Turns out an extra 16 minutes of sleep are WONDERFUL. 2 weeks into being back at the gym, beating even the sun to start the day and I'm loving it. Support and accountability from a buddy don't hurt, infact if it wasn't for Joel I don't think I'd be back at the gym, and even though he and I have never talked about it, I'm 100% sure I'd have fallen off the wagon back into fast food burger and candy HELL. So thanks dude for being dedicated and dragging my massive butt along for the ride, who know's by this time next year maybe I'll be able to do a 6.5k with my wife too.
Meal plan is 3 weeks in, havn't been on a scale but I definately feel better. Sunday will be the 4 week mark and I should be doing a weigh in on Tuesday, will post the lbs per day at that time...based on what I've seen at the gym I'm not continuing the lb a day pace.
Thanks for reading.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
1000 Awesome Things
It's way too easy to get bogged down in the negative of life. I get it it, life is hard, between crazy time commitments, or the general stress of bills and taking care of our homes it's hard to take time and just enjoy this amazing world we call home if only for a short time.
I was listening to Q on CBC Radio this morning and Jian Ghomeshi did an interview with an amazing blogger Neil Pasricha about his blog 1000awesomethings.com. Neil also has a book coming out...oddly enough also called 1000 Awesome Things. The gist of it is that he has undertaken the task of posting one new Awesome Thing every day. A pace that will see the project end sometime around June of 2012. It's simple, some of the postings are sophmoric frat boy humor. But the concept is brilliant. I am enjoying it very much and suggest you do the same.
Thanks for reading
I was listening to Q on CBC Radio this morning and Jian Ghomeshi did an interview with an amazing blogger Neil Pasricha about his blog 1000awesomethings.com. Neil also has a book coming out...oddly enough also called 1000 Awesome Things. The gist of it is that he has undertaken the task of posting one new Awesome Thing every day. A pace that will see the project end sometime around June of 2012. It's simple, some of the postings are sophmoric frat boy humor. But the concept is brilliant. I am enjoying it very much and suggest you do the same.
Thanks for reading
Monday, April 19, 2010
4:59...
Is crazy early, and yet, my alarm was set for 5:00, I was up wide awake, "Bright eyed and busy tailed" whatever that means, at 4:59. Turned off my alarm before it made a sound and snuck out of the room...Addie trailing in my wake. Fed the dog, donned my workout garb, put the dog back to bed, snuck a peek at my little girl and I was off. I beat my partner by 10 minutes...apparently there arn't many people on the roads at 5:00am.
As I sat in the parking lot listening to Stephen A. Smith go off about the upcoming NFL draft I was shocked, car's just kept pulling up. By the time we went in to work out there were at least 15 people waiting outside for the doors to open. It was like a big sale at the mall with everyone lining up early.
I love the gym, have for a long time but as real adulthood has taken over my life I suddently found I had zero time for it...turns out all I really had to to was wake up...at 4:59.
The workout was great, and best of all I was able to get home while my house was still quiet and have some time to do a devotion. Discipline is a wonderful thing. I got pretty tired around 9:00Am but that passed and the rest of my day was seriously just a normal day...Granted I was in bed by 10 and slept like a baby, but I woke up on my own this morning at 6:00 wide awake, and low and behold, had time for my devotion again (putting God first by literally putting God first...great concept hey?)
So tomorrow I'll wake up again to hit the gym, and hopefully there will be the same sized group because hey, it's really encouraging to see that many people making the sacrifice to try to stay healthy and to pull a no show would feel like letting them down. Maybe I'll start waking up Tuesdays and Thursdays to swim too. I think I have a new favorite number and I'm gonna set my alarm to...4:59.
Thanks for reading
As I sat in the parking lot listening to Stephen A. Smith go off about the upcoming NFL draft I was shocked, car's just kept pulling up. By the time we went in to work out there were at least 15 people waiting outside for the doors to open. It was like a big sale at the mall with everyone lining up early.
I love the gym, have for a long time but as real adulthood has taken over my life I suddently found I had zero time for it...turns out all I really had to to was wake up...at 4:59.
