Mood or Mindset?

I've got a question for you today:  are your responses based on your mind-set or on your mood?

A couple of years ago I did a Beth Moore Bible study based on the book of Esther.  In this study, Beth talked about several Bible characters who stood firm even under difficult (and sometimes life-threatening) circumstances.  She made the statement that "each responded out of his mind-set rather than his mood." 

Up until I started on Take Shape for Life/Medifast, my weight loss efforts were pretty much dictated by my mood.  When I was feeling motivated, I tried to lose weight.  When I didn't feel like it, I'd tell myself that it wasn't going to be a "good diet day" and I gave myself permission to eat whatever I wanted.  Needless to say, a mood-driven weight loss program got me absolutely no where!

It wasn't until I embraced a mind-set of getting healthy that I finally began my final weight loss journey.  Having the right tools - this program! - certainly made the difference, but what was also different this time was that I had a different mind-set.

When I started on this program, I wasn't trying to lose weight for a specific event, and I didn't set a date to reach my goal.  This time, my goal was to get healthy and stay healthy, and I didn't care how long it took (but naturally I hoped it would be fast!).  Once I embraced a mind-set of getting healthy, it was amazing to see the difference in my resolve.  

If you're in the habit of responding out of your mood, this journey is going to be a long and rocky one, because there will be times when I can guarantee that you won't be in the mood to stay on plan.  There are days when this isn't fun at all, and unless you have a mind-set that is fixed on getting to a healthy weight and continuing your pursuit of health, you're likely to succumb to the myriad of temptations that surround you.

Part of moving from mood to mind-set is taking the time to identify what it is that you really want.  If you want to be at a healthy weight, write it down.  Picture in your mind what your life will look like when you reach your goal - what kind of clothes will you wear?  How will you feel?  What will you be able to do?  If you can get a picture in your mind of what you want, that can help you keep moving forward on those days when this isn't fun.  Instead of moving away from what you don't want (being overweight, on medication, etc.), think about what you want to create in your life.  That's much more fun and will be a big step forward in giving you the mind-set you need to get to your goal.

The choice is yours - mood or mind-set?  Choose wisely :-)

Season Within a Season

Every now and then, I like to share some of my earliest blogs, written when I was in the early weeks of 5&1.  Since that's where many of you are right now, I hope that what I wrote a little over four years ago will be helpful to you today!

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It's looking a lot like autumn around my house, both inside and outside.  Outside, the trees are slowly but surely changing color and some leaves are beginning to fall.  I love to have my surroundings reflect the seasons, so last night I bought pumpkins and mums to join a stuffed scarecrow on my porch and put away all of the summer decorations around my house.  In their place are leaves, pumpkins, and spicy candles.  I am always amazed at how quickly one season turns into another, and realized that in just a few weeks all of my autumn decorations will be replaced by Christmas things.

When I was a young wife and mother, I remember hearing a speaker talk about the seasons in a woman's life.  It was a time in my life when I thought I had to do everything NOW and I was running in a hundred different directions, feeling very fragmented and frazzled.  The speaker urged women to embrace each season of our lives and not try to rush from one season to the other, because we would find in retrospect that they had passed very quickly indeed.  I remember thinking that I "couldn't wait until the baby was walking, or potty trained, or ready for preschool, etc.", and I also felt such a sense of urgency to keep a dozen balls in the air all at the same time.  The speaker's comments about viewing different stages as seasons really resonated with me and forced me to slow down and re-evaluate my priorities.  At the time, I was in the "young stay-at-home wife and mother" season, and, as she predicted, it all too soon turned into the "full-time working mom of adolescents/teenagers" season, making me wonder why I was in such a hurry for the first season to pass .  Now I'm in the peaceful season of the empty-nester, very much enjoying having my adult married daughters and families nearby and my son in college.

I'm finding that there are also "seasons-within-seasons."  This journey on Take Shape for Life/Medifast is a "season-within-a-season" in my life; viewing this as a season helps me to maintain perspective on some of my "I don't want to do this anymore" days.  Yes, I have stayed on plan 100% for 14 weeks, but there have been numerous times when all I could think was, "This is NOT fun anymore."  Going to a great potluck and turning down the cheesy potatoes and wonderful desserts wasn't easy, and there have been other times when I would have killed for a slice of pizza or hot yeast roll.  Then I remind myself that this is the season I have devoted to getting healthy - this is NOT the rest of my life (although I know and accept the fact that I will never again be able to eat like I once did).  For this season, I am choosing to stay on plan and focus on losing the weight I need to lose and just getting myself healthy.

So as I view the falling leaves and think about how quickly the seasons change, I am reminded that this season of dieting will also pass, unfolding to what I hope will be a very LONG season of enjoying my thin and healthy body!

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Reading this again four years later is a reminder to me of what an amazing journey this was - and is!  I am almost 3-1/2 years into the season called "Maintenance" and it's a lovely season indeed!  It's certainly not without its challenges, but getting to a healthy weight and maintaining is well worth any and all challenges.

