Winter Activity

Brrrrrr! It’s COLD out there!

Despite the freezing cold temps, Murphy needed some exercise in his little pug life. Living in the city, it’s tough to find places that allow him to run around and play like the crazy pug that he is. Most parks in the area require that dogs stay on leash, which isn’t all that much fun for a 7-month-year-old puppy. However, our friends, Dave and Marie, have a small yard at their apartment, so we took Murphy to have some puppy playtime with his favorite doggie friends this afternoon.

Bella and Grady were well dressed for the occasion. Stylish even!

Murphy’s camo harness didn’t keep him warm– maybe he needs a doggie sweater?

Pug vs. Bijons.

Murph was pooped by the end of puppy playtime. He’s passed out and snoring in his crate right now. He definitely gave playtime his all.

On our way home, Mal ran into the grocery store to grab a few things for the week.

Check out the nutritional superstars that ended up in his bag:

I just had to laugh. Typical guy, right?

After puppy playtime and some errands, I made myself an afternoon snack. It’s almost dinnertime, so I kept it small.

I had candied pecans, a cranberry-pistachio biscotti, and a glass of iced coffee. It was the perfect afternoon snack.

(Can you believe that I drank iced coffee after being outside in the cold for hours? What wrong with me!?)

For lunch, I whipped up something quick: carrot sticks + peanut butter.

And Oikos Greek yogurt with [me] & Goji cereal mixed in.

Quick and satisfying.

This morning, a reader emailed me with this question:

My New Year’s resolution is to lose 20 pounds. I’m eating more healthily, but I have trouble exercising consistently. I always lose my motivation after just a few weeks, especially when it’s cold and dark outside in the winter. Do you have any advice for me?

I think a lot of us struggle with this same thing (I know that I do!), so here’s how I replied to her email:

Hi [reader's name],

Thanks so much for your email and question. I know exactly how you feel about losing motivation during the winter months. It’s tough to leave my nice, warm apartment to go outside into the cold to exercise.

As for advice, check out the post that I wrote about winter motivation. Hopefully, it’ll give you some ideas to keep you motivated. For me, simply putting on my workout clothing almost always gets me to the gym. I wake up and immediately put on my gear, so then a trip to the gym pretty much seems inevitable. What’s the point of wearing workout clothes if you’re not going to exercise in them? This strategy works 99% of the time for me. In addition, setting up a defined workout schedule each week helps me stick to a plan. I plan my workouts on my blog as well as in my iPhone. Setting a fitness appointment with myself helps me carve out time to exercise and stick to it.

Hope this helps!

Best,

Tina

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I have a yummy dinner planned for tonight. I might start cooking soon!

See ya later!