The Boringest Blog Post Ever

Today’s post is very boring.  If you would like to quit reading now, and come back next week in the hopes that I will once again be clever, inspiring, humorous, and/or profound, please do so without any feelings of guilt or worry of retribution.

One of my goals for the new year was to post my blog twice a week.  I also had a set idea in my head about what those posts and my blog should be about.  Well, that whole thing is kind of going out the window.

I guess what I am trying to say is that I don’t know if I have the bandwidth to post twice a week all the time, nor to have a set “type” of blog.  I think I am going to keep my weekly Thursday night posts, and then sometimes Mondays, until I get a better handle on my time.  And what you get is what I am in the mood for that day.  You might get humor, you might get inspiration, you might get the crazy cat lady.

Goal setting and accomplishments mean a lot to me.  I don’t set goals lightly.  I set them based on drive and passion, because I want to grow and stretch my life.  I want to test the limits of my capabilities, to use all God gave me to live my life as fully as I can – sometimes in service to Him and others and sometimes just for the pure joy of it.  But I am not above admitting when I have too much on my plate, and that is really what this is about.

You have all heard the famous John Lennon quote, “Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans”.  I made all these plans and now things I didn’t plan for have taken precedence, and I have to pare down my life a little.  It’s nothing major, just other areas need my attention.

When we were first married and learning to budget and live on our own, Dave and I would sometimes find ourselves running out of money before the next paycheck, simply because we were hit with an unexpected expense.  We learned to be more cautious with our money, to hold off on buying the extras until we knew we had paid all the necessities.  Publishing my blog more than once a week is an ‘extra’ for me time wise, not a necessity.  Notice I didn’t say “writing”.  Writing is a daily necessity.  But not everything I write is for my blog, and I just don’t have the time and energy for biweekly posts right now.  That’s not to say I won’t ever – just not consistently for now.

I’m admitting to this because I want you all to know that it’s okay to re-evaluate and adjust your goals.  It’s okay to say, “I still want to do this, but I need to do it at a later date” or “I need to only do half of this now, and build up to the rest” or “I thought I wanted to do this, but now I think I have changed my mind”.  You have to give yourself permission to change your goals without berating or belittling yourself for it.  And without using the other F-word – FAIL.

Assessing your life and changing your plans in order to meet your current needs is how you become successful in achieving your goals.  Setting a goal to lose 100 pounds in 3 months by drastically changing your diet and adding two hours of exercise everyday would easily overwhelm a person, but deciding to lose 10 pounds and adding a half hour of exercise 3 times a week, and eliminating just one trigger food is much more manageable.  It’s not that the 100 pound goal is thrown to the wayside and forgotten.  It’s merely been reevaluated and broken down into more manageable steps and a more realistic timeline.

So that’s that.  Now if you will excuse me, I am going to go walk the dogs seeing as we finally have a night above 10 degrees, and then I am going to come home and go to bed at a decent hour so I can finally get rid of this crud I have been walking around with for over two weeks.

Keep warm!

Sue

PS – the “crud” might very well explain my whiney, boring post tonight.  Or maybe I just need a Snickers bar.

PPS – you know a post is boring when there aren’t even any pictures!!!

PPSS – remember the old “generic” brands of food – white boxes with black lettering?  This post reminds me of that.

PPSS – okay I’m really finished now.

Dreaming Big

I’m a goal setter. I make lists at work and at home of things I need to do or want to accomplish, and then joyfully scribble them out when complete. Most days it’s mundane things like “laundry” or “clean up email”, and I keep lists to stay focused on what needs to get done or I will while away my time on Pinterest (and believe me, I can spend a lot of time on Pinterest) or camped in front of the Big Bang Theory, while my laundry begins it’s world domination plot like some bad episode of Pinky and the Brain. But I also

My laundry can take these guys.

keep lists because I LOVE the feeling of accomplishment that comes with crossing something off.

Sometimes I set bigger goals. These are not chores that need to be done to keep the world safe from my laundry. These are life changers. Personal Quests and Personal Bests. Goals that fuel my imagination, motivation, dedication, anticipation, concentration, inspiration and aspiration – and any other ‘tions’ you might like to throw in. These goals are usually challenging but attainable – like reading the bible cover to cover in a year or completing a century (100 mile bike ride) – both goals that I accomplished last year.

So when I sat down to write this post and explain my motivation behind changing my diet, I was at a loss because while I can feel the overall goal in my heart, I am having trouble putting the magnitude of it into a single explanation. Of course part of it is weight loss and health, and part of it is because I have some physical goals I want to reach this year (another post in the making!).

But I also have these other carrots God is dangling in front of me. Carrots that will take longer than a spring of training, and will in fact take a life time to realize. And a lot of divine intervention.

For instance – I would like to be a motivational speaker. Or inspirational. Or spiritual. But I like speaking in front of people about things I am passionate about. A friend of mine once said she thought I was an exhibitionist – she was just kidding (I think) but there was some truth to it. I have spoken a few times in church and I think I did alright. I just want to share what I have learned with other people, especially other women, because:

I have a passion for helping women love themselves for who they are. I want to redefine body image, not only for myself but for anyone who has ever looked in the mirror and found only fault. I want to learn to see myself as God sees me, and then help others do the same.

