's motd Sunday July 11, 2010

[Guest guest]

THIN?

Sunday, 11 July 2010

When I started losing weight so many years ago, I had one goal in mind. And that goal was to be...THIN! Oh, I wanted to be thin so bad that, I'm telling you, I did some pretty foolish things to get there.

Let's see, I took diet pills and laxatives. Or after overeating, I'd force myself to throw up what I'd eaten. And yes, I also starved myself in my efforts to get thin. While I was doing all of these terrible injustices to my body, all I could think about was having a thinner face and a slimmer waist.

And sure enough, I did accomplish my goal. I got down to 119 pounds and sported a 28-inch waistline. Oh, I had cheeks on my face that stuck our forever. And when I looked in the mirror to see my reflection, I was very, very happy with the person I saw looking back at me. But to tell you the truth, I'd indeed gotten thin but...I was now sick, too! I had awful pains in my joints. My kidneys were not functioning like they should and I had absolutely no muscle definition in my body. My doctor even told me that I was a "half-dead man walking." I was anemic, dehydrated and malnourished. Boy, had I ever made a big mistake in my efforts to be thin. I was afraid I'd never be able to turn things around for myself. But, thankfully, God had different plans for me. He gave me the good sense to go to work turning things around for myself.

I began eating healthier and as I built back my strength, I began exercising regularly. And all of these years later, just look how gorgeous I am now! LOL.I always talk to you about my students at Slimmons. And, I'm sad to say, I've noticed that some of the young girls who attend my classes are extremely thin. See, they watch movies, TV shows and see photos of women in fashion magazines who're often, I think, painfully thin. And because society has made being ultra-thin "the look" to have, many young girls aspire to look that way.But I have to tell you that many of them are not even able to complete one of my classes. I mean, they may be thin but I can't help but notice how out of shape some of them are, in spite of their very low weight.

For instance, when we do the toning part of our class, all of these girls will pick up the two-pound weights and, you know what? They have a little trouble working out with the two-pounders, our lightest weights of all. Look, you shouldn't dream to simply be thin. You should dream to be healthy. I know that genetically, some people who are just born thin. But the rest of us often have to struggle to keep the pounds down.

First of all, you should look at your body frame. It will give you a more realistic idea of what you should weigh. And once you determine your ideal weight, you have to start eating healthy, balanced meals and snacks. And you have to workout everyday to help your body burn the calories it's stored over the years. Plus, that exercise will help strengthen your bones and tone your muscles.

A few days ago, I talked about our nation's serious problem with obesity. But on the flip side of that coin, we're also a nation that attaches perfection to being thin...too thin! We place models and thin actresses on pedestals and, truth is, we need to be more realistic about our definition of "beauty." With each of us, that begins with setting realistic and good sense goals for what we weigh.Love,