Waaaaaa!

You guys?! @#*^%@$#!!!

I want it! All of it.

I took a walk in the hopes that the craving for sweets, chocolates and candy would pass and all I could see was this!

Just want to throw myself on the floor and kick and scream until I am too tired to do that anymore, then go to the store for some chocolate covered almonds or tootsie roles (yes I am one of the odd balls that loves them) or perhaps one of these from the cupcake shop. 

Oh how I miss the cupcake shop!

Why oh why did I ever think giving up chocolate and sugar was a good idea?! Somebody, anybody, please... talk me down from the ledge.

Hello, my name is Shannon and I'm a sweet-o-holic!

xo

Happy Halloween!

... From the dog.

Here's to making it through the day (and night) sugar-free. Weeee.

Aftermath

Hello my Beauties,

I just wanted to send out good thoughts to anyone suffering with the horrible aftermath of this hurricane that's currently battering the East Coast. Evidently I live in a bubble and had no idea what was really happening.

But to my girls Helen, both Amy's, Marie, and any others of you in that area, I pray that you are safe, that if you're without power, that you're coping and that your families and friends are around you or that you've heard from loved ones and are all in one piece.

We had apparently suffered an earthquake out here on the West Coast and I had to hear about it from my concerned friends in Toronto and my mom among others. The news often blows things out of proportion so when I'd heard there was wind and rain in the East over the weekend, I didn't give it much thought.

Am thinking of you and hope you're all okay.

Big hugs,
Shan

DAIRY might NOT be the bad guy?

Over the more than year and a half or so since my graduation from Metamorphosis, I've struggled to find that perfect balance of what to eat, what not to eat, to do cardio, to not do cardio etc. I've tried a lot of different things, gave up some die-hard favorites (bye bye chocolate chip cookies, will miss you Ben & Jerry) and talked endlessly to all of you about what you've found that works for you.

When you put out a request like that, the answers that come back are as varied as the women providing them, but the general consensus from the most successful of you (my sister, Janice, Marie) strongly recommended that I add more protein to my diet. It's said that protein helps to attack that nasty belly fat that an abcentric girl like me has to contend with on a daily basis. (Don't believe me? Check out the photo of my belly here!)

Should be simple enough, right? Wrong. If you're a vegetarian this can be tricky. (If you're vegan, it's even harder, but that's not within the scope of this post.) A girl can only stomach so many eggs and eating a ton of tofu or other processed "meat" substitutes sort of defeats the purpose of eating a clean diet. So what to do? 

Dairy is a natural recommendation. Yogurt works well for breakfast. A little cottage cheese with your crunchy green salad at lunch? Yum. Or how about some low fat cheese melted over your beans and rice? I can feel my stomach growling already. Problem solved. Not so fast.

I like to think of myself as being in tune with my body. Others might call this being neurotic. But I found each time I'd eaten a serving of yogurt or cottage cheese (I try to stay away from cheese melted on anything as it can quickly pile on the fat and calories), I noticed that the next day my joints ached and my body felt stiff. Was I just being a hypochondriac, or was there some kind of connection to the dairy products I was consuming? A quick search on Google gave me my answer. Dairy can have a potentially negative effect on arthritis and other inflammatory conditions. I was going to need to stay off the dairy.

But here's the odd thing. I could eat certain types of cheese with no ill effect, or weirder, sometimes I could eat yogurt and not feel badly at all. Hmm. More digging.

I think I may have found my answer. Carrageenan.

Any idea what that is? Don't worry, I'm not going to go all technical on your ass. I'll keep it super simple. It's a natural additive that's extracted from certain kinds of red seaweed (hence the term natural) and added to dairy products to keep them from separating or to make them gel, for lack of a better term. 

Kappaphycus alvarezii - Red Algae

But it turns out that this stuff can cause serious inflammation along with several other health concerns. It doesn't negatively affect everyone of course, but (I am assuming) like gluten, it's not tolerated well by everyone.

But there is good news. You can get dairy products that do not contain carrageenan, which might explain why I am okay with some cottages cheeses and yogurts, while others leave me feeling every bit my 41 years and then some.

So next time you're in the mood for a little dairy for some added protein, have a look at the list of ingredients and maybe choose the one that's seaweed free, especially if you've found that you've not been able to eat it in the past.

Cheers,
Shan

Continuity REALLY Works!!

All I can say is WOW as I introduce you to my lovely and beautiful Nancy P. 

She is the perfect example of the Tracy Anderson Method in action, the proof that Continuity delivers, the evidence that if you stick with the program... you are going to get results.

I'll just let her photo speak for itself.

Continuity 2.0

I know that I don't have to say LOOK AT HER ABS People, but omigod, would you look at her abs? Absolute perfection! We all have a new photo to add to our Vision Boards or Pinterest or to stick up on the fridge. Thanks for that Nancy.

I was definitely curious to know how she got here and I know you all are too and Nancy was gracious enough to indulge me as I peppered her with questions. I kinda felt like a kid who'd just met my idol! Read on for details!

1) How many days a week do you do the Muscular Structure on the mat? 
Without fail, no less than 6 days a week under normal circumstances. I travel a lot so I take a little breather and get right back to it when I get home.

2) Are you doing dance cardio alone or do you supplement with other forms of cardio as well? 
Ok I will be totally honest, me and dance cardio are not friends, so I do not do the dance cardio (insert cringe!). (oh a girl after my own heart, I love you even more now) I do other cardio DVDs, none less than 1/2 hour. I also love to hike at Griffith Park here in LA, and I have been taking ballet for a number of  years but don’t get to it as often as I would like. 


3) What centric did you choose?
I'm a hipcentric kinda gal. (to that I say, hips? What hips?)

4)How long have you been at it? 
I did my very first TAM mat workout on June 28, 2011 and haven’t stopped for 16 months now.

5) What is your daily diet like? 
I've been a strict vegetarian (no meat in any form) for 18 years, so I enjoy a plant based diet. It’s a bit of a misconception that being vegetarian automatically means you are thin. I packed on 30 pounds when I first went veg!  I supplement with Thinkthin bars for protein, and enjoy lots of fresh fruits,grains and veggies, along with various vegetarian forms of protein. I don’t have a big sweet tooth, so a splurge to me is a good cheese plate and glass of wine or chips, guacamole and a margarita with friends! I can attest to the fact that a splurge at this point in the TAM game doesn’t totally set me back like it used to, another incentive to keep going!

