RIP Farrah

I had a white cobra mustang like Charlie's Angel. Cancer sucks.

pizza at North

Have you been to the restaurant North at 119th and Roe?
Excellent mushroom and arugula pizza. Truffle olive oil makes a wonderful woodsy flavor.
The crust is super thin so there can't be many carbs, and there's no cheese.
Yeah for healthy pizza option!

I never touch politics, but this got me.

Washington Times: "Extramarital affairs, gambling, alcohol abuse, prostitution and sexual pursuit of minors have taken a toll on the GOP."

"...taken a toll?"
Oh My.

blogs I'm into now

I am really loving these talented blog writers:
www.joannagoddard.blogspot.com
http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/
http://decor8blog.com/
These women, of all ages, post wonderful photos, catalog pretty things and write wonderful little stories.

yeah for protein

Since I am no longer breastfeeding I can put dairy back in my diet. More and more though I'm reading dairy is not a good idea.
I was excited to get to drink an Isopure -- a protein drink in a bottle that's like a punch or kool-aid, not a shake. It's from whey protein, which is derived from cow's milk.
I was full all afternoon. Amazing how protein will quiet down your appetite and stabilize your blood sugar.
Going to make this a habit for a few days until I get my appetite under control!
Angela

Rose Brooks

I have been sick to my stomach all day.
I got a fundraising letter from the Rose Brooks Center. Apparently the economic situation has increased domestic violence significantly. Easy to imagine that. But the Rose Brooks Center is in a wait list situation.

I can't imagine a woman with a child who finally summons the courage to leave an abusive situation and then finds the shelter -- her last resort -- has a waiting list.

I wrote a check and put it in my desk to mail at the end of the week when I have money to cover it.
Having a new baby makes me feel vulnerable. Having enjoyed immense independence for my entire adult life, I can't imagine being in a situation where I had no options. A home life so bad I had to evaluate leaving. Sleeping in your car, staying with a friend, getting by until you can change things -- not options when you have a baby to care for.
I NEVER solicit and rarely do fund raising, but if you can help, please consider sending a donation to Rose Brooks Center, PO BOx 320599, Kansas City MO 64132-0599.
Angela

hormones and hunger

It's been ten days since I stopped, completely stopped, breastfeeding.
In the first week I gained ten pounds.

Every expecting mother is excited to learn that breastfeeding burns 500 calories a day.
No one tells you that you will be absolutely ravenous.
And then, when you stop breastfeeding, you have to re-train your appetite.

It didn't help that a weird neck/back injury kept me from working out for nearly two weeks.

But three days after the 10 pound gain (I nearly fainted on the scale) I have lost six pounds.

Whew. Work ahead.

Happy Earth Day

Happy Earth Day.

Did you see this article that thinner is better to curb global warming?

Regardless of how you feel about global warming, here's one more reason to eat well -- it's better for our planet. (Like we didn't have enough reasons already.)

On the consulting front, Excel Wellness celebrated their first year in business. I wrote her business plan and am tres excited to see her doing so well.

And I've known these girls for years, but recently developed a new program for them: Physical Transformation Retreats. You can learn how to get in Shape magazine cover-shape at one of their weekend retreats. If interested, tell them Angela sent you and you can attend the entire weekend for $299 (regular $499).
Create a healthy Earth Day
Angela

fit mind inspiration

Stumbled on a couple of cool sources of inspiration this week:
Jill Bolte Taylor speaking at the TED conference. You have to listen to this 20-minute presentation of this Harvard brain scientist re-telling the story of her stroke -- it is simply phenomenal.
I signed up for this online creativity circle; could use a boost since baby and demanding job have sucked up a great deal (all) of my time in the past few months. Time to re-focus on what makes me. I love this quote from Tim Ferriss: your job description is not your self-description.
Excited to go to New York in May. Attending the Yoga Journal Conference, though only one day of it, is at the top of my list while in the big apple. Also hope to do this anti-gravity yoga class which looks fascinating.
Creative not-exactly-Phit things I just have to share:
Delightful decals for decorating on Etsy: I am putting the cherry blossom branch in my office at home and "hanging" the chandelier over my desk at my "day" job office.
Another nifty find on Etsy: these darling ceramic buttons.
You can now follow me on Twitter or join me on Facebook. Hope to see you in cyberspace.
Angela

cupcakes (again)

Had an excellent nutrition week and then yesterday Mr Right wanted to spend his William Sonoma gift card and we found ourselves on the plaza. Too close to Cupcake A La Mode. Chocolate cherry cheesecake. Unbelievably tasty and worth the approx 600 calories. Glad I tore up the treadmill yesterday morning.
We picked up some whole wheat pizza dough and made the best spinach and mushroom pizza for dinner. Going to have to eat light for several days to make up for that cupcake.
Have lamb shanks simmering in the slow cooker and they smell divine. Can't wait to feast on them before our Academy Awards party (a very private party this year, baby girl is teething).
Have been doing micro-sessions of strength training very well -- happy with my consistency. Cardio is still good too. Now I just need to make it to a yoga class.

cupcakes and cardio

Well the cold seems to be over. Yesterday I felt almost completely better. Baby M didn't sleep at all so I didn't get out of bed Saturday and do the planned cardio. Today however, I fought the urge to sleep another hour and got myself over to Lifetime. The first 20 minutes felt boring and long. I stopped and did a couple machines for a change. Went back to the treadmill, changed my playlist and got busy with some intervals. It worked really well:
5 minutes walking at 4.5mph
1 minute running at 5.5 mph
1 minute jogging at 5.2 mph
then repeat, for 45 minutes.
Got good and sweaty and wow did the shower feel good.

