Kara

Back to Basics Healthy Habit Challenge. Habit #2 Week #2

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Hello, friends!

On January 1st, I launched the #backtobasics2015 challenge where we
would tackle a new healthy habit every 21 days. No more quick fixes or
10 day plans towards six pack abs.

Small, sustainable changes that will add up to change your life.

To read more about it, you can click here.

Last week, we started our SECOND Healthy Habit: MOVE YOUR BODY.

I gave you small challenges each day that would help you figure out your WHY, then gather some motivation and inspiration, and then gave you assignments to complete.

Now we are ready for week #2!

Just like last week, I’ll type below a full description of each day’s challenge, plus I’ll post a link to where you can go access a printable checklist for each day’s tasks. This will be a great way for you to stay caught up and on track.

And if you get behind? (Or are just now joining us) GRACE. Jump in where you are. This is about sustainable, lifelong change so it’s okay to take it at your own speed.


Day #8: January 29th:
Last week you started a motivation journal, you figured out
your “Why”, you wrote down quotes that inspired you to press on, your recorded
your goals for 2015 in this journey, and you wrote down your goals for this
week in regards to your physical activity. Today’s task: take those goals that
you wrote down and schedule time into your daily agenda to make them happen.

For example: If my goals were to get in 3 twenty minute workouts and to spend
10 minutes walking a day, it may look like this:
Thursday: Get up early to complete 20 minute workout #1. Use
RevelationWellness VIP-TV or other at-home workout option. Complete my walking
that evening during commercial breaks in my living room.
Friday: take half of my lunch break and walk around campus. If raining,
walk inside.
Saturday: While the kids watch their Saturday morning cartoons, get in
workout #2. Use one of the workouts on the Wellness Witness website or one from
Peak313.
Sunday: Family walk Sunday afternoon. SUPER BOWL SUNDAY!
Monday: Get up early to complete 20 minute workout #3. Park at the back
of the parking lot at work to get in five minutes of walking before work and
five minutes after.
Tuesday: Walk during lunch time. If raining, use the hallways.
Wednesday: Spend 10 minutes stretching and praying before bed.

Whatever your plan may look like, WRITE IT DOWN either in
your motivation journal or in your planner/calendar/agenda.

Day #9: January 30th:
Look at your planner/agenda/motivation journal. What did you schedule
for yourself to do today? MAKE IT HAPPEN. You’ve got this! Extra Credit: Post a
pic of your weekly schedule for us on the Facebook page!

Day #10: January 31st:

It’s Saturday. Spend some time today doing a physical activity that is fun.
Play basketball with your kids, have a dance party in your living room, go for
a swim if you have access to an indoor pool, ride a bike, etc. Physical
activity should NOT be something you have to suffer through. Find a type that
you love and do it for fun!

Day #11: February 1st:
Today is Superbowl Sunday, which means most likely means that you’re
going to be at a gathering with lots of delicious food to choose from. Best way
to get prepared before then?
1- drink your water! (Hello, healthy habit #1)
2- get in some exercise today or a nice, long walk
3- Pray- ask God to help you make wise choices that honor Him
4- Realize that this NOT the last chance in life that you will get to eat
delicious foods and so you don’t have to stuff them ALL in. Moderation is KEY
here.

Day #12: February 2nd:
Did you overindulge last night? If not, GREAT JOB! If so, GRACE! Start fresh
today. Don’t wait for another day or another week. Start fresh with your very
next food choice. And get back on track with your exercise plan for the day.
Look back at your motivation journal and see what you scheduled yourself to do
today. Also review your WHY and at least one of your motivational
quotes.

Day #13: February 3rd:
Physical activity can happen anywhere, at almost any time. Today, while
brushing your teeth, I want you to do some calf raises if you’re able. While
brushing your hair  do some squats. Now
drink your water and stick to your exercise plan for the day!

