Anyone that has spent time struggling with weight has probable seen food as the enemy. Weight loss can feel like a war, and in war you have to hate your enemy so that you can destroy your enemy.

I have discovered that food can be my friend. The right foods make my body feel better, despite the fact that I am still carrying around extra weight. Eating the right foods soothes my taste buds and energizes my system. Food is your friend – you just have to discover the right foods for YOUR circumstances.

The 21 Day Green Smoothie Detox gives me the encouragement to experience new foods and sometimes just old favorites in a new way. The more I try, the easier it will be to continue to include fresh in my eating as the seasons change.

Detox Day 3 Menu:

Breakfast: ¼ honey dew melon, two leaves of fresh mint, ¼ cup cranberry juice (the recipe called for water). It became clear why it has the name Minty Melon Milk – it does look a lot like milk when you first mix it, but it settles pretty quickly so drink up.

Lunch: small bunch of spinach, one leaf of romaine, ½ tomato, ¼ cucumber, 2 Spanish Queen olives, 3 medium black olives, pinch of fresh dill. We had company over for lunch and so I ate the salad – and inspired one of the visitors to join me because it looked so good. This is the first time I ever just ate a green olive in my life. I have had them in an olive spread, but never plain. I LOVE green olives!

Dinner: ¼ LARGE baked potato w/ butter, ¼ chicken kabob, ½ roasted vegetables (from kabob) including onions, tomatoes and green bell pepper. We were invited out to dinner by some friends and I had the choice of just eating the salad bar or ordering from the menu. I opted for a kabob and skipped the salad bar because I guessed it was straight ice berg lettuce. The roasted vegetables tasted much better than those that I had that were sautéed on Wednesday.

I drank water the whole day and took my time eating “outside the box” so that my body had time to tell me what was on its mind. I did bring home the leftovers – which was most of the meal.

This whole experience is getting me back to a place where I make choices instead of falling into a pattern. I would have gone with the fried catfish fillet or something along that line – the things that I always eat because that is what I always do. This time I really looked at the menu. I talked to the waitress about what she liked and what she recommended. Only then did I make the more informed decision that I made for my meal.

Permanent life changes do not come in a pill or magic drink. Exercise and controlled diet will only take me along my journey as long as they are in control. The way to the healthy lifestyle that I desire starts in my own head. I have to choose better and the rest will begin to flow into my body.

The last week provided better results in my journey. The three pounds that had found their way back on my body are removed again. The results may have been even better had I not felt the overwhelming need to feed the cold. I am not sure that is what the saying is, or even if that is what it means, but I slipped a few times and ate just for the sake of eating.

Doing what I know to do can be a struggle, even on those good days. Hanging in there when the going gets tough can be down, right painful. My mind says one thing and my body says another. In the past the mind had been the winner, but each day gets me closer to the place where I choose to listen to my body and then act accordingly.

Tips for Hearing the Body over the Mind

1. Wait a few minutes – a mental craving demands instant gratification. Taking the time to think about that craving allows you to see it for what it is – a want not a need. Just shining the light on the craving may send it scampering away into the dark.

2. Think rationally – the mind will attempt to play tricks and may even use the body as its pawn. A growling stomach usually indicates hunger, but if that growling is just south of the stomach and you just had your dinner, then it is probably the mind trying to convince you to eat when you are not physically hungry for food.

3. Think seriously about the craving – sometimes the body is trying to tell you that there is a specific vitamin or mineral that you need in your system. When craving something salty, skip opening up the potato chips and try carrot sticks or celery sticks with a dash of garlic salt. Look for unique and unexpected ways to meet you cravings.

The only way I will ever control my eating is to choose to control my eating. I know that I should only eat when I am physically hungry. I know that I should choose those foods that give my body the best fuel for functioning. I know WHAT to do, it is just that some days I let my wants overrule my needs.

Share your secrets for how you overcome the wants.

It was not always like that. There was a time in my life – a short few years – where I grasped the truth. I ate when I was hungry, I did not life on the scales and I could still fit into my pants. It would be easy to blame my current weight struggles on pregnancy but the simple truth is that I chose to listen to man instead of God. How many of my struggles in life have been caused by that one simple issue?

