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Love Your Body: Set Realistic New Year’s Goals

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Love Your Body Like God Loves It

Love Your Body Like God Loves It

Since Christmas was on a Sunday, many of you have today off work. I’m actually enjoying an extra day with family, as I will be next Monday, so there won’t be a Monday Morning Blog. I’ll be back on January 9 to start the New Year with you.

[Tweet ” you might be contemplating starting 2017 with some resolutions or goals regarding your health. “]

Today, you might be contemplating starting 2017 with some resolutions or goals regarding your health. I hope so because as your health goes, so goes many of your activities and your quality of life. Good health doesn’t just happen. It takes diligence and work, but the rewards are life changing and life giving. Over the past years of Love Your Body Mondays, I’ve given you lots of ideas for improving your eating and exercise habits. But reading what to do and doing them, as you know, are two different things.

I thought today I would give you some of my ideas on goal setting, and then you can pray about how to apply them to your life. Maybe it won’t be in the area of diet or health . . . maybe there’s some other area of life you would like to improve. Each anniversary my husband and I write goals for the upcoming year and review how we did with the past year’s goals. It has helped us maintain, spiritual, personal, and, marital growth in our relationship.

Here are some tips for any kind of goal setting . . .

Set Realistic Goals

Twenty-four years ago, my husband’s doctor wanted him to weigh 210 pounds on his 6 ft. 4 in. body. When we set our goals this anniversary, we talked about this goal since he hasn’t weighed 210 for many years, but he has been able to achieve between 215 and 220. I think 215 is healthy for him, he’s happy with the range, so we’ll probably settle with somewhere in the middle.

I like to read the Bible in a year, but I need a plan to keep me on track. I’ve tried various ones like YouVersion.com and find what I’ve enjoyed the last few years is Walk Thru the Bible Daily Walk. I also enjoy reading a different Bible translation each year.

Set Measurable Goals

We have scales in our bathroom and I weigh myself every morning. For me, it’s important to know if I’m going up a few pounds because then I know I need to cut back right away since I don’t lose weight easily. My husband likes to get on “occasionally,” but he does weigh himself so he’ll know if he’s staying between 215 and 220.

Every month I receive my Daily Walk magazine with the next month’s reading schedule and devotional so I can keep on track reading. But this year I was writing a new book with a short deadline and I was only able to read half the Bible. So I’ll read the second half in 2017. Sometimes you need to adjust your goal and give yourself grace, but don’t give up entirely.

Set Maintainable Goals

I prepare our meals so I know what my husband is eating, but if he wants to stay on the lower weight range, he needs to add exercise, also good for his heart. So we’ve talked about him joining the gym again this year. That’s something he has agreed to do, but he has to go to the gym after he joins it. Are you laughing because so many people join a gym, pay the money, and stop going. Setting a goal is only as good as your follow through.

[Tweet “Setting a goal is only as good as your follow through.”]

Here’s my pet complaint about goal setting, so I might as well share it with you now. I don’t like to use or hear the work “try” because to me it gives the person who is using it an escape clause.

The Bible says: “All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” Matt. 5:37

Let me give you a couple of examples of why try doesn’t convey commitment to me:

  • Would you marry a spouse who says they will “try” to keep his or her marriage vows?
  • Would you get on a plane with a pilot who says he or she will “try” to get you to your destination?
  • Would you go into surgery with a surgeon who says he or she will “try” to pull you through alive?
  • Would you get in a car when the mechanic said he “tried” to fix the brakes?

[Tweet “If you don’t think you’re going to do a goal, then set something more doable.”]

Ok, I think you get my point. Don’t set goals you’re going to “try” to maintain. If you don’t think you’re going to do them, then set something more doable. Now I know some of you are thinking well isn’t that setting the bar too low? Would you rather get over the bar and feel successful or give up because you keep coming in under the too overwhelming bar? Once you know you can do it, then by all means, set the next goal a little higher and go for it!

