evlEwt

 Mow, mow, mowin' the lawn. No longer is this just a favorite dance move of mine, but also a favorite pastime. I love the feel of the fresh cut grass. I love being out, and feeling the sun on my skin. I love getting exercise without touching equipment that other people have recently touched.

This has become primarily my chore, because I want it to be. We have a 1930s, rotary-blade lawnmower that is completely people-powered. It does not smell like gasoline, is excellent for the environment, and it makes a purring sound as it cuts. Plus- I own very little land, so it doesn't take very long!

People have reacted very interestingly to my mowing the lawn. Most people see the lever contraption and say things like, "what a good workout!" While it is a good workout, pushing a newfangled lawnmower would be a better one. This is due to the fact that the new ones are far heavier!

Two of my neighbors were excited that we were using the rotary-style because they too had used them for upwards of 30 years. That's because these things are good quality! As former rotary-oweners themselves, I will take any advice that these men have to offer. After all they have mowed old-school before.

The confederate-down-the-street, who fixes lawn mowers, even gave us a kudos for trying out the manual machine. However, he did also offer me a discount on a new one if I ever changed my mind.

Then there's Mr. Mansplain. Mr. Mansplain wants me to stop mowing to listen to him tell me how much harder my mower's going to be than a modern day lawn-mower. I don't know what makes him knowledgeable about this. Owning a modern lawnmower? Being a man?

The fact is, he's wrong. I mow my lawn with the speed of a pouncing mantis shrimp. It's not difficult at all, and I love it.

 

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NEvEle

Recently, I succeeded at something that many before me have already attempted. I lost weight! This is not an easy task for anyone, but I was determined.

First, I did my research. I needed a diet plan that wouldn't annoy me too much, and would be easy to remember. This is not an easy task. Elimination diets and calorie counting both leave a sour taste in my mouth. If my diet was going to require too much focus, then it wasn't going to work. Period.

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In the end I turned to Michael Pollan. Michael Pollan isn't a nutritionist or physical trainer, but rather a food anthropologist. He knows more about food, food history, and culinary traditions than most of us. Through his studies, he has made a set of simple recommendations that manages to anger both vegetarians and meat eaters. These recommendations are straightforward and based on his research of how people around the world eat and have eaten through the centuries. Boiled down he is promoting a diet of food that is naturally found in the environment, rather than artificial concoctions. However here is his full recommendation:

"Eat food, not too much, mostly plants."

Now that's a diet that I can remember and follow! Next in my research was the advice that surrounds hacking the process. I know that there is no easy panacea for weight loss, but I am happy to take every shortcut that I can get. The best shortcuts and aids that I could find came from this article appropriately titled "40 no-dieting tips to lose weight." Here is a list of my favorite tips from the list that I regularly use. 

1. food journaling (yes, everyday)

2. getting an online weight loss buddy (I have 33 of them at the free forum I joined!)

3. get a mantra (mine is "I am hungry for water)

4. sniff a banana when you're hungry (I sniff cinnamon sticks)

5. throw your fat clothes away for good (this occurred during my decluttering)

6. make one social outing this week an active one (Aerial yoga, hikes, paddle boarding)

7. eat 90% of your meals at home

8. If you're going to indulge choose fat releasing foods (Dark chocolate for the win!)

9. try hot sauce, or cajun seasoning

10. eat fruit instead of fruit juice

11. drop your milk type- my mom has had me hooked on skim for awhile now

12. snack on a small handful of nuts 

13. get most of your calories before noon

14. close the kitchen for 12 hours

15. put less food out and you'll take less in

Last but not least, I followed the cardinal weight loss advice: Move more and drink more water. I started drinking 8 oz of water as soon as I wake up to perk me up and start me off on the right foot. Then I counted my water intake for the rest of the day. I found that while full on water it's harder to be hungry for food. 64 oz a day is a lot! I felt full! Hence the inspiration for my mantra, "I'm hungry for water." 

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I also got my butt moving. I created a plan that would be too fun for me to fail. This meant two days of Zumba a week, playing dance games at home and running on the other days. Running is the most boring of the three, for me. However, I had a plan. I would listen to audiobooks ONLY when on the treadmill. That way I wouldn't be bored while I was doing it, and I'd be encouraged to keep going to hear the next parts of the story. 

It's quite a large plan, but I wanted to cover my bases. I wanted to succeed. You see, I didn't only attempt this goal to fit into my gorgeous structural Jessica Simpson dress. Losing weight also happens to be a strategy for managing Psuedotumor Cerebrii. Psuedotumor Cerebrii is a mostly innocuous condition that I have, that if untreated can lead to vision loss. I had no choice, I had to lose weight. So, I did. 

NeVeS

It is ok to try things. However, trying is not worth a mention if you do not persevere at it. Cue my new favorite gadget: The Passion Planner. It gives you wings! No, not that. It gives you passion! Things I have tried since getting a Passion Planner: Flossing, Meditating, Running a 5K, Coding, etc.

The Passion Planner is a Planner, with add ons. It has space for doodling. It has space for writing what you are grateful for each week. It has a to-do list and a separate work to-do list. However, most importantly it has a goal brainstormer with monthly check-ins. The Passion Planner is organized to help you reach the goals you actually care about. It was created and funded by a kickstarter because people want help with this. But does it work?

The Passion Planner works so incredibly well! I enjoy creating a new color scheme each week as I take the time to fill in my goals and regularly scheduled programming. One friend bought the planner concurrently and raves about it, and another one bought one based on my recommendation.

Personally, I created this blog because it was one of my goals. I had reminders written in the planner to update my posts, and now my blog has updates. I've had reminders to floss, and now my teeth endure strings of pain. I had reminders to practice running and I actually ran during my last 5K (which anyone who has run/walked/pushed a stroller during a 5K can tell you is not mandatory.) I wanted to write letters to people and receive letters. I've done so so frequently that I've even gotten some back!

You are a Flamingo in a flock of boring ass penguins. Thanks Jackie :)

I even use it for craft projects. When Erin demanded that I recycle my magazines if I want to get new ones I put a collage of my favorite images into the planner.

How do I like mine? At this risk of alliterating, I would say that the Passion Planner is my prized possession.

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A goal of a true Renaissance woman is to try new things. However, for many things you have to try for longer than one day in order to claim that you have really "tried them" in a way that implies effort.

Take flossing for example. I have been told to floss every 6 months for the last 25 years of my life. So in honor of year 26, I have decided to listen. I decided that this year I would try to floss everyday. And like all lofty goals- this one flopped. 

So, I decided to try for a month. They say that it only takes 21 days to form a habit. (Although apparently "they" is wrong) I even added it to my planner, along with my other goal for the month, meditating. This resulted in the obvious portmanteau for all of your health needs: flossitate. 

Flossitate. 

I piggybacked my habit onto brushing my teeth as was suggested in this article, and decided that I would politely ignore the good advice in this article and this article.

I made a (secret of course) inspiration board on pinterest with inspirational photos for a great flosser. 

See comic source here

Yet I'm still only flossing 80% of the time. The verdict? Though your dental hygienist strongly recommends it, I do not. Flossing is painful, and results in bleeding even when you are past the time period where that should have subsided. It breaks and snaps back at you and can cause frequent wincing reactions. It requires daily effort and I do not condone it.*

*These are the opinions of this author and do not reflect the opinions of dentists, dental hygienists, or anyone with actual knowledge of this field. 

Edit: For really strong advice on picking goals that matter I recommend reading this.