Sunday, January 30, 2011

Mamavation - It's a Cinch!

This week was one of those weeks that felt like a year. I started the week by going to Raleigh, NC for a workshop for work. It was a media training workshop which involved being interviewed numerous times on camera. Uh yeah, the camera adds 30 lbs right?
I was determined to not go crazy and eat crap on my trip and I am happy to say that I followed my plan. When I got home I was up 1.5 on the scale, which was water weight from the excess sodium. It is gone now...and more! Which brings me to the main focus of my week - The Cinch Plan.
I was intrigued by Cynthia Sass's book Cinch! Conquer Cravings, Drop Pounds, and Lose Inches after I learned some about it during the Mamavation twitter party - a plan where you can eat out, eat dark chocolate, and carbs, count me in! I ordered a copy of the book that night and when I returned from my trip to Raleigh the book was waiting on me. I was excited to read about the plan and get started. The book basically outlines a low glycemic, very clean diet - which is exactly what I need. It is amazing to me how great I feel when I eat low glycemic foods, and I needed this plan to remind me of that. The plan starts with an optional "Fast Forward" where you eat a very limited diet for 5 days and it kind of detoxes you. I decided to do that and I am on day three. I have to say it is going pretty good so far! I have stuck with the 5 day plan and I haven't felt hungry, which I LOVE.
I look forward to making a meal plan this next week using the recipes in the book, they are all really simple but appear to be very tasty!
The best news - After 2 days of the Cinch Fast Forward I am down four pounds! That includes the 1.5 lbs I had gained from my Raleigh trip and an additional 2.5 lbs! I am super excited about that. This just reiterates how important low glycemic, whole foods are for my body.
My plan for this week, continue the Fast Forward plan through Tuesday and then start the Cinch Core plan.
The Mamavation question this week is "What does wellness mean to you?"
Wellness to me is feeling alert, content, and confident. Having a stable blood sugar helps me in all of these ways - I hate the feeling of blood sugar highs and lows, it effects everything about my day. Eating clean and healthy coupled with an active lifestyle result in me feeling my best and therefore I am happier and more productive.
I hope I am going to be able to join in for Mamavation TV Monday night. I want to see how the Mamavation Moms are doing and of course winning a pair of Earth Footwear would be AWESOME! I so want some!

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Mamavation Monday - On the Road Again

I hit the road again today. I am heading to Raleigh, NC to go to a workshop on dealing with the media, doing interviews, etc. I do interviews and deal with the media a few times a year and I never look forward to it. I am always afraid I am going to say something stupid, be misquoted, or just look like an ass in general and then have my name and agency attributed to it. So if I learn anything at this training it could be worth my pride in the long run.
I worked out 5 days this past week. I am loving my EAS active 2 for my Wii! It is so much fun and I love that I can get a workout during my lunch break (I work from a home office) and especially after I put Fisher to bed for the night.
I have logged everything I have put in my mouth for the past 28 days. I have only went over my calories one or two of those days. I am proud of myself for keeping up with my calories and sticking to my calorie goal. However, I am super bummed that as of this morning - since I have only lost 1.5 lbs total since logging my calories AND working out. I know I lose slow, but DAMN! It is even hard to lose 5 lbs at a time when it takes literally months to lose 5 lbs. So I am meeting with a doctor so she can assess my medications (thyroid), look at my calorie intake, and hopefully offer some suggestions and/or changes. I have been eating clean for the most part. Lots of whole foods but probably still too many whole wheat breads. I am going to try to eat less breads/carbs and see if that helps. I am trying not to get discouraged - because I do feel better. I feel like my body is slowly losing, even if the scale doesn't appear like it. I feel like my jeans fit me better and I feel a little more firm since I have been able to work out so much lately. So please remind me to focus on the positive and not give up! :)


Question: How are you getting more fiber in your diet this New Year?
I have been eating a ton of fresh fruit and vegetables. I have made it a mini goal for me to only snack on raw fruits and vegetables if I want to eat something between meals. This has helped me increase my fiber intake and increase the amount of healthy fruits and veggies I am eating!
I have never tried Kellogg's Fiber Plus, but I am getting a free sample, so I am excited to try it out! As a super busy, working, traveling mom - if I can get anything quick and easy I am all about it!

