The weight loss tip that you're not ready for.

So, as of my last weigh in, I have lost 44 pounds. I am starting to feel successful. Yes, I am slow, and I know I should have felt successful many pounds ago.

I am also starting to realize that I might be able to now share my success with other people that could be going through the same crap I've been going through and ARE going through. Yes, it's a weight loss tip. No, it has nothing to do with food and exercise. I guess a cool thing that's happened to me is that my weight loss is a by-product of me following this tip. As I type that, I realize how ridiculous that sounds. People might say this isn't a big deal or a new philosophy or a revolutionary thought of any kind. 

But they'd be wrong because I maintain that most of the world can't handle this tip. Ok, now on to the tip.

If you want to lose weight, you have to believe that you are worth it.

Actually, fill in the blank. If you want _____________ , you have to believe that you are worth it.

Get real with yourself. Are you worth it? Are you worth saving? Are you worth changing? Are you worth not settling? Are you worth all of the things that you dream of, that you want, that you pray for, that you can only imagine?

It might take you 35 years to figure that out. I hope that someone lights a fire under you and it happens quicker for you than it happened for me. Somewhere along the way, you and I stopped believing that we were worth it, that we were made for more, and that we are more than conquerors. Somebody lied to us and got us to be weak, to give up, to give in, and to settle.

Don't. Don't do that anymore. There is a first step that you need to take, and you might be the only one that knows what that step is. So take it. Have courage, and take it. The great news? We are all in it together - taking small steps that add up to 44 pounds. And more.

Fill in the blank and let's do it together.

-Liz

I miss you, Christmas cookie. More than you know.

Merry Christmas! More importantly...watch out.

I have walked into a few parties recently and have seen the unavoidable dining room table spread. Chips, cookies, chips, brie cheese platter, chips, meatballs, chips, crock pots and...chips.

These are some kind of like, minty, frosting, shortbread
magic type of cookie. They are, in a word, MY JAM.

And I have walked out of a few dining room table spreads as I wonder what the heck am I going to eat at this party? Food is the great conversation stabilizer. If you don't know what to do with your hands, grab a fork and a plate and do some damage. Comment on how great the spinach dip is. Ask who brought the swedish meatballs and can you get the recipe? Comment on the fact that someone super lame brought veggies and lowfat dip.

This year, I was that super lame someone.

I'll admit, I do feel left out of social situations. I am set apart because I don't get to take part like everyone else does. I can't even walk into the room with Christmas cookies because - if I was an alcoholic, I probably couldn't order a diet coke in a bar, so why am I putting myself in danger? Don't get me wrong, one Christmas cookie won't do me in. But in my life, one Christmas cookie always brings his friends. He brings peppermint bark, peanut butter brownie, cheesecake, hershey kisses, and a host of others that I miss. More than you know.

I don't know if you are about to hit something hard over the next week, but chances are, it's a tough time of year for you. It might not be food, it might be family. Heck, it might be both, plus a few other things! I just want to encourage you that the emotions pass, the cravings subside, and the nights always turn into new days. No food is off limits, but stuffing yourself in order to fit in...is. For me, anyway.

Merry Christmas, peeps. Shoot, now I'm thinking about Easter candy. Crap.

-Liz

Update: I just left my aunt's house where we always have our annual Christmas Eve dinner. It could also be called "Reunion of the Clean Plate Club" or "You Better Eat Seconds or Thirds So We Don't Have a Ton of Leftovers". My cousin makes these BANGING cookies every year. I took a picture of them just to prove to you that they were there, they were my favorite, and I have NO IDEA WHAT THEY TASTED LIKE. Nailed it.


Confession: I did, however, eat some fried oysters and some tasty ambrosia salad. I'm no saint.

An anonymous comment that has me wondering...

A few posts ago, someone sent me an anonymous comment...


"You already are a great person so make sure you don't lose what makes you awesome along the way of becoming even better!!!!"


Hmmm.


I've been thinking about that comment for a few days. And as I am processing what Anonymous said, I am realizing how much truth is behind it, and that THAT VERY THOUGHT has haunted me my whole life.


If I lose all the weight, will I still be me? And has that fear stopped me from really going for this?


I have been overweight my whole life. So of course, like we all do, I developed some professional defense mechanisms and talents to take the attention off of my weight. Maybe if I make up for it in other areas, no one will notice the weight. I have a lot of talents, I guess. I can play guitar, drums, bass...I can sing, I can paint, and I consider myself pretty funny. I think I am an all-star friend, and I am pretty generous. I am not afraid to embarrass myself in public (which many of you have witnessed) and I have a soft heart that is probably, too soft at times. (Maybe that's why I am responding to this Anonymous.)


Have you ever stayed in a bad relationship because you were too afraid to move on? Have you ever chosen pain because the cost of freedom was too high? Have you ever let someone use you because you mistakenly thought it was love? If you haven't, you will. We all will. Because we are all trying to figure it out.


So Anonymous, thank you for the challenge. And I am publicly declaring (like a UFC weigh-in) that I am in this fight for the long haul and I will NOT lose who I am. Because I'm not willing to give up on myself. Because I am worth it. Because food did not make me awesome. God did. And my changed relationship with food isn't going to take that away.


Challenge.


-Liz