6) Do you have a favorite level or sequence? 
For some reason I remember really enjoying level 2 of meta-hip. But I have to say, continuity has really surprised me in a number of enjoyable ways. Just when you think you're work is done after day 90 of meta, then you start continuity and it’s a whole different and wonderful ballgame.

7) How did you find the Method and Tracy? 
My best friend Jen found her first and so I looked into it, and instantly liked the different approach Tracy was taking, as opposed to the other plans out there. I think I could identify with her having a dance background like I do. I love the ballet inspired moves the best.

8) Have you tried other forms of fitness and how does it compare for you? 
Oh I sure have! Name it and I've probably tried it. I think many of us girls are in that same boat, With TAM, it really is about the right combo of diet and exercise. You simply cannot do one without the other.  My body has really responded to it and now it's all become part of my normal routine.

9) And if it's not too personal, how old are you? 
I just turned 36. (happy belated birthday!)

10) And of course we're all curious about your current height and weight? 
I'm 5'6 and 118lbs. At my highest weight, I was 164. 
I keep a picture of me at that weight on my fridge. It says "think before you eat" :)

11) If there is anything else that you'd like to share, we'd love to hear it. 
I've shared this on your blog before, but honestly after Day 1 on level 1, the very first thing I did after was look for the return policy on the DVDs. Then I thought about it, and said at least complete the first level. SO glad I did!
 
12) Also, at one point, you expressed feelings of uncertainty when it came to the chair and you considered going back to repeat older levels. Can you tell us about that? 
Oh lordie! As soon as continuity 2.0 began, I said, no way...I went back to my tracker and looked for a level that had a smiley face next to it, my way of remembering what level I liked. Then I commented on Mastering the Method, and you, Shan encouraged me to give it a try, stick with it, it will work! So glad I did. 
And in the absence of a chair, I use my sturdy coffee table, and have modified any moves that are super-chair-involved. I have to say, I'm really enjoying it!! 
On that note, the phrase that sticks in my mind throughout this entire process so far is "make it work for you". I do, and it still pays off. 

13) Did you have a lot of weight to lose or was this is more of a maintenance plan? 
So my initial impetus for doing this was to tone up and get stronger. On other diet and exercise programmes, I might lose weight, but wasn’t getting toned at all, especially not in my problem areas. I liked the targeted -centric approach Tracy was taking. My entire shape and frame have changed. Even my posture is better! Every day we are met with a number of food choices, or the choice to hit the mat or not hit the mat but I can honestly say I've never said " I wish I hadn’t just done that workout!"

14) And since we've been on the subject of Maintenance... How long have you been maintaining your current weight? 
Interestingly, I weigh less now than I did on my last day of Meta. I think that speaks volumes for continuing with the program. I've been around this same weight now for the most part (there have been a few gain weeks, I aint gonna lie!) for about 6 months. 

So there you have it ladies. If you think the program is just hype or that it won't work for you, think again.

Nancy, thank you so much for sharing your story and reminding us that we really do get out what we put into this program and for showing us that the Method keeps on working. 

You look stunning. And I think we can all agree that you have an awful lot to be proud of.

Big hugs.
Shan 

Fun with Instagram.

Never thought I'd say this, but I am actually having fun with Instagram!

 Feeling fat? Stand next to something big!

Emotional Eating -- The Maintenance Series

Those of you who have children (or pets) know how easy it can be to tell them what they should or shouldn't be eating. We want what's best for them. We want to feed them well so that they can grow up to be strong and healthy and live a long time (that last bit is for pets especially, dogs just don't live long enough in my opinion). But you may also know it's not as easy to do this for yourself and if your significant other pipes up to remind you of the rules you've laid down for the kids (or pets) or the goals that you set for yourself, well he or she may very well get snapped at.

At the risk of sounding like an absolute hypocrite, allow me to share a little story with you. Or as I sometimes like to call it, confession time. 

I hate confession time.

Right, so coupla days ago I came on here and I asked y'all to have a look at some of your habits, think about your favorite foods, then more or less dared you to try eating less than what you'd normally consume while giving yourself permission to go back for more if need be. But the exercise was to be a little more aware of the foods you put into your mouth so you can actually enjoy the experience and also perhaps discover that you could be satisfied with less.

Sounds simple. I started doing this while I was away so there was absolutely no reason I couldn't continue doing it at home.... except for when I am stressed, worried, anxious, nervous... or feeling anything other than numb! Yes I am talking about the dreaded emotional eating that can sabotage even the best efforts and intentions! Here's where I become the hypocrite.

On the very day that I wrote that post, I got a copy of the first rough cut of my film. Eeep! Let the nail biting ensue.

I shot a text to he who shall not be named to let him know we'd be screening the film that evening and he wondered if we should have something special for dinner. Yes! I cried, pizza and lots of it!

No questions asked, the man ordered two pizzas, bless him. 

I had the film set up and ready to go when the pizza arrived. Before the boxes were even opened, I considered my post to you. I thought, if this pizza were on set, I'd have a single slice with a big salad and that would that. But here at home, I didn't feel like making a salad so my compromise was that I'd have one slice of each (they were different pizzas) and stop at that.

As if! Did I mention I was a nervous wreck? What if my movie sucked?! What if I was an abject failure and would never work in this or any other town again?! Ack! I kept eating. Turns out the film was okay. I was going to be okay. I kept eating, I needed to celebrate you know. He who shall not be named tried to slow me down at one point... yeah, not a good idea. I was in the middle of watching ten years of hard work come to fruition, I deserved this! Needed it even.

What's one more slice, I'd run 5km that very afternoon. Holy crap before I'd realized it, I'd eaten five slices of pizza and it wasn't even that good! We tried a new place, dumbasses! 

Five pieces, are you reading this? Have I mentioned recently that I am so not a good example? I may as well have had a bag of brownies on top of it! I didn't thank goodness. But lemme tell you something. Five pieces of thick crust pizza now all trying to pass through my little intestines was like trying to squeeze an elephant into a pair of tights! It was agony. My stomach swelled up, I felt horrible.

But here's the thing. I'd been eating pretty well for five or six weeks now, more or less and I had a different mind set than in my "diet" phase. When you're on a diet and something like this happens, you can kinda tend to freak out a 'lil bit. Oh I've ruined my diet, I've fallen off the wagon again, I suck, I'll never do this, never get there, why am I such a loser always sabotaging myself? And on and on it goes, right?

