Freedom on a Budget

My husband and I are budgeters. He kinda converted me to the practice of extreme budgeting, but now we're an Excel-spreadsheet kind of couple. Practically every dollar earned and spent each month is accounted for. While it seems rigid from the outside, there is actually so much freedom and peace of mind in knowing that when we simply stick to the plan, we will have absolutely everything we need that month (and more!). Groceries, bills, gas, date nights, family outings, savings, giving - all allotted and divided into their appropriate amounts. By staying in the given boundaries, and not blowing it all on a whim, we're able to know we will always have enough.

This past weekend I helped host a Faith & Fitness day at our little, local church. We had a solid hour workout class with 3 different instructors and an eye-opening, encouraging discussion on nutrition. We delved into what the Bible says about it all, and enjoyed a luncheon of salad and smoothies with a bunch of lovely, sweaty ladies afterwards. As hard as we worked out, it was such a peace-filled, satisfying morning. And even though I helped lead the event, I ended up hearing and leaving with some serious truth from my nutrition-savy friend. It was along the lines of when we live within God-given boundaries, like simplicity and self-control, we actually receive freedom in return. Obviously this can be applied to other things in life, but she focused it specifically to food. Living within boundaries provides freedom? This is not something the rest of the world will tell you. The reply might be boundaries are no fun. "Diets" suck. Rules are for breaking. Right? But I know that through other simple, controlled boundaries in life, I HAVE gained freedom. With money and marriage, with alarm clocks, with discipline in parenting, even with monitoring what my eyes see and my ears hear throughout my day - when I set up the boundary, freedom follows. "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free..." Galatians 5:1

So, contrary to my Hot Fudge Sundae self, I'm setting up some boundaries. With two kids and my schedule at home, I can't fit in double sessions at the gym like I did in college. I can't compensate my devout love of food with constant workouts anymore. And really, where's the boundary in that? It's almost like consistently sinning and running to confess, instead of just cutting off the sin. (Not that eating is a sin, unless it's gone to gluttony, then it might be in the running.) Anyway, I've decided to budget my food. To set the limit, to put the "don't pass this line" tape up. And in doing so, I'm expecting freedom, freedom from food. I'm only on Day 3, so I'm still in the baby stages, but this is a big step nevertheless. I'm also expecting God to meet me here, help me, and bless my self-controlled, simplified attempt of honoring Him with my body, specifically what/how much I'm putting into it. So I've got my plan, my budget is laid out, and I'm actually excited to have boundaries in place. Knowing I won't blow it all on a whim, while always having enough. Not feeling entitled to ALL of it, but instead satisfied with ENOUGH of it. Thank you friend for the encouragement; now here's to accountability!   :)

You say, 'I'm allowed to do anything' - but not everything is good for you. And even though, 'I'm allowed to do anything,' I must not become a slave to anything.  ~1 Corinthians 6:12

Faith & Fitness

Faith & Fitness Day

Saturday, January 19th, 2013

10 a.m. to noon

Crossroads Community Church

445 Oakshade Road, Shamong, NJ

-Workout with 3 Local Fitness Instructors-

Scripture, Prayer, Nutrition and More

Childcare Provided
Open to all Ladies in the area 

Bring a friend!
Wear comfortable clothes. 
If you have your own free weights and/or mat, 
bring that along too

Contact: michelle.umbehauer@gmail.com 

Extremes

I once got a C+ on a speech a wrote in college because I got so fired up about the topic that the Professor said it was more like a rant than a speech (it also may have had something to do with her being a bumper-sticker supporter of the person I was ranting against Ooops!) Anyway, I came across a seriously disturbing article in the NY Times this week and I will try my best to just share and avoid ranting, but I can't promise anything.

