Controlling Your Fitness Destiny

You do not control the weather. You do not control your circumstances. You do not control what other people do and say. But you DO control you...how you act/react, your eating choices, your workouts.

As I sit here on New Year's Day like many other people, eating my "last" cookie, my "last" cheesy burrito and drinking my "last" Bailey's and coffee, I know that ultimately, I control where I go from here. So how do you make a plan to get you where you want to go in the New Year?

As I mentioned in my last post, for me, resolutions are not the way to go. However if resolutions motivate you, here are my tips for controlling your fitness destiny in 2009.

1. Make a plan. Write down your goals in a journal, on your laptop, on your phone...whatever works for you. You don't set out on a journey from your house to a certain destination without an idea of where you are going and how to get there. A fitness goal should be no different. If you want to make changes, and reach your goal, write it down.
   
2. Make small changes. Don't try to change everything at once. Don't say tomorrow, I am going to give up alcohol, chocolate, fast food and all fried foods. That is a sure fire way to fail. Instead try something like, the first week, limit your chocolate to two days instead of five, only drink alcohol on the weekends and allow yourself to have fast food OR fried food once each week. Then, once you feel comfortable with these changes, add a couple more the next week until you are living the healthy lifestyle that you want to live.
   
3. Set small, reasonable, measurable goals. If your ultimate goal is to lose 50 pounds, set smaller, measurable goals along the way. For example, set a goal of losing 1-2 pounds per week and then reward yourself when you lose your first 10 pounds. Then start working on your next 10, not your remaining 40. Keep track of your progress in writing and in pictures so you can see just how far you have come.
   
4. Accountability for your goals. Tell someone else about your goals. Post it to your blog, if you have one (hmmm, does that mean I need to do a post about all my 2009 goals? Note to self, idea for next post). Telling others what you are working toward will help keep you on track rather than letting you off the hook at the first sign of temptation!
   
5. Remember, YOU are in charge! No one can MAKE you eat that cake or make you drink that next beer. No one can force you to skip your workout, not even your boss!! Really, YOU are in charge of your actions. You cannot control your circumstances or situations you are presented with, but you can control the choices you make in each one of those situations.

Now get out there and make 2009 your healthiest and happiest year ever!

Refreshed And Ready For The New Year!

After a few weeks of some soul searching, journaling and really thinking about priorities, I am refreshed, renewed, refocused and ready for the New Year! And for the first time in a long time, I am really looking forward to the upcoming holidays with family and friends. I am not dreading the family scene or the dysfunctional dynamics that always seem to rear their ugly heads. Because I am in a new place with myself.

When many of us think of being fit, we think of our physical bodies. And while that is a huge part of fitness, I am finding that mentally and spiritually we need to be fit as well. I have heard about this sort of "fitness" approach for years, but I guess until you hit a certain age or have a certain number of "ah ha" moments in your life, it just doesn't click. At least it didn't for me.

So, this year, no New Year's Resolutions...I like to call this Being Mindful in the New Year:

1. Focus on Priorities and What Really Matters - Life is short, cliche I know, but TRUE! We need to value every day and stop worrying about things we have no control over or the little things that DON'T matter. When someone does something that you question (cuts you off in traffic, says something less than kind), ask yourself, "What is the most generous explanation for their behavior?" I got this advice from a great friend of mine and it really, really puts a new perspective on things!
   


2. Forgiveness - This is one that I have struggled with for YEARS! But, I am going to be mindful and remember that forgiveness comes from within me and it doesn't matter if the person I am forgiving has apologized or not. It is up to me to truly forgive and if I don't, I am hurting myself more than anyone.
   


3. Selfish No More - Being the baby of the family, it was a way of life for me to be selfish it seemed. I don't have any children of my own and many people say that is because I am selfish. (Ok, if that is the case this is the only area where I plan to continue being selfish!) I tend to think of how things will affect me, not how they affect others. Being mindful of that and turning that around in 2009 is my goal!
   


4. Care and Nurture of My Physical Self - I think we all have a tendency to get in less workouts and more calories during the holidays. I plan to get back on track taking care of myself with good, healthy fuel, plenty of workouts and plenty of sleep. I plan to cut back on (not cut out!) chocolate and alcohol. My husband always reminds me...everything in moderation!
   


5. Dedication and Commitment to all of the above - This is the new way of thinking for me. After the past couple of weeks, I really feel like a new person and I like her, so I plan to stay this way!
   


6. Being the Best ME I Can Be! - And finally, anyone who knows me knows that I have a comparison issue. This person has nicer arms than me, this girl is taller, this one has longer thinner legs...and I spend countless hours focusing on things that I can never have. But, I have realized that being me is not a bad thing at all and no one can be me better than...well ME! :)

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas season (or whatever holiday you celebrate) and a joyous New Year. Don't come up with a list of resolutions that are unrealistic or that you really aren't committed to keeping. Be mindful of what is important and what makes you feel good!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Enjoy Your Journey...NOW!

I hate to admit it, but I have had a hard time getting inspired to write this post. I think the "ba-humbug" attitude that a lot of people have this time of year caught up with me over the past few days. I don't like that because I am NOT a ba-humbug sort of person!

One bright spot was my team doing the Jingle Bell Run this past Saturday! We had 6 runners and 4 walkers and everyone did great, in spite of the cold weather! I am SO proud of each one that showed up to participate!

Then this morning I read a really cool blog post from the Fit Shack and I got inspired. I got so much out of this post! She is so right...all we have is THIS present moment and why are we waiting to be happy or run our first race or whatever it is until the scale says what we want it to? The biggest thing I got from her post is that you are going to be the same person when you get to your goal weight as you are now! Your values aren't going to change, the people you love will be the same, the things you enjoy will be the same (except hopefully not all the unhealthy habits you have now!).

Many times I hear from people who seem to be postponing happiness until they reach a certain weight or run a certain time in a race or beat someone else's time in a race. While I think it is awesome to be on a journey, be it weight loss or a new PR, I think that we sometimes get WAY too focused on the destination and we forget to enjoy the journey. All we have is NOW people....don't throw that away!

Enjoy your journey! Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of someone else!

Just Hear Those Jingle Bells Jingling!

I can't believe it has been over 3 weeks since my last post! Time has really been flying by, as it seems to do every year at this time. The good news for me is that I made it through Thanksgiving without gaining a pound. I attribute that mostly to the fact that I was able to keep up relatively well (3-4 times a week) with my workouts AND that I was traveling with friends this year and not going to TWO full turkey dinners with families.

I am so excited that we have 11 members signed up on my team, New Beginnings, for the Jingle Bell Run 5k next Saturday, December 6. I was hoping for 5 and we ended up using one of my favorite tactics called "word of mouth marketing" and the next thing you know we have 11 people on the team. It is going to be a fun day for a good cause.

What I love most about the folks that have signed up on my team is that we have ALL levels! We have veteran runners, beginning runners, run/walkers and walkers. No one let the fact that they weren't able to run as fast as others or run the entire race keep them from signing up. This is what it is all about folks...do what you can do, starting now! You don't have to be the best or fastest, just get out there and get moving!