I am here with a gentle reminder that it doesn't have to be that way. Perhaps we need these types of mess-ups to remind us how good it feels not to be "stuffed full" after dinner. But also to remind us that one bad night does not undo all of our hard work and effort. It doesn't unlearn the lessons we've picked up along the way. 

Maintaining our weight is about balance and balance doesn't have to happen in a single day. Yes, noble and beloved readers, this story has a happy ending. With my belly protruding and my insides aching, I made a note to self, self I said, tomorrow (being yesterday) we're going to create a Kimberly Snyder smooth interstate in our gut! I ate light to heavy, making sure I had a full 12 hours without food after my pizza extravaganza. I consumed mostly fruits and veggies, I had some yogurt in there and tossed a few nuts and seeds into my midday salad, then had a lovely vegetarian chipotle corn chowder with some corn chips on the side for dinner. I felt satisfied, my belly deflated (mostly) and today I feel right as rain. Back to normal. Crisis averted.

Every time we mess up, and we will mess up because lets face it, sometimes life throws us a damned curve ball, it doesn't mean the end of a healthy lifestyle. It means we're human, we're fallible, but we're also capable. Capable of getting right back to our good habits without a month-long junk food bender.

So if you didn't manage to eat less than you normally would the other day, it doesn't mean you can't try it again. Keep trying until you find your balance, until you hit upon the amount of food that feels just right for you! And before long, the weight will come off (if it hasn't already) and you'll be well on your way to maintaining that gorgeous figure!

With November right around the corner, it'll soon be time to start talking about things we can do to get through the holidays muffin-top free!

Thanks for sharing.
Shan

Too Many Choices! The Maintenance Series.

The goals that we set for ourselves are as unique as we are, so why do you think we're prone to believe that some mass-produced diet or workout program will suit us? We're all so different.


I think the reason Tracy Anderson's Method is so effective is because it isn't one size fits all. But even within that program, we've got to customize it to fit our needs. I do this all the time. (I'm a terrible example by the way, so don't do what I do, do what Tracy tells you in conjunction with what feels right for you).

But if you're practicing the Method, you know this already. Besides, the Method isn't what I want to discuss today in this installment of the Maintenance Series, I want to talk diet. 

Ack, the D word. Don't panic, I don't want to discuss the latest or greatest detox or low carb or non-fat plan, I want to talk about the way we eat. The way we break bread with our friends, the way we choose to feed our families and ourselves, and how we can use these lovely moments to help keep us in our skinny jeans.

I am beyond amazed that I have been holding at my (new, slightly higher) goal weight for a little over two weeks now. For months I'd been holding an extra five pounds and had gradually grown to accept that perhaps that was where my body wanted to be, hence I posted the pics that you saw in Two Years In.

While away, I somehow managed to drop those last few pounds, the dreaded final five I guess you could say, without much effort. And those are generally the hardest to lose. SO WTF?? Right?

We've had a lot of theories. I'd already given up sugar so that wasn't an issue, my mind was focused on other things so I wasn't obsessing, I'd been counting calories so I generally knew what things would cost me on my diet budget, or perhaps all the good habits I'd put into play had finally taken over. 

But here's another theory.

While on location, we had food catered. Often when you think of catering, you think high fat, high calorie, buffet style, all you can eat binge-fest. This can be true, unless you're a vegetarian. Then your choices become more limited.

Looking back, I pretty much had the same things every day and because some of the foods I ate came off the craft truck, I was eating them out of small serving containers. For example. Almost every day I had two breakfasts. The first was a piece of fruit on our commute. Later in the morning, when I felt peckish, I'd hit the truck for some eggs, but I always had them in a tiny bowl rather than a big plate because they were greasy and I couldn't stomach a large quantity. 

And while they always changed things up at meal times, the veggie options rarely appealed, so I often just created a giant salad out of the same stuff. 

Had I been eating sweets, I would have gorged myself on the cakes, cookies and candies because there were so many choices. We always had beautiful cakes and cookies every day and different ones at every meal, not to mention the bags of cookies and candy on the craft truck.

The other reason I believe that I had success was because I could just take what I wanted and what I needed without ever having to worry about food going to waste. So I just naturally gravitated toward smaller portion sizes. 

That's not the case at home though is it? When you cook, there always seems to be just a little bit more than what you might need because God forbid you go to all the trouble of cooking to wind up being hungry because you didn't make enough. Not only that, but we often do our shopping for the week, so there are plenty of choices in the cupboards for treats and snacks and little extras. Maybe we just have too many choices at home.

I have since tried to stick with my "away" frame of mind while eating here at home. Sticking to more or less the same things and starting out every meal with half the amount of food I would normally pile on my plate, just to see if I'll feel satisfied. Sure a couple of times I'd had to go back for more, but I've learned that I can be okay with less than I thought as well. On the occasions that I haven't been as strict with portions, I got full. I discovered that I no longer liked that feeling. It's uncomfortable. Could it be that feeling full and feeling satisfied are two totally separate feelings?

When you have the option of just taking what you need and not having a lot of options to chose from, you can get used to feeling "satisfied" and that's now my new bench mark.

What is your favorite dinner time food? Is it bread with your meal? Do your kids love pasta? Is wine a must when you go out? I am not suggesting that you avoid these things. Instead I'd ask you to savor them, but in limited quantities. Eat that bread slowly, serve some crunchy carrot sticks to the kids with their pasta, sip a single glass of wine slowly, tasting every note.

But I would also urge you tonight at dinner to keep things simple and whole (nothing from a box or can), and give yourself permission to serve yourself half of what you'd normally take, knowing full well that you can go back for more if you want. But pay attention to how you feel at the end of the first serving. Ask yourself, is it enough? Do you feel "not hungry anymore". If the answer is yes, don't go back. Pay attention to how your stomach really feels and see if you can't make this the new norm.

And perhaps while you eat dinner tonight, if you're a meal in front of the TV kinda girl, check out this fantastic video from Ted Talks - The Paradox of Choice. It just might get you thinking about the items you put into the basket on your next trip to the grocery store.

Love this guy!

