Keep it simple and stay motivated!

For the past couple of weeks I have really been increasing my exercising regime.: swimming laps and speed walking with intermittent sprints mostly. I really feel like I am getting into the swing of things and am looking to bump it up a little. The humidity in Georgia is beginning to lighten up so jogging/running is back on the agenda. I have also found a yoga class (I hope they have a spot open) which I hope to sign up for, and I finally cleaned out the garage and set the karate/work out room back up with a punching bag.

I think exercising is quite easy of you can find a form of exercise you really love and/or when you can find a reason to WANT to exercise. This morning for example, I woke up and did not want to drive to the pool to do my laps, but I knew that is I didn't I would miss out on the majority of good quality exercise for the day and would being messing up fitness training. So I found something to motivate me to get my butt out of bed, into the car, and to the pool. I remembered how good I had felt in Europe where I walked practically ALL DAY LONG. I remembered how GOOD I had been felling these past few days after swimming laps every morning and I realized that I wanted to feel that way today, so I got up and went out. When I got there I wound up feeling so energized that I wound up swimming an extra 10 laps! So in the end I swam 40 laps in 25 minutes rather than my usual 30 laps in 19 minutes. It paid off and I've been feeling really good with a positive and productive attitude.

Tomorrow I am starting on some strength and resistance training and I really REALLY want to get a bike so I can start cycling. I have never wanted to do all this stuff so much before and actually went through with it. I really believe that if you can find a good and influential reason to to get fit, that it will motivate you and lead you to success!!

Today I was also in a very simple mood. I didn't want a lot of different stuff meshed together so today I went for simple and it was incredibly refreshing! :) It went something like this:

• Breakfast: 8 cups of watermelon (so sweet and juicy!)
• Lunch: 2 cups of chopped spinach and basil leaves topped off with asparagus and fresh picked yellow and red tomatoes from the garden.

• Afternoon juice: 16 oz. of green juice
• Supper: Quart of smoothie - 4 mango, 4 bananas, a handful of strawberries & blueberries, and a bit of raw honey.

On my 1 to 10 simple eating scale (1 being the simples, 10 the most complex) I would say today was about a 3. I find the simpler I eat, the better I feel and preform through out the day. Just enjoying each individual flavour is really a delightful experience!

So go out there and have fun! Move around, enjoy the simple things in life when you can, and above all else . . . SMILE!! :D

Friday: BUSY!

I woke up this morning, got out of bed, and haven't stopped going since! Today I woke up extra early to go swim laps. Every time I swim I always time myself to see how many laps I can complete in the 2o minutes I have to swim. Yesterday was my first time getting back into the "swim" of things since I got back from Europe and I was incredibly surprised at the increase in my energy, stamina, and speed. When I first started swimming every other morning at Johnson Park, I could barely do 18 laps, and when I finished I was exhausted. Now, both yesterday and today I timed myself and I was able to do 30 laps in 20 minutes and I felt like I could do 30 more (but I had to get back to the house to get to work)!!

After my swim I sat in the Johnson Park parking lot and ate my breakfast while watching people walk and listening to the radio. Sometimes it's just nice to have breakfast completely by yourself and just relaxing . . . *sigh*. I had a Mamey Sapote with pumpkin pie spice sprinkled on top. . . aah . . . need I say more? :)

The rest of the day was spent cleaning the house, preparing food for my brother, running errands to the bank, grocery store, post office, etc. The whole day I felt like I was running on fast forward. It felt good though, to move around and accomplish things. It made sitting down in the evening all the more relaxing.

Wednesday (09/09/09): Not what I expected

Today didn't go or turn out even vaguely close to what I had planned. First, my organic plums turned out to be a bomb. Seriously, it was like eating slightly sweet water! I only wound up eating 2 of the 5 that I had, choosing some globe grapes to make up the bulk of my meal.

Then I had to go back to the insurance agency that morning because of some sort of misunderstanding/mix up that took about 40 minutes to resolve. No sooner had that been taken care of my up to Rainbow Natural Groceries to get more organic dog food. Since we were already in the area my mom and I had lunch at Rainbow and stopped off at Farmer's Market just to grab a few things so we wouldn't have to come back Friday, but instead could hold out until Sunday or Monday.

