450.

it has now been over a year since i last partook of the greasy goodness we call fast food :)  unbelievable. i am so thankful for such a dramatic change in what i choose to eat. and what a difference it has made in the way i feel, both physically and emotionally.

eating healthy everyday is a choice, and i don’t always choose wisely. i do know that removing this one temptation has helped tremendously.

again, i want to encourage all of my readers to choose to eat healthier. one of the hardest, yet most fulfilling ways, is to not eat fast food. your pants will get looser and your wallet will get fatter :)

365.

ONE YEAR WITHOUT FAST FOOD :)

can you believe it? i can't! this is such an exciting goal to have reached. it doesn't feel like it was a year ago. and now i'm here, on the other side. it feels so good. and thank you to everyone who has been so encouraging to me through this personal challenge.

some things i have learned over the last year about my previous relationship w/ fast food: 

1. i am no longer an emotional eater b/c what i would go to for comfort was fast food. no more! 

2. i don't have a desire to eat fast food. i actually think i would feel bad, emotionally, eating it again. (though i'm not ruling it out in the future, but i would like to go as long as possible w/out it.)

3. if i were to calculate the amount of money i have probably saved over the last year i think it would be somewhere around $500-$700. maybe even more. (that's ridiculous!)

4. i feel so much better, inside and out. i was eating so unhealthy three months prior to giving up fast food. it's really embarrassing how much of it i was consuming. 

some words of encouragement for anyone wanting to give up their fast food habit: 

-fast food is a convenient option when you are in a hurry, don't want to cook and are on the road. i get that. but it is not your only option. fruits and nuts are an easy snack to curb your hunger while on the road or while you wait for a meal to be prepared. you can choose to eat better.

-ask someone to take the challenge of not eating fast food w/ you. it's always helpful when you have someone else to walk through something w/ you, even as trivial as this may seem. accountability is so helpful. crucial even.

-take it one day at a time. i didn't begin w/ a year in mind. i just started out hoping to see that i would be able to go a long time choosing to eat healthier things. challenge yourself to a month. the first week was the hardest for me, but i did it. and so can you.

-telling people about what you are trying to achieve will help you. they will encourage you when you need it. they will help you. they will cheer you on as you reach for your goal.

may we all choose healthier options NOW.

you CAN do it!

a confession and a challenge.

i'm about to be really honest w/ you and put myself in a vulnerable position. i'm doing it b/c i think it's important, i want people to be more aware of their health, and i want to encourage someone else.

on july 26, 2013 i was diagnosed w/ type 2 diabetes.

(i went to my doctor the day before b/c i had been having some weird heart palpitations for the last several days and wanted to get them checked out. i had also been extremely tired recently and very thirsty, which i would later be reminded are symptoms of diabetes.)

my doctor's office called me and told me the news while i was at work. it came as a complete shock to me. (both of my parents have diabetes so i knew i had a chance of getting it, but i thought my chances were slim b/c i do not have a big sweet tooth, very rarely drink sugary drinks, etc.)

i immediately broke down in tears and left work early. i called my mom and texted a few close friends who i knew would pray for me. it's one of those things where i felt embarrassed and just knew that people could look at me and tell that something was different. i realize now how dramatic that sounds, but that is honestly the way i felt. i also knew i just needed to get through that day and i would be able to see more clearly.

i went back in to the doctor the next week to talk about medicine and what i needed to change in order to get my blood sugar down to the number range it should be in. one of my greatest fears in life is being dependent on medicine and i knew i wanted to do everything in my power to change what needed to be changed.

i started checking my blood sugar twice a day and taking a pill every morning. losing weight was next on my list. for two and a half years prior working out was more of a dream than an option, due to back issues that i have. i had recently gotten clearance from my chiropractor to exercise again. i was really excited and scared at the same time.

i joined a gym again, for the first time in four years, and began working out three to five times a week. i watched my sugar intake, which was making sure i didn't eat any sweets (unless sugar free - aka that fake sugar), yogurt and watching the sugars i ate in salad dressings, and other sauces, which if you know me then you know i love a sauce :) and i also limited my carb intake.

my blood sugar got down to the range it needed to be in (and has consistently stayed there) and the weight really seemed to just begin falling off. i've never known what that felt like. i lost 26 pounds in three months! when i went back to check in w/ my doctor about my progress she told me that i was a poster child for what people should do when they find out they have diabetes. i was so encouraged!

a fire had been lit under me. God used the horrible news of diabetes to kick start a healthier lifestyle for me. i had already stopped eating fast food five months prior and knew that God had put that change in to effect to make this one even easier now. i could see clearly. i could see the bigger picture.

my end goal is definitely to come off of the medicine and, God willing, erase the diabetes completely. it won't be easy and i'm not even sure it's entirely possible to wipe it out completely, but i want to do everything i can to try and make that happen.

healthy lunch option for me: lettuce & hummus "sandwich" w/ grapes :)

here's the latest: after losing that 26 pounds in the first three months i gained back 7 of it at the beginning of november, lost 5 of it again after a week of not eating any processed foods, but eventually gained that back. i have kept off the other 19, even through the holidays! unfortunately i have not lost any weight since then. and that is discouraging.

and here comes the challenge: juicing. i love to juice and have used it as a meal replacement several times before. one of my friends decided to juice this week for 5 days. and i thought it would be a great time to do it myself. but i will be doing a full week, 7 days. and i began today! i'm doing it in order to reset/cleanse my system and jump start my weight loss. (among other reasons.)

i'm sure this sounds absolutely crazy to some of you, and that's ok. if you would like to better understand why i'm doing what i'm doing and what juicing can do for your body, PLEASE go watch the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. it's on Netflix and it's so good. you can also read more about it and the guy behind the documentary at www.fatsickandnearlydead.com

a previous juice spill :)

i will be blogging each day of my juicing cleanse to share how i'm feeling, what i'm drinking and answer any questions that y'all may have for me. thank you for taking the time to listen to me and i encourage you all to listen to your bodies when things don't seem quite right.


please click these links for even more information on juicing:
Joe Cross's 3-Day Weekend Juice Cleanse
How To Do A Juice CLeanse