Dream a little thin dream of me....

There's no way I can pretend this all happened by diet alone.

I had to get my mind right. Saying "I need to lose weight." told myself exactly that--that I was fat. And, fat I remained as long as I took that attitude.

The Bible says that the tongue has the power of life and death. (Proverbs 18:21) It wasn't until I harnessed the power of my tongue that I became fertile for the change enabled through weight loss.

I started a private journal many months ago where I wrote descriptive paragraphs about how my appearance was changing. As I wrote, I put my mind into the experience of feeling slim, looking slim and the sense of well-being I would gain by making a transformation. (Shucks, I tried to post a picture of a page, but it turned out all blurry.)

I wrote about how if I could lose weight, I could do anything.

I wrote about wearing a size six, wearing a certain type of top to go with a certain type of pants.

I wrote about walking long ways with my dog and feeling the power of change.

I wrote about being successful at my endeavors. I did it daily.

I prayed while I wrote and I wrote while I prayed to God to give me the wisdom and strength of the power of a positive tongue and words.

The more I wrote, the more my subconscious mind took over and I was empowered to eat less, seek support through forums and to find healthy solutions to change my life.

That was last February (2/07). I joined an email support group of individuals who also needed to lose. My journaling and dreaming slipped off as I began to write some of these things to them. My last entry into my journal is in October of 2007. By that time I had a powerful momentum built up and was full steam ahead in positive thinking, positive writing and posting images of myself. And, then there was this blog where I began to share things I thought would (1) help others and (2) continue to enhance my own experience.

Through it all there were two keys:
-Constant thinking about success and
-Positive imaging through words of how I would look at the end of my journey.

If reducing your weight has not been a successful endeavor for you, I would encourage you to stop thinking about dieting and start thinking about how you will look when you are thin.

Experience it through taking time to dream and express what successful weight loss will mean to you.

So far I have lost a solid fifty pounds. Possibly more. Once I instilled an image in my mind of where I was going, there was no stopping me. It took several months of weight reduction behaviors to see results in my clothing size and in the mirror. I am short and the weight loss was very slow.

Somewhere around the ninth month I began to see the success I had desired. I never stopped my thinking, healthy choosing and knowing that soon enough the difference would unfold.

If you can't get yourself into eating less or eating better right now, start dreaming...dream and dream and dream about being slim, healthy and energetic.

Tell yourself "I am going to be so healthy next year at this time. I am getting healthier by the day."

Say, "I will wear white shorts with a red top that shows my arms--they look great! I will have tanned legs, I will have bright red toenail polish on my toenails and enjoy wearing a size eight."

Feel it, feel it, it while you are writing.

Say, "I am so empowered by using my words to reach the success I wholeheartedly desire." (And feel it. Say it out loud.)

Say, "If I can lose weight, I can do anything I want to do." (And feel it.)

Dreaming is a process that you develop. If you are overweight, your dreams may have all gotten lost in the Zinger wrappers and ice cream cartons tossed in the garbage. Mine did. Make new dreams and write them down.

Do it daily. Protect your journaling and dreaming time. Soak it up. Follow the subtle hints of your mind when you dream. You'll find yourself rejecting improper food mentally...act on it. Reject it. Let your dreams send you to purchase an Atkins book, or to join Weight Watchers. Let your dreams motivate you to purchase exercise memberships...or just a pair of good shoes to walk in every day.

I'm dreaming a dream right now...that these words will empower you to be who you want to be.

Write, write and dream, dream. Feel the feelings of a thinner you...until you are on your way.

Doncha wish...

your girlfriend was a phreak - like - me....hm...hmmm....hmmm....doncha...ta...ta..ta..taaa...

Oh! Hi there. You caught me singing my theme song in my low carb battle to good health, wealth, beauty and power. Well, maybe not the three latter, but certainly the first: Health.

I have more energy and Jack LaLanne-type vitality than I have ever had. Okay, again I've lied...I am no Jack LaLanne but I plan to be when I am a little older and fitter.

