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Today is officially the first day of 2010. I can't belive I just wrote 2010! I remember back in grade school thinking that the '90's were so far away... let alone 2000... but 2010, WOW!

I am hoping that this New Year is a year of greatness. I hope that I will be able to continue on the path of fitness, heath and all around well being. In other words... BALANCE. As I look back at my transformation following the birth of my fifth child, there were many great things that happened. It was a very chaotic time and I think I was on autopilot, just trying my hardest to hang in there and improve. That was two years ago. I have hung on and moved forward.

Last year definately pushed me in ways that I never thought was possible. To add to our hectic craziness in raising five children, whith three of them having special medical needs, we were informed on Christmas Eve of '08 that my husband would be loosing his job. Since he is our main source of income, let's just say that this time last year was not so exciting.

As the year progressed and we were adjusting to our new situation, things just seemed to blow against us from all directions. My husband's unemployment continued for most of '09 with things finally beginning to turn around towards the latter most part of the year.

Then in the fall, we received news that my dad would need surgery to remove his prostate. We were originally told that the prostate cancer was all contained in the prostate and that things looked pretty good. After the surgery, it was completely a different story.

When the surgeon came to give the report on how things went, he basically said that the cancer was far more advanced than originally thought and that he removed as much of it as possible. In fact, he said most surgeons, after seeing how spread it was, would have just sewn him back up and sent him home. His cancer is considered terminal (equivalent to stage 4).

I had the opportunity to go and help care for my parents for a month while my dad was recouperating, since my mom is also battling cancer (4 different types, terminal too). It was a great time to be with them and I thoughouly cherish the time we had together.

During my stay and to my surprise, both my parents asked about how they could improve their health. I began by teaching them the basics about nutrition and exercise. I was able to get my mom involved in a water arobics class and I helped them revamp their eating habits. By the time I left, my dad had dropped 25lbs. and my mom 20lbs. My moms edema even improved 100%... she had ankles again! This was such a fun and motivating time but filled with a lot of stress, to say the least.

As the year continued, I kept finding that things were out of balance. I felt like I was getting hit from all sides and knocked of my balance beam. It seemed that there was always some huge thing creeping up to be taken care of. If it wasn't my parents, it was something with my kids medical needs, some big finacial need or something else.

I do have to say that I am forever grateful for the balance that Beachbody has brought into my life. It has not only helped with my personal fitness and health, but financially too. The supplemental income that we received has been a huge life saver over the last year. The additional winnings from the Million Dollar Body Game was like manna from heaven! Being part of this community has truly blessed my family's life in more ways than I thought possible.

So hence why my New Year is being dedicated to finding balance - to even out the scales and have all areas of my life in harmony with each other. To have the yin and the yang. Here is to all of you and may you all find your balance too!

Namaste

I have to admit I am a dairy junkie. I love my dairy products any way I can get them... cheeses, yogurts, milk... you name it, I love it! So this brings us to my topic, cottage cheese. I could go on why I love it so much, but I didn't want to end up with cottage cheese thighs, so I started to try out the different fat versions it comes in.

The full fat cottage cheese is very delicious and creamy but LOADED with fat and calories. I wanted to still eat cottage cheese, but didn't want the extra fat and calories so the hunt began to find a lower fat version. I started out by trying the low fat cottage cheeses and found that they pretty much taste like the real deal but were still higher in the fat and calories than I wanted. Next I started trying the fat free cottage cheeses. Okay, not all fat free cottage cheeses are created equal. Either the taste was way off or the texture. Even the really expensive brands didn't seem to have nailed it. Then one day my sister-in-law turned me onto Wal-Mart's store brand (Great Value) fat free cottage cheese. I was pleasantly surprised to find a good tasting and nice textured fat free cottage cheese. I was blown away! I could still enjoy my cottage cheese without all the extra fat and calories!

Since then I have come across only one other brand that can hold up to being a truly good tasting fat free cottage cheese. When I was in California taking care of my parents, I stumbled across Knudsen's fat free cottage cheese. It has a creamy taste with a traditional cottage cheese texture. So if you don't have a Wal-Mart near by, this is another alternative that can be found in most grocery stores.

Here is a side by side nutritional comparisson:

Great Value Fat Free Cottage Cheese                  Knudsen (Kraft) Fat Free Cottage Cheese

Serving Size: 1/2 cup (113g)                              Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Calories: 80                                                     Calories: 80

Total Fat: 0g                                                    Total Fat: 0g

Cholesterol: 5mg                                              Cholesterol: 5mg

Sodium: 410mg                                                Sodium: 430mg

Total Carbs: 6g                                                 Total Carbs: 7g

Dietary Fiber: 0g                                                Dietary Fiber: 0g

Sugars: 5g                                                        Sugars: 5g

Protein: 14g                                                      Protein: 13g

Great Value Fat Free Cottage Cheese Small Curd Grade A

Ingredients: CULTURED NONFAT MILK, NONFAT MILK, WHEY, SALT, CITRIC ACID, CULTURED DEXTROSE, ARTIFICIAL COLOR (TITANIUM DIOXIDE)*, GUAR CUM, LOCUST BEAN GUM, CARRAGEENAN, POLYSORBATE 80, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, MONOPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, NATURAL FLAVOR, POTASSIUM SORBATE (AS PRESERVATIVE), VITAMIN A PALMITATE*, ENZYMES, CARBON DIOXIDE (TO HELP PROTECT FLAVOR). *NOT FOUND IN REGULAR COTTAGE CHEESE.

Knudsen Fat Free Cottage Cheese

Ingredients: CULTURED PASTEURIZED GRADE A NONFAT MILK, WHEY, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, SALT, POTATO MALTODEXTRIN, CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, ARTIFICIAL COLOR, CREAM*, MILK*, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES*, GUAR GUM, ACETIC ACID, POTASSIUM SORBATE AS A PRESERVATIVE, XANTHAN GUM, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, VITAMIN D3. *ADDS A TRIVIAL AMOUNT OF FAT. CONTAINS: MILK.

I prefer the Great Value cottage cheese over the Knudsen. I also have a harder time finding the Knudsen in my area.

Another great benefit from eatting cottage cheese is the casein. Casein is a great protein supplement. What makes it such an attractive protein supplement is it's abbility to form a clot in the stomach. This ablility to clot causes a sustained slow release of amino acids into the blood stream. This release can last up to several hours and provides a better nitrogen retention and utilization by the body.

So here is to those cottage cheese thighs!