I'm BAAAACK!

In my two month hiatus from FitMeBlogging, a whole heck-of-a-lot has happened. I'm ready to start blogging again, mostly because I'm dying to start working out again. Exercising, and blogging about fitness seem to go hand-in-hand. So before I figure out how I'm going to fit fitness into the chaos of motherhood once again, I'll start with a quick recap of the past two months!

First, I bid farewell to my husband as he left for the Wasatch Back Ragnar race a few days before I was due, and prayed that the motorcycle ride my cousin took me on that morning wouldn't send me into labor! It didn't! (NOTHING sent me into labor--not my spin class, not walking 3 miles, not painting new shelves in every closet of the house, not lift class, not reorganizing closets, not cleaning--NOTHING until the day I actually did NOTHING. I finally went into labor in the middle of the night on the day I was scheduled to be induced...5 days after my actual due-date! Hooray!)

A week after the race, I gave birth to this angel baby. I can't believe she's already a month old!

Everything life-changing always happens in sets of 3. Having a new baby was no different! A few weeks before she was born, we found out that my husband could possibly be losing his job. He was encouraged to apply for a new position that could either keep us where we are, or could move us to Colorado Springs. A few days before she was born, he was offered a new position/promotion RIGHT HERE. No big move with a new baby...phew! I am SO GRATEFUL for the blessing of a good job in this economy, but those first few weeks of my husband working LONG hours to adjust, I was sort of wishing we'd just taken the severance package so he could be home with me! Oddly, though, having both of us adjusting to hard things at the same time has really strengthened our marriage.

The third big change happened this week: I turned 30! On Sunday, August 1, 2010, I officially entered the 30's club! I was kind of sad to say good-bye to my fun 20's, but hopefully it just gets better! My husband threw me a "surprise" luau-party that would have actually been a surprise if my 4-year old hadn't told me how much I was going to love the cakes they bought me! Oh well...I had a blast anyway!

With all my life-changes and post-baby-feeling-not-so-cute stage, I was having sort of a mid-life crisis. What does one do in such a situation? Chop off 8 inches of hair, that's what!

It's short, it's sassy, it's blonde again (I dyed it for the first time in 4 years), and I'm hoping I don't regret it! Hair always grows, right?

Now that I've gotten the first post-baby blog post over with, I hope to be back much more regularly! And speaking of "regular," I have to say that there REALLY is something to a whole food/plant-based diet. Hemorrhoids? Gone in a week. Baby weight gain? Only 4 pounds left to lose...I haven't done ANY exercise yet. My body definitely still looks frumpy, but the weight is falling off quicker than ever before! All I'm doing is eating TONS of fruit and veggies. Check out a few recipes I've tried here! It feels good to be back. I'm going to start working out on Monday with an early morning spin class. Can't wait! I also let my sis-n-law talk me into running this crazy race in September. Life does continue after a new baby...phew! I'll see you soon!

More Worms For Dinner, and other updates...

In case you were worried, we all survived the worms-in-the-brown-rice disaster. Stie's comment that she's "just a good tape worm away from reaching [her] goal weight" would have been a happy ending to the story (in my case...not in my pregnant friend's)! Maybe I'll buy some more Great Value brown rice in hopes for some sort of fat-eating parasite! But all was not lost, and my dear friend Evelyn and I have shared many a laugh because of the unfortunate event.

First, I took over a peace offering:And Evelyn brought over the BEST "wormy" Chicken, Bacon and Ranch Pizza EVER. What a nice friend for working so hard to make me feel OK after feeding her rotten rice! As for the rest of my silly experiments, going 'poo-free is actually going well! The baking soda wash makes my hair squeaky clean, and the vinegar rinse makes it super soft! I have super fine hair, so I'm trying to adjust the amounts to see what works best. Too much vinegar makes it too soft and straight. By focusing only on the ends with the vinegar rinse, everything seems fine. Has anyone else dared to give it a try?

My cousin mentioned to me that she actually washes her hair with egg whites! In college, I used to curl my hair with an egg-white mousse, but I've never tried washing it that way! Michelle adds her own concoction of good smells with cloves, mint, crushed flowers, etc. Who knew eggs could be so versatile! The baking soda thing's working for me, but maybe I'll get brave someday and give this one a try!

The other experiment--waking up early to work out--is going quite well. I'm definitely more tired. And I'm for sure suffering from sleep-deprivation-induced-grumpiness. But I love being done with my workout by 7 am. More on this later.

Are you experimenting with anything? (Brown rice meal worms, anyone?) Let us know what you've tried and what works/doesn't work for you!

Side note to the egg-white mousse thing: After my mission, I was at a friendly gathering where my pre-mission-boyfriend was also present with his wife. I'd used egg whites in my hair that night to give it the crunchy-curly look (I know...so hot). My ex's wife was having a major allergic reaction for some reason, and they weren't sure why, so they left early. Come to find out, she was allergic to eggs, and my hair had caused the reaction! Good way to put an end to an otherwise awkward evening! Go me!

Giving Shampoo-Free a Try!

Remember when I debated whether or not I should wash my hair everyday? I tried only washing it every other day for about a week, and was too grossed out by the post-workout-sweaty-hair, so I went back to my daily shampoo and conditioner nice-smelling ritual.

