Holding me to my word

Yesterday my butt and legs were hurting ! It's amazing how fast something that is affective will work on your body- and it is never comfortable to live with the results ! Healing and growth are painful processes, and it can make you want to give up the effort if you do not have a good motivation for your lifestyle change. I made a commitment to my self to get in the proper condition to hike, announced it to my husband and son, got them to agree to tag along, so there was no backing out ! Nick and I do some walking and other exercise during the day, we all walk as a family before dinner and then in the evening Bob and I take turns with the little pedal bike as we are watching TV. Community support on the most basic level , and no way to escape when you decide to find an excuse to back out ! It was warm-ish yesterday but very humid and my butt muscles were really achy ! Bob suggested maybe I skip the walk , but I thought of this and said Heck No !

So out for a walk we went, and after dinner a session with a bike. The soreness kind of worked itself out - something that I had long ago forgotten ! How is it that as kids we take pain as an inconvenience to be ignored , but as adults we take it as a sign to stop ?? When do we learn this ??

Tonight is a Date Night ! Okay, we are taking Nick along with us and it is to the excitement and romance that is WalMart to look for trekking poles, but a date none the less. This weekend is looking to be very full again with church commitments, but I am hoping to find the poles and get out to the woods on Sunday afternoon. Fingers crossed !!

Walking with a cane

I have to say , walking with a cane is indeed a good thing ! Only hang up is that my back falls into a different alignment while using the cane and it creates an odd pressure on my hips. Nothing that can't be overcome though. It is making me think about investing in a set of hiking poles and seeing if this would allow me to do walking off paved or handicapped ready surfaces ?

Going for another walk today- I should take my camera and snap some pictures of the plants like Spunkysuzi does- I always love seeing what she finds on her walks !

A new friend, a new pizza and weigh in

Another good, pain free day, and an increase in activity. We are doing school 3 days a week during the summer, so for two days i get to devote more time to myself. Weekends are still going to be filled with all of the necessary errands and about a thousand commitments. Is it just me or is this summer going to be very busy ?

I my quest for "wings that work" ( I.E. Exercises that will strengthen my muscles enough to allow my joints to be supported enough to move with arthritis and not do further harm) I came across several sites written by physical therapists and the recommendation is stationary bike work as opposed to tread mills, and best exercise is water aerobics. No pool this year, no room for a full bike, so I mentioned to Bob I need a bike that is apartment friendly. He came home with this, my new little friend

It's basically pedals with a frame. All the cardio benefits of a bike without the seat or handles. Very portable and fits nicely in a really cramped space. So with the addition of My Little Friend.my activity for yesterday came out to be this

Exercise
15 minute walk outside( got cut short due to wardrobe malfunction)
50 wall push ups
25 wall slides
40 standing leg abductions
15 counter squats
35 Bridging
30 straight leg raises
20 calf raises
20 Power Knees
40 back kicks
20 isometric chest presses
100 "pull your navel in towards you backbone" thingies ( no idea what they are called, but they
help repair abdominal distasias ( separated ab muscles- thank you two surgeries !)
5 animal frolics (QiGong- an oriental exercise form sort mixing yoga with martial arts)
Qi Gong breathing exercise
cycle 15 minutes ( only because the bike did not enter my life till dinnertime)

For dinner , I made a new pizza- this time with a polenta crust. It turns our that this may be closer to what was actually eaten in earlier times by Italians. Not sure, but it is the best gluten free pizza option I have come across so far !

Polenta Pizza

1/2 cup milk
2 1/2 cups water
1 c cornmeal
1 T oil
toppings as desired ( here it was mushroom, cheese and sausage)

Bring milk and water to a boil, whisk in cornmeal, stirring
constantly till the mixture is as thick as oatmeal. Remove from
heat and stir in 1 T oil. Spread on a baking sheet to a depth of 1/2
inch, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.Bake at 425 for
25 minutes till it begins to crisp. Prepare toppings( cook your sausage,
vegetables, etc). Place on crust, top with cheese and return to
the oven for 5 minutes, or till the cheese melts.

