Welcome!
Hey there! I'm Holly. A 40+ year old insurance-nerd wife, mom, beauty lover, and about a million other things in between. This is the place where I share about our lives, what I'm currently loving, books I'm reading, plus-size style, beauty recommendations, health + fitness endeavors and anything else I'm finding interesting at the moment. Thanks for stopping by!Instagram
Categories
Looking For Something?
Monthly Archives: March 2014
Impromptu Whole 30: Behind the Scenes During Days 1-4
Can you help?
You see, I don’t actually understand how time works.
For starters, HOW THE HELL IS IT THURSDAY ALREADY? This baffles me.
Fair Warning: I think I might be cranky. This is a phase, right? I think this is a phase. π
The Upside? I’m on Day Four of my Impromptu Whole 30 and I’ve hardly even realized that it started! Only 26 days to go.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA :::HEADDESK::: That calculation didn’t really motivate me. Re-do!!
In reality though, it’s going surprisingly fine. The only reason I can cobble together for this is that my attitude about this is very relaxed. Maybe there’s something to that, eh? For example Monday night we had corned beef, carrots and brussels sprouts for dinner. Corned beef is not photogenic at all really, but I assure you she’s a true beauty on the inside! π But my corned beef — as hippie as she was — did contain Sodium Lactate. I imagine that is not “approved” but I had purchased it for St. Patty’s Day before I decided on this impromptu Whole 30 and I wasn’t going to let it go to waste or deter me from getting started.
(It’s okay, you can give me partial credit in your minds if you want and count this as a Whole 29 if you want, I won’t stop you.)
While I don’t plan on eating any other questionable things in the next month, I didn’t let that tiny deviation freak myself out into postponing and hey look at that, now we are more than 10% of the way done. Cool.
So, I mentioned that I would be posting pictures on Instagram and stuff — because what the hell is Instagram even for if not to post pictures of delicious food I’m about to eat — but I think I have only maybe posted one. This one:
The thing is, this is what I’ve eaten for breakfast the last 4 days, and I made the executive decision that you don’t need to see that 4 times in a row. Sure I could jazz it up a little and change my filter or something, but I’m not feeling at my most creative with respect to photo composition when at 6am, so one picture will have to do for now.
Forgive me?
*****
The other reason I think the first 4 days have flown by is that I’ve had Real Life Things going on that have made the “What’s for dinner” question feel very rudimentary and just sort of noise going on in the background, ya know? Work is taking up a lot of brain space for me right now, I’m in the middle of doing my taxes and it’s not going well (grumble), and then yesterday was what would have been my Dad’s 60th birthday.
THAT was a bit of an emotional land mine. I thought about writing a post yesterday, but for some reason I just couldn’t. (Here’s the one I wrote last year.) Part of it, is that he was so youthful when he died — in age and in spirit — and it is hard to believe he would have been 60 years old. Time is just an oddity, I tell ya. And I definitely just went ahead and had all of the feelings yesterday. Sorry I didn’t leave any leftovers for you. π
So like I said, the upside is that in the context of everything that is going on in life, this Whole 30 is feeling pretty easy. Everything is relative, yes?
According to this though, I’m about to get to the murder/suicide/nap phase:
I may already be approaching that, frankly.
In fact, you know what, a nap sounds pretty damn good right now. See y’all when I wake up!
Surprise I’m (Crazy And) Doing Another Whole 30!
I was painting my nails on Saturday and noticed they were sort of splitting and chipping and generally making for a gnarly looking manicure. AND WE CAN’T HAVE A GNARLY MANICURE NOW, CAN WE?
My solution:
*****
I know, it probably sounds a little nuts but I remembered back to every Whole 30 I’ve done and one of the most notable things that always happens is my nails end up looking fantastic. So — hey, superficial goals for the win!
My other superficial goal? Get back my May 2012 shoulders. Ooooooh, and get rid of my back fat. Yes, that too! Sadly, some of those goals will take more than 30 days, but all of these silly superficial goals have one thing in common: They require my nutrition to be dialed in tight. So why not a Whole 30?
I quickly glanced at the calendar on Saturday and it didn’t appear we had no major boozing holidays on the books over the next 30 days (sorry, just being real, that is always the toughest part of Whole 30 for me) so I decided, “Why put it off, let’s start Monday!”
