Discipline and Strength!

This is exactly what it means to be on a fitness journey for life. We must discipline ourselves even in pain, even in laziness, even in sickness, even in doubt. The Bible says if we allow Christ to discipline us then we will be righteous, and have peace. We will be trained! 

But in order to attain these we must strengthen our weak arms and knees. We must allow the Lord to strengthen us! We must seek His strength. We can´t do it on our own, as many would like to lead us to believe. We must cry out to Him in prayer. 

This is the first step of our fitness journey. 

Have you asked God for help to say "NO" to that doughnut and "YES" to 20 minutes of walking? He will give you that strength you need. You just have to ask. 

Do you sometimes feel like Peter the fisherman? 

"We have fished all night but haven´t caught anything!" He said to Jesus, after Jesus had told him to go back out to fish again. 

We can then read Peter´s testimony and learn from him. He said, 

"yet, at your word, Lord, I will throw out the nets again." And he caught more fish than he had ever caught in his life!

Persistence and consistence are key! We must continue on! 

However, the most important journey of all is our spiritual one . We can not succeed if we miss the most important key of all!

JESUS!

 He died for us so that we might have life eternal. He gave His life so that we could be forgiven. We must live for Him, because He gave His life for us!

Then and only then can we achieve discipline, righteousness, peace, training, strength and be healed! 

Inspiration Sweating!

"Therefore, my beloved sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." 

1 Corinthians 15:58 

This is our theme verse for this week! I needed this encouragement today. It seems that no matter how hard I try, come the weekend, the pounds just come right back on. I know, that the increase in exercise and weight training will jump start my metabolism, so I will keep on!

 I will try to increase my exercise to a full hour each day this week.

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, running and abs at home, Tues, Thurs and Saturday weight training and running if I can on Saturday. 

We need to keep cutting out those excess carbohydrates. I think that even the whole wheat bread is keeping me from losing weight. 

Let´s encourage each other on our journey! It is so important to have this support in order to have success. We must rally around each other, empathize with each other and cheer each other on. Check out what each one is doing on our facebook page and please leave encouraging comments! 

Be Strong and Consistent and you will reach your goals! 

Sweatin´it with ya, 
Dani

Almond milk

I want to get 1 extra point today, so I am posting =) Almond milk is delicious and good for you, and it is not difficult to do you own. I love a good" almond milk-banana-blueberries/strawberries/raspberries-flaxseed" smoothie. 

Homemade Vanilla Cinnamon Almond Milk

Yield: 3.5 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw almonds, soaked in water
• 3.5 cups filtered water
• 2-4 pitted dates
• 1 whole vanilla bean, chopped (or 1/2-1 tsp vanilla extract)
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• small pinch of fine grain sea salt, to enhance the flavour

1. Place almonds in a bowl and cover with water. It’s preferred to soak them overnight (for 8-12 hours) in the water, but you can get away with soaking for 1-2 hours in a pinch.

2. Rinse and drain the almonds and place into a blender along with filtered water, pitted dates, and chopped vanilla bean.

3. Blend on highest speed for 1 minute or so.

4. Place a nut milk bag over a large bowl and slowly pour the almond milk mixture into the bag. Gently squeeze the bottom of the bag to release the milk. 

5. Rinse out blender and pour the milk back in. Add the cinnamon and pinch of sea salt and blend on low to combine. Pour into a glass jar to store in the fridge for up to 3-5 days. Shake jar very well before using as the mixture separates when sitting. If your dates or vanilla bean are dry/stiff, soak in water to soften before use.

Candida yeast greatly influences your health and fitness.

I have learned many things about my body and the natural things that influence my fitness and health since I started this journey in January.  I mentioned in my intro that I began taking a supplement called Plexus Slim that naturally levels my body's blood sugars which aids in overall health. When I hit a plateau in my weight loss, I started doing a little more studying.  I learned about candida yeast and started taking a probiotic. I broke through that plateau.

