Two and a half weeks to go. As noted when I posted In the Middle, I sort of expected to hit a "good grief when will it end" point a few weeks ago. Honestly, until this week I was feeling (read this next part with uncharacteristic and annoying perkiness): Strong! Excited! Ready for More! I could do the Whole Life Challenge FOREVER!
But damn. This week. This week I hit a wall. THE WALL.
Preparing for the Hail Run. I'm wearing 4 base layers under that jacket...
I'm on Spring Break (kind of -- too many work projects to actually take a break, but I can sleep a little later and take a run mid-day if I want). But this Spring Break bears no signs of spring. Not here, not anywhere. Most of the US has been dumped on by Winter Storm Asshole, and my annual late-March bout with I-Have-Had-Enough-Effing-Winter has hit with a vengeance. My skin tone has reached what I refer to as a "do you need a transfusion?" shade of pale, and I'm so stir-crazy that I went running outside yesterday in hail shower on a 34-degree day and kinda have a sore throat now. I'm sure everyone else is feeling the same way.
Unfortunately for my WLC food-related commitments, cabin-fever grumpiness means I want comfort food. I tried to stick to compliant comfort food, downed almost an entire batch of almond flour banana and date muffins in a day and a half, but that's not ice cream. And it's not a cookie. And it's not pizza.
So this has been a one-cheat-per-day week so far. And there was pizza. There was a cookie. There was a frozen yogurt smoothie. Tomorrow I'm going to The Greenhouse Tavern with friends and I totally plan to have Gravy Frites (aka: poutine) and a Basil Hayden's manhattan. I will have no regrets.
Until I have regrets.
I know myself well enough to give my "Up Yours, Winter" tantrum a little time to have its way because I'll only dig into it a little further if I try to scold myself for being a whiny weakling. I am keeping up with the WLC exercise and Lifestyle challenges and not berating myself for one food-cheat per day this week, because it has made it easier to stay mostly on track (other than the one non-compliant item, I've been entirely compliant. I'm not completely, or even mostly, derailed!) and the cheats are not huge, so I don't feel negative effects from over-indulging in grains and cheese and sugar.
But I know, come Saturday (my planned "enough with the self-pity" day - I'll shake myself out of the funk somehow and hit the rest button on the WLC), I'm going to look back on this week and think "Nadia, you idiot. Was any of that necessary?"
I actually haven't decided yet if it's necessary or not. I sort of feel like the one cheat per day is keeping a monster at bay. The "DAMMIT, SUN, WHERE ARE YOU" monster that lives in us all and is threatening to engulf this one small person in more gloom than is normal, even for My-Personal-Style-Is-Early-Edward-Gorey me.
So there it is. The confession post. I've let myself cheat a little and openly plan a little more cheating for the next couple of days. Guilt post will possibly follow. Or not. I might just be really okay with all this. In the meantime, if anyone has advice about surviving this sort of thing sans french fries, please share. I'm seriously open to suggestions, because I truly want - and believe I can have - my WLC enthusiasm back.
Meditation is not for everyone. Specifically, meditation is probably not for me as a regular, daily practice. Is there a meditative practice called "Meditation for the Fidgety"? The WLC lifestyle challenge for this week and next is to practice mindfulness for 10 minutes each day. I should note this doesn't necessarily mean meditation, although apparently it's "all the rage" these days. The WLC folks state it simply means being absolutely present in whatever you practice for those ten minutes. Journaling, walking (not for fitness or to go somewhere, but just to walk), anything that focuses your mind completely on just the thing you're doing in the moment you're doing it. They DID note that yoga doesn't count for this - although there are meditative yoga practices that I think fit the bill for mindful meditation, I suppose they don't want people to do ONLY yoga for two weeks since it also counts as the daily exercise and stretching requirement. S'okay. I like a more athletic than meditative yoga practice anyway, so I won't let that be a sticking point for accepting this challenge.
Despite having the Take-a-Walk option, I made a commitment to use the WLC as an opportunity to step outside my comfort zones, so I thought I should at least try meditation. I went into this with no expectations for successful outcome, as I've always sort of believed the ability to meditate must be a super power.
Background on that theory: there is a list of things I've tried and failed with a consistent degree of suck, things a functioning adult should be able to accomplish, resulting in the conclusion that the people who do these things with ease have super powers. The list includes (but is not limited to):
Walking gracefully in high heels.
