Adrienne's Story

My battle with weight has kind of been on going for most of my life. When I was young my mother always told me that I was a big girl so I always assumed that I was overweight. When I look back at pictures of myself I see now that I wasn't, but the seed had been planted and I watered it frequently. I'm not blaming my mother but sometimes things people say get embedded in our minds and we take it as truth. I've always been an emotional eater, no matter what the emotion was, food was always the antidote. My family shows love by cooking food or going out to eat so every celebration revolved around food.

I didn't really start gaining weight until after I had my daughter. I was depressed and ate my emotions, although at the time I didn't understand that that was what I was doing. From there my weight would balloon up and then I'd try a crash diet and lose the weight only to gain it back and more. I did Weight Watchers and lost fifty pounds but wasn't really taught how to maintain my weight so within three months after reaching my goal I started gaining the weight back. I was also severely addicted to Splenda.

Each unsuccessful attempt at losing weight left me more and more depressed and hating my body. I couldn't understand why I could be an expert at losing weight but couldn't keep it off. I knew there was something more at the heart of it all. I knew I needed to not only address the physical aspect of losing weight but also the mental aspect as well. By this time my self esteem was so low that I wouldn't even look at myself in mirrors and I hid behind baggy clothes. I was embarrassed to have gained the weight back once again.

So I decided that I was once again going to lose weight but this time I wanted it to be different, I wanted God to get the glory and not some other weight loss company or plan. I knew I needed something with structure and discipline because I didn't want to have to count points for the rest of my life and I also needed something that would address my Splenda addiction.. I had never heard of Grace and Strength before but I Googled' "faith based weight loss programs" and Grace and Strength popped up. It was literally an answer to prayer!

When I started Grace and Strength I was doing Bible Study Fellowship (BSF), which is an in depth Bible study class, and we were studying the life of Moses. My journey with Grace and Strength paralleled the Israelites journey from Egypt, through the wilderness, and onto the Promise Land. I could so identify with the Israelites and all their problems and issues. I found that I had times when I was rebellious and wanted to go back to Egypt, back to bondage, but returning to bondage was not an option. I complained like them but then I realized that my complaining wasn't against things or circumstances it was really against God. So instead of complaining I started telling myself, "Thank you God for my portion, whatever it is" and that helped stop my complaining. I kept hearing the Lord say, "choose life not death, blessings not curses" just like he told the Israelites. So I decided to choose life, choose life giving foods over the curses of processed foods and sugar. I wanted to take care of my temple (body) because God dwells there.

Obedience and discipline were the two things that I needed and learned through Grace and Strength. I realized that I was stubborn and didn't want to surrender my eating over to the Lord. Food was something near and dear to my heart, my idol I didn't want to give that up. But God doesn't want us loving anything or anyone more than Him. It wasn't easy and there were plenty of temper tantrums and tears but slowly I started surrendering my eating over to God and I realized that it really wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I was actually gaining rather than losing. Instead of fighting against the discipline needed to be successful with Grace and Strength I actually started liking it and realized that the discipline kept me in control and gave me more freedom. My whole lifestyle changed and I actually crave the healthy foods and the exercise needed to maintain my weight. I feel so much better physically and mentally now. I used to use food to fill the voids in my life or to escape the bad emotions and celebrate the good times. But now I've replaced the food with God because only God truly satisfies.

The journaling and Bible study were really helpful for me in this journey. There were so many emotions that needed to come out and be dealt with, things I really hadn't realized I was holding onto. I still struggle with making time for daily Bible study but I'm getting better and stronger day by day. I realize that my day, my eating, and my moods go so much better when I spend some time with the Lord.

Coach Anna Anthony was so helpful, I couldn't have done it without her. She was there for me through the ups and down, through my tantrums and successes, but most importantly God was there through it all. There were times that I couldn't even put into words to even ask for prayer but God knew and He was there to get me through. My Grace and Strength sisters were also a great help. Our weekly meeting were such an encouragement to me because sometimes I just felt like I was going through this all alone, but with this program you are never alone.

I know there are some things that I might have to battle for the rest of my life but the difference is that Grace and Strength has taught me the tools to be successful. It's taught me how to get back on track and rely on God for the answers. I now know how to eat to fuel my body, to study God's Word to fuel my mind, and exercise to maintain my temple (body). Grace and Strength instilled these principles and I get to see the results both physically and mentally. My self esteem is higher than it's ever been and my walk with God is so much closer.

My journey with Grace and Strength has been one of the hardest but most rewarding thing I've ever done for myself. I've run the gamut of every emotion from extreme happiness to feeling really low, but I've come out on the other side stronger, healthier, and happier. I used to look at myself, hating what I saw, but now I say, "Look what God did!" I'm now Adrienne 2.0 to the Max!

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* Individual results may vary.