As always, keep me posted on your progress. How did actively choosing to take half as much as you normally would feel to you, not just physically, but also emotionally? Did consciously deciding to savor that favorite food or drink and eating it or drinking it slowly make it more pleasurable? Think about it. Lemme know.

Cheers,
Shan

Catch All (and C2.2.4)

Ever go away and come back to find it takes so much longer to get your feet back on the ground than it used to? I've been back for a couple of weeks and it still feels as though I am playing catch up. Not only that, time feels like it's flying by, before I know it, it'll be Christmas and I am not ready. Eeeeeeee.

There's a post in my head for the next installment of our Maintenance Series, but I'm sitting on it for today, simply because I've been working with Stacey on level 4 of Continuity 2.2 and wanted to share that. In addition, I also wanted to touch on what's been happening in my world in my dealings with sugar. I hope you're not terribly sick of that yet. Not to worry if you are, this will likely be one of the last posts on that subject. Ugh, too many thoughts, too much to write.

So Stacey... level 4.

First off I cannot say enough how much I love Continuity 2.2. It's everything that a series continuing the Method should be. It contains all of the elements that I loved from Metamorphosis and even has a few nuances of the original Mat DVD, it's all there, but Tracy. I miss her. However, both Stacey and Maria are doing a fantastic job and I believe that my practice and understanding of the Method is growing from having new teachers. I do take heart knowing that Tracy was there behind the scenes every step of the way. 

It shows, because the moves are every bit as challenging as the Mat DVD and Metamorphosis, yet this series is also simple. And by simple I mean that so far it isn't filled with overly-complex moves or props. It's ballet based, it targets your balance while getting to those accessory muscles and it is continuing to pull everything in. It's a cornerstone in my maintenance program. I can't believe I ever thought of quitting!

My first thought when starting this level at the beginning of last week was summed up perfectly when he who shall not be named walked in, saw the TV and said: "What the hell is she wearing?!" I had to laugh.

Do any of you remember the outfits Tracy wore for Meta or on some of her old YouTube videos? We were always talking about her crazy-ass leggings. Anyone remember the ones that looked like little jeans? I digress. The girls do not disappoint. As I move deeper into the series, I can see their hair coming down. In Level 4, Stacey is wearing a black bra under a backless white body suit, over which she's got black crocheted tights? So the bottom of her white body suit is quite visible through the tights. 

There must be something in the Method that causes us to lose our sense of taste because normally? I'm your basic sweats and tank top kinda girl but check out my new favorite leggings. 

Yikes! Even I wonder how I'm gonna feel about these in six months time.

Shall I just get on with the workout now? Yeah, best that I do.

I'd like to talk legs first. How is it possible that Tracy can still continue to come up with new moves? I don't know, but she does. And I love this sequence. I particularly like the speed with which Stacey executes it, despite her totally see-through pants. Once again, the sequence consists of six different moves of about 30 reps each. This seems to be the standard for this level. Unlike Maria, she does the moves with an ankle weight and she even doubles up for the last two moves. I do not weight my ankles. I want to make that clear. Perhaps if I did, I wouldn't love the series so much.

In any case, each move is done with precision from start to finish, it doesn't feel at all rushed and as such, you can really feel the burn. There is one move that I had to watch over several times to be sure I was doing it properly because you are balancing on one knee (and your palms) while the working leg goes into a hydrant on steroids. It flips out to the side then carries right on up up up and over until your butt is nearly facing the ground (so the whole torso twists and the abs engage to within an inch of their lives) before you bring the leg back, plant it down in a plank and the "non-working" leg then kicks up and behind, crossing the hip of the working leg before starting over again.

Okay, I realize that I said the moves in this were not complicated and reading the above makes it sound as if I've obviously lied or my leggings are cutting off the circulation to my brain, but seriously, take my word for it, that's the only one that is a mind-bender, the rest are pretty straight forward.

As for standing abs, there aren't really any solo standing ab moves in level 4, but the abs do get a good workout while you perform standing arms. I found this level's arms a little difficult to catch on to and still don't feel as though I've mastered them yet. This being the second workout I've done with Stacey, I can say that I enjoy working the floor abs with her. Again, she seems to somehow slow things down just that little bit that allows you to follow her while getting in deeper. Rather than flying through a bunch of sit-ups trying to keep up, you are able to perform the moves correctly almost from the start and really sink into them and target that belly!

So for me, this level, as with all the other levels in 2.2 so far, is a definite winner, one I'll come back to if I get to a stage where I feel like throwing in the towel.

In other news, Sunday the 21st of October marked 90 days off sugar for me and I hit it with mixed emotions. My first thought was: wicked, how about a nice mini cupcake from the shop down the street. I was dreaming about it all morning. It would be chocolate with a whipped pink icing, perhaps a few sprinkles and a bit of caramel swirled in there for good measure.

There are a couple of schools of thought around the whole subject of getting off any food. If you're not doing it for obvious health reasons -- like getting off gluten because you are celiac -- you should not deprive yourself because you will binge. Hey man, been there, done that. But the other way of thinking is like that of a vegetarian or addict. If you chose to be veggie, you just don't eat animals... ever. If you are an alcoholic, you don't drink... ever.

My fabulous and lovely reader Tammy commented that she was off to contemplate the rest of her life without chocolate. That's an enormous task. Too big to face and one that might set us all up for failure. I hadn't ever really considered what would happen to me beyond 90 days. I'd never ventured farther than that before. Of course I'd had moments during the past 90 days where I'd convinced myself that a life without sugar would become normal. I'll be honest, it's been extremely difficult. Each day has its challenges for a variety of reasons; almost always emotional.

I will tell you this, I did not celebrate the day with sugar. I weighed in and found that miraculously, I'm still holding steady at my goal weight so that was one reason to carry on. Then, He who shall not be named took me to MEC (that's Mountain Equipment Coop in Canada, like REI in America and I don't know what elsewhere in the world) and bought me a brand new pair of hiking boots which we took off-road yesterday.

I'd say that view is reward enough for staying off sugar for today. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

xo
Shan

We Are Not Perfect!

Yesterday was a great exercise wasn't it? I don't think there is any losing here because whether you managed to forgo your vice for the day or not, I bet you have a keener understanding of what might be controlling you.

If you were successful, perhaps giving it a go for three days will be the next challenge. If you didn't manage to get through the day, don't give up! I bet a few of you out there who may have indulged had a whole lot less than you would have normally and in my books, that's victory, baby!

