Motivation:When it's tough to move on

       Let's be honest...The past few weeks have been difficult for me to get motivated....You might think, "But you're a fitness professional...you're immune". WRONG. I'm not immune. Let's banish the thoughts of fitness professionals who claim to never eat sweets, bread, alcohol, or other such temptations...It's not a realistic picture. I learned a long time ago that if I never treat myself, then I'll crash and man, will I crash hard and quickly. And I'll crash for hours, maybe days, maybe weeks...lol, but really, that picture is not pretty. Life happens, that's the blessed truth. But one valuable lesson I've learned is to make the most of the times when I'm at home...It's MY time, my clean meals, and my fitness routines that matter then, no one else's. I was asked recently by someone what it would take for me to give up my health and fitness regimen. I looked at that person and said, "You're asking me to give up the one thing I do for me - that's not going to happen. If I don't get that time in, then what you want from me is not going to happen." Really though, some women go shopping, some love pedicures (there's absolutely nothing wrong with that), some women have other hobbies. The one thing I do for myself, and my hubby is we try to indulge in healthy foods and exercise. Next to my quiet time with God, then time with Micah, this is the most critical part of my day. If I don't get that 15 min. - 1 hr., then I'm one cranky caterpillar. Here lately, fitness has helped me deal with stress, with emotional pain, and brother has there been a lot of it.

       Micah's grandmother passed this week. But she wasn't just his Nana, I claimed her too, even for the short time I knew her. After both of my grandmothers passed away last year and my husband and I started dating, Nana adopted me. It has been during the past month as she digressed that I spent a lot of time on the recumbent bike, praying that we'd get to love on her just one more time. My thoughts would be so blurry and scattered to the outer edges of my mind, but something about hopping on that bicycle became my prayer chair, and the place where I could clear my head...I took out stress from work and other areas on that bike, and honestly, it helped. But oh, how my goal of working towards that fitness contest in November was not as all important for me. I had to find another reason to train in addition to that. Strength training makes me feel like a valkyrie...just kidding...but pretty close. I needed to feel strong. The tension I felt in my mind began to fade as a contracted my muscles to the max...the more I thought, the more I placed the tension in my muscles. Now I'm back working towards that contest, but more importantly, I've persevered....I didn't just stop...I still kept going. I pity those who think they can not deal with the physical because of the mental and emotional issues they face. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators affect each other... so Persevere.
"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love, and of self-discipline." 2 Timothy 1:7