Archive for the ‘Fitness & Health’ Category

As many of you may know (through previous blog posts) I love the show The Bachelor/ette.   The reason isn’t the show per say… it’s because each week a group of friends get together for dinner, dessert, reality tv watching and catching up.  It’s become a great tradition. and something I will surely miss when I move to the UK.   With my love for the Bachelor, and treating my friends, I was excited to make cupcakes today for tomorrow’s get together.  Since the show is moving to the tropical location of Puerto Rico, I decided to make Pineapple Upsidedown Cupcakes!

Pineapple Upsidedown Cupcakes

These were super easy to make, and unlike last week, I didn’t set off an alarm once.  (For me, this is a major victory!)  All you have to do is use a basic yellow cake mix for your cupcake.  For the topping, mix brown sugar (1 C) and brown sugar (6 T), and melt.  Pour into cupcake pan pre-sprayed with cooking spray.  Place pineapple and half a cherry… pour batter into tins and cook for about 17 minutes.  Trust me, these are simply divine and a great addition to the Bachelor tomorrow!  I am excited….

n addition to learning how to make cupcakes to wow friends at TV watching get togethers (just wait to see what I make for the Super Bowl next week!), I am also jumping into the fad of juicing.  You see, I am trying to up my veggie and fruits in order to get more healthy (and to off set the cupcakes!).  This weekend I juiced kale, beets, carrots, ginger, grapefruit, oranges, cucumbers, apples and more.  The idea is up my intake of the “good stuff”, and after a week… I am feeling the difference.

Homemade Juice... Packed with Vitamins! YUM

I am going to keep this up in prep for wedding beautification.  I mean, you can’t go wrong with homemade juice of beets, carrots, ginger and apples…right?

As for other 2012 Resolution Updates:

Now that we are nearly down with January, it’s time to take a look a how I am doing with my resolutions.

• Reading More: I am at about 60% complete for the Paris Wife, and I am in LOVE.  It’s a great read.  I should tackle it by the end of this week, getting me ready for my next read (TBD) of 2012.
• Remembering to Sparkle: I am making a daily effort to compliment others, use good manners and try to contribute positive energy/juju into the world.  And you know what?  I believe it’s working.  It’s making my days go by more smoothly… and it’s bringing great joy to others!
• Learning New Recipes: Check and Check
• Keep on Dancin’: This week alone, I have worked out at the gym four times which is a major improvement for myself!  I’m planning on doing the same next week.  Also, I’ve been in touch with a dance studio to set up private lessons for Neal and I to take lessons in March.  Such fun!
• Welcome Changes with Grace & Open Arms:  Now, this resolution I have been struggling with.  My life (as I anticipated) has massive changes on the horizon which is causing me anxiety and stress. (Hence the helpfulness of working out and eating well.) The other thing that is helping me get through the stress?  My darling Neal.  He is supportive and thoughtful wanting to always make sure that although he isn’t here he is from afar.  One of the biggest things that I love about Neal is his ever constant (and unending) patience.  For that, he is remarkable.

How are you, my lovely blog reader, doing with your resolutions and promises for 2012?  Keep up the good work all!

Have a marvelous and wonderful week!

Cheers,

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Well, in an effort to keep my personal promises (both to myself and to the lovely blog readers out there) I have decided to post how I am doing in my 2012 “resolutions/goals“:

First, I have completed my first read of 2012 which was goal #1.  The title of this novel is The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.  And from a scale of 1 to 10, it was easily a 8.5.  This book was filled with magic, imagination and plenty of mystery.  The author painted a rich tapestry of a divine world, that you never wanted to have end.  Simply stated, it was delicious… especially with all of the cold, wet winter outside my window.   If you are looking for a new read, I would 100% recommend this book!

My reading goal has been expedited by another goal: to keep on movin.  You see when I hit the gym, I love reading my Kindle.  It makes the time on the elliptical machine literally fly on by.   I am sticking to burning calories, getting in shape…with the overall goal of May 26th in the forefront of my mind.

As for the cupcakes, I am going to attempt a new recipe at some point this weekend…. I will be sure to keep you all posted on my success or failure.

Ah, the universe is laughing down at me tonight. I have been slacking quite a bit in the working out, health and fitness.  (I’ve been blaming the warm weather and busier schedule.)  With me slacking on working out, with a focus on completing wedding projects… I have found myself sitting on my cute derriere for longer periods of time than I’d like to admit.

