5 to 10 Challenge

I know I normally post my 5 to 10 challenge update on Mondays, but I don't really have time today. I have too much to do! :-) I may or may not have time later in the week. Hopefully I will wrap up this series soon. In the mean time, I'm enjoying the summer weather and getting some projects done!

5 to 10 Challenge: Week 4

Last week went fairly well for me. I always seem to struggle most on the weekends when my snacking can get out of hand. I went to bed a bit earlier most nights, but I still have a lot of work to do in that area!  I got in 4 exercise sessions and have been way more water than I used to. I believe at this point my weight loss has plateaued. I haven't seen much change in the past month or so. Most of my pre-pregnancy clothes are fitting again, but I still have a bit of work to do to get back into some of them. I am trying to face the facts that if I want to get past this plateau I'm going to have to stir things up a bit.


On to this weeks tips:

Tip 7: Eat a Healthy Breakfast: I eat breakfast every single morning, but I wasn't always a breakfast girl. I confess my breakfasts are boring and I tend to eat the same thing every.single.day. A piece of toast, yogurt, and coffee. I'm going to try to vary my breakfast a bit this week. Maybe try oatmeal, or eggs one or two days.

Tip 8: Cut Back on After-Supper Snacks: If you're anything like me, I often make my poorest food choices after supper. During the day I'm too busy to snack much, but when I relax in the evenings, often the bag of chips or bowl of ice cream makes its appearance. Try to cut out or cut back on this after-supper snack , or make a healthier choice that is both lower in calories and more nutritious.

5 to 10 Challenge: Week 3

Last week went by so quickly that I think I kind of forgot about this challenge, especially toward the end of the week & the weekend. Oops.
 I did my exercise video 3 times and stayed on track at the beginning of the week, but then I don't know what happened after that. It was a crazy busy week as we tried to finish our kitchen before my hubby had to go back to work. I'm pretty sure all the ordering in of pizza and Chinese food plus a couple trips to McDonald's didn't do me any favours. I did try to exercise moderation and ensure I had my priorities straight, but I struggled with making wise/healthy choices and fitting in exercise.  I didn't lose any weight this week. I think I've kind of plateaued with regard to my weight loss, and although I am fairly okay with where I am right now, if possible I would like to lose the last 10 pounds so I could get back to where I was pre-pregnancy.

Moving on to this week's tips...

5) Pay Attention: Why am I eating this? Am I hungry? Am I just bored?

6) Get to Bed Earlier: Most nights I don't get to bed till around midnight. I'd like to try to sleep a bit better at night (if possible) so I have more energy during the day.


Don't forget about tips  1) Drink Water 
                                  2) Get Moving
                                  3) Moderation & Self-Control
                                  4) Priority Check (Spiritual before Physical)


Feel free to leave a comment about how you are doing!

Kitchen ALMOST done!

We are almost, almost, almost done our kitchen! YAY! We now have the counter top installed (thanks to my father-in-law & hubby), the sink & faucet installed (thanks to our brother-in-law who's a plumber!), and all the cabinets up! The only things left to do are put the shelves in the cabinets, a few little finishing touches, and start getting our life back together. No more dishwashing in the bath tub!

On another positive note, Nathanael slept through the night last night from 11:30 till 6:30 this morning! YES! One week ago he was still getting up like 2-3 times a night, so this is huge for us! Elianna managed to keep herself in her bed last night, too (she had been going through this phase of getting up in the night again for the past week). I got a solid 6 1/2 hours of sleep in a row and I feel like a brand new woman!

Well, lots of work to get done today, and I'm SO SO SO excited to be moving upstairs again and start using my kitchen. Pictures to come once we get it all together in hopefully not too long!

5 to 10 Challenge: Week 2

So how did you all do with Week 1? I have to confess something...I didn't do so great. I lost 0.4 lbs (at best).  Yes, I did drink more water and I got in 4 (not 5 like I had planned) sessions of exercise in. However, I did not exercise much self-control over some of the choices I made. Please don't get me wrong; I don't believe in obsessing over things like food or exercise because it can easily become an idol. That is NOT good. Really not good. I've been there before many, many years ago.

I believe there's a place where one can be exercising self-control and yet not be obsessing over every bite or workout. It's not a sin to eat a piece of cake. On one extreme is the lack of self-control/gluttony , etc. but on the other is making being fit an idol and obsessing over every bite which can become a pride issue or distraction from more important things. My prayer is to find the place where I am neither practising gluttony nor obsessing and making things an idol. It really isn't about the weight or some special number on the scale. It is more about glorifying the Lord in all things including the way I approach the whole issue of health.

Now for a confession. I've had a part in both extremes. I used to struggle with an eating disorder. Used to. A long time ago (middle school age). I saw a counselor about it a few times. Praise the Lord, He rescued me out of that bondage and I have not struggled with that extreme since that time in middle school. I used my control over food as a coping mechanism instead of turning to the Lord with my emotional struggles. It was a way for me to gain a false sense of control when I felt like I could not control anything else going on in my life. Perhaps sometime I will share more of my story with regards to that time in my life and how the Lord rescued me out of that.

May I stress again this is more about moving toward a healthier lifestyle and glorifying the Lord with my choices than it is about weight loss. Here are the 2 things I'd like to work on this week in addition to last week's 2 goals (1. Drink Water and  2. Get Moving)

 3) Moderation & Self-Control: 1 brownie instead of 3 (or 4...or 5..even if they taste SO good!). I'm going to try to keep an honest food journal for this week.

4)  Priority Check: Spiritual "exercise" before physical exercise. Spend time with the Lord in prayer and in His Word before I begin to think about getting some physical exercise.