mandyhoran.com
Blog
Balicasag and Bohol
Sep 25th
Day 15 – Relax then explore Balicasag
After a full day of travel yesterday all I wanted to do was relax, read, jump in the pool and do a workout. I got a good workout done in the morning and then had some internet time. We had met back up with our friends, but one was really sick. Chris decided we were going to rent a boat and head to Balicasag Island to check it out and do some snorkeling.
Balicasag Island
We got over there, snorkeled, it was awesome! The water was clear and warm, the reef was alive, there was a huge drop off of the reef, saw tons of fish, some big ones even.
Fresh grilled shrimp
After that we checked out the island, grabbed some lunch, and found the two accommodation options. We had a choice of a fan room with limited electricity or a hotel with a pool, a restaurant, AC and electricity. We chose to go fancy and stay at Balicasag Island Dive Resort for 2500p a night it was well worth it. Plus with one of our friends still feeling pretty sick the cool air would feel WAY more comfortable.
Balicasag Beach
We headed back to Bohol Divers Club, ate another very mediocre dinner and called it a night, looking forward to our two days ahead on Balicasag.
Day 16 and 17 – Balicasag
I had some Beachbody work to do in the morning. I was going to be without internet for 2 days so wanted to get a bit caught up. We were on our way back to Balicasag at 10am to check into our cottage.
Our cottage
Our Room
- Our View
Everyone but me was ready for a nap after we had lunch. I swam, read and snorkeled and hung out. When our friends woke up we went for a snorkel, saw trigger fish, big yellow/black/white fish, pretty blue and rainbow fish, a lion fish (my first one!). It was a fantastic day. Read in the hammock, wrote, and had a great dinner of chicken, pineapple and mushroom. This quickly became a highlight of our trip. Quiet, peaceful and relaxing. Not
sure if it beats out El Nido or not, maybe you can help me decide…
Y
Book time
Sunset on Balicasag
Underground River Day Trip
Sep 23rd
Day 13 Underground River
I had heard that the Underground River was one of the not to be missed trips in Palawan. We booked it through the hotel for 1500p/person. We got picked up a little after 8am then spent about an hour going around town picking up the rest of the customers. Then we had about an hour and a half drive to Sabang.
Sabang Beach
Sabang was really nice – nice beach, decent lunch and a pretty boat ride to the underground river.
Next we saw some big lizards and waited a while before going into the actual river.
Monitor Lizards
The cave was pretty cool inside, pics really don’t capture it. You float the river for around 1.5km. Not as cool as Waitomo Caves in New Zealand 
It was totally touristy, but hey, we’re tourists!
Entrance to Underground River
If we did this trip again we would have just booked a ride to Sabang and spend a night there. The beach was great, there was hiking, it was more pleasant than Puerto Princessa and we could have done just the Underground River as a 1/2 day trip instead of spending hours in the car.
Map of Subteranean River Area
Philippine housing
That night we had a great dinner at Kalui’s – coconut eel and veggie plate. By this point in the trip I was over loud noises – loud motorbikes, loud boats, loud music. I just want quiet. My stomach still wasn’t feeling great which doesn’t help the situation.
Dinner at Kailui
Day 14 Travel day PP to Cebu to Bohol to Panglao
After spending three nights at La Charica in PP I was thankful that it was going to be my last free “breakfast” which consisted of 1/2 a banana, a piece of stale white toast and a cold fried egg. Uck. It wasn’t until our very last day that we actually found a decent place to eat breakfast next to One Rover’s Place – we would have been there everyday.
We had an appointment to extend our Visa and got that sorted out in about 30 minutes. We had to bring a photo copy of passport and entry stamp, fill out the form, pay your 3000ish pesos and you got your extension. Our friends did it in Cebu and it took longer. I compare it to going to the DMV in a small town versus a big town.