Today, after work, I found myself chatting with a co-worker about upcoming wedding plans and the such when all of a sudden “POW!”,  I was stung by a bee.  Where you may ask?  Right there on my bum.  Lovely. Just lovely.

Since I was wearing a skirt, I had to carefully and gracefully swipe the bee from the skirt.  (I bet that never happened to Audrey Hepburn…) In pain, and horribly embarrassed the culprit finally flew away.  Awesome.. just awesome.

Tonight, I found myself lying on the couch with an ice pack on my bum, in some serious pain.  (Yes, I am a wuss with zero pain threshold.) All I could keep thinking was how I am willing to barter with the universe, to promise to get off my ass (literally) and start working out again.

Bee Surprise

A month ago today, I started taking the whole idea of getting into shape more seriously with the “Getting Geared Up” post. So… I’ve strayed away from the plan a bit, with the idea of starting in baby steps: working out 3-4 times a week.   Sounds simple I know, but I have read that it can take three weeks to develop and maintain a new (healthy) habits.  Where I work I have access to a gym, which makes it easy to change into gym clothes and then zip off to the gym.

Here is my typical weekly fitness schedule:

• Monday:  Elliptical machine 60 minutes, with weight training for about 15-20 minutes
• Tuesday: Bike machine for 45-60 minutes, with weight training for 15-20 minutes
• Wednesday: Treadmill 30 minutes, with alternating walking/jogging followed by stair stepping for 15-20 minutes
• Thursday/Friday: One of the any above…

As a naturally competitive person, I have fun tracking my workouts and the number of calories burned.  There are tons of apps that allow you to do this, I use CardioTrainer (a free android app).  After each work out it shows the number of estimate calories burned with a fun badge.

As for nutrition, here is my typical food plan:

• Breakfast: Fruit smoothie with non-fat milk, flax seed, strawberries, bananas and protein powder.
• Lunch: Salad with tuna, avocado, hard boiled eggs with a side of hummus and whole wheat crackers.
• Dinner really depends on what I have on hand… to be honest.

So far, so good…and the proof is in the numbers. In the month since my wedding dress was ordered,   I decided to swing by the bridal shop Marcella‘s to be remeasured to make sure I was on the right track.  And guess what?  The hard work is paying off!  I have already lost 4 inches!

I am hoping in the next few weeks to add more core work outs, strength training and other new challenges.

By July 15th I hope to:

• Be able to run/jog for five minutes straight.  (I am currently at 2:30)
• Be able to get to 50 lbs on the weight machines.  (I am currently anywhere from 15-30)
• Rock the stair climber…. right now, I look down right silly.
• Pushups? Let’s shoot for 20 (real) pushups…

There you have it! Now go out there and kick some working out butt!

Yesterday, with my mom and sisters in town,  my wedding dress was ordered. (Since Neal reads the blog, I am not going into any amount of detail here!  Sorry readers…) Yes, with over a year to go my dress has been ordered and will be arriving early autumn.  Seeing the measurements on the order sheet yesterday, reminded me that I am going to have to kick it into gear to get into shape for preparation for the big day 377 days away.    The goal isn’t to lose a certain amount of weight, simply to feel (and look) the healthiest I can be on the big day.

Strolling through Barnes and Noble it seemed to me that many books focus on one part of a healthy makeover: From diet to fitness, no book seemed to grab me as a program I could try on a continual bases.  Then I stumbled upon  “Look Better Naked!” by Michele Promaulayko, the editor-in-chief of Women’s Health.   What I loved about this book, is that it focuses helping women to feel more confident and comfortable in their birthday suits.  The book has tips and tricks, that can be used right away It includes practical tips you can incorporate right away (stand and sit up straight to look slimmer instantly), suggestions for what you can do to feel more comfortable in your own skin (have a candlelight dinner in the buff), a six-week diet plan as well as a workout schedule.   One of my favorite points?  There are amazing beauty tips that any woman can use.  I also love her style of writing, it’s as if I am chatting with a close friend.

The diet includes plenty of high fiber, protein, vegetables/fruits all in small portions.  (Something I need to improve on… )  The book includes different recipes which I will try my darnedest to  learn how to make.  (Remember, I am not the most cooking inclined.)  The workout/fitness includes a balance between strength training and metabolic workouts.

Let’s give this six week plan a shot, after all what is the worst that can happen?   I’ll give the you lovely blog readers updates and insights as I go along.