Fit and Healthy Friday's - week# 3 of Blogger challenge

Well, I missed my post for the 2ND week and so this week will be for week two and three combined.

I don't have too much to post....I know, I know. Well I can honestly say that I have been keeping up with my healthy eating 95% of the time. This entire week I have only had variations of salmon & shrimp. I have fallen off the wagon with the fruit eating though. I know that I should really cut out the coffee and wine drinking BUT...

So! I am continuing my journey in being mobile but I still continue to just walk. I have not gotten to the water aerobics class or the Zumba class yet, but it is on my "to do list". I'm a little bit of a slow starter sometime, but the best thing is that I am doing something. I am not discouraged or disappointed in myself, because it is what it is. I think taking SMALL STEPS to a healthy life is better than taking NO STEPS. I do what I can do within my own abilities. One area of concern for myself, though is my water intake. I know that I am not drinking it enough. I don't know why this is such a challenge for me! I think this week I will try to spruce up my water a little bit, by adding mint leaves, orange slices or cucumber slices.

My partners in this healthy eating challenge are doing great! If you get a chance stop by their blogs to see what they are doing. I know you will find some very good tips there , such as a very tasty & healthy Gumbo recipe and what to eat for an organic CLEANSE . These ladies are really on the ball, which is motivating for me and I'm sure you will find it motivating as well.

I hope I do better this week...

Are You Ready To Work It Out?!

The month of April is when we really start to see things come alive. The sun is shining bright, the flowers start to push through the dirt with fresh stems and buds, the trees begin to get green and we all begin to unwrap and show a little bit more skin. Well, for some of us the showing of more skin can bring about a little bit of anxiety. We have to kind of tone up and cut back here or there, because we see the after effects of those cozy comfort foods during the winter.

Previously, I had agreed to take part in a 4 week healthy eating challenge by a fellow blogging buddy Swarthy Daisy, which is great because it will help me to focus a little bit better on...being healthy. So imagine my excitement when I was invited to attend WORLD FITNESS DAY on May 1, 2010 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta Ga. How cool is that? The whole dome filled with people ready to be lead by some of the world's most widely known fitness leaders. All working together sharing their passion for health and fitness for mind, body and spirit. Oh My Goodness! I am soooo There!

I'm very excited because some of the fitness experts that will be there are people that I grew up on. I mean come on, who doesn't remember when Jane Fonda was working it out with her fitness videos rocking her sweat band on the head, wrists and the colorful leggings? I was always entertained by the energy of Richard Simmons and when I was older I bought the Billy Blanks DVD's and tried (i do mean tried) to keep up with him in my living room. Even the Great Debbie Allen and Denise Austin will be there! It is an all star team. We will also have an opportunity to be entertained by legends such as the Pointer Sisters and Atlanta native Ludacris.

This is the first annual event, and I am sure that it will be highly regarded for the years to come. What is also great is that this event will benefit Jane Fonda's Organization; The Georgia Campaign For Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention, founded in 1995.
This is an event you do not want to miss, come out and join us as we strive to get healthy and fit. Wanna know something even cooler? If you can't make it, or do not live in the Atlanta area you can still have fun because it will be live streamed on www.UStream.TV....ohhhh, the wonders of technology! So there is no excuse not to participate.

Check out this video, it gets your adrenaline going and whets your appetite for May 1st, See you there!

Help for Isabella

Recently I received a call from a friend and colleague in DC regarding her god daughter Isabella. A beautiful little four year old with Leukemia, who in 2008 received a bone marrow transplant and was in remission until March 2010. As she told me the story of this brave little girl, I was very touched at heart, because being a parent of a daughter AND a son I cannot imagine the heartache that Isabella's mother is going through... Actually, I can imagine it. As a parent there is NOTHING worse than feeling helpless when it comes to the well being of your child.

Currently, Isabella is in need of another bone marrow transplant but does not have any prospects. Why? Because, only 30 percent of the patients in need find a matching donor in their own family. Which means that they will then have to turn to the National Marrow Donor Program. That should solve the issue right? Wrong! There are not enough minorities/people of color registered to be a donor and so people of color have the hardest time getting a donor match. Which means there is only One in a million chance of getting a match. How sad! This was a eye opener for me, because I did not know that in order to receive a bone marrow transplant the donor has to be of same or like ancestry.

I began to wonder "why is it that so many minorities are not represented in such a needed area?" Well I believe it is because of a lot of misconceptions within our communities. So I did my own research and came across the Be The Match Registry (also known as the National Marrow Donor Program) . This website is full of information, one page that I found very informative was the MYTHS & FACTS PAGE where I learned that I was wrong in my knowledge about being a donor. It is not a overly painful procedure that is done without anesthesia, and there is more than one way to donate. You should check out the site, perhaps there is a myth that you believed too, but can learn the truth to. Go to www..marrow.org

Please check out the site find out where you can go locally to register and learn what you can do to help Isabella and children like her. And imagine, what would you want for your children if they were in her shoes? How would you feel if YOU were Monica, Isabella's mother fighting for the survival of your child which is dependant on the sacrifice of others? A serious matter, deserving serious attention.

Here is another site that I found for those who want to help but want to do so without the use of blood. I know that personally I want all of my needed surgical procedures to be performed without the use of blood transfusion. If you have the same beliefs or concerns then this site www.noblood.org is a great place to start looking for bloodless alternatives when donating and receiving for transplants.

Let's give Isabella and others like her a fighting chance.

Who can resist this face?

Look at that face!