I downloaded a preview of Roni and Carla’s book #WYCWYC (or Wick Wick) to my Kindle app before it was available for sale. I put it in my “basket” but until last week, I had forgotten I hadn’t actually purchased it!
I am only 1/4 of the way through it, but so far, I love it. I “met” Roni somewhere around 2008 when I found her Green Lite Bites blog. She did these recipe videos with her then only son (The “toddler”), and what I loved about her was that she was not only fun and down to earth, she used basic ingredients to make healthy, flavorful food. And she was one of the first Blogger Meetups I ever had! Here’s how we looked nearly 7 years ago!
I think I started following Carla in 2011 – her blog MizFitOnline was quirky and she’s inspired so many people with her weight loss, keeping it off, and how she’s raising her young daughter to have a positive attitude not only about food but her body too. You can check out Carla’s video here.
The premise of the book is simple – What You Can When You Can #wycwyc. I am not the only one that has the all-or-nothing mentality when it comes to weight loss. “The WYCWYC way isn’t about changing your life overnight: it’s about knowing that the road to improvement (NOT PERFECTION) is paved brick by brick, step by step, and by simply doing what you can when you can.” This mindset will break the “I’ll start over on Monday” or “I’ll start on June 1!” or “when I get back from vacation, THAT’S when I will get my act together.”
But you know what? Life is too short to live like that. I have to realize that mindlessly eating isn’t going to bring my husband back and drinking that extra glass of wine isn’t going to suddenly make me forget that my husband is no longer here to be my biggest cheerleader. I loved that about him. He always and forever told me that if I decided to lose weight, it was because I wanted to, not because he thought I needed to – he told me I was beautiful every.single.day.
I don’t want to get to the end of the summer and think “I wish I would have just tried a bit harder.” I have probably lost and gained 50 pounds since I started this blog nearly 7 years ago. But I let life get in the way of my goals when things are out of my control. Like Tony being sick, or having to get a second job. One of the chapters of the book is “Be Consistently Flexible.” When you lose your routine and how hard it is to get back at it after such events. But with this #wycwyc way of looking at it, it helps you stay focused on doing what you can because there will be hiccups in life that will always try to throw us off course. “Life doesn’t always go as planned. So, to get where we need to go, we need to do what we can with what we’ve got at the moment, and consistently keep at it until we get there.”
So what is the 101 Day of Summer Challenge? Anything YOU want it to be. If that means writing down 5 things you want to do this summer around town with your family, or training for a 5k, or going on a road trip
By the end of week three of my diet bet just six weeks ago, I was doing everything right. Working out, drinking lots of water, reducing my wine, kitchen closed after dinner, etc. etc. But somehow these last few weeks leading up to the Spartan race, I got a bit lax. The wine started showing up by Wednesday, I found myself eating mindlessly well after dinner most of the time I wasn’t even hungry, but mindless emotional snacking is always something I need to reign in.
What really struck me when reading the book is when they talked about being “non-obsessively determined” in getting to a goal. “When we’re determined we stick to our vision; when we’re obsessed, our vision has narrowed so much our goal is all we see – and the rest of life passes us by. Determination is good, obsession is not. It’s important to know the difference.”
If you are willing to join this challenge with me, simply leave me a comment and let me know what you want to accomplish this summer. I am hoping that by sticking together – we can help each other reach our respective goals. If you decide to join, I am giving away a copy of #WYCWYC – it’s just too good not to share! I’ll pick a winner tomorrow and send you a copy via Amazon.com.
And as I am seeing all the graduation photos on Facebook, I can’t believe Hannah graduated from high school FIVE years ago already. Happy to report she’s enrolled back in college after taking a bit of a hiatus – only three semesters to go before she gets her degree.
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So Hannah requested my spinach pizza for dinner on Friday night. I, of course, am never one to shy away from Party Pizza Friday! But my original pizza calls for a ricotta cheese/olive oil sauce. I didn’t have any ricotta at home and I didn’t really feel like stopping on my way home from the store just for that, so as I was driving home I thought “what about making a cheese sauce for the base?” Hannah has now declared this the best pizza I’ve ever made. Maybe it’s because I lost my marbles again and actually caramelized onions for her!
[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:126]
I heard Tony in my head screaming “what smells like ass?!” as I was making the onions!
Guys – I know I’ve made a lot of pizzas over the years, but I guess the best way to describe this pizza is that it has the perfect balance. The crust isn’t too thin or too thick. The Baking Steel gives it an amazing crust. The cheese gives it the saltiness and then the sweetness from the walnut pear balsamic glaze, well, it’s just the perfect pizza. Try it and let me know what you think!
