A week without the scale

So every year my family goes out to Lake Ann, Michigan for a camping trip and it's always an amazing time! My dad is an incredible cook and is famous for his grilling. One of the food highlights this year was making homemade tomato sauce over the fire! The tomatoes came straight from my dad's garden and the results were SO GOOD!

During the 8 hour drive downstate I made the decision that I wasn't going to track my food for the week. I also knew that there wasn't a scale in the middle of the woods, so I had to focus on making good choices, but not obsessing over them.

My relationship with the scale has never been the healthiest. I weigh at least once daily and often allow that morning number to dictate my mood for the rest of the day. This is something I have been working on, but still have lots of room for improvement. So yes, camping! The week was amazing :-) It was so freeing not to be tracking my food at every meal! I tried my best to focus on healthy choices and had lots of fun teaching my mom about high protein foods. I followed my plan for the most part, but did have a 'treat' almost every evening (these indulgences included s'mores, icecream, and hard cider)!

For the most part I felt I was doing pretty good! I went with quest bars in the morning instead of the doughnuts and made sure to have protein at every meal. I even got some exercise in! Mentally I was in a good spot.

Then the last day came around and I started to have some serious anxiety. What if I gained weight? I didn't track, how many calories were in those s'mores? Did I get enough 'intense' exercise? All these questions seemed to hit me all at once until I had convinced myself I had gained 10 lbs over my trip and it would take weeks to undo all my bad choices. I was dreading getting back on that scale when I got home!

We packed up and went home. P.S isn't my puppy adorable! She didn't want us to leave!

So I got home and guess what? No weight gain! I even lost a little... So what did I learn?

• I have a lot of work to do mentally on this journey. The scale can't make or break me. I need to focus on how I feel, my energy levels, and my overall health! 
• I can actually lose weight even if I don't track my food! (I still will but won't freak out if I miss a day) 
• Little treats (on special occasions) will not undo all the hard work I have done
• I have the best support group ever :) Thanks guys for telling me to relax and just enjoy my trip! 

It was such an amazing trip and I already am looking forward to next year!

God Bless,
Sarah