We flew Cebu Pacific from PP to Cebu (left at 12:40pm, arrive 1:50 – about 3000p each). It was a fine flight. Not sure why we needed to be at the airport 2 hours early but not going to mess with it. The airlines are pretty strict on baggage – if you paid for 15kg you aren’t going to get more than 15kg. We arrived in Cebu, got our bags and got a taxi to head immediately to Pier 1 (300p) to get our ferry (Ocean Jet) that left at 3:35 to Tagbilaran on Bohol. Timing wise it worked out great, we had about 20 minutes to wait in the ferry terminal after buying tickets. The main complaint was the absolutely horrible, LOUD, gory movie they played on the boat, Dayroamers or something like that. Somehow I escaped into my book, and surprisingly even took a nap. We arrived in Bohol, grabbed a cab (600p, 30min) to Alona Beach where we met our friends at Bohol Dive Club. (800p fan room). It’s not a bad place, right on the beach, really hard beds in the fan rooms and paper thin walls but location works and they have a pool and wifi. They had many room options for upgrades. We ate a mediocre diner at the hotel and pretty much called it a night.
El Nido to Puerto Princessa
Sep 22nd
Day 11 Travel from El Nido to Puerto Princessa
El Nido was great and I would definitely go back. It was our favorite spot in all of the Philippines. When we first arrived we really liked it and were excited to do all four tours. That changed after the second day due to a few different factors.
1. Chris had a meeting coming up that required internet access which was tough with the electricity being off most of the day
2. We were all kind of tired of being on load boats
3. Two of us weren’t feeling 100% after getting a little stomach bug
4. Weather for the day wasn’t looking amazing, rain was coming
Chris proposed that we just leave that morning and we all said – sure! I went back and found a van to take us to Puerto Princessa. We opted to split a private van, with AC that would be ready to leave in an hour. We found one for 6,000pesos – which later found out the booking office kept about 2,000pesos – which hardly pays for the gas and time the driver spent taking us to PP. This will come to be a norm while traveling through the Philippines. The road was part dirt road, part paved. The drive was fine. We stopped for lunch just in time to watch the last part of the Mosley vs Pacquiao at a tiny little restaurant on a small tv.
We went back to the same hotel at Puerto Princessa. It was nice to have internet, electricity, AC and flushing toilets. Not excited about being back in the crazy traffic of Puerto Princessa. It’s pretty entertaining.
This is just a typical day, on a typical corner in PP. Love it!
Day 12 Massage and chill
Chris had his meeting this morning. After Chris’ meeting we went looking for some more food, phone cards, a post office and the immigration office to extend our Visa. When you come into the Philippines you can get a 21 day visitor visa and can extend pretty easy for a longer visit. After that we headed back to the hotel until I got hungry and needed a snack. I was STARVING and finally I found some meat on a stick so I asked if it was chicken and the guy said yes so I ordered two. Chris came up to me looked at what was getting grilled up for me and the rest goes like this:
Chris: You know that’s a chicken head.
Mandy: No it isn’t, is it? (He’s always messing with me)
Chris: silence
Mandy: (takes first bite and something juicy and liquid pops out) Ewww, what’s that?
Chris: That’s its eye.
Mandy: (spits out chicken head and throws the rest in the trash)
Chris laughed at me until I found him fried banana pancakes. Sometimes he still laughs at me because of this story.
Coron part 2 to El Nido, Philippines
Sep 21st
Click here if you missed Part 1 of Coron.
Day 7 – Wreck Diving
The rest of the group wanted to do a dive and I just went out on the boat. We went with Rock Steady Divers, a German company and they did three dives. I was able to snorkel at the first site and would have been able to snorkel at the third but chose to jump ship and head back to town after the second dive to catch up on some internet stuff. Kind of disappointed that I didn’t do the third snorkel as it turned out to be their favorite of the three but glad to have a shorter day. It was a long day for me out on the boat, not being a diver. Chris looks great in neoprene – don’t you think?
Chris in neoprene
This was our last full day in Coron. Overall it probably got a 3 1/2 out of 5 for me as far as places in the Philippines. I think my friends got more out of it as they are divers.
The highlights were definitely the day trip to Coron Island -MUST do, hiking Mt. Tapayas and the hot springs. If you aren’t a diver 2 days is probably enough time – unless you wanted to go to the nature park.
