It's A Process...

Hello, Everyone!

It's been a little while since I made a post and I wanted to share with you something that God is showing me. My journey is a process! I know that sounds very simple but how many of us want to hurry up and see results; I know I do! I am the type of person after a few weeks I want to lose over 10 pounds and when that doesn't happen I can get frustrated. In these last few weeks I have been having no choice but to learn/develop patience. I have been losing pounds, then gaining, then losing, then gaining again. At this point I don't even want to see a scale! But instead of focusing on what the scale says, I need to focus on what my body is saying to me. My body is getting stronger, it's developing more stamina, and my clothes on my body even seems to be getting bigger on me :-). So for anyone whose focus is on the number on the scale remember the scale is only one of the tools you can use to gage how your journey is going.

Okay back to the process. Are we willing to put in the time and effort which will develop the character that we need on this journey?  Remember in the Why Living Healthy Inside Out post we talked about character consisting of our behaviors; and we know behaviors are the manner in which we function or operate in. So what type of behaviors do you need for this journey? A behavior I need is consistency; I need to be consist in my eating, in my exercising, and in my thinking (remember what we said about our thoughts!).  Rushing through this process will not allow me to fully develop the behaviors I need. So if you are struggling right now I just want you to let the process do it's work. As long as your doing the right things it will happen, trust God!

One of the physical struggles I am going through at this moment is pain in my knees. I have heard people say that as you get older your body gets more stiff. (Also falling down the stairs during the end of winter did not help). Well let me tell you I have been relying on God's strength to get me through my exercise routine. When I get on the treadmill I want to go faster, and I know I can do it but my knees says otherwise. Have you ever got to the point where you are going for it and then something tries to stop you from accomplishing your goal? Well this is how this particular pain feels to me. Don't Give Up! I may have to change something in my regiment but I don't want to stop or lose momentum. I received an article today from the Prevention website called Knees Hurt How To Keep Moving! Only God directed me to this article. It was just the push I needed to not give in to the pain but also gave me different options on helping with the problem. You may be struggling with something but trust God, He will give you what you need. I hope your journey's are going good, feel free to update me on them in the comment section.

Loving and Living Healthy Inside and Out,

Sharon

The Difference Between Goals, Planning, and Scheduling

 

 

How many of us have a plan for weight loss? Is it just for a week? A month? or a year? Is it really a plan or is it just a set of goals? Okay definition time :-)

 

Goal - The result or achievement toward which effort is directed; aim; end.

 

Plan - A proposed or tentative project or course of action.

 

Schedule - A timetable; a written list of times; a plan of procedure for a project, allotting the work to be done and the time for it.

 

 

I have been struggling with balancing my weight loss plan with my life. What I am beginning to realized that I don't have a plan for weight loss I have a set of goals that I want to accomplish for weight loss. Goals are great things to have but having a actual plan to implement is soooooo important. If you remember in my 5 Steps to Help You Start Over the 2nd step was to make a plan; well a warning I had was not to get stuck in the planning phase; So warning #2 make sure you are actually making a plan not just a set of goals! BE SPECFIC AS YOU CAN! 

 

I am taking time this weekend to write my plan. A plan should expand on your goals and let it be known what course of action you will take to get to your goals. Now this is where scheduling comes in; scheduling is the timetable that you plan to accomplish your goals. Scheduling also keeps you accountable to yourself and you will know what you are and are not doing.  Before you can take action (or implement your plan) you have to know where you are going, how you're going to get there, and how long it should take. If you don't have these you will not go anywhere. 

 

Loving and Living Healthy Inside and Out,

Sharon

Back on my grind - smoothie recipe

Okay my birthday weekend is over. I did not eat my best :-/ but I'm more than ready to get on my grind. Smoothie recipe: Lemon yogurt (5.3 oz container - plain yogurt will do if that's what you have), spinach (about 20 leaves or a handful), and small banana. Side note: I put a tbsp of milk in it but you may not have to. If you want a more "frozen type" smoothie just add a few cubes of ice and blend.

