January 2010 Blog Posts (635)

Scene 5: A Gift

"You look tired today," my boss' cousin said to me Friday afternoon, as the elevator descended toward the 4th floor from the roof, where a brilliant view of the Manhattan skyline had just been the subject of a photo shoot with his Canon SLR. I looked at him and wearily replied, "It's been a long and busy week." Indeed, it has been quite a week, with a flurry of activity at work followed by deep periods of introspection at home, which seemed fortuitously appropriate as the Plan swung into it's… Read more

Added by Elizabeth McGorty on January 30, 2010 at 11:00pm — 1 Comment

staying insured

Like many people I know, having medical insurance is an issue with a lot of part time workers in this job-stressed economy. I found that HSA's are a nice alternative with… Read more

Added by Sara Redec on January 30, 2010 at 7:00pm — No Comments

looking back

Eating healthy food is difficult for me. I LOVE food. I was off to a good start but I fell off the healthy eating wagon more than once. I didn't loose any weight this month which is something I had hoped to do but I have improved my fitness levels. I can work out longer, am stronger, feel healthier and am now mindful of most things in my life. The meditation has been great for me. I am now taking time for myself. Even a few minutes each day is a great improvement on the once every six months if… Read more

Added by Shona Mohr on January 30, 2010 at 11:31am — 2 Comments

Journal - Week 4 - Th and Fri

Mom had surgery on Thursday. I was in the hospital all day and went off the plan for a little. On Friday, I have been at home taking care of mom and preparing food for her. I am trying to prepare healthy food for her.

I also noticed, I've been craving something sweet. It must be the stress.

Something good came out of having to take care of mom, post surgery. I am getting my work out. She is upstairs on bed rest. Guess what, I have to go up and down with her food, water, help her up,… Read more

Added by D on January 29, 2010 at 11:30pm — 1 Comment

Cheers!

This was my husband’s idea of support during the Plan:

But to be fair, this was also:

He didn’t do the Plan with me, and that’s for the best. I don’t like being nagged, and if he’d cheated, I would have too. But he did listen when I whined about how hungry I was, how much I hated my last post, how I didn’t have time to meditate. I’m pretty sure he’s glad it’s almost over, despite the Plan’s… Read more

Added by Audris Wong on January 29, 2010 at 6:00pm — 5 Comments

Take Our Survey and Give Your Feedback

Now that the Whole Body Action Plan is drawing to a close, we want to know your thoughts on this year’s program and your suggestions for 2011. Whether you were a daily contributor to our Whole Living community or you mainly followed the plan offline, we’d love to know what you liked, what you hated, and how you’re feeling now.

Click here to take our quick… Read more

Added by Whole Living on January 29, 2010 at 5:32pm — No Comments

Timely Reminders

This week, I had a tangible reminder of why I signed up to do this - bridesmaid dresses. I am the maid of honor for my sister, who is getting married in October, and we went to check out dresses. We had high hopes, since we were looking at a specific fabric/color combo available in 3 styles, but I was also pretty nervous because I could stand to lose about 25 pounds.

I wasn't fully prepared for the tiny backroom they had, or to have a bride in there trying on dresses too, or most… Read more

Added by Caroline Conway on January 29, 2010 at 4:58pm — No Comments

The Accidental Work-Out: Home Improvement

First of all, let me confess that I haven't been to the gym in eons. Not once in 2010, actually. However, I've discovered an interesting way to burn calories: renovation.

It all started when we realized we needed to have our as-old-as-electricity wiring replaced (see horrifying photos below). And, being the resident home editor on staff, I simply couldn't stop with just repainting the plastered up holes and channels in the walls and ceilings that were left post rewiring. There are… Read more

Added by Sarah Engler on January 29, 2010 at 2:20pm — 1 Comment

TWO INCHES LESS OF ME, YAHOO!!!!!!!!!!!

Can't hardly believe it, thank you wholeliving community, I am actually succeeding. I was so frustrated with my weight loss and I find that now as I incorporate health into my life little by little, things begin to actually move in the right direction. I threw out my scale because I had a compulsion with it and for almost four weeks now I did not even peek, I started pilates because I cannot afford the gym right now and I doubled my walking and began running, I cannot run too far, maybe two… Read more

Added by Edith Gomez on January 29, 2010 at 7:39am — No Comments

care givers stree

My husband has ALS and COPD with signs of dementia, how can I manage the stress, while trying to keep my Lupus and emotional eating under control ?
Thank you

Added by claire learn on January 28, 2010 at 11:45pm — 1 Comment

Reflecting back on the past month

I can't believe the month is almost over. When I first signed on to participate in the plan I was unsure how successful I'd be. I have had mixed results; I have not lost weight but I haven't gained any either. I have increased the amount of vegetables and fruit I eat each day and find myself to be more mindful of my eating habits. It's difficult; I teach fifth grade and my day is often hectic, causing me to reach for whatever is easiest. I have been unable to work on my core and to do yoga as I… Read more

Added by Grace VanAkin on January 28, 2010 at 5:50pm — 3 Comments

Beyond January: How We're Moving Forward Together

It's bittersweet reading the boards this week: Many of you have expressed disappointment that the 28-day Action Plan will soon be over, but your posts are also so full of hope and optimism and stories of success that they're really not disappointing at all!

