Dyana Valentine » 40 Days

Celebrate The WIN! 40 Days of my Body: Day 40

admin — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:53:10 +0000

WOW, I did it. I kept a huge, longer-term-than-I-thought-I-could commitment to myself. THANK YOU for being here with me. Some of you joined me, others read along, and some even joined secretly–you know who you are. I could not have done it without you. This is NOT just something to say–I mean it. I started AND finished this commitment because I wasn’t doing it alone.

BEFORE:
164 lbs
40.75% body fat
out of breath coming up the stairs to my apartment
AFTER:
148.5 lbs
37% body fat
rocking the lower heart rate and running up the stairs on the way home every day.

NB: even though I did 40 days of exercise (and more of journalling), my entire duration of this challenge was 58 days.

CELEBRATIONS: I got myself some foxy new 800 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets–YUM! And, my dear friend, Melissa Kelly, gave me the gift of a massage this Sunday to celebrate my 40 Day accomplishment! Wahoo!

NEXT:
I commit to continuing the workouts–varying them with your help (send ideas!), including:
hoola hooping at least once per week;
continuing to work out with Sunny through December (at least 2x/week);
finding a new sport by the end of the year;
giving weekly updates on my body through year’s end.

What are you committing to? Do you need help? Let us know in the comments and offer ideas for others struggling with making or keeping commitments to themselves.

The 40 days of My Body (if you are new to this story, read the intro here) project, is a quest in service to my business, my body and my own path of finishing what I start. I am committed to exercising 6 days/week, keeping a food journal and being more aware of ways I use (and abuse) my body. Going public is extreme, yes, and it’s working! I’m working with a fantastic trainer, Sunny Riggs, to create a program I can sustain over time. She’s amazing. HIRE HER!

I am not alone on my quest. The roll call is at 31 people (including me)! Some are getting organized, others giving up fast food and some are simply breathing! Check out the updates and links below and show your support:

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness she’s DONE and kicking off another 30 days, this time of writing.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says she’s back in action!
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She has GREAT ideas on staying inspired and gives an update on wrassling her bitchy soul and is rocking her challenge!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth: She’s DONE, no honey or sugar for a MONTH, lost 4 lbs and has great new awarenesses around her body and her cravings. Way to go, Monica!
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise. Check out her guest post/video here.
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food. She’s got loads of fish to fry and is going to re-evaluate her commitment in 2010.
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their update videos here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week: gone AWOL–come back to us, John!
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week, GREAT insights on the most recent video update. WATCH&LEARN!
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day, She’s on day 27 and let go of journal writing. BUT, she has kept to one soda/day for the WHOLE commitment–yahoo!
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol: fell off the wagon. Gitty up back on, Lucero!
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week. She made adjustments in service to moderation AND feeling good!!

Ashley White-Stern: 40 days of meditation and she’s giving herself the gift of swallowing her pride for sliding off the sit for a minute. She DID sit today–and that’s what matters!

M Arsenia Brown (aka: @donutdemon) joins with a commitment to 40 days of her body: She’s DONE!
Cat Sabonis-Chafee is in and says “I will move my ass” for 21 days of daily, considered exercise. She reminded me of a great tool: TAKE A DAY OFF every week and she added in an abs&stretch class.
Emily-Sarah is joining with body awareness and daily movement. How’s it going, Emily-Sarah?
Nicola Warwick kicks off 40 days of food journaling and diet hacking! TODAY! She’s using a super duper diet spreadsheet.

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Commit to yourself, today. (Day 39/40)

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:49:17 +0000

We, the questers (31 as of today) have taken commitments during the past months–to our organization, our bodies and our passions. Here are updates from others on their quests and an interview! Enjoy, support and add your own stories in the comments.

