Long Pause

My husband passed away almost three weeks ago. I will not be updating this blog for the time being.

I am happy to see all of the clicks this blog is getting and wish there were more time/energy I could focus into the blog.

I did want to report that I did not see any results from using the essential oils for weight loss. I don't know if I did not use them often enough, at the right time, or in the right amount - but either way - I did not see any changes.

Finally Confident

I've had this blog for awhile. I usually made one strong post about all these wonderful things - then - every time - I slip. I get busy. I get overwhelmed. I get stressed. And I EAT. When I say I eat, I mean I EAT. Everything. Constantly. A half gallon of Blue Bell, chips, chicken Alfredo, chicken and dumplings, giant cheeseburger, fruits, cookies. Yeah - in one day. It. Is. Awful. 

Thankfully, this year has started off A LOT better. Instead of the routine "I'm going to lose weight and live healthier" New Years Resolution, I sought to find the ROOT of the issue. What causes me to get stressed? What leads to over eating? What ruins my motivation? If you've never sat down with yourself to have a heart to heart about the real problem, DO IT! Do it today! It was the best thing for me.  

If you've read previous posts, you know I'm a single mom, a teacher, a grad student, and I wear several more hats with each of those titles. All of these responsibilities and my constant desire to never say no are my problems. My REAL source of the issues. 

My New Years resolution is to say no. My New Years resolution is to leave work, meetings, ETC at a decent hour. This is the end of week three. I've kept my resolution, and I'm staying on track! 

The scales are headed down. I'm feeling better. I have more energy, and I'm not stressed. 

As a teacher, I've stayed at school until 10pm. I've taken tons of paperwork home. This takes away from time with my family and time to focus on me. It isn't healthy. I love what I do, but I'm not willing to trade my entire exsistance for it. I've started leaving by 4pm. I've started leaving work at work. 

At home I cook, I excersice, I play with my son, I work on graduate school work, and I sleep! What a wonderful thing! 

Don't let one thing bog everything down. What is your root problem? 

Back in Action

Well - my last post was about not blogging, and here I am STILL NOT blogging! It really is a goal of mine, and I plan to make it a priority. On top of teaching eighth grade Language Arts, I teach and produce the school yearbook, I teach and produce the school newspaper, I am the school PR pro handling all website, news source, and social media, I am the STC (School Technology Coach) helping teachers with technology issues (we are a 1:1 school, so we have technology everywhere), I am the PTSO teacher rep, I am the Den Leader for my son's Cub Scout den, I am a 'soccer mom,' I work part time running the online end of my mom's business, and I am working on my MA in Gifted/Talented Education through a hybrid program that requires me to travel four hours away between one and two Saturdays each month plus a good chunk of online work. As you can tell, it's run-run-run! Thankfully, I enjoy every second of every thing I have the opportunity to do. 

While my holidays have not gone well, I can at least say I have not gained weight. I've stayed in the same range. Thankfully, I am motivated to lose weight and have been doing well sticking to things!

This chart is from My Fitness Pal. As you can (embarrassingly) I yo-yo between 320-325. I am ready for this number to plummet! It is hard work, and it is my hard word to do. I am posting this for accountability. 

I took my FitBit off over the holidays. We were traveling a lot, and I was enjoying some down time. Thankfully - I am back on it. Since school started, I have worn my FitBit. I do not allow my day to stop until I have reached at least 10,000 steps. 

I love the PACT app. It is wonderful for accountability! I am starting out slow as school starts back, but soon I will be back to my normal routine (4-5 workouts, 5-6 food logging days, and 25+ veggies). I'm almost to $100! That will be a nice chunk of change into my bank account when I feel I deserve it.

I am not necessarily counting calories religiously, but I am keeping track of what I eat. As you can see, I had McDonalds yesterday. While I'm not proud of that, I am proud that I tailored my dinner, snacks, and workout to compensate for that. 

Cheers to a new year with new motivation and new results!

Busy, Busy.

LIFE.

Life seems to get in the way of everything! I did great over the summer! I exercised, dieted, counted calories, took my essential oil weight loss trio - I was on it! Then life hit.

