Exercise and Healthy Eating as a Way of Life.

I have been reading a book "Thrive" that writes about the top happiest cities in the world by evaluating factual data from surveys and statistics. Sponsored by National Geographic these places are called "Blue Zones" where people are fundamentally happier than anywhere else in the world. The book tells a story of the cities, introducing us to happy people. You might think that these people are rich, have great jobs, etc, but truth be told each has a life much like our own in many ways.

The author goes on to help outline some ways that we can improve our lives and THRIVE. One key point involved exercise. He suggests we make it a part of our lives rather than a forced necessity. Incorporating it might mean riding a bike to work, or walking to the grocery store. Depending on where we live this might be difficult, but is it possible to find new ways of doing the same routines?

If you have been reading my journey, you will notice that I started in steps. First a nutritionist for four months, then I added one 1/2 hour of exercise, then two 1/2 hours 2 days a week. Now I am swimming with the Masters Swim club one day a week, and just added another day with a 1/2 hour of boxing. I never belived a year ago that I would ever be able to do any of this. In small ways I am THRIVING.

Recently I travelled on a business meeting to a trade show. 12 hour days, junk food, no time to exercise. I came home exhausted, irritable and depressed. Was it any wonder? Never in my life have I been so in tune to my body and what it needs to thrive. Regardless of our size at this moment in time, our body needs us to make better choices. No matter how small, one good choice will lead to another.

Looking back I can tell you I went in dreading the thought of exercise. I craved sugar, chocolate and all things bad for me, and now I find myself wanting to do better because I now know how bad I feel when I make a bad choice. It's not a feeling of guilt, its rather a physical run down feeling. Why would I want to keep feeling that way? My only choice is to make a healthy one.

I consistently make bad decisions. I love food. For me I am learning its an addiction and I need to be more aware of my surroundings and why I make the bad choices. A harsh word from a boss, an embarrassing moment will bring out the worst of my eating habits and those triggers can come and go so quickly before I even know all that I have consumed.

One of my mentors/coaches suggested that when I have a bad day, try not to repeat it the next day. So one bad day, one good day. It may take a little longer but I think eventually I will have more good days and less frequent bad days. In the past, one bad day became a littany of conversations in my head about how fat I was, how lazy, how I would never be able to change. Its a goal I plan to work toward. It also makes it a guilt free process. I know I can get up the next day and start again. But its not "Starting over" its just part of the process. Get it? Got it!

BUILD YOUR SUPPORT NETWORK!

For four months I have been exercising, getting on the scale occassionally to see that I have not lost a pound. My trainer continues to tell me its not the weight to worry about right now, its the movement. The goal was to get moving. And I did. I feel lighter at times, but convince myself its all in my head. I realized I was not really following the recommendations of my nutritionist and it was time to get back on track. I also realized that I needed to find a mentor, a coach of some sort that could keep me motivated, offer advise, push me a little or alot as I went through this process. So I asked a member of the company I work for. She is an IRON MAN competitor, and was recently featured in an article in Canada about successful women entrepreneurs. I have always admired her, and new if she was willing that her support would be a well needed addition to my core support group. So I asked her. And she said yes. She lives in Canada, I live in the US, but we talk via email and will track the successes of our goals at conventions we both attend each year.

My first trip will be at the end of January where we both travel to Hawaii. What we do is simple. We email each other each day, our food and exercise diary. She helps me see areas that I need to change some habits. I haven't offered her much at this time, as she has it down pretty solid, but over the first three days what I have learned from her as been HUGE!

Truth is, I had not truly bought into the process. I am exercising, but I have been down right ignoring the eating. I didn't want to change the old ways. Looking at her meals for the day, I realized that while I am living to eat, she is eating to live. Her choices are better, healthier. She doesn't seem to be waiting for the next meal to come. And yet, she has a discipline, a routine in place where she knows what she is eating each and every day. Its imperative for her to have control over what she puts in her mouth. Its important because she has goals outside of food, yet affected by food. She wants to compete and win in IRON MAN. To do that she has to pay attention to her diet.

