I started my health journey in 2018 weighing 212 pounds.  I released 50 pounds in the first 6 months of 2019 by building a closer relationship with the Lord, joining the WLGW program, tracking my food daily, and exercising 5-6 days each week.

 After that, I kept exercising several times a week but not as consistently. I stopped logging my food because I foolishly thought, “I got this.” I had the head knowledge, but the tracking and measuring of my food kept me accountable to stay within the healthy calorie and carbohydrate intake boundaries I had set for myself. It took me approximately another 6 months to release 20 more pounds - that brought me down to 142 pounds. I found the balance I needed to eat healthy and exercise consistently. My vital signs and bloodwork numbers were excellent.  I was in the 140s for several months then I stayed around 150 pounds for approximately 2 years. 

The initial major turning point in my health journey after I joined Weight Loss God’s Way in the Fall of 2018 started in January of 2019 during the 40-Day Detox Course. I detoxed from carbohydrate cravings during that time and I developed 3 additional good habits – I stopped mindlessly snacking in the evenings, I kept a food journal on 'myfitnesspal' , and I learned to how capture my negative thoughts. 

A second turning point for me was during the Breakthrough course that followed the Detox program. 

That is when I fully acknowledged and accepted that I cannot lean on my own strength and I cannot make lasting healthy changes without keeping God involved every day. 

I realized during Breakthrough that I was no longer obsessed with food.  I knew what was good for me to eat and what wasn’t wise for me to eat.  I mostly tracked my food intake during the course of the day and made adjustments as needed to decide on what and how much to eat for dinner.  I wasn’t perfect, but I allowed for adjustments so that I didn’t fall back into unhealthy ways. 

I did well with my health journey during the first 20 months of COVID. I put on a few pounds in October and November of 2021. I contracted COVID in December of 2021. It wiped me out. After having cold- and flu-like symptoms for about 10 days, the lack of energy and almost constantly feeling tired wore me down physically, mentally, and spiritually.  After a few months I got back to having a normal energy level and feeling well.  

By March of 2022 I was back to being set in my old unhealthy ways. I lied to myself about not being concerned that the scale number was rising. I stopped weighing myself.  I tried a few times after that to get back on track by myself. I wasn’t able to do it for more than a day or two. Around October I went back to praying over my health journey and asking others to pray for me and to check in on how I was doing. 

In November I started actively participating in Weight Loss God’s Way again. It felt so good to be back on track with God and caring for myself the way He intends me to. I'm currently down almost 20 pounds and I feel like my old self again. 

The biblical soundness of the Weight Loss God’s Way program as well as the support, encouragement, and guidance from Cathy and other members of the program is what brought me back to actively working on my health journey. I have faith in God and faith in this biblically based process.  I'm finding my way back and am confident that I will return to my healthy weight as I go back to what I know works

~Mary R.