Let it Go! Live life beyond your wildest dreams.

Why is it so easy to see each others faults?  Why are we so focused on blame and others faults instead of supporting each other and trying to help?  All humans want the same thing; to be loved and accepted for who they are.  We want to be enough!  We want to enjoy life.  This time of year emotions are running high.  Everyone has their "IDEAL" scenario in their mind about what the ultimate celebration would look like. When things don't turn out the way we plan, and of course they can't always because that's not reality, then we start to have hurt feelings, be disappointed, and bad things start to happen. 
When we focus on others we are focusing on things we CANNOT control but when we ask, How can I help?  What can I do to make this situation better? What can I do different next time?  What lesson am I to learn from this? Then we can feel less helpless, less disappointed and more a part of the solution instead of the problem. 
This time of year is to celebrate Jesus' birthday.  He was born and died so that our sins would be forgiven.  We have been given grace.  We have been forgiven for ALL our sins and loved beyond anything we can imagine in our earthly bodies and yet we hesitate to offer this grace to others.  Have you ever done something and then immediately thought...why did I do that?  Why did I say that?  Or have you ever been really tired, annoyed, had a sick child, an argument with your spouse, etc. and then took it out on someone else because of your state of being at the time?  Yes! It happens to all of us.  We need to apologize immediately, ask for forgiveness and then do better next time.  We all need to extend the same grace we've been given to others.  I don't know about you but I have never PURPOSELY set out to hurt someone.  I don't do things on purpose that I know would upset someone or make them mad.  In our day to day encounters I find how people behave has less to do with me than it has to do with them.  Their own mood, experiences, and issues are what guides their behaviors, not mine.  Once we can realize that and disconnect from the emotions of the situation and just look at the behaviors the better able we become at dealing with whatever is happening in an objective, calm, understanding way.  I'm not saying that what is being said or done is okay or even right just that perhaps the person saying it is having issues, that you may never even know what the issue is, and they may need you to extend grace at that time.  I can already hear many of you saying oh that is unrealistic, ridiculous, impossible to do when someone is upset with you OR you don't know the situations I've been through with this person and what they've done to me and you're right I don't but I do know that NOTHING you do or say is going to change them so the only thing you have to work with is your part.  How you react, respond, etc. is up to you.  That is who you can control, PERIOD.  If you think you control any other human being you are wrong.  By extending grace to another who may not be in as good of a place as you at that moment you will actually be helping yourself.  You will feel better about the situation, you will give them pause for thought because eventually they will realize what happened and probably feel bad and maybe even apologize but even if that doesn't happen you will feel good about yourself and know that you did what you could do to make the situation better.  This is not a right or wrong issue.  As Dr. Phil (I don't like quoting him but I think this cuts to the Nitty Gritty so to speak) says Do you want to be right or do you want to be happy?
What we focus on and what we do on a daily basis is what we attract and what we experience.  Do you want more drama, pain, heartache, etc.?  Then keep trying to be right and win (by the way you will never truly win this way). Do you want to be a productive, positive force in your daily encounters that feels good about yourself and attracts more of the same?  Then extend grace in every situation, and love freely, quickly apologize for anything you need to and forgive just as quickly as you would want to be forgiven.  If you find yourself in more negative situations than positive ones then you need to look at what you are focusing on.  Just for today try to look ONLY for the good in each situation.  What am I suppose to learn?  How can I make a positive impact on someone's life?  As you have read this who's name has popped into your mind?  Do you need to forgive them? Apologize to them?  Ask forgiveness from them?  Extend grace to them?  Do it now!! You will be so glad that you did.
Don't be the one that holds back from offering grace becoming a bitter, angry person because the only one you will be hurting is yourself.  I guarantee that person isn't sitting around wasting time thinking about how they impacted you.  They are living their life most likely very happily so the only person you are hurting is you by holding on to the encounter.  Let it go, forgive and live a life of freedom with grace that has already been paid for by Jesus just for you!!!  Let your light shine, YOU ARE ENOUGH!!! God says so and he's already proven HIS love for you!
God Bless,
Nena

#getoffthescale #letitgo #forgiveness #weightloss #loseweight #grace #love

Excuses vs. Choices

What we tell ourselves has power.  Are you a person who has excuses for why things aren't the way you want them to be?  Excuses give us a reason to stay stuck where we are and not grow.  Excuses give us a reason to live a mediocre existence; status quo.  Excuses give us a reason to live a life of existing.  Have you ever heard someone give you an excuse for why they are successful? happy? I'm so successful because I just don't have enough time.  NOT 
Choices give us a life of possibilities.  Choices give us a life of excitement.  Choices give us a life of abundance.  Choices give us a life of hope.  Choices give us a life of opportunities beyond our wildest dreams.
I've lived on both sides of this issue and let me tell you living a life of choice is so much better than a life of excuses.
I spent many years living with excuses of why I couldn't lose weight.  I didn't have enough time to prepare the food.  I'm never home and it's hard to eat out and lose weight.  I'm busy with my children and I don't want them to feel deprived.  I don't have enough money to eat healthy.  I work full time and I'm exhausted when I get home.  My husband's ill.  I volunteer.  There are so many events and social functions I have to attend. I have a lot of pain and it's hard for me to eat well when I don't feel well. Diets don't work so why bother.  I'm sure in a few months this new diet will be proven bad for your health so I'll just wait. You name it I've said it to myself. I was so buried in excuses and negativity that I didn't even realize it.  You've heard that old saying "She/He can't see the forest for the trees".  Well that was me!  When you're living the life of excuses you don't even realize it because it is so comfortable and it keeps us from being accountable for our own decisions.  Life happens to us.  It is a victim role.  The negative, hopeless, defeating voices in our head keep us stuck in the excuses.  They feed all the excuses so we don't have to upset the cart so to speak.  But IMAGINE for one minute that you stopped the excuses and decided to make a choice, what if you decided right now to just be aware of the words that come out of your mouth for one day?  What if you wrote down all the negative things you say (or tell yourself) for just one day and then turned them around into a positive statement?  Oh! That's just silly if it were that easy everyone would do it!  Could become; I can make a choice to do one thing today to improve my life.
Just being aware of the lies we tell ourselves is a huge step toward making a positive change.  As Dr. Phil says "You can't change what you don't acknowledge." That is such a true statement because if you aren't aware of how you are sabotaging yourself you will never change.  When faced with lives daily challenges we all have a choice.  We can see the negative and make an excuse for why we are where we are or we can see the possibilities (positive) and make a choice to do something about it.  Life does not happen to us; we make excuses to stay in the negative, the despair, because it serves a purpose for us even if we don't like it.  It may get us sympathy, keep us from changing (which may be scary) or keep us from doing something that is taking us out of our comfort zone.  No one can make us a victim if we don't choose to be.  Think about people you know that have faced adversity much greater than anything you have ever known and they are positive, successful, happy, productive human beings that contribute to the world.  A few people come to mind for me:  Mattie, the little boy who inherited a rare and fatal neuromuscular disease called Dysautonomic Mitochondrial Myopathy.  He lived a very short life with this awful debilitating disease but he used his short life to impact millions of people.  He wrote poetry, was on Oprah and spread the message of PEACE being a real possibility in the world.  His foundation lives on to support the dream of peace.  There are people who are born without limbs, blind, deaf, or have other real handicaps, sexual and physical abuse victims, and yet go on to achieve greatness, live with positivity beyond comprehension.  It is a choice they make.  WE ALL HAVE A CHOICE.  Every choice we make determines the life we live.  To some this is overwhelming; to know that they are responsible for where they are today.  Especially if they have always blamed others.  In every situation we have choices no matter what is happening at the time.  Even if the only choice is to accept what is happening and make the best of it.  Do not let anyone or any situation take away your power to choose the life you want to live because the only one with the true power to do that is you.  When placed in a situation you have a choice to make an excuse or make a choice.  I finally chose to make a choice and it changed my life.  Getting rid of the excuses enabled me to release 134 pounds and GAVE ME A LIFE!  YOU CAN DO IT TO! No matter what excuses you are telling yourself now, no matter how old you are tell yourself:
I HAVE THE POWER to change one day at a time, one choice at a time.
Start today! Make it happen!  It is WORTH IT! YOU ARE WORTH IT!
God Bless,
Nena

