My Little Devil

Yesterday I shared a password protected post from which I received a lot of feedback, surprisingly. If you’d like to read it just ask and I will send you the password. Although the post was mostly me just venting about stuff that’s been on my mind I was happy to see I was not alone. A friend of mine messaged me after she read it and I wanted to share our conversation because I feel like so many can relate.

J: I feel the exact same way. I was just talking to a friend of mine. I’m so damn sick of thinking about food, making good choices, getting activity, water levels, why I’m doing certain things, blah, blah, blah. But I feel like I’ll never get to not think about it. 

Me: yeah, it's tough. You want to care but not obsess but you also don't want to be complacent but you also don't want to overdo it but you also need to relax and be normal but then this is your normal and this normal is obnoxious so you care less and then you get complacent and then you freak out because you have gotten complacent and so you obsess....and on and on and on....

Me: not to be all doomsday

J: haha no, it’s just the truth! And that’s just the thinking, then you actually have to DO things!

Me: YESSSS....doing the things. Always a battle in my mind. Couch vs gym...bed vs pavement. Never just is. It is always think think think dissect plan think more

J: I'm glad I'm not the only one. It's nice to know that.

Are you this way too? As much as I know I am healthier and feel better when I am being active and making good diet choices it is still always a battle. I mean, I am lucky and being active and eating healthy win out most days but seriously COMFORT > DISCOMFORT. It will always be harder to get out of a warm bed at 5a to go run than it is to stay and sleep, no matter how much I love to run. I will always have to talk myself into going to the gym after work because going home and sitting on the couch will always sound better, even when I know I will feel a million times better if I choose the former over the latter. Which is why I go

This is just my truth…

Pizza and beer will always sound better than salad and water

Snuggling on the couch watching TV will always sound better than the gym

Sleeping in on Saturday morning will always sound better than getting up hours before dawn to run so many miles that an ice bath is required afterwards

Comfort always sounds better…ALWAYS

I mean come on, that’s why there are yoga work pants now. Seriously, if I could wear leggings to work every day I would. I like comfort. Who doesn’t?

But that doesn’t mean I choose comfort all day, every day. I just can’t. Because I know that if I did I would end up back where I started which was a rough place to be. All that comfort brought me to a place where I was super limited by my weight and my body was taking a huge toll because of it.

I know I have to make the tough choices every day because those are what allow me to be healthy, active and, for once, happy.

Yeah, I still eat pizza, drink beer, watch TV, and sleep in. But not every day. Most days it’s salad, gym, and early mornings. And that’s ok. It’s actually the best way for me to live.

That being said, don’t take my actions to mean that I don’t constantly have to think about my decisions. Or fight that little devil on my shoulder telling me to have another beer, skip the gym or stay in bed. That little monster was conditioned on my prior laziness and he fights me every day. Some days I want him to win, some days I give in and some days I can quiet him. But he never goes away.

And because I think some (maybe most) of you can relate I just wanted to share this with you.

These pretty accurately represent my devil and angel...LOL

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxox

Serendipity...Sort Of

I’ve been getting hit in the face lately with a lot of truth bombs. It’s that whole serendipity thing, but not in a fortuitous way. The universe is speaking to me and it is telling me I’m not fooling anyone.

The other night I read (in the most random crime short story from the 90’s) a passage where the author, talking about drug addiction, wrote:

"Sometimes a man quits trusting his strengths and starts trusting his weaknesses. His weaknesses are more apt to be dependable"

Yeah, that blew my mind.

Then I was reading this post from Andie Mitchell over at CanYou Stay for Dinner and she was talking about goals and making big changes that are impactful and when I got to this part:

"Sometimes when we feel stuck, any movement feels good. And while it’s true that doing something is better than nothing, we can trick ourselves into thinking we’re making progress when we aren’t doing anything meaningful. When we’re just doing the minimum and checking the small projects off of our To Do lists every day, at a certain point we have to stop and ask ourselves, Am I growing? Am I moving toward my goals…or am I just getting by?"

I was floored.

TRUTH! 

SO. MUCH. TRUTH.

And it felt like a roundhouse kick to the head.

I always am talking about small changes, something being better than nothing. Heck, I love the whole idea of #wycwyc (what you can, when you can) because it works into my self-proclaimed crazy, busy life. But is it helping me?

