#beginwiththeendinmind

[beautifulreflections]

Blog Post 4: Looking back to move forward.

Blog Post 4: Looking back to move forward.

This week I’m remembering the why. I truly believe your willpower will only be as strong as your why. So, I’m taking you back to my why, which takes us back almost six years to the birth of my second son. It was a beautiful day, when He was born with His big brown eyes and brown hair making me the proud mom of two healthy boys. Except I still remember the nurse coming in every hour and pricking my youngest son’s feet. It was horrible. I was tired, He was tired, my husband was tired, and all I wanted to do was sleep, but the nurse had to check His blood sugar.

Why? Well because I had gestational diabetes all during the pregnancy leading up to the birth of my second son. My Dad had triple bypass surgery about three years ago, His mom had type 2 diabetes and later developed Alzheimer’s, and my aunt has type two diabetes as well. The gene pool clearly wasn’t flowing in my favor and the sickness seemed to trickle right down to me. The symptoms were low mood and a lack of energy, but I was mom. So, I chalked it up to job description. I mean, all moms are exhausted right? Apparently, these were warning signs of what was to come, I just didn’t know that at the time.

I ate sugar free chocolate pudding every day after dinner to curb my sweet tooth in a healthy way and took walks when my sugar was especially elevated. After I had my son, and after the heartache of hearing Him cry when the nurse checked His blood sugar, I moved on with life, sweets, and all. But a couple years ago I was diagnosed with chronic gastritis and acid reflux. So, this is when I became a vegan. I let go of the meats and cheeses, filled up the fridge with vegetables, and watched many documentaries about how diet is connected to overall health. My favorite documentary is still “What the Health” by Kip Anderson. In this documentary, Kip uncovers the secret to reversing chronic diseases.

After years of living a vegan lifestyle and seeing the health benefits including clear skin, good digestion, and overall increase in energy, I began to get lax in my efforts and became a vegetarian, and now I eat meat again. The point is that those habits are only as effective as my ability to maintain these healthy eating choices consistently and over a long period of time. Now I am focusing on eating healthy foods overall. I’m pulling back out those old but loved vegan recipes including crispy tofu with quinoa and steak seasoned zucchini. I even put some of the candy from my Christmas bag into the communal candy pile for someone else to devour. This may sound small to you, but it’s a big deal for me.

I said no to Super Bowl brownies and key lime cake last night, as well as all the diet sodas that I used to love. My favorite soda used to be cherry coke zero. The point is that Americans, myself included, consume too much sugar. I know I did, and I now must come up with a game plan to leave the sugar where it needs to stay, on the shelf for special occasions. According to the American Heart Association Americans on average consume 20 teaspoons of sugar per day while the recommended daily amount of sugar is 6 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. Beverages make up most of our sugar consumption at a whopping 47% which include soft drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, coffee, and tea. The second leading cause of excess sugar comes from snacks and sweets at 31%.

The point is, sugar consumption has gotten way out of control, especially in the United States, and we need to be aware of the risks associated with excess sugar which include chronic inflammation, tooth decay, acne, advanced skin aging, weight gain and obesity, diabetes and insulin resistance, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, brain loss, cancer, and premature death. Sugar though sweet can be deadly. It’s recommended by John Hopkins Medicine that we avoid sodas and other sugar sweetened beverages, reach for fruits instead of candy, cookies, or other sweet treats, read ingredient labels, and watch for sugar aliases. As it turns out, smoothies with no added sugar still taste sweet because that’s how they are made naturally. If we stop and think before we run to the sweets isle, in the future we will be happy with the choices we make.

            “Always begin with the end in mind.” - Ellen Muth

References:

“How much sugar is too much?” American Heart Association. https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/sugar/how-much-sugar-is-too-much

Ndumele, Chiadi. “Obesity, Sugar, and Heart Health.” Johns Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/obesity-sugar-and-heart-health

[operationsinsider]

"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" is a book written by Stephen Covey. Stephen Covey was an American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker, who was widely recognized for his work in the field of personal and organizational effectiveness. The book provides a comprehensive guide to developing personal effectiveness and leadership skills. The author argues that by developing these skills, individuals can become more successful in their personal and professional lives. The book is divided into three parts: the first part provides an overview of the 7 habits, the second part examines how to develop the 7 habits, and the third part looks at how to apply the 7 habits in different areas of life. Go to operationsinsider.com to read the full summary including the key takeaways of this book. Link for summaries or purchase in BIO Like❤️/Share✅/comment👇/follow👉@operationsinsider #opex #operationsinsider #wasteattack #waste #StephenCovey #personalEffectiveness #organizationalEffectiveness #leadership #selfImprovement #productivity #success #habits #principles #character #values #proactive #BeginWithTheEndInMind #FirstThingsFirst #ThinkWinWin #SeekFirstToUnderstand #SharpenTheSaw #business #professionalDevelopment #Bestseller #author #keynoteSpeaker #businessman #coaching #emotionalIntelligence #timemanagement (hier: Air India Airlines) https://www.instagram.com/p/CovDgcHo8Rq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[marcaccettaseminars]

BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND. -Stephen Covey #beginwiththeendinmind #goals #businessquotes #lifequotes #quotes #stephencovey https://www.instagram.com/p/BwmktI0gzp1/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=5zsaunl3dns0

[thepropertyhuntress]

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A post shared by Ronni D. Cannady | Realtor® and Mentor (@ronnidanielleismyrealtor)