 

I LOST 134 pounds in 12 months and have a passion to help others do the same!!

A little over two years ago I found myself in the kitchen of our summer cabin surrendering my life long weight problem to God.  "Dear God, I cannot do this on my own.  I have given up hope that I will be able to be thin and live a normal life.  I am begging you to help me find a way to stop my cravings and constant thoughts about food.  If you will help me I promise to make my life a blessing to others!"  A short time later my daughter approached me about something she found that she thought could help me.  I said NO.  Yes you read that correctly I said NO.  My daughter had never in her life asked me to lose weight, never mentioned dieting to me, and I had asked God to show me the way but when it was presented to me I said no.  I think many times we pray for answers and God provides them but we are not ready or not open to listening and we immediately say no.  Thank God he worked through my daughter for 4 months until I finally said ok I will try.  Not because I thought it would work but because I wanted to prove her wrong so she would quit trying to talk me into it.
I was very negative and lived in a world of doubt, fear, and shame.  I had been over weight since shortly after my parents divorced when I was almost 5 years old.  We moved several times and my mother remarried.  I didn't see my father a lot and there were issues.  Needless to say as a child I worked it out in my head that there was something very wrong with me and I must be unlovable.  If I were kinder, better behaved, prettier, thinner, etc. then people would like me.  Then being overweight provided a barrier from the pain and eventually I was invisible.  No one wants to ask the fat girl to do things or go places so I spent a lot of time in front of the television or alone eating. This facilitated the idea that I wasn't deserving of love or attention.  Then the voice in my head started telling me how worthless I was and how I couldn't do it.  No matter what "it" is because after all if you can't control your weight how can you be successful in anything else.  It made me angry at myself which made me lash out at others.  It's hard to get close to people and let them in (have any type of an intimate relationship with anyone) when you don't feel deserving and so I did and said things to push people away.  I didn't want to get close to people just to have them not like me, love me or even worse yet...leave me.  I can look back now and see where friends would mention they were going to be moving and I would start immediately shutting down and withdrawing from the friendship because I didn't want to have to deal with the pain of them moving when the time came.  It all sounds so crazy now but when you're living through it you don't see the situation for what it really is.  As I set down to write this post today I wanted to reach out to people who were where I was two years ago and was going to write an entirely different message than what has come to my mind but I have typed from my heart because I feel God is charting this course because someone needs to hear this and maybe I can reach that person and help them.  Perhaps it is you and if it is I am praying you will comment on this post or you will email me at nena@getoffthescale.com so I can contact you and help in any way I can.  Now I am going to finish with the message I was going to write when I first set down.  I have lost 134 pounds; I did do it in 12 months (8 months for 100 pounds); I did do it without exercise (although I do think it's better to exercise); I did do it at 50 years old when everyone says is the most difficult time to lose weight; I did do it without any cravings or struggle; and I have maintained my weight for 15 months now.  I have started helping others and a friend just told me last week it was the easiest 50 pound weight loss she has ever done.  If someone had told me two and a half years ago how simple this would be I would have called them a liar and thought they were crazy!  It has been a lot of working on my thought process and stopping the negative dialogue inside my head.  It has been a process but the rewards are so worth it.  I TRULY want to help others reach their goals.  I know I have been put on this journey to have the experience to be able to help others.  I encourage you to contact me if you would like to chat, seek help, ask questions, etc.  Please don't suffer in silence another day.  Life is worth living.  It is the best feeling to have renewed hope and passion! YOU ARE WORTH IT!  GOD DOES LOVE YOU! 
God Bless,
Nena
#getoffthescale #loseweight #weightloss #healthyat50 #lovinglife #GOD #teamfreedom 

Do you live in the past, the here and now, or the future?

Do you live in the past, the here and now, or the future?

Are you a person that longs for the good ole days?  High school, college, maybe even further back and miss everything about the past?  Or are you a person that thinks “oh when such in such happens then everything will fall into place and be great”.  That next raise, when my spouse does ____________, when my kids behave, or when they get a little older or move out of the house, when my in laws quit _________________, etc. 

Think about it.  Where do you spend most of your time?  Past, present, or future?

If you are living in the past or the future you are missing out on the MOST IMPORTANT PART of life…the PRESENT!  You cannot change the past, the future hasn’t happened yet and we are not promised the future.  We only have the present.  RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW.  How different would your present look if you only focused on right now?  Ask yourself…How different would my life look if I just focus on what is happening this very minute and making it the best it can be?  What can I do in this situation to make it positive?  How can I enjoy this time?  When we enjoy and treasure the little things in the here and now and learn to be present in the moment we honor those who are present with us and ourselves.  I find that the more I am present in the moment the better my past looks and the brighter my future becomes.  The little things I do TODAY, the choices I make now, are what have the greatest impact on my future.  When I was focusing on the future by saying “Well if I or when I get this weight off I will… or when I make more money I will… or when my husband stops… or after I graduate… or you get the idea.  Living outside of right now causes us to miss many important things that are happening right now and it keeps us frustrated, regretful, angry, fearful, unproductive, depressed, and most of all we miss out on life. 

For example:  How many times have you taken a phone call when you are with someone?  Perhaps your spouse or your children.  Many times it’s not an important call just someone wanting to chit chat but yet we talk because we have our cell with us always and don’t want to miss anything.  But what about your child that you could be having a conversation with or building a relationship?  What about when you’re with your spouse?  Do you take calls then too?  How important do your children and spouse feel when you ignore them to answer your phone?  How would you feel if your children or spouse did it to you?  Pretty soon they will quit trying to speak to you or develop that relationship because silently you are telling them that they are not as important as the person on the other end of the line. 

When you are going through your daily routine…STOP and think…what is happening right now?  What am I doing to help someone else?  How can I make this situation better?  What small contribution can I add to make the situation better?  Thank about what is happening right now and think about what you can do and what you have to be thankful or grateful for in this moment.  You will be AMAZED at how your life starts to change and how your family and friends react to you.  You will also be amazed at how light and free you feel.  GOD has great plans for you!  Please share anything you have tried that helps you stay focused on the present or anything you do to help others that also has helped your outlook.  Let’s help each other along this journey.