The article is titled Bridal Hunger Games: Losing Weight in Time for the Wedding. It's worth the click. You will be amazed at how this Style Section article seems to glorify, or at least normalize, these extreme wedding weight loss trends. The highlighted method is receiving a 10-day feeding tube through your nose which pumps you a mere 800-calories a day while you go about your everyday business (minus eating food). Is it really more of an inconvenience to go to the gym a few times a week than to walk around with a tube in your nose explaining to the sympathetic onlookers that you are not dying of cancer, but instead trying to drop a few pounds for your wedding? This isn't an obese woman looking to be mobile again; these are slightly overweight women looking to be immediately skinny. I don't understand how this is legal, really.

Leading up to my wedding, I definitely had some weight to I wanted to shed. I started teaching two classes a day, running in the mornings, and popping avocados like candy. Sure, it took more like 3 months than 10-days to get there, but I felt pretty awesome on my wedding day. I can't imagine how sickly someone would feel walking down the aisle like they just voluntarily spent a week in the hospital. Eating a little smarter and staying active may be the old-fashioned way nowadays, but it's always going to be the healthy way.

Even still, I can't help but to disagree with the saying, "Nothing tastes as good as being skinny feels" because I can think of at least a dozen things that taste better than anything feels and I plan on eating them occasionally :)  But as extreme as the mentioned fad procedures are, I definitely need the basic, basic reminder that there is no substitute for healthy living. No doubt this insanity is going to grow in popularity and feeding tube centers could put Weight Watchers out of business one day, but I'd rather just eat me some salad please.

There has to be a balance, a middle-ground out there somewhere. The Word says we should neither treat our bodies like crap nor obsess over them.    “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. (1 Corinthians 6:12)  While our bodies may just be earthly, temporary things, my Creator gifted me with a body, and I want to honor Him simply by choosing to respect it. I really do.

Running with the Rugrats

Today I woke up to see sun peaking through the clouds and hear robins chirping out back and I actually had a desire to go for a run. Now while I might enjoy exercising and teaching classes, I would never ever dare call myself a "runner". But with the gym not an option because of spring break (yes, our whole town likes to shut down when Penn State does) and my husband out of the house before 7 a.m. today, I knew I had to tow two kids along if I was going to make this happen. And miraculously enough, I learned exercising with two is possible, perhaps not ideal, but somewhat feasible. I strapped my 6-month old in the jogging stroller, threw sneakers on my 3-year-old and said, "Let's go!"

In Walmart, Baileigh seems to have no problem sprinting 30 yards ahead of me the whole time, yet when I ask her to run in front of me, her legs only seem to work in short bursts followed by cries for mercy (and water) LOL. But then I grabbed her arm with one hand and pushed the stroller with the other and we laughed and jogged along for almost a mile. On the way back we stopped at a small park and she climbed the rock wall while I did walking lunges around her and used the park bench for push-ups and tricep dips. I probably looked ridiculous, but I managed to get a little sweat goin. Baileigh made it up to the top of the rock wall and I asked what she could see up there, expecting an answer like "some mountains" or "lots of cars". But she yelled with excitement "I see some mulch!!" Haha.

The three of us made it back home with just a few tears over a scraped knee, but no serious meltdowns, no screaming fits, no blown-out diapers. Just lots of giggles and a decent workout. I don't know if this means that this could become a regular part of our routine or if it means I should just hold on to this lovely memory and not push my luck ever again. But I do know my excuse of not being able to workout without a gym or a babysitter has been proven wrong to me today.
Crap   :)

"Strength" Training

So last night I went to the gym after dinner instead of my usual morning routine. It was amazing to me the difference in atmosphere. I think 9 a.m. is not too early and just early enough to have a solid, motivated workout. And there are always lots of people there around that time who seem lively and friendly. But this is not the case around 6 p.m. Everyone seemed straight angry and not one person talked. It was seriously miserable. I guess after a long day at work, going to the gym is less "fun". But after a long day with two little ones, I thought some time to myself sounded good. But once I got there, surrounded by silence and looking out the window to a pitch black scene, the last thing I felt like doing was getting a good sweat. I actually managed to leave there without a single drop on me as a matter of fact. And I never intend to return for another sad, dark, cold, somber night workout again.

