50 by 50

A few months ago one of my fellow health coaches created a 40 by 40 list. A sort of "bucket-list" to achieve before she reached 40 years old. She has lost 100 lbs, has kept it off for over a year and decided it was time to have some major fun and live life to the fullest. I have loved watching her sky dive, zip-line and participate in fun activities that before her healthy life she was afraid or too self-conscious to do. 

So... I have been inspired to create a 50 by 50 list. 

I've got 9 1/2 years to work on this list completing this list and while it's not yet a full list I have had a blast, with myself and my husband, dreaming up goals, digging deep into my heart and mind of things I want to do, places I want to see and bits of life that I am not going to let fear get in the way of letting me live. So many of these items I wouldn't have even wanted to do before finding health... but now I know my body will work with me (not against me) I'm ready to take on the world!

Cancer taught me a ton of things... but one was to accept reality and live live to the fullest wherever you are planted. When I was going through chemo I had a blog called My Honest Walk. In this post I shared my bucket list at that time:
http://myhonestwalk.blogspot.com/2012/02/looking-forward-our-bucket-lists.html
So far I have been blessed to complete 7 of those items. To this day, being able to watch Aubrielle be born is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen - thank you forever Melissa and Ben. And our trip to Yosemite opened my eyes to a whole new world - a million thanks Deanna and Mike. But... some of those items still need to be accomplished - cause I'm not done and there is life to live. 

Okay... so even though the list is not yet complete, here's my 50 by 50:
1.   Raft the Colorado River/Grand Canyon
2. Own a Vespa/Moped
3. See the Northern Lights
4. Hike Manchu Pichu
5. Visit the National Parks in Utah
6. Go to Cedar Point and ride the Top Thrill Dragster
7. Visit the Holy Land
8. See Enya in concert
9. Own a cool car (lose the mini-van)
10. Snow ski again
11. Show my kids where I lived in Italy
12. Make homemade tamales
13. Sew a quilt
14. Take kids to Washington D.C.
15. Play in an adult soccer league
16. Bake and decorate a cake that doesn't look horrible
17.  Paddle Board
18. Zip-line
19. Camp in Hawaii on the ocean
20. See Garth Brooks in concert
21. See Mumford & Sons in concert
22. Get a conceal carry license
23. Bow hunt with my husband
24. Be involved with a group that makes a significant mark on our community
25. Teach my kids about money
26. Become more wise in my words... slower to speak
27. Read (or listen to) the entire Bible
28. Take Leah to New York to go shopping
29. Take a family trip to Mexico
30. Go to Disney World
31. See the Space Station
32. Visit New Orleans 
33. Ride the train on a significant cross-country trip 
34.
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-
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50. 

Do you have a bucket list???? Please feel free to share things on your list - I'd love to be inspired or have new ideas to consider. 

Pushing Through Weight Loss Plateaus

Hope that you are having a fantastic summer & enjoyed your 4th of July! Ours was packed with small town fun activities, hanging out with several different groups of friends and lots of (healthy) food! My one indulgence was a little bit of homemade strawberry ice cream (I'm in maintenance not in weight loss mode)... but otherwise we did a pretty good job not being near or buying the foods that would throw us off of our health journey. 

This week I wanted to share some information that I was given from my mentor team leaders regarding tips for when you find yourself hitting a plateau in your journey. If you are finding yourself in this situation, these tips can help you get back on track and focused on fighting for your health. 

Plateau Tips

First off, a real plateau is 2-3 weeks with zero weight loss after being on plan 100%. It is normal for a person's body to not lose weight every so often for a week. Your body is coping with stress of weight loss. It is actually HEALTHY to have a week with zero weight loss sometimes.

Secondly, go over your food journal to make sure you are in fact following the plan 100%. Sometimes a person does not realize something they are eating is not on plan (What? We can't eat apples?).

Okay, here are some tips for pushing through plateaus:

- In general, be aware of your total carbohydrate intake if you are experiencing slower weight loss or hit a plateau. We recommend staying between 80-85 grams of carbs per day.

- Try eating more "liquid" products for a few days, which are generally the lowest in carb content (aka Have a shake day!)

- Choose meats from the leanest category and veggies from the lowest carb category for a week. Eat more fish! 

- Make sure you are drinking half your body weight in ounces each day. At least 64 ounces, but preferably 100 ounces or more is best for getting off a plateau!

- Drink the calorie burn flavor infusers (up to 3 per day) that will help you burn more calories and increase your metabolism. You can find them in the section of the website under the area where you purchase your feelings. 

- Make sure you are eating within a half hour of waking up, and never going longer than 3 hours between meals.

- Are you getting at least 7 hours of consistent sleep per night? Lack of sleep can contribute to plateaus.

- Are you excessively stressed out? Read in Dr. A's book on pages 313-315 and practice daily stress reduction techniques.

- Remember listen to your body! If you are already exercising, try picking up the intensity or frequency of your workouts. If you are exercising intensely, you may be pushing too hard- try to avoid excessive "huffing and puffing" while exercising. Your body will store fat if you are overworking! (We can contact Nutrition Support to make sure that your diet and calorie count is what it should be for the exercise you are adding to your day.)

- Focus on the long-term optimal health that will result from eating right and practicing habits of health, and check inches- plateau weeks are CLASSICALLY HUGE inches lost weeks.

- Check out this Habits of Health Call that addresses plateaus: Habits of Health Zoom Call: Peaks and Plateaus: How to Learn from Both!

Good luck and if you are struggling please contact me... let's figure out how to get you back on track to reaching your health weight!