Motivational Monday

Today's message is simple. It comes at a time I need to remember that when I set this goal of completing this 8k, I had my doubts on how well I could do it. I didn't know how much weight I would be able to lose before this race. I also didn't know that because of another decision (to be discussed at a later date) I would be sidelined from actually running this race. 

The thing is, I still have a lot to be proud of. I still did it. I made it. I will be able to say I participated in an 8k after this week. That is something I am very proud of. 

Motivation Monday

Today's motivation stems from the fact that I've had some up and down days over the last couple of weeks. 

It's ok to have a cheat day. It's not ok to have cheat days - especially right in a row. 

Weekends are my downfall. Always have been, always will be I fear. Workdays have a routine to them. I know what I am going to eat for breakfast, snacks, lunch, and most likely dinner. The guess work is gone. I even know approximately when I am going to be eating all of them too. I also have the added security of not being able to just go open the cabinet or fridge and grab something to eat. 

With the weekends, it's all a game as to what we're going to eat and when. We have been really trying to have a better idea of our game plan before the weekend hits. If we at least know where we will be out and about, we have a better chance of making better decisions. That is one of the things we are working on going forward. 

That is why I choose these motivational phrases today. Health, wellness, and fitness is always a commitment. It is always making a conscious effort to make the best decision you can. I am far from perfect when it comes to these decisions. But I always have these two thoughts in my head when I am "cheating." I cannot afford to just give up and let all the progress go down the drain.

Motivation Monday

This one is pretty self explanatory. I know I am guilty of this a lot around these parts. Each step and little marker that I take or make it to is a major accomplishment. 

It's so hard to be looking at the overall big picture and still see the goal barely on the horizon.  The problem is that you have to be able to see all the smaller details that you are passing along the way. How will you ever know how many miles you have to go if you neglect to look at the mile markers on the side of the road?? 

My grandma called me tonight and she was telling me how she was creeping on my pictures on fb (she fully admits she writes nothing on fb but uses it to only look at people's posts and pics, LOL) and she mentioned that she saw my picture from a couple weeks ago at Miller Park and how wonderful I was looking. Yesterday I got to see my other grandma and she also mentioned that she can tell I lost even more weight. I am so close to my grandmas and it made my day(s) that they noticed and gave me compliments on it. I am working hard at this. It isn't easy but I'm doing it. 

Along the way, make sure to stop and smell the proverbial roses. Take in the scenery. Check out the new sights and sounds. You owe it to yourself to completely experience this journey.

Motivation Monday

This week's motivation is prompted by some kind words I have heard lately. I've had friends and acquaintances .reading this blog and my facebook updates and have been inspired or moved by my journey. They have said how proud they are of me and how happy they are to see me succeeding. A few have mentioned how much they are motivated by me.

Of course this makes me feel good that I can help them in their own respective journeys. It's not easy to commit to this big of an overhaul on your life. It takes a lot of dedication and hard work. I don't always want to go to the Y and get my workout in. I would love to not feel extreme guilt when I eat some of my favorite foods. I just want to eat my cheese sticks in peace dang it, lol. Some weeks I think, "Wouldn't it be nice to have an 'off, no diet' week?"

But I choose to keep going because I have to, even in those moments I don't want to. Want is such a hard action or thought to overcome. Nobody wants to be fat. They just become fat. Nobody wants to diet and watch what they eat. You have to want to lose the weight. You have to want that more than you want instant gratification. My god is it hard some days. But I remind myself that one day I will look back at this time and I will know that I was strong enough to accomplish something that is truly life changing. I know what it is like to be the thin girl. I want to have that back more than

I hope that all of you that are reading this, those of you trying to find the courage and strength to start off on your own journey, find your own success. You can do it!

Motivation Monday

Using these two for my motivational messages this week is helping me to remember to slow down mentally and remember why I started this journey in the first place. 

There are countless stories that highlight the pain of being overweight. The stigma, the embarrassment, the pain, and the heartache. I'm not sure there are many stigmas out there that are worse than being overweight or infertile. I happen to be battling both of those issues currently. Feeling like a failure and that your body is flawed is a huge mental road block. Some people are never able to get over them. 

I don't want to feel the pain of being fat anymore. I don't want to cringe at myself in pictures. I don't want to cry in a "normal person's" clothing store dressing room because I can't fit into the largest size they carry. I want to be healthier and thinner. Under no circumstances have I felt any pain from my workouts that can even compare to the pain of being overweight.

I also have to do that one pound at a time. There isn't a quick fix for this problem. Little by little, it will happen. Sometimes I get down on myself when I see other people have huge weeks with losses of 4-5 lbs. I have to remember that I'm not in a race with anyone other than myself - and there isn't a prize for getting there first. The medal only comes from reaching the goal.

Motivation Monday

Ah Monday. Good old Monday. 

I stayed up way too late last night watching Olympics coverage. I am so thankful tonight is only a stretch and strength day. There's no way I'd be able to get through a strenuous workout this evening. Tonight I am going to focus on upper body and abs using free weights, machines, and the fitness ball. 

After that we'll go do some grocery shopping and then head home. Where I am going to have to manage to not turn on the Olympics again... ;-)

Have a great Monday all! For today's dose of motivation I will leave you with:

Motivation Monday

Happy Monday y'all!

What a day, what a day. I'm struggling with some things in the workplace right now and I'm really trying to keep my head up about things. The good thing is that a workout is a great way to focus my energy around something more positive and better for my well being. 