I’m writing this post as an entry to a blogging carnival sponsored by Fiber Plus. I will be receiving free product in return.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Mama worries

One of the things I have heard over and over from many different moms is that I should prepare to worry about my child (or children) their entire lives - it never stops. In the short 16 months that I think I have been pretty normal in the fact that I have worried about many things - some completely valid, some not so much. As Fisher grows and develops I think back to some of my earlier worries and laugh. I already wish I could go back in time and tell my new mama self not to worry so much! I am sure I will have those feelings over and over again throughout my mamahood career. What I have learned already is that the majority of the things I have worried about are non-issues. The first few months when we had Fisher sleeping in our room to monitor his breathing, I worried that he would be 15 years old and still sleeping in our room. At four months he outgrew the cradle, got the go ahead from the doctor to be in a room by himself, and slept better than ever in his own crib in his own room. No reason to worry.
I was worried that Fisher wouldn't be able to roll over, crawl, walk, and meet the developmental milestones because he couldn't do tummy time for the first several months. I even took him to the doctor when he was 3 months old to discuss my worries. The doctor was kind and did a full evaluation and then assured me that I had no reason to worry at all. He was developing as a normal 3 month old baby. And of course Fisher crawled at 6ish months and walked at 10.5 months. Again, a non-issue.
I guess it never ends because the other day I was reading a toddler book and it mentioned that toddlers should be able to point to a certain number of body parts by 18 or 24 months. I had a panic moment. My son is 16 months old and I haven't started on the body parts! Worst mom in the world. Would Fisher ever get it? So that day (which happened to be about 3 days ago) I started with "Fisher, where is your belly?" and showed him. About two minutes later he was doing it when asked. I then did toes, ears, nose, and head...all of which he has picked up and has been proudly pointing to when asked the last few days. I could repeat this type of story with his talking, his sleeping, adjustment to daycare, napping, and a thousand other things that I suddenly worried about, only to realize once I relaxed and let Fisher develop on his own - he surpassed my limited expectations.
I am daily amazed by what he has figured out, what he is putting together, what he is learning. Now if I could do a little learning of my own - I need to remember to relax and enjoy my amazing little boy and save the worrying to real issues.

Monday, January 17, 2011

Mamavation Monday - Losing it, finally!

I had a loss this week! I am super stoked because it has taken me a long time to have one! Between my crappy thyroid and not being able to work out due to my ankle - I have been doing good holding it steady. But not this week! I have lost 1.5 lbs, which for me is great.
I was able to workout 5 days this week. My ankle held up pretty good, though I have definitely been protecting it some -but I am very happy it is slowly getting back to normal. I have been loving my EA Active 2 on my Wii! I finally got to bust it out this week. My only complaint is that the resistance band does not seem to be made for a 6 foot tall person. I love being able to watch my heart rate and the amount of calories I am burning - it makes me work harder.
We might be trying something new in our house, which will probably help me in the weightloss department - we are thinking about going gluten free. My husband has had major stomach problems for years. He also has a really crappy immune system. He hasn't been diagnosed with Celiac Disease, but I was thinking it might not hurt to try to eliminate gluten from his diet to see what happens. And being the awesome wife that I am, I will join him on his quest, to also see what happens :) So, if you are gluten free and love it,hate it, or have any suggestions and comments - please let me know! I am a whole wheat addict, so that is going to be the biggest change for me - but we shall see. It might not make a difference to Shawn and we might be back to our whole wheat loving selfs.
This week I am looking forward to working out. I plan on working out 5 days this week.
I also am going to make drinking plenty of water a huge priority. My hydration seems to fall to the wayside every so often and I have to remind myself to drink up.


I am really looking forward to the twitter party tonight! Can't wait to see which two of the Mamavation finalist will be the next two Mamavation Moms - they all are deserving.

Monday, January 10, 2011

Bye, bye mullet

Fisher may look just like his daddy, but I think he got my hair. That poor child had the makings of a pretty righteous mullet from day one and over the months it has crept farther and farther from cute baby hair and closer and closer into serious mullet territory. Add that to the fact that Fisher is an extremely messy eater (as are most 15 month olds that I know) and Fisher's napkin of choice is the back of his head. Seriously, that child does not eat without sharing his nutrition with his hair. And you can imagine how much he loves having crusty food brushed out of his hair. Yeah, not so much. So, it was time to cut the mullet. We tried to put it off for as long as we could because as Shawn said Fisher's curls had a "George Washington Charm." Who wouldn't want that?