Set Purposeful Goals

[Tweet “If you don’t think you’re going to do them, then set something more doable.”]

No one really follows through on something they don’t see as having value or purpose. So before you set any goals, determine why you’re setting them.

Why do you want to lose weight?

Why do you want to exercise more?

Why do you want to eat healthier and what would that look like?

Why do you want to take better care of your skin?

Why do you want to drink more water and less soft drinks or alcohol or coffee?

Why do you want to read your Bible more and spend less time in front of the TV or computer?

Why do you want to spend more time with your children or spouse?

Why do you want to pray more?

[Tweet “Nothing will happen for the long term until you answer why doing it is meaningful to you. “]

Nothing will happen for the long term until you can answer why doing it is meaningful to you. Not to your doctor, or your spouse, or even your kids . . . they will all benefit and be the receptor of the blessings of your goals . . . but you must determine the importance if you’re going to keep at it even when it gets hard.

I pray that whatever God puts on your heart for 2017, He will plant it so deep that nothing can uproot it until He has finished the work He planned in and for you.

Happy Blessed New Year all my friends and family and I’ll see you again on January 9.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6 NLT

If you receive this blog by email, comment here.

December 26, 2016
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Love Your Body–Get Help with Overeating! By Julie Morris

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Love Your Body Like God Loves It

Love Your Body Like God Loves It

I am so excited to share today’s blog post with you written by author friend Julie Morris who truly understands and empathizes with the struggle to maintain a healthy weight and lifestyle. Even as a nurse who knew better, she couldn’t help herself until she surrendered completely to God. Please take the time to read this entire blog and pray about how God would have you apply it to your life. It could save your life like it did for Julie.

I also wanted to let you know that I’ll be taking a break from my Monday Morning Blog for the months of July and August, when I’ll be speaking and finishing my new book Mentoring for All Seasons: Women Sharing Life’s Experiences and God’s Faithfulness. So have a blessed summer and I’ll be back in September!

Somebody Help! I Can’t Quit Overeating!

By Julie Morris

My blood pressure gauge frantically tapped out the message I didn’t want to hear. While thoughtfully removing the stethoscope from his ears, my doctor said what I already knew: “You have got to lose weight!

[Tweet “my doctor said what I already knew: “You have got to lose weight!”]

After years of dieting, starving, and bingeing, I was fatter than ever. The harder I tried not to overeat, the more I found myself eating. I was the RN Supervisor of a large medical-surgical floor in the local hospital, telling people what to do to get healthy, and I couldn’t lose the weight that could kill me. Even though I was only in my 30’s, my doctor told me that I could have a stroke if I didn’t lose weight. I had dieted a thousand times before, but this time nothing seemed to work.

[Tweet ” Even though I was only in my 30’s, my doctor told me that I could have a stroke if I didn’t lose weight. “]

I woke up every morning and pleaded with God to help me to eat right that day. By lunchtime, with all the stress at work, I found myself saying, “I just need a little something to get through the day.” Those words seemed to magically give me permission to gobble up everything in sight.

[Tweet “I woke up every morning and pleaded with God to help me to eat right that day. “]

Since I had already “gone off my diet,” as soon as I got home, I would yank off my uniform and run to the refrigerator muttering, “I’ve already blown it today, so I may as well eat.” Every night I fell asleep promising to do better and praying that God would forgive me for eating in such an unhealthy way.

Why Is It So Hard to Quit Overeating?

When I stopped long enough to think about what I was doing, confusion overwhelmed me. Why was I eating like this when I knew there was nothing more I wanted than to get rid of these extra pounds?

[Tweet “Why was I eating like this when I knew there was nothing more I wanted than to get rid of these extra pounds? “]

I didn’t know the answer then, but research has discovered why many of us continue to overeat, even when we try not to. The secret? Endorphins—feel-good brain chemicals. These natural substances that our bodies make, increase when we eat. Some of us have a dramatic rise in endorphins when we overeat. They are the same chemicals released when an alcoholic drinks or a drug addict takes drugs.

