So, I Did a Thing...

I made the mistake of doing a 3-day cleanse. I got what I paid for, I lost some weight and I stuck to the strict diet for 72 hours. I also got more than I paid for: lessons. Some good. Some bad. Overall, I will not be putting myself through another cleanse.

I learned that sleep is important and I will commit to giving myself a nap 3 days a week while my kiddos nap. I am an early riser and have not been prioritizing sleep for myself as well as I do for my littles.

I learned that I do enjoy vegetables and I will spend more time making creative sides and snacks of them instead of reaching for packaged items first (or primarily).

I learned that I do not like celery or cucumbers. I can tolerate celery in smoothies, but I do not like eating it by itself or with almond butter.

I do not really like almond butter. It's peanut butter or nothing! HA!

I am far too dependent upon coffee. Prior to said cleanse, I was consuming somewhere between 150 and 350mg of caffeine per day. Since discovering that 1 tall Starbucks or 1 medium Panera black coffee are 175 to 300mg of caffeine, respectively, I don't feel so bad; however, I will stick to 1 cup of regular coffee or 1 pre-workout drink (depending on my workout) everyday (or skip the caffeine altogether on days without a hard workout or big plans).

If I am too ashamed or embarrassed to post about what I am doing in my HSM community forums, than I should probably not do it. I shared my cleanse on my last day (even though I had been considering it for several weeks), when I was feeling resentful of the low amount of calories that I was consuming. I was quite bitter and a little frustrated with myself (and that box of instructions).

I learned, also, that I actually miss tracking my food in My Fitness Pal. Sometimes, I need a break from the numbers, but I forget that the numbers are on my side. I was still tracking using the Beachbody containers (which I still loves and gives me a fun visual of what I'm consuming), but I just miss seeing the Macro break down every once in a while. (I also don't prefer a low-fat diet, which is what the container system does for calorie intake breakdowns).

I am happy to have a community that is supportive, even when I make mistakes that we all are working to fight against: quick fixes. After chatting with my family about it this morning, I realized that a 30lb weight gain during pregnancy is not bad (it's actually pretty normal).

Considering I had lost about 80lbs prior to pregnancy, I take care of 3 kiddos under the age of 4 everyday; 1 is fully potty trained and can write her name, the 2nd is working through the process of potty training and can write the letter A (as well as lots of squiggly lines and circles), and the 3rd is 3.5 months, loves to laugh and rolls over both ways; I think I'm doing pretty well. I am still operating on a 55lb weight loss, and know that if I work consistently on my habits, I can get back to where I was.

I am praising God for sustaining me through the challenges of parenting, losing weight, managing our home, and striving to thrive in my marriage. Life is tough, but He's got me.