DAY 230 Spring Challenge - Our First Update!

Hello Journal & Friends,

I blinked... the week was gone!! What happened?? It's been a wild ride of emotions this week for me. Up, down, up, down. A roller coaster, for sure.

Okay, on to...

 The Spring Challenge, Week 1 Update. 

Here is a Summary  of The Spring Challenge... it's not too late to join! If you join by April 1st, you will even still be eligible for the prize drawing at the end. :-)

My Spring Challenge goals:

1. Every day for the next 13 weeks, do some kind of Exercise.

2. Every day for the next 13 weeks, drink a Greenie.

3. Check in every Saturday.

4. Tell one thing each week that I like about myself.

5. Save up to buy myself a fun Reward at the end.

My Exercise:

This went harder than I thought it would be... I am not in the habit yet! So, I made out a little chart to follow. No thinkin' about it, or which exercise to do... just glance at the chart, and DO it.

That has helped.

But one of the "down" dips on the emotional roller coaster this week was facing the fact that it's going to take a LOT longer than I had hoped to be able to use my Mini-Clubbells properly.

I've watched the DVD, and am reading the book now. There is a lot more to it than I had realized. I like so much about them, yet have a long way to go. I finally realized that instead of giving in to self-pity, I can use the feelings as MOTIVATION. 

My sweet husband is making me a padded workout bench, and has agreed to set it up in our living room.  I am not able to get up and down from the floor yet, so this will give a safe place to do my stretching routine. 

What does that have to do with the Mini-Clubbells?? To do proper form, which is the basis of using them without injury, I need to get my legs to straighten out all the way. I haven't been consistent with my leg stretching... my excuse was I had no place to effectively do it.  Well, I am MOTIVATED now, and found a solution: the bench. Realistically, it will take months of consistent stretching. So until then, I plan to be very careful and modify how I use the Mini-bells.

My Greenies: 

Yes, got it done. Barely. One day I forgot until about 8pm... I had to give up my evening snack, to "pay" for it, caloriewise.  Another evening, I totally forgot until AFTER I was out of calories. I thought about it, and figured it was more important to get in the nutrition AND the habit, than fret over the 100 calories. So, I'm still not in the habit, yet. 

One thing I like about myself:

I had no idea this one would be SO hard!! Now that I've been thinking about it, I recommend trying this to EVERYONE... it's very revealing. 

Okay, on to my answer for this week:

I have a built-in spell-checker in my head. 99% of the time, I know when a word is spelled wrong. I may not know the RIGHT way to spell it, but I almost always know when it's wrong. I used to edit a newsletter, and this came in handy. That's when I first realized it about myself. 

I always did excellent on spelling tests in school... it must've been from reading a lot growing up?? I did NOT do well on grammar... but I always nailed spelling, no problemo. Not sure if this would qualify as a "talent". Maybe more a side-effect of being detail-oriented... or a perfectionist tendency. Either way, I like it. :-)

So if you see something misspelled on my blog, it's probably because I was in a hurry and it's a typo... ha ha ha... now everyone will be out to catch me. ;-)

 For my Reward: I decided to decorate a glass bear-shaped jar. Each week I will add $5 to it during the challenge, to buy my reward at the end.

I hope everyone had a great first Spring Challenge week... I look forward to reading your progress reports. Remember, we want progress, not perfection.


PS: It would great if everyone left a LINK to their update here (you do the actual update on your own blog, IF you have a wt loss blog; otherwise here is fine), so we could all cheer each other on!

From Dr Phil's book: "Food behavior and exercise behavior are highly interactive... you feel better so you want to do better."

My verse for today: "Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power."

My quote for today: "If you want to reach a goal, you must 'see the reaching' in your own mind before you actually arrive at your goal." --Zig Ziglar

DAY 93 Another Chance to Make Good Choices

Hi there Journal!

This morning, this is what I looked and felt like when I first woke up:

I woke up with another backache... argh. It felt as if I moved, I would break. Years ago I heard the saying: "You can HAVE pain, but you don't have to BE a pain." Easy to say, harder to do sometimes. But it all comes down to CHOICE. 

So, I tried to think of things for which to be genuinely thankful... um...um...I finally thought: "After I make MyGuys lunch and dinner to take to work, I can go back to bed!" Pretty shallow, but there it is. I even had to laugh at myself... so many people are going through so much, and I am whining about a backache. 

I am happy to say, it's better now. Getting a little more rest helped... coffee helped... my massage wand helped... and just wiggling around helped. Then, I read one of my little flashcards for today, the ones I made from Dr Phil's book The Ultimate Weight Solution. Here is what it said:

"Weight is managed, not cured. You must never relax your watchfulness over your thoughts, feelings, and actions... a keep sense of alertness...self-monitoring... Failure to self-monitor is one of the top reasons why people allow their weigh to creep back on."

