5/2/2022: Day 8 of my Health Transformation

 Check-In Day!

Not that there is a set time for me to check my weight while on the plan, but I had always intended to see what progress I had made.

• 07:00 - Cheddar Biscuit (need to figure out a better way to make this)
• 10:00 - Peanut Butter Bar (Have you ever tried to eat something from a wrapper when in a meeting with over 100 people??)
• 13:00 - Chicken Noodle Soup (Another good one)
• 15:30 - Another mixed Shake
• 18:30 - Round Steak with Vegetables
• 22:00 - Chocolate bar
• Drank over 64 ounces of water, Half of a PowerAde, 1 Zevia, a couple of pickles and couple of cashews.

It is MINDFUL week.

The goal is to build a habit of taking time to think about the day, and specifically, some of the micro-aspects of the day.

I am doing this blog, so that is one way I am already practicing this habit, but I will keep a log in my book as well.

Today was a great day of learning, and the Lifebook really had something I had thought about, but not in the way they brought it up.

THE INCONVENIENCE OF DISEASE

One of my WHY statements is that I want to be able to provide for my family. I had wrote that down while thinking about how health could cause me to not be able to work, and that is not a good thing.

Here is what I had not thought about - all of the inconveniences.

The extra medicines, doctor appointments, therapy sessions, wear and tear on my family, and all of the dollars associated with it.

Each of them are an inconvenience.

Now, I need to be clear about this:  I am a person of faith, and I believe God has a plan for my life. He already knows my future and my future health.

Focusing on my health and losing weight does not guarantee that something bad will never happen to me.

However, taking care of my health is me being a good steward of my body. For a person of faith, the body is referred to as the temple of the Holy Spirit, and it is important that I maintain it well.

This part may not speak to you as much as it does to me, and that is prerogative. For me though, my identify is wrapped in my faith, and I cannot separate myself from that. It is how I identify, and it's one of the WHY statements that I know is bigger than temporary satisfaction.

Today was also my celebration call!

I love my coach and her mom. I have known Brandy and Madison for years, and they are truly awesome people. I am so glad they are in this journey with me!

Lesson I take away from Day 8

• Writing about my journey is important.
• Heart of Palm could be a great pasta replacement.
• I need to consider the importance of not having excessive sodium in my diet.
• Disease is more inconvenient than just dying, and it affects everyone and everything in your life.
• Be healthy on purpose.
• If the best leaders in the world write about their days, then so should I.

Things I encouraged myself with

• My why statements
• That God created me on purpose, to live in His purpose, for a purpose.
• My current success

Speaking of.....

I AM DOWN 7 POUNDS IN ONE WEEK!

Feeling great, sleeping better, and moving in the right direction!

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!

5/1/2022: Day 7 of my Health Transformation

Sunday!

This is truly test day.

Our family has a weekly tradition of getting donuts & kolaches before church, and the place we go has the absolute best cinnamon crumb cake donut in the world!

• 07:15 - Berrios (Tried it with 1/4 cup of almond milk, which is first for me also. I still have a difficult time with this one.)
• 10:45 - Mint Chocolate Bar
• 13:20 - Pudding
• 15:40 - Bell Peppers and Ground Beef
• 18:40 - Cinnastix
• 21:40 - Cheddar Biscuit
• Drank over 64 ounces of water, 1 PowerAde, 1 Zevia, two pickle slices and a couple cashews

Today I focused on eating things I don't like. I figured it would be a good way for me to focus on what I was trying to accomplish rather than missing out on my favorite donut and fried chicken. My wife and kids have been amazing at not eating what I cannot eat in front of me and I am thankful for that!

However, today was really hard. This is one of those habits we have literally done HUNDREDS OF TIMES. 

It is REALLY REALLY HARD to stop doing something that you have done so much, for so long. 

How did I do it?

This is when you have to REMEMBER YOUR WHY.

Your WHY must be greater than your desire for temporary satisfaction, otherwise you are hamster in a wheel. 

The carrot on the end of a stick.

Always trying to get something, and always unable to get it.

I have been called to bigger things in life than a donut and fried chicken, and I have to remember that.

ESPECIALLY ON THE HARD DAYS.

Lesson I take away from Day 7

• My WHY has to be bigger than my temporary desires for satisfaction.
• I can say NO to hard things, and I can walk away.
• As a person of faith, relying on God to help give me strength to overcome is necessary to win some battles.

Things I encouraged myself with

• This is the reason I started this program. I can't fail in week 1!
• Remembering my WHY statements!
• Prayer.

