My Personal Trainer!! Oh how lucky I am!!

Ever since I have started posting about losing weight I have wanted everything to come off quick and easy. HA I've always wanted that... I've read about a million people's blogs about weight loss and have, through each story, found new motivation and ideas on what I can do. It seems, lately however, that I've heard of "easy" ways to take care of weight loss! Tempting as it was to take part in these "cures", as they called it, I researched the easy fixes. I'm not sure what conclusions I came up with exactly, there are many pros and cons to everything. I guess I have to give a little background. My whole life I have been insecure about my personal appearance. Looking back at pictures of me I'm not sure why I was so worried all the time however, I was and sadly still am...but because of this personal struggle I have always been willing to do anything, extreme or not, to lose weight. Why this time is different I'm not sure exactly but I have been so determined to research the best way for me to lose weight AND finally I found my answer!! (This is the story of how I got my answer) I learned about a shot called HCG... a miracle shot as it is called... you give yourself everyday for a period of 40-45 days. You eat only 500 calories a day and the weight just melts off. The pros to this little miracle is that it feeds off your hard stored fats so you are able to lose about 1-2 lbs a day. I was told that you are literally burning about 2,000 a day without working out at all. It is suggested, actually, that you walk each day but that you don't do any strenuous exercise while on the diet. You are tricking your body into thinking it is starving so that your stored fats gets burned and you lose weight where it is hardest to get ride of. You restart your system so you are basically wiping your health slate clean and starting over. Doctors put you on an extreme diet after and are taught how to eat health. You go in for regular check ups and are coached so that weight gain afterwards is minimal. Sounds good right? It did to me!! Desperate to FINALLY have the body I wanted I had all the information I needed to convince my husband that I needed this diet. However, before I did this I prayed for help that I might be able to find peace within myself to have the strength and knowledge I needed to do what was right and healthy for my body and mind. What an easy solution! Without realizing, my prayers were answered. Here is what I came up with. There are brilliant people in the world who, if can come up with a way to open up a person's scull, take out what's causing problems and close it back up without harsh evidence of a major surgery, can without a doubt find a "cure" for losing weight! The consequences might be minimal if there are any to unhealthy fat being burned off. However, one of the cons IS huge!! It's cost is so expensive and most likely you will gain weight back. I've heard of people who have taken the shots and have gained weight back so quick. Is this because they truly haven't learned how to eat healthy? Is it because even after the diet is over and you've reached your weight loss goals you can't afford the organic expensive foods to maintain this new look? Or is it just because it's become so hard to continue such a hard diet?? i don't know the answer to that but I do know that we were created by God and in His image. Knowing that... Who knows exactly how to help us lose weight or gain the much needed self confidence and strength to overcome our personal weakness, to feel better about who we are and what we look like?? If you will allow me to explain my opinion... Here is the difference between going to a man made solution and to our Heavenly Father! I was taught that faith without works is dead. If I can apply that to working out... weight loss without working for it won't work. I can take a shot and yes my fat might melt away but if through my own hard work and determination I can't lose weight how will I ever learn to appreciate when I do? Maybe my thinking would be oh well if I gain weight I will just get the shot again, never really making changes to my life so I can be healthy all time and not just when I realize I've eaten poor enough to gain weight. What would I be, in the long run, telling my mind and body? It's OK, just eat that.... you can get a shot that will melt the fat way... maybe not really even giving myself a real chance to learn about my personal body and what works for it! So, as I knelt in prayer and asked for guidance in how to lose weight and if this shot was right for me I learned an unforgettable lesson. I was created in God's image. Through faith and hard work alone is the only true way, not only to lose weight, but to find peace and love for myself so that I can look in the mirror and be proud of my reflection! Here is what I felt. I need to learn to eat healthy and not just eat what I think is healthy but learn about healthy living!! I need to exercise. I don't need to spend a million dollars on gym memberships (although I do plan on getting a membership so I can workout with my husband) I can use my legs and start simple . Go for a walk. Do jumping jacks. Run stairs for 15 minutes. Use cans of food as weights. Do leg lifts. As I get stronger, I'll go for longer walks, do more jumping jacks, run more stairs, use heavier cans of food, do more leg lifts... AND as I use my hands to pick up that yummy brownie that I LOVE to eat I can remember "Moderation in all things." If I go on a diet I will fail, if I make small changes at a time I will succeed!! I can eat that brownie, I WILL eat that brownie.. but instead of eating 10 of them, I will eat one and slowly so that it feels like I am eating 10! and I will learn to be healthy not because I want to be model skinny but because i want to feel good inside and out and I want to learn through my own success that I can do it! And NOTHING can stop me! So here starts a new journey to weight loss... As I start my day with a prayer I will remember to ask for help from my "Personal trainer" to become healthy and have the strength to make small changed on my road to a healthier me!! By small and simple things are great things brought to pass! so i'll start simple and see great rewards!