God Bless,

Nena

#getoffthescale #weightloss #loseweight #loseweightover50

He is strong when I am weakest

The spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Romans 8:26
Do you ever have those nagging doubts about your ability?  Areas of your life where you feel weak?  You go along for a while feeling strong, doing well, and then little doubts start coming in and making you feel weak...making you feel less than victorious, less than courageous, less than strong. 
My weak places frustrate me, at times I feel like I may never learn and keep doing it over and over again. Then I remember, with the power of Christ, all things can be made new and all broken things can be restored again. I get so tired of feeling weak.
Things can be going along so well, everything is working together and I feel strong, warm, and fuzzy all over and then all of a sudden someone (or something) comes along and snatches my soft, warm, cuddly blanket away!!  Leaving me cold, shivering, and shaking.  That is exactly what the weak places feel like.
What is your weak place...a temper? insecurities? a family dysfunction that is always simmering?  May I offer a word of hope in your weakness?  Whatever you are dealing with no matter how large or small know that God helps us in our weakness.  We do not know what we ought to pray for but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Romans 8:26
We don't have to have all the answers because He does.  It's okay to be so tired of our weak places that we run out of words to pray because we can lean on Him.  Look at all the Hope and encouragement He offers US:
There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  Romans 8:1
You, however, are not controlled by the sinful nature but by the Spirit.  Romans 8:9
If God is for us, who can be against us?  Romans 8:31
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loves us.  Romans 8:37

Perhaps we need to meditate or sit quietly today and try to figure things out without condemnation or the swirl of trying to figure things out.  Quiet knowing with absolute assurance that the Spirit helps us in our weakness.
He knows what to pray and he understands our weakness.  He has a purpose for our weak places.  Though it doesn't feel good, we can trust that good will come from it.  Romans 8:28  While we are quiet in our weakness God will give us hope; a glimmer of light that will over shadow our weakness.  Even the smallest drop of God's strength is more than enough to cover our frailties, our shortcomings, the places where we deem ourselves weak.  We will cast off that label...We ARE NOT weak.
 We are dependent on the only one powerful enough to help us.  The only only sufficient enough to cover us in grace throughout the process of growing stronger.  Our relationships, circumstances, willpower, and confidence may not be sufficient but God is sufficient, forever will be. 
Hear Him speak this promise straight to your heart: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9
Instead of wallowing in my weak place I chose to let the Spirit reveal the one positive step I can take today.  I will wash away the condemnation with the warmth of HIS grace.  I will receive His power.  I will rename the weakness my strong place. "For when I am weak, then I am strong."  2 Corinthians 12:10 
Dear God,
I am so grateful to know that when I am weak, You are strong.  Help me see the positive steps I can take to grow stronger in my weak places. 
In Jesus name, Amen.

Six Steps to SUCCESSFUL weight loss

Over the past couple of years as people have watched me successfully release 134 pounds I have had many ask me for help.  What's your secret?  How have you been able to get the weight off and now keep it off for a year.  As I think back and try to find ways to be truthful and encouraging at the same time I have found some things that I find will help you be more successful.  FIRST you MUST make a decision!  Decide that you are going to commit to this habit.  If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. Ecclesiastes 11:4 (LB)  Life happens.  There will always be a vacation, pot luck, dinner with friends, church social, wedding, birth, etc. to deal with.  Just because you want to lose weight the whole world isn't going to stop.  When you make the decision KNOW this and KNOW that you will have to plan for these happenings.  You are in control of your eating and you can make good choices and plan for events.  You can even EAT BEFORE you attend the event so that you are not hungry and therefore, eat less and can be more selective about what goes into your body.  Give yourself permission to be successful without worrying about what others might think of you.  Remember your opinion about you is the most important opinion.  SECOND make a declaration.  Announce your intentions and give your family or friends permission to check up on you.  This allows you to be held accountable.  You may need to let your family know that you don't need a food police but that you would like some words of encouragement and perhaps a kind word (code word) to remind you of your goals.  Ex: Perhaps instead of your spouse saying "I thought you weren't going to eat that any more." They could use a code word that you agree upon prior such as "thoughtful".  Then nothing else needs to be said it is just a reminder to us.  I find many times, especially in the beginning, we eat unconsciously.  I have put something in my mouth and started chewing and then realized, oh no I didn't want to eat this.  I have even been known to spit it out.  It seems strange to someone who hasn't struggled with obesity but it happens, especially in the beginning so a kind code word can help.  I also have found a huge RED flag is when someone tells me they don't want anyone to know what they are doing because it means they are already telling themselves that they can't do it; why should I think it will work this time it hasn't before and I don't want everyone knowing I failed again.  This type of thinking is self defeating and will keep you unsuccessful.  That is why it is so important to make the declaration, get people that will love and support you and CHANGE the negative self talk.  THIS IS WHAT WILL MAKE IT WORK THIS TIME!!  THIRD make a determination.  Don't allow any exceptions to knock you off track especially in the early stages.  Be mindful and stay focused especially the first few months because once you have habits in place it is easier to stay focused.  In the beginning if you are constantly breaking your plan you are sabotaging your plan and you are setting yourself up for failure.  Plan the day before for where you will be the next day at mealtime and have everything thought out and written down before it even happens.  It is so much easier to plan before you are hungry than in the heat of the moment!  Having said all of this I want to tell you that if you eat something you weren't planning to eat...THIS IS HUGE...DO NOT WASTE A MINUTE beating yourself up for it.  IT'S OVER...done...forget about it and move forward as if NOTHING happened.  Get right back on track and eat according to your plan.  The more you live in the past and beat yourself up the more YOU WILL STAY in the past.  You do NOT want to be in the past you want to be in the PRESENT!!  Living in the NOW and not in the PAST is what will make you successful.  FOURTH double up!! GET a partner for support and encouragement!!  This is the quickest way to succeed.  Two are better off than one, because together they can work more effectively.  If one of them falls down, the other can help him up.  Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 (GNB)  Fifth depend on God.  Rely on God's power to help you establish the habit of daily planning for success.  For the Spirit God has given us...fills us with power, love, and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7 (GNB)  SIXTH FORGIVE yourself.  Many of us are much quicker to forgive others than to forgive ourselves.  When you forgive yourself and live in the present you will find it much easier to make good choices and not self soothe with food.  YOU ARE SO WORTH IT!! 
I would love to encourage you to comment with any ideas that someone else may find helpful or ask any questions that we can help each other be successful.  Remember you are not alone in this journey.
God Bless,
Nena
#getoffthescale #weightloss #loseweight #stepstosuccess #sixstepstosuccessfulweightloss #forgiveness #successfulweightloss

Worry, doubt, fear, shame, guilt...devil in disguise!