Well, first things first: The step-by-step first month of the plan may be over, but by no means is this community -- or our support -- going anywhere.

We Hope You'll Still Blog ...

Yes, our four superstar… Read more

Added by Whole Living on January 28, 2010 at 4:56pm — 2 Comments

Attempt No. 1 to Eat More Veggies = FAIL

Try as I may, I cannot seem to get myself to eat enough veggies. The only servings I get come from an Italian diet full of tomato sauce and yep, you guessed it...tomato soup.

I made a pretty honorable attempt this past Monday to incorporate some new veggies into my rotation. I thought incorporating some carrots, onions and celery into my usual homemade tomato sauce would be a good bet (since I eat it so often). So I followed a new recipe (which was pretty similar to my own, but you… Read more

Added by Caitlin Losey on January 28, 2010 at 2:30pm — 2 Comments

anyone else dream more with less coffee?

I couldn't figure it out! I have been dreaming like crazy every night. Maybe I'm just well rested enough coming out of a six week winter semester break, or maybe because I've cut my coffee to 2 cups before noon. Though yesterday, I had 2 extra cups and no tea. I was tired all evening and woke up sore this morning.
I'm wondering if I'll be able to keep to my 2 cup coffee limit entering a tough spring semester course-load.

Added by nm on January 28, 2010 at 2:05pm — No Comments

Taking Time to Recharge

My Christmas tree is still up.

That’s my 5-year-old in front of it. As these posts wind down, I felt like she needed to make an appearance!

Nearing the end of Week 4, I have indeed made soup (butternut squash, which came out very well, yay!) and went to hot yoga (which was just yoga in a hot room. I think I was expecting something more … primal.) I have journaled, eaten well, reflected, and focused on gratitude. And I have been… Read more

Added by Audris Wong on January 28, 2010 at 1:00pm — 3 Comments

quinoa

I loved all the quinoa recipes however I could only get the recipes for about half of the dishes.
Would love to get them all.

Added by Katy Lacy Clark on January 28, 2010 at 11:41am — No Comments

Nearing the end!

I'm actually kind of sad to see this end, but I know it really isn't going to end, because I plan on keeping with most of the ideas that were part of the plan! I definitely would like to keep up with all the various smoothies for dinner. As for breakfast, maybe I will include a little more food but I definitely find that at night, I am way less hungry, so I'd rather just have a smoothie then.

I've seen my weight drop from about 142 lbs to about 135 lbs. While none of my clothes are… Read more

Added by Dolphins_20 on January 28, 2010 at 9:05am — No Comments

Green Tea

What do you guys know about considering green tea as medicine. Can you spend money out of an HSA for the purchase of tea. Some International Health Insurance companies allow for tea to be considered medicine for some immune system disorders. The high anti-oxidant content has proven to be helpful for fighting… Read more

Added by Cindy Fallsen on January 27, 2010 at 10:31pm — No Comments

Week 4...also week 2

So, yes, we're nearing the end of week 4, but I'm feeling like I'm still in week 2. I have been working for weeks on trying to add enough exercise. Work, traffic, kids' schedules - it all keeps interfering with my workouts. I know that my optimal workout frequency is close to every day. A day off here and there is ok, but almost every day is what works for me. So I've been stuck on week 2 all this time.

The food part has been great. That has been pretty easy. I love many of the… Read more

Added by Julie Sargent on January 27, 2010 at 9:47pm — 2 Comments

True Confessions

Here's how Week 4 is going: Today one of our graphic designers gave me a Swedish Fish wearing a little Skittle for a helmet, and I am looking at it longingly. Why does candy have to be so dandy? It's so dandy that I ate three or four of that Swedish Fish's brothers today, plus a couple pieces of "fruit" -- flat, sweet-and-sour jelly concoctions shaped like apples and oranges, the real food that I should be eating instead.

So today hasn't been such a great day. But one thing I'm… Read more

Added by Amy Maclin on January 27, 2010 at 6:48pm — No Comments