When the Courier‘s newsroom and graphics folks aren’t talking about their favorite subjects of kids, cooking and eating, the conversation oftentimes turns to healthy living and/or weight loss.
So it was no surprise to me when Staff Writer Amy Kotlarz suggested that we participate in this year’s "Eat Well. Live Well." corporate challenge sponsored by Wegmans.
Now, mind you, I’ve packed on the pounds quite a bit as I’ve gotten older, and having two children in my mid-30s didn’t help matters any. And to be honest, I’m just sick of being overweight and out of shape. But I also need to be motivated to do something about it, so I figured participating in this challenge and having my teammates depending on my progress would do the trick.
The eight-week challenge is quite simple: Choose how many steps you want to walk per day (minimum is 7,000) and how many cups of fruits and veggies you plan to consume per day (minimum of four). I chose the minimum numbers, and I track my daily progress on the Eat Well. Live Well. website.
Even though the challenge didn’t officially start until April 22, at the beginning of that month I dusted off my pedometer and started eating better, walking more and working out on my treadmill. And although I don’t always get in all my steps and sometimes fall short in the eating fruits and veggies department, I’m exercising more and eating better than I have in years. And I’ve already seen results — in the way I feel, in the way my body looks and in the way the number on the scale is going down.
And I’m hoping that at the end of eight weeks, there’s going to be a whole lot less of me to love.
Salad Day at the Courier office.
Jennifer’s "Eat Well. Live Well." BEFORE shots. Stay tuned for the AFTER results in a follow-up post in July!
The pedometer keeping track of her steps along the way!