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So, while I was all ready to get going this week with the 101 Days of Summer Challenge, um, turns out I have bronchitis. I started coughing on Friday, and by yesterday morning I knew it was bronchitis. I am just so thankful that it didn’t happen to me right before my Spartan race! I went to urgent care yesterday, and I have the Z-pak, and while I normally would have been pissed about this, I am using the #wycwyc mentality. I’ll do what I can this week, and just take it a day at a time.
So who’s with me? Make it a great day!
OK. How do I sign up? I want to lose 10 lbs by the end of summer and walk 5 days a week. I’m not copying PK. Really.
I will be sending out a group email later today – I think we are nearly 50 strong! 😀 We’ve got this. I just can’t wait to get rid of my bronchitis 🙁
My goals are simple. #1 Move for 30 minutes every day. #2 Lose 10 pounds.
I’m in! I’m going for 10,000 steps (need to dust off my fitbit), drink more water, and a home exercise video once a day or a stroll in the park.
I’m in! My goal for the summer is just to be consistent. I hate to blow it on a Saturday night and feel like a failure come Monday morning.
I’m catching up on blog reading after my wedding (yay!) but would love to jump in on the summer challenge if there is still time. My summer goal is to move in some way every day, and to get outside every day (ideally these would be combined, depending on how hot and humid it is!).
Gah – I clicked on this post yesterday & never got around to reading it so I’m late to the party! I want to participate in the challenge please!! 😀 I do pretty good with my workouts due to my gym buddies blowing up my phone if I’m not there! My problem comes from my diet even though I’m under my WW goal. So here are my goals:
1) DRINK WATER!! Some days I realize the only water I’ve had during the day was the bottle of water at the gym!
2) MOVE MORE!! I have an office job & it’s just me here most of the day. 2 hours will go by & I haven’t even got up from this desk!
3) LOSE THESE 12 LBS! I have gained back 12 lbs of the 32 I had lost since January. Mindless late night snacking has to stop!
4) FOR ME! Get a mani/pedi a little more often than once a year – just to pamper myself!
5) FITBIT! I talk about getting a FitBit at least 3 times a week. Lol Save up & just go get one! 😀
Please cont me in for the 101 Day Challenge. I would like to exercise at least 5 days a week and work on controlling “BLT’s” aka bites, licks and tastes…not good for by waistline or my diabetes. Time to fine tune all the work I have done so far in this journey of a helthier me!
I’m in!! I need to adopt #wycwyc since I’m not in that mentality at all!
goals: not having a glass of wine during the week with dinner. Cutting down my portion sizes. steering clear of mediocre office snacks. adopting #wycwyc to sneak in healthy habits here and there! long term goal: lose the 10lbs I’ve gained recently, plus an extra 10 I’ve been trying to lose for ages!
Love it Katelyn! I like the idea of skipping the mediocre office food – which is what I call “insulin worthy” much like the “sponge worthy” episode of Seinfeld. If it isn’t insulin worthy I can usually walk on by 😀
I missed the boat on my reply yesterday. This “blankinty” work computer. I’m in for the challenge and my goals will be:
* Stop the madness…. we just had wood floors installed and we are doing all of the trim work ourselves (crazy idea to save money it is chaos).
*Work on getting the house back together. I need to fly Hannah down to help with the organization process. I am overwhelmed but refuse to put any room back together without a compete clean out.
*Not gain any weight in 101 days.
*Work on me time and quit taking care of everyone else first (that is probably the hardest goal).
*Stop putting off going back to the doctor. I got pneumonia the first week of March and still have a cough even after treatment and an inhaler. Anything cardio including laughing 🙁 sends me into an uncontrollable coughing fit.
I love your goals Kym! I wish I could send Hannah your way – she’d ship up your house in no time!
You may have bronchitis too – Hannah and I were goofing around on her computer last night and laughing sent me into the worst coughing fit too – I am on Day 3 of my Z pack – hopefully it will go away soon 😀
I’m in!
Goals:
1) No alcohol (not even in the weekend) till my vacation starts in week 29.
2) Run a 5K without stopping.
3) By the end of the challenge Bella should have a “go” to walk long. So by the end of August I want to have done at least one long walk with her again.
Awesome goals Fran! And hopefully Bella will be back on her feet in no time 😀
What a great challenge. I’ve been soooooooo bad. Exercise is not happening and I am eating incredibly poorly. 101 days of summer is just what I need. I wish you well and hope you make your goals!!