School started back. Grad school started. Soccer started. Homework started. Yearbook/Newspaper/Clubs/Sports started. Cub scouts started. LIFE HIT! Fast & Hard. Quick snacks. Fast food. Exhausted. No exercise. It. Is. Awful. (Life isn't awful - the busyness is awful.)

I've definitely gained weight (again). Thankfully, I am two weeks into school and feeling a lot more confident! I bought a FitBit, and my day does not end until I walk at least 10,000 steps (first day of school I conquered 14,000+!). I am still working my PACT app, but my calorie counting has been ending in the negative.

Today is a new day! The year is settling in. Our schedule is smoothing out. I will be back on track. 

(hopefully I pick back up blogging too!)

Essential Oils for Weight Loss

Each day I become a bigger "essential oiler." For those of you unfamiliar with essential oils, they are the life blood of a plant. They were used for medicinal reasons before chemically created medicines began to poison us. Oils are referenced many times in the bible (just to show you how long they have been being used). 

I started out extremely skeptical. These "smelly waters" were just another expensive marketing scam. They don't do anything. These people are crazy. 

Towards the end of the school year, I began to get sick (sore throat, congestion, yucky head stuff). A friend invited me to a meeting and gave me thieves and eucalyptus. I felt better before the end of the meeting! My scratchy, sore throat was GONE. My congestion was clearing up - I could breathe! She sent me home with peppermint for anymore sinus issues - and I. Was. Hooked. 

I ordered a Young Living started kit (Young Living is the only company with a seed to seal promise. After a great deal of research, I settled on YL.) shortly after that meeting. 

I've used them for so many things! Cleaning, sinus trouble, migraines, headaches, sore back/feet/anything (especially from working out), my son's eczema, anxiety, insomnia, ETC! The list could go on forever. Now I'm using them for weightloss!

I had the idea to make and take these from reading another blog: http://stuffparentsneed.com/tag/young-living-oils-for-weight-loss/

She used grapefruit, peppermint, and lemon essential oils mixed with coconut oil. Peppermint and lemon come in the kit, and grapefruit is fairly cheap. I also ordered empty capsules and the coconut oil. Following her directions, I mixed them up, filled them up, and stuck them in the freezer. 

I've only been taking them for a few days, but I can tell a difference! It's summer time, and I'm used to snacking constantly throughout the day - I don't have the snacking urge anymore! I don't even really care to eat until my tummy is talking to me. I can't speak to how big this is for me and my body!

I don't weigh myself each day, but I will definitely update when I do to see if they are helping with weightloss!

Progress Perfection!

There are few better feelings than watching the scale numbers decrease! It means my hard word, sweat, tears, and lack of sweet treats isn't for nothing! The scales aren't headed down fast, but down is always better than up. 

PACT app has been a HUGE help. I may be comfy on the couch and exhausted, but I still don't want to owe $5+! So my butt gets up and walks for 30+ minutes. I've found the time goes by a lot faster if I try to run. Apparently when you are gasping for air like your life depends on it, you don't notice time. I've completed over 200 activities (excersice, calorie counting, and eating fruits/veggies), and I've earned almost $20! May not seem like much, but when I lose the weight - shopping here I come!

I went shopping recently due to the new school year, and I made myself use their full length mirror (I don't own one!). I see weightloss in my calf/thunder thigh areas, but not much of it. My butt, stomach, and arms sure aren't going anywhere fast. It's okay. I know I'm headed somewhere better - getting my life back! I won't be trapped inside this flubbed suit forever!

Bad Blogger

I am such a lazy blogger, but I am not being a lazy weightloss-er! I've been busy with teacher professional development and planning for the upcoming school year, so blogging has gotten away from me. 

I'm doing very well using PACT, eating better, exercising more, and tracking calories! I've earned over $13 with PACT now. 

There are my May to June differences. You can definitely see improvement! I'm not losing weight as much as I would like, but I feel better - more energy, happier! I have high hopes that the weight loss will happen.