Fearfully & Wonderfully Made

So the sad thing is I finished the 12 weeks and I weighed more than when I started. The good news is I have been consistently working out and I love doing weights! Yay! It's been over 15 weeks now that I have worked out a minimum of 3 up to a maximum of 6 days a week. I really am in the swing of it which is nice. I'm looking forward to school starting to have a set routine so I can plan better what I'm eating and when. And also to have a same schedule/set time for exercise. I've been having a hard time falling asleep lately... which has led to sleeping in... which has created a vicious cycle of staying up late and then sleeping late. Blah. Trying to fight that one. Especially before school starts up again. School days start early- 5:30 a.m. to be exact. We have to get everyone up, dressed, fed, school things gathered and down to the bus stop by 6:20 a.m. Whew. It's quite the exercise! I think the big thing I've been struggling with is emotional eating. A

As Mike and I are on this journey to improving our health and changing our diet and exercise habits we have been having fun discovering some great supplements. Our new favorite is by Max Muscle: Essential Omega 3-6-9 Supplement. Peach Mango Smoothie is out of this world and we also love the lemon twist! This brand is gluten-free, sugar-free, all natural, and pharmaceutical Grade FISH OIL, with Vitamin D. Yes, I said Fish Oil but this is the best stuff I've ever tasted of any supplement EVER!!!!

Mike and I have been faithfully following the Body-for-Life challenge for 4 weeks now! It hasn't always been easy and we haven't always been perfect but overall we're doing it and I feel like we're changing. Changing what we eat. Our exercise habits. Even what we drink. Coke is for our off day! I look forward to Saturday nights. We enjoy a 24 hr day off from Saturday evening til Sunday evening. It's part of the program. When I'm tempted to feel left out or deprived I will say to myself, "Hey, you can have it Saturday night or Sunday afternoon." Often by the time I get to my free day I couldn't care less. Must confess I'm excited my birthday falls on a Sunday... this Sunday.

Mike and I started a Body for Life 12 week challenge on May 1st. Day 8. We're doing really well. Keeping up with the exercises as well as diet. If I plan then I do well... and when I don't... well, I'm setting myself up to fail. So plan on. Plan on. Look forward to posting progress at 4 weeks. I've been inspired to read the stories and see videos that show people overcoming obstacles and making huge changes in their life.

I gave up sugar for lent as well as fried foods. It's been really challenging but somehow God has helped me to overcome. I've bypassed coffee cake, hot fudge sundaes, and other sugar social eating opportunities. I have been substituting with a lot of dried and fresh fruit. It's sweet I want and sweet I get but without the sugar. I've been eating a lot less processed foods. And I've managed to drop 5 pounds. I wasn't doing this for a weight thing but it is a nice perk and it also shows me how much sugar I eat and how I'm pretty addicted to it. It's kind of unbelievable the things I've been saying no to.... I didn't realize how much sugar I was eating. Yikes. I've been avoiding caffeine. Not on purpose mind you but I like sugar with my coffee. I like flavored lattes and mochas. I like drinking english breakfast with sugar. And then there's Coke. I really like Coke. It started with my pregnancy with Libby. It was pretty much the only thi