My hope and prayer for you is that this "season within a season" will be short and that you will enjoy a thin and healthy body for many seasons to come!  You'll get there one day, one meal, and one choice at a time . . . choose wisely :-)

Do You Really Want To?

Do you want to get to a healthy weight?  Do you want to stay at a healthy weight for the rest of your life?

This seems like an obvious question, doesn't it?  And I hate it when people ask obvious questions (makes me wonder if they think I'm stupid or something . . . ).  But I'm asking this question today because I think it's an important question to ask.

One book I really like is, "At His Feet" by Chris Tiegreen.  One of the devotional readings in this book is based on the story of Jesus healing a man who had been an invalid for 38 years.  When Jesus approached the man, He asked the man, "Do you want to get well?"  Interestingly, the man didn't respond, "Well, of course!"  Instead, he offered an excuse (the entire story can be found in John 5:1-15 if you want to read the entire account).

The writer of the devotion noted that as much as we think we want to change, we're comfortable with the status quo.  The man may have been tired of being an invalid, but he also may have feared the changes in his life that being healed would bring.  So Jesus asked what seems to be an obvious question, "Do you want to get well?"

Our problem is that all too often we want change, but we don't want TO change.  At least that's true for me :-).  I want to keep doing what I've always done, but get better results!  Unfortunately, that happens to be the definition of insanity (doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results . . . ).

We know we SHOULD lose weight, and perhaps we even want to lose weight, sort of.  But things come up that are more important to us that getting to a healthy weight and we cheat.  Or perhaps losing weight makes people begin to notice us, and that makes us uncomfortable, so we start sabotaging ourselves.  Status quo can be a pretty comfortable and safe place to be sometimes, even if we know it's not healthy in the long run.

So the question needs to be asked, and I ask it respectfully:  Do you want to get to a healthy weight and stay there?  If you do, you are on the right program to get you there.  You have a lot of wonderful tools to help you each step of the way and there is an amazing amount of support available.  The program is a proven program - the only variable is you.  If you work the program, it works!  If you don't work the program, it doesn't work.

As I've shared before, for me the food part of this program was the easy part.  The really, really hard part was the head and the heart part, because I had to change in pretty fundamental ways how I thought and felt about food.  I had to end a long relationship with food, and that was not an easy task.  What made this time different than all of the other bazillion times I'd tried in the past was that this time I finally, really wanted to change.

I hope your answer to my question today is a resounding "YES!!!"  But be honest with yourself, and if it's not, spend some time figuring out why.  If you figure out what's holding you back and then take steps to deal with it, you'll eventually be able to answer "YES!", too.  And when you do, you'll reach your goal and stay there!  And you'll reach your goal one day, one meal, and one choice at a time . . . choose wisely :-)

It's a Marathon!

One thing I know for sure . . . getting to and maintaining a healthy weight isn't a sprint - it's a marathon.  We really have to prepare ourselves to stay consistent over the long haul, because no matter how long it will take for us to reach our goal, reaching our goal is only the first phase of this program.  Maintaining at a healthy weight is the rest of the program - one marathon after another.

I'm not a runner due to my knee (recently replaced, but bad for over 30 years), but I've watched bits and pieces of a few marathons over the years and I've watched my daughter run.  As I think back to the marathons, one thing I remember is that most of the runners aren't smiling while they're running.  Some of them look like they're concentrating, and others are actually grimacing.  The exhilaration of taking off at the starting line eventually fades and the marathoner is faced with the task of just putting one foot in front of the other.  At some point along the way, it's not particularly fun any more.  But running a marathon isn't necessarily about having fun along the way (although some runners really do enjoy the journey).  Running in a marathon is about finishing it and having the satisfaction of knowing that the runner accomplished something difficult.  There might not be a lot of smiling going on during the marathon, but there are lots of smiles and lots of celebrations at the finish line.

Sometimes we have unrealistic expectations about the weight loss marathon we're on and we expect it to be fun and exciting the entire time.  That might be true if it was a 50 yard dash, but it's not a dash - this is the marathon of our lives.  The reality is that we will alternate between exhilaration and exhaustion, between feeling like this is the best thing we've ever done to hating the thought of doing this one more day.  In the end, we will experience a full spectrum of emotions on this journey, but as long as we keep putting one foot in front of another, we will cross the finish line.  And when we cross the finish line and reach goal, there will be smiles and lots of celebration. 

And after the celebration we'll begin the next marathon - maintenance :-).

So, are your running shoes laced up this morning?  It's another marathon day - are you committed to staying the course today?  The choice is yours . . . choose wisely :-)

Oh Really????

On our way home from Chicago this past Monday night, we passed a billboard for a bariatric surgeon.  The billboard read, "Obesity is a Disease, Not a Decision."  All I could think of was, "Oh really????"

The billboard really frustrated me (actually made me angry, if the truth be told).  It gives the impression that obesity is something that can't be helped - it's a disease that apparently you "catch."  The billboard gives the distinct impression that an individual's decisions have nothing to do with their obesity. Again, I can only ask, "Oh really????"