Day #14: February 4th:
Today I want you to explore some new forms of exercise that you may not have
tried before. Several great at-home options are listed here and here.
Do you do better in group settings? Spend some time looking at the group
exercises offerings at local gyms. Need the accountability of a partner? See if
there is someone in your neighborhood or at your workplace that may want to
partner up and walk together. This journey is SO much easier when attempted
together. If there isn’t anyone for you to team up with right now, it’s okay.
Know that God is with you and that you + GOD= the perfect team. Keep your eyes
on your WHY.

Branch out and try some new exercise forms or make plans to do so in the next
week. Speaking of next week, we enter into week 3 of this healthy habit
tomorrow, so go ahead now and write out your goals for the upcoming week in
your motivation journal and then add them to your planner/calendar.

And go check in on the Facebook page and tell me how week #2 went for you.

Here’s a photo of what your checklist will look like:

To access the printable word file, click HERE.

To access the printable PDF file, click HERE.

So proud of you all. KEEP PRESSING ON. YOU CAN DO THIS!

#backtobasics2015

I need you to not quit…

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This morning, a sweet friend posted a picture and some encouragement on a group page I’m a part of.

It was originally posted here, and it spoke so strongly to me that I wanted to share it with you.

This is what Andrea wrote:

“I
need you to not quit.” I was driving to work this morning, when this
statement rose up in my spirit. It surprised me a little because I
wasn’t thinking about quitting anything at the moment. But I heard the
Holy Spirit say it again, “I need you to not quit.” It wasn’t an ominous
statement or a sense of foreboding, but rather a charge. A loving,
don’t-give-up, don’t-throw-in-the-towel, don’t-get-discouraged, don’t-count-yourself-out, don’t-lose-sight-of-where-we’re-going
charge to stay the course. I know we all face times when we can get a
little discouraged. Maybe we messed up in some way. Maybe we get
overwhelmed. Maybe we start to feel a little burned out and we wonder if
what we’re doing is making a difference at all. Does anyone see? Does
anyone care? Does GOD see? Does He care? I can tell you this, it really
doesn’t matter if people see or not, but God most certainly sees your
labor of love, your diligence and faithfulness during seasons when you
feel like maybe your part doesn’t matter. And He most certainly cares…
He is so proud of you. I promise you, your part in God’s story matters.
And He is lovingly urging you, “I need you to not quit. I need you to
stay in the race. To stay the course. I have my eye on you, and I’m
right there with you in that bend in the road that seems so deserted, so
unseen, so seemingly unnecessary. What you don’t see is that around the
corner, I have something amazing prepared just for you, and it will be a
blessing and joy for you, a benefit to the kingdom, and it will bring
glory to My name, if you don’t quit now.” Friends, stay the course.
Don’t give up. If I could look you straight in the eye right now, I’d
say with every conviction in my being, “Don’t quit. We need you. And,
sweet one? The best is yet to come.” Love you… xoxo “So let’s not allow
ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a
good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.” Gal 6:9, MSG

—–

Beautiful, right? So that’s my challenge to you today. I need you to not quit.

Persevere, friend.

You’ve got this because He’s got you!

Monday Morning Motivation: FIX YOUR EYES

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Hey, friends! Happy Monday!

Here is this week’s Monday Morning
Motivation video. It’s based on something I was reminded of this weekend
by Alisa Keeton of Revelation Wellness at the Jesus at the Core Event
in Georgia. SO good.

Click the image below to watch it, or if you’re reading this as an email, click on the LINK below.

Love y’all! Praying for you and cheering you on!

Here’s the direct link for Email readers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS7ax4hrxns

Back to Basics Healthy Habits Challenge #2

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On January 1st, I launched the #backtobasics2015 challenge where we would tackle a new healthy habit every 21 days. No more quick fixes or 10 day plans towards six pack abs.

Small, sustainable changes that will add up to change your life.

To read more about it, you can click here.

