Haiti

Friends...

I honestly intended to give you another weekly weight loss update, because I know that many of you are praying for me and helping to hold me accountable. Thank you! But, honestly...I feel like I have no words. I've been reading and reading and reading and watching the news and reading more about the devastation in Haiti following yesterday's earthquake. My weight loss update seems so trivial in comparision to the bigger issues going on right now in Haiti.

My heart is breaking for the Haitian people. The nation was already so terribly broken due to poverty, disease, spiritual depravity, and vial wickedness. We have missionary friends of our Connect Group at church that are living in Jacmel, Haiti - 3 hours south of Port au Prince, and their account of the early hours of the earthquake continue to astound me. Knowing that they were three hours away and experienced what they did makes me shutter to think of those areas closer to the center of the quake. Click here to hear their account of yesterday's events from their location in Haiti.

I feel so helpless from where I sit. Yet...I am still called to do something. I will PRAY for starters. This is one of those times that I truly don't know how to pray. The situation seems so large. But, I also know that my God is larger...he IS in control, and this was NOT a surprise to Him.

So, Lord please pour out your mercy on the people in Haiti. Please stir Americans to respond financially in a way that will blow my mind. Please guide our hearts as we seek your will in how to help!

I'll follow up soon on the weight loss world. Be blessed dear friends!

My Weight Loss World Update...

Happy Wednesday blog friends...

WOW...after writing continuously for 40 days, I suddenly feel as if I've abandoned my blog by simply taking a few days off. Never fear - I haven't. Just trying to get back into "normalcy". This is my first full work week in a month. Forgot what that was like. I've also been working on some of my 2010 goals, so that's kept my focus on other areas, but so far so good. One of those goals is to improve my physical health, so here's an update on how that's going...

Unlike many, I didn't re-start my diet until January 4! I never like to start on January 1, because I feel almost like it's a setup for a failure - one of those "resolution curses" so to speak. Additionally, this year, I attended a wedding on January 1, and January 2-3 were the first weekend days of the year. So...I talked myself into one more weekend of blatant disobedience in the area of food and exercise. Shameful - I know. The holidays really took a toll on this body of mine, but I'm sad to admit that it was worse than I thought (or at least that's what the scale revealed to me). OK - that's in the past - moving forward (not dwelling there)...

So, I'm beginning day 3 of my adventure. So far...so good. I'm back to my low-carb way of eating. This really worked for me before the holidays, and I can't tell you how GOOD I felt. I felt so much more energy than I recall in recent years, and the weight fell off at a reasonable rate also. Initially, I find that I lose a lot of water weight, so this first week is proving to be pretty high in pounds lost, but that will shift within a week or so, I'm sure.

In addition to the low carb way of eating, I'm also back to drinking lots and lots of water and one cup of coffee in the morning. I've really been failing at hydration lately, and our bodies need water desperately, so I'm flooding my system again! It shows...my bathroom trips have more than doubled!

I'm also trying to do some form of exercise daily. Something. Anything. On Monday, I went to the gym and worked out for almost an hour doing a combo of cardio and weights. However, my foot pain has returned with a vengeance (and seems to be worse on the treadmill), so last night...I exercised using my daughter's Wii Fit! I only did this for about 15 minutes, but it was something!

Lastly...and perhaps the most important piece of this journey...I'm journaling. Right now - I'm journaling in a notebook. I'm too chicken to put it on here. I have a couple blog friends that have chronicled their weight loss journey in a blog format, and I so applaud them (especially sweet Charlie - you've got to check out her blogsite if you haven't already)! However, I just can't seem to do so yet. I hope that will change, because I think it will hold me more accountable and will be an inspiration to others on the same type of journey. We'll see what the future holds on that...

On another note, I'm so tickled to see that some of you have decided to join me this year in a scripture memorization challenge. Kudos to you! Not only do we need to focus on our physical health, but our spiritual health needs to be kept in check also (even more so, in my opinion). What better way to do that than to focus on knowing God and knowing Him more intimately by hiding His Word deep in our hearts! I know some of you are doing this scripture memorization "thing" on your own, but I really, really encourage you to do so publicly, and I've given you an opportunity to join a group of us two times a month in a way that will cause us to be more accountable to each other. If you haven't read about it yet...here's my original post on the matter.

It's hard to believe we're at the halfway mark on the first week of the new year. I'm praying the rest of the week is a great one for you!

Oh...here's a little heads up for you...I'll be doing my first blog giveaway later this month! I mentioned last year that they would be coming in 2010, and my birthday is later this month, so I will be giving away a gift on my birthday this year! Stay tuned...check back often! Be blessed sweet friends!!!

The Biggest Non-Loser!

Disclaimer: This blog post may be anything but encouraging. If you're looking for encouragement today - maybe you should check back tomorrow. However, if you want to read the writings of a real woman with real struggles being really transparent, then you're in the right place.

OK...moving right along.

I just finished watching The Biggest Loser. This is the only television show that I watch regularly, and it almost always inspires me. I, too, have struggled with my weight all my adult life (and even throughout most of teen years). I've tried almost every diet out there, I've exercised, read nutrition book after nutrition book after nutrition book. As a matter of fact, I'm still waiting on someone to award me an honorary Master's Degree in nutrition! Anyway...while watching tonight's episode of my favorite show, I began feeling discouragement. As I watch this season's contestants get smaller and smaller as they near the finale, I watch myself lose less and less or sometimes gain. I've been doing what I know to be the right things, but it's not happening like I had hoped. I know that I need to exercise more and will do so as soon as my foot injury heals up. But, other than that...I feel I'm doing okay.

