You Snooze...You Lose

Or so I hope anyway.

A while back I wrote a post called We're Breaking Up about my struggles with my weight. I have this...shall we say...bootylicious problem that I continue to struggle with. Anyway, this past Monday, The Today Show on NBC did a story on how your sleep habits affect your weight. I heard about it from a friend (I'm a Good Morning America gal) and had to check it out.

Apparently everyone (but me) knows that lack of sleep can contribute to weight gain and getting the right amount of sleep can actually help you lose weight. What?!?! So all I have to do is sleep MORE and I'll lose weight? Of the women who participated in the study, nearly all of them lost weight and one who lost no weight, still managed to lose inches! Over the course of 10 weeks they lost anywhere from 6 to 15 pounds! They made no other significant changes except to sleep at least 7 and 1/2 hours each night.

Okay, think about it. When you become a mom, it gets harder to keep your weight down...when you become a mom, you also get a lot less sleep. We live in an obese country...we live in a busy, sleep deprived country. I'm just putting two and two together people. The studies show that those who "sleep 5 hours or less a night are 30 percent more likely to gain 30+ pounds than those who got more rest". "The average woman gets 6 hours and 40 minutes." The healthy minimum is 7 hours 30 minutes! Go to the article here to read all the details. It's fascinating.

I'm a night owl. After the girls go to bed, that's MY time. Just me and Daddy. I like to savor it as long as possible so I always go to bed LATE. Unfortunately, the girls always wake up at 6:15 on the dot. I'm not missing the healthy requirement by a whole lot, but that 7.5 hours is a minimum! At this point, I have about 2 non-elastic waist pairs of pants that fit so I'm willing to try anything. And I do love to sleep.

So Monday night, my Bible Study was cancelled and I was in the bed by 8:30pm and asleep by about 9:30. That would be 9 hours of sleep...except...Little Sister was up at 4:30am. 7 hours! Just short by 1/2 an hour! I tried again Tuesday night and the SAME THING! I'm starting to think she likes me big and soft and these are her attempts to keep me that way. Finally, last night, I went to sleep at 10:00pm and the girls came downstairs at 6:15am. That's a little over 8 hours...and I feel thinner already.

So how much sleep do you get each night? And what do you think about this study?

Cream, Glorious Cream

I made it through the week of black coffee and have really been savoring drinking it the way I like it again. I hate to admit this but it really did require some self-discipline for me to drink it black. A couple of times I really thought, "This is stupid. Who cares about cream and sugar? This is a dumb exercise, I'm going to do something else." But that's what I always do. I'm very persuasive when I want to talk myself out of doing something I don't want to do.

My favorite thing about this exercise was that it started my day. First thing every morning I was reminded that I desire self-discipline. It made me think about how I need to rely on the Lord for everything in my day. I would wake up and before I ever got out of bed I would first think, "coffee" and then my next thought would be, "Lord, I need you." I'd spend a few minutes talking to God about my day and then roll out of bed to get my cup of hot dirt.

But it's not about the coffee. It's about developing self-discipline and I've had an "Aha!" moment that I'll share in my next post. The coffee was the specific challenge but I've been trying to exercise self-discipline in many areas. For now, I figure it's time to up the ante and do another, slightly more challenging, exercise. I've struggled to think of something good. I really want to do something this time that matters. Something that might stick or at least be a baby step in the right direction. Something that will get me what I really want in the long run. So I'm asking you to vote. I'm not sure if there are enough of you reading to make this work but I'm going to throw out three ideas and have you vote. Whichever exercise gets the most votes will be the one I tackle. So here it goes...

1. Leave at least one bite of anything I eat. (I'm a plate cleaner so this could be a real challenge)
2. Get up at 6:00am whether anyone else is up or not...and NO NAPS. (I'm a night owl)
3. Spend NO money for one week. (Not even $1 for coffee at the church's coffee stand)

Okay, so my parents are laughing right now. Which give me another good idea. As a second part to the challenge, I vow not to complain...at all...no matter what...at least not out loud...or at least not about the exercise anyway. Can you see why I need this self-discipline? Anyway, voting will end on Sunday night (in case I need to get up at 6:00am Monday) and then I'll get started. Thanks for your support. I love hearing your words and how you are being challenged. Hang in there!

My One Word 2009

In my last post, I wrote about the concept of ditching new year's resolutions and instead, choosing one word. So I've thought long and hard about my word this year. It was actually pretty easy to choose. What I need to work on is clear. My word for 2009 is self-discipline. Do hyphenated words count as one word? Anyway, every frustration I have with my life all boils down to one thing...a lack of self-discipline. My budget, my weight, my spiritual growth, my unfinished projects, my yet unreached goals...you name it.

I'm pretty sure I know how I got this way. I have such an aversion to legalism that I have swung the pendulum too far in the other direction. More on that later though.

