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Monday, August 19, 2013

Losing to Gain....Who won?


Well honestly I've kinda put off writing this post. But inquiring minds keep asking so I will oblige as promised.

Some of y'all have been with us from the beginning of this journey.
Remember this?

It seems like a lifetime ago to me.  For so many reasons.
What started out as challenge that I wanted to win for selfish reasons has turned into something that means so much more to me than winning a beach trip.  So much more to me than looking nice in my mother of the bride dress.  So much more than being "skinny". 

When we embarked on this this journey we wanted a name to reflect what we were striving for...
losing to gain.  Losing weight in order to gain other virtues...feeling better about ourselves, getting healthy, self control, etc. etc. etc....

It sounded good and yes I knew those things were good but in the beginning what I really wanted most was to look better....to fit in my old clothes. To not look like I was 5 months pregnant.   To not have a double chin and chipmunk cheeks in every picture I  saw of myself.. All those things most ladies desire if we're honest. 

But somewhere along the way, my desires shifted. My aim changed. And my resolve grew stronger.
I don't know if it was the sobering fact of all the emails, texts and calls from y'all telling me y'all were inspired to join in and do the same  or if I was God working in my vain and prideful heart.  Probably both.  But I realized what a responsibility I had to make the right choices.  To take this serious.  That y'all were watching and ~gulp~ some of you were doing as we were. yikes.   Such a huge slap in my face that this is our everyday as believers...we should we living in such a way that others watch us and if they do what we do, it will lead them closer to Christ.   To be a "pattern" for others as Paul states in Philippians 3:17 and to able to boldly say "imitate me as I imitate Christ." Corinthians 11:1

With so many responses from y'all this became a huge wake up call of what I was doing with my sphere of influence I've been given.  And we all have one...you have one too.  It may be your pre-schoolers, or your co-workers or your spouse but someone is always watching us.  And they are  learning to do what we do in making choices and handling life.
So this went from a temporal competition with my girls, talking smack and all that stuff to a huge spiritual journey with eternal lessons for me.  
And for that,  I'm so grateful.

Losing to gain.

What I've lost:
28 pounds 
3 pant sizes
countless inches
 (I forgot to measure in the beginning.  bummer)

What I've gained:
self control!!
I became a RUNNER! 
I broke free from food bondage
(food is no longer what I turn to when I'm bored, depressed or happy.  
That is a whole other post in itself)
Discipline
Confidence
learned how to cook food that is delicious yet healthy
gosh....I could go on and on


It stopped being about winning the contest about 8 weeks in. I didn't really care about winning because as cliche as it sounds, I had already won. I've had personal food victories that wouldn't even make sense to y'all if I tried to explain it...But for me it was huge.  

Like discovering that I can say no to food and it not drive me crazy still desiring it.  But that I can also say yes to food and it not drive me crazy beating myself up that I ate it!  Discovering, as a dear friend put it so perfectly when she said to me,"learning that everything is permissible but not everything is beneficial." 

But enough of all my talk talk talk....I know y'all want to get down to the neety greety..
WHO won?!!


 Me!!
The 42 year old grandma beat the bride, the newlywed and the baby lady.



 The before pic  was taken the day we started on April 15th.
The after pic was taken about 3 weeks ago in a t-shirt that was designed and given to me by a sweet girl  about a year or so ago... but I could never fit in it to take a pic and thank her.  (victory!)
But Nick likes identical before and after pics.  So here's me in the same shirt almost 30 lbs lighter.


All three of my girls worked really hard during the challenge and we all had obstacles along the way. I 'm proud of all us.
 Lauren was nipping at my heels the entire time and she lost about 18 pounds.  I wish I could share pics of her face beaming the day we went to have her wedding gown fitted.  You will just have to wait to see her hard work on her wedding day.  Which is less than 3 weeks away!! Say What?!?!


As far as the beach trip.  I forfeited it for a new pair of expensive running shoes.
(71 was the number of miles I ran last month)

But don't feel sad for me because of no beach trip...
I have something even better coming up that I will tell you about soon.

Thank you to each and everyone of you who have cheered me and my girls on during this adventure.  I appreciate you from the bottom of my heart. 

For me, the adventure isn't over...
It's only just begun.


                                                                                              


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23 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh! Amazing! Congratulations! And congrats to all the girls for all the hard work! I can't believe the yellow tee shirt pic! So inspiring!

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  2. Congratulations!! So very inspiring!!