So cardio is back on track.

Now the indulgence of the weekend...
on Thursday a vendor brought in cupcakes from a new bakery on the plaza: Cupcake A LaMode. Yum. They are definitely treadmill worthy. So good that Mr. Right and I went back down Saturday and indulged in cupcakes instead of a Valentine's Dinner out. Cupcake A La Mode has what they call a cupcake sandwich: two cupcake tops with buttercream frosting in between them. Wow.
The good thing is that they are so sweet you vow to eat good for the rest of the weekend.
Angela
Angela Broderick

good decisions and delightful surprise

I'm still baffled at how two hours can simply disappear when you have a baby. I was up at 5:30. Mirabella might be catching my cold. I so hope not, esp since I am feeling better.
Had a good breakfast of steel cut oats and scrambled egg whites along with a soy, decaf mocha. Thank goodness Mr Right is a wonderful cook and put this together while I pumped milk for M.
Even with a 5:30 wake-up, barely made it to the office by 8:00. Only about ten minutes of exercise: 30 push-ups and lots of stretching. Feels good. Will have to get my strength exercises tonight. Cold is lightening up so I'm hoping to resume cardio tomorrow. Had to get a sub for my step class last night.
I arrived at the office to find delightful surprises! A glass vase of red tulips on the table. And potted tulips on the window ledge -- the most beautiful shade of magenta.
Mr Right is not only a wonderful cook, he is exceptionally thoughtful and generous.
Next to the vase of tulips on the table was a gift wrapped in a very pretty white and damask paper with a bright red ribbon. Inside was an eco-jot journal of recycled paper. Been wanting a journal (another one!) to document M's "first's." Since she crawled last night it's time to start writing about important dates -- like watching her crawl across the bathroom floor instead of sitting and watching me brush my teeth as she has for several months. Just yesterday she couldn't hold her own head up.
Life moves so fast!

"baby" workouts

Thanks to inspiration from Annette Lang, I've decided to try posting my workouts and nutrition challenges here as my "journal."
The new baby, new house and incredibly demanding job are taking quite a bit out of me. I've done well getting cardio in -- I go to Lifetime on the weekends and run on the treadmill (love the shock-absorbing decks on those treadmills -- my knees really love them), and when the weather cooperates I walk outside. But strength training has slipped away. For 20 years I've taught classes where I automatically did more strength training than I needed. My weight fell to pre-pregnancy weight before Mirabella was three months old. But I've a living case study in body composition -- muscle tissue atrophied while I healed from the c-section. The new lifestyle hasn't done much to build muscle.
So this morning Mirabella was up about 5:45. I should have been up before her but she woke up three times last night. Highly unusual as she's a steady sleeper (like Mom!). So after I got her up I put her in the playpen while I pumped milk for her. Then we went into my office where I keep my dumbbell set and we put U2 on the iPod. I put Mirabella in the jumper and started my weights. She has recently learned to patty-cake. At the end of each set, I put the weights down and she clapped for me. What wonderful motivation!
Her attention span doesn't allow for more than about 15 minutes in the jumper. But something is better than nothing, and here's what I got done:
Biceps:
10 reps w/ 18lbs
10 w/ 18lbs
9 w/ 18lbs
10 w/15lbs
Tricep kickbacks:
10 w/ 12 lbs
10 w/ 12lbs
8 w/ 12 lbs
Then did a series of low back stretches and my "hip opener" series that I used to LOVE to do in Sunday morning yoga. Did bridge for 60 seconds, three times. Then some more stretching.
Would have loved to do more, but M was tired of the jumper, and I needed to get in the shower or be late for work.
To improve: I skipped breakfast, got to do that tomorrow. Mr. Right made me a mocha (soy, decaf, almost nothing since baby can't have dairy or caffeine) but I should have had my usual oatmeal and I'd like to add in egg whites.
Rushed mornings are a part of almost everyone's lives these days. I recommend a baby clapping for you and a little Bono on the iPod -- does wonders!
Create a healthy day~
Angela

fitting in cardio or not) while resting

Woke up with a scratchy throat and a huge fear of having to deal with the fatigue and fever of being sick in this upcoming busy week. So I took the morning off from the cardio I had planned and slept a bit longer. Spent the day using the neti pot and taking Zicam.
I was so committed to getting 60 minutes of cardio on every Sat and Sun. Since it's 11 pm and I still feel a scratchy throat, I'm very glad I rested.
Nutrition wise today was ok. I blew it with Mr Right's giant homemade chocolate chip cookie. But meals were good: breakfast of fresh spinach and poached eggs, lunch of shrimp and leftover pasta and dinner of soup. Soup was take out lobster something from Bonefish Grill -- yummy but probably too much fat.