I’ve written before about how to make your Whole 30 a success and I’ll have you know right now I have taken none of my own advice (that’s not completely true — my mindset is pretty determined) but I am not prepared at all. I don’t have a great meal plan or any fabulous new recipes to get excited about, but I have a fridge full of meat and veggies so I know it can be done.
Besides, I totally own Well Fed and Well Fed 2 — and in my humble opinion, those are really the only 2 resources I need to have crazy good/squeaky clean eats for 30 days.
Seriously, GETCHA SOME!
Impulse Whole 30s are the new black.
It’ll be an experiment so I’m sure I’ll be updating the blog, Twitter and Instagram with all my thoughts.
Follow along if you like!
*****
Any chance you’re doing one?
Fun Things To Read On A Friday
Well would you look at that! It’s Friday. 1/7th of your life is a Friday — so hey, that’s pretty rad.
Any exciting weekend plans? I have a lot of errands to run this weekend so I anticipate being really productive but also getting out into the sun as much as possible. It’s going to be in the 80s this weekend (SORRY/NOT SORRY) and something about that just makes me feel much more excited about being out and about and getting things done. Also, there will be eating dinner outside FOR SURE.
I’m heading to the gym tonight to do workout 14.3 (let’s just get this over with! LOL Did any of you do it already? TELL ME YOUR SECRETS) and then tomorrow we’ll be cheering on our friends doing it as well (feeling much more relaxed I’m sure.) And beyond that, not too much planned besides taking Buster to the park and just laying low.
But enough about all that chatter, how about some links?
*****
*Interesting perspective for the Fitbit Obsessed.
*If you are reading this post and thinking, βThis doesnβt apply to me β I never lie,β you are probably lying to yourself:Β The Surprising Cost of Telling Small Lies
*Recipes I’d RULLY like to make: Grain Free Orange Scones, Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Garlic Aioli, Cinnamon French Toast Panna Cotta,
*Good advice on loving the body you have.
*This is seriously the best book list I’ve ever read.
*A fun roundup of necessary CrossFit gear — I definitely second most of these. (And that double under thing looks pretty interesting if you are still trying to master them.)
*Stuffocation? Hmmm…that’s an interesting concept.
*No truer words have ever been spoken: “Never live anywhere without a bathtub. That would be like losing godβs phone number.”
*Need a week of meal ideas? Well here you go!
****
Hope you enjoy your weekend, wherever it takes you!
10 Things Rocking My World Lately
Sometimes it’s fun to just share the awesome, you know?
So let’s do this!
Here are a few things absolutely rocking my world lately:
1. The Breakfast Salad
I subscribe to a lot of random fitness/health newsletters (I guess email marketing is here to stay, eh?) and one of my recent emails (and I can’t remember which one, dangit) included a recipe for “Breakfast Salad.” I almost just deleted it because, while I love vegetables, I’m more of a “Lettuce after 11” kind of gal. Luckily I clicked through and scanned the recipe which, a week or so later, inspired my own.
Here’s what I include:
2 oz breakfast sausage (which I cook up in little mini meatballs)
1-2 Hard Boiled Eggs
Cherry Tomatoes
Cilantro
Salt and Pepper
…and then right before I eat it I chop up half an avocado and if I’m feeling fancy, add a squeeze of lime.
IT’S AMAZING!
(And if you also get that newsletter, remind me in the comments who it was so I can give credit where credit is due. Thanks!)
2. This Dog Video (and really ALL dog videos)
I don’t know, you guys, lately I am just obsessed with cute animals and seriously what a lame thing to say BUT IT IS TRUE AND I AM UNAPOLOGETIC. Sometimes finding happiness on the internet between all the criticizing and awful news of the world is hard, and cute animals are just making my day!
3. March Meatball Madness
If you are not reading Melissa’s March Meatball Madness posts, please remedy that right away.Β I am having food dreams about Bacon Jalapeno Burger Balls with Dill Relish and Awesome Sauce (on the menu this weekend!)
4. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
You know what I have realized about myself? I love a good campus novel (random ones that come to mind: Prep, I Am Charlotte Simmons, The Secret History, Looking for Alaska…what else am I missing? RECOMMENDATIONS AHOY!)