Yesiree, I'll be over forty years old in September...didn't say HOW old, just that I'll be over forty. DON'T ever settle on obesity because you think you are too old to lose weight. This morning I talked at length to my sister about losing weight. She's getting geared up for doing it in the New Year. Here's my thoughts on it...even if obesity doesn't steal some years off your life it will surely steal some of the joy.

Who do you think is happier, the gal in black (18W), the gal in white (Size 16), or in blue (Size 14/16), or in the brown size 12 pants and blue flip-flops?

It can be done on Atkins, high fat intake, and plenty of protein, cottage cheese and veggies.

Forget the Magic Chicken Dance, er, Diet...forget the high-priced Kimmer Scam and buy an Atkins book. I got mine from Half-Priced Books here in Little City, Texas.

Eat healthy, cut out ALL the sugar, ALL the starches and eat like you love yourself. Plenty of protein, fat and low sugar/starch veggies. Get your carbs from carrot sticks, cottage cheese and other healthy foods that will not immediately turn into blood sugar.

In a year you'll be singing..."Doncha wish your girlfriend was a phreak like ME???" No, folks, I'm no phreak...just a happy post-menopausal gal with lots of energy, hope, and a week-long cruise next week.

Though the cruise came after the decision to lose weight...I think the singing woman in the blue flip-flops will have a lot more fun than the heavier ones pictured above.

Ketosis on, Garth!

For an eye-opener on the scam diets that will ruin your health, start here:

http://yustyucky.wordpress.com

http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/292/ripoff0292941.htm

http://www.3fatchicks.com/Diets/Diet_Articles/Kimkins:_Anatomy_of_a_Diet_Scam/

http://the-journey-on.blogspot.com/

Cream Cheese and Cherry Sweet Treat

Take two ounces of cream cheese and heat them up in the microwave for 15 seconds. Add a couple of drops of Almond Extract and lots of Equal; mix it up really good. Now, grab a sugar-free jello cup in Cherry flavor and dump it in. Mix well. 200 calories. Oh, so delightful.

No Title...just a quick thought

My life has been a rocky one in the last ten years, but I believe with all my heart that things are looking up more this year than they have for a long time. I have a lot of peace in my life, a lot of serenity and I care about things more than I have in a long time.

My husband, Gary, killed himself in 1999 the Sunday after Thanksgiving. His decision to do that has impacted my life profoundly. It takes many years to get past that kind of loss. There were other situations which were very disturbing and sad to me which happened almost simultaneously with my loss of Gary. I have been depressed a lot and I have kept to myself more than I like to admit. The good news is that the last few months I have begun to feel lonely and to desire finding people to really become good friends with again. I didn’t feel that way for so many years. I felt numb. I was in a new place when Gary died and then I chose to move to yet another new place because I couldn’t stay there and I couldn’t go home.

It was good to fade away from the thick of things. It was good to have my privacy because I was such a wreck. It was hard to be so isolated but it was a better solution than to be such a broken up mess of a woman in front of people I grew up around. In a larger town I could be heal without people feeling sorry for me. I had no idea it would take me so long to heal.

I am blogging tonight because I have felt a terrific pressure to get some of this off of my mind lately. So, perhaps as the holiday season approaches and I am reminded of a distant Sunday night after Thanksiving God’s gentle Spirit is pressing me to be release the last of the remnants of my loss.

I will never grow to my full potential until I am free to completely leave that era and move forward.

I hope it doesn't take me forty years...

Recently I've been spending time reviewing what the Bible says about the Holy Spirit starting in the Old Testament. I will share with you my thoughts on how that's become an inspiration to me with my own struggle with messiness and clutter.

(Context is, as I understand it, that God and Moses are on Mount Sinai and He is speaking to Moses about the construction of the Tabernacle, as well as in regard to Oholiab whom God has chosen to help Moses.)

Exodus 31:3 - "and I have filled him with the Spirit of
God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts..."

