The second week seemed easier than the first.  I think it’s becoming habit to reach for fruit and most of the time I don’t even consider cooked food an option.  I never dreamed that fruit could taste this good.  I find myself getting excited when I bite into a crunchy, juicy, sweet apple.  It’s like dessert to me.  I’m getting more adventurous about trying new raw foods but I am not willing to force feed myself anything that I don’t like (been there, done that for years on every diet imaginable).  I’m even considering making the switch indefinitely at the end of these 30 days.  Yes, that’s how good I feel eating this way.

I’m still amazed at the post-workout recovery time.  If I’m sore at all, it’s very minor and doesn’t last long at all.  During the workouts I don’t get burning in my muscles, they just get tired.  The benefit of this is being able to push further because I’m not hurting.  Probably even more amazing is how well my foot is doing.  I’ve been dealing with Plantar fasciitis for a few months now.  I think it is almost completely healed.  I still have some discomfort at the end of the day and in the mornings when I wake, but there have been days when I couldn’t walk on it at all, so this is a vast improvement.

I have allergies and, although they have significantly improved since moving to Colorado, I would still have some congestion/pressure from time to time.  I noticed this week that I rarely breathe through my mouth now, it’s all through the nose.  This is especially true when I sleep.  Another thing to note, someone in my family (if not several someones) is usually sick between Thanksgiving and New Years.  Not this year.  Everyone is quite well.

Most of the day I am bright-eyed.  I no longer have that “afternoon crash” feeling.  It seems like I have more of a “glad heart” about doing household stuff that I typically put off.  It’s amazing what a bit of energy will do for your work ethic.

I did have a moody outburst this week.  The “be ugly” monster was after me in more ways than one so it was certainly a valid (although still sinful) response.  Now that I know this was PMS week, it makes even more sense.  I’m so glad I cast that on the Lord, it was all just too much at once.  As of this morning, day 28 of my cycle, it is behaving normally (girls, you know what that means).   I did notice very minor breakouts on my face yesterday but nothing compared to what I usually have just before the period shows up.  I can tell that I’m a little bloated this morning, which makes today’s numbers all the more significant to me.  Cramps are here.  I have no idea what I can do about that (time for a google search).  Advil is usually my companion during this time but… that’s not raw or natural.

Now for the numbers. This week, I lost 2.6 pounds and 2.9 inches off my chest, waist, hips, right thigh and right upper arm (yes, my arm shrunk a little!).  Almost an inch of that was just off my waist.  So, for the first two weeks of this challenge I’ve lost 7.4 pounds and 6.6 inches.  My averages were very close to last week.  I was hoping for a higher calorie count but maybe I can take that up a notch for week three.

Calories: 1,828.8
Carbs: 88.3%
Protein: 5.1%
Fat: 6.6%
Fiber: 56.4 g

This next week will be more of a challenge as we will no longer be on our holiday schedule.  Early, early mornings, lessons and some activities will resume.  I’ll have to plan ahead a little bit more.  “With God I will gain the victory!”

I can’t believe it’s been two weeks already!  Thank you, Lord for the strength to press on toward the prize 🙂  And thank you to those who are following along on this journey.  You guys keep me accountable when no one is watching.