So, this blog is a pretty simple one. It covers a few of the products that I use to stay healthy.
The obvious one is the Army. With our workouts, which we call PT (physical training), every morning for an hour and a half, you think it would be easy to stay healthy. And this was once true, but since I work for the battalion, I find myself working during PT more often than I would like. And since I have to be at the office by 0545 now, and am lucky to get off by 1700 , it doesn't give me much time at home to get the things I need to (especially for deployment) done and still get plenty of sleep! So, when given the opportunity I almost always sleep in. Plus, I am not a morning person! I would much rather stay up late and wake up sometime after the sun, than be on the Army's schedule. And, even though some say I will get used to it, I have been getting up at or before 6 multiple days a week for ten years and I still haven't "gotten used to it" I don't think I ever will. Anyway, most of the Army's workouts (especially in my unit) includes a lot of running. I know for my age, weight and body type, a mile run burns about 105 calories. So, the Army is great for just burning calories, but since it doesn't always happen, I have to add other things to my life. (If you want help tracking your runs, walks, hikes or just about anything else, I recommend downloading the free Endomondo app from either the play store, or the app store).
When I can't get P.T. into my daily routine, I love doing Yoga. My sister-in-law put me on to an amazing website to help, too. I always found that if I did dvds that I wouldn't keep it up, because eventually I would get bored doing the same routines. And finding time going to classes is way more difficult than making sure I get to do PT. Plus, most gyms and studios charge (and that's frequently about $10/ class). But yogaglo.com is different. With Yogaglo, you can pick any time duration from 5- 120 minutes, you can pick your level, your style of yoga, a specific instructor, a specific body part... whatever you want! And it is only $18/ month (and you can cancel anytime). Plus there are literally thousands of videos because they are uploading them all of the time from a studio in California. You can schedule them for yourself, pick your favorites and add them to your queue. And for me, yoga has been such a big part of my recovery (see
But that isn't all, of course. Occasionally, I find myself putting on a few pounds (I fluctuate up and down about 5 pounds during the year). And when I get to the higher end, I like to retrain my body. The problem for me is, I work out a ton for awhile, and I get used to eating the calories to back it up. Then I go through lulls of not working out as much, or eating really unhealthily and it puts on the weight. Now, a few pounds may not bother most people, but my thought line is that a few pounds can add up fast. Most people who are overweight don't notice until it is too late, or maybe they just don't want to. It is much easier to maintain the weight that you are comfortable with, than yoyo-ing constantly. So, when I start to realize I am adding the pounds back on, or I am just eating too much, I start counting calories. I like to use Loseit! You can use their website or their apps to help you track meals and exercise, create weight loss goals, and even create your own recipes so you know how many calories are in your home cooked food. You can also add friends (making you more likely to achieve your goals). I mostly like to track calories to retrain my body for how much food I should be eating and to get comfortable "eating less" which is actually the correct amount for my desired healthy weight. Plus, since it's not really dieting, you can feel free to cheat! If there is a potluck, or your celebrating a birthday dinner, don't worry. Eat whatever and then go back to tracking the next day!
And last but not least, my husband and I recently started getting Organic Groceries delivered to our door, thanks to our friend Jordan. Door to Door Organics charges a flat rate for boxes of varying sizes. You pick the size box you want, how frequently you want it delivered and if you want fruits, vegetables or both. You can create lists of vegetables you don't like, or ones you love and they try to accommodate. And you can sub out items for ones of similar values if you want to change something. Plus, you can then add additional fruits, vegetables, meats, bakery items, or dairy if you want. And, for all of their food, you know that it is organic, but you can also find non-GMO, locally grown or made in the USA organic foods. It is always fresh and wonderful! I would highly recommend checking them out.
And last but not least, when my neck and shoulders are out of sorts, or the stress is piling on, I love getting Nueromuscular Massages from Parker at The Shade Tree Massage Therapy. Her prices are great for the amazing work she does. I will definitely be missing her while I am deployed!
