The BIG Weigh-In Month 3 Week 5

Proverbs 27:17 - "Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend."

     Thanksgiving is over and now everyone is gearing up for Christmas. This is the time of the year where many people put all discipline aside and eat, eat, eat. I did this on Thanksgiving. I gained three pounds on Thanksgiving day alone. It was NOT pretty this past week. I was VERY weak. I am trying to get refocused. I have decided to try to lose as much weight as possible between now and Christmas, because I can't depend on my discipline on Christmas day. I proved to myself, I have NONE. Here is my weight chart for the month of November.

Date

weight

Gain/loss

Total   +/-

Goal

11/1/10	368.8	0	-11.2	n/a
11/8/10	373.4	+4.6	-6.6	n/a
11/15/10	372	-1.4	-8	n/a
11/21/10	368.2	-3.8	-11.8	n/a
11/29/10	372.6	+4.4	-7.4	360.0 )-:

My goal for my first weigh in Dec. 6 is 362.6, a loss of 10 pounds this week. The question is, how will I reach this goal? This is what my plans are for the week.

• I will eat between 1200-1500 calories a day.
• I will get my 21 grams of Fiber every day.
• I will begin to do some type of exercise everyday.
• I will NOT eat any left overs from my kids plates.

There are four things I will do this week to help me reach my goal. I will try to write again this week, but with Haven not arriving yet, Christmas activities to attend and plan, not to mention my normal duty's, all I can say is I'll try. I WILL write every Monday though. So until next time, keep up the War on Weight!

The BIG Weigh-In Month 3 Week 4

Proverbs 27:17 - "Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend."

With the holidays approaching it will be more difficult to write everyday. I will try. I will at least write once a week with my weigh ins. Yesterday was a very busy day so I didn't get to write. I have put together a chart that I will be adding to every week. I will post it along with my weigh in.

Date	weight	Gain/loss	Total   +/-	Goal
8/9/10	380		n/a	n/a
8/16/10	378.8	-1.2	-1.2	n/a
8/23/10	378	-0.8	-2	n/a
8/30/10	373.2	-4.8	-6.8	n/a
9/6/10	375.2	+2	-4.8	n/a
9/13/10	373.2	-2	-6.8	n/a
9/20/10	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
9/27/10	381.2	+8	+1.2	n/a
10/4/10	379.2	-2	-0.8	n/a
10/11/10	377.6	-1.6	-2.4	n/a
10/18/10	366.6	-11	-13.4	n/a
10/25/10	368.8	+2.2	-11.2	n/a
11/1/10	368.8	0	-11.2	n/a
11/8/10	373.4	+4.6	-6.6	n/a
11/15/10	372	-1.4	-8	n/a
11/21/10	368.2	-3.8	-11.8	n/a
11/29/10				360.0

This is a chart that I have made for me to use so I can track exactly where I am and where I am wanting to go. Beginning next week I will post 1 month at a time, but I wanted to show what I am doing to REALLY lose weight. It is SOOO hard, but I know God can give strength. By the way, if I can reach my goal for my next weigh in it will be the smallest I have been in along time! So, even with Thanksgiving on hand I'm going to try my hardest.

Running Shoes

Hebrews 12:1 "run with patience the race that is set before us,"

     While this verse speaks of patience, it also speaks of forward progress; run. It takes action to make progress. I cannot sit on my sofa and see progress in my weight loss. I must DO something. The key is NOT to be discouraged when I don't make as much progress as I want to make. Progress IS still progress.
 
     While in this war on weight we must realize that we will not always have the victories we want to see, but it is important to note that progress has been made. We should realize that though we didn't lose fifteen pounds by our designated goal we have still made progress. We then must be ready to get focused and ready to take it to the next level. Maybe we have not exercised as much as we should, or we've had one to many unhealthy snacks. This is where stepping back and evaluating the past week, two weeks, etc. is very important. I find myself on Mondays looking back and asking myself "What did I do that helped me lose weight?", and "What did I do that hindered me from reaching my weight loss goal?"

