Yummy for your Healthy Tummy

Assignment #5:

New Product Blog Review

1.      WHO is it designed for?  Who would appreciate this product?

Moms trying to feed their kids healthy but appetizing products -- kids love chicken nuggets but they are so often heavily breaded and full of fillers and the chicken is poor quality and the breading is heavy and greasy.

2.      WHAT is it, in your own words? 

This is a product that is significantly less breading, half the fat and 40 percent of the calories in other similar products. 

3.      HOW does this product seem different/unique from existing offerings?

Less breading (significant), less calories, less fat, no steroids, antibiotics or hormones!

4.      What would people LOVE about it? 

The fact that it looks good, you can take in less breading (and thus less calories and fats). The fact that it has no hormones, no antibiotics and no steroids. And less fat and good amount of protein. Lots of good things about this product.

5.      WHEN should it be used?  WHERE might it fit into people’s lives?

When? Meal time, snack time, lunch dinner Where? Your typical kitchen, your typical kids meal time, your typical adult meal time. In place of the heavily breaded chicken or non-breaded chicken meals that people have.

6.      What does it say &/or show on the LABEL/PACKAGING that is appealing to you?  Anything that is not appealing to you?

Favorably, the wording is appealing -- no hormones, antibiotics or steroids Ever! The fact that it clearly shows the lower fat, lower calories, the less breading and has the calories and protein right at the very top of the package is great. The picture of the chicken itself is very appetizing, the salad next to it, adds to the healthy factor.

Negatively, the packaging reminds me of dog food actually (the color and the Natural logo make me think of like Benefuls or something I saw in the dog food aisle recently) (so maybe go back to the drawing board on the colors and fonts/logo!)  

7.      How would you feel—physically & emotionally—about EATING this product? 

I would feel good, I would be able to eat this knowing its providing a happy medium between breaded and non-breaded chicken with good meat, breading (which lets face it most of us like breading!) and no unwanted add ins such as fillers, steroids, antibiotics or hormones.  I'm thinking this would taste good and be good for me.

8.      How would you feel about SERVING this product to your family?

I would be happy to serve this to my kids, grand-kids, family.  It is a good option. A better option.

9.      What product/s would you expect Tyson Naturals to be BETTER than?  Why?

I would expect them to be better than some of their own products, better than Banquet, better than the store brands. Better than Weaver.

10.  What product/s would you expect Tyson Naturals to be NOT AS GOOD AS?  Why?

I can't think of a product they would not be as good as at this time, considering the nutritional aspects.

11.  Create an advertisement that would convince people to try this new product.

 Are you tired of the bread and not so breaded chicken products in your pre-cooked frozen chicken selections?

How many times have you purchased something "healthy" and found the breading to be blotchy, inconsistent and non-existent in some areas? Is this how they make it fewer calories? To create it in such as way that the breading is not fully coating the product or made of very few and sparse ingredients?

This product is for you, the Mom that wants to feed your kids healthy but yummy chicken products. You don't want to feed them the heavily breaded products that are full of fillers and you don't want to feed them the partially breaded products that look like they were rejects on the quality desk.

This product is for you, the healthy eater, the person that wants quality and a good looking product that not only provides nutrients but is not bland and uninteresting.

This product has 65% less breading but is consistent and has the same feel and texture of your traditional breaded white meat chicken.  This Natural Tyson product is half the fat and 40 percent of the calories you would find in comparable breaded white meat chicken.

There are NO Antibiotics NO Hormones and NO Steroids! EVER!  We give you as simple and as healthy a chicken product as possible. At 150 calories and 16 grams of protein, this is a essential part of any healthy meal!

Shopping Trip

In Store Scavenger Hunt

Examples of convenient meal items that meet my healthy/better-for-you criteria

 Here are examples of meal items that can be grabbed (and are in my home as a meal substitute) a bar or drink that have a lot of nutrients, protein and come in a nice variety of flavors. Easy to take with you when you are on the run.  On the package the protein is what peaks my interest, also on the bars now, the variety of flavors is what peaks my interest - I mean look at these zone perfect bars..mmmm.. chocolate chip cookie dough, dark chocolate almond...yum.  But theres more.....

