Fit Fabulous and Forty the natural way!

Fun in the Sun with Fitness

2009-05-31T07:11:00.003-05:00

Between a conference, the end of the year insanity that happens to all teachers and graduation, I'm just now sitting down at my computer after three weeks away. Thanks for the emails asking about how I was doing, and I promise to be back to normal now!

Summer is my favorite season. I adore the beach, the sand and especially the time off from work! Another thing I love about summer are all of the outdoor activities available to me.

One suggestion I always make to my friends is to try something new every summer. While you don't have to become a pro, with the extra time you have on hand you can learn a new skill, take up a new sport or get involved in a new volunteer activity.

This summer two of my children (the oldest) are getting involved in a Tai Chi class. I've taken Yoga and Pilates for some time, so I'm really hoping they love Tai Chi. My youngest is focusing on volunteering at our local hospital two mornings a week. He'll be unloading boxes from delivery trucks. It's not the most glamorous of volunteer obs, but for a young man who has always wanted to go to medical school, it will give him a new perspective in the inner workings of hospitals. (and it's the only volunteer job they let 15-year-olds do!)

According to this article in New Horizons for Learning and this article on Succesful Aging of the Healthy Brain, we need to constantly teach our brain new tricks. Both articles support that our brain needs to stimuli during our entire life to help it stay healthy.

... we need NEWNESS, new pursuits, new ideas, new activities in our life.

For me this summer, I'm taking up knitting. While I know it's going to be hard to sit still for the 30 minutes a night I've committed to this new skill, I think it will be a great way to help keep my brain fresh while I'm learning the valuable skill of relaxation.

How can one more kid eat so much food?

2009-05-17T09:06:00.006-05:00

It amazes me how the addition of one family member can upset the homeostasis of my home.

This week the oldest of my three boys came home from Texas A&M Univeristy. His sophomore year over, he's now entering the last two years of his college career knowing that it's all downhill. He's 20, he's voted for the president AND he's hungry. ALL OF THE TIME!

He's not just hungry, he doesn't sleep. As a baby my son slept soundly almost from day one. He'd sleep all night, wake up and eat, then sleep some more. It was heaven, so WHY does he suddenly have to stay awake 'till 4am and sleep 'till 4pm?

*Sigh* Maybe he's turned into a vampire, I'll check for fangs later.

I just finished reading this book about teenagers and brain development. Secrets of the Teenage Brain is a great resource for parents and teachers. Knowing that his brain is still forming helps me appreciate the odd sleep cycles and understand the never ending appetite. It's filled with tips on helping to assure the brain develops the right way, (can you say nutrition?) and how to encourage problem solving.

It also helps me understand why my youngest son (who is 15) gets so upset when I show people this picture. (He wants to make sure everyone knows this image is one year old and he's now 2 inches taller then his oldest brother)

Tonight I'm making a meatloaf (only grass fed, organic beef for my guys of course) using 5 pounds of beef. Between the three of them it will all be gone before the night is over. Then while I try to sleep knowing I've got to hit the gym at 4am, my oldest will be up, talking on the phone, lifting weights and driving me insane.

Thank God he's home!

Mother's Day

2009-05-09T21:04:00.002-05:00

Of everything I've done over the past 40 years, nothing has compared to the joy of becoming a mom. It's hard to believe that my babies are now taller then I am, weigh more then I do and all have valid state driver's licenses. (It gives me nightmares) Yet they are still my little boys, and bring me more joy and happiness then I'd ever imagined possible 21 years ago.

Happy Mother's Day to everyone, and please remember to give a little extra hug to that special mom in your life. (Even if that special mom is you!)

If you'd like to do something really special for your mom, you can donate in her honor to the Avon Breast Cancer Society.

Awards

2009-05-08T19:09:00.004-05:00

I've been off at an educator's conference for a few days, and when I return I'm lucky enough to have received two awesome awards from some very special friends.

The adorable award is from Healthy Moms.

This incredible award is for

I'd like to pass this award onto Laura at Junk-Foodaholic's Journal. I adore her blog and I love hearing about her family.