Don't Give Up

I just wanted to write a post encouraging you to not give up. Yesterday you may have eaten too much. You may have not exercise this weekend.  You may have messed up a lot but God still loves you and you can do this. You are not alone, there are many people that are going through something also. I implore you to encourage someone today, even if you "feel" like you don't have it together and wonder how can I help somebody.  Your words of encouragement can encourage someone to continue on and not give up. You never know they may in turn encourage you also.

Loving and Living from the Inside Out.
Sharon

Struggling with Exercise

Here are some things we may say to ourselves when it comes to exercising:

• Why am I the only one struggling with exercising? 
• Why is it hard to find time to exercise? 
• I'm too big to exercise. 
• This is too hard for me. 
• They're skinny they don't understand what I go through. 
• I'm barely walking 1 mile everyday, and the recommend miles to walk everyday is what!!!
• I just don't have the energy or motivation to exercise. 
• Sorry exercise - It's too cold, I'm too tired, and I need some relaxation time.

Have you made any of these excuses lately on why you can't exercise or find the time to exercise? Well join the club, everybody has thoughts or excuses for not wanting to exercise, but they are just that THOUGHTS! A few weeks ago we talked about what words we are speaking over ourselves, now we need to focus on what thoughts we are thinking. 

I remember in the beginning I would think to myself I am going to have to lose weight the hard way. One day I verbalize this to a friend; she asked me is there an easy way to lose weight? It made me think; there is no easy way to lose weight. You WILL have to work hard no matter what "diet", exercise plan, or etc... you do. So if your not checking or examining your thoughts on your journey those thoughts you have can/will hurt  or be destructive to you during the process.

Did you see the words that are italicize in the above paragraph? The first word is think - what thoughts come to your mind when you think about exercise? The second word that is italicized is verbalize - What words are you speaking over yourself? This should make you think about what you are actually doing. Sometimes I thank about exercise as a chore (duty, burden, job); something I really don't want to do. Instead of thinking of exercise as a chore think of it as something fun and exciting. In the March 2013 newsletter there was a section on Fitness Fun that gave different options on incorporating fun in your fitness routine. Some of those ways were Zumba classes, dancing, housework, swimming, game console (Wii, Xbox, or PlayStation has fitness options), exercising with friends (this can help the time move along), hula hooping, and just going for a walk outside. It's time for us to stop thinking of exercise as a duty instead think of it as something that's fun and helpful also.

Exercise is one of my weakness on my journey, so I decided I would start off with small steps. I am currently walking at least 15 minutes a day doing the Leslie Sansone 1 mile express walk. You can easily found any of her videos on Youtube. I have also found some Zumba fitness videos. I am doing these while we still have cool weather but when the spring time comes i am planning on walking on the lake front. 

So what thoughts come to your mind when you exercise?

Struggling With Something - Check Your Thoughts!



Thoughts

Are you struggling with something like weight loss, exercising, eating right, .... Do you know what's really going on? I have a suggestion maybe you should check your thoughts. A few weeks ago we talked about the words we say now we are going to talk about the thoughts we think. I  wish I could have posted about this subject before I posted about the words we speak because the thoughts we think manifested in what we say.

 

I have personally been struggling in this area a lot lately. I have been wanting to write this blog for a while now but I didn't know how to encourage you about your thoughts when I am haven't totally conquered this area, so this is something I hope we can learn together. One of the areas I struggle in is my thoughts toward exercise.

 

Here are some things I think to myself when it comes to exercising:

• Why do I feel like I'm the only one struggling with exercising? 
• Why is it hard to find time to exercise? 
• I'm too big to exercise. 
• This is too hard for me. 
• The recommend miles to walk everyday is what!!! I can't do that.
• I just don't have the energy or motivation to exercise. 
• Sorry exercise - It's too cold, I'm too tired, and I need some relaxation time.

