The Final Button: One Mom’s Journey to Postpartum Weight Loss

November 26, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

This is it. This is the post that I was hoping to say I hit my postpartum weight loss goals. My journey started in September when my doctor gave me clearance to start exercising again. I’ve been blogging about my weight loss journey in hopes to encourage you in your wellness journey--wherever that may be. While I haven’t hit my end goal yet, I certainly haven’t lost hope and I have made quite a bit of progress. If you have followed my story, I hope you’ve found it encouraging. I'm so grateful for this community we share to uplift and cheer each other on.

Here are my greatest takeaways from the last three months’ weight loss progress:

Eat to nourish your body. The next time you eat or drink something, ask yourself, "is this simply providing fuel, or is this food/beverage nourishing the cells in my body." I make it a goal to eat a vegetable at every meal (except breakfast) and most snacks. It’s not always what I want, but I can tell you from experience it’s always what I need. And when I eat vegetables, I feel better, more energized, and more vibrant. The 95/5 guideline is good for me-- Not a hard fast rule, but a great reminder that 95% of my food should nourish my body, and the other 5% can come from healthy treats.

Press Release: Weight Loss and Wellness Go Hand in Hand

November 19, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul

We're very excited to something big: our official Press Release for Living Wellness for Growth Groups! Our book was published in February, but it recently won the Gold Evergreen Metal for the Living Now Book Award!

About the Award

Four years ago, the Evergreen Book Medals were launched to commemorate world-changing books published since the year 2000. We all seek healthier, more fulfilling lives for ourselves and for the planet, and books are important tools for gaining knowledge about how to achieve these goals for ourselves, our loved ones, and for Planet Earth. Divided into five categories, these books are honored for their contributions to positive global change.

We're so honored that Living Wellness for Growth Groups won the GOLD Evergreen Metal for the Health and Wellness category!

Weight Loss and Wellness Go Hand in Hand

Not everyone recognizes the link between nutrition, fitness, and faith, but longtime personal trainer Ashley Darkenwald is an exception. In her award-winning new book Living Wellness for Growth Groups, she takes readers on a journey of self-discovery toward exceptional health through freedom of mind, balanced living, and an abundant relationship with God.

5 Tips to Avoid Vacay-Mayday

November 04, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

My dad always taught me to leave a place better than when I got there. Whether it is cleaning up my kids dishes in the kitchen or picking up a paper towel in a gas station bathroom, I’ve tried to live out this saying. As I continue on my post-partum weightloss journey, I’ve decided to take on this motto with my body and traveling. I want to leave healthier than when I arrived. Quite the opposite of how we normally feel after traveling, right?!

Whether it’s the snack displays at the airport, those airplane snack-packs that look mouthwatering in the pictures but don’t quite live up to their image, or just being in a new environment with new foods, traveling can really off set your body…but also your wellness journey. But! It doesn’t have to!

This weekend while visiting a long-time friend of mine in LA, I’ve committed to 5 things to avoid Vacay-Mayday.

Bible verse_ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”Colossians 3_17.png

Introducing: My Friend Areya Goodnuff

October 29, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul

Today on the blog, I wanted to do something a little different. I wanted to introduce you to a dear friend of mine: Areya Goodnuff. Yes, I know, she does have a bit of an unusual name. I just checked and it is not on the top 10 (or top 100 for that matter) list of baby names for 2017. Regardless of her quirky name, we're great friends and chat often.

Areya Goodnuff and I chat daily. We're besties. Okay...maybe daily was a bit of an understatement. We check in often during the day. Hmm... how often? Maybe really often. Okay, fine, I'd call it frequently. I consult with her about pretty much everything. See Areya Goodnuff just has an opinion about everything and she helps me remember things I might forget.

She reminds me how often I forgot to work out this week. How few veggies I've eaten today...or this week. She challenges me to think of other activities I could get myself involved in at home, work, church, community, etc. I mean there's always more of me to go around right?

When's the last time I cleaned the toilet? Areya reminds me: three weeks ago. Is a full night of sleep really necessary or could I use some of that time to be more productive--that was an Areya original! She reminds me that I really could do more in the day and that even my best efforts could be better. Isn't it great to have a friend that doesn't let your shortcomings and mistakes fall through the cracks? What would I do without her? What would I be without her?

Roots: Going Deeper

October 22, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul, Nourished Body

I recently had some dental work done to fix alignment issues in my mouth. The treatment was pretty straight forward:

I was to pay x amount, follow the instructions attentively and in x weeks I will achieve x results.

The more I thought about it, the more it sounded like how I use to view my work as a personal trainer.

Clients would pay x amount, follow the instructions carefully, and in x weeks they would achieve x results.

Both of these equations lead to a positive end result. The difference between these two equations, however, was that one ends in lasting change all the time, the other does some of the time. Can you guess which one is which?