Spinach pizza looks awesome! I’ve made your dough many times and love it!
Hey Debbi! Glad you are on board – what are your goals? I’d love to help you reach them 😀
Getting rid of the all or nothing attitude for me was certainly an eye opener to how much stress I put on myself when trying to lose weight. Once you get rid of that – it is much easier to get back on track when you start to meander.
sorry you are sick. Bronchitis sucks- although to be honest I have never had it.
I couldn’t agree more – but more importantly CONGRATS ON SELLING YOUR HOUSE! I know that is such a relief – now you can focus all your energy on Radiance Manor! 😀
I am in! First I have been listening to and loving the wycwyc podcasts. Roni and Carla are such a great balance. Roni’s weigh was the first blog I ever read and it really was instrumental in how I changed my mentality about weight loss and then subsequently lost over 70 pounds after having my son.
My summer goals are to hike as often as possible with Carlos on as many new to us trails we can find, train hard for the Hartford Marathon in October, go to at least one farmer’s market each week, fit comfortably into a particular pair of jeans that is a bit snug right now and read at least one book for fun.
I hope you feel better soon Biz. In the meantime #wycwyc!!
Thanks Aimee – welcome!! I need to listen to their podcasts – thanks for the reminder. I did good today – even without working out, I didn’t eat any donuts that were at work, and after dinner the kitchen was closed #wycwyc 😀
I am here to join!
Things I want to achieve this summer:
1. Hit 10,000 steps a day.
2. Some other type of exercise at home (with all my DVDs) – min 25 mins or hit up a class at the gym.
3. Read several personal development books that I currently have with dust on them.
4. Get to work a little early, take a actual lunch break (which I don’t now), leave on time and don’t open my work computer/phone once I leave for the day.
5. Enjoy the last week of July in Destin, FL with my husband and daughter – and not worry about what I look like in by bathing suit or just in any general pic.
6. Lastly, start living in the moment and enjoy my life and those around me. My weight is my weight, but I can control my outlook!
Biz, hope you get to feeling better. I need to send you some Trader Joe’s Sriracha and Roasted Garlic BBQ Sauce. It is like crack! I hate to even say we like it better than Rudy’s BBQ…
Wow, that’s saying a lot Teresa! I usually turn off all devices at 9:00 every night and just decompress – nothing earth shattering happens too often that I can’t read about it the next day.
When I used to be busy at work, I wouldn’t tell anyone I was leaving, I just put a post-it on my chair that said “gone walking” and that worked before I got roped in to staying at my desk.
I’m in. My goals – exercise 5 days a week minimum, do weights 3 times a week minimum. I want to build some muscle and feel stronger.
Sounds great Sara – I have to tell you that my strength training saved my ass during the Spartan race – not sure I could have done most of the obstacles without some guns 😀
I love the idea of this challenge! My goal is to track everything no matter what for all 101 days and start training for the Chicago Marathon and follow my training plan.
Great goals Anna – have to give you props for training for the Marathon – I’ll come cheer you on! 😀
Hi Biz,
I’m in. Way off track the last 6 months. Goals walking and getting 10,000 steps and quit the night eating– my downfall. Thank you for always being real. Xo
Awesome Patti – let’s kick ass the second half of this year! xoxo
I bought a non-stick electric skillet specifically for trying Alton Brown’s caramelized onions and I haven’t yet. Maybe soon!
I had no idea how long it took to make onions like that – nearly 30 minutes!
By the way, if it’s not too late, I would like to join the challenge. My goal is to do some sort of exercise for 30 minutes a day. I have a bad back and there are some core strength stretches I’m supposed to be doing, so the 30 minutes might be a combo of walking and stretching.
I’m in for the challenge! The way they put it makes sense.
Awesome Lisa – welcome! 😀
Hey Biz! Sorry to hear you feel cruddy. I had bronchitis in February/March and it suuuuucked.
I’m doing a Whole 30 for June. Last time I did one, I lost 22 pounds and 9 inches. I’ve kept that off and lost about 14 pounds more, so I’m using THIS Whole 30 to hopefully jump start some more loss on the scale. My main focus, however, is getting some good activity going again!