And another week has completed and it's time for weigh in

Me- UP 0,4
Nick - DOWN 2.8
Bob -DOWN 2.4

It's getting better all the time

Oh, my little herb friends, I could kiss you !! You may be common, green and thought of as weeds by many, but you have never let me down ! Yesterday was one of the "bestus" days I have had in a long time in regards to pain. Not only was I able to function in comfort, but I was able to get in some actual exercise ! Check out my activity log for the day

Exercise
20 minute walk outside
Using guide at Safe exercise for arthritic joints here
50 wall push ups
20 wall slides
40 standing leg abductions
10 counter squats
25 Bridging( it's the Yoga position The Bridge)
30 straight leg raises
20 calf raises
20 Power Knees (Sit in a straight-backed chair and cross your legs above the ankles.
Your legs can be almost straight, or you can bend your knees as much as you like. Try several positions.
Push forward with your back leg and press backward with your front leg.
Exert pressure evenly so that your legs do not move. Hold and count out loud for ten seconds.
Relax. Change leg positions. Be sure to keep breathing.)
40 back kicks

I also slept so well that I woke up very, very early with the feeling that I have had enough sleep and I could start my day.I am sure that will fade, but it was very nice to be awakened by something other than pain. This stuff ROCKS !!! I have great faith in herbs because unlike drugs they have never let me down. Drugs always seem to work partway on my body and create a wake of problems in that course of action. Herbs have always gotten to the root cause, addressed it and the symptoms of the problem fade away. it is like the symptoms are the messenger of an imbalance and once the imbalance is addressed, there is no need for a messenger .

Food was also very good. Here is the log :

Food log
Breakfast
1/2 cup cottage cheese, 1 cup assorted melon cubes, 2 T ground flax. 1 T sliced almonds, coffee, 32 oz water
Lunch
1 c 15 bean soup, 2 c cut veggies( carrots, celery, broccoli) 1/3 cup hummus, Diet Rite, 16 oz water, sugar free fudsicles ( we need to get these out of the freezer so we can make ice cubes)
Snack
2 c air popped popcorn, 16 oz water
Dinner
Aloha pork with brown rice, roast broccoli and green salad with fruit and rosemary roast pecans, Diet Rite
Snack - nonfat plain yogert, blueberries and 1/3 cup Kashi crunch ( not Core so i had to count it)

Dinner was a spur of the moment change that involved the crock pot. I was feeling so good and wanted to just accomplish as much as I possibly could lest I started feeling a backlash of pain, and I did not want to be tied down making dinner at a specific time. The crock pot would give me the freedom to roam as I want to, so I grabbed this recipe from my files- Aloha Pork served with roast broccoli and a green salad tossed with the last of the melon cubes and rosemary roasted nuts ( THESE are potential crack !!)

Aloha Pork ( Gluten free, Core)

4 lean pork steaks ( Boneless skinless Chicken breasts would work fine as well)
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 fresh pineapple, cored , peeled and sliced
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup packed brown sugar twin
2 Tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
2 Tbsp - cat sup
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp - dry mustard
1 pint cherry tomatoes
2 cups hot cooked brown rice

In a large skillet brown the pork steaks on both sides in hot oil. Transfer the steaks to slow cooker.
In a bowl combine drained pineapple, water, brown sugar twin, tapioca, catsup, soy sauce, and dry mustard; pour over steaks.
Cover; cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours (or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours). At the last half hour, add the cherry tomatoes Skim fat from sauce.
Serve over hot cooked brown rice. Makes 4 servings

Stress busting through boxing

I think I am seeing some other non scale progress here. The power of vigorous exercise to relive stress ! Often times I simply think myself to death about a problem or issue, but yesterday I found myself reaching for a more physical release, and it felt great !

I started the day with cinnamon raisin oats , topped with a mix of honeydew, cantaloupe and pineapple. Fresh fruit with oats is wonderfully sweet and satisfying !

Then it was off to the tasks of the day , which included three big mental puzzles on top of the usual school things . I pondered, I wrestled, I was getting nowhere fast, and Nick was trying his best to be helpful. He may struggle with expressive speech, but the boy understands volumes ! We kept breaking for walks , but it was not helping the brain puzzles much.

Lunch was Garlic Pasta with kale and an assortment of veggies and hummus on the side. Crunchy sometimes helps thinking( I joke that the crunching wakes up the sleeping dwarfs in your brain), and kale just does a body good. Kale's phytonutrients help your liver to produce several detoxifying substances that help in the prevention of numerous cancers, including breast, ovary and colon. It can also lower the risk of cataracts with it's high level of lutien, B vitamins and minerals. Kale is also very high in calcium. If that was not enough, kale can also help decrease the loss of mental function. ( can I have a bushel of it , please ????)

