND a way to do it. The suffocating heat of summer, the lure of 22 cupcake variations in a single showcase, the pressing demands of family or career, a lack of immediate knowledge, discomfort, finances–heck, there are probably a bazillion (maybe more) obstacles in the course of a life. But they are all obstacles that can be overcome, if we want something badly enough.

::Pause while I look over my goals list at a couple of the same projects that have been there for OVER A YEAR with only modest progress::

Oh yes, the time has come to turn things around and begin the ascent. If these projects and goals are truly important to me, I will do them. I may not always feel confident or comfortable or successful, but I will do them. Somehow. Some way.

And if I’m not going to do them–if I’m going to repeatedly say they’re important to me but continually come up with lame excuses why they’re not getting done–well, then I need to just shut up about them.

Whether we’re talking about weight loss, fitness, decluttering, starting a business, or any other sort of life goal, the bottom line remains the same: We DO what is important to us. Maybe not all at once, and probably not elegantly, but we DO IT.

As I move through my day today (and the days that follow), I’m going to be especially mindful of excuses and barriers I put up for myself, separating and eliminating the excuses right away, so that my time and energy is spent on finding ways (fun ways, I hope!) of getting over the obstacles. If you’ve found any measure of resonance in this post (or Erin’s), I hope you’ll join me.

And just in case you’ve managed to get that song out of your head, I’ll leave you with the lyrics, which are quite inspiring actually, if a tad repetitive:

Climb every mountain,
Search high and low,
Follow every byway,
Every path you know.

Climb every mountain,
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
‘Till you find your dream.

A dream that will need
All the love you can give,
Every day of your life
For as long as you live.

Climb every mountain,
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
Till you find your dream

A dream that will need
All the love you can give,
Every day of your life,
For as long as you live.

Climb every mountain,
Ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow,
Till you find your dream.

What will YOU do today?

::Put down mirror. End lecture.::

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Aging Gracefully: Hisssssssssssss

July 26, 2010

This post is brought to you by the letter ‘S’. (FTC: This is an unsponsored, uncompensated post.)
Greetings one and all! Or just one, if that’s all this title attracted. (And I do thank you for coming. You look lovely today.)
Before I get into the heart of today’s post, a little follow-up work:
Splurgecake: Stupendous! Superb! Surreal [...]

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I Wouldn’t Really Eat a Horse

July 23, 2010

see more Lolcats and funny pictures
Yesterday was one of those days. My stomach growled almost constantly from about 2:00 on. It even growled while I was eating dinner! ginormous taco salad, celery & salsa, if you’re curious)
At first I thought it was simply a case of me wanting something I really didn’t need [...]

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