Making a soufflé.
Gardening.
Folding fitted sheets (the elastic sides, what the eff.)
Calculus.
Ice skating backwards.
Being absolutely still without sedatives.
I expected to try meditation and quickly abandon it for the "take a walk" option. I figured my own disinclination to be still, coupled with my surroundings, would make failure a sure thing. I mean, I'm trying to meditate at home. Home is my haven, where there is a husband and some teenagers and a messy [insert any room in the house] and a meal to prepare and homework to check on and and and... a day to wrap up so I can get into bed with a book and actively engage in Not Sleep (see previous lifestyle challenge description). So, home is my haven but home is distracting (pleasantly so, aside from the ever-present messiness). And the distractions are hard to shut off to be in my own head.
But hard is not impossible, and I couldn't relegate meditation to the list of Not-My-Super-Power until I gave it a shot. Here is what I've discovered:
Probably the closest I come to meditative stillness is when I'm sitting on a Laurentian beach with a cup of coffee.
I'm not a stillness kind of girl. My thoughts easily wander, most often to my kids or a list of unfinished tasks. As I sat still, trying to focus entirely on my breath and stillness, I found myself having to constantly redirect. It was the first time I've ever been distressed by what I usually think of as my enviable ability to multi-task. Honestly, when I'm having a conversation or am otherwise engaged in an activity with another person (out to dinner, etc.), I'm mentally in several other places. I am not fully focused and present in that conversation or activity. The same holds true really for anything I'm doing. I'm not just running, I'm running while planning a work project. I'm not just working, I'm working while mentally organizing my family's week. I am wholeheartedly not fully present most of the time. Which kinda sucks. I know I'm not the only person out there guilty of this, it's sadly the norm (thank you, smartphones) but it still sucks. If I'm engaged in a conversation with you, you deserve my full attention. I deserve yours.
During a wedding I attended last year, my father (one of the priests officiating) spoke after the service to those gathered and referenced the Zulu greeting "Sawubona" meaning "I see you." The reply to this greeting is "Ngikhona" meaning "I am here." The greeting and response carry huge meaning in their simple words. By saying "I see you," you convey that you recognize one another's whole existence, your humanity and dignity, and that you respect and are grateful for all that you see in that person. By answering with "I am here," you affirm that you have been seen and understand that your personal dignity is recognized. The exchange is an acknowledgement of the responsibility each of us has to respect and care for one another.
It stayed with me, this wedding speech, in part because my Pops sure can deliver a few moving words (comes with the preacher territory, I suppose), but also I think because it was such a simple but eloquently stated summation of something that so few of us are good at. And it comes to me every time I practice yoga, when I can honestly say I am at my most "present." It comes to me every time I'm missing a loved one, or when I'm trying to really understand something my children are experiencing or when I'm trying to make myself understood. Or when I experience loss and wonder if that person knew how very much they were valued. And it surfaced again while I've spent time trying to meditate this week. And so I found the focus and purpose of my personal "mindfulness challenge."
I'll say again that daily meditation is probably not my thing - maybe that's a super power I'll acquire someday, and to that end I will still try it every few days - but I will definitely carry the practice of mindfulness beyond these two weeks. While I may choose a walk over seated meditation (know your limits, Nadia, know your limits), I'll try to use that time to be present in that moment and observe my thoughts in that moment, and hopefully then bring an improved "presence" to moments of active engagement with others. If I can get anything positive out of this Lifestyle challenge, it will be knowing that you - family, friends, readers - can believe I mean it, or that I'm at least trying to mean it, when I say "I see you. I am here."
p.s.
My "mindfulness music" this week has been the work of Arvo Pärt, whose compositions I had been - like many - only peripherally aware of but whose career I knew was significantly important and influential (many of the rock/pop/punk/indie musicians I like cite Pärt as an influence). The man and his work are currently the subject of an intense project my cousins are involved in, so I wanted to give it some more focused attention.
The man is a genius.
This is one of Pärt's most popular works - you've probably heard it in a film score here and there. It was composed in response to the passing of a composer who Pärt admired deeply but never had the chance to meet. It is dedicated here to the memory of Rick's friend Jason Molina, another musical soul, who probably never knew how many people saw him and knew he was here.
