photo credit: TRAVIS J PHOTOGRAPHY | follow him on instagram @TRAVISJ_PHOTO
CLOTHING C/O FIT LIFE BOUTIQUE located in EXCEL FITNESS
I receive emails often from readers asking many different questions, but the number one question I receive is…
can you guess?
HOW DO YOU STAY MOTIVATED?
I wrote a little bit about this a while ago but I feel like it’s something I could write about weekly!
Simply because there are SO many answers to a somewhat simple question.
Truthfully, I don’t think it’s the answer to the question we are all so anxious to know, I think it’s more how to APPLY that answer into our lives!
I hope this post helps you search for an answer deep down inside yourself, an answer that will help you START. Help you have the COURAGE to get off the couch and do something for you!
I think I can best explain myself by talking about my fitness journey a bit.
Growing up, I never considered myself ‘heavy’ nor did I EVER consider myself ‘skinny’!
I was more just a gymnastic type build. I didn’t watch what I ate…EVER.
I was always active. Playing sports and competing heavily in Rodeo. I hovered between a 8-10 pant size and was happy and healthy.
I had insecurities like all other girls, maybe more than some. I struggled with acne too, so sometimes I felt like a hot mess…but I never felt like I needed to do anything extreme about it. Like I said, I was happy enough with where I was that I didn’t feel the need to change anything to improve or change my body. This was the case throughout college and my early married life as well. When, my first baby, Reagan, was about 9 months old, I joined my first CrossFit gym. About 5 months later, I was pregnant with Baylor and feeling great! I had gained quite a bit with Reagan and knew, with the help of Crossfit, I would be able to keep my weight gain to a healthy amount. During this time, I was working nights as a labor and delivery nurse. Those dang nights always got to me. I remember a fellow nurse approaching me when I was about 25 weeks along, and asking me if I had passed my glucose tolerance test, I looked at her stunned and told you I had passed it with flying colors. She then looked me up and down and said something like, “If I were you, I would get retested and start watching what you are eating. You are getting really swollen.” It broke my heart but I knew I was growing a healthy baby and brushed it off the best I could. Even with CrossFit 2-3 times a week, I still gained about 80 pounds during my pregnancy… and on May 22nd, I gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby boy. All that weight was worth it and is ALWAYS worth it. But, that doesn’t make losing it any easier. I know that some women have babies and 6 weeks later have their pre-baby-body back, but not me. In fact, I usually don’t lose much more than maybe 15ish pounds until AFTER I stop breastfeeding. That being said, everyone’s body is different and loses their weight differently after having their babes. AND, even if you haven’t had a child, but want to improve your body… weight is weight! AND EVERYONE has to do something to lose it. Some just more than others. I wanted to tell you my story to help you understand something. I am more lean and toned than I’ve ever been in my entire life. Above is a teeny tiny clip of my life and my fitness journey. It doesn’t tell you much, other than one thing…
that little paragraph is full of hidden excuses as to why I didn’t have that body I wanted or why I was the weight I was.
Whether we believe it or not, our little minds are holding us back more than any weight ever could. Internally, we all hold fears and doubts that somehow we generate into truths that ultimately hold us back from so much in our lives.
With that being said, I’m going to say something that you already know. Something that seems ridiculous but we need to hear it. All of us.
The MOTIVATION so many of us are looking for… CANNOT…
CANNOT be found ANYWHERE but within ourselves.
It’s a hard concept to swallow.
Especially if you’ve been making excuses your entire life.
Or, what if you just don’t know any different.
You’ve been told you can’t change,
Or, you’ve been bullied or ridiculed, like that my fellow nurse told me. We like to pretend that words really aren’t like sticks and stones, but they kinda are, aren’t they?
maybe you’ve been bullied more than you like to admit, and you’ve let those words from others sink deep into your soul, tainting it so that you can’t see past the negative bull crap people throw at you.
you’ve told yourself you can’t do it.
You’ve spent so many years of your life holding yourself back that you don’t even know what it means to believe in yourself.
Believe in your body.
But guess what,
I DO NOT CARE WHO YOU ARE,
WHERE YOU CAME FROM
OR
WHERE YOU ARE NOW…
YOU CAN MOTIVATE YOURSELF!
YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR BODY.
And even more than that, you CAN change YOUR outlook on yourself and your body.
I don’t care if you’re 300 pounds,
if you’re 18 years old,
if you’re a single mom,
if you’ve never been told you can do it,
if you have a full time job,
if you live in a tiny apartment,
if you don’t have money for a gym membership.
I DON’T CARE your excuses…
because I KNOW you can do it.
I know you can because I DID!
We all have these AMAZING things,
A HEART and A BRAIN!
It’s time we start using those things that keep our bodies alive, and train them to love that body they are running.
My brother-in-law gave me advice one day that I will never ever ever forget and I hope this helps you find the motivation you’ve been lacking.
I PROMISE YOU, if you do this, you will find that motivation and drive within yourself!
I want you to take 5 minutes, that’s it, 5 little minutes out of your morning every day.
I want you to stand in front of the mirror and look at yourself…like really look hard.
It’s going to feel awkward and uncomfortable but just stick with me here…
Now I want you to start talking to yourself…
…I promise I’m not crazy!
I want you to look at yourself and tell yourself that YOU BELIEVE IN YOU!
“I AM BEAUTIFUL!”
“I AM ENOUGH!”
“I AM STRONG!”
“I CAN IMPROVE MY BODY!”
“I CAN LOSE WEIGHT!”
“I CAN BE HAPPY!”
Say those words at least once a day for however long it takes for you to ACTUALLY believe yourself!
It’s going to be hard.
BUT it will give you the motivation you’ve been searching for.
You are beautiful and strong. You CAN improve your body and lose weight.
NO MATTER THE CIRCUMSTANCES…and guess what…
it only takes YOU to believe that for it to happen.
Try it!
I promise you won’t regret it.
It’s the reason why I have been able to lose all my weight and continue to conquer my goals.
Some days are still REALLY HARD.
But,
take one day at a time and find that strength within yourself.
It’s in there!
I promise!
XOXO