Have you had any of these excuses lately on why you can't exercise or find the time to exercise? Well join the club, everybody has thoughts or excuses for not wanting to exercise, but they are just that THOUGHTS!  What you think about something can shaped how you view it. If I think about exercise as a chore (duty, burden, job) then it becomes something that I don't want to do. But if I change my thoughts I can begin to look at exercising as fun and exciting.

Okay I know some people are like well that's fine for you but how do we change our thoughts?

The first step is to start off by examining your thought? Is the statement true or false? Let's take one of my thoughts about exercising " Why do I feel like I'm the only one struggling with exercising?" Now is this statement true? No it's false I am not the only on struggling with exercising.

The second step is to ask yourself is this statement caused by emotions? Yes this statement is caused by my emotions, a key element in knowing this is by the word "feel". What you feel may not be true.

The third step is to change your thought into something truthful, "I am not the only one struggling in exercising".

The final step is to take action, you can do this by asking yourself a question about you new statement. For example well if I am not the only one that has a struggle with exercise what did the other people do to help themselves? This question will cause you to research how to help yourself in overcoming your struggle.

When I researched for a answer to my question I found an article that helped me. (I apologize but I did not save the article if I find it I will post the link.) The author of the article was talking about how he challenged himself to do at least one push up a day. The objective was to give yourself such an easy task that anyone could do it; also it helps you to incorporate a small step into your process. By the time you do your task you most likely start to push yourself into doing more.

I decided to challenge myself into walking at least 1 mile a day. This would only take 15 minutes and anyone can do this. Well I have been doing this for a couple of weeks and I am enjoying it. Now there have been a couple of days where I'm getting ready for bed and I remember I haven't done my mile; so I get up and do my mile. I am currently doing this challenge for the month of March into April. I am considering adding another mile next week and doing that for a couple of weeks then changing accordingly, but I have to at least do a mile!

Do you see by changing my thought I was able to find a solution to a problem I was having? Do you have thoughts that are sabotaging you along this journey? What steps do you take to change your thoughts?


 

Side Note: Please know there are plenty of ways of incorporating fun in your fitness routine. Some of those ways are Zumba classes, dancing, housework, swimming, game consoles (Wii, Xbox, or PlayStation has fitness options), exercising with friends (this can help the time move along), hula hooping, and just going for a walk/run outside.

Sharon

 

Catrina Weight Loss Update

 Hello everybody!

I am excited to share with you a weight loss journey that we got a glimpse of last year. Catrina was featured in the February edition of the 2013 newsletter. Here is an update of her journey. If you have any questions for Catrina please put those in the comment section.


Catrina, Age: 40

Starting Weight – 200 Pounds  

Ending Weight – 145 Pounds 

What caused you to gain weight? Bad eating habits and lack of exercise. 

Did you/ Do you have any health problems? High Blood and a borderline diabetic.  Was this instrumental in helping you lose weight? Yes  

How did you lose the weight? I had a little professional help, changing my eating habits and exercise, and some support from family and friends.  

Last year you stated you wanted to lose 30 pounds, did you meet/exceed your goal? Yes 

What tips did you use that helped you in your weight loss journey? Portion control, learning how to weigh my food, eating more fruits and vegetables. 

What are your future goals?  Try to maintain my weight and do more exercise to tone. 

Thanks Catrina and keep up the good work! J

 

Note: Catrina's picture states her final weight as 140 pounds it's actually 145 pounds.

The Power of Words

The Power of Words

 

Have you heard this saying before? "Sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me". Well I'm here to tell you this is not true. Words will hurt you, especially the words you say about yourself.

When you are making a lifestyle change what you say can affect your attitude toward that change;  I can do this vs. I can't do this. The more you tell yourself something the more you are inclined to believe it. Words have power, what are you saying/declaring over your life?

What is the Purpose of the Winter Season?