Repeated again in Exodus 31:6 - "Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab son
of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to help him. Also I have given skill to all
the craftsmen to make everything I have commanded you..."

Exodus
35:31-32 - "...and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability
and knowledge in all kinds of crafts --to cut and set stones, to work in wood
and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship, to make artistic designs
for work in gold, silver and bronze.

Exodus 35:35
He has filled them
with skill to do all kinds of work as craftsmen, designers, embroiderers in
blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers -- all of them master
craftsmen and designers.

So, the Bible tells us that these people were transformed into artisans in order to fulfill God's plan. I get a mental image of all these worn out, gripey people, feet hurting, no place to take a bath... wandering around in the desert, certainly not wanting to concentrate on anything except getting the heck out of there and God says, "Hey, Moses...I have a little project for your group."

How despondent and depressed that must have made Moses! These people had been making bricks from straw and mud for years. That was the extent of their talent...at this point they were really down and out; their circumstances were precarious at best...and now this?

As usual...God's response was:

"I will supply every bit of skill you need. Before we even get started you guys are going to be transformed into fine designers, master craftsmen and people of very fine taste.

My Spirit is FILLING YOU with every necessary talent. When I want a job done...all you need to do is show up. I'll take care of the rest."

As a struggling to recover cluttery-messy person, it seems almost hopeless that I'll ever reach a place outside of our personal deserts of chaotic crap where my space and stuff is under control...well...it does if I view it with human understanding.

But, when I revisit the power and ability of the Holy Spirit to transform people, I have faith and I am renewed with a sense that The Holy Spirit is ready, willing, and able to transform me into a woman of order and beauty. The very evidence of that renewal is my awareness that the Holy Spirit has begun to transform me by changing my outlook into one of optimism and possibility through the work of the Holy Spirit.

If the Holy Spirit filled those guys out in the desert with craftsmanship and artistic ability right down to the blue and purple cloth details, I know He is willing and able to fill me with all I need to have order, peace and beauty in my life.

All I need to do is to show up and be there welcoming the Holy Spirit's indwelling in me. He will take it from there.
--------------

I have now lost about 44 pounds. I give the credit for my transformation (and continued transformation with weight loss) to my faith in God and His desire and willingness to see me happy, healthy and full of a sense of personal accomplishment. No doubt the Holy Spirit has been with me without me really putting much of a priority on encouraging that relationship during this time. Now that I have my head on straight about drawing closer to our Lord's Holy Spirit, I look forward to the blessings of wisdom, peace and health far greater than before.

List of Every Verse Where the Bible Mentions "Spirit"**

**Note: Some of the verses in the list will not be relative to the HOLY Spirit, but contains reference to a different spiritual being. For information on how I generated this list, scroll to the bottom of the reference list of verses where I will explain my source.
__________________________________________________
Recently, I have become very interested in the character of the Holy Spirit and a deeper relationship with Him. It only seemed sensible that the first place to start was to get a mental picture of what exactly the Bible has to say about the Holy Spirit. So, I created a list and have been going verse by verse (I've made it through 2 Samuel, so far) to try and characterize the traits of the Holy Spirit in each particular verse or circumstance.

It's important to note that Genesis 1:2 tells us that The Spirit was there right from the beginning...hovering over the shapeless world protectively, being a part of the process of creation. My personal conclusion is that the world and its tangible existence came from The Spirit, or by a process devised by Divine spirtual beings a.k.a., The Holy Trinity. It stands to reason that since man came from a spiritual beginning, our flesh and blood human existence craves to have a relationship with The Spirit.

This is the path I am traveling this month, and if there are any places I find inspiring enough to blog about, I'll be posting. Without further editorializing I shall now move along and present the list. (Don't forget to check out the source of my references at the bottom of this blog entry--it's free.)