The answer is in the roots. See, my dental changes are a permanent change because my dentist made sure to address the problem deeper than the surface level. In my early days as a personal trainer though, my guidance and strategies often seemed to just stay at the surface--clients would commit to my program, loose weight, stop the program, gain the weight back. What I didn't realize at the time was that our health and weight journey is usually grounded in deep emotional, psychological, and/or spiritual roots. Let's dig a little deeper :)

Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back

September 10, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

Two weeks ago, I received clearance from my doctor to get serious about my postpartum health and exercise journey. Check out my first post here.

As many of you have read, I recommend setting goals for your wellness and fitness journey that are SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals (Living Wellness for Growth Groups, p. 17). I've recently decided to make it my goal to be back to pre-baby shape and size by Thanksgiving. That gives me about 3 months from now (5 months since baby was born)--Just in time to make a new plan to get through the holidays, healthy- and with a new baby! My point in blogging this journey is not to keep a digital journal, but rather give you inspiration AND to receive encouragement as well. I have been thrilled with your response from my first post-- please keep your stories coming! I want to hear about your struggles and progress.

I'm happy to report I HAVE made a little progress these past two weeks, but progress nonetheless! Here's what I've been up to, I hope this inspires you, wherever you're at in your health journey.

Autumn Peace- Piece by Piece

September 02, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul, Nourished Body

I feel blessed to live in a place where the season of fall feels so magical. As a child, I loved to jump into piles of raked leaves. This was one of our favorite family celebrations to welcome fall.

Many people celebrate the fall season with crisp morning walks, cozy blankets, or homemade apple pie. These I do enjoy, but mostly, fall is a season to meditate on a change in of season, a change in life, and to find peace within God's divine presence.

Without the warmth of the sun the leaves surrounding us will begin to change and true colors will be revealed. Friends, we have unique colors within ourselves too, at all times of our lives. God creates our colors to change and shine, and not to be covered up. See your colors as transition, moving into the next season of life. Someone once said to me, "Without change, there will be no change". This made so much sense to me, and to this day I silently speak this in my mind when I am afraid of the unknown or of what will be in my future.

The Last Button: One Mom’s Journey to Postpartum Weight Loss

August 27, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Body

I couldn't tell if the audible crying in the bedroom was from my baby or me as I tried on my jeans, for the third time. I'm not even talking about my everyday jeans. I'm taking about the other ones.

I'm almost 8 weeks postpartum. Although I've come a long way from the moo-moo I wore home from the hospital, I still can't comfortably wear ANY of my old pants that have a button, snap, or zipper.

A few minutes into my pity party, however, I looked in the mirror. I starred at the reflection looking back at me. As I gazed at my reflection, I realized that I wasn’t actually feeling upset with myself at all—I was only reacting to how I thought I should feel after seeing a number on the scale that I haven’t seen since my “overweight” days. Once I really searched my heart, I realized I was quite at peace with my body and my weight, albeit larger than I would like. My body had carried yet another (praise the Lord!) precious life in it for nine months and now serves to feed and sustain that life. My body carries the marks of motherhood, and I’m so so grateful for them.

Although I am at peace with myself, I feel excited and ready to start getting back into shape for this next season—life with a baby, two older children, and a business. I'm ready to enjoy feeling strong and healthy again. With support from my family and friends, I'm ready to take this journey that I have coached so many people on.

Quote_ Rest & self care are so important. Whenever you have time to replenish your spirit, it allows you to serve others from the overflow. You cannot serve from an empty vessel._.png

More of Me

July 30, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul

Well friends, tomorrow marks the last day of our #LWGG30Day Challenge. Thank you for sharing this journey with me and supporting me as I challenged myself with my wellness goals.

My hope is that over this past month, you found our wellness challenge posts to be inspiring. Inspiring you to nourish your body with different types of exercise. Inspiring you to choose your body with foods that not only satisfy your hunger but nourish your body with the building blocks it needs for health. Inspiring you to take time for yourself. And inspiring you to put nourishing your body, mind, and spirit at the forefront of your mind in order to worship God, honor God, and serve God more fully.

Two weeks ago, I shared with you in this post my progress with the Living Wellness 30 Day Challenge, what exercises I found I enjoyed, and a few take-aways that I learned from this challenge.

Today, I'd like to share with you one final take-away.

Progress Note

July 15, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Body

I was stressed about getting a paper done for my 9th grade English class. It was late in the day and I was tired, but the assignment was not finished...being type A that I am, I want every task I start to be "finished" and finished well. But, this particular evening, my brain felt it had hit a road block.

My mom suggested "set your alarm for 5am and finish your paper then. It will be very quiet in the house at that time and your brain will have had time to rest and reset." I thought she was crazy (as many high-schoolers often feel about their parents!), but I didn't know what else to do. Little did I know that this simple event would be a defining moment for me.

