PSALM 51: A Prayer of Repentance

<sup>One of my favorite chapters in the Bible. My prayer to the Lord everytime I know I have displeased Him or others. In time for the Lenten season, I share this sincere and heartfelt prayer with you.

1</sup> Have mercy on me, O God,
   according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
   blot out my transgressions.
² Wash away all my iniquity
   and cleanse me from my sin.
 ³ For I know my transgressions,
   and my sin is always before me.
⁴ Against you, you only, have I sinned
   and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
   and justified when you judge.
⁵ Surely I was sinful at birth,
   sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
⁶ Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
   you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
 ⁷ Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
   wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
   let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
⁹ Hide your face from my sins
   and blot out all my iniquity.
 ¹⁰ Create in me a pure heart, O God,
   and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
¹¹ Do not cast me from your presence
   or take your Holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation
   and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
 ¹³ Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
   so that sinners will turn back to you.
¹⁴ Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
   you who are God my Savior,
   and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
¹⁵ Open my lips, Lord,
   and my mouth will declare your praise.
¹⁶ You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
   you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
¹⁷ My sacrifice, O God, is^[b] a broken spirit;
   a broken and contrite heart
   you, God, will not despise.
 ¹⁸ May it please you to prosper Zion,
   to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
¹⁹ Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,
   in burnt offerings offered whole;
   then bulls will be offered on your altar.

Buffets: Friend or Foe?

"A buffet is a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners generally serve themselves. It is a popular method for feeding a large number of people with minimal staff.  Another advantage of buffets compared to table service is that diners have a great deal of choice and the ability to closely inspect food before selecting it."

Have not been blogging for a while because of this. It's like I'm in a buffet once or twice a week and it's messing up my goal. Yes, I enjoy dining with my friends and my hubby. I love how there's so much to choose from. And how about that term " eat-all-you-can"? Best thing of all: it's only $ 9.99! Prime rib, steak, chops, shrimp, paella, pasta, potatoes, soup and salad, bottomless drinks....and the desserts! Oh the decadent desserts! How can I resist? Everything that I love to eat is laid spread out before me!

So I put my calorie calculator aside and enjoyed.

I think I just gained 5 pounds in the last 2 weeks. =(

F. 70. I have failed. I have to start over again. This time with helpful tips when eating at a buffet. http://www.ehow.com/way_5777011_tips-eating-buffet-staying-diet.html.  There is no reason to murder my diet or totally avoid buffets. It is economical and can be healthy. But now I know how to handle it better.

Ok, back to step one today. Oatmeal for breakfast. 30 minute walk done. Another one this afternoon. Hopefully get my gym membership back next month so I can burn more. Sorry for the disappointment. But like what I always say when I was a kid: "Try and try until you succeed!"

Oh, yeah. There's this party tonight at my cousin's house....

DAY 2&3: JAPAN WASN'T THE ONLY ONE THAT HAD A DISASTER!

¹⁰ The LORD sits enthroned over the flood;
   the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
¹¹ The LORD gives strength to his people;
   the LORD blesses his people with peace

^{Psalms 29: 10-11}

My thoughts and prayers go to the people of Japan. Some things are just out of our hands. Our faith in the Lord is stronger in times of adversities such as this. He is in our midst to strengthen us and give us peace. Do not lose your grip on His hands. Trust that there is a reason for all this. We may not be able to comprehend it right now, but soon we will.

FACING MY OWN DISASTER

DAY 2: It was mine and Matt's day-off. Usually, we run errands and try to spend some quality time together. QT consists of walks on the beach, shopping, doing chores and other "activities." =)

CALORIE BUDGET: 1,759

BFAST: Waffles, Eggs and Mushrooms, 2 Sausage Links and 2% Milk- 597 cals

LUNCH: Gyros Sandwich, Fries and Tea- 1022 cals (ugh! But it was so good...)

SNACK: Pancake Puppies from Denny's ( Matt's Idea!)- 390 cals

DINNER: Fried Calamaris (Hand-breaded by me....) -1233 cals

Total Calorie Intake: 3242 ( OMG....)

Total Exercise: Brisk walk for total of 2 hrs, Chores and other "activities"- 1,498

Balance:  15 under- It may look good but not it isn't. Too much food taken today.

DAY 3: Started good but ended up in a disaster!

