What Does the Challenge Mean to You?

I was going to reply to Jennifer's question on the original post but then I thought it might be a good stand-alone post as many of you may be wondering the same thing. Here is Jennifer's question:

Is there partial credit? I'm being serious. If I can chug down half the water, do I get half points? Also, it's 5 points for 3 veggies/2 fruits. If I can eat 4 out of 5, do I get 4 points for the day? Just want to clarify and certainly don't want to cheat :)

So what do you think, ladies?

It has been interesting to watch this blog come to life the past few days. So many ideas, so many comments, lots of support, successes and concerns. And while I started this challenge with the purpose of moving toward a healthier body, I'm beginning to realize that it goes a little further than that -- at least for me.

As I've read your comments, it seems like most of us have struggled with these choices for a lot longer than we would care to admit. So first I want to say how good it is to know I'm not alone. And while I know I will always struggle with these choices, this time feels a little different. My motivation feels stronger, simply because I know I'm not alone.

After 8 weeks I don't want to say, "Whew! I'm glad that's over!" Instead, I want this to be the beginning of something permanent. And I sense that many of you feel the same way.

So is keeping track of credits earned important? Yes. Does it add a sense of competition and motivation to do well? Yes. But in the end I don't believe that a bunch of points recorded on a tracking sheet is what will be remembered. How you decide to keep track is up to you.

There will be a recognized "winner" at our Challenge Celebration in January -- and I plan to be right at the top of the list. But when this is "over," the takeaway for me will be a greater understanding of who I am and gratitude for 24 women with whom I never knew I had so much in common.

Another favorite Anne quote that sums up my feelings about the next 8 weeks : "I've done my best, and I begin to understand what is meant by 'the joy of strife'. Next to trying and winning, the best thing is trying and failing."

I would just add, ..."and getting up and trying again."

Heather

Hello Ladies!

So this challenge is coming at a very good time for me! I've been transitioning my eating habits for a few years now and this started in the day I was going to give up the foods that cause me the most trouble and try out the Paleo diet, which is only met, veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds and healthy fats. No sugar, grains, legumes or dairy.

I will freely admit that I am a sugar addict!! My body and brain feels that I have to have sugar every single day. Is this true? Of course not! Same thing goes with processed or unprocessed carbs or grains. They do absolutely nothing for me but gain weight, feel sluggish and sap energy. Don't need, and have now finally gotten to the point, that I don't want them anymore either.

 I'm now on day three of my new eating lifestyle, not calling it a diet as I plan to eat this way for the rest of my life. I was snarling yesterday from sugar detox, that resulted in a bad headache and irritation with everything. But today, I'm feeling much better. I'm looking forward to continuing along on this path and curious as to the results.

The plan is to eat the diet strictly for 30 days to eliminate all the toxins from those foods from your body. Once the time is up, you can reintroduce them one at a time, much like testing foods on babies, to see what affects your body. The foods that have been eliminated have been know to cause all kinds of problems. But everybody's body isn't the same so for some, dairy might be just fine, while for others it's not. We'll see.

This will mean that I won't get to eat bead and my heavenly home made stuffing that I look forward to every year, this year. But I'm okay with that. There's been Halloween candy all over the house and while I do still want it and sometimes will salivate when I see it, I have control enough to not reach for it.

Which is also something that I'm trying hard to do in my life. Get control. I figure, if I can control my food, I can control a lot of things in my life, like my finances and weaknesses...or at least begin to. One step at a time, right?

Now, I am seriously lazy when it comes to exercise. Currently, I don't. At all. It's pretty pathetic really. I think I need a work out buddy, but that's been hard to find. I once had the self-motivation to get up every morning at 5:30 to swim, but the place doesn't offer early morning lap swim anymore, which is sad. And with seminary and I start work at 7, the only time I have is at 5:30am. Doable as I've done it before, but not enough motivation. I was working out with some friends in Bear Creek and was in the best shape of my life, and then they moved and I tanked and put back on the 15 pounds I had lost. So sad.

Well, this is way too long. I'll wrap it up. I'm happy to be in this and look forward to the comments and support!

We've got this, ladies!!

