Weight Loss

BRRRRRR…It’s cold! What Choice Do I have this morning?

I woke up to a chilly, chilly house. Hmmm…what choice do I have? This is the first morning this year that we have considered turning on the heat…just enough to take the chill out of the air. It’s supposed to warm back up later today and tomorrow, though, so we decided against the heat. LOL

Instead, I decided to warm myself up in other ways. First, I jumped into a nice, HOT shower. I definitely did NOT want to leave that water. haha I finally forced myself to get out and get dressed. Then, rather than putting on my normal daily work clothes, I chose to make today a PJ day! Those are the best, aren’t they? I have the warmest, cuddliest set of super soft jammies. I could seriously live in them!

Of course I had to add a nice cup of hot tea to my morning. (I used to be a die hard coffee drinker, but recently switched to green tea – that’s a whole different blog post. Maybe I’ll write about that sometime soon.)

Now, here I sit, cuddled up on the couch under my fuzzy Blanket sipping my Hot Chai Tea with a Woodwick Candle crackling beside me.

THIS is one of the many reasons I love working from a home office. Some days you just don’t feel like going into the office…so you don’t. 😉 You pull your laptop out of the office and sit on the living room couch instead. Today is definitely one of those days.

Um, what?

Why am I sharing all of this with you? Well, If you read my previous blog, you will remember that I’m changing up the way we run things around here. My blog is no longer just a “business/product” blog. I want to serve you by providing much more than a product. I want to provide you with tools or ideas to hopefully make your day a little easier, or at least brighten it up a bit.

As you continue to follow our blog, hopefully you will feel like you get to know me and what makes me tick.

A-Ha Moments!

Last night I had one of those “a-ha” moments. You know, those moments where something just “clicks” in your brain? Yep, one of those.

Let me back up a bit and set the stage for my a-ha moment. A couple of weeks ago I started really noticing that my clothes were not fitting, soooooooo I stepped on the scale and realized I weighed more than I have ever weighed in my life! Who can relate to that? HAHA I’m a short, petite woman, so even just a few pounds adds up quickly. Needless to say I went into semi-panic mode. LOL

My hubby and I decided to start eating healthier and try to get us both in better shape. We added in a daily workout on our Bowflex MaxTrainer in addition to eating better. I downloaded an app called FitnessPal and began tracking my eating habits. OUCH! I quickly learned that sugar is in EVERYTHING! No wonder I had gained so much weight – and turning 40 this year didn’t help.

I’m happy to say, though, that after I started tracking my calories and added the daily workout, I have lost 5lbs in 2 weeks! Woohoo!

This is it!

Here’s where my a-ha moment comes in. Last night on our way to church, we stopped by our local Caribou Coffee and I considered getting a Campfire Mocha instead of a hot tea. Before I made my decision I checked the calories in my Fitness Pal – 430 calories!!! WHAT!?!?!?!? That’s more than a single meal for me! What choice do I have? I had to stop and ask myself, “Self, what is more important…having a fattening cup of mocha (which is only momentary) or enjoying a cup of hot tea and KNOWING you will look good in that sweater dress you want to wear for Christmas?”

I knew in that instant there was no way I was putting that many calories into my body, not after working so hard and seeing results! I made the wise choice and felt SO good about myself…and I truly enjoyed my hot tea! (I bought a Lipton Acai Dragonfruit Melon Hot tea- YUM!)

So, during our Bible Study last night I got this revelation. I began to think about the Fitness Pal and mocha episode. If I had not had that tool (Fitness Pal) to show me how many calories were in the mocha and had not stopped to question how that choice would effect me…I would have have gone ahead and bought the drink just like I had so many times before. buying the high-calorie mocha would have set me back. Instead of stepping on the scale this morning and seeing the number drop, it would have either remained the same or even gone up.

The Parallel

Now, let’s relate this to our Spiritual Walk. How many times to we just make our decisions without checking our “Fitness Pal”? It’s so easy to walk through life without considering how each decision will impact our future. Unfortunately, many of us learn too late that some of those decisions will have a drastic impact on our lives – and not in a good way. We should stop and ask ourselves, “What choice do I have?”

God has given us a tool like the Fitness Pal – the Bible. If you aren’t sure how your choice will impact your life (how many “calories” does this choice have?) you can flip open your Bible and find an answer. Not sure where to find a certain scripture? Get yourself a concordance and find exactly which one you need. We have the Holy Spirit as a “check” inside of us to guide us…listen to that check!

The next step is to ask yourself (just like I did when faced with the choice of buying a mocha or sticking with hot tea), “Which is more important? This brief moment of satisfaction or the lasting impact it will have on my life?” – Again, what choice do I have?

I’ve heard it said, “Every decision you make is either drawing you closer to God or pushing you further away”. Think about that the next time you sit down in front of the TV preparing for hours of entertainment. What is more important? Watching TV all night or spending time with God (reading, praying, worshiping)?

Am I saying that watching TV is bad? NOT AT ALL! I’m simply saying listen to that still, small voice prompting you. If you get the approval to watch TV, then do it! Watching a good “chick flick” with my hubby is one of my favorite ways to spend time together. I also know how quickly that can take over, though…and my time with God gets neglected.

I am sharing this with all of you because I need to hear it, too! By sharing it, I’m keeping myself accountable to follow through. 😉

Your turn! Let me hear your voice.

OK, now it’s your turn. Do you have any a-ha moments you’d like to share? I would love to hear them! Or, has this post convicted you to spend a little more time taking advantage of the tools God gave us (Bible, Holy Spirit)? I’d love to hear from you. Leave me a comment below and remember to ask yourself daily, “What choice do I have?”.