I received the Over the Top award from Mommy's Little Corner.

To receive this award your blog must be exceptional in design and content; presenting us with new knowledge, a sense of style, or at times just giving us a smile!

I'd like to pass this award over to the excellent blog at The Modern Mom. She goes over the top every day, covering everything from removing ants to losing weight.

Have an awesome Mother's Day this weekend.

Happ!y Cinco De Mayo - Recipes for a healthy gathering!

2009-05-04T16:46:00.005-05:00

Happy Cinco De Mayo! If you don't know what Cinco De Mayo is, you can read about it here. Basically, the 5th of May is the day the Mexican Army beat the French Army in the Battle of the Puebla. While I recognize this is not a huge holiday for many people, we celebrate it here in Texas with parties and family gatherings.

Every Cinco De Mayo I plan a traditional family gathering filled with awesome foods with a Tex-Mex flare. While Tex-Mex food can be very unhealthy with all of the cheese and fatfilled sauces, it doesn't have to be. With a little planning, our family get together doesn't have to be unhealthy.

We're starting the night off with a healthy guacamole, served with baked torillias instead of chips, follow with chicken fajtas served with a healthy corn and tomato salsa.

Guacamole

4 avocados
2 home-grown or vine ripened tomatoes, sliced
1 whole chile ortega (canned)
1/8 cup finely chopped yellow onion
salt to taste
hot sauce to taste

Chicken fajitas

1 - 1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 medium yellow onions sliced into 1/4 inch strips
1 large red bell pepper sliced into 1/4 inch strips
2 medium zucchini, sliced into strips

Marinade

1/2 cup olive oil
1 tsp. liquid smoke
2 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. honey
1/4 cup water
1 tbs. fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. oregano leaves
1 tsp. soy sauce

Toppings

salsa
quacamole
a bowl of low-fat sour cream
2 cups shredded mild cheddar cheese
lime wedges, optional
fajita size flour tortillas

Grill as usual over medium heat till the juices run clear. You can baste with the marinade while the chicken is cooking. Toss the marinade out after you are done basting.

Corn and Tomato salsa

2 cups fresh corn kernels
1/2 Roma tomato, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped purple onion
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 small hot chile pepper, finely chopped - skip the chile if you don't like the heat
juice of 1 lime
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
dash ground cumin

Mix and chill for at least three hours before serving.

This awesome meal will be a healthy alternative to the usual cheese/fat laden fare Mexican food is famous for, but it will please the family and me with it's great taste and it's high nutritional value.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

While enjoying the food, you might also enjoy the salsa workout music I've put in my IPod to celebrate this holiday. You can preview the Mp3 on the right of this post.

Happy Pilates Day

2009-05-02T08:08:00.005-05:00

If you've read my blog often you know how much I love pilates. It helps me build much needed muscle and it gives me a sense of well being.

Today is Pilates Day - a day to celebrate and raise awareness of the Pilates Method.

"I must be right. Never an aspirin. Never injured a day in my life. The whole country, the whole world, should be doing my exercises. They'd be happier."
- Joseph Hubertus Pilates, in 1965, age 86

I know for me personally, adding pilates into my workouts helped me build strengthWlal in areas I didn't realize were weak.

To celebrate Pilates Day I made sure I hit the gym early to incorporate some of my favorite pilates moves.

The Swan (Great at stretching my core and building long lean muscles)
Pilates Push Ups (Awesome for balance and strength)
Wall Slides (I can feel my legs getting strong with these)
Criss Cross (Targets obligues and lower ab muscles)
The 100's (Wow - love how this makes my abs feel and look)

If you've not tried adding pilates into your routine do so - you'll love it, your body will love it and it won't take long before your friends start asking you you new secret to looking so hot!

Check out the Pilates Method Alliance for more information on The Pilates Method.

Thanks to my top April Droppers!

2009-04-30T21:03:00.004-05:00

Thanks to my top droppers for the month of April. This month has been incredibly hectic for me, yet some of my best blogging buddies are always checking in on me.

A special thanks for all of the encouragement during my Avon Breast Cancer Walk. (You can support our team here if you'd like to help us find a cure for breast cancer.)

