So, last week, I embarked on a 30-Day Fitness (and weight loss) challenge.  I had a few rough days at the beginning, but I’m starting to feel much better!  After a visit to the doctor, there are hormonal imbalances causing some of the weight gain.  Hopefully, that will be under control soon.

While I felt relief that some of it was physical, I’m also recognizing that I’m trapped in a cycle.  Hoping to look at things from a different perspective, I checked out the book Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire with God, Not Food from our library, and it’s been really eye-opening for me.  I would highly recommend this book if you are struggling with your weight.  It approaches food and weight from a spiritual perspective.  While I can “blame” some of the weight gain on physical causes, there are also some other issues I hadn’t even considered before.

Here’s a look at the goals I set last week and my progress on them:

1)  Lose 5 lb. in the next 30 days.

I’m sharing my scale photos (gulp!) with my friends on Instagram.  I thought it would be a way to hold myself accountable each week to make progress. 

Yes…it’s slightly embarrassing.  But I haven’t been making any progress without the accountability.  At least there aren’t tons of people seeing it!!

I did have a good week (but I don’t get too excited since I’m guessing most of it was water weight), and I’m three pounds down.  Hopefully, I’ll be down a few more next week and then I can change my goal!

2)  Exercise 5 days a week with Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred.

Here’s how my exercise plan went last week:

• Monday:  Shred Level 1
• Tuesday:  Shred Level 2
• Wednesday:  Shred Level 3
• Thursday:  Shred Level 1
• Friday:  Off
• Saturday:  Off
• Sunday:  30 minute bike ride

I made 4 out of 5 days…and I did get in a bike ride, but I plan to try again for five days this week!

3)  Implement the Perfect 10 Diet:  10 Key Hormones That Hold the Secret to Losing Weight and Feeling Great Fast

This has been pretty challenging for me.  The first three weeks this diet includes no sugar (real or artificial) and no grains!!!  I am allowed to have stevia sparingly, so I used that a few times.  The first days were terrible, but I feel much better.  It seems like I haven’t really had a craving for any extra sweets.   Even at the community festival we went to this weekend, I was able to say no to cotton candy (and I love cotton candy), so I’m feeling pretty positive.

However, I know that the temptation is coming just around the corner!  It always is…

How did your week go?  Are you making any progress or do you feel stuck in your old habits and patterns?  Feel free to comment and we can cheer each other on!