[Tweet “Some of us have a dramatic rise in endorphins when we overeat. They are the same chemicals released when an alcoholic drinks or a drug addict takes drugs“]

As long as I could remember, I had turned to food to help me deal with stress. Eating always numbed my pain, but stress-eating like that caused a horrible vicious cycle: when I got upset, I ate something so I would feel better. My problems grew… and so did I. And because I overate every time I had to deal with stress, my problems didn’t get solved. They only got worse. It didn’t make sense, but I couldn’t stop because eating really did help me to feel better… at least for a while.

[Tweet “I called out to the Lord daily, begging Him to make me thin. And I complained bitterly to Him about giving me such a slow metabolism,”]

I called out to the Lord daily, begging Him to make me thin. And I complained bitterly to Him about giving me such a slow metabolism, but I knew deep down that my problem wasn’t my metabolism. My problem was that I ate too much and didn’t know how to stop. However, after my doctors scary words, that I could die, I was determined to lose weight and be healthier.

How Can I Surrender My Eating to the Lord?

I went to someone in my church and asked what to do. “You just have to surrender your eating to God, Julie,” she stated simply, as if there were some surrender button I could push. Oh, I wanted to. I knew I should be able to do all things through Christ who strengthens me. But even though I had been a Christian for years, and prayed every day for God’s help, I couldn’t seem to surrender my eating to the Lord. 

[Tweet “But even though I had been a Christian for years, and prayed every day for God’s help, I couldn’t seem to surrender my eating to the Lord. “]

These 12 Steps Helped Me to Surrender My Eating to the Lord!

[Tweet “I realized that the 12 Steps were the structure I needed to help me to surrender this eating problem to the Lord.”]

I continued crying out to God for help and, finally, in 1982, I began to make progress when I went to my first 12-Step meeting. I realized that night that the 12 Steps were the structure I needed to help me to surrender this problem to the Lord. I felt sure that the steps would help me to draw closer to Jesus and plug into his power. And I began to understand that they would also help me to get to the emotional roots of my problem with food.

[Tweet “People try to make the 12 Christian Eating Steps complicated, but they’re not.”]

People try to make the 12 Steps complicated, but they’re not. The 12 Steps are just little baby steps, taken directly from the Bible, that help us to rely on God’s power when we lack will power. They are not just a list of 12 things that we do and then quit, but a way of living—surrendered to the Lord, being guided by him.

The steps I use were inspired by AA’s 12 Steps, but are different because mine focus on Jesus. Another difference is that we are learning how to receive Jesus’ help to stop overeating—instead of drinking. Later, I started using a shortened form of the steps to make them easier to understand. Look at end of this post for a summary of the Christian 12 Steps.

Jesus Tells Us Where to Find Self-Control!

While reading John 15:4, it dawned on me that Jesus is telling over-eaters where to find the fruit of the Spirit of self-control that we so desperately need. He says,

“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”

Then later in that chapter, he says exactly what I had been learning—the hard way:

“Without me, you can do nothing!”

I Started Winning the Battle!

[Tweet “After Jesus’ words finally sunk in, I quit dieting—trying to lose weight using my own willpower—and I quit beating myself up for my weakness.”]

After Jesus’ words finally sunk in, I quit dieting—trying to lose weight using my own willpower—and I quit beating myself up for my weakness. Instead, I began to put my energy into drawing closer to the Lord. And, amazingly, I started winning the battle with the ravenous monster inside of me who could never be satisfied, no matter how much I fed him!

Since John 15:4 had been so life-changing for me, I began diligently searching the Bible for other verses that would speak to me about how to stop overeating. I was excited to find many of them, and I memorized a few so I could remind myself of God’s promises when food cravings struck. I started reading Christian books about weight-loss and learned a lot from people who had overcome the same struggles I had. I also decided to stop flirting with temptation, so I got all of my old comfort foods out of my house.  Another important thing I did was to start calling an accountability partner every evening to tell her how I had done with my eating that day.

