It's Friday and the 3rd day of Challenge365!

Well I know that last night I hit on the fact that changing our lifestyle impacts your children so much, but I'm going there again! When we tried before to lose weight, our biggest excuse/problem was we didn't know how to incorporate the kids! We tried plans that you bought all your meals from... that was great except we still had to feed the kids, not to mention lugging all those boxes around when we went out of town. Plus, we are human, we are going to go out to eat! We now feed the kids the same thing we eat. Of course we have to be a little creative, for example on pizza night, we make one for us like you have seen on previous posts and one with cheese. On spaghetti night, we do whole-wheat noodles, spray butter and a little Parmesan cheese. The kids HAVE to learn to eat health from a young age so they don't have to go through this when they are older like us! Snacks a big battle in our house. We completely cut out sugar cereals! I found that my kids would sit around and eat a bowl of fruit loops in the middle of the day... and I wondered why they were so cranky... DUH KEISHA! Anyway, we have found that the kids do like fruit, they actually love it. They like different things, Morgan is into grapes and apples, Alex loves oranges and watermelon and Carson like just about anything you put in front of him! I took pics to prove to you that kids will eat healthy when given no other option!!! I'm not saying it happened over night, because like us adults, they had to undergo their own sugar detox. Just be patient and don't give up on them... they need this as much as you do!

Alright... how is it going so far? Anyone want to share? ANYONE AT ALL??? Happy weekend!!!

Thursday Night Post, Day 2 of Challenge365

So I'm begining to wonder if there is anyone out there reading this and following any of the advice? I'm really hoping YES so I will continue on! If this is able to reach just one other person and help them feel the way I do now, than it is totally worth it!!! I hope you are all doing great following your food, reading some educational books and exercising so far!

It's almost the weekend and I know this is where it gets harder. You are all home from work and want to go grab some quick food out on Saturday afternoon or Sunday after church. I know the drill, you think that it's just this once and you will change tomorrow. Well fight the temptation with all you have!!! It's just not worth it. You are trying to change your life which means you have to train your brain! You do not need the junk, your body doesn't want it, it's just your brain. Teach your brain that you don't want it either.

So another awesome thing about changing your life and getting healthier... teaching your children the importance of health too! This is something that I knew was important, but I had no idea the impact it would make on my young children. Tonight we had a swim meet and it dawned on me that we probably wouldn't be here if we were in the same place we were a year ago. Our kids see us being athletic and want to do the same. We encourage them to do the best they can and to be proud of themselves for what they accomplish! I was a proud momma tonight, my little guy swam in his first meet and he was SOOOO EXCITED AND PROUD!!! My daughter did great too, her first meet was last week! I've told them both that it's not about coming in first place, it's about giving 100% and doing the absolute best job you can do! This is something that I've only recently learned. The triathlon I did was not a race to be number one, it was a race against myself to finish! I was very proud of myself and I've learned that it's ok to push myself to things that I would ordinarily shy away from. God gave me this body and I should be proud of it and take care of it! It can do way more than my mind thinks it can... mind over matter!!!

Two of my babies... Morgan is the girl in the middle and Alex is the little guy in front! They are with their sweet friends Taylor and Allie.

First Day of the Challenge

Well, I hope those of you following the menu and making a change had a successful first day! Last night for dinner Andy made us one of the awesome pizza's I have on the Menu to right hand side of the post.

This is a whole-wheat crust (Whole Foods Brand, Organic 365). He added pizza sauce, roasted bell peppers from a jar, artichoke hearts, 2% mozzarella shredded cheese and spinach on top. Set the over for 425 and cook till it's the way you like it!

This is my new FAVORITE snack food!!! Dark Chocolate Acai with blueberry. They are so awesome, they are perfect for a quick sweet fix. Serving size is 1/4 cup and contains 7g of fat and 180 calories. However, they are very good for you! My kids LOVE them, they call them chocolate balls and eat them like they are candy! I can't believe I have tricked my kids into eating acai and blueberries, YAY!!! We bought them at Costco.

On another note, I have found a training schedule that I am going to be starting tonight for my first workout! My good friend Kristina and I are going to run a half-marathon this coming October in Athens, GA!!! I'm so excited because I went to college in Athens and the run will go directly through the University of Georgia and the surrounding area. You can check out my schedule here.

Remember to keep up with your exercise, try to hit 30 minutes of walking a day. Keep up with it now, because every week it's going to change and get more difficult to jump in. Just keep a smile on your face, because you are changing your life! Try to take a pic of yourself in the mirror or something each week, it's a lot of fun to go back and look at them later!

If you are following this, send a quick comment so I know who's actually reading this, haha!

Week ONE of Challenge365

Alright everyone, here it is. Your one year challenge. I know there is at least one person out there reading this, so I will continue to update this blog with weekly instructions and lots of tips and just inspiring tips throughout the week. We will all get on the blog and update our progress every Monday. For those of you with a blog of your own, I will set up inLinkz so you can link your blog up to the post directly with your update and those of you without one can leave a comment so we can all be accountable! If there is anyone out there right now, I would really like to hear your story and so would others... for inspiration!