Well now that school is over for you, that will most likely help! Love it Erin – I’ve read good things about the Whole 30 – just not sure I could give up cheese for 30 days 😛
Heck yah, I’m with you! I also did so well during the diet bet but I went on vacation the day it ended and well, that was that. 🙁 I’ve tried a couple of times to “get back on the wagon” to no avail. Having some support could be just what I need. Not sure what I want to accomplish exactly, but I’ll be thinking about it and will definitely let you know. I’ve been thinking about getting Roni’s book – you convinced me! Have a great day and I hope you feel better! 🙂
Awesome Christine! Yep, after the Diet Bet I kind of fell off the wagon too – I am hoping with a group like this it will help me be more accountable – can’t really inspire people if I gain 15 pounds over the summer 😛 Hugs!
Sorry I had to leave and come back but my A/C broke in the house this morning and I’ve been dealing with that. It’s June in Georgia…it had to be fixed TODAY. 🙂 But we are back in business!
My single goal is to have better lab results 6 weeks from now when I have the labwork done again. That will mean a lot of mini goals to get there, like counting carbs each day and getting in around 45-50 at each meal (have been eating way less than that). Actually reading the health/diabetic articles that I have been adding to my favorites list for the last couple of weeks, thinkiing I’ll “eventually” get to it, like all the low glycemic foods. Paying enough attention to the calories, too, while getting settled on the balance of carbs/protein/fat so I don’t actually GAIN weight while trying to stabilize my sugar. I’m up 2 lbs from last week…WTH?? So yeah, I’ve got some work to do. A challenge will be nice to keep me on track. 🙂
Love it Tammy – having better numbers is an awesome goal – I’ll help you out with the diabetes questions anytime! 😀
I’m in for the challenge. My goal is to do Insanity again although I will just repeat month one twice because month two is just too hard on my body. I also want to be able to run an entire 5k without stopping.. Your food always looks so amazing!
Awesome goals Cyndi! And thank you – I appreciate the compliment about the food! 😀
I want your pizza! I have a soft spot for “white” pizzas with caramelized onions. My fave!
I don’t think I’ve ever had a white pizza at a restaurant before, but then we don’t have too many good pizza places around here – need to go to Chicago for that 😀 Loved your wedding recap!
Stop the “mindless” after work eating fest! That’s my goal cause you can’t workout enough to compensate for a crappy diet. Thanks Biz feel better : }
Yep, it seems like I am good at maintaining my weight at 170 – but I need to not out=eat my workouts!
Bronchitis?
Ain’t nobody got time for that.
Ain’t nobody got time for that.
Ain’t nobody got time,
Ain’t nobody got time,
Ain’t nobody got time for that.
I bought the #wycwyc book a few weeks ago but haven’t started reading it yet. I’ll be writing my own review in a few months. Not that I’m being lazy, but 99% of the buzz about a book happens in that brief period right after release. It’s nice to wait until that time is over and then bring it up again.
Great, now I have *that* song in my head! 🙂
You’re welcome! 😀
Love it! I was telling the kids about that yesterday – I am sure you’ve heard the autotune version 😀
https://youtu.be/waEC-8GFTP4
Love it!
that pizza looks good and I am so impressed with the way you are incorporating some sauteed onions in your cooking. Their flavor is so nice and mild when cooked. Next thing you know you will be making onion soup fondue! With Cabot of course! My goal this Summer is to keep a journal. It seems to keep me accountable for all the good things and bad things. I think it helps with emotional eating as well.
It’s funny you mention that Jan because Jacob was just telling me that his favorite soup is onion soup!! I envy people who don’t emotionally eat, but it’s just something we’ll both have to work on 😀
I’m in Vat. My goals areto up my water drinking EVERY day, get my butt back on my yoga mat at least twice a week, catch up with my favorite blogs more regularly, and to be a little kinder to myself. (I haven’t been very good at that lately) Have a great week!!!
Awesome Roz! My favorite part – is that you want to be kinder to yourself – best non-scale victory! I think you are pretty amazeballs – wish we lived closer! 😀
Even though I’ll be spending the majority of the summer( all of June/July) in the library studying for the bar, I still want to get in some exercise.( I took the dogs to the park this morning and we walked the track) if I sit all day, I develop sciatica and that is painful. I also want to eat intuitively, and only when hungry. If I’m bored reading property or contracts, its easy to reach for a snack. Whenever I feel like I need a “treat”, I have to remind myself that I’m not a dog. LOL.
I also want to plan meals, its hard being married to Picky Mrs. Pickerson, but I think I’ll just have to worry about myself for the next 2 months. We grilled some chicken breasts on Saturday and I plan on eating that tonight with some veggies and half a leftover sweet potato. Not sure what J will eat, she isnt a fan of leftovers. I can’t stress on it though. Ya know.
Great Randi! Even if you stretch out the exercise throughout the day, I think you’ll be able to squeeze in some exercise – tell J to make herself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich 😀
I’m in on this.
