New jobs, new beginnings

Sunday, February 03, 2013

Hey everyone! I know I've been MIA for a few days..maybe 2 weeks?
I FINALLY quit my job that was completely stressing me out. I feel like shackles have been broken and I am freeeeeee!

I accepted the recreation director position at a pediatric skilled nursing facility and also a part-time evenings/sundays at a hospital 4 miles from my house to create a therapeutic recreation program for a new transitional care unit they are opening in March. I also started my LAST semester of grad school and will graduate May 18!!!

I met the dietician at my full-time job this week and she is holding a "Biggest Loser" contest at work. It's 3 weeks in (contest runs 1/9-3/10), however she let me join. It was $10 to enter. Each Wednesday you get weighed in. At each weigh-in if you gain more than 2 pounds you must pay $1. Winner is based on % of weight lost. Winner of total amount of pounds lost will get a small portion of the total $ winnings too.

So wish me luck!! Even though I'm joining 3 weeks late, I'm hopeful to really blow them out of the water!! I was mortified when I got weighed on Friday that her scale clocked me in at 247.5lbs!!! YIKESSSSSSSSSS

I have finished EAT TO LIVE and I'm going to follow Dr. Fuhrman's philosophy and see what happens!

9 vegetables in one meal!

Thursday, January 10, 2013

So I'm reading the EAT TO LIVE book and although I have not finished it yet, nor am I completely following any kind of "diet", I have started to make a conscious effort to eat more fruits and vegetables. I'm launching on a journey of healthy living and eating. And want to make a commitment to this for the rest of my life.

Some of you know, I am currently in California visiting my sister and her husband (both of whom are very healthy). Tonight while they studied (they are taking a very intense Italian class in preparation for her next assignment in Italy) I made dinner. They requested I make ravioli stuffed with wild mushrooms, the rest was up to me. Deal.

*For an appetizer I had radishes, celery & sugar snap peas.
*I made a spinach salad consisting of red onion, tomatoes, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries & bleu cheese with a little red vinaigrette.
*I roasted asparagus and red peppers, using a little olive oil and italian seasoning. (I need to learn a healthier alternative to olive oil, so if you have suggestions, please send them my way!)
*I also made frozen spinach that was lightly sauteed. I put this over top of the ravioli with fresh diced tomatoes.
* For dessert I sliced fresh strawberries - sweet enough to take care of that sweets craving.

And wah-la! There you have it - a delicious meal consisting of 9 vegetables and 1 fruit! Dr. Fuhrman wouldn't completely approve, but hey, I'm just getting started.

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When does the scale start to move?

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Good evening SP friends! So I'm feeling pretty frustrated. The scale hasn't budged in months. I'm eating more veggies, fruits and lean meats, I'm drinking more water (i'm not a big water drinker but i'm learning), i'm exercising, i take the stairs instead of the elevator, I have a SP buddy and her and I check on each other, I read articles and other stories on SP….what gives? Can anyone give me suggestions? I'm truly lost here.

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Honey Grilled Pork Chops

Sunday, March 18, 2012

The weather was gorgeous today and I decided to try some Spark recipes! I had a strawberry smoothie in the afternoon while I enjoyed the sunshine on my deck and made honey grilled pork chops and "not" fried, fried rice for dinner. It was all delicious! Fist time I tried any spark recipes and I'll be sure to start using them more often!

Lazy Sunday? Not me!

Monday, March 12, 2012

I didn't have time to blog last night and just had to share this with all my spark friends! Yesterday it was absolutely gorgeous outside so my fiancé and I decided to go for a bike ride on a bike path. We ended exploring some new sites and rode for a total of 65 minutes. Picture below of us at the end of the trail before we turned around to go back to the truck.



So THEN a friend of mine sent a text asking me to go hiking with her, she didn't want to waste the day. Her and I were able to snowshoe twice when we had our two days of winter a few weeks ago. I was amped up from my bike ride and went directly from the bike trail to the hike trail. What an adventure we got ourselves into!! And I was even able to get my fiancé to join us. Although it was 60+ degrees outside, it was still quiet icy in the woods. I fell several times, beating myself up pretty good. Hurricane Irene really messed with the flow of the river and made it merely impossible to cross it. That didn't stop us!! We straddled a log and scooted to the other side…

I seriously felt like I was a contestant on the Biggest Loser participating in a crazy challenge to keep myself on the ranch! I felt great last night even though during our 2.5 hour adventure through the woods I was quiet frustrated with myself at how out of shape I have let myself get! I was equally disappointed this morning when I weighed myself and still no budge. Ug this is getting old.

I'm going to keep taking it one day at a time! At some point my hard work will HAVE to pay off!

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