Spring, Fruit Trees and New Beginnings

I took a lot of time to think about whether I should start a new blog, or continue with this one.  I decided that I am going to share real life with you and continue with this blog.

I did SO well on my journey to weight loss and health, and then I fell...I fell hard.  I wanted to be a motivator and share my success.

I decided that I am not the only one to fall and fall hard.  Instead of giving up, I am going to pick myself up and start again.

I am not promising perfection, but I am promising truth, I will try hard and I would like to share health, because that I what I am aiming for!

I was out planting 4 beautiful little semi-dwarf fruit trees that we got.  I don't think you realize what a huge deal that is to me.  I LOVE FRUIT TREES...I always have.  When I was little, we had an apple tree in the back yard that I spent hours in.  I had a special spot that was my sitting place.  I loved to eat the green apples out of the tree with my best friend Becky.  We would salt them.  When the kids were little we had a beautiful peach tree that I tended with tender loving care.

When Jeff and I got married, he did not want fruit trees because his experience with them was having to pick up the fruit that fell before mowing the lawn or playing around the trees.  I promised I would take care of them and he still said no.

When he finally said yes this year I cried with joy.  I planned too hastily how to convince my kids to help me plant them and didn't take things into consideration like the buried gas lines, how to remove the rocks and how to do lots of manual labor when I am in the middle of a pretty serious treatment regiment for my health.  ( I am going through radiation for breast cancer).  We had an argument and I fell into tears on the kitchen floor.

Poor frustrated Jeff did not realize my passion for the trees and I didn't plan well.

We talked it through, and I started again, with a plan in hand.

Is it easy?  NO.  Am I scared I don't have the strength and health to accomplish this task, YES.  Am I going to complete the planting...YES.  ONE STEP AT A TIME!

I failed at the first attempt.  In that failure I realized a few things:  I CANT DO IT ALONE, I CANT DO IT WITHOUT PLANNING, I AM GOING TO SLIP UP!

I also know that I am going to have incredible return in a few years...beautiful side yard where there has been the trash of the home in that corner of the yard. I am going to also enjoy the fruits (literally) of my labor with fresh, crisp apples, sweet and sour cherries, beautiful juicy plums and sun kissed peaches.

That is how I feel with my weight loss.  Did I start out with great ambition?  YEP, did I succeed for a while, YOU BET.  Why did I slip up?

I thought long and hard about this:

1.  I didn't plan long term
2.  I didn't change my mind set for a life style change
3.  I do well with SUPPORT.
4.  I tried to change everything and didn't stop to take one step at a time.

I am in the planning stages again, which I will share with you, but I do know that I have to have MOTIVATION, PLANNING, SUPPORT, DAY TO DAY CARE, and know that the fruits of my labor are not going to be instantaneous...it is a day to day choice to be healthy.

WEEK ONE OF OUR SUMMER CHALLENGE...DONE!

We started a Summer Challenge at my work to help us through bikini season...HA HA!  I am very excited to share this journey with a few of my friends here.  The main reason is that I need to get back on track and be ACCOUNTABLE!

We are taking turns bringing a little gift to the winner of the week. This week my friend Cheyann kicked BOOTIE with 2.32%.  I am proud of her, she has been doing a great job...this is a challenge to her for this week...I'M Gonna take you down to CHINA TOWN sista:)

I will be posting a week one through week 12 side pic...aaahhhh! stay tuned!

FOOD

I have had a lot of people ask my what I eat while I am on this program to health.  I have studied up on a lot of different ways of eating and I really like the raw diet for some things, but it comes down to this...
WHOLE, NATURAL FOODS ROCK...they just do.  The simpler, the less processed the better.  I DO eat meat, but not a ton.  I just make sure most of our meals are full of FRESH vegies and fruits, good quality protein and cheeses, good oils, whole grains when we can, and the less processed the best.  I know they always say shop around the outside of the grocery store.  Guess what?  That is SUCH a great idea and one you should think of when planning (yes, I said PLANNING) your menu's.
I make sure that I have a well stocked pantry, so if the kids need a snack, it is hopefully readily available.

Everyone is different, but here are my staples:

Olive oil
Sea Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper
Mesquite seasoning
I grow mint, basil, oregano, thyme, cilantro, dill, chives, rosemary, tarragon. When they are not fresh out of my garden, I use the extra I took the time to freeze or dry.
Lemons
Limes
Oranges
Apples
Spinach
Kale
Green onions
Onions
Garlic bulbs
Arugula
Red peppers
Avocado
Romaine (for Jeff)
Carrots
Sweet Potatoes
Yukon Gold potatoes
Canned diced tomatoes
Frozen Berries
Whey Protein
Yogurts
Parmesan and Feta cheese
Chicken tenders
Ground Turkey
Flank Steak
Tuna
Whole Wheat Bread
Oatmeal
Cornmeal
Cracked Wheat
Brown Rick
Salmon
Craisins
Golden Raisins
Almonds
Pine nuts
Walnuts
Dried Coconut
Pure Maple Syrup
Blue Agave syrup
Coconut Oil
Chicken Broth
Vegie Broth

These are things that are ALWAYS in the home.  I always add another green vegie for the week, which changes...Asparagus, Broccoli, snap peas..I let my kids help with the menu, so they can choose their favorites. I will also pick up a different fruit or two for the week, pineapple, watermelon, peaches, pears. Another hint is to take them to the store and tell them they can pick any cool fruit or vegie they want.  That way, they think it is a cool treat, and we have tried some things that are keepers... cumquats, brussel sprouts, jack fruit, star fruit, parsnips..have all been picked.

