Chiseled Faith: Your Motivational and Survival Bible to Achieving Your Greatest Health & Fitness Potential

By CarolAnn M.S.

You now have the opportunity, finally, to chisel away the junk in your life and reveal the strength of your faith both physically and spiritually, to be renewed, born again, alive! Chiseled Faith is a faith-based program featuring a simple twelve-week fitness/nutrition plan designed to emphasize lifestyle adjustments. Whether your goal is to lose weight, gain energy, or take your current fitness to the next level, Chiseled Faith is for you! Chiseled Faith is more than just a diet-and-exercise program. This program emphasizes a paradigm shift in your mind-set, helping you to achieve success and gain control over your life. Through a positive experience, becoming healthy and fit will soon become a natural routine part of your life. Restore your faith and clear your mind of cant once and for all. Get fit and trim and closer to him. It starts today. It starts now . . . get chiseled faith.

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body (1 Corinthians 6:1920).

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 23, 2017
• ISBN: 9781973602842

CarolAnn M.S.

Known as the trainers trainer, CarolAnn, MS, CPT, CN, has traveled nationally and internationally training fitness professionals, presenting continuing education certifications and workshops, and sharing her knowledge for specific training techniques and applications. With over 20 years experience in the health and fitness industry, CarolAnn holds a Masters Degree in Exercise Science and Health Promotion in addition to various industry certifications. Along with various fitness training dvds, she is the creator and star of the fitness dvd series called The Steel Physique System (www.Steel-Physique.com) She also is a freelance health & fitness expert writer for several publications and websites. She is the Head ProTrainer for FiTOUR, an international fitness professional education organization. The focus of CarolAnns training technique is to engage her clients into leading healthy lifestyles for a lifetime through an educational and fun process. The tough love mantra of CarolAnns health & nutritional sessions is what lays the foundation for developing a healthy, strong body inside and out. Her fun, energetic, and easy-going coaching style is the driving factor that draws clients and students back for more! ---And there is indeed more to come!

Book preview

What is FAITH?

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, (Hebrews 11:1).

Right now, you may be asking yourself, I know, I’ve heard it before. I grew up in church. Faith is partly how I’m going to get into Heaven. But what does faith have to do with a health and fitness program that is going to help me reach my full potential? I say to you: EVERYTHING. Your faith in your ability, with God’s help, just may be the missing link to your success.

You were not meant to be imprisoned by your body, whether your limitations take the form of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, fatigue, pain, or any other ailment. You were meant for greatness. So what has stopped you from having all that you desire with a healthy mind and body? Why is it that you have had all the tools at your fingertips – gyms, personal trainers, diets, supplements, and even sometimes prescription drugs – to help you achieve your perfect health and fitness, only to fall short over and over again? The answer is faith, or the lack thereof, that you can actually achieve it. But what does faith really mean? Apart from the biblical definition, let’s look at other definitions and break it down.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines faith first as confidence or trust in a person or thing. The second definition is belief that is not based on proof. For whatever reason, you currently dislike or desire to change something about your health or body. You may have tried to make those changes countless times and did not achieve what you wanted. Unwanted outcomes or shortcomings will shake anyone’s confidence. Or, perhaps you realized that you have put on a few extra pounds for the first time and have never had to change your behavior to transform your body before. You’re thinking that you have no idea if you can even do what is necessary to reach your perfect health and fitness potential. Therefore, you have no confidence. These are the very reasons why faith is going to be key in this journey to get healthy and fit. It will be crucial for you to rely on faith to get you through those times when you just can’t find the time to prepare proper nutrition for the week, or that you are just too tired to exercise that day. You may hit plateaus and want to give up, but you must have faith to keep pushing forward. You can and will do the work to get the results you want as long as you stick with the plan during good times and have faith during those times when you feel that you are never going to get there. Your confidence will grow over time, just as your body will become stronger and you get ever closer to reaching your goal. As a side benefit, your faith will become stronger as well.

It is interesting that within the definition of faith, the Bible states that faith is the evidence of things not seen. Research shows that faith plays a very important role in one’s success in achieving weight loss or improved health and fitness. If you are a nerd like me who wants to know the supporting evidence for the efficacy of faith-based health and fitness programs, please continue to read. If you’d rather stick a pitchfork in your eye than read about research, then skip the next few paragraphs. However, you may be surprised by just how intriguing the findings are to support faith-based health and fitness programs.