Town is LOUD and busy – we were really glad we stayed out of town at Sunz en Coron. We liked it enough 
We would eat at Mannekin Pis again for sure.
Day 8 – Ride the Joe
We had booked a boat from Coron to El Nido with Ride the Joe (2200p) and had to meet the boat at the pier at 8am. El Nido has no ATMs so we needed to make sure we had enough cash for the week and to get us back to Puerto Princessa. We made it on to the boat quarter to 8 but had to wait for the coast guard to check us which took until quarter to 10. It’s just part of the procedure so we had to suck it up. The Joe had plenty of food and clean drinking water and was moderately comfortable – use the lifejackets as pillows and cushions, it wasn’t too full or crowded which was nice, we were able to stretch out on the top. Our bags stayed dry and secure on the top covered by a tarp. The ride took 7 hours and was pretty. We considered doing an overnight boat at one point but glad we did it during the day. I say all of this because as we did our research for other boat companies we heard a bunch of negative stuff about the Joe but come to find out it was basically a sabotage because he stopped docking the boat in water too shallow at the Sea Dive Resort, so they are spreading rumors about how The Joe is unsafe. By the way – the Joe also has two motors – something VERY useful if one dies in the middle of the ocean.
The Joe
Us on The Joe
We made it into El Nido and had found out there were some decent beach cottages, Hadafe’s towards one end of town. I called a lady named Diana and arranged for her to meet us and take us there. I got a good feeling for the town right off the bat, much nicer than Coron town in my opinion. We headed to Hadafe’s and were shown our simple beach cottage for 700p a night. It has the best view of the sunset, no electricity from 2 am to 6pm, a simple bed, cold shower, toilet (non flushing) and small porch with outside sink. It’s a lot like camping – just in a bigger tent. I like it more than I thought I would.
Our cottage at Hadefe's
Beautiful sunset in El Nido
That night we grabbed dinner at a restaurant on the way into town. The food was good but they were slammed and missing a staff person so it took over an hour to get three veggie curries and a rice dish. Other than that it was fine.
Coron, Philippines – Part 1 of 2
Sep 21st
Day 4 – Flying to Coron
We woke up early in Puerto Princessa pretty much used the day to search out money. Many ATMs only let you take out 4000-10000 pesos a day and many were empty due to a holiday weekend. Our flight left for Coron at 1:50 but it actually left when everyone was there and on the plane, about 40 min early. A big surprise actually. The airport in Coron is 30 min drive from Coron town where all the accommodations, restaurants, etc are. You don’t get your own cab, instead there will be about 5-6 shuttles and you’ll share it with anyone else who happens to get in. I enjoyed the back seat to see the view of where we were although I was crammed in with the luggage.
Crammed in the back with the luggage
The van was comfortable and the ride was fine. 150pesos per person. Tell the driver where you want to get off and he’ll take you there. We checked in to Sunz en Coron, took a dip in the pool and headed to town.
Sunz en Coron, hotel
The hotel was a bit out of town – 10peso tricycle ride per person. That night we met up with MJ a couchsurfer and tour guide at a restaurant called Manekin Pis. Really good burgers, would definitely recommend going here.
Day 5 Hike, chill out, hot springs
I woke up early and headed out to hike Mt. Tapayas before it got to hot. 719 steps to the top and nice view of town. Good to get my heartrate up.
View from top of Mt. Tapayas
Came back to the hotel to play on the internet a bit, jump in the pool and then Chris and I went to the Manquit hot springs. Really cool tricycle ride through the other part of Coron town – 150p each r/t from the hotel. The hot springs were pretty and a nice place to hang out. 100p entrance fee. Nice view of the water. Would definitely recommend going there.
Manquit hot springs
Day 6 – Coron Island
Today was dedicated to a tour of Coron Island. First stop was Kayagan Lake – very cool seeing the limestone cliffs especially how they wear down at the bottom and hang over the edge.
Lake Kayangan
Next stop was Baracuda Lake – different temps of water made it interesting.
