Challenge 2, Day 2 (of 91)

So, ignoring the funny face, the jorts, and the fact that I can't make the picture fit the box, I love this picture. This is me, towards the end of Challenge 1, definitely looking fitter than I have in years. Here's to keeping it up!

I've decided for this new challenge to do something a little different....in addition to $5 for missed workouts (which is going to be tough since I'm scheduling workouts almost every day!), $10 for gaining weight for a week, and $1 for ice cream, pizza, and tortilla chips, I'm going to add one health improvement to my life every week, and once added, it will stay a part of my plan throughout the challenge. While they may change, here are my ideas:

9/16: No eating after 10 pm

9/23: 1 hour tv/night (this may not seem weight loss-related, but I think it will help my mental health, and allow me to spend that time doing other things that are important...job search, reading, staying organized....)

9/30: 5 fruits and veggies EVERY day. That'll force me to do my grocery shopping :)

10/7: Start cycling. I've been wanting to try it for a long time, and the intro class is offered the first Monday of every month (which is technically the 6th, but I'll be including it my workout plan the rest of the week/challenge....). Once I've started, I'd like to do it at least once a week.

10/14: Add yoga. I think an hour a week (at least) will be good for the mind and body :)

10/21: No more than one non-whole grain per day. This shouldn't be that hard, except when eating out it will keep me away from the bread bowl :)

10/28: Limit sweets. I'm not a big candy person, so this one (and Halloween) hopefully won't trip me up. I do want to limit ice cream consumption (which will already be limited since it's one of my $1 items), and avoid cookies, etc. Lets say one sweet a week.

11/4: Get more sleep. So hopefully I've already started doing this, but I'd like to get 7 hours of sleep a night.

11/11: Cooking: cook a healthy dinner (not out of a can) at least twice a week. This will be a challenge for me, but it'll force me to find some easy and healthy recipes.

11/18: This is the time in the challenge when I start to peter out, so I'm going to increase workout time by one hour a week from here on out. Shouldn't be too difficult (60 minutes of cross when I would normally do 30 two times a week), but hopefully it will help keep me motivated.

11/25: Buy some new clothes, and pitch ones that are too big. I know this doesn't sound like a health issue, but if I keep clothes around that are too big, it gives me no incentive to lose weight.

12/2: Limit drinking. Hopefully I've already been doing this, but I'd like to get down to drinking once or twice a week. Once on the weekends, and a glass of wine here or there during the week.

12/9: Plan my race schedule for the next year. I'd like to do at least one race every two months, just to keep me running :)