All About Me

Good Morning and Happy April 1, 2011. And to all you little jokesters out there...be nice as you celebrate April Fool's Day!

Wish me luck! I am embarking on a challenge. It is the April A-Z Blogging Challenge. It is a challenge to post everyday with a different letter of the alphabet serving as the inspiration. Some of these letters are going to be tough! It's not to late to join! There are over 1000 Bloggers signed up. If you are looking for a new blog to follow, there is something here for everyone. Check out the button on the right!

I decided A was going to be ALL about me! I am also incorporating a book review in it as well because it was my inspiration. How many of us have succeeded in our new year's resolutions? You all have!?! Let's be honest. I haven't and I am pretty sure I'm not alone. I figure what better day to fool myself than April Fool's day. So I can shoot for the stars and blame it on being foolish.
So what is ALL me. I am really striving to be a better me! I am eating better (gotta lose some weight), starting an exercise routine, making better relation ships, and knowing myself better.

I received a book that inspired me to get in touch with me. It is Journey To You: A Step-by-Step Guide to Becoming Who You Were Born to Be, by Steve Olsher. The book is phenomenal. I usually don't buy self-help books and if I get one it generally sits on the bookshelf under anything so I don't have to read. This book is so different because it is so personal. There are some difficult challenges to follow. It makes you look at who you really are and not someone else's version. I just read the book, but I am going back to actually do the exercises.

As it would happen, Washington, D.C. has officially announced that Steve Olsher,author of USA Book News' 2010 "Self-Help Book of the Year,"
Journey To You: A Step-by-Step Guide to Becoming Who You Were Born to Be,has been appointed to the position of Director of the newly-created Department of Hope & Inspiration.

"We need a man like Steve Olsher at the helm of the government's initiative to
revitalize our people and leverage the strength of America's human capital to propel
our wonderful country back to the forefront of the world's stage," said President Obama.
If you get the chance, read it! You will be glad you did!
And now my challenge to you... Go out and discover who YOU ARE! You will thank yourself.

21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart

As I have mentioned before, the big 5-0 is approaching. And as many can agree, we gain those few (or many) extra pounds that don't go away. I am here to tell ya, I am no exception. At the start of the year, because my depression over my sister's death, instead of 30 pounds, I needed to lose 40 pounds. I could stand to lose more, but let's keep it real. With a 40 pound loss, I would be considerably healthier.
Yes, I am big boned and yes, I can carry my weight well. But who are we kidding, I need to lose weight. I am not big on diets. And less on exercise. But I know 2 truths are constant in losing the extra pounds. EAT LESS and MOVE MORE! That is the only sure way to lose those love handles. Or is it??

I received the book 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart by Neil D. Barnard, M.D. And like every person who has to lie flat on the bed to zip their pants, I saw the brass ring...21 -DAY! My first thought was what is this gimmick? A cleanse, a starvation,or the magical .com site that sends you their magical dietary cardboard. But this book wasn't any of those.

We have all heard the magic word - metabolism. Surprise, it's not low...you are probably starving it. This book goes into the types of foods we should be eating to become healthier. It does not focus on calories or exercise. But doesn't that go against what I thought were the weight loss rules. This book basically revolves around a vegan diet.

Stop the BBQ! I am a meat and potato girl from Montana. We eat meat! But in order to give this book a fair review, I thought I'll give it a try. In 1 week I lost 10 pounds. Did I follow the diet and recipes exactly? No. Did I exercise? No. I can hardly believe it! I did try to cut out all animal products, but remember the MT girl? I couldn't go cold turkey. (No pun intended)I ate very little meat and I am pleased with the results. I have used the advise of the book and have used fiber to feel full. And substituted the animal products with healthier protein choices.

I have tried so many new foods in the past week. Soy yogurt has so much more flavor but it is a sharp contrast to regular yogurt. So stick with it. Almond milk is really very good. Now almond cheese on the other hand keeps me longing for our wonderful Tillamook cheese. But in small quantities,grated on whatever legumes I tried that day, it works quite well. In all honesty, I said that I didn't exercise, but I did have more energy and did walk more.


Overall, it is still a matter of willpower to shed those extra pounds. But this book gives you the proverbial 'food for thought', without the prerequisite of a degree in nutritional science. My goal is to embrace 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart as of April 1st. I will keep you posted. Looking forward to a leaner me!
Category:HEALTH & FITNESS
Format:HARDCOVER BOOK
Publish Date:2/28/2011
Price:$25.99/$28.99
ISBN:9780446583817
Pages:368
Size:6" x 9"
I received this book from The Hachette Book Group for my honest review.