The workout was great, and best of all I was able to get home while my house was still quiet and have some time to do a devotion. Discipline is a wonderful thing. I got pretty tired around 9:00Am but that passed and the rest of my day was seriously just a normal day...Granted I was in bed by 10 and slept like a baby, but I woke up on my own this morning at 6:00 wide awake, and low and behold, had time for my devotion again (putting God first by literally putting God first...great concept hey?)
So tomorrow I'll wake up again to hit the gym, and hopefully there will be the same sized group because hey, it's really encouraging to see that many people making the sacrifice to try to stay healthy and to pull a no show would feel like letting them down. Maybe I'll start waking up Tuesdays and Thursdays to swim too. I think I have a new favorite number and I'm gonna set my alarm to...4:59.
Thanks for reading
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
My 5 Favorite things about my morning smoothie
This is an incredibly stupid post, but hey, I'm working through some pretty big stuff in real life and I really just wanna be stupid on here for a post.
1. It's like having a milk shake for breakfast
2. It's fast and easy
3. IT'S LIKE HAVING A MILK SHAKE FOR BREAKFAST!!!
4. I have SO MUCH energy since I've made the switch
5. I've lost 8lbs in 8 days...smoothie power? I'm a believer
And now for the SAL smoothie recipie.
I buy IQF (Idividually Quick Frozen) blueberries, strawberries, and mango chunks. I also IQF my own banana's after they get over ripe (banana's are the key to the icecreamy milk shake texture) To make enough smoothie for me, wifey, and my 10:30 snack at work the night before I pull out my digital kitchen scale, put on my my blender caraf and add:
3/4c Skim Milk
3/4c Grape Juice, Pom Juice, or Acai Nectar (pick one and go with it) Pure sugar free juice please.
1 frozen banana broken into chunks
I then hit the "tare" function button (this sets the scale to '0')
Add:
4oz Mango and "tare"
4oz Strawberries and "tare"
6oz Blueberries and "tare"
cap of pure vanilla extract
Lid up and put in the fridge over night (thaws just enough that it blends easily but not so much that it isnt still a heavenly MILK SHAKE FOR BREAKFAST!!!
Buzz it up, pour into two tall glass and 1 travel mug and you're in smoothie heaven. I can't wait until tomorrow.
Thanks for reading
1. It's like having a milk shake for breakfast
2. It's fast and easy
3. IT'S LIKE HAVING A MILK SHAKE FOR BREAKFAST!!!
4. I have SO MUCH energy since I've made the switch
5. I've lost 8lbs in 8 days...smoothie power? I'm a believer
And now for the SAL smoothie recipie.
I buy IQF (Idividually Quick Frozen) blueberries, strawberries, and mango chunks. I also IQF my own banana's after they get over ripe (banana's are the key to the icecreamy milk shake texture) To make enough smoothie for me, wifey, and my 10:30 snack at work the night before I pull out my digital kitchen scale, put on my my blender caraf and add:
3/4c Skim Milk
3/4c Grape Juice, Pom Juice, or Acai Nectar (pick one and go with it) Pure sugar free juice please.
1 frozen banana broken into chunks
I then hit the "tare" function button (this sets the scale to '0')
Add:
4oz Mango and "tare"
4oz Strawberries and "tare"
6oz Blueberries and "tare"
cap of pure vanilla extract
Lid up and put in the fridge over night (thaws just enough that it blends easily but not so much that it isnt still a heavenly MILK SHAKE FOR BREAKFAST!!!
Buzz it up, pour into two tall glass and 1 travel mug and you're in smoothie heaven. I can't wait until tomorrow.
Thanks for reading
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
What's really been going on...
Two opportunities have been casually presented to me...one is in a different city quite far away and has been dismissed out of hand. The other is a major challange, not sure how I feel about it. On one hand it proves I was absolutly right 2 years ago, on the other hand I'm not really sure if I'm passionate about doing it anymore of if I still am but am harboring some sort of bitterness. Sometimes I really hate the way God works...because I'm lazy...and comfortable...and don't want to face things...or work harder...ya...
So I've made a commitment to a group of people who all also commited to eachother, turns out not very many...if any of us have kept this commitment. It sucks that I've failed, it sucks that they failed too. Mostly it sucks because if we could just do this life would be so much better for all of use and for the people we're hoping to impact by coming together as a group.