Interview with Julie Rorrer, who is training for the Austin Marathon in February 2010:

Portia Reddy made a commitment to do 40 days of yoga. Here she is in her yogic glory and an update on her challenge:

Hey Dy,

My challenge died. I lost my motivation and so I revamped the challenge and it has not taken off. At least not in the way I would like. I am still doing my yoga stretches in the morning and evenings but have not done a real 30 to 45 min. workout in weeks. But it was eye opening to see how much harder it became when it was something I had to do every day because I said I would as opposed to the sporadic nature of my practice before. Currently I am trying to work on re-incorporating 30 min. yoga sessions into my week 2 to 3 times a week.

Thanks for the check in, I really do appreciate it.

Tia

Norbert and Paula are in the middle of their 87 Days of Passion. Here’s a letter from them.

Dear Dyana,
We are entering our second month of PASSION. Living in the USA been quite an adjustment. My new schedule includes working on English with my husband, so I have been taking less time to write. Still, we’ve collected quite a few passions:

We love to work out! (joined the local YMCA, very helpful, professional people there)
We love to play outside! (sitting on the bank of the beautiful Wisconsin River while my husband fishes – a bit about meditation, visiting places in my hometown that I’ve never seen and finally seeing what’s been there the whole time)
My husband loves to invent solutions – part one! (he’s renovating my mother’s house bit by bit using odds and ends laying around in my father’s workshop – ties in to some feelings about my father’s death)
My husband loves to invent solutions – part two! (he’s building a device for loading our canoe onto our van – how to translate visions into reality)
We love our canoe (and the water)! (checking out a variety of central Wisconsin canoe spots)
We love surprise! (Story about dressing up for Halloween and trick or treating as an adult and the joy of feeling a little bit scared/apprehensive)
We love details! (the precision with which my husband works as a German-trained machinist and about enjoying the smallest details on a walk in the woods with my nephew)
We love the sun! (gloomy fall weather in northern Germany and sunny late summer in Wisconsin – seasonal depression and cultural differences)
We love music – part one! (my husband’s passion for music by German singer Udo Lindenberg, old German songs from the 20s and Dixieland)
We love music – part two! (a small town concert in a terrific venue built with donations gathered by a passionate teacher and a plea by the band leader to continue supporting the arts)
We love to cook (and eat)! (Norbert’s passion for cooking with great ingredients and good tools and my passion for eating – and sustainable local food production)
I love to find connections! (connections I’m seeing among the passions of my ancestors, my relatives and myself)

Maybe we’ll call the second month of this quest DIRECTION as we try to figure out how to transform these passions into a way of life. My husband will be looking for an internship and I’ll be trying to carve out some time to write and plan our future endeavors based on what we’ve learned in our first month.

Thanks for checking in.

Many friendly greetings from Wisconsin (a phrase directly translated from German that I find wonderful),
Paula

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week: gone AWOL–come back to us, John!
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week, she’s doing great and being nice to herself:)
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day, Marcie is rocking along and DOING it!
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol: fell off the wagon. Gitty up back on, Lucero!
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week AND recently added no sugar to her challenge. Way to up the ante, Jenny!
WATCH this video of the SouperJenny team taking very good care of themselves and appreciating each other!

Ashley White-Stern: 40 days of meditation and she’s on day 26 of her challenge, fighting a cold, but staying true to being silent at least once a day. Feel better, Ashley!

M Arsenia Brown (aka: @donutdemon) joins with a commitment to 40 days of her body
Cat Sabonis-Chafee is in and says “I will move my ass” for 21 days of daily, considered exercise. She reminded me of a great tool: TAKE A DAY OFF every week and she added in an abs&stretch class today.
Emily-Sarah is joining with body awareness and daily movement. Welcome, Emily-Sarah.
Nicola Warwick kicks off 40 days of food journaling and diet hacking! TODAY! She’s using a super duper diet spreadsheet.

