To quote Jay-Z

I guess I got my swagger back!!!

Two weeks ago, I felt so defeated and awful. Today, I feel great!! While I still think the sugar-free challenge is a great program, it is so definitely not for me and I am SO happy I gave it up when I did. Two weeks ago, I ran a 15k and ran out of steam early; by the time I crossed the finish, I wanted to cry and I felt awful for the remainder of the weekend. Today, I ran a 15k, felt great thru all 9.3mi and felt great after!! Please don't think I'm boastful, I'm not fast and do not place in any of these races; for me, it's running at my regular pace, the accomplishment of finishing and feeling great during/after races that is most important. Today, I succeeded.

After giving up the sugar-free challenge, I still wanted to eat healthy, just add back sugar and carbs. Last week, I increased my daily net carb intake and had tons of fuel in my muscles to do a 5mi social run yesterday and 15k race today. I don't have any planned runs/races this upcoming weekend, so I plan to backoff on my daily net carb intake.

Breakfasts will continue to be eggbeaters and turkey bacon, because I'm addicted and that's my favorite weekday breakfast. Lunches will vary between soups (still have a freezer-ful!) and leftovers. Snacks will include yogurt, fruit, nuts, the usual and here's what we'll be having for dinners this week:

Tonight - french dip sandwiches and smashed red potatoes
Monday - chicken stir-fry with brown rice
Tuesday - healthified chicken fried, leftover smashed red potatoes and green beans - I made this for the first time a few weeks ago and it was tasty; this time, I'm tweaking the recipe some to suit our tastes and will post it once I get it perfect
Wednesday - individual mexican pizzas - whole grain tortillas topped with ff refried beans, turkey taco mix, olives, jalapenos and rf cheddar (and whatever else Dan finds in the house to put on his)
Thursday - not sure yet, we have a few meals in the freezer so it will probably be whichever Dan picks; the options are meatballs, baked pasta, soup (with grilled cheese or tuna sandwiches) and chicken enchiladas
Friday - going out for date night since I don't have a planned run on Saturday - yay!!!

Are any of you still keeping up with your New Year's Resolution to eat healthy, exercise, etc.? What are you doing to stick to it?? If you're reading this, would it help if I listed what exercise I'm adding in with my healthy eating?

PS - Dan looks fabulous and he's not exercising! I've kept him on the reduced carb/sugar diet (he was never sugar-free) and he really likes it, loves how much I pack for him to eat all day long since he's more of a snacker/grazer than one to sit and eat full meals mid-day and he really enjoys all the cooking I'm doing!! He's such a great help during the week with heating/finishing whatever dinner is planned, I could not do this without him and all of his support.