Hey Ya’ll! I promise this won’t be a novel like last week! Haha!

But, seriously- I have had a very interesting week learning to adjust to this new routine, and every day I learn a little bit more about myself, about letting go, about how strong I already am, and about little by little progress.

So, let’s dig in.

Sleep/Rest: This is improving, both little by little, and dramatically. I am getting more disciplined about going to bed, little by little, and it is really hard. Last night was our weekly (in house for now) date night, and we stayed up late, so I chose to sleep in a little instead of getting up and going for a walk. It’s possible I can do it when Scott gets home, but even if not, it’s okay. I’m sitting here feeling very sleepy, and anticipating a longer nap than the hour or so I’ve been taking the past week. What is dramatically better is my sleep quality, and my wakeups. I have only woken up anxious once in the past week- that was today, after a very short nap and very late night last night. I am SO encouraged by that and really want it to continue. So, as hard as it is for me to discipline myself to go to bed before midnight, I will keep working at it, because the payoff is worth it.

Food/Nutrition: Food prep went super great this week, and it feels really good to have a houseful of good options to eat and plans for delicious good meals. I am tripling up on my omega supplement for awhile, hoping to beat down the inflammation in my body. We had our (new) weekly Taco (or Tamale) Tuesday last night and i had not been so hungry in a long time, and the tacos were very simple and clean, so I ate more than a few of them. With what I have learned about Intuitive Eating, I was able to do that without guilt, and with confidence that i wasn’t sabotaging myself or even overeating. I drank lots of water before and during the meal, making sure that i wasn’t mistaking dehydrated for hungry, and I made sure I wasn’t getting overfull. It was good, and liberating. We had our chocolate for Date Night, and I let it be ok to have “indulged.” VICTORIES!

Exercise: I did my strength/HIIT (hereafter called STRONG, because that’s the name of the program) work all five days last week, and 30 minutes of Yoga twice. I was, initially, disappointed and frustrated to not have had more energy for yoga, but eventually I was able to reset my thinking and accept that it’s part of the transition, part of the rebuilding, of the “new thing” God is doing. This week, so far, I’ve done both of my STRONG workouts and 30 minutes of beginner yoga twice. I performed well, overall, though push ups are a struggle right now, especially in a HIIT workout, but that will improve! I’m also a bit frustrated that the workouts are taking a bit longer than expected, and I will have to learn to streamline that in order to have time to ride in the morning, when I am ready for that, energy wise. My STRONG workouts don’t have a lot of biceps and triceps, so I am going to squeeze in a few sets of a tricep exercise on my chest day, and biceps on my back/shoulders day and leg day. Yoga and push ups should also give me a little more tricep work.

Squat: Bar (45 lbs)

Row: 50 lbs

Overhead press: Bar (can’t get to 3 sets 10 yet)

Deadlift: 50 lbs

Chest press: Bar (adding 5 lbs this week)

Bodyweight rows: bar level 3

Push ups: did a total of 44 yesterday

Yoga: 30 min beginner level (looking forward to being able to get to 45 min and then to alternate 30/45 intermediate!)

It’s far too soon to see any tangible “results” from my changes, but I feel hopeful and excited. I am, God willing, starting to find some freedom again. I am also starting to process that it’s possible that as I grow, I’ll need to just get new clothes, even as I lose fat, because my new body may just plain be shaped differently. I really don’t know, and that’s both scary and exciting. I don’t know how long it’s gonna take for my body to relax a bit and start shifting again, so, prayers for patience and consistency are greatly appreciated!

Misc Self Care: this is little by little progress too. I have taken baths and showered most days in the past week- though I still need to do better. Monday I even got my hair and makeup looking nice! I have also been making time for fun and relaxation. My garden is caught up and starting to sprout. In just another week or two I will get to plant the flowers, and shortly after that, the rest of the veggie plants and herbs! I have some creative projects i want to finish this month also. Hopefully next week I’ll be able to report on progress there!

Time for me to go curl up with something fun and relaxing!

XOXO