Garlic Pasta with Kale

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
6 cloves garlic -- crushed
1 lb kale -- stems removed, leaves cut into bite size pieces
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb whole wheat pasta

Bring large pot of water to boil. Add kale and salt. Simmer 1 minute or
until kale begins to wilt. Add pasta. Cook 8-10 minutes or until pasta is
al dente. While pasta is cooking, heat oil and garlic in a small
saucepan over medium heat, stirring 2 minutes until heated throughout.
Remove from heat.
Drain pasta and kale. Transfer to serving bowl. Add oil and garlic.
Sprinkle with Parmesan. Toss before serving.

After lunch it was back to the drawing board, and I slowly came to the conclusion that I was dealing with a no win situation and I wanted to scream ! Nick suggested we do some Wii Boxing, and I agreed. I tried to vent my frustration out through the game, and it felt darned good ! I could not come up with a solution, in spite of feeling better about it, and I tried to put it on my mental back burner.
Dinner was a quick favorite- Turkey Burgers with sweet potato fries and coconut salad. We had these on the new Earth Grains Tins- 100 calories per bun , but many more grains and healthier ingredients than the Arnolds or Pepperidge Farm thins. It is great to see different choices in these better for you options !

Turkey Spinach Burgers- serves 5

1 lb ground turkey
10 oz frozen chopped spinach defrosted and drained
1/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 T dried parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce or Braggs Animos or soy sauce

combine all in large bowl. Divide into 5 burgers grill or broil 7 minutes on each side
or bake in a 350 oven for 30 minutes.( cooked burgers freeze well)

Sweet Potato Fries- serves 3

3 medium sized sweet potatoes
1 t olive oil
cinnamon to sprinkle

Wash sweet potatoes. Leave peels on and cut into fry shapes. Pour
olive oil on cookie sheet and spread with a paper towel. Spread
potatoes on the cookie sheet in a single layer, sprinkle with
cinnamon and bake at 350 for 45 minutes

After dinner I was really quiet and tense - happens when I think myself to death over something, and Bob suggested we watch Men who Stare at Goats. Funny movie based on true events, and I enjoyed it. I think I would like to buy this one to have in my collection. It made me stop thinking quite so hard about my dilemma ( lest it become a goat and I kill it with concentrating ), and somewhere in the middle of the night the perfect solution came to me , and there was great rejoicing in my head . The wanna be goats would be safe to bleat another day and two big dilemmas were solved .

Progress and worthwild pain

Busy day ! Best to begin it with something healthy- quinoa and frozen berries !

Then school, exercise, housework and a lunch break for some leftovers

Colorful salad and leftover Polenta casserole. Leftovers are something that I am trying to once again embrace. Having a family of 3 makes it hard for cutting down some recipes. You cannot cut some things smaller ( an egg for example), and not everything freezes. The polenta casserole kind of deconstructed when it was reheated ! In the afternoon it was a trip to the DMV to renew my license. I hate driving, but as much as I hate the act I hate the thought of having to redo the whole behind the wheel test even more, so I renew it. I have to say, the pain of this activity was infinitely less than the pain one of my nieces was experiencing at the same time. I got a new license for my trouble , but she got a brand new Abigail Marie !

7 lbs 1 oz and 20 inches long. Ready for the world, and will not have to deal with the DMV for at least 16 years !

Dinner was veggie lasagna in the crockpot- a MUCH better outcome with texture, but it seems all my lasagnas want to slide off their stack and deconstruct. It does not bother the guys, but it bothers me ! I served it with a salad of assorted greens , apple , pear and walnuts.

I noticed yesterday that my walking gait is more stable, even and a little faster. Working on my abs is helping my head to feel a little more connected with the ground when I walk ( hard to explain this one) , and that makes me feel a little less tentative about the terrain under my feet. That has been something that has really bothered me with arthritis. Because of the pain in movement it seems your focus tries to go to places not in pain, and in time you sort of lose your "connection" with things that the painful parts connect or engage with. When a step causes pain and you must constantly step, the survival mechanism does what it must to keep us alive.I think the abdominal work helps to increase the blood flow in my lower body, and with blood flows a certain "cellular awareness" or something, and you begin to be more alive. At least that seems to be what happens. Not sure, but I am looking forward to another opportunity to get out to walk in the woods again ! Perhaps one day I will be able to even consider running if things keep improving.

