LIKE UNDER ARMOUR...BUT LOVE GOD'S ARMOR

Like UNDER ARMOUR....but LOVE GOD'S ARMOR!!

"Put on the full armor of God, that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."  Ephesians 6:11

Do you realize that "our battles are not against the flesh and blood, but against the rulers and powers of the dark world of evil" that Satan leads?  (Eph 6:12).    You may battle with being overweight, insecure, or eating disorders, but let me tell you where that battle is coming from...SATAN!!!    Now, God has made us in his image, and has given us authority to CHOOSE how we live.  But the devil likes to play games in our head, like "if you eat this cheeseburger and fries, you will feel so much better after your tough day at work".  He makes simple decisions about food even seem harmless.  But God made our bodies (His temple) to function in a way we can serve and work for His Kingdom...do you think Satan wants us to feel good physically or to have mental clarity after we exercise?  NO!!!!!  He wants us to sit around wishing we could wear a size 4, weigh 110 pounds and when we don't, he is so fast to jump in and say, "you are no good because you can't even control what you eat or you won't get up and go exercise!"  

Well I say, 'LET'S ARMOR UP, GIRLS!!!!"    Not only do you need to feed your physical body with the healthy nutrients it needs daily, we need to feed our spiritual body with the Word of God!  We can seek direction, guidance, wisdom, answers to prayers from His Living Word.   And when we feed our spiritual body, we also are giving God the greatest gift we can give him...our love to Him by spending time with Him in the scriptures he wrote!!  

So today's tip of the day for "10 SIMPLE TIPS FOR HEALTHIER EATING" is:

2.) FILL UP WITH WATER, as well as fill up your heart and soul with THE WORD OF GOD!!! 

Now, all my close friends will tell you, I drink tons of water daily (which explains why I have to buy toilet paper like every other day!! LOL)   But after I am around other people for an entire day, I have come to realize the majority of Americans do not drink enough WATER!!!    I drink 4-5 liters a day of just water on regular basis!!  That is to the extreme on the spectrum I realize, but I have just made it habit, and my body feels sluggish when I don't drink that much!!   So let's say 3 liters a day is a good goal.  Break that down however you need to, depending on the size of water bottle or glass you drink from.  I use a one liter bottle and refill it thru the day. For example, if you have a 12-oz bottle or cup, you would need to drink 9 of those in a day!  Drinking  really cold water actually burns more calories because your body has to use energy to heat up the water to be used by the body!  Another tip is to add a packet of crystal light occasionally (don't recommend that for all 9 bottles!)  or heat up water for hot tea.   Same theory applies for hot drink too...burns more calories to bring temperature down to use for body. 

HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT: 

I want to challenge you for next 3 days to FILL UP WITH WATER!!    Increase your water intake to approx 2-3 liters a day, and see how you feel.  Then for the next 3 days, go back to your normal intake.  See if you feel the difference!!  Also, for the first 3 days, avoid carbonated drinks and sugary sport drinks.  I know what my friends are saying right now as they read this:  "Yeah, Keitha, give up your diet coke!!"  LOL!!  I do enjoy a good diet coke, especially if I am near a Sonic...but I have cut back on those, and I always flush my body out with a liter before and another liter after I drink a DC.    

One of my dynamic duo's favorite movies is "Evan Almighty".   In this movie, Morgan Freeman, who plays God in the movie, tells Evan that the way he can change the world is through the ARK...Acts of Random Kindness.  He tells him change comes from one act of kindness at a time.   Take that same philosophy to your health:  YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR PHYSICAL BODY ONE STEP AT A TIME!!  Small steps sometimes get us farther than big giant leaps that can cause us to fall!!!    Small changes will improve your health, and give you more energy!  I have had couple of ladies this week tell me how much better they feel after just exercising 5 days now in our Boot Camp!!!  

Get your tennis shoes on, and TAKE A STEP TO ARMOR UP!!!  

