Grandiose Resolutions

Did you know that statistics show that 9 out of 10 people who make their New Year's resolution to lose weight, fail? How sad. But I can tell you that I was in that group of 9 people for years, making a big, grand resolution that, "this would be the year that I was going to lose all my weight." Some years I would start strong, only to fade when it got hard or when I got tired. Usually, I was just to lazy to stick with it.

But I have learned that setting goals is a far better way to go than making grand resolutions. Of course, there is a right way to make goals if you want to be successful. It really breaks down to four easy steps:

1. Set a clear, precise objective that you can reasonably achieve. Make this a small bite size goal, nothing grand or general. For example, your goal might be that you want to lose a great deal of weight. The small, attainable goal might be to lose two pounds a week.
2. Set a deadline. For example, decide to weigh yourself every Thursday to check your progress.
3. Prepare a plan of action. This might be something like, weight training twice a week and aerobics or cardio three times a week.
4. Take action. To borrow a slogan from Nike, "Just do it."

And there you go. You have a large goal of losing weight, not very specific, and really too vague to be the only "plan". Instead of stopping there, you have broken it down into achievable steps, a time limit and plan for evaluating your progress, and a plan for the specific way that you will accomplish the small goal. Now, it is time to go get started.

I have taken a week to pray and analyze what my new goals should be for 2010. What better accountability than sharing some of them in my blog. On this journey, I have learned to make goals in every area of my life, not just fitness. My biggest goal is to daily spend quality time with my Lord, husband, and two daughters. In my homeschooling, my goal is to always have my planning done two weeks ahead of time. I also have the goal of keeping the house in order every day before starting school, and then doing a deep cleaning once, before the end of the week. One of my new big fitness goals is to be in a spin class by December, which I am now breaking into steps to accomplish. And just today, a new huge goal fell in my lap. My gym is having an 8-week weight loss contest. My goal is not only to compete in it, but to win it. So, I will definitely keep you posted on that one.

There is something that makes your goals more real if you write them down and share them with people. So this year, don't just have another failed, meaningless resolution. And join me on my path so that you will not only make grand plans for "getting healthier", but rather, setting achievable, specific goals that you can actually maintain. Then watch as you actually "get healthier."

P.S. One of my secret goals is to be a skinny, spandex person. Watch out, 2010 just may be the year.

More Beautiful You

We took family pictures for my mother-in-law's Christmas present. Don't tell her, shhhh. My friend Rita took them. She is a brilliant photographer. We had a lot of fun. It was so cold. I have never really liked taking pictures because of my weight and I must tell you, when we got them I was quite disappointed. Not with the pictures, they are wonderful. But with how I looked. I thought I looked as if I had not lost any weight. I was quite depressed and wondered why I was even trying. I was quite defeated. My husband and my buddy Michelle tried to tell me that it DOES look like I have lost the 130 pounds that I have lost. Nothing really helped and I was very down. But I keep working out, even though I did not want to. When I was rowing, I listened to a new song that I had just put on my iPod. When you are rowing for 45 minutes you have nothing but time on your hands. So I really listened to the words of a song that my daughter is dancing her solo to this year. To be honest, I thought it was just another bubble gum song, but I was wrong. Some of the words really took me back:

If you feel depressed with past regrets
The shameful nights hope to forget
Can disappear they can all be washed away
By the One whose strong can right your wrongs
Can rid your fears dry all your tears
And change the way you look at this big world
He will take your dark distorted view
And with His light He will show you truth
And again you'll see through the eyes of a little girl
There could never be a more beautiful you.

I spend so much time regretting my past and how I have let myself go and all the time I wasted. Sometimes it can get overwhelming. And I know when I looked at those pictures I had a distorted view. But I know that God's view of me is what matters most. He is leading me through this path and wants me to see myself though His eyes, to put all my past mistakes behind me, rid me of my fears and dry my tears. He does see me as beautiful.

So I am sharing our pictures with you and I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and want you to take time this holiday season to spend time with the Savior who will dry your tears, right your wrongs, and show you truth. Because He loves you and gave Himself for you. And He can wash away your past and make all things new.

An Interesting Question

Would you keep working out if you did not have to?

