Happy New Year- Day One Post- January 1, 2010

40 Days of Fit- January 1, 2010

The “Heart” Part

“Before the world began, you were on His mind. And every tear you cry is precious in His eyes. Because of His great love, He gave his only son. Everything was done so you would come.”

I love this Christmas song by Darlene Czech. The rest of the song goes on to invite the listener to bring his or her gift to the Father, assuring him or her that no matter the offer, no matter how small, broken or insignificant, God receives the gift through the His son Jesus Christ. But that’s not what I love most about this music. I love the line, “Before the world began, you were on His mind.”

Think about that. Wow. Before the foundations of the world were laid, God knew you. He had you on his mind, in His thoughts. He knew you were destined for this time and this place, this day and this age. He equipped you with all that you need to make this journey… where ever on this planet you are. He is a good God.

On my first day of devotional and prayer today, I was of course reading the first chapter of The Purpose Driven Life. Pastor Warren drives this point home. Colossians 1:16b, “Everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him.” What is the first line of the first chapter of this amazing book? Well, it hits me right between the eyes, “It’s not about you.”

Holy cow!

I make so many things about me!

Warren asks a comforting question, “With all the advertising going on around me, how can I remind myself that life is about living for God, not myself?” I don’t know the answer to that. I trust the Holy Spirit to remind me of that question as I live each day. That’s how I’m praying.

It’s not about me. I got that to some degree when I became a mom. It’s so vivid when you hold that tiny little helpless baby in your arms. When you realize you would do whatever necessary to protect him, regardless of the personal cost. Yet, as time has gone by even my six year old often arrives in second place… after me and my agenda… my plans.

I’m not going to be too hard on myself here. I’m in process. But part of this 40-day journey I am on is to nudge me toward being a better wife to Todd and a better mother to Quinn.

So, that’s the spiritual direction I took today in my 40 days of Fit, the “heart” part.

The “Hard Body” Part

In the matters of my head and my health, let me just update you quickly. I am doing a workout plan I downloaded from Exercisetv.tv. Great site! And many of their videos are on the Cox Digital Cable Free Zone under Health & Wellness. One of the suggested workouts was not available so I simply substituted another. Each day I will do the workout they suggest. On days they suggest a 35-minute cardio, I will add a 15-minute cardio workout as well, just so I get at least 45 minutes in. Today I added a “walking” video. That was interesting and I really enjoyed the instructor. If you have the Cox cable option, I recommend you look at it. The walking workout was light and easy and the instructor was delightful and encouraging. I look forward to doing the workout again in a few days!

In case you care to know, here is the 30-day Rock Hard Body workout suggestion:

Monday- 35 minutes of intermediate cardio (I added a 15 minute, 1-mile walk)

Tuesday- 45 minutes of weight training with intervals- very difficult workout. I can’t do the whole thing at this time.

Wednesday- 45 minutes of Cardio

Thursday- 45 minutes of Cardio

Friday- 45 minutes of Cardio and intense AB workout

Saturday- 45 minutes of the hardest interval and weight training exercise ever. I can actually feel my body being “ripped” as I go through the motions. I’m glad this workout only comes around once a week!

Sunday- “Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.” Okay, so I’m out of context on this one, but the reality is that this is the day off. (and I will vacate formal exercise this day!)

My friend John suggested I set small realistic goals. So, my two goals related to my health for this week are:

1. Workout 45 minutes a day every day (except Sunday)
2. Drink 64 ounces of water a day.

The water thing is pretty easy for me. With a small bit of focus I can get that done with no problem. If you struggle with water drinking remember that any beverage free of caffeine and calories counts toward your 64 ounces. You are probably hydrating more than you know!

The “Head” Part

I actually made little progress on any of my personal goals today. That is because it is a holiday and Todd & I worked tirelessly in the garage today. Yet, I could say that this was a small step in a big goal. The garage is very important to Todd. Honestly, I don’t get it. But, as the house has been rearranged the past month and the garage took the brunt of all the moving around of rooms (all erroneous stuff got tossed in there haphazardly by me), I began to sense the uneasiness of the garage being out of balance. I suspect Todd has set a high standard there all these years and I have adopted it somewhere in the recesses of my mind. I could probably have gone with it for a few more weeks, but it was important to him. And remember, it’s not about me. J So, though I would have rather watched holiday TV and eaten myself into a frenzy today, I got to hang out (gladly) with my handsome husband and get something accomplished. And who knows how many extra calories I burned? (bonus!)

I have other goals related to the “head” part of my journey that I will share next week. One thing I did do today related to my “head” is I created a daily schedule. I’ll figure out how to post it on here. If I do and you look at it let me warn you… it’s a bit over the top! But, I know me. I’m a visual learner. If it’s written down where I can see it, I will have more success in getting it done.

So, are you going on this 40-day journey with me? If you are, let me know what you are doing. What devotional are you reading? What exercise are you doing? What goals have you set for yourself in the New Year?

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog about my 40 days. It means a lot to me!

Love,

Natalie