I want to lose weight, I have to begin to pay attention, I have to incorporate discipline into my eating schedule if I truly want to SUCCEED. As she put it to me yesterday: "Here is my non motivational quote: JUST DO IT!" There are many people in your life that you can look to for motivation, guidance and support. If you are looking for someone, pray about it. Ask God to bring the right people into your life. HE WILL and you will get the support you need to succeed.

Why I am going to do it, and SUCCEED

Today I babysat my two nephews. I have 5 in all and every moment I spend with them is full of giggles, never ending energy, trips to the park, the zoo, craft projects, school work. They are brutally honest, and clearly innocent in all they say and do. And I want to be able to hold my own right up there with them. I am so enamored with these 5 little wonders on wheels. I have held them as babies, rocked them to sleep, fed and changed all of their diapers. I have made them laugh, and disciplined them when they got out of hand. My goal has been to be the best Aunt I can be to these little guys, and to be the best, I have to be healthy. I have to be able to sit, stand, kneel, walk, talk and race them in order to keep up.

And that is why I will do it, and will SUCCEED. I don't want to be knonwn as the fat aunt who can't move. I want to go on every hay ride, every roller coaster ride, every dinosaur archaelogical dig. I want them to know I will show up to their soccer games and stay until the game if over.

And the only way I can do this is to get rid of the excuses. My size has been my excuse for too long. My size affects my energy levels, my ability to move, move up, down, take a simple walk to the park, cook dinner, all of it. I want the total package.

I can't change it all over night. I have to take it one step at a time, but I also have to challenge myself to do things that I may not quite feel comfortable doing. I have to push the envelope a little. Walk before I can run, pay attention to my training and listen to my body.

Its a wonderful world out there and I choose to be in it. Play in it, walk in it, laugh in it, rejoice in it.

I Hate to Exercise...

Or so I thought. (Grin here). I have always hated to sweat, didn't like to push myself beyond my limits. But an interesting thing happened as I began to MOVE. Just move. That was my personal trainer, Linda's goal. She said, "We just want to get you moving". That was our first goal. I was afraid to move. I had spent so much time trying to protect myself from the pain in my knees, the crippling pain in my back, the sweating that other people may see. I didn't want to fall in front of others, or not be able to do something, that I shied away from MOVING. And what a wonderful thing moving is. Because its easy, and its free, and you learn so much on the path. My "Moving" began when I started walking to take photographs of the birds, walking the simple trail with my husband, and then alone. Taking each step one at a time, sometimes getting down on my hands and knees to scoot from one step to the other.

By the time I started with the personal trainer, I could move, but my balance was bad, my hips hurt, my knees hurt. I complained, not too much (Another GRIN HERE), but I complained. I thought I knew my limits, but my personal trainer knew better. She pushes me to do one more, sometimes slips in a heavier a weight. But all in a way that makes me feel a part of the decision making process.

And I think that is what its really all about. We want to be part of our own change. We need to have a say in our growth and development. For me, my weight caused me to hold back, not always speak my piece. But as I began to tackle one problem after the other, I realized that only I am ultimately responsible for my successes and my failures.

An attitude that says "I hate to exercise" may be true at the time, but we should add, "I will do it anyway because I KNOW it will make me stronger". I think that our negative thoughts force us to figure out who we really are, what we really like and to move in the direction that makes us complete.

There are parts of exercise I do not like. Those that challenge my knees, those I have to do while laying on the floor because its so difficult to get up off the floor are on my top two list. I haven't ventured onto the floor yet in front of all those people. But I do the knee exercises anyway, because I know it makes me stronger.

Today, I was able to move from a sitting position into a standing one without using my hands to push me up. For many that may sound so simple, for me it is not. I don't mind the sweat anymore. It makes me feel like a part of this new healthy club. I am getting stronger each and every day, and those little extra challenges push me to move forward, to keep coming back.

Sometimes you just have to show up and do it anyway.