Starting the Year off Right- My first day of 2013!

Today, being January 1st of 2013, was the start of many great health commitments in my life, and a renewal to my existing commitments. Some new things on my "healthy plate" this year that started today include:

• Whole30 Program- "Think of it as a short-term nutritional reset, designed to help you restore a healthy metabolism, heal your digestive tract, calm systemic inflammation and put an end to unhealthy cravings, habits, and relationships with food." Essentially the "Paleo Diet", but done for health reasons more than "this is what cavemen used to eat" reasons. A great focus on sustainable/organic meat products as well as fruits & veggies!
• 13 in 2013- I had set out already to do 12 in 2013 (that is 12 fitness events in 2013, or one a month), but found an entire group of folks doing 13 in 2013! A supportive virtual community is a big asset, so I've hitched my wagon with these folks.



Me and the hubs at #committmentday detroit

• StartClean2013 Challenge- Start Clean 2013 is not a diet, but does focus a lot on food. This challenge is about exploring food choices, get organized in the kitchen, and reflecting on food habits and choices. Includes Daily Prompts on Clean Eating & fitness!

Today, I took several big steps toward these commitments! The first of these was completing my 1st of 13 fitness events for the year: Mike and I ran the Commitment Day 5k in Detroit! It was chilly outside, but a lot of fun to start the year off running with my love :) Also, it was a pretty awesome experience to get to run through the tunnel onto Ford Field as a 5k Finish Line. This rally wasn't officially timed, but based on when we started and the time when we cross the finish line, we're estimating a 29m:00s run time, which is a PR for us both! Here's hoping that the other 12 races will be just as fun and inspirational.

The second big step was officially starting the Whole30 Program. I have been eating fairly "clean" for about 3 months now- little to no gluten, little to no dairy, a greatly-reduced amount of refined or added sugars, lots of fruits & veggies- but it is time to really double down for a month and see where clean eating can take me! There's a very extensive list of what NOT to eat, but I've summarized it here:

• Do not consume added sugar of any kind, real or artificial. No maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, Splenda, Equal, etc 
• Do not consume alcohol, in any form, not even for cooking.
•  Do not eat grains. This includes (but is not limited to) wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, rice, millet, bulgur, sorghum, amaranth, buckwheat, etc. 
• Do not eat legumes. This includes beans of all kinds (black, red, pinto, navy, white, kidney, lima, fava, etc.), peas, chickpeas, lentils, and peanuts. No peanut butter, either. This also includes all forms of soy – soy sauce, miso, tofu, tempeh, etc.
•  Do not eat dairy. This includes cow, goat or sheep’s milk products such as cream, cheese (hard or soft), kefir, yogurt (even Greek), and sour cream… with the exception of clarified butter or ghee. 
• Do not consume carrageenan, MSG or sulfites. If these ingredients appear in any form on the label of your processed food or beverage, it’s out for the Whole30.
• Do not eat white potatoes. 

I am going to ignore the white potatoes line item. It's Winter, I live in Michigan, and I'm trying my best to be a local foodie and a seasonal eater. Potatoes are like half of the veggies we're got here in the winter, man! Not really, but they are a big staple, along with carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, onions, cabbage, kale, spinach, and so on.

Still figuring out how to make these tasty juices look better..

The biggest changes for me will be the No Added Sugar and the complete elimination of Grains and Dairy. I've already made great strides in these areas, simply because I feel better without these products in my system.

Dairy really bothers my stomach, and grains make me feel bloated and yucky. I used to be the "pasta queen", as my husband pointed out to me last week, so even the reduction I've been doing so far has been a big change! The nice part is, since both grains and dairy bother me, even if I love my heart loves eat them, my head is getting more used to saying, "No! Remember last time you ate that and felt gross for a day afterwards?" Ah, yes.

In 2013, I'll continue to maintain some of the goals I've been progressing towards in the past 4 months of my new lifestyle:

• Working out 5 - 6 days a week for an hour
• Logging calories on MyFitnessPal app
• Maintaining and even increasing my weight loss and Body Fat % improvements
• Juicing at least 1 time/day

Feeling great and off to a strong start here in 2013! I've found a great deal of support from friends, co-workers, family, and the online community as well, including greatist.com and my fellow Greatist ambassadors, the StartClean2013 folks, and the 13 in 2013 runners! The support I am seeing between these folks is just amazing!

What goals do you have set or in mind for this year, and how will you make them reality?

My Health and Fitness Bucket List for 2013

I'm not always one for hard-core New Year's Resolutions, but I do love a good list! Here are some activities and things I'd like to Try, Do, Maintain, Learn about, or Grow in for 2013. I've already signed up for 2 of my 12 fitness events for 2013- a strong start to a new year!

I like to share- it keeps us all more accountable!

Let's shake on it.

Cheers to a Happy, Healthy, and AWESOME 2013!

What do you resolve for 2013?

12 in '13 Fitness Challenge!

I'm excited to announce that I'll be hosting my first-ever Fitness Challenge coming up here in January!

As I've been thinking forward to the new year and how to keep myself motivated, one of the fun goals I came up with was to do one "competitive" fitness event each month for the year. 



Why fitness events?  
1) Training for a 5k or a cycling event can be SUPER motivating, even if your goal is simply to run a mile at a time or complete the event!

2) Because you're investing some money in registering for events, there's the bonus motivator of "oh, now I've spent money on this thing; I should probably give it a good effort"!

3) There's something really powerful about participating in a group fitness event. Whether it's competitive, like the Boston Marathon, or a "Fun Run" like The Color Run, getting out there with other men and women that are trying to better their lives and their health is pretty inspiring- it kinda makes me tear up a little thinking about it now!

Get Started!
This will be a fun, personal-challenge type of thing, and I've created a few ideas on how to start and plan out your 12 in '13, as I'm calling it. I've also designed a few different images, that you can download here if you'd like. Feel free to post them on your blog, share them on Facebook or Twitter, or event Pin them!

Each person that "registers" by tweeting using #12in13challenge and putting a Commit Button on their blog will be entered into a drawing to win Eating Clean for Dummies, and each month that you register for a new event and share it on Twitter using #12in13challenge, you'll be entered for another small prize drawing!

Here are some buttons below that you can share & post. Please link them back to here, so more people can join the challenge, motivate each other, and get fit in 2013! I'll be sharing the events I've registered for so far in the next post. You've got until 1/5/2013 to enter the contest by registering for your first event & sharing it with others!