Sipping and Chilling 🍸#realestatelife #goodlife #mindset #findyourpassion #breakthrough #findyourbreakthrough #youhavetostartsomewhere #beginwiththeendinmind #begin #you #youchoose #youdecide #create #createyourownpath #createyourreality #createthelifeyouwant #createthelifeyouwanttolive #dream #dreamsdocometrue #beginner #beginning #happyhumpday🐫 #thepropertyhuntress https://www.instagram.com/p/BuHz7imFlcG/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=6dft5bo2yth5

[maxyeo]

"One Day Your Life Will Flash Before Your Eyes. Make Sure It Is Worth Watching." - Gerard Way It is usually what we did (Happiest or Saddest Moment) or did not (Regrets). Even before our dying moments, we tend to reminisce our most intense moments (Happy ones or Sad ones) in life from time to time... The question would be "Why live in the past instead of making the effort to create happier moments?" Or Imagine we are there, at our own eulogy, what would people say about us? And realize that what they had to say is because of what we did. So in a sense, we are responsible for our eulogy - Not just What we did, but how the actions were interpreted. While, I am one who wouldn't mind getting negative feedbacks, corrected, or "sorted out", as long as it makes sense to me. But, if are someone who mind what people had to say about you... 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗢𝗻𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀... https://productivemax.com/success-psychology/death-motivation/ #LifeFlashedBeforeMyEyes #BeginWithTheEndInMind #EndGame #EndGoal #LifeGoals #LiveALifeWorthLiving #DyingMoments #Reminiscing #ReminiscingMemories #Reminisce #IntenseMoment #IntenseMoments #CreateAHappierYou #HappierMoments #OurEulogy #NoRegrets #StartWithTheEndInMind #StartWithWhy #WhenDeathComes #YOLO #YODO #YouOnlyLiveOnce #YouOnlyDieOnce https://www.instagram.com/maxyeo7/p/CXU2ZOxJDP8/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jpwalters]

🗝"Every goal you achieve begins with a plan."🎯 ”Design Your Life for Success.” Lifestyle and Interior Design by Jim Walters, JP Walters Design . . . . . #spaceplan #furnitureplan #beginwiththeendinmind #jpwaltersdesign #homeretreatcollection #designerquotes #liveyourdream #thegoodlife #designyourlife #dreamhomes #artofliving #thegoodlife #interiordesign #dreamlife #customdesign #designinspiration #palmspringsdesigner #sandiegodesigner #custominteriordesign #interiordecorating (at Palm Desert, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/ByQGJ2YHXy1/?igshid=13bzcg0k1oodp

[valeriemacleod]

"One of the mistakes that writers make is spending a lot of time thinking how to start their stories and not a lot of time thinking about how to end them. Knowing my ending makes the beginning super easy. It's totally clear what I have to do and totally clear what I shouldn't do." - Malcolm Gladwell on writing, and it works for planning

[0xcusesfitness]

See yourself the way you want to be. Begin with the end in mind. Do so with feeling, deep emotions and unbridled PASSION! #0excusesfitness #lifequotestoliveby #beginwiththeendinmind #visualization #creativevisualization #manifestation #manifesting #goals

[marcaccettaseminars]

BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND! -Stephen Covey #stephencovey #quotes #goals #beginwiththeendinmind https://www.instagram.com/p/B4gQmnRgFRk/?igshid=60rwbremfca7

[thepropertyhuntress]

Who’s Next! 🤍ѕнσρριиg σи α Tuesday💕#confessionsofarealtor #realestatelife #goodlife #mindset #findyourpassion #breakthrough #findyourbreakthrough #youhavetostartsomewhere #beginwiththeendinmind #begin #you #youchoose #youdecide #create #createyourownpath #createyourreality #createthelifeyouwant #createthelifeyouwanttolive #dream #dreamsdocometrue #beginner #beginning #thepropertyhuntress https://www.instagram.com/p/CVN2pyMrGnB/?utm_medium=tumblr

[clarktheshark-blog1]

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A post shared by Clark Hogan Jr (@itsclarktheshark)

"Time And Tide Wait For No Man" #DontWait #BeProactive #JustDoIt #BeginWithTheEndInMind #CarryOn #ThinkWinWin #LifeStyle #SharkLife #PositiveVibes #Life #Motivation #Beach #Vibes #Summer #Sun #Fun #Sand #Waves #SaltLife #BeachLife #Sandy #Dunes (at Indiana Dunes State Park)

[zitases]

#beginwiththeendinmind #beinspiredtoinspire

[ariyaniistiyana]

although it's looks so far, so dark, and impossible but i'll do what i want to do for achiveing my dreams.. keep move and be myself.. Lovely keep shining anywhere!! jumping higher!! 💖🐇#missionstatement #beginwiththeendinmind #160218

[cooking-with-tirzah]

It’s almost lunch time, what will be on your plate?? We are only 29 days into the new year, remember your goals, your intentions, and why you started!! Eating right is a lifestyle, I believe in you, you got this #keepgoing Love, Chef Tirzah 💞 #goals #remeberwhyyoustarted #beginwiththeendinmind #healthy #delicious #nutritious #cheftirzah #tirzahskitchen #tirzahcatering #lunch

[lilac-cola]

Have a plan. 📒🖊 #BeginWithTheEndInMind #PhotoByKatieKate

[0xcusesfitness]

So very true - and yes - it's just AS true in terms of your fitness goals as it is LIFE! #fitness #beginwiththeendinmind #imagination #motivationalquotes #motivation #0excusesfitness #napoleonhill