Snowy Winter Day



Well it's winter season again; time for coats, boots, hats, scarfs, and etc.... Winter is also known as the season where people stay inside their houses. What is the purpose of winter? And why is winter important?  This is a question God had placed on my heart late last year.  Since winter is the season most people are "inside" this can force us to look, be, and examine ourselves. Now some people may wonder how is this a good thing? This is good because during the new year everyone usually want to make some type of change. Winter gives us the chance to work on those changes, goals, and mindsets while allowing us to bring them into habit before we are out and about with people (who may not understand or support you). By using this unique opportunity to establish those habits in our lives it then can become a lifestyle for us. What lifestyle do you see for yourself? I want to challenge you to begin to create the lifestyle you want during this winter season while you still have time to cultivate it on the inside. So that when you go "outside" those truths, goals, and mindsets are already shaping your life and will help you to continue on your journey when you have distractions that might be found on the "outside". I think we need to consider winter a good season and thank God for it!

Five Steps To Help You Start Over

We have just begun a new year and most people have made goals they want to accomplish during 2014. When a new year comes in it seems like it's a good time to "start over" and begin to do something different or new. One of the most recognized goals people have is to get healthy and lose weight. I want to share with you 5 steps that I am implementing on my journey to living healthy; I hope these steps can help you on yours also.

The first step is making a choice. You have to choose to start this journey. This is important because by making a choice you recognize this journey will have ups and downs but you have decided to work through those. This step is more of an intentional way to have a positive mindset during the process.

The second step is to make a plan. Planning helps you to have specifics available that will help you to stay on track. By having a plan it can help to stop some of the "unknowns" from happening. I want to put a warning here. Please don't get stuck in the planning phase. It has happened to me; I planned and planned and didn't "do" (take action).

The third step is to start implementing your plan. You may start off with small steps but it is a step in the right direction. A small step could be to buy more vegetables and stop drinking soda. When implementing your plan be careful not to start off with unrealistic goals because you may over stretch yourself and get overwhelmed; this could possibly cause you to give up.

The fourth step is to find a system that will help you track your progress. One of the purposes of tracking your progress is so you can see and recognized your changes which will help keep you motivated on continuing your journey. Some of the systems you can use to help track your progress are My Fitness Pal, Weight Watchers, Spark People, your doctor, a weight loss clinic, etc..... Warning: Sometimes when you accomplish these goals you will want to reward yourself. I would not recommend you reward yourself with food. If your trying to stop overeating rewarding yourself with food can become a habit of eating every time something good happens.

The fifth step is very important; get an accountability partner or coach. During a portion of my journey I had a couple of friends I was accountable to but sometimes a friend can be very restrictive or too lenient. Unless you are led to be answerable to that person you may have to look outside your immediate circle of friends because sometimes friends or family may not understand your struggles. Now please don't get me wrong you NEED friends and family support during this process but they may not be the best accountability coach.

A bonus step is to find (seek) resources that will help you on your journey; be proactive! You can find these resources either online, through your circle of friends (relationships), or by another avenue. But remember your journey is your journey. No one can do it for you but if you need help please ask for it! Sharon

Additional Info:

 

You can follow this blog by e-mail so when new entries are posted you be notified. 

I will be continually updating this blog in January so please be patient with me during this process.

Any questions or concerns you have can be e-mailed to healthylivinginsideout@gmail.com; I most likely will change this in the future but for now send all inquiries here. 

Please feel free to comment on posts but if you are disrespectful or out of order you will be blocked from making comments on this blog.

Thanks again,  Sharon

Updates - People weight loss journeys that was featured in the newsletter.

I just wanted to make a quick post regarding the people who were featured in 2013 newsletters.  I will be posting updates to their journeys during the months they were featured.  So in February, March, and April be ready to see those updates on Catrina, Nicole, and myself.

Thanks, Sharon

Additional Info:

You can follow this blog by e-mail so when new entries are posted you be notified. 

I will be continually updating this blog in January so please be patient with me during this process.

Any questions or concerns you have can be e-mailed to healthylivinginsideout@gmail.com; I most likely will change this in the future but for now send all inquiries here. 