Today, we start our SECOND Healthy Habit:

Back to Basics
Healthy Habit #2: MOVING YOUR BODY
For the past three weeks, we worked on our first healthyhabit: drinking water.
We talked about WHY our bodies need water, HOW to drink more water each day,
and strategies to keep you chugging your water daily.
Today, we add in our second habit: MOVING YOUR BODY.

Please don’t read that and then tune me out. 

This is not typical New Year’s Resolution talk of spending
hours in the gym or performing long cardio sessions or even a planning to run
your first 5K. What I am referring to here is essential for your health and
well-being and that is to MOVE YOUR BODY
daily, the way that God created it to move.
What I mean by that is this:
 There is no one right way.

For some of you, you may only be able to move your arms or tap your toes. Maybe
all you can do right now is to march in place, or for some of you much further
down this path you are used to running full marathons. Wherever you find
yourself right now, there is GRACE. There is also room for growth. 

Your body was made to
move. 
Regular physical activity is tied to better health, increased
longevity, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, decreased rates of cancer
and other diseases, increased energy and better quality of life. It’s also one
of those things that gets easier the more you do. 
Because we are trying to create lifelong, sustainable
change, we’re going to take this habit nice and slow. If you already regularly
exercise, you won’t have much to change so you can serve to cheer us on and
offer support. 
For those of us that are just getting started, I want you to
do this step by step, day by day.

TRUST THE PROCESS. 

We’re going to go a bit deeper with this habit, and start by
looking at our motivation and reasons for needing change.

To help you keep track of each day’s task, I’ve created a Printable file for you that you can use each day to CHECK OFF your progress (If you’d rather have a WORD file, you can access it here). A quick description is listed for each day’s task, but refer back to this post for the full information and assignment.

Here’s what the printable file looks like:

YOU CAN DO THIS and we’re in it together!

Day 1: January 22nd:
Get a blank notebook or journal. On the front of it, write
2015. Open up to the inside and on the first page write this:
My Why:

After those two words, I want you to stop and consider your motivation for why
you want to get healthier. See, if we only focus on the scale or a clothing
size, these changes you’re making will not last. Those factors alone are not
enough to keep you on a path towards lifelong health.
What WILL keep you going, is if you figure out your real WHY.

For me, my WHY consists of several factors.
These are things that keep me going when I’d rather quit.
Here are just a few that I’ve listed:
-To steward well the gift of health that God has given me.
-To make sure that I am physically able to go wherever God’s calling may take
me
-To do all that I can to be around to see my children grow up, get married, and
one day meet my grandchildren
-To be ready to serve and love my family well
-To encourage others
-To be an active participant in my life

Your reasons may be vastly different, or they may be the same. Either way, WRITE THEM DOWN.

Like right now. WRITE THEM DOWN.

You may be tempted to skip this step, but it will be
critical to your ability to stick with this months down the road.

WRITE IT DOWN, friends.

That’s it for today. Now go chug your water!

Day 2: January 23rd:
Get out the notebook that you started yesterday. This notebook is going to
become your motivation journal.

Read your “WHY” from yesterday. Add to it if there is anything different that
God has led you to add.

Then flip to page 2 and write down any motivational quotes or scriptures that
may help you persevere in this journey. These should be quotes that stir your
heart and help you stay motivated…ones that inspire you to continue when you’re
ready to quit.

Here are some examples to get you started:

Ps. 139: 14- I am fearfully and
wonderfully made.

My body is HIS temple and I am the Caretaker. Am I stewarding it well? (Based
on 1 Cor. 6:19)

“It’s not about the mirror, it’s about the One we are trying to mirror.” –Jimmy
Pena

I am called to present
my body as a LIVING, HOLY SACRIFICE acceptable to God. –Romans 12:10

“Our health–as a Believer in Christ–is so much more than what society says
it to be. For us–it is about stewardship. It is about obedience and full
submission, turning this gift of life and the tool (our bodies!) He uses to do
His work, back to Him…If it’s been a while since you’ve asked God what He may
want you to do in regards to your health, then I encourage you to do that. Just
like the areas of parenting, marriage, finances, schooling etc–it will look
different for each of us, but it’s our duty to ask, listen, and then
obey…” Quote from: ”Discipline: The Glad Surrender” by Elisabeth
Elliot. 

