Are you stuck in a pit?

Some time has passed since I last wrote! Things have calmed down as I'm not training to run the Blueberry Stomp any longer. In fact, someone recently referred to me as a "runner"! I immediately set the record straight; for I am NOT a runner. I am a person who had a dream to run a race she had always dreamed of running! That doesn't make me a runner but it does make me someone who realizes I can accomplish ANYTHING I set my mind to.

I was recently reminded of that important fact in other areas of my life. The fact that if I want change, I can choose change. I was reminded once again that I am not victim to consequences of bad choices, but rather I have the ability, the right, and the power to make the changes in my life I want to make.

I recently read an AMAZING book written by Beth Moore, "Get Out of That Pit." This book spoke to my heart like no other book in my life!! Beth talks about how we can find ourselves in a pit. We are either thrown into a pit by no wrong doing of our own. Life circumstances have pushed us into the pit. Loved one's choices have sent us into the pit but we choose to remain in the pit out of self pity. We can also end up in a pit by just not paying attention. We sort of tried to straddle a fence and wound up knee deep in mud and mire. Lastly, we can end up in a pit by our very choice. We want what we want when we want it, and as a result we're paying the consequences in a big ole hole that seems impossible to get out of!

GOOD NEWS friends.... we are NOT stuck in a pit! It doesn't matter how you ended up in your pit, you CAN get out!! God loves each and every one of us. He knows the things we struggle with. He knows how we ended up in our pit. Even if we caused our own fall, He wants us OUT OF THAT PIT - NOW!!!!!! You're not alone. Help is on the way!!! Help is just a choice away!!!

I am out of pit that trapped me for so many years! I can't express to you the feeling of freedom from this pit! Yes, we may find ourselves in a pit for other reasons, but we must remember what we've learned along the way so we don't stay stuck in new pits for long! We were never promised an easy life.... but friends, it could be SO MUCH EASIER if we stick close to Christ and lean on Him for the strength to help us GET OUT of the pit once and for all!

From one pit dweller to another.... let's get out of dodge and enjoy the life God gave us!!!!

Race Day!

This weekend was a special weekend of sorts for me. It was Blueberry Festival weekend, which ALWAYS equates SPECIAL. In years past, the BBF meant one thing to me, and one thing alone - DEEEEEELICIOUS FOOD!!!! I would go to the festival all four days and literally stuff myself silly. I had no other interest than eating. I didn't really care to see people because I was too embarassed of them to see me! I recall on race day sitting alongside Michigan Road, watching the runners for the Blueberry Stomp. I remember shakin' my head in amazement - wondering what it would be like to be like them. I wondered what it would be like to actually care enough about my body that I would say NO to myself instead of a continual YES regarding the food I ate. I wondered what it would be like to be strong and muscular - to be proud of myself and confident in my abilities. I've wondered for the past 10+ years; unfortunately the wonder never propelled me into action. Year after year I would get up from my seat and head straight to the blueberry donuts and then smoothie booth, and then and then and then.........

THIS YEAR, was different! THIS YEAR I didn't wonder anymore. THIS YEAR, I made it happen. Yes... I still enjoy my favorite foods at the festival.... but not in near the quantity and I made sure to burn off every last calorie of it! THIS YEAR, I looked forward to seeing others and was not embarassed if anyone should happen to see me. THIS YEAR, I ran that 5K for the first time in my life and I loved every second of it!

I loved my strength,
my confidence,
my ability,
and mostly my freedom.

I loved the friends and family cheering me on because they know the difficult journey I have been on. I loved that my husband ran the 5K to support me... but ended up finding a newfound passion and confidence in his own abilities. I am still amazed that he earned 2nd place in his age group! SO PROUD!!

Today was a memorable day, one that I will forever cherish.

I encourage anyone reading this..... TODAY could be your day! It is never ever too late to gain back your life again. It doesn't matter if your 30 lbs overweight or 100 lbs overweight - I want to shout it from the rooftops that it's never too late!!!

You don't have to wonder anymore!!!

