Life has a way of carrying us away in the ebb and flow of our daily routines. We move from day to day, season to season, being carried through time; and then one day it happens... we look up and wonder how exactly we got where we are. This is the story of my journey to a healthier life, showing my daughters that taking care of the body God entrusted to us is as important as taking care of every other part of our lives.
I love a fresh start, and a brand new WW week is just that...a clean slate :)
I went to my WW meeting this morning and just as I suspected, I was up a hair more than a pound but that's still OK after traveling. I determined this morning to make good food choices and to be diligent about tracking. I began my day with a banana and a piece of toast along with my plexus slim. A decent start to the day :). My WW meeting gave me encouragement and inspiration for this new week... Something greatly needed and appreciated. I made the choice to not hit drive thru and go home to make a healthy, filling lunch. After being off track for a couple weeks, it's actually nice to be back to making healthy choices, rather than lazy ones.
I'm hoping to get caught up around our home so that I have an easier time of planning and executing those plans, such as being more active and preparing low point meals. For now, I'll leave you so I can enjoy my yummy lunch :)
Tomorrow is my weekly weigh in and after a week on vacation and 2 twelve hour road trips I'm expecting to see a slight gain on that scale. That said, I weighed this morning on my scale and am down a pound from when I returned from Arkansas. Heading back in the right direction :)
Back to eating lots of fresh foods and not living on "treats" makes all the difference. That said, we are heading out to a movie today which means movie popcorn;) It's called life and I've got to learn how to live within the bounds of God's permission not what the world offers as "OK".
After such a terrific start on this journey, I've managed to lose sight of the goals and I seem to have forgotten that God himself called me to this. I've been having a tough time getting my head back into the game. But then... God cut me some slack and gave me a much needed break from my daily routine so that I can gain a new focus on Him and His plans for me and my family. I was blessed to go visit my very best friend in Arkansas and surprise her for her birthday. I loaded the girls up in the truck and headed south. Along the way, I was conscious of my food choices and my portion sizes. I did allow myself treats, but within [what I felt was] reason. We enjoyed southern home cooking as well as eating out and I managed to stay on my daily medicines as well as enjoyed the benefits of Juice Plus+ daily. The road trip home was a bit tough and I "needed" more to keep me awake and alert (Dr Pepper, a frappe, and a little more munching). All in all, however, best I can tell I only gained a pound.
Now, onto looking forward.....
What am I going to do to get my head back into the game? Well, for starters, I determined to start off the day right. I had a WW friendly breakfast and tracked it. A bowl of berries with nuts, a little chocolate granola, and coconut milk. I'm planning on a healthy lunch (probably a big salad with protein on top) and a home cooked dinner. I know for a fact that eating at home keeps my points in range. Planning ahead also makes a HUGE difference in my staying on track and I know that it helps my family to eat healthier as well. This week is going to be a busy one and to be honest, I'm not prepared for it when it comes to my WW plan. I've not planned ahead, I've not shopped to stock up on healthy food choices, and I've not fully engaged my heart back into "the goal". That said, I'm keeping my heart totally focused on God, I'm determined to follow His guidance in all areas but especially in this particular area. I truly feel that He is using WW to teach me to be more disciplined in all areas of my life. This week is also about cleaning out the clutter in my life by cleaning out the house to get ready for a yard sale this coming weekend. I believe that if I can declutter my home, I can declutter my mind and heart as well, making more room for the Holy Spirit to fill me.
Please pray for me this week as I focus on getting back on track in my WW journey as well as my home management skills.
It may be Friday, but it's the first day of my restart. I jumped on my scale this morning and am down a pound from the past couple of days... that's a great encouragement to stay on track. I made my favorite 2 point smoothie for breakfast (recipe below) and am looking forward to a day of spring cleaning and living well. It's a good start to a great, rainy weekend... perfect for staying home and cleaning out (which also happens to be a great way of getting extra activity points).
Smoothie Recipe:
Berries of choice about 1-1 1/3 cup
individual carton of Dannon Light and Fit Greek yogurt - Strawberry (all other flavors are 2 points)
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon of ground flax seed
crushed ice
I determined yesterday to get back on track with WW, and am really trying, however it just seems that life is also determined to get in the way. Both yesterday and today I started out ok... good even; then as the days progressed, I ended up getting off plan. Yes, I have my extra "indulgence" points to use each week, but I really don't like catching myself using them up due to my own lack of planning. This haphazard way I have is what's causing me to continue to stumble and it's also one thing I strongly feel God is working on.
Tomorrow is another clean slate; another chance to "get it right". I plan to eat at home tomorrow and for the next several days, and I plan to get back to my planning, as well as living by my plan. It truly is the desire of my heart to glorify God every step of the way along this journey.... continuing to have a stubborn heart that turns to food to fill emotional voids and calm stressful moments is NOT glorifying Him. Turning to Him to give me the comfort and support I need will glorify Him and hopefully bring me closer to my physical goals.
Jeremiah 29:11-14a "For I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you", declares the Lord, "and will bring you back from captivity",
Knowing I'd done nothing but eat out and not made the wisest of choices over the past week, I still chose to face my weekly weigh in. Yes, I've officially gained back half the weight I'd initially lost. That said, It's a brand new week with a totally clean slate. I've prayerfully determined to get back on track as of this morning, and will admit to turning to God many times already for strength and direction (and it's not even noon yet;)
God is the architect of this journey He chose to place me on. He knows when/where/how I'll stumble and fall. I am clinging to His promise that He will see me thru everything that comes along the way. God Designed my life at the beginning of time; I'm just trying to find the plans He has for me and stop getting in the way of everything He is doing in my life. I'm so very thankful that my God loves me so much that He has never (nor will He ever) given up on me, even when I've given up on myself.
After gaining a pound at my last weigh-in, I had the best of intentions of getting right back on track and watching the scale go down again. Well, it's been one of THOSE weeks. You know the kind. The kind that get completely away from you without you even knowing where it went. It's those type of weeks that get me into trouble because we end up eating out all the time.
Tomorrow is my weigh-in day and I'm expecting to see another gain. Gracie heard me talking to my mom about it and said, "Just don't go tomorrow, Mom". No way! I'm going to face my giant at that scale, accept the consequences of my poor choices, and determine to start fresh and get right back on track. I'm not going to continue down this spiral of eating to fill my emotions, then feeling like "Oh well, I've been bad all day, so it doesn't matter anymore; I'll forget about it and just continue to eat what I want, when I want it." My desire is to glorify God in this journey, so I'm going to allow Him to pick me back up, dust me off, and set me back straight on my path.
