New Years. my resolution

I understand resolutions are meant to be written, hidden, and reopened a year later. However, how can you improve on something if you do not make it a daily goal or routine if you write it and basically forget about it? 

Everyone wants to lose weight. Very little people understand it should be about feeling better not looking better. that is one of my main goals for this year. I did well last year, with the exception of October/November.

I also want to find joy in the little things and don't let minor issues or major complications stand in my way from being happy. 

The life Ilive with my husband and best friend is important to me. I don't want to spend the days arguing or stressing about our finances. Everyone has money problems. Our goal is to pay off everything in our name (with exception of mortgage) to help with the future change coming our way. We have so much to do when I graduate I want to pay things off now. 

My New Years Resolutions are as follows: - to feel better in my own skin: Comfortable, happy, and healthy 

- eat healthier and make those important healthy choices

- find joy in the little things in life

- stress less. Save more. 

Happy New Years, everyone!

Love,

Ally Leigh 

Challenge Day 2

 As I sit at my desk, I am thinking of all the healthy choices I have been making and will continue to make. I should be doing the three most important assignments that are due this week, but instead I procrastinate. Any way, I found the key to being healthy is not to plan one week, one month, or even a just a few days ahead. Health is about taking it one day at a time and setting the right goals to achieve maximum results. A person must think about three things on their road to a healthy living: food, exercise, and staying positive.

Yesterday, I started my second health challenge after looking in the mirror and feeling absolutely horrified. After one month of going to the gym with my bestie, I took two weeks off due to busy school schedules. Boy, do I regret it. The challenge I am currently working on is a 24-day ab challenge.






This challenge gives me a goal each day to meet, including rest days, in order to master the crunch, leg raise, and plank exercises. So far, so good. The planks are my most challenging because I can really feel it in my back, which is not at its strongest these days. I have had to cut of 2 secs each goal, but I would rather have a healthy back then meet the full goal. Today, I mastered 8 crunches, 8 leg raises, and 10 planks, completing two sets of crunches and leg raises.

The ab-challenge is not the only goal I must meet. I must also complete 20 minutes of cardio each day. So far, so good. Yesterday, I completed 37 minutes on the elliptical and today I attempted 40 minutes, but only reached 34 minutes. (It sounds like an excuse, but once I feel my back muscles starting to flare, I stop.) Along with the elliptical, I also completed 10 minutes of fast paced walking to keep me awake while writing this blog and, supposedly, the first paper of three.

Ab Challenge, Check ✓ 20+ minutes of cardio, Check Check ✓✓ Now, all I need is to make healthier eating choices. This fall and summer I managed to prepare dozens of meals and stick them in the fridge for easy nights of popping something in the microwave or slow cooking all day. However, not all of them were the healthiest. Yesterday, I started my "No Pop, No Sugar" diet. By diet, I mean eat less, feel better. I say ex-nay on soda all together, but yesterday I made a german chocolate cake with sugar-free frosting for my husband and had I slice. Who says I can't taste test my own baking? <3

So, I have the "No Pop, No Sugar" thing decided, but now its time to eat healthy meals with unprocessed all natural foods, like fruits, veggies, nuts, venison, beef, pork, and chicken. All of these meat I will have hunted and butchered or received from the butcher shop. Salads and homemades soups are other great ways to eat healthy. I have been making homemade soups for the last two weeks, and my husband is enjoying it, too!

 Last, remember when I said, a person must have a positive attitude when making healthy choices? This is one thing I have been working on for a few months, now. Every day, I write a positive quote on my message board in the laundry room for my own inspiration. Each day gets better and with every day, I move a sticky tab from one side to the other. If I have a really bad, negative day all of these stickies go back to the one side. It is almost like those work safety "Days Without Injury" signs. This reinforcement allows me to work towards my goal and hopefully start living more positive and fulfilling lifestyle.

These posts will not be so long during my challenge, but I needed to set up a online tracker. If I journal each day, I will have better success at reaching my ultimate goal. To feel healthier, happier, and accomplished.