There are three pictures that follow this blurb....For days when you are working and you don't want to run to the fast food place, (or you forgot to make yourself a decent lunch... these salads that are made up offer a convenient and healthy option and are appropriately calorie and nutrient for eating and not having to worry too much about eating bad.  These salads come in a good variety and are in the deli or produce area of the store.  You can see in this small sampling quite a few varieties. Some have meats, some are loaded with veggies and most come with a low calorie dressing and also comes with a portioned dressing so you get exactly what is a reasonable calorie content on them. (rather than a free-pour salad bottle that can lead to extra calories!)

There are bags of chicken and steak in the same area - they are pricey -- 3.98 for the smallest bag that would really only be sufficient for one person, but they are a good source of protein and substance for a salad or snack - the appeal of this product to me is pre-cooked, no hormones or steroids added, they are grilled. Following that photo is the pre-packaged salad kit area and it shows the Sunflower Salad Mix (Dole) that we use a lot for quick meals,  IN the package is not only the chopped up salad but the add ins, such as sunflower seeds, cranberries, a package of dresssing, some of these mixes have chicken or bacon in them as well.  It's quick and easy and fresh eating, great to have alone or with a meal or break into two servings and take to work for lunch. I have bought all of the items shown in this section at one time or another in the past year. I regularly buy the Dole salad (and store brand) kits.

Examples of convenient meal items that DO NOT meet my healthy/better-for-you criteria

These burritos are quick and easy but have you seen the calorie count on these? And a whopping 60% of your daily allowance of FAT. AUGH. Not acceptable.  I used to buy these for my kids (when they were young adults - 18-24 - they would ask for them when I was going shopping back when they lived with me and I would just pick them up and put them in the cart. About a month ago I looked at one and read the back and went OH MY GOODNESS I let my kids eat this?!? (Egg rolls in the same style are right next to these-- high fat, high calories, no nutrients)

And of course the grab and go pizza...horribly high in fat, and sodium. I am guilty of grabbing them once in a while while in the store because I know I will be busy and they are cheaper than delivery.

These are in the deli/produce area as well (all of these items are) and they are again SO HIGH in calories and fat and sodium, just loaded with them. I have bought these once or twice but really don't like them.

Another high sodium and fat culprit!The pre made potato salads and other salads you find in the deli/produce area.

Examples of FROZEN Pre-Cooked Chicken Nuggets/strips/wings that appeal to me:

These products appeal to me because they are the least calorie, made with white meat, 4% total fat,18% sodium,39% protein, all in a 3 oz serving!!! No trans fats,the package looks pure, healthy, simple, bright and colorful packaging. I have bought these products shown here and do often.

Tyson Chicken Breast Fillets, green packaging, looks fresh, 100% natural on the bag, 110 calories, 3% total fat, 14% sodium and 42% protein in one peice!

For the kids in your life -- these Tyson Fun Nuggets are 100% natural made with white meat chicken, Whole grains, fun shapes, no fillers, no preservatives and no trans fat. They are a little higher in calories due to the breading and not as much protein as the more adult products up top, but overall, a nice product and I have fed these to my grandkids. Cute packaging, with the dinosaur on them.

Examples of FROZEN Pre-Cooked Chicken Nuggets/strips/wings that DO NOT appeal to me:

Here we have Banquet fried chicken... number one look at the price of this product, over $10 and I've had this stuff, its largely bones, there is not much meat on them and it is higher in calories, a lot higher in fat (3 or 4% in the products I like versus in the 20 to 30 percent range in this product.  higher sodium and less protein. And it tastes, frankly like ...(yuck).

 

So these have potato starch, chicken FLAVOR, up to 8% Chicken broth.... and so you have a lot of add ins, these are still high in protein, and not horrible in calories, but again, these products are high in sodium and much higher in fat. (18%).  I also know from experience that the portion of meat on these is minimal. It's largely bones.

After my shop, nothing surprised me, I research what I eat and in the past year have been on a knowledge quest for what products are healthier, where  you can find good protein, low fat, low sodium.

I don't feel that there is anything missing from the frozen pre-cooked chicken section of the store, there is a large selection of items, of course finding a breaded chicken product with better numbers and nutrients would be nice, but I don't know that it is possible.  I don't know of anything that I would like to see less of, its a good balanced area, in general the protein and calories in these products are much better than many other items, but what you have to watch for is the meat quantity (and quality) in the products. To pay over $10 for a box of fried chicken and get so little meat (and its hard and low quality) is not fair to the consumer.

Good Day Bad Day augh

Assignment #3:

What a Difference a Day Makes!

