Saturday, January 16, 2010
I on going on holiday to the South Island on Monday. I am soo excited. We will be driving down so it will be such a fun road trip! On Monday we drive to Taupo and stay the night there. Hope fully have time to look around and do something. I next morning drive to Wellington. Maybe do some shopping and site seeing there!! We are planning on driving down to the south island as quick as we can so we can stay there longer. We only have two weeks off so we want to make the most of it!
At 8 in the morning we take the car ferry to Picton. It will be a 3 hour long trip with lovely views on a nice day! From there we go to Westport. I believe Westport is a small town and not much happening there. But Michel has a police friend there so we will stay the night with him. Not sure what he has got planned for us but im sure it will be fun!
And again the next day is more travelling!! We will be going to Greymouth to stay with friends. We will stay with them for three days. Hopefully go to Shantytown and visit the mines. And im sure they have some exciting things for us to do too..
We will be going the Hamner springs and staying the night there. Hopefully it will be a colder day so we can swim in the thermal pools!! It wouldn't b nice if it was too hot. Hamner springs is a beautiful town, im really looking forward to going there!
After that we will be going to stay another night in Picton so it next morning we can take the car ferry again! We will go to Hastings. Stay the night there.
From Hastings will go to Rotorua. I have wanted to go to Rotorua for awhile now. The last time I went I was extremely young and just remember the rotten egg smell and the thermal mud pools. We will spend to days there. We will be staying at a bed and breakfast place. Will be nice to have a homecooked breakfast!!
I really want to go on the Luge and to the thermal resort.
From there to Te Awamutu in Hamilton. Have some more friends there that we will be staying with for two nights.
At this stage we will almost be back home again!! The last stop is to visit Michel's mum at Maungataroto. We left our two beautiful dogs there while we will be gone. So we will stay the night there and then head back home with the dogs.
Will be a fantastic trip! Will take lots of photos for all to see. And will let you know how it went!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
It is that time of the year again to reflect on the past and make new goals for the year. I love this time because I get so motivated and excited about life!
I had a FANTASTIC 2009. I completed my second year nursing and I feel as if I really am becoming a registered nurse now. I joined the Ambulance service which I totally LOVE doing! I not only enjoy the excitement of the call outs and learning so much about people and the human body but also the fact that it is voluntary work makes it special. People pay more attention and respect you more when they know you are doing something self-less and important for the community. I have also set the wedding date! Very exciting!! Lots of planning to come! I feel as though my life is coming together finally (as cheesy as it sounds :) lol).
This year will be a big and exciting one! I have lots of things happening this year which I am totally excited about.
This is my last year of nursing! I will become a registered nurse (i love the sound of that!), I will be earning an income for a change haha, have lots of responsibility, learn more than ever and meet lots of talented and intelligent people.
I will be doing the voluntary ambulance work.
Planning for the wedding.
So many more that I can't think of, but as the year goes by it will get busier, as always.
So now for my new years resolutions!
EXERCISE: this is always on the top of every ones list! I want to push myself harder than I did last year, exercise more regularly and become sexy, lean and toned for the wedding. Its my day so I gotta look good! I also want to age well to- no wrinkles, no diseases, be mobile and fit when I'm 80, and not spend my last years in a rest home, I want to die with dignity and feel proud.
DIET: this is another common one that people like to improve on. Its the basic things in life that we seem to struggle with. I guess thats how life goes. If you achieve the basics then you have achieved in life. The main thing I want to achieve with my diet is to start cooking healthier and learn how to cook like they did a hundred years ago, making own stock from scratch, learning how to prepare grains, learning how to ferment vegetables and culture milk, and learn to cook delicious but healthy meals! This will make me full of energy and help me with my fitness and body goals.
SPIRITUALITY: I would like to start meditating. Even if it is just 5 or 10mins a day. I want to have more time to myself and reflect on the day, meditate on what I want to achieve with my life.
LIFE IN GENERAL: I want to have a good laugh every single day and feel like a kid, get excited over the little things and not worry about any other problems that people are faced with, it could be worse. I also want to focus on the things that make me happy. I want to always please others first and forget about what I enjoy doing.
