#FridayFeels Accomplished 

On September 1, I started my 30 Day Challenge which included a 10 minute daily walk, daily gratitude journaling, and eliminating certain foods from my daily diet (no sugar, dairy, grains, or alcohol).  Aside from the total of 5 days of planned travel in which I released my food restrictions (4 in NOLA, 1 in Vegas), I was able to stick to my Challenge in all three areas! I’m feeling pretty accomplished and I have to say, pretty darn proud of myself.

On this final day of my Challenge, here are my observations:

This wasn’t about counting calories or weight loss, but about feeling better in my body.  The weight dropped, honestly, was minimal. Maybe 5 lbs? BUT the fact is that I truly do feel better. Not having pain and inflammation in my joints and bloating in my gut is worth saying “no thanks” to the foods that were hurting me.  Being able to love myself enough to listen to my body, take good care of her, and do what feels best for me really sums up my personal mission of helping women to love the body they are living in.  You can find support and guidance in my program, The Cocoon, if (like me) you are living in a bigger body and want to take some easy steps forward in your health & wellness.

Making time to move my body and get a little sweaty each day is a legit battle.  Oh my gosh, the mind games I played with myself to try and talk myself out of it!  Every. Damn. Day. But I would lovingly make myself do it, and each time I felt great. My body felt better physically, I released any pent up emotions, and cleared my mind for exciting new ideas. I know the struggle is real, friends, but the rewards are there for the taking.  It’s just 10 minutes.  If you are able, get out and walk!  If walking is not something your body allows you to do, spend your 10 minute doing something physical such as modified chair exercises.



Sugar is EVERYWHERE. Corn too. WTF? These two foods, I believe, have been my body’s primary enemies and main sources of inflammation. I read ingredients labels now for everything before putting it in my shopping cart at the grocery store.  Corn syrup, sugar, corn oil, sucrose, cane sugar, cane syrup – if any form of these were on the ingredients label, I didn’t eat it.

I know that I will be A LOT more careful and conscious of what I eat.  For sure, I will be reading ingredient labels moving forward. And yes, sometimes I will indulge a little and have some sweet treats when I’m celebrating with friends and loved ones- but it will not be part of my everyday meals.

Whole foods > Junk foods. Well, duh. Of course they are, but I mean they just realllllllly are so much better.  They look better. They taste better. They provide better & longer-lasting energy.  They are not difficult to prepare.  They inspire culinary creativity.  They do not leave me feeling gross, tired, bloated, blah.  They keep my head clear and mind focused.  They are easy to pronounce.  They are a better value for the money.  Even on nights when I was tired after a long day and didn’t have the stamina to create a fabulous dinner, we could still enjoy no sugar added, uncured smoky bacon & eggs. WINNING.  I’ll be sharing a collection of my favorite recipes from this Challenge, so if you’d like to receive them in your inbox just complete the form below!  (Including this SO TASTY Pot-Roasted Chicken)

I really like a good glass of wine.  During my Challenge, sometimes I craved a sweet dessert, but that craving would pass quickly.  Some mornings I craved a latte, but again, it would pass quickly.  If I really hardcore wanted something sweet and indulgent, I had some Medjool dates or a Frozen Smoothie Pop. As I was getting closer to the end of my 30 days, though, I found I was really looking forward to enjoying a glass of fine wine with dinner.  Maybe I will feel differently after that first glass tomorrow, but I don’t think so.  CHEERS!