[Tweet ” I also decided to stop flirting with temptation, so I got all of my old comfort foods out of my house. “]

Soon my cravings became weak and conquerable and the miracle finally happened: I lost my weight and have kept it off for more than 30 years! Not only that, I started helping others to lose weight.

I started a Bible study in my church to help overeaters to lose weight. It was so successful that a few years later I wrote Step Forward—a Christian weight-loss program for groups—published by Abington Press.

Guided By Him Is a Light and Easy 12-Step Christian Weight-Loss Program

GBH photo

A few years ago, I joined with my daughter Sarah Morris Cherry, a Licensed Professional Counselor, and we wrote Guided By Him—a 12-week lighter an easier version of Step Forward.

guidedbyhim

Packed with Bible studies, practical weight-loss tips and inspiring success stories, Guided By Him is perfect for individual Bible study, family meetings, Sunday School classes, Bible study groups, lunch breaks at work or friendly neighborhood get-togethers,

You can tell by these chapter titles that you’re going to have fun as you read the book and get to the roots of your overeating:

  • Tripped on a Twinkie
  • Are Donuts My Bread of Life?
  • My Refuge–the Refrigerator
  • Do Broken Cookies Count?
  • Resentments Are Fattening
  • Is Fudge My Fortress

 God Uses Our Weaknesses When We Surrender Them to Him!

It’s exciting to receive e-mails from readers across the United States and in many foreign countries as well, telling me what an amazing difference our books have made in their lives. Many say that, as a result of what my daughter and I have written, they are closer to God than ever and they have learned things that they will use for the rest of their lives.

God is helping them and they are helping others—turning their misery to ministry. He is taking their biggest weakness and using it for good as they surrender it to Him.

They are shrinking on the outside and growing on the inside as they lose the weight… and the worries that have weighed them down!

Soon You, Too, Will Have an Exciting Story to Tell!

Join me on this adventure and be Guided By Him… To a Thinner, Not So Stressed-Out You, and soon you, too, will have an exciting story to tell! The amazing thing is that weight loss won’t even be the best part!

Julie Morris’ Bio

Julie photo standing

Julie Morris is a popular motivational speaker and internationally recognized author of 12 books. She is the founder of Step Forward—a Christian weight-loss Program  and Guided By Him…to a Thinner, Not So Stressed-Out You! . Guided By Him is a lighter and easier version of Step Forward.

Other books that she has written include From Worry to Worship and From Worthless to Worthy.

She presents seminars, retreats and workshops across the country that inspire her audiences to make exciting changes toward becoming the person they have always wanted to be.

Julie has worked as a secretary at the Pentagon, Spanish teacher, Coronary Intensive Care nurse and the supervisor of a large hospital Medical-Surgical unit. She has been married for over 40 years to her college sweetheart. Julie is the mother of two adult children and grandmother of one very precious little boy.

Julie’s greatest joy is helping struggling Christians to overcome weaknesses by relying on God’s strength.

She would love to hear from you! Please comment below if you can identify with any part of her story. If you received this blog by email, comment here.

Also, please check out her website www.guidedbyhim.com  or e-mail her at [email protected] if you have questions about starting your own group or if you are interested in purchasing books or inviting her to speak at your church.

Join her on Facebook at…

 

Summary of the Short Form of the Christian 12 Steps

  • Step 1 is “I can’t!” While taking the first Step, I finally gave up on the idea that I could lose weight on diets and willpower. I didn’t allow myself to stay stuck in the first Step “I can’t,” but when discouraged, would go straight to Step 2.
  • Step 2 is “God can!” While taking the second Step, I began learning how to rely on the Lord. I memorized his promises, thanked him for his help and praised him for answered prayers even before I had received them.
  • Step 3 is “I’ll let him!” While taking the third Step, I learned practical things that would help me to cooperate with the Lord one day at a time.

