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My Chocolate Week | Body Transformation Challenge
Last week I started The Chocolate Diet.
It was a great time to start given it was Easter and like many households there was quite a bit of chocolate temptation about. I’m pleased to say that I avoided it as best I could, ok so I won’t lie I did have a few Cadbury’s Milk chocolate eggs but the shakes kept me pretty focused.
I’m not a fan of dark chocolate so the after dinner chocolates have gone untouched after I tried the first one but I’m not really a night time snacker like my husband is (perhaps if I had his slim genetics that would change..lol). My goal has been to drop cm’s rather than kilo’s and not getting on those scales daily has actually helped my confidence and boost my commitment. In the past I’ve tried diets where I’ve been so focused on losing weight daily that I seem to get really down when the scales don’t reflect my hard work.
This week I decided to take measurements and another round of pictures and I’ve seen a difference already. 3cm’s lost from waist 1 ½ from butt/pubic bone and ½ cm from thighs.
The 2 shakes a day from the start may have been a little too much for my body to adjust to so without getting into too much detail let’s just say that I had to cut down to 1 a day for a few days so that my ‘tummy’ could adjust. But perhaps it is this reason why I’ve seen results?
I’ve been having a shake first thing in the morning (7am) heated so it’s like a hot chocolate, this cuts out my morning caffeine hit and breakfast in one and It keeps me feeling full til morning tea time around 10am. Morning tea usually consists of a piece of fruit after the mornings washing has been washed and hung out and the floors have been vacuumed. Fruit gives me another boost until lunchtime.
Children don’t understand time in the same way as grown-ups. This can make school mornings a stressful time of day for families. Time pressures and competing demands can turn mornings into a combat zone. Time management can be one of the most difficult skills to master. In fact, many mothers agree that there simply isn’t enough time in the day to get everything done. Even the most organized person will become stressed out when short on time.
Whether you’re a morning person by nature or not, most weekday mornings begin too early (in this house weekends do to but that’ll have to be another post). It is easy to fall into the pattern of being late or in the rush, rush, rush pattern.Getting Kids Up, Snatch and Go Theory Really Does Work.It’s just not enough to get dressed and eat. How many times have kids missed the bus because they couldn’t find their homework sheet or didn’t have their backpack put together? Neither one of these are helpful for our children. Avoid the morning rush with planning and preparation. When morning time is unhurried and organized, everyone is more relaxed and the day begins much brighter.
Create a morning routine and help your child to follow the same routine every day. Routines make things predictable and help keep your child on track. Younger children may enjoy using a picture chart to illustrate their morning schedule. There are heaps of free printable’s on the net for this like this one school-morning-routine-cards or if you’re tech savvy kids prefer you can even get apps like this one the preschool morning routines app from staytoooned.com. For older children who are reading, a written schedule is often helpful.
(I would say is vital point especially for mums with children with have learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders, or executive functioning disorders. Children with these disorders often have difficulty managing the everyday tasks necessary to move through the day with ease. I know my son is much more at ease when he knows what to expect and routine is also a way to reduce those “episodes” where uncontrollable anxiety and stress levels increase.)
Switch off. Keep electronic distractions off in the morning. Use the morning time to talk and be with your child during breakfast and in preparation for school. Make a rule that there be no television, computer, video games, etc. during this time.
Stagger Wake-Up Times. Try getting up 15-20 minutes before the kids to get anything done that may not have been done the night before (or better yet get yourself ready before you have kids hanging off your legs). If you’ve got more than one child in the house, and especially if you have a large family, consider staggering wakeup times for greater efficiency. Start with child who need assistance first, or the ones who are real sleepyheads who move at a snail’s pace come mornings.
Also consider the gentle wake up approach (especially children who are sensitive to touch. Try gently wiping a cool, damp wash cloth over your sleepy kid’s brow and cheeks while whispering a morning greeting can have a much better result than yelling out “time to get up for school”. Alternatively Let light into the room. If it’s naturally dark outside at night, leave the bedroom curtains parted to allow natural light to prod your child into wakefulness in the morning. Or install a dimmer switch and turn up the light gradually on dark mornings.
Mother’s Day Gift Idea Thanks To Sunbeam!!! (Good for Christmas too!)
Sunbeam have some fantastic home appliances in their range at the moment and we’ve got the scoop just in time for Christmas (Mother’s day already passed).
Check out the FABULOUS Café Series Planetary Mixmaster (Oh MinuteManda would LOVE one of these), Mixmaster hand Mixer Colour Range, SecretChef Electronic Sear and Slow Cooker (oohh I want one of these), Safe & Sound Cosy Fleece Heated Throw and the Dual Micathermic ConvecXon Heater just to name a few!
What are you hoping for this Christmas? Clothes, handbag, shoes, Mix Master Café Series, diamonds? And a quick tip for the gentleman - you can get a special Christmas gift idea from xmasgiftsforher.com.au ;D
Maybe you have a gift card to spend on something special; What ever your plans we all hope that you enjoy your day and get treated like a Queen. Sunday is Mums day!