My father is in the hospital with pneumonia, so this week will probably continue to be a slow week while I continue to help both my mom prepare for him to come home and help him on his road to recovery. Thanks for continuing to stop in and check for updates!

Here are my top droppers for April:

A Simple Life

Mommy's Little Corner

Lainy's Musings

The Modern Mom

Rebellious Arab Girl

moms..... check nyo

Everyday Living

Yummy-as-can-be

Life's sweets and spices

Symphony of Love

Thanks guys - and I look forward to another awesome month of blog posts on your sites too!

Fitness Check In and Brunch

2009-04-25T10:08:00.005-05:00

One of the things I love about my friends is that they all choose to join my commitment to living a healthy lifestyle. This occurred about a year ago, when my friend Deb had me start this blog.

Today, we met at my house for a very healthy brunch. We try to workout together several times a week for motivation, and once every three months we spend a few hours evaluating our levels of fitness. Today we brought our charts, any medical records and records of our fitness goals and how we did over the past 90 days.

Here are the goals we set for ourselves the past 90 days.

Complete all Daily Dos (DDs)
Contact new members to our team
Walk/Run at least 120 minutes a week
3 weight lifting/resistance training workouts weekly
Run/Walk or workout in at least one charitable race ever 90 days. (like our Avon Walk)

Overall, our collective group, now 12 in number, is continuing to improve. All of us managed to complete our "Daily Dos." (DDs) Our daily dos are things we must do everyday no matter what. We promised ourselves one pair of new shoes each if we all did our Daily Dos. (Shoe Shopping occurs this afternoon!) Daily Dos are things like drinking 96 ounces of water daily, parking at the back of the parking lot for work, taking our Pops and assuring we have one group meet and greet a week to chat.

Since our focus is on our overall health, we didn't weigh ourselves or measure anything, we just enjoyed knowing our bodies and our minds were much healthier because of our commitments and we ate an incredibly healthy and good tasting brunch. (If I do say so myself)

Setting goals with friends and keeping in contact with them is a great way to help keep you and the ones you love on the road to lifelong fitness. Grab some friends, enjoy a great meal and set a few fitness goals. Your friends and your body will thank you.

One of the favorite raves today was on my VERY healthy Tomatillio Sauce. This is a wonderful sauce that tastes great on fish, chips, eggs, or poured onto veggies. It's also super-healthy and very easy to make. Just make it ahead of schedule so it has time to chill!

This is my grandma's recipe.

1 1/4 pounds organic tomatillos (12 large)
8 cups filtered water
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (chop finely)
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Steps

Discard the husks and stems from the tomatillos. Bring water to a boil in a Dutch oven. Add tomatillos; cover and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes or until tender; drain. Place tomatillos in a blender; process until smooth. Stir in cilantro and salt. Cover and chill

Note: You can substitute 4 (11-ounce) cans tomatillos if you can't find them fresh. drain the canned tomatillos,and purée with cilantro. Omit the salt; canned tomatillos contain added sodium.

Workout & Help Cure Breast Cancer

2009-04-23T20:22:00.002-05:00

If you already workout and would like to use your hard work to help cure breast cancer, then BumbleBee Foods has a great new program called BeeWell Miles.

There is not charge to sign up, but BeeWell Miles allows you to log in your meals and workouts. In exchange for your time on their site, they will make a donation to the Breast Cancer Network of Strength for any miles your walk or run.

If you are looking for a way to stay motivated there are many resources on the site that you might find useful! I've logged my miles from today and I've already made .45 to help cure breast cancer!

Great New Recipe - Salmon Pinwheel Salad

2009-04-21T15:03:00.000-05:00

I love to cook, so when I find a great recipe I have to pass it on. This recipe is incredible tasting and very healthy. This Salmon Pinwheel Salad recipe comes from Everydayhealth.com. I love that it combines many of my favorite things into one dish, and you make it ahead of time and pull it out for a cool and refreshing meal.

I made this last week when some of my teacher friends came over and they raved over the taste and the health benefits. One change I made to the recipe, is I did remove the simple sugar from the dressing and substituted in honey instead.

