Paleo, Revisited and Why I am Done with the Scale

Hi there, remember me? Yeah, it's been a while since I did more than post pictures and accounts of our wonderful summer vacation adventures. But, school starts in four days (no one in this family is counting down the days) and so the feeling of getting into a groove and having a schedule is starting to settle in. I'm ready for it. I've had a great summer and have thoroughly enjoyed the time spent with my family, but there's something in me that really craves organization/order/routine. I'm also tired of the girls' fighting and arguing and whining. They have actually done great this summer at getting along and playing, but it seems like within the last few days they've either run out of patience with each other or are bored of the doing nothingness of summer and ready for school themselves. So, we are all counting down the days til school starts.

One of the things I'm grateful for about school starting is that we'll actually be home for longer than two or three days at a time. I found it difficult to stick to any kind of workout plan this summer while we were camping to and fro. Sure, I got in some runs and some great hikes but there wasn't a ton of consistency. Add that to the lax stand we took on eating and you've got a fairly discouraged girl here. How lax, you ask? Well, I tried to keep us as close to 80/20 paleo/primal, but there are a few delicacies of camping/summer that we had a really hard time limiting or putting the kabosh on. (Can anyone say s'mores? pancakes? swedish fish? margaritas? crackers? ice cream? buttery popcorn? ) It's no wonder I feel mostly like crud (digestively). The only thing I'm grateful for is that we didn't completely hop back onto the gluten wagon--although we still have a long way to go to get back to "clean".

And so, for that reason I decided to jump right back in with a "Whole 30" challenge. Except I'm going to do it for a little over 60 days. From now until my birthday. And I'm excited! To get back to the basics and feel better will be wonderful. And, I am hoping it helps jump start my "weight loss" again. I haven't weighed myself in quite some time and the last time I did, I hadn't changed one pound. My clothes are still mostly fitting the same (if you can ignore the bloat) so that's good, I guess. But there is still quite a bit more jiggle and flab than I would like to see or feel. I want to be strong and fit, and I just don't feel that way. But I'm not going to weigh myself and I don't have any weight loss goals directly related to the scale, either. In fact, I might never step on a scale again.


Yep. You read that right. I'm no longer going to measure my health or size by the scale. And you shouldn't either. Who cares how much gravity is pulling down on me? I care about how my clothes fit, how I look, how I feel and what I can do. When I see a super buff chick doing pull-ups or handstands, I don't think, "Wow, that lady probably only weighs X amount." No! I say, "That chick is strong, look at her doing those pullups!". For more on ditching the scale and why, check out these very insightful articles posted on EverydayPaleo: Attention Scale Addicts, Part one and Part Two. Part two is especially eye opening! Remember back a while when I did that Jillian workout book? And I didn't lose any weight on the scale but lost inches?  Remembering that just fueled my fire to ditch the scale.

You want to know how I'm going to "measure" my progress? Two (three, actually) ways. The first way is that I'm going to take measurements once a month and keep track in a journal. I may or may not share those with you. (hee hee) The second way is that I'm going to take front, side and back shots of me in my sportsbra/shorts each month. If we're honest with ourselves isn't that were we want to see improvements, anyways? I could care less what the scale says if my stomach lost it's pooch and my muffin top was gone and my arms didn't jiggle, and I think you feel the same way. I don't think I'll be posting those pictures here, but who knows, if my before/after is inspiring, I might! The third way is just in how my clothing fits and how I feel, neither of which are actually measurable, really, and that's fine.

And that leads me to my new goals. Gone is the "lose 20 lbs" goal. I threw it out the window. Now my goals are focused on what I truly want to achieve: to be healthy and strong. Yes, I want to lose my stomach pooch, that's a no brainer, but I felt like I needed something more measurable, and so I settled on some fitness related goals.

• I want to be able to do a pull-up. Unassisted and from a hanging down position. A true-blue pull-up. This is something I've never been able to do, so it's kinda lofty.
• I want to be able to do a hand-stand. Not against the wall, either, and not on my elbows. I've seen the crossfitters do these and it's inspiring. 
• I want to be proficient in the five essential movements as set out in the Primal Blueprint. These include push ups (the real kind, no knees), pull ups, squat (these are the deep ones), shoulder press push up, and  plank (both front and side). (I'm currently following the Primal Blueprint Fitness model)

And that's it. Doesn't look like much, but it'll challenge me for quite a while. And when I reach these, I'll throw in some different ones, like maybe doubleunders, burpees or some other puke-inducing move. It's weird to me to have goals that are not related to a number on the scale or a running distance/time, but I think it's going to be a good change for me. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to share my success with you one of these days!

And so, I guess you could say my family and I are "back on the wagon". We never actually fell completely off it, but it's kind of tough to function when you are hanging half-way off. Now, we are safely sitting in the comfort of middle seat. I probably won't post pictures of all the yummy paleo/primal meals I cook, because let's face it, I'm no food blogger. I write about so much more than just food, but if I find a new recipe that it so delicious I have to share, you can be sure I will. If I can remember to take photos, I might share with you the girls' lunchboxes, too, because our goal is only 1 school bought lunch/week this year. Sound good? Alright, let's do this thing!