What if no one cares?

ACCOUNTABILITY

It seems we need this to stick with something that we don't enjoy.

I have felt (countless times) that LACK of accountability. And what happens when I don't have anyone to hold me accountable? I fall. I fail. I make excuses. I quit. I slack. I don't measure up to any expectations, especially when NO expectations have been set. 

I often have a pity party inside my head! I frequently find myself saying, 

"Well, no one else cares if I fail. I have done it before, and NO ONE cared. Why does it matter what I look like, anyway? I am still a good {wife, mom, friend, sister, daughter} even if I don't fit into those goal jeans or hit my goal weight. 

WHY DOES IT MATTER?

NO ONE ELSE CARES? 

WHY SHOULD I?"

After time and time again of struggling through this mindset, this thought came to me just yesterday. I reversed the question and asked myself:

 "IF I DON'T CARE ABOUT MYSELF, 

WHY SHOULD ANYONE ELSE?"

This was a tough reality check. 

Why do I worry so much about what others think and try to please everyone else?

The person I should worry most about is myself. After all, I am the one who has to look at myself in the mirror. Am I proud or ashamed of the choices I have made? 

So where should the expectations come from? 

They should come from within. What is it YOU want and desire? And how bad do you want it?

Expect more from yourself. Not because you are not good enough RIGHT NOW, but because you are capable of SO MUCH MORE!!!! Much more than you ever give yourself credit for. 

Do it for YOU. And no one else. Because you are worth it. 

Don't get me wrong, this is NOT an easy task. 

We all need constant reminders.

Can you count yourself as your own accountability? Your level of commitment depends on your level of desire to grow and become better. 

But guess what? No matter how much you think no one else cares, there is always Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ that will care for you no matter what. They also want you to do your best and become your best. Challenge yourself. Improve your skills and mindset. We are here to learn and grow, NOT JUST SURVIVE.

It seems that through struggles, we are brought to our knees in humility and broken heart, which then draws us closer to God and we will then become spiritually stronger. 

We all have a purpose and a place in this life. There is no doubt in my mind that each one of us is unique and we each play an important part here on earth. 

This new favorite song of mine portrays JUST THAT!!!!!

Read the powerful words, then LISTEN to the song and FEEL of it's truthfulness <3

There are times when

you might feel aimless

and can't see the places 

where you belong.

but you will find that 

there is a purpose

it's been there within you all along

and when you're near it, 

you can almost hear it.

It's like a symphony

Just keep listening

and pretty soon you'll start 

to figure out your part.

Everyone plays a piece

And there are melodies

in each one of us.

It's Glorious!

And you will know how

to let it ring out

As you discover who you are

Others around you will start to wake up

To the sounds that are in their hearts

It's so amazing

What we're all creating.

It's like a symphony

Just keep listening

and pretty soon you'll start 

to figure out your part.

Everyone plays a piece

And there are melodies

in each one of us.

It's Glorious!

Listen to GLORIOUS by David Archuletta

"Focus your energy on the things that really matter! There will always be distractions that will keep you from achieving your goals. Don't give in to them. How have you increased your skills, knowledge, abilities, or income in the past 90 days? Do you really expect to be successful, given how you are using the majority of your time, resources and skills?

Are you spending time with people who can enhance and enrich your life? What are you doing to take your life to the next level? Will your current efforts make the next 90 days even more successful than what you just experienced? Be honest with your assessment. Don't play games with yourself. Remember ~ if you don't have an agenda for your life...you will be a part of someone else's agenda. You have GREATNESS within you!" -Les Brown

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Conscious eating

CONSCIOUS EATING

When you put food and drink in your mouth, do you eat with intent and purpose?

Conscious eating is about being AWARE of the foods you are consuming, and consume food with specific positive intentions. 

Perhaps you have noticed yourself mindlessly eating out of stress, boredom, fear, or for another reason. Or during a meal, you eat too fast without even really thinking about the food you are eating. 

With these habits already formed, it may be a challenge to transition into conscious eating. 

However, for your health, it is a challenge worth taking, and after a while you can create new lasting habits that will better serve you. 