STUDY: This year will be a tough time with my studies so I need to be focused and do the hardest that I can. Stop the procrastination and finding excuses not to do it. Procrastination wont make me a great and talented nurse.
BLOG: And last but not least I want to carry on with this blog. Its a way to speak my mind and do what I enjoy doing- researching food and diet and living a healthy lifestyle. I not only want to make my own lifestyle great but I want to teach others also! If I want to be a good teacher I need to preach what I teach.
DREAMS: Dreams of the future are always important to think about. The dreams in the future that I would love to accomplish is: do my masters in nursing and start my own holistic clinic. I believe that any disease is curable and drugs are not always needed, its just masking the symptoms and doesn't fix the problems. It all starts with the nutrition. I want to start learning dutch. I always say I will but never do it. Its hard to do when living in an english speaking country. And possibly write my own book.
Whenever I lose motivation I will always look at this post and I know it will keep me moving and staying motivated.
You might think that this is a lot of goals for the year but you can never have too much. They are all achievable goals if you stick to it and make it a habit.
It is a good idea for every body to write down their goals and put it somewhere where you will regulary see it. I have started a vision board so I will be putting it on there and it will also be on here as well.
Please post a comment of your goals for the year too. I am very excited to hear them :)
So I finally did my first workout of the year! I knew I had to do it today other wise I will never be able to get back into the routine.. Its been awhile. December is such a busy month with parties, work-do's, christmas, new years, that I kept postponing my workouts and along with the over eating, it was well over due that I did a work out ;p
It was very short (15mins). Shockingly, that was all I could handle! But it was incredibly intense!
I love short, intense workouts because it boosts your metabolism and really increases your heart rate. It is also strength training so I am building muscle and burning calories for the rest of the day. What more could you want?? :)
I'm glad I did it because when I stop working out for awhile I felt really tired, lazy and obviously have the risk of gaining weight. I love the feeling of successfully completing a workout and feeling like you have completed something great.
What a great start to the year!!
What I did:
3 exercises and 3 rounds
Toe touch downs and jump (15 reps)- squat, down touch your left and burst up into the air- thats one rep.
Plank variation (10 reps)- Start in push up position and drop down to your forearms, then get up again to push up position- thats one rep.
Assisted v-sits (15 reps)- sit with your hands behind your bum and your knees towards your chest, as you bend your arms extend your legs and then back to starting position
I'm bringing sexy back ;)
I love Jennifer Nicole Lee and Jessica Alba
Jesiica again
Best of luck to your new year plans. Lets concur and achieve the bodies we always dream of... IT IS POSSIBLE! ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!!!
Monday, January 4, 2010
This is a quote I found in the book im reading in Nourishing Traditions. Im sure you will find it very interesting and will never go near margarine again.
Back in 1967 or so.. a food technologist told me how he thought the term "plastic food" must have originated, must have observed that when looked at through a microscope, a hydrogenated fat molecule looks very much like a plastic molecule.... "Lipid chemists", he explained, "actually talk about plasticizing oils".... I decided to discontinue selling margarine- as well as products containing vegetable shortening, margarine's cousin- and to perform a little experiment.
It was quiet nontechnical... I put a cube of margarine, the kind I had been selling, on a saucer on the window sill in the back room of my store. I reasoned that if I made it readily available and if it was real food, insects and microorganisms would invite themselves to the feast. Flies and ants and mold would be all over it just as if it were butter..... That cube of margarine became infamous. I left it sitting on the window sill for about two years. Nobody ever saw an insect of any description go near it. Not one speak of mold ever grew on it. All that ever happened was that it kind of half-puddled down from the heat of the sun beating through the windowpane, and it got dusty- very dusty, a cube of margarine doesn't clean up very well either. Finally, it got to looking so revolting that I decided to terminate the experiment. For me, the experiment had not been foreshortened; I had reached the conclusion long ago that margarine basically is not food, whether or not it's like plastic.