My goal is to walk or bike 30 mins 5 days a week
eat 3 healthy meals a day
NO sugar NO grains
would love to read the book, it sounds great.
Hope you feel better fast, I am just getting over sinus and ear infections, not a fun time of year to be sick.
Great Heidi! I think it’s just our crazy weather – it gets hot, we turn the air on, then it’s cold outside and we turn the heat on – hope you are feeling better too!
I SO need this challenge right now! I love your paragraph about not becoming obsessive…I MUST practice that for 101 days 🙂 My goal is to be feeling better about my body in time for my cousin’s wedding in September.
Love that you are here Karli! We can all motivate each other – and by the way, you are beautiful right now! 😀
That pizza LOOKS AMAZING!! And look at us! I remember that day so well. We had so much fun! I’m so so so glad you liked the book. That’s one of my favorite chapters too. 🙂
Thanks Roni – I am on the “Don’t Settle; Seize!” chapter – love it!
I’m with you!
My goals are to eat healthier, no alcohol during the week (unless I have a date *ha, like that will happen*), lift weights so I can build up arm strength for arm balances. I also want to start saying no more. I don’t have to go to everything I am invited to – I think this may be the hardest one. I am doing yoga teacher training this summer on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays so that is really exciting! I hope I can hold a handstand by the end!
So plan:
morning – weight lift
night – yoga
Goals:
say no more
hold a handstand
lift weights
200 hours of yoga in 3 months
🙂
Love your goals Natalie! And they talk about saying no in the book – “It’s okay to say no. It’s just another aspect of being responsibly selfish. Each time you say “yes” to someone else’s priorities in place of your own, you cut into the extra space in your life.
When you hold a handstand I want a picture! 😀 Love you!
Feel better soon, Biz – glad you got on the meds so quickly!
Me too! Loved your mini cooper recap – too fun!
Bronchitis? That blows! Hope you are feeling better quick. The pizza looks awesome.
Yep, it definitely stinks – hopefully it won’t last too long since I got on meds pretty quickly. We need to get together soon! Let me know what weekends you are available and we can make pizza at your house 😀
HI Biz, Im in too, I am up to the challenge, I have enough excuses not to, but its time to realize 30 minutes a day is possible and can make a difference, Thanks you are amazing!
Welcome Lisa! You can spread it out too – 10 minutes of walking before work, at lunch and after dinner – it’s still 30 minutes at the end of the day 😀
Sure, I’ll join the challenge with you. But give me a little bit to think up my goals. I’ll comment later on what they are. 🙂
Awesome Tammy – no hurry! 😀
I’m in! I find my exercise always diminishes and then completely dies out once we hit the Texas summer heat. My goal is to continue my 5 days a week of walking routine throughout the summer, with a monthly average of 8,500 steps. That might mean walking at 6 a.m. or even doing a Leslie Sansome DVD when it’s really awful out.
Hope the bronchitis heals up quickly – I had a bout in April that was a big pain!
Great Rachel! I know that Texas heat is crazy along with the humidity. Hopefully the flooding wasn’t bad in your neck of the woods. The problem with bronchitis is that I feel okay, I just keep hacking up a lung 🙁
I’m in! i was already planning on doing a June challenge of walking at least 30 minutes every day. But why not go for 101 days!? And the book sounds really really good too. Just the kind of book I gravitate towards. So my goal(s): walk at least 30 minutes every day, somehow and also at least several times a week to either complete a DailyBurn workout or an Essentrics workout. I need to move my body in different ways much more often. This is a great challenge. How’d you say we check in with each other on it? Hope your bronchitis heals up fast – that sucks this time of year. Take good care of yourself dear sweet lady! =)
I am going to start an email group in the next day or so – I think that’s the easiest – no? I really missed walking today – it was 65 degrees and sunny but this damn bronchitis is kicking my ass 🙁
I am in for the challenge. My goal is to finish the Body Pump 90 day routine. I’ve already finished week 1 and want to continue on til I finish and see some results.
That’s great Wendy – so glad you decided to participate – hugs!
I am in for the 101 challenge and my goal is to exercise 5 days per week. Over our long harsh western NY winter I was sick for a month and lost my mojo and have yet to get it back. Now I am huffing and puffing going up to the 2nd floor for work. NOT GOOD. I can’t wait to try that pizza but I am not a huge spinach fan so I am thinking of using Arugula.
Yeah! So excited Diana – love your goals. Arugula would be awesome – I may need to try that next time. 😀