Monday Motivation- Week 6

Hey friends!

Well, here we are….its week 6 of my Monday Motivation Blog Series, and the last fitness related blog post I plan to write for a little while!  Truth is, fitness is not my passion, though it’s what I’ve been focusing on a lot lately with this series.  I have really enjoyed stepping out of my comfort zone and sharing a little about my fitness journey with you all.  Though, what REALLY gets me all jazzed up is writing about everything else–motherhood and family, recipes, DIY projects, travel, home decor, sharing deals and affordable fashion–with a little bit of fitness mixed in.  Oh, and wine. 😉 This IS a Lifestyle Blog after-all, so I want to write and share about ALL the things that I love.

Also, I probably should’ve but this as a disclaimer in week one, but here you have it in week 6….I in no way claim to be the picture of health, a personal trainer, life coach, etc…and actually, my goal with this series was not to be ANY of those things.  My goal with this blog series was to hold myself accountable by putting my thoughts and feelings about weight loss successes and struggles, meal and exercise plans, motivational support, etc. out there in hopes to not only keep myself motivated, but to hopefully inspire at least one person out there in this big ol’ world.  I’d love to know if YOU were that one person.  Send me an email or comment below–I’d really love to hear your feedback!

Anywho….thanks again for reading along over the past several weeks. If you are new here and want to play catch up….you can click here to view the other posts in the series: week 1, week 2, week 3, week 4, week 5.

To wrap this series up I just wanted to talk about a couple key reminders for happiness as you continue on your journey, whatever that may be…

1. Living a balanced lifestyle of healthy foods and regular exercise is so important, and I realize that now that I’m older and starting to feel the aches and pains that come along with my age (mid 30’s this year…when did that happen?!), but you know what else is important–living a happy life experiencing things you love.  So if wine makes you happy, then have the wine…just don’t have an entire bottle.  Or do, shoot…I’ve been there a few more times than I’d like to admit. 😉 Just in moderation.
2. This is YOUR life, YOUR journey.  As hard as it is (and damnit it is so hard!) stop comparing yourself to everyone else. Yes, social media paints a picture perfect portrait of everyone’s life, but you have to learn to love your own if you want to experience true happiness.
3. Along with that…learn to love yourself.  All of that double chinned, crazy curly haired, big ol’ cellulite covered booty self! (Totally talking about myself here—can you tell what my insecurities are?) Part of that is, practicing a little more self love and doing things that fill your love tank.  Things that make you feel good inside and out. And feeling comfortable in your own skin.  Not letting your insecurities control you, rather work on changing or bettering the things you don’t like.
4. When it comes to exercise, again, don’t compare yourself to everyone else…instead let others inspire you to try new things or step out of your comfort zone.  So whether you prefer an in home program, like to hit the gym for a group classes, play tennis, swim, run….whatever it is–just do you.  For me, I’ve always admired those who love to run, but I never felt confident enough to start myself. Mainly because I knew I ran like a 15 minute mile and would be out of breath and walking within the first 30 seconds which would be totally embarrassing. “Hey guys, I just ran a mile in 15 mins–yay me.” Telling myself, “No one would think that is some great achievement so I’m just not going to do it at all.” Yeah, that’s the better route to go. I let the fear of what others “might think” control my mindset, which ultimately led me to sitting my ass on the couch and not doing a thing.  But you know what…I was wrong and what I should’ve been telling myself was “YAY ME! I haven’t run in years and I just ran a 15 minute mile! And now a few months later a 12 minute mile, and a few months later I’m in at a 10ish minute mile. YAY ME!!”
5. That said….it’s okay to Be Your Own Cheerleader! For example, I’m totally just gonna go ahead and shake my own pom-poms right now because I ran a 5K on Saturday a whole FIVE minutes faster than I did back in November–and I think that’s pretty damn awesome! Perfection? No. But it’s progress.  And I’m hoping by the end of the summer I’ll have knocked off another 5 minutes!                                                        Super Hero 5K for Mom and 100 Yard Dash for Josie

Lastly….I said this same thing last week but I’ll say it again here…We need to support and lift each other up, no matter what we look like or where we are in our individual journeys.  Stop comparing. Stop feeling sorry for yourself.  Just recognize your struggles, and remember that each new day is a new opportunity to make a new little change.  YOU GOT THIS.

Have a great week everyone! XO