Jumping into Lake Baracuda
We had lunch at twin lagoon and did some snorkeling. Then to skeleton island for a snorkel of a wreck and finally off to Atawayan Beach – nice place for a sunset but we didn’t make it that long. It was a loooong day.
Gorgeous water, limestone features
We were back about 5 but could have stayed out later if we wanted to watch the sunset. Knowing how long it takes to get food from a restaurant we chose to just head to dinner. The tour with was good but we didn’t NEED a guide – most of the boat drivers know where to take the tourists.
Our Boat for the day
QNZ>CHC>KUL>CRK>MNL>PPS
Sep 21st
This me FINALLY putting together my travel journal from our trip to the Phillipines and Bali in May/June, 2011. We traveled 4 weeks in the Philippines and 2 in Bali. Here were the first 3 days.
Day 1 QT>ChCh>KL>Hotel
We left Queenstown, NZ about 7 am to head to the airport to catch a plane to Christchurch, NZ where we had a 6 hour layover. While in ChCh I went to the Antartic Exhibit for $65NZ. It was ok but a lot more money than I think I got out of it. Rode in a hagland and the 4D movie was beautiful but the 4D aspect of it was basically get squirted a handful of times. I probably wouldn’t go back or recommend spending the money unless you are REALLY REALLY interested in Antarctica. I think I would have gotten more out of it using the audio guide but for $65 I think it should have been included.
Because of the cheap flights on Air Asia we just wanted to GET to Asia and booked the flight to KL before we even decided on going to the Philippines.
Day 2 – Explore KL
After very little exercise the last 24 hours or so I took advantage of the gym at the Novotel and got a workout in. Walked around KL for most of the day. Saw China Town (went too early in the am) then went to one of the big malls in Bacuit Square. 10 stories of the same stores over and over again. Got our feet cleaned by fish – very cool and tickly and rode the roller coaster. The roller coaster was fun but not amazing. Headed BACK to China Town to see one of the famous temples in town then back to the hotel. I went on my own to see the Twin Towers in KL then called it a night after some dinner.
Meat Market in KL
Shopping Mall, KL
Mall in Kuala Lumpur
Foot spaTemple in KL
Twin towers in KL
Day 3 KL>Clark>Manila to Puerto Princessa
Another huge travel day. Woke up at 4:30, left at 5 for another hour long taxi ride back to the airport, and a 3 ½ hour flight to Clark. We landed in Clark and had to take a cab (reserved through Avis) to Manila. It took 2 hours on a Saturday afternoon to go the 70k. The traffic wasn’t too bad – but the driving was unlike anything I had seen before. Everyone turned 3 lanes into 4-5 swerving in and out, but it was all very calm and it wasn’t scary. We were nervous about getting to the Manila airport because we heard it could take 4 hours in bad traffic. Made it to PP and headed to our hotel via tricycle. Arrived at One Rovers Place but they didn’t have any room for us even though we booked on line and was charged through Agoda. The arranged for us to stay at another hotel, shuttled us over there and we had a pleasant stay at La Charinga (?)
Small room, fast internet and close to town, but off the main drag. Ate at Balinsasaya Restaurant. Due to a bank holiday and the weekend we had problems getting money out of the ATM that night in Puerto Princessa.
Lessons learned -
Be ready for terminal fees in all Philippine’s airports – cash!
Cash is king in Palawan! Bring Philippine Peso’s BEFORE you leave!
Travel with US$$
Make sure to know what airport you are flying in and out of in Manila – there are two and about 2-4 hours apart depending on traffic.
Don’t buy 3 Heineken’s at the bar at the Novotel – $50US… WHAT???
Pick Five
Sep 21st
Last week I took a class where I learned about Ayurveda, the ancient traditional Indian medicine and learned from my teacher, Susan Wilesmith the daily routine she goes through, which include 5 key points. She is up around 5:30 or 6am and immediately starts her mediation, followed by yoga, a run, self oiling/massage, and finally food preparation for the day. She works for herself and doesn’t began work until 10am.
I sat there thinking – “Yeah, right, like I have time to add 5 MORE things into my day.” As we went through the course she brought up how she BEGAN to fit it into her life and I wanted to expand on that and hope this tip helps you to began to make healthy choices throughout every day of your life.
