31/03/2014

2014 RESOLUTION > APRIL GOAL


So it's the 1st of April tomorrow and I've been thinking about what this months goal will be.

I had heard of the 100 Days of Happy Challenge that was popping up on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as my friend is now on Day 52 but I noticed it the other day and I thought it would be a perfect goal to achieve.
I will be mostly using Instagram and you can follow me to keep up to date with how I'm doing but don't worry I'll be posting on here too.


As well as the #100Days I will also be taking part in an AB-pril Fitness Challenge that my local fitness trainer has posted on Facebook . She's so motivating and you can also find access to diet tips, exercise routines and YouTube videos to follow. You should definitely check it out.




What's your goals for April?

2014 RESOLUTION > MARCH GOAL

My goals in January and February focused on creating a more positive mind and spirit so I decided that I would work on a healthier body in March.

I didn't want to go on a diet, I wanted to instil a truly healthier lifestyle as I had recently been diagnosed with an intolerance to sugar. This isn't very inconvenient as, when you start reading your food labels you discover that, sugar is in EVERYTHING!!!
It doubly sucks as I am a cheesecake fiend so I pretty much had to say bye bye to all my sweet treats.





The main reason for doing this was I had begun to notice that after about 6 weeks of "clean eating" I got sick of making good food choices, I just didn't want to think about it and eat all the "good" stuff I couldn't, so I binged and then totally regretted it for the week after. I felt bad physically and emotionally, major guiltfest.
The second time this happened I knew that this wasn't a healthy way to live either and I decided to make some changes.

I was the most serious I've ever been about working towards a healthier lifestyle and after a bit of research (Google, what did we do before Google?!) I found the Whole30 program.



It's a free, healthy eating program that you follow for 30 days, the main rules are:
- No sugar
- No alcohol
- No dairy 
- No grains
- No snacks
- 3 meals a day

It's a variation of the Paleo diet where you eat "real" food which helps you sort of "reset" your body and get rid of all the bad habits you've picked up.
I tried not to focus on what I couldn't have and looked at what I could have; e
very meal is built up around a portion of protein; beef, seafood, chicken, pork or eggs with as much specified vegetables as you like.
I also read the book "It starts with food" which was a great support tool as it breaks down food choices into 4 categories or questions you should ask before you eat it;

- does it promote a healthy psychological response
- does it promote a healthy hormonal response

- does it support a healthy gut
- does it support a healthy immune system.

I always need to know the "why" before I do something and then I can get fully behind it because I know the reasoning behind it and understand it better.
It was a great challenge, especially as I am not a great lover of vegetables or salads but I found my tastes changing and choosing salad as a meal, this is a big step for me.

It was a lot of work to  plan your meals and  cook them all from scratch but it was definitely worth it as it felt more like an investment in yourself rather than a chore.

I completed the 30 days and I feel the best I've ever felt: mentally and physically. 
I also feel that I've made lifelong changes to my attitude and relationship with food that I'll carry on.
if you want to make a change to your lifestyle I can't recommend this program enough! Seriously if I can do it, anyone can!

26/03/2014

2014 RESOLUTION > JANUARY GOAL

It is the end of March already so I decided to recap on my resolution to not set a resolution at the start of the year.
I decided to mix things up in 2014, instead of stating one big resolution to keep to for the WHOLE year I decided to give myself little goals to meet every month.

I've really enjoyed it but at the start of every month I'm like "I've got to do this for 30 whole days? No way will I do it" but I have and it has made me feel so much more accomplished than I think I would feel if I kept it up for say 6 months, got bored and then resolved to try again next year, where's the empowerment in that?


I'm one of those people who over thinks situations and has a million and one things going around in my head at one time, sometimes this works for me when I need to multi task but it was becoming more draining than useful so in January I set myself the goal to try meditation.

I was a complete beginner so to help me I used the website Headspace which offers guided meditation for modern living, it has a cool app you can download to your phone so you can grab some clarity wherever you are, great for when you sleep in so you can do it on the train (which can be a real test).

Let me be clear that when I decided to meditate every morning for 20mins, it wasn't an easy decision as "I am NOT a morning person" I repeat "NOT a morning person". 
I love my bed, I love my sleep and to fit in a daily meditation I had to get up at 6.30am every morning. It was hard at first but totally worth it, as almost instantly I noticed that I was less stressed and able to deal with difficult and people more calmly whereas before they would have definitely pushed my buttons.



I also noticed when the 30 days were up I had incorporated this single task into my routine so it was easier to carry on doing it, people say "if only I had an extra day" or "I need more time" but I'm starting to think the key is to make more of the time we do have to fit the things we want to do into our lives.
You can keep track of your progress which is great and so far I have completed 87 sessions and 23% of my Headspace journey. Looking forward to completing 100% by the end of 2014.




03/03/2014

SHOW EVERYONE SOME LOVE


Over the last couple of weeks I've looked at self love and sisterly love but today I started thinking about the love you feel towards other people. 
As soon as I say that my mind instantly goes to my boyfriend and my best friend, the people you get on with and choose to have in your life because they're fun and they'd do anything for you and you them.

What about the difficult people in your life?
You know the ones, the family members that say inappropriate things at the wrong time or 
the friend that doesn't agree with ANY of your opinions and you start to wonder why your even friends.

How do YOU act around them?
Are you constantly on the defensive or try to limit the amount of time you spend with them? 


How about the next time you think about that difficult person you focus on the good things you love about them, go on there must be something! 
Send them love instead of negative thoughts and see how it changes your feelings towards them and then the actual relationship. This might sound like a lot of hard work and you might think why should I even bother, but think about how good YOU will feel when your not tense or aggravated before you are due to see them or when your in their company.


It's easy to love the lovable people in your life but why not show the unlovable's that you rate them too?
My friend "McDougal"s (if you read my TGROW post you'll have already heard of her,  
she's a fountain of knowledge and my "go to" if I need some straight talking advice) 
favourite quote is ~

"You get more with sugar than you do with sh**" 



Why not give the people you least enjoy spending time with a little sugar? 
You never know it might sweeten them up.