jo burgess hannon

fit for today, fit for life

Tick Tock

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As Honey’s alarm went off this November morning the bedroom was pitch dark. I had been sound asleep and was convinced it was earlier than normal. I was shocked to see it was 7:15am.  Usually, by this time of day, I have brewed a cup of coffee and am deep into catching up on all the latest news my iPad offers. You know, reading the important stuff like my favorite decorating or fashion blog. I even commented that it felt WAY earlier and Honey said solemnly, “like 5:00am. ”

The question is not will we go through change, but will we grow through change.
John Maxwell

This post might fall into the category of “you know you are getting old when…” As time marches I am more aware that I need to allow myself the right to shift my outlook, change my ways. In fact, even encourage myself to explore fresh ideas.

Now I long for daylight savings to get here a little quicker.  NO! I love the light of late afternoon.  Don’t make the skies any darker and sooner.  Repeal the daylight savings program.  These past thoughts are pushed aside: I must be getting old to crave more light in the morning hours. (Then again, maybe the pre-dawn brain haze was just a sugar hangover from Halloween.)

I must be getting old, or at least older. Yikes.  So I’m going to try to remember this simple lesson: life is always changing and I can change, too.

 

What’s your plan?

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file cabinet

Have you heard the phrase “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail’? I used to think this mantra was original to my father in law, who for years sent every family member an inspirational letter encouraging goal setting.  A google search gives credit to Benjamin Franklin.  Who knew? Well, probably my father in law.

With Halloween right around the corner, I daily remind myself to stick to the plan.  Yep, having consumed WAY too many miniature candy bars in the past I realized I needed to confront my weakness for itty bitty Snickers bars.  And single servings of Peanut M & M’s. And Twix. And Kit Kat. I’m not sure why these littles are so delicious: I can walk by a full size bar without a glance. They seem to be the perfect combo of everything I like.

halloween-1994-1
How did my little Husky turn into a Coug graduate?

 

When those annual letters would arrive, a hand addressed envelope mailed separately to each person, mine would sometimes sit for days, sometimes it was eagerly opened, sometimes it was weeks before I read the contents.  I knew enclosed would be a call to action, a call to plan and I wanted to be in the right mindset.

I have found myself this time of year putting all my favorite Halloween candies in my cart, telling myself I will save them for the knock on the door and the shout of “trick or treat!!!” I want to ignore my inner voice, the voice of reason, reminding me I can’t eat just one. Some years a trip a buy more has been needed: all the good stuff gone before anyone in costume had a chance to make it to the front porch. Anybody been THERE?

Failing to plan is a plan to fail.  Oh, how those empty candy wrappers can expose that.

The strategy that has worked for me is pretty simple.  I wait until the last possible minute to bring the bags home.  Then they get stored out in the garage, up high, out of sight.  The first few years I only purchased the flavors I did not like because I knew I would open the bag.  You know, like gum drops. Seriously, those might would go stale in my house.

How about you? How do you avoid consuming hundreds of extra calories this time of year?

letter

Thanks Gary Hannon for always encouraging reflection and action.

Don’t buy in

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hallstand

I was watching the cooking channel as I was working on a project.  Commercial after commercial used the word “heathy” in their ads.  What manufacturers want us to believe: a product will make you healthy.

Here’s how it really works: move your body, eat real food, move your body, eat real food, move your body, eat real food.  Yep, it’s that simple.  However, it is not EASY.  It just isn’t.  Its hard to take care of ourselves.  Its hard to make choices that lead to improving our longevity.  Its hard to leave the processed foods out of our cart. Its hard to choose fresh vegetables and fruits that might need prep work.

rolos

Confession #1:  I recently broke one of my long standing food rules. Did I ever mention I love BBQ potato chips?  You probably know where this is going. With a lot of foods I can have just a few.  I can walk by my hall stand treat bowl without even noticing the Rolos and dark chocolate mini bars. However, when it comes to potato chips I CANNOT MODERATE. I will eat a whole bag one handful at a time.

Clarification: I will eat a whole bag of BBQ potato chips.  Plain chips can stay open in the pantry for a week, I have a few and I am satisfied.  Salt & Vinegar, my girl’s favorite, I don’t even open that bag. BBQ, though, I cannot stop thinking about them till the bag is chip dust and my fingers are stained a little orange and my breath smells like, hmmm, something not good. My general rule is I don’t buy them unless I have a group to help me eat them.  We were having people over for the 4th, a week away,  the chips were 2 for 1 and in my cart they went, the family size.  Honey was out of town.  I knew better.

And what about moving our bodies?  That can take a back seat to so many others things in life.  I have an ongoing to-do list and moving more is not on it.  It should be at the top.  Again, its hard to do the simple thing like take a walk, take the stairs, park in the back of the lot.

Baby steps.  Make one small change you can stick with today, tomorrow and most other days.   A few years ago I stopped putting sugar on my shredded wheat.  It was hard.  It just did not taste the same.  Honey might even say this cereal tastes like cardboard. The first change I made was to simply measure out the sugar, every single breakfast.  It was shocking to realize I was adding tablespoons of sugar to my morning meal.  Then slowly I cut back the amount.  Again, with the idea that I was to start small and stick with the plan.  Finally, I quit the sugar habit all together. It took months.

Confession #2: I did the math. No, I can’t do it my head like Honey and my daughter.  The calculator showed I was consuming 39 cups of processed sugar a year. Thinking I had made a mistake, I ran the numbers again.  Thats a confession thats harder to admit than 1 bag of chips: 39 cups of sugar. On purpose.

I am wondering now,  as I write this,  if adding up those numbers in the beginning would  have made a difference in my breakfast choice. It feels good to have the sugar bowl a part of my past.  One small change you can stick with can make a bigger difference than a ‘healthy’ product.

Those chips though? Even knowing a large, family size is thousands of calories and a week’s worth of fat grams, I just have to stay away.

Move your body, eat real food.

What small change can you make?

 

A lesson from the Good Witch

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seahawks 5k

I recently ran, well jogged, the Seahawks 5K. I rarely go for a jog. Usually my fitness classes and lifestyle are enough to keep me feeling great and in shape.  The last time I jogged prior to this Hawks run was 8 months before when I ran, no jogged, well walked, a 5K in Seattle. It sucked. I sucked. I just couldn’t get my head in the game. I knew I could do the run, no problem, yet I walked at least a third of the way to the finish line. My excuse was that my neck was bothering me. It was, but I know I could have done better.

Anyway, back to last Sunday and jogging through The Landing at Renton. I ended up finishing 11 out of 190 in my age group. Say what? It was a beautiful, sunny morning. The temperature was perfect and I was there to support Honey who had set the run as a spring goal. It was easy. I think I even said, “Like a walk in the park” when Honey asked how I was feeling at the one-mile marker.

It got me thinking: what could I do if I put in a little extra effort and actually trained for a 5k? I envisioned myself finishing top 10 in my bracket. Surely, I could improve my time by ½ a minute.

And so now I ask you, what could you do if you put in a little extra effort? Because, you probably already have what it takes inside of you.

glinda the good witch

                                            “You had the power all along my Dear”