rents25's comments

Dad's Losing It - An Introduction - Blog Entry

07 Feb 2007 08:03 AM

Jeff...

I enjoyed your blog entry. As with any life changing decision, you must first set your mind to accomplishing your task. You have to think it b4 you experience it. I'm not talking about any hokey fanokey stuff here. Just realize how powerful your mind is. Harness that power for your change. Feed it the right information. Associate with those who encourage this decision. Remember, all things that are successful happen in the mind first. There are no accidents.

I'm inspired whenever I see others do the difficult. You've inspired me! Thanks! Make it happen.

Levi

Think You Have What it Takes to Become a Families.com Blogger? - Blog Entry

06 Feb 2007 09:32 AM

I'll be reading! Thanks!!

Levi

On the Weight Watchers Wagon...Again: Recommitting - Blog Entry

06 Feb 2007 09:32 AM

Susan...

Here's some advice (not that you asked for it...so, for whatever it's worth!) we often give to our business partners. In regards to permanent desired change (growth)...there is always one principle in play...The gain has got to outweigh the pain. Desired change (which is personal growth) is not easy. It takes work. Couple that with the fact that we always react and make decisions according to this principle of gain and pain. So, if you want desired change to happen, the recipe is always the same...you've got to make where you're at more uncomfortable/irritating and/or make where you want to get to more comfortable/beneficial so you're internally driven to move in that direction. Remember, it's the starting that stops most people. From your bio I can see you're internally driven for excellence in many parts of your life. Ask yourself why you do the things you do wiht your exercise, Pilates, spinning (cause, that's hard!!). Turn that same thinking to your weightloss. Make your weightloss destination more vivid, believable...more in focus. Change the way you're thinking to change the actions to change the results. Your thinking has you where you are today. To produce different results, you need different thinking. Otherwise, even if you get to that point, it will always be more comfortable being where you were!! You'll regress back to that state.

Hope that's helpful! Just toss it if it isn't.

Wishing you well in your journey.

Levi

Give Yourself a Break! - Blog Entry

05 Feb 2007 09:55 AM

Elizabeth...

"Mark it all joy, when trials come upon you. Because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance, and perseverance must finish its work so you are found mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

We have to be willing and joyful in the trials to be able to become more complete.

That's my goal...to be completed!

Like gold, we have to go thru the fire to be refined into something more pure and valuable.

For whatever it's worth!!

Levi

What is the Right Job for You? - Blog Entry

05 Feb 2007 09:48 AM

Amen!

We live in a society that places much value in entitlement. Phrases like "You deserve it." are metaphorical pats on the head comforting us by saying "Hey, you worked hard rowing that boat. No matter that you rowed it in the wrong direction RIGHT OVER THE WATERFALL!! You should be rewarded for your hard work."

I used to think I should be rewarded just because I was working hard.

Man, what a wake up call when I figured out I was rowing my boat over the falls!!

Nope. We should not be rewarded just for hard work. I know alot of peolpe who work hard. Some have made it, others haven't...and should be able to hear the waterfall. But in a society that values giving people something for nothing, we have little hope of changing that thinking. There is no such thing as a free lunch!!

Words like service, accountability, responsibilty, sacrifice, honesty, initiative, perseverance, wisdom...these are words that have lost their value to us. They're just the words we use with our own children. They will understand their value...and be successful in their lives because of it!

Thanks for the ranting!! Levi

Think You Have What it Takes to Become a Families.com Blogger? - Blog Entry

05 Feb 2007 09:34 AM

Havs...

Really enjoy the "tone" of your Families site. Can you give us more information on how we could become a Families.com blogger?

Thanks!

Levi

On the Weight Watchers Wagon...Again: Recommitting - Blog Entry

05 Feb 2007 09:24 AM

Sue...

WW is a great plan. My dad lost 85 lb and has kept most of it off. As with any diet, the secret is habit. We must change our tendencies. If we don't change our thinking, we won't change our actions. WW tries to educate you as you eat. Great idea!!