When I looked up the word self-discipline at dictionary.com, here are some of the definitions I found:

-discipline and training of oneself, usually for improvement
-Training and control of oneself and one's conduct, usually for personal improvement.
-the trait of practicing self discipline
-the act of denying yourself; controlling your impulses

Compare that to the definition for self-control:

-Control of one's emotions, desires, or actions by one's own will
-the trait of resolutely controlling your own behavior

Seems to me, self-control is something people have...self-discipline is the training you need in order to develop self-control. And training means exercise. Speaking of exercise, many things I've read on self-discipline compare it to a muscle that needs to be built up little by little. I need to lift some small but challenging weights to build a little muscle in order to handle some heavier things over time. In other words, it wouldn't help me to set a goal of "run a marathon". It's impossible, I haven't trained to run a marathon. I already believe I can't do it. It makes more sense to set a goal like "run for 20 minutes 3 times a week". Start small...be specific...set attainable goals and meet them. I need to prove to myself that I can follow through on the little things and build on that.

Now, I have no desire whatsoever to run a marathon...EVER...but there are many things I would like to do...achievable things...things I don't have now because of my lack of self-discipline. I'm ready to start training. So many things have been written about self-discipline, I feel like I have some good ideas about how to get started. I'll keep you updated as I begin my training.

Meanwhile, my first exercise, and the real foundation of everything, will be to be mindful each morning of the power of the Holy Spirit at work in me. 2 Timothy 1:7 says, "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline." He has given me all I need. Now I must submit to his will. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing, and perfect will." I will definitely do some tangible, hopefully life-changing things along the way. But I won't do it alone.

I've come up with a pretty good first challenge starting Monday. Tune in to see how it goes and feel free to share your "one word" if you like. Happy New Year!

Breaking up is HARD to do!

A while back I wrote a post about breaking up with my butt. Well, I've been trying to break up with my butt for two LONG months now. It hasn't been easy. It seems like if I relax even a little bit, there it is, trying to lure me back. There have been some challenges along the way. A visit to my sister in Wilmington, NC...the Bon Jovi concert...the Preakness of course. How can a person be expected to diet while doing these things? Then there was that short but beautiful two weeks I participated in the dinner exchange. I teamed up with three other girls and each person took one day, Monday through Thursday, and made and delivered dinner to the other three families. It was kind of crazy but I love to cook and the other three days you had a wonderful meal delivered to your door. There were two major problems. The driving was killing me because we just lived too far apart. And the food!!! Not conducive to breaking up with that butt. Among the most tempting were baby back ribs, spaghetti pie with tons of oozing, melted cheese, and some kind of dessert that had snickers bars in it. Ahhhh! That stupid butt was using my friends to try and come back.

Then there's the running. I'm shocked to say, I actually started to like it. I even planned to run a 5K on Memorial Day. Eventually, I got a little muscle pull in my left quad which I continued to run with. It turned into a hip flexor pull and hurt so much it was waking me up in the night. So I stopped running for two weeks in order to let it heal. I want to feel good when I run and it was getting more and more painful every day. So, since I wouldn't be running away from my butt and regularly listening to my motivational break up music, I needed a plan. I'm a little more than halfway to my GREAT REWARD and I refuse to stop now. I also noticed that even though I was losing weight, I wasn't necessarily losing all fat. I want to get leaner so I started doing some research. EVERYTHING I read about cutting fat said you had to cut carbs. My worst nightmare. I love carbs. I love sugar. I love bread, pasta, dessert. But...that butt...I had to try something drastic.

After two days I was completely miserable. Tired, hungry, and not sure it was even working. You can eat all the meat and lean proteins you want but last night I couldn't even finish my grilled chicken breast. You can even have one of my favorite things, cheese. But woman cannot live on cheese alone. I was starting to think I could just find a way to settle for that butt. Forget the cookies and bread, I have never thought a banana sounded so good. Well, after one week of torture, I do think it might be working. I haven't weighed myself yet so we'll see but I'm willing to stick it out a little longer at this point. I will, however, be visiting my stepdad this weekend in Miami. That could be a challenge. That butt may be lurking around every corner.

With my reward in sight I keep pressing on. I started running again yesterday and the pain is back but I'm not quitting until I get to the end. I get through it by dreaming of one more thing. When I reach my goal weight I have a special day planned for myself. A day of gluttony. Is that bad? It probably is. Kind of like a one night stand with my old butt. But in my mind right now I see myself eating out three meals and baking all day. I'm making a mental list of all the indulgences.

Pancake Pantry for breakfast (Sausage and Cheese omelet with a side of pancakes)
Pizza for lunch (any pizza will do, never met a pizza I didn't like)
Mexican for dinner (again, not too picky here)

And then the sweets
Chocolate chip cookies, Caramel cake, Brownies, Blondies, Homemade ice cream, Chocolate covered strawberries (heck, chocolate covered anything), Donuts, I want it ALL!

Wow, suddenly I have visions of Veruca on Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and some giant golden eggs. Truth is, I'll probably feel sick by lunchtime and that will be the end of it. Anyway, I just want one long cheat day and then back to eating like a normal person. Back to moderation and maintenance. Back to sanity and satisfaction. Here's to kissing that butt goodbye and cashing in on my great reward!