Susan basically said: You have these 5 things to do everyday. Some days you’ll get them all in, others you’ll be lucky to get one in. You do your best, you leave space for yourself.
She said so matter of fact. With so little pressure. It clicked for me. I don’t need to do EVERYTHING everyday right in the beginning. I can AIM for incorporating those five things into my life, and soon, just like anything they’ll become a routine. I decided to start small. Yoga doesn’t have to be 90 minutes everyday. I’m not quite ready to start with the self oiling as we are getting ready to pack up and travel. I LOVE sunrises so to see a sunrise everyday is a treat, I can incorporate a daily bike ride, 5-10 minutes of mediation and 10-15 min of yoga/stretching while out on my ride. I’m seeing how this can slowly fit into my life in about an hour instead of four! Because lifting weights is important to me I decided to stick to 10-30 minutes of Ten Minute Trainer a day, I can do ten minutes – can you? Of course you can!
I encourage you to PICK 5. Aim to incorporate 5 healthy things into your life daily. Give yourself a “gold star day” for the days you accomplish all 5. When those five become routine pick 5 new ones.
Below I started to brainstorm, please add your 5 in the comment section below – I’d love to know what yours are!
Mediate
Yoga
Run, bike, swim, dance, play, hike
Commit to your exercise program
Only drink water, no sodas
Turn off the TV
Eat a serving of vegetables at every meal, yes even breakfast
Eat 3 meals a day and 1-2 small snacks
Don’t eat anything that has high fructose corn syrup in it
Walk for 10 minutes on your lunch break
Invite a friend to walk with you
Park as far away as you can at work
Pack your lunch
Skip the drive through
Dry brushing or oil massage
Plan your meals for the day
Eat at a table for every meal
Eat with your family
Don’t eat 3 hours before bedtime
Keep a daily food journal
Keep a journal
Try a new healthy recipe
Take your dog for a walk
Learn something new
Tell someone you love them and appreciate them
Eat foods that heal, real foods, not processed foods that make you sick
Read
Smile at a stranger
Don’t eat until you are full. Eat until you are not hungry.
Give gratitude to your body for what it allows you to do
Give thanks for the food you consume and the fuel it gives you
Take the stairs
Ask for a doggie bag
Skip the candy bowl at the dentist/doctors/mechanics office
Bring a bowl of fruit to work for the week
Wake up at ____everyday. In bed by ____
Get adequate sleep
My current 5 are
Wake up between 5:30 and 6 for the sunrise (7-8 hours of sleep)
30-40 min Bike ride (this will change in a few days due to a move)
Meditate 5-20 minutes a day
Yoga- minimum of 3 sun salutations to a full 90 minute session
1-3 Ten Minute Trainer DVD
Remember, not all days will be 5 star days. It’s not the end of the world.
Motivation. It’s a tricky thing!
Jul 25th
All day I hear from people about their lack of motivation to exercise, eat right and make healthy choices. “I try to work out but I lose my motivation.” Or “I don’t see results so I lose motivation.” I have SO many thoughts screaming to get out of my head right now on this but I’ll do my best to keep it under 12 pages.
I have a ONE word tip for you on motivation. Yep. One little word.
Why?
Let me ask you this instead. Do you like your job? Then why do you go to work? (and count yourself VERY lucky if you have a job you love). Do you like to pay rent and bills? Why do you continue to do it month after month? Did you like to do your homework after school when you were growing up? But you did it, well, most of the time, right? Why? Because the consequences are more painful than that action of just doing it.
My dad once told me that there are only 2 things you have to do in life. Die and pay taxes. I don’t agree. I think there is one more – suffer the consequences of your actions and choices. You don’t have to go to work. But if you don’t you’ll get fired, you wont get paid and the consequences will be worse than if you roll out of bed and just GO. Same with rent. Same with homework.
Same with eating right and working out.
What is your WHY? This has to be bigger, louder, stronger and maybe even angrier than the desire to not work out. To eat the junk. To sit on the couch. To hit the snooze button. To make your excuses.