Gen 1:2
Gen 6:3
Gen 41:38
Gen 45:27
Ex 31:3
Ex 35:31
Num 11:17
Num 11:25
Num 11:26
Num 11:29
Num 14:24
Num 24:2
Num 27:18
Dt 2:30
Dt 34:9
Jud 3:10
Jud 6:34
Jud 9:23
Jud 11:29
Jud 13:25
Jud 14:6
Jud 14:19
Jud 15:14
1Sam 10:6
1Sam 10:10
1Sam 11:6
1Sam 16:13
1Sam 16:14
1Sam 16:15
1Sam 16:16
1Sam 16:23
1Sam 18:1
1Sam 18:10
1Sam 19:9
1Sam 19:20
1Sam 19:23
1Sam 28:8
1Sam 28:13
1Sam 30:6
2Sam 13:39
2Sam 23:2
1Ki 18:12
1Ki 22:21
1Ki 22:22
1Ki 22:23
1Ki 22:24
2Ki 2:9
2Ki 2:15
2Ki 2:16
2Ki 5:26
2Ki 19:7
1Chr 5:26
1Chr 12:18
1Chr 28:12
2Chr 15:1
2Chr 18:20
2Chr 18:21
2Chr 18:22
2Chr 18:23
2Chr 20:14
2Chr 24:20
Neh 9:20
Neh 9:30
Job 4:15
Job 6:4
Job 7:11
Job 10:12
Job 17:1
Job 26:4
Job 31:39
Job 32:8
Job 32:18
Job 33:4
Job 34:14
Ps 31:5
Ps 32:2
Ps 34:18
Ps 51:10
Ps 51:11
Ps 51:12
Ps 51:17
Ps 73:21
Ps 76:12
Ps 77:3
Ps 77:6
Ps 104:30
Ps 106:33
Ps 139:7
Ps 142:3
Ps 143:4
Ps 143:7
Ps 143:10
Ps 146:4
Prov 15:4
Prov 15:13
Prov 16:18
Prov 16:19
Prov 17:22
Prov 18:14
Prov 20:27
Prov 25:13
Prov 29:23
Eccl 3:21
Eccl 7:9
Eccl 12:7
Isa 4:4
Isa 11:2
Isa 19:14
Isa 26:9
Isa 28:6
Isa 29:24
Isa 30:1
Isa 31:3
Isa 32:15
Isa 34:16
Isa 37:7
Isa 38:16
Isa 42:1
Isa 44:3
Isa 48:16
Isa 54:6
Isa 57:15
Isa 57:16
Isa 59:21
Isa 61:1
Isa 61:3
Isa 63:10
Isa 63:11
Isa 63:14
Isa 65:14
Isa 66:2
Jer 51:1
Lam 1:16
Ezek 1:12
Ezek 1:20
Ezek 1:21
Ezek 2:2
Ezek 3:12
Ezek 3:14
Ezek 3:24
Ezek 8:3
Ezek 10:17
Ezek 11:1
Ezek 11:5
Ezek 11:19
Ezek 11:24
Ezek 13:3
Ezek 18:31
Ezek 21:7
Ezek 36:26
Ezek 36:27
Ezek 37:1
Ezek 37:14
Ezek 39:29
Ezek 43:5
Dan 4:8
Dan 4:9
Dan 4:18
Dan 5:11
Dan 5:14
Dan 7:15
Hos 4:12
Hos 5:4
Joel 2:28
Joel 2:29
Mic 2:7
Mic 3:8
Hag 1:14
Hag 2:5
Zech 4:6
Zech 6:8
Zech 7:12
Zech 12:1
Zech 12:10
Zech 13:2
Mal 2:15
Mal 2:16
Mt 1:18
Mt 1:20
Mt 3:11
Mt 3:16
Mt 4:1
Mt 5:3
Mt 10:20
Mt 12:18
Mt 12:28
Mt 12:31
Mt 12:32
Mt 12:43
Mt 22:43
Mt 26:41
Mt 27:50
Mt 28:19
Mk 1:8
Mk 1:10
Mk 1:12
Mk 1:23
Mk 1:26
Mk 2:8
Mk 3:29
Mk 3:30
Mk 5:2
Mk 5:8
Mk 7:25
Mk 9:17
Mk 9:18
Mk 9:20
Mk 9:25
Mk 9:26
Mk 12:36
Mk 13:11
Mk 14:38
Lk 1:15
Lk 1:17
Lk 1:35
Lk 1:41
Lk 1:47
Lk 1:67
Lk 1:80
Lk 2:25
Lk 2:26
Lk 2:27
Lk 3:16
Lk 3:22
Lk 4:1
Lk 4:14
Lk 4:18
Lk 4:33
Lk 8:29
Lk 8:55
Lk 9:39
Lk 9:42
Lk 10:21
Lk 11:13
Lk 11:24
Lk 12:10
Lk 12:12
Lk 13:11
Lk 23:46
Jn 1:32