Fred Rohe, PPNF Health Journal
Here is a few more facts on margarine
Bad things in margarine, shortening and spreads
  • Trans fats: These unnatural fats in margarine, shortenings and spreads are formed during the process of partial hydrogenation, which turns a liquid vegetable oil into a solid fat. Trans fats contributes to heart disease, cancer, bone problems, hormonal imbalances and skin diseases; infertility; difficulties in pregnancy and problems with lactation; and low birth weight, growth problems and learning disabilities. Recently a US government panel of scientists determined that man-made trans fats are unsafe at any level. (Small amounts of natural trans fats occur in butter and other animal fats but these are not harmful.)
  • Free radicals: Free radicals and other toxic breakdown products are the result of high temperature industrial processing of vegetable oils. They contribute to numerous health problems, including cancer and heart disease.
  • Synthetic vitamins: Synthetic vitamin A and other vitamins are added to margarine and spreads. These often have an opposite (and detrimental) effect compared to the natural vitamins in butter.
  • Emulsifiers and Preservatives: Numerous additives of questionable safety are added to margarines and spreads. Most vegetable shortening is stabilized with preservatives like BHT.
  • Hexane and other solvents: Used in the extraction process, these industrial chemicals are highly carcinogenic.
  • Bleach: The natural colour of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is grey so manufactures bleach it to make it white. Yellow colouring is then added to margarine and spreads.
  • Artifical flavours: These help to mask the terrible taste and odor of partially hydrogenated oils, and provide a fake butter taste.
  • Mono and Di Glycerides: These contain trans fats that manufactures do not have to list on the label. They are used in high amounts in so called "low-trans" spreads.
  • Soy protein isolate: This highly processed powder is added to "low-trans" spreads to give them body. It can contribute to thyroid dysfunction, digestive disorders and many other health problems.
  • Sterols: Often added to spreads to give them cholesterol lowering qualities, these estrogen compounds can cause endocrine problems; in animals these sterols contribute to sexual inversion.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
  • 10= Have more sex- sex has many health benefits. Studies suggest sex can boost your immune system and reduce sex
  • 9= Brush and floss your teeth- you might be surprised to learn that diabetes, low birth rate babies and heart disease all have been linked to gum and bone disease in the mouth, things that can be prevented by regular brushing, flossing and regular dentist visits. The bonus to good dental care is reduced tartar and plaque, fewer cavities, and avoidance of that nasty sounding gingivitis and bad smelling breath!!
  • 8= Use the sun- a little sunshine is good for your mood and allows the body to produce necessary vitamin D, but too much sun can cause skin cancer
  • 7= Drink less- drinking alcohol may have some benefits, but excessive drinking can lead to a whole host of health problems
  • 6= Wash your hands- having clean hands remains one of the best ways to prevent catching the an illness
  • 5= Get some rest- serious lack of sleep-less than 6 or 7 hours a night, has been associated with increased risks of high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and cancer. Lack of sleep can also contribute to auto accidents and on the job injuries
  • 4= Stop smoking- study after study has shown smoking is simply bad for your health. This is arguably the most no brainer of the list. There is a wide misconception that lung cancer is a smokers destiny. Indeed, smoking is responsible for 87% of all lung cancer deaths, but smoking-caused heart attacks and strokes kill more smokers than cancer does.
  • 3= Don't stress- simple lifestyle changes can drastically reduce stress. STRESS KILLS. It causes deterioration in everything from the gums to the heart and can make you more susceptible to a range of illnesses, from colds to cancer.
  • 2= Exercise- exercise improves blood flow to the brain and may help build new brain cells, recent studies show. The US centers for Disease Control and Prevention says avoidable behaviours like smoking, poor diet and a couch-potato lifestyle are the underlying causes of half of the deaths in the United States. The message is simple: GET OUT AND DO SOMETHING (almost anything), and you'll probably live longer and be healthier while you are alive
  • 1= Eat better- getting back to basics is the simplest way to ensure a healthy diet. Sure you have heard this before but society these days are becoming notorious for poor eating habits and rapidly getting worse, devouring on processed foods and fats, and excess sugar consumption that all lead to weight gain and increased risk for diabetes, heart disease and even cancer.
Sources:
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Heart disease, cancer, diabetes melitus etc were all very rare a hundred years ago. So what changed? What are we doing wrong? Clearly something is very wrong.