Several weeks ago, I began yet another weight loss journey. It was actually working. I set a goal to lose 25 pounds by Thanksgiving. Guess what? I've been stuck at an 18 pound loss for over two weeks now. I'm not budging from that mark, and I'm sure I'll actually gain a few pounds before the week is over. I continue to get discouraged over the lack of success, because I have a long way to go before I reach my goal!

Now, I know there are other issues that can affect weight loss. A sweet friend reminded me that stress can wreak havoc on dieting and weight management. My life has had quite a bit of stress lately. I also continue to suffer with foot issues - affecting my exercise program (or lack thereof). I generally do okay in the food department, but it's not appearing to be enough.

I really don't mean to complain. I know that's all I've been doing for the last few paragraphs. But, maybe just maybe somebody else is experiencing a similar frustration right now. If so...please know you're not alone friend! I promise I'm not going to stay in this pit for long. I guess I just needed to get some of these thoughts of frustration and disappointment off my chest in order to proceed to the next step. I WILL defeat this giant one day! This mountain WILL move! I WILL reach that place that God has purposed for me. While I know these things to be true...today I'm just a bit low. I won't stay this way, and I hope I haven't let you down. Please forgive me.

List #13

Some of you know that I've been making some pretty big changes in the way I eat, exercise, and just overall take care of myself. I've been battling my weight for quite awhile, and the battle wages on, but the victory is around the corner! However, in studying up on nutrition, in general, I've really begun a quest to try and get myself healthier. In other words, it's not just about the weight loss anymore. Even if I were already a skinny-mini, I would still employ many of these same things, because they simply make me a healthier woman. People often ask me what kind of diet I'm on, or what am I doing to lose weight. My "diet" or new healthy way of eating is a mix of different things. I've done so much research and have been on almost every diet imaginable that it's really a blend of many programs and much study. I also have polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), which confounds problems by creating a pattern of insulin resistance in my body. I say all that to say - carbs are NOT my friends right now. So, for this week's Friday list, I thought I would share ten things that I'm doing along this healthy life journey that I'm on. I'd love new ideas from you if you have any you'd like to pass along. Or - maybe you have a success story to share. Feel free to comment or email me (see my profile page)...I'd love to hear from you!

10 New Things I am Doing to Incorporate a Healthier Lifestyle:
1. Lowering my carb intake to no more than 60-80 mg a day.
2. Eating almonds, blueberries, flaxseed oil, and olive oil daily - all very high in antioxidants and regulating insulin levels (no I’m not diabetic but struggle with insulin resistance)!
3. Paring protein and carbs together. I don’t just eat empty carbs - I put protein with it.
4. Eating 3 smaller meals and 2-3 healthy snacks daily.
5. Eating NO refined sugar - only natural sugars.
6. Using Stevia as a healthy, natural sweetener rather than Splenda, Sweet ‘n Low, and Equal.
7. Taking a multi-vitamin each day.
8. Avoiding potatoes, rice, crackers, bread, and other heavy starches.
9. Getting more sleep.
10. Getting exercise. This is actually limited right now due to a foot and ankle injury, but I’ll be up and at it again very soon!

One day at a time...

You've heard the expression "one day at a time"...it's a line in an old gospel song - it even used to be the name of a 70's tv sitcom. The expression makes sense...days come only one at a time anyway. Knowing that and trying to live in that knowledge has been difficult for me most of my life. I'm always trying to plan my future, whether it's a day in the future...a week in the future...or a decade in the future. While planning is important at times, it can often be crippling for me. Allow me to be a little transparent on this one.

Maintaining an ideal weight has always been a struggle for me. Partially, it's in my genes - very slow metabolism - large bones - blah, blah, blah. I've used all of those excuses before, however the bottom line is if you take in more calories than you release - you will more than likely gain weight. I know how to eat properly, and I know how to exercise, but for me - food is an emotional comfort (regardless of the emotion). I have been very successful in the past at losing weight only to gain it back again. I really thought I had it licked this last time only to discover my strongholds and weaknesses remain. I finally reached the point where I realized nothing would work, because I was trying to do it on my own. I would cry out to God for help, but then I would never actually allow Him to help. I would make a week of menus and exercise plans and fail after one day and then scrap the rest of the week's plans. This vicious cycle repeated itself over and over, until now...

Partially, I'm confessing this for accountability. Putting things in print for others to read will automatically open the door for questions about how I'm doing, and I welcome them. So, what's different about this time you ask? After spending time in prayer and fasting a few weeks ago, this time - I'm taking all of the nutrition and exercise knowledge I already have, and I am applying it one day at a time! Sounds simple right? Well, in a way it is. I begin each day before God's throne dedicating the day to Him, asking Him to walk me through each challenge and temptation and allow me to be successful THIS day. I don't look ahead to tomorrow - I'm only looking at my behavior on THIS day. You would never realize that something this simple could end up being so huge, but it has really changed me. Now, when I fail (and those days happen), it's one day of failure - not a whole week or month just thrown away but one day! I needed the nutrition and exercise knowledge also, but this was the missing piece. Simply allowing God to work in and through me one day at a time has been amazing! I now live each day doing my best to walk in obedience to Him, and by faith, I know that He's pleased with me and will reward that obedience one day!