A study conducted at John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County in Chicago, IL, compared two groups of African American women to see if there was a difference between a faith-based weight loss intervention and a conventional method of weight loss intervention. Although no significant statistical difference was found, the group practicing faith-based weight loss intervention lost more weight over twelve weeks than the conventional weight loss intervention program. (Fitzgibon, et. al., 2005)

Another study conducted through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found a significant weight loss difference between a faith-based, eight-week weight-loss program and a non-faith-based, eight-week weight loss program. The participants in the faith-based program lost an average of three more pounds than the participants in the non-faith-based weight loss program. (Kim, et.al., 2008)

In a study conducted at UCLA, researchers found that women in a faith-based exercise and prayer program increased their walking by about three miles per week. Researchers looked at 62 women from three different churches: Catholic, African Methodist Episcopal, and Seventh-Day Adventist. All women participated in exercises, but one group listened to scripture reading and participated in group prayer, while the control group listened to lectures on secular topics such as memory loss and identity theft. The women involved in the faith-based program increased their weekly steps by 78 percent, while those in the control group increased their steps by only 19 percent. (Duru, et. al., 2006)

Even more research is needed to support the idea that faith is imperative to ultimate success in reaching one’s health and fitness goals; however, what I do know is that Chiseled Faith has helped countless people to realize their perfect health and fitness. Just because you cannot see it now does not mean that it will not happen for you or that it is impossible. With every week, your new body and mindset will begin to be revealed to you. Your faith will be tested throughout this process. You will learn so many things about yourself that you never knew before. This is an exciting time in your life! You will be chiseling away the junk so that the true YOU will be revealed. Get ready to finally have the perfect, healthy body that you were always intended to have. Get ready to achieve Chiseled Faith!

How to Follow the Chiseled Faith Motivation and Survival Bible

Each chapter represents a week within the program. Each week consists of three parts: The Motivational Topic of the Week, The Nutrition Plan, and The Workout. The motivational topic is like a weekly devotional that will help you with specific behavioral activities to be successful. The nutrition plan is based on a balanced diet focusing on portion control that gives you options. The workout plan consists of simple moves requiring zero equipment that progressively builds from a basic routine to a more advanced routine. At the end of each weekly chapter in the Chiseled Faith Motivation and Survival Bible there is a chart that summarizes a specific meal plan and workout plan. This chart can be copied and placed on your refrigerator as a constant reminder to stick to the plan. A more detailed account of the nutrition and workout plan can be located within Appendix B and C, respectively.

I encourage you to shop for your food on Saturday, prep your weekly meals on Sunday, and execute your weekly plan beginning on Monday.

For specific measurements and serving sizes for your nutrition plan, refer to the Chiseled Faith Master Meal Plan in Appendix B. Refer to Appendix C for an overview of workout definitions that will help you understand the format of your Chiseled Faith workout. For specific demonstrations of the exercises provided in your workout plan, refer to the Chiseled Faith Website and App, www.ChiseledFaith.com.

During each week, every positive behavior you execute will hold a certain point value. Calculate those points on your weekly summary sheet that you post on your refrigerator. Documenting your actions throughout the week ensures a more successful outcome in reaching your health and fitness goal(s). Refer to Appendix A to determine, calculate, and record your points throughout the week.

Finally, you will be journaling about your progress along the way. This will help you understand later as you reflect on your successes and challenges throughout your journey. Recording your feelings and actions will provide insight as to how you achieved your twelve-week destiny.

Chiseled Faith JumpStart Detox

Before you dive into your twelve-week program, you need to wipe the slate clean. You are going to detox through nutrition and exercise. Detoxing can boost energy levels, improve digestion and help get rid of a few unwanted pounds. While it may resemble a fad diet, restricting grains, alcohol, milk, and sugar, a detox is far from a quick fix for weight loss. The purpose of the detox plan is to rest the organs that detoxify the body – the liver, kidneys and bowels – while at the same time supporting and improving their performance. If you want to jumpstart your health, give your body a break, or just want to detox diet for a short time, follow this safe and doable seven-day program.

What to do: Check your schedule and mark a week where you have a clean break from functions or events that might derail your detox such as weddings, birthdays, or other special occasions. In the first few days of detox, some people experience a cleansing reaction which can take the form of headaches or loose bowel movements. This is due to the sudden withdrawal of certain foods in addition to stimulation of your detoxifying organs. These symptoms should subside in twenty-four to forty-eight hours.

Detox plan for the next seven days before your twelve-week program begins:

1. Morning lemon juice: To kick-start digestion and cleanse your system, squeeze the juice of half a lemon into a cup of hot water. Drink first thing in the morning before breakfast.

2. Exercise: During the detox, aim to exercise for one hour daily. Choose an exercise that makes you huff and puff and sweat such as a spin class, jogging, walking uphill, hot yoga or boxing. Vigorous exercise increases lymph flow