Nia Peters, December 2021

Challenge Description: The goal is to engage in 1-hour weight lifting session on weekdays

Motivation: Adding to my cardio workout. Toning, balance, and strength training. Overall I’m just trying to engage in healthier habits. I know cardio helps my heart so now it’s time for me to give me limbs and muscles some love.

Expectations: B+

Outcome: So using the ActiveTrax app from the YMCA, I woke up everyday at 4:30am and lifted weights. No cardio, just weights. I’m a Zumba instructor so I continued to teach on Tuesday and Thursday, but Monday – Friday I was in the gym. I like the ActiveTrax program because it works different areas of the body each day including abs everyday. It also corresponds to the numbers on the machines in the YMCA so I don’t spend a lot of time figuring out where things are (great for novices starting our in the gym). Finally it shows videos of how to do the exercises properly. I can track long-term progress by logging into the website. The downside is I have to be proactive and challenge myself (which is more of a reflection on me rather than the app). If I start to feel the weights are too light or the workout is too easy I have to increase the weights myself and log it. To my understanding the app will then adjust accordingly. This way I avoid plateauing which I have been known to do if not careful.

I didn’t always feel like getting up at 4:30am, but I pushed myself and consistently felt good after every workout. I was so energized that I made morning smoothies and read before the rest of the house woke up. It really gave me back a lot of my day. I give myself a B+ because I missed a few days because of holiday travel, but I still did pretty well.

Next Steps: I’m going to continue! I enjoyed this month’s challenge and I want to see where this journey leads me. I’ll continue to explore other times, but the morning is usually my best time. Like I said the major downside was that struggle to get up that early in the morning and I admit I would burn out earlier in the day and need an afternoon nap. Other than that the benefits far outweigh the cons, including morning energy in the morning, productive morning activities including smoothie making and getting my daughters ready for school. I also feel in a much better mood on the days I have a morning workout.

Nia Peters, November 2021

Challenge Description: The goal of this challenge is to adhere to a vegan diet for 30-days.

Motivation: I haven’t written my motivation in previous posts, but I wanted to add it here. There were two things that motivated me to try this challenge. I follow the social media influencer Tabitha Brown. I would check out some of her videos. They made me laugh and smile and sometimes brought me a sense of peace. I later purchased her book Feeding the Soul (which I highly recommend) and she mentioned she was not only motivated to try a 30-day vegan challenge because of a health scare, but also after watching the movie What the Health on Netflix.

I admit I’m sensitive to propaganda and usually see a lot of movies like What the Health as propaganda. Just because I define them as such, doesn’t mean there isn’t a useful message. Most of things we consume are propaganda and are there to make you feel strongly about something in order for you to act a particular way. This isn’t good or bad, it just is. It’s what you do with these messages that makes that difference. I know propaganda has a negative connotation, but here I’m just acknowledging that this film was trying to send a message and hell, it did a good job. The image that sticks in my mind is that of the dead pigs and the notion that they grind them up and feed them to the pigs we eat. It was gross enough to motivate this challenge.

Not sure if I will remain a vegan forever, but with Tabitha’s meal ideas to try along with that horrible image of dead pigs imbedded in my brain for awhile, count me a vegan this month.

Expectations: I expect these next few 30-days to be pretty challenging. At the end of the month we will be traveling down South for the celebration of my aunt’s birthday and retirement. I know there will plenty of tempting treats there. I admit, food + family = comfort so I’ll see how well I fare this month. Wish me luck!

Grade: A+

Outcome: I did it! First let me commend myself for seeing a challenge through ’til the end. Hurray! I ate vegan for the entire month even through Thanksgiving. The hack there was traveling on Thanksgiving day. That worked to my advantage. Honestly this challenge was not as hard as I thought and it came with a lot of lessons.

1. I can do without “meat substitutes.” Things like vegan cheese, source cream, yogurt, etc are unnecessary and honestly I did not enjoy them. Some vegan subs were fine such as butter, mayonnaise, and impossible meat. Otherwise I was comfortable just eating fruits, veggies, nuts, and grain. Specifically I just eat a lot of foods that are already vegan i.e. India, Thai, Mediterranean, Chinese, Mexican, Ethiopia, etc. Without adding meat these foods are amazing!
2. A regular day was as followed:
   1. Fruit or fruit smoothie in the morning…so yes I engaged in the Only Eat Fruit in the Morning Challenge this morning.
   2. Lunch I did a varied of things, with my favorites being:
      1. hummus, pita bread, and sliced veggies
      2. guacamole and chips
      3. avocado with chili lime seasoning and tofu scramble.
   3. For snacks I munched on cashews or popcorn with avacado oil or eat fruit.
   4. For dinner at home I made things like
      1. vegan spaghetti or chili with impossible burger (my family couldn’t tell the difference and enjoyed it)
      2. vegan pad thai
      3. falafel and tahini sauce (this was not a hit with the family, but I loved it)
      4. Traditional dinner in our house with a meat, carb, and veggie where I only eat the card and veggies.
3. I found a few restaurants with dishes I am absolutely in love with. I live in Dayton, OH so places like Butter Cafe have an excellent tofu scramble and vegan chocolate cake. The Cheesebase Factory has a lovely cauliflower taco and avocado egg rolls. Finally The Trolly Stop has an absolutely amazing portobello mushroom sandwich. If you are ever in Dayton I highly recommend these restaurants and dishes

I gave myself an A+ because I handled this challenge like an absolute boss! I also did two other failed challenges this month: the Workout 1-hour Per Day 5 Days a Week Challenge and the Only Eat Fruit in the Morning Challenge.

I lost weight, gained energy, and feel great,! Full disclosure, some days were a lot harder than others. Look I’ll level with you. I grew up eating meat, eating unhealthy, and associating food with love. Eating vegan for month although offering rewards also took a toll on my me physically and emotionally. I just want to paint a wholistic few of the journey.

1. I was gassy for the 1st 2 weeks. I called this my detox period. Anytime you do drastic changes in the way you eat, you body may go through some uncomfortable changes. Mine was gassiness. I embraced that I was in a detox and just pushed through it
2. I associate food with love and not being able to share in the foods loved by my family was difficult. I found it helpful not claim that I was vegan or doing a vegan challenge, but just eat what I could and when someone asked me about me plate, I would just say “I ate earlier.”
3. If I did not pack a snack bag I was in trouble! I learned this early on in the challenge. When I am hungry, I am more tempted to just give in and eat what is available. With a snack bag if I was every anywhere were vegan options were not available, I would just eat a snack before or after to curb my appetite.

Next Steps: I’m going to continue! I enjoyed this month’s challenge and I want to see where this journey leads me. Look I never thought in million years I would participate in a vegan diet, but I’m going to see if I can do this next month along with the other previous challenges. Although next month I will have a different challenge, I like the concept of habit building. Let’s keep that trend going.