Six Month Review

As we approach the end of June, I have been actively pursuing my journey of balanced spiritual, physical, and mental health for six months. I figured now was a good time to evaluate why I am doing this, how my overeating undermines those goals, and what steps I can take to meet these goals.

(1) To have a baby. This one’s new. I did not start out in January thinking this way, but now that my husband and I are seriously considering starting a family in the semi-distant future, this has become a primary factor for me. My weight is one of the most influential factors in determining whether I can get pregnant, stay pregnant, and have a healthy pregnancy.

Overeating undermines this goal by putting it entirely at risk. I am already at risk due to my endometriosis, so being overweight when I try to get pregnant will just further complicate matters. My overeating is quietly sabotaging this goal.

It is not enough to acknowledge my goals and how my old ways will simply undermine them. I need to make a concrete plan to meet those goals. When it comes to getting healthy in order to have a baby, the very first step is going to be consistency. I have to stop being on-again/off-again with my diet. I have a tendancy to “take off” for a weekend or a week. I can’t afford to do that and stay on-track, let alone develop the necessary self-discipline to teach healthy living to a child. So, step one is: Consistency.

(2) To get my health under control. This was my primary motivating factor last winter. Between my myopic degeneration and my endometriosis, I was determined to stop piling on the pounds. Technically, my conditions are not weight-related, but I have found that they (especially my endometriosis) react better when I am eating right and exercising regularly.

Overeating just makes me feel bad. It decreases my energy, and makes me sick feeling. It makes me vulnerable to the daily wearing pain and frustrations of my conditions, leaving me open to collapsing under them.

To reach this goal requires maintaining my daily eating habits and exercise. Generally, I can be “on the wagon” but be eating crap and sitting on the couch. This doesn’t help me deal with my daily pain, or avoid feeling sick. To find equilibrium with my health, I need to increase fiber, cut down on junk, and maintain my exercise routine.

(3) To ensure that I am healthy in my old age. One of my greatest fears it to be trapped in my own body as I age, instead of being healthy and active enough to enjoy retirement. This is, of course, directly related to how I take care of myself now.

Overeating, and failing to take care of my self now, will mean that I suffer the lifelong consequences of obesity and lack of activity when I am older and unable to repair that damage.

Consistent healthy eating and exercise will obviously lead to the type of healthy body that will keep me active into my old age. But I need more then that: I need to maintain the agile thinking that I so enjoy. To that end, I want to commit to turning off the tv and computer and doing something, anything, else that keeps me from sitting. The long term purpose here is to develop an interest/activity that keeps me moving, even when I am bored or alone all day.

(4) To honor God. I know this sounds cheesy, but my body is one of the many assets God has entrusted to me. I have a duty to manage it, as I would money, for His benefit. As a trust attorney, this is called a “fiduciary duty,” which means that the trustee is legally bound to do what a reasonably prudent person would do in that situation for the benefit of the beneficiary. Read Romans 12:1 – our “reasonable” act of worship. All this boils down to a simple definition: the minimum standard of conduct. So, technically, taking care of my body is the minimum standard of conduct that God expects from me.

Overeating hinders my ability to use this asset for His Glory.

My blog makes it seem like I consistently pray every day, all day long. I realize how high-and-mighty my writing may sound, narrated in your inner voice. But please realize that I am a work in progress, never perfect. I work daily on my relationship with Jesus and it isn’t always flawless.

I have talked for a long time about my devotionals, but you will notice that I didn’t say “daily.” (Except, maybe, for a 3 week period in April where I tried really hard to get up at dawn every day. Yeah, that didn’t last long.) It is so important to maintain regular contact/dialogue with God. How can I know what resource He needs to use if I’m not listening? So, my final step in my four-point plan is to work on daily devotionals.

After reviewing my motivators, I have a revised four point plan towards total health:

(1) Consistently
(2) Stay on Weight Watchers (food servings and all).
(3) Don’t sit on your butt.
(4) Pray every day.

Sounds pretty good, huh? Now I have to work on implementing it. … More on that next week.