Leaf Turning Tuesdays

I really have been good this past week with the resolutions I've already made for myself. I wore a skirt the past 3 days in a row! I've made a concentrated effort to spend alone time with each of my kids everyday. And I've also played more and cleaned less - as the Leaning Tower of Laundry on my couch can attest! No Tofu recipes yet...and I still have Christmas Thank You notes to conquer, but hopefully this week. It's also my goal to take my husband line dancing sometime this month. Making out is sure to ensue, right?! So I feel really good about my resolutions thus far. But I don't want to get too excited. It's only the 12th! Stay Focused.

I have also spent this past week narrowing that Focus. Fine tuning what I want to unwaveringly commit and adhere to. What has been ever present on my mind is my health. I don't think I live an unhealthy lifestyle - but I would like to lose some weight. And there are a few "bad habits" that could stand to be broken. So this past week I've taken some steps to start down that path.

1) My last Diet Coke was on Saturday night. I have a serious addiction. Like 4 cans a day. And it wouldn't bother me so much, except that I hardly ever drink anything else. A glass of milk with dinner sometimes, but that's it. I pop a can of DC at 7AM and so begins my day. I started noticing that the skin on my face was so dry it was flaking, my cuticles were brittle and gross, and my hands so dry they would hurt after I dried them off. Can you spell DEHYDRATION? I stopped to think of the last time I had had a glass of water, and I couldn't remember! So unhealthy.

Now I am swimming in water like a fish. I've been drinking over 100 ounces a day trying to counter act my deprivation. And I eliminated the Diet Coke. Not forever, but at least for now. I know I will go back, but not to 4 cans a day. The plan is just every once in a while. A treat!

2) I've committed to change my diet. Knowing I am the only one standing up for my sister in her wedding has given me the kick in the butt I've needed to finally get serious about my weight loss. The plan is to eat less and eat better. Lucky for me, Becci, my room mate from college, is a registered dietitian and UCLA's Director of Sports Nutrition. She tells all their athletes what to eat to be their best! So as we were IM'ing on Facebook the other night, I asked her to create a menu for me that would help me get started. I am excited to start seeing results.

3) I've committed to working out 4 days a week. As someone who has lost a sizable amount of weight in the past, (I lost over 60lbs before I got pregnant with Megan) I know that just changing my diet wont do the trick. Not for the amount I would like to lose before July. I know the other bad habit that needs to be broken is my procrastination. I will do almost anything before I work out! Blog, read, cook, even clean! Getting active has to become a priority.

It's SO hard for me to find the time to fit this into my day. I am not a morning person. Waking early enough to work out before Matt leaves for work feels like torture to me. Once the kids are in bed for the night, I am exhausted from my day, and running is seriously at the bottom of my list of things to do after dark! But I know I have to find the time. If I don't get up and do it before Matt leaves in the morning, then I will have to go right when he gets home in the afternoons. I'll keep you posted as to how this goes!

That's it for today, this second "Leaf Turning Tuesday." I resolve to make a conscious effort at changing the little things in my life that will make a BIG difference in my health!