As long as people think that they are somehow helpless victims of this epidemic, somehow caught in the throes of a disease called "obesity," they will view themselves as powerless to escape.  Disease is viewed as something to be treated externally by someone else, whether the treatment is in the form of medication or, in the case of the physician on this billboard, through surgery.  Disease somehow implies that there is little to no personal responsibility involved.  After all, it's not a decision.

Ugh! 

The truth is that while we may not have decided to become obese (in that sense, it's not a decision because most rational people don't one day decide that they want to be obese), the hundreds and thousands of decisions we made along the way brought us to the point of obesity.  If obesity is a disease, it is one that we inflicted on ourselves one decision at a time.

Owning up to that is an important step in reversing our obesity.  When I saw "268" on the scale, I knew I'd done it to myself, one forkful at a time.  Because I was able to accept responsibility for what I'd done to my body and acknowledged that the Type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol I had was a direct result of my obesity and the choices I'd made, I was eventually able to make the decision to get healthy.  Just as I got obese one decision at a time, I got to a healthy weight that same way - one choice and one decision at a time.

It's not easy to turn things around, but it IS possible.  That's not just my own story, but it's the story of so many others I know who finally made the same decision I did.  We aren't helpless, and we aren't victims.  We have the ability to choose a different path that can lead us to being healthier than we ever thought possible.   With all due respect to the surgeon who posted that billboard, obesity IS a decision.  And we know it can be reversed in a matter of weeks or months, one choice at a time.  Choose wisely :-)

When the Adrenaline Rush is Gone

Yesterday was an interesting mix for me emotionally.  On the one hand, I was really happy to be home after a busy ten days away and it felt good to be on my own turf with a more normal schedule.  On the other hand, getting back to the "real world" always feels a bit anti-climatic.  After a trip that included a conference, time with friends and sight-seeing, I was back home with laundry to do, dust to contend with, and a pile of things waiting on my desk.  I am a hopeless adrenaline junkie, so my mini-crash today was to be expected.

The same is true for our weight loss journey.  When things are happening - the scale is moving, sizes are shrinking, people are noticing - it's pretty exciting!  When things are happening, it's not too hard to stay motivated.  The challenge comes when things aren't happening anymore.

To my surprise, I experienced a mini let-down after I reached my goal and went through Transition.  After almost a year of watching the scale move, after almost a year of watching sizes shrink and eventually getting constant comments about how great I was looking, I reached Maintenance.  The scale didn't move any more, I wasn't going to drop any more sizes, and people began to adjust to my new, small size and comments stopped.  This was my new normal, and while I was happy to finally be here, the adrenaline rush was gone.  There was no excitement as I stepped on the scale each morning, and I found that I missed it.

The easy part of this program is the food part.  The hard part is the head part.  I worked on a lot of my food-related issues while I was on 5&1, but I hadn't really anticipated feeling any let-down post goal.  I realized that part of what kept me going for almost a year was the excitement of something happening all of the time, and I also realized that I needed to dig deeper to stay motivated for the long haul of Maintenance.

Much like returning to my normal routine that includes laundry and dusty furniture, Maintenance isn't glamorous.  Some days are more fun than others, but the adrenaline rush has slowly been replaced by something that is ultimately more satisfying - a healthy life and lifestyle.  The more I think about it, the more I realize that the lack of excitement is a GOOD thing, because it means that all of this has truly become an integral part of my life.

For those of you who are on 5&1, I hope this is an exciting phase for you!  I hope you're seeing consistent weight loss, that you are shrinking out of your clothes on a regular basis, and that you're starting to receive encouraging and complimentary comments from others.  This is a great time in your life and it's truly life-changing!  By staying on plan day by day, you are not only moving ever closer to your goal, you are also establishing new habits that will serve you well in Maintenance.  And even though Maintenance isn't always exciting, it is great place to be - come join me!  You'll get there one day, one meal, and one choice at a time . . . choose wisely :-)

Waving My Magic Wand

I am the weight loss fairy and I am waving my magic wand, sprinkling fairy dust all around.  If you are blessed enough to catch the breeze of my wand or have a few bits of dust land on you - poof!  You will be at your goal!  Anybody interested?

Wouldn't it be GREAT if it was that simple?  How I wish I could wave a magic wand or sprinkle dust around and know that everyone touched would immediately be at their goal. 

Of course, it's not that easy, is it?  It's almost that simple, however.  Eat 5 Medifast meals a day and fix a lean and green (or order one at a restaurant).  Not much thinking required, and the program really DOES work like magic . . . it's just that the magic on this program takes a bit longer :-)

So are you ready to change your life today?  Even in the absence of a weight loss fairy, you CAN make all of your dreams come true, if you decide that's what you want to do.  Best of all, unlike magic that has an annoying way of disappearing, the changes you'll make on this program can last a lifetime.

The changes begin with the choices you'll make today, so choose wisely :-)

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I am leaving today for Chicago and will be flying to Salt Lake City tomorrow morning for a leadership conference at Sundance, Utah.  I'll be back on October 11 and will get to blogging when I get home.  In the meantime, you know what to do . . . keep making those wise choices!