Health and Heart. Part Two.
HEALTH
So the good news is I’m down 6 lbs since my last post a month ago, but I’m a few pounds off of my goal of losing 8lbs a month. I’ve noticed a significant change in my body composition though, so I’m hoping that I’m converting some of the fat into muscle at least! I think the heavy lifting six days a week and doing less cardio has actually helped me to gain some muscle mass which hopefully will speed my metabolism up, but we’ll see! It feels really good to be using all the equipment in the gym again; I forgot how much I missed lifting heavy weights! My trainer has also showed me a few different variations of workouts that I hadn’t seen before, so it’s been great to learn from him and continue to pick his brain about different workouts.
My legs did fine on the ski trip, and I actually wasn’t even sore because I had built up such good endurance in them. Unfortunately, I reinjured my right calf and my right hamstring a week ago, so I finally went to the orthopedic doctor to figure out why these injuries keep happening. When I got back from the ski trip, I started doing two heavy leg days at the gym a week, and I began running two days a week. It worked great to start with, and I was up to running five miles twice a week. My leg days were starting to get to some pretty heavy weights, on my four sets of ten on leg press I was doing 505lbs, 525lbs, 545lbs, and 565lbs. However, about 2.5 miles in to my 5.5 mile run I felt my right calf start to go like it had in the past, so I stopped running for a week. As usual it felt fine within a few days, and a week afterwards I went back to lifting when I felt it start to go out while I was on leg press. I then pulled my hamstring a few days later after playing tennis for an hour, so I decided to finally get it checked out once and for all and try to determine what’s causing these leg injuries. I have an MRI setup for this week, so hopefully by the next blog post I’ll have an update for you guys and can get this resolved!
I have determined to not let these nagging leg injuries slow me down, and I have researched other forms of cardio I can do in the meantime to make sure I stay on track with my weight loss goals. Using the row machine and just leaving your legs bent instead of pulling with them as well is one option, or I can swim with a kickboard under my legs and just do laps that way. I can also continue to do the recumbent bike and the elliptical whenever my hamstring soreness goes away, which should be in the next few days. I have been very consistent for the past month and I refuse to let injuries or anything else keep me from reaching my goal!
We all know the most important part of weight loss is what you’re eating, and that’s been something I’ve really been working on. With all the lifting I’m doing and trying to lose weight by building muscle, I’m required to eat around 220 grams of protein a day. Your body can only process about 60 grams at a time, so I’ve been making sure three big meals a day all get to that 60 gram number, and then have two small meals in between for an extra 20–30 grams each to get me all the way. I’ve been mixing up the small meals like a protein shake, chicken thigh, or turkey and cheese roll. I’ve got some good meal prepping strategies with chicken, beef, and eggs, but I’m looking to try out some fish this coming up month, I’ll let you know how it goes!
HEART
“He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our sins. The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds, we are healed.”
- Isaiah 53:5
This verse was made into a song, which I’ve posted the link to below, and I think it’s one of the most convicting verses in the Bible. The only reason we have so much freedom and peace, is because Jesus died on the cross for our sins. We have so many songs that celebrate God’s grace, and we constantly talk about how loving He is and how amazing it is that the veil was torn, and we can have a personal relationship with God. This instant access to forgiveness is kind of a two-edged sword though, because so many times we commit a sin, ask for forgiveness, and move on with our lives so quickly that we take for granted how big of a sacrifice God really made for us.
God showed us by taking the form of a man and going through all the suffering and torture before and during His crucifixion, that He loved us more than even life itself. This was such a massive commitment and act of surrender on His part, and if we just considered how high the cost was to wash our sins away, we would be a lot more motivated not to sin in the first place. No one’s perfect, and I know that our earthly nature is constantly at war with our spiritual nature. However, the Bible is very clear about how God will never let us be tempted beyond what we can handle.
“No temptation has seized you beyond what people normally experience, and God can be trusted not to allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear. On the contrary, along with the temptation He will also provide the way out, so that you will be able to endure.”
1 Corinthians 10:13
I want this to be an encouragement for you, not just a conviction. I hope as you read these words you are inspired to do your absolute best to live out your faith every day. Whether it’s something as simple as smiling more or being more kind to the people around you, or if it’s putting more effort into fighting that habitual sin that you just can’t seem to get rid of. Whatever is holding you back from living for God to the fullest in every part of your life, I pray that you would be galvanized into action to fight against it. God wants the best version of you every day, and to do that takes commitment and sacrifice on your part.
The unbelievable thing I’ve learned about living for God, is that not only is it so much better to Him, but it’s also so much better for me! I’m so much happier and fulfilled when I know I’m doing the things in my daily life that God wants me to do. The days I indulge in my sins are the ones I feel the absolute worst, and then I wonder why the heck I ever did it in the first place! We call it a sacrifice to die to ourselves and live for Christ, yet it’s almost a selfish sacrifice because of the incredible benefits we receive when we do! I have never felt so valued, purposeful, or fulfilled as when I’m living for God. I’m not saying you need to start preaching to every person you meet, but you do need to seek God’s direction for your life and ask Him for wisdom about what He wants you to do to help build His kingdom. Maybe that’s something as simple as reading your Bible more or spending more time in prayer, or maybe God wants you to share His love with the people around you by simply asking them how their day is or bringing a neighbor a plate of brownies. There are so many big and small things we can do on a daily basis to make sure that God is the center of our life; we just have to make the effort to do them! One last verse to encourage you in this journey:
“Dear friends, I urge you as aliens and temporary residents not to give in to the desires of your old nature, which keep warring against you; but to live such good lives among the pagans that even though they now speak against you as evildoers, they will, as a result of seeing your good actions, give glory to God on the Day of his coming.”
1 Peter 2:11–12
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKqDbVUFjzU&ab_channel=quellagioiadivivere
I will be writing a new post once a month, so please keep a lookout for the next one. I really appreciate any comments, questions, or concerns you may have, and look forward to responding to any messages when I have time. I hope this blesses you and encourages you, and thank you for reading!
Sincerely,
Matt Casperite
Photo credit: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/156148312052642564/
