Challenge Starts Tomorrow

First, thank you all for the comments on yesterday's post.  I'm still not in a great mental place but we must move forward or else we are standing still.

So my 30 Day Primal Challenge starts tomorrow.  I have my badge to the right (the same as above) to remind me every time I get on Blogger about what I'm trying to do.  I created a calendar to track my successes and opportunities ala Shannon at Fat Wife's Journey to Fabulous.  Thanks for the inspiration Shannon!  I'm aiming for being primal 80% of the time.  I'm just not an all-or-nothing kind of gal.  And Maria at Last Train Out of Fatland is a couple days into her Paleo Challenge which is very similar so I won't feel so alone.  The guru on this journey is Mark Sisson...THE Primal Blueprint guy.  So what is  this Primal Challenge all about?  Well...quite a bit.  Below are the challenges Hubby and I face in the coming month, taken straight from the Primal Blueprint website.  My comments are in blue.

1. Eat Lots of Plants and Animals.  Easy enough.
• Cook at home.  Getting better about this.  
• Eat clean: The quality of your food matters. While sourcing clean food (organic, grass-fed, pastured, etc.) can be difficult and pricey it’s also an important part of the Primal Blueprint. Let me be clear. If your eating plan strictly consists of Primal foods, but your beef isn’t grass-finished, your eggs aren’t pastured and your vegetables are conventionally raised, you are still light years ahead of most people. But there’s room for improvement. This probably isn't going to happen.  Organic and grass fed is just a little too rich for my blood these days.
• Dial in your carb count
2. Avoid Poisonous Things
• Don’t eat garbage.  I can do this, I can do this...
3. Move Frequently at a Slow Pace
• Just move: It’s that simple. Just get out there and move. I challenge you to align your low-level aerobic activity with Primal Blueprint Fitness. Too hot...back to the gym.
4. Lift Heavy Things.  Since I'll be at the gym anyway...moving...might as well lift something while I'm there.
5. Sprint Once in a While.  I'm not known for speed but OK...
6. Get Adequate Sleep.  I'll try...really...I will.
7. Play.  If you’ve forgotten how to play, this challenge will jog your memory. Grok did it and it’s why I train. For the stress-reducing effects, to get you moving without even realizing you’re moving and for the sheer fun of it.  I don't know about this.  I'll make an effort to play with my kids more and hopefully this will satisfy it.  
8. Get Adequate Sunlight.  Done.  Can't walk to your car in AZ without getting your daily dose of Vitamin D
9. Avoid Stupid Mistakes
• Listen to your body: This is such a broad Primal Blueprint law the challenge could take many directions. For the purpose of this 30-day challenge, though, I’d like you to be particularly aware of what your body is telling you during each of the other challenges. Feel a sharp pain during a sprint? Be smart and end your sprint session. Skin turning pink while out in the sun? That’s a sign to seek shade and avoid a nasty burn. 
10. Use Your Brain
• Challenge yourself intellectually: I won’t ask you to throw out your television or read War and Peace this month. But I will say that you are gifted with a huge brain, and you should flex it. We each have the power to solve difficult problems, be incredibly creative, and effect major change. And it all begins in our heads. Hmmm...I'll have to figure this one out.  It seems that the type of work I do strains my brain every day but I'd rather make it fun...like crosswords or sudoku or something.  Wonder if that counts?

So there you have it.  This is what Hubby and I are attempting to do in the month of September.  It all seems pretty basic doesn't it?  Doesn't seem that hard.  Just cut out the crap you eat, move your body and get back to basics.  We'll certainly give it the ol' college try.