A Journey to Health

Like any journey, you stand at the beginning full of promise and hope. You think "I am going to do this, and nothing will stop me." Determination! Such a false friend. Unfortunately, my journey for "weight loss" has been a lifetime effort. I was never just a skinny girl. God made me shapely, and sometimes that "shape" got a little out of hand. From the time I hit 9th grade, I have had to purpose to stay thin and healthy. My body holds onto food like it is a life raft in stormy seas. I had to learn at an early age what to eat, how much to move, and how to really view "health." I struggled. My senior year, in an attempt to look absolutely stunning in my prom dress, I lost a shocking 20 pounds in less than 6 weeks because of some terrible eating choices. I even found myself lying to family when they asked me what I had eaten during the day. Usually, the truth was that I had eaten a bag of fat free pretzels and drank about 4 gallons of water. That was it. I wrote a non-fiction piece in college about my eating issues called "The Fat That Isn't Really There." In it, I address the disconnect from what was reality and what I saw when I looked in the mirror. I liken it to someone putting on a fat suit...what I saw when I looked at myself was not an accurate representation of what was really there.

So, it is obvious that my view of heatlh was still distorted- back then "health" meant skinny and only skinny.

Well, since I have now had two babies...needless to say, my body is in a whole new realm of "what the crap is that?" Mamas, you know what I mean. Doesn't it sometimes feel like our bodies are a puzzle and after kids, we have a few extra pieces that just mess the whole thing up? But, it is worth it, obviously!!!




Gained 45 pounds this time!!! So far, I have lost 29 of those.


At first, after Maddy was born, I was daunted by the idea of losing the 40+ pounds I had gained with her. I struggled devilishly with emotional ups and downs, as not only was I a new mom, Chris and I had just found ourselves in a terrifying financial situation. So, my eating actually got worse for about 8 months after she was born. Then, in 2010, when our church embarked on the Daniel Fast journey, I realized how good it felt to put food that MEANS something into my body. Food that had a purpose, that worked with my body to produce energy and vitality. I lost 11 pounds on the Daniel Fast without even thinking about it. I wasn't trying to lose weight, but to join my church in a movement of prayer and purpose. Voila! 11 pounds gone, and I felt like a new person.

Then, friends introduced my family to the Leptin Diet by Byron Richards. The book made such sense that my parents, sister, and I all started to put the principles into action. My dad dropped weight like he was on fire. He saw a significant decrease in his blood pressure and LDLs. I experienced significant weight loss, but also relief from my chronic neck pain. It was amazing. And the best part, it was simple.

So, here I am, another baby has left his beautiful marks on my body. Another pregnancy has wrecked my kidneys. Yet, emotionally, I am in such a good place. I feel like a much stronger person this time...and I do not feel fearful of this journey that I am on...this journey to health. It is not a journey to thin...or a journey to a bikini. I want to be healthy in the sense that I have energy to handle my two awesome kids and still have some left over at the end of the day for my precious husband. I want to be strong...I want my body to move surefootedly. I want to be able to show, not teach, my kids about health and fitness. I put the best foods I can in front of Maddy to eat....not a nazi about it, but I do try to teach her healthy eating and I plan to model that behavior.

So, because of all of this, I have decided to share some of my experiences with you. If you care, follow along. I will offer tips, opinions, emotions, and fears. My hope is that all of you who are starting on the same journey can find encouragement here and that we may be a cheering section for one another.

This journey is not just for weight loss...it is for health...by following Byron's studies of the hormone Leptin, the body can be restored to a balanced state, eliminating inflammation and chronic pain, stave off disease, and ultimately- get back to the weight your body needs.


To catch you up on Leptin, please check out my blogs from 2010. I will add updated info, but these will get you started:

http://sweetlemonsqueezed.blogspot.com/2010/05/my-friend-leptin.html
http://sweetlemonsqueezed.blogspot.com/2010/05/my-relationship-with-leptin.html
http://sweetlemonsqueezed.blogspot.com/2010/05/leptin-licious.html

Please consider buying the book too, though!!  http://tinyurl.com/3zl4g8b

Here's to health!!