Measurable Goals

One of the things I've learned from leading these Bible studies that are focusing on weight loss and living a healthy lifestyle is that I need goals.

Short-term goals that are easily measured, that will give me small victories along the way that will encourage me to stay focused on the long-term goal of being health and getting off meds for high blood pressure and cholesterol and avoiding Type II Diabetes.

I know I'm not defined by a number on the scale or a size in my waistband. Yet, there is a great sense of victory for me when I put on pants that I bought last summer and I'm starting to look like one of the boys in da 'hood.

I love putting them on and the freedom I feel. Not necessarily freedom from the tight waistband (although that's nice), it's freedom from the quilt and shame I've been carrying with all that extra weight.

My friend Carolyn told me today that I needed to get some new pants.  It might be time.

But

I'm

not

ready

for

spandex

yet.

Turning north with friends

I did something I've never done before.  I tried to get a group together to go walking this morning. I knew it would be dicey because it's a busy weekend, but it was worth a try.

I wasn't sure I would like walking with other people —if I could keep up with them (or less likely if they could keep up with me).

When I stepped outside and it was damp and drizzly and on the cool side I couldn't help feeling regret that I'd suggested that we meet at 8 a.m.  Me and my big ideas.  Why do things always sound so good in the moment then later…not so much?

But I'd committed, and Carolyn and Rona said they would be there, so there was no turning back. I had to go.

It was misting heavy enough to need my windshield wipers on to get to the park. Ugh!  What was I thinking?

I love walking, but I'm a fair-weather walker.  I see little sense in freezing, getting soaked or over heated.

When I got to the park there was hardly anyone else around.  Another sign that this was a bad idea.  Not even the die-hard exercise freaks were out. Groan!

About a 1/4 of a mile into the walk the three of us settled into a comfortable pace and I totally forgot about the damp chill in the air.  Soon the jacket came off.

Before I knew it, we'd lapped the park three times and logged 4 miles, the sun was starting to burn off the clouds and the trail was starting to get crowded!

Our last Made to Crave session encouraged us to find accountability partners to keep us focused and on track. Basic, common sense advice that when taken to heart got me out of my slippers and into my walking shoes — with the side benefit of making some wonderful new friends!

I have recently found a lot of encouragement from Deuteronomy 2:3, "You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north."

I love the idea that I'm not heading north by myself.

While there's still time...

A few years ago my sister and I sat on her little deck at her home near St. Louis enjoying the backyard filled with flowers and scores of hummingbirds darting between her many feeders. We sipped ice tea, and talked about old times, hard times and good times as the scorching July sun would finally give way to the night.

One evening she took a deep drag off of her cigarette, exhaled, looked me straight in the eye and proceeded to tell me that I had gained too much weight and that I needed to start taking better care of myself.

Her blunt comment wasn't meant to be hurtful.

I couldn't disagree with her assessment of the health risks I was creating for myself. She was right of course.  I was on medicine for high blood pressure and high cholesterol, I was borderline diabetic and my knees were protesting from the extra weight.

But it's pretty hard to take health advise from someone with a cigarette in one hand and a recent diagnosis of terminal lung cancer in the other.

My sister died a few months after that visit.  It was too late for her to make changes that would extend or improve the quality of her life here on earth.

But wasn't too late for me.

I am not wasting any more time stuck in a rut of discouragement, defeat, guilt and embarrassment.  By the power of the Holy Spirit I am learning to turn to God, not food, when I'm lonely, bored, discouraged or stressed.  I am learning that I'm made to consume food, food is not supposed to consume me.

Me and my 'big' sister, Dorothy.
Taken a few months before she died from lung cancer.

FAT Snowball

Finished Session 2 of Made to Crave. It was a good class except that I talked too much as usual.  We had good discussion about some of the challenges we face, and I loved it when some of the ladies were willing to share some of their victories.

I'm all about acknowledging when I've messed up and then celebrating what I've done right.

One of the Jesus Girls talked about how she and her husband have attended Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University and they have started budgeting, using the envelope system and are becoming debt free. She was frustrated because she and her husband were able to work through their financial issues, yet she struggles to put a food plan together and stick with it.

First off, I think she's being too hard on herself, but I understand her frustration.

You don't get out of debt or lose weight over night.  It takes the "want to" to make it happen, it takes a plan and the willingness to sacrifice and suffer some discomfort, it takes goals and the patience to reach them and it takes small victories along the way to keep you motivated and moving toward success.

Part of Dave Ramsey's plan involves what he calls the debt snowball.  Identify your debt, pay off the smallest debt first and roll that payment into the next debt until it's paid, and so on.  He acknowledges that this plan helps the bottom line, but more importantly those small victories keep you motivated to tackle the next debt.

