ready4change

So today as I was on the elliptical trainer and nearing that 10 minute mark with 20 minutes to go, sweat already dripping down my face, my feet already numb, I was thinking “what is going to help me push through the pain today?”  And suddenly a song by John Mellencamp came up on my ipod…can’t think of the name right off hand but he says “…you can bend me you can break me but you better stand clear…when the walls come tumblin’ down, when the walls come crumblin’ tumblin’…” and I thought to myself “YES!!  Life can bend me and break me but I’m breaking down the walls around me that has held me back from getting back on this wagon we call fitness!!  So look out!”  And those thoughts kept me going at full force through the rest of the 20 mintues.  It felt great.

So then I started wondering, what are some of the things that help you all push through the pain and kept  going to the end?  What thoughts do you replay in your head to get you through your workouts?  What songs inspire you to get through?

Every other Friday I’m off of work.  For the past (insert big number here) Fridays I have slept in late and once I did wake up I sat on the couch and watched TV for the rest of the day.  I would ‘think’ about working out….but…the longer I sat on the couch the less I felt motivated to do anything let alone exercise!  Today I got myself out of the house and went for a nice 1 1/2 mile walk around my neighborhood.  It felt great!  And the greatest part is this was the third day in a row I exercised!  It’s funny how as your walking and the blood starts pumping through your veins your mind gets a little clearer, goals seem achievable, and you get that little bit of excitement in the pit of your stomach. 

The singer Pink sings a song called “Don’t let me get me” that I was listening to today while I was on the treadmill.  Oh yeah, btw, I made it to the gym today - which makes two days in a row!!  Anyway, there are several lines in her song that rang true for me as well.  She says:

“Everyday I fight a war against the mirror
I can’t take the person starin’ back at me
I’m a hazard to myself”

and

“Don’t let me get me
I’m my own worst enemy
Its bad when you annoy yourself
So irritating
Don’t wanna be my friend no more
I wanna be somebody else”

Which in Pink’s case she didn’t like herself mentally which isn’t my case - well, at least not to the same extreme as her.  I’m sure she was making suicidal references which is not even close to my mindset.  However, I do annoy myself when I make bad food choices or choose to drink wine for dinner (and only wine). Or when I have every intention to workout when i get home but instead plop on the couch with a cold beer and get nothing done.  And then the next morning I look in the mirror and hate the image staring back at me and  say “today is the day.  I”m going to eat better today.  i”m going to make it to the gym today. ” and then….i don’t.

I know what to do to lose weight.  i”ve done it before after the birth of my first child.  I wasn’t on a ‘diet’ I just worked out - a lot.  I keep a food journal - religiously!  I had given up fast food 95%.  I was down to 16% body fat which for women is considered in the top athlete range.  However, over the past two years my life has changed a lot.  And while I consider myself a very positive, upbeat person, I somehow let go of that part of me and I can’t seem to find her.  I need motivation and encouragement from somewhere beyond myself like I used to have.  So I started searching for some sort of support group…and well…i landed here!

is not user friendly on this site.  I have used (and will continue to use) the one found on fitday.com.  It’s very intuitive and easy to use.