These are first person, in the voice of my daughter who works, goes to college, has a family to take care and pets and a husband.

Day 1:  A Day That’s In Balance.  Write about a day that goes smoothly, a day in which the woman feels like her life is in balance today.

I got to bed early and slept like a baby.  I got up and had my coffee and yogurt and a bagel and packed myself a healthy salad and sandwich and fruit for lunch.  I'm ready to start my day and it's going to be good. I pet the dogs and head out the door to school. I listen to some great music on the way to school and enjoy the teachers lecture. I leave school feeling inspired and head to work. I get good parking and it's not crazy busy today.  I will be able to get through it and have some energy left for my family and housekeeping tonight and then a few hours of homework and off to bed.

Day 2:  A Day That’s Out of Balance.  Write about a different kind of day in this woman’s life, a day in which she feels like her life is out of balance today.

The dogs barking kept me from getting a restful nights sleep. I am dragging and the coffee just isn't working.  I still have to finish that Ethics paper and work my 8 hours today.  I don't have time to eat breakfast because I slept in as late as possible. Lack of sleep and no food will make for a difficult day.  I will probably be a able to get a lunch if I drive through a fast food place real quick during the lunch hour but that's going to make me drag too. It seems if I don't start out right it all goes to hell. I will just keep on trucking, that's all I can do.  Work ends and I go home and collapse in my recliner. I don't want to make dinner, I will probably just eat chips and dip and whatever I can find that is easy and tell my family it's do your own thing tonight, Mommy is tired and needs to go to bed early.  Tomorrow will be better if I get some sleep tonight.

After you’ve written your short stories, please reflect on them and answer the following questions:

1.      Explain how you relate to this woman and her two different days.  Which day do you relate to more and why?

My daughter and I are very similar only I don't have kids at home anymore, I only have 2 pets (she has 4) I don't have to leave my home for school or work even though I have them, its all online/virtual.  I relate to the first day more so as I have been very diligent about managing my sleep and work and relax time.

2.      How often do you have a day that’s in balance?  What tools or tricks help you to have those days?  How do you feel about yourself on these days?  IF APPLICABLE:  How do you feel about the job you’re doing as a mom on these days?

I say about 80 percent of the time my days are in balance. Tools are to stick to a schedule, not stay up late, get a good nights rest and eat well and balance your activities. (N/A - no kids at home)

3.      How often do you have a day that’s out of balance?  What factors make those kinds of days happen?  How do you feel about yourself on these days?  IF APPLICABLE:  How do you feel about the job you’re doing as a mom on these days? 

Probably 1 day a week to 2 days a week I might have an out of balance day due to something (insomnia, illness, pain, stress or something on my mind) that keeps me from a solid sleep at night.  I feel rushed, cranky and exhausted, out of balance on those days. (n/a - no kids at home)

Feeding My Family

Version B

Assignment #2:

Feeding My Family

1.      When you think of your own personal relationship with food, what words or feelings come to mind?  Find/post an image from Google Images that depicts how you feel about food.   Describe why you chose the image and how you relate to it.

I chose this image because this shows how I feel when I eat good healthy food. It nourishes me at the core of my being! In the morning if I don't eat I begin to feel sluggish and sometimes I'm just too busy to go make something healthy and so I grab whatever. Lately I have been trying to have health bars available like LaraBars or yogurt in the fridge so that I can eat healthy and vitamin/protein rich foods. The better I eat the better I feel.

2.      In the first assignment, you described your philosophy of life.  Now I want you to blog about your philosophy or approach to eating and feeding your family.  When it comes to food choices, what is most important to you—and why?  What does success look like?

Trying to incorporate the basic building blocks of nutrition in our evening meal is what it looks like. Meat/protein, fresh vegetable options whenever posssible. Salads, fresh broccoli, adding in things like dried cranberries or crab or sunflower seeds to our salads from time to time to add nutrients.  Chicken or steak slices in salads are a way to incorporate protein into a fresh meal. Success looks like a well balanced meal that is as fresh as possible. I like to shop at farmers markets so I like to incorporate purchases from there as much as possible. It's harder during the winter so often times it is frozen vegetables - we use a lot of the Birds eye Protein mixes - - they are relatively new and very good.

3.       How easy or hard is it to eat/feed your family this way?  Explain.  What are the barriers or challenges that get in the way?

