Finding Balance

Wow Wow Wow...Have I been going through some crazy times...Actually, that's normal. However, the stress levels in my body are really high right now and I've been having weird little shock-like responses. I know it has to do with hormones and stress, but GOD, it's really an odd feeling that gives me almost the heebiegeebies. It's like I walk around with my shoulders up around my ears and the hair on the back of my head, neck, back and arms is always standing on end...again, it's a really odd feeling. I've been practicing my uji breathing when I feel stressed, which is most of the time, and it has been helping!...However, I realize it can't be healthy walking around like this. Granted, I've been dealing with alot, but I've got to get my body under control. Currently I'm reading Jillian Michaels' new book "Master Your Metabolism", I just bought it yesterday and am only in the 1st chapter, but she immediately lets you know that a lot of our problems with our health has to do with hormones. Hormones ARE your Metabolism. Hormones are triggered by everything from what you eat, to stress, to how much sleep you get to...well you get the point, literally everything! Even though I'm producing 4 operas, running an opera company, working a day job, performing, auditioning, trying to manage my weight, about to have a birthday, and trying to survive day to day, I've also been dealing with other outside factors that involve people I love and trying to help them with their struggles. I think I'm pretty much at my breaking point people. I WISH I could afford a vacation, but it's also the time that I've already prioritized to those above mentioned things that make it seem almost impossible to get away. I generally use my vacation days from my day job toward going on tour and pursuing my actual Opera Career. I haven't had a vacation in almost 5 years and I haven't gone home to Texas for longer than that *cry*. Look, I'm not complaining really, I made the choice to sacrifice what I have to in order to have my career, and generally that's time (and sometimes stability, both mentally and monetarily).

So, what to do? Well, I'm going to do what I know works for me:

• I've got to get control of my eating. Balanced blood sugar levels always keep the irritability factor in check, thus I've got to eat right and often.


• I've got to continue my work-outs. Working-out really does help lower the stress factor in my life AND it gives me more energy, when I pair it with the next to do on the list.


• Get ample sleep! I have to have to have to get at least 7 hours of sleep. Sadly I average 5-6 hours and that's just not enough for my bod...ESPECIALLY when I'm working-out 5-6 days a week.


• Give myself breaks. I must step away from the computer, rehearsal, and any other necessary evil long enough to breathe, relax and refocus or I'm no good to anyone. I also have to include that I've got to "give myself a break" when it comes to self-judgements. Big deal if I don't do everything perfect all the time...that's the beautiful and "perfect" thing about being human. From weakness we find strength, you can't have one without the other.

I think that's a good list to start (continue) with. I'll finish the book I'm reading soon and see if there isn't anything else that will help me find balance in my life. Perhaps tweak a few things that I'm doing.

Oh, I should share that I had my biometric screening yesterday, and although my finger is still sore from the finger prick *owwwuh* my results were surprising to me. I'm considered in the very good to excellent range of health!...so big YAY all around. My cholesterol was very good in both the HDL & LDL categories, my blood sugar was great, and my blood pressure was better than normal...so I must be doing something right. I have to say that even though my eating hasn't been the stellar example that I would like it to be, it's not terrible...AND I have been working out pretty consistently, even if it's just getting in my 10K steps a day. Also, I do think that my regular intake of ground flaxseed has been helping with getting some good Omega 3's in my system as well as a nice source of non-soluble fiber (keeps a girl regular...TMI?)

Anywho, its time to get back to aforementioned day job. I hope everyone is well, and feel free to chime in with any suggestions, questions or comments.

Have a great day,

Bex

Life Ramblings

It seems everyone that I know is going through one or more transitions in their lives. Either they're tweaking their health & fitness, renovating their homes, and/or trying to get out of some emotional funk. I wonder if the state of the economy in the world has made people wake up and realize that it's time to start living and doing with what one has instead of filling our empty lives with "stuff" that we buy. I have been know to fill the void in my life from time to time by stuffing either my mouth or home with things I don't need, and I find that I still feel empty even after the stuffing has ensued. How satisfying this past month has been out of the simple use of elbow grease and revamping my home. How free I feel not to have all the clutter suffocating me and the looming feeling that I should be at home cleaning and organizing my apartment all the time. When it's done and done well...then you are left with not only a feeling of completion and pride, but you are actually left with time. Time to do other things without that guilt in the back of your mind. Time to work on your health without the would've, should've, could've-s. At least that's how my brain works. I just don't feel I can do anything else with other things hanging over me. Granted, I do accomplish many things even with a messy house, but when the mess is gone, I just find it easier to avoid the excuses not to do something.