I think the key to maintenance lies somewhere along the path of perseverance. Don't be afraid to try different things and mess up and fall. You're aware of the wagon, so if you fall off it, it's not going to leave you behind. You can always get back on it. Tracy's Method will never abandon you. Jillian Michaels, Gunnar Peterson, Tony Horton, Mandy Ingber, David Swenson, Chalene Johnson, or whomever you've picked to train with, will still be there for you if you take a little leave of absence.

I was out of my routine for three weeks, I couldn't manage a full workout with the schedule I was working on. When I came back last week, I had to face the music and lemme tell you something Maria kicked my butt all over again. My hamstrings were screaming uncle whereas when I left, I totally thought I had that workout down cold. Ha! Not so much. More on that and this past week with Stacey 2.2.4 on the weekend.

For now, I want to leave you with a very inspiring speech from America's 26th President, Teddy Roosevelt.

It is not the critic who counts,

or how the strong man stumbled and fell,

or where the doer of deeds

could have done better.

The credit belongs to the man (or in our case woman)

who is actually in the arena,

who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotion, 

and who spends herself

in a worthy cause.

If she fails,

at least she fails while daring greatly,

so that she may never be

one of those cold and timid souls,

who know neither victory nor defeat.

Have a fantastic weekend, my friends.
Shan

So??

Hey guys,
So what's going on today? Have you thought a little bit about what you might be doing to sabotage your best efforts? Are you now applying that awareness to the behavior and for today choosing not to participate in it? 

Remember, your mind is going to give all the reasons in the world why today is the absolute wrong-ass day to do this. Ignore it.

It will tell you how much you deserve that "thing". Ignore it.
It's going to say you'll just fall off the wagon like you always do. Ignore it.
It might try to convince you that it's okay to just have one glass of wine or only a small handful of chips, or just one square of chocolate or only do ten minutes on the mat - Please, for your own sake, ignore all that.

Whatever your mind argues or pleads or bullies you for today, just IGNORE IT!

To help keep you motivated, check out this short video by one of Tracy's LA trainers and if what she's saying doesn't sink in, just check out her fabulous physique and let that motivate you.

All my best, I know you can do it and I am already proud of you!
Shan

Losing it! The Maintenance Series.

Hello Lovelies,

The changing seasons always get me looking at the world with fresh eyes. Doesn't matter what season, it's simply that change of pace that shakes up my perspective and this autumn is no different.

Being away has also affected my point of view and got me thinking that I want to sort of start a new writing series here within the blog. A maintenance series. I hinted at this in yesterday's post and I've taken the evening to table my thoughts. While I am not entirely sure what it's going to look like, I believe it should take the form of an Idea Incubator. Meaning that (like always) it's a place for our voices to be heard, for all of us to chip in thoughts, practices that may have worked for us or failed, methods and tips for us to build a foundation of health upon and around.

I looked up the term "Idea Incubator" and I found a website for a company that helps build small businesses and I really liked their premise - that they would become the small business's "advisers, confidants, and drinking buddies" until their ideas could hatch.

I think we can do that here too. We already share our victories, support one another, commiserate, and commemorate, so why not advise one another, confide in each other and have a few drinks as well as laughs along the way? 

So I guess this is going to officially be the first post in the Maintenance Series.

I'd like to use this space to continue our discussion from getting into shape or losing weight and allow it to evolve organically among us into ways that we can stay at a healthy weight, never have trouble zipping up our skinny jeans, and just generally feel good about being in our own skin no matter what our age or history. Sounds good right? Sounds perhaps a bit like a mythical unicorn though, no? I don't think it has to be. If diets were really designed to be effective, the diet industry would be broke, think about that. If we're outside that diet box, I think we might stand a chance of success, so bear with me here, okay. This is going to take some work.

We're not all at the same stage. Some of us still have yet to get to that magical happy place of stepping on the scale and loving that number that's reflected back, or checking out our butt in our jeans and being happy with what we see. Allow me to be the first to burst that bubble right here and right now!

When (when not if) you lose the weight (because you can do it, let's get that straight right off the bat) you are going to be exactly the same you that you were before you lost the weight, only smaller. So you must get right within yourself first. Weight loss is not a magic formula for happiness. That is something else altogether. Here's what I mean. I am abcentric. I gain weight in my belly and I am never ever ever going to have an hourglass figure without the help of a rib-cracking girdle, doesn't matter how much weight I lose, got it?

I had to come to a place where I could be cool with the fact that at least getting the weight off allows me to not spill over the top of my jeans in a big old muffin top and be happy with that. 

I suppose what I am saying is that you might want to think about preparing yourself for the fact that if you have a behind like Jennifer Lopez, you need to embrace it and stop dying to look like Gwyneth Paltrow. Can you do that? I now understand that I will never have the curves of Halle Berry.

But I could get her arms or her legs, perhaps. But that waist? Those boobs? Not mine naturally, never will be, and that's OKAY! My long straight hair could never be hers naturally either. But like Halle embraces her gorgeous cropped curls, I embrace my boyish figure, you embrace you booty, or petite height, or strong legs - Shamandment number one - Be Shannon. 

You be you too. I think we should have T-shirts printed up.

Once you can understand that you will always be you only smaller and accept that (no easy feat) it's time to start digging. If you are overweight or out of shape, you've got to lose it before you can maintain it, right, so let's fucking go there next shall we? Straight down the rabbit hole.

I recently wrote a post entitled What's Holding You Back? and my sweet and beautiful reader Josie posted a comment that really got me thinking. Josie, like so so many of us has yet to find a way to maintain her weight (me included) and she's spent a lot of time being unhappy about that. 

I am going to play the "tough love" card here and say it -- we all know how to follow a diet, we all know that we are supposed to exercise, we are not idiots! We are strong, intelligent, women here so why the hell do hit the drive-thru on the way home, skip the workout, have the donut with our coffee in the morning? I can't answer that for you, but I am going to ask you to answer that.

Another of my favorite brilliant authors, Michael Singer, writes in his book The Untethered Soul...

