Saturday, November 7, 2009

Autumn Activities








Wow! I can't believe it's been so long since my last blog. I'm still around. I've been working on the keeping connected front and planning to have some kind of get together or outing at least twice a month. I think of late it has been more often than that. I'll do a post later to catch up on Summer happenings (there were many), and here I'll just focus on more recent events.

Before Autumn even began I set a few plans in place of things the boys would enjoy. The list included visiting a pumpkin patch, taking a trip to Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo, hosting a Halloween party, hosting Thanksgiving dinner and putting up Christmas lights outside the house. I am happy to report that we have actually done the first part of the list and have the other two in our sights. I am also working on the Christmas Countdown and Cruising Through the Holidays.



Tuesday, June 23, 2009

The Heat Is on



Summer is here. The calendar and the heat advisory that is now in effect shows that my favorite season has arrived. What do I love about Summer? I can think of many things. Here are my top ten.

10. Having weeks and weeks to get my act together
9. Being able to read a book from start to finish in a day
8. Cooling off in the pool.
7. Going to the lake in the middle of the week when it is not crowded.
6. 4th of July picnics and fireworks
5. Sleeping in until after 7, at least until the second week in August arrives
4. The big family vacation
3. Day trips on any day of the week
2. Sharing meals out on the patio
1. Spending hours and hours each day with my family. I can't seem to get enough hugs once school starts.

Did I ever mention before that I love Summer?!?!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Muscles and Moderation

I have been working on a new goal during my break. As I have been working on organizing closets and spending more time with family, I have also been working on a couple of fitness goals. I am writing this at the mid-point of one of those goals. Several weeks ago, I purchased Wii Active, a personal training system developed with many fitness experts including Bob Greene. Bob Greene is Oprah's trainer and has also authored The Best Life book and online community/health program. I think the Best Life plan is a little too intense for me personally, as I believe one should ease into change, and everything including any lifestyle changes, should be started in moderation. The Wii Active program allows you to either choose a previously designed workout, put your own workout together, or to let the program set up a 30 day fitness challenge which includes a mix of cross training and rest days. In the 30 day challenge I am working on, I have two cross train days in a row and one rest day. On the rest day I am encouraged to do other activities that benefit my health, but may not be traditionally thought of as workouts, like yard work.

So I have made it to the halfway point. I was just getting a feeling of boredom setting in and the program kicked my workout up a notch or two and added some new activities to bring some variety into each new workout. I have 13 days left to complete my 30 day challenge, and I will report back with the final results, but in the meantime, I am definately toning up muscles and increasing endurance. I am hoping this is the jump start I need to keep an ongoing fitness habit going far beond the 30 day mark.

The other fitness challenge I am involved in was developed by Jonathan Roche. I have been following Jonathan on Blog Talk Radio and his e-mail community, now found at Big Tent. I have just finished the fifth week of a twelve week challenge to move with the No Excuses Workout (NEWO) system. The goal is to move every week using intervals or the No Excuses Workout that includes all over strength training, building up to five or six days a week of alternating types of workouts and building the length of each workout as strength and endurance are gained. I started with the NEWO system in January and have dropped my resting heart rate 14 beats per minute. I have also renewed my love of running, and have brought myself to the level that allows me to do the Wii Active Challenge as well.