I mean it has to be. Something is always better than nothing, right? 

But...

Am I growing?

Am I progressing?

Am I moving towards my goals?  

Jeez, some days I don’t know.

I know that on any given day I can look over the choices I have made and find those that could have been better and those that could have been worse. I mean, hell I preach constantly about balance and 80/20 and never engaging in extreme behaviors. But it’s a fine line, right, between balance and complacency? And I have to stop for a minute and ask myself - am I coasting?

Am I trying to fool myself into believing I am doing enough?

Or worse yet…

Am I starting to trust my weaknesses more so than my strengths?

That’s so easy to do.

So how do I know? I mean seriously though, how can I honestly know I am taking meaningful actions in my life that are helping me reach my goals? 

Am I just following the path of least resistance?

Maybe it shouldn’t be this easy

Or should it?

I wish I knew. 

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxox

WW Weekly Recap: Week 16

Week 16

Yeah, I had to go back and count. I had no idea what week last week was/this week is but now I do.

I can’t believe it has almost been 4 months since I re-joined WW. Even with the post ACL/antibiotics/injury/wedding mayhem gain I am still over 10 pounds down from where I started. I am 12.2 pounds down to be exact. I will call that a win!

Oh, sorry- horse before the cart. I am at a total of 12.2 lbs down because I gained a whopping 0.4 lbs this week. LOL. Yeah, we’ll just call that ‘staying the same’. And for a week of very little activity and eating so/so I am 1000000% ok with ‘staying the same’.

I would like to get back into losing again but really, I just want to get back into my healthy habits that keep me sane. I am pretty good with meal planning/cooking/packing lunches – even during the crazy busy times. Yeah, sometimes I eat out more than I would prefer and sometimes I drink more than I should but those are not my norm. The norm is still packing breakfast and lunch M-F, eating dinner at home S-Th and then some meals out on the weekend and this week is no different. Smoothies for breakfast, apples and bananas for morning snacks, soup for lunches, edamame for afternoon snack and some awesome meals planned from JL Goes Vegan’s pressure cooker cookbook. Oh and can’t forget, dark chocolate and tea at night.

This week I am looking to get in some more activity though. I plan on getting in two runs during the week (plus I have a HM on Sunday), two days of Cize and then a long bike ride on Saturday- if the weather cooperates. I also brought one of my bikes to work with me to keep in my office. This way I can go for rides during my lunch break and even to/from meetings. Hopefully I can get into the habit of getting a few daytime rides in every week.

I also am still balancing school, work, and life also which means it can’t always be about my training schedule or my preferred meal options. I need to make sure I still have time for schoolwork, self-care and relationship care <<< that’s a thing right? I mean, it should be even if no one actually calls it that.

I decided though that I want to get back into the habit of posting weekly goals with my update. I like the added focus to my plans but also I like being able to tailor them around the weekly events in my life. Monthly goals, sometimes, are just too long to plan for. A week at a time tends to be much more my speed. So here they are, some goals for week 17:

Monday 11/2 through Sunday 11/8

100,000 steps 

Track every day

30 minutes of movement 5 days/week

Some form of self-care (reading, bubble bath, stretching/meditation) at least twice

Finish homework before the weekend

Stick to Sunday-Friday meal plan

Ok, that’s about all I have for today. I will definitely be checking in with you next week for an update and it will hopefully include a happy recounting of my half marathon J

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxox

Balance

Balance…I talk about that concept frequently. I guess if I had a theme word (is that a thing?) it would have to be balance. I kind of feel like my whole journey, the essence of my life, is to find, and maintain, balance.

Funny that a quick Google search for 'balance' brought up this image of tree pose. This was the pose I posted on IG this morning for my PAD Challenge today. This is my favorite pose and it is at the heart of this entire blog. So fitting for today's post. See my photo here  (Photo shown from tinybuddha.com)

Balance not just between all the must-do’s and the want-to-do’s and the should-do’s but balance in everything. Balance between the mental and physical, between motion and rest, between childlike optimism and adult like pessimism (realism).

For me, it is all about balance.

Some days it’s a struggle. Some days there are far more must-do’s and should-do’s and not enough time left for the want-to-do’s. Meaning, some days adulting gets in the way of all the fun stuff. I think that is true for most everyone with a job/mortgage/kids/car payments (you get my point) and my point is not to say that I am any different than you or that my struggle is any different- it is not. At the core we all have responsibilities and we are all making sacrifices. It’s just the way it is.