The first three Steps are the foundation for the others.

  • In Steps 4-7 we get to the roots of our overeating by looking back at things done to us and things we’ve done. We become willing to let go of them and let God change us.
  • In Steps 8-9 we ask for God’s help with our relationships—past and present.
  • Steps 10 and 11 help us to do a daily check to make sure we’re staying on track, learn ways to seek God every day and have a closer relationship with him.
  • In Step 12, we practice doing things we’re learning that help us draw closer to the Lord and we share with others the exciting things he’s doing in us.
June 27, 2016
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Love Your Body–Beat or Treat High Blood Pressure

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Love Your Body Like God Loves It

Love Your Body Like God Loves It

Today is Love Your Body Monday, following the most important Sunday in a Christian’s life: Easter! The day that Jesus defied death for believers and rose from the grave to offer everyone who believes in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, confesses sins, and asks for forgiveness—eternal life in heaven with Jesus Christ our Lord. Yes, Jesus overcame permanent death for believers, but we still must face the death of our physical bodies.

During my first breast cancer treatment, I witnessed to my atheist radiation oncologist: “Dr. your mission is to provide longevity and stave off death for a while for our earthly bodies; my mission is to help people know the Great Physician who provides eternal longevity and life after we are finished with our earthly bodies.” I think he got it.

[Tweet “Our earthly bodies are a gift from God during the years He gives us to make a decision for Christ”]

Our earthly bodies are a gift from God during the years He gives us to make a decision for Christ, and then were are to live out that decision and help others come to know Him before their, and our, earthly bodies return to dust. Did you ever think of life in that context? We are here for God’s purpose and pleasure, not our own. Therefore, we must treat our bodies as a precious gift and instrument of God.

[Tweet “Sometimes, we treat our bodies like we own them. “]

Sometimes, we treat our bodies like we do own them. We’ve all heard, “It’s my body. I’ll do what I want with it.” This erroneous thinking is also behind the “women’s rights” propaganda. And that’s all it is…lies and misunderstanding from those who the evil one blinds.

[Tweet “We don’t have any rights over our bodies, God does!”]

We don’t have any rights over our bodies, God does! He creates us, numbers our days, and makes no mistakes.

Satan says, “Your body is your own.”

God says, “I knit you together in your mother’s womb.” (Ps 139:13 paraphrased)

Satan says, “Eat whatever you want if it makes you happy.”

God says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31)

[Tweet “What a novel thought: eating and drinking for the glory of God.”]

What a novel thought: eating and drinking for the glory of God. What a praise it would be to God if before putting anything in our mouths, we asked ourselves, “Will this glorify God by keeping my body healthy or will this dishonor the amazing temple he has entrusted to me?”

How to Beat or Treat Hypertension

[Tweet “I am amazed at how many people take medicine to lower their blood pressure.”]

In January, we talked about Love Your Body—Prevent or Reverse Type 2 Diabetes. Today, I want to mention another illness that could be prevented or treated by proper diet and exercise: high blood pressure. I am amazed at how many people take medicine to lower their blood pressure. High sodium intake can increase blood pressure and most processed, packaged, and processed foods are very high in sodium. Even if you never salt your food, if you eat these foods regularly, you are taking in higher levels of sodium than are healthy for a normal body.

According to the Mayo Clinic, here is a definition and risk factors of High Blood Pressure also known as Hypertension:

High blood pressure is a common condition in which the long-term force of the blood against your artery walls is high enough that it may eventually cause health problems, such as heart disease.

Blood pressure is determined both by the amount of blood your heart pumps and the amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure.

