Category: Early Beginnngs

I launched my blog, I would say what feels like months ago and now I’ve lost track of where to begin or rather how to continue.  Since the launch, I’ve focused on family, friends, work, fitness, my passion project, travel, and dating.  With several ahhh haaaaaa moments in between where I’m like, “I need to write this somewhere.”  That thought would slowly fade away, usually into a new activity and/or adventure.  Needless to say I’ve been slightly preoccupied enjoying that thing called life.

Not only do I feel preoccupied but I’m feeling unaccomplished.  Have you ever thought to yourself where the heck does your time go.  One minute your setting goals, you can see them growing and slight improvements here and there – fast forward a few months later and your scratching your head wondering what is going on, “I can’t see my seeds that I planted months ago.”

I’m referring to my goals as seeds because of late, I’ve been telling friends to water their seeds.  A dear friend of mine introduced me to Louise Hay who writes about affirmations and how we need to plant a seed, water it, be patient, and it will grow.  This is true but sometimes when life takes shape we neglect said seed and/or plant and it’s difficult to recognize while the plant hasn’t sprouted, the roots are actually taking shape.

As I discovered the Mayan Underworld on my trip to Mexico, I found roots 60ft underground which didn’t exactly take shape over night.

 

So, a little perspective at the beginning of 2016 I set a few goals – let me share them as it may help keep me be accountable:

• Mental Fitness aka Meditation
• 30 minutes of daily exercise
  • 80/20 heathy eating
  • Learning new recipes
  • Cutting back sugar
  • Being aware of what’s in my food
  • Meal prepping
• 2hrs weekly of the following
  • Reading
  • Writing
  • Passion Project (LLE)
  • Web Development
• Sleep
• Travel, dating, salsa, learn Spanish

Anything that’s scratched out woooo hooo I’m doing it, anything not scratched out means they are areas of improvement.  When you look at it and the grand scheme of things I’m not doing so bad.  I’ve accomplished more than 50% of my goals and we are half way through the year.  Why then do I feel like I’m not working hard enough??

BALANCE & PERSPECTIVE

When I was in college, one of my professors was adamant about being S.M.A.R.T. and if you are in your 30’s you’ve likely heard of S.M.A.R.T.

Setting Measurable Attainable Realistic Timely GOALS

Let me break down some reality for you:

In reality there are 24hrs a day and of those 24, we sleep 8hrs to be rested, leaving 16 hours to be awake, now subtract another 8 for work, we are down to 8hrs left for other stuff. So, now you can probably subtract another let’s  4hrs for things like commute, eating, showers, I don’t know doing your hair (clearly my own personal problem.. LOL), exercise, you are down to now 4hrs and this doesn’t include having any fun, family, or friends………. so, back to my point:

BALANCE & PERSPECTIVE

While you work on LIFE: The Perfect Plan Interrupted try to maintain balance in goals, living, laughter, dreams, loving, and maintaining your perspective.  You’re likely growing roots if you haven’t started to see your plant breakthrough the soil.

Now, if you dare – I would love for you to share one goal that you would like to accomplish in the next six months.  Small or big.  My goal that I’m going to work on for the balance of the year is getting 2hrs of writing/reading in a week.

(Yes, I’m still going to write cheesy questions at the end of my posts in hopes that someone will respond 🙂 )

Ever since I revisited fitness and nutrition I’m always on the hunt for new recipes, ideas, and quick realistic solutions.

I can’t imagine a world where I wouldn’t be able to Google my ingredients in my fridge and end up with several great options to try something new.  However, with all the options available online – some work out and some not so much.  I will do my best to post options that are my favs, easy to do, tasty, and for the most part healthy (as it relates to my fitness goals).

This recipe was really simple and found on Facebook.  It was posted by Proper Tasty, and you can find the video, here if you need more direction.

Why I love it, it’s the perfect single chick meal with leftovers for the office the next day:

• 50 g Spinach
• 50 g Ricotta ( I used goat cheese instead)
• 50 g Mushrooms
• 2 pieces of chicken breasts (a little on the large size, as you will be stuffing them)
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• Shredded Cheese & Paprika

NOTE: I added more spinach and mushrooms to mine.

1. Preheat oven to 200°C or 400°F
2. Cook the spinach, mushrooms together to your liking in a large enough pan, I just use my single serving frying pan, nothing fancy – when almost done add your ricotta or goat cheese.
3. Line a baking sheet with foil for minimal clean up and lightly grease to reduce sticking (this is a personal preference for me, but not mandatory).
4. On a cutting board, slice your chicken breasts with 3-5 insertions, depending on the size.  You want to cut it deep enough that it provides room for the spinach/mushroom/cheese mix. It’s very easy to cut right through the chicken so do it with caution or else you’ll end up with a chicken casserole instead 🙂
5. Place the chicken on the baking sheet and using a spoon add the mixture to the insertions that you made.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Top with the shredded cheese, then sprinkle paprika to give it that nice gold colour.
8. Put into the oven for 25-30 minutes.
9. Enjoy! As you can see by the fourth picture it ends up being very juicy!

