Change Takes Time

I don't know about you, but guilt has never motivated me to change. I don't look at a picture of a model in a magazine and think, "Hey that's awesome! Today I'm going to lose weight so I can look like her!" Nope. Usually it just makes me want to walk into the kitchen, bake a box of brownies, and start eating right from the middle, with a spoon, and some vanilla ice cream, and maybe some caramel sauce... but I digress. For me, I have to change from the inside. I've lost weight in the past because I wanted to LOOK different. But last year, as I was on bed rest, I got real with myself. I realized if I'm losing my weight to look a certain way, I'll just keep yo-yoing like I have since I was 17 years old. If I want to change the way I look, I feel like crap when I "mess up" or eat a "cheat food" or don't workout. If I want to change the way I look, once I achieve my goal, what's motivating me to keep working? I realized it had to be more. Here's a link to that post if you want to read about my change of mind.
http://shortcakessweettooth.blogspot.com/2015/08/bed-rest-to-5k.html

I started slow last September, and as far as weight goes, I gained and lost the same 5 pounds over and over for 5 months. I wasn't too worried about the weight though because I felt myself getting stronger and my measurements were slowly going down. {I record my measurements once a season and typically weigh myself on just the 1st of each month. This is freeing for me and allows me to focus on healthy habits and sustainable lifestyle choices, instead of giving myself anxiety and guilt by seeing value only in the numbers on a scale.} September through December I focused on drinking lots of water and walking. After the new year, I slowly added in some jogging, increasing my fruit and vegetable intake, decreasing my sugar and dairy intake, and finally worked up to a 5K in June! I've tried to make one positive change at a time. At the end of December I read the book, "It Starts with Food" and watched a documentary on Netflix about plant-based eating. Then I purchased the book, "42 Days to Fit" on our Kindle. On February 15, I started reading and following along with her weekly suggestions. If it tells you how addicted I was to sugar, in the first week when she has you cut out desserts and sugary drinks, I lost 4 lbs. I have never in my life lost that much weight in just one week. And I haven't done it again since then, but was just trying to give you an idea of my serious sweet tooth. I found a lot of success with her book. She helps you focus on making just one change each week and she even includes workouts and exercises to help amplify the results, but I chose not to complete those the first time around because I knew my downfall was diet. I would so much rather workout then make good food choices, so that's what I knew I needed to focus on. The changes and steps she takes you through make so much sense and seem attainable to me. They are things I can easily continue as a lifestyle choice. It doesn't feel like I'm depriving myself of certain things, it feels like I'm focusing on eating foods that are beneficial for my body to live. Even now, I continue to pick one or two of her suggestions to work on each week.

 Just as a point of reference, here are a few "stats" from my life during the 'before' picture:
- I had given birth to my 3rd child just 6 weeks before.
- I ate dessert whenever I felt like it, usually after lunch and after dinner.

- My morning coffee consisted of coffee + milk + coffee creamer + sugar.
- I took 1 mile walks a few times each week, at an average pace of about 22 minutes per mile.
- I didn't feel in control of my eating habits. Thinking about not having dessert for an entire week, even one day, felt "impossible".
- My BMI was in the 'obese' category.

One year later:
- I only have dessert a few times a week.
- Typically my morning coffee consists of coffee + honey and sometimes half and half {or this summer when I made iced coffee I just added natural bliss coffee creamer (no additives or soybean oil, you know, weird stuff that shouldn't be classified as 'cream')}.
- I walk almost every day (I took a Walk this Way challenge in May and fell in love with taking daily walks. Some days I go to zumba or run, but I'm usually out and moving 6 days out of the week) for about 1.5 miles and my average pace is 19 minutes per mile.
- I feel more in control of my eating habits. I still struggle with sugar and it is something I have to make concerted effort to overcome. But I saw what I could do over the past year and realized I'm stronger than I thought, which is empowering to me and another benefit of this lifestyle change.
- I've lost about 20 lbs. and my BMI has gone down to the 'overweight' category. 

You know those before and after pictures that you look at over and over again and think, "Is that really the same person? It can't be. And sometimes it's not!" Well here's mine, and it's pretty obvious it's me :) I did my best to have Jeremiah get a shot from the same angle and wore the same shirt for the best comparison possible.

September 12, 2015 

September 12, 2016

Can I tell you something? This didn't happen in a few short weeks for me. I didn't read some article about how to "lose 10 pounds in just 2 weeks!". I was realistic with myself. I set goals -- some of them I crushed, others had to be readjusted and evaluated. Guys, it's hard to change. So hard. You know what worked for me? Making one small change at a time. Then taking those changes and making them habits in my life.

What's a goal you have for your life? A change you'd like to make? Does it seem too big or overwhelming to attempt it? Try breaking it down into bite size pieces. Trust me, at this time last year, I just wanted to be where I am now and I wanted to get here faster than I did. I still have about 21 pounds I'd like to lose, and once again, I'm struggling with wanting to get it done fast. But as I've found success over the past year by making these small, consistent changes, it urges me to keep taking one step forward. I'm living my life right now. I'm trying to overcome the mindset of, "Well, when I {lose this much weight} or {make this much money} or {insert some goal here} then I can really enjoy my life. No, I've been missing out and I'm done. My life is happening now and I can't keep being afraid to change or fail just because something looks too big. One day at a time. One meal at a time. One positive change at a time. They all add up to this life I'm living; to the one you're living. Maybe you don't have a weight loss goal, maybe the list of books you want to read is a mile long. Go to the library, check out the book and read the preface. Instead of being on your phone in the waiting room, stick your book in your bag and read while you wait. Just start. Don't keep putting it off for tomorrow. Do something today to boost your self-confidence. I think we're all stronger than we think we are; let's punch life in the face!!