Morning everyone!!! May all your dreams come true this Friday. Or at the very least, it be a good one and kick off your weekend right. 😉 In case you can’t tell, I’m still in such a good mood. I love happy days! Hehe.

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Today brings us this week’s installment of the Gifts of the Body series within the 30 DSLR. Click for Part 1 and Part 2. We need to grow to appreciate every part of our bodies. We need to love them for the life they give. No part of our bodies is insignificant and we need to honor them. Find three new things to thank your body for today. Praise your body throughout the day. It truly is a blessing.

I thank my hands…

…for being able to hold little M’s hand to keep her safe. For having the ability to write/type quickly so I can do more of what I love and express my thoughts thoughts. For being able to cook healthy meals for my family, albeit not extremely well. For being able to caress my husband or rub his achy back and legs.

I thank my tongue…

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…for allowing me to taste and enjoy food. And also for helping me to speak. You are one powerful muscle because I know I can talk! For the record, there are a lot of unattractive tongue images on Google!

I thank my brain…

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…for my creativity and knowledge. Even though you may not be as sharp after “pregnancy brain” has hit me twice, you still do not fail me. I can still make sound decisions. You can still guide me to answers. You provide me a pathway to pursue a passion for helping others. You help me remember special moments so I can cherish them. You help me communicate in two languages (Spanish & English) and do quick math in my head with ease. You were crafted by God to make me who I am.

What of your body (inside or out) do you thank today?

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Check out the following blogs for the thoughts they shared on 30 DSLR!

• Ulterior Harmony
• Simply Maren
• Making A Change
• Adventures in Weight Loss, Cooking, and Life

I’ve shared before how right now a lot of my favorite healthy foods don’t hold the same appeal as when I’m not carrying around a two ton stomach pregnancy. I do, however, continue to make a concentrated effort to eat as healthfully as possible. That decision has nothing to do with weight gain or how others perceive my eating habits. I simply know that eating vegetables, fruits, whole grains, healthy fats, lean proteins, etc helps me feel better and live a higher quality life.

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I have certainly been in a place where I could care less where my food came from as long as it helped me reach my daily caloric intake goals. Even when I focused on eating enough calories to fuel my body, the calorie count still reigned supreme. I didn’t consider reading the ingredients of nutrition labels over the other statistics. I didn’t think about where my food came from. I didn’t determine a food’s worth based on its wholesomeness – an apple or a 100 calorie pack at lunch were interchangeable.

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I had already given up those food rules of things being “good” or “bad” but the calories still defined how they fit into my eating habits. After my fitness competition, when I could freely give up calorie counting (and coincidentally a bit later picked up reading blogs), I began to change how I viewed food. Not only did I want to fuel my body with enough food, but also with valuable energy.

I knew my body deserved respect. I wanted to care for the body God had given me. It could do so much for me by surviving years of binging, enduring months of brutal competition prep workouts, carrying a child, and beyond. Why should I not give it my best? And wouldn’t it make sense that the best I could give my body came in the form of the foods God gave us?

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That was how I personally become to understand the importance of giving my body the best quality and choosing the apple over the 100 calorie pack every time. Only I have the choice on what my body receives nutritionally. I still don’t view things as “good” or “bad”. I still will have processed items without any guilt. Now, however, I desire the wholesome foods because of how they support my body, instead of how they support my personal goals or body image. I am still a work in progress and have a lot to learn. Nevertheless, I also know that I will make that progress and continue to honor my body with natural, wholesome foods. Because it deserves it.

• Have you experienced any shifts in how you view food?
• What are the biggest influences in your food choices? Without getting preachy, my personal reason lies in trusting God. He gives me so much…including my body’s wellness. To keep that wellness it only makes sense to me to trust God’s food to feed it as well. Just as His word feeds my spirit and joy in life.

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Check out these bloggers who shared their personal 30 DSLR  thoughts on their blogs!

• Days One By One
• Running to a Healthy Life
• Making A Change
• Ulterior Harmony