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds fish, salmon fillet
1/2 cup(s) wine, dry white
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper, black
1 bay leaf
10 ounce(s) lettuce, mixed greens
2 orange(s)
1 cup(s) cucumber(s)
1/4 cup(s) nuts, almonds, sliced
1/2 cup(s) sour cream, light or fat-free
1/2 teaspoon orange peel, finely shredded
2 tablespoon orange juice
2 teaspoon sugar ( I used one tablespoon of honey instead )
1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds

Preparation

Salmon Pinwheel Salad:

1. Cut fillet lengthwise into six even strips. Lightly season with salt and pepper. Starting with the thick end of each strip, roll into pinwheels. Secure each pinwheel with a wooden toothpick or wooden skewer.

2. In a large skillet combine white wine or water, the 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and bay leaf; bring to boiling. Add salmon. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 6 to 8 minutes, turning once, or until fish just flakes easily with a fork. Using a slotted spoon, remove salmon from cooking liquid. Discard cooking liquid. Cover and chill salmon in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

3. To serve, arrange salad greens, orange sections, cucumber slices, and almonds in six salad bowls. Spoon some of the Creamy Orange Dressing over salad mixture. Top each with a salmon roll.

Creamy Orange Dressing:

In a small bowl stir together 1/2 cup light dairy sour cream, 1/2 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel, 2 tablespoons orange juice, 2 teaspoons sugar, (I used honey instead of sugar) and 1/2 teaspoon poppy seed. Add additional orange juice, 1 teaspoon at a time, to desired consistency. Makes about 1/2 cup.

April is Poetry Month

2009-04-20T08:07:00.003-05:00

I've wanted to post about poetry month for the past three weeks, but I've been a bit too scatter-brained to make it happen.

As an English teacher, I understand that learning to read and interpret poetry helps a reader learn important skills relating to problem solving and inferencing, but I also know the right poem, at the right moment can have a deeper meaning.

In many ways, poetry is like that boot camp class Douglas teaches at my gym. (If you've taken the class you know what I mean) Most of the time it works out my body and I can appreciate it, but on a few days the only thing that keeps me sane is that one class. Poetry can do that. At the right moment, the right poem can mean so much.

I have volumes of poetry on my shelves at work and home. Some of my favorite poetry is in The Book of Psalms. While I can't say I have a favorite poem, I do have many that inspire me and give me strength. There are also poems that make me laugh and enjoy life.

"The true philosopher and the true poet are one, and a beauty, which is truth, and a truth, which is beauty, is the aim of both."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

One poet that I love is Langston Hughes. His poetry is beautiful, and very heartfelt. His significance in the Harlem Renaissance is legendary, and his poetry gave voice to millions who needed to be heard.

In high school, I can remember reading "Mother to Son" and thinking that this was a beautiful poem. It wasn't 'till I'd lived a little, that the poem really held meaning for me.

Enjoy ...

Well, son, I'll tell you:

Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

It's had tacks in it,

And splinters,

And boards torn up,

And places with no carpet on the floor—

Bare.

But all the time

I'se been a-climbin' on,

And reachin' landin's,

And turnin' corners,

And sometimes goin' in the dark

Where there ain't been no light.

So, boy, don't you turn back.

Don't you set down on the steps.

'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.

Don't you fall now—

For I'se still goin', honey,

I'se still climbin',

And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

by Langston Hughes

Day One of the MS150 canceled

2009-04-18T09:38:00.006-05:00

Thanks to everyone who emailed me this week wishing me luck on my MS 150 bike race. Unfortunately the MS 150 - Day One was canceled due to some pretty nasty weather. (You can check out the MS 150 page here) Right now the plan is to still have Day Two, starting in La Grange Texas. After working so hard to prepare for this race I admit I'm pretty let down.

Of course the training has been incredible, and weather permitting, Day Two should be awesome. I'll set my goals on 150 miles next year, and be thankful that I'm healthy enough to have done it this year.

The MS 150 has raised 17 million dollars this year in Texas. The race is really about earning money for research to help find a cure for Multiple Sclerosis. Even without racing today, we've all won this race.