Do you ever find yourself worrying about things you have no control over?  Maybe you fear the unknown or the outcome of a situation you have absolutely NO control over.  Do you doubt yourself when you make a decision and second guess yourself?  Do you carry around shame or guilt from the past; even after you have been forgiven?  I have great NEWS!! You are going to be so excited to find out you NEVER have to carry around these debilitating thoughts again.  Philippians 4:6-7 says...Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (NIV)  I tell you that worry, doubt, fear, shame, guilt and the other debilitating thoughts you experience are NOT from God they are of Satan.  Do not let Satan steal your joy!!  Stop immediately and pray for God to take control (he's in control already!).  Give it to God and then, here's the hard part, get out of His way and let HIM handle it.  Don't try to take it back and control the situation just step back and witness as HE leads.  He will not lead you where you don't need to go.  If we keep taking it back and getting in His way it takes Him longer to do His good work in you.  So if you're saying God why haven't you?  OR Why is it taking so long for you to answer my prayer?  Step back and take a good long look at yourself and ask yourself...When I gave it to God did I take it back?  Am I trying to control the situation?  Am I trying to manipulate the outcome I want?  If the answer to any of these questions is YES then you answered the previous question too.  That's the reason he hasn't been able to do the work in you and that's why it's taking Him so long.  You are preventing Him for doing the work in you by taking control. So for today are you willing to hand CONTROL over to God and then get out of His way and let Him do the work you are praying for?  He can't do it if you don't have FAITH in HIM and surrender control to HIM!
One thing that has helped me in this area (and I am not a Master by any means! Sometimes I have to give it back to HIM over and over again!! But at least now I KNOW what I need to do!) is to create a list of 10 things I am grateful (or thankful) for every day and speak them out loud to Him and give praise to Him for all he is doing in me.  I dare you to try it for 30 days and see what impact it has in your life.  Then comment below to help others.  If you do it already comment below to give others the courage to do it themselves and make a difference in someone's life.
God Bless,
Nena
#getoffthescale #weightloss #loseweight #inspiration #scripture #Philippians4:6-7 #praisegod #control #worry #doubt #fear #Satan #God #shame #guilt

Who do you Trust?

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.  Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV
These two verses are so easy to understand, comforting, and straight forward.  Trust God not your own understanding, acknowledge HIM always and He will show you the way.  It seems so simple and easy to do yet why do I struggle with this?  Every morning I get up, do my devotional, read scripture and recommit to this.  Each day great things are happening and I feel amazingly powerful and jubilant.  It is a fabulous state of being and then throughout the day I tend to let little doubts chip away at my trust in the LORD and remember old ways or baggage from my past and I start to lean on my own understanding instead of HIS.  This is when other doubts, fears, anger, worry, etc. start to creep in to steal my joy.  What I have started to do, that is really helping me, is to STOP as soon as I am aware of what I am doing and recite this verse back to myself and give my "issue" back to God and pray for Him to handle it.  I will admit that there are days when this is much harder to do than others; especially depending on if the issue involves someone close to me like one of my children or grandchildren.  I do know this:  every time I allow God to handle the situation, trust in Him and get out of His way the outcome is great.  It brings me a peace and comfort that I cannot express with words.  My prayer today is for all of us to put our Trust in the Lord and when we feel the need to try and do it alone we will STOP, PRAY for God to handle it and then Trust Him to take care of it for us.  Please let me know in the comments what happens when you apply this method or if you already have please offer encouragement to others by commenting today.
God Bless,
Nena 

Stop holding yourself back!

Many of us struggle to let go of the past.  Even when we are doing great, life is good, and we are enjoying our friends and family little doubts from the past start to creep in and chip away at our confidence.  I have been reflecting on this for a while now and something is speaking to me that I need to write on this subject; not sure if it is because someone else is also struggling and needs the encouragement or if it is that I need to make a public accounting to be able to move on or both!  I know it is Satan who is bringing in the doubt and I know it is God that is moving me to write. 
     This morning after my daily devotion time I was led to 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (NIV)  This tells me that God has already forgiven me my sins but yet I let Satan come in and cast doubt in that area of my life.  I cannot change the past, I cannot reap any benefit from dwelling on it but it can be a huge anchor holding me back from being who I am in Christ.  He forgave me when I confessed my sins to HIM so this is me doing this to myself (with Satan's help of course).  As I reflect on the past few days I realize I am letting someone else's journey and issues effect me and my walk.  And I wonder how many times we do that... Someone has an issue in their life and they lash out at me and because of the old insecurities I am quick to take it on and make it my own when in reality it has nothing to do with me.  Especially when they attack my character or someone I love and I want to show them that I am trustworthy, honest, caring, dependable, etc. (you name it) and I make their issues my own when in reality I had nothing to do with it.  God is telling me to stand strong in Him and know that He is with me.  Let it go and move on.  So today I am choosing to let go, give it over to God and let Him work on the other person's heart.  I may not know the outcome ever but I do know my heart, my intentions and that God has forgiven me of my past and I don't have to keep living in the past every time someone tries to throw their issues onto me.  I choose to hold on to 2 Corinthians 5:17 Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person.  The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (NLT)
What in your past are you holding onto that is preventing you from moving forward with your life?  I urge you to ask God and then to forgive yourself or someone else and move on.  What's waiting for you is a million times better than what you left behind.
God Bless,
Nena
#getoffthescale #freedom #Godisgreat #2Corinthians #1John #Christ

Surviving the hurt of childhood.