Season is a big factor.  With the volume of cold and rain we've had recently the taste of vegetables are not as enticing, it seems this weather has dulled the flavor in many things. Fruit is really hard to get fresh and tasty it seems. Finding very fresh fruit and vegetables in the grocery store around here is a science.  Get it and use it immediately if you want to enjoy it.  Our humidity this year has made our foods last fewer days. I don't mind price, I will pay a good amount for something if it is healthy and not going to end up in the garbage.  Pears are so fragile that it aggravates me you get it home and just in transit they are all bruised up and they end  up often costing at least a dollar each in the grocery store.  Peaches have been yukky this year, which is really sad considering I live in Georgia!

4.      Describe how your eating habits and food choices have changed in the last few years. What are you trying to eat more of and/or less of, and why?  Please provide some specific examples of how your habits have changed and what you are trying to accomplish with these changes.  Also, what prompted the changes?

My eating and food choices have changed dramatically over the past few years.  We can afford to be more selective now that I have a great job with good income.  We also only have to feed us 2 (my fiance and I) - where as we had several adult children that lived with us and also came over and took food from our house (sometimes without asking)...so we'd be spending so much on food it was ridiculous.  Now we can buy what we want and pay what we feel comfortable paying for fresh food.  We go through a ton of chicken and vegetable items here. My dog is diabetic so I'm always cooking chicken for him and us. I often will pressure cook, bake or skillet fry several pounds of chicken at one time, I will take out a portion for my dog and then season/prepare the remaining for us. We eat a lot of salad.  We are both watching our weight and trying to eat more healthy.

5.      Next, I want you to take some photos of what’s in your refrigerator/freezer right now.  I have some specific pictures I want you to post & blog about.

 My fridge, some top items: milk, cream for coffee, ricotta, celery, yogurs, canned fruit, large jar of garlic, water, prune juice, aloe juice, passion fruit juice, eggs, little plastic thing of chicken (blue lid - for the dog)

 Butter, cream cheese, parm, canned biscuits, ensure, pouch fruit

 Heads of lettuce, roma and regular tomatos, broccoli and green onions (all fresh)

Bin of meats and cheeses, sliced chicken, cheese, grated cheeses

a.       Overall contents of the refrigerator

                                 i.      What do the contents say about how you feed your family?

I think it says we like fresh things, veggies and meats/dairy/juices

                               ii.      What are you happy to see in your inventory & why?

Yes, I am happy that we have a variety and have a lot of fresh produce because that is what we like to eat and makes your meal fresh and enjoyable.

                             iii.      What are you less than thrilled with, and why?

Not much, just the darn fridge is not very easy to access and we need a better one.  As far as the food in the fridge, it exemplifies what we like to eat and a relatively healthy batch of food.

 Lean cuisie, cod, bagged chicken, grd beef, sliced frozen deli meats, salmon, steak ham, mushroom bugers

bannas, waffles, protein birds eye (cold packs for pain relief)

b.      Overall contents of the freezer

                                 i.      What do the contents say about how you feed your family? meats and veggies pretty much not a lot of junk in there

                               ii.      What are you happy to see in your inventory & why? Yes, I see meats, veg, (the bananas are there for making bannana bread from scratch.  You see the Special K waffles (red berry ones - my fave) birds eye frozen protein and veg, mushroom bugers, some bagged frozen meals (i.e. broccoli and beef - thats whats for dinner tonight along with some birds eye protein and some canned cranberry) You see some lean cuisine some bagged chicken legs, chicken bone in breast, ham, ground beef, a small steak, lots of fish, 2 lb bags of Cod, and Salmon.

                             iii.      What are you less than thrilled with, and why? Nothing really, I have one small box of sweets -- there are frozen Dole chocolate covered bannana slices in the  box with one or two ice cream sandwiches.  We don't buy near as much ice cream and sweets as we used to!

c.       Convenient meal items that help you eat the way you want to (pull them out, put them in a group on the counter, and then photograph them)
These are sauces that are convenient meal items that help me to eat the way I want, home made prepared hot and fresh emeals (there is marinade, mushroom sauce, green enchilada sauce, a garlic and rosemary potato add in, a lentils add in and an eggplant add in shown in the photo above.

                                 i.      How do these help you eat the way you want to? Easy when you are busy or working on a project.

