Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 9: "Food for the Soul"

In order to keep my body in good condition, I also need to take care of my soul. I need to be better about the spiritual side of my body. I need to remember to read my scriptures daily, meditate/ponder, pray, and serve others. I need to remember to think of more than just myself. I need to make my home a place where the spirit can dwell. Only allow in things that are good, virtuous, and beautiful.

It is important to create an environment that is soothing for the soul. When the soul is at peace, the body can be at it's best. It is important to remember to take care of my spirit. It is what can help me to overcome the natural man. The natural man can be what wants to take over and make choices that may not be so smart, but the spirit can override that. I'm grateful for the opportunity we have each month to realign our spiritual side with our bodies through fasting. It helps us to remember that we are in control and can make wise decisions.

Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 8: "Listening to your Body"

I know that my lung is normal and I am over the worst of it. However, I still feel that there is something lodged in my lung trying to get out. I'm sorry, I know that sounds pretty gross, but it still hurts on my left side when I move.

I woke up this morning with it higher up, so I know that it is trying to get out. We were fasting today, so I didn't take Mucinex yet, but I will later on. I just really want it to go away. I felt like I needed to lie down most of the day. It felt better when I lied down. I could get up for awhile, but it would hurt after awhile. I'm glad that I went to get an x-ray because I know that it is nothing serious. I just need to listen to my body better. I need to understand what is happening to it.

I know that I still need to relax and not stress out. I am listening to my body more. I still need to work on being more efficient. I started my new lists today. I combined the A, B, C, D list with the subjects list and how long it takes to do each one. We'll see how it works out.

Listening to your body can be hard. I really don't want to be a wimp and think of every little thing that goes wrong, but I do need to take care of my body. It is important since I am the only one who can really decide what I need and at what time. I hope that this does go away and I can start working out again. I feel like my body is needing that to. There is moderation in all things and I'd like to get back to working out soon.

Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 7: "Eating Healthy"

Is there a way to eat healthy when out with friends or family? Such as going out to eat. I know that there are a lot of places that offer lower calorie options, but what about when eating at a family function? Or at a place where those lower calorie options are not there?

I guess I could just plan on not worrying about it. When it's a celebration, just relax. If I really want to watch it, then it's all about proportions. I don't need to eat everything in sight. I can eat lots of different things, but in smaller proportions. It's just hard when there are so many great things.

Eating out is the same way. Buffets are the worst! I guess I just need to be better during the rest of the week. I need to watch what I eat the other times so that it can really be a celebration when I go out with family or friends.

So really it comes to healthy eating the rest of the time. I guess that is not too bad because I have more control over what I eat at home. In the end, it's all up to me. That can be the hardest part. :) Good thing Ryan is a good protector and supporter of healthy eating. It helps me to stay closer to my goals.

Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 6: "Stress Reducers"

Stress is a part of life. It can motivate you or it can immobilize you. No matter what you do, it's going to always be there, but it doesn't have to rule your life. I have already confessed that I have a tough time doing "first things first". I put off those important tasks that should be done for tomorrow, for the things that will happen far in the future. It is not bad to plan for the future, it is just important to do what is important first. I have worked on writing lists and I know that they can help. The problem is it takes time to plan out my list. I want to be as efficient as possible with my lists, but I still haven't perfected the art of using the list correctly.
I've used different methods:

• Priority Lists (A, B, C, D)
• Timed lists (write the actual time I will work on the task)
• Week Lists (write one or two things down for each day)
• Subject lists (home to do list/school to do list)
• Room lists (things to do in the home)
• Subject lists (what to do at school)

I guess it's not an exhaustive list, but it's what I've tried. I guess the next step in my ability to de-stress is to follow that list. Maybe I need to plan in my day to plan for the next day. I should be better at this because I'm a teacher, but I'm still learning. I admit that this is a weakness, but I want it to be a strength. In my planning, I need to remember to not over plan.

I was talking to my mom last week about this subject. She mentioned that she knew someone that planned out her days with things they needed to get done, but also time to relax. This is an important thing that I forget to do. That might actually be what could help me to continue writing lists.

As I started out writing about these topics, I really thought that it would be more about my weight and how to be healthy, but maybe it was divine intervention that I got sick with pneumonia so I could start out focusing on my mental health. I can't do a lot about exercising right now. I can do a lot more about how I think about my health. It is important to learn how to deal with life in general and all of it's unpredictable events. I know you can't plan for everything, but "If you fail to plan, than you plan to fail."

I've noticed that I still have a tightening on my left side. The doctor called today and told me that my lung is completely normal. Either I still have stuff that is working it's way out or it's a stress ball that has always been there, I just didn't recognize it until now. Either way, I'm going to work on getting more sleep and relaxing by making lists that are attainable and smart.

If you have any tricks on how to write a better list or stay motivated please leave a comment. 

Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 5: "Good Night's Rest"

I had no idea (or I had forgotten) what a good night's rest can do! I slept almost 10 hours last night (that hasn't happened in who know's how long) and I woke up feeling so much better. I still feel like there is something in my lung, but it's actually starting to leave. I felt a ton better today. Not 100% still (cough, runny nose, etc.), but the sleep did some wonders.

I've been looking at what sleep can do for you. It really does have a lot to do with "beauty rest". Your body repairs itself best when you are sleeping. That is why when you are sick, the doctor tells you to rest. I was not very good at that last week. I was still working on school work when I was at home. One of my co-workers told me after I came back that she had taken the math books from me because she wanted me to go home and rest and stop working. (We are adopting a new math program this year, so we have lots of different volumes).