You know those silly surveys that pop up on facebook?  What decade should you live in?  What kind of animal were you in a previous life? etc...  I just took one and it came up that I am Unbelievably loving!  It was an eye opener to me because that's the way I feel on the inside but I wonder how many people who know me would say that because I have built up so many walls around my heart to keep from getting hurt.  My earliest memories are when I was 4, my parents separated, my dad was packing his things into the trunk of his car and I was standing out front by the car crying and begging him please don't leave, please don't go and him responding I have to go I don't have a choice.  Then, of course, the divorce wasn't friendly and my mom was constantly telling me how bad my father was and then when she was mad at me she would tell me "You're just like your father".  The message to me as a child, I'm sure my mother didn't mean it, but as a 4 year old child the message I got was that I wasn't loveable, I wasn't good enough, and so I started building walls around my heart to protect myself from the hurt.  As I grew up we moved every couple of years and it seemed every time I would get close to someone and let my guard down and think okay it's safe now and begin to love someone or care about them we would have to leave again.  When I was nine we left on a two week vacation from Texas to go with my mom and grandparents to California.  My mom was visiting a friend, my grandparents were visiting their siblings, and my brother, sister, and I were visiting our dad.  While we were in California my grandparents called my dad to tell him my mom had flown home to TX to get married, pack up all of our things and move to CA.  My grandparents came back and picked us up so that they could spend time with us before they had to go back to TX without us.  To say that leaving my grandparents was devastating would be an understatement. I had never lived away from my grandparents since I was old enough to remember and they took care of us everyday while my mom worked.  My grandparents, siblings, and I were all crying.  (My grandma told me years later that her and grandpa were so physically ill they had to keep stopping the entire way back to TX.)   We were going to live with my mom and her new husband that we had only met one time, on a Sunday afternoon for about 30 minutes at a bar where he was in a fist fight with another man.  We also never got to go back home and tell our friends, Aunts, Uncles, cousins or anyone else goodbye.  This was a life altering event in my life.  After only five months in CA there was a major earthquake that shook all of the dishes out of the cupboards and they broke all over the floor, the water erupted out of the diving pool, all the street lights were out, roads were cracked and the dam cracked.  As soon as my step father arrived home he said he was tired of the earth shaking and we were leaving.  We drove to Phoenix and he was able to get a job the next morning so we stayed.  I always cared very deeply for people but I stopped letting it show because I didn't want to be hurt.  I started hiding on the inside and used a tough exterior to keep people away and not let them get close enough to hurt me.  I developed a very sarcastic, judgmental, hard exterior just to cover up the hurt and the pain to keep myself from being hurt anymore than I already was.  Of course, having a boy I loved and cared very deeply about not love me back or feel the same way in return was what I had come to expect and figure that's how life is and that's the way it's always going to be.  Even after getting married and my husband not being capable of loving me the way I felt I needed to be loved wasn't a surprise.  But what I found and what I'm finding through my journey over the past two years while trying to come to terms with who I am because I've never felt on the inside the way people portray me on the outside is that I do care very deeply for people, I do love people, I do want them to succeed and I get my greatest joy in helping others and in lifting them up and showing them their true potential and that they really can do it.  Even at times when I don't believe in myself I do believe in others and their abilities.  Through this journey I am discovering the more I let go and the more I let God I am able to love others and I can actually tell them and it's not so much a reflection on me if they don't love me in return as it is on them. It is a very freeing feeling and I'm not completely there yet but I am getting closer and I feel that the true me is beginning to surface.  I have had periods of time in my life where someone has asked me what would you do if you won the lottery? Or what would make you happy?  And I honestly couldn't answer them because I had no idea.  I have spent so much time covering up who I really am and trying to be someone that people would want to love that I had no idea who I am.  I never thought about what would make me happy.  Now I'm starting to think about that and while I'm far from there yet I am to the point where I am more comfortable telling people that I care about them and what happens to them.  I'm trying to let all the hurt and ideas I learned along the way, that is now being called limiting beliefs, leave me so that I will be able to love people, care for them, and be able to tell them without fear of what they will think about me. So if I have hurt or offended you while trying to protect my heart I am truly sorry!  I didn't do it on purpose.  I will take unbelievably loving and be proud to share it with you.  I am no longer going to put a hard coating around my heart to protect it because I find I am very happy being authentic. 
Praise God,
Nena
#getoffthescale #weightloss #loseweight #childhood #weightlossjourney

Don't Worry About Anything...

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need and thank HIM for all He has done.  Then you will experience God's peace which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
~Philippians 4:6-7.

The past several months have been some of the best of my life.  I have been making many changes in my life and daily routine that have brought much peace and happiness.  I have been on top of the world and enjoying life.  Wow what an amazing feeling and how awesome it is!  Then I noticed a shift; not sure what happened...I tried to talk myself out of it, reason with myself, continued reading my Bible, praying to God asking that he reveal where I need to be to carry out HIS plan for my life and for Him to give me a burning desire to live out the plan He has for me.  I would like to tell you that I have it figured out!!  These past few weeks have been very challenging for me.  I found my job has been cut to half time, I've applied for other positions but not obtained full time employment yet, and then a colleague was killed while running one morning before work while training for a marathon.  She has a beautiful family; a husband and 4 children.  Her oldest daughter will be graduating from high school next week and going to college in the fall.  They had many plans and much life to look forward to and then in an instant it all changed.  It has left me feeling sad and melancholy but I have started looking at my little issues and thanking God that I have my family, I have a job, my husband, my children, grandchildren and many wonderful things to be grateful for.  I have been praying and praying for God to show me where I need to be and what he wants me to be doing.  I don't know what the answer is yet but today when I opened my computer this is the first thing I saw:
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need and thank HIM for all He has done.  Then you will experience God's peace which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
~Philippians 4:6-7.
It gave me a peace and let me know I need to quit worrying, give it to God and quit taking it back.  How many times do we pray, give HIM our troubles and then before he has time to do anything we take it back and start worrying again.  I will do little things I can and turn the control and trouble over to HIM which gives me peace.  I will praise HIM for how far he has brought me and be grateful for what I do have.  Today I chose to live in peace and faith knowing He loves me.  I pray you will do the same.
God Bless,
Nena

I am not a product of my circumstances, I am a product of my decisions!

Today's affirmation: I am not a product of my circumstances, I am a product of my decisions! When I read this today it made me think!  We spend a lot of time worrying and telling ourselves what we cannot do because of what has happened to us or what we are going through.  We say to ourselves I can't do that because _____________.  So in so is so lucky because they can _______________ but they don't understand the struggles I have.  In reality there is not one person on the planet that doesn't have struggles or a past that doesn't include some hardships.  The choices we make regarding the hardships are what define who we are and what we can do!  We can sit in the place of I can't change this, I can't deal with this, I can't do this because of ______________ OR we can turn it around and think I can __________.  For example:  I can't buy a gift for my spouse because I don't have any money.  What can I do?  I can make a card and tell them all the ways they make my life special or all the things I am grateful for.  I could make a coupon book with items such as: good for one free back massage, good for one free car wash, good for one night of cooking dinner, you get the idea.  Perhaps it's a friend: good for one free night of childcare, good for one hour of cleaning, etc.  You change the I can't into an I can.  It works with anything but one that I hear over and over is I can't afford it or we don't have the money to...What can you do today to help the future?  You could make your coffee at home instead of buying it, you could cook a meal instead of stopping and grabbing something to eat out, you could pack a lunch instead of buying, you could save the leftovers and prepare them tomorrow instead of throwing them away, you could cut up your fruits and vegetables and put them in containers as soon as you bring them into the house so that they are easy to eat and quick to use so they won't go bad, you can take good care of what you do purchase so that it lasts longer, you could polish your toe nails and get rid of your acrylic nails, stop buying cigarettes, soda, alcohol, walk, carpool, or take the bus instead of driving and save gas and the list goes on and on.  It's a shift in mind set.  Every time you have an I can't thought ask yourself What CAN I DO?  Then focus on what step you can take.  When you do this over time you will feel empowered and less in the depths of despair.  It is about doing it consistently not about changing everything in a week.  We tend to want everything to happen NOW or we feel it isn't working when in fact little changes over time become habits that last a lifetime and make a HUGE impact!!  Today I challenge you to stop yourself every time you have an I can't thought and replace it with an I CAN statement and then do it.  Please take three minutes to watch this video and then tell me about choices! This is an amazing man who has had to make some VERY difficult decisions in his life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rr_5wDmX3kY
God Bless,
Nena


#getoffthescale #choices #ican #positive #changeyourlife #habits #decisions #circumstances #weightloss

Diet VS. Lifestyle...Do you know the difference between thin people and overweight people?