We are constantly trying to hold it all together. If you really want to see why you do things, then don't do them and see what happens. Let's say you're a smoker. If you decide to stop smoking, you quickly confront the urges that cause you to smoke. The urges are the reason you smoke. They are the outer most layer of cause. If you can sit through these urges, you will see what caused them. If you can get comfortable with what you see, you will face the next layer of causation, and so on layer upon layer. Likewise there is a reason you overeat. There is a reason why you dress the way you do. There is a reason for everything that you do. If you want to see why you care so much about what you wear and what your hair is like, then just don't do it one day. Wake up in the morning and go somewhere disheveled with your hair a mess, and see what happens to the energies inside of you. See what happens when you don't do the things that make you comfortable. What you'll see is why you're doing them.

You are constantly trying to stay within your comfort zone. You struggle to keep people, places, and things in a manner that supports your model. If they start to go any other way, you get uncomfortable. Your mind becomes active telling you how to get things back the way you need them to be.

Isn't that in fact why you have the cigarette or the dessert or the second helping?

I am asking you to have faith in yourself, know that your dreams are born from your darkest hours. It's when you feel the worst about yourself that you dream of tackling that new exercise program or starting that new diet.

Singer says "Your true greatness hides on the other side of that layer of pain."

So I have an assignment for you. You can call it this week's Body Challenge if you like.

I'd like you to take a good honest look at your habits, without judgement. No being a hateful meanie to yourself. It's a shamandment! How is it that you are sabotaging yourself? What's the trigger that sets you back? I already know some of your habits and you know mine --

I was eating brownies after breakfast, cookies for lunch and chocolate and ice cream were a must after dinner. (And you thought you had issues!) What are you doing that you need to stop doing?

It's like I asked Josie -- Do you snack at night? Do you have children who's plates you pick off if they don't finish a meal? Is sugar an issue for you? Are your portions too large? Maybe you're not eating enough and your body is trying to hang on to every calorie? Are savory snacks killing you in the office?
 
Once you can admit to yourself openly what's going on habitually, you have identified the problem, but how do you stop it? Because, you've tried and failed countless times before, right?

Without giving it another thought, tomorrow you are not going to do this. You just aren't. For one whole day you are not doing it. You can do anything else that you like instead, but I am asking you to not do your thing for just one day. If you want sugar, have potato chips instead. If it's snacking while cooking, make a pre-portioned meal like Lean Cuisine or something. If it's the donut in the morning with your coffee eat FRUIT only! Step outside your square and watch all of the arguments and pleas that rise up in your mind. It's just your mind talking and you are going to ignore it. No debate, no discussion and if it gets to be too much, remind yourself that the day after tomorrow you can go back to exactly the way things were. But for this one day - do not do it.

I truly believe that by carefully considering your habits and patters with a neutral (meaning non-judgmental) attitude and looking to see where you can start to make tiny changes -- that will help you in the long run to eat better without feeling like you are on a diet. This is going to be the very first step toward creating a balanced lifestyle that YOU can LIVE with.

But don't just do it because I said so. What do I know? I'm no expert, I'm just your drinking buddy. Do it because you want a lifestyle that has balance, that is liveable, doable and gives you a body you can be happy in.

Lemme know how it goes and please don't put if off for the weekend, or Monday or the start of November. Do it first thing tomorrow. It's just one day. And who knows, after tomorrow, you might feel brave enough to try it for a week, a month or... even 90 days. Hmmm, there's a thought.

Love you.
Shan 





 

Uncharted Territory.

October is officially halfway over. Can you even believe it? Pretty soon we'll be turning our clocks back, the days will grow shorter and colder and it will be time to decorate the tree or light the Menorah. Whoa whoa whoa, hang on a minute, we've got to get through bloody Halloween and all the candies and chocolates first! 

 
Halloween has always been a free-for-all, it's like a hall pass or something when it comes to sweets. Yes a sweet tooth or sugar cravings during PMS were one thing, but Halloween was a license to binge. But now I am sugar free. Sunday the 21st marks 90 days for me. That was my goal and I hadn't really given much thought to what lay beyond that 90th day. Can I keep going and get through this sticky holiday? Do I even want to?

Many of you have had thoughts and opinions on the subject of going without sugar - some of you assured me that being sugar free would eventually just feel like the norm (I love you so much for that, on some days it was all that kept me going), others had high praise and a strong desire to do the same, some of you I'm sure think I'm out of my mind and questioned why I would ever want to live without chocolate. 

In fact there is a post somewhere on this blog that reads simply:

Save the Earth, it's the only planet with chocolate.

But things have changed for me my beloved friends and readers. I don't want to go back to the crazy making that was my addiction. I like being free. Which leads me to something else that is new and strangely uncomfortable - holding steady at a comfortable body weight. 

Argh, my brain is whirling around these two topics and I'm not sure how to weave them together, but I am sure there is a common theme here, so forgive me if I go a little astray trying to link them and make it all make sense.

In September 2010, when Tracy announced the release of her book, Tracy Anderson's 30-Day Method, I had a very specific goal in mind. Allow me to take you back for a moment. In my adult life, there has only been one other time that I gave up sugar and I did it faithfully for 90 days way back in 2004. At the end of that 90 days I was a very healthy 116 pounds and I'd never felt better or more confident in my own skin. Being in my early 30's helped. Little Miss Martie, and Tammy and all of you other lovelies who are just tipping into this decade have a lot to look forward to. I somehow got over the angst that was my 20's and just started to feel good. (My metabolism hadn't started to crap out on me at that point). In any case, the reason I mention this is because when I set out to lose the weight that I'd gained in my late 30's (an issue I'd not really ever had to deal with before) I held the magic number of 116 in my head, because that is what I weighed when I last remembered feeling good about myself. Who knew we could go along for so long feeling rotten about ourselves?

The book brought me close, but I couldn't seem to shave off those last 5 or 6 pounds. Then Tracy brought out her Metamorphosis program and I was determined to follow it to the letter for the prescribed 90 days. What is it with me and 90 days? As those of you who've gone through the program know, if you stick to the plan and the diet, the weight will come off. 

But herein lay the problem for me. I hated the cardio and the diet was really hard, so life was not easy on a day to day basis because I was always aware that I was on a finite program that had a beginning, a middle, and an end. And as I met with that magic number on the scale, it didn't have that wonderful feeling that I imagined that it would. Instead 116 felt like too much. So I quickly changed the goal to 114, then 112 and when I hit 111 then 110 seemed like the ideal. This was impossible to maintain. And yeah, the diet books and programs don't really like to talk about that too much.