Another good and fun thing to do is to get a Bountiful Basket, or a Coop share.  It's fun to be surprised by the fresh fruits and vegies, and to look up fun ways to use them.

I will pick a fun meat, such as Hot Italian Turkey Sausage, or Filet's or shrimp once in a while, but if I always have the ingredients on my main list, we have hundreds of nutritious meals that can be made and the ingredients to season them!

Think of what your list for your family is...try to take the toll house cookies OFF the list and the snickers bars...and the SODA!  (Yes, my family has to buy their own of these things...) You should see Jeff's stash.

Another good hint is to know what fruit and vegies are in season and take advantage of that!  We cant get enough watermelon and corn on the cob in the late summer, Peaches and pears...Pineapple.  Look up a good chart if you dont know.

Another last suggestion is GROW YOUR OWN PRODUCE!  I have tomatillos, fresh tomatoes, herbs, kale, arugula, shallots, peppers, swiss chard, carrots, beets, cucumbers and zucchini, kohlrabi and nasturtiums at my disposal for wonderful fresh meals...cant beat that.  Now if someone can talk Jeff into letting me have fruit trees, I would be GOLDEN. ( He thinks they are too messy).

Popeye Soup

My sister Annette is one of my hero's when it come to being healthy.  She has always eaten well and exercised and taken good care of herself.  She made this incredible book up for me a few years ago that has charts and healthy ideas that I am using now that I am finally on my road to health.
One of her recipes is a "Popeye Soup".  This is a fresh, raw soup that has spinach, cucumber, avocado  red pepper, green onions and it is spiced so it almost tastes like a fresh guacamole.
I have to tell you a funny story about this soup...we had a sister week-end a few years back in Texas.  Annette, Val, Debi and I.  We took turns cooking for each other and Annette made this soup.  The rest of us had not had raw greens like that in our systems for a while, so we all got pretty sick to our stomachs...come to think of it, we were probably all detoxing and that is why we were sick.  Val had bad gas and they made me, the baby sister sleep in the one room with her!  Annette and Debi were crawling down the hall to come scare us, and they couldn't make it all the way into the room because of the thick air in there:).  Thanks guys!  The next day we were driving to the airport and I was in the back seat with Debi.  She got sick to her stomach and "lost" the green soup in her bag.  Instead of helping her I was screaming at Cheree, who was in the front with Val to trade places with me so I didn't have to sit by Deb when she was sick...so sorry Deb...I love ya!

I didn't dare eat the soup for a few years after that experience because I associated it with a sick tummy, but when I tried again, I was hooked!  I actually did a cleanse with the soup and had energy, stamina and felt great.  Thank you Netski

Family Workouts!

We have had two official family work-outs, and they have been a blast!  I was sooooo excited because I was able to go the Saturday a week and a day after Riley's surgery.  It was a welcome break, and I was SO excited because...I was down 5.9 pounds. OH YEAH BABY!

We did a killer circuit training both saturdays at the Junior High where my sister in law Sher teaches in Spanish Fork.
The first week we had a mini lesson from Amber that was great. She talked about childhood obesity and how important it is to have healthy children and the benefits.  ANIKA won the challenge, so she kicked our butts Biggest Loser style with push up's and these other crazy things I forgot the name of.  Then we pumped the music HIGH and rotated from upper to lower body weights then did a bit of aerobics in-between to keep our heart rates up.  We ended with a jog/walk around the halls of the school.
The second week we had an incredible mini-lesson by Sam on vision boards and our homework was to make one....SCORE!  Emily told a story about a guitar she put on hers before Christmas before she and will were dating.  She woke up on Christmas eve and decided to take HER guitar and play and sing at the mall.  In a few hours, she had made MORE than the 400.00 goal she had set...and got the guitar.  Put your vision board up!  Divide it into 9 squares, like a phone pad.  Dont worry about making it fancy.  Put it right where you can see it when you wake and when you go to bed.  Look at it straight on for a few minutes morning and night and visualize smells, sounds, tastes, feelings of obtaining what it on there for you.  I CANT WAIT TO ACHIEVE AND OBTAIN THE THINGS on my board.  I changed mine a bit after this lesson, because my 9 things were too general.  I put more specific goals and things.  I will post a pic soon:)  Steve won the challenge this time, and he kicked our trash with burbees.....UGH!  I felt them for days...that is a good thing, right?  Another killer curcuit work out:)  I am starting to feel muscles I didn't think I had.  WOOT WOOT!

