DAILY DOSE OF HOPE – BLOG – NAIMA LETT
Jennifer Hudson, Jessica Simpson & 5 Resolutions We Don’t Keep, © NaimaLett.com/blog

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© Weight Watchers: Jennifer Hudson & Jessica Simpson

WEIGHT WATCHERS KNOWS:
America’s #1 New Year’s resolution is to LOSE WEIGHT.

So, WW enlisted it’s 2 A-List spokeswomen to motivate us to get on board:
Jennifer Hudson, who reportedly lost 80 pounds after pregnancy a few years ago, and
Jessica Simpson, who reportedly lost 60 pounds after pregnancy this year (pregnant again).

Their latest 30-second commercial (above) is inspiring. We all remember J. Hud on American Idol and the flack Jessica got after she grew out of those Daisy Dukes. You cheer for them… and you believe, “I can do it too!”

GREAT MARKETING

That’s the power of great marketing. We believe we can do it. We make the New Year’s Resolution. We sign up and pay Weight Watchers too. But, if experts are telling the truth, it turns out that most of us don’t actually lose and keep the weight off.

According to a recent Forbes’ article, there are “5 New Year’s Resolutions You Won’t Keep – And 5 You Will“. Contributor Melanie Haiken says experts agree that people have a hard time keeping the following 5 resolutions.

TOP 5 RESOLUTIONS WE DON’T KEEP

1) Go on a diet (aka lose weight)
2) Quit smoking
3) Join the gym (aka lose weight)
4) Lose 20 lbs (aka lose weight)
5) Stop biting nails (or some other physical habit)

WHY?

The explanation offered to sum up why we have a hard time keeping such resolutions is because we’ve formed habits that are hard to break. “Experts say it’s almost impossible to break a physical habit with willpower alone… we’ve been doing it so long (hence the name habit) that we’re no longer aware of it.”

Instead of making resolutions to change long term habits by will alone, the article suggests that we work from the inside out. First, find out what triggers the habit. What are the “cravings underlying the behavior”? If we understand our trigger, we can address the root issue.

Also, it’s recommended to make small changes instead of sweeping declarations. For example, instead of going on a diet and starving (which doesn’t work long term), choose to daily swap the 600 calorie muffin for a 150 calorie bowl of oatmeal. We can choose to buy differently.

MY RESOLUTION

Is it just me, or does anyone else find it remotely interesting that all 5 resolutions mentioned above involve weight, addiction or something physical? Not that we shouldn’t get in shape. We should. But is that odd to anyone? I wonder if it’s one of our Americanisms.

What’s on your list? Are your resolutions all physical?

I had one resolution this year, and it wasn’t necessarily physical.

MY RESOLUTION?
Care about what God cares about.

WHAT MATTERS

Before you send me angry emails exclaiming “How dare you talk about weight when you don’t struggle with it !!!”, please know that we all struggle with something.

For me, I daily want to pursue and put my energy into things that matter to God. I want His heart, and I want to care for people like He cares for people. I meet folks all day long, believers and non-believers, who are obsessed with chasing fame and fortune. The longer I walk with the Lord, the more I realize those things don’t seem to be a priority on His list.

God is not nearly as fixated as many of His children are about becoming millionaires. He owns all. I believe He’s more interested in our stewardship of what we currently have and what we’re doing with it. How we use what we have reflects what’s in our heart.

Romans 12:1-2 says transformation starts in our mind: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Of course, we should read all of chapter 11-12 to get the context, and this is not a ‘canned’ answer for every situation, but the concept is transformation starts with renewing our minds. This is applicable in our theology. And it’s also applicable in our New Year’s Resolutions.

LIKE JEN & JESS!

So, if you really want to lose weight like Jennifer Hudson and Jessica Simpson, get a $4 million endorsement deal with Weight Watchers and have all your meals prepared and delivered to you. Just kidding!

Our weight loss and any other resolution we make starts from within. If we change how we think, we change what we believe. If we change what we believe, we change what we do. :=)

Work in progress,
Naima

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