I woke up the next morning groggy but determined to finish my paper. I read over where I had left off and went to work. My fingers flew across the keys and paragraph by paragraph I finished my paper before the rest of the house was up.

Now what's the point of this story? Looking back, it wasn't until that early fall morning that I realized how awake and alive I felt in the morning. Over the years since, these early morning times of quiet have served to be such a blessing--from times of productive studying and finishing assignments to devotions and sweet snuggle time with my toddler. I'm surprised though that I never considered until this #LWGG30Day Wellness Challenge that this would be a great time for a workout.

Summer Camping Adventures

July 09, 2017 in Nourished Home, Nourished Mind

If family camping is a memory from your childhood, you know what it is like to prepare for an outdoor family event. Packing your favorite outdoor toys and games was something to look forward to. Games like Frisbee, bean bag toss or lawn darts were fun events for my family!

One of my favorite memories is when we would travel to my grandparents house and camp out on their lawn in our camper. We enjoyed each day with the games that we had brought, spending time together as a family, and our time boating on the lake. Our evenings would wrap up with a game of hide and seek and then a bonfire with our favorite treat, a smore, and sometimes watch fireworks!

Do you have memories from your youth about camping that you can reflect on? How can you include them in your camping adventures this summer? If you've never been camping and this post inspires you to take your first family camping trip, let me share a few ideas for packing fun summer games and activities. Grab a pen and paper and let's build your packing list!

Getting Back on Track

July 01, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

Friends, I have another confession to make: I have fallen off the exercise bandwagon. Like, that wagon is so far beyond my gaze that I may need a telescope....or two.

Back in March, I wrote about starting a new chapter in my own wellness journey. For years I've been diligently working on my nutrition while allowing the fitness part of my health to fly under the radar. In March, I was all set to get a regular fitness routine established not because I felt that I had to or "should," but because I realized that this was one area of my life that I was ignoring. I wasn't nourishing my body with the exercise it needs to stay healthy and strong. I had moved through the Stages of Change (listed on page 18 of Living Wellness for Growth Groups) from pre-ontemplation all the way to action.

But then, you know what happened? Ready for the really big confession?

This week I looked back at my Living Wellness Journal and my Living Wellness for Growth Groups book after wiping some dust off of them. Want to know where the writing stopped? Week 1. I completed a week of journal entries and the first chapter of questions, and then...I got too comfortable....too busy....top confident that I would be able to keep up this new routine on my own. Many of us have heard that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. No wonder my new fitness routine flopped after just 7!

Your Foundation

June 18, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

To conclude the sermon on the mount, where Jesus gives instructions on how to live an abundant life, he tells a parable about two people: one who built a house on sand and one who built a house on rock. When turbulent weather came, the house with the firm foundation was
the only one left standing.

Your foundation, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, determines your ability to weather life when it gets rough.

With almost 30 million people, approximately 10% of the US population, struggling with high glucose and 86 million struggling with prediabetes (Centers for Disease Control), it's time to get to all of our why's? Why are we eating enriched flour, bleached flour, white flour products, puffed grain products, factory-made modern soy? How do we break the cycle? Do we have the knowledge to do so?

Removing processed carbs from our diet is one of the secret weapons to reducing sugar cravings once and for all.

What would happen if we all started to eat to nourish our bodies, rather than to stuff them and satisfy every craving? What would happen if we made our food choices based on what we needed in a given day rather than what was handed to us through a window?

Mindful Eating

May 27, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

In today’s post, I want to give you a sneak peek at one of the activities we complete during a Living Wellness Growth Group: Mindful Eating. It’s one of my favorites! We’re revisiting this topic because the benefits you can gain from being more mindful of what and how you are eating are just too good not to share!

Before I share the Mindful Eating exercise, let me give you a little context about our Growth Groups, what mindfulness is, and how this topic of Mindful Eating became part of Living Wellness.

What is a Living Wellness Growth Group?

Living Wellness Growth Groups are 8-week long nutrition/fitness/spiritual book studies, where a group of participants come together one a week to learn about & practice healthy living. Each week we practice a different component of healthy living—from exercise to grocery store tours and fermented foods demonstration to mindful eating. Living Wellness Growth Groups are wonderful places to be and become the healthy individuals we desire to be.

Mindfulness & The Benefits

Mindfulness is a really popular concept right now, and its popularity is showing up in all types of circles—fitness, nutrition, healthcare, even kindergartens!

When we discuss mindfulness, we are talking about the concept of becoming more aware and in-tune with the both the external (what you are doing/interacting with) and the internal (what you are feeling, tasting, experiencing).

Rest

May 21, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul

Rest.

Do you feel like you have enough rest? Would you consider yourself “well-rested”? If I’m honest, I’m not sure that I even know what “well-rested” looks like…or feels like.

