Hey everyone! 👋🏾
I’m back with another post for the day.
Hope you all are enjoying your Friday evening. If you are new here, welcome to the blog, and click here to learn more about the site. To my followers, welcome back and as always, if you missed out on old posts, click here to catch up on some good reading!
So, back in January, my mother and I were discussing getting back on track with our health (as well as other things). Upon her research, my mother proposed to me a challenge for February. After my long bout of depression, I needed something to help me get my life back on track. This was that moment.
Today, I’m going to talk about the details of the challenge, and how my progress has been for the past few days.
Challenge Details
January was a decent month for me when it came to food. I was eating mostly fruits and vegetables throughout the month during my birthday vacation and continued the diet until the end of the month. Unfortunately, that was it. I wasn’t working out, and on a good day, I could guzzle down 40oz. of water with my Yeti. I wasn’t active, and when I told myself I would work out the next day, I found myself making excuses or I would push it to another day if I was under the weather.
But that all changed when I received this text from my mother:
“Every day, we’re doing the following:
- Pray
- Do Walk Away the Pounds (1 Mile)
- Drink 32oz. of water
- Eat a fruit and a veggie
- Read/meditate on a scripture verse
It will become a habit.”
So for those of you who would like to do this challenge for a week, or a month, feel free to do it at your own pace. Do what feels right and comfortable for you, and remember to have fun. Here is a more detailed list of the challenges, hope this helps you all:
- Pray– Pray when you wake up in the morning, pray throughout your day, and pray before you go to bed. Whether you write it in a journal or say it verbally, prayer is important.
- Move– Do some form of movement for 10 to 30 minutes. If you’re just starting back working out, start slow, and find something fun to do. Walk Away the Pound is a great program to do for thirty minutes, and you can do it in the comfort of your home. There’s a channel on YouTube if you’re searching for it.
- Hydrate– Start your day with a cup of warm water, and drink water throughout the day. If you can drink 32 oz. a day, drink it, if you can drink more, drink it. If you can drink 16oz. that’s okay, drink it. Remember to drink water to stay hydrated and feel great.
- Eat the Rainbow– Incorporate fruits and vegetables in your meals throughout the day. Whether it’s a yummy salad or some fruit with yogurt, mix it up, but make sure to eat all the healthy colors of the rainbow.
- Read/Meditate– Take time to meditate, do breath work, read the Word and meditate on the scripture, and do some self-reflection, it’s important to take care of yourself mind, body, & spirit.
- Unwind– Rest is important, remember to take time to unwind from screens and get the proper sleep that your body needs so you can be present and prepared for the days ahead.
Now that I have given you a list of what the challenge holds, here are a few reminders I want to leave you all with while you take on your own challenge.
Friendly Reminders
While I understand that health is wealth and that it is important to take care of yourself, I also know that sometimes, if things don’t go as planned, we tend to put ourselves down. So, while you start reading and planning out your challenge for the week or the month, here are some things to remember:
- Accountability– It’s best to do this challenge with someone or a group of people who will hold you accountable. My mother texts me throughout the week and we have our daily check-ins to see how the other person is doing. Having a partner or a group of people doing the challenge with you will get you motivated and push you to keep going.
- Ease into It– Read the list, and evaluate what you can do. If you know you can only drink 16oz. to start, that’s fine. If you can only put in ten minutes or fifteen minutes of a workout, do it. Don’t feel like you have to do so much.
- Positive Affirmations– For the days that you’re not feeling, give yourself a little pep-talk. Whether that’s through scripture or positive affirmations, speaking positivity over your life is going to help you be more motivated to build better habits each day.
- Give Yourself Grace– If you have a day (or a few), that’s okay. Take note of what happened- did something come up? Were you sick? Once you’ve done that, think of ways you can work around those mishaps in the future, so you can continue to do your best throughout the challenge. We all make mistakes, and we all have setbacks, the important thing is to remind yourself that it’s okay, to learn from them, and move forward.
✨And most importantly, have fun doing it!!!!!!✨
Now that I’ve told you about the challenge and given you some helpful reminders to help you throughout your journey, I’ll share with you my progress so far.
A Recap of Week 01
The first few days were good. It helped that I was at Mom’s because I was able to do exercises with Nana. We’ve been working on helping her get her strength back since she’s been living with Mom. She enjoys doing her exercises with me, so we all did a family workout together.
It wasn’t until I returned back home that things went a bit astray. While I’ve been doing well drinking water throughout the week, my eating habits have gotten the best of me, and it is about time for me to go grocery shopping again.
Prayer has been a strong force in my life at home. I had a few nights where sleep was not the best due to feeling sick and tired. One of these nights, I remember watching InTouch Ministries, where the late Dr. Charles Stanley talked about the importance of not living in fear and how in our walk, we should have prayers that anchor us when we feel anxious and worried about our current circumstances. While I stayed up until 4AM that night, it calmed me down and got me thinking:
- What are my anchor prayers?
- Are the foods I’m consuming causing me to become more anxious in life?
- Are the things I’m worrying about something that I can turn over to God?
- Why should I worry about anything as a Christian?
This week has been a test for me with my faith. Thanks to listening to InTouch and taking the time to read the Word at the end of the day, I feel more calm and more at peace at night. So here are some things I’m learning after these past few days:
- A splash of lemon juice helps me drink water better
- Creating salads is my go-to for a healthy lunch and dinner
- Mini breaks are the best for doing simple movements (and help get steps in)
- Don’t do well working out or eating when stressed
- Reading and journaling before bed helps calm me down (plus soothing Lo-Fi music)
- Taking medicine early helps me fall asleep early
I’m still staying positive because Mom has been texting me throughout the week to keep me motivated. She even has one of her good friends joining us, and I’ve been thinking about having Jasmine join and do it with me as well.
There you have it, I hope you all enjoyed today’s post. If you are inspired to start this challenge or took ideas and decided to create your own, let me know in the comments below. Have a great evening, and I will see you all in the morning. Good night and sleep tight. 🌙
Until next time…
♥️
As Told by Gabby 