Monday Moment - Finding Faith

I’m in that dangerous time frame with a big goal. I’m about five weeks into the process, and although I have seen progress, it has seemed agonizingly slow despite my absolute determination and exceptionally controlled behavior. The first blush of excitement has slipped into routine that my intellect calls positive habits and my emotion calls boring tedium! It’s a dangerous time!

I am still committed to my weight loss plan. And in the five or so weeks since I began counting every calorie and fat gram, I have sweated, strained, and managed to dispose of 5 unwanted pounds. Do you see what I mean when I say the progress has been agonizingly slow?

And I swear to you – and more importantly to myself – that my calorie intake has been well within my limit all but one day of those five weeks. And even on that day – my birthday when I did allow myself a small portion of chocolate cake – I only exceeded my limit by 200 calories. I know this because I still log all my food intake every day – tedious though that process is. My activity level has been high – I’ve increased my average to 333 minutes a week for those five weeks. And still, I’m not seeing the results I’d really like to see. It’s a dangerous time.

So I have to look for other results that are harder to see in the numbers that are reflected on the scale.

I made it a point last week to try on a few items of clothing that I don’t wear often – partly because they have been a tad on the uncomfortably tight side. And now, five pounds lighter, there’s no crimping at the waist, there’s no interruption in the line of the skirt against my hips, I don’t feel compelled to drag on the lycra or seeking out a longer jacket to feel comfortable and happy in these items. There’s a result that will keep me going for a few more days.

And in my annual visit with my doc on Friday, I found evidence of more results of my efforts – the kind that don’t show, but will make a big difference over the long haul. My blood pressure – genetically very good at a normal of 110/70 – had been creeping up to numbers I didn’t much like. It wasn’t alarmingly high at 130/80, but certainly high for me. On Friday my blood pressure read 120/64 which pleases me very much. Likewise my cholesterol levels improved since last year’s blood test. Again genetics have been on my side – along with a diet habitually lower in fat than many people eat. But last year, my total cholesterol level was higher than I like – 212. And this year it’s down to 177 with corresponding drops in my LDL levels! Hooray! These are also results that fuel my determination and give me faith that all my effort is not in vain.

I suspect that I’m not alone in my need for tangible results for my goals. In fact, I suspect that a big reason many of us give up on setting goals in the first place is the lack of faith that our goals will produce the results we want. The effort seems too big a gamble for such a potentially slim return – especially when our goals are intended to have long-term effects.

And yet, there are often positive off-shoots of our goals – even if they aren’t quite the results we were hoping for. I’m going to rely on – and look for – those off-shoots as I continue my quest to get back to my healthy weight. I’ll need to rely on everything at all – any tiny sign - that can give me faith as I plod my way through this dangerous time.

May you also find faith in the week ahead!

Sally