Once I strode across that finish line, I dove for all the stuff in the fridge and freezer that I'd been trying so hard to abstain from. Falling off the wagon became second nature and the yo-yo cycle kicked in. I quickly gained back half the weight I'd lost, then I'd get rid of two, maybe three pounds only to gain back five. There was no plan for after the "program" so I sadly watched all my hard work start to fade into a memory. This is not news people. We've been doing this for decades. I started to think that perhaps this was the new normal "for my age". Bleck. Who wants to look good "for their age"? Who wants to be "just okay"? Don't you want to be fabulous at any age??

So I carried on with the Continuity workout and tried to come up with a plan I could "live with". I exchanged cardio for running which I can do with my boys, and swiftly barreled through all the trends of dieting short of starting to eat meat (a staunch vegetarian, me). I tried dairy free, low carbs meaning no bread, no granola and no fun, gave gluten free a whack, did the vegan thing for a short stint, counted the ever loving shit out of my calories and for the love of god I could never get them low enough to make a real dent in those damned ten pounds! I even enlisted the help of two food sponsors as you know - my lovely Nicole and Alma - hi girls, long time no talk. 

Finally I had to admit that the real problem wasn't so much my "diet" as it was my obsession with sugar. So without much preamble or the usual pretox binge before my bi-annual detox, I jumped in to the 90 day goal of being sugar free. No debate, no negotiation, no wiggle room. I did it once before I could do it again. Hey, it took at least three tries before I gave up the smokes for good fourteen years ago this month. (the 24th is that anniversary)

Then armed with my knowledge of how many calories are in pretty much everything, a fixed determination to avoid sweets and a more realistic goal weight in mind, (115) I set off to see ten years of hard work come to fruition in the birth of my film Empire of Dirt. With my mind more focused on the task at hand  -- "Being quiet on the set" and less worried about my waistline, I returned home to the discovery that I'd dropped a few more of those stubborn pounds and I weighed in at 117.

117? Could I live with that? My measurements were pretty darned close to the magic numbers I'd set for myself, in fact all were bang on but my waist which is only off by a half inch, and all my clothes fit, there was no bloat, no tummy ache, none of that. I think I could. For the first time since I set out on this journey to beat my middle-aged spread with Tracy's help, I felt generally "okay". Not in a harried race to get a few more pounds off, not in a panic that I would gain it all back, just virtually okay with where I am at. It's not perfect, I'm not perfect, but what and who is?

This weekend, I stepped on the scale for good measure and my weight is the same a whole week later. I thought wow, is this what maintenance feels like? Can I actually keep this up? And if so, how?!

That's the million dollar question isn't it? It's the thing that very few "diet experts" write about. But I think I'm gonna take that challenge on and talk about it here. 

Let's figure out how we can stay where we are (provided we're happy with that, or look at ways to achieve it) and still get through the cold weather, shorter days, fun parties and holidays, right into the new year while living well and feeling good in our own skins. You with me?

xo
Shan

Insta-what now?

Hello Lovelies,
Hope you're all having a great weekend.

Had a quick question for you. What the heck is Instagram... like really. I finally moved myself into the 21st century and got a lovely little iPhone but I have no real clue how to work it.

While on set, one of the girls was telling me about instagram and before I knew what had come over me, I downloaded the app. I pretty much do what I'm told, how else do you think I ended up doing the Method for years on end, Tracy said I needed to.  But I digress. 

At the wrap party, the same lovely girl took my phone, hit a few keys and voila, I was following her and my blond twin.

I've played around with it a little bit and I like the neat ways in which you can manipulate your pics, and I love seeing the photos the girls have taken and posted, but I still don't actually "get it". On Two Broke Girls, Max exclaims "twitter is for idiots and instagram is twitter without words." Yikes!

Somebody 'plain me please?!
xo
Shan

PS
Here's a photo I recently took of my fun rain boots.... guess where? In the rain! Seriously, girls, I have no life.

 

What's Holding You Back?

In the intro to his fabulous book The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho writes: 

Oscar Wilde said: "Each man kills the thing he loves." And it's true. The mere possibility of getting what we want fills the soul of the ordinary person with guilt. We look around at all those who have failed to get what they want and we feel that we do not deserve to get what we want either. We forget all about the obstacles we overcame, all the suffering we endured, all the things we had to give up in order to get this far. I have known a lot of people who, when their personal calling was within their grasp, went on to commit a series of stupid mistakes and never reached their goal --- when it was only a step away.

This is the most dangerous of obstacles because it has a kind of saintly aura about it; renouncing joy and conquest. But if you believe yourself worthy of the thing you fought so hard to get, then you become an instrument of God, you help the Soul of the World, and you understand why you are here.

I am at the epicenter of seeing my dream of being a filmmaker come to fruition as I witnessed the production of my first film, but isn't the above true of our weight loss goals too?

How many times have you read right here on this blog that I was doing so well only to turn around and sabotage myself? I'd fallen off the good food wagon so much I needed a food sponsor and I wasn't alone. Many of you echoed my frustration. Why do we do it to ourselves? Could it be the dream of the perfect body tastes sweeter in our imaginations? Would we really rather cling tremulously to that dream than discover that we're still pretty much the same old us once we shed the weight, and that perhaps having that body ain't all it's cracked up to be? Why spoil the illusion, right?

We'd go along for a while eating perfectly, working out like mad demons, only to turn around at a birthday party or over the holidays and stuff our faces, over-indulge, stop working out, binge and cry because we came so close only to have a major set back. Is it just easier to have the dream rather than go through all of that hard work and suffering to try and achieve it? 

While on location, I found this video clip of a Tracy workout that I could quite easily do when I was finally alone, just before bed. 

 
I confess I didn't make it past the abdominal work before crashing, but it was something. I only managed to run twice the entire time I was away, but I made it a point to do something each day.

In addition to these tiny workouts, I really kept an eye on what I was eating and somehow managed to shed those last four pounds. Will I be able to keep them off and maintain the state I'm in? That is the absolute toughest part of any weight loss goal, and it still remains to be seen.

I've spent a couple of days pondering how I managed to pull this off with all of the food I was continually surrounded by and here's the lowdown.

The Glowing Green Smoothie wasn't an option and surprisingly I didn't really miss it. I did however, try to stick to some of Kimberly Snyder and Dr. Junger's principals when choosing what to eat and how.

