Destination Discipline

I was in a very good mood today. I have been working on a presentation at work and have it nearly finished. It is completely my creation and while I received guidance on how to create some of the graphics, I created the whole shebang! I am happy. And proud. So when I walked into my favorite grocery store tonight on my way home and began to pick out my Serrano peppers(so I can make fresh guacamole) I smiled at everyone I saw, even when they didn’t smile back. And I proved to myself yet again that smiles are contagious.

I was standing in line to check out when I witnessed the very sour woman in front of me scowling.

The cashier spoke kindly to her, “Good evening, Ma’am. How are you today?”

But the woman ignored her and continued to scowl. Cassandra, the very sweet cashier looked disheartened and therefore so was I. So I tried, “Hello there. I love your earrings.” Then I smiled really big.

She turned and looked at me. Then she felt around her ears and said, “Oh, I forgot about these.”

And I said, “They really are lovely. They even match your outfit.” Then I smiled again.

Then, with a bit of hesitation, she began to smile. “Thank you.” She said, “I’ve had a pretty rough day and I’m really tired.”

I said, “I hope you are able to get some rest tonight. That will make you feel better.”

Then she took her receipt from the cashier and said,(to the cashier) “Thank you for your excellent customer service. You have a nice evening.” And she walked away.

By this time the crabby customer was smiling, the cashier was smiling, the customer behind us was smiling and I was still smiling. I multiplied my smile by 4. Isn’t that awesome?

Today, if you are downhearted and discouraged, if life has got your goat, I encourage you to smile. Smile so big your ears hurt. Then go into a public place and start smiling at people and see what happens. I bet it’ll brighten your day(and someone else’s too).

Happy Smiling!

I’ve been writing a lot lately about eating too much, but that does not mean I have given up my healthy lifestyle. The truth is, as much as I love to eat, I also love to exercise. I’ve been quite busy strength training to build muscle, riding my elliptical, doing step aerobics and I’m even back to running twice a week. I love the energy I get when I exercise. I also love the freedom of going into a zone where no obnoxious children can follow. One of my basic problems is I don’t often know the meaning of moderation. Much the same way I think, “If one ice cream cone is good, two must be better!” I tend to think “If running 3 miles is good, running 6 miles is much better!”. The truth of the matter is that I love to run. I would run every day if my body allowed it. This is also why even though I am overeating, I have only gained 10 pounds and not 50.

Exercise is a fundamental human experience. We were made to move. When I watch the olympics and see the wonderful things a trained human body can do, I am truly amazed. When I see men and women gymnasts flying through the air with their steel muscles flexed, when they land perfectly, I want to shout and clap. Hard work and determination are the building blocks of such success.

Vigorous exercise also breeds injury, and I am the Injury Queen! I like to push myself so hard that ribs pop out, hip ligaments tear and toenails turn pretty colors(Hey, purple is pretty no matter what my kids think!). I was at my favorite chiropractor recently(John Smith in Ellisville if you’re wondering) and I was telling his staff that 2014 is the year I start taking it easy. “I’m going to be really careful and not injure myself.” They were still laughing when I left the office. So today when Dr. Smith was popping my kneecap back into place(I popped that out running six miles on Saturday) we had a nice chuckle. He told me my body is weird. And when I said, “I know it’s weird. Everything about me is weird.” He smiled and nodded. “I meant to say unique.” But that’s how it is with me. There’s nothing run-of-the-mill about Margaret. For me, normal is a bad word!

People who are chronically inactive cannot possibly understand the importance of exercise. All they know is that moving too fast makes their lungs ache. I remembering running around as a kid and really enjoying it. Tag, hide-and-seek, Red Rover….it was fun to get outside and move. What happens to us as adults that we become so enamored of our couches that we forget our youthful exuberance? I am nearly 40 years old and there is nothing I enjoy more than exploring nature. Last weekend our family went out to our favorite place, Cuivre River State Park, and hiked down to the spring. We sat in a creek bed and found fossils and threw rocks into the water. There was a moment where I lay back on the rocks and stared up at the sky. The sycamore trees were swaying as a turkey vulture circled overhead. The gentle breeze reminded me how lucky I am to be alive. I can’t possibly experience that sitting inside my house.

