Home and. . . healthy

So, life has been absolutely crazy, but I believe it will begin to be normal again - a perfect time to start again. I actually haven't been doing all that bad. I have pretty much given up diet Coke (a recent addiction) and due to the lack of sweets in my house (and the lack of money to buy more) I haven't been too bad at eating sweets either. My 1 sweet tooth is for Otter Pops. Those things are fabulous. With only 25 calories per pop, they totally hit the spot, and they have water in them, too! :) So - there's my tip. Eat an otter pop! Plus - your kids will love them. And they're only like 4 cents a piece! Much better than a candy bar at 60 cents a piece with 350 calories!!!

OK - off my soapbox. Since life is starting to calm down, I am going to tell everyone my goals and start sticking to them. I am going to begin by exercising every day. Since I don't know what my hubby's schedule is, I will just go as follows. If he opens - I will do my workout video (it's Turbo Jam - it kicks butt!) or go walking with the ladies in the neighborhood. If he closes - I am going to go running. There's a 3 mile loop that we walk that I would love to be able to run. As far as eating - that's usually not as bad as not exercising, but I'm going to stock my fridge full of fruits and vegis and whole grains. In order to be truly honest about this, I'm going to follow the example of others and write EVERYTHING down.

OK, that's all. And a quick get to know you from me in case you missed it earlier - I am an almost 25 year old mother of 2 (Sara is 1 and Kirk is 3). My husband and I live right by Layton, UT where he works in retail. I am a stay at home mom. :) And here's an updated pic. I think I look gross and fat (especially next to my skinny hubby and kids) but maybe that will motivate me to keep going - so that all of you can see how skinny I get!

Feeling Good

So I have been at this now for two weeks and I have lost 7 pounds so far. I have 28 more to go. I am excited and enjoying the walking and the attempt at running. I have been eating healthy and writing down EVERYTHING I eat. It has helped a lot.

Keep up the great work ladies and hope all of you reach your goals.

Starting Somewhere

So, as I mentioned earlier I am not a runner. I get really bad shin splints and I have no endurance. I can't even run a mile without passing out. I need to slowly build up my endurance and so I plan on running as long as I can starting today and each day increase it by a minute or two. I know that sounds pathetic, but I gotta start somewhere. 

As far as my diet goes, I need to make some major changes. I have a HUGE sweet tooth. Mostly cookies, but I love all sweets. It's really going to be hard for me to cut out sugar but I need to try. Any healthy recipes would really help. I'll update you all on my status at the end of the week.

Blog list

So I finally added all of our blogs to the side, so we can get to know eachother better. If I've added anybody who DOES NOT want to be there, just let me know. Also, if I've missed someone, send me your blog link again. I think I've only missed Hannah, because I don't know yours, and Shellie (my mom) because she doesn't have one.

I'm at home still, and doing...hmm...we'll say OKAY. I'm fine exercising, but my brother's homecoming yesterday was a little tough. There were cookies EVERYWHERE! ALL DAY LONG! I'm starting strong today though, and I think I'm going to go running with James' sister who is going to be running a half marathon in 2 weeks. Amazing huh. She usually runs about 3 miles a day, and then builds up on Saturdays. Last Saturday she went 9 miles. I can't even imagine! Anyway, I'll catch up to ya later! Hope you're all doing well as we end up the Summer!

Hello Ladies

Hi everyone! I'm new to this "love yourself healthy" blog and I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Rachel and I'm related to both Jill and Jenna (I'm actually their husbands cousin). Anyway, I have 2 kids. Austin is 3 1/2 and Brooke is just over a year. I have a great husband named Anthony who I have been married to for almost 6 years. We are currently living in Utah.

I saw this link on Jill's blog and after reading all the posts I got really excited because I too want to lose a few pounds and get into shape. I think this is a great way to motivate myself. So here are my goals:

1. Lose 12 pounds by my anniversary (Nov. 23rd)

2. Eat healthier 

3. Run a 5k without stopping by April 2009 (no laughing... this is going to be really hard for me because I am so not a runner)

I'm really going to need a lot of support and so I'm looking forward to using this blog site as a way to motivate myself through all you girls. By the way, for all of you out there that have run a 5k (JILL) any advice you could give me would be great! I have no idea where to even start. So, to everyone I say may the healthy living force be with you. :) 

Back from Camp

Well I'm back from Girl's Camp! We had a great time, and because of the "Bear" situation, we weren't allowed to take any food out of the lodge, which really helped my snacking problem! I didn't do as bad as I expected. Plus, on Wednesday, we wen't on a massive hike, and really worked our legs. Then on Thursday we wen't on a 3 hour canoe trip down the Teton River and got a pretty good arm workout. Somethings better than nothing!

Anyway, since I have a big week this week, (we're going home for my highschool reunion on Saturday, my brother's Homecoming on Sunday, and my Anniversary this week as well,) I decided to really hit it hard since I got home on Friday. I decided no treats until I'm home. Yep. It's only Tuesday, but I'm still sticking with it! (Minus a piece of Zuccini bread, but hey...does that really count? It is a vegetable!!!)

As far as my goal goes, I'm only down to 133, and I was hoping to be down to 130 by this weekend. Oh well. I still feel pretty good about myself, because I've been trying and I think that's all that matters. If I keep working at it, I'll get there.

Goals this week: No treats until I'm back in Utah. ----then....SPARINGLY!
Drink more water.
Exercise everyday except Sunday.
Run on Wednesday, and at least once when I'm home.


How are the rest of you doing? Mom? Melissa? Haven't heard from ya in awhile! I'm still keeping tabs on ya!

Back in the saddle!!

I know that the title is funny, but I'm in my husband's small hometown and it always turns me into somewhat of a cowgirl. :) Life has been extremely crazy to us lately. We had a huge 24th of July party (a state holiday in Utah), then the progressive dying of Paul's grandmother, and my little baby's 1st birthday. Anyway - suffice it to say that any thoughts of a healthy lifestyle are completely kaput.
OK - sorry that I haven't put anything about me on here, though. My blog is paulandlisathomas.blogspot.com. Feel free to visit to find out more about me. :)
Now - on to my new plans. I don't know how many of you are LDS, but I've had a hard time with fad diets lately because of my faith. The Word of Wisdom teaches to eat meats sparingly, and even the diet I am on says to eat meats ALL DAY LONG. So, I have modified my goals. Now, first off, I have to say that this will not take effect until probably next Monday. We still have a funeral and wedding to go to this week. My inspiration comes from this article:

http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=86c33645a2cba110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&hideNav=1
I am going to buy lots of fruits, vegis and whole grain foods. I will eat healthy - but not yucky stuff or too much of 1 food group. I also plan to watch my portions and my snacks. Last of all, I am going to start running. I ran a lot while I was college, but have lost the fire. I am going to upload my favorite songs onto my ipod and find a time to run the 3 miles that has taken me an hour a day to walk. I really really want to run a 5K like all my friends are doing. So, I will keep everyone updated!