It's been a while, SparkFriends!

The past year has been full of mountains and valleys.

MOUNTAIN: Last September, in the middle of a Jamie Eason challenge, I stumbled upon a website that claimed that butter is healthy and should not be avoided. In fact, it claimed that butter and other natural saturated facts can actually aid in weight loss and overall health. Naturally, I was intrigued. I started researching like a mad woman and through my research I came to the conclusion that this idea of thought is right! However, there was so much more to this idea than adding mounds of butter to my plate. It required a major overhaul of both my mind and my pantry. I started learning about "real food" -- food in its most natural state, as God created it. Full fat foods encouraged, I stopped buying anything "low fat" or "fat free" and instead embraced unaltered food. I have learned SO much over the past year, leading to great satisfaction in the area of food. Once I switched to eating 90% organic, unprocessed, real food, my body felt so much better and weight just melted off! In January 2012 I completed a "no sugar challenge" and I dropped from 127 lbs to 119 lbs just by eating lots of healthy saturated fats (real butter, coconut oil, animal fat, and nuts), eating unprocessed, and cutting out sugar. No more headaches, muscle tension, foggy brain, or constant hunger while trying to convince my body I was fine. I felt AMAZING!

I continued to follow this lifestyle until April 2012...

VALLEY: One morning in April I received a frantic phone call from my brother. Mom was on the phone with dad, and she was hysterical. Dad was out of town & an accident had happened. They were on the phone together for 11 precious minutes before my dad passed away. He was 47 years old, leaving behind a loving wife of 28 years and five children, the youngest being ten. My whole world was turned upside down in just a few moments. I am so thankful for a faithful God who loves me and gave me great comfort and strength through this trial. My family is very close, so though this is the most painful trial we have ever endured, we are making it through leaning on each other and relying on the Lord to be our strength. However, grieving quickly zaps all types of energy, not only mental/emotional, but also physical. Some days it was all I could do to make it from the bed to the couch every morning. I certainly did not have the energy to exercise, and for three months many kind friends from church brought us meals that were not exactly healthy, so I ended up gaining about 7 lbs and losing quite a bit of muscle over the summer. It's amazing how good cake and bread taste when your heart is breaking. This fall I have gotten back to eating well, but have still not had motivation to exercise.

CLIMBING: It has taken 7 months to start feeling like I have the energy to try again. I am finally at a point where I am ready to challenge myself physically. But this time is different than the other times, because I am not looking to achieve a certain fitness goal. I don't have a goal weight, a pant size, or a timeline. This time my motivation is HEALTH and ENERGY. I miss the energy I had when I was more fit; not only the energy my body had, but also my mind. It's time to get on track again! I feel like eating healthy is second nature now (although I do enjoy the occasional splurge), so I am ready for a physical challenge. Tomorrow I am joining a local gym. No excuses. Time to strengthen my heart, lungs, muscles, and all of my body!

My healthy eating lifestyle:
- WATER, WATER, WATER!
- NO processed food in my home
- Only real food with real ingredients
- ABSOLUTELY NO SOY or SOY PRODUCTS!!!!!!!
- NO GMOs!!!
- 90%+ organic
- Minimal sugar and only the healthy kind (fruit, honey, stevia, maple syrup, blackstrap molasses, rapadura)
- Limit wheat
- Lots of vegetables, all colors and types
- Lots of GOOD fats (real butter, coconut oil, organic animal fats, full fat yogurt & cheese, avocados, nuts, etc.)
- LOTS of probiotic foods (kombucha, sauerkraut, fermented pickles, full fat yogurt & cheese, etc.)

When I stick to it, these are the things that make my body healthy, strong & beautiful.

I am ready to find me again!