Mountains where they should not be

Day one of additional ab work, and I learned something very important about my body. I laied down to do some crunches, something i have not attempted since my days before pregnancy, and noticed that as I rolled up, my abdomen formed a mountain ridge down the center- weird to say the least ! I continued my planned work and felt around on my abdomen while I was working and noticed a weird separation feeling with my hands. Not painful, but weird in the fact that I had not seen this on other people doing ab exercises. So after I finished I started nosing around sites with anatomy discussions and such , and finally came upon a description of what was happening , why it happened in the first place and some possible solutions.

It seems that I have an abdominis rectus separation- it happens with abdominal surgeries( I had two major ones in the span of a year) and pregnancies where the mother has weak abdominal muscles- like me with pregnancy squeezed between the two surgeries. In the case of this separation, traditional ab work will never repair the damage, but other isometric type exercises can improve the condition. Often time surgery is required to reconnect the muscles. Instead of feeling defeated when I read this, I am taking it as a red flag. Someone says I can't do this on my own- consider it done ! I WILL do it, just to prove to the person pronouncing it that they are wrong. So I made notes of what exercises have been proven to help and I am going to work with them. Last night after all the days work was done I was a little sore , but I noticed that I seemed to have more "stability" for lack of a better word. I also seemed to have greater bladder control ( something that has become a very big issue, and I believe is linked to this muscle tone issue as well). I will continue and see how this improves.

Last night for dinner I tried a new to me recipe, Polenta Vegetable Casserole. Think of a cross between a Shepard's pie and a lasagna but minus the meat and a whole lot less cheese. It was pretty okay- meaning it was tasty, but a little too fiddly for my tastes. I served it with a salad made from romaine, watercress, baby spinach, arugula, dried cranberries and sliced almonds

Polenta Vegetable Casserole

2 cups fresh organic baby spinach
1 cup zucchini -- chopped
1cup broccoli -- chopped
1 cup red pepper -- chopped
1 cup green pepper -- chopped
1 cup fresh tomatoes -- chopped
1 cup fresh mushrooms -- chopped
1 medium onion -- chopped
1 tablespoon oregano
1 cloves garlic -- chopped
1 tablespoon Mrs Dash
1/8 cup water
1 jar pasta sauce -- no or low salt
Polenta
6 cups water
1 1/2 cups sun-dried tomatoes -- soaked overnight & cut into small pieces
4 cloves garlic -- minced
2 cups cornmeal
Cheese topping
1 cup mozzarella cheese -- grated

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute' vegetables, herbs and seasonings in
water for 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender, adding more water
if needed to prevent sticking. Mix in pasta sauce, reserving 1/4 cup.
Meanwhile, bring 6 cups of water, sun-dried tomatoes and minced garlic
to a boil.Then slowly add cornmeal, stirring constantly on low heat for
5 minutes until the cornmeal thickens.
Spread 1/4 cup pasta sauce over bottom of 8 X 11 baking pan, then spread
a layer of polenta over the sauce. Place a layer of the vegetable/sauce
mixture on the polenta and then another layer of polenta
and vegetable/sauce mixture. Sprinkle grated cheese over top. Bake in oven
for 20 minutes until heated through. Serves 8.

Arthritis, tragic abs and up a creek with a flimsy paddle

Life moves much like a stream, always flowing, always heading somewhere and the terrain it flows over dictates the characteristics of that flow. Flat lands create gentle meandering courses, hills create swift flowing movement and boulders create rapids.The stream can seem to disappear when it flows through a cave, but when it flows over a cliff , it becomes a waterfall. Yesterday made me feel as if my life's flow is in a waterfall of late !

Thursday I noticed that my arthritis was flaring up , and I was having pain in walking. Let me rephrase that- pain is not really accurate. It is more accurate to describe it as the feeling that my knee, hips and lower spine are not capable of supporting my weight and may collapse.Not a new feeling in the least, and i know more movement can help to lessen this feeling. It did not, but I was too wrapped up in life to give it a lot of thought. Thursday night I had trouble sleeping because there was no comfortable position to be found with my knee, and Friday it was worse because of the lack of sleep. Friday night was also fairly sleepless because of the discomfort, and while shopping Saturday I taxed the knee, hip and lower back too much. I could not complete all of the shopping, and had to send Bob into the last stop to complete the list. Again, I did not really think much about it because there was too many other things pulling at my focus. Yesterday afternoon was nice and our plan was to head to the park and play frisbee for some activity after lunch- portabello and red pepper sandwiches serve on Arnolds with veggies and strawberries on the side.