We've found a great site online that is very educational and allows us to make educated decisions when we're eating. Often, we were eating not knowing the consequences. Now, as we've gotten more educated on the calories, fat, cholesterol, carbs, we've started to change. What we found was that we weren't taking in enough protein and too much fat/carbs. We started to address this by shifting the percentages of foods on our plate more to protein (not radically, that's not realistic!!) and away from carbs/fat. Also we use an exercise bar that's patented to help you burn fat when you exercise -- giving you more energy, less lactic acid build up, less post-exercise muscle soreness and fatigue -- AND YOU BURN FAT!! -- instead of glucose when you exercise. We love it! As much as you exercise, you'd love it too!! And there's no hanky panky, wierd, metabolic-heart racing-death causing drugs in them. Just natural food ingredients that, when combined in a certain way, have been proven to help the body burn fat instead of sugar.

Awesome!!

Understanding Good and Bad Cholesterol - Blog Entry

05 Feb 2007 09:08 AM

Alison,

Just finished reading your article and found it informing. Thanks!

I've also read literature on the Eskimos having Cholesterol in the 300's...yet no heart disease and very little cardiovascular damage. They're linking it to their diet being rich in omega 3 fatty acids, which science has found to be very beneficial to our bodies (cardiovascular health, brain and neurological health, skin health, etc). I've always held the opinion that it's not the amount of cholesterol, but the amount of damage that it causes that counts. The eskimo population seems to prove this out.

Additionally, there's the "French Paradigm". This is where they studied the French population and found low incidence of heart disease there as well despite a diet rich in fat. They linked it to a glass of wine a day (well, not really, it was found it was the anti-oxidants in the wine that were beneficial) that helped combat heart disease.

Do you know if science has made a direct link from levels of cholesterol and heart/cardiovascular disease, or is there just "a relationship". Is there any recent studies on diet and cholesterol relationships?

Also, I'm wondering if it's multifactorial. Cholesterol certainly plays a part, but how about stress, environment, diet, genetics and other factors that can't really be measured but we all know are present? What are your thoughts there?

I totally agree our bodies are temples. We should be taking care of them. Eating right is important...and difficult to maintain, eh? Personally, my cholesterol was 267 despite me slender, active, eating relatively well and relatively unstressed. Hmmmmmmmm. Also, I'm not crazy about the side effects of the cholesterol medications on the market, so have started supplementing with Omega 3 and anti-oxidants and found my numbers to drop dramatically, especially triglycerides.

Oh happy day!! No bad side effects and improved health with reduced risk!! There's a good deal!

Levi

What Does "Successful" Mean? - Blog Entry

05 Feb 2007 08:51 AM

Kori...

I've tossed the concept of "success" around for years. Here's what I've come up with...

Success is defined by your destination. We establish that destination based on our ideas and perceptions of our personal reason for existence. We've all been created with a specific plan in mind...been gifted with specific skills, attributes, personalities that, when orchestrated in perfect harmony, achieve the full purpose for our lives that only we can and have been designed to achieve. (Whew!! What a sentence, eh?).

Basically, we've all been created for a specific purpose that only we, personally, can achieve.

Success is also a lonely journey as a large majority of us aren't really interested in it. it takes perseverance, joyful suffering, hard work. It's rewards are not instantaneous. Its much like sailing a ship across the ocean. We know where we need to get to, understand how far it is, but have no control over the storms, waves, winds that may blow us off course or slow our progress. However, as a good captain of our ship, we always keep the nose of the vessel pointing towards the destination. With the skill we've developed as a captain (self improvement) and a good crew (proper association), we reach our destination...but not without having to weather storms, slow winds, and dead seas in our life.

As a summary, I have a couple of quotes. First, from Coach John Wooden. He was one of the winningest college basketball coaches in the history of the game. He is an excellent teacher in principles of wisdom and life building strategies. In his 90's, he continues to inspire anyone who is around him, write books and enjoy life to the fullest. His definition of success goes something like this...

"Don't ever try to be better than someone else. And always, always do your best."

I think that's an airtight definition of success. It talks about maximizing your personal potential...no matter what...and that should not be compared to what others are doing.

Lastly, one of my favorite authors, Pastor John Piper, speaks about the purpose of man (and woman) as being the glorification of God. I happen to believe I've been created by a master potter. A wonderful god that, for His specific glory, put me together for a specific purpose. With that perspective, meditate on this quote...

"God is most glorified in us...when we are most satisfied in Him.".

Pretty well sums it up for me.

Levi