Let me know if you try it.  Bon apétit!

I think it was about six months ago, when Tina (the coach) asked me to journal and I laughed that it would do nothing for me. Fast forward six months later, I try to start my day with MITs, I’m writing on the go for my blog, I spend time throughout the day writing about my journey to a healthy lifestyle, and I end the day with a happy note.

When we decide to start new journeys and adventures, it’s not always easy.  Whether it’s school, a career, leaving a career, relationships, fitness, moving to a new city or country, a hobby, I can go on, but my point is – it’s not always easy. It’s challenging and requires the type of dedication that for the most part comes from within.

[Side note: it’s March 10, 2016 and I’m editing this post to make sure it’s decent for you to read when I would rather be curled up on my couch eating Pho and watching Young & the Restless (yes, I watch Y&R).  This my friend is dedication, dedication to want a little more out of life.  Here’s hoping you are enjoying reading this, as much as I’m enjoying this new journey 😉 ]

As I was saying, this dedication that we need to channel, it’s not visible. It’s what I remember Tina saying to me when we first started – change your dialogue.  By this she meant the mental dialogue.

I’m sharing my thoughts on dedication because it’s important to understand that I didn’t want to journal at all, I couldn’t begin to see why, or how I would make it a part of my daily routine.  But by adding small habits to my day, instead of committing to writing a book or journal entries every night, I was writing everyday in my own fashion.  So, how did I start this new habit; I complete my daily MITS, blog on the go, track my fitness, and take a moment to reflect at the end of the day.

Hopefully this insight might help you start writing daily, work on your goals, plan to add something different to your routine, get you closer to an ah ha moment, or just introduce you to something new.

My Daily Routine

Most Important Things (MITS)
A colleague introduced me to the blog Zen Habits, by Leo Babauta and when I found his post on MITs, I started to apply this approach to my days  and since then I have found my days have become more structured (for the most part).  I start my day by opening up my notebook, not a digital tool an actual physical notebook.  I jot down the date, write MITs in caps and pick three things I would like to accomplish that day.  From Monday – Friday these tasks are usually one personal and two work related and then on weekends I focus on personal projects and/or larger tasks/chores.

We all have lists; to-do lists, grocery lists,  project lists, reminders, phone notifications, etc…  In my approach with MITs, they are not meant to replace my everyday tasks – I actually use Todoist to manage a very detailed list of my projects, tasks and chores.  My application of the MITs approach simply helps me look at the big picture for the hours ahead.  When I’m successful at getting through those three items I’m one step closer to success with my personal and professional wins.

Now, I’ve not perfected the art of setting realistic MITS, sometimes I get them all done and other times they are unrealistic, for example doing three workouts when I have not slept the night before 😛

But that doesn’t stop me from trying again tomorrow, seeing my goals everyday on paper helps me learn what’s realistic and what’s not. I pretty much wake up the next day and assess and reset.

Try it, stop doing it, try again, forget to write them for a week, start back again, and keep going – habits are not built with one try.

The Blog
Well, not much to say here other than I busted my butt off working on launching the blog so you can enjoy reading my musings.  I included it on this post on writing because deciding to write a blog takes a certain amount of dedication that I don’t think anyone realizes until you really get into the nitty gritty of what it takes to start and maintain a blog.  This includes making decisions on:

• What the blog will look like
• What will you talk about
• How do you keep track of all the topics
• Who do you want to share it with (yes, I do realize this is the internet)
• Oh crap! Who’s going to review posts before you publish it
• What if it’s a really bad idea and you have no idea what you are doing

Once you get past those ‘minor’ hurdles your creative juices start to flow and next thing you know you are writing on the go.  I use several things to help manage my writing for the blog:

• Google Keep – when I get an idea, or conversations with friends or colleagues spark something I jot it down using this app
• MITs – under my list of three things to accomplish daily, I make a table with two headings ‘Work and Play’ and keep notes on that page of things that come to mind through out the day
• WordPress – there are sooo many draft posts in the back end of my site, I will get to them eventually.  Probably not the best approach for keeping things organized but for this rookie it works for now
• Evernote – one day when I’m bored, I will log into the app and work on the notes I’ve collected over the last five years to turn them into posts for this blog

I have no idea what this blog will eventually take off to become but very pleased that I can hit the publish button.

366 Fit Goals
So, if it’s not enough that I start the day imagining my future and then throughout the day write on the go – I decided that the world shall know about my journey to a healthy lifestyle.  Well right now the world is my 60 followers on Instagram, where half of them are my family/friends and the other half random people that like my posts because the hashtag is popular.