Portobello Red Pepper Sandwich
SANDWICH
1/2 large red onion -- thinly sliced
4 large Portobello mushrooms -- stems removed
4 deli thins
2 cups large arugula leaves
2 medium drained roasted red bell peppers -- from jar,
seeded and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
TAHINI SPREAD
3/4 cup raw tahini (pureed sesame seeds)
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Mrs Dash
1 teaspoon Bragg Liquid Aminos or low sodium soy sauce
1 large pitted medjool date -- chopped or 2 deglet noor
1 small clove garlic -- chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange mushrooms and onions on baking sheet
and roast until tender,about 15 to 20 minutes. Meanwhile, make tahini
spread by blending all spread ingredients together.
When mushrooms/onions are done, place on deli flats Spread generous
amount of tahini spread on top half of split pita. Place 1/2 cup arugula
on bottom half and then, 1 mushroom cap (pat dry with paper towels to absorb
liquid), sliced onion and roasted red pepper.
Serves 4.

We got to the park, and I was having real problems walking on non paved terrain, so we decided to skip frisbee and simply walk. My knee was really bothering me , and after about a block I could not walk without hanging onto something- Bob was that something. I decided to try to just push through the pain and walk no matter what, and I could no longer do it after about 3 blocks. It made me come to some really sobering thoughts. First, in spite of weight loss and activity, my arthritis is getting worse instead of better. Second, it is time to begin walking with the use of a cane.Either that or give up walking all together. We came home, and the knowledge of this made me feel like I am now living in one of those waterfall experience , where I have no control and am at the mercy of gravity and the obstacles in my terrain. Defeated, but defeat always makes me think deep to uncover an unheard of approach. Is it possible, I pondered, to better cope with my knee and hip instability with the strengthening of my nearly non existent abdominal muscles ? Would it be possible to work on strengthening these and temporarily using a cane to give my frame more support so more speed can be archived, greater distance and therefor increased weight loss and less stress on the joints ??? Lets find out ! So starting today I am adding abdominal work into my day. I am not doing it to lose weight or get a six pack, but rather to strengthen my core muscles so they give better support and this will allow me more movement which will burn more fat and bring greater weight loss.

Dinner followed some searching on Google to find some exercises that should help this objective. Southwest Chicken with Braised Kale and Squash with Pumpkin seeds

To make the chicken , I places boneless skinless chicken thighs in a 9x13 pan and added 1 can of black beans ( drained) , 1 cup of frozen corn and 1 jar of salsa and a handful of chopped cilantro. I covered it with foil and baked it at 350 for an hour. The kale and squash were made with this recipe

Braised Kale and Squash with Pumpkin Seeds

2 bunches kale
1 medium butternut squash or small pumpkin
1 medium red onion -- coarsely chopped
6 cloves garlic -- sliced
2 tablespoons Mrs Dash
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons Fig Vinegar
1 cup pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds -- lightly toasted

Strip kale from stems. Discard stems. Wash leaves well, and coarsely chop.
Peel, seed, and cube butternut squash or pumpkin. Place kale, squash,
onion, garlic, and Mrs Dash in a large
pot with water. Cover and steam over low heat for 20 minutes or until
squash is tender. Add vinegar and toss. Serve sprinkled with lightly
toasted pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Toast seeds in oven at 300 degrees
for 5 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Serves 6

So today is back to school and a new , focused effort to repair the machine known as my body.My abdominal area has always been a problem ! While my arms, legs and back was strong, my abs were pretty wimpy when i was younger. Then I got pregnant, had a stillbirth, had major exploration surgery that cut me from six inches above my navel to the hair line, a pregnancy with a 12 lb baby and a C Section with an incision parallel to the other one in less than a year, and never working to regain muscle tone. Ladies and gentleman, I have my work cut out for me !!!

Nutrition is a powerful thing and remebering the rest of my life.

