Keep Moving

“Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.” ~Will Rogers

So you've researched all the best exercises to work those thighs, tighten those abs, get rid of the flabby batwings under your arms and get those buns of steel. You either bought a treadmill, or joined a gym, or printed out copies of exercises to do at home, or maybe you bought P90X or Turbo Fire or some other DVD program. Awesome.

You've gotten rid of all the junk food in the house - it's now a candy-donut-Twinkie-ice cream-free zone. And you've added in tons of new healthier choices like whole grains, fresh fruits, veggies-a-plenty and lean meats and dairy. Way cool.

You've created an account on My Fitness Pal or Weight Watchers online or got yourself a fancy new journal and are tracking every single bite of food that goes into your mouth. Every bite accounted for and logged. You, my friend, rock.

You bought workout clothes and a shiny new water bottle - prepared to sweat and re-hydrate as needed. All is well in your healthy, new world. You start the process, and you start seeing results. Before you know it, you are feeling so good, you are victorious!

If you are like me, you may have played out this drama a time or three in your life and had success. Maybe you reached your weight loss goals or lost significant weight and were feeling so much better. And then, without realizing it, worked your way back up the scale to where you were before, or higher. That has been the story of my teens, the story of my twenties, the story of my thirties and hopefully it won't be the story of my forties.

To me, you have to keep moving. You can't rest on your prior knowledge, on your past accomplishments, heck, you just can't REST period. This is a lifelong process where in order to win the war you need to win the daily battles of motivation, focus and discipline.

You can be on the right track, get just so far in the process, and then get completely derailed or run over by the old patterns, habits and lifestyle.

My pep talk today is for me and it is twofold. I think, for me, it will be the key to staying on track and moving forward, and hopefully the key to my success:

1. Write down my health goal every day in the form of an affirmation "I am fit, active, healthy, and enjoying life." (I may sign off every blog post with this, come to think of it!)
2. Keep moving. Every day. Find a way to incorporate physical activity every day. Tennis, biking, swimming, walking, jogging, treadmill, hiking, caving, obstacle courses, in-home DVD, yoga, spin class, Zumba, heck, if all else fails...jumping jacks, crunches, pushups, planking, lunges and squats in the house while watching Big Bang Theory....get my drift?

Stay on track, my friends. Your life is like a Choo Choo Train, and you get to determine the size of your caboose.

Carly

"I am fit, active, healthy, and enjoying life."