   I have had one person contact me and challenge me to have a plan for Thanksgiving. I appreciate the note and I will be posting my plan Monday or Tuesday. Get yours ready. I want to encourage everyone to be willing to share your plan with the rest of us. Don't keep those weight loss secrets away from everyone, after all we are ALL in this war TOGETHER.

Marathon of Weight Loss

Hebrews 12:1 - "let us run with patience the race that is set before us,"

   "It has taken time to put weight on and it will take time get it off." I have heard that many times  and still struggle with the idea that I can't lose it all NOW!! The fact is that it was much more fun to pack on the pounds then it is to unpack them. It is a race that we run, not as a sprint, but as a marathon.

      If I try to lose weight in a sprint I will be very discouraged when I gain all the weight back, not to mention extra weight that is likely to appear. According to the professionals it is better lose a few pounds a week. If we consistently lose ten pounds a week it will not have long term benefits. We will lose a ton of weight and then all of a sudden we will balloon back up to where we were and weigh even more.

     We must instead look at weight loss as something that we must take time to do. We must STAY focused and realize that weight loss whether 10 pounds or .5 pounds is STILL a weight loss. This philosophy has gotten me through several potentially discouraging days, when I lost very little weight. I simply remind myself that I'm in it for the long haul and that it will probably NOT happen in my time frame. Just so it happens!

My Favorite Things

John 10:10 - "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

     What is abundant life? The definition of the Greek word is as follows:

exceeding some number or measure or rank or need over and above, more than is necessary, superadded, exceeding abundantly, supremely, something further, more, much more than all, more plainly, superior, extraordinary, surpassing, uncommon, pre-eminence, superiority, advantage, more eminent, more remarkable, more excellent

WOW!! That's what Jesus said he came to give us! A life above average, more remarkable, more excellent than what we had without him. So many times we try to take our happiness in our own hands, as if God doesn't know what will fulfill us - what an insult to Almighty God. We try to hold on to the worldly desires, lusts, and we flirt with temptation while God is trying to let us know if we will only turn completely to Him and trust Him he will give us  fulfillment that we could only dream of in this life, and the life to come.

     This is where I fall short. I see a few of my favorite things such as turkey, mashed potatoes, ham, corn, rolls, Holly's chocolate pie, Holly's pecan pie, pop (soda depending on where your from), stuffing, gravy, to name a few things, and my oh my, all of a sudden all my spirituality and logic goes right out the window. I begin to dive in and if I'm not careful I WILL BE A GLUTTON. Now I don't want to mix up abundant life with abundant sin that seems harmless, but really is very dangerous. So it is at this time that I must get with my best friend and tell him my weaknesses and DEPEND on his strength, because I know as Paul says, in my flesh dwelleth NO GOOD THING; A.K.A. I HAVE NO STRENGTH. I must take my "favorite things of this world" and simply make Christ my favorite "Thing" in the universe.

Dirty Boots

1 Corinthians 9:26 - "so fight I , not as one that beateth the air:"

     Paul has a purpose for his fight. He is not just throwing punches hoping to hit something. A person need not no a single thing about boxing to know that a boxer that closes his eyes and starts swinging at his opponent will get himself hurt fast. As Christians, there is a lesson for us here. We cannot simply say, "Well, I will just let things happen as they will and as the perfect door of opportunity opens, the I'll do something." Can you imagine going into your boss and saying that? So why do we give that excuse to Almighty God?

     Paul speaks of focus, but before this verse he speaks of being in the "mud" of peoples lives. He is all things to all people so that he may see at least some come to know Christ. He did not sit around waiting for the lost to bring up salvation to him. Instead he went to them. He took risks of love so that he could see others come to Christ. This should be our goal as well.

