Let Your Reasons Be Bigger Than Your Excuses

So many women tell me all the time that they want to lose weight, eat healthier and most of all feel good. I agree with them, as those were and still my reasons for making good choices when it comes to my health. However, these goals get lost in between this thing that happens called (drumroll)……..LIFE! Our lives will never be perfect, or even close to it. There will always be stress, reasons for emotional eating, and excuses not to workout. As a mom of four, I could probably come up with at least 5-10 excuses for each of these. Actually I did that for years and years. I thought that if I kicked butt at the gym, I could eat whatever I wanted. If I ran 10 miles that day, carbs were my friend. But funny thing, even though I was working my guts out, my body never changed. Sure I would fluctuate down a pound to two here and there, but I’ve come to realize that was mostly just water weight. I wanted to transform my body so badly, but every time I sat down to eat, I ate whatever sounded good in the moment, without any thought to what was on my plate.

However, reality is a different story. If we want to look and feel our best, change in inevitable. Will it be hard? Yes. Will it mean saying no to food we love? Yes. Change is never easy. Only you are the one who has to decide if its worth it. I can’t make that choice for you. Was it worth it for me? Absolutely. I had months of trying my best, eating right, and seeing very little change in myself physically. I had to trust the process. If you learn to do that, the battle is won for you. Are there magic pills out there? Maybe. They can give you short term success with some long lasting consequences. I have many friends who take prescribed diet pills who do have some success losing weight, but it is not something that can be used forever. Once you are done, the weight will come back, sometimes even more than before. But guess what, there is a magic pill I can tell you works…..eating right and exercise. Truly that is it. If it was easy, everyone would do it. A recent statistic stated that only 2% of the American population actually obtains their fitness goals. That to me, was astounding.

What are your reasons? If you are reading this blog post, you are either related to me (thanks mom and dad) or something drew you here. Are you ready for a change? Are you fed up with being tired all the time? Do you want to feel good from the inside out? Are your clothes no longer fitting? Do you look at others and wonder why you can’t be like that?

If you said yes to any of these, I can relate as I have said yes to these questions before. Some people have said it is superficial to want to look good. Others said they just want to feel good, which once you start eating right, it is a domino effect. I encourage you to make a change. Just one change, it can be something simple and do it for the next week. Maybe be more proactive about taking the dog for a walk every evening or buying more produce at the store. Although I have 5 very important reasons to be healthy (my family) I did it for me. I wanted all that energy I was spending, not being happy, to go towards loving others. And there is nothing superficial about that.