Run Your Race with Endurance and You Will Succeed

When it comes to our journey in life and the trials that we face, we often hear people quote Hebrews 12, in which the apostle Paul states we "must run with endurance the race that is set before us". Friends, take notice of the word "endurance".  Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word endurance as follows, "the ability to do something difficult for a long time, the ability to deal with pain and suffering that continues for a long time, the quality of continuing for a long time". Whatever race we may be running in life, whether it be the journey of losing weight, obtaining an education, or starting a business, we are going to encounter obstacles and set backs on the road to reaching our goals. Success comes with a high price tag, the endurance to keep running the race in the midst of trials and hardships is essential in order to reach the finish line. Suffering is going to be a part of our journey and there are going to be times when we want to throw in the towel and call it quits.  Babe Ruth once said, "You just can't beat the person who never gives up". Helen Keller believed, "we can do anything we want to if we stick to it long enough". These legends couldn't have stated it better. If we press on and fight through the hard times, when we want to give up, we will eventually reach the finish line.   While obstacles along our journey are often painful to endure, they are a necessary part of our journey.  Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University professor who became famous for his "last lecture" that he gave to faculty and students as he was battling terminal cancer, profoundly described the obstacles we encounter along our journeys as "brick walls".  He argues that, "The brick walls [in life] are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough". In other words, the obstacles, plateaus, and times of frustration we face on our journeys should not be the points when we quit but instead they should be the defining points when we work harder to find a way over the "brick wall".  Will there be people who quit and give up?  Yes, but they are the "other people" who don't want it badly enough, not you my friend! 

People who are successful in life simply don't give up, they stay focused on their goal and refuse to settle for less. They run their race no matter the costs.  Do you know that Thomas Edison failed over 1,000 times at making his invention of the light bulb? Can you imagine the frustration? His witty response to a reporter who asked him, "How it felt to fail 1,000 times" was that "I have not failed. I just found 1,000 ways that won't work".  Edison is a perfect example of someone who's determination and focus brought him through his journey to achieve amazing things. Through staying focused and remaining determined that you will reach your goal no matter what, you will be able bring down those "brick walls" that you are sure to encounter on your pathway to success.  I assure you, if you refuse to give up and run your race with endurance, you will reach your weight loss goal and you will be incredibly grateful for every obstacle you may have faced along the way. For only at the end of your race can you look back and see that the moments of hardship and frustration that you faced along the way were the defining moments that made you stronger.

Sources:
Hebrews 12
Endurance Definition
 The Last Lecture

Research Confirms That Doing This Can Double Your Weight Loss Results

Research confirms, when it comes to weight loss, keeping a food journal will double your weight loss results.  In a 2008 study conducted by Kaiser Permanente, of the 1700 participants, those who were dedicated to keeping a food diary lost double the amount of weight than those participants who did not fully adhere to tracking their food or did not record their food intake at all (American Journal of Preventative Medicine).  In a similar study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, similar observations were made by researchers that individuals who maintained a food dairy lost more weight than those who didn't.  Regardless of what type of eating plan you may follow, if you are serious about getting results, you should be recording all of the calories you consume on a daily basis. Keeping a record of food and beverages will keep you accountable to your healthy eating regiment.  In addition, a food diary is an incredibly useful tool for accessing areas in your diet that could be improved to yield greater results.  How you approach maintaining a food diary is simply a matter of preference. Some may want to keep a tangible journal, while others may prefer the convenience of using a food diary app on their phone.  Personally, I use the fitness app My Fitness Pal, a user friendly app that allows you to track your food and exercise.  This app has a food database of over 4 million food items and a database of most exercise or physical activities.  Furthermore, it has many beneficial tools for those on a weight loss journey, such as the ability to analyze macros (protein, carbs, and fats), nutrient breakdowns, and ways to track your progress. When it comes to maintaining a food diary, it is important to be honest and record everything you consume in accurate portion sizes and to be consistent in keeping your journal complete.  So if you are not already doing so, consider beginning what research has confirmed is effective for greater weight loss results and maintain a food journal!

