Really? Brad Pitt turns FIFTY today?  There’s just no way.  There is no way that Brad, the man whose Legends of the Fall poster I had hanging in my college dorm room, is now old enough to need yearly prostate exams.  The saying “time waits for no man” could not be truer.  It doesn’t wait for Brad Pitt and it hasn’t‘ waited for me.  I’m not saying I’m old, but I’m getting there.

• I have a son who is about turn eight years old who has no idea who any of my favorite bands are and has no idea who half of the characters from Sesame Street are.
  
• My husband and I get excited about things like cheaper health insurance premiums and can actually carry on a fairly lengthy conversation about it.
  
• It’s fairly common that when I find one of my loose hairs that have fallen out, it is grey.
  
• When buying new clothes, I actually take durability into account.  My mom’s words ring in my ears as I shop…”Look for things that are polyester/cotton - they don’t wrinkle.”
  
• Lowering my blood pressure and making my back and knees feel better are more motivating reasons to lose weight than fitting into a cute outfit (really, how many polyester/cotton outfits are really that cute anyway?).
  

I could keep going but I’m sure you get the idea. Time really does just seem to pass faster the older I get.  It’s like life is a ball tumbling downhill and gaining momentum as it rolls.  I’d like to be able to throw the brakes on and regroup but there’s no time for that…the ball can’t be slowed down.

The time to get things done is now.  I can’t put off getting healthy forever. People my age die sometimes. People my age get diagnosed with heart disease and diabetes. People my age have bodies that are beginning to reap the consequences of the past.

Whether it by physically, spiritually, or mentally - now is the time to get yourself right.  Because if JD from Thelma and Louise is just five years out from being able to order off of the Bob Evans senior menu, all of you young whipper-snappers out there aren’t too far behind.

I googled “what weighs 16 pounds” and the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is one of the first things that pulled up.

Yesterday was the weigh-in for week 2.  Total pounds lost - 16.

Even though I KNOW that 16 pounds is a fantastic amount of weight to lose in two weeks, my brain still tries to convince me that 16 pounds is just a tiny, insignificant drop in the massively large bucket of weight that needs go.  So until next weigh in, every time I feel as if my progress isn’t significant, I will think about how much lighter I would feel if I had to carry that dog around all of the time and how thankful I would be to get to put it down (and by put it down, I don’t mean euthanize - I just mean literally setting it down). :-)

Maybe it’s not the most conventional motivator, but at this point we’ve got to do whatever works, right!?

When I quit smoking, it took several months before I could confidently say that I didn’t want a cigarette at any given moment.  Same was true when I regularly smoked marijuana or drank alcohol.  I didn’t succeed at quitting those things because my desire to have them went away, I succeeded because DESPITE the desires, I didn’t give in to what my body desperately wanted.

I need to accept that the same concept has to apply to food.  What I am seeing is that I was waiting on a magic solution that would take away my desire to eat mashed potatoes, ice cream, and pasta by the truck load.  Instead, what I need to focus on is being able to control and deny my flesh even when I don’t want to.

“Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master." Genesis 4:7

Today was the official one week weigh-in day.  I have been doing this low carb/low sugar thing for seven days now and am very happy to say that I have lost 12 pounds!  

I have one week left to go on Phase 1 (the most restrictive phase) and then I can slowly start adding in some whole grains and fruit.  I have definitely noticed a decrease in my cravings for carbs overall.  That’s not to say I don’t still want them.  The other day as I watched Micah eat a package of crackers at Subway, I almost tackled him for them.  It was strange because Quinton was eating a sub and it didn’t appeal to me at all.  That club cracker though - it was calling out to me.

It’s been a while since I’ve had results that I am satisfied with.  I realize 12 pounds a week is not a realistic weekly goal…but it is a great jumpstart for sure.

It’s nice to feel motivated again.

Today marks day five with no sugar or carbohydrates.  It's been difficult but honestly, not as torturous as I thought it would be.

I'm  hoping that this will really help to straighten out my insulin levels and cut down the cravings for bread and pasta that have plagued me for the past...oh, 30 years or so.

I, Rhonda Marcus, hereby renounce you, Spaghetti!

Reese's Cups, you no longer rule over me!

Long live romaine lettuce wraps and sugar free Jell-O!

I don’t have a whole lot to say today. I have rededicated myself to having healthier eating habits and would definitely appreciate your prayers.  

So far today I am doing well.  My sister and I have started a new way of eating and thinking that I hope will lend to success without having to obsessively monitor and focus on food.  I’ll probably have more to say about that later once we determine whether or not it works or not.

For now, here are two things I’ve recently heard from friends. They have stuck with me and I hope they make sense to you as well. 

• Now is the time:  “I keep saying I’m going to start eating healthier after Thanksgiving or after Christmas but then I realized that it makes more sense to just start now knowing that I may indulge for those one or two days than it does to indulge every day up until then.” (Quote from a friend)
  

• Temptation to overeat can be an effective spiritual attack.  A friend recently shared this from a book she read:  “Adam and Eve were tempted with food.  When Jesus was in the desert, Satan also tempted him with food.”  What makes me think he wouldn’t use the same tactic with me?  It definitely works to preoccupy my mind with things other than spiritual matters.
  

Like I said, not a whole lot to say. I have to get my typing fingers warmed up again as I hope to be writing a lot more soon.

Until then, eat well.