Today's inspirational quote: 

Live{Laugh}Love...Eat Healthy

Every day, I have been trying to stay in the habit of watching what foods I consume, with of course the exception of giving myself a little treat each week. You can't cut yourself completely off, but if you work hard, you can keep it off.

This week, I made myself aware of what foods I ate by monitoring my calorie intake and drinking plenty of water. This following week, I plan to do the same. Once I feel like I am on track, I will begin to monitor my exercising habits, as well. I am currently doing both, but I am only tracking one. This way, I cannot get overwhelmed by all the things I have to do each day and gradually they all become habits.

I am patiently awaiting my 'TurboFire' workout and very eager to get back to Havre to start my swimming and Tuesday's Fit Club. The last few weeks have been quite busy and with all the extra little things, I sadly put myself on the back burner. But no more! I must take 30 minutes each day to help myself get on track with my exercise. By doing this, I feel better and help either eliminate or process any stress I might have, therefore, not taking it out on my body in a bad way.

So here's to 2013 and the 'New Me'. I look forward to doing more with this and start to lose my goal of 35 lbs. Wish me luck and begin to consider the possibilities for you to become healthier. Not only will you be happy, but everyone around you can learn by you and get on track to a healthier nation. 

.:Determination will get you through it:.

Did you know that: "more than 1/3 of U.S. adults and 17% of U.S. children fall under the category of obesity?" Since 1980, obesity rates doubled for adults and tripled for children and its increasing everyday. It's reality and it's very scary!  This is a result of not being conscience of what we take in everyday. Food, television, lazy Sundays, and other bad habits form obesity.  Obesity causes many health conditions like Sleep apnea, liver & gall bladder disease, osteoarthritis, and Type 2 Diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is what scares me the most. I have had two grandparents who have had it, two great-aunts have it, and every day I see people around me are suffering from it and don't realize it.  It's brought on by the foods we eat and exercise we do or don't do. 
Eating healthy and being active is critical for our everyday lifestyles and I, for one, am guilty of doing just the opposite most days. Today, I am changing that. I am going to make an effort to work out using my new TurboFire DVD set from Beachbody and use my MSU-N health class to gain some insight on healthy ways to eat and live. Everyday I note what I eat and try to maintain and healthy diet using the Food Pyramid. It's the most solid nutritional diet out there. I will be keeping a daily journal on blogger to help monitor my progress and stay on track. Who's with me? Let's get fit & healthy!


Today is February 12, 2013
-I am 5'7 and 192 lbs.
-I wear a size 14 pant size.
-My goal is to strength train, eat healthier, and get my 30 mins or more a day working out.
-My weight goal is 155 lbs by 2014. I know it is a large amount of time. But who am I racing? -If I am going to do this, I am going to do it right.
-Swimming, TurboFire, TotalGym, Ellipitcal, fast-paced walking, and strength training will be my excercise goals.

Last summer, I was down to 175 and I spun out of control when my back began bothering me. So here I am trying all over again,  but this time I have my challenge group from Beachbody to support me! Here we go! 

{GO.Go.go}

The last half of my winter break has been spend on the road from going to visit my in-laws to taking the speech team to Manhattan for a speech meet. Also, I begin school on Wednesday, so my car, my Sirius radio, & I will be reunited. The next three weekends we travel 3 plus hours to and from speech meets. I will have put on over 3500 miles, not including in-town travels for meets, and 55+ hours of driving. I am SUPER Coach!

I am really not sure how I manage to work a job, coach speech & drama, travel to school during the week, coach on the weekends, manage a household, keep up my marriage and its daily tasks and get good grades in college. I am very thankful for my speech kids and it's fans. I am also very thankful that I have the opportunity to help change lives and improve and create life skills for students of all ages. I can't wait to expand on the program once I have figured out how to do such a thing.

{Butts}&Guts

Here it is, the 6th day of 2013, and I am feeling the holiday blues.  The only reason the blues have stuck around this long is because I haven't had the time to re-coop from the constant driving and the eating. I have had no time to exercise or work on eating right. I have had no time because I haven't taken the time.