 Sources:

http://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(08)00374-7/fulltext

http://www.andjrnl.org/article/S2212-2672(12)00634-X/fulltext
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/

The Game Changing Kitchen Gadget That May Help You Lose Weight

The infamous kitchen sale, it has been argued that the only people who care about this kitchen gadget are either drug dealers or bodybuilders.  But I will tell you that on my weight loss journey the food scale was an absolute game changer. Accurately measuring your food makes a huge difference! Most people severely underestimate the serving sizes of the foods they are consuming. We can thank the restaurant industry for this mishap, they have been serving us super sized portions for years now, that are actually 2-3 servings! Using a food scale to accurately weigh meat, nuts, cheese, etc. can save you from unknowingly consuming hundreds of extra calories per day and also spare you from the frustration of not understanding why you are not loosing weight despite your hard efforts of eating healthy and working out.  Food scales are inexpensive, simple to use and can be found at most box stores.  For the most accurate measurements, I recommend using a digital scale. As you implement the use of a food scale at home, you will begin to develop the knowledge of what a "real" portion looks like. This knowledge will help you when you are eating out, giving you a more accurate idea of what you are consuming.  A food scale is beneficial to everyone regardless of what diet or meal plan you may adhere to.  So if you are at a point where the weight loss has stalled or you are interested in loosing weight, consider giving this game changing kitchen gadget a try.

Battle Plan: The Fundamental Role of Preparation for Your Weight Loss Journey

Let me begin by prefacing this post by stating that I will present the analogy of losing weight and fighting a battle within my writing on this blog quite often. My success in weight loss can greatly be accredited to having what I refer to as a "soldier mentality".  I firmly believe that much can be learned from drawing the parallels between the admirable values and practices that the men and women who serve their country possess and applying those values and practices to someone on a weight loss journey. Losing weight is very much a battle and without investing the time in advance to prepare and create a "battle plan", you are setting yourself up for failure. Can you imagine a general sending his troops into a battle without a plan or any training for combat? It would be catastrophic and the same is true when it comes to weight loss. Perhaps you have heard the famous words spoken by Benjamin Franklin, "by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail".  There is no way around it, I cannot stress the importance of preparation for your weight loss journey enough.  Additionally, believe it or not, planning is actually biblical.  Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish…”  A clear vision and purpose of where you are going is something you need to take the time to prepare.  In the business world, this concept is utilized all the time in the form of a business plan.  When it comes to losing weight, a battle plan is a necessary step to take in order to successfully accomplish your weight loss goals.

There are several steps to creating an effective battle plan for your weight loss journey. I will briefly outline and explain each step involved, so that you can create your own.  The battle plan is a tool to be used to keep you focused throughout your journey, but it is not etched in stone. There may be times throughout your journey that you may need to return to the drawing board and make revisions to your battle plan. It’s important to not become so stuck on your plan that you are unwilling to make necessary adjustments to it when needed. For example, on my journey, when my son was diagnosed with cancer, I had to make changes to my plan because the option to workout everyday was no longer possible. There may be circumstances that arise on your journey that will cause you to have the need to make adjustments to your plan and that is OK! Make the necessary adjustments and continue on your journey and you will reach your finish line.

The first step in planning is knowing what your anchor is for your journey. What is the reason you have started this journey? What is the underlying reason rooted deep within you that will keep you anchored and focused on reaching the finish line of your journey?  When things get tough and you begin to lose hope while on this journey, what will be the reason you can return to that will motivate you not to give up and quit?  Just as a ship could not stay in place without an anchor, an individual without an anchor on their weight loss journey will not stay focused enough to reach their goal. Your anchor may be that you need to lose weight to get off of the medications you are now required to take, it may be that you want to be able to an example to your family, it may be you want to restore the confidence you had in your youth, or it may be that you want the energy to play with your children and be a better parent.  Take a few minutes to consider what your anchor is for your journey and always have that anchor in the back of your mind, let it be the driving force that motivates you during the hard times on your journey.

