Week ?? Weigh-In

Okay, so I've fallen off the Garden Lites Challenge horse. I thought "All right! I hit a great weight, now I can go back to how I ate before to maintain." Nope!

Here are some things that have happened lately...

2 Christmas Parties.

• Cookies, cookies, cookies.
• A love of spiked hot chocolate.
• Appetizers I lose count of.

I switched my 1 Garden Lites a day from my dinner meal replacement to my sometimes lunch.

• Now I am not substituting a healthy alternative for a sometimes 1,000 calorie meal.
• I went back to eating late dinners when my partner comes home.
• Winter meals are not as forgiving as summer meals.

It's cold out.

• I am a victim of the winter blues.
• With it being dark by the time I get home, I don't get out to move around.
• It's too easy of an excuse to blame the cold weather for anything.

So there is my sad list of excuses that are neither excusible nor acceptable. It is no wonder I gained back.... 3 1/2 pounds! Yikes!!!

As I am packing for the first of 3 back to back weekends of family holiday gatherings with sweets, big meals and laziness, I needed that wakeup call. No wonder everyone starts the new year with a diet. But maybe if a little health consciousness returned right about now it wouldn't be that big of a struggle to start the new year with a good rhythm already in place. Sometimes the situation is unavoidable, but it is possible to control what gets onto my plate and into my stomach.

As for the weather, there's nothing I can do to change the forecast, so I'll just have to work extra hard to keep myself motivated to move. That looming February 12th date of the 5K is helping push me to find some plan that works for me. Garden Lites will help with the rest!

Happy Holidays!

Julie

Get Real Challenge: Day 2 - Julie

It's funny how your mindset can change once you feel like you're trying to challenge yourself. If you had asked me a week ago if I would pass up on a Chewy Chips Ahoy in exchange for my water with lime... I would have thought you were crazy. Turns out I'm the one who's crazy!

Yesterday we saw what this challenge means for Peg, so I thought I'd share what it means for me. For me, getting real is not a diet, it's a mentality. Thinking more is actually the biggest difference. In the past I wouldn't take a moment to think about the consequences of my eating actions (Will this still feel like a good choice in an hour? Will this make my body feel sluggish? Am I really hungry or just bored?), but now... I am a new woman!

Okay, it's only Day Two. Let's be honest. But here are my Mini-Milestones:

• My desk is right near the kitchen. Everytime someone passes, they offer me some of whatever they made. I have said no every time today, where in the past I would have said yes to be polite.
• Cookies were brought into the office, I am pretending they don't exist. If I get enticed to eat them, I will first read the nutrition facts and then ask myself if it's really a good choice. It might be yes, but at least it will be an informed yes.
• I parked twice as far away in the office parking lot. It felt like no difference at all, but it is a small step I can take to take more steps.

That, and I had a Roasted Vegetable Souffle for dinner last night! I don't know whether it's in my head or not, but I felt better than I normally do after dinner. No gurgling tummy, no heavy stomach loaded with breads and cheeses. We could be onto something...

Target Weight Loss: 20lb
Next Mini-Goal: Get on my treadmill.