Holiday Baking and Losing Weight

Thanksgiving is behind and Christmas is ahead. This is the time of year that can be quite a challenge for those who strive to eat healthy or are trying to lose weight. I've been hanging out at the LoveToKnow Diet forum where people are discussing all kinds of topics. If you go to the page, look in the top left hand corner for the yellow bar that says "Diet Forums". I brought up the topic Tips for Dieting and the Holidays, and have found the exchange is helping to motivate me to make better choices, and use the little tricks to help me through the times of temptation. If you're looking for some support, it's a great place to visit.

The tip I posted there today is about holiday baking. My family has a tradition of making a slew of Christmas cookies. Over the years I’ve narrowed it down to about four kinds of cookies, and most of those I bake to give away or bring to a special event. This way I can have a few of my favorites, without the temptation of eating them throughout the day...day after day.

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Jump Start Your Motivation

I just finished juicing some big juicy apples and some spinach with about an eighth of a lemon. I'll be sipping on the scrumptious and nutritious beverage throughout the morning in an effort to get my eating back to balanced. I'm trying to get rid of my all or nothing attitude and to make more consistent healthy choices from day to day. In my case, when I decide it's okay to make an exception, like when I go out to eat, the exception tends to lead to days of exceptions! I get so tired of my double mindedness. I want to eat healthy, my stomach wants instant gratification...tries to tell me I deserve to eat whatever I want and as much as I want if I really like whatever it is! So it's a mental battle!

This apple juice lemonade is not only nutritious, but also delicious, and so it works to satisfy on every letter AND I hope will jump start my motivation to make better choices. If you're in the same boat, give it a try.

On the writing front I received good news yesterday. I'll be starting a diet blog at LoveToKnow Diet and will keep you all informed when I have more information. It will differ from this blog, but I already have some great ideas.

Stress, Life and Losing Weight

I apologize to my regular readers for not posting more often. Sometimes writing life demands make blogging the least unprofitable use of my time, but I had to stop in to let you know that all is well. Promotion of my book, Beyond the Fifth Gate, is going well. It can be downloaded as an ebook and is also available at Amazon.

I'm also reading books and developing upcoming classes for Writer's Village University. Who would have thought years ago when I signed up for membership there that I'd find myself in this current situation! I attribute much of my success to that move and highly recommend their classes to anyone with the desire to improve their writing.

With all this, my role at LoveToKnow is also changing as I'm being promoted to Group Editor over Diet, Business and Cruises. Training starts in November! I'm very excited about this.

This is just part of what's keeping me busy, so you may be wondering how I'm doing with my weight. I admit, I've struggled a little with my eating, but it's not running away with me. I've stopped weighing daily, but when I stepped on the scale today, I've lost another 2 pounds. Now how exciting is that? This makes a total of almost 25 pounds since I moved to Georgia!

I haven't bought a "lick" of Halloween candy, either. Instead of handing out candy, our family has a tradition of going out for dinner--a healthy dinner. This way I don't have left over candy AND I don't even have to make dinner.

One Day at a Time Weight Loss

Life is a bit hectic right now, but I haven't cut exercise from schedule, though my blogging time has been whittled down as my regular readers may have noticed. I'm on day 13 of my cleanse, and feeling good. I've lost 7.5 pounds, though I know some of that will come back when I'm done with the cleansing process. One of the main things I've noticed is how much better I'm sleeping. Which tells me that what I eat can affect that!

My writing responsibilities continue to grow in a good way. I have a second interview with LoveToKnow tomorrow to possibly take on more responsibility there. Time will tell what is next. Either way I'll be satisfied as I'm very happy with my current role there as Site Editor for Diet, Exercise, Vitamins, Business and Home Improvement, along with my writing responsibilities.

Along with this, I'm setting up a couple more blog tours for Promo 101 Virtual Blog Tours. Two very interesting books. One is young adult fantasy and the other is non-fiction written by a man who grew up in a crime family!

I'm also making slow but steady progress on my next novel, looking for reviewers for Beyond the Fifth Gate, and reading a mystery for review.

With this kind of schedule, in the past, I've snacked when I hit a snag, or have to take care of something I don't feel like doing, or if I feel overwhelmed or too busy to make something healthy. Following this cleanse has helped me take my focus off food. I don't have to think about what I can or can't have. There's one thing. The fresh lemonade mixture I make each day. It satisfies, gives me all the energy I need and more, plus when I'm at our weekly pot luck, or sitting at the dinner table...it's okay. I don't obsess about what I can't have! I take it one day at a time.