School and College can be so dang awkward and for some reason I sort of love reading about it. I’ve been jumping into bed early every night just to catch up on campus life in this adorable, well-written novel.
5. Tree Hut Shea Sugar Body Scrub in Tropical Mango
Do you know what season it is? Self Tanner Season. It’s been warm enough here for bare legs and let me assure you that self tanner is not so much a vanity play for me, but a courtesy for you. YOU WOULD GO BLIND AT THE SIGHT OF MY WHITE LEGS OTHERWISE. Anyway, this requires a good pre-tan exfoliation sesh and this scrub is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. No scratchy granules, no drying salt, deliciously scented, and gets the job done.
Need an impulse purchase idea for the next time you go to ULTA? This is it.
6. Fresh Flowers
$5 Daisies from Whole Foods. $6 Tulips from Trader Joe’s. DUDE: WORTH IT.
7. That Mad Men is almost back!
Nothing extra to note here: I’M JUST EXCITED!!!
8. Philosophy Anti Aging Products
Years ago I tried Philosophy’s Purity Made Simple and it worked well but I always moved on to try other things (as beauty junkies do!) But over the last few months I’ve added their Microdelivery Triple Acid Brightening Pads to my skincare routine each week and I have been BLOWN AWAY by the results. (The product is a must have if you are fretting about skin texture. It’s incredible.)
Anyway, I was watching QVC a few weeks ago (as you do) and was sucked into purchasing their TSV which was a combo of Philosophy Anti Aging Products. I was interested in the Miracle Worker line – specifically the eye cream which I have heard a ton about and subsequently fallen in love with (BELIEVE THE HYPE) – as well as the daily moisturizer. But it also came with another fun little set of microderm type products and some face washes. It’s been a blast. They all work well and the value for all the products is ridiculous!
9. Spring Scents
I don’t know if it is the weather or what, but I have been loving me some flowery fragrances. I’ve been picking up perfume samples at Sephora like it’s my job (it’s dangerously close in location to my job actually: DANGER WILL ROBINSON, DANGER) and I have settled on a possible spring fragrance purchase: Roses de Chloe. This is strange to me because I don’t really love floral scents and I REALLY don’t love rose scents. And yet… I dunno, it must be the bergamot. It smells so fresh!
Also, I’m loving Bath and Body Works candles lately. They just had a huge sale recently and ever since I’ve been burning them like non-stop. A good smelling candle can really make your house feel homey, and they have some really springy smelling ones that I can’t get enough of!
10. And then of course this guy, just because
*****
Tell me what’s rocking YOUR world lately
Spring State of Mind
This weekend, in our neck of the woods, spring arrived in full force.
I can’t believe I am saying this because I HATE talking about the weather — this, by the way, is another consequence of working many years of retail — but the weather has been so reflective of my moods as of late. One day it’s sunny and mid 70s and absolutely gorgeous, another day it’s a bit misty and damp, and other days it’s stormy and downright electric.
That sounds a bit melodramatic, but I actually feel like I am on the cusp of something great. Like I’m about to bust out of this hibernation phase! Does that sound crazy? You know what, don’t answer that. π
I have really gotten my work stress in check in the first few months of the year. HOLY RELIEF, BATMAN! I’m also back to working out 4-5 times a week and man, my mental health is thanking me. Garrett and I are kicking ass and taking names together when it comes to finances, meal planning, and keeping our house clean (WHAT? That shit is stressful!) and lately I have felt so, so grateful to have a partner who is actually a partner.
I still have some goals in my head that are on-going (getting our yard in check, dealing with the garden, hiring a gardener, buying patio furniture) and some projects that are going to take some time to achieve (fitting back into all of my pants, getting back into the habit of reading for entertainment, decorating our guest bathroom, getting into a more regular schedule for blog-post writing) but I am going with the flow and it feels really nice.
What is dramatically different between life today and life a year ago today is that my plate is not as full (in all respects, frankly.) The upside? This is exactly what I need right now. My main goal in 2014 was to pursue peace, joy, rest and fun and man I am totally doing that. But as someone who tends to regularly bite off more than she can chew — the downside of this time in my life is that old habits die hard. I am constantly (and consciously) always fighting the urge to Do More. I think that’s where the stormy feelings come in.
