Day Seven

 

Day Seven- Progress Report. One week down, and here's where I'm at so far. The purpose of this 60 day venture is to blaze a path of healthy habits, rituals and rhythms to keep me on track for life- no matter what comes up. I don't have any particular number goals, but it's nice to track my progress regardless. Here's where I'm at.

Diet- I think this was my biggest challenge overall, developing better eating habits that I can take with me back into the grind. I'm discovering different ways to 'meal prep' all kinds of fresh plant based ingredients that I can mix and match through the week. Plus tools that help me get the job done more quickly!

Movement- besides the almost daily ritual of going out and shoveling snow for a couple hours, I've been taking full advantage of the walking mat I purchased earlier this year. I knew I would have some time off, and given the winter we had last year, I figured I wouldn't get out for many walks. Game changer! Between that and my Lebert Equalizer bars, I'm pretty well covered. I'm easing myself in to more time on the mat which is getting easier as I build strength in my hips and knees.

Sleep- still very much a work in progress. I'm kind of all over the map, some nights I get a decent 7 hours, and others I'm lucky if I get four. It's been more of the latter lately, so I need to work on how to get myself settled and comfortable enough to fall asleep without tossing around for hours.

Weigh in- just an aside: weight loss is not the goal, so I don't have a goal weight per se. But my weight is a good indicator of where I am health wise, when I'm stressed and inflamed, I gain. My 'healthy weight' is 165. My highest weight (this year and 13 years ago) was 237. I'm comfortable at 180. I'm now at 231, which means I've lost 6lbs since the start of 2026. Given that I gained 54lbs (roughly 1.5lbs a month) since I moved north, the fact that I've lost 6lbs in 20 days is worth celebrating! Woo!

Now for the best part *drumroll* ...the poops! Yes, I'ma write about it because it's another important indicator of health for me. I've suffered digestive issues forever, so a good poop is another thing worth celebrating. I've been keeping track of my food intake daily, and my movements to follow and I have learned something very interesting. My best, most healthy movements this week have been on the mornings after eating spaghetti squash! Now to find more foods that give similar results and are equally as comfortable to digest.

Funny- as a gardener, I cursed the spaghetti squash. I'd always mistakenly plant more than one plant, and they'd go wild and take over the garden. Maybe it was the gardens way of telling me I needed more!