I have a few balls in the air vis-a-vis personal development experiments. I wanted to take a minute to update you on how things are going…

6WBMO: Yesterday started my fourth week of the Six Week Body Makeover. I’ve been following certain principles of this program (eating frequently, eating more protein, carrying pre-made meals with me, 5 days of low-to-medium intensity cardio per week, 2 strength training sessions per week) pretty faithfully. I’ve substantially altered others (eating meat 5 times per day). The biggest changes I’ve seen have been increases in strength and stamina. If I were following the program as it is written, I’d expect to see more weight loss than I have.

One thing I’ve learned from this experience is that I do well with a more flexible and less prescribed approach. 6WBMO tells you to eat at your given mealtimes regardless of whether you feel hungry. As an emotional eater, I’m trying to train myself to eat only when I’m hungry, so that rigidity regarding meals doesn’t really work for me.

Daily routines: Sunday was the first day of my third and final week for the Daily Routine 21-Day Makeover. I LOVE my routines! I feel so much more organized and less chaotic using them. I highly recommend that you consider establishing morning, after-work (or afternoon), and bedtime routines if you don’t already have them.

Alcohol: Today is Day 3 of my no-alcohol makeover, and I feel great! I got a few emails asking why I chose to do this, so I’d like to explain my reasoning…

1. Alcohol is nothing but empty calories. I’d rather “spend” my calories on FOOD!
2. Alcohol has been shown to significantly raise your risk of breast cancer. Even though I had the surgery, there’s still a very slight risk for me. After all I’ve been through, why take the chance?
3. When I look back on most of the bad social experiences of my life, alcohol was involved.
4. I still have just as much fun when I don’t drink.
5. I’ll spend so much less money on dinners out without the accompanying wines.
6. Speaking of dinners out, I read that alcohol consumption can actually (over time) diminish your sense of taste!
7. I have a tendency to use a glass of wine to “relax” instead of doing something healthier like going for a walk or meditating or reading or talking to someone.
8. I want to have kids in the next few years, so that means I’ll have to stop for at least 9 months. Then I’ll have a baby and I won’t want to drink around the baby. So if I’m going to wind up stopping anyway, why wait?

Cheerleaders: My personal cheerleader and I  kicked off our Get Fit for the Marathon program yesterday! We’re doing weekly checkins on Mondays, in addition to emails, texts, and phone calls whenever one of us needs some additional support. We’ve established both ongoing goals and goals with deadlines to track our progress, and we’ll reward each other as we reach our goals. How are you doing with your cheerleaders?

So there you have it. What’s new with you?

Trackback URI | Comments RSS