The trays crackers, meats, cheeses, plates of buns & specialty loafs, & of course the holiday desserts & treats that linger all day long because everyone is either too afraid to eat them or have already had one too many themselves. All of this comes with the season of Christmas and I need a lot of will power to stay away from the carbs & sweets.

I am one of the few people that actually understand that feeling better & losing weight comes with exercise and eating right. This summer & last I managed to lose 15 lbs...and almost 20.  I had never felt better but both times, I started out my routines slow & easy and worked my way into. And both times, I managed to injure my back and nearly gain all but a few pounds back. I felt so alive and so healthy and very conscious.

I daydream of exercising to feel better and nothing pains me more than knowing that I have no idea what it is that will make me feel healthy without killing my body. I do know that at this point, I need to be a realist and learn to say no to the bad foods and stop overeating to compensate for not feeling well.

With all the Go.Go.Go this month, I really thought I would stay busy enough not to eat so terribly but it is the complete opposite of that. I am hoping that tomorrow I will wake up feeling refreshed enough to get a start on this. 

Stress.at.Midnight

THIS POST HAS BEEN DELETED.

.:Needle&Thread + Hook&Yarn:.

Today, I began the New Year in a new way... I crossed something off my Bucket.List! 

My husband & I have been in the mountains visiting his family for the past week.  On our last day here, I had plans to learn how to use a sewing machine with his grandma. I was so excited, three of my grandparents died when I was a young girl and my grandma recently passed, but I never got to learn anything from them. I may have inherited some cooking traits but never the craft of the needle&thread. It was time to learn something that can be passed down.

We had some errands to run in the city, so we stopped to get some fabric to learn a simple lesson of hemming and threading a sewing machine. While in the fabric aisle, I noticed some crochet items and somehow they landed in our basket! I figured if I am learning one thing I might as well keep going!  Six hooks, 3 balls of yarn, 1 yd of fabric, & a "Learn to Crochet" book later.. we walked out of the store. I sure gave myself a handful for the 2nd day of 2013. I hope that by 2014, I will have made several scarves, hats, headbands, booties, and maybe even 1 blanket. 

Gramma Jones took me under her wing and showed me how to thread the sewing machines needle and getting started. She had me hem an old rag that she had lying around. It was rough and far from a straight stitch. Then after several laughs, we began shaping a pillow for my hubby. measured and pinned and off to the sewing machine. It was pretty simple, even the reinforcing with a double stitch. I learned about grandpa's family and life with my father- & aunt-in-laws. I even inherited a few breakable heirlooms. I had a pretty awesome day and this even my sister in law was very generous to help me understand what my crochet book was trying to say... Now it's off to YouTube to learn how to get this yarn and hook thing started. 

Here is to trying new things....

.:Chances are:.

Chances come in all forms, colors, shapes, & sizes, but none of them are as amazing as the ones you take. 

                                        -me  

Chances usually something I tend to avoid, at all costs.  No risks, no changes, just simple so I can coast through life and 'grin-n-bear' it.  They were something foreign, something scary, and something far beyond what I had already experienced.  In the last year, I began taking chances and seeing the world through a different set of eyes. With the help of my loving husband, I learned the glass really is half-full.  I had always thought that is was but barriers or obstacle seemed to always get in the way and my thoughts were lead astray. When you drink from the glass, chances refill that glass. If you don't take the chances, the water dries up and you lose sight of the happiness. You have to look at every opportunity as something positive, it may be drastic or it may be minor, but when positive, you can never go wrong. 

Without my husband, I would not be doing some of the things I am doing today nor the ones I plan to do in the future. He is an optimistic dreamer who fights bad things all the time by taking chances to better his life. I am inspired by his outgoing, funny, positive personality.  I am now striving to fulfill my dreams of helping the youth and give them the chance of higher education. I cannot wait to become a certified teacher for grades k-12.

With these degree, comes endless chances and possibilities that will somehow better our life together. My degree could take me anywhere in the U.S.  Ultimately, my ideal place would be our hometown.  Buy a home with some property and live happily ever after.   Another would be to take a teaching job up in Alaska, that's a huge chance to change our lives.  Another would be to pick up and move to where the work is. More than anything, as long as I am with my husband, life will be good wherever the chances take us.

