Day 6: Friends Don’t Let Friends Eat Without Thinking

I love the song by the Supremes that says, “Stop, in the name of love, before you break my heart. Think it over.” Who would have thought this classic tune could apply to so much more than a girlfriend warning her wayward beau? Contained within the melody is a powerful statement that applies to many areas of our life: Think it over. I wonder how many bad choices and severe consequences could have been averted if that three-word statement had been applied.

Sometimes we can muster up the gumption to think it over on our own and avoid the slippery slope of compromise. But more often than not, we need measures of accountability. For me, one of the most effective accountability measures has been mutually tracking progress with friends.

For instance, I have a friend who started eating healthy ahead of me, and she’s been an invaluable source of encouragement. She was the first to challenge me, “Lysa, if you do this healthy eating plan, it will work.” I clung to her statement when I had those really hard moments
of temptation.

My friend served as a voice of reason and stability, assuring me that my new lifestyle choices would be worth it and get easier. Plus, I hated the thought of having to admit that I hadn’t persevered when she asked. If she could press through her hard days, then so could I.

Another friend started a healthy eating plan along with me. We both knew it would be hard, so we committed to pray for one another as well as hold each other accountable. Each day, we talked about what we’d be eating. Every week, we reported our weight to one another. We processed each struggle and helped each other battle temptation.

While I cannot expect anyone else to make my decisions for me, it was motivating to know that someone else cared about my struggles. We encouraged each other with this motto, “If it’s not part of our plan, we don’t put it in our mouths.”

I never thought I could leave my old eating habits full of potatoes, white bread, pasta, rice, chips, brownies, and other sugary delights. I didn’t think I’d last a day. But watching my friend’s success and having my other friend willing to sacrifice with me gave my brain the permission to stop — in the name of love — and think it over.