I used to think I ate rather healthy.

Every night I ate salad with dinner. Dinner was 90% home cooked meals – not pre-packaged junk meals with ready-made sauces or frozen main courses, or canned ‘anything’.

So at 45 I started wondering where the weight was coming from. My lifestyle hadn’t changed, my work-style hadn’t changed, my eating habits hadn’t changed.

Certain that something must be terribly wrong with me, I headed into the doctor’s office wanting a complete battery of tests. I had a good idea it was a thyroid condition or some dreaded ‘fat’ disease.

Now if you’re a boomer-generation woman you probably already know what’s wrong with me. I was getting older. The doctor told me that every year (past 45, I think he said) a woman’s metabolism slows. If we keep eating, living, working, exercising at the same level as we’d done the previous year we won’t be able to maintain our current weight. Nope. We’ll gain ten pounds a year, every year!

Diet? Pretty sure I didn’t have time for all that.

More exercise? Argh! Okay, I could take more walks…buy myself a fancy little pedometer and some cute sneakers to make it more fun…

But would that be enough?

What about messing around with my metabolism a little? What if I could make my metabolism think I was young again and burn more fat and calories without attaching it to my ass first?

After purchasing 3 books and hitting about 10 websites on the topic of womens’ metabolism I gave in. It was apparent I was going to have to do some exercise, some dietary changes and apply some of what I’d learned about metabolisms, in order to see my toes again.

The worst of it all was that I thought I could lose weight as hap-hazardly as I’d done in the past. You know a little walking, a few less potato chips and a lot more water. For a year I pretended not to notice that it wasn’t really working.

When your metabolism changes, so must your attitude about diet, exercise and overall health. When I finally got my head around that, I started losing weight. How much weight? As the title says: 6 pounds in 3 days.

Stay tuned. Over coming posts I’m going to tell you what changed, how easy it was, whose advice makes the most sense and is the easiest to follow and, of course, what I’ve been eating (you may be surprised!).

The year is half over, and even though I hadn’t made any resolutions on New Year’s Eve I can’t help but wonder if I’m doing any more in life than just treading water and trying to stay afloat.

Sure, my business has changed and I’ve adapted to the new economy, but what of other pursuits? Personal fulfillment, health, portfolio growth (financial), and spiritual growth?

I imagine this happens to (or at least I hope it happens to) women of my age around the world. We’ve hit 45+ and, are well aware that most of our life is behind us now.

Have we realized our hopes and dreams? Are we in good enough physical shape to see us through our later years? Are we financially independent or at least prepared for retirement – because make no mistake here, it’s coming faster than you can shake a stick at it.

I know for a fact that most of my generation is light years ahead of me in all departments and that makes me a tad sad. I’ve always been ahead of the crowd, always been on top of the pile in my class but when compared to women of my generation, I’m behind. You see, I’m a late boomer… (more…)

It wasn’t that long ago I was trying to convince people that the internet would one day be a large part of everyone’s life. It was the dawn of the information age.

Today we’ve been there, done that – even though many still think we’re in it. We’re not. A new era in online connections has begun whether you are aware of it or not. The new era has been dubbed ‘The Recommendation Age’.

It’s all part of the way Web 2.0 solved the troubles of the information age. As the web grew so did the overwhelming volume of information on any given subject, product or service. Search engines were bogged down, searchers were frustrated. Like a home that has too much stuff, the clutter was overwhelming. (more…)

I’ve been thinking quite a bit about this the last month. You see, I’ve been skinny and I’ve been fat (this is the largest I’ve ever been but the doctor says not to be too hard on myself). Skinny is inherently better!

I’m joking. Somewhat. I’m not actually after skinniness again, but I am after health and to get that health I’ve got to lose weight. Seven years of pounding the keyboard – even just being enamoured by the knowledge share online – hasn’t done my body any favors. There have been other stresses that caused me to find solace in food, but really, there is no excuse. At least no medical excuse for being this size.

And so, I’ve gained 40 pounds.

The last two weeks have netted great change. A stronger body, my clothes fitting looser and less strain on my knees when I take long walks or play on the WII. All I have done is a 20 minute workout daily (The 30 Day Shred with Jillian Michaels), watch my fat intake, and take a 1 mile walk every now and then (every second day – more or less).

If I was smart, and I’d like to be, I’d be drinking more water (right now I drink next to none) and getting more sleep to aid in my success at losing weight and growing healthier. Well, Rome wasn’t built in a day so I’ll incorporate those new habits into next week’s agenda.

As for my title “Skinny is Better” I can remember how I felt when my jeans were just slightly lose in the right places, when a t-shirt fitted snugly and looked great, when no matter where I went or what I did I felt free enough to flirt, smile and walk with my head high at all times. Does it make me shallow that I don’t feel that free today, knowing that thin is better? Absolutely not! If I was shallow I’d also be insecure about my age, my wrinkles – but those I wear with honor as a rite of passage into 45+, the weight on the other hand and in my case is an act of negligence, “not paying attention”.

This low GI, no added sugar banana bread recipe passed the Veronica test! I enjoyed it too and we at our slices for a snack after dinner without butter as it was certainly moist enough.

• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 cup softened butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 smashed over-ripe bananas
• equivalent of 1/2 cup sugar (I use Suzanne Somers SomerSweet – in this case, 8 of the tiny scoops was perfect for this recipe)

I’m not one for cooking and baking by perfect directions, the use of 5 bowls or precise measurements. I actually used a little less than 1/4 cup of butter in my last test as I’m also trying to lose weight (less fat, less sugar recipes).

I can tell you this though – if your banana bread is always coming out of the oven 1/2 baked inside and too dark outside, get a wider loaf pan and make a loaf that shorter in height. When you remove any banana bread from the oven let it sit for 5 minutes in the pan as it will continue baking inside (remember that the interior of the bread is still 350 degrees even after it is removed from the oven.

Finally, if it isn’t cooked right through, remove it from the pan after cooling and pop it into a low powered microwave on high, or a high powered microwave on medium for 60 seconds. That should finish cooking it through consistently.

Standard size banana bread loaf pan is 8″ x 4″. Bake at 350F for 55-60 minutes.

Well. It is done.

Late last night, just hours from my deadline I sent off 53,576 words and 60 some photos, charts, forms and drawings to my publishers at Skyhorse.

I feel as though I’ve been in some trance for the last month. The world has kept spinning without me but I’ve been incapable of even noticing. (more…)

One of my favorite shows (and I don’t have very many) is America’s Funniest Videos.

Truly my favorite video of all time was Lola doing the Smarty Pants Dance – around the living room every time she picked out a state on her US map, called for by her dad. The special part? She’s only 20 months old in this video and the way she dances around the room reminds me so much of Veronica when she was this young. (more…)