It was a very cool, rainy day here yesterday. The temps did not reach the 40's , so it was another day of hall walking and Wii. It was the kind of cool damp where you began to expect the rain to turn to snow, but it never did. While the weather was miserable, we were pretty bubbly and began the day with the following

Steel cut oats with pears, apple , blueberry and pumpkin seeds. Oats are always a good way to start a day ! After breakfast, we hit the halls for our first walk of the day and then jumped on the Wii to get in almost a full hour of exercise before hitting the schoolwork. I was feeling quite energized when we began , and then suddenly discovered that an unwanted visitor made an appearance- she seems to visit most adult women ever 28 to whatever days. This made my energy go from peppy to
However, there is no sick day for mom's , so press on ! We jumped into ( okay...energetically stepped into ...err, slid into) school, then another walk, and then a break for lunch. I was feeling more droopy as the morning wore on , and suddenly so ravenous that I could eat floor tiles if not bolted down. Our metabolism changes with that visitor ( for some complex reasons) , and the ravenous hunger you get is your body demanding different nutrients as fuel or the journey. Instead of simply diving into anything, I thought about what fuel my body was in the greatest need of, and whipped up a creation I call scrambled eggs with stuff
I took some shredded cabbage, red pepper, scallions, mushrooms and kale, sauteed them in water and then tossed on some Mrs Dash and egg beaters. The veggies made it incredibly bulky, and immediately following lunch I felt back to my perky self. Yay nutrition !

After school was finished and a third was was taken I started looking or school materials , and stumbled onto two documents that many of you may be interested in about personal fitness action plans. First one is called Fitting fitness in ( click on the link to follow) and another called
Minimalist fitness- how to get in shape with little or no equipment .Both have some really handy tips about routines and exercise that can be done anywhere with little or no equipment. We are going to add many of these to our own daily routines.

Dinner was wholewheat pasta with roast vegetables ( zucchini, eggplant, butternut squash,broccoli, red peppers, asparagus) and chicken legs with mango glaze ( actually 100 percent mango papaya fruit spread that I found at our market with some garlic powder added).
The evening found me in a conversation with my middle sister about my mother. Mom has Dementa and Parkinsons Disease, and my middle sister is her caregiver. Lately mom has taken a turn for the worse and has begun to be physically violent with my sister whenever it is time to change her clothes or get her in the shower. Mom is fully incontinent, so changes happen often every day. Mom thinks that my sister means her harm and starts trying to defend herself, picking up anything nearby and beating on my sister with it as she struggles to change her clothes. Mom only responds to her, and it seems that it is time to look into a care facility for mom. She is only going to get worse, and if she progresses like most patients with this disease, she is going to begin to experience swallowing problems and more in a short time. My sister is feeling very guilt ridden about this, so I am trying to get her to see that this move is to be thought of more as the best care for her needs instead of failure or abandonment. Not going to be an easy argument. However, it does serve as a powerful personal reminder that no matter what the scale or clothing sizes or tape measurements say, your life is defined by a lot more than just these things. I am someones mom, daughter, wife, friend, sister, lover, counselor, Reiki worker, teacher,fiber artist, Blogger and a whole lot more. While the numbers on the scale may prove to be an indicator of how physically fit we may or not be for these challenges and roles, it does not define our abilities to preform them or even who we are. That lies with something much deeper, more far reaching and of greater concern to many. It is true for me, and every other person on a weight loss journey. We are not single faceted, one dementional beings, and it is important to keep that in mind. Life happens while you are busy executing plans based on your perception of your impact on the world.

Can you pass the test ?

Planning and cleaning day yesterday for me- two very necessary chores for the smooth running of this house. Menu planning keeps us on track food-wise, money-wise and helps me with time management. Housecleaning keeps us all sane and organized. They can be boring jobs, but I have come to embrace the act of planning as an adventure all in itself. I also began to plot out next weeks homeschool lessons, and was reminded by the calendar that it is about time to do our annual attempt at the President's Physical Fitness Challenge. Anyone remember that ? It is a standard of fitness that tests the number of push ups, sit ups , running speed and so forth to label one as fit or unfit. While checking for this year's resources , I came upon a PDF document that has the Adult Fitness Test. Think you can pass it ? Check it out here. If nothing else, if you do not belong to a gym or have a trainer, this could make for a good basis on which to form your own workout plan .

Breakfast was overnight oats with apples and pears added in with the morning heating and topped with a tablespoon of ricotta cheese. Reason for this addition was that I have part of a container of ricotta in the fridge that will go out of code soon, so I am looking for creative ways to use it up. Tasted pretty good !