I write this post more to talk about what I do to find the balance. That sounds funny right? Having to work to create balance? That seems like something that should come naturally, and maybe for some it does, but for me I have to work at it.

At the base of my normal day-to-day life, and even more so now when I am also wedding planning, there is a good amount of routine that helps keep things going. This routine stems from years of working on good habits. My routine is based around meal planning, preparing meals at home during the week and packing my breakfasts and lunches, scheduling time for activity, scheduling time for homework, and then penciling in the other weekly necessities such as grocery shopping/chores, time with E, Gordie and now M and any special events happening that week. I try to map out as much of my week as possible. For example, if I know that one night I will be out at an event during the week (Bernie Sanders volunteer meeting, tap takeover at the bar, etc) what will be my plan for dinner? When will I workout that day? What time do I need to be home? What time do I need to wake up the next morning?

Sounds like a lot right? It kind of is. Well, at least I should say that a lot of thought goes into how I plan my day. Ultimately by taking time to think about these things I feel better prepared and less stressed – which keeps me feeling balanced and in control.

That being said, I don’t plan every moment of my life out. That would be too rigid and too stressful. I always have chunks of time, even full days on the weekends, where I am open for anything- including doing nothing. Now most of the time E and I choose to spend our free time either out at the beach or downtown on our bikes but there are times where we just stay in and watch movies or Netflix- just vegging out. Both are really great options- even if the latter takes some convincing on my end. Does anyone else ever feel guilty for spending the day doing nothing? That happens to me a lot lately (just because I have so much going on with the wedding) but I do remind myself that downtime is not only a good thing, it’s a necessity.

I think in life it is all about understanding the long-term as well as the short-term when it comes to balance.

Eating a whole small pizza sounds good in theory and there are definitely times when that is exactly what I want to do. But the reality is that is an ‘in the moment’ feeling. I know that the better option is a few slices of pizza and a salad because I will feel better physically later and I also know it is a choice that supports my long term goals. This choice leaves me feeling better in the now and in the future. 

Hitting snooze ALWAYS sounds like a better option at 5am than getting up and working out (even though I love my morning workouts) because honestly what is better than a nice warm bed? Especially when it is super dark outside and no one is drill-sergeant style forcing me out of bed. But I know most every day, getting up and exercising will make me feel energized and ready to take on the day. There is nothing better to me than the feeling of accomplishing a goal before the sun even comes up. This choice leaves me feeling better in the now and in the future. 

On the flip side, it is also important for me to know when to take rest days (the body needs to heal and recover) and when to take time for self-care. When the to-do list is out of control I still need to make time for a hot bubble bath or some time with a good book. Being ‘ON’ all the time does nothing for my mood, my stress levels, and for the most part- doesn’t help make anything better. Trust me, I am seeing this a lot now as I am getting grumpier every day and the littlest of things have been setting me off. This is my signal to RETREAT! This is the time I really need to focus more on letting go, unwinding, and turning off that damn monkey mind. That choice will leave me feeling better in the now and in the future. 

Trust me- I’m working on this one. I know it is my biggest struggle right now so I am intentionally scheduling in self-care and relaxation each week now.  I have a whole day planned for Sunday that involves a ton of relaxing activities to help me get back in balance.

Sorry this post was such a brain dump. As you can see, I have had a lot on my mind lately. Writing is cathartic (when I make time for it) and helps me better focus as well as better relax. Weird how that works, right?

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxox

A Little Friday Rant...

Here’s what I think…

I don’t like the phrase ‘real women’ because it makes me wonder where all the ‘fake women’ are. Are you a human? Yes. Are you a female human? Yes. Well, then guess what? You are a real woman. Now I know that it is used most of the time in place of saying a non-professional model (like ‘this ad campaign uses real women’) or to say that the body types presented are a better reflection of the mix of what we see in our everyday life. I get that. But semantically speaking- aren’t the models real women too? Let’s not hate on them just because their profession and their body is different than ours. That’s silly.

