Our New Project: Strong Sense of Place
My new project is taking all of my attention right now, and I'd love for you to join me for new adventures! It's called Strong...
Read MoreOne of the things I learned after the Spartan Challenge last year is that my workout journal and my food log can be helpful training tools — if I take the time to review them. So each weekend, I’ll be reviewing my notes and sharing what I’ve noticed… to make sure I’m honest with you and myself.
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Week 4 of the Spartan Challenge and Mission 17 has been full of change. Based on the scale not budging for three weeks — and my attitude and energy falling into a black pit — I knew I needed to make some dramatic changes to my eating habits, but I didn’t know quite how to do it.
I talked to Crystal and Megan and Erika and Dave and my friends at Weight Watchers and Melissa Urban. And I fretted and talked and worried and talked and read and talked… and when Melissa’s advice aligned with Crystal’s recommendation to add more fat, Erika’s stories about giving up dairy, I enlisted Melissa to be my foodie mentor for the next six weeks. (More on the fabulous Ms. Urban in a future post).
I REFUSE to say I’m paleo — and you can’t make me say it — but these are the new goals I’m working against each week:
So how did I do?
So far, so good. I’m learning how to re-shape my thinking to accommodate everything I learned from Weight Watchers, the Zone, and now my don’t-call-it-paleo approach. I’m still eating tons of veggies, but less fruit throughout the day. Lots more fat. A little more protein. The food puzzle pieces are fitting together a little bit differently than before… and bananas are back!
The immediate results are encouraging: My energy is significantly higher, and my mood is way, way better. Just ask Dave. I’ve been sleeping through the night again — that is HUGE. Also, I lost two pounds this week. I’m opketical — and also thrilled.
Here are some stats from my workout journal and food log:
The Spartan Challenge+Mission 17 Index: Week of 5/31 through 6/6
# of workouts: 5 (4 CF + 1 run)# days of training: 5
average hours of sleep per night: 7.5
lbs. lost/gained: -2.0
consecutive days without a tortilla chip: 28 (!)# of Balance Bars: 0
On a scale of 1-10
(with 10 being “AWESOME”)
satisfaction with workouts: 9. I had fun with my training this week, and enjoyed my rest, too.
satisfaction with diet: 9. The new stuff seems to be working great.
overall mood/level of optimism: 8.5. I’m dangerously close to being really excited about my new plan, but I don’t want to count my chickens too soon.
Favorite workout: I enjoyed Tuesday’s Spartan + run a lot: 5 rounds of pullups, situps, and lunges, followed by a CFEndurance run around the lake.
Bad attitude moment: The only one I can think of (remember a few weeks ago when I had two?! Now I can barely think of one.) was a mini-meltdown before dinner one night when I was frustrated trying to decide what to eat that would fit within the blocks I had left and could be made from the food in the house.
Gold-star behavior: I taught Dave about the Zone and helped him plan menus for breakfast, lunch, and snacks. I feel pretty good about that.
Tweak for next week: I want to get more facile with my new guidelines so every meal or snack isn’t a giant production. And more sleep!
My new project is taking all of my attention right now, and I'd love for you to join me for new adventures! It's called Strong...
Read MoreWe could all use some happy distractions right about now, right? Here are some of the things I found online lately that made me happy....
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Mel! You continue to dazzle me and entertain me at the same time! Keep up the great work and thanks for being an inspiration!
Heidi! You're so sweet to say that… but I wonder if you'd find me "dazzling" if you'd spent any time with me the last two weeks. I'm was a moody monster. It's good to be back in the smile zone.