The Before


However, the George Washington Charm came to an end on Saturday. We took Fisher in for his first hair cut with an entourage of 6 people - my two sisters, my niece, my brother-in-law, and of course Shawn and myself. We went to Cookie Cutters in Lexington which is a kids only hair cutting place. What a neat place! They have video games and a slide for kids to play on while waiting. Kids can pick what car or horse they want to sit on while they are getting their hair cut and they get to watch cartoons the whole time.
Fisher chose the Firetruck. He got in it, was content sitting there for about 2 seconds until the hair stylist wet his hair down to cut. If there is one thing Fisher doesn't like - it is getting his hair wet....so you can imagine what was next. A little crying, a little wiggling, a little fussing. One balloon and a sucker later he was content enough to complete the right of passage.
And bam - my baby was no longer a baby. Even though I have been warned by so many people - I was still shocked at the difference one hair cut made. Fisher may look very different, but he is quite the handsome devil, if I do say so myself :)
It was a little bittersweet, but I am honestly glad it is over. I couldn't imagine trying to contain Fisher in a chair long enough to have a sharp object cutting at his head - but the stylist at Cookie Cutters was amazing and was so fast. So another biggie is in the books (or in the blog) - the first hair cut is now behind us. What is next? College graduation??

The after - my handsome young man -

Trudging on

I have not been posting much to my blog lately. I have several things I want to write about and share about, but I have to find the time to do it.
In the meantime I want to continue with my Mamavation Monday posts. It is good for me to be accountable each week as it reboots me for the coming week.
This past week I did alright. I still haven't been able to work out, due to the ankle. But I ate pretty good, until the weekend when I went a little off track. Back on track now and I am thinking my ankle is healed enough to ease back into cardio. I won't be jumping this week, but I am going to try my new EA ACtive 2 for Wii. I can't wait to see what it has in store for me.
Weight - held steady this week, which isn't bad considering I am, um...bloated. Thanks Mother Nature. The good news is, usually once the bloat goes away I am usually down a little, so I am hopeful that next will be a good weigh in!

To answer Leah's questions this week -
Have you ever been injured starting a new exercise routine? Tell us about it…If not, do you get any aches and pains? Where?
I have never been injured starting a new exercise routine. I usually ease into things and the worst I have had is aches and pains from long, long hikes and such the day after. For the most part I think I have been pretty lucky in the injury department (until the ice incident of a few weeks ago).

Congrats to all the Mamavation Mom finalists!!! I am excited to see what Leah has in store for you ladies this next week.
Looking forward to seeing their mugs tonight at Mamavation TV. Hosted by Salonpas

Monday, January 3, 2011

Here we go, here we go, here we go again

Another year is on the way and like most folks I am hopefuly that this year holds a lot of great things for my friends and family. For me personally, I plan on striving to improve my health this year, so here I go, here I go, here I go again.
I have been tracking everything I eat on my iphone through the My Fitness Pal app. I love doing that! It keeps me motivated to eat foods that are healthy and good for me and not go crazy over board on anything. If you use My Fitness Pal, feel free to add me as a friend, my username is erinmcpatrick.
The workout thing...grrrr....it has been two weeks and I am still limping on my sprained ankle. I talked to my sister about it yesterday, she is a physical therapist and a ton of help on so many workout related questions! Anyway - she said that I should allow at least 4 - 6 weeks to fully heal and until I can walk without pain I don't need to push it. She gave me some strength building exercises for my ankle, which I have started doing.
Weight, stayed the same this week. Ug. I hate that, I was down about 1.5 lbs earlier this week, and now back up. I guess at least I didn't gain.
This weeks plan is to continue eating clean/whole foods, which I have been doing probalby 80% of the time, drinking lots of water, and doing some strength exercises as I can.
I can't wait to get my ankle back to normal, so I can start my EAS Active 2 on my Wii!! I just got it for Christmas and I am so looking forward to it! I love using my Wii to work out from home. I also like DVDs. I am going to get back to the 30 day shred as soon as I can as well. Working out from home has become important since having my son - getting to the gym just wasn't happening for me. When I changed my work out routine to the house, things clicked again!

Looking forward to this weeks Mamavation Monday, hosted by Gamestop!