W.L.K. Sarah

Been traveling for the first half of April. Since coming back home, I've decided to entertain a keto diet again. Not 100% -- as I don't do well going 'cold turkey' or 'all in' right away. Just being more mindful of having a, not 'low-carb' but, a 'lower-carb' diet.

General updates: Really proud of myself for being more consistent at the gym. It's become my weekly schedule to go to CrossFit every MWF for the morning class. I'm beginning to recognize that workouts that used to be hard for me are becoming easier or that I can put more reps in! I always take the stairs from the parking garage to my office, and vice versa when I leave work. I established this as a habit early on I'm actually timid to use elevators. Lol. I've found that (even though I'll walk 3 to 6 flights of stairs at a time), taking the stairs is faster than waiting for the elevator. Plus, I don't like the awkwardness of sharing an elevator with a stranger. With the stairs, I rarely run into anyone. It also feels like the 'last stretch' to wrap up a productive day. Stretching is incredibly important to me -- though I can always do a better job of being more consistent When it comes to evening time, I definitely still find it more relaxing to watch TV and eat what I want. I spend so much of my daytime tracking everything I do, the evening is just a great time to let loose. However, because I have a more consistent workout routine, I find myself sleeping before midnight. This is an improvement for me as I'd often go to bed by 1 or 2 AM. Baby steps!

Bar @ 65 lbs

Recap of my goals:

See you at the next challenge!

Continuing my last challenge!

Thank you! Happy to be back!

Enjoying my Friday night 📺

1.5 hours of TV this evening 📺

This week’s local produce 🍎🥒🥕

Under two hours of watching TV tonight 📺

PR’d today 🏋️

Using my productivity app to track the amount of time I spend on entertainment. I’ve never thought to track what I do in my leisure time till now. I can see how this can be a great way to be more intentional with my screen time.

My primary goal for this challenge is to reduce screen time and increase movement (i.e. physical activity). I'm personally nervous to do this considering how most of my life revolves around the screen, but I'm up for the challenge! Some baby steps I have in mind are: Scheduling movement on my calendar Incorporating reading in the evenings -- this can also help me reduce how much I passively eat while watching TV Baby steps -- I have to say this a second time to remind myself that this is key for me to make lasting changes! Let's do this!

Returning from my hiatus! You can find me at my next challenge here:

Excited to be returning from a hiatus! Here's my last challenge:

I was able to walk over 10k steps for three out of the five days that I was in Orlando, FL -- in barefoot-like sandals. I'd switch to flip flops if my feet started to feel sore, but that was typically toward the end of the day. Then, I made it a point to stretch extensively before bed every night. My feet did great. I'm so proud of them and how strong they've gotten this year! ❤️ 👣

Initial thoughts... As I have a more active lifestyle, I'm finding myself updating here less and less. I'm even messaging my health coach and therapist less. I believe this is because I continue to solidify healthy habits and, most importantly, I'm internalizing everything I've learned. My healthy lifestyle is becoming second nature to me -- and I love it. ❤️ So if you don't see me posting here as often as I did in the last challenges, this may be the reason why. Thank you NF for being part of my health journey! Sharing it with all of you has truly made a difference! 🤗

Moving onto my 8TH CHALLENGE 🙌🥳 See you there!

Happy to do my 8th challenge here! Check out my last challenge:

Updates I shared with my therapist: I bought a mini stand up desk to better help me work at home. I love my new desk because it’s adjustable should I want to sit on my exercise ball and it’s mobile (has wheels on the bottom) so I can move around my home as I need to. I’ve learned that if I really need to rest or relax, I can simply lay in bed. We have more space in our home now because we recently gave away our couch, ottoman and armchair. We’re rearranging our home to now fit our active lifestyle. Also the couch and armchair hurts our lower backs if we sit in them for too long. We first bought them when we moved to the east coast four years ago. It felt like it was the right time to give them away. In fact, the lady who took our furniture expressed that she was so thankful and that she loved me. Haha we never met, but she was so grateful that we gave our furniture away for free. Speaking of active lifestyle, I haven’t been to the chiropractor in nearly two months and am successfully without chronic pain. I’m so grateful to have a renewed relationship with my body and the opportunity to have more joyful movement in my life! In fact, I went paddle boarding for the first time in a year.

