It’s here, day 43 of the challenge. I haven’t updated the past two weeks, for two reasons. One, I pretty much experienced the same thing for the past two weeks. Two, I have been busy and I didn’t take the time to do it. But here is a brief update:

Days 29 – 35, not much took place. I continued to have a ton of energy. I continued to eat Whole30. I continued feeling really good. From an exercise standpoint, my enthusiasm waned. I didn’t get as many work outs in as I would have liked, but it was ok. From a spiritual standpoint, God continued to become more prominent in every aspect of my life. I sensed a new direction for devotions. I sensed what my next steps were. And I really settled into the lifestyle being lived for the past several weeks.

Days 36 – 42, a lot seemed to take place, from a task perspective. Work, home projects, projects with my daughters – all kept me busy. Busy kept me out of the gym. I still don’t feel guilty about it, but I am ready to get back into a four times a week routine. A couple of the gals and I were able to meet for dinner Friday, and I am blown away by what God has done, is doing and will continue to do! Seriously. I am overwhelmed at how things came together – I’m in awe.

Last Wednesday we collectively decided to begin re-introduction, so we were ready to go into Thanksgiving informed and prepared. I learned quickly gluten is not my friend. I had a pretty serious reaction to it when I re-introduced it last week. Needless to say, I am steering clear of it, from here on out. Rice seems to be ok, as well as peanut butter. I’m not much of a dairy person, so I see myself leaving it out completely, but I will re-introduce tomorrow.

Where am I with weight loss? I am down three pounds and some inches. Again, not a dramatic change compared to others, but that’s ok. I have gained SO MUCH MORE from this challenge. I am more sensitive to the Holy Spirit than I have been in a long time. I feel energetic and wake up ready to go every day. My relationship with my husband has improved 100 fold. My children and I are much closer and more devoted to one another. I have gained some pretty wonderful friendships and I have a clear vision of God’s will for my life.

This is why I don’t see much changing. I thought I would take a break from Thanksgiving until January, simply because I felt I “deserved” it. However, after some conversations, time in God’s Word and presence yesterday, and then two messages that came from two separate Pastors, I need to “Keep going”. It doesn’t make sense to potentially undo all that has been gained, just to have a break. It makes more sense to keep in place the very elements that have brought me here, and see just how further He can take me.

So, I am going to begin the Shepherdess study Monday, December 1st; I have no idea how long this may go, but it could be a while. I am going to transition to Paleo indefinitely. Finally, I am going to work out four days per week, incorporating lifting and HIIT cardio. In the meantime, I am going to finish strong and encourage my husband and girlfriends to do the same. I am going to look forward to date night this weekend, and celebrate our crossing the “finish line” TOGETHER. And then I am going to enthusiastically “keep going”!

habits. Early last week I had an emotional storm brew and cut loose, no doubt. I shared with the gals in the group, the storm came and I was able to bend and sway with it, rather than snapping under the high winds. Then another emotional situation came up, back to back, and I feel I didn't handle it so well. But God. God took both and something beautiful is being birthed from it. Must have been those pesky birthing pains leading up to it! So here's what the week looked like...

Day 22 - Great day at work, great day with nutrition, great day in the gym, feeling high energy. The storm blew in. Ugh. I did have some Whole30 banana bread, maybe a little too much, but I guess I feel it could have been much worse. Turned in, and slept great.

Day 23 - Felt as though the storm was just hovering. It seemed as though I couldn't get away from it. Very emotional on my way to work. Fought old habits of giving up and giving in to food. So many things were there. But I desired to remain well and whole, rather than feed the temporary pain and discomfort. So I ran.

Day 24 - Spent time settling into a new ministry God has placed on my heart. There is so much potential for what He can do through me, it made me so excited, hopeful and sort of healed the hurts I was feeling. I saw my pain cannot consume me, or I become worthless to those around me. 

Day 25 - Work stress had me a little down. Things are changing, and it has been something I am curiously watching unfold. I went to work out and discovered I forgot my sports bra, so I didn't work out. Came home and felt like I had hit a wall. This was by far the most emotional week yet. BUT, I didn't give in. I stood my ground. Unfortunately, it seems like my mind did not like it and I sort of bent REALLY FAR. OK, I think I actually 

Day 27 - Yesterday my husband and I went on a mini-getaway. We left with the kiddos early in the morning, with the intent to explore without an agenda. I was able to meet my coach, Amanda Kuclo, from the Ultimate Oxygen Challenge. Man she is so awesome! We talked more about our Rock, faith and fitness, than I had expected. She agrees, we are nothing without Him, and our physical well being is directly tied to our relationship with God, the grace He provides and what we put into our bodies! We then had some great food, checked out art, an old school record shop and explored an artistic city. It was fantastic.