I also don’t like the terms ‘bad food’ or ‘cheat food’ or any other phrase that gives food power. Food has one main job- to keep us alive. Food also has secondary jobs –like bringing us enjoyment. Regardless of what you are eating something good is coming from it. Yes, there are more indulgent foods than others. And yes, maybe I do need to limit how often or how frequently I can eat something because of its effects on my body. However, I don’t want to feel guilty or ashamed or embarrassed ever about the food choices I make. It is just food people. It is simple and easy and, ultimately, powerless over us.

I don’t like the fact that ‘common sense’ is not so common anymore when it comes to healthy living. I love that there is a whole movement now centered around what should be/used to be common sense - ‘what you can,when you can’ - but the diet industry has overwhelmed us for decades with how to lose weight (fad after fad, quick fix after quick fix) and has pretty much brainwashed us to think otherwise. An industry that profits off of our failures (meaning unsuccessful weight loss/maintenance attempts) is not an industry I want to have anything to do with. However, it is all we know. Personally, it has been in my face through TV ads, magazines, social media- you name it- my entire life. Someone, somewhere is telling me that they have a better plan for me and guess what? It does NOT involve recognizing my personal needs, wants, limitations and it does NOT allow for real-life, long term sustainability. We need to create a mental shift away from this and move towards a healthier focus on sustainable habits.

And lately I really don’t like the scale. Not because of the number it reads when I step on it, but because I care. I don’t like living my life feeling like my worth is being measured in pounds, or the lack thereof. I know that I am the only one making me feel this way however, it does not help that in the weight loss world people focus first (and sometimes only) on how much you lost (and how quickly) and how much of that loss is maintained. I get it. Numbers are easy. But fuck, they should never be an indication of our worth or success or failure or anything like that. If I step on the scale and gained, so be it. If I step on the scale and have lost, so be it. If I chose to not give a crap about that number any more, well that’s ok too. Honestly, for me, that number is the hardest part of the process. It’s like my judgement stick, it is my personal benchmark. But I don’t want it to be. I want my life to be measured in moments and memories and laughs and snuggles and not inches and pounds. Again, this is all me. So today I am telling myself…just let it go. Let go of that number and move on. It is time to focus on the bigger picture, and that number does not play any part in it.

This sums is up perfectly...

Image from C'est La Vie 

Anyway, sorry for the brain dump. Some days….well, some days I just have a lot of random shit on my mind. LOL.

Happy Friday!

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxox

Eat, Move, Love at Fitbloggin' 15

Photo/logo courtesy of Fitbloggin' 

I am very (super duper unbelievably) excited to be heading off to Denver in a week. Not only will I be attending my THIRD Fitbloggin’ conference I will also speaking there as well. Our session (I am speaking with Thea and Heather) is called ‘Eat, Move, Love: Finding Yourself Without Losing Your Mind’ and if you would like to read the session summary click here.

I really cannot wait for this session. Ours session is in the ‘small group discussion’ category meaning there will be interaction between the three of us and anyone choosing to attend vs. a presentation where someone speaks at you with limited interaction or feedback. Thea, Heather and I are putting together talking points in order to make sure the conversation moves over the course of the hour long session but I personally think there will be a lot of people interacting and sharing. At least that’s what I hope for. I think this is a great topic that is relatable to anyone in any situation so hopefully we have a good turnout and we all walk away feeling a bit stronger and happier in our life.

On the Fitbloggin’ page for our session there are seven topics for discussion listed- all of which could be a session in and of itself. Once I am back I am hoping to sit down and write about each of these topics and (with permission of course) include some of the things discussed in the session by attendees. Maybe this could even allow for a guest post or two. Who knows? I always have great ideas but I don’t always have the free time to execute them. LOL. BUT these are all topics important to me and I hope that soon I can share with you some of my opinions about each of them.

Of course, if you don’t want to wait ,come check out our session on Saturday June 27^th from 11:30-12:30. If you aren’t planning on attending Fitbloggin’ then check out their website and social media outlets for some possible recaps. Maybe even some photos on their IG page or some live video on Periscope. I will be shooting videos from Fitbloggin’ as well and sharing them live on Periscope (make sure you download the free app) but I doubt I will be able to do that during my own session.

Here are some links in case you want to follow me and/or the Fitbloggin’ fun next weekend in Denver:

My Personal Stuff

Instagram (@daciaroot)   Twitter  (@MyRootsToGrow - my Periscope is linked to this account)   Facebook (same, My Roots to Grow) 

Fitbloggin’

Instagram (@fitbloggin)   Twitter   (@fitbloggin - same for Periscope) Facebook (Fitbloggin' community page) 

Are you coming to Fitbloggin’? If so, what session or fitness class are you most excited for?