My fitness team and I are involved in several other fitness related fund raising events. We are running in the Susan G Koman "Marathon for the Cure" in San Antonio (more on that soon), the Houston area Race for the cure as well as our most recent Avon Breast Cancer Walk. (we're doing the Avon walk again next year in September and possibly again in April since the planners are considering two walks in Houston next year) If you'd like to help support our team as we try to walk/run/bike for our favorite charities you can do so at the link I've provided.

Have a great weekend and let's hope for better weather tomorrow!

100 Best Wellness blogs for Women

2009-04-17T05:09:00.002-05:00

I was thrilled this morning to find that my blog has been included in one of the 100 Best Wellness Blogs for women by MastersinHealthcare.com. I was honored when I woke up to find the email from Kelly letting me know that this blog was selected to be one of the lucky ones included. According to the artilce the blogs listed ...

offer sound advice from those who have made positive changes in their lives as well as experts in a variety of fields.

There are many other great blogs listed in the 100 Best Wellness Blogs, you should take a few minutes and check them all out.

Manic Monday Workout

2009-04-13T20:35:00.004-05:00

Today is Monday. According to my Blackberry, that's my official "upper body and ab" day at the gym. According to my children and my job, it was Manic Monday!

My usual morning workouts are preempted this week trying to get my 15 year-old to school at 5:30 am for practice while my 17 year-old is going on a college visit. Since I have to be at work at 7:20, I'll be unable to hit the gym 'till after work.

Of course this being the first day of the week, I'm not used to this schedule. My usual happy post-workout demeanor helps me get through the day, but today I could tell something was off. Of course it didn't help that we had a swarm of bees at our home this morning, a snake in my classroom this afternoon, the phone rang constantly, my dog had a limp and had to be dropped at the vet and my morning planning was interrupted by someone barging in who didn't have an appointment.

Finally 4:30 pm arrived and I was able to pick up the dog and hit the gym. I found a kick-boxing class and worked on fighting away the stress. I skipped the abs portion of the class to run the track. Somewhere, around lap 3 I started feeling more like myself. I did my own ab workout with bicycle exercises, leg raises, exerball crunches and reverse crunches. At the end of the workout I felt refreshed, and really tired!

Tomorrow I'll still need to take him to school at 5:30 am, but I think I'll fit in a walk in the morning and my usual leg/glute workout in the afternoon. The workout really helps me deal with the little insanity that my daily grind throws at me.

Happy Easter to all of those who celebrate it!

2009-04-10T17:04:00.003-05:00

I realize that everyone doesn't celebrate this holiday, but for those who do Happy Easter. Today my boys and I are coloring Easter eggs and celebrating with our traditional Good Friday meal of Cajun Bean Soup. (Follow the link if you'd like the recipe. ) It's super easy, cheap and very good for you. While this soup isn't a traditional soup for the holiday, it's something we've always had on Good Friday in my family.

This year I found these Dark Chocolate Easter Bunnies for my kids and friends. Nothing like a little boost of anti-oxidants while enjoying your bunny ears!

Great Grocery Bargains on Amazon

2009-04-09T05:46:00.004-05:00

In this shaky economy I know we're all struggling to save money. When I found out that Amazon.com was offering a few great grocery savings on things I buy everyday I wanted to pass this on to you guys.

There is not a market around here where I can readily purchase some of the health foods we eat daily, so I use Amazon's Health Food Store for many of my shopping needs. We have a regular order of Bare Naked Granola and Newman's Own cookies delivered to our home.

If you are shopping for a baby, there is a good deal on the Tastybaby food. My sister-in-law swears by this food. It's organic with no salt or sugar added and it's blast-frozen which means most of the nutrients are not killed in the processing of the food.

Enjoy the deals, they are good 'till the end of April.

39.3 Miles - Using Fitness Runs and Walks to Help You Stay Fit

2009-04-06T20:22:00.003-05:00

This weekend I participated in the Avon Breast Cancer walk. This is a yearly event for me and some of my teacher friends.