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Getting the Job Done! (Day 38/40)

admin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:14:18 +0000

As many of us wind down our commitments, 40 day or 40 second, we might find ourselves on a slippery slope. Maybe you’ve started to skip days of exercise due to flu or lack of motivation. Maybe you are feeling discouraged by co-workers bringing in leftover Halloween candy. I get it, really I do. If you have 2 days left or 15 days left, know we are with you and supporting you. I put a call out to the questers asking how their challenges went or are going. Tanya Geisler, a quester from Toronto, and Suzie Powanda, from Southern California, wrote to me and agreed to let me share their letters.

Tanya’s letter:

Hiya Mighty D -

Yeah…it’s almost surreal how a month has come and gone. It’s like the moment I joined you in the challenge and “declared” it, it became real easy-like. Beyond the resonant reasons that I attribute my decision to to quit in the first place AND the accountability that I have felt owed to you, I’ve had two boffo bouts of sickies. First was a cold that made me lose my breath then voice (and me without a voice is, well, pretty um, strange) and then, in the last week, THE flu. Sick sucks.

AND what I make of this is quite simple. It was my time. And I feel so bloody blessed that I heeded your call…good Lord…was that from Twitter? Hmmm. I see a blog post. “How Twitter prolonged my life…by connecting me in the right moment to Dyana Valentine and how I got out of my own damned way in the process”. Or something more eloquent or at least more concise.

So yes. I am more resolute than ever. I have had my share of challenges. I bought an emergency pack of nicorettes (just in case) that I have yet to crack into AND found myself bargaining a week ago saying that I was doing so well that I could “reward” myself with a cigarette “if I so chose” on Hallowe’en (and didn’t take myself up on it). And I feel good (H1N1 aside) and proud, but moreover like it was about time. And the entire time, I’ve felt held by you. The woman I’ve not met and yet, I feel I have. Ahhhhhhhhhhh.
It’s a short life. I am grateful that you put out the call….the call I didn’t think I NEEDED to heed. And I did.
XOX
T

Suzie’s letter:

Hi Dy~

I finished the challenge on November 1st. All said and done, the idea of 40 days is just long enough to change a habit (good or bad), easy enough to see the end of the tunnel and not give up. I didn’t realize the impact of the challenge when I started until the first day, I decided to ‘treat’ myself to breakfast via drive thru. It felt heavy in me and on me. As the day progressed, it was a super hectic one as I was taking 2 days off (my birthday celebration to me), I was running errands on a tight schedule, hit the drive thru for a flamed grilled chicken sandwich, and ate while I drove to make the most of multitasking! Fortunately or unfortunately, I had the WORST indigestion I have ever had. And honestly, I knew it was the food!! I had been eating so good and wisely, that my body was not happy with me. I had so much water trying to help flush this through my system.

I did decide to try a new 40 day challenge as a result. I am going to exercise for 40 days – exercise = either the gym or the Wii fit and may happen at any point in the day M – Th with Friday a bonus day that doesn’t count towards the challenge. Not sure of the start date, but will keep you posted!

Suzie

What call are you heeding? What will you commit to next? Share with us in the comments.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week: gone AWOL–come back to us, John!
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week, she’s doing great and being nice to herself:)
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day, Marcie is rocking along and DOING it!
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol: fell off the wagon. Gitty up back on, Lucero!
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week AND recently added no sugar to her challenge. Way to up the ante, Jenny!
WATCH this video of the SouperJenny team taking very good care of themselves and appreciating each other!

Ashley White-Stern: 40 days of meditation and she’s on day 26 of her challenge, fighting a cold, but staying true to being silent at least once a day. Feel better, Ashley!

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Photos courtesy of The Library of Congress, Tanya Geisler and Suzie Powanda. All used with permission.

No related posts.

To Me, From Me (37/40)

admin — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:49:06 +0000

When was the last time you did something, big or small, just for yourself? No one was watching, maybe no one else even knew? Tell me in the comments.

Some of the best gifts I’ve ever received were ones I gave myself–anyone else in this camp? As you plan for the holidays (travel, gifts, events, gatherings, mad rush of end-of-year work), plan some time for just yourself. Page down and look for the updates in bold of my fellow questers and find out what they are doing for themselves.

