Lead a Healthy Life - Project Charter

OK, every successful project starts with a great plan, so here's what I've got so far:

Project Goal - I want to live a healthy life!

Project Team - Sara (nutritionist), Judith (acupuncture practitioner), Dana (chiropractor), Dr. Bevan (general practice doctor), and me (project manager)

Requirements -
1. Get some exercise every day
2. Work on flexibility
3. Keep up with vitamins and Chinese herbs
4. Eat vegetables with every meal
5. Plant a Fall/Winter garden
6. Prepare meals as designed by nutritionist Sara for breakfast and dinner most days
Note: If scope of project has to be reduced, #s 1, 2, and 4 are Critical Path and must not be deferred, while the other three requirements are negotiable

Success metrics - (to be measured by posting here every single day of the project schedule)
1. How do I feel each night when I go to bed? Am I exhausted? Am I stressed out and barely able to make it up the stairs? Or am I pleasantly tired, relaxed, and ready for sleep?
2. How do I deal with stress? Do I mindlessly eat? Am I screaming at the puppy? Or do I take it all in stride and go for a short walk to burn off nervous energy during the day?
3. Is my house clean? I hate a messy house and yet mine usually is messy because I'm just too wiped - mentally and physically - to deal with it when I come home. A healthy life for me would also mean not just wanting to do something about the house but actually creating a daily chore list that would allow me to have the clean house that I want/need.

Schedule - November 12, 2009 through February 14, 2010 (Yep, that's Valentine's Day...)

You'll note that there's nothing in the metrics about "Did I eat my veggies today?" or "Did I get some exercise?" and that's because those are the means to the end I want, not the end itself, so it doesn't matter if I do them or not if I don't achieve the requirements for the project.

Is it the lack of sleep talking?

I don't know I'm just too tired to think straight or if this is real, but I'm suddenly overwhelmed by the urge - nay, the NEED - to live a healthier lifestyle. I just want to get what I'm thinking down on paper (virtually), so here are my Five Principles of a Healthy Lifestyle, in no particular order:

1. Get some exercise every day (yup, I'm calling it exercise, not"movement" or some PC thing). My body needs to move so that I don't end up stiff and sore every night, and even worse first thing in the morning. I have enough pairs of walking shoes now (thank you 3-Day!) that I can keep a pair at work, a pair in the car, and a pair at home...no excuse not to strike while the iron's hot

2. Keep up with my vitamins and Chinese herbs. Things just feel easier on the days I take them and it takes less than 5 minutes every day

3. Get the five fruits and veggies thing going. I can't remember the last time I had a meal that included veggies unless they were covered in oil or some fat-laden sauce; no fruit in any form for months. I'm pretty sure it won't kill me and perhaps I won't feel as lethargic...worth a try

4. Get the garden going again. Will help with #3 plus help with the depression PLUS it's a good excuse to walk 10 minutes each day when I have to water it

5. First, go and see a primary care doctor for the first time since 2003 (yes, really) so that I can get a referral to a nutritionist/dietitian who can write up a bunch of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners that I can cook or grab and go, depending on my mood. I'm fed up with eating every meal either out of a take out bag, a box (microwaved, processed within an inch of its life, nothing fresh or healthy), or at a restaurant which eats up our bank account as well as my good health

6.Write here every day so that I can report on how I'm doing and how my ideas morph in the light of day

(Yes, I know I said I had 5 Principles...consider #6 a bonus, if you will.)

OK, the puppy's snoring (TCB probably is, too) and I see light coming through the blinds...let's see if I can get some clothes on and my walking shoes and go for a little stroll, huh?

Progress, not perfection

No walking or yoga yet, but I did have a better evening than I usually do, possibly because I remembered to take my anti-stress Chinese herbs (8 little pills that I am supposed to take 2x a day) just before I left work.

Today I'm going to make sure I grab my shoes, socks, and a hat before I leave for work so that I can walk at work if I have 20 minutes free plus email my ex-husband, landscape designer extraordinaire, to see if he'll design my fall/winter garden as well as coordinating day laborers to dig out the horrible soil in our community garden plot and replace it with good stuff. I think I'll grab my Plus Sized Yoga DVD and put it out where I can't miss it when I get home, too - can't hurt, right? (Hey, I just saw these DVDs, too...perhaps I should add them to my Wish List.)