When your WHY is bigger, louder, stronger, and angrier than your current situation you don’t need motivation. You Just Do It. You have a choice. You can continue living the life you have or you make a change. You take one step. Then another. Then one more. Keep going. And ask someone to join you to hold you accountable. You toss the junk. You keep a food journal.
So what is YOUR why? Did your doctor tell you that if you don’t lose weight you’ll be on medication for high cholesterol, sleep apnea, acid reflux or other related diseases? That you’ll be at risk for diabetes? Or maybe your why is to be a positive role model in the lives of your children. To be around longer for your children and grandchildren. Maybe it is to have 6 pack abs. Or to never have to say “I can’t run 5k”. Or is it to stop feeling like you are drowning.
I see so much complacency in so many people. We all have so much we can accomplish and succeed at. If you don’t believe me send me an email. I believe it. I’ll support you. I know you can achieve your goals. But you have to be ready to work for them to achieve them. You’ll have to make some changes and probably some sacrifices. Stop coming up with excuses. Working out is hard. I don’t like to sweat. I don’t have time. Eating healthy is too expensive. I don’t like vegetables. I don’t like to cook. Blah blah blah! Fine – if you are happy carrying around that extra weight, the way it makes your body feel, the way it makes YOU feel keep doing what you are doing. Everyone who has already accomplished what you want to achieve has made the changes. Has done the work. Knew their WHY.
What are the consequences of you NOT working out? Maybe nothing today. Maybe nothing next week or next month. But fact is fact, living a consistently unhealthy life will take a toll on your body and soon your body will break down.
What are you going to do if your body breaks down? Where are you going to live? You figure out your WHY, and I’ll gladly help with the rest!
So, what do you do?
Mar 30th
When I left my job on February 21st, 2010 I realized I would still get asked “so, what do you do?” when meeting someone new.
A few months ago I asked someone the same question and his reply was fantastic – it was “hike, read, spend time with my wife”. He and I both know that what I was really asking was what do you do (or did you do) to earn money to live the life you live? Do you have an interesting job, background, education, story?
Isn’t it easy to place people in a box based on our notions of what it means to us be an accountant, pilot, actress, janitor or nurse?
Do I miss working?
Yes and no.
~I miss having something I am proud of. I had a great job, a “cool” job, an unique job. When I told people what I did they wanted to know more and it was fun to share what I did.
~I miss working with and being around creative and talented people. I worked with amazing athletes, singers with “velvet throats”, funny people, dramatic people, needy people, talented people. People with dreams, goals, passion, and desire to do MORE, push harder, be more.
~I miss growth, change and movement. I see people on facebook commenting on their new gig, promotion, or congragulating a show for passing 2 years, 3000 performances or opening night.
~I miss my work family. The people I would see at least 40 hours a week that had to put up with me cranky or happy, giggly or broken hearted. These people became my closest friends. We celebrated birthdays, holidays (no such thing as off for the holidays in show business), weddings, even leaving for new adventures.
~I miss challenging my mind and using my skills on a regular basis (although, I’ll be honest, my last job didn’t challenge me on a regular basis).
~I do miss my paychecks – knowing it was MY money, being able to be generous with it.
So would I go back. Probably not.
~I don’t miss the stress. My life is simpler now. I don’t have a house. I don’t have a dog (but I do miss her). I don’t have bills, I don’t have a tight schedule.
~I don’t miss not being able to do things because I was working 6 nights a week, 50 weeks a year.
~I don’t miss my paychecks because I am taken care of financially.
So what do I DO?
I pole dance, cook, hike, bike, workout, read, chat with friends on facebook, plan our next adventures. I work on my Beachbody business but find it hard when we move every few months to keep up with it.
I think I feel like I need to explain myself to people. I’m not a gold digger. I didn’t seek out a man who would ask me to quit my job and be with him full time – if that were the case I probably would have quit my job the first time he asked me to! It took a year.
I’m not really sure where I am trying to go with this.
I’m super thankful for my Beachbody “work”. I LOVE connecting with people. I love that I make a few hundred bucks of my own each week based on MY schedule. I am proud of what I have done with it and would like to do more.
