It was the first week in February 2005. I opened the mailbox and found a card from my sister-in-law that contained a picture of me taken at our last family Christmas get-together. She included a small note that said, “I hope you like the picture.” Well…I didn’t. It wasn't obvious at the time but I believe that picture helped me realize and accept the fact that I had to do something about my weight.
My entire adult life I kept thinking: ‘As soon as this project is complete I will have some rest.” As soon as this event is over things will calm down. "As soon as this holiday is over I’ll lose weight." Guess what I finally learned? There are always more projects…and things never calm down…unless it’s shortly before the storm. And…there are always more Holidays. Once I finally comprehended that this is where I am and I quit waiting to “arrive” I could focus on becoming equipped to make some important changes.
I am 4’10 with a small frame. My highest weight was 206 with a Body Mass Index of 44 and at my largest I wore a size 1X. When I started my weight loss program the nurse weighed me in at 190.5 and I wore a size 18. I took medication for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and acid reflux disease. Nine months later at the completion of the weight loss phase of my program I weighed 107 pounds, had dropped to a size 2 and my Body Mass Index was 22. My blood pressure averaged 104/64, my cholesterol was 120 points lower and I had no acid reflux.
Truthfully, most of us already know that we need to make a change. We just aren’t ready, willing or empowered to do it. I’ve learned that if I want to change what is happening in my life I need to change what I am doing in my life. If I want things to change, I actually need to make some changes. If I want things to change permanently I need to make permanent changes. We have to change our habits if we want to break the cycle of bad choices and habits that over a lifetime have caused us to succumb to the emotional, social and environmental challenges that reek havoc on our body, our emotions, and our relationships, and shorten our life.
No one can decide to lose weight for you. They can’t nag, embarrass, bully, trick or manipulate your decision to adopt a healthy life style. For me it took that nudge, the deciding moment when I finally understood and accepted that I had to make a change.
My entire adult life I kept thinking: ‘As soon as this project is complete I will have some rest.” As soon as this event is over things will calm down. "As soon as this holiday is over I’ll lose weight." Guess what I finally learned? There are always more projects…and things never calm down…unless it’s shortly before the storm. And…there are always more Holidays. Once I finally comprehended that this is where I am and I quit waiting to “arrive” I could focus on becoming equipped to make some important changes.
I am 4’10 with a small frame. My highest weight was 206 with a Body Mass Index of 44 and at my largest I wore a size 1X. When I started my weight loss program the nurse weighed me in at 190.5 and I wore a size 18. I took medication for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and acid reflux disease. Nine months later at the completion of the weight loss phase of my program I weighed 107 pounds, had dropped to a size 2 and my Body Mass Index was 22. My blood pressure averaged 104/64, my cholesterol was 120 points lower and I had no acid reflux.
Truthfully, most of us already know that we need to make a change. We just aren’t ready, willing or empowered to do it. I’ve learned that if I want to change what is happening in my life I need to change what I am doing in my life. If I want things to change, I actually need to make some changes. If I want things to change permanently I need to make permanent changes. We have to change our habits if we want to break the cycle of bad choices and habits that over a lifetime have caused us to succumb to the emotional, social and environmental challenges that reek havoc on our body, our emotions, and our relationships, and shorten our life.
No one can decide to lose weight for you. They can’t nag, embarrass, bully, trick or manipulate your decision to adopt a healthy life style. For me it took that nudge, the deciding moment when I finally understood and accepted that I had to make a change.
Here are some subtle hints that it might be time for you to address a healthier lifestyle:
You simultaneously take five prescriptions in order to control your blood pressure, cholesterol, acid reflux, persistent back and knee pain, and your bladder. And none of them really seem to work.
Your doctor uses a multitude of creative terms that mean obese when discussing your medical condition.- Family members begin to ask you questions about your views on burial versus cremation, the location of your important documents, and your stance on organ donation.
- Before you leave the house you ask your spouse to check to see if you remembered to put your shoes on.
- The word exercise causes you to tremble and hallucinate.
One of the most interesting phenomena’s I observed is how many people are unhappy with their weight and their health yet they are unwilling to eliminate the attitudes and behaviors that are contributing to their unhealthy lifestyle. I’ve watched people in their various programs eating food not on their plan, and they, not-so-secretly, confide to many of their team mates their eating indiscretions…that happen frequently. Each week they have a different excuse for not losing weight. They are frustrated that they’re not losing weight or moving faster towards their goal. It’s because they haven’t come to terms with the changes they need to make to succeed. They haven’t learned that if they want things to change they need to make changes… permanent changes.
The first step to a healthier lifestyle is to recognize the need for change. The next is to research your options and come up with a reasonable, reliable and workable health plan and goal for weight loss and maintenance program that will work for you. Then make a commitment to do what is necessary to make the changes.
Pray…seek Gods will and direction for your plan. If you can’t come up with one…ask him to direct you. His plans work. I often discover my own plans don’t turn out that well.
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