The second step when planning your journey is to write what your ultimate goal is or what I refer to as the “finish line goal”. This is your long term goal, what you ultimately want to accomplish at the end of your journey. When writing your finish line goal, you want to be specific, you can’t just say your goal is to lose weight or to get healthier. You want to make it specific, measurable, and include a basic plan of action of how you will attain that goal. So an example of an appropriate long term goal would be, “To lose 100 pounds in the next 2 years by eating a clean diet and incorporating an hour of exercise daily”.  Your finish line goal will always be the end result you are fighting to accomplish and the main focus of your journey.

The third step to your battle plan is to create several shorter term goals on the pathway to your finish line goal. Just as in a marathon race, there are stations along the route for racers to stop to hydrate and refuel, your short term goals are stops along the way for you to reach and celebrate and then continue on your race route to your finish line. Short term goals are especially important for those who have a lot of weight to lose, they give you something attainable to focus on accomplishing instead of getting completely overwhelmed with how far away your finish line appears in the distance.  Similar to your finish line goal, your short term goals should be specific and include a plan of action to reach them. For example, a short term goal could be, “to lose 20 pounds in 3 months by eating a clean diet of 1400 calories a day and completing 3 hours weekly of strength training and 3 hours of cardio weekly”. It’s important to celebrate when you reach each of your short term goals, it doesn’t have to be anything extravagant but reward yourself for your hard efforts in reaching your goals! It could be something as simple as buying a new outfit or getting a pedicure but make it a point to reward yourself for reaching each one of your goals along the way. The short term goals on your journey serve as checkpoints along the way to your finish line goal.  They keep you focused and on task towards moving forward and eventually reaching your finish line.  If you are a major planner, you could further develop and breakdown each short term goal into smaller goals, even weekly or daily goals. Essentially, it really is what works for you individually and what is going to keep you motivated and focused on your journey, if you need more planning to reach your goals, then do it!

The final step of the battle plan is one of faith. As I have shared in my own personal journey, I had lost weight many times and gained it back but it wasn’t until I brought my faith into the equation of weight loss that I was finally successful in losing all of my extra weight and keeping it off.  You may want to pray prior to creating your battle plan.   And once you have created your battle plan, you should commit your plan to the Lord. “Commit whatever you do to the Lord, and he establish your plans”. Proverbs 16:3.  If you want God to bless your journey, give it to him! When you give it to God, he will get involved, he will give you the strength you need, he will give you the power to change, he will transform you, and he will give you beauty for ashes.  If you have tried before and failed or if you have been stuck and unable to move forward on your current journey, the faith component may be the key to unlocking your success! 

Ground Turkey Taco Skillet- 20 Minute Meal Prep

Ground Turkey Taco Skillet- 20 Minute Meal Prep

When most people think of meal prepping, they imagine spending hours in the kitchen preparing a weeks' worth of meals and snacks and get overwhelmed even thinking about it. Perhaps in an ideal world, you would have the time to invest in prepping for hours each week and having every meal and snack stored away in a storage container in your refrigerator, but let's be honest, most people don't have that kind of time! As a mom of 3 kids, I have a busy schedule and I simply don't have the time to prep an entire week of food at a time. Many people avoid meal prepping all together because of the time issue but what I would ask you to consider is to simplify the process by just having a few prepped meals available. Even something as simple as having some grilled chicken prepared in the refrigerator will get you out of the bind of deviating from your healthy eating regiment. The following recipe is complete in under 20 minutes and provides 4 prepped portions. I keep this on hand to use on top of salads, in lettuce taco wraps, to stuff bell peppers, or to use in omelets. This recipe is low in fat, carbs and sodium and high in protein.

