This week in road blocks...

This is the tenth week in the BetterU challenge.  How's it going, you ask?  I know you want all the gory details, and like a good blogger, I will share them with you.


Today, I stepped on the scale and was pleased to have seen I've lost just about 10 pounds.  This is in addition to the multiple pounds I've gained in muscle-something else that the uber-fancy scale measures.  Granted, it's a fraction of what I need to lose, but I'll take it.


This week presented a fair amount of challenges.  The worst of those challenges-lemon bars and brownies.  Every day this week, a tray of delectable desserts was offered up as lunch fare, and everyday I refused.  Imagine my surprise to find out that it wasn't nearly as painful as one would think.  I've been at this long enough now, that what the coaches threatened to happen actually happened...I lost my taste for the good stuff.  I no longer feel that instantaneous draw to sweets that I used to.  I took a drink of processed orange juice the other day and thought-ugh, what is this?  What is that all about?  I look at white foods with no nutritional value and think-why?  Why would I eat you if you're not disease preventing?  Why would I eat you if you're not nutritionally valuable to me?  Now granted, there are other benefits that I make an exception for, but for the most part, I question everything.


Last week I had a double whammy - two birthdays. For my mother's birthday I ordered the best cake ever.  It's from the cutest bakery in Michigan City and their cake is to die for.  A ripple of raspberry, a ripple of Bavarian cream, in between three layers of light and fluffy cake with the most delicious icing.  Fortunately, my youngest was ill so I wasn't able to go and enjoy it with my family.  Unfortunately, they sent a piece home with my husband.  I took one nibble of a flower, then one nibble of the ribbons, and was done.  That was it.  Today, I actually threw away the piece of cake, sans nibbles.


The other birthday was my now three-year old daughter's.  I made all the food, making an effort to only use low calorie alternatives when possible.  I did allow myself one small piece of cake alongside 1/2 scoop of Edy's light ice cream.  But that was the trade.  I could not justify having two pieces of cake, so I made a choice.  My mom's or my daughter's?  I went with the kid.
So, the last ten weeks (okay, eight-since the first two weeks were really just learning time) I've been working on transforming my family's eating habits. We've been planning meals, and really reducing the amount of times we eat out in a month.   I add a ridiculous amount of vegetables to the food I prepare and try to sneak in whole grains whenever I can.  Honestly, the kids have barely noticed.  My husband...well, he noticed.  But he doesn't complain much, and in fact-he's lost almost twenty pounds.


I'm about three pounds from my BetterU Challenge goal weight.  I'll keep you posted.