Day 28 - Now here I am. Ready to go into these last two-and-a-half weeks with more vigor. Perhaps the same vigor I had seven weeks ago, when God placed this challenge on my heart. I am also going into it with a new direction. One I am excited to see how God brings together.

Have a great week!

I really needed to get a pedicure (or do SOMETHING with my toes) and do some laundry (not shown here is the banana bread batter on my stretchy pants that felt really good to cook in...really good). Then it occurred to me, there will ALWAYS BE WORK, why not CONTINUE working at something meaningful like nourishing my family's bodies, being an example of wholeness and demonstrating that keeping our eyes fully on Christ will cause us to do things we never thought possible. Ok. Good. Now that we have that out of the way, here's a summary of the week...

Day 15 - Monday I continued to feel great. I was able to sneak in a HIIT workout AND hang out with my daughter to watch Super Girl. OK show, kind of cheezy, but my girlie liked it.

Day 16 - Tuesday still feeling good, must be the "tiger blood" so often spoke of in the program. However, I did not make the spin class I had hoped to join. My hip was feeling a bit sticky and sore, so I chose to allow rest and healing. Tuesday was a challenging spiritual/emotional day. I shared a portion of my testimony. It was a struggle to do it, but I was glad I did. That evening, I had to coach my daughter through her own fears, affirming my decision to not allow the fabrications in the mind to be what holds me (or her) back.We shared gratitude in overcoming the moment with lots of hugs and cuddles :)

Day 17 - Wednesday I had a great workout and the sweat was a drippin'! It felt so good to move my hip and stretch it out after. The whole family enjoyed the crock pot chicken fajitas, and I enjoyed great conversation with my friend. I love being reminded of the importance of having people in our lives who know and appreciate EVERY ASPECT of who we are. Not only that, but who challenge, support and encourage. So, so, important. Thanks Chelle!

Day 18 - Thursday was a bit of an "off" day. I was feeling sleepy and had a bit of a headache. I quickly ran through the six pillars of wellness and realized all was good, when it occurred to me the sweater I had on and the pony tail were most likely the culprits. Sure enough, as soon as I got home and ditched both of them, I was MUCH BETTER. Caution: if you walk in the door after work and announce you need to get your clothes off and let your hair down, after your husband asks how your day was, you might get a perplexed look in return ;) We also shared dinner with my bestie and her hubby, which was SO NICE. Again, sharing relationships where ALL OF WHO WE ARE is known, loved and accepted - is SO IMPORTANT. Thanks Summer!

Day 19 - BOYS YOU MAY WANT TO STOP READING. I woke up, began my day per usual, and wanted chocolate. It wasn't a ravenous desire, but a craving nonetheless. Hmm, odd. Go on into work, later discover the surprise of my cycle. Well hot diggity! Absolutely no PMS leading up to the grand entrance of the red lady. This, my friends, is a super nice side benefit of being Whole30. The rest of the day was equally mild, and yes, I did prepare myself a Whole30 snack to cure my chocolate craving. And it was good. And it worked.

Day 20 - Yesterday was my momentary lapse of reason in the kitchen. VERY MOMENTARY. At this point I am not even sure how I could ever go back to eating grains and sugars (I believe these to be the primary culprits for my hormonal dysfunction and lack of ability to change body composition). My husband and I have discussed this and we are leaning on living a Paleo lifestyle, with a celebratory glass of wine or dessert here and there. WE both feel so good, and are convicted this really is the best way to eat for our children. Also, we both noticed the festive candies from last night did absolutely nothing for us. Yay for balancing out the body!

Day 21 - Here I am this morning, after falling back an hour (so weird), and I'm feeling good. I have made it to the point where my new habits are well established in my brain. This is now becoming MORE of a way of life for me, rather than a diet or the next hip thing to do. Perhaps this is why I can't imagine going back? My brain already registers this as normal and comfortable, and wants to now hold onto it. We are only half way there. I'm hoping to really get into my workouts again. While I worked out last week, it wasn't nearly to the degree I had hoped. This third component is really important to me, because I enjoy it so much!

Here's what I plan on doing, which is the same as last week:

Sunday - Upper Body, Steady State
Monday - HIIT
Tuesday - Lower Body
Wednesday - Glutes, HIIT
Thursday - Upper Body and Yoga
Friday - Rest
Saturday - Spin (HIIT)