High blood pressure has many risk factors, including:

  • Age. The risk of high blood pressure increases as you age. Through early middle age, or about age 45, high blood pressure is more common in men. Women are more likely to develop high blood pressure after age 65.
  • Race. High blood pressure is particularly common among blacks, often developing at an earlier age than it does in whites. Serious complications, such as stroke, heart attack and kidney failure, also are more common in blacks.
  • Family history. High blood pressure tends to run in families.
  • Being overweight or obese. The more you weigh the more blood you need to supply oxygen and nutrients to your tissues. As the volume of blood circulated through your blood vessels increases, so does the pressure on your artery walls.
  • Not being physically active. People who are inactive tend to have higher heart rates. The higher your heart rate, the harder your heart must work with each contraction and the stronger the force on your arteries. Lack of physical activity also increases the risk of being overweight.
  • Using tobacco. Not only does smoking or chewing tobacco immediately raise your blood pressure temporarily, but the chemicals in tobacco can damage the lining of your artery walls. This can cause your arteries to narrow, increasing your blood pressure. Secondhand smoke also can increase your blood pressure.
  • Too much salt (sodium) in your diet. Too much sodium in your diet can cause your body to retain fluid, which increases blood pressure.
  • Too little potassium in your diet. Potassium helps balance the amount of sodium in your cells. If you don’t get enough potassium in your diet or retain enough potassium, you may accumulate too much sodium in your blood.
  • Too little vitamin D in your diet. It’s uncertain if having too little vitamin D in your diet can lead to high blood pressure. Vitamin D may affect an enzyme produced by your kidneys that affects your blood pressure.
  • Drinking too much alcohol. Over time, heavy drinking can damage your heart. Having more than two drinks a day for men and more than one drink a day for women may affect your blood pressure.
  • Stress. High levels of stress can lead to a temporary increase in blood pressure. If you try to relax by eating more, using tobacco or drinking alcohol, you may only increase problems with high blood pressure.
  • Certain chronic conditions. Certain chronic conditions also may increase your risk of high blood pressure, such as kidney disease, diabetes and sleep apnea.

Everything on the above list except for age, race, family history, and certain chronic conditions are controllable by us! Several of these controllable areas, we’ve talked about previously on Love Your Body Monday!

Weight Loss: Love Your Body—Maintain Weight Loss and Love Your Body—Break the Food Strongholds and Love Your Body—Weight Loss is Not the Goal

Become more physically active: Love Your Body—Use Technology to Lose Weight

Drinking: Love Your Body—Don’t Drink Alcohol

If you smoke, you need to stop smoking.

We will talk in future blogs about eliminating stress.

Reduce Sodium intake: Love Your Body–Read Labels  discusses the importance of reading labels on food you purchase. You can look for sodium content on the label per the serving they indicate, which might only be a half cup or 5 pieces. You need some sodium, but if you have high blood pressure, your doctor may want you limiting to 1500-3000 mg a day, which can add up quickly just in natural food. So you must read labels for sodium content and avoid obviously salty food. Here is a great article on how sodium effects high blood pressure, recommended intake of sodium, and high-sodium foods to avoid: Salt and High Blood Pressure.

saltshaker

At our house, I don’t put a saltshaker on the table, and I use very little salt in cooking, but rely on fresh herbs and salt-free seasonings for flavor. Both my husband and I have normal blood pressure. Sometimes visitors ask for the saltshaker without even tasting the food to see if it even needs salt! Is that you?

bananasIncrease potassium and Vitamin D: Here is a good article on nine foods that can reduce high blood pressure and increase potassium and Vitamin D in your diet: Nine Foods That Reduce High Blood Pressure.

Let me stress that the ideal is to avoid having an illness or “condition”. Taking preventative measures—instead of waiting until you have a problem that you could potentially sidestep– could prevent having to take medications, which always have side effects. And isn’t that just like everything in life: proactive always trumps reactive.

If you received this blog by email, please leave a comment here.

March 28, 2016
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Love Your Body—Weight Loss Is NOT the Goal!

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“I will read your posts on Loving Your Body. I have seen them before, but as you know, I wanted a fix but didn’t want to do the work.” Debbie Dittrich

If you’re on Facebook, you’ve probably noticed the same phenomenon I have, and maybe you’ve been part of this scenario. A peep suddenly posts a picture looking fabulous after losing a great deal of weight. Everyone congratulates her and “oohs and ahhhs” at how wonderful she looks as she joyously grins with achieved success.