I have read Dr Phil's book several times, and it has helped me more than any other weight-related book or program... I highly recommend it. But honestly, the phrase "weight is managed, not cured" just never clicked before... it was vague to me. However, THIS MORNING, the penny finally dropped in the slot...  I got it!

It is MANAGED, not CURED... it is all about managing our weight by our CHOICES.

It is caused by BEHAVIOR, by our choices.

It is not something to cure, because it is not a DISEASE. It is not something that I caught by being exposed to a "fat germ".

It's a behavioral thing, not a disease thing.

Sure, there might be a genetic componenent, where we can have a propensity to being overweight... when it runs in the family. BUT, the research shows that the "fat gene" is like a bullet sitting in a gun. It takes something to trigger it, to activate it. And that something is our behavior, our lifestyle, our CHOICES.

So we don't "cure" anything, we MANAGE our weight by making healthy choices. I totally do not agree that we are "destined" to be fat just because it runs in our family. Sure, it might be harder for us than for someone that has the "thin gene". And how we are brought up factors in... and our environment... but the most powerful componement of all this is within our CHOICE. 

I have heard all this before... and somedays it bores me to hear it yet again. But other days I NEED to hear it again, to get that kick in the tush. That reminder that I have a choice in the matter. That I have another day in which to contribute TO my good health... another chance to make progress towards my dreams and goals.

From Dr Phil's book: "Weight is managed, not cured."

My verse for today: "So do not fear, for I am with you."

My quote for today: "Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will."--Zig Ziglar

Enjoy the Journey,

Loretta

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DAY 67 Attitudes & Hula Hoops

Good Evening Journal,

Today started off late...since I had a rough night I didn't get up til late. When I saw the time on my little bedside clock, I instantly felt pressure and frustration. I hurried to make a phone call and delay a commitment...then I made a business call quickly before everything back east closed up for the day (I am in Oregon). And all this....gasp...before coffee!!!

Attitudes are funny things...they arrive at our door in all wrapped up in a package of circumstances, but need a signature--our permission--to be accepted and made permanent. I had signed for this package when it first arrived.

After talking to my sister, Karen, on the phone about her novel The Complex (I am having fun helping her with the editing, and needed to beg off today's installment), I "felt" better. I decided right then and there to return the package of Crummy Attitude to the sender!! It was a choice I should have made BEFORE I talked to anyone else...attitudes are contagious. I am glad Karen was immune! 

At Karen's suggestion, I tried out my new exercise toy: a weighted HULA HOOP! (Here is my new toy) It was so funny...I couldn't even keep it up for one total loop-de-loop around myself! Good thing the intructions say to start out the first week doing it only 1 minute per day. I thought that was silly advice...til I tried it! It will be fun to learn, and it got me to laughing today.

What does all this have to do with weight loss: ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING!

I needed to remind myself that my attitude is MY CHOICE.

The mood of my day is MY CHOICE.

Circumstances can offer me a "good" reason to feel bummed...but whether or not I STAY bummed is MY CHOICE.

This is what I want to remember...I have the choice to make my own weather each day (I wrote about that here) ...and today the weather is sunny and bright, with showers of chuckling expected on and off.

From Dr Phil's book: "Become the Captain of your own behavior."

My verse for today: " I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?"

My quote for today: "Of all the attitudes we can acquire, surely the attitude of gratitude is the most important and by far the most life-changing."--Zig Ziglar

Enjoy the Journey,

Loretta

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DAY 52 Guard Your Heart & Distilled Wisdom

Good Afternoon Journal!

I was about 14 yrs old, riding in the back seat of the car as our family went out to eat one night at Shakey's Pizza Parlor in Sunland, California.

I was the typical self-absorbed teenager. The rest of the family talked about this and that, when the subject of a particular tv show came up. Everyone else was in a good mood, taking turns talking about what they liked about the show. I piped up and glumly said that I HATED the show.......Silence. 

Then my Mom said to me something that I have never forgotten, even 44 years later: 

You know, people don't really like hearing what you HATE...if you don't have anything nice to say, just don't say anything at all.

I know there is a time and place for all things...a time to give my opinion, even about things for which I feel strongly AGAINST. But I know exactly what Momma was telling me...we were having a good time, and I was being a wet blanket, ruining the fun mood. I was being negative and selfish. Attitudes are contagious, and mine was definitely NOT worth catching. I haven't always taken Momma's advice, especially when I was younger...but I have tried.