(I sort of hate myself right now for using the term “stormy feelings” by the way. But dude, THE METAPHOR WORKS. And what are blogs for if not to talk about all of our feeeeeeeeeeeelings. heh)
No matter what conflict these two parts of my personality have, the pace of my life right now is a fantastic improvement! I’m guarding my weekends Fort Knox style. I’m scheduling in my priorities during the week like they are appointments. I am being gentler and less demanding of myself, for the most part, with things like not regularly updating the blog when it feels like too much. I’m not planning social commitments when I know I am going to want that time to do very important things like read magazines or take my dog for a walk. I am buying bubble bath in bulk. π
It’s a work in progress, but so far it’s working out. I feel like all this nurturing is going to yield an awesome bloom over the next months and while I’m not sure what that will look like, I’m looking forward to it. We all need a little surprise every once in a while.
The Most Wonderful Time Of Year?
It’s CrossFit Games Open time.
*****
If you have no idea what I’m talking about, consider yourself lucky. π
But since I’ll probably mention it a time or two over the next 5 weeks, here are the cliffs notes from good old Wikipedia:
In 2011, the Games adopted an online format for the sectional event, facilitating participation by athletes worldwide. During the “CrossFit Open”, a new workout is released each week. Athletes have several days to complete the workout and submit their scores online, with either a video or validation by a CrossFit affiliate. The top CrossFit Open performers in each region advance to the regional events, held over the following two months. As of 2013 there are 17 regional divisions, including 12 in North America (North West, Canada West, Canada East, North Central, Central East, North East, Mid Atlantic, South East, South Central, South West, Southern California, and Northern California), and five in the rest of the world (Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Australia). The top athletes (up to 3 of each gender) from each region are eligible to compete in the CrossFit Games.
They began last Thursday with the release of the first workout (Aptly called 14.1 — as in Workout #1 of the 2014 CrossFit Games Open):
To be honest, I almost didn’t sign up to participate this year. I am not feeling in the best shape, I am only starting to get my workouts back on track after a year of inconsistent training, I am carrying some significant extra lbs, and I just thought the stress of doing a weekly workout that was “officially judged,” that would most certainly be hard for me, that I would then have to make public each week — ARGH — it was just something I wasn’t really feel like I was needing in my life at the moment.
But the more I thought about it, the more I remembered what a fun time it is at the gym just participating. And usually when people are new and they are scared to sign up I always say “Don’t stress! It’s a great bench mark and the scores don’t matter! It’s just for fun and so you can see your own progress.”
So, AHEM, I figured I needed to put my money where my mouth is and just sign up. IT’S FOR FUN, and dammit I’m going to have some doing it! (Also, if we’re being honest, I didn’t want to have a blank year in my Games Profile because then my data would be messed up and YES I AM A CRAZY PERSON THANK YOU FOR ASKING.)
Garrett + I spent a lot of time nervously speculating on what the workout would include and my only hope was that it would include snatches. And it did! Hooray. Too bad it also included double unders. Double unders and I get along most of the time, but when I am off, I am ROYALLY OFF.
Saturday we headed down to the gym to do this beast, and let me tell you it was a rough 10 minutes. I had shortened my rope the night before and about 2 minutes into the workout I realized that had been an ENORMOUS mistake. Not that I thought I would end up doing a million rounds of this, but it was just clear early on I was not on my game. Double unders are also SUPER mental and once you let a few misses get in your head, it’s the pits. It was hard to eek out 100 reps. Luckily Garrett and I both felt sort of disappointed in our performances so we hatched a plan to retest before work today, which meant going to the 5am class.
5 am and Double Unders are just a special way to start a Monday. π
Anyway — in the end it was great — I added some additional reps to my score (171 in the end), and I just felt like it was more representative of my skill level right now. I am still feeling super out of shape (FOR ME) right now, AND HOOOOOOO BOY will double unders remind you that you are out of shape (gasping for air – hey, let’s go do some snatches), but at least I feel like this is more representative of where I’m at. Saturday was just a mess. So Workout #1 is in the books and now it is on to the next! The workouts get progressively harder as the weeks go on and I usually tap out around workout # 3 because it always seems to have MY NEMESIS Toes to Bar in it, so I am excited to see what’s coming next.
Until Thursday, we’ll just be over here tapping our toes, waiting.