I get home and head off to TCB to do my CSNN work while my mom takes my brother to karate. Today I studied the important links between the digestive track, enzymes, and nutrient absorption. I also have started into studying the different types of carbohydrates and the enzymes needed to metabolize them.

Afterwards I picked up the dogs from the groomers and ran over to the nearest Ingles to see if they had any Organic peaches, they didn't have any. I guess I am going to have to check the other Ingles tomorrow morning when I go for a swim.

By the time I was settled back at home for the evening, it was 6:30 p.m. and all I felt like doing was making a smoothie and watching another Monk. Like I said, this day, not what I expected. Tomorrow though is another day and I plan to make the most of it! 

Tomorrow is Surprise Thursday, the day that my mom goes to PCLA in the morning to tutor in Algebra, and when she gets back in the afternoon I have a lovely lunch made up for everyone! Since my brother eats mostly cooked and my mom eats some cooked grains and potatoes, I always make sure that there is at least two healthy as possible, cooked dishes on the menu. The rest I make is raw and there for my family if they feel up to trying out one of my raw creations. I have no idea what I'm going to make tomorrow. I never really know for sure until it comes time to start making it! :)

Anyway, before I end this entry I wanted to make a list here on all the things I want to complete before Saturday. I'm thinking that if I list them on this blog that it might motivate me to actually do them and finish them. Wish me luck!

1. Clean bathroom.

2. Clear up garden (weed, prune, harvest)

3. Clean out garage/gym

4. Organize and label stuff in preparation to have a garage sale

5. Carry out Surprise Thursday

6. Swim Laps

7. Look into buying a bike

8. Finish Lesson 5 of CSNN module #1 by Friday evening

9. Get peaches

And off I go!

Tuesday: Insurance, Lettuce Wraps, and CSNN

Today got off to a good start, with my usual morning quart of lemon water followed by 4 cups of freshly cut up sweet pineapple. At 11 o'clock (a.m.) my mother accompanied me to our insurance agency. Now that I am officially an adult it was time for me to get my own insurance. After some thought I finally decided on the 5 year renewable term. 

Being an a legal adult is feeling a bit . . . surreal. I was just a few weeks ago that I was still 17 and under the authority of my mom. Now I alone am responsible for myself, my actions, and the rewards or consequences that come with those actions. I guess I just haven't really gotten used to it yet.

When lunch time rolled around my mom and brother had gone out to TCB (our local cafe) so I got the whole house to myself. :) I decided to throw together whatever was around the housefor lunch and wound up with this:

The filling was made up off locally grown tomato, cucumber, red onion, minced garlic, dried basil, and real salt. Simple, fast, and tasty! After putting it together I sat back and enjoyed an old episode of the T.V. show Monk while ate. Afterwards was just spent doing various chores around the house: laundry, sweeping, emptying the dishwasher, etc.

At about 1:30 p.m. I grabbed a banana and headed out to run a few errands. I headed over to Johnson Park to renew my annual pass so that I can start swimming laps in the morning again, and visited a few local establishments to ask about any part-time job openings. I'll be filling out some applications for a job tomorrow, wish me luck!

After picking up my brother and dropping him off at karate I headed over to TCB to meet up with my mom after she finished teaching at PCLA, and to work on my correspondence study work for the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition (CSNN), I just finished the chapter covering water pollution. Most of it I already from independent research, but still, it blows my mind on just how many chemicals and metals that out in tap water. Yikes!

When I got home I settled in with my nightly quart of smoothie to relax and enjoy the rest of the evening. Tomorrow I'm aiming to work on a few projects as well as some more of my CSNN work. Hopefully all will go smoothly.

My new favorite smoothie! 

A combo of mango, banana, peach, raw honey, and cinnamon!

Monday: Mameys, Mangos, and the Mall

Labor Day, Monday, was another lovely sunny day! I had my first Mamey Sapote that morning. The taste and texture really surprised me, as I had no idea what to expect of it. To me, a Mamey has the same taste and texture as a baked sweet potato with maple syrup. Yummy! I also had a fruit smoothie that I made for my entire family, and they all adored it (even my usuall raw avoiding brother).  