Then as suddenly as the pictures appeared, months go by with no pictures, and then you see a picture and your heart sinks … at least my Dietitian’s heart sinks … she has gained all the weight back, and maybe more! Or some, like Oprah, we actually watch on television go up and down in weight over the years as she tried different diets.

What happened? Why wouldn’t they want to maintain their amazing loss? Why wouldn’t they want to stay thin and healthy? Why wouldn’t they want to enjoy wearing all those beautiful new clothes they bought?

I’ve discovered the answer is always the same—a weight loss regime they couldn’t possibly maintain for life. Fast and noticeable weight loss was the immediate goal, without a long-term goal and plan to keep the weight off.

[Tweet “”Weight loss without a realistic lifetime eating plan is doomed to failure!”]

Maybe they lost the weight by eliminating certain food groups, extremely low daily calories, shakes, drinks, shots, pills, surgery, ready-prepared boxed or frozen meals, eating the exact same thing daily …. Anxious for a quick fix, they did something drastic to get results with no long-term maintenance plan. They couldn’t go a lifetime on that regime. Once the weight goal was reached, or they ran out of money for the costly shots or products, they slowly, maybe quickly, went back to their old eating habits, which they hadn’t learned to modify or change.

Weight loss without a realistic lifetime eating plan is doomed to failure!

“While I know that I must eat properly I do not think that means eating the same thing for 17 years!” Debbie Dittrich

[Tweet “God made our body to operate best on the food He created in the quantities that maintain our body He created in optimal health.”]

God made our body to operate best on the food He created in the quantities that maintain our body in optimal health. When we try to circumvent His plan for good nutrition by eliminating a food group or going on a crash diet … we’re going to crash too. It’s not how God made us to subsist.

I recently saw a friend who had lost weight and I commented how great she looked. She said her goal was to be thin for her high school reunion. Her main concern now was keeping the weight off for the next two months until the reunion. And with those words, I knew that once the reunion was over—the goal of being thin for the reunion—she would feel the freedom to go right back to her old eating patterns and soon the lost weight would return. Unconsciously, she was acknowledging that what she was doing to lose the weight was going to be difficult to maintain for two months, not a lifetime. I mentioned that the first time I met her she was on a diet, and her comment was like those of so many, “I’m always on a diet.”

Maintenance is the Goal, Not Weight Loss

“This time it’s different,” my goal is to keep this and maintain this throughout my life. Before I’ve had more of a view of ‘Get to the goal, have the goal.’ Now I really looked at it as this is my life, and until I’m dead basically, I am going to keep this this way, instead of like, ‘Oh I lost 50 pounds and now I can do whatever I want.'” Kirstie Alley on the Today show January 6, 2015, after losing 50 pounds.

Kirstie Alley has publicly gone up and down with her weight. When she’s a Jenny Craig spokesperson, she does great, and when she quits the “program,” she gains it back. The above quote looks like she finally realized that weight loss was not the goal, she needed to eat the way she ate to lose the 50 pounds for the rest of her life to not gain it back. I don’t know if she was successful in sticking to the right goal.

[Tweet “people who lose weight gradually and steadily—about 1 to 2 pounds per week—are more successful at keeping the weight off.”]

Even though our human nature makes us want to see quick results, people who lose weight gradually and steadily—about 1 to 2 pounds per week—are more successful at keeping the weight off. Healthy weight loss isn’t a “diet,” “program,” or “gimmick.” It’s an ongoing lifestyle that includes long-term, doable changes in daily eating and exercise habits.

Once you’ve achieved a desirable weight, by relying on healthful eating and physical activity, you are more likely to be successful at keeping the weight off over the long term.

Losing weight is not easy, and it takes commitment.