  SOME REASONS TO CREATE CONSCIOUS EATING HABITS

Improve heath and well-being

Reduce stress

Lose weight

Save money

Food tastes better

Create a more pleasant eating experience

Learn to listen to the needs of your body

Recognize triggers and the meanings behind your body's cravings

Recognize actual hunger and thirst

Have more respect for your body and the digestion process

Learn to control your appetite and stop eating when you are full

Create greater appreciation for your food and health

Now that you have an idea as to WHY you would want to create the habit of conscious eating, now we can talk about HOW.

First: DECIDE

Decide how you can benefit from it, and then decide to make it happen. 

Start with the food you already have. Take a look at what is in the fridge and in those cupboards. 

Eliminate the food that isn't serving your health. 

When creating our grocery list, carefully consider the importance of the foods there and 

whether or not they are WORTH consuming.

YOUR BODY is VALUABLE. Treat it as so, and it will last.

YOU CHOOSE WHAT YOU PUT IN YOUR MOUTH!

Simple as that. YOU are in control!

If you feel your eating habits are out of control, it's not too late to begin making small changes every day and reverse those habits that are not serving you or your health. 

Now lets say you have the healthy foods your body can thrive on. 

NEXT you COMMIT to pay more attention to your body, your hunger, your cravings, the habits you have that make you want to eat, habits of where you usually eat, the triggers that send you to the kitchen... etc. ALL DAY. BE AWARE of your actions and thoughts when it comes to food.

Put more thought into your meal planning and preparation. T

his doesn't necessarily mean more TIME, just more thought. Every meal should have a purpose. 

Try to find a sense of calm when you are preparing and eating your food.

Take three or four slow, deep breaths to center yourself before you take that first bite.

Take a moment to give thanks for the food you are about to eat. 

When eating, remember to SLOW DOWN! Try to make eating a pleasant experience. 

Remember, digestions begins in your mouth. Eat slowly, chew your food thoroughly, and pay attention to your food while you chew. Try putting your utensils down while you are chewing so you can focus on what is in your mouth rather than hurrying to get the next bite.

After you finish, pay attention to the way you FEEL. 

How does the food you just ate make you feel?  

This will be a way of determining what foods your body likes and what foods you may want to steer clear of in the future. 

Once these practices become habit, you will likely notice yourself  looking forward to meals and appreciating your food more. Conscious eating also relieves stress and will realign your own personal energy. Your body is worth every effort to move toward optimum health and well-being!

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Finding your WHY

When making a change for the better, you MUST have a reason for wanting to make that change. 

Especially if the change is not easy. 

Especially if it takes effort and time.

Especially if you may not see the changes right away.

Your WHY has to be powerful enough to see you through the times when you want to quit. It has to be strong enough to PULL you up when all you want to do is lie down. 

In my journey to losing weight, there have been plenty of times that I don't see results immediately and feel like my efforts are not making any difference. For one who has never really been into "working out" or "dieting", sticking with this has been tough. I have had to learn and relearn different things that work for me (and don't really work for me). WHY do I continue to press on, even through the tough times when I don't "feel" like doing it anymore? 

It is because I decided from the very beginning that I wanted to be a good example for my family to follow. I want to SHOW them that anything is possible with persistence and determination. But more importantly, I want to be healthy for THEM! I want to LIVE to its fullest, and be able to create lively memories for them. I can honestly say that when I was obese, there were MANY things that I couldn't do. I didn't let my weight or physical appearance hold me back from loving myself, who I was, my purpose as a wife and mother, or belief in myself. However, the physical aspects of being obese held me back from being able to do many things. Like walk up the stairs without being out of breath... yeah. That was me. I couldn't run to keep up with my children. In fact, if I had to run to save my life, I would die. Hahaha! I noticed before that I was constantly tired. Energy was hard to come by no matter how much sleep I got. I lacked drive and motivation to do anything productive. Although I never doubted my self worth, I still was disappointed in myself as I would look in the mirror and see someone I wasn't sure I recognized. I wasn't proud of that. I try to teach my daughters to love themselves no matter what, but the truth is, when you aren't doing your best to keep up with your health, there is a sense of disappointment that comes.

This is where my WHY gets even deeper. I look at my oldest daughter who is now 9 years old. You know those tween years when they start to believe the things that others tell them? They see pictures of models and begin to take in the world's definition of what beauty is? It scares me to death thinking about my daughter not loving herself the way I love her. Embracing every aspect of how amazingly wonderful and beautiful she is not matter what she looks like. I want her to KNOW, without a doubt, that her body is something to appreciate. It is a miracle that was given to her and she needs to take care of it. I truly believe that by me being that positive example, she will learn that. By showing her that her health does matter because her body is a miracle that needs to be taken care of, she will learn to appreciate the blessing of health and put forth more conscious effort to treat it properly. 