I love this time with my family working out and getting strong!

New CONTEST!

On New Year's day, we met at Nathan and Kristen's house ( my nephew and his wife) to start our new 12 WEEK CHALLENGE!  This one is a family challenge and Steve and Amber ( other nephew and his wife) started a great new plan for us!

I am SO excited to be doing this with family...that is what it is all about, right?  This is a bonding thing as well as a great support system and healthy way of living.

That first meeting was fun.  We had computers set up and skyped in another nephew Will and his wife Anika, my sister Debi, and my daughter Jacey...They gave us the awesome guidelines and this is one I am a little bit more serious about...

There are quite a few of us in the family doing this...my niece Lynsie and her kids, the above mentioned family, my brother Craig and his wife Sher, my niece Amy and her kids will come for some of the challenges.  I am not sure who in my family will actually do it with me, but Riley and Jocelyn came to the first meeting too.  Nate and Kris have their kids joining in as well...I LOVE THIS!

We have a point system, where you get a point for eating 3 fruits,  points for eating 5 vegies, points for water, NO SUGAR,points for no fried foods, eating breakfast,1/2 of grains eaten are "whole grains",no soda, no eating ater 7 pm,   exercise (you can get up to 3 points) and sleep...what is that?  I am not very good at the sleep thing.  Part of that is Jeffrey's fault:)  He likes to have the TV on until 3:00 am and it is hard to sleep through that, so I take Ambien.  I know, bad!

Quite a few of us use the "My Fitness Tracker" to log our food and exercise.  It is a great and easy app you can download onto your smart phone.

We are going to divide into teams for challenges.  The winner of the biggest percentage of body fat lost gets to lead the rest of us in any workout they would like...aaahhhh. You have to do extra things if you dont lose and you are put on probation if it is a few weeks in a row.  The winning team gets to make the losers do something crazy like clean their house while they watch, do a play for their neighbors, go to the movie theater dressed as trolls.  Man I love this crazy family!

I am more committed to the NO SUGAR this time.

I hope my cooking well and eating well is a good example and motivation for my whole family.

Before and after pictures from the Flab to Fab...

Before...

                                                                                     After...

This is my before and after picture for the first 12 weeks, talk about black-mail material!  It is good to know that I will never look like that first picture again!  Look at my poor little ankles.  No wonder they ache at night.  They are trying to hold up that big ole body on a little 5'2 frame.  I have a long way to go, but already I walk faster, I hold my head up more and I am proud of myself for taking better care of this body I was blessed with.

Hello!  Welcome to my journey.  My name is Kathleen McDonald.  I am 46 years old and I started a road to health on September 12 of 2012.  My cute niece Amber started a biggest loser contest called "Fab to Flab in 12".  I was at my highest weight of 253.9.  I was on blood pressure meds, diabetes meds, cholesterol meds and downright unhealthy.  I think having to weigh every week switched a light on in my head that made me think a bit when I ate.

Another thing that really helped was trying out for the first play I had been in for 25 years.  I was in the "Nightmare on Broadway" for Payson Community Theater.  At try-outs, Sam (another cute niece) and I talked for a few hours about mental and physical health and so many cool things.  She had me take this test about how I felt about my body and where I store things...VERY INTERESTING...

The first 12 weeks I think the play practice and dancing and being on stage really helped me realize that exercise and moving my body felt good.  I also really love to dance and sing and it was so much fun to share that time with Nathan and Steve my nephews, my brother Craig and his wife Sher, Sam and Malaina my little great niece...Hmmmm...I felt like I had some self esteem, something that I have not had much of in the last few years.

I got married in 2007 to a wonderful man named Jeff McDonald after dating for a few years.  It is hard to get married when you are older.  I love Jeff and he is a great guy, but we have been through a few VERY HARD YEARS.  Stress got to me and I would hide things in my desk drawers to eat.  It didn't help that I sit next to a big candy store in my office.  I would get stressed and there was a peanut-butter snickers right there 4 feet away to make me "feel better."

I have 5 amazing children that I love dearly.  They have had some battles of their own thru my divorce, melding families, some addiction problems, health problems and major surgeries and illnesses.  Every time one of my children was having a hard time, I would stress, take it personally in a bad way with the way I treated my body, and it was all adding up.

I lost 23.7 pounds in that 12 weeks.  I still ate sugar during that time, but I was a bit more conscious of what I put in my body, and I really stepped up the exercise.

I didn't do well over the holidays:(  I am a great cook, and the treats we made for our neighbors were pretty darn good.  I had my fill of sugar cookies, magic bars, buck-eyes, chocolate covered pretzels etc...wow, I just didn't feel well after I ate like that.

I am not perfect, but I am on a journey that is taking me to where I want to be.  My goal weight is 135, and I would like to be there by next Christmas!  

I am going to log my journey here for a help for myself, a journal, and to hopefully give some hope and advice to anyone who needs it!

Cheers!

Kathleen:)