Brown Eyed Girl sent me a text this morning talking about motivation & how hard it can be sometimes to stay motivated with exercise. I agree wholeheartedly and realize that many of us struggle with motivation. Perhaps not exercise related, but motivation in general.
For me, it is exercise/diet motivation.
Get up at 4:40am to get to the gym? Sometimes I'd rather sleep?
Healthy salads (like last night's with strawberries, chicken & goat cheese)? Sometimes I'd rather just have fried chicken.
What motivates me to keep making positive choices and positive changes in my exercise and eating?
Me.
I'm my own motivation. No one else is going to do it for me.
I want to fit into my clothes.
I want to run around with the munchkins, push them on a swing, throw them up in the air without getting winded.
I want to be healthy 10 years from now & not worrying about high blood pressure.
Exercise just makes me feel good. I love the feeling after a great workout. Not so much the hair maintenance, but that's a different story.
I like taking Hade Dog for a long walks & not getting shin splints.
I want to feel comfortable in a bikini on the lake.
I want to be ok with having my picture taken & not cringing at the results.
You see, I've made remarkable progress in the last 8 months. I've lost 20 pounds. For me, that is a big deal and something else that motivates me.
I carry extra weight in my face & my stomach, so part of it is vanity.
But I also have a family history (on both sides) of heart problems, cholesterol problems, high blood pressure, etc. In fact, my aunt was just in the hospital with one of her arteries 90% closed.
She's the healthiest of that side of the family - my dad's side where I have 2 Aunts, 1 Uncle & my dad.
I look back at old pictures and I know that we're often our own worst critics. I'm certainly my own.
But I'm working on that voice. I'm making changes so that when I look at pictures, I see how happy I am & how confident I feel.
To show you the difference.
This first pictures is from last year's Derby in KY. Now, granted, it was a nasty rain day, so my hair was a mess. Yet you can see it in my face. How bloated I was. If you watch The Biggest Loser, you'll see that in the Before/After pictures as well.
This year's Derby - here in CLT. What a difference a year makes.
Who knows what next year will bring!
Now, I've gone on about some of what motivates me. What motivates you?
For me, it is exercise/diet motivation.
Get up at 4:40am to get to the gym? Sometimes I'd rather sleep?
Healthy salads (like last night's with strawberries, chicken & goat cheese)? Sometimes I'd rather just have fried chicken.
What motivates me to keep making positive choices and positive changes in my exercise and eating?
Me.
I'm my own motivation. No one else is going to do it for me.
I want to fit into my clothes.
I want to run around with the munchkins, push them on a swing, throw them up in the air without getting winded.
I want to be healthy 10 years from now & not worrying about high blood pressure.
Exercise just makes me feel good. I love the feeling after a great workout. Not so much the hair maintenance, but that's a different story.
I like taking Hade Dog for a long walks & not getting shin splints.
I want to feel comfortable in a bikini on the lake.
I want to be ok with having my picture taken & not cringing at the results.
You see, I've made remarkable progress in the last 8 months. I've lost 20 pounds. For me, that is a big deal and something else that motivates me.
I carry extra weight in my face & my stomach, so part of it is vanity.
But I also have a family history (on both sides) of heart problems, cholesterol problems, high blood pressure, etc. In fact, my aunt was just in the hospital with one of her arteries 90% closed.
She's the healthiest of that side of the family - my dad's side where I have 2 Aunts, 1 Uncle & my dad.
I look back at old pictures and I know that we're often our own worst critics. I'm certainly my own.
But I'm working on that voice. I'm making changes so that when I look at pictures, I see how happy I am & how confident I feel.
To show you the difference.
This first pictures is from last year's Derby in KY. Now, granted, it was a nasty rain day, so my hair was a mess. Yet you can see it in my face. How bloated I was. If you watch The Biggest Loser, you'll see that in the Before/After pictures as well.
This year's Derby - here in CLT. What a difference a year makes.
Who knows what next year will bring!Now, I've gone on about some of what motivates me. What motivates you?
