I have six, yes, SIX days left on my 30 Day Shred Challenge. I had hoped that I would see this thing to completion, but I was so confident at the beginning that I was 99.9% sure that I would succeed this time around.

That definitely doesn't mean that I'm 100% perfect with eating well. In fact, on day 23 of the Shred challenge, I indulged far too much. Though I was in carb heaven while eating, the end result was less than stellar.

For one, the increased carb intake affected my workout greatly. I felt bloated and H-E-A-V-Y which is pretty out of the ordinary. I've moved on from Atkins and back to calorie counting and moderation. Don't forget that I'm a diabetic lady, so I'm still watching and limiting my carbs. My doctor told me that I should eat no more than 120 grams per day. I shoot for 100 grams. Some days I'm closer to 120. I try to eat all of my bread-y, grain-y carbs in the daytime. For dinner, I really try to limit them to only natural carbohydrates from vegetables. My dinners look like Atkins induction meals look. This has been working out well for me! After indulging myself all day at every meal with carbs and zero fruits and veggies, my workout really suffered. I couldn't jump very high, I couldn't plank very well, heck, I couldn't even do butt kicks which are my favorite thing! Additionally, I became flatulent (TMI? sorry!). I've definitely noticed a trend. When I'm eating lower carb and whole fruits and vegetables, I don't feel that constant pressure. When I do, well, it's not too pretty.

My day 24 workout (2/29, happy leap day!) was a complete turnaround from the night before. I fueled my body all day with whole foods, limiting carbs to 100 grams and making sure I got in my veggies and water. When I worked out, I was able to work harder, harder than I ever have before. I floated off of the ground when we were supposed to jump, I willingly planked and push upped and scissor crunched. Jumping lunges? Pretty easy! Mountain climbers? Well, I still need to work on those, but they were much easier than the night before.

Fueling your body with healthy, whole foods is key. There is no need for me to eat useless junk food any longer. This is just one of the lessons I've learned since December. I'm ready and willing to learn more as I run along this path to great health!

Also, you guys, I have guns! Whaaaaaaat?! This is a very exciting development!

We're heading to my parents' house this weekend which is eight hours away. I'm packing healthy snacks for the road since Rob and me are both into snacking on a road trip. I'm pre-portioning out everything I eat so I know exactly how much food (calories, carbs, etc)  is going into my body. I know it's going to be a challenge to complete my last few days of the Shred while I'm there, but I have every confidence that I can get it done!

I hope you all have a great weekend. I'll pop in sometime this weekend to let you know how I'm doing and to share my Shred notebook photos. I'm so, so glad I started taking those because they are a great way to look back and reflect on my hard work.