As you’re reading this, it’s been a week and a half since my husband and I joined thousands across the state for the 2019 Scale Back Alabama challenge.

I promised to keep you apprised of my successes and setbacks, so here I am checking in. To tell you the truth, though, I’m not quite sure how it’s going.

Metrics are so important when you’re pursuing a goal, whether it’s losing weight, completing a big project or mastering a new skill. You have to know and define your starting point and your ending point and keep track of your progress all along the way.

That’s an area where I need some improvement. I haven’t had the courage to see if the scale is showing any progress toward my goal of at least 10 pounds lost – the target to be entered for cool prizes in the Scale Back competition.

Even though I don’t know if I have improved according to the scale, however, I have definitely scaled back in other ways over the past week.

To hopefully jumpstart our efforts, my teammate and I challenged each other to a “no desserts” week to kick things off. We both love sweets, and it was definitely a challenge to turn down the multiple treats that kept coming our way – ice cream, brownies, doughnuts, chocolates and more. But despite one planned cheat, we went the whole week without any sugary snacks.

Additionally, I made several healthier choices in terms of portion sizes and food choices.

This week the focus is a more moderate approach to desserts – we’re each allowed 50 grams of sugar in the form of sweet treats – and a stronger focus on daily exercise. I started sluggishly with sedentary days Sunday and Monday, but I kicked it up a notch Tuesday and will finish the week strong. Get a full report next Wednesday.

Are you competing in this year’s Scale Back challenge? I would love to hear about your achievements, too – and even if you aren’t participating officially, you can still set your own goal and “join us” in the challenge.