A week of ups & downs!

Good evening, poppits! I'm typin' at 'cha LIVE from the coziness of my bed. Man! I love wireless internet!

It's about 9:45 pm and I'm feeling really tired. I think it's because I worked out with The Evil One today and did yoga with Nadia tonight. Can I just say right now how much I love doing yoga with Nadia? She ROCKS it people! First of all, the yoga studio she has in her basement is awesome and, as an instructor, she pushes you without killing you. The good news is that Nadia no longer has to push my shoulders with her feet anymore as I'm actually able to do the moves myself! This is good news to me!

Tonight she did some wacky, wrap-our=knees-with-a-belt-and-lift-our-pelvis-while-squishing-in-our-shoulders-while-linking-our-hands-under-our-elevated-bums thing. Get the picture? Well, although there were no mirrors, I can't imagine it was a pretty sight! It was a great stretch, though, even if I felt like I was doing some kind of weird bondage sex position! Easy girl, it's just yoga....

As the title suggests, this past week has been a series of highs and lows for me. All the highs seem to come when I'm out with friends or clients...networking, talking, listening and generally having a good time. I had many "reconnections" that reminded me of what wonderful people there are in my life. Duane & Aubrey constantly remind me of how much I am appreciated and respected for being me; my coaching peeps like Panagiota, Maggie, Michael and my practicum compadres remind me of how important the journey we are on together really is...and that it's ok that I'm struggling and not perfect! These messages were so important for me to hear this week as I've been challenged on my abilities to grasp the process of being a good coach. I was also inspired by the creativity and resourcefulness of these people. How they manage to pull themselves up from adversity is inspirational!

And, yes poppits, there were other highs...like the FIERCE patriotism I felt during the Olympics, especially the men's hockey game between the US & Canada. I'm sure everyone reading this blog has heard about the outcome so I'll spare you any details. I will say, however, that the best part of the game for me was the four text message conversations I had during the game! Two of my nieces were texting me...what fun! We all agreed the suspense was brutal and let's just say that we were not above the use of profanity to express our feelings!

The weight loss journey has also been filled with ups and downs. I am so pleased with the progress I've made. My skinny jeans are on & comfortable, and I feel good when I wear them! I am working out ... HARD ... several times/week. And yes, Werner challenges me, but I'm challenging myself as well! For example, I did more stairs Tuesday, despite that my knees were a little sore and my back was a little twingy. I just did some really good stretching and voila! Nothing more to whine about! So, I did 800 stairs where I ran up them. Admittedly, the last 200 stairs were more like walking kinda fast, but I did them. I told myself that, every time I approach my own workout, I must go beyond the previous one...and that's what I did. I must admit that I'm getting bored with just doing stairs, but I know I need to keep at it as the benefit outweighs the boredom...blah, blah, blah...Hey! maybe I'll do them naked and see if that shakes things up a little bit! At the very least it will give the guys across the street something to talk about while on their smoke break!

Easter is around the corner. You know how I know it? 'Cuz all my favourite Easter candy is back in the stores, taunting me. Not that I've noticed...everyday...as I walk through the store while I wait for the GO Train...but Laura Secord has their awesome cream eggs out now. And...O-M-G!! I just saw this pecan caramel fudge nut egg as well. Lemme tell you that one is SCREAMING my name! I pray to The Big Guy Upstairs that they sell out fast because I'm just not sure how long I can resist that one...seriously...

I'm struggling with the diet too. For some reason, I'm feeling really carnivorous...like I want to rip meat right off the bones. Of course it's cooked and has a nice sauce to it. Come on, people. I said "carnivorous" not "barbaric"! I really need to stay focused in this last little bit. Although I'm down 75 lbs. it's really getting harder for the weight to come off. Reality check, though, is that I KNOW I can do it if I stay focused on the diet...and stay away from the granola mix and the "Awesome Almond" mix at Planet Organic. Yeesh, I should just stay away from Planet Organic until after Machu Picchu! It's bad news when you have to ban yourself from an entire store!

Once again, I am reminded that I am in complete control of my own destiny on this one. I have no physical problems preventing me from losing weight or exercising, so I can decide when I want to lose the weight...simply by shutting my pie hole! Right?!? Eat the right foods, in reasonable quantities, only when I'm hungry and the weight will come off. Simple right? So why can't I do it?!? Years and years of bad habits and weird, sabotaging thoughts...sigh...

OK, thanx for sharing your week's ups & downs, Yvonne, but whats the "bottom line" here? Fair point...here's the message I want to leave you with..it's really deep, too!

Life is the best, most awesome roller coaster ride you can ever be on. You choose whether you want to clutch the railings with fear, crying like a baby OR whether you let your hair down, raise your arms and yell "WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" all the way.

What's it gonna be, poppits...."boo hoo" or "WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"?!?
(a) yt xox