A Critical Exercise
Good Morning Girls! When I woke up and looked out the window I sat up not only wondering what day it was, but what month it was. Wow, heavy snow in April......I guess God is the best April Fools player there is (though I do think He has an unfair advantage).
For the last week I have been struggling with the drama that is my life. Yesterday I finally broke free from the mental and emotional torture I was in. I refuse to worry about tomorrow.....I choose to live my life today! In order to get back on my feet again, I had to fully realize and accept (again) that I truly have control over very little in my life. I cannot control the economy, the environment, or the people around me. I can only control myself (which isn't always easy).
And that is a perfect segue to getting back to writing about healthy living. I believe that since we have control over ourselves, and not much more, we ought to take that seriously. We ought to exercise the control we have. We need to exercise self control. We don't even have complete control over our bodies. We can pick out healthy foods. We can exercise. Still, our bodies will take that and deal with it differently. One person eats a certain way and drops 10 pounds, another may only lose 2. One person lifts weights and gets stronger faster than the next person. Hard to explain. There are so many variables that even if you do follow a special program, you can not be guaranteed any specific results. We are all different. Our bodies all respond different.
Knowing that your body may or may not produce the desired results when you follow a new diet and exercise program may seem like one more reason not to bother making such changes.....but it's not. You see, your body may not make the changes you desire in the amount of time you desire, but your body will make changes that are good for you. Do you think I was happy when it took me 8 months to lose 20 pounds? Nope! I was not. In fact, I often cried and felt frustrated. But what were my options? I had already lost some of the weight. I knew how good that felt. Was I going to give up and pig out and lose the progress I had already made? No. In fact, my verse that I stood on all summer was Philippians 3:16 but we must hold on to the progress we've already made. I knew that if I didn't keep moving forward, even if at a snails pace, I would move back....and I knew that I did not enjoy my life as much the way I was. So, I had to accept (again) that I had little control over how my body was going to lose the weight. I just had to believe that if I kept doing what was right, I would in fact lose the weight.
And you know what I realized 20 pounds later? That by losing the weight slowly, and sometimes painfully, I have a testimony to offer others! I have my story. A story of a real Girl who followed programs and then finally followed God and lost the first 10 pounds in 6 months....and the last 10 pounds in 6 weeks. I have managed to keep the weight off (for the first time ever), and I have the compassion and empathy for the "dieter" that I never would have had, had it come easy for me. So once again, God has proven his goodness. Though I didn't understand it at the time. My slow and emotional journey was preparing me for something bigger than myself.
I can't guarantee what will happen to you if you follow some of my recommendations. I can't promise you how fast you will lose weight if you follow the Abs Diet, or if you simply cut out sugar for 90 days. I can't make big promises of wearing a bikini by June if you follow this or that. But I can guarantee you this: if you do not make any changes, you will not see any changes. Well, I take that back. You may see changes, but I don't think you will like them. You may put on another pound or two, or you may have your next yearly physical come back with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or other symptoms. You may not be able to keep up with your family this summer. You may spend the summer wishing you could get in the pool with the others, but you are too self conscious to. (just so you know, you should never be too self conscious to get in on the summer fun....there are very cute swimsuits for all shapes and sizes....).Now you all know me. I am not saying these things to be harsh. I am saying them so you realize that we have limited control of our life......maybe it's time we start "exercising"some of it.....
1 Peter 1:13 So think clearly and exercise self control
Love you all-
Jen
For the last week I have been struggling with the drama that is my life. Yesterday I finally broke free from the mental and emotional torture I was in. I refuse to worry about tomorrow.....I choose to live my life today! In order to get back on my feet again, I had to fully realize and accept (again) that I truly have control over very little in my life. I cannot control the economy, the environment, or the people around me. I can only control myself (which isn't always easy).
And that is a perfect segue to getting back to writing about healthy living. I believe that since we have control over ourselves, and not much more, we ought to take that seriously. We ought to exercise the control we have. We need to exercise self control. We don't even have complete control over our bodies. We can pick out healthy foods. We can exercise. Still, our bodies will take that and deal with it differently. One person eats a certain way and drops 10 pounds, another may only lose 2. One person lifts weights and gets stronger faster than the next person. Hard to explain. There are so many variables that even if you do follow a special program, you can not be guaranteed any specific results. We are all different. Our bodies all respond different.
Knowing that your body may or may not produce the desired results when you follow a new diet and exercise program may seem like one more reason not to bother making such changes.....but it's not. You see, your body may not make the changes you desire in the amount of time you desire, but your body will make changes that are good for you. Do you think I was happy when it took me 8 months to lose 20 pounds? Nope! I was not. In fact, I often cried and felt frustrated. But what were my options? I had already lost some of the weight. I knew how good that felt. Was I going to give up and pig out and lose the progress I had already made? No. In fact, my verse that I stood on all summer was Philippians 3:16 but we must hold on to the progress we've already made. I knew that if I didn't keep moving forward, even if at a snails pace, I would move back....and I knew that I did not enjoy my life as much the way I was. So, I had to accept (again) that I had little control over how my body was going to lose the weight. I just had to believe that if I kept doing what was right, I would in fact lose the weight.
And you know what I realized 20 pounds later? That by losing the weight slowly, and sometimes painfully, I have a testimony to offer others! I have my story. A story of a real Girl who followed programs and then finally followed God and lost the first 10 pounds in 6 months....and the last 10 pounds in 6 weeks. I have managed to keep the weight off (for the first time ever), and I have the compassion and empathy for the "dieter" that I never would have had, had it come easy for me. So once again, God has proven his goodness. Though I didn't understand it at the time. My slow and emotional journey was preparing me for something bigger than myself.
I can't guarantee what will happen to you if you follow some of my recommendations. I can't promise you how fast you will lose weight if you follow the Abs Diet, or if you simply cut out sugar for 90 days. I can't make big promises of wearing a bikini by June if you follow this or that. But I can guarantee you this: if you do not make any changes, you will not see any changes. Well, I take that back. You may see changes, but I don't think you will like them. You may put on another pound or two, or you may have your next yearly physical come back with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or other symptoms. You may not be able to keep up with your family this summer. You may spend the summer wishing you could get in the pool with the others, but you are too self conscious to. (just so you know, you should never be too self conscious to get in on the summer fun....there are very cute swimsuits for all shapes and sizes....).Now you all know me. I am not saying these things to be harsh. I am saying them so you realize that we have limited control of our life......maybe it's time we start "exercising"some of it.....
1 Peter 1:13 So think clearly and exercise self control
Love you all-
Jen
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