The First 43: My Life Now

It's time to work off all those holiday treats! After looking at a few monthly calendar type exercises online, and a little help from a fitness guru friend of mine, we came up with this calendar to get ourselves moving every single day in January. I am going to do this with some friends in the month of January. I thought I'd share the exercise calendar here. Each week, add in an additional set so it gets harder over the course of the month. Below the calendar you will find links to all the different exercises in case you need a refresher! If you want to make it a little tougher, add some weight to your sumo squats and lunges. Hope you all enjoyed your holidays and happy new year!   Here is how to do all the exercises: Sumo Squats: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY-EQp1oAxs Crunches: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xyd_fa5zoEU Push – Ups (knee and regular) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7cPaJZoOng Bicycles: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqoD0Bdggto ...

  Make this! So good!  Even Jeff who doesn't usually like this type of meal, really loved it. We will definitely make it again. I made a few adaptations to the recipe based on what I had available to me at home but I have linked the original recipe below if you want to see what I left out and add some of those back in.  I am not a huge quinoa fan so I made it with Thai jasmine rice instead which was a great substitution. Ingredients: 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces (I bought the little chicken fingers (fresh) and cut them up because it's a lot easier.)  Dash of salt and ground pepper 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 3 Tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce 2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar 2 Tbsp. honey 1 garlic clove, minced 1 tsp. cornstarch 4 stems of sliced green onions 2 tsp. sesame oil 1 tsp. sesame seeds Directions: Heat up a frying pan and put your cut up chicken breast in it to cook. About 6-8 minutes on medium/high depen...

I love the holiday season.  So much joy and love and happiness. I am a sucker for Christmas music too.  Last year, the holidays almost gave me a full on nervous breakdown since I was deep into my weight loss journey and so close to my goal. This year, I've been trying to enjoy it more but you really don't quite grasp how many sweets there are for the taking, how much wine and other yummy alcoholic beverages are to be had and how many party appetizers end up in your stomach, until you are watching everything you eat.  Even though I've relaxed just a tiny bit, I still have to force myself to stop sometimes.  I've been trying to stick to logging in My Fitness Pal everyday (though, it's becoming more challenging now that I'm just maintaining) but I'm getting better and when I log days I skipped, I'm still within my limits which means I can manage my calories without the app now, it's really rewired my brain and taught me so much about how m...

I've been slacking when it comes to posting this month.  I haven't really had much to report on or new recipes to share. Well, I have had recipes to share, I just haven't had time to post them but I promise I will in the coming weeks and I really want to pick this up again! This past Saturday we did the Ugly Sweater 5k Run at Downsview Park. Proceeds went to The Children’s Wish Foundation of Canada. Some of us found actual ugly Christmas sweaters, some of us did a little DIY (you'll notice Jeff and I match!) The run was great, we did some running and a little walking. It's not timed and it's just for fun. I didn't have my usual running strength/endurance this weekend and was a bit disappointed in both my energy levels and speed but when I woke up with a full blown cold on Sunday morning, it was very clear to me why I didn't have the energy just 24 hours earlier. Either way, I completed it and had fun with friends so, winning all around. I highly recomm...

For the first time I can remember so, about the last 18 years, every time I went to the doctor I was told I was overweight. As a kid, my doctor never made me feel bad about it but those words always lingered. It got to the point as a teen that I avoided the scale, and my doctor, as much as humanly possible. I really just didn't want to face it and I didn't think I could change it.  Let's fast forward to yesterday. I had my annual appointment and I got weighed. The nurse and my doctor were floored.  I've lost 11 BMI points and about 60lbs since I started going to her. I started seeing this doctor about a year before I started trying to lose weight. When I was weighed I even mentioned that I thought it was 7lbs off... as in it put my weight at less than it is.  My doctor laughed at my honesty but really, if I don't lose 7lbs before this time next year, I don't want it to seem like I gained weight!! My doctor said to me "Well, I'm really happy to tell yo...

Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope you've all had a wonderful thanksgiving and are yourselves in a delicious food coma. There is so much to be thankful for; family, friends, furbabies, food in our tummies and roofs over our heads.  Last thanksgiving was rough for me. Being on such a strict diet made me irritable and frustrated looking at all the delicious food.  This year, though I ate in moderation I definitely enjoyed the food coma a little more.  Here are some photos of some of the desserts and some links to their recipes. Our mom's requested these again this year and they were a big hit. Date squares! Here is the recipe, I cut the sugar and margarine in half for the crust/topping but otherwise use the recipe as is. http://www.thekitchenmagpie.com/date-squares Homemade cranberry sauce is maybe my favourite part of Thanksgiving.  This is how I make it: 2.5 cups cranberries 1 cup of water 1/2 cup of sugar I bring the water and sugar to a boil, ...

I took a stab at a new pasta sauce that I've been meaning to try for months. Luckily Pinterest kept it handy and top of mind for me. The original recipe I found was just a little bit too high in calories for my liking so, I made a few changes/substitutions and it tasted great. Ingredients: 140g package of Blue Menu (light) Goat Cheese 2 red peppers, roasted 1 cup 1% Milk 1/2 a white onion, chopped 2 garlic gloves, pressed 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil basil & thyme to taste salt & pepper to taste Directions: Preheat oven to 425*F. While it's heating, quarter your red peppers, take out the seeds and place them on a a piece of foil on a pan.  When oven is up to temperature, roast them for 10 minutes per side.  While the peppers are roasting, prep the onion and garlic until cooked.  When you turn the peppers, put a pan on the stove medium heat, and cook the onions and garlic.  Add cheese, milk, herbs, salt and pepper.  Simmer. Take the pepp...