So, four weeks down, four to go. Here at mid-challenge, I finally get why it's an 8-week journey. When Rick did the Whole Life Challenge last fall, I kept thinking "oh my hell this is ENDLESS why isn't it just 30 days like all other diet-related challenges I miss potatoes and pasta and if I have to eat one more compliant meal or even hear the word "compliant" again I'm going to scream because it's not me who signed up for this it's my lucky-to-still-be-alive husband who is the madman around here when will this just be OVER." Yes, that run-on punctuation-free sentence was on a loop in my head for two months. It seemed like overkill, eight weeks.
But here I am, four weeks in, and I'm definitely not ready for the challenge to be over. I'm still learning. I'm still figuring out meal and snack choices that can become a lasting part of my family's diet. I'm still getting into the groove of daily stretching and just beginning to notice the benefits. 30 days would not have been enough for the potential positive impact of the WLC to be realized in the long-term.
A recently-noticed positive change: the WLC requires at least 10 minutes of exercise daily. Prior to beginning the challenge, I did take a day off here and there, if I pushed it too far with a run the day before, if I got a little carried away with back bends in yoga, or if I just had no time (a late work meeting or another commitment that would mean a 10 pm workout - I have a hard enough time making myself sleep without having to come down from a late-night workout). So to stay within the rules I've been repeating the 12-minute prelim workout - burpees, sit-ups and squats - on those days that time has run short or I just don't have a run in me. It's easily done in my bedroom, I can always find 12 minutes, and it's actually a great workout. My burpee form and efficiency has improved, and although I still hold that sit-ups really really suck beyond belief, I have noticed in my yoga practice that I can more easily hold Navasana (boat pose) for longer periods. Once again, the WLC has advanced my yoga practice!
So, as I've documented - there have been ups and downs and many lessons that will stay with me. I'm looking forward to the lessons yet to come. I'm in the middle of learning another one now, as the challenge in the "Lifestyle" category has changed from 7 hours of sleep to "Practicing Mindfulness" for 10 minutes a day. A tough one for me... blog post to come soon.
This is beauty.
I will close with a photo of my mid-challenge non-compliant St. Patrick's Day ice cream binge at Mitchell's. A scoop of Guinness Stout and Dark Chocolate on top of a scoop of Jameson's Irish Whiskey with Buttermilk Toffee. It. Was. Awesome. I felt horrible the next day, and should have followed the lesson learned during wedding weekend (see last blog post) - have a few bites instead of two scoops that were large enough to add up to a pint of ice cream. But it was AWESOME. And so it goes - fall and get back up, fall and get back up...
The Wedding. Family, crowns, ornate Russian church and love.
My cousin got married last weekend, and my fabulously huge family gathered in Washington DC for the festivities. The weekend was gorgeous and celebratory and moving and not even a little bit WLC-compliant. I have to confess that I blew my first big test of steering the WLC course while dining out and traveling.
My first impulse when we climbed into the car on Saturday was to say "Maintaining the challenge this weekend will be impossible. IMPOSSIBLE, so why even try?" So I didn't try. Off the wagon - completely - Saturday through Monday.
But of course it wouldn't have been impossible. It wouldn't have even been hard. The truth is, I just didn't feel like dealing with it. I didn't want to ask for a list of ingredients or "just eat salad" -such a huge lie to tell myself that I would have had to spend the weekend eating salad - or just have one drink at the wedding (okay, the cocktail points I would happily lose without guilt. Absinthe and tequila and agave...sigh). But people do this sort of thing all the time, right? People with allergies, or religious dietary restrictions, or people who maintain a vegetarian or vegan diet - they ask about ingredients all the time, they are carefully selective and observant about what they put in their mouths ALL THE TIME. But me? Faced with one weekend during which I wasn't in charge of the grocery shopping and I gave up.
Zeke's in DC. So, so good.
As you can see, I'm disappointed in myself for not taking advantage of a learning opportunity. After all, this is the WHOLE Life Challenge. Occasional family celebrations and more-than-occasional meals in restaurants are a part of everyone's WHOLE life. Why wouldn't I ask questions or take a minute to think about a meal decision when what's at stake is my overall health, my commitment to an effort to make a meaningful and lasting change in how I view food and the role it plays in my life and my family's lives? I mean, sure, I didn't have any allergic reactions to the pasta, bread, cheese and sugar I indulged in this weekend... but I have to admit I kinda feel like shit this week. My energy plummeted, I'm a little cranky, I feel mildly unfocused... was this worth it? The restaurants had non-pasta options, and I could have easily asked about sugar content in those items. The wedding feast had plenty of compliant offerings. Couldn't I have been happy with salmon and salad and avoided the bread basket? Maybe a couple of bites of wedding cake (bad luck to entirely skip the wedding cake) instead of a whole piece? And the effing amazing Mexican chocolate and ancho chile donut from Zeke's didn't need to happen TWICE. Maybe one donut shared with Rick would have been sufficient.
