I hate to admit it, but by this time last year I had nearly finished off a huge bag of candy from a bulk store by myself. To say I have a sweet tooth is a serious understatement. My freshman year of high school I had a bag of skittles almost every day after lunch. I love dessert, and I don’t think I have ever uttered the words “too sweet” in my life.

With that said, I have not had a single piece of Halloween candy this entire month, and I’m not going to have any. As people bring in bags of candy to work, the candy bowl sits by the door of my house, and millions of children load up on the sweet stuff, I’m going to say no.

It’s not that I don’t like Halloween, but rather I have worked so hard to finally cut back on my sugar intake and I’m not willing to let a single “fun size” package of candy blow my entire 33 grams.

But my “just say no” policy will continue throughout the year because:

1. Candy is not healthy or natural
2. Between the packaging and the incredible amounts of processing, it is incredibly unsustainable and wasteful. Think of all of the small wrappers that will be thrown out in the 48 hours surrounding Halloween alone.
3. Many chocolates are made with child or slave labor in poor working conditions.
4. The food dyes and other additives are chemicals that have been linked to health problems and behavioral issues, not to mention their carcinogenic chemicals.
5. There is no benefit. I may love the taste and enjoy the sugar rush, but heavily concentrated sugar does nothing but damage.

I started training for my half marathon with a nagging foot injury and an irritated shin. Definitely not putting the best foot forward on the entire experience, but one of the benefits of starting with pestering injuries is that I got into the habit of taking care of my poor legs and feet. In addition to foam rolling and stretching religiously, I started to ice bath.

After reading about how ice baths can help improve recovery and help prevent injuries, I decided it would be good to give it a try. But one major thing got in the way. I hate to be cold. I would rather be pouring sweat from being too hot than have to shiver even a little. I get cold so easily that I consider icing an injury on par with torturing someone for information. So the idea of purposefully putting my entire leg, or even part of my leg, into cold water was hard to get over.

To start out, instead of filling a bucket full of ice and a little water, I used straight tap water. Where I live the water comes out at about 65 degrees, which doesn’t sound too bad until you put your warm feet into it, then it’s frigid. I slowly built up to adding a couple handfuls of ice at a time. (And despite what the picture above looks like,) I put in about 4 handfuls in the beginning and add a few more once I get a bit used to it.

Even though I still hate putting my feet in, it’s nice to be able to “ice”  my entire lower legs and feet at the same time. In 15 minutes I’m done and putting on my cozy socks to warm up. To make it more tolerable I also wear multiple layers or wrap myself in a blanket and I try to sit in a warm spot (like in the sun on the patio). When it’s windy I sit on the edge of the tub with my bucket inside of it to make pouring out the water and drying off easy.

It turns out after hobbling through 9 miles, I put up a lot less resistance towards dunking my lower legs into icy water.

At least three days a week I pack up a change of clothes to be ready to go at any moment like superman (only I don’t know where he kept his 2nd outfit…). It is now to the point that without my gym bag I feel like 1. I’m missing something, 2. I never have what I need and 3. My purse just doesn’t have enough room.

Between CrossFit, yoga, and running, I need a wide variety of items. When I buy workout clothes, I always make sure I can wear them for two of the three activities at the least, but the goal is always something that can be used for everything, preferably year round. This not only makes packing easier (it means I can decided right before I leave work if I want to run or go to yoga (or both) for instance), but it also saves me space in my bag.

Before when I was able to get dressed at home, I used a small messenger bag for my gym bag. It fit all the accessories (extra hair band, deodorant, etc.) that make the gym more pleasant without taking up too much unnecessary space. But now that I have to bring an entire head-to-toe wardrobe with me, I had to go for a bigger bag. I opted for a backpack because it fits everything in it well, it’s easy to commute with, and it holds up well while being dragged all over the place.

What’s in my gym bag:

1. Extra hair ties: I have thick, wild hair. There is no way I would be able to get through a workout with my hair down, or even with just one hair band. I keep extras clipped to my backpack with a carabiner for easy access and to keep me from losing them.

2. After workout layer: In the summer I bring a light long sleeve or another shirt to change in to so the ride home is more comfortable. Now that it’s fall I’m starting to need something to keep me warm.