There is an ancient proverb that says: 

"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." 

 Another way of saying that is GIGO, which stands for "garbage in, garbage out." We are affected by what we allow IN. What we read, what we hear, music, tv, the people we allow to influence our thinking...this really is a big deal!

I LOVE inspirational quotes. I think of them as "distilled wisdom." Big thoughts distilled down into pithy, memorable quotes. Love 'em. I want to always have a teachable spirit that reminds me that I am NOT a know-it-all...that I can learn something from everyone I meet, even it is a lesson in reverse--what NOT to do.

So I want to be selective in choosing which people I allow to influence my heart, my "wellspring of life." I will often read about the people that I quote. I was inspired by the biography of Abraham Lincoln. I have read about the lives of other people that I admire, such as Michelangelo, Helen Keller, Og Mandino, Zig Ziglar, Dr Viktor Frankl, Ralph Marston Jr, Tom Venuto, Dr Phil McGraw, and many many more.

This idea of guarding our hearts even extends to the blogosphere-interwebs. I have had to make choices as to which people I will allow to influence me on a regular basis. There is only so much time, and I want to spend it wisely. I don't make that choice based on the blog's popularity, but rather on a few simple questions: 

Is absorbing what this person is putting out going to make me a healthier, better, more loving and whole person??

How do I feel after leaving the this persons blog...uplifted, encouraged, inspired; or even if I don't totally agree, did it help me think, grow and learn?? 

Do I feel a kinship with them...a connectedness because we are on the same journey to wellness??

Are their values and philosophies of life compatible enough with mine...do they add to me or detract from me??

Do they, ultimately, CONTRIBUTE to or CONTAMINATE my journey to becoming a healthier person??

If all this sounds self-centered...maybe it is. But I, and I alone am responsible for what I allow into my life. I am not a victim...I have choices. And I am so happy there are a multitude of fantastic blogs out there from which to choose. Now if there was only more time in the day!!!!

(Illustration: Deborah Mori)

From Dr Phil's book: "Ultimately, only you--and you alone--are responsible for getting your weight under control."

My verse for today:  "There is a time for everything...a time to be silent and a time to speak."

My quote for today: " You become like the people you spend time with." --Jack Canfield

Enjoy the Journey,

Loretta

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Day 48 Feeling It...or Not

Hello Journal!

Some days I "feel" it, some days I don't. Today I don't.

Some days I feel all fired up, determined to do whatever it takes to create my new future... I FEEL the passion, the fire, the excitement of the progress. I am enjoying the journey.

Then the day comes--and it will, because that's the way of life, with ebbs and flows...when I do NOT feel it.

BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN IT IS NOT THERE ANY MORE. 

It just means that I don't FEEL it today.

As far back as I can remember, I have always been a quote-putter-upper. I stick little notes all over, here and there, with quotes, notes, goals, slogans or phrases...anything that I want to "seed" into my mind.

On the days that I do not FEEL the inspiration, the motivation, I inevitably run across one that fits my need.

Just from my art studio alone, here are some of my little notes...some are hard to read because they are so old they have faded...that's okay because I know them by heart..they are like old friends:

No Excuses


If you don't like it, change it.

If you can change it, change the way you think about it.


Talent is cheap; dedication is expensive. It will cost you your life.--Michelangelo


The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything.


There is one thing no one can ever take from me; and that is my freedom to choose how I will react to what happens to me. --Viktor Frankl


Be BOLD...color outside the lines


Passion bridges the chasm between the dreamer and the doer.--Lew Lehrman


There's treasure everywhere!--Calvin and Hobbes


Our most precious achievements are those purchased with our greatest efforts.


Excuses are the crutches of the uncommitted.


Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.--Abraham Lincoln


Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.--Thomas Edison


Whether you believe you can or believe you can't, either way you're right.--Henry Ford


It's not the technique that counts but it's the passion that matters.--Beethoven


Six P Principle:  Proper Planning Prevents Pukey Poor Performance


Dreams are where you want to go; hard work is how you get there.


Don't let what you can't do stop you from doing what you CAN do!


Remember: the same boiling water that hardens the egg will soften the carrot. Everything depends on the individuals reaction to stressful circumstances.


One can never consent to creep when one feels the impulse to soar.--Helen Keller


Sow a Thought, reap a Word

Sow a Word, reap an Action

Sow an Action, reap a Habit

Sow a Habit, reap a Character

sow a Character, reap your Destiny

Time continues...I will go to sleep tonight...and tomorrow I will most likely FEEL it again. That is not a necessary thing to my success, but it sure is more fun!

From Dr Phil's book: "Problems..don't get better with inattention."

