02/23/16
organic food

Starting Over, Again

It’ll be just like starting over – starting over

John Lennon Starting over

After a year of stress and eating my way through it, once again I stand on the scale and am not happy with the number on it.  It’s time to start over.  Once more, into the healthy eating and exercise fray, my friends.  Once more!

Starting Over, Step One

In my usual fashion, I begin by scouring the net, looking at diet plans, reading advice, checking out possible magazines that could provide inspiration. Continue reading

06/15/15
Surgeon

The Big C, Take 2 – The Cancer Operation

Big C, Take 2 – Cancer Round 2

The Cancer Operation

Stops Four and Five

After the Big C diagnosis, I moved into the no man’s land where time is not your own.  It’s like being a child again and having mom and dad scheduling your day.  The difference is you’re not being scheduled for fun stuff.

Stop 4 – The Operation

Continue reading

12/31/14
I don't plan

New Year Resolutions

A New Year, New Resolutions

Making New Year resolutions is a bit of a double edged sword. On the one hand it can be the spark that you need to go out and achieve some goals to better your life. On the other hand it can create guilt and feelings of failure when you look back at the year past and realise you’ve not ticked off one thing on your list.

So How to Start?

So, how to create resolutions that inspire and not depress you? You can’t make them too airy fairy, like “I want to be a better person” because there’s nothing to achieve. How do you measure “better”? Continue reading

11/4/14
Maxine on Fat

Fit and Healthy 12 week Experiment

If you’re wise exercise all the fat off,
Take it off – off of here, off of there!
Annie Lennox, Keep young and Beautiful

The Fit and Healthy Experiment Begins

My Fit and Healthy experiment all started with my finding a very cool tracking book called The Fit Book.  It was just lying around the mail room and Agent K said I could have it.  It was the ultimate food and fitness tracking book, all in a moderately small and neat package.

The Log Book

Every weight loss book or program always insists that you have to log your food intake and exercise if you want to be successful at losing weight.  Over the years I’ve just logged my progress in a boring old notebook.  This notebook was sexy.  It had colour, it had columns and tick boxes, it had food and exercise tracking all in one spread.  I got excited just looking at it.

So I decided that this little book showing up at this time was a sign that I needed to get on with my health regime. Continue reading

09/23/14
Photo by Tara Hardy

50 Lessons – #36 Growing Old

Growing Old – Gratefully

Growing Old Ain’t for Sissies
Bette Davis

After I posted Regina Brett’s 50 list, I saw an opinion piece in the Globe and Mail that related to #36.

Heather Sanders published a piece in August 2014 about women and our penchant for denigrating ourselves, no matter what stage of life we’re in.  Her hypothesis is that we should age gratefully, and stop being so hard on ourselves.  As Regina puts it:  Growing old beats the alternative – dying young.

Here’s the link to the Globe and Mail website, Ladies, it’s time to age gratefully.  I’ve also included it below in case the link doesn’t work one day.  PS Thank you, Heather. Continue reading

04/30/14
Big Bang Theory Flash

Hot Flash!

I’m hot blooded –check it and see
Got a fever of 103.
Foreigner

“I think I’m having a hot flash,” I casually said. “Does it feel like your face is on fire,” inquired Agent I. “Yes”. “Well then, that might very well be a hot flash.” She replied.

And so it begins

Yikes, a hot flash! Could this be my official entry into menopause? Continue reading

03/11/14

Ditching the Diet Books

Ditching the Books

If you’re wise, exercise all the fat off – take it off , off of here off of there.

 Annie Lennox – Keep young and beautiful

I’m ditching all my diet books.  Why?  Because they depress me.  They mock me from my bookshelf, throwing my lack of success with the bulge in my face. Also, they don’t tell me anything I don’t already know.   Continue reading