It's the first day after a major holiday!  Many of us ate candy, great dinner with family and friends, enjoyed many foods or drinks that we don't have everyday.  It's fine. It's called life.  People do this once in a while.  Don't beat yourself up! Do you ever wonder why some people are overweight and some are thin?  I know we've been told it's because of genes (even when some people in the family are thin), income levels, will power, etc.  There are many contributing factors but I think our mental dialogue plays a huge part in everything related to food!  There is one significant difference I have discovered...overweight people are on a diet and there's a reason the first three letters spell die; because that's how you feel like you're going to die.  As if you are depriving yourself of something.  You eat healthy until you can't stand it anymore or worse yet don't eat at all until you're so hungry you eat the first thing you see or anything and everything until you're so full you can't move and then you feel guilty and like a failure so you tell yourself one more time that you can't do it; you will never succeed so why bother and then you give up...until the next time you think I really should do something about my weight.  Thin people eat healthy 80 to 90 % of the time, it is called a lifestyle, so when a holiday or special occasion comes around or maybe they just have a desire for something that might not be exactly healthy they eat it but they don't feel guilty because they know it is a lifestyle.  They don't beat themselves up and say I've failed, I have to eat unhealthy now, I'll never be able to eat healthy again, NO they start making healthy choices the very next meal or the very next day and keep going.  Not even giving it a second thought because it's a way of life.  The trick is to eat healthy most of the time and then don't give up when you make a different choice, don't talk negatively to yourself, accept it for what it is...your choice to enjoy something you want and then go right back to eating healthy and tell yourself...I can eat this once in a while and go right back to healthy choices and everything will be fine.  Build yourself up, encourage yourself, and when you have those old negative thoughts STOP! (Ex: If you're thinking oh no I knew I couldn't do it forever, I knew I would fail.  STOP change your dialogue and say...I ate this, I made the choice, I control my choices, I will make a healthy choice at _________ (whatever meal is next) and everything will balance out, I CAN DO THIS, I AM DOING THIS!!  I AM SO WORTH IT!)  You are living a lifestyle you are NOT on a DIET because DIETs don't work; Lifestyle changes do!  If you would like help or have any questions please comment or email me for private questions at nena@getoffthescale.com
God Bless,
Nena
#getoffthescale #dietsdontwork #lifestylechange #healthylifestyle #weightloss #healthyaging

Do you need more time in your day?

Ever think...I need more time in my day?  I wish I had more time to________.  You fill in the blank.  I have found one REALLY great way to have more time in my day.  No I'm not Bewitched. I can't turn back the clock or add more hours to the day.  Two years ago I made a decision to make some changes in my life and one of the changes I made was to turn off the TV.  I didn't watch any television at all.  COLD TURKEY!!  I started reading instead.  I read a lot of books!!  Then my husband started to lose interest in television; maybe because there was no one to sit with and just veg.  After about 5 months we disconnected the satellite because why pay for something you don't use.  We started talking, doing things, and relating to each other.  I will tell you it was weird the first month or so because we were the people who automatically walked into the house and turned on the TV whether we were home alone or together.  Slowly but surely we started doing other things with our time.  I read some great books on organizing and started cleaning out small areas of the house and getting rid of stuff we hadn't used for years.  Cleaned our closets. Painted.  We both joined Bible study groups.  I started meeting once a month with some friends for a crafting group. We have joined organizations that we have interests in and in short we have started living our lives.  It is amazing what can be accomplished when you are not sitting in front of a TV every night and most of the weekend.  I used to watch so much reality TV and I was sucked in...what's happening with The Little People, Kardashians, Teen Mom, Kendra, Who's on Dancing with the Stars, you name it we watched it and our friends know we are HUGE NASCAR fans and there was not one NASCAR show on that we didn't watch!  Guess what?  There is nothing on Television that is worth the time we have now! NOTHING!!  I started to wonder how much time does the average American spend watching television every day? I did a little research and found out it is 5.11 hours per DAY!  But I found out some more interesting facts:  99% of American households own at least one television (we have 6), The average child spends 1,480 minutes per week watching television, the average youth spends 900 hours per year in school but 1,200 hours watching television.  The statistic that REALLY scared me was when they asked 4 -6 year olds to choose between watching television and spending time with their dad 54% of them said they would rather watch television than spend time with their dad.  That is not only scary to me but very sad!  If you are thinking or complaining that you don't have enough time in the day to do what you need to do or you can't relate to your friends and family the way you would like to, I challenge you to turn off the TV for a month and see what happens.  You might be pleasantly surprised.  I will tell you that I have no idea what the Kardashians are up to now and quite frankly I don't care because my life is so wonderful that it doesn't matter to me at all!!  I wouldn't trade the relationships I have for anything.  Think about the meaningful conversations you could have with your children, spouse, and friends.

God Bless,
Nena
#getoffthescale #television #time #makemoretime #freedom #coldturkey #stopwatchingtelevision

Who are you trying to please?

What are you doing on a daily basis in hopes that you will make someone happy?  Many of us struggle daily with worrying about pleasing others and end up living our lives for someone else.  We want people to like us, we want our spouse, parents, children, friends, etc. to be happy and to like us.  It is impossible to make someone else happy.  The ONLY person we can control is ourselves.  The person we need to please and make happy is ourselves.  Think about people you know or have known in your life.  The ones that you feel good around.  What made you feel good around them?  I think it was the ones who were positive, friendly, upbeat and saw the good things in life.  They weren't trying to please or impress people they were being themselves.  On the other hand think about people that you try to avoid, dread calling, don't like to invite over...what do these people have in common?  They are negative, drain you, remind you of every bad thing you have ever done in your life, bring you down, and make you start doubting yourself.  Everyday we make a decision about what kind of day we are going to have.  We do that with every choice we make each day.  We decide whether we want to look at the positive side of a situation or the negative.  It is a continual process all day.  The thoughts we have, the way we say things; for example: one thing happens in the morning and how many of us immediately say, "Oh no, It's going to be a bad day". Sometimes even before we walk out of the house in the morning.  We need to start listening to our inner voice and doing the things that bring us happiness, things that make us feel positive.  When we try to please others, many times they don't even notice, sometimes they don't care, and in the long run it makes us into someone we're not.  I'm not saying you shouldn't do things for other people.  Many of us get pleasure from helping someone.  What I am saying is that you need to stop and think of why you are doing the things you are doing.  Is what you are doing changing you?  Is it something you don't really want to do but you feel obligated or you are saying yes because you don't want someone to be upset or mad at you.  Are you going to feel resentment, or like they owe you?  Then you are not being your authentic self and you need to step back and ask yourself what is your motivation.
I lived for many years trying to please my parents, my friends, my husband, and my children and all it got me was 134 pounds overweight and they weren't happy either.  When you live your life listening to your inner voice and being true to who you are you will attract people that like you for who you are!  These are the people you want in your life because they are the people that will appreciate you and all the unique and wonderful qualities you were born with.  YOU ARE ENOUGH!  BE WHO YOU ARE AND LIVE A LIFE FULL OF HAPPINESS and BLESSINGS!
God Bless,
Nena

WHAT CAN I DO?

