Christmas is going to be a challenge this year. I know I will have to really keep my diet in mind the whole season. My family traditions tend to be focused around food. With a full belly exercise is usually the furthest thing from my mind as well.
I am hoping with the official start of the student part of the UBBT in January I can keep myself motivated.
The new year has a lot of promise, my new year's resolutions have been set for months,so now it's time to get down to the hard stuff.
Have a great Holiday season,I hope whatever way you celebrate brings nothing but Good feelings, good company and of course lots of good food.
Happy Holidays
Linda

Exercise or not to exercise that is the question

Well by the end of last week the flu finally caught up with me.I put up a good fight but in the end I let my defenses down long enough for it to take hold.I figure I might as well get it now rather than at Christmas. Now it's over with.... at least thats what I'm going to believe.My big question then was "should I be exercising while I'm sick?"I looked it up and the article below seemed to have the most common sense;
Mayo Clinic physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist Edward Laskowski, M.D., and colleagues say;

Yes, you can continue with mild or moderate activity if you have a cold with no fever. Exercise may even help you feel better — by temporarily relieving nasal congestion.

So how do you determine if you're too sick to exercise? Here's a good rule of thumb: If your symptoms are "above the neck" — such as runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, or sore throat — you can proceed with your workout.

However, if your symptoms are "below the neck" — such as chest congestion or tightness, hacking cough, or upset stomach — you should postpone your workout. Also, you shouldn't exercise if you have a fever, fatigue or widespread muscle aches. Rarely, exercising with a fever has been associated with inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis).

As always, use common sense. If you're not feeling well but still want to exercise, reduce the intensity of your workout and listen to your body. If your symptoms worsen with exercise, stop and rest. Missing a few days of exercise isn't the end of the world.
I will be playing catch up for a few days but I'll live through that too.
See you on the track
Linda

Too much time

I had a lot of sick folks at my house this week. Just about everyone had the flu at different times. I never did come down with it...at least not yet. It was a bit of a struggle to keep focused on my UBBT requirements. My personal time seemed to be taken up nursing everyone else back to health.
Unfortunately it also gave me too much time to think and some of my old insecurities came to the foreground in my mind. I tend to read double meanings into things people say to me... like was that a joke or was he trying to tell me something.... maybe I'm not the right person for that job....things don't come easy for me... maybe it shows, anyway you get the idea,I drove myself nuts all week. The cloud lifted somewhat as the kids started to get better and BACK TO SCHOOL! It,s a good thing Randy has such great patience
Here's to a better week to come,
Linda

Giving is good for the soul

In our time of technology one of the main stays in our homes is the telephone. It keeps us in touch with loved ones, with the touch of a finger we have medical aid, and a way to resource the world around us without leaving our homes.Of course with the good also comes the bad. Telemarketers bombard us daily with calls. The same can be said about people with good causes looking to raise money. The problem is that I become jaded with not only the telemarketers but also with so many needy fundraisers. I have hardened my heart over the years just so I can survive the sometimes cruel ways I must tell the phone" no I don't want to buy your product, no I Know I have not won a free trip to... and no I have no donation funds left for you cause." I was raised a good Catholic girl and guilt was driven into the very fiber of my soul. So saying "no" does not come easy... or maybe too easy these days.
My husband Randy and I attended a fundraiser last week and I must admit out of loyalty to Silent River Kung FU. The cause once again was a blur with no real meaning to it. Just another place to put a meager donation and keep the flow of income going into our schools fundraisers. Our attitudes soon changed as the speaker "Memory" described her life and those of women in general in her home country. Anyone who was there came away with a new understanding of how well off we are in Canada. We have three daughters of our own and could not imagine in our wildest dreams how hard it would be for them to have to survive such a life. The night turned out to be a real eye opener.
The topic around our table these days is about giving to these women. Each one of my teenagers has pledged to give a portion of their next pay cheques and we as a family are going to sponsor one of these girls for the next year and maybe the next four. We have so much to give thanks for and maybe one way to appreciate this is to give to someone who doesn't. I am hoping by putting a face to a young girl in need will drive this home to my whole family. This Christmas will have more meaning with project in mind. After all isn't this the message that Christmas is bring to us each year, the one I have been missing for a long time,it isn't about receiving,it's about giving.....
Once again;
Linda