77 Days - A Reflection

My gym - the one I mentioned in the stress post, had an amazing challenge. They call it the 77 Challenge, you have 77 days to make a major change/difference in your life. It's a weight loss goal but it also accounts for healthy eating and you get caliper measurements (you know, the ones that pinch like crazy!).

77 Days ago I weighed in. The day that I weighed in I was just coming off of a stomach bug, so that probably wasn't the best choice in days. Regardless I have some fun before pictures from that day. Since I weigh out today I thought I'd reflect a bit on the whole experience. 

Thinking back it was clear to see that I wasn't 100% committed. With a husband, 3 year old, job, busy schedule (of all the year this was the busiest 77 days I've experienced!) it was challenging to do the healthy eating part. The exercise half was easy, I do that anyway! I did not meet  my personal weight loss goal but that's fine, I'm walking into the gym this morning a different person because:

• My eating habits have changed, and not only myself but my entire family now eats better and with more awareness.

• I have even more energy throughout the day because of more consistent workouts and also the better eating

• I have a thyroid problem and my levels are normal for the first time in 3 years (woo hoo), which doesn't mean I'm off meds for it but that I don't have to keep going in for the blood work

• I'm wearing sizes that I haven't worn since my wedding day, woot! (which means the gym should give us gift cards for clothing stores since all of my clothes are attractively baggy now!)

I am not entirely where I want to be but I have made a big change, one that I want to continue with even after my weigh out later this morning. This is such a great experience and one that I can use in my classroom when I teach my students about goal setting. Being a part of this gym has taught me so much about myself, about healthy eating, and about how to talk to others about making positive lifestyle changes. If this teaching thing doesn't work out, doing what the trainers at my gym do every day seems pretty interesting! 


I hope that you have a place locally that can encourage you this way. If you don't please talk to me, I'd be happy to share more about what I learned. Have a beautiful Memorial Day weekend, I'll be listening to some students read their award winning essays, I hope yours will be just as fun!