My verse for today: "...His compassions never fail. They are new every morning."

My quote for today: "People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily."--Zig Ziglar

Enjoy the Journey,

Loretta

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DAY 14 That Scale & Daily Motivation links

Good Evening Journal,

Thinking about my regular Monday weigh-in tomorrow...at first I was excited but nervous. The "old tapes" in my head said what if, after all your spouting off this week, you don't lose anything? Or, even worse, gain! My answer is, MUST be, so what..so what?? If that happens, I will take a minute, honestly evaluate, make any necessary course corrections, and GO ON. Just keep going.

Some people get all bent out of shape about the scale. I learned a while ago that it's JUST INFORMATION...it's just a tool. It can't MAKE me feel any which way...I choose how I feel by what I choose to believe and think. At least with the information, I can make informed decisions, not wonder...so, I am thankful for that tool, the scale. :-)

And that's not even my topic for today ;-) The next topic on my "need to get CONSISTENT" list is: Daily mental/motivational input. Actually, I find this one fun. I LOVE reading all the motivational stuff you find on the internet and in good books. Believe me, I have read a slew of self-improvement type books over the years...trying to "improve me", to change me, to get to the bottom of why I used food for EVERYTHING except nutrition.

Food was my drug of choice, whether sad, mad, happy or glad. I wore God's ear out begging Him to change me, to help me, to do SOMETHING. Yet, bottomline I wasn't willing to "lose the food". Oh, I wanted to "lose the weight" but NOT the food. Not really...not for good. It would only last until the next big time stress hit, and then I would NEED my drug again, and lots of it...just this time...and the cycle would start all over again.

I now think of all that positive input over the years as SEEDS, watered by my tears, and finally...finally given the sunshine of my WILLINGNESS to eat responsibly. And now it feels like some of it has grown inside of me...there is SOME of it that I can believe and embrace as MINE. Not all...I don't claim to be there yet, but a lot of it.

Instead of trying to quote all the inspirational stuff here, I think I would just like to remember all the wonderful people over the years who have had an impact on my life. There are teachers, speakers, artists, preachers... and I will probably leave some out, since this goes back a long time. But here goes, in no particular order (you can click on their names if I included links):

• Dr Phil McGraw: especially his 3 books

The Ultimate Weight Loss Solution (are you ready?)

Self Matters (here)

Life Strategies (my fav are the Ten Life Laws)

• Norman Vincent Peale: My first ever introduction in the early 1970's, to that fact that how I choose to think can impact my life, from his book The Power of Positive Thinking."Change your thoughts and you change your world."

• Dr Robert Schuller: from the Hour of Pour tv show...loved to hear the interviews with successful people.

• W Mitchell: "It's not what happens to you, it's what you do about it."

"Before I was paralyzed there were 10,000 things I could do. Now there are 9,000. I can either dwell on the 1,000 I've lost or focus on the 9,000 I have left." - W Mitchell

• Dr Viktor Frankl: Survived years in Nazi death camps; wrote Man's Search for Meaning.

One of my all-time favorite quotes, in Man's Search for Meaning: "...everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms -- to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."

• Tom Venuto (here for blog)(here for About Tom)
• Carol tuttle's wonderful short video Remembering Wholeness (here)

• Og Mandino: my favorite book of his is The Greatest Salesman in the World (written in story-telling format).

• Zig Ziglar: YouTube video...highly recommended! (here)

• Napolean Hill: author of Think and Grow Rich; the principles apply to life in general

• Helen Keller: "One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar." (here for About Helen Keller)

• Ralph Marston: (here for the Daily Motivator) Love it!

(here for About Ralph Marston)

• Michelangelo Buonarroti: Italian Sculptor, Painter, Architect and Poet, b.1475 - d.1564

(here for pics of Sistine Chapel)

(here for About him)

(here for links to List of Works)

"There is no greater harm than that of time wasted." " I am still learning."-- Michelangelo

• Vincent Van Gogh: "What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?" "Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together." (Vincent Van Gogh, 1853-1890) An artist, not a book author, but wrote numerous letters revealing a passionate heart and deep thinker.

• Dan Michelson: my pastor; made me feel welcome, accepted, and at home; from him I learned about LAFing...Love, Acceptance, and Forgiveness. (here for teaching podcasts)

• And the best selling book of all time, the Bible

"Mulberry Tree" Vincent Van Gogh 1889

From Dr Phil's book: ""Having specific, carefully mapped out, vividly envisioned goals is an absolute requirement for success."

My verse for today: "When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my hearts delight..."

My quote for today: " I am still learning." Michelangelo

Enjoy the Journey,

Loretta

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