Please feel free to comment on posts but if you are disrespectful or out of order you will be blocked from making comments on this blog.

Thanks again,  Sharon

Welcome to the Living Healthy Inside and Out blog!

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to my blog! People that personal know me may have come to this site because of the newsletter I write. For those who don't know me I need to give you a little history on how this blog got started.

Year 2012 - I was working a job where I rotate shifts every month and my off days fluctuate. ( I am currently still working that job) I was not in the best of health and I knew that something needed to change. All around me there were people going through all kinds of health problems. It got to a boiling point in December 2012; I was at the point where I needed to do SOMETHING, for myself as well as other people. So I started a healthy living newsletter; now just image a overweight person starting a healthy newsletter! [I will elaborate more on this topic in another post]. I shared this idea with my friend and we prayed about it; with hesitation I started the newsletter. In the beginning it was only for my co-workers but then it grew to other people outside of work who wanted to read it. The name of the newsletter was the "Healthy Living Newsletter".  I was excited about the newsletter, I had my best friend to help me write some of the articles. It was to come out every month, with challenges, prizes, and etc...... Well by the end of the May issue I was so overwhelmed, frustrated, not accountable in my weight loss journey, and so many other emotions that I just stopped the newsletter.

I ended up taking the summer off from doing the newsletter, now this was without explaining anything to the readers about what was going on. By August I begin to regroup and remember why the newsletter was started in the first place. I knew I wanted to start the newsletter back up but I also knew there had to be some changes made. I started making plans for the newsletter and where I wanted it to go. One of the changes was to only publish the newsletter 4 times a year. I wrote a Fall edition newsletter which went out in October 2013, the newsletter apologize to my readers and explained that some changes were in store for the next year. It was basically the same format but a particular article I wrote was a little different from normal. When I started writing this article it was about the benefits of walking but the Holy Spirit led me in a different direction!  The article was called "Succeed or Fail? It's All Up To My Attitude!". Since that newsletter I have felt God leading me in a different direction of what He wanted the newsletter to say.

So January 2014 started getting closer and closer, I still hadn't wrote the next newsletter. I had written the potential outline for the newsletter and what changes I plan to make, but I had not written any of the articles yet!  In December 2013 God started giving me "nuggets" to write about. I noticed the more time I spent with Him the more He put on my heart what needed to be said. All of the topics He put on my heart were not just about food and exercise, but they are about living healthy inside and out! I started feeling a little frustrated again with the newsletter process when I took my concerns to God the word blog came to mind. Now I always knew I would start a blog eventually but I didn't know that it would possibly take the place of the newsletter. Part of the reasoning behind this was because when God puts something on my heart to share I need to share it and waiting 3 months to tell people was too long! So the Living Healthy Inside and Out blog was started! [I will write a later post with more details about the significance of the blog's name] I am hoping you continue with me on this journey. I know this is a change from the newsletter that was previously presented but it is what is needed. I am not without fault so please be forgiving when mistakes happen. I do not have weight loss success yet but I am working toward that goal. This blog will share what God has put on my heart as well as other things that will happen on my journey to living healthy inside & out.

Sharon

Additional Info:

You can follow this blog by e-mail so when new entries are posted you be notified. 

I will be continually updating this blog in January so please be patient with me during this process.

Any questions or concerns you have can be e-mailed to healthylivinginsideout@gmail.com; I most likely will change this in the future but for now send all inquiries here. 

Please feel free to comment on posts but if you are disrespectful or out of order you will be blocked from making comments on this blog.

Thanks again,  Sharon

Living Healthy Inside & Out.....The Beginning Stages

Hi everyone,

I am currently in the stages of setting up this blog. This blog will be about my journey (struggles and triumphs), helpful food tips & tricks, living healthy, mental challenges during the journey (example: self pity ~vs~ humility), and more. I will be posting more details on why the name of this blog is living healthy inside & out. Be prepared for encouragement which hopefully will inspire you to make changes on living healthy inside and out.

Sharon