     When it comes to weight loss it takes both focus and willingness to get our boots dirty. It takes work. This is why I am a huge proponent of setting goals, they help us focus and gives us a specific thing to work on. I have been in a slump the past couple of weeks, but I am refocusing and working toward goals set. By God's strength and your prayers victory shall be mine. I will be praying for you as well, feel free to message me on Face book.

The BIG Weigh-In Month 3 Week 3

Proverbs 27:17 - "Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend."

    Last Monday I weighed in at 373.4, a gain of 4.6 pounds from the week before. I said that I would lose that this week. Well.... I didn't make the goal. I will not offer any excuses, I will say, however that someone told that they could tell I had lost weight. They also said it looked like I was toning a bit. This is good news because muscle does weigh more than fat, so my workouts are beginning to show. This is good. I did lose 1.4 pounds this past week. I now weigh 372.0 LBS. 

     Some of my goal for this week, the week before Thanksgiving, is to:

1.  keep drinking my gallon of water
2. Exercise every day
3. I will get on a 1200 Calorie diet for this week

I believe if I can do those things I will lose weight this week.

    I know that I will NOT reach my original goal of 323 the Monday after Thanksgiving, but I will do my best to get as close as possible. The scale I have is really a neat scale. It keeps track of my last five weigh ins and it tells me how much I have gained or lost. When I first bought the scale some months ago I stepped on it and that weight was locked in as a point of reference for my overall weight gain and weight loss. I am now 11 pounds heavier than when I 1st stepped on that scale. It is now my goal to register an overall loss by Nov. 29th. If I depend on God's strength and stay focused I believe that this new goal is very reachable!!

Never Give Up!!

1 Timothy 6:12 - "Fight the good fight..."

     Sometimes it gets difficult to stay focused and to continue in the battle against fat. I feel, at times just giving up and saying, "Forget it, I will just eat what I want and 'Die happy'." The verse today encourages me to fight the GOOD fight. It is good to lose weight, it is good to have energy, it is good to spend time with family DOING things instead of WATCHING the family do things, and it is good to have discipline. If you find yourself in the same Focus struggle as I am in, remember, don't quit we MUST fight the good fight! Victory will be ours even through the holiday season!

To Our Veterans

Romans 13:7 "Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour."

     Dear veteran,

     I want to thank you for all you have done for this great nation. You have forsaken family, friends, and home. Why? You did that for me. You may not know me, but you still were willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice for me. You are my hero. The Bible says greater love hath no man than this, that he would lay down his life for a friend. I may not know you personally, but the fact that you were and are willing to shed blood to protect the freedom I enjoy makes me step back and, in great humility, realize you are my friend.

     I thank you for the sacrifices you undoubtedly make on the behalf of a nation that does not always treat you properly. I thank not only you, but your family who is willing to let you go. It would be a tremendously difficult life to live not knowing where your husband or wife is, as he/she fights for this nation. It would be an unspeakably difficult life to take second place to "work". I can not imagine the life your family lives, the sacrifices made. I have only one word that comes to mind, "WOW!".

     Veteran, you are a precious commodity to this great nation. You are a role model for my children. You teach, by example, selflessness, sacrifice, giving your best, integrity, honor, duty, and the list goes on. When and if we meet in this life I would be honored to have my children meet such a person. Thank you for being a positive role model for my children. The Bible verse above says to give honor to whom honor is due. Today, especially, America honors you. We join together to say.... "THANK YOU".

God Bless,

A Grateful American Citizen

How can I?!

1 Corinthians 9:27 - But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

     Mark Twain said "The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not." Sometimes it feels that way! I just struggle at times with getting up and getting going. These past couple of days have been a struggle though Monday I did exercise, yesterday I did not. Here is where I struggle, I want o have all the benefits of weight loss without all the work. It does indeed take work, hard work, to lose weight.