Candida yeast can cause you to crave sugar and yeast. It wants these things to continue to grow.  It prevents you from absorbing the proper nutrients from your foods. Candida yeast can also cause digestive problems (which is causing you to keep toxins from your waste not being released quickly from your body), bloating, headaches, fatigue, and "brain fog." Read more about it here. http://restormedicine.com/candida-and-weight-loss/

You may have an overgrowth of candida yeast in your body and not know it. How do you find out? Take a spit test. Yucky I know! First thing in the morning get some water in a clear glass.  Spit into it.  Wait a couple of minutes. If your spit remains in a cohesive blob, you are pretty much candida free.  If your spit begins to develop long stran-like tendrils, you have an overgrowth of candida.  Many people do and don't realize it.

If you hit a plateau in your weight loss, definitely do a spit test.  Taking a good probiotic will help you to get rid of candida yeast.  You can find one at any drug store or health food store.

Cucumber sandwich

Hello, the first day of the challenge was a success, some beginnings are easy. I do love veggies and want to share a delicious snack that I have tried lately: cucumber sandwich. You can get the regular big cucumber or the small english cucumbers, slice it lengthwise and fill it with cream cheese, ham, turkey, smoked salmon, the possibilities are endless...zero carbs yet you get the crunchiness. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to make it tastier...mmmm...easy, healthy and good!

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!

Dani´s SOFIV Intro post

 It's been four years now.  My Journey started HERE. 

It seems to be harder now than in the beginning, but I am determained to stay at my best for my family, and for God.  

God? Yes, He made me and, He saved me by His son Jesus , so I want to do my best and be my best for Him! 

This is my goal. To do all I can to stay fit! 

Exercise - 40 minutes to 1 hour everyday except my free day. Hard cardio and weight training. Running 2-3 days and the others doing my Jillian Michaels DVD workouts

 HEP- to cut out all white flour, white sugar, and all fried foods. To follow my Belly Fat Cure iPad app. 

Weight- start 137. Goal 125. As you can see I have  gained more than 10 lbs back, and 5 is just recently from the end of the last challenge. REALLY! 

I have gone up in my measurements too. So this is a big focus for me to get more toned again. 

Can't wait to see change! 

Ladies, let's sweat it! 

Dani

Introductory Post

Hello, my name is Rebeca and I am from Spain but God´s providence has lead us to Toronto. I met Danielle 11 years ago when they arrived to Mataró with little Isaiah to help as missionaries in the work there. She kept on having babies and all had to be boys...they were the cutest thing ever. I learnt a lot from her and that helped me when I had my own babies. I still have my "On Becoming Baby Wise" that she always recommended, what a treasure!
I have 1 boy and 3 girls, ages 8, 7, 5 and 2 and a half. I homeschool (also got that from Danielle). When expecting I was never big and went back to my pre pregnancy weight quickly, every single time got out of the hospital in regular clothes. After my fourth one I started losing weight but did not get rid of it as quick. My sister is a nutritionist and I told her I was thinking to diet and ask if she would do an eating plan for me. That was only 6 months after the birth, I know it may sound ridiculous to some of you but those pounds were really bothering me. And she said something I will not forget. She said "if you do not lose this weight know you will end up thinking and believing this is the way you are". In 6 weeks 10 pounds were gone, end of story. I have always enjoyed exercising and loved healthy eating, that has helped me to "remain the same" except for the blue under my eyes =)
Also, after having my fourth I started running with my dad. I love it! But sometimes, many times, or most of the times it is hard to find the time to work out. I have never completely stopped but I have not been consistent, and I want to. But not for two months, I want it for life. I am very excited and encouraged and hope to see results by the end of the challenge. I do not think I will be losing much weight but I want to tone up and be stronger and feel good. May the Lord bless all of you in what He has entrusted you. Nice meeting you all!

Start Sweatin´!

Let´s get started, Ladies!