As I am working with people who are trying to change their life and lose weight, improve their finances, organize their lives, or just get healthy, I find one common thread...they are very down on themselves and quite negative.  Even some people who appear very happy and cheerful on the outside when they start talking about their issues they are very negative about themselves.  It made me think about myself and where I've come from.  I told myself some pretty awful things for years.  I wasn't good enough, I didn't do _____ as well as others, I wasn't as thin as I should be, I wasn't as funny, as kind, as good of a wife, or mother, you get the idea and you can fill in the blanks because I told myself many negative things over the years.  Then one day I surrendered to God and begged for help and told HIM if he would show me the light I would do everything I could to make my life a blessing to others.  He has led me down a pretty amazing path!  I am growing and learning everyday.  A few things I've learned are:
1. STOP the negative self talk.  As soon as a negative thought pops into your head STOP and replace it with a positive one; IMMEDIATELY!  for example:  If I thought "What makes you think you will be successful, you've been on many diets over the years and have never been able to keep the weight off before." I would immediately tell myself; YOU CAN DO THIS, YOU ARE DOING THIS!  I also had sticky notes around the house; the refrigerator, pantry, bathroom mirror, near my bed, even on the steering wheel of my car, with inspirational notes, bible verses or quotes to remind me how great I am.
2.  Each morning (or evening) make a list of at least 10 things you are grateful or thankful for.  I prefer to do it in the morning because it sets the mood for my day and then reread them at night before I go to bed but you can do it to fit your lifestyle.  In the beginning some days it was REALLY difficult to come up with 10 so I would write things like...I am grateful it is not raining, I am grateful I have a roof over my head, etc.  Now I can write pages of things I'm grateful for.  What I found out is that the more we focus on positive the more positives we have and the more we focus on negative the more negatives we have.
3. This leads to another VERY difficult topic for some of us, negative people in our lives.  I'm not going to tell you to get rid of people from your life but I will tell you in the beginning when you are trying to make changes it is very important to look at who you are spending time with and if they are toxic to you it is very important that you limit your exposure to them.  As you are trying to change and get better you need as much support as possible.  If you are trying to lose weight you clean out the house of any tempting food so that you don't eat it in a moment of weakness, the same is true for toxic people.  You need to stay away from them or limit the time you spend with them until you are stronger and able to handle the toxicity better.  You may find you don't want to be exposed to that type of toxicity at all and that is fine too but either way it is YOUR choice. That leads us to our next topic.
4. You make choices everyday and that is what decides what type of life you will have.  Making choices is the major difference between success and failure in anything we try to do.  You can make a positive choice or a negative choice for you.  You can live with excuses and I can't(s) or you can turn it around and ask yourself What CAN I DO?  Maybe you cannot clear out 15+ years of clutter in one day but YOU CAN clean out one drawer in the kitchen or go through one box and get rid of stuff.  If you do this everyday pretty soon that overwhelming mess starts to disappear and you feel empowered and successful.  Start turning your thought process around...every time you catch yourself thinking or saying I can't STOP and say what CAN I do?  Then do that.  It is amazing what an impact this one step can have in every area of your life.
What are you looking for on a daily basis?  Are you looking for the positive?  What you can do? How you can make a positive impact on your own life or are you looking for excuses to keep doing what you've always done because it's comfortable?  All you have to do is compete with yourself and make yourself better today than you were yesterday and you will see a huge impact on your life!!  It doesn't matter what anyone else is doing or how well they are doing.  YOU ARE ENOUGH!!
God Bless,
Nena

Is fear holding you back?

I had a huge Ah Ha! moment last night during Bible Study...we were discussing our daily devotionals and talking about how God sends messages through our thoughts and how HE wants us to live without a barrier around our heart and without fear.  All of a sudden a light bulb went off in my head and I started thinking about all the times I have held back for fear the other person wouldn't like me or think I was silly (or worse) for saying something.  All the times I've wanted to praise my children and let them know how important they are to me and that they are my whole universe for fear of them thinking I was smothering them or embarrassing them or having them feel uncomfortable.  Fear of telling my husband exactly how much I love him for fear of not hearing it back.  Fear of letting friends know how much and deeply I care for fear of them thinking I'm a little too emotional or crazy or having them not feel the same in return.  Then it hit me...how much better my life would be if I lived without fear and talked from my heart and let people know and quit worrying about rejection or getting hurt... God wants us to love, share, help and support each other on this journey.  He wants us to live a life full of HIS purpose with abundance and joy.  So I have made a decision that I am going to communicate my true feelings of love and compassion and express what is in my heart!  I want to let you know because when I see you, meet you, call you, text you or hear from you I don't want you to think I'm crazy or run in a different direction! LOL Seriously, I want to be able to live the true me and have you know how much you mean to me without holding back and having a barrier around my heart.  I want to live the way God intended me to live and I really believe he wanted me to express my love for people and I have a lot of love in me!!
I am praying you will release your fears and whatever may be holding you back and live your life filled with purpose and abundance. 
God Bless,
Nena

Are you ready to change your life? Live your dreams? I can help!

Most of my life I have felt like a happy, positive person trapped in a negative life.  As a child I didn't understand that I was learning to be negative from those around me.  I constantly fought the contradiction of feeling positive and happy with the reality of those around me always pointing out the negative side of what was happening.  After a while I did what was expected and learned to find what was negative too.  However, inside I always had a conflict and always felt there was hope for things to be different, better even.  I have always felt like I was created to do more, dream big and help others.  I LOVE helping other people.  I am just starting to realize what a huge passion it is for me.  The more I help others the better I feel about myself.  It is my dream to help as many people as I can to get healthy, find their passion, and LOVE their life.  I didn't even know what that meant a short time ago but now that I am experiencing it I want everyone to experience it and KNOW THAT IT IS POSSIBLE!!  Don't settle for what you have.  DREAM big and believe in yourself.  If you don't believe in yourself yet then fake it until you make it.  YOU are the key to your own happiness.  I used to put notes and inspirational quotes on sticky notes and put them in my bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, office and even the steering wheel of my car.  When negative thoughts entered my head I would immediately turn them around into positive thoughts and stop the negativity.  We may not have control over everything that happens to us but we do have control over how we react to the situation.  We do not have to get drug into any drama.  If you are being drug down by others ask yourself what benefit am I getting from this?  Only you can figure out why you allow it to happen.  Once you decide to take charge of your life and look for the positive in each situation, even if it's only that you're learning a valuable lesson, you will be the happiest you have ever been and true growth will happen.  I am serious when I say that I want to help you reach your goals.  I do not charge for coaching I do it to help others realize their goals.  Someone helped me so I want to pay it forward.

#getoffthescale #freeweightlosscoaching #freecoaching #dream #goals

I want to help 5 people lose 100+ pounds...I'm offering free coaching to those who qualify.

As many of you know I have lost 134 pounds and changed my life!! My passion is to help others do the same thing.  I prayed to God before I started my journey and told HIM if He would finally help me conquer this demon I would do whatever it takes to make my journey a blessing to others.  I am very serious about helping to coach 5 people through their weight loss journey.  It is so rewarding to see people not only release pounds and inches but also to watch them come alive as they start to see what is happening in their lives. 
When I started this journey I had little or no hope and now I see Hope and Opportunities everywhere. It is such an amazing feeling.  YES YOU CAN DO IT TO and I would love to help you do it.  I have helped many people on this amazing journey and know it is possible.  PLEASE don't sit at home and say "That only works for ___________ It won't work for me" I use to do that and now know that I could have done it a long time ago but the difference is now I don't dwell on the past and what could have been I just say that was then this is NOW and NOW is so amazing!!!  PLEASE comment or email me nena@getoffthescale.com so we can get started to the new you!!! I am starting with my next group on Monday, March 17rh so please contact me immediately to get started.
God Bless,
Nena

#getoffthescale #weightloss #freeweightlosscoaching #healthcoach #100poundslost #100poundloss #100poundstolose

Where do you invest your time?