Jn 1:33
Jn 3:5
Jn 3:6
Jn 3:8
Jn 3:34
Jn 4:23
Jn 4:24
Jn 6:63
Jn 7:39
Jn 11:33
Jn 13:21
Jn 14:17
Jn 14:26
Jn 15:26
Jn 16:13
Jn 16:15
Jn 19:30
Jn 20:22
Acts 1:2
Acts 1:5
Acts 1:8
Acts 1:16
Acts 2:4
Acts 2:17
Acts 2:18
Acts 2:33
Acts 2:38
Acts 4:8
Acts 4:25
Acts 4:31
Acts 5:3
Acts 5:9
Acts 5:32
Acts 6:3
Acts 6:5
Acts 6:10
Acts 7:51
Acts 7:55
Acts 7:59
Acts 8:15
Acts 8:16
Acts 8:17
Acts 8:18
Acts 8:19
Acts 8:29
Acts 8:39
Acts 9:17
Acts 9:31
Acts 10:19
Acts 10:38
Acts 10:44
Acts 10:45
Acts 10:47
Acts 11:12
Acts 11:15
Acts 11:16
Acts 11:24
Acts 11:28
Acts 13:2
Acts 13:4
Acts 13:9
Acts 13:52
Acts 15:8
Acts 15:28
Acts 16:6
Acts 16:7
Acts 16:16
Acts 16:18
Acts 19:2
Acts 19:6
Acts 19:15
Acts 19:16
Acts 20:22
Acts 20:23
Acts 20:28
Acts 21:4
Acts 21:11
Acts 23:9
Acts 28:25
Rom 1:4
Rom 2:29
Rom 5:5
Rom 7:6
Rom 8:2
Rom 8:4
Rom 8:5
Rom 8:6
Rom 8:9
Rom 8:10
Rom 8:11
Rom 8:13
Rom 8:14
Rom 8:15
Rom 8:16
Rom 8:23
Rom 8:26
Rom 8:27
Rom 9:1
Rom 11:8
Rom 14:17
Rom 15:5
Rom 15:13
Rom 15:16
Rom 15:19
Rom 15:30
1Cor 2:10
1Cor 2:11
1Cor 2:12
1Cor 2:13
1Cor 2:14
1Cor 3:16
1Cor 4:21
1Cor 5:3
1Cor 5:4
1Cor 5:5
1Cor 6:11
1Cor 6:17
1Cor 6:19
1Cor 7:34
1Cor 7:40
1Cor 12:3
1Cor 12:4
1Cor 12:7
1Cor 12:8
1Cor 12:9
1Cor 12:11
1Cor 12:13
1Cor 14:2
1Cor 14:14
1Cor 14:15
1Cor 14:16
1Cor 15:45
1Cor 16:18
2Cor 1:22
2Cor 3:3
2Cor 3:6
2Cor 3:8
2Cor 3:17
2Cor 3:18
2Cor 4:13
2Cor 5:5
2Cor 6:6
2Cor 7:1
2Cor 7:13
2Cor 11:4
2Cor 12:18
2Cor 13:14
Gal 3:2
Gal 3:3
Gal 3:5
Gal 3:14
Gal 4:6
Gal 4:29
Gal 5:5
Gal 5:16
Gal 5:17
Gal 5:18
Gal 5:22
Gal 5:25
Gal 6:8
Gal 6:18
Eph 1:13
Eph 1:17
Eph 2:2
Eph 2:18
Eph 2:22
Eph 3:5
Eph 3:16
Eph 4:3
Eph 4:4
Eph 4:30
Eph 5:18
Eph 6:17
Eph 6:18
Phil 1:19
Phil 1:27
Phil 2:1
Phil 2:2
Phil 3:3
Phil 4:23
Col 1:8
Col 2:5
1Th 1:5
1Th 1:6
1Th 4:8
1Th 5:23
2Th 2:13
1Tim 3:16
1Tim 4:1
2Tim 1:7
2Tim 1:14
2Tim 4:22
Ti 3:5
Phile 1:25
Heb 2:4
Heb 3:7
Heb 4:12
Heb 6:4
Heb 9:8
Heb 9:14
Heb 10:15
Heb 10:29
Jas 2:26
Jas 4:5
1Pet 1:2
1Pet 1:11
1Pet 1:12
1Pet 3:4
1Pet 3:18
1Pet 4:6
1Pet 4:14
2Pet 1:21
1Jn 3:24
1Jn 4:1
1Jn 4:2
1Jn 4:3
1Jn 4:6
1Jn 4:13
1Jn 5:6
1Jn 5:8
Jude 1:19
Jude 1:20
Rev 1:10
Rev 2:7
Rev 2:11
Rev 2:17
Rev 2:29
Rev 3:6
Rev 3:13
Rev 3:22
Rev 4:2
Rev 14:13
Rev 17:3
Rev 18:2
Rev 19:10
Rev 21:10
Rev 22:17

