Just Enough

Good morning thick chicks! It's Small Business Saturday and I just walked 3.3 miles and ordinarily I should feel good about it. But I don't. Why? Inconsistency. I haven't written and neither have I worked out consistently in weeks. As you well know, if you're a faithful reader, I've done this pretty regularly. Start strong, lose momentum, fall off, but do just enough so that I don't actually quit. Yeah. I did that again. Only this time, it's different. Where I failed in this area, I've taken huge strides in others. Not going to go into any details, but just thought I'd drop in to tell you keep at it. Even if you do just enough, that's truly enough...for now.

ReBecca Theodore-Vachon's Plus Sized Essay

If you haven't already, this article is a must-read! 

To me it wasn't just a black or white issue, though that should be duly noted, but one of inclusion; 

as in don't forget about me. Bravo my dear sister. Bravo!

Komen Race for the Cure

So I didn't find out about the Komen Race for the Cure until last night. Woke up at 3:47am, prayed and listened to the Word until after 5am. Dozed off and woke up again at 7:52am; 8 minutes before the race. Knowing that I had no time to make it to starting line, neither did I intend to, I quickly put on my sneakers, left my hair in plaits, and got on the treadmill to virtually support the cause. Mind you I have a 5k on my Vision Board. But my intention is to jog a 5k. Didn't know that God would let me walk one this morning...virtually.

Yesterday, during the report, I heard a snippet of a speech keynote Eric Stonestreet give about the race that caught my attention. He said that it wasn't just about finding the cure, but managing the disease while still being able to live a productive life. That's what I'm talkin' 'bout. Because you can become cynical and think, 'After all these years and with all that money, y'all still haven't found a cure?' But as I've learned, God doesn't always heal in a moment. Sometimes the cure comes in the process of time.  

Healing Takes Time

Healing is not to be confused with the miraculous. A miracle is a supernatural event that happens in a moment of time. Again, healing oftentimes occurs in the process of time. Take the woman with the issue of blood. Matthew 9:19-22 says, ‘And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind Him, and touched the hem of His garment: For she said within herself, "If I may but touch His garment, I shall be whole." But Jesus turned Him about, and when He saw her, He said, Daughter, be of good comfort; [your] faith has made you whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.’ She could have been experiencing any number of things; from Hemorrhaging, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, infections in her pelvic organs which could have been caused by Sexually Transmitted Infections to Uterine Fibroids or cancer of the cervix, uterus, ovaries or vagina.  Whatever her condition, within a matter of minutes, what she’d been struggling with for twelve years, was gone instantly. But again, oftentimes, healing doesn’t happen that way.  

Though you can have both, a miraculous healing, it may not happen all at once. I don’t want to leave you with the impression that yours will. Neither do I want you to be discouraged if after reading this post you still experience symptoms. Because if you do, that doesn’t mean you’re not healed.  It just means that you are ‘a-wenting’. A term coined by one the greatest healing Evangelists of our time, the late Dr. Oral Roberts.  He used this term because in Luke 17:11-14, we find ten lepers. “…[Jesus]…met…ten men who were lepers…and they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”…So…He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.” Notice the lepers were healed…as they went.  

Recovery Mode  

As they went infers that they weren't cleansed on the spot. This is because their healing came in the process of time. And though immediate miracles do occur, more often than not, God will heal you through recovery. Right now, you may be in pain and/or experiencing symptoms. But that does not negate the fact that you're healed! You're simply in recovery mode which could take weeks, months, or even years. But until you receive the full manifestation of your healing, don't be fearful if the doctor's report doesn't change, and don't be discouraged if you still experience symptoms. Just remember to keep doing your job which is to believe, '...in Him whom [God] sent.' No matter the diagnosis and no matter the symptoms, you are healed. You're just in recovery mode.

Bro. Kenneth Copeland explains it this way. He said one day he asked God why it was that when he laid hands on some, they were instantly healed, while others walked away in the same condition. God spoke to his heart and said that, 'Healing always comes.' He assured Bro. Copeland that as long as he released his faith, whether they received it then or ten years later, healing would still be available whenever their faith level was ready to receive it. I know that to be true because I too am a Stage IV child cancer survivor. Though I lost my eye to Retinablastoma in 1976, I still have great vision today. When the specialists said that removing the tumor would either cause death, immobility or blindness, God honored the mustard seed faith of my grandmother and kept her grand baby alive. Though I've never supported Komen in the past, I am so thankful that I got to virtually do so today; via treadmill and prayer because I too am a cancer survivor. So thick chicks, no matter your weight or condition, know that God is a healer!

 Copyright 2018 © Real Issues Publishing®. All rights reserved

Temporarily Stopping My High-Intensity-For-a-Big-Girl-Workout

Hey. I mean hey there! I'm a little sheepish because I haven't posted since July 9th. Oh, I've been working out since then. But since that time, I slowly stopped my intensity. In fact, on August 1st, I'd gotten up to up to 2.393 miles and even got to 2.5 miles on August 3rd. 

Proof that ya girl was doin' her thing!

But since August 3rd, my workouts have slowly deteriorated. Though I didn't stop all together, because I kept walking to do my errands, but even that was down to a light stroll. I haven't actually worked, worked out since August 3rd. And for that my dear readers, I apologize. That the bad news.