OK, I need to run so that I can get ready and take Al (the Pug) to his doggie day care with the girls at the vet's office...more tomorrow.

Two new residents at Casa Suburban Bliss

I have two dwarfs living with me as of today. No, I'm not being politically incorrect about little people, nor am I referring to Sleepy, Happy, or Dopey...it's my new dwarf Meyer Lemon and Clementine Mandarin (orange) trees that I'm talking about. The trees themselves arrived yesterday and the awesome 14" pots today, so Farmer Mick and I went out and did the honors with potting soil, stakes, and garden tape and now their leaves are brightly shining in the sun in front of our entry way. Yay!

Honestly, it's hard to put into words how excited I am about all of our gardening exploits. Running out every day to see how big the soon-to-be-a-gourd squash blossom has gotten, removing the plastic water bottles from atop the lettuce plants (take THAT, Sally Squirrel!) to water then replacing afterwards, and hoping against hope that we'll have plenty of strawberries from the abandoned plot adjacent to mine that I've been watering for a month now...it all makes me irrationally happy. There's something so organic about it (pun not necessarily intended but it does apply as well) and it just makes my spirit sing even though I haven't gone for a walk since Mick got home and the house is cluttered with stuff that came home with Mick and hasn't found a permanent home yet: none of that matters. I am woman and I can grow food, people!

On a separate but related note, I signed up for a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) weekly delivery of organic produce today. I'm not crazy enough to believe that my little veggies that I just planted a month ago are going to provide for all of Mick and my fruit and vegg needs year-round, so we'll get a small box of produce each and every week to help me reach my goal of 3 veggies and 2 fruits each day. (No dieting, just eating better.)

Also, I found a local, free e-waste recycling service in case anyone's interested in getting rid of a bunch of electronics stuff. Perhaps we're the only people in San Diego with way too many old computers, monitors, routers, etc., but I'm guessing not.

Finally, I have to share a little suburban craziness with you: our local strip mall sushi place next door to Starbucks has valet parking. Seriously. (I couldn't think this stuff up.) Because walking two steps from the empty parking spaces surrounding the valet sign is just too much effort out here in Suburbia.

Happy Earth Day!

What do suburbanites do to celebrate Earth Day? Why, we go to the e-waste recycling event at work then water our veggie garden, of course! Seriously, we are just too obsessed with being eco-friendly...it's hampering my ability to get stuck in and clean through the boxes in the garage. I'm just going to have to set the timer for 30 minutes, do some work, and then re-evaluate, because that garage is not going to clean itself.

Nothing but bliss

OK, the title of this post is not quite true...we've disagreed a few times (more than a few) already, but we're still living in the same house, so that's good.

Things we've done (and not done) since Mick's been home:
1. Bought a new bed. King sized, eco-friendly, and crazy comfortable. I'm still having trouble getting to sleep with another person in bed with me, but I'm hopeful this will pass.

2. Shopped for new couches. Result? We don't agree on what we want/need, so we're passing for now.

3. Got the advanced wireless network technician out to set up our Airport Extreme so that the internet at our little piece of suburbia doesn't drag anymore. (Yay!)

4. Found Mick's new unit on the large base he'll be assigned to until he retires. (Note: This was a tougher task than you'd think.)

5. Started in on the large piles of clutter in the garage. Yes, this has so far been limited to Mick, but I'll join in soon, I promise.

6. In the "not" category, we haven't gone for a walk yet. This is more on me than Mick because I'm sure he'd go if I asked him to, and I need to do so today. Formal 3-day training program starts in less than two weeks and I can't let the work I've done until now to fade away because I'd just rather not.

7. Also in the "not" category, we keep meaning to do a full grocery shop and then do not. Not really sure why that is other than we keep trying to put too much into one day and then run out of steam. This needs to happen today as well.

8. Still need to plant two cherry tomato plants plus sow beet seeds in my veggie garden. We now have blossoms (future veggies) on eggplant, tomato, cucumber, and squash plants, and actual veggies (v. small!) on the green bean and bell pepper plants. Nothing on the strawberry plants but that's OK because everything I read tells me I shouldn't let the fruit set on those plants the first year anyway. I think I'm going to subscribe to Sunset...when did I become my mother/grandmother???

It's time to get going on the day - things to do, people to see, clutter to clear!