I made it through a hard day!

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!

4/30/2022: Day 6 of my Health Transformation

 Today I got to play golf! I love to get on the course, swing the sticks, and enjoy the serenity a golf course provides. Even if it is in Houston, TX! Preparing for today required some extra planning.

• 07:15 - Shake (Have I mentioned how much I like these?)
• 09:45 - Cheerios (Struggled to get these down dry)
• 12:30 - Bar (easy eating!)
• 03:30 - Mustard & Onion Straws (this is a pretty good snack)
• 18:30 - Fish (for the first time on plan!) with vegetables
• 21:30 - Shake
• Drank over 150 ounces of water, 50 ounces of PowerAde, 1 Zevia, a couple pickle slices & nuts.

I was surprised at how much the heat took out of me today, and I was not properly prepared for that. As I get healthier and stronger, then this will go away. Just another part of my body adjusting. 

What I did prepare for was how to eat. Knowing I was going to be on the course meant I would need easy to eat food, which is why I chose the dry goods today. That was definitely the right call.

Today was also my first real temptation day.

The fundraiser had Chick-Fil-A for breakfast, snacks on the golf course, and BBQ for lunch. 

I avoided the dining room before and after so that I could limit my exposure to it. However, the BBQ smell hit me outside the door as I was walking by and I got immediate hunger pains. 

BUT!!!

I did not eat it!

I have to remain committed to doing the right thing!

Lesson I take away from Day 6

• Definitely need to be conscientious with how much physical exertion a person puts in while in the fat-burning phase. The body is adjusting, so need to recognize that it takes time, and that is OK.
• Walk away from temptations.

Things I encouraged myself with

• I can do hard things! That is one of my why statements.

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!

4/29/2022: Day 5 of my Health Transformation

 It was basketball day at the office, so a chance to get a couple more ounces of protein. I like these days to get a little more meat at my meal, but it will be my last day for a week or two. I twisted my knee pretty good. Glad this program does not require exercise so I can continue my healthy transformation!

• 07:15 - Pancake
• 09:45 - Shake (I mix the different flavors and these are really good!)
• 13:15 - (Not a huge fan of Mint Choco Chip Bar)
• 15:45 - Penne Pasta (another good one!)
• 18:30 - (Spaghetti) Zuchini Noodles with Ground Turkey (this turned out really well)
• 21:30 - Shake (Decided to go with easy for the last meal)
• Over 64 ounces of water, 28 ounces of PowerAde, and 1 Zevia.

Hurting my knee put a damper on the day. However, I can keep moving forward on my journey because it is about learning how to properly fuel my body. The most important thing I can do is stay committed to proper eating because I have big things I want to accomplish in the time that God has given to me!

Lesson I take away from Day 5

• Proper eating will help me continue forward on my journey, and it will also help my body heal and recover faster.

Things I encouraged myself with

• I can still keep moving forward because the focus is on my input and not my output.

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!

4/28/2022: Day 4 of my Health Transformation

 Today I have a medical screening, so I have to fast until that is over. Madison thought it would be best to try and eat every 2 hours since I will have gone 10 hours without food.

• 10:30 - Flax Seed Bar
• 12:30 - Brown Sugar and Honey Potatoes (sweet potatoes!)
• 15:00 - Mixed Protein Shake
• 17:00 - Chocolate Bar
• 19:00 - Soup (Lean chicken breast and vegetables. Ate more today!)
• 22:00 - Brownie (That was amazing!)
• Drank over 70 ounces of water, 28 ounces of PowerAde, and 1 Zevia
• Snack was 4 pickles and a couple walnuts

The fasting today caused me little discomfort today, so I ate more pickles instead of the recommended 2. I also hit golf balls at the driving range today, so I had some low impact exercise. It also was the first day where I craved milk and something sweet, but I was able to lay off. 

My medical screen at work was fine.

The bad cholesterol is where it needs to be, but the good cholesterol needs to be better. That will happen when I get my weight where it should be.

Speaking of weight, I know I am down a couple pounds for the week since I started. Just got to keep it up!

No huge life-thought today.

Today was about being focused, staying committed, and powering through.

Isn't that how life goes for us sometimes though?

We just have days that seem mundane, but it actually requires us to push through.

Today was just about soldiering through and doing the right thing. 

I can't afford to have an off-day at this moment because I am building consistency and momentum.

Messing up will just set me back, and going back is not what I want to do.

Lessons I take away from Day 4

• Soldier through the mundane. Keep going forward!