The good news is that I stopped eating sugar and meat. I decided that September would be my NO month. So might be wondering how that's going. Well, I replaced the sugar with sugar free which means I bought some sugar free fruit and chocolate popsicles. Then I went vegan. NO, I'm not vegan, vegan; meaning, I still get my dairy on. But I haven't eaten any meat since August 31st. But get this, I hadn't really been working out since August 3rd and I started my NO month this month and guess how much I weigh? 220lbs! What? Yep! During the time I wasn't working out, which would have been part of July and all of August, I had gotten up to 235lbs. 2-3-5. So me doing this no sugar and no meat thing has gotten me down 15lbs - without exercise. I shouldn't say without working out because I did get my light stroll on 2 to 3 times a week. But 15 pounds. Man I feel like I'm a size 12 right now. But that's not why I'm writing today.

I'm writing to say don't quit. If you're like me you peak, stop, and have to repeat. Not anymore. The quitter in me is dead. I'm not going to quit fighting this battle of the bulge and neither should you. So what if you aren't doing your high intensity for a big-girl workout anymore. Do a so-what-I'm-thick-and-I'm finna walk slow on y'all boys workout instead. But again, don't quit. You've got time, just don't waste it condemning yourself. Just be sure to do one little thing regularly during those down moments when you want to quit. And remember, big or slim thick, you still rock.

Today's Workout after 46 days of down time!

 Copyright 2018 © Real Issues Ministries®. All rights reserved.

Celebrating 30 Seconds!

I know you can't see it,but I added 30 seconds to my workout today. 30 whole seconds! 

 #ayeayeaye

I know you might be thinking, 'So what?' But I've learned that you have to celebrate the small victories along the way. Even the tinny, tiny ones when it comes to working out. Remember in my post, 'No More Comin' Round That Mountain', that I mentioned how Joyce Meyer, bestselling Author and televangelist, said people are salty because they don't take the time to set goals and enjoy their small victories along the way; so they watch, hate and shade those that do. No, she didn't say it that way but that's the way I took it. Anywho...we have to take the time to celebrate one extra minute on the treadmill or thirty seconds of jogging because usually we celebrate when we see the before and after.

We've all been on the Gram and seen a before pic of a thick chick and was like, 'Wud? You go girl!' Then kept scrolling thinking, 'I wish that was me.' But it can be, if you'd start. Just start girl. And when you add an extra squat, rep or few seconds to your workout, celebrate it. Don't matter if folk think you're crazy or not. Quiet as it's kept, they think you special anyway because you're so thick. So why not give 'em something to be positively salty about? I'm telling you, this weight loss thing doesn't have to be as technical and scientific as most would make it out to be. Lose your weight your way. Just be sure to celebrate the little you's along the way. 

 Copyright 2018 © Real Issues Ministries®. All rights reserved.

Hypocritically Healthy

Yay me! I've lost about 6 lbs. To us thick girls, 6 lbs is like 16! I don't know how I'm doing it, other than I'm not eating as much as I used to. I guess it's portion control; only, I'm not really trying to control my portions. In that, its not deliberate...well maybe it is. But it's nothing elaborate. You know how they tell you to buy the containers and precook your meals for a week? Yeah, its NOTHING like that. I'm just not eating 2 or 3 chicken breasts at a time. Instead, I'm butterflying one and telling myself its the same. A part of me wants to feel guilty for sharing my good news because you might not be doing so well. And if you aren't, that's okay. Everybody falls off every now and then. You'll be back on your grind in a minute. Until then don't feel guilty. 

But I wanted to share with you an article I read in The Atlantic about 'Being Black in Anerica Can Be Hazardous to Your Health'. In it, Kiarra, a 27-year-old receptionist for Maryland Community Health Initiatives who was 200 pounds overweight brought up a point I think many struggle with. She said that she 'worried that if she lost too much weight, the other girls in the club would think she was a hypocrite1.' She'd 'founded a club for plus-size women called Beautiful Beyond Weight, with some of her best friends. The goal was to help overweight women feel better about themselves. They put on fashion shows that she described as “Beyoncé big, but on a Christina Aguilera budget2.” Her desire to not be hypocritical was one of the reasons she remained overweight. And if the truth be told, some of you do too.

It's like the stripper who wants to stop stripping but she's afraid to leave the life because she's not sure how she'll take care of herself. She feels God tugging on her heart, but she doesn't trust Him enough to walk away. That's what can happen in this plus-size world of ours. We get used to being overweight, sitting a certain way, looking how we look all while eating what we want to eat. Only we know we want to get fine. Besides that, we know its best for our health that we do. But some excuse it and stay fluffy because they're too comfortable with who they've become. But can I tell you something? You will always be a thick girl at heart even if you lose all that weight. You know why? Because that big girl will motivate you to stay fine and help other big girls get like you. 

We're not supposed to stay fat. That's not the goal. I'm not saying become a size 2 or 6, but get to a weight where you know you're where you want to be; even if that's a size 18 or 26. Your goals aren't everyone else's. But don't let theirs keep you trapped in a body that's ready to come out. 

 

 Copyright 2018 © Real Issues Ministries®. All rights reserved.

SOURCE: 

Khazan, Olga. “Being Black in America Can Be Hazardous to Your Health.” 

The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 21 June 2018