75 Hard Day 9: Rested Mornings, Sweet Potatoes & Feeling Lighter
Monday — Day 9.
Day 9 started slower than most Mondays.
I woke up around 6:30, which felt really nice.
One of my 5:15 AM client contracts wrapped up last week, so until I sign another early morning client for that time slot, my mornings are temporarily more open.
And instead of immediately filling that space…
I’m allowing myself to rest.
So I stayed in bed for a while, relaxed, and eased into the day.
Then around 7, I got up, read my pages, and drank a black Americano out on the front porch.
Quiet mornings like this are starting to become one of my favorite parts of the challenge.
Morning Walk + Missing My Turn
Around 8:30, I headed out for my walk.
Another hill walk.
And somewhere along the way, my brain wandered off into planning mode.
Ideas.
Schedules.
Goals.
Random life thoughts.
Next thing I knew…
I completely missed the turn to head back toward my house.
So my walk ended up being about 10 minutes longer than planned because I had to loop back around.
Not the worst problem to have.
Breakfast
After my walk, I came home and made my favorite breakfast lately:
2 eggs over medium
sourdough toast
strawberries
a small avocado
Warm breakfasts are really working for me right now.
They feel grounding.
And after all the walking and water intake this week, my body seems to respond best to meals that feel nourishing instead of restrictive.
Lunch + Realizing I Needed Red Meat
Lunch ended up being a tri-tip sandwich and sweet potato fries that my daughter and I split.
And honestly, my body had been craving red meat.
I think after all the extra movement, workouts, and walking hills every day, my body needed something heavier and more grounding.
I only eat read meat 1 to 2 times a month. Usually around the beginning of my monthly cycle.
It really seams to help decrease the intensity of the symptoms and discomfort I get with my cycle.
So we shared:
tri-tip steak sandwich
sweet potato fries
And it hit the spot.
Feeling Different Already
One thing I’ve really started noticing this week is how different my body feels overall.
Energy is high.
I’m only needing to use the bathroom about once an hour now.
I don’t feel creaky.
I don’t feel swollen.
And I’m not dragging through the day tired anymore.
I actually feel lighter in my body.
Not just physically—
mentally too.
Afternoon Snack
Around 2 PM, I got hungry again and had some SkinnyPop.
Simple. Easy. Light.
Exactly what sounded good.
Sweet Potato Dinner
By dinner time, between the eggs at breakfast and the tri-tip earlier in the day, meat just didn’t sound good anymore.
And it was hot outside.
So we decided to keep dinner really simple.
Loaded sweet potatoes again.
Apparently this week has turned into a sweet potato era.
What can I say?
We topped them up and called it dinner.
And it worked.
Evening Workout + Calm Energy
After dinner, I taught my 6:30 Zoom workout.
Tonight’s focus was:
legs
knee mobility
ankle strengthening
hip mobility
long leg sequences
And the whole class felt really calm.
Steady.
Grounded.
Which honestly matches how I’ve been feeling lately too.
My mood feels calmer.
More stable.
More reliable somehow.
Like my nervous system is finally settling down after spending winter feeling heavy, stiff, and overstimulated.
Ending the Night
After class, the rest of the night stayed pretty quiet.
I think I was in bed around 10.
And even though the workouts and walks are adding up…
my body still feels better than it did before I started.
Day 9 Complete
Still walking.
Still hydrating.
Still learning what my body actually needs.
And for the first time in a while…
it feels like my body is working with me instead of against me.
