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.

Starting

As of January 1, 2019 I am stepping out in faith to walk through this journey of becoming healthy and fit, so I can help others become healthy and fit.

To be transparent I did not weight the 1st week. I had every intention of weighing in on Monday Dec. 31, 2018 (Monday is my weigh in day). However “good intentions” reached up and bit me in the rear. So, I weighed starting on the 1st Monday in January, that turned out at 223 lb.

I am counting calories because calories count. I started with a goal of 1800 calories. This is a high number, but compared to what I was eating I knew it was a safe starting place. As I lose weight I will calculate how many calories I should be utilizing to continue to lose weight.

There are many places you can visit online to calculate your calorie intake. If you do go online to calculate your calories, I want you to remember to pay attention to the amount of calories it says you can have. Some of them tell you how many calories to consume to stay where you are and you have to subtract 500 cal/day to lose 1 pound a week or 1000 cal/day to lose 2 pounds a week. Other sites will subtract the calories for you based on how many pounds a week you want to lose.

This is where I tell you I do not believe in people eating less than 1200 calories per day. I do believe you have to eat to lose weight properly. The healthy way to lose weight is slowly, 1 to 2 pounds per week. Now the more you weigh the more weight you will lose in the beginning, this will level off. This is another reason to calculate your calories. You will start off eating a high amount of calories and as you lose weight you will re-calculate your calories, many times. This is how you slowly eat less & slowly lose weight.

Here is the truth of how my beginning looks. I am not comfortable in my own skin, however I pray that my vulnerability will inspire people to look at their own truth, no matter how they feel. Everyone has a starting point.

Sorry about the frown. I just got done working out, I was hot and the heater just kicked on. LOL

I will continue to post pictures as my journey progresses.