Beyond Beginner 3 week Challenge

kbessey04

Good evening everyone. My name is Kari and I have realized I've let myself go to a point I cannot even begin to describe outside of the work disgusting. The thought of losing weight frustrates me and the thought of working out exhausts me. I created this 3 week challenge as an attempt to FINALLY get myself back on the wagon of healthy living. Please feel free to add me and we can go through this together. It is EXTREMELY easy, the goal is to simply be able to follow it and modify it as needed.

I can also e-mail an attachment of a nicer 'printer friendly' version.

The “Take it Easy” Challenge
‘3 Week Challenge for Ultimate Beginners’

Week 1: ‘Prep Week’
Create an account on a website such as Myfitnesspal.com or sparkpeople.com and take note of how many calories you should consume each day.
Day 1: Log everything you eat
Day 2: Drink 72 ounces of water (9, 8oz glasses). Continue logging.
Day 3: Write down trigger foods. Avoid them today. (Ice cream, candy bars, chips)
Day 4: Clean something. Mopping, dishes, and folding laundry all burn calories. (Log it)
Day 5: No Junk Food Day!!! (It’s only 1 day!!!) Make healthy snack choices and meals. Desert should be healthy also. Keep logging!
Day 6: Weigh in Today. This is where we start, we all start somewhere! Keep logging!
Day 7: Log-free day (If you choose) Make healthy choices. Don’t go buck wild on your break day!

Week 2: ‘Fitting in Fitness’
Some of us are extremely out of shape. And many of us do not own home equipment. So this week is an ultimate beginning to walking. Mapmywalk is an App on Android and iOS that tells you your distance and calories burned. It’s worth the download. Another way to fit in fitness without really trying is to park a distance from the grocery store. We all shop at least once a week, why not burn a few extra calories? Make an extra lap around the store if you can.
Day 1: Walk .5 mile to 1 mile. Log in your food chart (You get to eat those calories back :-D, That’s what I call motivation!!)
Day 2: Do some stretches. Google easy beginner stretches, but they feel fabulous.
Day 3: Walk .5 mile to 1 mile. Keep logging!!
Day 4: No Junk Food Day!!!!
Day 5: Walk 1 mile to 1.5 miles. (More calories :-D)
Day 6: Walk 1 mile to 1.5 miles. Weigh in today :-)
Day 7: Free day! Log if you choose! Don’t go buckwild!!

Week 3: 'Focus on Food'
We all have a trigger food. Ice cream, chips, cheese, for some people it can even be fruit. The focus this week is what works for us with food. Feel free to continue walking, and repeat weeks 1 and 2 along with 3 if you would like. Make week 3 a 3 step a day process :-). The goal this week is to try to separate ourselves from our triggers.
Day 1: Look back on your list of trigger foods. Choose one to avoid all week... Starting.....Now.
Day 2: Try a new food! Asparagus, mango, Brussels sprouts, the list of foods people haven't tried is enormous.
Day 3: Another list: what do you love about yourself. Come up with 5 things! You're amazing, it's time you see that.
Day 4: No junk food today. Our bodies need breaks from sugar.
Day 5: Instead of a midnight snack, try a cup of hot tea or even a cup of hot cocoa. A half cup of ice cream can be as low as 120 calories but a warm cup of hot cocoa is only 90 and counts toward your water!
Day 6: Weigh in today. How's it going? Remember, a number is no reflection on how you feel!
Day 7: Free day (sorta) continue to avoid your trigger food, even today!!

Congratulations!!! You made it through 3 weeks of a healthier lifestyle!!! How do you feel?? Did you slip up anywhere or miss a day? We all fall sometimes, getting up is the real challenge. After I have successfully completed week 2 I will create a 3 week challenge for the beginner, a step up from this with more fitness and food challenges to help us on our way.