Sleep make it so that your mind is more alert, your emotions are not heightened (as much), and your patience is not as thin. I feel so much better about life when I've had my sleep. Now I know that this is a hard thing to practice. I'm the girl who "burns the candle at both ends", but I think that was my wake up call as well as having pneumonia. I need to take care of my body/mind and sleep is a priority. It takes into account the philosophy of taking a break. Our body needs that break to rejuvenate.

I have also heard that if you get the same amount of sleep each night as well as go to bed around the same time and wake up at the same time (with a variation each night within an hour), you control your body weight better, specifically body fat. It was a study I read that they had done on college age students. Does that work for me still? I should try it out and now that I have seen what a good night's rest can do, I'm going to work on that. Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite. Or in Sweden "Sov som en groda" (Sleep like a frog). :)

Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 4: "Overcoming Obstacles"

Overcoming Obstacle #1
Pneumonia:
I went to the doctor's today for a post check up (after the antibiotic regiment) to see that the pneumonia was all gone. My oxygen levels were good: 98%, breathing was good (no wheezing or crackles). They took an x-ray to check and make sure everything was gone. I had a scary thought that it might be something worse (I still had cold symptoms), but that was just my imagination going wild. The doctor looked at them and said from what she could see, I was fine, but the final opinion would come from the radiologist on Friday. Until then, I am supposed to still take it easy and treat the symptoms.

I was glad that I was able to go to Young Women's tonight. They were making some cute pictures of the Plan of Salvation for one of the Personal Progress Values (Faith #6). They are talented girls. They were painting on canvases and cutting up pictures. I left early since I wasn't 100%, so I'll have to make mine later.

I am so grateful for my body's immune system. It definitely helped me to get better. I need to take better care of my body though so it doesn't get run down like it was. My immune system does not always get thanked until I am sick. I am grateful for what it does daily to keep me from getting sick. They are my own personal warriors against diseases.

Overcoming Obstacle #2
Motivation to Keep Going:
I know it's only Day 4 and I'm already starting to lose the motivation to keep going with thinking better about my body. Seeing my weight today, did not help that either. Here is a quote that I got today that might help me to keep going. I will end with that thought.

Healthy Body Image Challenge Day 3: "Healthy Balance: Moderation in All Things"

Sometimes I forget about how wonderful something is until it's gone. Monster Ballad comes in (enjoy the 80's rock band hair) Cinderella song "Don't know what you got, 'til it's gone. . ." or Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" (remake by Counting Crows) "don't know what you got 'til it's gone, they paved paradise and put up a parking lot"

Having pneumonia has been a real trying time for me. I haven't been able to go running; walking just makes me tired; and I need to relax more when I come home. On the other side, it's taught me some things that I should keep doing. I need to relax more. My husband and I were talking about this with a couple of friends the other day (our home teachers).  We were talking about how it is important to take a good long break. This makes it so we are more productive. I know I try to cram in a lot during the day. Being a school teacher, there is a lot to do! You also want to get as much done because you never know when you will have to spend your time doing something unexpected. (Such as dealing with students that were disrespectful to another teacher or a class that is not doing what they are supposed to when the student teacher asks.)

But really, I know that I try to cram a lot of stuff in, sometimes too much. Then I get way overwhelmed and just don't know where to start. I become this crazed person who is trying to get everything done at once, but really getting nothing done at all.

I need to have a healthy attitude about what needs to be done. At school, we have been working on the Steven Covey: 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. One of them talks about first things first. (He dedicated a whole book to this). I know that I have a problem with this. I have a task that should be done first, but for some reason I will do something else that is important, but less important than what I should be doing right then.

For example, it would be good for me to prepare my lesson for tomorrow. Instead, I decided to get the quizzes ready for the end of the week. Still very important, but it's not going to help me for tomorrow's lessons. It has been helpful with my sickness to step back and realize what really needs to be done. I don't have oodles of time just to get everything done. I should really just get the most important thing done and then move on to the next important thing. This is going to be a long time working on this.

How does this work with my body image? I am very good at coming up with plans for exercise and how I'm going to eat, but I will usually overload what I need to do to accomplish it. Since I cannot exercise right now, I am stepping back and focusing on one thing at a time. I am working on finding meals that are simple, weight watcher crock pot meals that I can do. If my sister-in-law Leia is reading this, I decided to re-start my goals by being vegetarian for the week. :) We've had vegetarian 3 bean chili tonight and I just finished making a yummy spinach and broccoli soup. This has been good for me to help get better as well.  Next is baked macaroni and cheese and sweet potato cauliflower soup.

3 Bean Chili

Broccoli and Spinach Soup

I have also been taking more breaks at school. It has been helpful having a student teacher right now, because I can step back and see how I can make things more efficient and prepare in advance while she is doing the day to day things. I have learned to come home earlier (being home by 5:30 is early for me when I was staying until 8 or 9) and not going in until 8 or 8:30 in the morning (contract time is at 8:30). I used to be "burning the candle at both ends" and I think that's why I was run down and got sick.

It has been so nice coming home and preparing meals. It doesn't seem so daunting because we do crock pot meals and they are set up before I get home. By preparing the meals ahead of time, I'm not so starving that I eat whatever is easiest to grab. I really do feel better about myself, I feel like I have more time, and it's been refreshing to take more time to myself. I still feel like I have plenty of time to get things done. The difference is I am more focused and efficient with my time.

Right after our home teachers left on Sunday, Ryan and I decided to apply what we had learned right then. We decided that we would take more breaks and play games in between those breaks. It was actually a lot of fun. We would play two rounds of Scattegories and then go back to what we needed to do that day. I felt like I got a lot more accomplished.

I am so grateful for little setbacks in life that help me to reflect on what I am doing. I realized that another one of the Covey Habits: "Sharpen the Saw" is something I need to work on. I need to not focus on just one thing, but step back and focus on a lot of things that will help me to stay more focused when it's most important. With that being said, I need to get to bed. Good night!