Herbalife Challenge - week 1 check-in

So, I have been doing this 30-day challenge for a week now. Several things have changed, nice improvements, though I am still a pound heavier and wearing the same size clothes. Eh, it's only been a week. I'll cut myself some slack...for now.

Reprogramming the brain...I'm an emotional eater. If something upsets me or someone hurts me, then I binge. Not in huge amounts, but enough to consider it binging. I don't do it until I'm alone, though, so most people don't know that about me. If I'm discouraged about anything, I eat. If I'm bored, and I've already checked Facebook a gazillion times, I eat. If I'm exhausted, I eat. Until this week. I'm actually about to cry right now because I have hope that I can overcome this problem. This week I have finally started thinking of food as fuel. For some reason, it finally clicked. Yes, food should taste good and be pleasurable, but it can be healthy and proportional, too. I've been bored this week, when both boys were napping. What did I do? Laundry. Dishes. Blogged. Epiphany! There's a whole world of options other than food!

Another problem I have with food is that I have had to learn about proper nutrition. When I was growing up, we lived on a farm. (Technically, I guess it was a ranch since we raised cattle. But, "ranch" implies rich, "farm" implies not-so-rich. Therefore, it was a cow farm.) My mom, older sister and I would be at school from about 7:30am-4:30pm. My mom is teacher so that meant leaving a little earlier and staying a little later. As soon as we got home, we had to change clothes, grab a snack, and head outside for 2-6 hours of chores. How long it took depended on the weather, seasons or how much sunlight was left in the day, and how much trouble the cows had caused my dad. My dad can handle anything, but we've had some of the orneriest cows on the planet. Anyhow, we needed a snack that would boost our energy and keep us going until we finished the chores. That was usually some form of Little Debbie. I've known for a few years now that what I truly need for sustainable energy is a mix of lean protein and complex carb. Like a string cheese and some whole-wheat crackers. I've done a much better job of applying proper nutrition this week than I ever have. The few times I've needed a snack, I've chosen a lovely banana or tart apple or a strawberry and mozzarella salad.

I've done better with portion control this week, too. I know how to eat until I'm satisfied instead of stuffed. I had only once slice of pizza yesterday instead of two or three. And, I was satisfied. I've also realized that's alright to say no when someone offers me food and I'm not hungry. If I'm truly worried about my rejection hurting the person's feelings, then I'll just take a bite or two.

Water is my new wonder elixir. I can't get enough. I drank about a gallon a day during both of my pregnancies, but I stopped drinking as much after giving birth. Now, I'm back to drinking a gallon a day, sometimes more. I'm grateful that my bladder has adjusted.

I've researched nutrition and exercise for about three years now. You would never know that if you saw me. It's kind of like auto mechanics who drive clunkers. I know the facts. I can share them with anyone, help anyone else to learn and succeed. I just haven't been able to apply them to myself. It feels so good to finally have the discipline and confidence to apply all this knowledge to my own life.

Shakes...I still like them. Actually, I find myself craving them. They're so easy to make and taste so good. I like that I can have a great tasting, healthy shake that fills me up for three or four hours. I love that it's good nutrition.

I did the math on some of my shakes this week. For example, one day I had a turtle cheesecake shake. I don't have the Herbalife protein drink mix, so I used some I bought at Wal-Mart awhile back. I only have the vanilla flavor F1 so I threw in 5-6 chocolate teddy grahams to create the cookies 'n cream flavor. And, the pudding mix I used was not sugar free. Keep all of those factors in mind when you see the final the numbers, and I should tell you that I always round up when calculating calories and sugar. The total calories for this shake was 535 with 45 grams of sugar! Note to self...buy sugar free pudding mix next time!! However, that "535" doesn't seem horrific to me, even though I know I could have eaten a quarter-pounder with cheese for fewer calories. Here's why:
1. Not all calories are the same. There is a ton more fat in that burger than in the shake. There's way more nutritional value in the shake than in the burger. No oil in my shake. No fried anything in my shake. Five hundred calories of Herbalife is a far greater good for my body and health than even three hundred calories of fast food.
2. The shake fills me for several hours. With fast food, I eat and am hungry again in two hours or so. And, I need a nap. Not so with the shakes. I do get a little bit of crash about an hour after drinking the dessert-flavored shakes (not the fruity shakes), but I'm too full to want to eat something else to boost my energy. And, I'm never as sluggish as I am after eating fast food. If I really need more energy, I'll have a cup of Herbalife tea.

Exercise...I had a vast variety of options to choose from when deciding on what exercises to do for this challenge. I've heard that you should find something you enjoy and stick with it. What would I enjoy? I've always wanted to have the long, lean, toned body of a dancer or swimmer. Well, the "long" part will never be. I was born a Lankford, and no one in my family could ever be referred to as long or tall. But, on the bright side, we rarely have to duck under things like tree branches, and our pants are never too short. So, lean and toned dancer or swimmer it is. Wait...I don't know how to swim. That settles it. I shall be a lean and toned dancer, albeit a clumsy, ungraceful one. Two styles of dance stand out to me: Zumba and ballet. Zumba looks like fun, but this body jiggles enough as it is. I don't need to add to the jigglies with all that shaking and bouncing. The grace and peace of ballet appealed to me so I have been doing a barre workout that I thoroughly enjoy. It's the Xtend Barre DVD with Andrea Rogers, if you're interested. It's available on Amazon. I have two more barre DVDs lined up for the rotation, and I'm also looking into the Physique 57 DVDs. These workouts give my muscles, especially those in my legs, a great burn. You know that feeling. It hurts so badly you want to roll around on the floor and wail, but at the same time you feel incredible even though you can't move. Yep, that kind of burn.

I'm also trying to convince myself to start running. My family and I walk down our road sometimes, and I have the convenience of a treadmill. I'm following the beginning runner guidelines from the book Run Your Butt Off (also available from Amazon). At this point I'm still in the 1st stage which is to walk for thirty minutes three or four times a week. It's a twelve week program. My goal is to run the Jesus Day 5K in December.

When I started this challenge, I wrote out a contract and had my husband sign it. He was basically agreeing to let me continue buying and using Herbalife products if I succeeded at my goals. He works six different jobs to provide for our needs and enable me to stay home with our boys, so I think he's earned a say in what I buy. Coy was also agreeing to let me seriously consider becoming an Herbalife Independent Distributor if I saw great success, the products were significantly beneficial for me, and I successfully completed all of the goals. Well, I've blown it. I made goals that I will be able to fulfill in the fourth week, but not for all four weeks. So, the contract is broken. It's liberating, though. I wrote it for him, to show him I was serious about this, to give him a way to measure Herbalife's success instead writing goals that would enable me to measure my own success. Coy couldn't care less if I lose ninety pounds or gain twice that much. He just wants me to be happy and to know that he loves me. Contract or no contract, he'd be happy for me to continue spending some of his hard-earned money on Herbalife if it is a help to me, and so far it is. With the contract out of the way, I feel like I'm doing this for myself, which is what Coy wanted all along. I have more flexibility in my schedule. I can figure out what works for me and make adjustments as needed instead of being stuck with a rigid schedule. That makes for a happier wife and momma. So, I had to break the contract, but it's for the best.

This way we all win.