     The verse above cuts me to the quick. As I apply this to myself I must get my body under control. My testimony is very important and it is not a good testimony to be overweight. How can I preach on discipline when it is clear I have none myself?! How can I preach on self control when it is so obvious that I do not possess such a quality?! How can I preach on self sacrifice when I am so selfish I am made captive to my own desires for food! How do I preach at all with such obvious problems?!

     The answer is, while the above are all questions that have run through my head at times, and recently I might add, I remind myself that me being overweight is a result of what I have done. Now I have lost about 20 pounds and am in an active "War on Weight!" that comes with battles won and battles lost. I simply must stay focused and remember the above verse, use it for fuel, and keep on keeping on. God has been faithful to help me through these past months, I must rely on Him now more than ever because of the upcoming holidays. God is faithful to me, oh that I would remain faithful to Him!

Knowledge

Proverbs 10:14 - "Wise men lay up knowledge:"

     Knowledge is a powerful thing to have. Wisdom is knowing the proper way to enact the knowledge you have. I am afraid that some think knowledge is of the devil, this simply isn't true, knowledge without wisdom is from the devil. We can have all the knowledge in the world, but until we use what we know it does us no good.

     This being said I have come across a website that I think will be a great help to us in our "War On Weight!!" http://www.smallstep.gov/index.htm is a government site that offers tips for a healthy lifestyle. While I personally disagree with many of the things the government does, this seems to be something that we can profit from. They have a health tip of the day, they are quite interesting. So take time to look up the site and look through it. You can even track your activity on the site. So take this piece of knowledge you have and let's put it to good use.

The BIG Weigh-In Month 3 Week 2

Proverbs 27:17 - "Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend."

Well, friend... it has not been pretty this past week. I have GREATLY lacked self control. After stepping on the scale today they tipped to 373.4. A gain of 4.6 pounds! I will admit that in this war on weight they weight won last weeks battle. It comes, however, to my mind the verse in which Paul says  in Philippians 3:13 "forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,". I will forget last weeks failures and look forward to this weeks successes! I will get out of the muck of self pity - which I have been struggling with - and will turn my focus to others, family, and most importantly God. So while I have failed terribly, I have a plan. I have an exercise program called "Extreme Makeover" that is broken down into 7 days of intense exercise; today I will start that program in the afternoons and in the evenings I will do my 30 min. Tea Bo workout. I will also refocus on my eating habits and will try to make conscious decisions to eat right. I WILL be reporting a weight loss of at least 4.6 pounds next Monday! How do I know? I AM DETERMINED!

Priorities

1 Timothy 4:8 - "For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come."

     I have heard preachers say that because the Bible says that bodily exercise profiteth little that Christians need not to make becoming physically fit a concern, as a matter of fact I heard some say it is a form of vanity and that people who exercise to try to look better is in sin because they are being full of pride. I say "Hahahahahaha!!!"

     I do NOT believe that is true at all. Actually I believe the opposite is true. A person who does strive to make God's temple a.k.a. our body as attractive as we can - let me clarify, I am NOT endorsing immodesty - we are being lazy, self centered, selfish, and the list goes on. That said I will say that if your physical exercise and weight loss program keeps you from church, reading your Bible, have your personal prayer time, and even witnessing to others then I believe that you would be in sin. Why? Because our 1st priority is to be God and our spiritual life.

     It is interesting to see that the verse above says "For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." This verse is speaking of priorities. As your spiritual life becomes more vibrant and you become more godly then everything else will fall into place. As we grow spiritually it will benefit us in ALL aspects of life both spiritual and physical! So if you "don't have time to read your Bible, pray, or go to church", you are WRONG for doing what you do WHEN you do it whatever it is. Put God as first priority and you will be amazed at the change you will see. Will this require some sacrifice... yes, but the more important question is will it be worth the sacrifices made? The answer is a resounding YES!!!

Out of Control!!

Mark 4:37-38 - "37. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish ?"