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  3. Wow! I was wondering how that's been going! Good for you for putting in the time and hard work and not only making changes on the scale, but in your lifestyle, too! It's awesome to see the transformation in the pictures- wow! I've got about the same amount to lose an you've inspired me to just DO IT! I love keeping up with you and your girls :) Such a sweet family :)

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  4. You are always beautiful, Stephanie! Congratulations on this amazing and blessed journey!

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  5. GO YOU Steph!!! :) you look amazing!! so proud of you! what an inspiration. LOVE!!

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  6. That is so awesome and you look incredibly AMAZING!!!
    Those lessons you learned--- wow, just wow. That's how God rolls right there.. teaching you lessons you didn't even know you'd learn. Love it!
    All of your girls are gorgeous and beautiful, whether they lost a lot or not. Your hearts are incredibly sweet! And so many of us are so blessed by your family!

    (((HUGS)))

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  7. amazing! i'm with nick! I like to see same clothes! Because that REALLY shows just HOW AMAZING YOU HAVE DONE! GIRL! You rocked it! Of course, the weight loss, but the gain in all the other areas is the most important, for sure. I can't wait to see how amazing Lauren looks at the wedding! I know she will be BEAUTIFUL! YOu are ALL beautiful, inside and out. IT's so fun following you all on IG and being 'part of the family' even though I'm not. Sweet sweet group of girls! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!!!!!

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  8. i'm so proud of you!
    the virtuous treasures that God has taught you along the way are so priceless, and the weight loss is just the cherry on top!
    xo

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  9. Girl I can't tell you how proud I am of you. Thirty pounds is major. Your family is such an inspiration!! Love youuuuuuu :-)

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  10. I found you from Carrisa's blog. Congratulations on your weight loss, but more importantly congrats on all you gain. Breaking free from food bondage is huge! You look wonderful. The identical before and after pictures are amazing!

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  11. You amazing woman, you!! And I'm proud of you for racking up the miles! I read something that said you get the same endorphins eating chocolate as you do running. So, whenever I want to chocolate binge, I run more. Always worth it. You go on girl!

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  12. Oh my!!! I teared up at this, sweet friend! I'm so PROUD OF YOU!!!!! I struggle so much with working out, running in particular. And have always said "I just am not a runner and that's that!" and that could still be, it may not be my forte BUT stories like yours show me it very well could be, if I just TRY. Here's a big giant squishy hug to ya, all the way from California! XOXOXO

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  13. As usual, you inspire me. Phenomenal job my friend!!!

    3 weeks...wow!!! I can't wait!!!
    xxO

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  14. So proud of you. I started the journey to health a yr ago January. I wanted to reduce my odds for Alzheimer's after watching my dad get so bad. I know what you mean. The looking good ended up being second to breaking the stronghold food had over me. I lost 45 lbs and I'm not going back! Congrats girl. You look fantastic! You book like a talk girl. I wish I were! 5'6" is shirt compared to two if my girls who are 5'9 and 5'10.

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  15. steph YOU LOOK ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. seriously.

    and all of a sudden i got a feeling you're coming to seattle instead of the beach. are you!? tell me tell me tell me tell me

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  16. Soo ridiculously proud of you and inspired by you, as usual!

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  17. you are inspiring. and i totally get it being about so much more than the actual weight loss. i love the way God uses things for all kinds of victories.

    you look amazing, AND more than that your heart sounds AMAZING in this journey.

    you glorify God in everything you do, stephanie!

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  18. So, so awesome! Way to go, Stephanie! I agree with Nick. The before and after pics of you wearing the same shirt tell a bit of your story so well!

    You are inspiring. Even in your weight loss journey you point to Jesus, bringing glory to Him! "What is more I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Him." This is so clearly seen in who you are!

    Love you, sweet lady!

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  19. Your losing to gain journey has been SO inspiring! I shared your blog with a friend of mine a couple weeks ago and we have found inspiration and motivation to get back on track health wise! Best of all is that verse. THAT verse is an eye opener for me!

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  20. You are Amazing Stephanie! I wish I could be more like you in my faith, as mom & wife.
    thanks for writing and sharing with us.

    Love u,
    Tina

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  21. I love how this changed you in so many ways. I easily forget that people are watching me too and that I really do have a responsibility to point them to Christ in the way I live my life. Wow, I needed that put back in front of my eyes. You are such an inspiration in so many ways Stephanie! So glad I found you in this great big internet world :)

    Best of luck as you prepare for the wedding! Can't wait to see the details later :)

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  22. Woo~to~the~hoo! You look amazing. I have let myself get a little flabby-er...thanks for the motivation to get healthy. For myself, hubs & the kids. You are an inspiration. Hattie

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