My weight is not the problem. It is my heart. Any time my heart is not fully devoted to God I end up stumbling over mistakes that I already know to avoid.

What is the answer to weight issues?

The first thing I have to do is realize that there is no easy answer to my weight loss or to any issue that might come up in my life. I could take weight loss pills or follow a diet plan that regulates food but none of those will deal with my heart and eventually that weight loss or eating issue will rear its head once again. I have to face the food straight on and I have to reach out to God every moment of every day if I want to put weight under my thumb.

The second thing I have to do is confess my sin of overeating and of putting other things (food) before God because that is the reason that my weight is where it is. I have to then reach out to those around me. This seems almost funny. You can NOT hide the sin of over eating from anyone because the weight shows, particularly on a five foot frame. But I still try and the only person I am fooling is self. I need to find a group that will support me specifically on my Christian weight loss journey – instead of a weight loss plan that will teach me to control the calories, food or exercise.

The third thing that everyone has to understand is that a walk closer to God is a personal journey even when that walk is about weight. We may be able to share some hints and tips, but we can not share the same path. Every person is drawn along a different way – that is why it is narrow because there is only room for one. A personal relationship with God is just that – personal. There was only one burning bush, only one talking donkey and only one road to Damascus and there can be only one weight loss journey for me.

I am still not sure how I will make all of this come together, but I know that I am eager to try. There are others around me struggling to choose the path that God for their weight and their health has over the ways of man. Helping others lose the weight and deal with eating issues helps me because it keeps me God focused and God centered. With God with me then who can be against me?

Having children actually slowed me down some (in addition to the 24 hour television opportunities). It has been hard to stay as active as I was growing up or maybe it is just that the excuses to be a home body are easier to come by. No matter how I got – I got here. Staying station can not be an option if I want to be as physically fit as I was when I was active.

Getting Moving a Step at a Time

1. Pull out the yoga/pilate mat – stretching while I watch the few television programs that I still follow helps to tone and lengthen my muscles. I usually follow a similar routine to what I did when I was dancing although the going is much slower and not nearly as limber.



2. Take a stroll around the yard – granted, my yard is 37 acres, but the concept is the same if you are strolling around the park or around the block. The idea is to get up and get moving first thing in the morning. I tell my youngest (who is usually awake and determined to follow me around) that it is my time to talk with God.

3. Start slow – overdoing it in the first few days will almost guarantee that consistency will fall to the wayside. Painful muscles are not a good motivator. You need to work up to the heavy work outs and for now just concentrate on getting moving.

4. Count the steps – the recommended steps you need to be taking is 10,000. That includes the steps you take walking from room to room, from the car to your destination or any other steps you take during the day. How many steps are you taking?

Movement is essential to a healthy body. I am working my way back to the condition that will motivate me to follow my love of dancing once again.

After the birth of my second child I tried everything I could think of to lose weight. I bought (and actually did) a small library of exercise videos. I cut my fat and calories. Nothing happened. Then I found a Christian Weight Loss Program that helped me view food in a whole new light. I quit dieting and quit weighing and the weight seemed to pour off.

My last pregnancy brought the weight back in spades! Now it’s a fight between doing what I know to do and doing what I’m going to do – which seems to be a recurring theme through out much of my life.

My issue is not with calories or fat grams. My issue is with the heart. It has idolized food over all other things. It would treasure the times alone with food (when the family would be somewhere else and I could eat the meal with no one to disturb it). I didn’t want to share food with any one for any reason. My heart was selfish for food.

I have started retraining my heart to love what is right and to put that above the food. Breaking the habit of selfishness that I have created has caused some painful moments. It can be tough admitting that I am wrong. I choose to make moments to share with others, by making meal time a time together, so that the people become more important than the food.

Like any bad habit that is formed over many years, breaking the food habit is not easy and has not occurred over night. Every morning I am declaring out loud (and with enthusiasm) that the weight is gone and the habit broken. The words are being followed up with action.

With a positive attitude, the right mind set, and action, you can have, be or do what ever you desire!