Step Away From the Cake

For my teaching certification I have to take a series of 4 tests. I've already taken and passed two of them, yeah!!!! Today was number 3. Now this test is a pedagogy test. For those of you who are not teachers, pedagogy is defined as follows: Pedagogy , or paedagogy is the art or science of being a teacher. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction. What they do for this test is basically give you a topic and you have to design a unit plan around that topic. They tell you how many class periods you have and you have to tell them 1) what three main topics you would cover and why, 2) what you would do (lecture, lab, film, etc.) and 3) what end of unit assessments you would use. Also, what the students should learn and what they should know at the end. So there is no real way to study for this test. I was taking the life science test and they could have given me any topic in biology. How would I have studied for that? I did look over...

So since yesterday's post I've done some .....dwelling I guess you'd call it, on the poop. I have gotten so into the habit of looking at the bright side, being positive, trying not to beat myself up, whatever you want to call it. But I've spent so much time doing that that I think I kind of lost the ability to be realistic. I would miss a workout and tell myself, it's okay. I would eat dessert 4 nights in a row and tell myself it's okay. My pants would get a little tight and I would tell myself it's okay. Well guess what?? It's not okay anymore. I'm adding these things to my poop list. So far I have: I'm more tired though I'm working less My clothes don't feel as comfortable There are clothes I can't wear I don't have a lot of energy I miss workouts far too frequently I eat dessert way too often I have serious muffin top My stomach feels huge My back fat grosses me out I can't buy boots because my calves are so fat M...

I just found this cool site. It's a jewelry site that has lots of sterling silver jewelry , rings, bracelets, etc. They have some stunning engagement rings. But what makes this site so cool is the tips for guys. They have a fabulous section with tips for guys on what jewelry to buy when and how to buy it. They have this whole page that lays out what to buy her after 1 month of dating, 3 months, 6 months, once your engaged and even after your married. And they have pictures of what they recommend. It is really cool. There's a page for when the guys screw up and the degree of screw up. Seriously, if you're a guy and need help with the whole jewelry thing, you have got to check this site out. I absolutely love it. My husband does a fine job with jewelry but I know a lot of guys who need the help. Well, here it is. Go to it guys.

Lately I just haven't been able to get things going as far as fat loss and working out go. I get flashes of inspiration and motivation but then something comes up I lose focus. This week I was all excited about getting back into running and training for something. Then, on my first day back, I pull a muscle in my back. Yesterday I couldn't do anything and today it's still a little sore. I probably could have run today but I'd rather take a couple of days off then be laid up for a week. Right??? So I'm driving around this morning trying to figure out how to get my act together and keep it together. Dr. Laura was playing on the radio but I was only half listening, I was way too deep in my own problems to pay attention to someone else's. Then, this lady came on the phone who was overweight and wanted to lose it and hadn't for years and blah, blah, blah...... What she said wasn't important but what Dr. Laura said was. She was saying how being ov...

Yesterday afternoon I got home and immediately threw my running clothes on and headed out the door. I do know that if I start to do I will not get out and run. I started a run/walk program that doesn't seem too easy or hard. I walked for 5 minutes, then did 4 - 5 min walk/2 min run intervals with a 5 minute cool down. It was good. I felt great. The knee hurt a little but that always happens when I return to running. I was pleased. Later that afternoon I had to head out to class and Nala, the pit bull, was heading into the house. She fell on the stairs and I ran over to find her just laying there looking at me. She wouldn't get up on her own. I helped her up and then went to lift her up the stairs because I was running late. When I leaned over to pick her up I was at a bad angle and I pulled a muscle in my back. Ugh!! I know it's musculature and not a spine problem because of the type of pain. So it's been ice and ibuprofen and rest. It actually feels be...

So I've been lamenting about my seeming inability to get my workouts going again. Last week I was sick and gave myself a bye week, but now I have no excuses. I planned on doing something over the weekend but both days I had things going on and the workouts didn't materialize. I planned on getting up at 4:30 this morning to workout. That didn't happen. Then I figured I'd workout now between work and class. That is very much not going to happen. But, in spite of these apparent failures, I've had 2 revelations over the past couple of days that might help me in the long run. The first one occurred this morning. The alarm went off at 4:30 and I did not get up. I'm not sure I even heard it. I did get up at 5 though. Fairly easily. I've thought about this problem before and thought I had a solution but that just didn't work. The real problem is I don't like to feel rushed in the morning. On the weekends when I can get up, have my coffee, check...