Introduction

I was so excited when Joan added me to this blog.  I have blogged about my weight loss on my own blog, but glad to use this as a resource.

A little back story. Hi, I am Andrea (@akbusybee) I have been a special education teacher (in a LIFE- Living in a Functional Environment k-5) for 11 years. Next year I am changing positions to our campus Instructional Technology Specialist.  In January my husband and I sat down and wrote some goals.  These goals included ones that were job based, financial based... and for me weight based.  Being married to an Executive Chef makes it hard sometimes to stay on track with food (especially when he sends out those gosh dog cheesecakes!)

Anyway, I started my journey in January weighing in at 220 pounds... I am now down to 195.  I have never been one to be self conscious about my weight.. but it sure has been nice to be a smaller size!

Photo on the left March 2012/Photo on the right June 2013

So, this summer I have pretty much maintained.  My goal was to be down another 15 pounds by the time school starts, but that is a VERY unreasonable goal (and although I am competitive.. I want to do this the right way)

Things I have done to get this far:
Accountability Buddy-I have a friend that she and I text everything that we eat and when we work out.  We both go through stages where we fall off the wagon (and that is kind of where I am right now)
Accountability Group- I am excited to use this platform as another way to keep my self accountable (see a trend here) I also participate in a group on facebook.
Changing my eating habits- Hi, I am Andrea and I am fast food aholic!  In the past when I have tried to lose weight I give up fast food and sodas.. and then about a week later I was back to eating it.  This time around I still have fast food.. not as often and only kid meals.  I also stop eating after 8pm.

Here is where I need help!
I have a fitbit, a gym membership, and the need to lose the rest of the weight.... but I can not get the motivation this summer!  What do you do to change it up (and get yourself out of the house)?  I am a summer traveler and always going, and this is the first summer that I have slowed down.  How do you keep yourself accountable?

I look forward to learning from this group and connecting with others!

My Love Hate Relationship with my Fitbit Flex

Here's what I've got today at 1:30 p.m. 

I'm a little hesitant to jump on the bandwagon with new gadgets, so I waited awhile before buying the FitBit Flex. And no, this is not an advertisement. I just want to share some insights into how my own awareness and behavior have shifted since this device arrived last weekend.

• First off, I am driving my husband absolutely nuts ;-) Dancing around the kitchen, doing laps in our very small apartment, all so I can meet my steps goal. Come on, now! I know you'd be doing the same thing at 9:30 p.m. if it said you needed just 18% more to reach your daily goal ;)

• Second, it's made me realize that when I am not active doing Zumba or boot(y) camp or kickboxing, I am not that active when school is not in session. Granted, I have been doing quite a bit of writing work this summer, and even when I stand up while on my computer, I'm not really moving that much! Ugh.. must get a treadmill desk ;-)

• Third, I've grown appreciative of short little activity boosts of 15 minutes to get my juices flowing. In fact, I'm about to go over to my Wii and do some JustDance3. In the past, I would have an all or nothing mentality about exercise. If I didn't have an hour to sweat like crazy, then it didn't count. I am seeing, through my graphs, how wrong that attitude is.

Well, I'd keep rambling here, but by the looks of things on my graph, it's time to get movin'! What are you doing to be sure that you are active enough to ensure your good health? 

Let's Get Movin'! The Group Support of #Temt

A #temt walk in San Diego at #iste13

I know..it can be a bit irritating to hear people boast about their workouts, but if I annoy just one person each day to make a move back to health, then it will be worth it! I know that reading about someone else's run has gotten me off my butt on more than one occasion.

This blog was born out of a Twitter conversation several years ago. Fellow educators shared my plight: during the summer many of us are more active and seem to be able to take care of ourselves, but when school begins, the best laid plans fall apart. We agreed to use the hashtag #temt on Twitter to record our workouts and ask for support from others! We also planned to share this blog space to inspire others to get moving!

If you'd like to tell your story and become a contributor on this blog, just leave a comment or say hi to me on Twitter: @flourishingkids.  If you've written here before, please jump back in and share. I promise to chime in more regularly and work to keep us all a bit more motivated on our journey to health.  If we're going to be the best for others, we need to be in our best physical health!