The obvious one is the Army. With our workouts, which we call PT (physical training), every morning for an hour and a half, you think it would be easy to stay healthy. And this was once true, but since I work for the battalion, I find myself working during PT more often than I would like. And since I have to be at the office by 0545 now, and am lucky to get off by 1700 , it doesn't give me much time at home to get the things I need to (especially for deployment) done and still get plenty of sleep! So, when given the opportunity I almost always sleep in. Plus, I am not a morning person! I would much rather stay up late and wake up sometime after the sun, than be on the Army's schedule. And, even though some say I will get used to it, I have been getting up at or before 6 multiple days a week for ten years and I still haven't "gotten used to it" I don't think I ever will. Anyway, most of the Army's workouts (especially in my unit) includes a lot of running. I know for my age, weight and body type, a mile run burns about 105 calories. So, the Army is great for just burning calories, but since it doesn't always happen, I have to add other things to my life. (If you want help tracking your runs, walks, hikes or just about anything else, I recommend downloading the free Endomondo app from either the play store, or the app store). 
When I can't get P.T. into my daily routine, I love doing Yoga. My sister-in-law put me on to an amazing website to help, too. I always found that if I did dvds that I wouldn't keep it up, because eventually I would get bored doing the same routines. And finding time going to classes is way more difficult than making sure I get to do PT. Plus, most gyms and studios charge (and that's frequently about $10/ class). But yogaglo.com is different. With Yogaglo, you can pick any time duration from 5- 120 minutes, you can pick your level, your style of yoga, a specific instructor, a specific body part... whatever you want! And it is only $18/ month (and you can cancel anytime). Plus there are literally thousands of videos because they are uploading them all of the time from a studio in California. You can schedule them for yourself, pick your favorites and add them to your queue. And for me, yoga has been such a big part of my recovery (see Health & Exercise: Yoga daily, Health & Exercise: Yoga Update and Health & Exercise: Learning to Read Your Body to read more about why I do yoga and how amazing it has been for me).
But that isn't all, of course. Occasionally, I find myself putting on a few pounds (I fluctuate up and down about 5 pounds during the year). And when I get to the higher end, I like to retrain my body. The problem for me is, I work out a ton for awhile, and I get used to eating the calories to back it up. Then I go through lulls of not working out as much, or eating really unhealthily and it puts on the weight. Now, a few pounds may not bother most people, but my thought line is that a few pounds can add up fast. Most people who are overweight don't notice until it is too late, or maybe they just don't want to. It is much easier to maintain the weight that you are comfortable with, than yoyo-ing constantly. So, when I start to realize I am adding the pounds back on, or I am just eating too much, I start counting calories. I like to use Loseit! You can use their website or their apps to help you track meals and exercise, create weight loss goals, and even create your own recipes so you know how many calories are in your home cooked food. You can also add friends (making you more likely to achieve your goals). I mostly like to track calories to retrain my body for how much food I should be eating and to get comfortable "eating less" which is actually the correct amount for my desired healthy weight. Plus, since it's not really dieting, you can feel free to cheat! If there is a potluck, or your celebrating a birthday dinner, don't worry. Eat whatever and then go back to tracking the next day!
And last but not least, my husband and I recently started getting Organic Groceries delivered to our door, thanks to our friend Jordan. Door to Door Organics charges a flat rate for boxes of varying sizes. You pick the size box you want, how frequently you want it delivered and if you want fruits, vegetables or both. You can create lists of vegetables you don't like, or ones you love and they try to accommodate. And you can sub out items for ones of similar values if you want to change something. Plus, you can then add additional fruits, vegetables, meats, bakery items, or dairy if you want. And, for all of their food, you know that it is organic, but you can also find non-GMO, locally grown or made in the USA organic foods. It is always fresh and wonderful! I would highly recommend checking them out. 
And last but not least, when my neck and shoulders are out of sorts, or the stress is piling on, I love getting Nueromuscular Massages from Parker at The Shade Tree Massage Therapy. Her prices are great for the amazing work she does. I will definitely be missing her while I am deployed!