The problem with all the fads, diets, programs, regimes …they’re meant for immediate gratification of quickly experiencing drastic change because that’s our world today. Slow and steady doesn’t’ give us the satisfaction we need. That’s why quick-fix “miracle” ads attract so many:

  • The 10-day Weight-Loss Program
  • How to Reach Your Desired Weight in a Month While Eating All You Want
  • Lose up to 10 pounds in a week

Or one I recently saw: “Secret Method to Getting Slim Fast.” I’ve been drinking this miracle drink for about 3 weeks now. My friends won’t stop asking how I became so thin in such a short amount of time. I’ve become half the size I once was!”

Here’s the Weight-Loss Secret Revealed—There’s NO Secret Miracle Way to Get Slim Fast and Keep it Off!

Everyone acknowledges, and few try to defy, how God created gravity—stepping off a cliff = downward plunge. But many have spent thousands of dollars trying to defy the way God created our bodies: calories in minus calories expended = our weight. There’s no big secret and no way to secretly, miraculously change it. But millions of people buy into a lie that it’s possible for them.

The Way God Created Our Bodies

Energy (calories) IN and energy OUT = maintained weight

More IN than OUT = weight gain

More OUT than IN = weight loss

[Tweet “To lose weight, we have to use up more calories than we take in through body metabolism and exercise. “]

So in order to lose weight, we have to use up more calories than we take in through body metabolism and exercise. One pound equals 3,500 calories, so we must reduce our caloric intake by 500—1000 calories per day to lose about 1 to 2 pounds per week, which is a safe weight loss that doesn’t throw our body into shock or deprive us of necessary minerals and vitamins, if we’re eating a balanced diet.

If you haven’t read the article my daughter Kim wrote last month, Love Your Body—Use Technology to Lose Weight, read it now because she testifies from her own experience that logging in what she ate daily determined whether she lost or gained weight—extra calories at the same exercise level equaled extra pounds. No matter how much you want to believe the marketing lies, this is how God created our bodies. As I was writing this post, I saw Kim posted on Facebook: “Logging my Costco free sample calories is going to be a tedious task. A bite of this and that adds up quick!”

Even when it’s free, the calories aren’t free.

The Only Goal that Equals Maintained Weight is a Life-Heart Change Goal

I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Philippians 4:12-13

Identify:
1. Why you want to lose weight?

  1. Why you eat?
  2. When you eat?
  3. What are you eating now that’s contributing to your weight?

Then set realistic goals that are maintainable and healthy:

  1. One to two pound loss a week
  2. Exercise, 30 to 60 minutes most days that you can and will do
  3. Learn how to choose and prepare healthy food. Understand what constitutes a balanced diet.
  4. Reduce portion sizes and eat three meals a day.
  5. Track what you’re eating.

[Tweet “A healthy diet means eating a selection from all the five food groups “]

A healthy diet means eating a selection from all the five food groups in portion sizes that will help lose or maintain weight without sacrificing health.

I love the colorful Choose Plate website because it gives great information on how to determine your caloric requirement, what’s in each food group, portion sizes and so much more for the whole family. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention also has an amazing website to learn what “healthy” really looks and tastes like.

[Tweet “To be successful at long-term weight loss, we must adopt a new lifestyle,”]

To be successful at long-term weight loss, we must adopt a new lifestyle, just like when we became Christians and we put off the old way of life and put on the new. The new healthy you will make changes to adopt and embrace healthy eating habits, be more physically active, and learn how to change eating behaviors and habits.

 

Next month in our Love Your Body blog, the last Monday of the month, I’ll share a testimony from my friend and fellow author/speaker Debbie Dittrich who I quoted in this post. Debbie has lost a great deal of weight and shares with us the spiritual battle that kept her chained to bad eating habits for thirty years. She’s working at breaking those chains, and as they fall off, so does her weight.

 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17

Are you ready to make a dietary commitment to your health to love your body like God loves your body?

Can you see why having a weight loss goal isn’t successful without a long-range maintenance goal?

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August 31, 2015
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