Getting Unstuck

Hello, all! It's that time of year when people have long abandoned their new year's resolutions, the goal of a spring break bod has passed, and if you're not ready for your bridesmaid dress by now, I'm not sure if you will be! Consequently, many people find themselves stuck and ready to give up this time of year. My simple advice: DO NOT QUIT. However, it is much easier said than done. What can you do when you feel "stuck" in your weight loss efforts?

Sometimes it feels like the same 5 pounds are a prison! Lose a few one week, gain them back the next. All this fluctuating can make it super difficult to stay on plan. I know there have been times in my own weight loss journey when I felt like I could just not pull myself together! If this is you, take a second to think about the following question: What would a "good" weight loss week look like?

Got your idea? You see, in many cases, you probably already know what is holding you back. Sometimes, the key is to face that obstacle with open eyes and go at it full speed ahead. Perhaps identifying what trips you up is the first step to getting past it.

My second suggestion for shaking things up is kicking your workout routine into high gear! As I have said here before, a good body is really made in the kitchen, but nonetheless, you would be surprised how changing things up can lead to other good choices. I recently cut out most sugar and most white flour because I did not like how slow it made me when I run. Will I always eat this way? Absolutely not. But with the half marathon just a week and a half away, there is little margin for error. I have also noticed that since I'm used to this, "cheating" makes me feel (physically) terrible!

So what can you do to get unstuck?

He cares for you

Today I found myself in the center ring. There I was at a place I have been several times before, of juggling pins, keeping them all in the air gracefully, and keeping my eyes on this juggling act. And I can keep this going effectively for awhile. Even as pins bobble and nearly hit the ground, smiling so it looks easy, looking at God and saying, "I'm doing it. I'm doing it all. This is what You want, right?" These metaphorical pins can be anything-- a clean house, fulfilling relationships, a high level of health and fitness, being pleasant and useful in the workplace, and being an upright member of the church-- but we all have the pins we juggle hoping God will like them, and we will gain some kind of approval.

And that is when I drop one. When I start referring to it as MY life. When I forget step one: die to myself. Every day, I need to die to myself to live for God, but over and over I forget.

Today I let one of my pins drop. Nothing major happened in my life today, but even sometimes the small things can remind me that I don't have it all together. I was not meant to. One area of this is my work. If you know me or have read this blog even one time, you know weight loss and health are big in my life, and I want to do everything I can to help people achieve their goals. It's a major passion in my life; however, the minute my own health or someone else's becomes about what I can do, I've lost it. I've dropped the pin I'm juggling. So to pick it up, I lose sleep. I resolve to try harder. I shed tears. I think and worry about it constantly.

And then I seek the Lord's face, and He lovingly says, "what took you so long?" And I set my pins down. No more juggling. My arms are free to embrace the Lord that way, and suddenly it's not about me at all.

1 Peter 5:6-7 "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

He is enough. He is sufficient. And it's not about me.

So what pins do you need to lay down so you can embrace the Lord today?

Power Hour Workout

Hey, everyone!

I cannot believe April is upon us! This week, I want to pose a challenge..  For the month of April, can you do my power hour workout 4 or 5 times a week? It only takes 20 minutes, but it will wear you out!

How do you do this? Well, it's simple. You do not need any exercise equipment.... but some hand weights (or cans of soup :) ) would not hurt.

1. Turn on one of those TERRIBLE power hour websites that we might remember from college. You can google them, and there are many, depending on what kind of music you like.
2. For one minute (in other words, every time the song changes) do the following cycle of moves:

• Jumping Jacks
• Push-ups
• Crunches
• Burpees
• Bicep curls
• Lunges
• Overhead presses
• Squats
• Tricep dips
• Mountain climbers
• REPEAT CYCLE

3. Then stretch! Sounds easy, but this will take a lot out of you! 

So what do you think? Are you up for the challenge?

sarah