I’m going to be straight up with you – this wasn’t my best day. It wasn’t a complete failure, but definitely not what I wanted. Started off kilter because I’d had a late night before. Alarm went off at 7am in hopes I could run before having to hit to road for Carmel at 10am. Just didn’t happen. I was exhausted and had a few nights of restless sleep earlier this week. So no problem. I’ve worked out almost every day this week so not a huge issue. Stopped at Starbucks for a semi-healthy breakfast/lunch. Felt good. Probably snacked a bit more than I should’ve at our Chateau Julien afterparty. No big deal. Dinner I actually didn’t do too bad – I just didn’t do amazing. I allowed myself to eat 2 pieces of bread, which I really should’ve avoided. But you know, I’m not going to kick myself over it. Going to get back up and do better today. I have to fly to DC today so traveling is always a challenge. But I know I can do well like I did a month ago. Learning to be healthy under less than desirable circumstances is actually a good thing. Despite all this, I did track yesterday as well as I could guess in terms of points, etc. So as I said before, not a complete failure.

Date: December 8th, 2013

Days Complete: 8

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: No

Feeling: Hopeful that I have no flight/crazy weather delays this morning.

It’s a late post but it’s been a very busy day so I’m going to keep this short. 7th day was pretty good. I had a tasty brunch that was a higher than normal points value, but knowing I wouldn’t eat until dinner, made sense. I did pretty well at the holiday party. It was buffet so I purposely didn’t get a ton of food. I did end up drinking a bit more than I anticipated, but hey, it was a splurge evening. Overall I felt like I enjoyed the party without overdoing it.

Stressing a bit because I have to fly to DC again for 25 hours tomorrow. Less worried about food, more worried about delays with winter storms. Oy vey….send good thoughts to the weather gods.

Date: December 7th, 2013

Days Complete: 7

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: Yes. Ran 60 minutes

Feeling: Exhausted

Today I splurged a bit. And I’m okay with it. I ran for 40 minutes in the morning, ate well at breakfast and lunch. But we went to a concert at Oracle Arena last night and didn’t eat beforehand. I could’ve not eaten but I was hungry. Out of all the options, the hamburger seemed to be the best choice. There was no cheese on it, I didn’t add mayo and I only ate half the bun. I went over my points quite a bit (also had a vodka soda) but I’m okay with it. I was glad I didn’t get fries….not nutritional value there. And the other options seemed a lot worse.

I’m glad to be finding this balance. I can’t expect myself to be perfect every day. But I’m glad I at least had a good work out in the morning and ate well for most of the day. Tonight is Actelion’s holiday party. I’ve also set the expectation that I’ll splurge a bit. Allow myself a couple drinks but try to keep the food portions as healthy as I can and not feel the need to eat everything. Wish me luck!

Date: December 6th, 2013

Days Complete: 6

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: Yes. Ran about 4.2 miles in 40 minutes

Feeling: Content

Day 35 was a tough day. Not so much from a staying healthy perspective (I ate good, solid meals) but from an time perspective. I had planned on getting up at 4:30 to go to the gym to run. I have regular 8 am calls and while occasionally I can call in, I really needed to be in the office by 8am. That was thwarted by my insomnia at 1am that persisted until about 3am. Needless to say, when 4:30 came about I opted to sleep longer. So I didn’t make it to the gym in the morning, and even though best intentions were to go after work, it didn’t happen. Let’s just say it was a bit of a stressful day (which culminated in once again, making travel plans to DC for another 25 hour trip).

I did however, decide to treat myself after my long day and go get a manicure and pedicure. By the time I got home it was almost 8. I needed to eat before it got too late. I added roasted sweet potatoes to the mix tonight to help “healthfully” up my calories as yesterday was another low calorie day. I’m going to take some to work today which should help me with getting in calories earlier. Plus I’m going to get in that 4 mile run that should have happened yesterday.

