Fake it till ya make it

This morning I woke up determined to plaster on a smile and be cheerful at work.  Despite the fact that it's a shiny New Year and we are starting 'afresh' unfortunately there were a few glitches when I arrived at the office yesterday. I probably ended up a bit more irritated than usual because I haven't been well myself and I'm getting a bit tired of slogging on when all I really want to do is stay at home and watch The Mentalist while snuggled up in bed with a cup of coffee and Molly.

I don't particularly enjoy being grumpy yet it seems I spent the latter part of 2012 being a compulsive complainant at work due to circumstances which were out of my control.  I don't like the way that makes me feel so today I decided to just get on with it and be my usual cheerful self because being annoyed and irritable is not how I, or anyone else for that matter, wants me to spend my days. So here I am smiling and making coffee and just generally being amiable. Long may it continue.

Now back to my regularly scheduled post:

I worked relatively hard last year to ensure that I was going to be healthier and in better shape than I have been in recent years.  For the most part it worked.  I went home last summer feeling comfortable in my clothes and not actually cringing when I saw myself in (most) photos where I was sporting a bathing suit.  This last month or so has seen a decline in my level of physical activity and greed over-indulgence. Therefore I seem to have undone some of what I had achieved which is a bummer.  My clothes are a bit snug and I'm not feeling as energetic as I normally am.  However I know I'm not alone in this boat and like most of you, I'm jumping ship and getting on board the healthy boat again. It's a ship I much prefer to sail on.   Hopefully with due diligence I can at least partially repair some of the damage in the two weeks I have left before my holiday.  There... I've said it so I have to do it now right?  Oh and I can practically hear you laughing while you are thinking 'right, she can kid herself but she needs a reality check'.  Well people let me tell you I have a reality check and it's called the 30 Day Shred; maybe I don't have 30 days but here's the thing - I don't necessarily need 30 Days.  I've not let myself go by that much and remember, I've done this work-out before and it doesn't only promise a quick result; usually by day seven I'm feeling much better and I'm hoping for the same this time round.   Especially since my diet is now under control, which we know makes a big difference. I just need to throw in a couple of Spin/Combat classes at the gym and I should be at a point where I can contemplate a bathing suit again. Sleeveless tops?  Well we will see what this year brings... although I don't hold out a lot of hope.  If I didn't work hard enough at achieving slender arms in my 20's or 30's I doubt this will be the magical decade where I can set my arms free. Time will be working that much harder against me now.  Time is no longer my friend and like turning 40 I just have to accept it.  As with everything life throws at us we have to take the good with the bad and despite the fact my hair is turning grey at ridiculous rate and my hands are looking more like my mother's with each passing day, I still have killer legs; and like the fabulous Tina Turner I plan on rocking my great gams till well into my 60's at the very least.  Providing varicose veins don't come a-calling that is.

Oh, one last thing.

I've stumbled across a lot of food/fitness bloggers over the last few years who swear by one form of green smoothie or another and this year I've decided to dust of my smoothie maker off and try this one: 

I found this recipe here.