For me to be able to lose weight I had the find the 'want to'.  I needed a plan, and the willingness to sacrifice and 'suffer' some discomfort. I needed goals and the patience to reach them.  I NEED the small victories along the way to keep me motivated and moving toward success.

I'm trying NOT to visualize that each time I lose a pound of fat that it's snowballing into a big round ball somewhere.  That's just gross!  (Here's where I make a pun about my bottom line.) But the small victory of that first pound, eventually five, then ten and now 20 is keeping me focused on succeeding.

I've had setbacks and challenges and weeks where I've actually gained weight.  Working through money issues are similar.  There will always be cars that breakdown, a large utility bill or emergencies. There will always be long hours at work, a family celebration or boredom, loneliness and grief. But having the 'want to', the plan and the willingness to sacrifice and 'suffer' will get you through the rough patches, so why not celebrate the victories and keep working on that snowball.

Being $20,000 in debt and being 20 pounds over weight have a lot in common working towards the bottom line. (Sorry, I couldn't help myself!)

Victory Lap

I finished my 5k race in 46:14 minutes.  Not great by most standards and I didn't win any awards or medals, in fact I didn't even get a t-shirt (I registered late and they ran out), but I am ok with that.  I was 'racing' for other reasons.

I made an observation today. We all need accountability, encouragement, and someone/something who will motivate you to do your best.

You could spot the 'real' runners by the tan skin, flat stomachs, and those fancy running shorts. Most of the people seemed to be with family or friends and there were a good many people who appeared to be there for the moral support and to cheer them on.

Today I was by myself, but I wasn't alone. Thankfully I too have been blessed with accountability, encouragement and motivation.

At 5:30 a.m. when the alarm went off I started to self-doubt and talk myself out of even going, in spite of the fact that the weather was near-perfect for a race. I was going by myself,  I didn't have the ''outfit' and I certainly didn't have the flat stomach. I knew that I would be at the back of the pack from the get-go.

Having already paid my money kept me on track, I wasn't about to waste $25.  I think if I would have waited to register the day of the race I would have blown the whole thing off, rolled over and slept in.

My daughter and best friend, Jody, races and has been a constant source of support.  The thought of even competing in a 5k had never crossed my mind until she started planting the seeds of encouragement last summer. This was my 3rd 5k!

And as for my motivation, that seems to be coming from my deep desire to get healthy, be a good leader to our Bible study group and ultimately be able to give God all the glory for changing me on the inside and out.

I call today a NSV. Non-Scale Victory.  A NSV that is helping to build my sense of accomplishment, my sense of empowerment, my determination to make good choices for my body and soul.

Today I took a victory lap.

Empowered

Our First Place 4 Health class has finished for the season, but we aren't.

We've taken a break from the program and decided to do the new Bible study, Made to Crave for the next six weeks.  There was a great turn-out for our first class.  Lots of diversity in age, life experiences and weight.  I'm pretty sure that we're all going to be blessed by the study, each other and God's Word as we allow it to penetrate our minds and our hearts.

Last night Lysa TerKeurst, the author of the study, spoke to us on DVD about changing our way of thinking from feeling deprived about the choices we make to realizing that we are empowered by God to make permanent and meaningful changes in our life.  That we can move from craving food to craving a deeper relationship with Him.

Because I'm facilitating the class I'm a few days ahead of the group and I would like to share with you what being Empowered looked like for me today .

This box of cookies was dropped off at my desk about 2 hours before lunch time.  These Come See Me treats just screamed, Eat Me, especially since the cottage cheese and toasted bagel from breakfast were just a faint memory to my stomach by 10 a.m.

Ordinarily I would have taken one and then left the box at my desk for anyone who happened by and then finished up the left-overs when no one was looking.  But today I took fast action and made the rounds, handing out every single cookie in the box before my resolve gave way to the purple frosting.

The real miracle was that I didn't feel deprived, I felt empowered because I decided that a sugar cookie loaded with frosting wasn't worth the guilt  I would feel after I wiped the last crumb from my chin.

When lunch time finally rolled around I made another empowering choice. I had an apple, a cheese stick, a Fiber Plus bar and a Diet Coke and I was good for the rest of the afternoon and didn't think about food until dinner time.

An old Weight Watcher saying, "Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels," is true, but an even truer saying is "Nothing tastes as good as being empowered!"

It should be noted that I won today's battle with frosted sugar cookies, and I might not do as well tomorrow or the day after, but I'm ok with that, since all I can do is worry about today. Tomorrow has enough worries of it's own.