Weigh in Day! Plus, My Favorite Motivational Videos

Good morning! So, it's weigh-in day. My weight this morning is 200. Glad to be headed in the right direction again.

I'm feeling a little yucky, which is not uncommon when doing a detox program. All the yucky stuff stored in my body enters my system. Some people get headaches. Thankfully, I don't have the headache. I'm just feeling a little bloated. I know the key is to stick to eating well, and drink a lot of water, and it will soon pass.

I woke up feeling a little bit discouraged. Thankfully, I've developed the habit of not dwelling on it, but jumping in and determining what I can do to tweak my routine and change things up. I'm determined that I won't be held back. Metaphorically speaking, I'm working on learning to bob and weave, to be agile on my feet and stay on my toes to dodge the various blows life is sending my way and come off conquerer.

I wanted to share my favorite motivational videos with you today. They are all of children, with one exception. I'll just embed them here for you to enjoy. They're short. :)


This one is of a boy who just learned to ride a bike, and is giving a motivational speech to other kids who might be in the same situation.

This little girl, Jessica, shows us what it means to have a positive attitude.

I love this one! This is for those of us who have a big job to do, but we're scared to jump in. This one helps me a lot in my Arbonne business.

And last, but not least, Shia LeBeouf and his comical interpretation of the motivational speaker. I actually really like this, because it makes me smile, and reminds me of what I want out of life. You may want to turn the sound down on your computer. :)

Have a wonderful day!!!  XOXO, Suzy

Day 6--Is there an instruction manual for this thing?

Good morning! So, last night I was thinking about what an amazing creation the human body is, and how I have very little idea of how it works! I mean, I know the basics, but I've never taken a human biology class, so there is a lot of detail that I don't know. Isn't it fascinating that we are born into these incredibly complex structures with no knowledge of how they work and no ability to care for them on our own? Our parents help us in the beginning, but we are ultimately driven by biological urges that we need to learn to manage ourselves. It just struck me what a huge responsibility learning to care for our bodies is! Not only is it vital to our longevity, but my personal belief is that God has given us stewardship over our bodies. He wants us to care for them and use them to learn things and to bless others.

I have gained new resolve to learn more about how my body works, and to strive to care for it the best I can, so that I can feel great and use my physical capabilities to bless the lives of others. I also feel some guilt about not teaching my children how to better care for this amazing gift. That is something I can repair to a degree, but ultimately, we all have the opportunity to choose how we will treat our own bodies.

If you're like me, you may have developed emotional and psychological challenges that are connected with how you treat your body. Making good food choices is a challenge for me because I have developed the habit of eating unhealthy food when I feel anxious, and simply eating mindlessly. Thankfully, this can also be remedied through mindfulness, hard work, and in my case, lots of prayer. I feel good about what I have accomplished thus far, and I am excited to continue to progress.

I hope you all have a beautiful and blessed day. XOXO Suzy

Day 5--Living Intentionally

One of the things I'm really working on these days is living intentionally. I am going to try to explain what that means to me.

I think there are different ways to approach each day and the things we do in our lives. I imagine that most of us do a combination of these things. There have been times in my life when I have lived in what I will call a reactive style. This is where things are happening around us, and we are simply reacting. We are not really choosing our path, but instead, we're being bumped and pushed along in a particular direction, changing course frequently, not really knowing what our destination will be. When we get to the end of the day, we are left somewhat bewildered, feeling like we've been run through the wringer, and maybe not seeing a lot of evidence of all the energy we've expended. We might even blame others for our situation.

The opposite of this style would be proactive. If we're proactive, we're making deliberate choices, deciding what our destination is, making choices that lead us toward that destination, making course corrections when necessary, keeping that end goal in mind constantly. I'm trying to do this more and more in my life. This is what I mean by living intentionally. When I get up in the morning, I do my best to decide what will happen in my life today. I start my day with activities that I know will make my day run more smoothly, including things like prayer, exercise, and writing in my journal. Of course, there are plenty of things that come along each day that I can't predict or I didn't plan for. I feel like as I live with intention and keep my goals in mind, I am able to negotiate the bumps and curves of the day better. I take ownership and responsibility for the things in my life, and I don't blame others for my circumstances. I simply take what comes and deal with it in whatever way I need to to accomplish my end goals.

