Faith is the Fuel

In any undertaking in my life, faith has to be the foundation that success is built on. Making changes to my eating and exercise habits are very much connected to my faith in God.  Yes, there are choices that I have to make and things I have to do.  I can't blame failure on Him.  Neither can I say my success is only because of Him. But the truth is, I have to do my part and He does His. I rely and trust in Him to help me in these areas where I feel weak. But I still have to take action. So, yes, I joined the gym, started my journal and realized that more steps need to be taken to accomplish my goals.  Faith is an action.  Without action, faith is dead.

One of the thoughts that prevail in my mind is that my body is a temple.  And since it is a temple, I have a responsibility to make sure that I'm treating it in a respectable manner.  Carrying around excess weight is not in line with a life of faith.  It's disrespectful to put garbage in the temple or allow it to be sluggish and not operate at its fullest potential.  So my faith has a direct connection to the actions that I must take to be a healthier me.

This year, I plan to let my faith be the fuel that burns in me to do better than I did in 2012.  And I have to push myself to do more and not become complacent with the small accomplishments.  I challenge you to use your faith to help you reach your goals.  

From the Plate to the Page

After I started working out at the gym for a period of time, I began keeping a Food Diary.  At first it was a pain in the butt to carry a little journal around and jot things down every time I ate, but it's a habit that became easier for me to develop over a few days.  I actually was taught to do it from my Weight Watchers days several years ago.  I believe Weight Watchers is one of the better life-changing programs out there and really helps people to develop some good skills if one adheres to them.  Taking inventory of what you eat is all about developing accountability to yourself.  Every time you put something in your mouth, it should be written on the page.

Before I started my Food Diary, I would eat and then forget what I ate and eat more later. I didn't realize when I was eating, how much I ate or how often. Again, it's about honesty. With a food diary, you begin to realize how the calories creep up on you.  Now in conjunction with the Food Diary, you may want to invest in calorie counter guide.  Today, it's much easier with smart phone applications. They have apps that allow you to scan items, or type in the names of foods, even items on the menus at restaurants and it will provide you with the amount of calories being consumed.  For me, I was able to blow the dust off of my Weight Watchers booklet that follows the Point System - Based on my weight, I wasn't supposed to consume more than 28 points a day.  I discovered that I had been consuming more than double that in a day.  The key at first was not to modify my eating habits, but simply record my habits as they were.  It was clear to see why the weight wasn't budging.  I was eating too much of the wrong foods and eating them too often and late at night as well.  It was easier to see the error of my ways with the journal.

I began to limit the number of meals, make better food choices and eat smaller portions.  Who wants to record that they are eating a deluxe cheeseburger, fries, milkshake and an apple pie for lunch?  Even if it tastes good, it looks wrong on paper for someone who is trying to lead a healthy life style.  I'd rather write down that I ate a 1/2 turkey sandwich on whole wheat, spinach salad and unsweetened iced tea.  Call it psychology or just plain common sense, but it does work.

Try writing down what you eat each day for a week.  I bet your little journal will help you learn a lot about yourself and you'll see some improvements in no time.

The First Small Step

Years and years have gone by in my life with me knowing a change was needed for me to become a healthy, fit person.  It's not like I was ignorant that my health was headed in a bad direction.  Like most people, we can be aware of something, but not have the will power or the education to make the needed changes.  But a little over a year ago, I decided that I needed to do something about my health.  I was suffering from edema in my legs and feet.  Some days it was so bad that I couldn't fit my shoes!  I recalled going to a doctor and I asked him if he could give me medication for the swelling in my legs.  He said he could, but also handed me a pamphlet for the "Diabetic Diet".  I told him I didn't have diabetes.  He replied, "That's true, but if you eat this way, you'll lose weight and won't have to worry about the swelling in your legs."  He  followed that by saying, "If most of my patients would eat right and exercise, I'd have to give up practicing medicine and become a plumber."  I thought what he said was humorous, but the simplicity of his statement stuck with me. Taking water pills and reducing the use of table salt helped a little, but that alone wasn't the solution. I began to take his advice.   

One of the first steps for me was joining the gym.  I joined the one at work, instead of one across town. The likelihood of me making excuses to not go was diminished because I walked past the gym everyday for three years to go home from work before every visiting. How absurd was that?  I started out going two times a week, spending about 45 minutes working out - and not over doing it. Each time it became easier.  Then it became a routine and I looked forward to it.  I noticed a difference in my legs.  The swelling didn't go away completely, but I could see the improvement in my condition.  Within the first four months, I lost about 15 pounds.  I felt better.  It was the first step in the right direction.  That one decision, helped me to make the next healthy decision.

My encouragement to you today is to make just one small change.  Don't think about ALL the changes you need to make.  Just make one simple one.  Something you can stick to.  What is the one thing you can do today to help you start on your journey to a better you? 

Good Health Starts with the Truth

Honesty is the best way to approach anything you're trying to change. The New Year is the day that everyone is going to diet, get in shape, run to the gym and swear off of every bad habit known to man.  But statistics show that rarely does anyone keep these resolutions.  So let's be honest.  You didn't get fat and unhealthy over night.  And you're certainly not going to change over night.  My blog is not about making a resolution, with a sudden shift in behavior and following some fad diet.  It's about educating yourself and slowly implementing gradual changes in your life that, in the long run, will benefit you. 

Being from Detroit, which among other things was recently given the title as one of the "Fattest Cities in America", I was surely impacted by that fact long after I moved to LA.  Dieting and exercise is something I often talked about, but rarely did.  Fast foods like McDonald's, Burger King and Taco Bell were a regular part of my diet, not to mention fried chicken, tons of fatty carbs, processed foods and other sugary snacks and drinks.  

Growing up, I was given all kinds of advice about how to remain safe in a city like Motown. Everyone can relate to locking your doors, watching your surroundings after dark and using common sense to protect yourself against the enemies that lurk in the night.  But there wasn't anyone telling me how to protect myself in my own kitchen!  No one was there to warn me that I was eating my way to an early grave. That's because they were subjecting themselves to the same dangers. My grandmother died of a massive heart attack in 1994.  Ten years later at the age of 62, my father died of a heart attack as well.  Both he and my mom (still living and a breast cancer survivor) were diagnosed with diabetes.  I won't bother to mention to other family and friends I know who either suffer with or have been diagnosed with heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes or cancer.  It's truly a sad epidemic. Yet everyone acts surprisingly shocked to receive these diagnosis, but does anyone seriously stop to ask how these illnesses occur?  Some people may get mad at me for telling the truth, but the truth sometimes hurts.  These diseases hurt more. 

Now, I'm not pointing the finger in judgement at anyone because there are people who do all the right things that are sometimes struck down by unfortunate illnesses, which they have no control.  But far and wide, these symptoms are greatly reduced when a person makes a conscious decision to take care of themselves. Diet and exercise play a major role in quality of life.  And having suffered the loss in my own family, I have a choice to make. I can either continue to eat garbage, make excuses for poor exercising habits, or do something about it.  I choose to have a quality life and make good choices.  I ask you to choose the same in 2013.  Let's do this together!