The same goes for my younger two children as they grow. 

This is a lifestyle change that I am making for them. Not because I want to "look" good or be "skinny". But because I want them to be proud of the accomplishments that we have made together.

I am motivated by the memories we have YET to create. 
I am motivated by the legacy of love I want to leave. 
I am motivated by the fact that taking care of my health NOW, I can live LONGER and have more TIME with loved ones. 

The question now is what motivates you?

More importantly, WHY? 
Why does it even matter?

Once you find that DRIVING FORCE, you are UNSTOPPABLE! 

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My health transformation

This picture shows a part of my journey. Not the beginning, and not the end. 

I am in this continual process of becoming better, stronger, healthier, smarter, more knowledgeable, etc. 

I am determined to never let this progression end.  

This picture shows the outward result of the decision to CHANGE.

What was I BEFORE?

I was obese, but that didn't define me. 

More importantly, I was a wife and a mother. 

I was happy and content with my life. I thought I was healthy, because my blood pressure and cholesterol numbers were "normal". I was teaching my young children how to make healthy food choices, yet I wasn't being an example. I didn't know how to set and reach goals, and I had never heard of "Personal Development". I was a follower that blended into the crowd. I would look in the mirror and wonder where my GLOW went. Where was my spark for life? I was just going through the motions and not doing anything extraordinary. 

I KNEW I needed to make a change, but I was afraid of committing. 

WHY? 

Not because I was afraid, of failure, but because I was afraid of the work that it was going to take. I knew that if I was going to lose weight, I was going to do it the right way. By eating healthy and exercise. Which we all know takes time and effort. I was not a sucker for the fad diets, pills, wraps, or any other "quick fix" claims out there. I was also a cheap-o, and didn't want to cost my family extra money for something that I wasn't sure would work. I had looked into a personal trainer and was blown away by the expense of that. I was a stay-at-home mom with no extra source of income and wasn't about to spend that much for a personal trainer that would take me out of my home to workout, cost extra money for gas and daycare during workouts, take up extra time than necessary. I hoped there was another way, but I had no idea where to begin. Which is the reason I put it off for so long. When I found out about how I could workout at home and follow a training schedule that was laid out for me, with no question about whether or not it would work. I had no doubt that if I did my best and worked a little each day, I could essentially reach small goals. I discovered that it wasn't so difficult. Easy to do, but also easy not to do.

The thing that makes all the difference: 

DECIDE what it is you want and how bad you want it?

What am I NOW?

I am a wife and a mother. 

I am happy, but KNOW that being content with my life is a way of saying I don't deserve better than what I currently have. Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for all the blessings in my life. I am happy with the progress I have made, but if I were to become content and comfortable with my life as it is at this moment, that would cause me to cease in working toward becoming better. I am learning how to set goals and accomplish more! 

I am a leader that has others looking up to me for guidance and inspiration. It is surreal at times when I receive messages about how I inspire others. I didn't intend on that when I started, but found that helping and inspiring others actually DRIVES me to become better because I don't want to let them down. 

Does it mean I am perfect? No. Does it mean I am done? Surely not.

I know what it feels like to lose over 70 pounds. I also know what it feels like to convince myself that 70 pounds is "good enough" and then fall back into old habits. It's a good thing that I know how to pick myself back up and get back on track. Instead of giving up completely, I get up, brush off the dust, and make a u-turn back in the right direction. And my faithful friends and followers are so uplifting and supportive. 

So here I am trying to get back on track after a summer of indulging in old habits. 

70 pounds lost, but some gained back and ground to make up! But does that mean I am doomed to fail, and that I should just give up? No. I restarted my journey in October 2013 and committed to 21 days of clean eating and finished strong!

Click here to see pictures of my meals during this 21-day reset

This helped me to gain back some traction that I felt I had lost. Now that I am back on track, my body is once again craving healthy foods and exercise. It's a great feeling to know that I can progress no matter what happened in the past.

REMEMBER:

It's not about where you have been, but more about where you are GOING!!! 

And guess what?

YOU HAVE COMPLETE CONTROL OF THAT!

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