Ingredients:

1 Package of Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast (I use Jennie-O)
1 Red Bell Pepper, Diced
1 Green Bell Pepper, Diced
4 Green Onions, chopped
1/2 Packet Mrs. Dash Salt-Free Taco Seasoning
Low Sodium Chicken Broth

Steps:

1. In a large skillet on medium-high heat, add 1 cup low sodium chicken broth, diced peppers and green onions. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until most of broth is absorbed.
2. Add ground turkey breast to skillet and cook until done (no longer pink).
3. Add seasoning and 1/2 cup low sodium chicken, simmer until broth is absorbed

Nutritional Facts:

Servings 4

Calories: 183

Protein: 34

Carbs: 8

Fat: 2

Sodium: 101

Fiber: 1.5

Favorite Food Finds

Over the course of my weight loss journey, I have found some great food finds that make eating healthy a lot easier and enjoyable and I would love to share them with you! Most of these items can be found at Target or your local grocery store.

1. Oat Fit Oatmeal Packets- These come in several flavors, my favorite is the cinnamon roll, each packet has only 100 calories, added flax seed and omega-3, and the best thing is they are ready to roll in 90 seconds in the microwave.  These are perfect for mornings when you don't have time to cook and they taste great, even my kids like them!

2. PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter- Peanut powder is made by dehydrating peanut butter and removing most of the fat, it is low in calories and fat. I'll be totally honest, if you follow the manufacturer's instructions and make this by adding it to water to create the peanut "paste" as it suggests, it is kind of funky, but it is delicious when added to protein shakes, oatmeal or yogurt and really gives an authentic peanut butter taste for only 45 calories!

3. Walden Farms Zero Calorie Pancake Syrup and Chocolate Syrup- I am fairly convinced that some type of magic goes into creating Walden farm products. They have zero calories, zero carbs, and zero fat. They sound too good to be true! I imagine they are probably made with chemicals that will rot my insides but sometimes when trying to eat healthy I'm willing to make compromises and since this company gives me chocolate with zero calories, I could care less what may be in it because it tastes delicious. The pancake syrup tastes like real syrup only it has a watery consistency.  I use it when I make protein pancakes....yes, I go there, don't judge me.

 4. Archer Farms Cook in a bag Homestyle Turkey Breast- This is a hidden Target gem. Most Targets only carry these around the holidays but if you are lucky enough to have a super Target, they carry them year round. This little beauty comes pre-seasoned and cooks in a bag in your oven in a little over 2 hours. Usually pre-seasoned meat has ridiculous amounts of added sodium, but this one is low in sodium! Each 4 ounce serving has only 100 calories, 1.5 fat, and 0 carbs and it is really good! I use this often as an easy meal prep if I am short on time.

5. Jennie-O extra lean ground turkey breast- I have a confession- I am turkey breast snob. I have tried every brand out there and nothing measures up to Jennie-O extra lean ground turkey breast. I love that it freezes well, so I stock up when it's on sale because it is more expensive than the other brands. Jennie-O is the leanest ground turkey I have found, each serving has 26 grams of protein and 1.5 grams of fat. I use this for my skillets, taco wraps, salads, burgers, etc. 

6. Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk- A great way to cut down calories and fat in recipes that call for milk is by substituting unsweetened almond milk. Each 8 ounce serving has only 30 calories. I use this often for protein shakes and in a lot of my recipes. Costco is a great place to buy this in bulk for a cheaper price but you can also find it at any grocery store. They also make a yummy chocolate version which has only 45 calories per serving.

7. Coffeemate Sugar Free Sweet Italian Creme creamer- Similar to Walden Farms Products, this a clean eating compromise for me, after trying every "natural" alternative for coffee creamer, I decided I couldn't survive without creamer in my coffee and didn't care what chemicals were present in this product because coffee with creamer brings me joy. I have tried many different brands of sugar free coffee creamer and none come even close to tasting as good as Coffeemate products.  Coffeemate makes several varieties of sugar free creamers, my favorite is the Italian Creme and at Christmas time the Peppermint Mocha, they have only 15 calories, 1 gram of fat and 2 carbs per serving.  They sweeten coffee enough that no other sweetener is necessary. I love that I can enjoy coffee with creamer and not have to kill my healthy eating with a bunch of added calories and carbs that most creamers have.