Checking In With the #TEMT!

Hello Joan and the rest of the gang at #Temt.  It has been a long time since we connected via posts.  I still like catching the occasional tweet that reminds me we are connected.

Since last September, I have been using MyFitnessPal as my primary motivation.  In case you are not familiar with the site, you record all your calories in and calories out through your own personal account.  You can see what your foods cost you and what different activities credit you.  That has been really helpful for me - the accountability.

I have not made record progress in the weight loss area and I am often scratching my head about it but I think the tool is solid.  The best part is I am aware of what I am doing each and every day.  There isn't anything new about this approach to wellness but it has been good for me and I know I get a lot more exercise in my life because of it.  I am healthier and that has always been my one true goal.

I look forward to hearing how other folks are doing and what is working or not working for you.

This is me 13 months ago & 25 lbs heavier.

Let's go #Temt!

Some of the fabulous folks who tweet with #temt! Yay, we got to walk with Jerry at ISTE12!

I can't believe it's been nearly a year since a post has graced this blog, and yet I also can believe it. We all get so busy, but hopefully we have found ways to keep up the commitment we made to our health, whenever that was! And if this post hits you in a lull or a "fall off the wagon" moment, maybe it's a sign to devote some care to your health.

I know that the #temt tweets from others remind me to "move it" and the replies I get when I post motivate and affirm my own inner desire to be the healthiest self I can be. Thank you to all who use the hashtag that stands for "Twitter Exercise Motivation Team."

So, here's what I would love to know! If you are one of the original blog members who posted here, I would love to see a post from you, updating us all on how your quest for health has been going.  And, I would really like to know if there are any others out there willing to guest post on here occasionally, and by that I mean with whatever regularity you choose!

It would be wonderful to renew this blog and continue together on our journeys to our best healthy selves. Are you in?

Back on Track

I see it's been a while since someone has posted here, but it's great to see that #temt is alive and active on Twitter. The temt team is always in the back of my mind pushing me, reminding me to take care of my body so I have energy and good health for myself and my family. Although I was pretty good through the summer, I finally feel back on track this fall.

I have REstarted my own exercise program with two new frames of mind:

1) Exercise every day! I'm no longer assigning workouts to certain days. I'm just exercising every day. For me, early in the morning works best - the time before my family wakes up. This is time for me and I just DO it! That way, I don't wake up and say, "Today I don't have to get up and move." Instead, it's, "Get up - it's time!" If I'm really exhausted one morning, it's no big deal if I don't get up and sleep in a little instead. But the next day - no excuses. It's working for me.

2) It's not too late, it's too early! Both my hubby and I have started getting back on track late summer and, well, we didn't really get a chance to show off a stealth bod at the lake or in the pool. "So, what?" he said, "We're just getting a good head start on next summer." I've adopted this attitude with him and together we have made a pact to keep working out and eating right through the winter, into spring and summer. In other words - our cup is half full.

I'm looking forward to fitting better in my jeans as the weather gets colder and having more energy as the days grow shorter. I can feel the difference already in my attitude and energy.

Getting fit, let's face it, is a good thing no matter the season!

Awesome Green Smoothie Challenge Wrap-up

I loved the Green Smoothie Challenge, but I could only participate for 10 days due to my trip to Europe.

This was a facebook event, and all the recipes, tips, suggestions, and websites were posted to the event wall. This can sometimes make it hard to find things. (Facebook needs a "favorite" button like Twitter, and Twitter needs a "Like" button like Facebook!) So I consolidated everything into a word document. Then I wanted to share it with the event participants and others, but couldn't figure out the best way. I didn't want to post "message me with your email and I'll send it to you" because I have enough email to manage. Then, DUH! Google Docs! (Thank you, Karen Chichester!) Here's the link, enjoy!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HpHg_bgIdQLDuRcihlCuY18bffxasYJd9mn9Ax430do/edit?hl=en_US