But everyday, I try to get one note out into the interspace that is Instagram, on what I’m doing to accomplish my new lifestyle goals. You have no idea how much work this takes; images, filters, cropping, editing, being creative in what I write, hashtags, etc… it’s quite the task and commitment, but I do it.  I want to believe it will actually get easier in time.  That’s MITs, blog ideas/drafts/rewrites/edits, and fitness posts.

Shameless plug, follow me on Instagram @366fitgoals  to learn more about the daily struggle and wins.  Or, follow me because long blog posts are not for you.

The Happy Note
So, now it’s the end of the day and I’m getting ready for bed and by this point of the day let’s be honest just before bed we are all DONE.  But I decided to try to make reflection a part of my daily routine.  Every night, before bed I write something down that made me happy.  I will be honest at the end of the day it’s sometimes challenging to think back on what was my happiest moment of the day (especially if you know me well, my memory isn’t the greatest) –  but I try to find something, one thing, that made me smile, laugh, comforted me, encourage me to be better tomorrow, one thing.

I jot it down and toss it in an Addidas hi-top shoe box that signifies my start to 2016.  This wild idea was found on Facebook by the author of Eat Pray & Love, Elizabeth Gilbert – check out the original post here.

That completes a day of writing, which I swore I would not do six months ago 😛

Start small, one commitment to one new thing and next thing you know you are an amateur writer.  I dare you to try it!

I’ve heard of these crazy people that spend time food prepping for the week.

This means getting your meals ready for the week – my first reaction was, ‘Say what, you are committing to food choices all week!?!!?”  And now my kitchen is like this almost every Sunday:

So, what does it typically look like or start with – every other Sunday I start with Franky (my beta fish in the blue bowl) and give him his little spa treatment: bowl cleaned and a bite to eat.  Occasionally, I setup fresh cut flowers as well.  I’m that girl 🙂

Now let’s get down to business.

First things first, I usually start thinking about my menu the week before and jotting it down in my notebook it just gives me some ideas before the grocery trip on Saturday before the gym.

TIP: When you are starting off, working on a healthier lifestyle can be challenging as you probably have to start creating new healthy habits.  It’s not easy at first but I imagine a day that I will be an expert at it, cheering on others who are starting off.  So, don’t get frustrated if it doesn’t come natural.  If it does come natural kudos to you! If not keep at it, you are learning a new habit it will come 🙂

This week I’m lucky to have frozen turkey chilli already made, next on my to do list will be breakfast.  I have some go to options for the early mornings when I train, these options help to get food prep done in no time.  I will share recipes for these eventually, but let’s be honest you can Google them:

• Steel cut oats for the week
• Greek yogurt w/ sooo many yummy toppings
• Overnight rolled oats

This week I’m boiling steel cut oats for peanut butter and jelly (warmed blueberries) with oats and while I boil the oats, I’m usually doing my nails – yup this is me the healthy fashionista… LOL

For lunches  and dinner I will go back and forth between avocado dishes, and the turkey chilli.  The choice for snacks throughout the day will be cheese, almonds, or a fruit.

Food prep is doable but like everything new that we try – you just need to start, learn, and try again.

What’s your tips for food prep?

*** These questions at the end of posts, seriously it’s not like people ever leave comments – but who knows one day someone might.  I better figure out how to respond, and set that up.  Have a fab week!

It will be three years ago this August when I first saw my condo that I’m happily renting, and anyone who knows me well, knows I haven’t figured out what I would prefer to commit to house/condo also known as ‘to shovel or not to shovel my own snow’.

Anywho.. I’ve decided to share my home with you guys because to be honest it’s where all the action goes down; family, fashion, food, friends, music, fitness, dance, love, and work – it happens right here.  I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else but here in this moment.

The 411 about my place: if you know me, you know that I’m a die-hard Sex and the City fan (often referred to as SATC) and that I’m living here because of this show.  I may never remember anyone’s birthday without a Google reminder but I can pretty much tell you what happens next in every episode of Sex and the City.  No, this is not sad – I see you Walking Dead (I think that’s the name of the show) fans or [insert any other sequel/movie/show that I’ve never seen] 🙂 .

This home is my version of Carrie’s place in Ottawa, well at least in my head.  It’s an 80’s building, at least that’s what I tell myself, the kitchen is small, and rightfully so because I’m certainly no grand chef.  The living and dining room are good enough for Franky and I.

But more importantly, I have a patio (with a BBQ, which I will learn to use one day), a large storage room, a large guest bathroom, my guest room doubles as a study and storage for my 80 odd dresses, the main bedroom has what I fell in love with: a walk in closet and an ensuite bathroom.  So definitely larger than Carrie’s place but perfect for this SATC fan 🙂

So, if you have ever seen an episode of SATC you will know and understand how I couldn’t turn away from this place.  The bedroom, closet, bathroom sold me.

Hopefully, this will add context to future posts on fashion, updating my second room, my attempt at barbecuing, and much more!