So this week I am going to try to remove all that needless stress as best I can. Obviously it's easier said than done. I think that keeping my head wrapped around the things that I can control are what are most important for me to focus on this week.

Friday Funday

I really like the noon hour long water fitness class I've been taking on Fridays. The instructor is fun and it's a pretty nice group of regulars. I think I may be about half the average age of those folks but...who really cares, you know? 

One of my coworkers made a comment about how when she goes to swim her laps she sees all the "old people" there and it doesn't look like they are doing anything at all.To me, comments like those are just "exercising shaming" even though in my case, I know she was just trying to be funny. Here's the thing. At least people are out there doing it. It doesn't matter your age or your athletic ability. Water is very forgiving and it's a great work out if you put the effort into it. 

I happen to love being in the water whenever possible. I love swimming and splashing around in the pool but I'm not a lap swimmer. I blame it on the fact that I have terrible eye sight (like blind as a bat) and always wore glasses until high school. So I never was able to see well enough to do actual competitive swimming. But I still love to be in the water. This gives me a chance to. And I make it a great workout. 

I think it's very important for anyone trying to stay fit and active to find a combination of exercises that they enjoy and have fun while doing them. It reminds me of the episode of Friends when Phoebe wants to run with Rachel but when they go running Rachel is embarrassed by the way Pheebs runs. In the end, Phoebe convinces Rachel to just have fun and let loose and to not let what others think about her matter. Same thought applies here. Don't let others hold you back from doing what makes you happy. 

 

Motivation Monday

Wow. After having a bit of a holiday lull after my 5k in November, I finally put in my first full week of exercising and training again. Damn it feels good to be a gangster. 

For my dose of motivation this week, I need to remember that this isn't a quick fix. K and I are revamping our entire lives. My heart is slightly broken over the fact that this year will be year 7 of trying to have a baby and we will most likely not accomplish that task. But in the end it will be ok because no matter what happens, I will have made myself into the best I possibly could. I'm doing this for me and for the rest of my life. I want to be happy about who I am and how I look. 

Having a raging bitch of a period also dampened my spirits a bit this week because I wasn't seeing the results of my hard work of diet and exercise on the scale. Which is completely stupid because I full well know the reasons for this. I may be fat but I'm still a former athlete. I know how this shit works. But it's funny that even with that knowledge, the gratification and exuberance that I feel when I see a lower number pop up is remarkable. So I will keep on keeping on. It will budge again soon, I know it.

Weather Vents

You know, I enjoy all things weather related from the science stand point. I had a major highlight about two weeks ago when the Weather Channel rolled up into my small WI town. I normally chat with a lot of the on air meteorologists via twitter or email. So when I heard that they were in town, I contacted the reporter and he told me to come on down and say hi. So I did. Which is awesome - even if it was a bunch of snow that we were experiencing right on the heels of the nasty polar vortex that saw us hitting -25 without windchills (-50 with). 

Since then we haven't warmed up at all. There is no letting up in the forecast either. In a couple of days we will be back to struggling to hit -5 as our high. 

It's times like this that I can't stop daydreaming about moving south so that my life doesn't feel like it's on hold during these bitter cold months. I hate dealing with the cold and ice and snow. I want to be able to come home and head out for a run. I know that there are some runners out there that are quite fine going for runs in 20-30*F. Yeah, I'm not there. I don't know if I ever will be either. Not to mention that I live a couple miles off of one of the state highways and our little country road doesn't get plowed much. It's hilly, there are open fields and a lake so the drifts get bad and ice forms all the time. I'm basically screwed for a nice running surface until maybe March. Wah wah wah.

So until then I'm stuck running on the track above the basketball courts at the Y. Better than nothing I know. 

Yeah, there was no real need or point for this post except to bitch about the weather. Unless you care to share how you are able to run outside in the winter...even if you are in Florida and you think cold is 50.

Motivation Monday

Mondays can be such a drag. I usually have no motivation for anything. And you know that Mondays are when all hell breaks loose and then you want to come home and just stuff your face and crash on the couch, binge watching dramas you saved on your dvr.

While my desk seems to continue to get buried under tasks that I can't seem to make any headway on, it was a fun day because we had our monthly all building meeting and they always recognize some employees and do some giveaways. I walked away with both being recognized and winning the meeting attendance giveaway! I got a couple gift cards to our favorite grocery store and that made my day.

Since I was riding the happy train, I made sure to get us over to the Y for a workout. I busted out a nice 30 minute run and felt good about it. I am aiming to try out the deep water water fitness class tomorrow. I can be very extroverted in life but yet I am always shy when trying out classes of any kind. I just have to jump into the deep end. Bad pun intended. 

Anyway, I know this particular day of the week can be a drag but if you're having a case of the Mondays, keep trudging on!

For this week's dose of motivation I will leave you with these pins.

 

And my favorite one from my workout shirt tonight:

Run Hard

Run Fast

Run Happy

Just Run 

Motivation Monday

Hello! Hope you are all doing well!

It's scheduled to snow a significant amount here tomorrow so I have a feeling my exercise is going to be snow related. 

I am doing a group weight loss challenge with one of the message boards I frequent and I've lost 2.4 pounds this week. I was up a couple from the week before so I'm still at net zero, even if according to the challenge I'm down overall. I am diligently tracking my calories with My Fitness Pal and I think that is helping me a lot. I'm even making sure to track it on the weekends - which is something I haven't done in the past. My weekends are my downfall usually. 

I wish you all a wonderful week! Here are some motivational "pins" I've come across lately. It may be cliche but these types of sayings have always helped me to stay positive.