adapting new routines

Since I started teaching in the fall, my Sundays have become a routine of sorts: sleep in, clean a bit, watch tv, maybe go grocery shopping, nap on the couch with the TV on, clean a bit more, watch my Sunday night shows while grading/lesson planning.

REAL healthy, right?

Not so much.

While I do need down-time on the weekends, as well as lots of sleep, I have been wasting my weekends on the couch. I'm not sure when this started, because I used to be constantly on the go between working out, doing work in coffee shops, and hanging out with friends. Now all that appeals to me is hibernating until Monday morning. On one hand, this is understandable since I'm getting older and my job takes a lot out of me. However, lying around all weekend doesn't feel good. And I'm sick of not feeling good and healthy.

After talking with a friend last week about things that have helped her get healthy, I realized that I needed to spruce up my Sunday routine.

I was able to wake up by 9:30 this morning (yes, this is still sleeping in from my normal 5:30 wake up time, but I cannot reiterate how much sleep I need!), relax with the boyfriend for a bit, and then compile recipes for meals this week.

I don't love cooking, especially when I'm tired, but the only way to eat healthy and on a budget is to cook. I'm trying to get over it.

I stocked up on a lot of produce and other staples for this week's recipes. Then I made some lentils and barley for dinner and for lunch tomorrow. It was a very simple dish, but I love the heartiness of it.

After dinner, I decided to make these apple peanut butter snack bars from the blog "Happy Healthy Mama." They were easy to make and pretty darn good for such few ingredients.

Now I have healthy snack bars for the week, as well as all of my dinners planned out.

I must say, feeling prepared feels good. I get prepared for the week in every other aspect of my life, so why shouldn't I for what I'm going to put into my body?

It's funny how quick I am to put my all into my job and other daily duties, but how reluctant I am to really take care of myself. I think we all reach a point of realization in which it becomes quite clear that without taking care of ourselves, everything else suffers. Just ask my poor students, who have had a sub five times this year because I have been out with stomach issues. That's five days of chaos that I had to come back to, adding even more stress to my life!

Tomorrow I'm starting my two week challenge of no gluten, dairy, processed sugar, processed foods, alcohol, or coffee. I think the hardest part is going to be processed sugar...to say I'm addicted to sugar would be an understatement. Fortunately, I feel very ready to take on this challenge and start making some serious changes in my life. Wish me luck!