All that said, I realize that I can't beat myself up too much. The fact is, I am not a person who has to worry about life-threatening allergies or other restrictions, and one weekend of over-indulgence has never hurt me before. I know I can enjoy to excess on a very occasional basis and recover quickly, and everyone should be able to take a break now and then. And of course, part of the dilemma in taking WLC rules on the road is not wanting to appear rude. Who dares to question a chef in a fabulously-reviewed DC restaurant about the sugar content of his recipes? Who would refuse the chocolate cake so adorably sliced by the bride and groom?
Still... I really, really don't like how I feel this week. Three days of lazy = losing too many of the positive gains from three weeks of the WLC, and it was ridiculously avoidable. Recovery from excessive indulgence is harder and takes longer now that I am - well - let's just say "not a kid anymore." Perhaps my occasional excesses need to be less excessive.
One husband + one brother + that building = a morning of innuendo.
And there, I suppose, is the lesson from the weekend away. Have one bite, share one donut, choose the chicken instead of the gnocchi. Maybe I don't need ask if there's a sugar glaze on the chicken I'm not comfortable being that obnoxious (our friends have our permission to punch us in our noses if Rick and I ever become this couple), but still - pick the chicken instead of the gnocchi. Enjoy the company, the family camaraderie, the travel to a fun city, the dumb jokes about the Washington Monument and come home feeling satisfied but healthy.
(Dudes, seriously though - go to Zekes. Share the donut, but go.)
First, let me begin by noting that I still miss cheese. So much. Now on to our regularly scheduled programming.
How many hours of sleep do you average on a weeknight? Do you feel like it's enough? I'm guessing nobody ever thinks they get enough sleep, and they're probably right.
The second WLC Two-Week Lifestyle Challenge is to get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period. (The first was to drink Lake Erie every day. Slight exaggeration, but that's what it felt like...). So, we don't have to do the whole 7 hours at night, but we need to make up the difference with a nap before WLC point-logging closes at 9 pm.
In theory, I like this challenge, because who doesn't love sleep? I certainly like it better than the water challenge. While I understand the point of emphasizing hydration - which, like sleep, is something people don't do enough of - I found the amount of water to be consumed was annoying. I don't like feeling like I have to pee in the middle of a yoga class. If I can't get through an hour workout without being very aware of my bladder, then it's just way too much water.
Sometimes, Cat On Head is the reason I don't sleep.
So, yay sleep! BUT. Something awesome always has a "but." Seven hours of sleep for a busy working mother - and probably for most people - is actually pretty hard to accomplish. Example: we got home from a rock show at about half past midnight on Monday (...what? All good parents let their kids lose sleep on a school night to see rock shows. There are many kinds of learning in life...). My time between leaving work and leaving for the show was barely enough to get a meal into everyone, so I stayed up a little longer when we got home to throw in the load of laundry that I didn't get to over the weekend. I get up every morning at 6, so that night was a five-hour sleep night. I didn't make up those two hours on Tuesday before 9, because after work there was kid-shuttling for band practice, a necessary stop at the grocery, more laundry, dinner, cleaning the kitchen, more laundry and then it was almost 9 pm and I had to log my points. No two hour nap. As lovely as the idea of a nap seems, it's just not a possibility for me on most days.
Even without a rock show, 5 hours is often a typical night of sleep for me. Less if my mind is racing. Busy mothers? Can you relate? How often is 2 am the time that you lie awake making lists of things that need doing the next day? Composing a work email in your head that has to be sent as soon as you log in? Wondering if your son is actually prepared for his AP tests or just says he is so you don't bother him about it? Dissecting your daughter's description of a recent social interaction? Trying to decide what's for dinner the next day and wondering if you have the ingredients to make it? Feeling irritated that the next season of Downton Abbey doesn't start for months and months? (Okay, I don't really lose sleep over that last one, but COME ON.)
The Dowager Countess, just because.
My guess is she doesn't sleep much.
Too many lives to micro-manage.
I love her.