Here are a few ideas for those of you who can’t give yourself 40 days, but might consider 40 seconds of “to you, from you:”

Make anagrams from your name.
Fix something (even if that means disassembling something that works).
Break a plate.
Yell out loud in your car.
Sew yourself something.
Listen to your favorite song—you know the one I mean, the one that makes your best friend groan or would embarrass you if someone posted it on Facebook (Hungry Like The Wolf, anyone?).
Go to See’s Candy, a fancy nut&candy shop or a frozen yogurt place and get a sample.
Go to a park and just sit there. Heck, don’t even go anywhere, just sit there.
Hang up the phone. Push back from your technology. Stop.
Flirt with someone: a friend, an elder, a kid, play and be cute and lovey.
Make a wishlist. Write down everything you wish was just left, anonymously, at your doorstep.
Just leave the office. Now. No goodbyes or check ins, just leave and breathe.
Paint your toenails (this is for everyone: butch, femme, man, woman)
Make goofy faces in a mirror.
Skip school. (to my SMC students–but turn in your homework first:))
Order the fancy sheets you’ve always wanted.
Start a LifeList.

Body update: phase 2 of my flu has landed. I had terrific workouts Monday and Tuesday and took a very short walk yesterday. Am stretching and doing pre/post exercises today. Committing to healing includes: herbs, hot ginger tonic and pillows. Wish me luck.

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness she’s DONE and kicking off another 30 days, this time of writing.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She has GREAT ideas on staying inspired and gives an update on wrassling her bitchy soul and is rocking her challenge!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth: She’s DONE, no honey or sugar for a MONTH, lost 4 lbs and has great new awarenesses around her body and her cravings. Way to go, Monica!
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise. Check out her guest post/video here.
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their update videos here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week: gone AWOL–come back to us, John!
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week, she’s doing great and being nice to herself:)
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day, Marcie is rocking along and DOING it!
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol: fell off the wagon. Gitty up back on, Lucero!
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week AND recently added no sugar to her challenge. Way to up the ante, Jenny!
WATCH this video of the SouperJenny team taking very good care of themselves and appreciating each other!

Ashley White-Stern: 40 days of meditation and she’s on day 26 of her challenge, fighting a cold, but staying true to being silent at least once a day. Feel better, Ashley!

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

40 Days of My Body: Day 36, Try This At Home

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:22:36 +0000

I need suggestions: how shall I wrap up this challenge? I’m taking requests, so please comment and share your ideas.

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness and shares a great Huffington Post article, 10 tips from a Personal Trainer today.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She gives a GREAT tutorial on strategic rest!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise. Check out her guest post/video here.
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their update videos here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week

Ashley White-Stern: 40 days of meditation and says, “a controlled person is a dead person. A controlled person is not necessarily a disciplined person; discipline is totally different. Discipline comes out of awareness; control comes out of fear.”

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That (35/40)

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:33:33 +0000

Today was a little bit of this:

which felt SOOOO good, and a little bit of that (which felt even better):

up at 4a, down at 630p. That’s right, you can turn green all you want. I’m staying healthy!

Do you have any questions about the 40 Day Challenge?
I’ll answer (almost) any query.

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness and shares a great Huffington Post article, 10 tips from a Personal Trainer today.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She gives a GREAT tutorial on strategic rest!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise. Check out her guest post/video here.
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their update videos here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Comfy Bed by RachelKramerBussel.com and workout guy by Lululemon Athletica. Both used under a Creative Commons license.

Flu Reason: (34/40)

admin — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 02:33:50 +0000

What could be more about my body than being laid up with the flu? I planned for day 34 of 40 of my body challenge to be titled “back in action” because I assumed that all of the days of the challenge had to be in ACTION, thus taking days off and not posting on Sundays (and an occasional Sunday/Monday when my body was so worn out it sent flares).