3. A pair of shoes that I can run or do CrossFit in. I know, it’s practically a sin to not do CrossFit in anything that doesn’t say Reebok on the side these days, but I would rather have one pair of shoes that will do just about anything. It’s better for my closet (less to try to shove in there), my wallet, and the environment.

4. Scissors and athletic tape: I currently use stretchy athletic tape to support my wrists (but I’m working on getting some wrist wraps) and to keep my hands from tearing when I do a lot of bar work or pull ups. I hate having to ask for scissors or try to bite my way through the tape, so I keep them in the bag at all times now.

5. My workout journal: I track all of my CrossFit workouts on paper and my runs electronically with Nike+. I not only write down what I did that day, but I also keep track of my PRs and the weights I have been using in the back of my notebook so I can quickly calculate what weight I should be using in any workout.

6. Nuun hydration tablets: I don’t frequently use them, but in the height of summer when I was sweating what felt like swimming pools, I made sure to get in some extra electrolytes when I was done. These are also what I’ve been using now that I’m getting into high mileage runs for my half marathon training.

7. Quick dry, wicking running socks: I wear these whether I’m running or at CrossFit to prevent blisters and avoid turning my shoes into a swampy mess.

8. Speed rope: double unders were impossible before I bought my own speed rope and adjusted it to my height. At my previous gym they didn’t have any speed ropes, but even at gyms that do have them, I like not having to fight with everyone else my size for a rope.

9. Deodorant: I use a crystal deodorant, not an antiperspirant, before and after every workout (and daily). Because of the recent concerns about breast cancer being linked to the aluminum in antiperspirant and the fact that your body gets rid of toxins and waste through sweat, I no longer wear antiperspirant. I haven’t worn it for years, and it’s been great. The crystal deodorant has by far been the best option for me and not only does it keep me from smelling, but it lasts forever (not really, but I bought a stick 2 years that is 5 times the size of the one in the picture, and it’s still 95 percent unused after two years of daily use) and doesn’t stain my clothes.

10. Clothes: I wear crops most of the year for many reasons, but the main ones are that I get cold easily, squatting in short shorts makes me highly uncomfortable (I’ve seen many shorts malfunctions that lead to accidental (I hope) flashings), and they are great for running, yoga, and CrossFit. I wear crops with tanks in the summer and long sleeves (and sometimes a jacket too) in the winter. I also wear sports bras with all of my shirts instead of buying tanks with them built in because I can mix and match colors and I don’t need to buy them extra to wear in the winter with long sleeves.

What is a must have in your bag?

While I originally thought of May as the month I would build my monthly running milage, my body might have other plans for me. I’m currently battling a bit of tendonitis in my knee, and I have to first rest and rehab before I can really be running much. I’m hoping that by the second or third week of the month I will be back to slowly adding miles, but it doesn’t look like it will be the massive running challenge I had imagined.

But that doesn’t mean that my May Miles challenge will go to waste. Instead I will use it to increase my swimming and biking miles. As frustrating as an injury can be, every injury is an important reminder or lesson, and it provides an opportunity to improve. For me my lesson was to listen to my body sooner instead of waiting for it to develop into a full-blown injury. And since my legs can’t pound the pavement as much as I used to or lift heavy at CrossFit, I am taking the opportunity to get back into swimming for the summer months and work on some technique and upper body strength at CrossFit (all while doing some super fun rehab exercises to get back in action). And with such beautiful weather, who could be upset about going for a swim?

From calm to freaking out in 0.6 seconds. 

Earlier in the week I was happier than I had been in weeks and more relaxed than I was even over spring break. And yet in a matter of minutes I went from being incredibly content and at peace to completely panicing and swimming in stress. Who knew a couple of emails with quick deadlines could be so upsetting?

For the next 24 hours I lost myself in the throws of stress and anxiety. I couldn’t sleep and when I finally did fall asleep I would dream about my stress and wake up feeling worse than before.

It’s a bad habit that I’ve gotten into to completely surrender into stress at the first sign of it. But this time I decided to step back and not let it run all over me anymore. Here’s how.

1. Perspective. I can make the littlest things into the most important project I will ever work on in my entire life. In reality it is still just a small project with a deadline. Remembering that this one deadline, paper, project, whatever it may be, does not define the rest of my future goes a long way. 

2. Breathe. When I’m stressed I take shallow breaths or hold them in without being conscious of it. Just taking a few minutes to close my eyes and focus on my breathing helps me to let go. 