"Lord, I thank you for the words you gave me this morning...Jesus, it reminds even me of what I need.  To first of all, spend time with you, and be fed by your Living Word.   Then to feed my body with good, wholesome foods.  Now, Lord, we know you didn't create desserts to torture us, but we are to be disciplined in choosing foods that are not to be eaten in excess.  God, I pray that we will put on your armor daily so that we can stand against satan's evil attacks on us!!  Thank you for interceding for us!  In Jesus' name, Amen!"

 My sweet little blessings!!  Our visit to Sea World during spring break!

"God won't starve an honest soul, but he frustrates the appetites of the wicked."  Proverbs 10:3 (the Message)

DAY 4 OF BEACH BODY BOOT CAMP AT MC!!!  I fully intended to blog every day of this 10-day challenge, but getting up at 5 again to work out has made me glad to climb into my soft comfy bed by 10pm!!  But starting today I want to offer you 10 tips for healthier eating.  I think we all forget that sometimes it is the small, simple changes we can make in our lives to make us better in big ways!! 

COUNTDOWN TO 10 SIMPLE TIPS FOR HEALTHIER EATING:

1.)  Don't skip meals!!   Let me repeat this tip:  DON'T SKIP MEALS!  I used the verse above because I want you to know why eating is so important for weight loss.   When we skip meals, especially breakfast, your body goes into "hibernation" mode:  it will store whatever you do eat because it thinks you are starving your body.  This is a built in mechanism God designed for our body.  However, if you are struggling with being overweight or wanting to tone up your body, you must not get caught up in that mentality that you need to skip a meal to lose those extra 10 lbs.  You are making it harder on yourself!!  Not only does the body store those precious calories you do finally eat, but it actually has the reverse effect on your metabolism we are trying to achieve.  SKIPPING MEALS SLOWS DOWN YOUR METABOLISM!! 

I don't know about you, but I do not want my metabolism slowing down! Especially at age 42!!! LOL!
So here is a guide of when you should eat throughout the day:

Breakfast:  eat within 1 hour of waking
Snack:  2-3 hours after breakfast
Lunch:  2-3 hours after snack
Snack:  2-3 hours after lunch
Dinner:  Eat at least 3 hours before going to bed
(*Resource on this plan is Chalene Johnson's TurboFire "Fuel the Fire" Nutrition guide.  It is the most simple but thorough nutrition guide you can find, in my opinion.  See below on more info on how to get this guide.)

So basically, you eat every 2-3 hours during the day!!!  I can already see some of you shaking your head at the computer as you read this, thinking, "There is no way I can follow this!"    If you work outside home or travel a lot in your job, this takes some planning ahead.  But is it worth it??  YOU BET!!  If you go to Disney World for vacation, you research hotels, parks, and activities so you get the most out of your trip.  You probably wouldn't just fly to Florida, and take your chances on finding a hotel you really like and not spending a little time preparing for the trip.  We need to have the same mentality about our eating...I want to enjoy this body while I have it (Unfortunately, we don't get to trade it in when it doesn't look like we want it to!! haha).  Planning ahead is the key to keeping your body fueled for the day, keeping your metabolism revved up, and avoiding those binge eating episodes (like eating entire basket of chips and salsa while you wait on your order!).  Been there, done that!!!

My favorite snack to have in purse for going to games or dr appt is:  10 pretzels, 10 almonds or walnuts, and 1/4 cup dried cranberries in zip-lock bag.  Even if you work outside home, this is very easy and you can munch on this while you work!  Also, remember to grab an apple or orange for after lunch along with half peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat bread.

The biggest problem I see when women tell me they can't lose weight or at a plateau, is they are not eating enough!!  Sounds strange I know, but you need to be eating at least 1200 calories a day (depending on your physical activity, it may need to be more).    But don't eat all 1200 at dinner!!!!  Spread this out throughout the day...200-300 per meal/snack.   Honestly, I usually eat 5 small meals (which are more like snacks packed with protein) a day.  Remember, 80% of the time, you should be eating clean and healthy.   I will talk about the 80/20 rule later in the Top 10 list.   (another awesome tip from Chalene!)