                               ii.      What do these packages/labels say and/or show that you find appealing?  Typically I choose items that are calorie concsious, high protein

If you look at the freezer picture, the only convenience items in there are the protein birds eye and the broccoli and beef (Paul Newman) pack -- the rest are things you would have to cook/make things with. (other than the frozen lean cuisine)

d

  Convenient meal items that trip you up from how you want to eat (pull them out, put them in a group on the counter, and then photograph them)

                                 i.      Explain why these do not help your cause. 

                               ii.      What do these packages/labels say &/or show that you do not find appealing?

                             iii.      Why do you buy these items?  What roles do they fulfill?

I don't have any of these in the house right now..... we really don't buy things like frozen pizzas or non-healthy frozen meals anymore.  For non-frozen/fridge items, the picture above shows poptarts (who doesn't grab these for a quick breakfast when there's nothing easy to cook/make?) Chef Boyardee, Soups, Canned beans and Velveeta!
These do not help my cause because they are high in sodium, high in fat and high in sugars.  They are not fresh nor do they offer much real nutrition. These packages and labels all look yummy, but the ingredient/nutrition labels say otherwise.  Why do I buy them, well I try not to, but if I don't have something like this handy, there may be days that I go through a drive thru or order pizza or do something even worse! These are economically sound, quick and easy but no where near the nutrition or health value I'd prefer to have. 

6.      Reflecting on your refrigerator/freezer audit, what would you say is working well when it comes to eating/feeding your family—and why?  What is not working, or working less well—and why?  Please use real-life examples.  Also, overall, what do you think about the health/nutrition of refrigerated items vs. frozen items—and why do you say that?

 Sauces (in my pantry) add variety to our food preparation

Spices are an integral part of cooking a variety of items!  (in my pantry)

I feel that refrigerated items may have a stronger and more viable dose of vitamins and minerals.  I feel that freezing sometimes takes the nutrients out of foods.

What is working well: Sticking to the basics, using a variety of vegetables, sauces and spices to enhance flavor and interest. What is not working well - the hardest thing is time, having time to prepare a good meal is sometimes difficult, but we've been working on that lately. We may order pizza once or twice a month and eat out a few times a month but we try to limit it because we often feel we drag after eating fast food! The hardest part is ignoring cravings.

Me Myself and I Sailing Along

Hello! My name is Valerie Arena
I am a physically disabled individual as most times I am in a powerchair or just being very careful when I walk! I have really bad joints, degenerative joint disease and I'm too young for surgery.  (and not a good candidate either).

I certainly don't allow myself to be limited by my physical difficulties. I actually am quite successful in whatever I put my mind to and enjoy spending my time educating myself. I work full time and I also work part time. I have been able to utilize my education and experiences to secure and maintain fully virtual employment. I have been an instructor with Excelsior College for over 10 years! I am a Senior manager of Academic Assessment full time with a non profit education company. I work with a lot of questions and derive a lot of answers! Solutions!

I live with Rich, Bear and Sheena. The latter two are my babies, my dog and cat respectively. I have had my dog for about 9 years, from when he was born! He was born in Phoenix, AZ. I lived in AZ for over 30 years and moved to PA in 2007. I have since (2014) moved to Georgia and like it here!

I am curious, alternative, confident, goal oriented and silly at times. My family would describe me as successful and a go-getter, someone that fights for others.

This is me - the professional me, sitting at my desk, books and musical instruments behind me, looking intelligent. ha.

 This is the art rendering of myself, a little tiny piece of art I created with my Prismacolor markers, one of my favorite art tools.

This is me and Sherman Alexie, one of my favorite authors! I had the honor of meeting him right before I left Arizona, he is a fantastic writer and person and speaker! I met him at the Heard Museum. He writes a lot of literature for children/young readers. I am currently taking a Writing Children's Literature course at Western New Mexico University and one of his books is on the required reading list and I am working on a children;s picture book right now.

I make jewelry of all kinds from ornate beading to simple items, here is a picture of my line of moon and fairy necklaces. I run a few shops on Etsy and sell my jewelry art and excess supplies.

When I lived in PA I would put my art and jewelry up for sale at the well known Rattlesnake Round Up in Noxen, PA. Neat event, annually held not too many of these anymore. This is a picture of part of my booth.

I have fallen into the adult coloring craze! This is one of my first ones that I started working on.

I LOVE music, Adele and Enya are two of my favorites! 

