Where's My Journal?

Do you have one?  I wanted a diary so bad when I was younger, you know the ones with the latch and key?? Well now I’m all grown up and I have one now. Of course, it’s not the one of my childhood dreams but it does hold my dreams.

Writing is therapeutic. Keeping a journal is something I believe everyone should do even though I personally don’t express that often. A journal is a symbol of your thoughts, goals and personal growth.  I started keeping one mainly to help me to remember things. With a full house and constant action, I need to write down my thoughts daily just to keep everything in order and my sanity. The problem was I would write in one of several notebooks and forget where I wrote last.  Soon, my writing evolved though to hold more ideas than To-dos and more expectations than just my daily activities.

I write about just about anything that is on my mind at the time.  I may really fall in love with a song I heard on the radio that day and write about that song. Maybe I ate a really tasty pie and want to practice making one someday. Today I wrote about someone I admire and why.  Tomorrow my journal may be a tool to help solve a problem or make a decision.  Writing it out is like having that conversation out loud. But now I can see my options, and see what consequences may result.  

Just about every day though I try and include certain things. I like to know my general feeling for the day, so am I happy, relieved, stressed, nervous etc. and of course I try and keep accurate track of what I ate.

Where’s Your Journal?   

If you don’t keep a journal, I recommend you pick one up. It is very simple to start one.  You just need a plain notebook or even a calendar.  There are very inexpensive notebooks that can be picked up from the dollar store or any other discount store.  What is most valuable is inside.  If you feel like you don’t even know where to begin with your journal, write the date, day and time.  Write down how you are feeling at that exact moment or what your plan is for the rest of the day. It’s that simple.

If your goal is to be more health conscious, make a food journal. It will help keep you accountable and see in plain black and white, what types of foods you are eating, what types of foods you are not eating and how much. What I find is if I don’t write down what I ate and how much, I UNDERESTIMATE. 

Conveniently, I didn’t even realize I ate a slice of pizza and that whole double cheese burger. I didn’t forget on purpose, I just don’t remember accurately and I usually feel that I ate less than I really did. Can you see how not keeping track of your daily food choices can sabotage your healthy program??   I may snack more if I forget about the cheeseburger. An option in food journaling is to take a quick picture of your meal or snack before you eat it.   Keeping a food journal will help you to be accountable and also keep you encouraged when you meet certain goals and milestones.

Later, your journal is a reflection tool to reflect on life’s progress. I get a measure of joy when I see my personal growth and how much I’ve learned from different experiences. It’s funny sometime to look back and read the things that I have said about myself, or what I’ve said to others.  Or¸ to even see how different my views may be on certain topics a month or year later.

Life is about living and learning. Keeping a journal will help you to do just that. At the end of the day, there is always something worth mentioning to your journal.

Summer Workouts

Since summer is officially here, I will likely be hitting the beach often. I love to just chill and read a good book, watch the kids play, get a swim or two in and build a fort or two as well. Since I will be beach bound often, I want to figure out ways to intensify the calories I burn in order to get a little workout in- without working out, you know what I mean. Swimming is one thing, but with small children, I just can't hop in and do a few laps and keep an eye on them. I was thinking of doing a little more calorie burning on land. And I'm not yet the workout enthusiast who will do a complete circuit of squats, lunges and pushups midday on the beach

So I've come up with a couple activities that I am going to try and incorporate every time I hit the beach this summer




Walking in the sand.... definitely going to do this more especially on the long beaches. Sand walking burns more calories because it’s more difficult than walking on even pavement. Plus, if we get to the beach early enough, the serenity and calmness of the lake would be beautiful.





Volleyball/Beach ball.... tossing around a big ball and keeping it air born would be a good workout. Plus it’s fun and competitive!! Maybe a Frisbee too, (but I don’t catch that well.)





Flying Kites.... There is usually some open space nearby where no one’s lying at the bigger beaches. Since volunteering at kid’s school for kite day, I've become quite the kite fanatic. So I will dust off the kites in the trunk and maybe find a couple unique ones and fly 'em high this summer.

Like I've stated, I only come up with a few activities on land that everyone can enjoy and that would keep me moving. Please share any ideas you may have to SNEAK a workout in this summer at the beach. Keeping fit is about making it apart of your everyday life and keeping yourself surrounded by a good support system!

The Best Water I've Ever Had

Sometimes it's difficult to get the recommended servings of water per day. Drinking water, although we know its good for us, just doesn't always happen.  Myself included, I literally have to track how much water I've drank a day by counting how many times I've filled up my water bottle.  And, the water I drink during a workout doesn't count, for obvious reasons. 

Why is it so difficult to get in our water??

One of the main reasons, I've heard is TASTE. A lot of people just don't enjoy the taste and therefore don't drink enough or any at all per day. A glass of cold water can be super refreshing on a hot day or during a serious workout, but in regular settings, it may not be so appealing.  Here are a few facts about water and a few things that we all can do to increase our liking and excitement for WATER.

A Few Reasons To Keep Hydrated
WATER keeps are skin beautiful.  Have you ever seen a face that looks dry and parched?? Water keeps our skin supple and helps fight against premature aging
Water helps us lose weight. Tons of studies on this, but in short water helps flush toxins out our bodies and plays an essential role in our bodies' ability to burn fat. Plus, sometimes when we think we are hungry, we are really thirsty. So drinking water first can prevent us from overeating.
Water keeps us regular: Even though talking about bathroom behavior can be rather taboo, it's important to our overall health to have regular moving bowels and water makes that process a lot smoother.
Water energizes us. When we are dehydrated, we are weak and tired. Keeping ourselves hydrated prevents this.

Habits To Build
Make it a habit to drink at least 6-8 oz with every meal.  That will knock out 24 oz right there.

Keep a water bottle in your bag or purse, at your computer or work area, in the stroller, in your car etc.  This way you can get in another 8oz while commuting, out with the kids or working.

Now for the best part.....

The Best Water Ever

The BEST WATER I've ever had was in a resort. Every day, the water was filled with fresh fruit.  A definite upgrade from the lemon or lime wedge. Don't get me wrong, I typically drink water with lemon daily just to cut that "tap" taste. But at this resort, everyday was something different- melon, oranges, mangoes, lemons, cucumbers, mint, nectarines, blueberries, lemongrass. They had endless varieties that made water truly enjoyable. Absolutely something worth trying at home.  Just slice up your fruit of choice and drop into your pitcher. Add water and chill.  The taste is so refreshing and delightful. It surely will help you to get your daily doses of water in and keep you excited about it.

Let Me Know How You Like It!!!