Cold Killer

I woke up super sick yesterday, a really yucky cold.  bleh!  But I will not be overcome by congestion!! ;-)

I didn't want sickness to prevent me from getting my credits.

For anyone who is wondering , this is what I do to kick colds to the curb:



Ginger Lemon Cold Killer 

* 3 lemons, quaterted
* 6 inches ginger root cut in inch-size pieces

1. Run the lemons and ginger through a juicer.

2. Use 1 T. of the liquid/1 cup of the hottest water you can drink.  (I use filtered water) (Store the extra liquid in the fridge.)

3. Add enough honey to make it delicious.


This really cuts through mucus and I hate mucus (sorry to say the "m" word).

It's a good idea to drink copious amounts of the tea. Yesterday I drank 2 quarts of this tea.

WARNING: it's VERY strong, so DO NOT drink it with out adding water!!!!

It's cleansing and energizing, which is a little confusing when you are sick. . . "I feel good, but I feel so yucky!" See?  Confusing.

MY Biggest Challenge

There's a lot of talk on here about what your biggest challenge will be. Sweets seem to top the list! (I have a terrible sweet tooth.) Finding the time to do a bit of a workout is tough. (Work all day, chase kids all night, pass out. That's my day.) Not snacking after 8:30 is hard!!

But really, all of these weaknesses pale in comparison to my biggest challenge: Myself.

I am so easily discouraged. I have a hard time finding the motivation to keep going when I'm not seeing results right away. I get overwhelmed at the smallest roadblock. I see other people being awesome and I think to myself, "why can't I just get it together??" When I step on the scale and see I've gained another pound, my entire day is ruined.

I'm so glad to be a part of this fitness challenge so I can have the support I need to get back on the right track physically. Mostly I'm hoping that at the end of this 8 weeks I'll have more control over not only my health, but my mind as well.

I'm excited to get started on our fitness challenge! Like Heather, this morning when I woke up at 5, it helped to know that I wasn't alone! The hardest part for me is definitely going to be the sweets; I'm sure most of you have the same problem! It didn't help that today was Wes's birthday ... so I gave myself a little breathing room today with the food, exercised a little more than normal, and I'm promising myself that I'll do better tomorrow! We can do this!! :)

Sweets substitute?!?!

The hardest part of this challenge is definitely going to be the 3-sweets-a-week deal.  I'm not alone, right?!  Let's be real, it's asking a lot to limit myself to 3 sweets a day.  Ugh...this was almost a deal-breaker for me, but luckily Tina convinced me otherwise.  So while I put all that yummy Halloween booty out of sight (but not yet out of mind), I'm wondering if any of you have good ideas about feeding my sweet tooth (ahem, sweet teeth) in between those 3 treats.  Ideas???  This is all I've come up with on my own, so please add to this list!! 

- yogurt (if you're a lemon fan like me, try "muller, fruit up, luscious lemon"...it's very dessert-esque!)
- 100% fruit juice
- whatever fruit has the most natural sugar

(I love that there is no calorie counting in this challenge!) 

Thanks, in advance!

Sang

First Thoughts

Okay -- be honest. What was your first thought when you woke up this morning and remembered about our challenge? My first thought was, "Ugh! It looks so cold outside."

While I'm at my brother's home, I've decided that if exercise is going to happen it has to happen in the morning before the day gets crazy. When I left for my walk it was 42 but felt like 35 with the wind. On the bright side, I walked a lot faster than I usually do.

I've been drinking more water the past few days and have learned that I better be near a bathroom about 30 minutes later or I'll be sorry. Then I made the mistake of drinking 16oz before I left on my walk. If the wind didn't make me walk faster, the water definitely did. Any tips from you regular water drinkers? Does your body eventually get better at using the extra water rather than just flowing right through you? :)

I think sweets will be the hardest part of the challenge for me. I tend to be an all-or-nothing person. When I eat sweets, I can't seem to stop at just one. So knowing that I can enjoy 3 makes me a little nervous. Will I be able to stop? Should I just ban them all together? Will that only make it worse? Which category will be your greatest challenge?

Here's hoping for a great first day...with many more to come! Even as the cold wind was blowing this morning, the thought that I wasn't alone made it bearable.

Heather