TAM update - day 5 of 30...er...more like day 3

Today I reconnected with the phrase TGIF! A busy, stressful day to close a busy week. As a trader, I am accustomed to stress but today was beset with a doozy that was worse because it was of my own creation. {sigh} Lesson learned and move forward, right?!?

I have found this week full of success balanced with 'lessons' and am trying to shake it off and smile into the weekend :).

On the fitness front, starting a new routine has been mezza mezza. I won't say I cheated on the Tracy Anderson Method (TAM)...let's say I have just NOT been completely faithful, shall we? On the positive side:
1) I completed 3 days of her mat workout and felt it! I love this workout!! Easy to follow, challenging but, if you follow the ramping up schedule in the book, doable enough to come back for more the next day.

2) I completed 2 days of cardio, though my nagging plantar faciitis (think heel spurs) made me feel less than graceful and it was annoying to have to restart the cardio segment on the DVD.

3) I ate 80% of my meals off Tracy's menu

Now for the less savory side:
1) I do NOT have time to workout 2 hours per day!!! I just don't! Working woman in finance, business meetings, kids, oh...and did I mention I actually like my husband and want to see him sometimes???

2) The cardio really appeals to the former dancer in me, but to modify it to step-touching for 40 minutes will drive me to drink!

3) Did I mention drink? After the week I've had...a few cups of coffee and wine made it onto the menu, oh yeah! Coffee to wake up after an evening filled with 2 hours of working out. Wine after the long day of work. One dinner out, because the husband and I needed to reconnect. And yes...I broke down and had some desserts (I'm a chocolate every day kinda girl, and ran out of that yummy choco chestnut pudding).

Overall though, very pleased with the results so far! Lost 1" off my waist, 1/2" off my hips and 4 lbs!! Will definitely keep you updated, I think I can perservere for the next month (or two at the rate I'm going).

Til next time,
It'sABusyLife,
Danielle

Getting a new routine

After training for the NYC Marathon last year, and bowing out for a 2nd time due to injury I am on a running sabbatical. At first it was easy, coming off a few months of training I went the the gym here and there. A spin class here, weights there, yoga periodically. But lack of a real routine added up to 5 lbs and every attempt to run was squashed by inflamed tendons and my still bruised tibia! {sigh}

With that in mind, and a few inches in squishy tummy in sight - the amount I've been paying my gym for the privilege of NOT going did not add up. So I put my membership on hold and decided to take advantage of all the free fitness NYC has to offer in the summertime! NYC Parks has Free/Nearly Free events all summer long. My favorites are:
Tues: Pilates in Riverside Park
Wed: Yoga in Riverside Park
Thurs: Yoga in Bryant Park
Sat: Race Walking in Central Park
Sat: Kayaking on the Hudson
Sun: Tai Chi in Riverside Park

When those are not available or on a rainy day, there's cheap hot yoga from Yoga To The People for $5!!

I've been taking advantage of many of these wonderful events, but still didn't feel like I was getting any closer to happiness in a bikini. I even tried a few free sessions with a personal trainer at Serious Strength, but didn't feel like 30 mins 2x/wk was doing anything on its own.

I realize something drastic needs to be done, so I'm committing to 30-days on the Tracy Anderson Method (TAM). I picked up her book Tracy Anderson's 30-Day Method: The Weight-Loss Kick-Start that Makes Perfection Possible. I figure Gwennyth Paltrow and Shakira's trainer must know something that can help! The Daily Julie was an inspiration for me, so I decided to just do it!!

There are 3 parts to her method:

1) Mat workout
Strength moves that take me back to dance class in Brooklyn 20 years ago with what feel like grueling leg lifts, crunches and arm moves to sculpt the small accessory muscles for a lean look rather than bulking up!

2) Cardio
40 minutes of a cardio dance routine that, admittedly, even I had trouble following without the typically annoying cheerleader-y instructions Tracy has conveniently left out. But after getting it down and adding my own music, it's lots of fun

3) Meal plan
The hard part for me will be the food. Even though we've become a much healthier household over the years, there are still cookies and cupcakes and pretzels in the line-up which are big no-nos for Tracy. Day 2 and I'm still surviving - even without my beloved lattes!!!! I am going off the reservation a bit. Tracy said we're supposed to eat exactly what she laid out for the first 30-days. I am, however, eating her recipes but not in the exact order. My reasoning is that I'm a busy mom and only have so much time.