3. Laugh. When I feel like I’m really losing my sanity I find my roommates for a good laugh. While I may be distracting myself for a few minutes, I always go back to what I was doing feeling more relaxed and ready to get my work finished.

4. Awareness. Some days I find my stomach knotting and my heart beat quickening and I don’t know what started it. I can be sitting on the couch watching TV and out of nowhere I am stressed. When I am more aware of my thoughts and what triggers these random bouts of stress I prevent them or get them under control faster.

5. Exercise. Instead of sitting around and wallowing in my stress I go for a run or go to the gym. When I get back I can think more clearly and often if I am stuck on something I figure it out while I’m working out.

At the start of my sugar challenge I would tell myself that when this was all over I was going to devour exorbitant amounts of some amazing desserts, but now that it’s my last day, plans have changed.

I started the challenge completely addicted to sugar, to the point where even if I had a sweet breakfast, I craved a quick dose of sugar. It took me two weeks of the challenge to get my cravings under control, and even now I still am not where I want to be. I had hoped by this time to be fully freed from my sugar addiction, but I’m just not there yet. While much improved, I still give in to my cravings more than I would like to admit.

Now that my goal is over I won’t be as strict with what I eat and interrogate people about the sugar content of items. I will, however, continue to look for low sugar options and avoid foods loaded with added sugars. Never again will I pay to overdose on sugar at coffee shops, especially if I can make something healthier at home. I also won’t let myself snack on sweets throughout the day or rationalize eating dessert after lunch and dinner.

This whole experience was eye opening. I started finding sugar hidden in foods that I had thought were healthy and natural. More than anything I learned to ditch the packaged goods, say no to extra sweets, and eat whole, natural fruits and vegetables. While counting every gram of sugar was frustrating and at times stressful, I’m glad I did it and I’m not going to let it all go to waste.

The definition of failure can be pretty flexible and loose, but it’s safe to say week three was a failure on the sugar front. I started out well, but as finals hit hard and fast my roommates and I turned to our usual habits… sweets.

On Tuesday one of my roommates finished with her finals and to celebrate she decided to make my other roommate and I some cinnamon rolls. Since we were wallowing in our insane amounts of work, we both quickly devoured the cinnamon rolls out of self pity (and man did they taste amazing hot out of the oven). In one sitting I doubled my sugar intake.
The next night it was my turn to celebrate being done. It’s a tradition in my apartment that when you finish something huge or get good news, we celebrate with food. We made some cookies to mark the completion of my second (and final) senior project/thesis, which really would have been fine if I hadn’t eaten six of them (in my defense they were small cookies). The next morning I had a waffle (thanks to Parks and Recreation I had a massive waffle craving for the past month or so and I finally got to give in to it), but I didn’t use the fake syrup and instead just had whipped cream and strawberries.

The week just kept falling apart from there. I would do great all day with my sugar intake, and then I would blow it out of the water at dessert. But by the end of the week (this weekend) I got myself back on track.

Honestly, I’m glad to have failed this week. I’m not going to be one of those people who refuses a homemade dessert because “I don’t eat sugar.” I believe that food should bring you joy as well as feed the body. Did my desserts harm me? No. Would I eat them again, of course (although I wouldn’t let myself eat so many cookies). I’m not saying I’m going to overdo it on dessert every day and be ok with it, but every once in a while I think it’s a good thing.

I finally did it. For the first time since starting my sugar challenge I stayed under the AHA’s recommendation of 33 grams of added sugar per day. I kept my daily intake to 30 grams! I’ve been mixing up what I eat, but overall I’ve done pretty well at hitting 33 or just above every day. I have stopped wanting something sweet constantly and Friday after lunch I didn’t even reach for a piece of chocolate from the bowl at work.

One of the biggest things I learned this week was how much sugar is added into everything. I bought dried fruit and because it did not say sweetened on the front I ignorantly assumed there was no sugar added. I was incredibly wrong!

Because of my nut allergy I usually read nutrition labels and ingredient lists as if they contain the secrets of my future, but for things that I know are nut free I’ve clearly been a little lax. Now I’m on a witch hunt for sguar, and it seems to be slipped in everywhere. Also labled as dextrose, maltodextrine, sucrose, corn sweetener, evaporated cane juice, and any syrup, the sweet stuff won’t be sneaking into my cart any time soon.