But... if I absolutely had to, I'm sure I could. Whenever I feel like I can't push myself any harder, I often remember a dear friend of mine who used to take my fitness class in New York. She would reluctantly take a spot in the back corner of my class and wait for me to hand out the tortuous little resistance bands. Then, mid-exercise she would yell out with her powerful, Black voice, "Oooh, help me Jesus!" It always made me laugh, but I know she was more than serious. She was looking for some divine help to get her through when she was at the point of giving up. And amazingly enough, that is a promise we are given from God.

Philippians 4:13 assures us we are able to do all things through Christ who gives us strength. Whether it's what keeps you going at the gym or what pushes you out of bed in the morning... who or what is your source of strength? I know late-night workouts aren't for me (yes, 6 p.m. now equals "late-night" in my world), but I also know I have a source of strength that I can count on any hour of the day. A never-ending energy drink that pushes me forward when I need it.

Next time you reach your breaking point, try taking a lesson from my old friend:

bellow a big "help me, Jesus!" and let Him show you that He can. :)

" But you, LORD, do not be far from me. 

   You are my strength; come quickly to help me."

  ~Psalm 22:19

Biggest Loser for Believers

I have a secret ritual to confess to that I have done every Tuesday night for over 5 years... I intently watch the Biggest Loser. My husband and my college roommates will tell you this usually involves me eating simultaneously. I guess something about watching people workout makes me want to get down with some food. As hungry as the show makes me, it's also undeniably inspirational.

These are people who have allowed themselves to be crippled, in the dark, and practically hopeless. Through miraculous transformation they are able to dance with a newfound hope that radiates throughout their bodies.

As a believer, the Biggest Loser reminds me of two truths:  

complete transformation is possible and your body is a temple. 

• "Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.  But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body." -Philippians 3:19  

 Contestants on the Biggest Loser have allowed their god to be their stomach and have landed in a shameful pit of destruction.  And it is so easy for anyone to get here! Maybe not necessarily with food, but with all sorts of earthly things that we obsess over (alcohol, money, drugs, sex, power, etc.) Only through Christ and His power in us can control over these things be accomplished and true transformation of our "lowly bodies"  occur.

• "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received  from God? You are not your own, you were bought at price. Therefore, honor God with you body." -1 Corinthians 6: 19-20

While Paul precedes this verse in reference to sexuality, the bottom line is your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit! How amazing is that?? And clearly the greatest way to dishonor your temple is to treat it like junk. Ignoring your body or feeding it with constant crap are certainly ways you can disrespect the temple of the Holy Spirit. The Lord lives in your body, don't you want it to be pleasing to him?

In the end, my obsession with weigh-ins, Bob & Jillian, challenges, and the like isn't as terrible as my husband's groaning each Tuesday implies. While I may enjoy some ice cream while viewing, The Biggest Loser does remind me of my own personal transformation and the sacredness of my temple.

Do I have to...

I just broke through the half-way point of my second pregnancy - woo hoo!! We are expecting a little boy this summer and have an almost 3 year old daughter.

With my first pregnancy I taught group fitness classes right through my third trimester and I plan on doing the same this time around. At least this way I'm forced to show up at the gym on time and move around a bit. When I get there on my own, however, it becomes quite tempting to stroll on the treadmill at a lovely 2.6 while watching Rachael Ray for barely 20 minutes and then calling it a day. But after gaining nearly 75 lbs with my first bundle of joy (credited to my love of hot fudge sundaes and my complete loss of self-control for nine months), I am constantly reminding myself that exercising, not faking it, is best for me AND my baby.


Check out my article on what you CAN, CAN'T, SHOULD, & SHOULDN'T do at the gym when you're expecting.