While my legs are a bit tired today, it was a fabulous weekend. We started early Saturday morning and walked 26.2 miles. Then Sunday we got up early again, just to walk another 13.1. While I've always been in good shape, I was really glad I've been working so hard on my legs and my balance as the walk was long, the wind was strong and my legs really needed the extra strength. There was no rain and the sun was quite bright (notice my tan in the picture!) so I'm not gonna complain about the 30 mph winds on the overpasses.

One of the most uplifting things about the walk is talking to survivors and knowing that this walk, and all of the ones before it have helped them. It makes the journey more personal. For this reason I encourage everyone to help others by taking part in a fun run, or some other fitness event for charity.

Two of my teacher friends tell me the only way they stay fit and plan on working out daily is they know that this walk is always ahead of them. Knowing it's coming is their reason to hit the gym and to walk those extra laps everyday. If you are having trouble sticking to those fitness goals, then find a local 5K walk or run and start training for it. You help yourself stay fit, and best of all, you help others. It's a Win/Win situation.

Avon Breast Cancer Walk Weekend - For Two Days We Walk As One

2009-04-03T05:59:00.003-05:00

I've been training for months, and now the weekend is finally here. In less then 24 hours I'll be walking with over 1,000 other women who've dedicated this weekend to help find a cure for breast cancer. If you'd like to donate to my team, or if you'd like to just follow our progress you can check out my donation page here.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Catch a few Zzzzzz's

2009-03-29T22:09:00.001-05:00

Have you had one of those weeks when you just had too much to do and too little time to do it?

Stupid question, I know we've all experienced this. We've also heard that a good night's sleep aids in weight loss. In our goal for lifelong fitness, sleep deprivation can cause other problems as well.

According to WebMd deprivation of sleep can cause many short term illnesses and injuries.

Decreased Performance and Alertness: Sleep deprivation induces significant reductions in performance and alertness. Reducing your nighttime sleep by as little as one and a half hours for just one night could result in a reduction of daytime alertness by as much as 32%.
Memory and Cognitive Impairment: Decreased alertness and excessive daytime sleepiness impair your memory and your cognitive ability -- your ability to think and process information.
Stress in a Relationship: Disruption of a bed partner's sleep due to a sleep disorder may cause significant problems for the relationship (for example, separate bedrooms, conflicts, moodiness, etc.).
Poor Quality of Life: You might, for example, be unable to participate in certain activities that require sustained attention, like going to the movies, seeing your child in a school play, or watching a favorite TV show.
Occupational Injury: Excessive sleepiness also contributes to a greater than twofold higher risk of sustaining an occupational injury.
Automobile Injury: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates conservatively that each year drowsy driving is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 fatalities.

According to this article in the Washington Post, scientist have even linked insufficient or irregular sleep to increased risk for colon cancer, breast cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

To make sure I am giving my body enough sleep, I make sure I get at least 7 hours a night, and more if I feel I need it. Make sure you are getting enough sleep, your overall health depends on it.

Healthy Hearts and Healthy Planets

2009-03-28T08:41:00.003-05:00

After Hurricane Ike, I learned how much we depend on electricity. Tonight, from 8:30 - 9:30 Central Time, we'll once again turn off the lights. Our weeks without power during Ike reminded us how fun it is to play board games, to enjoy family basketball time and to eat dinner under the stars with our friends. For Earth Hour this year, we're spending time together relaxing outside with our neighbors. Join me tonight at 8:30 pm your time and enjoy an hour of fun and relaxation. It's good for our planet and it's good for our health.

Enjoy this video courtesy of Earth Hour!

Go Red for Women

2009-03-24T22:02:00.003-05:00

I wanted to remind everyone, that the #1 killer of women is still heart disease.

The American Heart Association has teamed up with a couple of corporate sponsors in their Go Red for Women campaign.

My Avon Breast Cancer walk is just two weeks away, and while I'm very focused on that walk and my MS-150 bike ride in May, I realize how important it is to take care of my heart. Lifelong fitness has always been my long term goal, and what I hope my friends are helping to incorporate with some of the ideas from my blog.