Wifey and I are in negotiations about "Pulling the Goalie." You know it was so easy when we decided the first time, we were commited to just letting things happen naturally...now that we're thinking about number 2 it's complicated...we don't know if we can handle another baby right now but we don't want the kids to be too far apart in age either...but then it also seems like sibblings who are a little further apart in age get along better. Not sure what to do...probably shouldn't have blogged this either but I'm 'totally buggin' (10 points and a Starbucks if you can place the movie reference).
On a happy note, the Monday after Easter was day one for wifey and I making a new commitment to our health...at the start I was 90lbs heavier then when I graduated HS...granted I played pretty competitive sports and ran my @$$ off, but 90 POUNDS!!! Injuries and lazyness aside, that's rediculous. So here we are, 8 day's in 8lbs lighter. I'm sure this trend can't continue, and I'm sure it's greatly influenced by my being WAY TOO FAT at the start of the whole thing, but either way I'm very encouraged...really really really really really missing candy though.
Thanks for reading and Happy Birthday to my first and only follower.
So I've made a commitment to a group of people who all also commited to eachother, turns out not very many...if any of us have kept this commitment. It sucks that I've failed, it sucks that they failed too. Mostly it sucks because if we could just do this life would be so much better for all of use and for the people we're hoping to impact by coming together as a group.
Wifey and I are in negotiations about "Pulling the Goalie." You know it was so easy when we decided the first time, we were commited to just letting things happen naturally...now that we're thinking about number 2 it's complicated...we don't know if we can handle another baby right now but we don't want the kids to be too far apart in age either...but then it also seems like sibblings who are a little further apart in age get along better. Not sure what to do...probably shouldn't have blogged this either but I'm 'totally buggin' (10 points and a Starbucks if you can place the movie reference).
On a happy note, the Monday after Easter was day one for wifey and I making a new commitment to our health...at the start I was 90lbs heavier then when I graduated HS...granted I played pretty competitive sports and ran my @$$ off, but 90 POUNDS!!! Injuries and lazyness aside, that's rediculous. So here we are, 8 day's in 8lbs lighter. I'm sure this trend can't continue, and I'm sure it's greatly influenced by my being WAY TOO FAT at the start of the whole thing, but either way I'm very encouraged...really really really really really missing candy though.
Thanks for reading and Happy Birthday to my first and only follower.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Perfect Roast Chicken
Every man should master this dinner, you're house smells amazing, cleanup is a snap, and the 'WOW' factor you'll get from your wife be well worth the effort (no I don't mean sex, I mean hey goof, you just took care of dinner one less thing she has to do for your lazy @$$) Here's how you do it.
1. Get quality chicken, the way the chicken you eat is raised dictates flavor more then anything else. Mass produced chickens are killed for your table at only 35 days, these poor birds are locked in a barn with nothing to do but eat, poop, and trip over one another...eww just go buy free range, it's worth the extra $2 to know the animal you're about to eat had a great life as apposed to 35 day's in the poultry version of Auschwitz.
2. Wash your chicken under luke warm water (no need for soap dummy). Shockingly commercial pluckers arn't as thurough as you or I. Wanna eat bits of feather? Me either. While you're at it, clean the cavity of the bird.
3. Brine the Chicken. You have no idea how good this makes your chicken...holy crap it's fantastic. Let's teach you how. It's really quite simple, get out the big dutch oven that came with your set of pots and pans. Add 4L of water, 3/4C Kosher Salt, and 3/4C Brown Sugar (most brines call for white sugar...brown tastes better). Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve, add the chicken, put on the lid and leave 6 hours minimum (I usually do this overnight)
4. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
5. Pull the chicken out of the brine, rinse it off and dry it very very very well inside and out. Sprinkle lightly with Kosher Salt.
6. Get out a good heavy bottom frying pan (NOT A NON STICK PAN A REAL PAN) add 1tbsp Olive Oil, heat over medium low heat until the oil just shimmers. Put the chicken int he pan breast side up, leave for 2 minutes then transfer to the oven, leave in oven, door closed for 1 hour.