Because our call times were very early and our commute to our locations were long, I started every day with fruit. Usually a banana. But on my days off I had more variety. One day it was a peach, another was an apple and orange, and on occasion I threw in a half cup of yogurt for good measure. I know we're not supposed to combine fruit with any other food, but some days I just needed that little hit of protein.

Once the sun was up and we had our first shots set up and ready to go, I'd grab a bit of scrambled egg, but really never more than a mouthful as they were quite greasy most days. And mid-morning found me with a slice of whole-grain bread and a pat of peanut butter. Again, not a perfect combo but it didn't seem to upset my digestion. Lunch was the biggest meal of the day and generally served around 1 or 1:30. Most of the prepped salads were dripping in dressing so I avoided them. Instead I chose to create my own from fresh spinach or field greens and I topped it with anything I could get my hands on. Things like walnuts, cranberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, you get the idea.

Also at lunch they always served some form of potato. So I'd have a very small portion. Dinner times were varied but they always had a veggie option on offer. I avoided the pasta dishes and went for protein - bean salads, grilled tofu or whatever else they served that was lower in fat. Sometimes it was just a soup or stir fry. Again the portion was controlled and the meal generally included some type of raw veggie - carrot, celery, broccoli, avocado, whatever I could get.

The thing is, as you read this, you might start to recognize a pattern. Several small meals, trying not to combine proteins with carbs, lots of healthy fats, and my number one golden rule was to always allow 12 hours between my evening meal and breakfast the next day, even if it was only a banana, I was sure to have it on a vacant tummy. That really helped keep my system working optimally during the crazy hours. I also tried to allow for two to three hours between any foods, whether it was a snack or a meal. I tried to allow time to digest properly.

Clearly I did not reinvent the wheel. I was eating enough protein. There were several small meals instead of one or two big meals. Having tracked my calorie consumption for nearly a month prior to going, I had a pretty good idea of what things would cost me in my calorie budget. I never obsessed about it, but really made a point of loading up on raw fresh veggies as the main event at each bigger meal so I'd feel full. And I drank bottles and bottles of water. I guess all that stuff the "experts" tell you is kinda true.

Now the trick will be to carry on eating this way at home. Portion control can be more of a challenge when you're cooking. Working from home can lead to a tendency to pick and graze and eat when you're not really hungry. No one is watching so the temptation to slip can be greater. But awareness is our biggest asset. Knowing the traps we can fall into and setting ourselves up to avoid them is a big help. Don't listen to the voice in our heads that wants to lead us astray.

Have you been able to maintain a weight that you're happy and comfortable with? What are some of the tricks you use to stay healthy? If you've been struggling, what's been holding you back? Sometimes just saying it out loud is enough to make it lose power. Don't be afraid to share it here, because someone else may have a solution for you, or you might have the fix another is looking for. We shouldn't be afraid of achieving our goals or making our dreams come true, whatever they may be. No dream is silly, not even that dream of slipping easily into your skinny jeans!

Cheers,
Shan

 

It's a Wrap!

On location in Keswick Ontario

As the setting sun signals the end of the day, it's officially a wrap on my first feature, Empire of Dirt. I'm caught between feeling incredibly blessed and just a little lost, but mostly so so lucky. I grew even closer to the friends I already knew... as well as making many new ones.

Me and my lovely producer (one of the stars of the film), Jennifer.

It was brilliant to see it all come together and from what I understand, most writers are not invited to set and the ones that are, are rarely happy with what they see. I'm told that no one has ever seen a writer on set smile as much as I did. In fact my face still hurts from grinning so much. It was inspiring to see it all come together.

My view through the monitor.

Watching it unfold.

I had incredible faith in my director, Peter, and producers, Jen, Heather, Geoff and Colin, and was not let down one bit. In fact we all have high hopes for our baby as noted here in this recent Toronto Star article. (Please allow me these small bragging rights, I may never be here again, okay?) Oh yeah, and I had that hat made especially for him, email me if you're curious about it's meaning.

And while there were days that I was absolutely convinced that the world was conspiring against me because it seemed like Willy Wonka was doing our catering...

A shop nearby.

My biggest temptation.

I simply admired the trays and platters and their sweet chocolatey fragrance, and appreciated them from afar. Well, from as far away as I could get while in the craft truck grabbing a banana or piece of toast. Once I told people that I didn't eat sugar, everyone was very gracious and no one gave me a hard time.

Don't you hate that when you tell someone you don't eat something and then they spend the rest of your time together trying to force it on you? Like meat? Or cake? Or whatever you're abstaining from? My team was wonderful for not ever doing that and because of their support I am less than two weeks away from 90 days sugar free!!! Wow! Who'd 'a thunk it, right?

I never went hungry or wanted for anything... except for hot water... that was the running gag, I could never find power to plug in a bloody kettle. But I ate extremely well and the best part is that I have somehow managed to shed those last few pounds and reach (nearly) my goal weight. Can you even believe it? 

More on how I think I might have miraculously managed that later this week!

But in the mean time, if you want proof, check out an updated photo here, and scroll to the end of the post.

Now the trick will be to get through the holidays and into year three while maintaining a healthy balance. I failed so miserably last year that I'm eager for a do-over.

Thanks so much for checking in while I was away. I have been thinking about you, wondering how you've all been doing, and anxiously waiting to get back to it.

Cheers,
Shan
 

Giving Thanks.

It's Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada... Happy Thanksgiving. And right on cue, autumn has arrived here in Vancouver as captured on the wall of the lovely Sylvia Hotel.

I just took this yesterday and as you can imagine it's even more beautiful in person. It also means that I am back home.

There's so much to share, so much we can talk about, and even more to be grateful for. You don't need a holiday weekend to take stock and give thanks.

A year ago, the world looked so different, it's been my rite of passage I suppose you could say. Not just me, many of us have come so far. As we approach the holiday season (you have five or six more weeks in America, but for us here in the North, it's already started), let's do it right with a healthy approach.

This week, we'll sit down, have a cup of coffee, share a few laughs, look at some cool photos, and put together some kind of plan to help us navigate the cheese plates and dessert platters, shall we?

Back to Continuity 2.2 tomorrow and I am a little terrified. I've been taking it so easy for the last three weeks, my system won't know what hit it! Yikes.

It's good to be back, I've missed y'all!
xo
Shan