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

I can't believe it's been over two months since I've last posted. My excuse: I am livin' life to the fullest! This has been my first summer I've NOT been in "losing weight" mode. I've kept my 90 lbs off and am maintaining just fine! A very unfortunate thing happened this summer... I discovered an ice cream shoppe called Maggie Moos. Yep, it is my new weakness (next to Mountain Dew of course). I think about meeting up with Maggie often and I use every excuse I can think of to visit her. Want to hear the good news? I can visit her GUILT FREE! Yes! I (as do my hubby and daughter) order the kid size cup everytime we go. Now, if you've ever been to Maggie Moos you'll know the kids size is about four bites. Those four bites give me the delicacy I need to satisfy my desire for Maggie Moos (for that day at least).

All this to say, being FREE to eat ice cream (or anything else I want) is a great place to be. Some people think that they have to give up all their favorite foods once they commit to a life of lighter living. This is just not true. Moderation is the key.

Living with 90 lbs less on my body, feeling great, looking great, being active and most importantly feeling ALIVE again - are all the motivators I need to stay on the path of lighter living!!! I find myself walking down the street thanking God for my chance and choice to live lighter! I don't take it for granted, not for one second.

For 8 months now, I "log" my weight every Saturday morning on a piece of paper inside my medicine cabinet (NOTE: the log is placed directly above one of my "fat" pictures). Every Saturday, Josh asks me how my "weigh in" went that morning. It's just the right amount of accountability I need. Josh and I know that if I gained weight two weeks in a row, I need an intervention!!! I know me! He knows me! Two weeks of weight gain means I've gone off the path and I NEED to get back on!

I am thankful for this accountability. I am thankful for a husband who knows me - and what I need to succeed! He has been cheering me on every step of the way and his compliments to this day are never ending.

I'll say it again - and again - and again. The sacrifice and "pain" of not eating whatever you want whenever you want IS WORTH IT. I say this from experience!! Food isn't worth it robbing you of the life God intended for you to have!!!

I am living my life to the fullest - enjoy all the little things once again!

Just Do It!!!!!

You really can do it!

It's seems so simple really...... Nike's trademark phrase... "JUST DO IT!" Change occurs as a result of DOING it... making the change.... making a different choice! To this day, there are times when I think about bingeing like I used to. There are times when I'm overwhelmed with life and desire to turn to food for comfort like I did for 20+ years. The difference between now and then is that I STOP, and think about the choice before I make it. I weigh the pros and cons of my desire to binge. I instantly think about how terrible I am going to feel and how my clothes will INSTANTLY feel tight. I HATE wearing clothes that are too tight!! I think about my daughter who reveals her hidden thoughts here and there in random conversation. "Mom, I used to be embarassed when you'd pick me up from school because you were fat." I think about my husband who compliments me on a daily basis - usually multiple times in one day. I think of all of those things now... I think of the consequences of my choices instead of numbing myself with food. I STOP, I think, I choose!

If you're at a point in your life where you're feeling helpless, remember that you are NOT helpless. You are a choice away from change. You're a choice away from living the life you've always wanted. The choice is hard, YES, YES it is..... but I promise you with everything in me that the choice is 100% worth it!!!!

YOU ARE WORTH IT - so just do it already!!! You'll be so glad you did!!

Maintenance - I thought we'd never meet!

In all my years of battling my weight, I never thought I'd have a need to learn how to maintain my weight. I've always been either losing... or gaining.... or losing.... or gaining. In fact, people would say to me, "Losing it is easy, keeping it off is a whole other story." Their words went in one ear and out the other, because I believed in my heart I'd never lose all the weight I needed to lose; therefore I'd never need to maintain. So much for positive thinking!

Well guess what.... maintenance and I have met.... and we're getting along quite nicely! Yes, I went through a couple of weeks of pushing the limit with my eating. Just like our children, I wanted to test the waters to see just how much I could eat without getting in trouble. I gained four pounds during that "trial period" and just as a child, I learned the lesson from my consequences!

Those four pounds gained are long gone and I feel as though I've found my groove! I would disagree that maintaining is harder than losing. Every single day of my life I am sooooo thankful for the 86 lbs I've lost! I do not lose sight of the hard work it took to lose that weight. I let that fuel me to make good choices every day! The cool thing is that I can still have my Dew. I can still have my Panera Bagels. I just continue to do so in moderation. I still eat only when I'm hungry and I still play the game of "how much can I leave on my plate!"