Yesterday was a good day too. I took Mirabella out in the stroller for over an hour, then lifted weights and enjoyed her giggles as I counted reps out loud. Laid her on the floor while I did some yoga stretches.
Tomorrow starts another week. Let's hope the cold stays away so I can get on track with the cardio!
Angela

cool blog

I have been to dozens (over 50 I bet) of fitness conventions. And one of my favorite presenters has always been Annette Lang. And I found this new blog of hers: sixbyfifty

She wants a six pack by her 50th birthday. She's actually blogging her workouts and what she eats. Very honest and brave, and very inspirational.

breastfeeding battles

I'm at a business meeting in Charleston. My fourth overnight trip as a Mom and my fourth episode of begging a hotel to store pumped breast milk in a freezer. I have to admit,these folks have been more helpful than others. But it is getting old.
My flight went thru Atlanta and I noticed the large, glassed room that was full of people smoking.
If airports can provide a lounge for people to smoke, hotels can provide freezer storage for breastmilk so working moms can attend meetings.
Period.

Merry Christmas!
Baby girl is still fighting a cold, so my sleep was on and off last night -- funny how little that matters when the next day has unlimited napping!
Mr Right made a yummy, healthy scramble with shrimp for breakfast, which I followed with an iced sugar cookie.

Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas~
For the past five years I've done all my shopping online, but the new baby (who's had a bad cold) has me in a new routine -- it's actually not routine at all -- running around doing last minute errands on Christmas Eve.
It's really not too bad, the weather and crowds could be so much worse. Went to Dean & Deluca and got some yummy treats for me and Mr Right to have at our Christmas tomorrow. Tonight it's off to the in-laws. I'm sure they'll have plenty of presents to spoil Mirabella (if you can spoil a six-month old).
Before January 1, I'm going to make a plan to get more workouts and yoga back into my life. The new job is a year old now, we have been in our new house almost seven months, and baby is nearly six months. All those changes in 2008 have me craving some routine. Nothing routine about this holiday season, but I hope to re-establish an exercise routine soon.
The tuesday night step class is going great. I didn't realize how much I missed teaching choreographed cardio. Always leave Lifetime Fitness really sweaty. And it's such a terrific stress release. Now I have to get yoga back in my life. Many good classes to choose from (it'll be awhile before I can commit to teaching again), but I can't seem to get to them. Maybe I need to create a 20 minute home practice that I can do each morning.
This past weekend I put Mirabella on the floor and did a series of downward dog, plank, cobra and she laughed like crazy. It was the sweetest thing. Maybe the mommy & me yoga classes are on to something...

Closing up my computer and getting back into holiday merriment. Have a wonderful one!
Angela

RIP girlfriend

I've been struggling to deal with the grief many are feeling at the loss of Lauren Chapin.
Read the story in the Star here.
She was a beautiful, talented, amazing woman.
Lauren was one of my first yoga students in Liberty(along with Laura, Lorraine, Trish, Deb). She was so helpful and so supportive. She was an original Phit Chick. I remember asking if "chick" might be offensive to anyone and she rolled her eyes. :)
I got to work with her on a series she wrote for the Star on healthfully indulging. It was great fun to go to the restaurants and figure out how to rein in calories so we could share dessert. :)
I just exchanged emails with her a couple weeks ago; she was asking when I'd be coming to Liberty to do that yoga class.
Thank you Lauren, for your smiles, wit and inspiration. It lives on in me and in many others, I'm sure.

health check up time

I've always said people pay more attention to the fuel they put in their car than the fuel they put in their body. I read a similar analogy today...

"The irony is that most women take better care of their cars than their body, and that is in large part because an annual inspection is required to continue driving your car," says Donnica Moore, MD, a women's health expert based in Far Hills, N.J.

I'm WAY overdue for a mammogram (pregnancy came when I was already overdue), so this quote made me feel a bit guilty today. Guilt isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially if it moves us to take action.

It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the perfect time to check your calendar and make an appointment.

More thoughts and tips for taking care of yourself:

Read these five lifesaving tests you may need.
An annual check up with your ob/gyn or family doc.
Subscribe to magazines and get books that encourage healthy habits. Manage the mental inputs.
Get moving. Regular aerobic exercise is good for your mind, not just your body.
Pay attention to nutrition.
It's been a wonderful week. I taught a step class at Lifetime Fitness, the first time I've done step in six years (since my first fall in Liberty in 2002). It was really fun. Like riding a bike; you can't forget. Fortunately Lifetime has two group exercise studios with suspended wood floors that my knees benefit from!

Mr Right built our first fire this week. It was absolutely yummy.

Enjoy the fall this weekend: take a walk in a pumpkin patch, soak in a scented bath, do something positive for yourself!

The yoga events from last weekend have been rescheduled (read below). Thank you for the well-wishes; baby Mirabella is doing much better!
Create a healthy weekend,
Angela
http://www.angelabroderick.com/