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxox

Life is Good

I am in a really good place right now. My mind, although not free of clutter, is settling into my new routine happily. My headspace is getting happier, calmer. Life is good.

Don’t jinx yourself dummy…goes to find some wood to knock on.

Although life is chaotic as usual (did I tell you I have a comprehensive exam/paper due next week that I must totally kick ass on in order to degree complete? And that I haven’t started it yet? In my defense yesterday was the first day I could have worked on it) I am learning, finally after decades of this shit, how to calm my monkey mind.

Right now I have so many positive influences in my life helping me to better take care of myself. Erick focuses and grounds me when I start to freak the eff out about whatever stressor of the day- usually school, but sometimes work. He has really taught me a lot about my personal strengths and how to utilize them. He has also taught me that I stress over things for really no reason. I mean, the paper is due. That’s just a fact of life. I will get it done. I always do. I have a freaking 3.96 (thanks to two stinking A minuses during my divorce)- I know what I am doing. I need to chill. It will get finished whether I stress over it or not so why stress, right? Simple idea but yet one that has eluded me my entire life. BUT I am getting better at it. Did you see I took a beach break in the middle of writing my midterm paper? Now that is progress my friends.

Anna has been helping me lately, too. She has been my workout buddy for a few months now and as of last week (two weeks ago?) we are back into a regular gym routine. She is a huge driving force in my life. Not only does she keep me in check on our gym days but we also try to take one walk a day during our work day. I love that she also understands the importance of staying active, even through less than ideal circumstances. She has a baby, and a dog, and a husband, and CHICKENS, and a stressful job but she still finds a way. Oh, and she is my matron of honor and humors me by listening to more wedding talk than probably necessary. Having her as a friend has really added so much happiness to my life in Pensacola.

Yoga. What more do I need to say. I knew it was what I needed- to reconnect with my mat. Me feet grounded firmly on the earth my heart and head pointed to the heavens. It has brought me so much calm and joy and I am so happy to have a practice back into my routine. Now, since they just opened the new studio and I just signed up for the monthly pass I am still in the process of finding which classes I love AND fit in my schedule AND work around E’s schedule. So far I think I am settled into Monday hot yoga with Sam (although Divine Balance is a close second) and maybe some weeks I will do back to back with her and stay for acroyoga. That is more a timing issue than anything-being able to stay for two classes. I also love Sunset Flow on Tuesdays (which I am headed to shortly) but starting next week E and I will be participating in a cornhole (bean bag toss) league and the games conflict with yoga so for the next two months I will be choosing cornhole (and beers) over yoga on Tuesdays. I have also started taking a Wednesday lunch time yoga class at the gym at the university but that looks like the last summer session is next week. So…I will be back to the drawing board trying to find a couple more classes.

For now, I am going to keep on enjoying every day and the blessings it brings me. Next week is Denver and Fitbloggin' and I am beyond excited. I am on periscope now (follow me through my Twitter @MyRootToGrow) and I plan on posting a ton of videos from FB. Maybe someone will even persiscope the session I am leading with Thea and Heather. That would be AWESOME.

Until then….

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxoxox

Misguided Preconceived Notions

Back in the day I used to live my life based off of completely misguided preconceived notions as to what my options in life were. You see, in my head I saw life as one of two ways- you can live it to the fullest with complete disregard to health or habits and do whatever you wanted because you only had one life so why not enjoy it. This was what I thought was happiness. On the flipside I thought you could choose to live your life focused only on your health- following a super strict diet, work out all the time (like hours and hours a day in the gym), depriving yourself of anything good and tasty, living completely restricted, having no fun whatsoever. In my head, I pictured this life as a life of misery and truth be told if I did live this way I would be miserable.

So I chose to live my life for many, many years with complete disregard. I chose to live it up. To do and eat whatever I wanted. I ate portion sizes that were too large of foods that were damaging to my body. I chose to spend countless hours plopped down in front of the TV and get lost in shows. I drank, probably way too much, too often. I didn’t think twice about spending my weekend nursing a hangover. I just did what I wanted because I was ‘living’ my life, the way I wanted to, because I only had one life so I needed to enjoy it.

