Welp, here it is again. The beginning of a new year. Usually, at this time, I imagine the year ahead of me. I think of the opportunities I will have to show off my newly svelt body, which, of course, I'm going to bust my ass (literally) to achieve. Hello, bikini! Hello, sexy Halloween costume! Hello, greater stamina and energy! The future usually seems brighter at the beginning, but this year, I'm not going to sugar coat it. No more deluding myself that losing weight is easy. No more thoughtless eating, emotional eating, or boredom eating. I know that I don't have the willpower or strength to follow a diet or an exercise plan; that's been made abundantly clear by hundreds of past failures. What I DO have, though, is an unlimited, reliable power-source that I can tap anytime. This soure of strength helped me quit smoking cold turkey. Now that I know I can kick one addiction, break one habit, with God, I just have to remember to rely on Him again. So, here is my plan.
1- PRAY. Pray for mindfulness. Pray for self-control. Pray for motivation.
2- Be prepared. When I plan ahead what my meals will be, I am more successful. I can bring healthy snacks and lunches to school so I won't be tempted by Chipotle (which I walk past daily, btw).
3- Pray some more. Particularly while walking past Chipotle.
4- Banish fear and guilt. To be more specific, fear of failure and guilt after I fail. Seriously, as long as I'm trying, I can't fail. Sure, I won't always make the healthy choice; sometimes a girl's gotta have a brownie. So, why fear the inevitable? All that does is paralyze me and make me want to give up. Then, I feel guilty for giving up, and finish off the pan of brownies. Not good. So, no more fear or guilt. My food does NOT have to be tied to my emotions.
5- Hydrate! The last time I was marginally sucessful at losing weight, I shed 45 pounds. Know what I did besides eat lots-o-veggies? I drank nearly a gallon of water a day. That's all I drank. No soda, coffee, milk, or juice. I had green tea to relax in the evening, but other than that I was a fish. A very happy, energetic fish (not that they actually drink water, but that's just splitting hairs. Lay off.).
6- Pray. Again. This time, though, I'll pray for motivation to stick to it when I'm beginning to see changes. I know that sounds silly...that's when dieting is easiest, right? WRONG. I remember feeling so elated that I was down another two, three, five, whatever pounds that I 'rewarded' myself with a day off my diet. Soon, that day was two, then a week, then, "Ooops, where did those four months go?" I'll reward myself with non-food items, and pray that God helps me.
7- Exercise three days a week. There's a voice in my head saying it should be more, but she can STFU and remember that's still three more days than I'm doing now. So there.
8- Use the tools at my disposal. Namely, Weight Watchers Online. I have an app on my phone, so there's really no good excuse for not keeping track of my food and exercise. Besides, when I reach a weight-loss goal, I get a star and fanfare. Don't lie and tell me you don't get excited about stars and fanfare....I do!!!
9- PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY
10- Last but not least, I'm going to share my struggle. Oftentimes, we see being overweight as something shameful and disgusting, but it's really just a physical trait, like having hands that look like your mom's or big blue eyes. The difference is that being overweight comes with health risks, and that it's completely changeable. It's not quick, and rarely easy, but hardship shared is hardship halved and joy shared is joy doubled. Will you share my joy? I'll gladly help you with your hardships. :)