 In Chattanooga, there is the Riverside Market and it has vendors and music and food trucks and its fun, its almost every weekend. There is a Saturday and Sunday market every week and a farmers market every wednesday (in the winter days). I currently live in NW Georgia and plan to move up to Chattanooga soon to be on public transit and take advantage of these events more often and probably sell my art and jewelry there too from time to time (or hire someone to do that for me).  I love going to these, they are busy and have lots of fantastic artisans and a lady who makes really cool steampunk home decor! I make a lot of steampunk jewelry.

As I said I can be silly sometimes and this was one time recently near the end of 2015 we were at Walmart and this HUGE display of potatos just had me cracking up! I took this photo with my phone and put it on facebook, this display of potatos just overwhelmed the whole produce area and I just found some humor in it.  It was like something out of South Park!

These are my babies, Bear and Sheena. I love them! They are just awesome pets and my poor baby Bear got ill about six weeks ago and I took him to the vet and it was determined that he had DIABETES! I was so shocked I had no idea dogs got diabetes (cats do too...I have since met a (online) worker in my company whose cat has diabetes!) I have to give my poor pup insulin shots twice a day! Yes, sticking a needle in a dog twice a day... some days he is a little antsy about it and i have to put a muzzle on for the few seconds that I have to do this.  Its been enough time and he is doing better but he was so sick and I was so scared! 

Quote

I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination

The philosophy that is for me: is exemplified in this quote. I actually bought this ring for myself last year after surviving necrotizing fasciitis.  I was in the hospital for six weeks and away from my home. I had further mobility and physical limitations put on me while I recovered, and some remain to this day. I ended up with a 24 inch incision along my abdominal/pelvic area. I was not expected to survive. I did. Just as my initial physical disabilities made me unable to work in the traditional sense...I found a way to get work from home and built up my resume and have been able to be influential as a teacher despite being "virtual."

a. What are some of your favorite moments during the week? Describe what you love about these moments. How do they affect you/your day & those around you? 

When the work day is over....somedays I can shut off the computer and phone at 4pm and just go put my feet up in my recliner and watch silly shows or something more meaningful. I love series like Orange is the New Black, Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, Transparent, etc...I like the new People vs. OJ series and anything with Lady Gaga in it! People know its my time to relax and my partner just does what I ask of him and makes my relaxing time pleasurable, because I honestly don't get that much of it considering I have 2 jobs, I go to school (grad school) full time, I write books, make art, make jewelry, run 3 shops on etsy and shop and dine out and go to events..many of the things I do are work related so to just put ones feet up is priceless!

Another favorite moments is when I cook or bake. I love cooking and baking! I also love shopping for all kinds of things, and shopping for spices, unique food items (picture Pier 1, World Market, farmers markets) is something I enjoy greatly!

b. We all have them: what are some of the everyday challenges or struggles you face? Describe how you feel in these moments. How do they affect you/your day & those around you? 

(I think my description about myself pretty much answers this one!) I get through it, I find ways to adapt to what I want/need to do. I love to cook and bake and have to use a variety of tools to do so, finding out what I can use/access most easily is something I work at. I just got a new stove and it's a little lower than the other one I had so that is really helping me have full access to do what I want to do.

When you think about your own health & wellness, what would you say your philosophy is? What is working well vs. not so well for you? What are your own personal goals right now related to your health & wellness? Are they the same or different for your family—how so? 6. If you think of yourself as being on a health & wellness “journey”, how would you characterize that journey and how it feels to you? Choose and post an image from Google Images that captures where you are right now on your health & wellness journey. Describe why you chose the image and how you relate to it. 

My health and wellness is good. I try to eat healthy and like to try new things.  I do not have a philosophy I don't get too heavy on this area of my life, I just take it as it comes and I use good judgement.  I am trying to stay away from sugar. I gave up soda for 2 years. Right now I have 1 or 2 sodas a week (the little 8 oz cans!) My body just does not feel well when it has too much sugary food in it.  My goal right now is to loose some weight, get some exercise, I plan to move to Chattanooga so I can be more accessible to a hospital that has a wonderful aqua aerobics and exercise facility that is fully accessible.  I went there for therapy after my surgery last year and they offer a monthly membership for $30 and its so worth it.  I want to get moving more! Do what I can despite being in a power chair. I can get up and out and into the pool so I am!  Here's a philosophy of sorts and a photo of where I am at (swimming to success).

Cheers! 

Valerie