Pictures

I'm not calling this a "before and after" picture because I have not reached the "after" yet. It's more like a "before" and "middle" picture. So here I am.....this is Cliff and I with the Great Jeff Gordon on June 12,2011 exactly one month before I started my diet.

And here we are on December 18, 2011 a little over 5 months after I started...70 pound lighter.

The Christmas celebrating and I'm back at it. Taking this week to do a little detoxing and back on the treadmill and I feel GREAT!

I've heard so many people say they are going to get serious about their weight after the first of the year. Best Wishes to you. I'm cheering for you!!

Tackling The Holidays

I would never advise anyone to start a diet this time of year. Its HARD!!! You are inundated EVERYWHERE with sights and smells of treats that only appear during the holiday season. Since Halloween, it seems that everywhere I go I see signs for Pumpkin this or that....oh how I have craved IHOP'S Pumpkin pancakes!!

Thankfully, I have 5 months of momentum behind me. I have worked so hard to lose each and every ounce that the thought of undoing all that hard work helps me keep moving past all those sugary delicacies.

So, how am I tackling the holidays? I'm going to eat...with moderation. I decided that part of the tradition of the holidays is the foods, tastes, and smells that bring back memories and bring us together. Smelling sugar cookies baking in the oven screams Christmas to me!

So on Thanksgiving I ate, without guilt. But keeping in mind that I didn't need 1/4 of the pie to enjoy the taste of Pecan Pie! And also remembering that Thanksgiving is Thursday ONLY...NOT all weekend!

I will treat Christmas the same way. I will enjoy our Christmas Eve treats and Christmas Day dinner.

I think the main thing is that this year I have a plan. And I think thats a large part of the battle.

HUNGER (or a Question Without an Answer)

I followed a conversation several months ago online and the topic was hunger. Someone was selling a weight-loss aid and the first question was, "Will I feel hunger?" I've been wondering since then, why are we so afraid to feel hungry? Frankly I don't have an answer. I haven't done deep studies on this topic....only my own deep thinking :-)

I do know that we were created with hunger and thirst. Over and over in the scriptures there are references to God's supplying to those that are both hungry and thirsty. The scriptures also tell us that we are to hunger and thirst after righteousness. I know it is God-given.

When I was at my heaviest weight, I rarely felt hunger - probably for 2 main reasons....1, I constantly kept feeding my body far more than it needed and 2, My metabolism was non-existant. 5 days or so into this new way of eating, hunger kicked it....and I LOVE it. I've read from Micheal Thurmond, that when you feel hunger that means your metabolism is working. So everytime I feel hunger, I know I'm on the right track and the metabolism is back!! I do, however, try to keep myself from getting extremely hungry....that would lead to some pretty poor choices. But I have discovered that I seem to follow a pattern....every 2-3 hours I begin feeling the hunger pains and I know its time to feed my body. In fact, I'm getting hungry right now!!!!!!!!

Hunger is nothing to fear....I don't know why we do. If you're watching your weight, embrace it and God's internal signal that its time to eat.
If you're thirsty, drink, If you're hungry, eat and if you're tired, sleep.

Glimpses

As I was getting ready for church this past Sunday morning, I caught a glimpse of someone in the mirror. Someone who I haven't seen in a very, very long time. I caught a glimpse of the girl I used to be. The girl who has been hidden behind pounds of overweight for far too long.

I was thinking back this past week and I've been on a continual journey towards freedom and healing. The girl behind the overweight has been there for various reasons....guilt, disappointment, self-preservation, fear, nonacceptance, loss of hope, and feelings of unworthiness to name a few.

I was thinking back to when Cliff & I were first married. Cliff was in the Navy at the time and stationed in Jacksonville, FL. I was 19 and had never really been away from home before. Now I found myself in this strange city, far from home with no life, no friends, and no car. Cliff did what he could but when you are in the service, you are married to it in a sense. We joined a fairly large church just across the street and when I look back I wish someone there had reached out to that very sad, very lonely, and very homesick girl. So I spent my days cleaning our little apartment, baking bread, and eating, while my negative thoughts reached a new level.

I do not hold anyone responsible for the over abundance of food I have put in my mouth over the years. And looking back, I have learned a valuable lesson...that I need to be intentional and in tune to the needs of others. I didn't reach out to anyone in that church....I didn't tell anyone how sad or lonely I was. I didn't know how and I didn't know to whom I could go. I can't change my past but I can learn from it and change my future. People's ignorance of me does not define who I am. God's Word does. And God's Word also goes on to tell me how I am to treat other people....especially those who are overlooked, hurting, or sad.