GGOOOOOAAALLLLLLS

Goals.
We can talk about what we want to do in this life all we want, but unless we set specific goals and create a plan with which to reach them, we will never achieve them.

I mentioned in my post 1 Corinthians 6:19 some of my goals which include running a mile, climbing a mountain and eventually wearing my goal jeans, which are a size 16. The issue is, how will I do it? I can talk all day about how all I need to do is watch what I eat and track it and with calories in versus calories out, and I will lose weight. That is all true, but I also need something specific. A specific plan. So, with the help of my cousin, who happens to be a coach for Beach Body, I have decided to do the 21 Day Fix with Shakeology.

Since doing Ideal Protein I am well versed in how to be creative with veggies to make really
delicious meals without refined sugars. This is a skill I had hoped to keep regularly implemented in my life, but was pushed aside for the delicious but deadly and addicting too-many-carbs, too-much-fat, overly-chemically-preserved and generally terrible for you, fast foods. I know, and I have said time and time again, that I need to get away from that junk and get strict with only eating whole foods. At the same time, I don't want to be on such a restrictive diet that I can't enjoy a cookie or a piece of chocolate or a glass of wine. My issue is that it will not be ONE cookie, or ONE piece of chocolate or ONE glass of wine. The 21 Day Fix is just the tool I need to remind me of healthy eating practices, perfect portions for what my body needs, and to remind me how to be creative in order to get what you want. With the 21 Day Fix I can have chocolate chip oatmeal for breakfast, so long as the ingredients fit in the proper containers and I am using dark chocolate. If you want to learn more about the 21 Day Fix you can check out THIS review (it might be sponsored, but it's very helpful) can give you a really great overview of the program.

You can be sure what once I get all of the stuff and start the program I will also give you my honest opinion about it! Usually the program is $80 and one month's worth of Shakeology is $130, but in the month of September they are having a promotion where you get the program AND the month of Shakeology for $140, so basically the 21 Day Fix is $10. It comes with their workbooks, eating plans, containers AND 6 workout DVDs. That's a pretty sweet deal.

I feel like I should reiterate that I think the 21 Day Fix is an awesome tool to help me get more organized and back in the habit of healthy, balanced eating. It is not an actual fix. What it is, is an awesome stepping stone to lead me from one bank of a turbulent river to the other. From death to life. In just the same way that Ideal Protein was an amazing blessing in my life at the time, in the end it was up to me to continue eating well and exercising and my lack of continued discipline is what allowed me to get so lost. The 21 Day Fix will help me to get back in routine, and hopefully, with the grace of God, I have learned my lesson and won't waste this opportunity to change my life for good.

My other goal, as I have mentioned in the last few posts, is to seek out the man that God intends to be my spouse. I definitely feel Him pulling me in a particular direction to find him, but to hedge my bets I am also officially signing up for Match.com. I already have a profile and some pictures up, but later in the month my sister and I are hosting a ladies night with our friends so that THEY can write our profiles. It's always better for our friends to help us with these things as they tend to see our good and can more easily articulate them than we can about ourselves.

Stephie needs adventure. This is where I start.

1 Corinthians 6:19

"Or do you not know that your body is a temple of

the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from

God, and that you are not your own?"

In January of 2013 I felt stuck. Stuck in the endless cycle of addiction, shame, and low-self worth- all of which I tried to self medicate with that which I was addicted to.
Food.
I should say AM addicted to.
In January of 2013 I could barely walk without pain. My blood pressure was through the roof. I lost my breath halfway up the stairs. I was depressed. I was lost. I cried out to God for help and he responded in the quiet of my heart with a simple Go to mass. Really? Go to mass? How could that possibly help? Go to mass he continued to insist. The following Sunday I made excuses as to why I couldn't make it on time- mostly simply by lying in my bed and watching the time pass. Once it was clear that I was going to miss the final morning mass I got out of bed and began my day. Go to mass rang in the back of my mind all day as I was reminded that there was a 5PM mass at our Cathedral. As the day went on I knew I had to follow His instruction and so I went.
"Lord, I am lost. I am stuck. I can barely breath. I need help! Please help me!" I prayed over and over.
The following week three different people mentioned to me a weight loss product they were using and having amazing results with- Ideal Protein.
I had done some research on IP many months before and had decided that it was far too expensive for my budget (budget nerd!). Now that it popped up again, I decided to give it a second look. Lo and behold! Somehow it all seemed to fit. Yes- it was still extremely expensive, but somehow it fit. I went back to Church the following Sunday to pray about it some more and to thank God for the opportunity.
February 2013 I began a new leg of my ever-ongoing weight loss journey, this time using Ideal Protein. I weighed in a 336.6 lbs. I was a size 22 and spilling over all of my clothes. I should have been wearing a 24. Over the course of the next 7 months I followed the program, relying not on my own strength, but God's to get me through and I lost over 75lbs. You can watch my transformation HERE if you are interested. :-)
But now what. Now where am I, now that is has been a year since the glory days of squeezing into a size 16?

 Here are the before-and-afters from IP- 75lbs difference:

Here is me in the same size outfit today:

Size 18 jeans, size XL t-shirt.

Yea... about that....
So now what?

What do I do now that I have, seemingly, wasted this opportunity that God gave me?

Try, try again.

Does my failure to keep the weight off make me any less a child of God, a bride of Christ? Nope.

True failure is not found in he who falls, but he who chooses to not get back up.
So I will put it in His hands. And I will ask Our Mother, Undoer of knots to pray for me. And I will be a budget nerd. :-)
Calories in vs. calories out.
I will also make goals- some weight goals to help mark progress, but mostly physical goals. Can I run a half mile? Can I run a WHOLE mile??? can I climb a mountain? Can I fit in those size 18 jeans again? Can if squeeze back into the 16s?!?! The weight needs to come off to accomplish these things, but more importantly, I want to eat better and exercise more forever, not just until I reach a certain goal. If you would like, you are more than welcome to add me on MyFitnessPal Stephieneedsadventure
Since that first whisper to Go to mass I am glad to say I haven't missed a Sunday since. I actually try to go to mass everyday when I can. This sort of hunger for God is the kind of hunger I need for a better lifestyle. It will be hard. I wont love every second of it, haha. But it will be worth it.
Adventure starts at home.
and in the gym.
and in the kitchen.