Gotta run take Harbor to gymnastics...my little monkey is climbing over me as I type this!! LOL!!
Have a blessed day!
"Lord, I thank you for allowing me to get out of bed this morning to workout, and for all the women and men who so willingly followed my "crazy sport gym workout"!! Bless them today in all they do. Thank you for this body, which is Your temple...and YOU DON'T MAKE JUNK! In Jesus' name, Amen Link to my website for more information on Turbofire: www.beachbodycoach.com/coachkeitha

GAIN YOUR GOALS!!

"I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."      Phillipians 3:14

So I am not following my recommendation for more rest...I finally got back on track to workout early mornings again.  Hit the weight room at 5 am this morning!!  Yay!!  But I was determined to get this done today!!  I have some exciting news I just had to share with yall!!!!  

But first let me say, I have had so many thoughts going through my head about what I want to share with you all in the next coming weeks.   The Holy Spirit has been working on me BIG TIME through our Ladies' Bible Study of James by Beth Moore.   Let me just say, YOU HAVE GOT TO GET THIS STUDY GOING WHEREVER YOU ARE!!!   I go from being convicted, to tears streaming, to laughing all in about 5 minutes in every lesson.   Beth can bring the WORD!!!  

However, so I am not up terribly late, I am going to focus reaching our goals.  I love this verse I started with, and I encourage you to remember to look at the goals you set in our first blog (if you didn't, do it!!).  Then put this verse right under them...read them both every day!!  

If you have been following my blog, you know that part of why I finally felt led to start this blog was a text I received from my sweet friend and former co-worker, Lanita, from Seminole.  She had sent me a text, saying she had started at a weight of 204 and was down to 161.   She had reached a goal of going from size 18 to size 12!!!  WOOHOO!!!  She had been successful on her weight loss program through drinking Shakeology, walking consistently12-15 miles a week.   Well, Monday morning, I check my phone and there is the following text:

"So flipping glad I drank a shake for dinner last night instead of eating Dickey's with my family...DRUM ROLL PLEASE!!!!!!.......

DOWN TO 159.6!!  My all time LOWEST!!  Another 10lb goal reached!  Only 4 more lbs til I reach my 50lb goal!!!!"

Makes me just want to jump up and do a little dance for her!!!!   (I would but step class and weight workout got me sore right now!! lol)    THIS IS WHY I LOVE BEING A BEACH BODY COACH AND FITNESS INSTRUCTOR!!!!  When someone shares their success story on reaching their goals, I just get so happy and full of JOY!!!  I feel like that is one of my purposes here on earth...to encourage, motivate, support, and listen to women and men who struggle with weight and health.   God blessed me with a talent, and I love to see how he uses me as his vessel!!!  

So, whatever is going on in your life today...stop, look at your goals, focus on the way you are fearfully and wonderfully made by our Mighty God, and REACH THOSE GOALS!!!  YOU CAN DO IT!!!!  Lanita did it, and so can you!!!  I believe in you all, and so does God.  Don't let Satan tell you that you can't reach that goal....he is a liar!!!!

Heading to bed...but got so excited typing this, I may be up for awhile still!!   Go Lanita!!  Go God!!  

Keitha Beth

This pic was from the Post Chamber of Commerce Banquet couple weeks ago, when my dad was recognized as the Post Citizen of the Year!!!  He is the most humble, kind, unselfish man I know.  True man of integrity!  I am so glad he picked me to be his daughter!!

"Lord, I just come to you so humbled that you would give me this opportunity to share with these wonderful readers.    And I am humbled that you have blessed me with a healthy body to teach fitness classes for over 20 years now, even giving the doctors wisdom to treat rheumatoid arthritis that has tried to steal my joy of exercise.  I praise you Lord for the healing of my joints!!!!  I thank you for Lanita, and her inspiring testimony of reaching her goals, and pray you continue to give her strength to reach the big "50" lb wt loss!!!!  Lord, you tell us that if we delight in you, you will give us the desires of our heart.   May we delight in you tonight, Jesus, as we lay down, and as we wake up in the morning!!  I love you, Lord, for all these blessings you allow me to be part of in women and men changing their attitude toward food and exercise.    I pray we remember every day, our body is YOUR TEMPLE!!!  In Jesus' precious name, Amen.