                       

Frozen

banana,

fresh strawberries

& blueberries,

raw honey,

& vanilla. My mom said,

"It's like having dessert for breakfast."

 

 

While enjoying our breakfast smoothies my family and I decided to watch the movie U.S. Marshalls. It turned out to be quite the thriller. I was on the edge of my seat almost the entire time and the movie even managed to throw in a twist I did not see coming. I definitely recommend this movie. I would watch the movie The Fugitive first since U.S. Marshalls is the companion/sequel to The Fugitive. You could still watch it without watching The Fugitive, but I think you would appreciate it more.

By the end of the movie my Mom and I were getting a bit restless so we left my brother at the house while we went to the Mall. First we walked around outside for a bit before walking the mall (stairs and all) for about 45 minutes before stopping at Borders to browse. I ended up purchasing an autobiography of a man who has Asperger's syndrome (a form of Autism). So far it's turning out to be a good read. I might write a review on it for my this blog when I finish it.

After arriving home I took my car out to stop off at Ingles to grab some more bananas and pick up my crate of organic mangos (which are ripening on top of the refrigerator as I as writing this). Seriously my family is in love with bananas. My family goes through 7 to 8 bunches a week. I put them in my smoothies, eat them as a snack or mono meal. My mom and brother has them in his Raw Cacao Hemp smoothies. My toy poodle, Penny, has a potassium deficiency so she always wants to eat bananas, so I feed her 1 to 2 of them everyday!

I hope everyone has had a lovely holiday!

Sunday: Papaya, Green Juice, and Monopoly

Sunday was not am incredibly eventful day, but it was nice and sunny! For breakfast I had 2/3 of a lovely papaya. Now the way I eat papaya is unique. I take my portion of the papaya, peel it, and cut the "meat" into cubes. I take 2/3 of my portion of papaya, put it into my Vitamix (just got it and I love it so much! Makes everything so smooth and creamy.) along with juice from half a lime and a tsp. of vanilla, and blend for 25 seconds. It makes a lovely papaya pudding!! I eat this happily with a big spoon, and finish off my breakie with the last 1/3 of my papaya cubes.

Since the weather was so nice I spent a good portion of the ay taking walks around my neighborhood and listening to my iPod. My neighbors probably think I'm nuts when they watch me walk by their houses. Every  30 minutes or so they see an 18 year old girl in a pink and white sun dress and flip-flops with ear buds in her ears singing and dancing down the road with a goofy grin on her face. LOL! :D

I also spent a bit of time at Starbucks with my mom. We sat outside to soak up more sun while she had a soy chai tea latte and I had an Ethos water. I think we were there for about an hour or some just talking about anything that came to mind. That day the topic centered mostly on Darwinian Evolution, Intelligent Design, and America's educational system. My mom is reading a book about how these three topics are connected together and how they have and are reshaping America's morals and culture.

Later that evening my mom decided that we needed to do something together as a family. So my brother, mother, and I sat down at the kitchen table with our green juices and watermelon (an hour after the juices), and played monopoly! :) I don't know how he did it, but my brother somehow managed to win the game!!

2 apples, 1/4 a lemon, thumb size of ginger, 4 celery sticks, 2 leaves of dinosaur kale, 1 heaping tsp. spirulina blended with 6 ice cubes.

                                  

                                     

 

Afterwards my mom and I went out to pick up some dinner for my brother. He really wanted a Chili's Old Timer Bean Burger with fries so we got him one. When we got back I made myself a quarts worth of yummy mango, kiwi, pineapple, and banana smoothie and watched a Psych with my family. All in all not a bad Sunday.

 

Friday: Market Day

I absolutely ADORED the weather today! It was nice and warm with low humidity, a light breeze, and clear blue skies with a bunch of fluffy white clouds. Since today was Friday, it meant it was time for my mom and I to undertake our weekly grocery shopping excursion in Atlanta. So when I woke up this morning I made myself a lovely green smoothie to finish off the last of the fresh produce from last week. The smoothie turned out looking more purple/bluish than green but it tasted divine!