A lifestyle change is the only way to experience long term freedom from the bondage of food!!! I've had people ask me, "How did you do it?" as if it I could sum it up with one word. I did it by following through with alllll the tips I've shared in my blog. All of them together lead to my breakthrough!!! And it's the continuing practice of those tips that keeps the weight off!!!!

Every bit of sacrifice is worth it my friends - every bit!!! I have never felt so great in my entire life! Thanks to my weekly personal training sessions I've done for the past four months, I have muscles in places I didn't know muscles existed!! I have seen myself move into smaller size clothing, even though the number on the scale is not decreasing. This lifestyle change is one of the best decisions I've ever committed to in my life!

Tip #20: Fuel your mind, first!!!

I'm to the point now where I've pretty much met my weight loss goals and I'm ready to maintain. Well let me just tell you that maintaining is a whole new mindset. I've always been big on goals... easily measurable goals. Well... when your goal is to maintain... and that scale stops moving - something just doesn't seem right. It didn't SEEM like I was accomplishing anything anymore.

Add that to an extremely challenging week last week - the most challenging I've had in over a year since I began my journey. I felt like my life was very out of balance and I found myself turning to food for comfort - just like I had for the previous 20 years of my life! It's VERY scary to think that after all the work I've done to lose this weight, I could so easily slip into my old ways!

I took my own advice and confessed to Josh four days into the week. He gave me a pep talk, but it didn't help. The day next four days I continued to turn to food for comfort. I was MISERABLE! I had flashes of my "old life". I was scared to death that I would give up like I used to......

I had such an urgency in my heart to ask God for mental strength and stability! Last week, I was reminded of the importance of having a strong mind!!! My mind was so weak that when I went to my aerobics class I literally felt like I couldn't make it through one song. It wasn't because my body was weak... I had been faithful in my personal training and aerobics classes for months.... but my mind was weak. That experience showed me that I MUST MUST MUST feed and fuel my mind with God's Truth, inspiration, with positive music, books, media, with positive and encouraging people, with anything I can get my hands on that will strengthen my mind. We must guard our minds as if we were guarding the lives of our loved ones from the evil one!

I'm happy to report I am 100% back on track and feeling stronger than ever. It's as if last week never happened... but it did.... and I'm GLAD it did. It reminded me the need to fuel my mind FIRST, then fuel my body! I know with everything in me that my life depends on it!

Tip #19: The truth will set you free!

I used to think that when I "slipped" and overate that I had blown the entire week. I honestly in my heart of hearts thought I had blown it by making one wrong splurge. That is soooooo far from the truth! We all splurge, we all slip, we all make wrong food choices and we always will! But one slip doesn't mean that all the hard work you've done is for nothing. On the contrary, all of your hard work has made it so a slip here and there is NO BIG DEAL!!!

Here is the catch.... start over A.S.A.P!!!!! Do not allow yourself to tailspin out of control. I'm sure most of you know exactly what I'm talking about when I say "tailspin." It's that mindset day after day after day that says, "I blew it again... and again.. .and again... oh well.. oh well.. oh well!" A gain of 2 lbs turns into 5 turns into 10 turns into 30 turns into 50.

The key is to stop the tailspin before it even gets started. We all need to find out how we can stop our tailspin. I can just tell you what stops mine.... and that's confession. Yep... confessing to Josh in particular of the condition of my heart with regards to where I'm at in the battle. The bible says the "truth will set you free" and I believe it wholeheartedly! By just confessing I'm taking a step towards FREEDOM!!!! When we keep things secret... keep things in the dark - there is NO HOPE for freedom!!! This applies to MANY areas of life, food is just one.

It was a couple of months ago I had made a week's worth of "bad choices." I had gained four pounds. That is the most I have gained this past year. The "old me" would have kept that secret to myself many many months. And as a result I would have gained a tremendous amount of weight. What I've learned about myself is that I'm either pressing TOWARDS the goal of staying healthy or I'm binging myself back into darkness. It's all or nothing for me.

Once that week had passed, I knew I needed to confess the state of my heart. I didn't want to go down the dark road of bondage ever again. I am sooooooo glad I did confess this to Josh. He truly is a man after God's own heart... and he helped me sort through my crazy thoughts!! IMMEDIATELY, I was free!

Friends, you can choose to live in freedom too! Live in the truth, always!

The truth will set you free!