What a question. When I was first asked this question I flippantly said, "of course not." There you go, it was short, quick, and to the point. But then it began to gnaw at me. Why did I answer so quickly. Would I really stop? And why is this bothering me so much. I started to ponder this. Would I never work out again if I didn't need to? I really needed to find out for myself.

So I started a list of pros and cons to work through this.

First, the cons. Working out is hard. It takes a lot of your time. You have sore muscles. You lose sleep in order to get up early. You sweat a lot - no, I really mean a lot. You sweat so much you ruin clothes. You have to take showers all the time. You have to go a gym and workout next to skinny spandex people. You always have sore muscles. Finally, you have to lift heavy objects. Okay, I think I just talked myself out of ever working out again.

But to be fair, lets move on to the pros. What have I gained through working out? When I really think about it, I have gained my life back. I know that sounds dramatic, but it is really true. I have begun to believe in myself again and made changes to become the person I want to be. Working out has taken me farther than I ever thought I could go. I have gained self respect and pride in my accomplishments. It has taught me how to plan and set goals, and push myself past my limits. It has allowed me a lot of time with God to praise Him and pray for people, and myself. It has given me the ability to earn respect from my family, friends, and people I don't even know from the gym and Internet. It has also allowed me to encourage and inspire people, and a drive for life that I have never known before. It has given me so many sweet family times - I no longer sit and watch my family do things, I can join in.

The journey I am on is the journey of a lifetime and it will last that whole lifetime. It has also given me sore muscles, early mornings, sweaty clothes, and at time, pain - physical and emotional. But when you take time to think about it, it is so worth the effort I have gone through.

I ran into a few people who had not seen me in a few years. They asked me if I had weight loss surgery. I was kind of insulted because I had dropped every pound through hard work and sweat. Although it would be tempting, if given a magic wand, to instantly get to my ideal weight and never have to workout again, I would not do it because I would miss out on this journey and what richness it has brought to my life. It has been filled with ups and downs, but they are my ups and downs.

If you've read my blog before, you know how inspired I am by music. I ran across a song that puts it perfectly, how I feel about my path, or climb:

There's always gonna be another mountain,

I'm always gonna make it move,

Always gonna be an uphill battle,

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose.

Ain't about how fast I get there,

Ain't about what's waiting on the other side,

It's the climb.

The struggles I'm facing,

The chances I'm taking,

Sometimes might knock me down.

But, no I'm not breaking.

I may not know it,

But these are the moments

That I'm gonna remember most,

You've gotta keep going.

I know, I know, it's a Miley Cyrus song, but at least she didn't write the lyrics - they were written by adults.

I will stay on my path and I pray that you will stay on yours.

The Process Never Ends Until We Die

"In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die, the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility." Eleanor Roosevelt

Responsibility, what a heavy word. But in the end it is truly up to each of us. Wouldn't it be easier if we could pay someone to walk this path for us. If we could have a "pinch weight-loss runner" who we could trade places with at the finish line, thin, healthy and fit. But I guess we would miss out on all this journey has to offer.

Each week is a blank canvas on which you can paint a beautiful picture filled with vivid colors, or scribble a black and white stick figure drawing. We all have to live each week, but it is our choice how we shape that week. And, we must accept that this process will never end, but is always filled with change along the way.

They say the secret to survival is the ability to adapt to change. I can tell you that I hate change, always have, and always will. Lately I have been struggling with all the changes involved on my path to fitness. I used to think that it was pretty straight forward - exercise, eat less, and you lose weight. And it is true that calories in / calories out is basically what it is about. But to be truly successful, you need to switch up your workout and your calories, and don't get me started on metabolism! I wish there was a manual that told you everything you need to do, but being fit does not seem to work like that.

Last week, I needed to change my workout because I was getting bored and unmotivated, so I knew that I needed to change up some things. My husband encouraged me to try the rowing machine at the gym. I always wanted to try it, but didn't think I would be able to do it. So, I thought, what do I have to lose. My husband strapped me in and away I went. I was going to try it for five minutes. My husband went to take a shower, but at the end of five minutes, I couldn't get unstrapped. So, I decided to keep going until my husband came out to help me. I went 15 minutes and burned a bunch of calories. So, the next day I wanted to see if I could go 30 minutes. Sure enough, I could. Then, I set a goal of going 3 miles which I already accomplished and am now on to new goals. And then it hit me - by changing up my workout, I was not bored anymore and in fact, excited to see how far I could go. Now I have some variety for my cardio. So I guess change is not so bad after all, which is good, because now I need to change my weight workout at the end of the month. You see change never ends.

