LONG over-due.

I am still alive, but I have not been blogging daily like I said I would. My grand total is 13.7 pounds right now after 5 weeks on Medifast. I am so excited! I have been disappointed a few times because I know other people have had much fast results but I have to remind myself that I still have a thyroid situation that will slow down my progress. At least I'm making progress.

It feels really good to have made it this far without falling off the bandwagon. I've been exercising a lot more lately and have noticed that my clothes are fitting completely different so I also know I've been losing inches. I will have a grand total of inches and body fat % lost in 2 more weeks. I did accomplish one of my goals last week though- I fit into a pair of jeans that haven't fit since I got married. I even wore them in public!

I've decided that I really don't like raw vegetables unless it's a salad. I have found a lot of foods that I want to eat everyday. Asparagus is my most favorite veggie and I eat a lot of it every night. I've been experimenting with cabbage as well. I shredded some cabbage, cooked it with some olive oil, curry, garlic, S&P, and a titch of tumeric and it almost tasted like pad thai! It was awesome. I think I might invent a pad thai recipe with cabbage instead of rice noodles. I do get to have peanut butter and there is such a thing as sugar free coconut syrup so I might get WILD and have some curry.

I did steal a recipe from my health coach's blog and have enjoyed delicious, tender, smoked pulled pork recipe all week. I took a pork sirloin roast, punctured it with a poker thing, rubbed sea salt all over it, then rubbed liquid smoke into it. I put it in the crock pot on low while I was teaching piano lessons. The official recipe can be found here. It was AMAZING.

I have noticed that as I've made more progress with my health, I am finding more self-confidence and productivity in my life. For a long time I have wanted to rearrange my piano studio policies and prices because I often come home frustrated with a few particular students. I am patient and positive in my teaching style but recently I've been more honest with myself about the direction I want to take my studio. I really want to have a professional studio where I teach advanced students who play classical music. Not too much to ask right? Well I have encountered lots of students who want nothing to do with classical music, technic, theory, etc. and it is really hard to be their teacher.

Without getting too much into my professional life, I also feel that I am worth more. I just learned how much other teachers in my area charge and I am WAY too low! I don't want to be the most expensive, and when the economy is rough I try to be affordable but I really feel like I am too cheap and I am going to raise my rates. I have wanted to do this for a long long time but have never had the courage.

Somehow getting my health on track has given me a huge boost of confidence in other areas of my life. I am going to send out my new policy letter in May and new prices will be effective June 1. I am only raising the rates by $5 a month at this point, but I fully intend to eventually charge what other teachers who are less qualified are charging, but I have to do it one year at a time. I am just believing in myself more lately and it feels really incredible.

I hope to have a few more ideas to blog about this week...we'll see.