You all know I love to work out. It’s not because I enjoy pain or hanging around with sweating, grunting men (although there is something to be said for that). It’s because exercise tires out my body and my brain. I have clinical depression, but since I have been exercising regularly, I have not had a major dip. At the end of a 4 mile run or a 20 mile bike ride or a really good strength training session, my brain is empty (no comments on that from the Peanut Gallery). I sleep better. I have more confidence. I am stronger, both physically and emotionally. My head is clearer and I can think better.

Well, I want to share that too, with people who are afraid to work out, or don’t have the money to join a gym, or the confidence to even try. Maybe they think they are too awkward or weak or fat or ugly or old or unable. But they aren’t. I want to help others to feel that confidence that comes from accomplishing a physical goal. It’s unbelievable how that changed my life.

I also want to buy the old De Pere Library (thanks for planting that seed, Collie), currently a law office, and turn it into a women’s gathering place/coffee house/craft consignment/creative outlet/peaceful getaway place-thing-house-store-shop-house-thing. With one room full of big loungy furniture and cushy pillows; another room with tables and chairs for games or eating or creating; another room – maybe like a chapel area – for when you need to be quiet and meditative; a coffee bar area with comfy stools; a consignment area where people can sell their artwork or jewelry or handmade items. And books. I think there will have to be books in there somehow. I will be cruising around with my walker because I will be 150 years old by this time, but hey. A girl’s gotta dream and if I’m going to dream, I’m going to make it big.

I just finished reading Mark Batterson’s book, The Circle Maker. In it he talks about the importance of Dreaming Big, Praying Hard and Thinking Long. Right now, this is just a nebulous idea, a gleam in God’s eye. He at least knows whats going on. But until God gives me a better handle on it, I’m just going to refer to this whole thing as Brick House Ministries. Maybe it will be a real ministry or maybe it will only ever be a name. But I will never know unless I try. And somehow, making that dietary change is the first step of the journey. With God, and all of you by my side, I am willing.

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would have not a single bit of talent left and could say, “I used everything you gave me.” – Erma Bombeck

Back In The Saddle

Hi Folks!

Haven any of you made New Years resolutions? I usually don’t, because I hardly ever keep them, but this year I had a bug up my butt and decided to make a few.

This is just a bug, and not a bug up my butt. Aren’t you glad?

The “bug” in question has been an increasing dissatisfaction with my weight and my BMI (body mass index). Okay, really it’s just my weight, because I am to chicken to do my BMI. I don’t need to hear that I am “obese”. Getting on the scale was hard enough, although the overall results not as bad as I thought.

I really, truly hate this chart. I have never made it to yellow! Ever!

I know that weight is just a “number” (or so I have been told) but it’s a number that can be used to gauge overall trends in a person’s health. So in my case, the number has gone continually up the last three years. And although I have worked out during those three years, my fuel intake has been more than my energy output, and that equals weight gain, my friends. I can’t really work out anymore than I already do, so it’s time to evaluate the intake.

About 7 years ago, I was very out of shape and overweight. Probably hit ‘morbidly obese’ on the BMI Richter scale. I was saved by my sister, who invited me to a group that helped me recognize my unhealthy relationship with food, and provided a food plan that actually worked for me. However, it involved cutting sugar, wheat and flour from my diet, and adding a lot of fresh veggies and fruits, true whole grains like brown rice and millet, and lean protein. It was really hard but once I got in a routine, it became easier. I lost a lot of weight, felt great almost all the time, and was hardly ever sick. I cruised along for about 4 years this way.

So what happened? I fell off the wagon, that’s what. At some point, I decided life was too short to be so restrictive. Plus I was participating in longer runs like half marathons where I had to refuel, and the easiest thing to carry was sugar. Gradually, I began to allow more sugars and flours in my diet, and now here I am 40 pounds heavier.

Starting January 2nd, I started the first step of my first goal of 2013, by cutting out sugar, flour, and most processed foods. I will be honest with you too – I don’t plan on being a freak about it. Last Saturday was date night, and I allowed myself to have something off-plan – a New Glarus Moon Man. That’s a fancy schmancy beer, if you were wondering. It was pretty tasty. Not as good as a Spotted Cow, mind you, but worth the experiment. You may wonder why I treated myself to a beer, and not a piece of cheesecake. Simple – I can stop after one beer. Not so much on the cheesecake.

It’s been going surprisingly well. I expected more bumps in the road, more nights of agonized wailing and foot stomping (I NEED A FREAKING COOKIE!!), more “a few chips won’t hurt me” moments. And it’s not that I have any super human willpower either. I think it’s more because I have a specific goal, and I know this is the first step to reaching it.

WHERE’S ME COOKIE???

Now here is the funny part. I know I mentioned being unhappy with my weight in the beginning of this post, and you would think that weight loss would be the goal that is driving me, but it isn’t. I do hope it’s a by-product, but my real goal involves something else. My post is much to long already, so I will address it next time. I will leave you with this hint though: It’s the reason I started this blog.

Pray Hard. Dream Big.

Sue