I hope you are all having a fabulous day!
My two littlest boys have had a lot of fun doing this lately….
Ya, redneck living at it’s finest!
They really wanted to swim and since we don’t have a little pool anymore, they came up with this! They’ve actually had a lot of fun and have played in these totes quite a bit the past few days. It cracks me up!
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I was interviewed by LiveFitter.com recently and they posted the interview on their site today. So fun! You can click here to read the article if you so desire. 😉
They asked me to send them some pictures to include in the feature; including a Before and After picture if I had one. So, I decided to look through some of my old pictures and create a little “Before and After” type thingy. Here’s what I came up with…
YIKES! That before picture is a doozy. I wish I could say that picture was taken shortly after I had a baby or something, but NO…my “baby” was almost 4 years old when that picture was taken.
I’ve learned so much about health and fitness since then and I hope to never go back to that “before picture” time. I want to live the rest of my life as fit and healthy as I can! It definitely takes hard work and discipline, but it SO worth it!
Oh, and since I’m currently feeling like a little fatty, I must admit I’m not quite as thin as that “after” picture right now. I’m not too far off though and I hope to be back there within the month.
I’m also getting ready to start my little “100 days without Sugar” challenge tomorrow! Yay! I’m really looking forward to it.
Sugar really is my biggest vice. If I take sugar out of the equation, it really isn’t too hard for me to eat well. Yes, I like to have the occasional burger, fries, chips, etc. but I don’t crave them like I do sugar. I am perfectly happy to have a burger or fries a couple times a month, BUT once I start eating sugar I want to have it every stinkin’ day.
It’s tough….and definitely addicting.
Several of you guys have expressed interest in doing this challenge with me too. YAY! If you want to do this challenge with me, feel free to comment, send me emails (happybeinghealthy@gmail.com) or comment on my Facebook page about how you are doing. I know it helps me SO MUCH to know that others are doing it too. My sister is going to do it with me too, which will be fun.
Oh, here are the specific rules I’m going to follow:
- I am going to have ZERO cakes, cookies, brownies, candy, donuts, muffins, chocolate chips, etc. Yes, ZERO…not even a little bite, lick or crumb.
Personally, I think it’s easier to just cut it out completely. I think it’s torturous to have a small bite and that’s it.
Also, I am NOT including white flour or white pasta in this challenge. I’m going to stay away from it as much as possible, but I’m not going to cut it out completely. I don’t feel addicted to white flour/pasta, so I’m not going to cut it out. I really don’t eat it much anyway. Also, I think I will be more successful at staying away from the sugar if I can occasionally indulge in a piece of pizza or burger or something.
Oh, and artificial sweeteners are allowed on this challenge in moderation. I really try to stay away from them as much as possible, but when I’m going cold turkey off of sugar, it really helps to have the occasional artificial sweetened thing. I may have the occasional diet soda (like once a week) and some of my protein powders have sucralose in them. I may have a little honey, stevia or agave too.
So, that’s it. Sugar really is so bad for us, unfortunately. It spikes the blood sugar, causes water retention and weight gain, weakens the immune system, increases cravings and is totally addicting! Dang it. My body feels SO GOOD when I go off of sugar for an extended period of time too. Oh, and I also lose my love handle, which is a welcome bonus!
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Yesterday, my daughter asked if she could make a treat. I really wanted to tell her no, but I decided to let her because I knew I was doing my “no sugar challenge” thing soon.
Sooo, she went onto AllRecipes.com and found a really good recipe, unfortunately. She decided to make Cookie Dough Brownies! Auuughh. I wish she would have made some kind of cobbler or fruity thing; those don’t tempt me at all.
But, NO she made this chocolatey, cookie dough-y thing that was heavenly.
I was actually quite proud of her though because it turned out fabulous and it was a complicated recipe. We had a bunch of extra kids kickin’ around our house last night, so I told all of them to eat as many as they wanted. I’m also planning to bring the rest of these to my mom’s house tonight so they will be ALL GONE by tomorrow when my challenge starts.
Well, I’m actually getting ready to go to the Planetarium with my mom and sisters today. My sister leaves to go back home tonight, so it’s the last day we get to hang out. 🙁 So, I better run!
I hope you all have a fantastic day…..and I hope you all want to do the “no sugar” thing with me tomorrow! So fun!
Real maple syrup is also a natural sweetener. I am already doing this so I will join as well. 🙂
You are awesome Kelly! I’m so glad you’ll be doing this too!
I have tried this in the past but haven’t made it 100 days…would love to have some support…it is hard to do solo! I am assuming natural sugars like fruits are allowed…I hope!
I would love you to do this too! We’ll just take it one day at a time! Yes, fruit is totally fine. We’re just cutting out all of the obvious sugary crap. 😉
Great interview. I shared it on my FB page. So inspiring to hard working moms out there.
Aww, thanks so much! You are so sweet. 😉 Thanks so much for sharing it too!
Well Melanie, If a can still use a tsp of honey here and there on my oatmeal and of course continue having my fruit, I will also join you on the no sugar challange. Thank you!
Yay Victoria, I’m so glad you’ll be doing it too! We can keep each other motivated!
I will be joining you all in the challenge. I crave sugar and know that if I would just cut it out I would lose the rest of this baby weight! Once I start eating it, I can’t stop myself. Thanks for the challenge Melanie.
Yay Britney, I’m so glad you’ll be joining us! Baby weight is so hard to lose and I hope you’re able to lose the last of it. It’s too bad sugar tastes so good and is so addicting because it’s so dang hard to cut out! We can do it though!
Good luck on your challenge, 100 days is a long time!
I definitely agree though that cutting it out completely is way easier than portion control, unfortunately. After finishing my Whole30 challenge my little chocolate and candy treats at work have slowly started to make their way back into my diet, because I can never have just one! I need to get back on track. The great thing about knowing to eat healthy is that you can get a little “fatty” like you said, but you know at what point you need to reign yourself in and get back on track!
Thanks so much Chelsea! I know it’s so amazing how easily little chocolate and candy can work their way back into our diets. They are just too darn yummy. I really like to cut out sugar for extended periods of time because it helps the cravings to go away and it almost becomes easy…almost.
I am going on a 70 day no sugar diet wish me luck I will let you know at the end how it went colin enniskillen
Good for you Colin! That is awesome!!! I wish you all the best. Please let me know how it goes!
I decided to do the no sugar plan I don’t like the word diet. Anyway, I eliminated sugar years ago and not only did I lose weight I felt great. I’m surrounded by people who are addicted to sugar therefore, I need to be strong and do what I need to do the feel and look better….so which me luck!!
Oh, I wish you all the best!! I’ve done lots of “cut out the sugar” plans over the years and I’m always so so glad when I do them! I always lose weight and I always feel so much better. Sadly, sugar always creeps back into my life….so I always have to do another no sugar challenge! I’m surrounded by a lot of sugar addicts as well, so it’s tough. I’ve always found that the first week of no sugar is always the hardest and then it gets much easier. After about 3 weeks or so it gets even easier! Good luck!!