Some days don't feel like successes. There may be little evidence of our hard work. But I know that when we stay focused on what we are trying to accomplish and keep moving in that direction, we will inevitably get where we want to be. And it is so important to celebrate each little accomplishment! I imagine myself jumping from stone to stone to cross a great river. Each jump is important in getting across, and is therefore worth acknowledging as an accomplishment. If we miss a step, we may get a little wet, but we need not give up. We can always get up and start again. ALWAYS!

Those are just a few thoughts from me today. I hope you have a really wonderful day! <3

Day 4--All is well!

Hi all! Just checking in! I'm happy to say that I have found my groove again, and it feels really good! I'm sticking to the program, and felling terrific! I'm only supposed to weigh in once a week, so I won't report my weight again until Monday. Although my weight is the only thing that counts to the insurance company as far as my surgery is concerned, my health is most important to me. I feel healthy and well, and that's what counts. Have a great day! <3

Small Victories

The past few days have been tough for me. I kind of got into a funk, and wasn't able to shake it as easily as I usually do. Thankfully, with some pondering and prayer, I am back in the game. I'm not just talking about weight loss here. I'm talking about EVERYTHING. I am as guilty as anyone of putting pressure on myself to be more than I am. I am glad that I have a desire to improve myself, but I struggle with being content today. Still working on this one. That being said, here's what I believe to be true: the me I am today is good enough, but I can strive to be more.

My weight loss/healthy eating hasn't been going very well, I'm sorry to say. Thankfully, my Get F.I.T. Group starts anew every couple of weeks. So, today is Day 1 again! Thanks for indulging me and my restarts!

This morning I weighed 204. Yes, I've gained. I probably mentioned this before, but I tend to eat nervously when I have a deadline. It's almost counterintuitive for me to be public about my goals, because the pressure to succeed under the microscope makes me want to eat. Nevertheless, I am striving to make personal changes, one of which is to stop my nervous eating.

I also set a high bar for my business this summer, putting some pressure on myself. I just reached a new management level, and I'm shooting for the next management level by the end of the summer. Not only that, but I asked my VP to schedule me to do a team training in September. I promised her I would have something worthwhile to share regarding my business in the summer. I love my job, and I welcome the opportunity for growth. But I know I'm a little crazy as well.

Here are some things that I rediscovered as I was pondering, working to shake my blues. First, I've made big life changes before. I've made decisions to change specific habits, and I've been successful. What is required to succeed, I think, is a big enough reason to do it. In Arbonne, we call it your "why." So, my success will come (and it WILL come) when my "why" is clear enough in my mind, and big enough to squash any desires I have to hold onto old habits. This idea works for all areas of life. I chose to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints because I felt it was the right thing for me to do. My "why" was bigger than my reasons not to. I made a lot of life changes at that time. I've never looked back on many bad habits I had. I have no regrets about that. If I choose to commit today to give up unhealthy food, my "why" has to be bigger than my fears, my habits, my desires for unhealthy food. This is a big deal, because I've developed a physical and emotional dependency on unhealthy foods. It's a lifetime of bad habits that I'm trying to walk away from. But that doesn't mean I can't do it. If it's a good thing to do, I believe it can be done, as long as I don't give up. I also believe in relying on the strength of God to succeed. The principle is true for my work as well. If my reason for succeeding in growing my own business is big enough, it can squash any fears I may have about reaching out to others to share Arbonne.

Finally, I want to talk about small victories. This was my little epiphany this morning. Every small choice we make in the right direction is a victory, and should be celebrated. One tiny raindrop isn't much water by itself, but put several together, and it can make a flower grow, or even become a stream, a raging river, or a mighty ocean. No matter how huge and powerful a body of water, it is made up of drops of water.

Every step I take in my journey is important. I may stumble periodically as my foot hits a rock or slippery patch, but if I watch closely and place my steps carefully, each one is an essential part of my journey, helping me get where I need to be.

I love you all!Have a great day!

