If you could take back your health this year, would you?

Usually, I wait for New Year’s Resolutions to make decisions that can affect change in my life. There’s something about hitting that reset button on January first that allows me the joy of taking control (again) of my life and working toward self-improvement. However, this year, after attending the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference in May for the ninth year in a row, I found myself reflecting on several things. One of which was my health. For the past few years, I’d looked at my pictures from the conference and noted how frumpy and dumpy I looked in the majority of them. How my midsection rolled beneath my blouses. How round my hips were. You know the drill.

And each year, I’d tell myself, “I’m going to make it happen this year.” I was determined I would make better, wiser choices when it came to eating, drinking, exercising, and sleeping. I was going to lose the weight and look great!

Four years later, I was still looking at pictures after the conference, hating what I saw.

Is this about body image? Not entirely. But, if I’m honest, it has a lot to do with it.

Here are my 10 reasons for taking back my health, which I’m sure are reasons you probably want to take back your health, too.

1. I want to live a long life.

When I consider leaving this earth, I am excited to pass into eternity. Yet, at the same time, I’m saddened to leave behind a life I truly enjoy most of the time.

2. I want to be here for my kids and my future grandkids and my future great-grandkids.

My mom has always been here for my siblings and me. She’s always ready to help when we need it, whether it be a place to live between residences, childcare when we’re away from home, or babysitting the great-grandboy. I want to be able to help my kids as much as she has helped us and my siblings and their spouses and kids.

3. I want to enjoy life to its fullest.

I don’t want to regret one day. And in order to live like there’s no tomorrow, I have to be healthy enough to do it. To hike the mountains. To play in the ocean. Enjoy a trip or two to faraway places.

4. I want to spend my days living, not lying in bed.

I have spent years suffering from migraines and other various headaches that would keep me from enjoying the non-work moments in life. Just ask my husband. Until a few years ago, every time he’d make plans for our family to go on an adventure for a day or weekend, I would without-a-doubt wake up with a headache that morning.

5. I don’t want to take medicine on a regular basis.

I don’t mind a round of antibiotics when needed, but in no way do I want to take meds on a daily basis for anything. Not for diabetes (which runs in my family) or cholesterol (I came close to having to take meds for this) or any other illness, disease, or mental issue.

6. I don’t want to suffer depression all the time; I want to be filled with joy.

I spend several years as a teen and young adult in a depression. Life was all right, but I was not. I found freedom from it about the time that I found God to be real. Since then, I’ve also learned that what we eat and drink seriously affects our mental and emotional state. I want joy and peace in my life and am willing to do what I need to in order to achieve that.

7. I hate my ________________________________________.

Fill in the blank, but only use words that describe something on your physical body that can be changed.

For example, mine would be: Muffin Top, Thighs Rubbing Together, Triple Chins, Swelling.

8. I want to remember words.

Over the past few years, I’ve noticed that I can’t come up with words that I used to know well. This would include names. The constant brain-fog-tired feeling doesn’t help me accomplish anything on my to-do list for the day. I just want to sleep all the time! So, I want to remember my words. And be fully awake throughout the day, ready to tackle anything life throws at me in that timeframe.

9. I want to sleep well.

(See above.) Plus, I want to sleep soundly when I lay down at night. I don’t want to toss and turn consistently. This past couple of weeks, I haven’t stuck to my plan, and I’ve eaten fast food, sugar, and had some dairy. I can tell I haven’t eaten well, because I toss and turn all night, no matter how exhausted I am.

10. I want to be able to move and still be enjoying life when I’m in my nineties.

When I go hiking and am huffing and puffing my way up the trail, needing to take breaks while my kids are running ahead, I want to be able to keep up with them now just like I did when they were toddlers. And I want to be able to hike those trails when I’m elderly. To enjoy nature my entire life.

What am I doing to take back my health?

I love encouraging people. When it comes to our health, I believe it’s always more influential to be experiencing a change yourself if you want to encourage others to take the leap into taking back their health as well. It’s so much more fun to do something like this with others than to do it alone. And accountability plays a big role when it comes to making changes in our personal lives.

My mom and sister started taking back their health a couple of months before I jumped in with them.

My mom has suffered from swelling since her 40s, with no help from the doctors, as they couldn’t pinpoint what was causing it. In the past few months, she has lost nearly 40 pounds, her swelling is decreasing, and she’s had to buy new clothes twice now, as she’s slimmed down two sizes. She’s walking without huffing and puffing. Her doctor has recently decreased one of her medications. Where the doctors couldn’t help much, she’s discovered a health program that has given her the results she’s been searching for nearly thirty years.

My sister has Type II diabetes. Since starting on her health plan, she has lost weight, slimmed a size, and had her meds decreased. But best of all, she’s waking up with normal sugar levels in the morning.

Since I started my health plan, I’ve lost nearly twenty pounds and slimmed back into my size 16s. I am waking up without headaches, have the brain power to do the work that needs to be done, and am sleeping much better. The ability to pay better attention to my family is making our time together more enjoyable. I’m avoiding the cholesterol meds my doctor wanted to put me on.

Don’t Wait. Do It Now.

I decided I wasn’t going to wait until January this time. This time, I was going to take advantage of now. It’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made this year.

What’s your reason for wanting to improve your health? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!

And if you’re really serious about it and would like more information on what has worked for my mom, sister, and me, I’d be happy to chat with you via Facebook Messenger or email to see if we can make it work for you too! What are you willing to do to take back your health?