Exercise is like a savings account for your body. You start saving by moving 20 minutes a day, and pretty soon, you have a whole bank account of good health to draw from. So on that day you feel like hiking up and down the St. Louis riverfront, you actually have the energy to do it. Saving takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight. But the one thing about saving that you must know is that you have to start somewhere. Believe me, I work for an investment firm and their entire philosophy revolves around planning for your future.

What do you see in your future? Is exercise a bad word to you? If you are content with the rut between the couch and the refrigerator, great! Thank goodness we have the freedom in this country to live the way we choose. But if you feel a growing discontent with your energy-deprived existence, consider some kind of physical activity. Life is too precious and too short to spend it wishing you could live another way. As I said to a friend at work today, “When I was 300+ pounds I used to dream at night that I could run and not get tired. Now, I run for the sheer bliss of it. It is my dream come true.”

What is your dream?

Everyone loves insulation, right? Good insulation keeps your house cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I came to appreciate the importance of good insulation when my husband refinished the attic in our 1.5 story home. The room used to be like an oven in the summer and an icebox in the winter. But even before the vents were installed we noticed the temperature had leveled out with the installation of good insulation. Even better, our utility bills decreased. What a difference! Obviously I’m talking about the good kind of insulation, you know, the kind that makes the pocketbook happy. Now let’s talk about the bad kind of insulation.

I rolled out the yoga mat this morning fully aware of the extra 10 pounds of insulation on my tummy because it puckered over my yoga pants. I lay down to begin my crunches and felt my belly pushing back. I pressed on and in fact, was feeling pretty good about myself until I got to the plank part of my workout. Then I felt like I had two 5 pound bags of flour strapped to my middle.

I have really noticed my sensitivity to temperature since I lost weight. First, I get really cold in the winter. I mean, seriously, my bones are cold. I even began to take cayenne pepper pills to help me stay warm. I always felt hot when I was heavier, even in the winter. But summer was worse. All I did was sweat. The weather has still been cold for March but I haven’t really felt it. Could it be because I’ve added an extra layer of insulation? My husband complained twice this past week that I’ve lowered the temperature in the house below 70 degrees when we normally keep it around 72. I think he might be onto me.

I have really enjoyed summers the past few years because I don’t sweat like I used to. In fact, on a sunny day, as long as I am well hydrated(and the humidity isn’t 80%) I feel really comfortable. My body has become an efficient machine. When it is not loaded with extra insulation and I’m running on clean fuel(fresh fruit, veggies and lean meats), I feel fantastic. But now I’ve got this extra layer. It’s like a warm, fuzzy sweater except that I can’t take it off. Also, I feel sludgy. It seems that the cookies(and ice cream and Chick-Fil-A) have prepared my body for an extended winter, only, I think Spring it here. Crap!

I know that my people still love me. Nobody is going to stop liking me because I gained a few pounds. (Even though my husband said it’s not bad motivation) After I punched him in the stomach and kicked him down the stairs(kidding) I ate an ice cream cone to prove my point. But seriously, I don’t like this feeling. My clothes are tight. I’m hot when I shouldn’t be. I can jiggle my belly like Santa Clause(Child #2 says he will never recover from the sight of it) and I literally thought I would die when I was doing planks this morning. Something is terribly wrong with this picture.

If I sound like a broken record, I also feel like one. I just keep trying to say no to sweets, but it is SO difficult. I want to eat cookies and ice cream. I freely admit that every single time I see a skinny person eating candy I want to poke them in the eye. I do draw the line at candy. No candy for Margaret unless it’s sugar free. See? I’m still sugar free. Sort of.

I have literally been gaining and losing the same 10 pounds for over a year. And I never even reached my goal weight. Right now I need to lose 20 pounds to reach my goal weight. To quote the many characters in the Far Side, “Eegads!” My point is this, insulation for your house is good! It saves you money. Insulation on your body is bad(unless it’s a warm, fuzzy blanket). Because even though everybody loves Santa Claus, he could never be accused of looking sexy. And while my goal has never been “sexy”, I really don’t want to associate my body with a “heavy-set” man in a red suit.