8. Boathouse Dressings- When eating healthy, salads are a staple, but let's be honest a bunch of greens by themselves isn't very appealing day in and out. The problem with salad dressings is that some are loaded in calories and fat and almost all are loaded with tons of sodium. I would say the ideal option for a salad dressing would be to make your own from scratch with a healthy oil and fresh spices. However, the time for homemade dressing isn't always available, and that's where boathouse dressing products come in handy. All of their dressings are much lower in sodium, calories and fat than other brands of dressings. Their cream based dressings such as ranch, cilantro and blue cheese are Greek yogurt based, so they are much healthier than traditional creamy dressings! Dressings range in calories from 30-45 calories per serving. My favorite is the balsamic dressing which is olive oil based and has only 30 calories per serving. These dressings are found in the refrigerated section in the produce department.

9. Flatout Protein Up Flatbread/wrap- If you are craving bread, tortillas, pizza, etc. this is a great lower carb, high protein, and high fiber version. I use these to make healthier pizzas, breakfast burritos, and sandwich wraps. Each serving is 130 calories,12 grams of protein, 2.5 grams of fat and while it does have 18 carbs which may seem high if you are watching carbs, it has 10 grams of fiber which is almost half of your daily recommendation! These crisp up nicely in the oven for pizzas and freeze well if you don't plan on using them within the recommended use date. I will say that these can be a little tricky to find in grocery stores, most grocery stores keep them near the service deli area.

10. Veggetti Spiral Vegetable Cutter- So this may not be a food product, but it is a tool used for food that has taken healthy eating to a whole new level. This inexpensive gadget turns zucchini and squash into "zoodles"- a healthy, low calorie, fat free, and low carb alternative for pasta! This tool is easy to use, you simply put the zucchini in and twist. It has two different width options for the thickness of the "zoodle". A medium zucchini makes a large plate of zoodles and only has 33 calories compared to 221 calories in a one cup serving of spaghetti! The Veggetti tool is sold at places like Target and Amazon and is around 10 bucks. If you haven't tried "zoodles" I highly recommend you give them a try!

Spicy Garlic Sriracha Grilled Chicken Meal Prep

Spicy Garlic Sriracha Grilled Chicken

Let's get real here- Chicken can get boring, especially when meal prepping is involved. This is one of my go to recipes for spicing up chicken. I grill a batch each time I meal prep and either portion it out into individual servings or keep it on hand to use on salads or in lettuce wrapped tacos.  This recipe is low in sodium, fat and carbs and high in protein which makes it a perfect choice for those trying to loose weight and/or gain lean muscle mass.

Ingredients:

1/4-1/3 cup Sriracha hot red chili sauce

5-7 cloves of garlic minced 

1/2 packet Mrs. Dash salt free taco seasoning

2-3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken, sliced thin.

non-stick olive oil spray

Optional: Chopped cilantro for garnish

Steps:

1.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl or a large plastic bag and marinate in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
2.  Spray grill with non-stick spray and grill chicken about 4 minutes on each side until cooked through or reach an internal temperature of 160 to 165 f.
3. Garnish with chopped cilantro if desired.