CALORIE BUDGET: 1,759

BFAST: Blueberry Yogurt, Sandwich Thins with Low fat cream cheese- 192 cals

LUNCH: Beef Flautas and Water- 578 cals

SNACK: Plum and Cinnamon Chips- 216 cals

DINNER: This is where it all crumbled down....we had dinner at Hometown Buffet- (pot roast, ham, fried chicken, hush puppies, chicken noodle soup, stir-fry veggies, dinner rolls, baked fish, lava cake with frozen yogurt and watermelon...small portions but still added up to gazillion cals!)- it's too embarassing to post how much...but I promised to be honest- 1842 cals!

Total Calorie Intake: 2828 cals.

Total Exercise: 45 Minute Brisk Walking-700 cals

Balance: 369 over- This is bad! Very bad....

Japan wasn't the only one that had a disaster.

I think I did poorly in the first three days. Although I exercised, I still ate a lot. My appetite control is not as strong as I want it to be. Plus there are external factors that I need to work on ( E.g. My husband who loves to eat and cook good food, our proximity to good restaurants, the sinful foods in our fridge...). This is tougher than I thought. Comments or suggestions anyone?

DAY 1: IT IS FAT TUESDAY SO....

My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you. Psalm 63:5

Breakfast: Wheat Sandwich Thins with Eggs, mushrooms and cream cheese, iced tea ( brewed)  334 cal

Lunch- Green Salad with seasoned croutons, shredded cheese and ranch dressing. Chicken nuggets, water-484 cal

Snack- Dove chocolate and cinnamon chips-178 cal

Dinner- Beef and Cheese Quesadilla with sour cream, ranchero sauce and avocados-279 cal

Dessert- 3 Musketeers Truffle Crisp-  85 cal

TOTAL CALORIE INTAKE FOR TODAY- 1322 CALS.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY- 30 MIN BRISK WALK- 221 CALS

This may sound OK, but with no physical activity for today it's not so good. And I don't think that I chose the best options for today's meals. But it's Fat Tuesday so can I be excused? =)

It is not an excuse. I give myself a C today. I think I will  ask Matt to go with me for a walk tonight so I can burn more calories. Now if only I can make him get off his butt....

Despite of my not so good performance, this is day 1. I will do better tomorrow. And it is my day off so if the weather permits, I will go for a run in the beach. Need to burn twice the calories tomorrow.

I do find that blogging what I eat helps me to be more conscious of what I eat and how much. I think I'm on the right track to weight freedom! Wish me luck for the coming days.

A NEW BEGINNING

Let me tell you something about myself and why I am starting this blog.

I am a 32-year old woman. I just got married to a wonderful man and has never been happier in my life. I have an enlightenment on my beliefs about being a Christian and my spiritual life is starting to flourish more. Everything seems to be going great and wonderful.

Except I am over-weight and I'm tired of it.

Right now, I'm at 210 lbs. I am 5" 8. Based on a height to weight ratio, my ideal weight is 145 lbs. Technically, I am carrying an excess baggage of 65 lbs.

That's a heavy load to be carrying around.

Imagine all the things I can do without that excess weight. The beach I can be ruuning, mountains I could be climbing without panting and going out of breath. Imagine how I would look like. Imagine the clothes I could be wearing. Imagine how much more proud my husband will be of me.

It's time to stop imagining. It's time to make things real.

I am using this blog as a motivational tool to further nourish and nurture my physical and spiritual self. I am expecting that sharing what I eat and what I pray for will help me achieve my goal of being a healthier and better person. 

EAT. I will be posting what I eat everyday (how much, how often). I will not lie nor hold back. Every bite, every morsel of food that enters my mouth will be known. You have the freedom to judge, ridicule my food intake, make suggestions, praise me for my efforts, etc.

NOTE: I will commit to eating healthier foods. BUT I will not deprive myself of the food that makes me happy. I.e. chocolate, ice cream, pastry, cakes etc. I will eat in moderation and in portion. Special occassions will be an exception as to what and how much I will eat but do know that I will still exert effort not to indulge too much.

An exercise regimen will also be added into this.

PRAY. To nurture my spiritual life, I will also post Bible verses that will guide me through the day and hopefully, inspire my readers as well.

Matthew 4:4 "Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

BLOG. Today is the beginning of a new life. I thank you for sharing this with me. Your support and encouragement is well-appreciated.