By using my Bible software, Theophilos I was able to quickly use the "Finder" tool to locate all instances of the word "spirit". You can download it for free here, but the catch is that the free version only comes with the KJV Bible. I have actually purchased the Theophilus Library CD. I bought it several years ago for $79.95 so that I could get the NIV Bible (my favorite) with it. I think it is a little less expensive for the deluxe model now.

I love bacon sandwiches. I just got through fixing myself several hunks of lettuce, slices of crispy bacon and mayo. It was good stuff.

Probably no weight lost this week but I am still on the downward slope. My mind is right to keep on keepin' on. Crazy...I've been craving broccoli with soy sauce and I am just trying not to eat too much of it (steamed, of course) so that I don't get stomach problems.

My friend/neighbor is at 232 and she's starting WWatchers today. She's gained 20 pounds while I have been losing. She said that today she realized that if she didn't get a grip TODAY that her next stop was 250. I told her consider herself already down by 18 pounds and to just start cheering herself on from that.

I also told her that I went six weeks at a time without weight loss at this point but that my method of staying the course was to remember that to choose to do nothing or to eat the "old" way and all you wanted from the wrong things would be to choose to NOT move away from unhappiness. To become happy just stay the course no matter what...never, never, never give in. The wrong foods didn't bring the desired results...change is imperative and necessary to achieve the desired results. To me it's all in how much I DON'T want to be unhappy with myself.

Changing anything takes a lot of thought control and a beginning in your mind followed by the actions which will develop the desired situation. I'm determined in this journey. I'm not going to stop even if it takes me another year to lose the next 20 pounds.

I eat healthy low carb. I don't starve myself. I don't feel deprived and I am able to stay on this diet day in and day out. It's become my nature...every day I move forward with the healthy way of eating is a day I am healthy longer...in which I get closer to my goal.

This is the problem with the Kimscam diet...I am talking about the diet discussed on the site http://kimkinsexposed.wordpress.com, the supposed quick weight loss is the big prize...and if you follow that diet along the way you lose your health and you cheat yourself out of learning persistance and perseverance....and while you are losing your health you are reinforcing that "quick fix" mentality with a diet that won't keep you healthy forever...and in fact, you might do serious damage to your heart.