Wellness Journey

A year ago I went to Boot Camp for Scentsy Directors. I had an amazing time, met new friends and gained so much from the training. I went there burnt out and feeling overwhelmed by my daily life. With Dan gone, and kids sports and youth groups, working at the school, volunteering at the school, and my Scentsy business, I was exhausted.

We are blessed at Scentsy to have a Wellness program. They truly care about us as people, not just consultants. Our wellness coach was very blunt and to the point (which I needed). He said that we need to take better care of ourselves, or we can't take care of our families and business. He gave us workouts, meal plans and the kick in the butt to get healthy. It was exactly what I needed.

I came home and started with small changes. My mocha habit (liquid booty as coach called it) had to go. I cut back to 2-3 a month, instead of 3-4 a week. I cut back sugar and added protein. I started walking more, and eventually started running.I now run 2-3 miles, 3 days a week.
It was difficult (and still is) to schedual my runs around my busy life, but it was well worth it. I gained so much more energy, giving me what I needed to keep up. I still struggle to make time, but I have never regretted a workout!

I set small goals to work towards. My first 5k was in February, and then did more in May, July, September, and have two more by the end of the year. This keeps me motivated to keep running, knowing I have something to work towards.

My favorite race was the Lake Padden Relay with my siblings. All four of us ran, and it's something I will treasure forever. While we were one of the slower teams, it was more about doing it together, than winning. Well.....our one goal was to not let my step brother and his kids (Team Because Dad said so) lap us (Team HARM- Holly, Amy, Rob, Marty). They did not lap us, but did beat us by about 20 minutes!












Besides the energy I have gained, I have lost 17 pounds this year. Losing weight was never the purpose of my wellness journey, but it has been a great payoff of the changes I have made. I'm down a pant size, (happy dance) and am rocking skinny jeans!!

I'm still working and learning. I had an injury this week, and the first thing that came to mind was that I couldn't run. I need to be more careful and avoid injuries. I need to work on my breathing while running. Having asthma as a child has really effected my breathing. I'm trying to focus on breathing patterns and it's just going to get harder as the weather cools down. I need to work on staying healthy. I got sick last month, and didn't run for 10 days.

My wellness journey has really been about taking care of me. Once I do that, it's much easier to take care of everyone else. I want to set a good example for my kids, and also have pride in myself and be happy with where I am at.