Day Two

Wake Up Call

Keep me from lying to myself; give me the privilege of knowing your instructions- Psalm 119:29

Okay Girls, I am going to ask you to do something today that is most likely going to make you feel a little vulnerable and insecure.  It is going to trigger all sorts of emotions.  It is going to be one of the hardest things you have done in awhile- but trust me, it will be worth it.  It is a critical step in your weight loss process.

For those of you who are serial dieters, this will come as no surprise to you.

  I am going to ask you to take a before photo.  That’s right, pictures of yourself.  For those of you who hate being in pictures, start praying now because not only am I asking you to take a picture of yourself, I am asking you to do it in a swimsuit!

The before photos provide us with two things.  First of all, it tells it like it is.  There is no more hiding.  Some of you have been lying to yourselves.  Maybe lying is a harsh word.  It’s more like denial.  We tend to minimize the effect our excess weight has on us, both emotionally, and physically.  We deny it, because to address it opens up a floodgate of emotions.  If we are not ready to process and work through those emotions, it’s best to leave them stuffed inside, deep down with the oreos and pizza.  So you continue buying bigger clothes, or wearing only elastic waistband pants, and say you’ve “put on a couple pounds”, but really it’s more serious than that.  It’s not that I want you to feel bad about yourself, I just want you to stop and realize it is in fact time to take action.

The other purpose of the before photo is that it is an excellent measuring tool.  You will quickly learn that I am not a fan of the scale.  I think it is distracting and often detrimental to your weight loss success.  I think it distorts the truth of what is happening to your body and it can send you into a mental tailspin.  A photo however gives us a better “picture” of the changes your body is making.  You will be taking another photo on day 90.

Not only do we lie to ourselves before we lose weight, many of us lie to ourselves after.  Or maybe the real culprit it the enemy of our faith.  I remember taking my after photo and downloading them on the computer.  I kept saying “is that me?”.  I couldn’t believe it.  All day I kept looking at the photos, in disbelief that for the first time in my life I didn’t hate what I saw.  At one point my friend said “Didn’t you know?  Couldn’t you tell?”.  I stopped for a minute to think about it.  The honest answer was “No”. 

We will get into this more later, but it can be hard to recognize the changes we make.  I’ve been so used to trying to lose weight, and never getting to my goal that I was mentally stuck there.  I was still the “fat girl” in my head.  Even though I was wearing clothes I never could of a year earlier, my weight loss was still not fully registering in my mind.  Even though I look in the mirror every day, I still have to look at my photo to see it and believe it.

There are still days when I feel like the same old fat Jen.  Maybe I’ve overeaten, or maybe I have PMS.  Or maybe I’m letting the devil whisper his lies into my head.  Whatever the reason, on the very worst days, it’s nice for me to pull out that before photo.  Again, I have tangible proof that I have changed.  Proof that shows me where I started- and where I never want to return.

So now it’s your turn.  Put on a swimsuit and take 2 photos.  One of your front and one of your backside.  I know it can feel embarrassing, but please do not skip this step.  In the end, you will be happy to have them. 

Upload them on your computer, or get them processed, but don’t look at them yet.  We’ll take that on tomorrow.  You can do it!  You are not alone in this!

Dear Heavenly Father, I confess I have been in denial about the effect my weight has had on my life.  I ask you to help me see the truth.  Please keep me from lying to myself any longer.  I ask you to give me the courage to take my photos and to see the truth. I ask you to start speaking to my heart, and giving me instruction on how to lose the weight.  I thank you for helping me.  I praise you for the victory that is mine.  For the victory that will be seen in my after photo.  In Jesus’ name, Amen