For more ideas, you can go HERE.

This page (or pages depending on how many you write down) will serve to
motivate you when you’re ready to quit. You can include pictures, quotes, clip
art, scripture doodles…whatever inspires you to press forward.

Once you’ve done this, if you’re brave enough, head over to the Facebook page
and post a picture of your page 2!

Day 3: January 24th:
So far you’ve looked at your WHY and you’ve written down some things
that make you feel inspired. Get our your motivation journal and read through
them.

Now today, I want you to flip to a new, blank page and write at the top: GOALS.

On this page, I want you to sit and dream with God for a few
minutes. Ask Him what His plans are for you in this journey. What does HE want
for you to accomplish? What are some things you hope to have learned or
mastered by December 31st, 2015? As you prayerfully consider these,
write them down in your motivation journal.

Once you’ve done that, drink a glass of water and then put on some comfortable
shoes. Your second task today: SPEND FIVE MINUTES WALKING. This can be marching
in place while watching television, walking laps around the inside of your
house, walking a lap or two around the outside of your home, or walking down
the street. However you have to do this, get it done today.

FIVE MINUTES is all
I’m asking. 

You can do this, friends. 
Day 4: January 25th:
Get out your motivation journal. Read through your WHY and your
motivational quotes page. Now choose a few of these and write them down on
notecards or sticky notes. Place one on your bathroom mirror, one on your
refrigerator, one on your food pantry and one in your car.

By placing truth in places that you will need to see it, you’re setting
yourself up for success in the future. Spend FIVE minutes today doing some sort
of physical activity. This could be walking in place again, walking outside,
stretching, riding a bicycle, etc. Find FIVE minutes and MOVE your body. This
will look different for everyone. Remember, it’s not about perfection, but
about imperfect progress. You can do this!

Day 5: January 26th:

Today, park your car in the furthest parking spot you can when at work, at the
store, or anywhere else you may go. With each extra step that you are having to
take, thank God for a body that can move and ask Him to help you move it for
His glory. 

Day 6: January 27th:
Your task for today: While you watch TV, for one entire television show
(30 minutes OR 1 hour show), use the commercial breaks to get up do some form
of physical activity. You can march in place, jog in place, do squats,
push-ups, sit ups, crunches, calf raises, jumping jacks, bicep curls, etc. Any time
the commercials start, begin your exercise. When the show comes back on, return
to your normal activity. Thank God for a body that can move.

Day 7: January 28th:

Flip to a new page in your motivation journal.

Write down: My exercise goals for this week:

and then put down what a reasonable goal for yourself might be. This is NOT the
place to go overboard and set unrealistic expectations such as: “Get up at 4:30
a.m. every day to complete a 10 mile run” or “go to the gym every night after
work for 90 minutes” if these aren’t things that you were already doing.
Remember, we’re asking God to help direct us in new ways of moving- ones that
are sustainable and ones that bring glory to Him. What can you reasonably do
this week that will inch you closer to your main goals for 2015. Write down
your plan for the upcoming week and the physical activity you hope to
accomplish.

Now go check in on the Facebook Page and let us know how week 1 went for you in
the #backtobasics2015 #moveyourbody habit #2. 

Monday Morning Motivation…you are ENOUGH.

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Each Monday morning I share a “Monday Morning Motivation” video on the Wellness Witness Facebook page.

In case you aren’t on facebook and wanted to see what I’m talking about today, I decided to post the video for you here, also.

If you’re reading this through an email browser, the above video may not work. You can click HERE to watch it.

In case you had any doubts, YOU are enough. Right now. As you are.

Week 3 of the #BacktoBasics Healthy Habits Challenge

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Last week, I wrote about the Back to Basics Healthy Habit Challenge. 

