First off, let me start by saying, I am not Catholic.
Not sure why I needed to say that, except that I feel that this challenge is only about my relationship with myself. I have used Lent before to kick start some changes I needed to make in my life, and had good success, and since I am in town this year, I thought I would try again. It is just like making a New Year’s resolution, except that there is a definite end.
So, I will be giving up sugar and I will be adding exercise. Every day. For 46 days.
Yeah, part of that sounds crazy. Like how can bake new cookies for Cookie Thursday? Guess someone else will have to taste them.
And what if I wake up sick and cannot exercise that day? That might suck. But a 20 minute walk might be just what I need.
What am I hoping to accomplish? My goal is to get out of the habit of having dessert every day. And, to make sure that I spend as much time thinking about exercise as I do about blogging, tweeting, commenting, and social networking.
Taking this challenge will allow me to be mindful of my choices and clear in my priorities.
Genie at the Inadvertant Gardener is going vegetarian for Lent, while Bridget from Family Adventures is giving up social networking.
Are you giving up something for Lent? Let me know!
Do you want to follow my progress? Follow me on Twitter to hear my daily achievements.
Daffodil in San Francisco photo courtesy of Jeff Tidwell.
Meyer Lemon and Cranberry Buckle (recipe)
Family Dinner Plan: Still with the freezer
In the Kitchen with Chez Pim: Marmalade
12 Comments
Just so everyone knows, Lent is not about Catholics, it’s about Christians in general.
Regardless of religious affiliation, you can give up something for lent.
I’m giving up meat, which will be huge for me.
Good luck! Giving up sugar is hard, but would use agave nectar count? And dark chocolate usually doesn’t contain sugar.
I’m now subscribed in hungry anticipation of Cookie Thursday!
Twitter: kitchengirl
thanks weakonomist – I did not actually know that. I always equated Lent with Catholicism. Thanks for clearing it up!
And meat is a big deal – I have been slowly reducing the amount of meat in my diet, but I don’t know that I can give it up completely. Are you also staying away from fish and eggs?
Twitter: kitchengirl
Peter – I have been debating what my giving up sugar is really going to be. At the most base level, it involves me not eating stuff with sugar. But I might have to narrow that down a bit – I don’t think of agave nectar as sugar, but I think I won’t use sugar substitutes. Somehow I have to be able to put that into a succinct goal.
BTW, do you have a cookie recipe with agave nectar?
And, I will only be eating super dark chocolate
I love your intentions and discipline, and wish you the best of luck, but there is something to be said for having dessert every day! That is a good life.
You are too close to my own heart! I am not Catholic either and I thought about giving up chocolate for lent just to see how I’d do. Maybe I’ll be more non-denominational and give up chocolate for March!
mariss last blog post..My Own Version of an Oscars Postmortem
Twitter: kitchengirl
Maris, the other night, I went to a local cafe that specializes in chocolate fondue. It pretty much killed me to not partake. But the challenge is interesting – although sometimes I feel as though I am turning into a martyr. I must develop a healthier relationship towards desserts!
Twitter: kitchengirl
after this, I am certain I will need to figure out a better plan. No desserts is painful – and I agree, desserts every day is definitely the good life. Maybe I could just focus on super awesome desserts, and skip the crappy ones…
Hang in there with it — it will get easier as the days go on. I’m so impressed with your exercise-every-day commitment, too! That’s awesome.
I gave up all meat, poultry & fish, but have left dairy and eggs on the list — definitely not doing vegan Lent! But I did give myself a travel and at-others’-houses exemption — I didn’t want to go visit anyone and turn down a dish over this. But trust me…I actually have a whole raft of other things I’m doing and/or giving up for Lent this year (they’re just all less public), so I’m not worrying about the few days where I’ll be potentially eating some rogue meat or fish.
I love your intentions and discipline, and wish you the best of luck.
This is great!!!
Twitter: kitchengirl
brief update – the no-sugar has morphed into no-desserts, which is actually going well, except for the slip-up on Monday, when a charming 7 year old offered me a birthday cupcake. I think that falls under your allowances Genie.
The exercise every day thing has been a little more challenging, although I give myself credit for lots of basic movement. I was actually hoping I could take over the Wii for the entire Lenten season.
And I agree, there are other things I have given up/added into my life for Lent, it is like a early Spring cleaning of myself!
Twitter: kitchengirl
thanks Andrea, I think discipline is what I miss most in my life these days, so these are just tools to exert a little self-control. Are you making changes this Lenten season?