Well, that thinking helped me:

stretch this 40 days out to an annoying, un-subscription inspiring, ridonkulously long time (total time elapsed since day one: 46 days);
practice valuing the days when I (over)worked as the only ones that “counted”; and
pushed my body past the point of health.

Where else do I do this in my life? More places than not. I push the envelope in ways that are sometimes brilliant, but truly most ways that simply make me tired. My busy-ddiction showing itself left and right.

Here’s what I learned (even though I don’t act on them):

slow and steady may not win the race, but it may get you there alive; and
you can’t unlearn how to rest, you may just get flabby rest muscles. Tone up those suckers and lay down–even for a minute.

As if her inspiration could be more on time and en pointe, Danielle LaPorte posted this Merton quote during my flu reasoning,

“Take more time, cover less ground.” – Thomas Merton.

I like the idea and the tone of his statement. But, what does it mean to me and how I might implement it. Ideas?
It really isn’t the end of the world to clear six days to rest and recover from the flu, just imagine what earth shattering reasoning I could do if I took that many days to frolic and create while healthy.

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness and shares a great Huffington Post article, 10 tips from a Personal Trainer today.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She gives a GREAT tutorial on strategic rest!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise. Check out her guest post/video here.
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their update videos here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Photo by SuperFantastic and used under a Creative Commons license.

40 Days of My Body: Day 33, Slow Down!

admin — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:58:35 +0000

I saw this sign while doing my cardio workout today and it inspired me to think about what SLOW DOWN means to me.

Usually, when I hear “slow down,” I think–what?! why? and immediately get indignant. It’s a bad habit; okay, I get that. But I’m starting to get more weary, less tolerant and a smidge less effective, so I’m viHere are my Pro/Con lists.

Cons of Slowing Down:

I hate waiting and get fussy in slow mode;
there’s MUCH more chance of backsliding if I slow down (or at least that’s what I fantasize about); and
I am addicted to the busy–and fast-busy at that. There, I said it.

Pros of Slowing Down:

it’s much easier to maintain focus and set priorities if you have your wits about you;
slowing down gives time for systems to catch up with actions (e.g. my body can recover more and allow me to get more out workouts OR on biz side, I actually have the space to check out what is working and make necessary adjustments); and
whether in food, decision-making, sex or conversation, slower is usually better.

What does it take for you to slow down?

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness and shares a great Huffington Post article, 10 tips from a Personal Trainer today.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She gives a GREAT tutorial on strategic rest!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their daily update video here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week

M Arsenia Brown (aka: @donutdemon) joins with a commitment to 40 days of her body
Cat Sabonis-Chafee is in and says “I will move my ass” for 21 days of daily, considered exercise. She reminded me of a great tool: TAKE A DA OFF every week and she added in an abs&stretch class today.
Emily-Sarah is joining with body awareness and daily movement. Welcome, Emily-Sarah.
Nicola Warwick kicks off 40 days of food journaling and diet hacking! TODAY! She’s using a super duper diet spreadsheet.

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

40 Days of My Body: Day 32, Booty&Booty

admin — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 05:54:35 +0000

Here’s an exercise medley video to get you going. FEEL IT! (I know I still am!)

I don’t know if I’ve ever looked so forward to a day off. Tomorrow, I’m going technology free from 8a-5p: no music, no computer, no e-mail, no hulu. Special request to questers: send me an update on your challenge via e-mail or post it in the comments. I want some suggestions for how to celebrate myself at the end of my 40 day challenge–any ideas?

Take care of yourself and answer this:

How did/will you move your a*# today?

I am not alone on my quest. The roll call is at 30 people (including me)! Some are getting organized, others giving up fast food and some are simply breathing! Check out the updates and links below and show your support:

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness and opted for a 5K today(honoring her injury and her intense conference/travel schedule), instead of the 10K she planned for. Go, Alisa!
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it. She gives a GREAT tutorial on strategic rest today! Check her out!
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their daily update video here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week

M Arsenia Brown (aka: @donutdemon) joins with a commitment to 40 days of her body
Cat Sabonis-Chafee is in and says “I will move my ass” for 21 days of daily, considered exercise. She reminded me of a great tool: TAKE A DA OFF every week and she added in an abs&stretch class today.
Emily-Sarah is joining with body awareness and daily movement. Welcome, Emily-Sarah.

