As I  made my way through our 42 Day Exercise Challenge, I was ecstatic with my shrinking  legs and derriere… but more than a little disappointed with my ever-present "poochy" midsection. I did crunches (even though I hate them), I did leg raises, I tried using an exercise ball… nothing worked!

Then a little voice in my head reminded me of an unusual term I first heard on Lindsay Brin's Complete Pregnancy Workout a couple of years ago: Diastasis recti. At the time I dismissed it as yet another pregnancy "worry" that most likely didn't concern me... but now I pulled out my videos and watched the section again. And my mouth dropped open.

We did it, folks! 

We completed our 6-week diet and fitness challenge as outlined in the book 42 Days to Fit! Whoo hoo!

Besides keeping up with the food challenges from the previous weeks, this week we were expected to eat only whole real food for all three meals, snacks, and dessert (allowed just once per week).  Our fitness routine included the same cardio, HIIT, and strength-training schedule as last week, but this week we were instructed to add on one of the following:

We are nearing the finish line as we wrap up Week 5 of our 6-week diet and fitness challenge following the book 42 Days to Fit.  Boy, are we feeling good! 

The usual food challenges applied this week, but we were also instructed to ramp up our carb control by limiting our carb intake and avoiding all fast food.  Needless to say, fast food is usually out of the question when you're on a real food diet, so that last one was just routine.  And except for a favorite pasta dinner that I had promised my husband as a special treat one night this week, the majority of mealtime was focused on fruits and vegetables. 

We're back after a brief hiatus, and boy, were we ready to jump back in!  Picking back up where we left off we encountered a new food challenge: eat a healthy lunch and dinner compiled by 50% fruits and vegetables. 

We were also instructed to monitor our portion sizes, especially where carbs were concerned, and to try to avoid all processed foods.  (If you read our post on eating real foods, then you know that we had that last one covered!) 

Here's to making it halfway through our six-week diet and fitness challenge! At this point we can both report that we are in much better shape than we were on day 1 of this 42-day challenge!

Our food challenge this week was a kitchen curfew that proved to be the first big challenge for both of us. This curfew meant no eating at least three hours before bedtime, which we failed on more than one occasion for one reason or another. Here's to doing better this week! 

Two weeks ago we took on a diet and fitness challenge as outlined in the book 42 Days to Fit.  If you're following us, you'll be happy to know that we're still going strong as we finish out Week Two of this six-week program!

This week our food challenge was to focus on eating a healthy breakfast while maintaining our no-sugar and no-dessert diet from last week.  This meant making it a priority each morning to eat a hearty breakfast with some combination of protein, grain, and fruit. 

My husband and I purchased a jogger stroller before our son was born.  At the time, I had no idea why I wanted one -- I was definitely not a runner!  But I told myself that I'd eventually want one and it would get used one day.  Ha! 

I spent the next 12 months talking myself into picking up the pace as I'd take our son outside for a stroll.  I never could get serious about it, though.  I willed myself to break out and run on a number of occasions.  To no avail.  I just wasn't motivated to exercise, period.  In fact, during my son's nap times, the last thing I wanted to do with those precious few minutes to myself was throw on some yoga pants and work into a sweat. Until recently...