For week ONE, follow the menu I have added on the right hand side of the blog. For breakfast, pic ONE that works best for you and do it every day! It's a good idea to make this a habit and keep it simple. For lunch, feel free to change it up, but again keep it simple. For me, it was much easier to just have the same thing when I was home at first. Now that I'm more confadent in my choices, I am much more flexible. For dinner, you do not have to follow my menu perfect, just try out the different recipes and fit them into your life! We actually eat spaghetti twice a week most weeks, because it's good and easy! I will also be adding a link to the right about fast food options! It is ok to eat out... we are HUMAN. Just be ready and armed with the right choices to make when eating out.

Please remember that I am not a doctor or nutritionist and this is NOT a diet! This is a lifestyle change and I am just trying to put the advice that has helped my family make a lifestyle change. Following an eating plan is great, but in the long run you will have to learn why we should and should NOT eat certain foods, so I am going to suggest some books that you should pick up and read! Use this as a learning time, you don't have to know everything before you make your change, learn as you go. I'm still a work in progress too and I'm learning right along with all of you!

The books to start looking for are the "Eat This NOT That" by David Zinczenko. There are several different choices in this series, I suggest picking up the new 2010 edition shown here.

Also, lets all start out getting up and moving this week. I'm not sure the fitness level of all the readers, so let's start easy and work up from there. If you are more advanced, feel free to modify at your own comfort level. Let's start out by walking 30 minutes a day! Try to do it every day, but if you can't, don't beat yourself up! Do your best... that's all anyone can ask!!!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! Be sure to comment with YOUR story or link up to the post with your own blog and story!

One year challenge!!!

Alright, so I've been thinking a lot lately about the past year. Well almost a year. We started changing our food and losing weight July 20, 2009!!! I've been reflecting on that journey for me and how it has changed me. I hear the same thing from so many friends...

-oh I can't believe you've done that

-oh I could never do what you have done

-oh I wish I could do a triathlon, but I can't

blah blah blah... the list goes on and on!!!

So I've decided that if there is anyone out there that actually reads this blog and would like to take the challenge, I would LOVE nothing more than to show you how you can not only lose any extra weight, but complete a sprint triathlon too!

Every year in June, there is a "My First Triathlon" at Lake Lanier. There are so many people of so many different fitness levels. Some are in amazing shape, some are huffing and puffing to get through, but they all have the same goal in mind... FINISH! If you are reading this and you live nowhere near me, I'm sure you too can find a sprint triathlon or some other type of event to join in and accomplish. The point is to have a goal and stick to it! Anyway, here is what I propose for those interested. Every week, I will set out some menu options. I will work with my sweet hubby Andy with the dinner recipes (since he does the cooking). He has some amazing options! You can pick the ones that you would like to try (I encourage you to try new ones, because you never know until you try it). Every week we will meet up on the blog and share our progress and any ups and downs we experienced over the week. I will add some things that I experienced along the way at each level as well. I will have to go pull out my journal! I'll iron out all the details over the next couple days and get the post up for anyone who is interested. I don't really mind if there is only one person out there reading this, I am more than willing to give my help!!! Thanks everyone, hope to hear from many of you soon. Please feel free to pass on the blog to friends and family who are interested as well.

The question is... WHO'S WITH ME?

Well I DID IT!!! I completed my first triathlon!

I am very proud to announce that I completed my very first sprint triathlon today! My time was 1:45:48. I was so proud of myself for doing this and beating my goal of 2 hours! The swim was my weakest part, since I am clearly NOT a swimmer, but I plan on working on that. The biking was my favorite part! I had no idea I would enjoy it so much, but it was very relaxing and gave me some time to recharge before the run. The run was HOT! It was so hot I thought I was going to catch on fire. I just kept running along... but it was way more difficult than I had planned on the run to be! I love to run, it is my strength, but you wouldn't know it by the 31 minutes it took me to run the 3.1 miles today. In any event, I had a great time and I found something else that makes me happy and keeps me in shape! I of course can NOT skip over the most important part... my family! They were awesome, cheering me on the entire race. My sweet husband helped me set up before and after the race AND watched the 3 kids! Thanks honey, I really appreciate it!

I'm BACK!!!

Hello everyone... it's been a long time since I've posted on this site! I apologize for that... it's been very busy around here. For an update... we have continued eating healthy and working out. We no longer follow the rigid 15g of fat per meal that helped us lose our weight. Once we were at a healthier weight, we started learning what was good and what was not! We eat much better than we did even then! I barely eat meat at all anymore. I do a lot of black bean burgers, veggie burgers, whole wheat pasta and organic foods! I will be sure to add some pics on here of the past few months so you can see where we are now! I can promise you that I will NEVER get back to where I started!!! I LOVE being the size I am now (115 pounds) and I will stay this size!

On another note, I have been very busy making lots of homemade goodies for my new etsy shop. Go check it out, if you see something you like, convo me and let me know you found my shop from this blog and I will give you $5 off any dress or top and/or a free lens cap holder on the camera strap covers. Thanks and have a great day!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/mommymac2004

Some of my Etsy items...