7. Pull from oven, move to a plate and cover with foil. Rest 20 minutes, carve and eat.
Side dishes? Ok sure.
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Take 1 head of garlic, cut off just the top (Pointy end not the root end) Put on a piece of tinfoil, drizzle with Olive Oil. Wrap tightly with the foil and throw in the oven with the chicken. Remove after 45 minutes and allow to cool, to get at the garlic just squeeze.
Wash and slice 3 Russet Potatoes. Steam until fork tender, mash with 3/4c whole milk, 1/4c butter, the garlic, some herbs, salt and pepper.
Ginger Glazed Carrots
Slice 2 carrots per person put in a non stick fry pan. Add 1 tsp butter per person, 1 bottle Ginger Beer (I enjoy the Great Jamacian Ginger Beer) and a small drizzle of honey. Boil until the liquid is gone and becomes a glaze for the carrots. Freeking AMAZING CARROTS.
Throw together a salad, set the table light a candle and eat. You're welcome
Thanks for reading.
1. Get quality chicken, the way the chicken you eat is raised dictates flavor more then anything else. Mass produced chickens are killed for your table at only 35 days, these poor birds are locked in a barn with nothing to do but eat, poop, and trip over one another...eww just go buy free range, it's worth the extra $2 to know the animal you're about to eat had a great life as apposed to 35 day's in the poultry version of Auschwitz.
2. Wash your chicken under luke warm water (no need for soap dummy). Shockingly commercial pluckers arn't as thurough as you or I. Wanna eat bits of feather? Me either. While you're at it, clean the cavity of the bird.
3. Brine the Chicken. You have no idea how good this makes your chicken...holy crap it's fantastic. Let's teach you how. It's really quite simple, get out the big dutch oven that came with your set of pots and pans. Add 4L of water, 3/4C Kosher Salt, and 3/4C Brown Sugar (most brines call for white sugar...brown tastes better). Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve, add the chicken, put on the lid and leave 6 hours minimum (I usually do this overnight)
4. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
5. Pull the chicken out of the brine, rinse it off and dry it very very very well inside and out. Sprinkle lightly with Kosher Salt.
6. Get out a good heavy bottom frying pan (NOT A NON STICK PAN A REAL PAN) add 1tbsp Olive Oil, heat over medium low heat until the oil just shimmers. Put the chicken int he pan breast side up, leave for 2 minutes then transfer to the oven, leave in oven, door closed for 1 hour.
7. Pull from oven, move to a plate and cover with foil. Rest 20 minutes, carve and eat.
Side dishes? Ok sure.
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Take 1 head of garlic, cut off just the top (Pointy end not the root end) Put on a piece of tinfoil, drizzle with Olive Oil. Wrap tightly with the foil and throw in the oven with the chicken. Remove after 45 minutes and allow to cool, to get at the garlic just squeeze.
Wash and slice 3 Russet Potatoes. Steam until fork tender, mash with 3/4c whole milk, 1/4c butter, the garlic, some herbs, salt and pepper.
Ginger Glazed Carrots
Slice 2 carrots per person put in a non stick fry pan. Add 1 tsp butter per person, 1 bottle Ginger Beer (I enjoy the Great Jamacian Ginger Beer) and a small drizzle of honey. Boil until the liquid is gone and becomes a glaze for the carrots. Freeking AMAZING CARROTS.
Throw together a salad, set the table light a candle and eat. You're welcome
Thanks for reading.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
10 Things I Need to Get Better At
In no specific order:
1. Golf
2. Living a balanced and healthy lifestyle
3. My relationship with God
4. Not interupting people
5. Loving my wife
6. Keeping up with my Laundry
7. My Jobs
8. Holding people accountable for rediculous statments, especially about other people
9. Not making rediculous statements, especially about other people
10. Fatherhood
1. Golf
2. Living a balanced and healthy lifestyle
3. My relationship with God
4. Not interupting people
5. Loving my wife
6. Keeping up with my Laundry
7. My Jobs
8. Holding people accountable for rediculous statments, especially about other people
9. Not making rediculous statements, especially about other people
10. Fatherhood
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