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

40 Days of My Body: Day 31, Just Show Up

admin — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 06:00:43 +0000

I showed up today. I got up at 445a and walked (showed up for 40 day challenge); I made breakfast (showed up enough to eat, fyew); got to school early (showed up for my students); frightfully and at the exact moments showed for all of my client calls (for them and for me); optionally and with glee went to meet peers (showing up for my biz and theirs–and for connecting to new great humans); and the grande finale, showing up at a party with old friends and new, eating beautiful fresh-from-the-farmers’ market food AND enjoying a fig dessert (showing up for passion, community and indulgence). And now, I’m showing up for MYSELF and laying the frak down (without excessive self-flagellation that this post has no video, doesn’t make some deep point and has no bulleted or numbered list of great insights for you). Read on below to see how my fellow questers are showing up for themselves.

How are you showing up today?

Tanya Geisler–40 days of hatha yoga and radical self-care. Check out her ROCKING tell-all post!
Petra Korn–30 days on her body (supported with love by hubby Nick)
Tia Reddy–yoga and exercise: she found her yoga plan was NOT working and made these adjustments.
Alisa Bonsignore–working out and food consciousness and satisfied her veggie quota and exercised doing a mall walk while at a conference.
Suzie Powanda–no fast food or beverages. Check out her guest post getting into the nitty gritty of her challenge progress.
Julie Rorrer–training for the Austin marathon in Spring
Emma Alvarez Gibson–some bit of exercise, every day. She says, “micromovements are proving to be very effective! I’m beginning to look for excuses to get more exercise.”
Joyce Black–FINISHED her 21 days without caffeine and doing a general detox, congratulate her! She did a guest post, too!
Carabunga is rocking 40 days of hardcore productivity and rocking a blog about it
Paula Trucks-Pape and her husband: 87 Days of exploring their passions
Monica Kingsbury: 30 days of the Candida diet to deal with her sweet tooth
Jack and LisaMarie Rowell: 30 days of extreme health (alkaline diet)
Diane Sherry Case: 3 weeks of walking–she’s up to 20 minutes 4 days/week! (yoga if it rains)
Cindy Morefield: 21 Days of 30 mins/day of cardio exercise
Paula Estes: 30 Days of playing congas while she works in her studio
Sheila Hart is IN: 21 Days of no sugar!
Amy Ahlers: 40 days limiting processed food.)
SouperJenny Team: 40 Day hits the ATL! So far, Meredith is giving up sweets and Jenny is giving up booze!! 7 folks have joined their group. Gooo, Team Body, Mind, Spirit! Watch their daily update video here.

John from San Diego is giving up carbs and working out 3x/week
Sharon’s giving up all sugar except fruit
Merrideth giving up all sugar and exercising 4 times a week
Marcie will journal every day and cut down from 4 to 5 diet sodas a day to one per day
Tricia from Atlanta will drink a quart of her green juice concoction and exercise 5 to 7 times a week
Lucero Martinez a restaurant/bar owner will give up all alcohol
Jenny giving up all alcohol and working out 5 times a week

Ashley White-Stern: 40 days of meditation and is finding her center; Go Ashley!
M Arsenia Brown (aka: @donutdemon) joins with a commitment to 40 days of her body
Cat Sabonis-Chafee is in and says “I will move my ass” for 21 days of daily, considered exercise
Emily-Sarah is joining with body awareness and daily movement. Welcome, Emily-Sarah.

Are you a quester wanting to tell your story? Do it! E-mail me and put your own video or guest post up!

Photo of me and Mario Trujillo by Sharifa Candelaria.