Well, my little 12 week healthy challenge ended yesterday!!! Woo hoo. It was seriously SO SO good for me! I must say at times it was crazy hard, but for the most part it wasn’t too bad.
Just to recap….I participated in a fun 12 week health challenge. I paid $20 to join and then chose a personal goal to work on the entire time. Now that the challenge is over, the $$ will be divided among those who reached their goals. There were about 150 people involved in this challenge, so I’m curious how it will play out. I’ll let you know how it goes.
My personal goal was to not have any treats (i.e. cookies, candy, chocolate, etc.) 6 days a week and to lose 10 pounds. However, from the beginning I decided to go without treats as long as I could. I am happy to say I went without treats 99% of the time AND I lost 10 1/2 pounds!
Yes, I really did.
I think it’s a miracle. 🙂
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I have to tell you one of the major things I learned from this challenge is that I can choose what I want or don’t want to eat 100% of the time!
Sounds simple, I know. But, it’s harder than it sounds!
Over the past 3 months, I had to strengthen my “will-power muscle” many, many, many times. Here are some examples:
- I had to resist all of my favorite leftover Easter candy.
- I made my favorite chocolate chip cookies and brownies for my family several times and I didn’t have any…or any dough…or even a lick of the spoon.
- We went on several road trips and I didn’t snack on any candy or treats.
- We visited Kev’s parents in Oregon and I didn’t have any of Kev’s mom’s homemade cookies or apple pie.
- I went to several social gatherings with plenty of candy and homemade treats around and I didn’t have any!
- We ran a relay race a few weeks ago and we had a BIG bag of mini candy bars in our van. Candy tastes especially awesome during a relay race. That was tough.
- We went to Lake Powell with a bunch of friends a couple of weeks ago. There was candy, treats and ice cream everywhere, but I didn’t have any!
I had to resist many other times as well! It was tough, but it did get easier as I went along. In fact, after about 2-3 weeks, my body stopped craving treats for the most part. They still always sounded good, but I didn’t crave them.
So….If any of you feel addicted to sugar and treats, I would highly recommend going off of them for an extended period of time. It was monumental for me!
Here’s a picture I took today.
Yay.
I probably look just the same to most of y’all, but I can tell a difference. I can fit into all of my clothes now, even things I haven’t worn in years. In fact, a lot of my clothes are too big for me now! Weird.
It’s been fun to actually see some results. Ya know, the biggest change I’ve noticed is the loss of my “love handle.” I’m so glad it’s mostly gone. I never used to gain weight around my middle, but the past couple of years I have! It is so not fun.
Interestingly enough, during this challenge I read an article in Oxygen Magazine by Tosca Reno titled, “Want to lose Belly Fat? Stop Eating Sugar!” It was an awesome article and I could definitely relate.
I still want to lean out some more and gain some muscle. That will be my next challenge. I’m looking forward to it. Fun.
Well, I need to go to bed now. Happy healthy eating to you all!
I completely agree with you… on the sugar detox. Once I weeded it out of my diet – I lost the “taste” for that super sweet. Just don’t want it anymore. Yes, I remember… it tastes good, but sort of too sweet for me now. I’ve switched over to having “Artic Zero” as a dessert – nothing artificial, and a cup of it – is about 80 calories. It’s sort of like a whey protein, ice cream. But, even with that… it’s an every now and then thing… cuz too much of a good thing, is no longer a good thing.
I hear ya! I’ve never had Artic Zero, but I’ve heard of it. I’ll have to try it! You are amazing Jeanne. I’m so impressed with your discipline!
I had a scoop of Artic Zero vanilla maple with a scoop of Artic Zero Mint Chocolate last night… and it’s to die for!! SOOOO good!! Only 150 calories for a whole pint! – so, it was safe! and soooo delicious. They have it at Wholefoods, and I’ve seen it on Amazon, but that’s more expensive. Easier to buy it by the carton, as needed. I will DEFINITELY get more of the mint chocolate!! YUMMY YUM YUM! http://www.myarcticzero.com/pints.php
That sounds heavenly Jeanne! Love it! I love stuff like that….yummy with health benefits. Awesome. I will seek this out and buy it ASAP. Thanks for the tip!