Sweatin´OFF the Fat fitness challenge is all about reaching goals, making new habits, and taking care of yourself for God´s glory. He created you special. Now it´s time to believe it! 

What do we do first?

1. Sign up. - If you haven´t signed up there is still time. Just leave me a comment here or by facebook. I will invite you to our special facebook page. 

2. Print your point spread sheet. HERE

3. Read the rules and point system. HERE

4. Prepare your Introduction post. (10 bonus points)
    May include - a photo, some facts about yourself, and measures
    Must include - your HEP (healthy eating plan), and your goals

5. Measure Monday, May 6 first thing in the morning. See how to measure HERE. 

6. Follow through!  Pray for each other, encourage each other here or on our facebook page, and get SWEATIN´! 

You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you! 

Sweatin´off the fat with ya, 
Dani Joy

Summer 2013 Challenge

Do you lack the motivation to exercise alone? Is it hard for you to lose weight and stay in shape?

You are not alone. It is a discipline that many of us struggle with, but we can all have victory over our weight and health!

My seasonal fitness challenges started back in 2009 with the first ever Christmas Crunch Challenge. Many ladies signed up, and helped inaugurate the Faith, Fitness and Fun blog! It was exactly that, FUN! I had already lost the majority of my weight, (40lbs) but needed the motivation of these sweet ladies to keep the weight off.

This is the fourth Sweatin´ OFF the Fat challenge! I need it more than ever, this year. Little by little my body has put back on 8 lbs. Ultimately, I would like to lose 10 lbs. What are your goals? Whether you have small goals or large goals, this challenge will help you to stay focused and disciplined. It will insure, a healthy life style, not a diet and it will help you keep your eyes on the goal. 

We not only use this blog, but we also have a facebook page that keeps us up-to-date every day. We do keep track of points with an adapted point system, pounds and measurements. (learn how here) But these are not the focus! We focus more on encouraging each other, staying on track and doing our best to be our best for God. 

To sign up, please comment here or e mail, danijoy2spain@gmail.com. 

We start Monday, May 6! 

Let´s get "Sweatin´Off the Fat", 

Dani Joy

Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31

Winners, Running, and Look out Summer Here we Come!

The Spring-in 2 Shape Challenge ended April 1, with two winners of the Amazon gift card!

Sharon Livingston - She did both 30 day challenges with a total 189 overall points and 9 pounds lost! 
She is an active mommy of three very young boys!   Way to go Sharon! 

Hannah Hill - won the second 30 day challenge with a total of 148 points- She is 29 pounds down... 14 inches @ the waist & 10 inches @ the hips... she has been working @ this for 14 weeks now... 

A big shout out to these two very brave ladies! God will bless your discipline and hard work! Keep on for His glory.

In our fitness journey for life, sometimes we get a little sidetracked and waylaid. This has happened to me recently. Even though, I never stopped exercising totally, I let a lot slide. I started eating a little more and before I knew it I had gained back 10lbs!

 It has been almost 3 years since I got the 40 pounds off . I have worked too hard to have it come back on! I refuse to let it! God help me to stay disciplined and strong. 

Running is not my thing, but it has become my thing. It is the only way to really truly lose the belly fat and inches in the lower end. 

Today, I hit a personal record. Thanks to a friend who runs very well,  we ran an 1 hour and 10 minutes! I just had to share our trek! I kept saying, 

"My help comes from the Lord," every uphill climb. 

The blue graph is the hills we climbed! 

Of course, this is not my first run. Please, be sure to work your way up to such a run. I have heard that the Couch to 5K is a great program to get running. Also, I use www.Dailymile.com to track all my miles. A friend of ours uses Nike +.  

Most importantly, don´t forget to stretch and drink lots of water.

It is still really cold here, but look out summer here we come! Stay posted for our up-coming Sweatin´ Off the  Fat  summer fitness challenge.  I hope to start it  the second week of May! 

Do all for the glory of God! 

Staying fit for life, 

Dani Joy