The public have been very conscious about their diet, they take exercise seriously, many have stopped smoking, consumption of fresh vegetables and grains has increased, many have reduced their intake of salt, and a good portion has cut back on red meats and animal fats.
But none of these measures has made a dent in the ever increasing statistic of degenerative diseases.
We buy foods labeled "lowfat", "no cholesterol", "reduced sodium", thinking they are good for us... why then, are we so sick???
The purpose of this blog is that the advice of the Diet Dictocrats- what they tell us, and just as important, what they don't tell us- is wrong. Not 100% wrong. There is a certain amount of truth in their pronouncement, enough to give them credibility, but not enough to save us from the sufferings of chronic diseases.
Lets take a look at what the food pyramid says about how we should be eating.
  • Avoid saturated fats- saturated fats actually play many important roles in the body. They provide integrity to the cell membrane, enhance the body's use of essential fatty acids, enhance the immune system, protect the liver and contribute to strong bones. Saturated fats do not cause heart disease, in fact, saturated fats are the preferred food for the heart. Your body makes saturated fats out of carbohydrates
  • Limit dietary cholesterol- dietary cholesterol contributes to the strength of the intestinal wall and helps babies and children develop a healthy brain and nervous system. Foods that contain cholesterol also provide many other important nutrients. Only oxidized cholesterol, found in powered milk and eggs, contributes to heart disease. Powered milk is added to 1% and 2% milk.
  • Use more polyunsaturated oils- polyunsaturates in more than small amounts contributes to cancer, heart disease, autoimmune diseases, learning disabilites, intestinal problems and premature aging. Large amounts of polyunsaturated fats are new to the human diet, due to the modern use of commercial liquid vegetable oils.
  • Avoid red meats- red meat is a rich source of nutrients that protect the heart and nervous system including vitamins B12 and B6, zinc, phosphorous, carnitine and coenzyme Q10.
  • Cut back on eggs- eggs are nature's perfect food, providing excellent protein, the gamut of nutrients and important fatty acids that contribute to the health of the brain and nervous system. Americans had less heart disease when they ate more eggs. Egg substitutes cause rapid death in test animals.
  • Eat lean meat and drink low fat milk- lean meat and low fat milk lack fat soluble vitamins needed to assimilate protein and minerals. Consumption of low-fat foods can lead to depletion of vitamin A and D reserves.
  • Limit fat consumption to 30% of calories- 30% of calories of fat is too low for most people, leading to low blood sugar and fatigue. Traditional diets contained 40 to 80% of calories as healthy fats, mostly of animal origin.
  • Eat 6-11 servings of grains per day- most grain products are made from white flour, which is devoid of nutrients. Additives in white flour can cause vitamin deficiency and intestinal problems unless properly prepared.
  • Restrict salt- salt is crucial to digestion and assimilation. Salt is also necessary for the development and functioning of the nervous system.
  • At least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day- fruits and vegetables receive an average of 10 applications of pesticides, from seed to storage. Consumers should seek out organic produce. Quality counts!
  • Eat more soy- modern soy foods block mineral absorption, inhibit protein digestion, depress thyroid function and contain potent carcinogens.
(info from www.westonaprice.org)
Hello all,
This is a new blog of mine.
My name is Katie. I am 20 years old, and in my 3rd year studying nursing. ONE MORE TO GO!!! I am so excited. I am engaged and living in beautiful New Zealand.
This blog is about educating people about healthy lifestyles. I am very much into eating healthy, exercising, and all things girly and beautiful like makeup and clothes!
I wish everyone and happy new year. Hope I can contribute to making your life even better.

About Me

My Photo
Katie
Whangarei, Northland, New Zealand
Hi.. Im Katie. I am 20 years old. I am a student nurse. I love learning about healthy eating and living healthy lifestyles. There are so many lies and myths about the food we eat today and I am determined to spread the word. If you have any questions don't be shy to ask. Email me at k_rotgans@hotmail.com P.S I am not a doctor, I do not diagnose conditions. I am just hear to educate myself and others. Any symptoms I address please see your doctor.
View my complete profile
Powered by Blogger.

Followers