This morning as I was reading Jeremiah 18:1-12 Where God told Jeremiah to go down to the Potter's house and watch as the man molded the clay into a pot and then change it until he liked what he was creating; like God does to perfect us...I was reminded of a conversation I had with my mentor; she told me that she is so busy she has to pick and choose who to help because she just doesn't have enough hours in the day to invest in those who are not ready or not willing to do the work required to be successful.  She does spend hours everyday helping people and inspiring those who want to work for their dreams.  I sometimes wonder if that's what God thinks when we keep trying to do it our way and will not surrender to HIM.  I know His plan is so much better than ours but we still resist.  He watches over us just as we watch over our own children. I know when I watch my children make mistakes and I know from experience that there is a better way for them but I cannot always tell them or get them to see it because they don't have the life experience to understand what can happen; this is one of the hardest things to witness.  I think our Heavenly Father might feel the same way when we resist HIM.  I find the more time I spend with HIM in HIS word the closer I feel to Him and the more he reveals to me.  It feels like the more time I spend seeking HIM the more he invites me in and the more HE invests in me.  Where do you invest your time?  Who do you invest in?  Are you spending time with people who aren't good for you?  Are you spending time with people who drain you?  Today I would like to challenge you to get in HIS word and see what HE reveals to you and where HE leads you! He LOVES you and wants what's best for you.  HE CAN HEAL what's wrong and turn it around.  REACH out and SURRENDER!
God Bless,
Nena

Whatever you do, do it all for the Glory of God.

^{I Corinthians 10:31
31} So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
This is a very powerful verse for me.  Along my journey I never associated God with my eating.  Remember I ate because I loved food!  It tasted good.  This verse of course can be applied to many different areas of our lives but today as I read it, something reached out to me about honoring God with what we eat or drink and how that applied to my life.  If I am a child of God, which of course I am, then my body is a temple and I am to do whatever I do for HIS glory.  If I am stuffing myself and eating to excess then how am I honoring HIM?  I will be honest it took me a long time to realize that God was playing a major part in my weight loss.  I am embarrassed to say that I did not give him full credit for what was happening in my journey.  I was losing the weight; I was counting the calories; I was choosing to eat healthier; and the list goes on and on.  Only one problem with that...the first thing I did was to surrender to HIM and beg for his help and then things started to change.  I found the system to help me not only loose weight but to feel better, feel alive, have energy (even before the weight came off), sleep well, and feel amazingly positive with NO CRAVINGS!! Sounds like a dream and it was!! A dream come true.  I had amazing support from my family.  I had the desire and conviction to stay with it and didn't feel deprived.  And I felt VERY PROUD of myself.  Then I realized I had given it to God but then as I was being successful I took it back.  It wasn't mine to take back.  It was all God!  I had never been successful before on my own...the only difference was this time I gave it to HIM and asked him to guide me and then when he did I tried to take it back for me.  I thank God everyday that He was patient with me and waited for me to realize (with a little coaxing of course) that it isn't about me; It was HIM all along and that is why I have been successful this time and not any of the times before.  I was always doing it alone before but this time I had a Co Pilot to keep me on track and help me through it all.  Now my focus is in the right place...all the glory be to GOD!!  Without Him I am nothing.  I hope you will surrender to HIM today and let Him help you...it is His desire and He is a LOVING GOD!
God Bless,
Nena

Why are you holding yourself back?

What are you doing to hold yourself back and keep you from becoming all you can be?  I know we all have times where we struggle with Can I do ______? or _________ can do it because the they are better at that than I am.  Our thoughts and negative thinking play a LARGE part in what we are able to accomplish.  On this weight loss journey I have found that food plays a VERY miniscule roll in what kept me fat for years.  I always believed I was heavy because I LOVED food.  I was raised by a grandma who was from the south and she cooked everything from scratch and much of the time fresh ingredients.  She even bought whole fryers (chicken) and cut them up into pieces to cook them because it was cheaper.  Food and family was a huge part of our socializing.  I thought my love for good food was why I had a weight problem.  As I've shared before, when I started this journey I surrendered to God and asked for him to please help take my cravings away so that I could loose weight.  He then led me to a plan that worked for me and took away all of my food cravings and helped my stay on track.  I was able to release 134 pounds in under 13 months and he started revealing things to me.  A huge revelation was that the negative talk in my head was really holding me back.  I made a deal with myself (yes I know that sounds strange) to stop any negative thoughts immediately if they came into my head.  I also posted sticky notes on my bathroom mirror, refrigerator, steering wheel of my car, and places that I would see daily with inspirational quotes.  Immediately, when I started having the old doubts or negative thoughts I would stop and start saying positive things to myself.  What I noticed was that over time I had less and less negative thoughts and more positive thoughts and was feeling much happier about myself.  It was a very freeing experience. 
God wants to give you the desires of your heart but we tend to get in the way of that by telling ourselves things that aren't true.  We replay old tapes of what others have said to us, usually in a fit of anger (and they probably didn't even mean it) and for some reasons we hold on to the negative and forget much of the positive.  Many times when people say things in anger it is more about them than the person they are saying it to but still we grab hold of the negative and in weak moments decide to repeat it to ourselves and it holds us back from being all that we can be.  This is NOT God's desire for you.  Just for today try to change any negative thought you have into a positive one and see what happens...You can do it just for today!  This will work in any area of your life; weight loss, financial, relationships, organization, etc.
God Bless,
Nena

Super Bowl OH NO WHAT DO I EAT??

Everyone has been asking me over the past few days..."What do I do about the Super Bowl?"  "It's so hard to enjoy the party when I am limited by what I can eat."  I don't look at it as limited.  That gives me the idea that I am being denied or I will be hungry.  Much of the weight "issue" or "problem" is our mental thoughts.  When you tell yourself you are being denied, or you can't do it, or it will be hard; that is what happens.  Tell yourself what you can do.  I can go to the super bowl party and take a dish that I can eat without worrying, I can taste test a few items and not eat too much, I can enjoy the game, people and conversation without eating everything in the house.  Focus on the positive not the negative.  Another really great thing to do is to eat a healthy meal BEFORE you ever get to the party.  You won't be hungry and therefore will be less likely to eat more than you need to.  Make sure your meal is high in protein to keep you from being hungry.  I am making a crock pot full of chicken tex-mex soup: http://www.hungry-girl.com/weighin/show/healthy-crock-pot-chicken-recipes  It is healthy, tasty, and filling.  I am also having steamed broccoli, brown rice, fruit and veggie platter and some healthy dips made with greek yogurt.  The party is at our home and I have told people they may bring what they like but I find most of the time they want to eat the same things I make because they are tasty and good for you.  Whatever you do plan ahead, be prepared, and focus on what you can do.  Enjoy the day and the fellowship with family and friends!
God Bless,
Nena