What I Learned from the First-Half of the Last 90 Days Challenge
I made a commitment to working out every day, drinking half my bodyweight in ounces of water, and giving up a food group I know was bad for me for 90 days. Here’s my story halfway through the challenge.
We’re officially halfway through Rachel Hollis’ Last 90 Day Challenge, and honestly, it doesn’t feel like a challenge at this point - it feels like routine.
If you haven’t heard of Rachel Hollis, stop what you’re doing. Download her audio-book and let her older sister mentorship give you a sweet kick in the pants to help you start believing a different narrative about your life.
Her book, Girl Wash Your Face has been instrumental for me as a mom and as a business owner. If you feel stuck in life, discouraged about your circumstances, if you have patterns of bad relationships or are so busy trying to please everyone, I highly recommend.
Rachel’s (Yep. First-name basis. We’re basically besties) challenge goes like this - for the last 90 days complete this checklist every. single. day:
-Exercise for 30 minutes
-Write down 10 things you’re thankful for
-Drink half your body weight in ounces of water
-Wake up an hour early and use that time to focus on your goal
-Give up one food item you know is bad for you
The idea is to let the last 90 days of the year leading up to Jan. 1 be a springboard to launch you into a healthier and more mindful lifestyle.
In doing this challenge, I learned something about my negative self-talk that I didn’t realize I struggled with. For so long, I didn’t think I had a problem with feeling capable or hesitant to start something new.
I’ve always been a head-first sort of person. Leap and the net will appear. No fear. No doubt.
But a lie started creeping into my thoughts around the start of November:
Sure. You can do it now. But you can’t keep this up.
Ouch.
It shouldn’t have come as a surprise, really. My computer is full of incomplete manuscripts. My bathroom scale shows 15 pounds of baby weight that I just can’t seem to lose. There are books on my shelf I started reading and haven’t gotten around to finishing.
Once, I even sprained my ankle on the tenth mile of training for my second half-marathon.
You get the idea.
I’m a great starter. Sustaining is where I come into problems. The excitement wears off and the enthusiasm I need to carry something through the sluggy parts. And I confess that sometimes knowing that I’m not going to finish a project keeps me from pursuing the big stuff I’ve always wanted to do.
I haven’t executed this challenge perfectly. There have been a few days where I’ve forgotten to write down my list of thankfulness. I almost never get up an hour early. I broke my “no gummy candy” rule a few times close to Halloween.
But I think the idea is to get back up when you fall short. It’s to carry on even when you’re sure you’re going to fail at some point.
So cheers, pals. Cheers to starting every day strong. And here’s to the last 45 days (or so) until 2019!