Date: December 5th, 2013

Days Complete: 5

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: No. And a pretty pathetic step day. Only about 7000 :-/

Feeling: AWAKE (another insomnia issue but this time I slept in until 2:20)

Another solid day. Great work out, healthy eats. I think my challenge is with the Weight Watcher points and getting enough. Maybe I am but I am often under my daily points value but quite a lot. Because fruit and vegetables are 0 points, a lot of what I eat doesn’t add up. So then in the evening I feel obliged to some extent, to add more to get in a few extra points. I don’t want to under eat and stop losing weight. So last night in my salad I added some avocado and extra chicken (normally do 3 oz, had an additional 3). It was all healthy but I feel like I’d rather try to get points in earlier in the day. Maybe I’ll start snacking on almonds instead of fruit and veggies. In any case, the weight has been coming off in small amounts in the past few weeks which is actually better for me.

Date: December 4th, 2013

Days Complete: 4

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: Yes. 40 minutes of my Total Cardio Challenge class

Feeling: In the groove

I like the number 33. Symmetrical, no evilness associated with it. Also the name of the Club in New Orleans Square in Disneyland….but I digress.

Another solid day. Managed to eat very healthy meals and got a 3 mile run in. I’m starting a 2 month training plan for my half marathon in February. I haven’t followed a plan outside of the few times I’ve done training for the SF Marathon. But for half marathons I usually just try to get in a few long runs prior to the race. This time I’m going to try and stick to an actual plan and see if it helps! Last night our book club was canceled and so we ended up at City Beer Store with a lot of homemade cookies. Since I had eaten so well and the cookies were so small, I did try 3.5 of the cookies. I wasn’t going to drink but then a couple of rare/seasonal bottles came out so I had small sips of each, just to partake. I didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything and stayed within my points. That’s a win for me!

Date: December 3rd, 2013

Days Complete: 3

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: Yes. 30 minute run

Feeling: Good but COLD. Damn cold freeze coming into the bay area!!

Day (3)2 was a solid day. Stayed on track, counted points, worked out. Just took a day to feel mostly back to normal. Not a lot to report but I feel confident any weight I may have gained over the Thanksgiving holiday will melt off quickly.

Date: December 2nd, 2013

Days Complete: 2

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: Yes. 50 minute weights class

Feeling: A little better. Healthy foods are helping.

Okay so I sat here this morning debating on how to title my posts. I can’t do Day 1 – 30 Day Challenge again because I already have done that format. So technically it’s not day 31 because I took 3 days off in between, but just go with me folks.

Day 31 was a bit more difficult and I think it was due to the fact that I had just come from eating a lot of food at my parent’s house for the Thanksgiving holiday. Oh and combine that with a trip to The Dicken’s Fair. So yeah. I tracked everything but it wasn’t my strongest day. Still, I did run for an hour in the morning which counts for something. Also did my grocery shopping for the week which will help me out as this week is a busy week.

Date: December 1st, 2013

Days Complete: 1

Tracked: Yes

Worked Out: Yes. 60 minute run.

Feeling: A little sluggish. Have to get the unhealthy stuff out of my system!

The last day. I finished strong. Ate well, run in the morning, it was a good day.

Looking back on this 30 day challenge I can say there were some ups and downs but more ups for sure. I think the main thing I realized is that if I put my mind to something, I can accomplish it. There have been several false starts as it pertains to my health and fitness goals over the past few years. Glad to feel back on track.

Date: November 27th, 2013
Days Complete: 30
Tracked: Yes
Worked Out: Yes. 30 minute run
Feeling: Happy and Proud!
Pounds lost: 12
Inches Lost: 7.5

So what’s next? Continuing Dec 1st for another 30 day challenge. I’ve taken off the past 3 days but I don’t want to negate all my hard work. One tweak I’m making is to allow 3 cheat meals versus 1 day per week. I may take all 3 or none, but I’m trying to allow a bit of leeway for the holidays. And most days I don’t want to feel like I’m cheating all day, maybe just for a brunch or a dinner. But the rest of the format will stay the same. And hopefully by New Years I’ll have had another successful 30 day challenge.

Thanks to all who have read and encouraged me along the way. Especially to those who were doing it with me (Nancy and Megan) and to those who have been inspired and will be making an effort soon. 😉