Things I encouraged myself with

• I remembered my WHY statements.

• I reminded myself that this is only temporary, but necessary, for what I want to achieve.

• I reminded myself that others have it way worse than me, so I can overcome this.

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!

4/27/2022: Day 3 of my Health Transformation

 I had a late start today, so my first meal was later than normal.

• 08:00 - CinnaSwirl Cream Cheese Cake (YEP, CAKE FOR BREAKFAST!)
• 11:00 - Mixed Protein Shake
• 13:30 - Onion Straws
• 16:00 - Potatoes
• 18:30 - Soup with chicken breast and vegetables (did not eat enough since it was soup)
• 22:00 - Vanilla Shake and Cereal (double-fueling since I didn't eat enough for dinner and have to fast for medical screen next day)
• Snack was 2 pickels and a couple of walnuts
• Drank over 70 ounces of water, 28 ounces of PowerAde, and 1 Zevia

Surviving or Thriving?

That was the thought that came to me today as I was considering this journey. 

Why do I eat poorly?

If you give it some thought, then maybe you will come up with some of the same answers I did.

• I'm so busy at work that I don't even know I'm ready to eat until my body tells me it is time to eat. By that time, I have so much going on that I just need to get something quick and get back to work.
• The kids are always going. One kid finishes their thing and we need to get to the next thing, and they need to eat. Just grab what we can and get the next kid to their appointment.
• I need to get somewhere right after work, but I have to eat. Go through the drive-thru and get something small.

See a pattern?

It's all related to busyness!

We are simply trying to survive the schedule we have and eating is something we do mostly because we know we need to.

It's not that we want to be in poor health, but we are just trying to thrive. Especially when there are 4 kids in the house!

I don't know if that is similar to anything you experience, but that's how it is for us.

It feels like we are just in survival mode.

However, as a person of faith, I believe God has called us to an abundant life. 

To thrive!

Food is an essential element to thriving in life because we get out of our body what we put in to our body.

That builds on what I learned yesterday - eat with purpose and intention. 

Eat to thrive!

Lessons I take away from day 3

• Don't just survive - THRIVE!

• God wants me to live abundantly and eating right can help me do that.

Things I encouraged myself with

• God wants me to live an abundant life!

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!

4/26/2022: Day 2 of my Health Transformation

The first fueling of the day was at 7:30 and I went every 2 ½ - 3 hours from there.

• 07:30 - Chocolate Chip Pancake
• 10:00 - Mixed Shake
• 12:30 - Cinna Stix
• 15:30 - Chicken Soup
• 18:30 - Lean & Green:  6 oz of Chicken breast, Asparagus, Cauliflower, Green Beans, Scallions, & green pepper with Butter and seasoned salt (Sauteed and accounted for the extra greens by putting less ounces in per green)
• 21:30 - Chocolate Pudding with 10 Pecans
• Snack was 5 Pecans
• Drank over 30 ounces of Powerade, had 1 Zevia, and over 80 ounces of water

As I made my breakfast this morning a thought came to mind.

Eat with a purpose.

How often are we intentional about what we eat and when we eat? 

Something I know this health transformation journey will help me with is eating for a purpose. Eating with intentionality.

Everything I put in my body matters, and it is either helping me move towards my purpose as a child of God, or it is hurting me.

As the hard times come at the beginning of this journey (like when I have to eat pudding), then I am going to remind myself that learning the discipline of eating on purpose is critical to fulfilling my God-Given purpose for being on this earth. God has a plan for me, but I can only be a part of it if I choose to follow His plan. That means I need to take care of my body. 

Win for the day, I did not struggle with headaches and lack of focus as much! Not sure if that is because of the adjustment my body is making, water I drank, Powerade I sipped on, or if it is the steroid shot I got. Regardless, it was a more productive day at work.

I did struggle with eating the pudding that I mixed pecans with. In the past, I have not been a pudding guy, but I need to adapt. I was able to eat it because I reminded myself of why I am doing what I am doing, and that this is part of learning how to do hard things. I can, and I will, do this.

Lessons I take away from day 2

• Be intentional with what I eat and when I eat.

• Drink water even when you don’t think about it

Things I encouraged myself with

• I had written down Bible verses to help me combat the negative thoughts that would come my way.

• I remembered my WHY statements.

• I reminded myself that this is only temporary, but necessary, for what I want to achieve.

• I reminded myself that others have it way worse than me, so I can overcome this.

CJ

Inspiring and motivating others to LEAVE AVERAGE BEHIND!