Staying Motivated and Patient

Its National Hot Dog day!!!!!!! Woohoo! ok lets get down to it.
I'm not gonna lie, its pretty easy to lose motivation! Last week I went on a business trip to Las Vegas and was blessed enough to get to spend some quality time with my family! The only bad part is with working all day and family time, I had ZERO extra time and energy to workout for the entire 4 days while we were there. Now that we're back there are tons of excuses I can use from my excuse archive:
I'm tired
My house is a wreck
My child was up crying for over an hour in the middle of the night
I need to do yardwork
I need to do laundry
I need to play with my child
I need to give time to my husband
I need to cook dinner
I need to work
I really just wanna sit here


All of these are extremely valid reasons as to why I don't have time to workout. I mean I should get a break too right? Wouldn't you wanna play with that little cutie? On the flip side...every time this happens I get in a funk! Why? I'm not feeling as strong or as confident as when I am taking care of my body. Anytime I take a few days off it is that much harder to get going again. It has been really difficult to get up early to go workout after having only worked out in the evening the past 4 weeks. I need to re-create my habit!

There is a lot of differing information as to how long it takes to form a habit, the most well known time period is 21 days. Where on earth did we get this number? It came from a book written over 20 years ago, but that's beside the point. New information tells us it can take anywhere from 18-132 days to create a habit and no you don't have to go that many days consecutively. 18-132 days! That's 66 days on average, a little over 2 months of consistency. What this means is, if you miss a day in trying to start a new habit, don’t put yourself on a guilt trip. Just keep trying; you’ll eventually get there, but don't let this be an excuse either. This is the ever popular saying of health and fitness is a "LIFESTYLE" not a diet. It takes some time to create a habit and on the flip side it can take JUST as long to break that habit. So whether you are trying to eat 4 servings of fruit everyday, or walk 20 minutes a day, keep trying. You will eventually get there. And don’t get discouraged if it takes more than 66 days. We hear all the time give it 12 weeks! Well.....give it 12 weeks of consistency and you WILL see results. Nothing fancy or magical about it.

Its easy to lose motivation when you have a million things going on, but use all your avenues! Posting gym selfies are motivating! You get to see your own results as well as use it as some type of accountability. Join a support group with your friends who have common goals. Make yourself a poster with motivating and encouraging words! If your partner is not on board with you on your journey you must pave the way on your own. Set reminders on your phone that give you a message of encouragement. There are tons of ideas on Pinterest for things like this as well! Ex. Take 2 jars, if your goal is weight loss then for every llb loss put the amount of marbles or something else in 1 jar and for each 1lb you lose move it to the empty jar! This gives you visual accountability. ! WRITE OUT YOUR GOALS If you do not have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish, it can be overwhelming and you will set yourself up to fail.

On another note, I've been on a salad kick this week, so we have been having salads for lunch! I've found a salad dressing that is not only healthy, its down right delicious! I highly recommend giving it a try! Salads can have hidden calories so be aware of how many "goodies" you're putting on your salad.


I put my workout for today in the workouts section! My intention is to complete it outdoors! Wish me luck!
Until next time, try to spend a full day without a single complaint...you will be amazed at how quickly your thought processes will change for the better! Happy Wednesday!!

Attitude and Its Effect on...Well...Everything

Well...as usual, quite a bit has happened in the past 2 weeks, my husband was injured during a corporate challenge event which turned out to be quite a serious injury. 6 days after the initial injury he had surgery to repair his Achilles/Calf. He had suffered almost a complete separation of his Achilles from his calf muscle. I am so relieved he was able to get it taken care of especially before Football season started, but when the Dr continuously reminds you that the injury was in a less than Ideal spot, you can't help, but worry just a little for future health. He told me he had wished the Achilles had torn closer to his ankle so he could attach tendon to tendon and get a stronger repair, but due to the positioning of his injury he will need a longer recovery time to ensure the muscle fibers heal in addition to his Achilles. During the first 3 days of "injury shock" (ex. omg I can't believe he got hurt why did you even play blah blah blah=Injury Shock) it's easy to start to feel sorry for yourself and I won't lie I sure started to!

 He was now unable to put any pressure on his foot for a total of 4 weeks and had only the help of some crutches that are less than comfortable. I began to think of the load that was suddenly thrust upon me and things I take for granted daily. My responsibilities not only included helping him get around, but my normal duties increased. He could no longer watch our daughter in the morning so I could get my morning workout in. He cannot chase her, cook her breakfast, carry her into the room to change her diaper or anything remotely close to it. He cannot make his own breakfast, get his own water or put his own plate up let alone mow the lawn, take the trash out or even do his favorite activity, workout. As you can see its really easy to feel sorry for myself or maybe blame him for something he had no control over. I started to feel like all my goals were on the back burner because my caseload increased. Had I stopped to think about how he was feeling? The amount of pain he is in? The fact that he is unable to do the ONE thing he loves most? The one activity that clears his mind and truly looks forward to? What if it were me? How would I feel knowing I can't help? What has he ever done to deserve these thoughts? I sure wouldn't want someone angry at me! So I ask again...why blame him and punish him for something he cannot control? My attitude needed to change...pronto, so I started to think of all the positives.

I am so grateful he has been able to spend so much time with our girl every morning. She loves to snuggle right next to him in our bed and watch her PBS shows before its time to go to "school". I am so grateful for the time I have been able to spend with him. He's been home everyday when I come home! Something I know won't happen in just a few short weeks when Football camp begins. I am so grateful for the conversation we have been able to have. For learning how to use the weed eater, blower and all the levels of the mower. For learning how to grill various types of meat and the best way to stain the deck. Despite his setbacks he still tries to do his best everyday to help, even tho I play Dr. Wife and yell at him to leave his fork on the table! :)  (Now some of these things could very well have happened eventually if he hadn't been hurt, but I like to think probably not.) As soon as I stopped feeling sorry for myself, I was able to be what I committed to be...a wife, for better or worse, in sickness and in health. He just happened not have his full health. How selfish was I? Even if for 1 day...shame on me.

Your attitude can have a huge affect on everything around you. We have all experienced it, either that one person who is always a "Debby downer" or who always has something to say about someone or there's always some kind of issue or tragedy happening in their daily life. Its draining, but it is also easy to absorb and begin doing it yourself.  Let us not harden our hearts because someone treated us wrong or things didn't go our way. Learn and let go. When you CHOOSE to think positively your entire life changes for the better. You CAN achieve your goals. Choose to be happy and have a positive attitude in all that you do. Stop negativity in its tracks, it is easy to blame it on our environment, but you know what that is? Its an excuse. Excuses are spread like wildfire. Stop making excuses for yourself. Don't let your mind defeat you. Having a healthy mind and healthy attitude are just as important as a healthy body! We are all human, we all have bad days and we all need a solid vent session. Just keep striving to be better everyday, and the results and happiness will soon follow.