Convos with my coach COACH M: Hey there! What have you done recently where you’re feeling proud of your efforts and progress? MY RESPONSE: Hello M! Hope you had a good vacation. I’ve really enjoyed being free from chronic pain. So nowadays, I’ve been focused on working out more consistently. I recognize that as I’m working out, I have to trust my cravings — so I haven’t been tracking what I’ve been eating as much. I primarily eat plant-based or keto, basically minimally processed foods. I’m finding that I am recovering quickly from my workouts, which inspires me to consistently exercise. I’m so appreciative of the hard work I put in at the beginning of this year to no longer have chronic pain, and to simply stay on course with my health journey. Working with you has been integral to my consistency and accountability — even if I’m not documenting everything all of the time. I recognize and embrace that my health journey is an imperfect one. To answer the question, “You mentioned you are celebrating... HOW are you doing that?” I have celebrated by buying myself a pedometer to track my steps and Vibram’s V-Train Women shoes. I’m happy to have invested in these shoes because they are barefoot-like shoes that I can take to the gym. I’ve been strengthening my feet with Xero Shoes’ Barefoot-Inspired Sandals on casual days. I’m just proud of myself to continue to prioritize my health by what I eat, what I wear, and how I consistently work out. I’m optimistic that I’ll eventually achieve my ideal weight and physique. For now, I’m enjoying the journey. I’m enjoying rediscovering what my body is capable of, especially now that I’m healed from 10 years of chronic pain. So far, I’m very proud of all of the internal things I’ve accomplished.

Coach I's response: I love hearing the reframing you are learning and changing the narrative. It sounds like progress is being made because those restrictions are feeling a bit more free. I love hearing all the progress you are making and can tell you are truly focused on having a positive relationship with food. I especially like the "joyful eater" you identify in. It is great to hear all of your victories! Gratitude, confidence, joy, and peace in your journey. You mentioned you are celebrating... HOW are you doing that? Yes, it does take some time to see some of that progress and at times takes longer than we hoped, but I see you making positive mental changes that is going to make you successful long-term. When you look at this week specifically to continue your weight loss journey, what do you think sticks out to focus on?

Sharing my most recent message with my coach: Hello Coach I, I recognize that you are temporarily taking Coach M's place. Looking forward to chatting with you! Here are my latest reflections. As I’m starting to develop a social life, I’m also having ‘social triggers’ to eat a lot of foods that would either wise be eaten in moderation. Today, I learned “food labeling.” Instead of saying that, “Chips are bad,” I’m learning to say, “Chips are chips. I can enjoy them in moderation.” Naturally, I’d shame myself for storm-eating red foods. But I’m learning more and more to have a more indifferent (than emotional) relationship with food. I recognize that this is a long process to go from being an emotional eater to a joyful eater. “Joyful eater” is just a term I came up with. Someone who trusts her cravings, doesn’t shame herself, do food labeling, or fall into the all-or-nothing thinking. A conscious eater, not one that just storm eats or is a forager. I’d like to celebrate my progress so far based on the article. Non-Scale Victories: 10 ways to celebrate your progress without a scale. The biggest victory is my mood. I’ve struggled with anxiety, stress and depression for a long time. I really have to credit eating a more plant-based diet to making me a more objective, leveled and content person. Social triggers are my latest challenge. But I believe that the more and more I’m around people again, the more comfortable I’ll feel and resort less to stress eating. Or eating the food that someone brought out of kindness. I’m generally a more confident person. Not necessarily because of how I look on the outside (I haven’t lost any extraordinary weight since starting this program), but because of how I feel on the inside. My health journey has really humbled me this year. I know that I’ll be extremely grateful if I’m to reach my ideal weight. For now, I’m truly grateful for my health journey thus far. My digestion has definitely improved. I feel less bloated. I notice that my stomach aches when I reintroduce highly processed foods back into my diet — or anything dairy related. My endurance is slowly and surely improving. I started going to a local gym again. Even though I’ve been sore for the last couple of days since my first major workout, I’m confident that my recovery time will lessen and lesson. I love how the 10th non-scale victory is “grit.” I feel proud of reading the program articles, logging my activity and tracking my meals on a daily basis. Every time I log something, I’m given a chance to be present and mindful of what I’m about to do or consume. Although I wish I could see a major dent in my weight loss, I’m kind, patient and gentle with my process. Thank you for listening!

Oh wow, I didn't realize that it's been sometime since I've updated this! Lots of good things going on in my life: I primarily eat plant-based. I LOVE veggies -- can't believe I can wholeheartedly say this now -- it's been a long time coming for me. I use the Noom app to track my daily activities. On there, I also have my own coach that I text frequently and I'm part of an accountability group I now attend CrossFit. I had my first big workout today. It got me really emotional because I was able to do a complete workout without feeling any chronic pain -- thanks to my chiropractic adjustments I had been committed to all year. Overall, feeling happier and healthier. Really enjoying living my life and currently counting my blessings.