Hallelujah Eve

I cannot believe Halloween is already here!  The holidays are officially beginning and here we are again.  It seems like every year we say we are going to be better prepared but every year life gets thrown for a loop and we end up in the exact same place we were before.  It’s insanity I tell ya!

One thing I’ve been thinking about is our vow this year to be more financially independent than we were at the beginning of the year.  We were to remember that its God’s money and not our money.  How have we fared?  Pretty bad.  Granted our debts are slowly decreasing and we haven’t accrued any new debt which I say is a plus but nothing has been paid off and we are literally hand to mouth right now.  But by the grace of God we’ve made it and we are continuing to make it day by day.

This time last year I was recovering from my 4th surgery and this year is the first October in two years that I didn’t have a surgery!  Woohoo!!  I definitely call that a win!  

This week is also the first week in months that I’ve worked out more than twice!  Last night I had planned a HIIT workout on the treadmill with some ab exercises but I didn’t do so great.  I’m not sure what happened but I tried a few of the ab moves and started feeling like I was going to throw up.  So I decided to skip those and just do 20 minutes of HIIT sprints on the treadmill.  I lasted 10 minutes and then I got super dizzy so I walked the rest of the time doing different intervals.  It was not a great workout at all and at first I was very discouraged but then it hit me.  I got up and DID something!  I could’ve gave up and said forget it and never given it a try but I did and I burned about 500 calories in the process.  

I have also decided to enter one final contest before the end of the year and I took my before pics.  Talk about a wakeup call!  I'm going to wait to post them on here until after the contest and hopefully by that time I'll have an awesome AFTER picture! ;)

October is always a strange month for me and this year was no exception but one thing I look forward to every year is our church’s Hallelujah Carnival.  

Normally I volunteer but I’ll have the boys this year so I’ll get to actually enjoy the carnival!  I’m very excited because this is the biggest event our church puts on every year with the exception of our Easter carnival.  Thousands of people come and there are always yummy vendors, an outdoor concert, bounce houses, and tons of games.  The kids love it and its a much safer alternative to going trick-or-treating.

Then Sunday our church celebrates its 45th birthday!  

The church bought thousands of cupcakes for everyone which I am SO looking forward to.  Who doesn't love a cupcake?!!  

I am so thankful to the men and women who started our church 45 years ago and cannot wait to take a stroll down memory lane on Sunday.

So that’s it for me!  Enjoy the rest of October and be on the lookout for more fit-related posts in November! :)

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What's My Problem?

The first full week of October has been rough.  My pain is back full force, still fighting depression, and I don't know about you guys but this allergy season has been the worst for me.  Usually I battle allergies more in the spring but this year it's fall for the win!

Yesterday I tried to start back on the 21 Day Fix eating plan and lasted half a day until I got so hungry I started shaking and then it was a free for all.  I did make healthier choices though there was a lot of cheese but I did not get the workout in.

I have started walking to pick my son up from school instead of driving to pick him up and found out that's a 15 minute walk and my iWatch counts it as workout minutes. Sweet!  I am also try to get 5,000 steps each day for October and this has helped me get close to my goal but I'm still not there.  Right now I am averaging anywhere between 2,000-4,000 steps a day depending on how I feel and what's going on that day and that just doesn't cut it for me.  My goal is to get up to 10,000 steps per day but I am really trying to break that up into smaller, attainable goals thus the 5,000 for October.

I am realizing something about my many failed healthy eating and workout attempts that I think rings true for many people:

I do not like to feel restricted 

I think this is where my problem starts.  Every time I try to count calories or just stick to a certain meal plan I always fail because I don't like being told I can't eat or drink something.  So now I am trying to figure out what I can make of that.  Maybe instead of restricting myself I can add goals like a certain number of servings of vegetables per day or watching my portions instead of counting calories.

I really want to get to the bottom of why I continue to fail.  It's like in some sick way I don't want myself to succeed though that's what I want more than anything right now!  There must be other people out there like me.  I'm not alone in this right?  What have other people done to find out what makes them succeed?  Well, that's what I'm going to try to figure out.  I have to fight for my health and right now everything I've tried has failed.

A friend of mine started Jenny Craig and so far as lost 15lbs but at this point there is no way I can afford to do that.  I just feel so discouraged.  I was really hoping October would be my month and so far it hasn't been BUT I still have a few weeks to turn things around right? ;)

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Tastes Like October

Happy October!!

The past two years October has been the worst month for me.  Last October I was hospitalized for two weeks and had my appendix taken out and the October before that is when I had my full hysterectomy.  Needless to say I am nervous about what is in store for me this month.  I am hoping and praying for a medical issue free month. :)

The first day of October, which also signifies the first day of fall on my calendar, means pumpkins.  Everyone has an object that when they think about a particular month there is a memory or an object that sticks out in your mind and for me October means pumpkins.

I remember carving a pumpkin only once in my life which is sad.  I can't even remember the age I was when I did it but I do remember pulling the seeds out with my hands and grossing out with the texture.  I also remember the rotten smell when it's been out on the front porch too long which could be another reason for me only having one pumpkin carving experience in my life.

Our family never went to the pumpkin patches either and I've never taken my kids but I am going to try to change that this year.  So many of my friends do it and it looks like fun!

Oh how I love the flavor that is pumpkin!  Pumpkin pie is one of my top five all-time favorite desserts and the Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks is something I look forward to every year.

This year since money is so tight I bought some pumpkin spice creamer for my coffee instead and am actually sipping on some as I write this.  It just tastes like fall to me!  Yum!!  Oh and have you tried these?

If you are a pumpkin-lover like myself you are going to love them!  Husband wasn't much of a fan but I thought they were great!  They are pretty sweet but I was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked them.

A new month means new goals so that's my goal today!  I love when a new month begins.  It's a fresh start and another chance to get it right and who doesn't need another chance?

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