On Sunday I made double batches of 2 recipes: sweet potato corn pudding and the AMAZING choco chestnut pudding. With that and some store bought carrot ginger soup and lowfat strawberry kefir, I'm good to go for a few days. I've been drining my weight in water and green tea and trying not to overeat but she did say if we're hungry, we can increase our portions until we're satisfied but not stuffed. It just has to be her food.

Today's Day 2 of TAM - wish me luck!

It'sABusyLife,
Danielle

Bug Bites

My friend's wife has a fantastic blog called Yes Five, as she has yes...five children! She's a doctor of family medicine currently staying at home and has some great posts as well as being a regular contributor now to ABC's Good Morning America's Health segements.

See her segment on bug bites here!

It'sABusyLife - re-start

Wouldn't ya know it...life got too busy to blog! Over the past year I've taken on more at work, taken to trying (and sometimes failing) to keep up with my very active toddler and trying to be more available to/on top of the teenager. But I found I was jack of all trades and master of none - isn't that the classic mom dilemma??

I need an outlet, like a blog, and a few more glasses of wine to help me keep it all together. Hoping my outlet gives you a few useful pieces of information to help you along in your busy life too :).

It'sABusyLife,
Danielle

Useful Links - Site Redesign!

Between moving homes, pick up on the markets and some good old spring cleaning, the blog has been neglected. Would love to re-focus and add more value rather than blather on about me me me, so....this blog now enters phase II - Parent Scout

As a parent, I've found that there are a bazillion resources for information. Some are so vast it's impossible to find what you want. Some are so message board intensive it's all chatter with little content. And some have great content but are only focused on one small aspect of our lives.

I am hoping to start a new project with Parent Scout, which is to put together a place to find what parents are looking for that is broad enough to be a single resource you use while focused enough to provide answers to questions you have.

As a parent, it's not just about child development or just about where to go about town. You're a whole person who has little time to be combing the Internet looking for answers your family needs like ages & stages, managing work/life balance, quick recipes, how to travel with your kids, networking, crafts with your child that don't require hours of brain damage on your part, and more.

Over the years I have amassed a wealth of little tidbits, useful Internet links and great information from every corner of parenting and household management resources that I'd love to share with you!

Until I can pull something meaningful together, here are a few of my favorite things, in no particular order, that other parents have found helpful recently...

• Hiding nutrition:
  Toddlers are a peculiar bunch, with strange eating habits. My oldest loved mashed potatoes, so I hid all kinds of things in there (powdered milk for protein, shredded cheese, shredded carrots). Her younger brother won't eat mashed potatoes, but loves breads, pancakes and yogurt. Baking in the fruits and veggies helps. Think zucchini bread with part whole-wheat flower and a few tbsp ground flaxseeds for omega-3, hide some finely chopped spinach, add flaxseeds and bananas to pancakes. For more stealth nutrition, try peanut butter playdough!
• Real Simple's Time-Saving Tips
• Great NYC Mom resources from Big City Moms
• 5 Simple Ways to Make Your Toddler's Day from BabyCenter
• Though your first though when you hear eating disorder is teenage girls, anyone can have an eating disorder, and most start early. Learn more from KidsHealth on Kids and Eating Disorders
• Someone has finally brought manners back en vogue! Learn more about Etiquette Workshops for Kids from Socialskilz and NewYorkFamily.com
• My favorite designer discounter for kids! The Mini Social
• We bought a ton of stuff for our little one recently from KidSurplus, a discount website for all things kid

Til next time,
It's a BusyLife,
Danielle

New Year - update

So, nearly a month has gone by - time to check on how the new year plans are going!

Get Healthy
Sleep

• Completed sleep re-training - hooray! Martin's still up at 5am for a bit, but 8pm-5am is a good start
  
• Got the supplies for bedroom partition, now just have to install
  
• Getting to bed by 11pm some nights, so slowly better
  

Nutrition

• Jodi from Citrition came to visit this week and we're off to a great start! Week 1 of 4 goal: eat fruit with breakfast everyday for everybody (13yr old, 13 mo old, and parents - many months old!)
  
