I have a confession: I'm stuck in "I don't wanna" mode.
I don't wanna workout.
I don't wanna eat another apple.
I don't wanna drink water instead of diet soda.
Then I wonder why I can't hit that gall darned next goal!
I can't hit the goal because Pretzel M&M's are quite tasty.
I can't hit the goal because sleeping in is more fun than workout dvd's.
I can't hit the goal because beer is delicious.
I can't hit the goal because I don't wanna try.
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And so, I'm going to have a little pep talk with myself. I'm going to ask myself why I am stopping myself and why I care more about snacks than I do my own personal well being.
I am at that point in my journey where pants are starting to get more and more loose and old clothes are starting to fit again, but I simply cannot stop bringing myself down.
I'm going to re-focus, re-center, start a new week with a weigh in and I'm going to forgive myself for whatever that number is and I'm going to move the EFF on! Get over it! Get over yourself! Get over your love of junk and get back to the lovely and healthy foods that you know you love! Skip the beer and wine for a while because they are a mutha fuggin treat, not a right!
Start listening to your support group and stop listening to your cravings.
Start asking for help instead of asking for a second serving.
Find a darn anchor because you weight as much as one! That's right, I don't have an anchor. I need to find a stupid anchor! It needs to be something I see every single stinking day of my life, otherwise I'll forget about it.
Start moving your ass more because the last time I checked, thinking about exercise doesn't burn a single friggin calorie. Driving by the gym on your way home doesn't count as activity.
I was pedaling away in spin class the other day when I realized that a lot of things that I've learned in spin class can be applied to my every day life. I have to share these with you!
10. Every once in a while, you need to sit back down and have a drink (of water).
So often in life and in spin class I forget that I can just take a moment for myself, and it is something I struggle with daily. I remind myself to take a moment at work for an apple or a quick walk. I remind myself at home that I'm not alone and I can ask for help. I remind myself that when I can't breathe at spin class, that I should sit down and have a sip of water.
Speaking of water, I picked up a great new water bottle the other day at a cycling store.
It doesn't hurt that it's name is the same as one of my mother's favorite movies. Honestly I like it because it keeps the water cooler for an entire spin class and it's really easy to drink from. I don't have to remove my water bottle top every stinking time I want a drink now.
9. The right music can change everything.
I'm a music lover, it's how I was raised and I truly love the way it makes me feel. I can play a record from ten years ago or ten seconds ago and I can still remember how I felt the first time I heard it. I love that in spin class and in life, I can hear a song and it can push me up a hill that I've been too scared to face. (I dare you not to feel tough with this one!)
8. Just because everyone around you is standing up and huffing and puffing, doesn't mean you have to stand up to do it.
Some times in spin class, I take a quick peek around and realize that although the instructor has told us to stand up and peddle in position 3, I'd like to sit down and push myself harder in a seated position. I don't do it a lot, but sometimes I enjoy the heat and the burn in the tops of my legs when I leave my resistance set really high and push myself in this way. The same rings true for life. You don't have to face every hill exactly like the people around you, you can face it any way that you'd like.
7. The right gear or tools make all the difference in the world.
Oh man, never have more true words been spoken. From the padded shorts and spin shoes to the new heart rate monitor (that I haven't reviewed yet), the tools really make the ride better for me. Look around yourself, what do you think you need to make your life (or ride) easier?
6. Whatever you do, don't stop pedaling.
I don't know if you've ever had this happen to you in spin class, but I've done it a handful of times and it sucks: There you are at a heavy resistance and the song winds down, so you slow down to get your water and towel off your face but you don't realize that you've slowed to a complete stop. Now you look like an idiot because you're making that horrible face as you push your legs to try to start the bike pedaling again, and finally you give in and take off the resistance and stand up so you can get moving.
Really, it's true. Don't stop moving. If you stop, you've lost your power and momentum and it's a b*tch to get it back. So follow Dory's advice.
5. When the ride gets extremely hard, sometimes you have to stand up and get some momentum.
The same is true in life, you could sit down and make it through most of the drama it's going to throw your way but every now and then you just have to stand up and power through it.
4. Some things in life are worth sweating for.
No, really. It seems so simple, but so forgettable. Aren't you worth a little sweat? You sweat taking care of other people in your life, so why not yourself? I struggle with taking a couple of hours out of my schedule every week so I can sweat, but I feel so much better after I do. The final out come and the endorphins are well worth the pain of a sweat filled work out.
3. There is something about overcoming obstacles that inspires and strengthens friendship.
I look around during and after a spin class, and I see nothing but friends. These people have cheered me on, yelled for me to work harder, and high fived me at the end of a tough workout. The same is true for my non-spin friends, and I appreciate all of the support these people give no matter where they give it.
2. If you don't love what you do, you'll eventually stop doing it.
If I didn't love spin classes, I wouldn't buy 20 classes at a time. If I didn't love science, I wouldn't be a chemist. If I didn't love losing weight while still eating what I want, I wouldn't be a Weight Watcher. This seems simple enough, but too many times I've tried to force myself into doing something that I didn't love. I don't love all protein diets. I don't love to run. I don't love laundry.
Well, I guess I can skip everything but the laundry part.
1. Ride your own ride.
Man, I love this saying. I say it all the time! At work, I say it when people start complaining about how other people do their job. With my friends, I say it when I see people trying to tell my ladies how to live their life. In spin class, I say it to myself when I start to have self doubt. I'm on my bike, I'm in my shoes, I'm in my own head. I have to know myself and push myself accordingly.
So in early February, I read all about a man named Brad Gansberg and a tool he's added to motivate people online: it's called the "7 day chip" and you can read all about it here.
Well as soon as I read about it, I had to try it! It sounded like a great non-scale goal to achieve. You set your own daily goals, something attainable, and you complete them every day for seven days. At the end of the week, you shout it out on Twitter or Facebook, or even tell Brad himself so he can recognize you on his blog and Twitter! Or just congratulate yourself and enjoy it.
Just make sure you are using the hashtag #7daychip so that other people can find you on Twitter and reply to you. It's a really positive community!
Then I sat around and thought about it for about four days, talk about procrastination! What would I set my goals to be? What if I failed? What if I forgot completely about my goals and the chip altogether?
I'm such a worry wort.
Finally, the day before my Weight Watchers weigh in, I sat down and picked three very simple goals for myself:
1. I will only use my daily Points Plus target and any activity Points Plus that I earn throughout the week. Another way of saying this would be to say that I will not use my 49 weekly Points Plus, but that sounded too negative!
2. I will drink eight full glasses (eight ounces each) of water each day for a total of 64 ounces. I had been seeing people setting 100 ounce goals each day, but after trying it for a day I decided it was a bit too ambitious for me.
3. I will eat a minimum of six servings of fruits and vegetables each day. I have to admit, number three is a total breeze for me. I usually eat about eight servings of fruits and veggies each day, so it was a no brainer to put it on my list.
And then, I started my first 7 day chip.
It was so great! I had people on Twitter that would see my tag and congratulate me or ask me how my day was going. I checked in with myself and the Twitter folks at the end of each day and the support was outstanding. People I didn't know that were on a weight loss journey would throw me the most positive and outstanding messages or notes. I felt so great.
So great in fact that I ate way more fruits and vegetables and added an addition day of activity to my week, all of this for no reason other than I felt like it. I would eat four or five pieces of fruit because they sounded good. I grabbed the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred DVD one morning and did it because I felt like doing it.