I still know that I definitely need to do something to cleanse my hair after working out each day. I was just born with sweaty genes...and sweat literally pours out of my hair follicles when I work out.

Lately, I've been reading around the web about something completely foreign to me--going completely 'poo-free. (I know...can you believe I just called it that?) I'm intrigued...and I can't believe I'm actually considering trying it.

I have a good friend who hasn't touched a bottle of shampoo for months. Every time she talks about her hair-non-cleansing ritual, I smile and nod, and think to myself, "I'm glad it works for you, but there ain't NO WAY this girl's giving up her shampoo". But then I did something else I never thought I would do...I switched to cloth diapers. And I actually love it!

So after reading on simplemom (and about 10 other blogs) about her experience going 'poo-free (I laugh every time I say that), I decided to give it a try...starting tomorrow.

Wait...before you unsubscribe to my blog, hear me out.

If I look and smell disgusting, and absolutely hate it, there's no harm in going back to shampoo, right?

Here are a few intriguing reasons simplemom gives for cleaning your hair without shampoo.

1. Shampoo is a detergent. Sure it cleans your hair, but it also strips your hair of all the natural oils produced by your body. It's harsh stuff...we're essentially washing our hair with the same stuff we use to wash our dishes!
2. Shampoo is full of all sorts of chemicals. If you're trying hard to eat natural, whole foods, why would you put something on your extremely porous skin (and scalp) through which harmful substances can enter the bloodstream? Most shampoos contain mineral oil--a byproduct when gasoline is distilled from crude oil. Mineral oil (and hundreds of other products) are added to shampoo to coat the strands and give the hair an artificial shine. Mineral oil can't absorb into the skin, so it creates a barrier on the scalp preventing oil from being released. You then need MORE shampoo to wash away the built-up grease. Yes...my scalp is definitely addicted to shampoo! (And it needs an artificial protectant--conditioner--to combat the stripping of oils!)

I'm sure there are hundreds of other reasons shampoo isn't really good for you. And while one of my favorite smells in the world is a nice, clean head of shampoo'd hair, I'm willing to give going 'poo-free a try.

Here's what I'm going to do:

1. Pour 1 Tbsp baking soda into a little 8 oz. squeeze bottle, then add a cup of water. I'll give it a good shake to dissolve the baking soda. When I'm in the shower, I'm going to squeeze the solution onto my scalp, I'm going to rub it in, let it sit for a minute or two, then rinse it out. Baking soda is gentle, it’s the weakest alkaline, and it supposedly removes chemical buildup from the hair.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar--which I've been know to drink for it's health benefits--is the next key ingredient in the 'poo-free cleansing ritual. The standard recipe is also 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar to 1 Cup Water. After washing and rinsing with the baking soda mixture, focus on the ends and apply the vinegar mixture. Apple cider vinegar is a mild acidic, so it works to counteract the baking soda, and supposedly acts as a great replacement for conditioner. It detangles the hair follicles, seals the cuticles, and balances the hair’s pH balance.

For more trouble-shooting tips, check out simplemom's post. Until I've actually tried it, I can't be held responsible!

Have any of you gone 'poo-free? Are any of you willing to try this with me? Are any of you going to stop calling me friend if I stop washing my hair? I'll let you know next week how it goes...wish me luck!

Proper hair care...to wash or not to wash!

OK...I've ALWAYS been a wash-my-hair-every-darn-day kind of girl. I just have to. Even if I did absolutely nothing the day before. Even if I washed it the night before. Here's my regular daily routine (with lots of kiddie-care mixed in):

• Wake up
• Work-out
• Take a shower
• Wash hair
• Blow dry and style hair (and take WAY too long to get ready for the day)

With the workout mixed in, actually getting my day started is a long, painful, grueling process. I have to plan at least 3-ish hours from the time I start my workout to the time I could possibly be anywhere looking at all presentable.

When I workout, I sweat. And it doesn't matter what kind of workout it is. I sweat. I sweat speed walking in the grocery store (to a lesser degree, but it's sweat none-the-less)! They say sweating is good for you, but it's also sort of a curse! If I do a hard-core cardio routine, I come home looking like I've already showered...I'm drenched!

But I'm hearing more and more of how you shouldn't wash your hair daily. My hairdresser goes 3 or 4 days without a good hair washing. And she looks fabulous!

With my last hair cut, I bought an amazing product...Aveda's Pure Abundance Hair Potion. It's amazing, thickening, volumizing, mattifying (is that a word?) stuff. And she told me that it would absorb excess oils so I could go without an every day washing. But I still don't dare!

Maybe it's meant to absorb excess oil from normal daily activities. But excess oil from sweat? I just don't know.

I have another friend who hasn't washed her hair (the traditional way) in months. She swears by baking soda as her "shampoo," and vinegar as her "conditioning rinse." And her hair is beautiful!

I'm still leery. I've been a shampoo-and-condition-every-darn-day for 28-years too long. I'm sort of stuck in my ways. But I'm TOTALLY open to change! I just don't want to smell like stinky dried sweat. Ewwwww.

What's your take, FitMePeeps? Do you wash EVERY day? Every other day? Never? Have you tried products like my hair potion to absorb sweaty oils? Enlighten us! (And then don't make fun of me when I show up looking like a nasty grease ball!)