Every Day is Day One

Wow. It's amazing how I can really want something intellectually, and really want something else physically. I'm sure you know what I mean. I really want to be fit and healthy, and I really want to eat unhealthy food. I have always recognized the similarity between addictions to things like alcohol and drugs and my relationship with food. It's like being temporarily possessed by another self that only wants gratification. We often think of how stupid smoking is, or other addictive behaviors, but we know from experience that it's tough to say no to that brownie, or we have "just a little" ice cream. Some people say you can't be addicted to food. I'd like to suggest that you can. I've felt what it feels like to be compelled by food, and what it feels like to free myself of the compulsion. That's a beautiful feeling.

One thing I know about myself is that every day, I have to start over. I have to have new resolve, and recommit to my goals. Even so, I often don't make it through the day without making a choice that is contrary to my goals. I think the solution is greater mindfulness. Although I haven't made a practice of it, I think having a midday renewal of my commitment is a good idea for me. Once a day in the morning is not enough. My resolve is very strong in the morning. I awaken with enthusiasm and a positive attitude. But as the stress of the day begins to mount, my resolve is often replaced by compulsive, anxious behaviors. I need to reset more often than once a day. I need to do it as often as necessary to stay focused on what I truly want, what my intellectual self wants.

Today is Day One. Tomorrow is a new day. Another Day One. Each day, no matter how many days pass, will always be a new beginning, a new chance to strive for being my best. I love that.

P.S. I'm looking for accountability buddies, right now. Would you like to join me on my journey? If you do, message me tonight before 10pm PDT, and you'll be glad you did. :)

I am a professional plate spinner.

I had an epiphany this morning. I like it when this happens. I am a visual person. I like to have an image in my mind to help me understand things. I was thinking about my life, and how I feel like I am constantly trying to juggle the various needs of each of my kids, my home, my job, my body, my volunteer jobs (of which there are many--a topic for another time). Then the image came into my mind of someone spinning plates, and I knew that was exactly what I am--a plate spinner. Here's a video showing what I mean. The second half really demonstrates what I'm talking about. Each of the areas in my life is like a plate that I have to try to keep spinning. I get it going, but I always have to come back to it to keep it going. For example, I like my kids to stay involved in useful, productive activities. I ask them and encourage them to choose something to do that is not just a mind-numbing activity. But as soon as I get them going and turn my attention to the next child or another task, they often fall back to some useless activity like video games or whatever.

Rather than give more examples, I'll just continue by saying that this approach needs to change. I can't win if I continue to take this approach in my life. Here's what's missing--momentum. The "system" (for lack of a better word) I use for running my life has always been one that requires me to push it. It doesn't generate energy, but consumes energy. MY energy! What I need to do is come up with a system that creates energy and propels itself once I get it going. Here's the thing. I don't know what that system is. But I am determined to figure it out! I think that one key element in the system that works will be motivation. I will, of course, have to create a visual image in my mind of what works. It's just what I do. It will be a machine of sorts that I simply need to turn on, and the parts will start moving together, doing their various jobs, being propelled by the motivation I mentioned before. This post is definitely a TO BE CONTINUED post, since I don't know the end of the story yet. Have a great day!

Decluttering my life!

I made a video today, but I wanted to edit it, and I don't really know how. So, no video today! I hope I can learn soon. I could ask Troy, but it's 12:30am, and he's not awake! :) I'll try to post one tomorrow!

Have you heard of Marie Kondo? I just read her book called The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing. Wow. What a book. It's like an instruction manual for tidying your home along with a case study in OCD. I believe that I can learn something important from any book, even if I don't agree with all of what's written. Marie seems like a very nice girl who happens to be obsessed with the "art" of tidying. Without going into too much detail, let's say that I gleaned plenty of good ideas from the book. My house is a mess, and I'm always glad to try a new approach. I've gotten started with her system, which involves getting rid of anything in your home that doesn't bring you joy. I started with my clothes, as she recommends, and got rid of about 2/3 of my things. I even refolded everything the way she says to, and arranged it on my shelves in cute little bins. I'll post a picture. My house has a long way to go. We did make quite a bit of progress on our clothes, and we took about 10 garbage bags of clothes to the thrift shop today. I would be happy if I got rid of at least 1/2 of all of my property. I'll keep you posted!