This year I plan to take as many chances as I can while I am in school. I want to begin to change my lifestyle and boost my self-confidence & self-esteem. I want to be more outgoing without scaring off every person I met. (("Wow! She is crazy!" or "Did she really just say that?....Awkward!)) I want to be a better person and really make a difference in my lifestyle. By BLOGGING every day, I plan to stay on top of this plan and encourage myself to take be steps and open my eyes & mind to bigger and better things. 

Goals

Goals. 2013. 
Eat Healthy. 
Exercise Regularly.
Smile A Lot.
Be Open-minded.
Be Patient.
Earn Good Grades.
Feel Good About my self.
Gain Confidence in Appearance and in Social Life.
Life is too short to worry about what everyone thinks all the time. Relax and lighten and enjoy the company you have at all times.

Live a healthier lifestyle -Exercise: 5 times a week. 45 minutes a day.
-Eat less Junk. Be Aware of What I Eat and How Much I eat.

Earn a GPA of 3.8 or greater in College-This means concentrate on my studies while maintaining part time work

- Each course I must maintain a 90% or higher

Take time for my husband- He supports me fully in everything I do. I should take the time to appreciate him.
- Be Patient. Be Kind. Be Open Minded.

Live Life Fully- Smile Everyday. Take a chance. Don't Be Afraid of Change.
- Never turn down an offer to go out and do something.

Make New Friends.- Don't be quick to Judge anyone.
- Be Open-Minded. Not every relationship is perfect. 

Be Positive. Love.Love.Love.OurLife!
Here is to 2013! I will take notes like these daily.

Love.Love.Love 2013

So Much We Want To Do.
So.Little.Time. 

Let's catch up on the past.

2009.

Married My Best Friend.
Began Remodeling Our 2-story Home.
3 Dogs~ German Shepherds: Lars & Lexi.  German Wired-hair Pointer: Luke.


2012.

3 Happy Partially Healthy Years of Marriage.  We had a rough start. Who wouldn't with both of us having 3 years of health problems? Our House & Our Health certainly have tested our marriage, but we are so happy and so in love. Not everyone can say that they married their best friend and that they spend nearly every hour of every day together. My husband runs a trap line near our hometown and I travel with him.  We both share a love of the outdoors and rarely do we ever do anything alone.

My husband hauls crude oil 3 days a week and has small odd jobs to fill his time while he is not playing outdoors.

I, along with my part time jobs, am attending college to finish my Education degree. In Fall of 2012, I enrolled into the university and education program for Elementary Education with a Minor in English 5-12. I fell in love with school, which in the past, I absolutely despised any college because it seemed that advisors did not help, they only threw you into the flames. I have the best advisor and greatest faculty. I can't wait to see what's in store for me there this semester.

I gained better organizational schools while living in two places and travelling back and forth from home to school. In 2013, I plan to start my new job on campus working to complete a graduate survey that will give the school an 80% response rate.  This will have doubled their past results.

Enough of the boring stuff.

I coach High School speech & drama, dabble in photography when I have the time, & I love organizing, decorating, and fixing up our home. I look forward to what the future as in store for us! 

My degree in education will open up amazing windows of opportunity for us and I cannot wait! 

My major hobbies are actively following Pinterest to come up with innovative & creative ideas for my job and home. Also finding new ways to express my photography. 


Goals. 2013. 
Live a healthier lifestyle -Exercise: 5 times a week. 45 minutes a day.
-Eat less Junk. Be Aware of What I Eat and How Much I eat.

Earn a GPA of 3.8 or greater in College-These means concentrate on my studies while maintaining part time work

- Each course I must maintain a 90% or higher

Take time for my husband- He supports me fully in everything I do. I should take the time to appreciate him.
- Be Patient. Be Kind. Be Open Minded.

Live Life Fully- Smile Everyday. Take a chance. Don't Be Afraid of Change.
- Never turn down an offer to go out and do something.

Make New Friends.- Don't be quick to Judge anyone.
- Be Open-Minded. Not every relationship is perfect. 
Be Positive. Love.Love.Love.OurLife!
Here is to 2013! I will take notes like these daily.