Four Yards Short....Not Really!!

I can almost see myself now driving down Wedgewood Avenue in Nashville, heading for my first Weight Watchers’s class…again. I knew I had gained a lotta weight, so I’d half-heartedly decided to do something about it! It was a beautiful fall day and expectancy was in the air…sorta, haha. Embarrassed and scare nearly out of my mind I was next in line to SEE my fate. My fate, the fate of all those cakes, pies, cookies, the doughnuts the pot roasts, the cheesecakes, the fried chicken…the fate of all that stress and rebellion! The stress of seeing my husband come home from work one day, looking like a Mack truck had hit him instead of him driving it, knowing he couldn’t go on like that. The stress of leaving my then 6 and 8 year old sons to find employment…and Punkin, and Loria was home at the time. The stress of flying up and down 1-24, weekend to weekend and those 12 hour shifts at Teledyne, and those vending machines. The fate and stress of being “chief cook and bottle washer” for over 7 years, God was my Jehovah Jireh, but I had to do the work as He gave me strength. I knew work, I had married at 34 years old, so taking care of myself was nothing new…but the weight of a whole family was very daunting for me, and the pounds increased. My gene pool showed me no favors, built beautifully like my mother before me, I had the McAlister beauty and resolve of spirit and the tenacity and hard-headedness of the Stewarts.

So there I stood, the lady weighed me and with a bit of joy I hadn’t thought to see, she went, “you’ve lost 3 pounds”. HA! She gave me the little book that now lies in my garage among my STUFF. I keep it as a constant reminder and motivator. I looked at it for the first time, yes I was 276, 3 pounds from the 279 pounds I had accumulated through the years. I think I cried all the way home….

But here I stand today at 232.4, I had so wanted to be down 40 more but I’m short 4 pounds…not bad for a gal who once stood at 279 pounds…

We had come to Florida after the miraculous sale of the Matchbox house in Nashville, having lost 14 pounds by mostly huffing and puffing around the block, and eating better, I got down to 265...without Weight Watchers.

As I stood in my Master Suite of my Brand new house on the first day in July 2011, I asked myself….wonder could I go a day without adding salt, sugar, and no junk, and YEAH ME!! came out of my spirit and into my mouth. It surprised me, you see I wasn’t a YEAH ME person…but I am now, haha. I would decide what is junk for me, and I would post on fb each night’s success keeping me motivated and focused. It was the plan I didn’t plan and it has worked! I was 268 on that day, now 36 pounds down and the lost inches I’m focused and ready for the New Year!

One of the wonderful things about my journey is having my family behind me, my hubby and dear sons always supportive and “watching” out for me. I had an idea of baking a few potato pies for the family coming for Christmas, my son spoke up and said “we’ll just buy something”. I don’t think he wanted to see mama in that kitchen baking all that stuff again…they bought chocolate chip cookies and a box of Vanilla Wafers, I had 5 wafers for dessert Christmas Day. No one is prouder of me than me..well maybe the Lord, He told me long ago, “I want you, to stop putting junk into your body”. I half-heartedly obeyed now and then…but now this is war.. And I’m sorry for all the disobedient years….look how far I could have been. But no rehashing the past, it is what it is… a whopping 47 pound weightloss, and 36 pounds since No salt, no sugar, no junk, YEAH ME!!…Yea…YEAH ME!! Blessing to all and a Happy New Year!
Oh… my goal for the coming year?…50 more pounds off, I can do it…now I know I can….I believe in myself and the strength of the Lord!. Pray with me and follow my blog Healthmatterstorrence.blogspot.com. Prayers Appreciated!

THANKFUL!!

“By the yard, it’s hard, but inch by inch, anything’s a cinch”. Les Brown.

I stepped on the scale this morning to find I’d lost another pound. I was so happy, but this has not always been the case. You see, in times past I would have not been thankful for the measly little pound, I would have acted the fool…(in my Steve Harvey voice)…I would say, is that all? I’ve worked so hard, just one pound, and on and on.

Now I keep track of even the ounces, logging each step of this journey…and it is a journey, no doubt about it!

There is something to be said for this getting older thing….I think I’m getting smarter, or at least seeing life from a different perspective. I’m finding and appreciating every “little morsel” of success, limiting my failures before I fail, and being happy in my own skin. And even in failure, I’m learning to brush myself off, and move on, learning to live another day without beating myself to pieces. It is working, slowly but surely……

The best part of the process is that I’m making progress, and I’ve learned to be thankful, for every little gift that God enables me to obtain, not foolishly complaining and regaining.
I believe the cycle has been broken, and the key to success is THANKFULNESS. “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18.….I’m there! Blessings!