Day 7, 36 to go...........

One week ago tonight I sat at the table eating candy bars and never in my dreams did I think it would lead to a healthier lifestyle but it did.

Today I weighed in at 131 pounds, 3.8 # less than I weighed on November 2.

I have a couple wonderful friends that have decided to ride this train with me.  Together we will be able to come up with new ideas and we will learn a lot along the way, I'm sure.

This is a picture of Deb, Jan, and I after we ran the Hot Chocolate Run last year.  It was great getting to know these women that I only knew through my computer before this.  Anyway, Jan, is going on this sugar freedom ride with me.  Today we discussed protein and how we can add protein to our diet without a lot of calories or fats or carbs that go along with.  We came up with the idea of cooking chicken breasts or turkey breasts ahead of time, dividing them up in individual servings, 2oz. 
Two ounces of chicken breast can provide 18 grams of protein.  You can add it to a piece of toast for breakfast, salad for lunch..........just to add some protein to a meal that otherwise could be without protein.

Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy.........

John Bingham's book, No Need For Speed.

"A friend once asked me whose voice it was that I heard in my head when I was being critical of myself.  Who was it that was telling me what I should be able to do?  Who was it that was never satisfied with who I was and what I was becoming?  It was a sobering question.

Is there a little voice like that in your head?  Does a little character sit on your shoulder all day long and evaluate your every move?  Do you hear that voice berating your every mistake and belittling your every success?  Many of us do, I believe nearly all of us do.

I had that voice, but for me, sadly, the voice was my own.  I couldn't blame it on anyone else.  I couldn't conjure up an image of a person or place that made me feel that way.  By the time I was ready to start a life of activity, by the time I put on my running shoes and tried to change the direction of my life, I was the person who was the least cooperative.

Many of us berate ourselves and belittle our accomplishments in the misguided believe that it will encourange us to reach for a higher standard.  Rather than using a positive voice to celebrate our success, we constantly undermine our progress by reminding ourselves how far we have to go.  In the end, the constant criticism works to defeat us.  We do this to ourselves all the time.  How often have you heard someone chastising himself for a mistake?  How often have you done it to yourself?  Do you wonder to whom it is you're talking?  Do you wonder who it is that's talking?"

My struggle is definitely not over.  After supper I noticed two Werther's candies on my husband's dresser and my mouth immediately wanted them.  I was not hungry but the thought of the smooth, sweet caramel flavor..........I'm drooling, ok?  I won this battle tonight and I am hoping to win the war of sugar addiction for life.