      I can't imagine how bad the storm was on the sea that night. It must have pretty bad to get experienced fisherman to worry for their lives. Here they were trying to survive and everything around them were literally out of control. The wind was blowing, the water was crashing over the sides of the boat more quickly than they could empty it, and above all that their master seemed not to care. They must asked themselves, "How could Jesus sleep at a time like this? We're about to die and Jesus sleeps!" They were terrified and honestly thought they were going to die. Their life was quite literally out of control.

     I find myself in "the same boat" as the apostles when it comes to losing weight. I have done o.k., but have not had any REAL significant weight lose for a while. I have gone back to eating unhealthy and eating a lot just before I go to bed. Usually my week consists of weighing about 368 then gaining about 2 - 3 pounds, then I spend another day or two trying to get back down to 368 then usually by, sat Thursday, I actually get below 368. I get excited and then it's Friday and supper comes where I eat uncontrollably so I gain back two to three pounds, then I spend Saturday and Sunday trying to just get back down to where I began. It is a vicious cycle and it must come to an end. It has NOT been a good week for my weight loss. I must refocus, get a grip and go to the One the apostles ran to in their troubles, Jesus.

Knowing is Only Half the Battle

James 4:17 - " Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin."

     When I was a young boy one of my favorite cartoons was G.I. Joe. I loved the action that took place in the cartoon, not to mention the good guys always won. The cartoon ended with a G.I. Joe talking about something; one that I remember was sunburning while tanning. The G.I. Joe would talk about the dangers of being out in the sun, then he would give the solution such as putting on sunscreen and turning over every so often. Then he would say "And knowing is half the battle!"

     There is a good lesson for us today in that simple statement. We can know something, but we must DO it to make change something. I know that for me to lose weight I must exercise. My problem is getting my feet on board with my mind! I know I should eat right, but I also have to get my determination on the same waive length as my mind or I will get food that is NOT good for me.I know that for me a good rule of thumb is not to eat a second helping, but my hands must stay by my side and not reach for more food. This reminds me of the verse "my spirit is willing but my flesh is weak."

     Our verse simply says that if you know to do good and don't do it you are in sin. Pretty harsh, but true. When I don't give God 100% I am in sin, so to know something and not do it is giving God less than He deserves. It is also disobedience to not do what we know we should. If I tell Corban to pick up his clothes, he knows he should, but if he doesn't he has disobeyed. If we know we are to do something good, such as be healthy and we don't do it are we then in sin? We have so many Christians who are saying we need revival and yet are not obeying God's simple command to take care of His temple. How can true revival happen if God's temple is not clean and holy, both spiritually and physically?

Too Much to Lose

3 John 1:2 - "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth."


     It is interesting to me that health is used here in direct correlation to the soul. What is the soul? It is our emotions, our thoughts, a.k.a. our mind. So, John says that he wishes health even as the emotions and  mind prosper. The saying "mind over matter" is one that is used when we are trying to do something difficult, even painful. There is a pain when a person is hungry and greatly desires food. When we begin to feel that way it is time to do something.

     I have been reading through a book about weight loss from the Mayo Clinic. It has discussed adding five habits and now as I continue to read it is telling me to break five habits. One habit is T.V. According to the book it is good to only watch as much T.V. as I have exercised. It actually suggests a "point System" for every minute of exercise I get a minute of T.V. It also states that I'm not allowed to use "credit" I can't watch T.V. until AFTER I have exercised or I can watch T.V. WHILE I'm exercising. It sounds a bit radical, but I think I will try it out. I will plan out my T.V. time I want and exercise that much, in some form. I can't afford to gain weight, I have too much to lose so radical or not I'm game.

     O.K. I can't help but think of something even better than exercise and, I might add, more important. It is also radical, but I think if you and I tried it, it would change our lives. So, what is this idea? Only as much T.V. as we spend with GOD! Yes, I know, we are too busy to spend time with God, yet we have HOURS to watch T.V. Something is wrong with that picture. Are you game?