Just to be clear - I will always, ALWAYS prioritize a good rock show over a good night's sleep. There are some moments in life when the saying "I'll sleep when I'm dead" feels like the right frame of mind. Some experiences are not to be missed, some chances will never come again.
That said, I do know I should prioritize sleep over some other things... for instance, I don't need to read Sandman comics until 1 a.m. I don't need to check work email "one last time" at midnight (which always leads to working for about an hour), I don't need to stay up late blogging ;-) Honestly, I don't need to do a lot of things that can truly wait until the next day or even for the weekend. And I do realize that a little bit of unreasonable anxiety gets in the way of prioritizing sleep - I can sometimes get completely wigged out over leaving something undone once it occurs to me it needs doing. Silliness.
But the biggest problem is the fact that I love my night owl hours. I love that time at night when there isn't actually anything that needs to be done, when the kids are in bed, the house is in a relative state of order, I know I've taken care of the things I need to be ready for the next day, and the nighttime is all mine. That time feels precious and perfect, and sleeping is the last thing that occurs to me. I know other (most?) people would be all over devoting that time to sleep. And - despite my devotion to Night Owl Life - I know I should, too. Because being a night owl is probably messing me up.
There are many studies emerging about the negative impact that too little sleep has on our minds and on our bodies. This is Sleep Awareness Week, so there happen to be an abundance of related news stories at the moment. The topic was covered in the March issue of Experience Life, a health and fitness magazine published by Lifetime Fitness. The article notes that lack of sleep can lead to high blood pressure, weight gain, vision loss, hearing loss, hair loss, heart disease -- the list goes on. Skimping on sleep doesn't just make you tired. It can actually kill you.
Okay - toning down the drama a little... I don't think I'm so sleep-deprived that I'm risking high blood pressure or heart disease, but I'm not doing myself any favors. It's probably impacting my memory, my overall mood during the day (ok, it's possible that's just Russian grumpiness), my athletic endurance. I would probably notice some dramatic changes with a little more sleep in my life, so I'm going to try. Starting tonight. 7 hours, minimum.
(Maybe. Checking which bands are playing first...)
The Whole Life Challenge has some fairly simple food rules:
No Grains or Starchy Carbohydrates. No wheat, rice, corn, barley, quinoa, white potatoes, soy, bread, pasta, bagels, cereal, pastry, etc. (there are exceptions for vegetarians).
No Sugar or Sweeteners. No white sugar, brown sugar, cane juice, agave syrup, honey, coconut nectar, or any caloric or non-caloric artificial sweetener. Stevia is allowed.
No Dairy. No milk, cheese, yogurt, etc. The only exception to the dairy rule is butter.
No Alcohol, Soda, or Fruit Juice. Wine, spirits and beer will all cost you a point, and so will Coke, Sprite, Mountain Dew (diet or not). No fruit juice, but vegetable juice and fruit puree are OK.
No Artificial Ingredients or Processed Foods.
For this challenge, the WLC folks added the option to modify the prescribed diet if you weren't playing for a prize. (You can win a prize for having the most points at the end of the challenge, a tally of your food points, exercise points, and amount of measurable change in your prelim/ending workout and prelim/ending measurements.) I'm not in this to win any prizes other than improvement in my own overall health and lifestyle, so I decided to make three modifications:
I added Quinoa. It's a seed, not a grain. It's a complete protein, is gluten-free (the primary reason I'm going grain-free is to try a diet free of gluten for 8 weeks, to see what happens), and is versatile enough to add some good variety to what can become a monotonous weekly dinner menu.
I included yogurt. In part because I'm not Paula Deen and I don't think butter is the only acceptable dairy. The main reason, though, is the need for a quick breakfast. While Rick is happy to eat eggs for breakfast every morning, one of my recent discoveries is that I think I might hate eggs (more on that later). Plain greek yogurt is packed with protein, and paired with fresh fruit is a quick-and-easy, delicious and energy-boosting breakfast.
I vote for Mother inthe Saloon.
Instead of zero booze, I opted for the one-drink-per-week option. Rick and I were puzzled/amused by the three WLC drink options: either no alcohol as prescribed, or one drink a week, or one drink a day (wine or spirits, not beer). I suppose there are wine-with-dinner-every-night people out there, but I like my liver to function (unless I'm on vacation... then my liver just needs to buck up a little) so that's not me. Where's the realistic option for a few drinks on a Saturday night? Anyway, as the Anti-Saloon League no longer exists (pity, it seemed like a cheerful group...) and we are not daily drinkers, we went with the one drink per week option. I have tall glasses to use on Saturday nights.
