I've learned a few things...

Things I've learned...

1. Being in the winners circle is fantastic! What an awesome thing to achieve. Really
makes a person feel good about themselves. I really am so happy that I made it in the top 4. The only thing that could have been better would be to have WON! Next time.

2. Writing about it means more than one knows. I was thinking about what might have made the difference. I did best when I was very consistently blogging everything. I worked harder at my clean eating when I talked about it. I had more positive energy when I was writing about it. Taking 10 minutes to write my thoughts, feelings, and actions kept my focus strong.

3. When life gets busy....I slack! K I didn't actually do awful, but I did worse the busier I got. Still made good choices in my diet but not the best. Sometimes convenience overpowers health. Let me clarify: it wasn't like I was eating microwave TV dinners and donuts but instant white rice instead of 30 minutes to cook brown. Or I would eat regular pasta instead of quinoa. I still tried hard to keep within clean eating for the most part.

4. Saying "no" to the foods you love is always a challenge. I must pride myself on the ability to pass up the things I love because right now I am doing it. It gets harder every day. Having gone 1 month without a Reese's Big Cup is killing me: I want one so BAD! But I know that if I eat one right now, I will eat 15 more before I stop. So I must contain myself. I also have noticed how hard it is to fix food for my family and other people, and not snack on or sample it. My best fix for this is right before I start cooking I put gum in my mouth. Then I seem to not try everything.

5. Thinking yourself skinny will work. I know: silly. But I believe that when I try hard to think skinny, I have so much more will power. It motivates me to become something. I act skinny, and by acting skinny, I eat less and keep moving throughout my day. I also have better posture when I think skinny.

6. Exercise! Need I say more. By now I must come to grips with reality. Exercise WILL help me. So I know that I could have lost more, and I could have done better. I only exercised 1 day out of the whole 1st month of the competition, and I managed to lose 14.6 pounds (must have been a killer work out j/k). So I know I could have done better. I could have lost more. I NEED TO EXERCISE.

Well, I wanted to share somethings I have learned. I am taking what I have learned, picking up and applying it to this month. I truly am proud of the loss that I have accomplished, and it gives me all the more drive to push forward.