February 21, 2012

Good morning to all,

Thankful this morning for consistency in so many areas of my life: family, church, friendships, even my health. I know that some of you contact me regularly with "how do we overcome the boredom of eating lean proteins, fruits, and veggies?" Let's be honest - the answer lies within us. Creating new dishes, eating at a different restaurant, eating a different style of food are all venues for each of us to explore. I gotta admit - during the winter it's harder for me to be creative with the selections as the fruits and veggies are not as plentiful and fairly expensive, but keep exploring with color and texture at each meal. And, keep replacing those food cravings with cravings to take a walk, shop, redecorate your bathroom. The Bible teaches us that whatever people think about (all the time) is what they are. (paraphrase) I planned my meals the day before and spent all day thinking about those brownies I was making or the chicken I was frying. Food consumed the airwaves of my mind. I know you may not be like that - but food was what I thought about all the time.

I still think about food a lot, but now I am creating and reading and asking questions. In essence, I am fighting for my long-term health. I know that as quickly as I lost weight, I can start the mindset of relaxing the standard and I will find myself sick again. So I fight daily. I watched Robin Hood Prince of Thieves (for the 19th time) on Sunday :) and there is a line at the end of the movie that I love that the Moor makes to lead the simple people to victory, "IF you would be free men, then fight your way to victory." That always inspires me! Sometimes when I wonder if all this effort is sustainable and even practical, at that weak moment, I remind myself that the alternative is not pretty!

I would rather get bored with my food selection than be sick again. But when I start to see boredom creep in, I grab those thoughts and see myself healthy and 100 years old, smile, and eat that apple. Boredom is not more powerful than we are. Right?

Choose life and eat to live, PK