But guess what? I was miserable.

Because that life- a life of excess- is just as bad (probably worse) than a life of restriction. And I couldn’t see that. I thought I only had two options (and I tried both, I would get frustrated with my weight and move to extreme dieting and an unmanageable workout routine which I could maybe sustain for a week or two tops) and I felt like both were making me miserable. Neither were how I wanted to live.

I am thankful that this time around I realized how wrong I was. That life is not about living in extremes, at least not for me. I was never able to be the person that could force myself into a lifestyle that made me hate living (i.e. restrictive diet, extreme exercise) but what I failed to realize for a very long time was that the lifestyle I had chosen instead (a life of complete leisure and indulgence) was making me hate living too. It made my world so difficult to navigate that I dreaded everyday life. It was embarrassing and humiliating not just being obese but being extremely limited because of my weight. Simple movements, like climbing stairs or tying my shoes, were hard. I was in my late 20’s/early 30’s and I was living like I was at the end of my life, like I had given up hope. All because I thought I was choosing to live my life on my terms, in a way that would bring me happiness. But it didn’t and I wasn’t.

Somewhere on this path I was able to figure that out. I was able to find balance. And happiness. I was able to find what works for me, what keeps me healthy, keeps me sane and leaves me feeling content. It took a lot of trial and error. My path never was, nor will it ever be, a straight line. But when you hear people talking about ‘lifestyle changes’ instead of ‘quick fixes’ they are absolutely right. I couldn’t continue to bounce from one thing to another, making choices and decisions that led me to a way of life that I could not, nor would I want to, sustain. One way was slowly (not really that slow either) killing me and making me miserable in the process and the other was impossible for me to sustain. I had to find my balance. The life I could live and wanted to live.

Yes, I had a lot of weight to lose and a lot of bad habits I needed to clean up if I wanted to get there. And yes, I wanted to change them all at once and be fit and healthy as soon as possible and it felt impossible and the whole process to get there seemed daunting and felt like it would take an eternity and I struggled with making the commitment to change my life because I thought it would take too damn long and would be too damn hard, maybe even impossible. But the reality of it was this: changing my life will take a very long time. It will take forever. Because every day I am changing. Every day I am re-evaluating and making decisions that I hope will support the life I want to lead. I found my happiness. I found my balance. But just because I found them doesn’t mean I don’t have to work every day to maintain them. I made a commitment to change my life knowing that it meant these changes would be for life. And that seemed daunting. Making changes that I would need to sustain for the rest of my life. Wow! That could (hopefully) be a very long time. But here’s the thing- when you are living the life that you want and doing things that are making you truly happy then it is easy to sustain. To me, it is easier to live this life today- a life filled with meal prep/planning, half marathon training, meeting with my personal trainer, grad school, traveling, being a vegan, going out/staying in with the bf, and puppies- than it was to live life when I ate take out/fast food all the time, drank too much, and watched countless hours of TV. Doesn’t seem like it would be that way does it? Seems like it would be easier to be lazy but it was too much for me. It was physically killing me and mentally draining me. I was miserable being a passive onlooker on the sidelines watching my life go by. Being disappointed, feeling like I was wasting my life- that was extremely hard for me. This life, it is easy in comparison.

So when you are thinking about your life and the path you want to take I encourage you to make choices that support the life you truly want. It will take work and a lot of effort to change habits and create new ones. You will mess up. You will struggle. It will be challenging and at times confusing but just know that every day you set out to make your life better, to work towards your goals and find your happiness, is never a day wasted.

Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxoxo

FOUR WEEKS!!!

What? It’s been four weeks already? How did that happen???

This summer has flown by…but that’s a whole other topic for another day.

I just now realized that today is the LAST DAY of my fourweek personal challenge. Of course, I didn’t realize it this morning and so I have no photo of the goal sheet on my fridge so I am just going to save the full recap for tomorrow.

I will say this, I am pretty pleased with how I did over that last four weeks. It felt good setting and sticking to some goals. And my favorite parts, of course, were the ones set around having fun. It’s all about balance, people. And as much as I need to try to focus on being active and limiting my drinking during the week and not obsess over a scale it is equally important to put myself out there, have some fun, go on some crazy adventures, and celebrate this amazing life.

And I can honestly say that over the past four weeks I did all of that. I found a pretty good balance. And it was awesome!

