DAY 162 Turtle Weigh In & Importance Level

Hi Journal & Friends!

But I don't WANNA be a turtle!!

I had a great last week, staying within my calorie budget all week. Came perilously close a couple of times with temptation, but my commitment held. Whew! 

So I SHOULD have lost a solid 2 pounds. But I shot myself in the foot by having a high sodium hot dog with chili con carne on Sunday. So the scale only recorded me at 353, for a 1 pound loss. Sigh. Guess I need to embrace my "inner turtle", huh!? ;-)

I read another great post by Sean Anderson (here).  He was talking about importance level. And how he is applying that same importance level he used to lose around 216 pounds (so far) to help him stop smoking. 

I have an "Improvement List". Things that I want to do better. Things like better nutritional choices, consistently taking my vitamins, drinking more water, reading my Bible every day, getting to bed on time EVERY night, etc etc. 

I don't know why it hadn't occurred to me to apply that same level of importance to each one of those things, one at a time, as I do to my weight loss journey. Simple concept. And it's all entertwined, all a part of getting healthy. But when I read Sean's post, I could see I hadn't been using the same approach to all the stuff on my "Improvement List". Now I plan to take one at at time and see improvement! The first one will be to get consistent taking my vitamins every day. Yeah, I picked an easy one to start. :-)

I think a mistake some people make is trying to make too many changes all at once. They white knuckle it, and struggle and scratch and fight, and get discouraged and exhausted after a few weeks... if that long. Ask me how I know?!! Ha!

I finally had to let go of my perfectionistic tendencies and accept that it will be a gradual process of change. I still have a LOT of things listed on that Improvement List!

For anyone just getting started, Sean wrote the most wonderful post recently (HERE). I highly recommend it. You don't have to do it exactly his way. But the basic concept is adaptable to any nutritional program.  I have learned so much from him. On this journey of change, we really need to have an open, teachable spirit. I like the saying: "Eat the meat and spit out the bones." Just take what will work for you, and let go of the rest. And ALWAYS remember WHY you are doing this.

From Dr Phil's book: "No matter what happens, I'll stay the course. If I do what is required, I will succeed."

My verse for today: "Live in harmony with one another."

My quote for today: "I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence, I can reach for; perfection is God's business." --Michael J Fox