Empty Nestor Syndrome

Panda Log 5-12-2016

One more week under my belt! My husband decided to join me on this journey and it has helped me that we are on the same page. In four days, we will be married for thirty years and in those thirty years we’ve ALWAYS lost and gained weight together. This is the one area that we have been 100% in sync with each other at all stages of our marriage. He’s fat, I'm fat. I’m thin, he's thin. I could care less how I'm eating, he could care less..you get the idea. This time around, it feels different, not just another diet, we are on a life transforming journey to create our better selves for ourselves and for each other. I can already see a difference in Kevin, my hubs, which it's both annoying and exciting. Annoying because he loses weight so much quicker than me and exciting because we are doing something new together. We got married young, I was 18 and he was 20. One year and three days after our first anniversary, I gave birth to our daughter, twenty two months later I gave birth to our son and six months after our son was born we bought our first home. The next 20 years brought  precious baby time, work, daycare, school, teens, programs, sports, events and life. We've now been empty nesters for 6 years. I see all my friends still very busy with their children and/or teens and I was making myself feeling very guilty about not having my crap together! I don't have that excuse of the “busy mom” life anymore, I should be in the best shape of my life! Yes, I work a full time job, still have house work and what life brings but, I had all that while raising kids. I was feeling like I've let myself down for not kicking into high gear and transforming my body as soon as I stopped the “raising kids” phase and entered into “empty nester” stage. The truth is, there was not a huge transformation for me. I missed my kids terribly, I got used to it being just Kevin and I, I enjoyed our time together, life just baby stepped it along just like it has been doing all my life. So, now, at age 48, I understand that it doesn't matter what life gives, if I'm not making the daily decisions, I won't see results or at least life time results. I refuse to be on another diet, I refuse to start a radical workout program! From now on, I will be kind to myself, make daily choices for better health, move my body because it makes me feel strong and know in my heart that these steps will create a happy healthy me for good, no matter where I'm at in my journey.

 Three weeks has passed since I started blogging. One of my main issues had been emotional eating. I've had one slip up in this area! Saturday ended up being a bad day and it started from the moment I got up and decided to get on my scale, my evil scale! It hadn't moved from my last weigh in and it messed with my head in a big way. Even though I did my mental exercises of asking myself if I was hungry or if there was an emotional reason that I wanted to eat, the negative thoughts would not leave me. I warded off the feeling of wanting to sabotage all my efforts until night time came. Kevin worked a night shift and I was left on my own. I bought a new grass fed butter that I wanted in the worst way! As I searched all the cupboards and refrigerator for something to slather that butter all over, I found nothing but a drawer full of white chocolate macadamia Cliff Bars, and let me tell ya, they taste great with grass fed butter on them, so good that I ate two! That's it though, so far, one bad day!

My exercising goal was to either walk, Kangoo or ride bikes every day and lift weights three times a week. I walked twice and my weight lifting routine consisted of three sets of curls one day, that's it!. I'm sure that the ugly weather all week had something to do with my lack of enthusiasm and I used it as an excuse.  This next week I am going to try and make exercise happen even if it rains, I don't have an excuse, I belong to the gym. Not only do I belong but, I have Healthways through my health insurance and belong to almost every gym around me!!

I made a Thai soup that I want to share because it tasted that good!!

 Here it is:

2 T. Olive oil

6 chicken thighs, salt and pepper

1 chopped onion

2 cups sliced mushrooms

3 t. Curry powder

½ t. Cayenne

1 t. Cinnamon

1 t. Turmeric

3 carrots, sliced

1 C. Broccoli ( I used frozen)

1 C. Green beans (I used frozen)

2 cups chicken broth

2 zucchini, spiraled

½ C fresh cilantro

Sour cream

Hot sauce

Heat oil. Salt and pepper chicken. Cook in skillet until golden brown. Remove to a plate. Stir in onions and mushrooms, cook til tender. Stir in spices, cook until they release their aroma. Add chicken stock, bring to simmer. Add veggies and put chicken back in. Cook on simmer 15 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Add cilantro.

Serve over spiraled zucchini. Top with sour cream and hot sauce to your taste.

If you like Thai food, I promise that this is restaurant worthy, and heathy to boot. I've made this twice and switched up the veggies each time, it tasted amazing with whatever vegetables you choose.

Peace,

Panda