As a Young Defender (or YD for short), one can face many a challenge. Most of the world treat challenges as an annoyance and a pain in the you know where. It is an opportunity to whine, feel sorry for oneself, and to blame others. On the other hand, a Young Defender treats them as opportunities to grow and to challenge ones mind and spirit.
As a Young Defender, one challenge I would face was my own personal health, specifically my weight issues. From an early age and well into adulthood, my up and down weight haunted me. One reason for my weight issue was poor food choices that came about from a lack of education and from home influences. I grew up in an Indian American family in the middle of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I had the worst of both worlds when it came to healthy food choices. First, I was eating the typical American diet that consisted of a lot of processed meats, dairy, little fresh vegetables or fruits, and a lot of unhealthy snacks. In addition, the typical Indian diet ( although Vegetarian) I grew up with consisted of overcooked vegetables, dairy, and fried foods.
As I became older and more educated on proper nutrition and exercise, I was still struggling with my weight. I knew how to exercise (cardio, weights, flexibility) and what was considered healthy eating. I would loose weight but eventually gain it all back. I know many of you have struggled with the same issue. That is the typical story for a lot of folks. You hear it all the time on the news and you see it all around you. Overweight kids and adults. Diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure are far too common. Unhealthy fast food joints and their drive thru lines are packed for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Something was not adding up.
It was not until my later years did I discover the true reason for my health challenges. As a Young Defender, I discovered there was something deeper that was keeping me unhealthy and overweight. A BIGGER REASON! It was my lack of SELF-LOVE. That simple yet powerful truth was life altering for me. THIS TRUTH WILL BE LIFE CHANGING FOR YOU AND FOR YOUR CHILDREN AS WELL.
When you truly love anything or anyone, you will never purposely harm them. That includes yourself. Why would I overeat and indulge in junk food on a daily basis? I knew better, but why did I continue down this dangerous road? My lack of love for myself was the missing ingredient. Whether you are a kid or an adult, your number one goal in life is to learn to love yourself more and more each day. That is the key mission of a Young Defender. This allows a YD to overcome challenges like being overweight. When I took on the journey of a Young Defender, I began to set and work towards goals like the one below (The goal below can be used as a model for any other goal you may have in any area of your life).
The Goal: Get to 160 healthy pounds and keep it there.
Deadline: 3 months from today (April 9, 2019).
List of Obstacles:
1. I have been eating bad for too long. What should I be eating?
2. What exercises should I be doing?
3. I love food, especially junk food too much (PIZZA IS NUMBER ONE)
4. I OVEREAT, ESPECIALLY WHEN I AM OVER STRESSED.
Plan of Action (POA) to overcome the above obstacles:
1. Go online to a reputable source or speak with a nutritionist about ways you can change your eating habits. Start with small steps and stay CONSISTENT. If you fall off the wagon, get back on. I discovered NOOM, which has been a nice program when it comes to nutrition (I like their practical science based approach).
2. Restart my workup with a mix of cardio, weights, and yoga. The key is CONSISTENCY and make it FUN.
3. Enjoy your junk foods occasionally (once a week) and control your portions. Eat a slice or two of pizza. Not the whole pie. A few potato chips. Not the whole bag. If I screw on this, do not beat yourself up.
4. You can not purposely hurt something or someone your truly love. I gave my self a heavy dose of LOVE (positive affirmations, acceptance, belief).
FUTURE BLOG BLOSTS IN THIS AREA WILL PROVIDE UPDATES ON MY PROGRESS & I INVITE YOU TO SHARE YOUR JOURNEY.