Now here's an observation: I always feel awesome after I work-out...in fact, I actually enjoy some of my work-outs in the interim...then, why is it so dang hard to get my @$$ to the gym (or exercise at home). Why do I find excuses not to go, when I know it's good for me and I always feel good afterwards? I enjoy the good sore you get from a kickin' work-out...so why do I fight it. Why do we fight it in general? Even the most skilled fitness guru admits to forcing themselves every now and then to get in their work-out. Why oh why can't we just enjoy it and stick with it and never argue with ourselves about it? Well then I guess it would be called playing or partying instead of working-out....huh? So here's my recommendation: Remind yourself why you go to the gym...remember that feeling you have once you've achieved your daily fitness goal (don't have one? Start making them and meet them head on)...really be aware of how your body feels after your work-out, not only at that moment, but for the next few days (can you enjoy that good sore feeling or the burst of energy you've gotten from it?)...I also like finding photos in a magazine or of myself at a favorite weight to help keep me motivated (For example, I found a pic of myself on Facebook the other day and really liked the way my arms looked in it...so I asked myself, what was I doing to attain that good shape?...time to revisit that good habit!) So many things we can do to motivate ourselves. Heck I've gone as far as to tell my coworker to remind me to go to the gym on my lunch break...she giggles and has a fun time with it, and it's done in such a sweet way...our own little game and inside joke.

What's your motivation? What are you doing for you? It all starts with a deep breath and then you just gird your loins and get to it! The time to live is now, so start living and be happy in the knowledge that you are succeeding in just that...LIFE :)

Have a great day,
-Bex

Sharing is Caring

Just wanted to share a new addition to the blogroll...Seth Weinstein at SethWeinstein.com. He's a friend of mine whom I live vicariously through when it comes to travel. I have to say that his Travel Logs are some of my favorite things to read, and make me feel that I was there right along side him on his travels.

This weekend is the Maestro's BBQ Bday Party...we'll be grillin' and soakin' in the sun with 50 of our closest friends...lol...it'll be lovely, AND I get to show off our "new" apartment.

Have a great weekend!
-Bex

Skinny Jeans

Woohoo, I broke through another barrier, I'm almost at the 20 lbs. lost mark...AND I got into my skinny jeans (skinny as in smaller size, not as in narrow legged...blech). How'd I do it? Perseverance my friends, per -se-ver-ance! Was I perfect this whole time?...NO...but I made good choices MOST of the time and got my @$$ to the gym on a regular basis. I think having the Women's Health Challenge keeping me accountable for my work-outs has helped. I also LOVE the pedometer feature on my little cell phone...it really makes me go for those 10 thousand steps a day, such a fun daily challenge.

In NaFOS Transformation Challenge news: Several people on the NaFOS Plan are doing really great! One of our participants has lost 30 lbs. in the past 2 months, and has a new love for yoga...WOW! And another participant has also lost close to 20 lbs. and she too has gotten into the Yoga trend. I have to say our yoga instructor Kristen has been amazing with our singers...YAY Kristen!!! I also have to give kudos to my girls who are going slow and steady with their progress, and have found a new love for the gym and working-out...this will truly help them to keep it off in the long run. As we all know, slow and steady wins the race!

Have a great day!
-Bex

Moving and Shaking

Ahhhh, the Memorial Day Weekend....a very productive weekend indeed. I personally love to use long weekends as an excuse to either get away, OR for getting things done around the house. I chose the latter this weekend and we accomplished much. With the help of the Maestro, my Cousin Philip, and my girl Chelle, we renovated our apartment. The renovations included taking everything out of storage, and the off-set rooms and doing a large purge of the situation. Once things were purged, we painted the areas that desperately needed it and then moved and reorganized all the rooms by rearranging furniture, books, appliances, etc. Once that was done (which took most of the 3 days) we did the little things like replacing light fixtures and bulbs, new batteries in smoke alarms and remotes, grooming the plants, and we even added a new toilet seat to the mix (so nice, new, and stain resistant!)

It feels so good to have everything done (ok, not everything...I want to go through all my kitchen utensils and dishes and purge as well), but it does feel like we live in a new place. How very calming it is to have everything in its place and how peaceful it is to have our space open and usable...I'm a happy person. I'm also a sore person...this was such a physical undertaking that I definitely know I got a good work-out from all the hard work...Mopping alone was quite the task, so you can only imagine how I feel after all the cleaning, purging, painting, etc....whew, I'm beat.