So what is the moral of the story? We all need to relax and walk the path that God has given each of us. Don't get set in our ways. If we want to truly survive and thrive, we need to develop the ability to change. Look around, do you see any dinosaurs on your path? They could not adapt to change. We don't want to end up like them do we?

Choices

The last two months have been a whirlwind of activity in my life. Here are just a few things that have taken place:

• I walked in my first Susan G. Komen breast cancer walk
• Lost a friend to a pulmonary embolism
• Returned to a church for the first time that we had left under difficult circumstances
• Restored a friendship
• Saw my all-time favorite band in concert (Casting Crowns)
• Got a clean bill of health from my oncologist
• Started teaching a home school co-op class to 36 kids
• Continued working out six days a week and homeschooling my own two children.

Wow, just putting it on paper makes me tired.

I realize more and more that it is the decisions you make every day that shape your life. And, a busy life is no excuse to stall or fall off your path to health. One of the most important life lessons I have learned is that every day, you make choices, and they are not always easy. Sometimes choices are made for you which are out of your control. For example, two weeks ago, I was only able to work out two times through no fault of my own. On the following Monday morning, when the alarm went off at 4:30 am, the last thing I wanted to do was get up and go workout. If it wasn't for the encouragement and prodding of my husband (who also didn't really want to get up either since he had missed the entire week at the gym), I would not have gone.

At the gym I felt so sluggish and had a horrible workout. My only consolation was that my husband was a lazy slug that day at the gym. If not for the accountability and fear of my family's karate sensei, I would not have gone to aerobics that day either. Then it hit my like a ton of bricks. This is how people can easily fall off their path to health. It really wouldn't have taken me much more to fall off mine. It only takes a few days of bad choices to ruin a long run of good ones. I was sharing this with Sensei Richard and he said something very profound, "In life as well as exercise, you can't bank things. You have to make deposits each and every day." Wow, he was right. I know there will be days when choices are made for me that are out of my control, but it is ultimately my responsibility to stay the path long-term.

This week, I have made some really good decisions as well as horrible ones. But, I know that I need to get up each morning, and with God's help, try to make the right decisions for my path. I heard a new song this week and felt God was sending me an encouraging note to keep me on my path. I wanted to share a few lines with you. The song is from Sidewalk Prophets and says:

Be strong in the Lord, and never give up hope.

You're going to do great things, I already know.

God's got His hand on you, so don't live in fear,

Forgive and forget, but don't forget why you're here.

Take your time and pray.

Thank God for each day.

And His love will find a way.

So don't let a few bad decisions throw you off the path God has set you on.

Get A Bicycle ...

"Get a bicycle. You will certainly not regret it, if you live." Mark Twain

In my new life, I have learned to set fitness goals. One of them was to ride a bike. I had a rocky start riding the bike in the gym, but now I am riding 30-45 minutes a day, 6 days a week (plus my weight training). My next huge goal was to ride a real bike - outside and everything - and to go on a family bike ride. Since I started on this path, I feel a lot of it has been in a holding pattern. There are so many things that I want to do, but I need to lose weight before I can accomplish them. But I wanted to ride a bike, not in a few months, but right now.

I knew that I would need a recumbent bike, due to an old leg injury. We started looking for one and quickly found that they started at over $1000. So, we went to plan B, AKA eBay. We found two that were up for bid by the same person, but we had a very small budget. So without God's help, I knew I would not be getting a bike. But, you know that I would not be writing this blog post if my bid had not won. So, let's recap - I wanted a very expensive, special bike, we had very little money, and it looked impossible. But with God, all things are possible and we won the bid at a great price, and got the bike. A happy ending, right?

No. The minute we won the bid, the realization set in - now I have to learn to ride a bike! Me, a rollie-pollie, uncoordinated person who hadn't ridden a bike in 40 years; what had I done? And of course, I had asked all my friends to pray that I would get this bike. They all knew I won the bid, so how would I get out of this one?