So, tomorrow….I’m coming back with my official progress update AND another set of four week goals. Because, why not?

Until then…here are some photo highlights from the last four weeks.

Exploring Ft. Pickens!

Beach Day

Kayaking...try not to look too happy, E!

Our minis, making a wish!

Bike ride around Orange Beach, AL

My favorite bike, stationed at the front door- ready to go!

New shoes!

The minis love beer, just like us ;)

Snuggling before a nighttime tour of the lighthouse...

Best 5K time for 2014...next stop, a new PR!

Also, just before I hit publish I found out I got an A on my final paper for my Social Reform class. That gives me an A for the semester. Add that to my A in my Stats 2 class and BOOM! 4.0 baby!



Love and hugs,

Dacia

xoxoxo

Changing It Up....Again

The key to my happiness and joy in life is balance.

This is something I continually work at.

Balancing work and school and relationships. Balancing exercise and socializing, relaxing and housework, home cooked meals and dinners out, spending and saving.

It’s all one big balancing act.

And I love it.

When my life is (somewhat) balanced I feel like I really can and do have it all. And that is a really amazing feeling.

However, keeping or even finding balance isn’t always easy. Especially when life and expectations change weekly, even daily.

I have learned I need to be adaptable while at the same time being rigid….it’s a balance. I plan out my week but I know that most weeks  things won’t go as planned. I just try to do the best I can and be happy with it. Some weeks (some days, some hours) are better than others. That is just life.

Yes, I truly believe that this is all just a part of life and I really shouldn’t be too hard on myself or beat myself up over’where I went wrong’ or ‘not doing enough’ or ‘not being good enough’ because I am me. And if I give each day my best (regardless of what my best looks like that day) then that is always going to be good enough. Period. End of sentence.

That being said, it is still smart (and necessary) for me to look for ways to set myself up for success. Meaning, I don’t just go blindly through life hoping for things. I know that if I want to stay healthy and be active and at the same time do well in school, at my job, and in my relationships then I have to work towards that. And I am always looking for ways that help me make the most out of my limited time.

Like going to the gym with E. We get to spend time together AND I get some activity in as well. Win-win.

Or prepping my meals in advance. I spend one day cooking/prepping and then have meals for at least a week in the fridge/freezer. Not only does this save me time during the week but it allows me to easily make good food choices.

But some weeks I just don’t have the time for all that cooking. I don’t want to give up a whole weekend day to spend it shopping and chopping and cooking and cleaning. Nowadays, mainly because I am in a relationship and love spending weekends out and about with E, there are other things I would much rather be doing.

So, this week I made a really quick, late night stop at the grocery store and grabbed a bunch of prepared foods (like salad kits and frozen items and soups) and my normal mix of fresh fruits and veggies I like to snack on and called it a day. I like how easy everything is and that I am still able to make all of my own meals however, I feel like I am bordering on the edge of too much processed foods and that doesn’t make me happy.

Then I remembered that Brendan Brazier (former professional IronMan and super vegan) started a food delivery service, Thrive Foods Direct, that seemed to me to be pretty reasonable costs for fresh foods loaded with real ingredients made specifically for vegans who lead an active lifestyle. I was looking over some sample menus and thought why not give it a try? One week won’t kill me. If anything, it will take pressure off of me (the pressure I put on myself, of course) to focus on my food intake and allow me more free time on the weekends and during the week. I think this will also makes me feel better knowing I am not eating a bunch of processed crap. Sounds pretty good to me.

My first delivery is this Friday and I will be sure to let you know how it goes. Right now I am signed up for the 5 day, 3 meals a day plan but they have a bunch of other options and you can change (or cancel) whenever you want.

This is a sample menu taken from the Thrive Foods Direct FB page, sounds yummy doesn't it?

So here it goes, time to try something new…again.

Because that is what life is, right? Changing and adapting and learning and growing and just trying to be the best version of yourself you can.

Oh, and also to not being afraid to try new things and taking help when you can get it ;)

Also, on a completely unrelated note: I will be in Anaheim 4/3 through 4/10 for a work conference. I would love to schedule a meet up or two (preferably 4/3 and 4/9- my non-conference days) to hang out with my west coast peeps. Let me know if you are interested and I will be sure to post details on the FB page.

Love and hugs,

Dacia