On a personal note, I am still caught between trying to conquer my life by controlling it, and just finding peace with the way things are. How do I balance that? I am all for being happy with things the way they are, but how do I reconcile that with striving for improvement? I'm sure I've brought this up in the blog before. I've even read books on this subject, such as The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown. Any comments on the topic are appreciated! In the meantime, I will continue to discover the answer to this mystery!

Have a wonderful day! <3

Day 3!

Hello everyone! Of course, I didn't manage to post yesterday, but I am getting to it today! I created another little video for you. Here it is.

I'm feeling good. I haven't been 100% perfect, but honestly, I've got a lot more important things to worry about! I've been doing well and I feel really good. I have quite a bit going on these days, with four kids home and out of school right now. It's funny how managing adult children can be just as challenging as the little ones! I'm a bit of a control freak, but I like to help encourage them to be involved in good, productive activities, if they're not already working. So between the kids, the house, volunteering at church, running the high school music boosters, and trying to find time for my work, plus time for exercise and self-care, I'm stretched a little thin! I am still learning to spend my time well on the most important things.

So here's a brief overview of the weight loss program I'm doing. It's actually a clean eating program. The objective is to eliminate toxins from the body, allowing the liver to do its job of managing fat stores. When the body takes in a toxic substance, such as chemicals, hydrogenated oil, pesticides, etc, the liver doesn't know what to do with it, so it stores it in fat. One of the liver's functions is to manage our fat stores, but when it's working overtime on toxins, it can't do that so effectively. When we stop the flow of toxins into the body, that helps. When we add a detox element, and flush the toxins out, that's even better.

So that's what I'm doing. I am not eating processed foods, wheat, dairy, peanuts, soy, and minimal sugar from natural sources. On this program, there are lots of veggies, meat, healthy fats like avocados and coconut oil, quinoa, stuff like that. It also incorporates Arbonne nutritional products. I'll mention them over time, but two main ones are the protein shakes and detox tea. The shakes contain pea, cranberry and rice protein. They are vegan and don't have any artificial anything. They come in chocolate and vanilla. I like both. So I have a shake for breakfast and one midday sometime. I have healthy snacks throughout the day, sometimes a salad for lunch, and usually a big salad for dinner. I'm not very creative with my meals. I kind of eat the same thing all the time, but I try to have a lot of different veggies in my salad. One of the most important things on the program is getting a lot of nutrients from the food you eat.

My Arbonne team created a cool thing, which is a Facebook support group for this program. We start a new one every two weeks. It outlines the program, has recipes, menus, meal plans, information, and support every step of the way. I love it! Now that I've done the program a lot, I end up offering more advice than I do asking questions, but it's still nice to have a support group.

That's enough for today! I'm hoping to get into the groove of posting daily. Have a great day!

Suzy

http://suzystein.arbonne.com

Getting Back on the Wagon

Hi all! I've decided to go public again! It's always been very helpful for me to have the support of my friends.

Over the past few months, I have stalled out on my weight loss. It's a long story, and I won't tell it all at once. It comes down to a couple of things. One is managing the physical challenges associated with a new way of eating. The other is dealing with the emotional side of the lifestyle change. If you're like me, food is way more than just something yummy. I associate food with a whole lot of different areas of my life, including recreation, tradition and celebration. I found that I reached the point where I got past the physical barrier, but I hadn't yet learned to manage the emotional ties I have to food. It was holiday time when I sort of fell apart. I hadn't learned how to celebrate the holidays without food. Anyway, I've still got a lot to learn. I really want to regain my health, and I don't want to wait anymore.

I'll be using the Arbonne 30 Days to Healthy Living Program, like I did before. It's basically a clean eating program, and uses some of Arbonne's products, like protein shakes and detox tea. I'll also try to post a video each day, just telling what I'm doing and how it's going. I appreciate any and all comments! And feel free to share the posts. Thanks for your friendship and support!

Day 1 Video