I’m on week 9 of my journey of being on the road to a healthier lifestyle. I’ve lost 19 lbs. since the first week in June, I’m logging my meals and my water intake through the Noom app (there’s other apps out there, but I still prefer the Noom app). I felt like I was doing pretty well. Except one thing – Exercising. I lost my motivation to get my lazy butt back on track with my exercise routine.
I would get up and put on my yoga pants, a t-shirt and tied up my Nike’s only to find myself making excuses. I’ve got laundry to do… I’ve got to pick up the kids… I’ve got to run to the store. Have you ever had a day when you’ve gotten all ready to exercise and you find yourself in those clothes all day until it’s time to change into your pajamas, yet you’ve done nothing? Not even walk around the block? I have…too many times!
This past week my husband asked, “Are you going to exercise today?” I replied, “I don’t have any clean socks to wear.” I can’t believe I said that! My husband was really cute and started a load of whites so I would soon have clean socks. What a supportive guy!
I even watched some really great YouTube workouts this week. Isn’t it fun to just sit back and watch people workout? I did not join in on any workouts but I did save some.
Anyway, Motivation doesn’t come in the form of a pill and you can’t buy it at the store. It’s something inside of you that comes from within. It’s all about you…I needed to make it about me. It’s part of self care and self care is not being selfish,
I know, just as well as everyone else knows ….that exercise can help lift your mood with the release of natural chemicals in the brain, increase energy levels and improve your sleep.
So what did I decide to do?
1. Look Back. My big why. I looked back on what motivated me to begin this journey of having a healthy lifestyle. The big Why? It was my weight. How my clothes fit. Most of all, the way I felt. I also had to reflect back on the realization that exercise had a profound impact on my weight loss.
2. Set a goal. I had to set an attainable goal. Not just a goal, an attainable goal, something I could actually accomplish. I stared off committing to exercising 3 times a week for thirty minutes. That was doable, for me.
3. Track Your Progress. Recalling what I started We’ll I’ve been doing that with the Noom app in their “Track More Progress” section. I just needed to get back on board. Too bad the app doesn’t have a feature to shoot out, “It’s time to workout!”
4. Don’t Think About It Too Much. Okay, I’ll admit I overthink things. I overthink pretty much everything. I was giving myself too much leeway and letting the excuses pile up. I just needed to dial up my playlist on Amazon Music and get to it.
5. Making It A Priority. I had to put exercise as an event in my phone as a way to commit and remind me what I needed to accomplish. I even set reminders – that I committed to not ignore.
Undoubtedly, making exercise a priority gets harder when you have young children or a job. I needed put exercise on the top of my list of things to do and make it an important part of my day. Except Sundays, that’s a day of rest.
You know if you exercise to keep your mind and body healthy, you can go conquer the world. Or at least show off a new, or old outfit that finally fits you nicely! Can’t wait – I’ll get there!