I asked you to join me in going about getting healthy a different way- a
sustainable way! I asked you to join me in learning a new healthy habit
every 21 days. As we master one, we will move on and add another. By
the end of 2015, we will have mastered 17 of them!

The first one was WATER. You can read the first week’s post here, and last week’s post here.

Today starts week three. You’re two weeks into this new year, and this new habit and I couldn’t be more proud of you! Several of you have posted over on the facebook page and say that this is getting easier. It will continue to get easier and easier if you stick with it (And your bathroom trips will become less frequent, too!)

Here are this week’s tasks:

Day 15 (Jan15) : Congratulations! You’re two weeks into mastering
this healthy habit! Remember, the goal is sustainable, life long change, so we
are taking it slow and steady. Focus on this one habit and then we will add in
another one next week.
Today’s task: Add in another 8 ounces which should bring you to a total of 64
ounces. A good suggestion on how to get this all down is to keep an eye on the
clock. At the top of the hour each hour, drink a cup of water. 9:00- stop and
drink 8 ounces. 10:00- do it again. 11:00- more water. Etc.

Day 16 (Jan 16): Last week we talked about Diet Drinks and Regular Soft drinks, now
let’s talk about other beverages that are sugar sweetened such as sweet tea.
In one large cup of McDonalds Sweet tea, there are 54 g of sugar. Remember from
last week that 4g are equal to 1 teaspoon, so in that large tea you’re
consuming 13.5 teaspoons of sugar!

In one Large Iced Mocha, there are 61g of sugar or OVER 15 teaspoons! Would you sit and consume 15 packets of sugar in one sitting? Of course not! So why are we drinking it?

If you typically drink sweet tea or sugar sweetened coffees, try reducing the
amount of sugar this week. Make it with 2/3 the amount of sugar or even half
the amount. Restaurants will give you half sweet tea/half unsweetened tea if
you ask. It may not be as good to you at first, but eventually you will get
used to it.
Now, drink your 64 ounces of water. 

Day 17 (Jan 17): Experiment with some flavor add-ins to your water.
By this I do NOT mean the artificially sweetened flavor drops as these have the
same negative side effects as we talked about on Day 12 with diet soft drinks.
Today try adding some lemon, lime, oranges or mint to your water. Some people
freeze ice cubes that have these items in them and add them to their water
bottles each day.
Drink your 64 ounces of water.
Day 18 (Jan 18):
Historically, we were all told that people need Eight 8-oz glasses of water a
day. We have since learned, that this ratio isn’t exactly right for all people.
Nutrition experts now recommend that you drink HALF your body weight in OUNCES
each day. So, if you weigh 180 pounds, ideally, your body needs 90 ounces of
water each day. If you weigh 200 points, you need 100 ounces. If you weigh 150,
you need 75.

Now don’t panic! If this seems like too much for you, don’t become overwhelmed
and quit. Keep drinking what you can and giving yourself some grace.
Get your 64 ounces down and then add in any extra that you can.

Day 19 (Jan 19):
When eating out, order water as your beverage if you don’t normally. At most
restaurants, drinks cost anywhere from $1.99 and higher. If you typically eat
out twice a week, you’re saving $4.00 per week or over $200 a YEAR!!!  Plus you’ll feel better.
Pocket the savings and put it towards a vacation fund or something fun!
Drink your 64 ounces plus!

Day 20 (Jan 20):
We are nearing the end of the first healthy habit challenge. Remember, the goal
is sustainable, life long change. Even if you aren’t there yet, trust me that
this whole water habit gets easier and will make you feel SO much better! Think
back to what we learned before starting Day 1- Those who drank at least five 8
oz glasses of water a day DECREASE their risk of heart disease by up to 60%.

This habit is one that will be critical to our health in all areas. DRINK UP.

Day 21 (Jan 21): You made it! We’re here at the end of our three weeks with Habit #1.
Drink your 64 ounces plus and then head over to the Wellness Witness Facebook
page and let us know how you did. Ready for Habit 2? We start tomorrow! Check
back for details!