2014 in Review

2014 was a year of challenges for me, a year of pushing myself a bit and setting and meeting goals.

The year began with changes with work, health, and, well...a milestone birthday!  I started a new part-time job, eventually gave up my two-year temp job, gave up gluten (ugh!), started going to the gym, started running with my daughter, and turned 40!

I ran my first mile EVER in April and my first 5K on Memorial Day!  A huge accomplish for me, the non-runner!  In August, I participated in a mud run with a group of friends and had a blast!  Through all of this, I realized that I CAN push through obstacles and reach goals!

Also during this time frame, I began my exploration of St. Louis through an area-wide cake hunt (See my last post here for details.), and I watched my two "babies" finish middle school and get ready for high school.

Our summer was a whirlwind of work and activities with a brief weekend getaway to Branson, MO, where we crammed as much as we could into a few days:  visiting the Titanic museum, the Dixie Stampede, kayaking, riding the ducks, and Silver Dollar City.

Then...school was approaching, as was another job change -- this time within the same company, but as a full-time employee.  Quite the change after spending 12 years at home or working part-time, raising and homeschooling my kids, etc.

It's been crazy...lots of adjustments - some good, some bad.  Some heartache that carries on to the new year.  As always, however, life is challenging, and we have to take steps forward.  Sometimes the steps aren't the right ones; sometimes we make mistakes that spin us into another direction.  Then we have to stand up, dust ourselves off, and look for the path to take next.  May 2015 be a year of positive steps!

Focus, Focus, Focus!

It's pretty easy to set new goals.  It becomes a bit more challenging when making the plans to implement them, and it becomes downright difficult to keep chipping away at the work needed to accomplish these goals over a long period of time.

The purpose of this post is for me to be reminded of how far I've come.  I'm perfectly fine if no one else reads it; it's for me.  It's my pat on the back.  It's my "Atta, Girl!"  It's my "Don't You DARE give up!" message to myself.

My timeline for the changes I've made so far:

• December 27, 2013:  Joined the gym.  Started with 2-3 days a week of weights and cardio.
• January 6, 2014:  Said good-bye to gluten.  This was not a weight loss attempt; this was a "let's see if my stomach will settle down" experiment...and it did!  Daily nausea, along with about 95% of the other worsening and new symptoms I was experiencing, went away.  Just like that...but in an effort to avoid gluten, I looked for things to take its place and ended up gaining a few pounds.
• March 6, 2014:  Went back to Weight Watchers.  Four years ago, I had lost 35 pounds on the plan, but over the last two, I gained back about 15.  I decided at this time in my life to give their Simply Filling Plan a try -- primarily whole foods, which works well with being gluten-free.  This also led me to my next step.....
• March 6, 2014:  Gave up my biggest addiction: Soda.  I allowed myself the points in my daily counts in case I wanted one at the end of the day.  By Day 3, I realized I wouldn't drink another Coke or Pepsi, because one sip pushes me back to drink it all day, every day.
• April 2014:  Kicked up my workouts to 4 days a week and started training to RUN a 5K.
• April 12, 2014:  Ran my first mile...EVER!
• May 26, 2014:  Ran my first 5K, with no breaks, no walking intervals...in 37 minutes.
• To date:  I've lost 23 lbs and several inches and am fitting into a size that I haven't worn since I was 20.

I still have a ways to go to be where I want to be, but I feel so much better.  However, I struggle.  I'm an emotional eater, and during times of high stress, I'm ready to throw it all away and just live for that second when I think some high calorie, large amounts of food will make me feel better.  They won't.  I know that, which is why I've set another goal:  Mud Run in one month.  

Plugging away.  One day at a time.  Sometimes it's hour by hour, but I'll get there.

Sauerkraut Success!

My first batch of kraut took seven days to complete.  Considering how hot it got outside all of a sudden, which means the temp in my house got warmer, I kept watching it like a hawk to see if it would finish sooner.  Nope...on Day 7, the brine dropped as the recipe said it would.  

I have to say I love the taste...I'm not sure if it's because the cabbage was cut into larger chunks than what you buy in the store or what else it may be, but I like it.  I'm not too ashamed to admit that while I was cooking dinner tonight (and really wanted a little snack) that I enjoyed nibbling on sauerkraut to get my tangy, salty fix.

I prepped my second batch tonight after dinner.  :)

Fermentation?

For several weeks, I've been toying with the idea of trying my hand at making sauerkraut.  Fermented foods are supposed to be excellent for the old GI tract...and well, my gut needs all the help it can get to feel better.

I had a head of cabbage from my produce co-op pick-up that I needed to use, and after some more searching, I found a couple of recipes for making a small batch.  Between this site and this recipe from the More With Less Cookbook, I gave it a go.

From the different things I've read regarding making a small batch, the fermentation process will take 3-10 days.  This is Day One: