February felt like a really really long month. The last few winter months always do. I have worked my tail feathers off this month and lost 5 lbs!!! The jeans I bought at the beginning of the month are way looser and I have noticed a great deal of muscle gain. I feel great. Tons more energy, however I want to see more weight loss in March.

February’s goals were:

1. Keep a food diary.
2. Give up drinking milk (I love milk and this so sucks)
3. Add a morning exercise to my routine.
4. Run a minimum of 9 km a week (3x 3 km)

I absolutely suck at keeping a food diary. I made it 9 days then got busy. Once forgotten it was never attended to again.  I am going to start up again because, I have an appointment with a dietician in March. Normally seeing a dietician in not covered by our provincial healthcare unless you have a weight related illness. Preventive health care, not so much. However since I have had a baby in the last year I am covered (because having a baby is a weight related illness?) Strangely this is a program that the local hospital does not make widely known, as my family doctor was unaware of it and could not find it on the hospital website (lame!)

I have given up milk. I miss it. I have been seen sniffing the children’s milk.

I have added morning exercise to my routine. Bloody hell I have been up by 5:30-6 am every morning to complete Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred. I hurt. My body is totally transformed. I am not skinny yet but damn it under all that fat I am! I plan on continuing working out morning and evening (most days). Although I have found that I can do the exercises better later in the day, so I am going to walk or run in the mornings and switch it up a little.

I have been able to work up to 9km a week. In fact I have been able to add a km to my runs some of the time, running 4 km once and 3km 2x per week.

Now what?

March Goals

1. See dietician and implement changes she recommends.
2. By the end of the month run 12 km a week (4 km 3x a week).
3. Try out other exercise videos.

So March is change the diet month. January I cut out our evil night snacks and started exercising. February I turned it up a notch on the exercise and took a closer look at my diet. I am in awe the changes in my body. At the beginning of the month butt kicks and any jumping almost killed me. Now my body, balance and stamina are way improved. I feel great (although most days I am very sore) and my body is responding to the changes I am trying to make happen.

I have been asked a couple times if Fitness Friday is a meme, weekly thing. Why not! If you want to join me in sharing the ups and downs of fitness on your blog, I will happily link to it here every week. The more people we inspire to take care of themselves the better!

Congratulations to Gail, she is the winner of last month’s giveaway (hopefully the post will not take THREE months to deliver it to you!)

What is your favourite exercise?

This Belle Rocks is focusing on Sticking With It, work out clothes and the Wii Fit Plus for Fitness Friday!

ugh.

Both Becca and Cordi are sick. This makes Ethan and I stir crazy and bored. Stuck in the house, nothing to do but chill out, watch sesame street, each Japanese noodles and read. Cordi has to be in my arms constantly. Which really isn’t that bad, except I have become accustomed to a little more freedom.

Becca has taken the day off school, so PJ’s and messy hair is all the rage here. We have enjoyed snuggles, books, television and it is still mid afternoon. GAH! Maybe I should give Cordi another bath in the kitchen sink?

As it is I am itching to get out and DO STUFF. Winter needs to just be over already. I need to SPRING out and just BE.

I am so fidgety even housework seems appealing. Yet I cannot venture far from their sides without a call for mom (in Cordi’s case a raspy cry that sounds wretched!) Normally I am quite content to be still if need be …. just not today.

We had such an awesome weekend. Tons of time together, shopping, laughing, cooking, playing.

AND

As of today … we paid off one of our student loans!!!!!!!!

*and the crowd goes wild*

Sure it was the small one … sure we still have one more massive one … BUT one is GONE! I am so so so trying to not spend and whittle that debt down. I hate debt. Makes me feel dirty. But man oh man I like pretty things. Such a hard balance.

gah.

This day is never going to end.

How do you pass the time when it seems frozen?

I am in awe of my children.

The greatest moments in my life are when they became apart of it.

My children are my everything.

I am their first role model. I am the person they will look to first and hopefully last. It is my responsibility to show them what it takes to be healthy, fit and happy. I am to guide them, demonstrate healthy eating habits and moderation.

The world will send them messages that will make them question themselves, doubt themselves, hate themselves. They need an anchor. My girls need to know they are beautiful no matter what, how to take care of themselves and the people they love. My boy needs to see it real, to see true beauty and to respect the people he loves.

I work out and take care of myself, so I can be that for them. I am important. I am beautiful. I am their mother. I matter.

I watched the following video at  PhD In Parenting … it took my breath away.

I wish I had a Mom to have told me this …

I hope I tell my children this through my actions, words and love  … everyday.

Have a fantastic weekend!

We had our first snow day yesterday. By western Canadian standards we did not have all that much snow, but it seems to stop time here. Becca, Ethan and even Cordi were totally excited to spend hours upon hours out in the snow (Cordi spent much less time but you get the idea!)

At one point, all my children were busy either outside or sleeping. It was strange and oddly lonely. I watched tv for the first time in forever. It was nice to just relax and be. I have been going going going for a while now. Some of the neighbourhood kids even came over and played in the afternoon.

Ethan had so much fun on the morning, he crashed for a nap (the first one in forever). It was so much fun seeing the kids love the outdoors. Not once did they watch television or proclaim they were bored. My kids are so awesome.

I had a massive headache this morning. For the first time I was unable to complete my workout this morning. I staggered back to bed in tears. I hate failing. My sweet husband, got the kids up, ready for school and walked Becs to school then headed to work. I slept in. It was beautiful. I am still feeling off, but was able to do my workout right before lunch. Cordi watched and almost fell asleep, while Ethan was upstairs looking at books. But I got it done and worked hard at it, so I feel better in that aspect.

My internet has been wonky the last few weeks. Dropping out, or slower than a  herd of turtles stampeding through peanut butter. It is really frustrating and since i have like no time for internet anyway, it has really prevented me from commenting. I am reading in reader but then I do not have time to sit with a computer that is acting like a PC on dial up in 1994. I have to find the time (HAHAHA) to fix the issue.

How do you find the time to do it all?