Check out the Go Red for Women page for a few great recipes or a little inspiration to help you go red.

Tests every mom should have

2009-03-18T16:55:00.005-05:00

Recently, I was diagnosed with the genetic predisposition for breast cancer. The results of this test help both me and my doctor make informed decisions about my personal health needs.

Cookie Magazine recently posted an interesting story titled "Health Tests Every Mom Should Have."

The article brings up a very good point. As moms, we tend to know all of our kid's medical history. I can still tell you the last tetanus shot my almost 21 year old had, but if my doctor wouldn't have mentioned it at my last appointment, I'd have never thought about it for myself.

Here are the recommended tests for a woman in her forties. There is a listing for women of all ages, make sure you check out what's best for you.

☐ Blood-pressure test: Every 1 to 2 years
☐ Cholesterol test: Every five years
☐ Tetanus-diptheria vaccine: Every 10 years
☐ Pelvic exam: Every 1 to 3 years
☐ Pap test: Every 1 to 3 years
☐ HPV test: Every 1 to 3 years
☐ Clinical breast exams: Every three years
☐ Mammograms: Every 1 to 2 years

I'd never looked around "Cookie" magazine until Erin sent me the link and let me look around the site. This magazine is filled with helpful information for moms. Make sure you check out this article, and then look around. I am particularly fond of the Robot Party!

Thanks Erin for sharing this article with the rest of us.

Happy St Patrick's Day & Tight Ass Tuesday

2009-03-17T08:38:00.004-05:00

Happy St Patrick's Day. While my family is Spanish and Italian, it seems like a good day to feel a little like a leprechaun and celebrate with a little green! I managed to find an old green t-shirt to wear while working out, I just hope I can find something for the rest of the day to help fit in the festivities.

Because this is Spring Break here, many of my usual workout buddies are off on vacations. This morning we decided to have our first ever conference call workout. We've discussed doing this before, using a free program called Skype, but this is the first opportunity we've had to do it.

We also decided to do this workout at home/hotel depending on where we all were. Our agreement was to use Adrian's videos on NowLoss.com. I've mentioned his videos before, but they are fun and easy to do at home. Best of all, they are free!

We starte the day with a quick walk. I'm also training for my Avon walk in two weeks, and then the MS 150 is a month later, so I've been concentrating on walking at 3 miles an hour. I walked on my treadmill for 15 minutes at three miles per hour. After our warm up, we called each other on Skype and started doing Squats. (I only used the bar without weights) We followed his suggstion of how many reps to do and when and how long to rest. I could tell the squats did some good as my legs felt tired after this one workout.

Next we tried the lunges. I used my bosu ball instead of a step, two of my buddies tried a step and two did it without. I like the bosu ball because I think it helps me improve my balance, something I felt i needed for my MS-150. We then did a good calf stretch and went on to Dynamic Stretches to end our workout.

We had a great workout, and even though we couldn't all be in the gym together we still had a great time. Have a happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!

Music Monday

2009-03-16T12:10:00.001-05:00

The Cactus Cuties are fairly well-known in Texas. If you've not seen these incredibly talented young ladies, then enjoy! They are a true joy to hear!

Family Fitness Day at the Lucky Trail Marathon

2009-03-15T08:20:00.003-05:00

I'm totally excited and honored today to be spending our Family Fitness Day helping out at the Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon. Because my Avon Breast Cancer walk is just two weeks away, I can't take part in running the marathon itself, so instead I'm volunteering, along with many of my students, to help out at an aid station.

This marathon benefits The Bridge, a safe place for victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. During Hurricane Ike The Bridge suffered a huge amount of damage and is still rebuilding. The hope is that the funds will help repair some of the damage so The Bridge can continue providing care to those who need it.

Today my three boys are taking part along with one of my fitness buddy's son. Today our family fitness day takes on a whole new meaning as we're focused on helping out others and not just enjoying the day together. Right now the boys are already off and have run over half the marathon. I'm taking a break to get a few pictures and to upload them to my computer.

Family Fitness day is a great tradition in our family, and now I'm thrilled to see our usual Sunday togetherness incorporated with the need to help out those who need it!