October Challenge

     The baking is still on for the weekend; however, I screwed up with the faculty breakfast. It was THIS week, not next, so now what will I do with those leftovers?? I think my students will be happy on Monday morning…The blog I stole borrowed the recipe from is pure evil. There are also apple cookies I need to try the next time I am required to bring something, somewhere. I just can’t have her evil baked goods taunting me, so the only way around it will be to bake for something specific. I would like to finally lose these last 15 pounds I’ve been hanging on to for the last year.

     This brings me to my October personal challenge of working out everyday for at least 30 minutes. I figured at the very least I'll get a 3-mile run in. Mission: Buff Arms was fairly successful. I did a boot camp all summer and now continue with 2-3 strength focused classes at the gym each week. I certainly have a lot more arm strength than I started out with and more bicep than I had before. With the holiday’s right around the corner, there is no better time than now to start this personal challenge. If you remember, my initial weight loss (between kids) started with a Weight Watchers sign up the DAY BEFORE Thanksgiving. Who does that? Me. I lost 42 pounds by April, with a steady loss showing right through the holidays. It certainly can be done. I proved that. I think I finally adjusted to my back-to-work schedule, so now is the perfect time. This challenge should get me moving on those days I don’t really want to. I am pretty good about working out most days of the week, but I need a little extra something to jump start the weight loss. It would be so nice to be at goal weight for my BIG 4-0 in March. Today is officially Day 1 of the challenge and the plan is to run 4-6 miles before dinner tonight.

         We head quite the rain storm yesterday with some flooding in areas, so Pete’s Healing Waters has been pushed to next weekend. Flooded riverbanks don’t make for good fly-fishing. Perhaps we can go to the Big Trucks event that I found for the kids, unless of course it’s raining because that would be a muddy mess. It’s full of big trucks and a sand pit for the kids to play in. I didn’t go last year, but I know a few people that did, and they said it was a great kid’s event. Saturday is supposed to be the nicer of the two days, so that will be perfect for the CureSearch walk.

     Next week Pete and I have a “date night” set to go see Michael Pollan. His books are amazing and worth the read. His books were actually the start for my dietary change to remove processed food from my diet. I eat “cleaner” than ever before, but I’m still not perfect, nor do I ever expect to be. But I can say we don’t purposely buy processed food, and we don’t eat at fast food restaurants, except for occasionally places like Panera, or to grab a quick slice of pizza. I figure they have far better choices than a place like McDonalds. Anyway, if you haven’t read anything by Pollan, go to the library and check out a book or two. Here’s a bit of information on him:

“For the past twenty-five years, Michael Pollan has been writing books and articles about the places where nature and culture intersect: on our plates, in our farms and gardens, and in the built environment. He is the author of four New York Times bestsellers: Food Rules: An Eater’s ManualIn Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto (2008); The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (2006) and The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s-Eye View of the WorldThe Omnivore’s Dilemma was named one of the ten best books of 2006 by both the New York Times and the Washington Post. It also won the California Book Award, the Northern California Book Award, the James Beard Award, and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. A young readers edition called The Omnivore’s Dilemma: the Secrets Behind What You Eat was published in 2009. The Botany of Desire received the Borders Original Voices Award for the best non-fiction work of 2001, and was recognized as a best book of the year by the American Booksellers Association and Amazon.com. PBS premiered a two-hour special documentary based on The Botany of Desire in fall 2009. Pollan is also the author of A Place of My Own (1997) and Second Nature (1991).”   To read more: http://michaelpollan.com/press-kit/

http://littlebittybakes.blogspot.com/2010/09/chocolate-peanut-butter-cake-cups.html

http://www.curesearchwalk.org

http://www.projecthealingwaters.org/

http://michaelpollan.com/press-kit/