I have myself convinced of one thing, its all or nothing. I have been blogging about losing weight for five years, three months and 6 days. I have lost, I have gained, I have learned and I have forgotten. I have been all in and focused on the goal, and I have been at times hanging on by a thread. I have an arsenal of recipes and favorite low carb foods. I don't eat beef, choosing instead to eat lighter, leaner meats like turkey and chicken. But I am still overweight. What gives?
I am convinced this is the hardest thing I have ever done and why is that? Because it is a choice I have to make every day!
Think about it, usually in life the big responsibilities come with built in rewards and consequences, things you cannot easily ignore. When you have children, once that baby is in your presence you can hardly ignore it and walk away, there are laws against that. When you start a job, there are people counting on you and that expectation keeps you going through your daily routine and showing up, performing and in a week or two you get your reward.
But...weight loss is all about choice, daily choice, weekly choice, moment to moment choice... the reward is both immediate, and long term, it is illusive because you can have it in your hand and feel the glory, turn around and lose it so quickly.
There are no laws that compel me to eat healthy, exercise or take medication, except the laws of nature and those are easily ignored by sticking my head in the sand. It is a constant battle, winning one, losing one. There is no screaming baby ( ha, unless you count me throwing a tantrum because I want carbs and then again I don't). The point being, there is a short list of reasons to do this and do it right, they are life or death reasons but those decisions come in such miniscule moments they seem insignificant. But the sum total of each of those equals the success or failure of any break of habit, any huge life changes. So what's a gal to do???
Go shopping of course! Ha hahaha - I cracked myself up on that one. But yeah, shopping for new habits, new outlets for stress, new bffs in the form of a commitment machine otherwise known as exercise equipment. I realize after five years of ups and downs that there is no golden grail. There are strings of decisions, that all add up. Like life itself, it happens while you are planning to make it happen and while you are sleeping away in oblivion.
There are ways to set myself up for success and ways to let myself off the hook. So with my new equipment, I have removed all excuses. (Well maybe not all - I'm sure I can come up with something) but I have given myself the gift of convenience that is hard to ignore. This is a chance to ramp it up. To take the higher road. My new BFF stares at me longingly across the room, beckoning me to join her. She is asking me to trust her, to tell her my worries and my woes.
I guess I better "shoe up" and go do that thing. Spend time with my new friend. I want to keep her happy. She and I are developing a good relationship of give and take. I'm gonna give her everything I've got and she is gonna take me to the next level!
That's all ~ Thanks y'all!
You are so right about it being a daily choice! A CONSTANT choice.
ReplyDeleteBut I think you can make tweaks to your daily routine that eliminate or reduce those opportunities for choice, so that doing the right thing is just automatic and easier than straying. For me, I got rid of everything in my pantry that required "moderation" to eat. Screw that, I don't have any moderation. Given that I live four miles from the nearest store of any sort, it's easier for me to eat the healthy food in my kitchen than to go get junk food.
Good look with your new BFF, she's a beauty.
Yes! Eliminating temptation is a great way to be more successful! Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
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