Tag: now

You asked for it…

You want an update you say. Well here it goes. Keto is my preferred way to eat. I still have room to grow & learn here. This is a new way of life for me, but I love it.

When I first started out, I did not have the cravings for things, however now there are times that I crave certain foods. This is one of those areas where I believe I can study and find out why. I don’t because let’s face it we cannot do everything we want in life. It is not always about carving out the time either. There really is not enough time to do all we want. Now we can delegate & some can even hire people to get more done in their day, but that is not an option for most people. Now I am a “most people” kind of person. Hiring someone to get more work done in my life is not where I am financially. 

This is how I handle the situation, I do the best I can. It is that simple. 

Right now I am working on goal setting. My goals are getting my blog launched, overcoming fear, not eating my emotions, keeping off the 50 pounds I have lost this year through the holidays, setting a goal to lose the other 25 pounds next year at 1 pound a week (so by June 30, 2020), eating a healthy keto diet, exercising 5 days a week, & learning how to be the example. I am not sure that is everything on my list, but it is a good start.

If you haven’t seen my beginning photos of where I started my weight loss journey, then check them out here.

  • March 2019
  • October 2019
  • March 2019
  • October 2019
  • March 2019
  • October 2019
  • March 2019
  • October 2019

This is the comparison of my 2nd set of photos taken 2 months into my weight loss journey in March 2019 with my most recent photos as of October 2019.

When I look at these photos I am amazed. I didn’t realize what other people saw when they looked at me. I didn’t look this big in the mirror. Now when I look at myself I appear larger than I do in a picture. I don’t believe it is the camera’s fault either. The way I envision of myself is skewed.

I tend to see things the way I want to. This can be a good thing, however it can be bad, very bad. When I was heavier I saw a thinner person. Now that I am 50 lbs thinner I see a heavier person. This is part of getting healthy.

What? You may ask. It sounds odd and unheard of, however it is true and in our heads. We see the version of us that we think we are. It is a mindset and we have to work at changing it. For me this is why I take pictures. The ones taken above & in my starting post are all taken in the same spot in my living room. 

See I know this because there is a spot of wax where my young nephew, who didn’t know better, picked up my Scentsy warmer lid and tried to carry it, but it got too hot & he dropped it. I have never taken the time to try & iron it out of the carpet, so I stand on that spot each time I update my photos.

In my health & fitness journey I believe the scale & photos help keep me real. Do they define me? No. But I can deceive myself by thinking a certain way over & over. So I step on the scale to see where it lands, it doesn’t always lie. Lol. I take updated progress photos so I can visualize what I look like at the weight the scale says. This helps me see my progress & it helps me see the truth in front of me.

Can’t you get that from a mirror? Wouldn’t your mind deceive you the same way? For some interesting reason I see what’s in the mirror & what’s in a picture differently. Maybe due to the size perspective, I am not sure. It definitely makes me wonder. But I am just being real with you, in hopes of encouraging you to find what keeps your health & fitness journey real.

Is it the scale? Photos? Is it old clothes? 

Share in the comments how you keep real with yourself in your health journey.

I want to encourage you all to not give up, stay strong, & don’t give in just because someone else says it isn’t working. Learn yourself, research yourself, & be accountable. You can do this.

It is growing one petal at a time.

Crystal

My “Why now?”

If you’ve read the about me section you know that I started dieting at age 13 and I have tried many ways to lose weight. I have been successful many times and the longest I had kept the weight off was 1 year. YES 1 WHOLE YEAR. Now to some that may not seem like long, however to those who have rode this roller coaster, you know that 1 year is a long time. I would have never thought that I could ever get back to where I started from let alone almost 30 pounds heavier.

So why is this time different? This time is different because I know that there is a calling on my life to walk this out. How did this blessed calling come about?

Well my revelation started April 11, 2018 as I was feeling lost because God had called me to quit my job of almost 12 years working for great boss’ and with great people. As I was going through this day I had to remind myself that God called me on this journey, so He would see me through. Then on the 22nd the message at church was planting seeds in faith. The pastor had a lady pray over me and she said that fear was keeping me held from going forward. The next morning in my private prayer time I asked the Lord what my next step was? His reply was, “What if the next step is trust?” Well that only opened up a lot more questions. Like, what does that mean? What is my part? On Wednesday the 25th in my prayer time again, I was talking to God about trust and what it was.

Well trust is an action, so “what am I supposed to be doing?”

His reply was take a step of faith.

My response was more questions, which led to Him saying to me “any step of faith!”

Through talking with the Lord and asking for His help to figure out what I was stepping toward, in His infinite wisdom He told me that I was taking steps of faith toward my dream. Insert quizzical facial expressions. What?! What dream Lord? That was the looming question for me as I went off to a 3 day ladies conference with our church.

Now at these conferences there is, for me, a session that hits home more than any other. That came Friday morning, April 27th 2018. This woman of God got up and was speaking about strength. Not spiritual strength, but physical strength. See she was a physical trainer, and her point was we have to have physical strength. The Greek word is coos, meaning physical power. You cannot love the Lord with all your strength if you don’t have muscle. Muscle like discipline, responsibility and self-control.

This is when I felt the outpouring of the Holy Spirit talking to me about my dream. My dream to be fit and healthy, so that I could help others be fit and healthy! This is also where I am to take steps of faith. This will take self discipline, focus, determination but it will empower me to overcome the challenge.

Most of you will notice that there is a gap here where I haven’t practiced what I was to be walking in. So I started as of January 1st. No, not a new years resolution. For me new years resolutions don’t stick, they are a nice thought that passes with time. I chose January 1st because it is a day we (society) associate with a fresh beginning. That’s what this is, a fresh beginning on an old dream.

So, “My Why Now” is a journey through prayer where God said I want you to take steps of faith toward a dream you had let go of so many times, but I am going to use you to help others.

There are others out there that don’t know how to start or where to start or even why to start again. I want to be of help through my journey.

Side note: I understand that asking all of these questions of God may not seem like faith to those who have journeyed through faith trials and can jump as high and for as long as the Lord asks when He asks. I admire you! I am not there yet, but by the grace of God, the Holy Spirit, stirring myself up, encouraging myself, and obedience, I plan on getting there.

I want to express a heartfelt THANK YOU for coming by and feel free to share your why now moment or contact me with questions.