Friday, February 6, 2015

Dream List #18

Dream list number eighteen. To go for thirty days without eating anything unhealthy.

I have been attempting to reach this goal for a very long time. But whenever I tried, I would give in to the temptations that would present themselves, and find myself back at the starting line. Pretty soon, I just gave up trying.

This January fifth our church began a weight loss competition. For the past four weeks; and continuing on for eight more, we have committed ourselves to be accountable to one another with weekly weigh-ins, all striving for the goal of becoming healthier and of course, to be the "Biggest Loser".
Being in the group has been life changing. It is not just my (insane) competitive drive that has caused me to find success. The encouragement and love that I have received from them has pushed me beyond my limits and helped me to see myself as more then I thought I was.

Three days ago was day thirty of this journey. And that marked the day that I was able to complete that illusive number on my dream list!
Though it has been a challenging month, the rewards have been so worth it!

I have felt so much more energetic, and have been happy to experience life free of the side affects of sugar and other unhealthy food choices.
This journey has forced me to really consider what I want the end goal to be. Not only do I strive to become more fit and healthy and to reach a goal weight, but I also work to change the inside. To get to the heart of all my issues. To be able to turn to God instead of to an unhealthy food choice to fill the empty spaces in my heart.
I don't just want temporary outside changes to take me to the end of a competition (maybe win!?! :) and then fall right back to where I was, and let all the hard work I put in go to waste. I want to make a forever change.

For me, this is not anymore all about a number on the scale.  Rather it is about reaching those personal goals and being the best version of me. The me that God has created me to be.
Sure, I still want to win the grand prize, but it is more then just a prize that I am working so hard for. It is the satisfaction of the overcoming of certain things that I have struggled with in the past.

This is not the end. This is just the beginning.
But it is the claiming of this one victory that will propel me further on my journey.
Thirty days completed. A lifetime of days to go.

4 comments:

godly-young-widow said...

Wow; this is SO inspiring! I can see why you would start it AFTER Christmas; that's the worst time to make a new start. I'm still working on that too, or on at least cutting down on the sweeteners, as well as choosing better ones like fresh honey, agave, coconut sugar, sucanat, etc. And with my side business in quinoa, vegetarianism is coming easier.
Anyway, thanks for sharing; now I have another "if she can do it so can I" moments. And so good to have that support from other church people doing it too, huh? Did you share a lot of healthy recipes, exercise together, keep each other accountable with portion sizes?
I could have many more questions, but I got my next thing coming. Have a great day.Looking forward to the next "dream list" item

Jennifer said...

Godly-Young-Widow:
Yes, it is really nice to have the support and encouragement from my church family!
We have an Facebook page that we use to share things on. But the nice thing is that we see these people every week and are able to communicate our struggles and triumphs in person. My sisters, mom and dad are also doing this challenge, so we keep each other accountable as well. I have not worked out with anyone from church yet, but there has been some of that going on.
You are right... If I can do this, you can too!! It sounds like you are on the right track!
You have a great day too!!

Anonymous said...

Hey... so I'm kinda curious...This all seems a little extreme/shallow to me. I'm just wondering what exactly do you call unhealthy foods?? I mean anyone can basically justify themselves eating something they think is perfectly healthy that another person might consider very unhealthy. How is it that you can decide something like that and then abide by those rules? Does your Church family all follow the same "diet"?? Also I really hope you know that God loves you just the way you are, no matter how you look or how much you weigh, I makes me sad when people think they need to be just exactly so in order for God to be pleased or satisfied with them. That is not the case God loves us and He died for our sins no matter who we are or what our bodies look like He will always love us!

Jennifer said...

Anonymous:
This was a personal goal. So I am allowed to make the rules and decide what is healthy for me and what is not. I am aware that there are many different opinions on the subject, but this is my life, an no one else's.
But since you are wondering, I actually followed a diet that is quite common right now and that some people from our church group are doing as well.
No, we are not all following the same diet. Every single person is different, so we are all losing weight in the manner that works best for our bodies.
Yes, I do know that God's love is unconditional. But I also know that our bodies are God's temple. It is our job to do our best to take care of ourselves and our health, so that we can be our best for Him. In this "Biggest Loser" group, that is what we are striving to do.