Well, it took a couple weeks to get the bike shipped, then we took it to get tuned up at a bike shop. So, finally the day came, and I had to actually ride my God given gift of a bike. I could not sleep the night before. I was so scared I wouldn't be able to do it. I even looked around online to see if they made training wheels for adult bikes. But, I knew God was with me every step of this path, so I took a "pedal of faith" and went for a ride. My husband went with me to an empty parking lot, early in the morning. I didn't want anyone to see me. Heck, I didn't even want to see myself doing this. I told him, "Whatever you do, don't let go of me." I know that's how he taught my two daughters to ride their bikes, but this was me.

So, with my heart racing, I started pedaling saying, "Don't let go of me!" I looked over, and my husband was jogging right next to me, not holding on. I realized I was riding the bike all by myself. What a feeling to accomplish a huge goal that I could not have done without God's strength. The next day, we went on our first family bike ride. It was somewhat traumatic as there were a lot of people riding on the trail so I was very nervous. I even got to take my first "wipe out." We had a great time, and I know it will only be the first of many family bike rides to come.

One thing I have learned on this path is you have to keep moving your goals once you meet them. So, my new goal is to ride 4 miles outside and work my way to 10 miles. My ultimate goal is to ride in a 50 mile bike race. I don't know how long it will take, but I know that I will keep working on these goals until I meet them.

So, there you go. Just as Mark Twain said, "Get a bicycle." I haven't regretted it (yet), and I'm still alive and pedaling down my path.

Go Kiss A Deer

I experienced a new part of my path last week while on vacation with my family. This was the first time where eating healthy and exercising actually matter to me. Well, needless to say, I was filled with much anxiety before we left because I was worrying about staying on my healthy eating plan and if I would have time to work out. To be perfectly honest with you, I really do not enjoy the outdoors that much and we were going to a cabin in the woods so that alone caused me to have much concern. Every time I have a break in my routine, I worry if I will ever get back on my path.

I was listening to a song while driving up to the cabin. I heard this song many times, but there was one line in it I heard for the first time. It was very simple but I think it was what God was trying to tell me, all through this vacation. The line says, "So look up and see love. Let grace be enough." It was as if God was speaking directly to me, saying that His grace is enough and that He loves me and I don't need to let the worries choke out the joy of this time with my family. There were many times that I would become anxious again, like when we arrived at the cabin and I saw two flights of stairs just to get in the front door. But I just looked up and saw love, and let grace be enough. Believe it or not, the stairs were no problem at all which was a good thing, because when I got in the cabin, there was another flight of stairs up to the loft. I guess all that cardio was paying off.

There were so many things on this trip that I was able to do with my family for the first time. We rode a steam engine train with an outside car that we all stood in and watched God's beautiful creation pass by. I was standing for more than an hour in the outside car with my daughters, which would have been impossible just a year ago. Last year I was only able to stand five or ten minutes at the time due to the pain in my leg and my lack of fitness. That was when God revealed to me the whole reason I am on this path - to take my life back and enjoy every minute of it. This vacation was not a snare to trap me to fall of my path, but a blessing to show me how far I have come, and what I have to look forward to with my family.

That's exactly what I did when I went for hikes, swimming in the Hot Springs, making s'mores over a campfire (yes the fire was outside). We saw so much wonderful wildlife. One the most fun things is that the deer were so friendly, they would come right up to you allow you to feed them. One actually kissed me when I bent down to feed him a cookie (no, it was not my cookie it was my husband's cookie - I guess now it is the deer's cookie). It was one of the most active vacations that we have ever had. My husband and my children have always been active, but I was never able to join in. But this time was different. It was truly a wonderful time. I cannot tell you that I now love the outdoors, but I will go there any time to spend time with my family. And of course with God's amazing blessings, when I got home from our vacation, after not being able to exercise regularly or eat as healthy as I would of liked, I weighed in and had lost 5 pounds (my husband gained 2 ha, ha, ha). Again it was God saying to me, "...look up and see love, let grace be enough." Jesus came so that we could have life and have it more abundantly, and it is our job to find the path He has given us and walk forward, living our lives.

So this week, I want you to look up and see love, and let grace be enough. And while you're at it, go kiss a deer.

Stay the Path