• Have been cooking at least 4 days per week
  
• Leftovers have not made it to work much. Gotta grab those on way out the door.
  
• Need more variety, next shopping trip - i promise!
  
• Taking vitamins at least every other day
  

Exercise

• Met with trainer and got a good supplemental routine. That said, have not been to the gym as much as I want. Hopefully will be less crazy by next week
  
• Teenager has been going to martial arts regularly - Go Maggie!
  
• Baby loves visiting the Museum of Natural History on the weekends. Could care less about the exhibits...loves to run in the wide open halls!

Get Organized

• Created the chore list, just need to actually print and put into action
  
• Event list there, just need to fill/check it
  
• Goals list - yeah....should make one of these

Get Happy

• Yoga - making time for practice every other day...progress
  
• Bath - haven't gotten to that yet (for relaxation that is...have bathed this year)
  
• Walk - getting a bit more in :)
  
• Read - lots more of this, might even get to bookclub meeting this month!
  
• Visit - Noodles with Lynn yesterday, check!
  
• ReConnect - date night Feb 7, check!

Overall, not bad progress. Will keep striving to strive and find reasons to smile through the chaos!
'Til next time,
It's a BusyLife,
Danielle

New Year

The past 3 months have been the busiest of my life! Many many work dinners and events, social calls for me and the family, conducting a NYC high school search for our 13-yr old like it was college, rush to work, rush to daycare, rush home, rush rush rush!...all the while feeling overwhelmed and underperforming. Not a great place to be for an overachiever.

So - 2010 finds me and a bazillion other people on websites like facebook and 43Things starting off with resolutions and promises anew for a more peaceful and productive year!

Happiness for me starts with getting healthy, getting organized and getting happy!

Get Healthy

Sleep

Our little guy just turned one year this month and has started waking at night again, so we are on Day 4 of sleep re-training for baby so we can all sleep.

• Complete sleep re-training - December
  
• Buy supplies for bedroom partition - January
  
• Set date for assistance with installation - January
  
• Get to bed by 10:30pm at least three times per week

Nutrition

Healthy eating is the fuel needed to live a BusyLife, so it is no surprise that a malaise has settled over me at the same time as a decline in the healthy habits our family once enjoyed.
To kick the year into gear:

• Appointment with family nutritionist - January
  
• Resolve to cook 5-6 days per week – schedule created
  
• Bring leftovers from said cooking nights for lunch (also saves $$!)
  
• Expose the kids (and adults) to more varied and healthy foods
  
• Take vitamins regularly

Exercise

Need more exercise in all our lives!

• Appointment with trainer for new routine
  
• Qualified for NYC marathon in November 2010
  
• Schedule gym nights for both husband and me
• Get teenager to attend martial arts classes twice a week
  
• More playtime for baby outside of the apartment (Saturday classes, museums, playground)
  

Get Organized

I’m always happier when I feel like I’ve accomplished my goals. Whether those goals are big (career change, marathon, baby) or small (vacuum the rug, organize my purse, put away that pile of clothes in the corner), happiness for me begins with organization.

• Chore list – no more guesswork or complaining, we all have a job to do and know when to do it
  
• Event list – all our outside activities are in one place so conflicts are to a minimum
  
• Goals list – posting a list of goals for the family in a prominent place (new apartment, healthy eating, more sleep)

Get Happy

Finally, a BusyLife is all about balance. Need a few little “me” moments to recharge and refresh so I am up for any challenge!

• Yoga – make time for morning and evening practice everyday again
  
• Bath – amazing what a quiet soak with a book can do for the psyche
  
• Walk – make time to walk to work more
  
• Read – at least one non-work related book per month
  
• Visit – at least one get together with friends and family per month
  
• ReConnect – at least one date night per month
  

My goodness…that’s a lot of lists! Well…that’s the plan for the coming year. Ambitious, but I think doable and ultimately will lead us to a very happy and relaxed place once complete.
‘Til next time,
It’s a BusyLife,
Danielle