A lovely concoction: 2 C. frozen banana, 1 1/2 C. blueberries, 1/2 C. strawberries, 2 C. romaine lettuce, &  a tbs. of raw honey 

After breakfast I was feeling really energized so I decided to take my dog, Charlie, for a mile long walk before I was to leave for the day to go grocery shopping. Honestly I was feeling so good, that if I had more time, I would have walked quite a few more miles. I was just glad though that I got to enjoy the lovely sunshine and fresh air for a little while at least. :)

Now when my mother and I go shopping for food, we go to three markets: 1) Whole Foods, 2) Rainbow Natural Foods, and #) the Dekalb Farmers' Market. We go to whole foods because it has the organic versions of the food my brother eats (tofurky brats, organic potato chips, hummus, root beer, cereal, Udo's oil, canned pumpkin, etc.) They also have a great salad and juice bar that my mom and I love to have lunch at. Today I had a nice big bowl of spinach with pineapple, strawberries, and cucumber with a fresh juice of lemon, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries.

 

The next stop we make (Rainbow) is because it has a lot of the foods that my mother and brother eat (hempseed, raw organic nuts, whole grain pasta, sprouted corn tortillas, grits, soy milk, raw cacao powder, etc.). I usually get my raw honey, seaweed, bee pollen, aloe vera, and sometimes a raw kombucha as a treat, from Rainbow. Today, however, was a rare exception where we didn't need anything from Rainbow. 

 

Since my mom and I had some extra time we decided to make a quick stop at the Lush store at the mall close by Whole Foods. I got a couple of freshly made face masks made with whole and natural ingredients. I got the Cupcake which has rhassoul mud, linseed, cacao butter, cacao powder. peppermint, spearmint, and sandalwood it it. It smells like chocolate! I've used this one before in Europe and it reduced my pours, cleared up come black heads, and made my skin glow! I also got the Cosmetic Warrior which has fresh garlic, tea tree essential oil, kaolin, grapes, honey, free range egg, and corn. I tried it for the first time tonight. The smell was a bit off putting, but the results more than made up for that! My skin was was so soft and clear, I don't know which one I like better, the Cupcake or the Cosmetic Warrior.

The last stop of the day, the Dekalb Farmer's Market, is my favorite stop of the three. Here I load up on yummy fresh leafy greens, veggies, and LOTS of luscious fruit! I have to share with my mom (and on occasion with my brother) the fresh produce purchased, but I don't mind much because I can always get more from our local grocers if I really need to, and the more raw plant based foods my family eats, the better. Today I bought:

• 4 organic mangos (will be getting more from Ingles when their organic shipment gets in on Monday)
• 1 big papaya
• 3 big bunches of organic banana
• a pint of organic strawberries
• a pkg. of organic blueberries
• 8 organic gala apples
• 7 organic lemons
• 1 HUGE watermelon
• 1 lb. red globe grapes
• 2 guavas (never had them before, wonder what they taste like)
• 2 mamey sapote ( I have been dying to try these! Heard they are quite tasty.)
• 1 stalk of organic celery
• 2 organic cucumber
• 2 red bell peppers
• 1 bunch organic dinosaur kale
• 4 organic zucchini
• a jicama
• ginger
• a bunch of organic radishes
• mushrooms, potatoes, green beans, EVO, and whole wheat bagels (for my mom & brother)

When my mom and I got home, I set about washing everything, chopping, pre-prepping, and putting all the produce away. I also went into the backyard to collect what might be the last crop of tomatoes and bell pepper from our garden. This means that we will have to start buying them from the Farmers' Market again. While this is fine, I really loved having really REALLY fresh and flavorful tomatoes at my disposable when ever I wanted some. :(

For dinner I had a bunch of watermelon (so sweet!) which I will be finishing off completely tomorrow. And now that the day has come to an end I feel quite good. Time to get some rest. I plan on going to the park tomorrow to do some more walking and maybe lie in the sun afterwards to read.

Pure fruit beauty. A perfect meal. Such a succulent indulgence.

I always cut up some nice ripe bananas and freeze them for my brother. He loves it when I make him raw cacao hemp banana smoothies for breakfast or for his post-karate work out recovery drink! :D