I have decided to go with the plan that has brought me the most success to date--Weight Watchers. I've lost sixty pounds following it and I think it will get me to my goal this year if I am more careful and strict with myself. Usually, once I get closer I kind of fudge the measurements or sneak bites here and there and figure my level of exercise will make up for it. But, I believe that if I work the plan fastidiously it will bring results, as well as a lifestyle of moderation that is the goal. Mentally, it is also much easier for me to imagine adopting for the rest of my life. I can eat ice cream, or brownies, or enjoy treats at a book club meeting. I just need to make myself write it down and become an aware eater, instead of meandering through the day grazing at will and estimating how I'm doing. The idea of never eating Maggie Moo's again is just too too much.
This morning I had a wonderful scripture study. I am teaching a short class on Thursday night at church about fitting health and fitness in and I've had a hard time pegging down my approach. This morning I learned alot about Christ's character and how part of His perfection is that He has subdued all things unto himself. He is the model of temperance and moderation. I also learned about how true joy is only possible when the spirit and the body are united. We cannot reach real happiness if we are only focusing on one side of the equation. Our bodies need nourishment and deserve time and I don't do myself any favors if I ignore my body while hitting every other spiritual mark. Every day I must read, pray, and move. Then my spirit and body will progress together and my soul will feel true happiness.
So far today I've done pretty well tracking everything, even the brownie I indulged in after lunch. I figure since I'm having beans and rice for dinner it should even itself out.
i really really love this line: "every day i must read, pray, and move."
ReplyDeletefor girls like us, i think it is the absolute 100% truth. i can never go back to where i was--because i don't want to, of course, but mainly because with knowledge comes change and accountability. i am not the same person i once was, who didn't know how essential moving was. now i do. and when i don't do it as often as i know i can, i feel it a personal disappointment.
my goal right now is to learn how to balance. i have all of these wonderful wonderful things going on in my life (the boy! the dissertation! the weight loss!) and they all require so much attention that it's easy for me to lose myself or shove one or more of them off to the side (and let's be real...it wouldn't be the boy!). but i can't. but i'm bad at balance--always have been, hence my deeply unbalanced life--and i want to learn, line upon line, how to do it better.
it really is all about moderation. but that line--read, pray, move--really really hit me. i love that. maybe you are an answer to my prayer. :)
You are SO my hero, Morgan. You have accomplished so much and just keep takin' it to the next level. You are so inspiring to me and I am SO glad we reconnected.
ReplyDeleteThough I got back to my goal weight after my first two children, in a 3+ year struggle with infertility, a few pounds snuck back on. And by the time I had stopped nursing so I could lose the baby weight (an injustice, I am convinced), I was pregnant again (my babies will be 16 months apart). SO, I feel like I am facing a mountain. Like, I'll probably have 40-50 pounds to lose after this baby.
SO, please keep up this blog. Share what you learn with me. What has worked best? I too LOVE Weight Watchers and am planning on that being my main plan. But did it help to start with a cleanse? Body for Life? Please share, friend.
And Homeschool . . . we gotta talk. Oh, how I wish you were my neighbor!