Take It Off

It is time.

It is time to let it all go.

It is time to let go of all the negative aspects of Asheville, all of the difficulties and challenges.

You see, all of the negative has manifested onto my body.

When I see pictures of myself, I don't know who I am.

I don't physically look like the way I think I look.

Crazy, right?

So, I am facing reality. I let go and release.

It is time to be mindful of my body.

Really, really mindful.

I believe the more you put into something, 
the more you get out of it.

If you want to really accomplish a goal, 
you declare it to the world - 
you create a vision board, you practice affirmations, 
you make it so.

You live and breathe that goal and you begin the transformation.

To start preparing my mind, I found an old picture of myself. 
I don't want to look like some skinny scrawny celebrity 
or anything like that. 

Hell, no. 

I want to look like me.

I've been putting this picture on everything - candles, notebook paper, my calendar, my desktop background -

Puerto Vallarta June 1998

This version of Amy is the symbol of my weight loss journey.

I plan on losing 5 lbs a month.

How do I plan on transforming myself?

With my mind for starters!
I am mindful of my actions.

Juicing.
I've replaced breakfast with a yummy and healthy juice.

Having healthy meal portions and 
eating slower - really chewing my food.
I'm putting a reasonable amount of yummy and healthy 
food on my plate. 
I'm working on putting the leftovers away 
before I sit down to eat.
That way there isn't even temptation to eat more.

Walking
3 weeks ago I got back into my gym routine. 
I love hopping on the treadmill.
I'm also spending more time wandering around 
downtown Asheville, 
which is a fantastic environment to walk around in.
The mountainous uphill/downhill sidewalks can get
challenging and exhausting.
The shops and people watching make it so worth it.

Hiking
Spring is upon us and I plan on exploring 
more North Carolina mountain trails
and journeying to waterfalls. 

Yoga
I am having my own personal Yoga Sundays.
Every Sunday afternoon, I'm doing yoga in my sacred space.

Strength Training

I love lifting weights at the gym.
Strength training is part of my routine. 
My body craves it and I can really tell the difference 
when I incorporate weights.

Boxing
I want, really, really want
my own boxing stand.
I love to box. 
If I had one at home, I could
 kick its ass any time I felt like it.

Gardening
I plan on being one with my garden this year.
At least once a week I'm going to be out there,
weeding, harvesting, and connecting with my special plants. 

Meditation
I meditate every morning after my morning pages, 
focusing on breathing, relaxing, and 
envisioning my authentic self. 

Finishing and moving through the exercises 
of the fabulous book, 
"A Course in Weight Loss" by Marianne Williamson.

Practicing Affirmations

My chosen affirmations:

I choose perfect health.

I am beautiful inside and out.

I am lighter, tighter, and brighter.

I am my Authentic Self!

Having Monthly Check-Ins
I am having New Moon check-ins. 
Every New Moon, I am going to measure myself and 
check my weight. 

I can do this.

I must be healthy inside and out.

"Spiritually, your wanting to lose weight 
is not a desire to become less of yourself, 
but rather a desire to become more of your true self." 
~Marianne Williamson 

Peace, Inspiration, & Love,
 ~Amy
 The Magick Muse

Amy Riddle, C.C., Holistic Alchemist and Manifestor of Dreams
is a life coach, crafter of sorts, writer, herbalist, reverend, and all out muse.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Alternative Medicine with an emphasis on herbs. 

She is a certified professional life coach with the Life Coach Institute of Orange County. 

Amy craves to inspire others to be healthy and whole in body, mind, and spirit. 

She has an affinity for striped socks, stinging nettle, and all things faery.

Embracing My Body (part of a blog circle concerning books)

The book I'm reading right now is teaching me...

I started reading, 
"A Course in Weight Loss, 21 Spiritual Lessons for Surrendering Your Weight Forever" by 

Marianne Williamson 
in December 2010. 

I got through chapter 1 and then stopped.

I picked it up again a year later...got through 2 chapters...and then stopped.

I strongly believe it is time...time to get through all 21 chapters. 

So far, so good...I mean...I've made it to chapter 3!

I obviously wasn't ready before, but I am ready now.

It was pretty much impossible to grow/live/be healthy in body, mind, and spirit in a shared 400 square foot apartment. 

My spirit was suffocating.

Good news, that is over. 

Now I have space. Space to create. Space to cook. Space to just be. Space to balance my body, mind, and spirit.

Every single day I feel closer to being me again, my authentic Amy is coming back 100%.

With that comes the realization of, 

"What the fuck happened to my body?"

We all cope in different ways. I've put on weight for several reasons...and I now know it is time to let it all go.

Reading "A Course in Weight Loss" is taking me on a deep spiritual journey concerning my weight. I have already felt a healthy shift...and I have 18 chapters left to go.

I started going back to the gym on May 6...I really do enjoy it. 

Plus now that I have a kitchen, I'm eating better. 

I have been against scales for many, many years..however when I ventured back into the gym routine on May 6, I hopped on. I figured I had to face me head on. I decided it was time to know. I hadn't weighed myself for probably 14 years. 
I've always gone with "how I feel". 

Well, I didn't feel good anymore. 

So, deciding it was time to embrace, acknowledge, and deal...

I stepped on the scale. 

Holy fuck balls. 

The number that came up was atrocious. 

My mind went through so many horrible thoughts...mainly, 

"Only really, really fat people weigh that much." 

Oh, gawd. What have I done to myself? 

I don't deserve this. 
I deserve better treatment from myself to myself.

"A Course in Weight Loss" has helped me let go of all those nasty thoughts. It has helped me realize that my soul was weighed down, which made my body heavy. 

Horrible domino effect that I am stopping.

I am changing my thinking. 

I am becoming more aware and conscious of what I'm doing with my body and what I'm eating. 

I got on that scale again this week and I've lost 13 pounds. 
Progress! 
I am back on track.
Thank you Marianne Williamson for being 
with me on this journey. 

"Spiritually, your wanting to lose weight 
is not a desire to become less of yourself, 
but rather a desire to become more of your true self." 
~Marianne Williamson 

**************************************

This blog is part of the Flying Lessons monthly blog circle. 

Hop to the next blog to see what other books are inspiring us. 

Who knows where you'll end up?

Next stop on the circle is the amazing Kristen Fairgrieve. 

I wonder what she's been reading? 

May you enjoy our reading circle and 

have some bursts of inspiration. 

Peace, Inspiration, & Love,
 ~Amy
 The Magick Muse