Overall a good and productive weekend...Next weekend...PARTY!!!

Breaking Through

It seems that I've finally broken through my latest plateau! My girl KS is this week's Guerilla Cardio buddy, and I'm incorporating my first solo weight training session back into my routine. It's been awhile since I've hit the weights solo, without a dvd, or trainer guiding me through a workout and I feel a little lost as to where to begin. So I shall revisit my old work-out logs, and surf the Internet before I hit the gym. I want to go with a plan so that there's no procrastination and no excuses (hey, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail). Feel free to hit me up with your comments if you have a great weight training program that I can do in 30-45 minute sets. I'm thinking different muscle groups on different days? Like lower body & Abs? Chest, Back & Biceps? Please do share.

I remember the intimidation my very first time at the gym...feeling soooo lost when it came to weight machines and free weights. I was completely clueless. Luckily I had lovely friends that did have experience and that were happy to start guiding me along on my quest. Then I did the Body-for-Life thing, and that just increased my knowledge with exercise. And now I find myself back to where I began...ok, not really. I know how to weight train, I know proper form and I know what my limit is...I just have to start slow and work my way back to a regular practice.

On the singing front, I sang my audition for Dicapo Opera yesterday afternoon, and I felt it went really well. I have satisfaction that I sang a successful audition and I'm satisfied with that...getting roles for next season would just be icing on the cake. The General Manager even commented on my vocal growth since last year...awesome! So things are going swimmingly in that department.

As for NaFOS The Transformation, its now time to get the participants on the road of serious fitness, now that their eating seems to be on a good path. We're finishing up our proposal for gym sponsorship and I need to do everything in my power to make sure our participants are working out at least 3 times a week. I really want to help them in their journey...so now I need to make some calls and set up this week's fitness classes.

Have a great day!

-Bex

Getting it Together

Allergies are soooo kicking my butt. I've got major drainage and a sore throat from it. My throat was so irritated last night, that I kept waking up every hour throughout the night...ugh...I really hate that. I'm not too tired today, but I do have a long day ahead of me and may make some homemade ginger tea to help soothe the throat and open up the sinuses....I'll have to settle for sugar-free Ricola until then.

I received two new Jillian Michael's DVDs (Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism and No More Trouble Zones) in the mail yesterday and I'm pumped about trying them out. We'll see how these new DVD's stack up to my favorite The 30 Day Shred...they received higher ratings on Amazon.com than my lovely Shred, and they're 30 minutes longer in the duration...so who knows, I may end up a pile of mush afterwards (which I love). I won't be able to try them until next week, but I'll let you know how it goes.

I also received two new cookbooks in the mail Hungry Girl: Recipes & Survival Strategies for Guilt Free Eating (whew) and Hungry Girl: 200 Under 200. I'm interested about adding these into my ever-growing archive of recipes and regularly usable foods. I already use and love her spinach artichoke dip recipe (which I used to make stuffed mushrooms) and adore the Kale Chips...I can't wait what else she has instore for me in her bag of tricks. Yay Hungry Girl!...and she also has a great site to check out.

Also, after this weekend is over, I should be able to cook more regular meals instead of relying on string cheese, nuts, yogurt, eggs and salad...I've gotta get more foods into my diet, and thankfully I've got more time to do that very soon. Plus the Maestro needs prepared food so he can eat well during his 12 hour work days.

Last night I began the reorganization plan for my apartment. I totally emptied my bedroom of clothing and started making "donate" and "keep" piles. Once that's organized then I will do the same to books, shoes, jewelry and other miscellaneous things such as paperwork (big undertaking.) I am such a pack rat and have got to learn to let go. I'm also on the hunt for a cheap wardrobe/closet to utilize in my bedroom, and a tall cabinet with a door for the hall to keep linens and towels in. This should open up closet space even more and make for a more functional home. I'm tired of putting linens and towels in suitcases and boxes under the bed...I need to get to them easily for usage...and so does everyone else in the apartment. I plan to have the sorting of all things done by this weekend, and then the rest of the reorganization completed by the end of May. I think that's a reasonable goal.

Other than that, I submitted my first NaFOS article to MizFit Magazine...I hope Miz has a successful launch, she deserves it.

Have a great day!

-Bex