It’s crazy because you always hear the expression “no one on their death bed wishes that they spent more time in the office”. So it is a weird feeling to have. I don’t think it is just about WORK – it is about expressing myself, sharing, growing, learning, being apart of something…
So what about you? If your partner had the funds so that you didn’t have to work would you quit? What would you do with your time? What do you think you would miss about your job?
What’s your biggest hurdle when it comes to eating healthy?
Oct 4th
This week on my Facebook page I asked a question. What is your biggest hurdle when it comes to eating healthy. I wanted to answer some of those hurdles and offer some solutions. Is your hurdle in the list?
1. Emotions ~ Honestly, I didn’t think of myself as an emotional eater but you know what – last week I learned that I am. I eat when I am bored. By simply recognizing this I realized that when I am not engaged in something I open the fridge looking for something to do. Emotions are the toughest hurdle, in my opinion. Recognition is HUGE. Now that I recognize my emotion every time I head to the fridge I can ask myself – Am I bored? Is it TIME to eat? Am I hungry? Maybe your emotion is sadness, anger, loneliness, etc. What other ways can you deal with that emotion? Call a friend, write, exercise, find a hobby that doesn’t include food. I know when I am busy in an activity I struggle to pull myself away from it long enough TO eat!
2. Planning/Preparation ~ I’m a planner by nature. I LOVE to plan, so this comes very naturally for me. I would LOVE to help you with your plan. Some things I do is make multiple meals at one time. I’ll make turkey meatloaf – sometimes two at a time while I make a mixed bean chili.
I’ll boil a batch of steel cut oats for the week while I boil some eggs and grill some chicken. My favorite meatloaf recipe is on my Facebook group page – Get Fit with Mandy. I can mix up the ingredients, pop it in the oven and workout while it cooks. Plus it makes GREAT leftovers.
3. Convenience/Time ~ This goes hand in hand with number hurdle number 2. I keep HEALTHY snacks on hand so when I am short on time or rushing out the door I know I can grab some sugar snap peas, carrots, celery or peppers, and hummus (already chopped). Same with nuts, yogurt, fresh fruit – my basket always has options. A protein bar and of course Shakeology are great options for lack of time and convenience.
4. Avoiding sweets ~ I KNOW this one first hand. You may remember last year I challenged myself to 30 days of no cookies, no cake, no sweets, no treats. It wasn’t for the rest of my life, just a short period. I wanted to prove I could do it. Can you avoid sweets for ONE day? Of course you can! Take it one day at a time. Get the JUNK out of your house! Keep home SAFE! At work – how – many of your coworkers can you ask to have a sweet free week? Or AT LEAST Monday-Thursday! Offer to bring in a bag of fresh fall apples to replace the candy on the desk. Instead of cupcakes for every birthday fruit skewers – yes some can be even be dipped in chocolate!
5. Cost ~ I have sent some emails about this- if you are ready for me to send it again let me know. You CAN eat healthy and not spend a fortune. A healthy breakfast can literally be less than a dollar. You can feed a family of four dinner for $2 a plate. YES – it IS more expensive to buy all organic- but the more in demand it becomes the cheaper it will become. YES it is cheaper to buy a soda and a candy bar and call that lunch – but REALLY – are the long term affects “cheaper”? Don’t you deserve better? Compared to other countries we spend very little on our food. Why do we value quantity over quality food? It’s killing us and making us unhealthy. Eating whole foods, prepared at home is cheaper and healthier for you.
6. Family ~ I don’t have kids, so I am not always aware of all the struggles parents have. What I have read about getting your family on board is tricks to “sneak” veggies into meals – like sauces, meatloaves, etc. And don’t make a big deal about it. When cutting out the junk a major announcement doesn’t need to be made. Small changes over time and your family will get used to it, and they WILL start feeling better. Did you know that life expectancy rates are dropping due to obesity rates. This means that today?s younger generation will have shorter and less healthy lives than their parents for the first time in modern history. That breaks my heart. We can do something about it – but we have to start making changes and STOP making excuses.
