"The Spreadsheet"

Last summer I realized I needed some lessons in a healthy lifestyle. I was at a point where I felt like all areas of life were unhealthy. I knew it would be a long process to journey back to health, probably one that continues through-out life.

I decided that the first task I was going to tackle was the "physical" aspect. It seems to be the most tangible (compared to emotional and spiritual).

One of the blogs I follow is Colourful Palate. My friend, Charissa, is a huge inspiration in many areas. I appreciate her love for life, her desire for healthy living, and her love for Jesus. Back in July she had a "Smoothie Challenge" in which she challenged us to have a smoothie a day. We had to document what we had each, and she tracked our "points". This was of course to encourage a healthy lifestyle, but also a side goal was to loose 5 vanity pounds. :)

This made me smile, and I shared it with my other blogging buddy, Jocelyn. We started to brain-storm some ways we could loose our vanity pounds, but most of all, spur each other on in living a healthy lifestyle.

Thus, "the spreadsheet" was born. If you're friends with me on Facebook, you will have heard of the spreadsheet. Everything I do or don't do seems to relate back to the spreadsheet. Being an office woman, any time I can create a fantastic spreadsheet I do a little happy dance, so that's exactly what happened...

It's all about the friendly competition. We track our daily activities, and the spreadsheet (with some fantasticlly awesome formulas) tracks our weekly totals, and then each monthly total. That's the ultimate "winner" so to speak. It is all in fun, but someone else knowing my every day movements spurs me on! Each day we track:

~ Excerise (walking, running, ringette, hiking, etc)

~ Work outs (sit-ups, push-ups, crunches, planks, etc)

~ Treat Eating (Dessert and Starbucks!)

~ Healthy Eating (Fruits and Veggies)

~ Water Intake (8 cups/day)

Our vanity pounds have indeed shed themselves, but more importantly, we do truly lead a healthier lifestyle. We're conscious of what we eat, and of the exercise we do - or don't do. We've had another friend join us as extra inspiration (she's killing me this month! Gah!).

It's all apart of the process. The long process of building a healthier me. Thankful for Jocelyn and Meghan who daily inspire me to keep doing my sit-ups. Thankful that HE gives me the strength and energy to keep going.