Between WIFI problems and a weekend road trip to pick up my step-son from his mother's.......I've fallen behind on my blogging. Not to worry though, I didn't fall off the wagon with my 24-Day Challenge! BUT, let me tell you it was extremely hard!
I cannot tell you how happy I am to have my son home. School will be starting soon so we are working to get back into the groove of bedtimes, homework and all the controlled chaos that goes with the school year. In the midst of all of that chaos I have to find the time to make sure that I am controlling my diet and trying hard to incorporate healthier foods into my families bodies. That's harder than it may sound. You see, I have the pickiest of the picky in my household. I love a wide variety of foods. However, my husband loves meat and potatoes and that's about it. BUT, at least with him I can throw in some canned veggies from time to time. That doesn't work with my step-son. His diet is.......VERY limited. He just turned 10 and like other kids he loves pizza, grilled cheese and cheese quesadillas. But unlike other kids those items make up a majority of his diet. While we have recently been able to add watermelon, cheerios and grapes to the menu that's really about it when it comes to healthier foods. There's a very long back story to his eating habits but the good news is that we're making slow progress on it.
Hopefully you get the picture. It becomes very hard to eat healthy when you have to be a short order cook. I know what you are thinking, "make them eat what you make," right? That is happening......slowly but surely. However, I came into their lives after they both (husband and son) had settled into their eating habits and changing ANY man is not an easy feat. By no means am I giving up, I just have to remind myself to be patient. Despite the obstacles that I am facing I know I must set the example and be as intentional as possible with this journey. I just keep praying that they will jump on board with me eventually.
So back to my where I AM with my Journey:
I won't bore you with a long list of what I ate over the last several days but I will fill you in on how I was able to survive these past 5 days in the midst of non-dieters and eating out, all while being away from home.
First, I packed a food bag to take with me. You cannot expect to have foods that you'll be able to eat wherever you're going. If you don't then you WILL cheat. It's as simple as that. You'll use the lack of healthy selections as an excuse to "take a break." I knew that would happen so I prevented it from happening. So I packed meal replacement shakes, raw almonds, grapes, baby carrots and Advocare's Lepti-Lean supplement. The Lepti-Lean is a hunger suppressant that really helps me say no to all the snacks that I don't need. It's a crutch for now but as I change my lifestyle it will become easier and easier for me to develop the habits needed to say "no" without needing it.
I made sure to drink my meal replacement shake in the morning and then snack on almonds or grapes in-between meals. Eating out was not easy with a bevy of appetizers roaming the tables but I would just order a salad with my meal and ask for it to be served when the appetizers were. That way I had something to eat while everyone else was eating breads and cheesy goodness. (Note - I chose red wine vinegar as my salad dressing and something about the zing really helped curb my craving for the rest of the stuff on the table). I'd order grilled salmon or chicken for my entree but I'd make sure to ask them to hold the starch and just add two veggies with it. I also made sure I drank two glasses of water before the meal came. That was one of the smartest things I did as it really seemed to help curb my appetite. When the dessert menu was passed and everyone was deciding what they would split, I allowed myself to have a coffee with one cream or and ice tea with honey. You can't deprive yourself of everything but you can make healthy choices!
The best part is that I survived that gauntlet and my healthy choices are working!
I am very HAPPY to report that as of today I have lost 5lbs over the first 9 days of my Challenge! Based on how my pants are fitting me I'm sure I've lost inches too but I am not going to check that until the 24 days have lapsed... I want that to be a big surprise! .
To Be Continued -My 24-Day Challenge Journey: Day #10
Follow Joni's progress and recommendations via Twitter: @SparkForMoms
If you have questions or would like more info on the 24-Day Challenge then CLICK HERE to email me.
I cannot tell you how happy I am to have my son home. School will be starting soon so we are working to get back into the groove of bedtimes, homework and all the controlled chaos that goes with the school year. In the midst of all of that chaos I have to find the time to make sure that I am controlling my diet and trying hard to incorporate healthier foods into my families bodies. That's harder than it may sound. You see, I have the pickiest of the picky in my household. I love a wide variety of foods. However, my husband loves meat and potatoes and that's about it. BUT, at least with him I can throw in some canned veggies from time to time. That doesn't work with my step-son. His diet is.......VERY limited. He just turned 10 and like other kids he loves pizza, grilled cheese and cheese quesadillas. But unlike other kids those items make up a majority of his diet. While we have recently been able to add watermelon, cheerios and grapes to the menu that's really about it when it comes to healthier foods. There's a very long back story to his eating habits but the good news is that we're making slow progress on it.
Hopefully you get the picture. It becomes very hard to eat healthy when you have to be a short order cook. I know what you are thinking, "make them eat what you make," right? That is happening......slowly but surely. However, I came into their lives after they both (husband and son) had settled into their eating habits and changing ANY man is not an easy feat. By no means am I giving up, I just have to remind myself to be patient. Despite the obstacles that I am facing I know I must set the example and be as intentional as possible with this journey. I just keep praying that they will jump on board with me eventually.
So back to my where I AM with my Journey:
I won't bore you with a long list of what I ate over the last several days but I will fill you in on how I was able to survive these past 5 days in the midst of non-dieters and eating out, all while being away from home.
First, I packed a food bag to take with me. You cannot expect to have foods that you'll be able to eat wherever you're going. If you don't then you WILL cheat. It's as simple as that. You'll use the lack of healthy selections as an excuse to "take a break." I knew that would happen so I prevented it from happening. So I packed meal replacement shakes, raw almonds, grapes, baby carrots and Advocare's Lepti-Lean supplement. The Lepti-Lean is a hunger suppressant that really helps me say no to all the snacks that I don't need. It's a crutch for now but as I change my lifestyle it will become easier and easier for me to develop the habits needed to say "no" without needing it.
I made sure to drink my meal replacement shake in the morning and then snack on almonds or grapes in-between meals. Eating out was not easy with a bevy of appetizers roaming the tables but I would just order a salad with my meal and ask for it to be served when the appetizers were. That way I had something to eat while everyone else was eating breads and cheesy goodness. (Note - I chose red wine vinegar as my salad dressing and something about the zing really helped curb my craving for the rest of the stuff on the table). I'd order grilled salmon or chicken for my entree but I'd make sure to ask them to hold the starch and just add two veggies with it. I also made sure I drank two glasses of water before the meal came. That was one of the smartest things I did as it really seemed to help curb my appetite. When the dessert menu was passed and everyone was deciding what they would split, I allowed myself to have a coffee with one cream or and ice tea with honey. You can't deprive yourself of everything but you can make healthy choices!
The best part is that I survived that gauntlet and my healthy choices are working!
I am very HAPPY to report that as of today I have lost 5lbs over the first 9 days of my Challenge! Based on how my pants are fitting me I'm sure I've lost inches too but I am not going to check that until the 24 days have lapsed... I want that to be a big surprise! .
To Be Continued -My 24-Day Challenge Journey: Day #10
Follow Joni's progress and recommendations via Twitter: @SparkForMoms
If you have questions or would like more info on the 24-Day Challenge then CLICK HERE to email me.