Breaking Free- My journey to losing over 160 pounds

  For many years of my life I was a prisoner held captive in the chains of my own body. I was obese; a miserable sentence brought on by myself through years of poor decisions that were neglectful to my health; both physically and mentally. No words can accurately convey the feelings of despair that I felt as a young obese woman and mother of three children. The desire to change myself was always there but the thought of losing so much weight seemed nearly impossible. For many years, I had attempted to lose the weight.  I had tried every diet, every pill, every promising workout routine and workout equipment. All of these attempts gave some minimal initial results but in the end would fail and I would then gain back whatever weight I had lost and then some on top of it. In essence, with each attempt I took to lose the weight, I actually ended up being heavier. In a last ditch effort, convinced of no other possible way to become healthy, I began to research drastic weight loss surgery options, however that door was quickly closed when my insurance company informed me they would not cover the costs of such a surgery. In this rock bottom moment of my life, I knew that if I wanted to be there for my children, I needed to change and become healthy.
   Being a woman of faith, it was at this point that I finally turned to God and laid it all down at his feet. I knew from all of my previous failed attempts with losing weight that I couldn't do this on my own and I needed his help.  A verse that spoke to my heart for my journey was, "Commit to the Lord whatever you do and he will establish your plans" Proverbs 16:3. After fully committing my plans to restore the temple that was given to me no matter what the cost, was the point when I truly began to walk my journey towards restoration. So before a single pound was lost, the transformation first began in my mind. I couldn't view these plans as a "diet" but more as a lifetime journey.  The weight wasn't going to disappear in a night or a month, but I had full confidence that my health would be restored gradually with each step of change I made. We live in a society of instant gratification, we want results now and we don't want to invest much time and effort to receive them- this worldly notion is easy to buy into but when it comes to weight loss it is not reality. Much time, dedication, sacrifice and hard work is required to loose weight. Very early on in my journey, I developed what I refer to as a "soldier mentality" and set off on my journey of waging war with each excess pound on my body.
    Tipping the scales at over 300 pounds, exercise in the beginning of my journey was simply what my body was capable of doing, which was walking. In combination with walking regularly, I began to make healthier food choices and simple changes. After 4 months, I had lost 50 pounds and was becoming more confident that my goal of becoming healthy was attainable. However, the weight loss had started to slow down as my body became used to my walking routine and my diet.  I knew I would need to make a change in order to continue to lose more weight. Keeping the mentality that it was a journey and sometimes on the roads to our desired destination we may need to make adjustments to our road map in order to arrive successfully. I decided that since my diet was very healthy and little change could occur in that area, that I would need to change my exercise routine and with that in mind I purchased a gym membership. However, as an obese woman the fear of going to the gym was overwhelming; thoughts of making a spectacle of myself and being judged by others clouded my mind and I delayed actually using my membership for 3 months because of this fear. I finally mustered up enough courage to go to the gym and began once again with what my body was capable of doing, which in the beginning was the elliptical machine and a few simple machines with light weights. I committed to working out as much as I could at the gym and as the months went by my consistency and dedication were paying off on the scale, as the pounds one by one were coming off.  I began to hit plateaus in my weight loss and so as my body became more capable of doing more strenuous exercises, I would make adjustments to my exercise routine, including adding classes at the gym that I had previously been afraid to try. The classes introduced a fun new aspect of the gym to me, comradely; people who shared the same common interest of living a healthy lifestyle and many who were on their own weight loss journey. These women inspired me, cheered me along my journey and many today are some of my closest friends.  In addition, I was greatly encouraged by a wonderful class instructor Stacey, who wasn't afraid to call me out if I wasn't giving my all in class and shared and emphasized the appreciation I had of working hard.  By my one year gym anniversary I had lost an additional 75 pounds and something crazy had occurred; I had absolutely fallen in love with fitness.
    As I continued on my journey and began hitting additional weight loss plateaus, my background as a college professor began to kick in. I began to research various training methods, new diet approaches, and supplementation. I set aside (and still do) time each day to research. I began experimenting like crazy with new exercises and diet alterations. In many ways, the gym became my laboratory or as I lovingly refer to it now as my playground.  As with all experiments, some worked and some failed and some just needed adjusting to be successful. I began to develop a training method that worked for me that was a hybrid approach fusing together several training techniques and pairing it with an effective diet and supplementation intended for optimal athletic performance. This method allowed me to loose body fat and gain lean muscle mass simultaneously and by my second gym anniversary I had lost another 40 pounds for a total of 165 pounds. More importantly, I had gone from only being able to walk to a fairly advanced fitness level.  Above all it was clear to me and to those who know me, that fitness had become my passion- It's what makes me happy!  I get excited just thinking or talking about it and no lie, I even dream of it sometimes! If you would have ever told me when I was an obese woman that I would love fitness and be doing the crazy exercises I do now,  I would have laughed and never for one second believed you! God's plans are always better than our own and he definitely has a good sense of humor!