Benefits and Challenges Observed These Two Weeks:
Benefits:
Allergies - I have noticed that the almost constantly present mild congestion I feel due to allergies (outdoor plants in outdoor months, dust during indoor months) has lessened significantly. I'm guessing this is mostly due to removal of gluten, but maybe it's dairy as well. We'll find out when the challenge is over and I consume an entire wheel of brie. The congestion is not entirely eliminated, but the severity has lessened. Any allergy sufferers will know that a drug-free way to alleviate sniffles is awesome. I can't tolerate any allergy meds, so this is a HUGE win.
Energy - while it has been the hardest dietary modification, elimination of sugar is the most important one and has definitely led to an increase in energy. 2:00pm doesn't feel as awful as it used to now that my lunch doesn't include any crash-inducing sugars.
The kids are curious - our kids are not entirely "on board" for the challenge (I'm not brave enough to tell teenagers they can't have pizza for two months) but they are definitely interested in the reasoning behind it. They are asking questions about why certain food items are not allowed, and are genuinely helpful in trying to come up with alternative meal ideas. Anything that can get a couple of teenagers to look closely and carefully at diet choices is a good, good thing.
Challenges:
Snacking. I am a grazer. I used to snack on whatever was handy - popcorn, granola, pretzels, fruit. All are out except fruit, which doesn't satisfy that mid-afternoon "gimme something crunchy" craving. Rick makes a great trail mix of various nuts and raisins, and there are plenty of WLC-compliant fruit-and-raisin bars out there, but I can't bring those to the office as I work in a nut-free school. I feel mildly discriminated against as a nut-tolerant individual. Anyway, snacking so far has been limited to raisins and fresh fruit and kale chips. All good but I'm kinda bored.
SECOND INGREDIENT! SRIRACHA, WHY???
SUGAR. I know I feel better without it and I'm well aware of the evils of sugar. But I really want a box of Girl Scout Cookies. All to myself. The bigger challenge than the craving is the fact that sugar is hidden in more foods than most people know, even those labeled "organic" and "all natural" and even my beloved Sriracha! The logical solution to eliminating sugar is to not purchase anything boxed, canned, packaged in any way and make absolutely everything yourself from scratch. Easy peasy if I had the time, but I am a servantless parent of busy teenagers, with a full-time job, an endlessly messy house, and laundry that seems to breed and multiply. I'm not willing to give up the precious little free time I devote to running and yoga to turn into Ina Garten. So I'm now an obsessive label-reader. I have discovered a few organic brands of common items that have no sugar (new favorite sugar-free hot sauce: Scoville Food Institute Habanero!). I have also discovered that my eyesight is not exactly tiny-print-on-food-labels reading strength any more (aging is delightful. Will a bespectacled Nadia emerge from this challenge?)
A related challenge - Stevia. The only WLC-allowed sweetener turns out to be effing ragweed in disguise. It's from the same family of plants and when I tried it I felt like I had been for a run in the park in mid-May (watery eyes, runny nose, the whole bit). Looking forward to being able to use Agave nectar again.
And finally...EGGS. I always thought I was a big fan of eggs. Omelettes, fried eggs, scrambled eggs - all awesome in my book. I ate eggs frequently, made dinners for my family featuring eggs as the star of the show, and thought "Eggs are compliant! This is going to be so easy!" Turns out, I am only a fan of eggs that are cheese-covered. But the cheese-free WLC has revealed that for this girl, eggs minus cheese = death on a plate. The miracle that is hot sauce helps a little... but for the most part, my friend Eggs and I are drifting apart.
So on we go. 6 more weeks. The fact that the WLC is designed as a game helps with the more challenging aspects of the challenge. Accountability through points and knowing that an online community is watching (as my cousin Eric said, "the observer effect") makes me stick to the food rules. And when I don't stick to the food rules, I feel the support of the full WLC community, chock full of people trying their best and falling down sometimes. Also, the Facebook group I'm a part of is awesomely supportive when it comes to recipe sharing. Rick calls it WLC food porn. Banana, peanut butter, strawberry and almond-milk shakes are actually pretty sexy. Just needs bourbon. (off to find the tall glasses...)
