Total workout, from the inside out!

Whew! I am so very tired today. I've gotten up at 5am for the past three mornings to work at The Lamppost. For anyone reading this who doesn't know me, I work at a year-round Christian retreat center and we just opened a coffeeshop and bookstore and I have had a crash course in being a barista. I thought I would like it, but I didn't know I would LOVE it! The more I work at making the drinks, the more I try to challenge myself to pull great shots, to not waste milk and to stay consistent with the recipes. I did not know that working as a barista gives you a full upper body workout. I am not joking! My back, pecs, biceps and triceps are sore! I'm glad. :o)

I woke up this morning and, for some reason I was afraid to step on the scale. All I could think was, "What if the past few days have been a fluke and I step on today and my weight is up and I disappoint myself and everyone else?" Well, I took a deep breath and stepped on. 169.2!!! I was elated. It gave me the strength to get through another day and resist some yummy treats. I feel encouraged. I know that the same thought is going to run through my mind tomorrow, though. But, no matter what, I will not give up. I was looking at a picture of myself in my wedding dress today... I will fit into that dress again!  Weight loss isn't easy, but neither is anything worth doing and doing right.

As I get in shape physically, I've been thinking a lot about the flabbiness in my spirit. I cannot, in good conscience, make improvements to my outward appearance and not give the same effort to my spiritual condition. God is my creator. Not only of my body, but of my soul and I plan to give that a workout, too! This weekend was a great catalyst for that. We had a retreat speaker that really challenged me and made me realize, once again, that I have not arrived. As long as I draw breath, my goal will be to follow God's precepts, become more Christ-like and try to never forget that I am an ambassador for Him.

My sheep know my voice....

Good Morning! Well, 170 today and I am feeling very encouraged. I love the Atkins diet because, even though I know I am initially losing water, I feel confident that I am not losing muscle with all the protein I get. 

On a personal note, this morning I got a new revelation about a scripture I have read and regarded for years. "My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me..." John 10:27
I always thought that meant; when we are following God and growing closer to Him that we will hear Him speaking to us. (I'm sure it does mean that, too). But, for the past couple days I've been going through a difficult personal situation where I have been misunderstood and as I've prayed for God's peace and refuge, I woke up this morning with this verse on my heart and a new (or additional) understanding of it. I think that it also means that as you grow in your relationship with God (Christ), you understand HIS character and truth. You won't fall for the world's lies, because you KNOW His heart. I am feeling very encouraged spiritually this morning, too. It's a good place to be! I found refuge in God's arms this morning and I have peace. Thank you, God.

Progress

Hi All. I hope you had a great day. My day started great and seems to be ending with a stress headache.  Anyway, the good news is, my weight was down today. 171.4. I was very encouraged by that this morning. I am glad I am doing this blog, even though it is very public and "out there" for everyone to see. I hope my progress encourages you, too. Early day in the coffeeshop tomorrow. Off to bed.

Testing, testing... 1, 2, 3

So it's official. I am officially an official blogger! Wow!!! So as not to disappoint anyone who is interested in following my blog for encouragement and accountability on weight loss issues, I'll start there. For those of you who know me, I am a thin person trapped in a larger-than-my-normal-size body. I gained 55 lbs with my son, Noah, who was born in 2006. I lost most of it (about 40 lbs) and then got pregnant with Rianna in 2008. Now, the great news is that even though I gained a whopping 60 lbs with her, I've lost it all! But, I have these last nagging 20 lbs left over from Noah and another 10 that I had gained before I got pregnant with him. So... It is my goal to lose 30 lbs by Spring 2012. 15 lbs by Christmas and 15 lbs by spring. My modus operandi  is going to be the Atkins Diet. I know that there are people out there opposed to it, but for me it works. I will expound on Atkins more in entries to follow. Wouldn't want to bore people to death on my first drive off the lot. :o)
Anyway, down to the nitty-gritty! I weighed myself this morning as a starting point and weighed 172.8!!! Arrrrgggghhhh!! Wtheck? How did this happen? I was really disappointed because this time last year I was down to 166. I am going backwards! Definitely don't want that. I will always give an updated weight with each entry...as embarrassing as it may be. Hopefully with that kind of accountability, it'll motivate me to stick to my guns. It will also be another goal of mine to keep my blog active. I will definitley be more encouraged knowing I am encouraging YOU! I appreciate your feedback.
By the way, I was off to a great start today, then I had some homemade bread with dinner. :/ Once I am firmly in induction, I really don't even crave carbs.. it's just getting there that's hard. So, as Scarlett O'Hara says, "After all, tomorrow is another day."