     As with all journeys, there were bumps along the road. There were just as many moments of frustration and pain as there were moments of happiness and jubilee.  When I was a few pounds shy of reaching my weight loss goal, my life was completely turned upside down upon receiving the devastating news that my four year old son had cancer. Every parents worst nightmare had become my reality. In the whirlwind of hospital stays, procedures, and chemotherapy treatments,  my own goals were no longer important, my priority was helping my boy fight for his life.  The disheartening truth about being a parent of a child with cancer is there is absolutely nothing you can do to help fix it, other than providing emotional support and praying like crazy, you sit and observe helplessly and must trust that the doctors are doing everything they can to attain the best possible outcome for your child.  My faith in God, knowing that he is the great physician and has the power to heal my son is what has sustained me in this storm of my life.  Honestly, I don't know how anyone could face such trial without God's mercy and faithfulness to sustain them through it. With emotions running rapid, I felt God say not to give up on my goal of maintaining a healthy lifestyle and so I returned to the gym and my workouts took on new therapeutic benefit where I could release stress and focus my mind temporarily on something besides cancer.  There were many days where the only moments of peace I had were found in the gym lifting weights and working hard. With the many hospital visits, I obviously couldn't work out as much as I once did, but I intentionally carved out time to workout when possible. My soldier mentality kicked in with a "no excuses" attitude, my son had cancer but I couldn't let cancer steal everything from me.  My son continues to fight cancer and has another year and a half of treatments planned, he is a true soldier and his passion for living, having fun and loving others displays his own determination to not allow cancer rob him from enjoying life. He is my hero and inspiration, God has used my young son to teach me so many invaluable life lessons and I look forward with great anticipation to the day when my son is cancer free and I can shout to the world of God's faithfulness that he healed my precious son.
    Today I am very much free from the chains of obesity that once imprisoned me.  In fact, many people I meet today do not even believe me when I tell them that I was once very overweight. I know that there are many people reading this who feel imprisoned by the extra weight they carry and have lost hope that their body can be restored.  But I'm here to tell you that there is always Hope.  My journey is proof that with God all things are possible, he can make all things new and give you beauty for ashes. I know what it feels like to believe that there is no way to shake the chains of being overweight but that belief is a lie! With a soldier mentality, dedication, hard work and faith you can unlock and loose every chain that is binding you today! I believe that the next step of my journey is God using my passion for fitness and my weight loss story to help others. Quite honestly, if I only help a single person change their life I will be satisfied for taking this step of faith and sharing my story. The truth is, I have not wanted to share my story for a long time with others and have kept it to myself, mainly due to fear of being judged or criticized by others. Yet now with God by my side, I am stepping out into the unknown with the confidence that his plans are always better than my own and that my journey to freedom will be used for his glory.

      

Here are some of my before and after pictures. It is the same pair of jeans in the after pictures that I am wearing in the before picture.

Welcome to The fit professor!

Welcome to the Fit Professor! This blog was created to motivate, inspire, encourage; but most of all educate others on how to reach their own weight loss goals. As an ex-college professor, I like to joke that my weight loss results can be accredited to the fact that I am a big nerd who is constantly researching and experimenting with new concepts.  Through the applied use of extensive research in the areas of nutrition, supplementation, and various workout techniques I have lost over 160 pounds without weight loss surgeries or extreme diets. My faith has also played an essential role in my journey and in my experience was the "game changer" to finally being successful in loosing all of my excess weight and maintaining the loss. This blog will be an online classroom of sorts used to educate those on their own weight loss journey. I feel so blessed to have been successful in my own journey and nothing will bless me more than helping others achieve their own weight loss goals. A post like this would be incomplete without the before and after photograph, so here is the "proof" that I indeed used to be a big mamajama. I hesitate to say that this is my genuine "after" photo, as I am still working hard, so this is truly more of a work in progress photo :) By the way, these are the same jeans in both photos. I pray that your journey to a healthy you be blessed and that you never give up on that journey no matter what obstacles may arise on your path.