FEELIN' FINE AND ALL IS GROOVY

You know that Simon and Garfunkel song, "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)?"
It is so hippy and care-free by nature. Part of me has been feelin' that way this week and I'll tell you why.

FEELIN' FINE IN '09 IS NOW OVER!

FEELIN' FINE IN IN '09? What's that, you say?

It was an eight-week long healthy habits challenge sponsored by my ward Relief Society. It was a team competition that encouraged us to do those things that are important physically and spiritually-- eating right, exercising, studying the gospel, praying, journal writing, etc. We got points for doing the good stuff and we lost points for eating the bad.

When this idea first started getting kicked around in our enrichment committee meeting, I was hesitant. I thought, "I had better not commit to anything like that in my last trimester of pregnancy." But, after some thought and encouragement from others I decided to give it a try. I knew that it would be hard for me, especially the eating part.

The thing is, any white flour, white sugar, candy, even crackers were on the list-- the NO-NO list that is. We really were to eat mostly grains, fruits and vegetables and light dairy/meat products. I knew it was going to be tough--but I wasn't it in to win it, at least not in the beginning.

The first day it started, I have to admit that I was STARVING by 9:30 in the morning. By day two, I wanted to quit. However, I knew my team would never let me. By the fourth day, I had a small nervous breakdown. I told Dan, "All this is doing is making me realize all the things I am not doing that I should be!"

But, I decided to stick with it anyway and just try my best. Whatever my score was, was what it was. When the first week of results came in, my team was pretty excited to find that we were near the top! We got a little boost and decided to try harder. We each shot to have a perfect day-- full hour of scriptures, full hour of exercise and all the good food stuff, no naughty. We did pretty well.

Though I lost some steam at the end, I did learn some things through the process that are worthy of note. Especially for me in the future, when I will be trying keep my life on track and lose a little weight after baby...

1) Snacking. I didn't realize how much I rely on popping a handful of this or that when I get a little hungry or need a boost. All this does it fill you up on the wrong stuff. That is the time to eat a piece of fruit with more nutrition instead of a granola bar.

2) Cravings. The times that I really wanted a candy bar or a soda was when I had really gone TOO long without drinking water or eating. I'd get home from running errands, want a taste of something yummy and then make my lunch or whatever. Again, eat the good stuff first.

3) Convenience. I evaluated in my mind why I ate what I ate. I decided that I am a convenience eater-- I prefer foods that are easy to prepare, require less dishes, aren't messy and are easy to swallow. So bananas? Easy. Oranges? Too much work. I found that I have to either make time to eat a little better or make the healthy foods more available and accessible.

4) Accountability. It does make a difference to be accountable every day to yourself on your record sheet and every week to your teammates. (I think this principle could be very useful when applied to time management as well. If you ever wonder, What did I do today? Or why is this taking me so long?)

5) Compromise. Sometimes before, I wouldn't attempt to exercise or even pull out my scriptures, because I couldn't "do it the way I really wanted to". I would like a nice long stretch of quiet, alert time to read and study or do a full hour of something that makes me sweat. If I couldn't do it perfectly, I wouldn't do it at all. I learned that twenty minutes of walking here and then twenty minutes of toning there, really is forty minutes of daily exercise regardless. Listening to General Conference talks at home or in the car is better than nothing and can be quite beneficial, even if you are multi-tasking.

6) Time. It really does work to do something for a while and create a habit. This morning when I was preparing waffles for breakfast, I automatically thought, "I will lose two points for this." Of course I don't anymore, but now after doing it so long, I think twice before eating whatever, whenever.

7) Finally, patience. It took several weeks into the program before I earned my perfect day. It seemed that when I really tried, I would either get the exercise or the scriptures, but not both. But overtime, I found a way to get them both and then it wasn't so hard to keep it up once I did.

Though I am glad to have a little break from the challenge, I hope the challenge remains with
me. I hope that I remember that during this phase of my life, I can't do everything like I used to. And this it is okay to get just a snatch of gospel study or just some exercise. I hope that I remember that the process is far more important than the result. I hope that I remember that the effort is worth it. I hope that I remember to make the best choice first. I am sure if I do, I will feel fine and groovy for years to come....