How many times have you looked in the mirror wishing for the clear evidence that all of your hard work, eating right, and exercising have truly paid off? Maybe you are looking for a smaller face in the mirror, thinner arms, a smaller waistline, or some visual sign. What do you do when you don't see that sign?
I know that this is a long and hard journey. DON'T give up. Stay in it for the long haul. Even if you don't see the noticeable differences on the outside, how do you feel on the inside? Do you have more energy, do you feel more confident in yourself?
I encourage everyone to take pictures of yourself along your journey.Those living with you may not notice the difference in you right away but when you and your family members look at your pictures, you should see some differences.
How about those clothes? Have you lost a few inches here and there? If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, then keep forging forward. Something that you are doing is working for you.
Give yourself some time to get it all together. As I've said several times before...it didn't take you a day to gain that extra weight and it won't take you a day to get it off.
Take the small victories as they come and wait for the big ones. One day, you will have people stopping you in the hallway or on the street asking you, "What have you been doing? You look good! You've lost a lot of weight!". Even if NO ONE ever says those words to you, you have to answer to yourself and God as to what you have done to get your mind, body, and spirit back on the right track.
Here are some quotes from
588 Days! Balancing Act of Faith, Family, & Finding Time for ME in the chapter called "I Can't Take It Anymore"
:
"I encourage you and I to keep forging forward, particularly during those times when you just want to throw in the towel. Those should be the times when you dig deep into your inner strength and call about your faith to get you through. Those should be the times when you recognize all of the hard work you’ve done so far and congratulate yourself for coming this far. Those should be the times when you reassess your eating and exercise regimen to determine where improvements could/should be made that would yield you your desired results.
Below you will find some quotes from the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan that reaffirm to me that the struggles, trials, and tribulations I was experiencing on this journey were ordained and I was not alone.
“Brothers and Sisters, each time we turn away from the struggle to overcome difficulty, there then is deterioration of character and there is destruction of the Will---and the Will is that within you is God’s gift. It is His Essence that He gives to man and anything that deteriorates your Will destroys you ability to cope with the problems of life. Struggle is ordained.” ~ Self-Improvement: The Basis for Community Development by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan – page 3
“Struggle is ordained by God. God is not a vicious God. He is a Loving, a Beneficent and Merciful God, but He ordains struggle. Because without struggle, you cannot bring out of yourself that which God has deposited within you. It is something that has to be brought out and it is a struggle overcoming difficulties that manifest your own gifts and your own sublime qualities.” ~ Self-Improvement: The Basis for Community Development by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan – page 3
“’Impatience’ is defined as an ‘eager desire for relief or change; intolerance of anything that thwarts or hinders.’ Thus we see that it is a force which is natural and which is characterized as a desire. Desire feeds the Will, therefore, the desire to be relieved from the irritation of waiting over a protracted period of time comes into conflict with the desire for any goal which requires patience to obtain. One force must win over the other.” - Self-Improvement: The Basis for Community Development by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan – Building the Will, Part III Study Guide #7
“Impatience, or the desire for relief or change, may be removed from us, not by yielding to this natural force, but by seeking refuge in Allah (God). Whenever impatience threatens to cause us to turn away from a desired goal, we must go to Allah (God), the Lord of the ways of Ascent, in prayer. Prayer will give us the security and peace of mind that will relieve our irritation. It is that frame of mind that we then must re-identify with our desired goal. The desire (and the willingness to be patient in order to obtain it) will then return.” Self-Improvement: The Basis for Community Development by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan – Building the Will, Part III Study Guide #7
“It is written in the Holy Qur’an, which is the Book of Scripture for the Muslims, that Allah created man to face difficulties. God has brought us all onto this Earth to face one difficulty after another and it is the facing of these difficulties and the overcoming of these difficulties that helps us to improve our character and improve ourselves” ~ Self-Improvement: The Basis for Community Development by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan – page 2
Although these times seem frustrating, disappointing, filled with anxiety and doubt, these should be the times when you kick it into gear and press on. You’ll be amazed at yourself when you do!"
"Remember...You Are Worth It...Just Do It...No Excuses"
