SOFIV Intro for Rachel S

Hello! I am Rachel Smith from Mobile, Alabama.  My husband is the pastor of Crossroads Baptist Church.  We have been here for a little over 4 years, before that he was pastoring in Indiana.  We entered the ministry right out of Bible college in 2000.  I am a high school English teacher.

My oh my! What I allowed myself to become after 13 years of marriage and 4 kids was a very self conscious woman who was always hiding behind a sweater, cardigan, or jacket of some kind no matter what the time of year.  I reached my heaviest this past year---I made it up to 169! GASP! I am a SHORTY that should not be carrying that much weight. I began going to a gym and exercising and started Weight Watchers.  I was not happy with myself and hated picking out clothes. I lost a few pounds, but not enough.  I determined this year was going to be different.  I was going to ask the Lord to help me get control.  With God all things are possible! I was determined...I am determined to press toward the mark!

In January my first step was no more Dr. Pepper! I am a Dr. Pepper addict.  I drank at least 2 a day...many days more. I only drink water. Then I began exercising with Zumba videos.  I get easily bored with exercise, so Zumba is fast paced enough to keep me challenged and interested.  I also began running again.  (I was very active in my high school days.) I used the Couch 2 5K app to get started (highly recommend). I am now running 2-3.5 miles at least 4 days a week.  I also started taking a supplement that I drink in a bottle of water each morning it levels my blood sugars, cholesterol, and lipids.  It is called Plexus. When your blood sugars are leveled, your appetite is naturally decreased. This has helped me not to CRAVE those Dr. Peppers or chocolate. With those changes and asking the Lord to help me push through when I have wanted to quit, this year I have lost 28 pounds! I posted a before and after picture. 

My HEP is 1. Follow my daily calorie allowance given to me for my height and weight on my fitness app. 2. Drink only water. 3. Eat fruits with peanut butter or nutella when I crave sweet

My exercise will be to continue my current activity--Zumba, running, and using my Wii Fit trainer, I started tracking my running on www.dailymile.com .  If you are on there, please look for me.

My goal is to lose 15 more pounds in 3 months, so that puts me at wanting to lose half of that during this challenge. I am excited to be a part of this with you all!