Has anyone else out there tried the no carb thing? Did it work? How did you feel? What did you eat? What are you indulgences?

We're Breaking Up

I was walking/running last night and I have to admit that it is getting a little better. A little. For the most part I still don’t enjoy it but I do have to admit that it burns more calories much faster. I loaded my iPod with what I thought would inspire me to keep going and it seems to help. Here’s my running playlist.

Queen – We Will Rock You

Survivor – Eye of the Tiger

Kelly Clarkson – Since You Been Gone

Destiny’s Child – Survivor

Christina Aguilera – Fighter

Britney Spears – Hit Me Baby One More Time

NSync – It’s Gonna Be Me

Backstreet Boys – Bye Bye Bye

Pat Benetar – Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Gloria Gaynor - I Will Survive

Heart – Never

Indigo Girls – Midnight Train to Georgia

KC and the Sunshine Band – Boogie Shoes

Elton John – Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me

I know, it’s not very spiritual. Somehow praise music has the opposite effect on me. It makes me want to stop in my tracks. I’m one of those people who can barely sing in church because I just cry the whole time. But I realized while I was running last night that I have a lot of angry breakup music in the lineup. I’m not sure why this music pumps me up so much. I mean there’s a little bit of fun stuff but what’s the deal with the breakup songs? And then I realized.

It’s over. We’re done for good. I’m breaking up with my big butt. I have broken up with my big butt before only to reunite with it again a few months later. It always lured me back with sugary sweets and fatty fried foods and I just haven’t seemed to be able to get it out of my life for good. Well, it’s done me wrong long enough. I’m mad and I’m breaking things off for the last time. I even wrote it a Dear John letter.

Dear Big Butt,
I know we’ve been together a long time. We know each other so well but there’s never really been love between us. In fact, I've never loved you and I never will. You make me unhappy. You make me feel bad about myself. You’re weighing me down. And this time I’m serious. Don’t come around anymore because I’m not taking you back. You need to just go and take all your fat pants with you. No one likes you. Your dimples haven’t been cute since I was about 3 years old. There’s no room for you here anymore so please quit following me around. You’re not the butt God intends for me to spend my life with so I’m breaking up with you. Goodbye.

P.S. Leave my friends and family alone too because they don’t want anything to do with you either.

So, what’s in your iPod lineup?

Running the Race

I ran today. A little. (Right now my sister Holly is picking herself up off the floor) I hate to run. I don't know what it is. When I run, all I can think about is when I can stop. A couple of years ago my sister Holly and my mom decided to come to Nashville and run the Music City Half Marathon. Holly called me one night all excited with a BRILLIANT idea. "Music city marathon...blah, blah, blah...thought it would be great if we ran as a family." My response? "Hell no. Holly, I don't even want to run down to the mailbox much less a half marathon." I know that's not very christian but that is exactly what I said. I know her. She envisioned us all running side by side, wearing matching T-shirts, smiling ear to ear the whole way, and crossing the finish line with hands clasped together and held high while everyone took pictures. I envisioned getting 3/10 of a mile into it and desperately needing a port-a-potty. I envisioned the effort it would take to figure out ahead of time where all the water stands would be because heaven knows...I would be visiting all of them. I envisioned me humiliating myself and wanting to DIE. But...today was just so beautiful it made me want to run. A little.

My dad loves to exercise but he doesn't like to run either. Years ago, when he was the Georgia state director for FCA, they asked him to run in the Peachtree Road Race. Thousands of people run in the race every year. Somehow he way underestimated the whole miles/kilometers conversion and thought he could just show up and run. Well, just as I envisioned, he had to stop at every water stand along the way.

There were all kinds of people running the race. One guy ran in a tuxedo. To my dad's utter humiliation, about halfway through the race, two people in full-blown chicken costumes blew past him. But of all the people running the race, it was clear that those who were interested in running well and even winning weren't wearing tuxedos or chicken outfits. They had stripped themselves of anything that might hinder them from running their best.

I can't help but think of Hebrews 12:1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us
throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let
us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

The word that is translated as "everything that hinders" literally means a mass or weight. It was a word used to describe how an athlete would ready himself for action by removing excess weight or even excess clothing. Notice the verse says, "everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles..." These weights may not be sins. There's nothing wrong with tuxedos and chicken suits...but they aren't made for running. What are the weights that you may be carrying that may hinder you from running the race marked out for you? Too many commitments to too many things? Preconceived ideas? A relationship? Guilt? Unforgiveness?

Greg LaMond, two time Tour de France winner was once interviewed about his training and was asked whether or not he lifted weights with his upper body. He said no because he didn't want any more weight on his body than was absolutely necessary to pump his bicycle at the level he wanted. He said that if he got on the scale in the morning and was one pound over the weight he knew he needed to be, he was horrified until he lost the pound. If only we could look at our own hearts and feel horrified over the extra weights we are carrying. If only we were so concerned about removing the things that hinder our relationship with Christ.

One last note, Greg LaMond said that he usually wouldn't notice the extra weight...until he reached the mountains.