If rest is something that seems to allude you, something that is either just outside your reach or maybe well beyond your reach, consider this: are you allowing yourself rest? Or do you feel this constant ache to achieve, accomplish, complete, check off the list, finish so much so that you cannot allow yourself to rest?

I was reminded of a scripture verse this week that has always captured my attention and my heart. This verse quiets that track in my head that nags at me to achieve, accomplish, finish and instead reminds me to rest: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Jesus was speaking to a crowd of people that were weary and burdened by the religious rules and legalism of his day. He invited them to come, follow him, and find rest—a rest that they could not find outside of him, a true eternal rest.

In the verse from the book of Matthew, Jesus invites us to come to him to find rest, but did you also know that God commands us to rest? In Exodus 34:21, God spoke to Moses and said, “six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.”

I often find myself too busy to rest. Ever feel that way?

My Wake-Up Call

May 07, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

As I sit here, staring down at my four fingers with four Band-Aids on them, I realize my failed glucose test was a not so rude awakening.

Let's rewind a week to that first glucose test.

I have been healthy my whole pregnancy, way more healthy than I was with my last pregnancy, 10 years ago. I have been choosing to nourish my body by eating more vegetables and exercising a couple times a week. So when I failed that glucose test, I got a bit teary behind the eyes. My healthy pregnancy suddenly felt all turn around and upside down (a little like the picture above). The thing that made my eyes gush open was when the doctor said, "eight pounds gained in one month, that's a little much for this stage of your pregnancy." I cried all the way home from that appointment.

What's clouding your lens?

April 30, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Soul

My toddler son is currently in a phase where he loves to be a helper. I love this phase, but it can get messy at times. I was getting ready for bed when I heard my husband say, "bring those right to mommy!" A few moments later, I hear little feet walking toward me. My son came in the room holding my phone in one hand and gripping my glasses with the other. He very carefully handed them to me and looked at me with an anticipatory grin waiting for my praise. I thanked him for being such a good helper while also grimacing a bit. See my son doesn't know the best way to hold glasses. He held them securely yet gently, but he held them by grasping just the lenses with his sweet, little, sweaty hands. I looked at my lenses and they were completely smudged--though nothing a little soap and water couldn't take care of.

You may be wondering what I'm getting at with this--Just give me a moment and I'll explain.

Day Three Changed Everything

April 15, 2017 in Nourished Soul, Nourished Mind

Can you imagine what it would have been like to be an early follower of Jesus during those three days after his death?

I imagine that day one must have been full of shock--"this Jesus we've been following and listening to is gone." The second day, I imagine that panic and doubt would have started to set in--"I thought He was supposed to be the Savior...Could the Savior truly have been killed?...What do we do now." All of those moments of amazement after viewing miracle after miracle slowly start fading as the thoughts of doubt start creeping in--"did those miracles really happen? Did Jesus really heal those people. Did Jesus really say...?" Day three, I imagine my thoughts start turning to what others may start thinking about me or saying to me--"didn't you follow that Jesus? Where is He now? Guess He wasn't all that He said He was." Oh how quickly we forget the truth and how easily we slip into believing the lies.

Today we remember and we celebrate that day three did not end like a normal day. It didn't end like days one or two. No, day three was the day that changed everything. Jesus did the impossible. Jesus fulfilled Scriptures that were written hundreds and hundreds of years before (such as Deuteronomy 18:18). On day three, Jesus, who was dead, rose from the grave fully alive! Jesus, who was present and active in the creation of the world, died a horrible death to be a ransom for the sins of the world. He died that horrible death and rose again for you.

The Roots of All Disease & Obesity

March 26, 2017 in Nourished Mind, Nourished Home, Nourished Body

Lately, as I continue my study of wellness, fitness, and weight management, I feel like I am inhaling books as fast as I can digest them. I have been reading books by MD's, PhD's, ScD’s, biochemists, nutritionists, personal trainers, and others on topics of the metabolism, the food industry, the human body, food politics, and pharmaceuticals. As more information presents itself, two common themes pop up again and again. By sharing these themes with you, I hope you will be able make better informed decisions regarding your health and wellness.

New Beginnings

March 19, 2017 in Nourished Body, Nourished Mind

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV, emphasis added).

These verse from the book of Lamentations are some of my favorites to dwell on for several reasons, but one reason I'll share with you now is that God's mercies are new every morning. Let's break that down a little bit.

First, God gives us new mercies--not day old, not half spent ones (I admit this is how I often feel)--new mercies. Second, these new mercies are not new when I'm faithfully praying, when I'm at church each week, when I've met my nutrition and exercise goals for the day. No, these mercies are new EVERY morning regardless of what I've done. What a relief! No matter how badly yesterday went or how much you have to tackle today, our Lord blesses us with mercy every morning.

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