Lunch was Split Pea soup, raw veggies and walnut hummus. Walnut hummus makes for a nice variation , and can be a little easier to find the ingredients for most home kitchens

Walnut hummus

1 can drained chickpeas
2 tablespoons sesame seeds (omit if you don’t have them)
2/3 cups chopped walnuts
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
sea salt to taste

process in a food processor till smooth

Dinner was black bean burgers with Zucchini Skillet. I thought the zuchini dish would be flavorful, but we discovered that it really needed something with a more savory flavor to add in. The combination of sweet potatoes , corn and bell peppers made it too sweet for our tastes.After I snapped the photo we began to eat it and wound up putting a spoon of ricotta cheese on top to balance out the flavors. Next time I will try adding nuts to this or substituting the parsley for cilantro or something.

Bean Burgers ( makes 4)

1/2 cup sunflower seeds
2 cups black beans
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 tsp. chili powder
2 tbsp. ketchup
1 tbsp. wheat germ or oatmeal

Chop the sunflower seeds in a food processor or hand chopper and mash the beans with a potato masher or food processor and mix. Mix in the remaining ingredients and form patties. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool until you can pick up each patty and compress it firmly in your hands to reform the burger. Then cook for another 15 minutes on each side.


Zucchini Skillet- serves 6

3 cups diced sweet potatoes
1/3 cup water
2 cups diced zucchini
1 cup diced red onion
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup green onion -- sliced
1red pepper -- diced
1 green pepper -- diced
2 orange peppers--diced
1 clove garlic -- minced
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder

In a covered large skillet, saute the sweet potatoes in water for about 10 minutes.
Add zucchini, red onions, corn, green onions, red peppers, green peppers, and garlic.
Saute in water until vegetables are tender. Add remaining ingredients and allow flavors
to blend. Serves 6.

Dear lungs

Dear Lungs.

First let me say that i find you to be wonderful, fascinating organs that have served me well in the past years. Outside of gifting me with Bronchitis as a child, we have made a pretty good team. You allowed me to swim very well, have functioned above expectations when it comes to things like yoga, and I have always enjoyed taking you out for a spin in the spring air. We have worked pretty well together for short walks on trails filled with wild violets and blooming trees.

There are times that I really wish I could improve you, and I have recently encountered one such circumstance. You really do not like cold air. I find this development rather interesting, as it was not an issue in the past. A couple of weeks ago you started rebelling when I took you out in weather less than 45 degrees, so to compensate for the lack of activity that my other body parts were experiencing, I started climbing the stairs. Admittedly it is a lot harder on my thighs, but they seemed to say they were up for the job. My glutes got excited at the prospect of this kind of work and they were last seen holding a meeting to discuss what it would be like to actually form themselves into a butt. Dreams were on the verge of comming true for them, and they were happy.

So why did you decide to rebel this morning, oh friend lungs ? Why have you determined that walking up the stairs in the enclosed stairway is a reason to beging to spasm and make me feel like I am going into an attack ? This is not acceptible behavior ! We have things to do and places to go and weight to lose. Like it or not we live in a climate that has cold damp weather for a good chunk of the year. You are going to have to toughen up my friend. Would a nice thick scarf help ? I realize that my face cannot stand the feel of any fabric touching it ( something i do not understand why), but I think I could bargain with Mister Face if a scarf or something would help you to work as you should. Think about it.

Sincerely,
The Management

Breakfast and meeting the stairs

What better way to begin a cold morning than with a bowl of pumpkin oats ?

1 cup water
1/4 cup solid pack pumpkin
1/2 cup of barley flake and oat flake mix
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

After cooking I topped it with
1 tbsp shredded coconut
2 tbsp ground flax
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1 tbsp pumpkin seed, sunflower seed and sliced almond mix
1 tsp coconut oil

I think I could eat this 3 meals a day seven days a week ! It just amazes me that I never realized you should eat oatmeal any way but plain until I started reading blogs !

The plows have come through and the crews have been out shoveling the walks, but last nights temps dipped way below freezing and there are several slippery patches out on the walks and roads. Time to get creative with exercise here ! Instead of bundling up and heading outside, we are going to do a stair climbing work out. We live on the 3rd floor of a building with an elevator, so the goal is to ride the elevator down and then walk up 3 times. Why not walk down ? My knee does not handle climbing down well, and there are no activity points to be gained through falling down 3 flights of concrete stairs. Considering we do not usually climb the stairs, I think 3 passes is a good number to begin with !