Anchors..

An anchor can be defined as; a person or thing that can be relied on for support, stability,or security; mainstay.  Recently during one of my Weight Watcher classes my leader talked about anchors and how they can be a great asset to us during our journeys. She was meaning an anchor in a way of something you can carry around with you or keep on your refrigerator, or maybe even a voice mail that you can listen to when you feel tired of the process.  I thought I'd share with you some of my anchors and hopefully it will encourage you to either continue to hold on to your anchors or figure out what keeps you "anchored" during your journey. I have a few :) and since the class discussion I've come up with a few more. I would say one of mine is definitely old pictures of myself. When I see them they are a reminder of where I was and how far I've come. And also reminds me that I don't want to go back to living my life that way. I have a few songs that I would consider an anchor when I work out. You know, that certain song that pushes you through when you feel like you can't push anymore. I have little stickers that I earn for every 5 pounds loss so I keep those around as little reminders too. Since these last 10 pounds are being such a pain in my butt to lose, I started wearing a little red yarn bracelet with two knots in it. Each knot represents 5 pounds, what I have left to lose to reach my final goal! I've also kept a few of my old clothes and once in a while I'll bring those out and try them on! That never gets old!! :) The other morning, I was getting out of the shower and put a towel around me and I thought to myself.. Ok, at what point was I able to wrap a towel around my whole body?! Seriously, I wasn't always able to do that!! So I made a mental note of that.. and will definitely hold on to that as an anchor for myself. I have many people in my life that have been anchors to me as well! The cheers and support they give me have been a huge help along the way. I think it is important to have some things in your life that you can look at or touch or hear, that when you need it, you can grab a hold of it. The journey gets tiring and you reach many points that you just wanna give up. But really, you can't :) Giving up is so easy to do and you get nothing from it. You have to set it in your mind, that you refuse to sink! 

Mind over matter..

A friend of mine recently sent me this quote, and I wanted to share it with you!


" Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing, you have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired in the morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired."
-- George S. Patton


I cannot help but love these words! I can remember making this decision when I first decided to run, to make up my mind and go with it! To not allow my legs to dictate how far I would run, but allow my mind to push me to my goal. Really, it's in anything we do. In any goal we are going after. In any decision we've made that we don't want to go back on. I have learned so much over the past 19 months, and learning how to never give up has been one of the most valuable lessons!! I believe you have to make the decision to never ever give up and once you make that decision, stick with it! The reason we fail over and over and over.... is because we give up so easily. We convince ourselves that whatever we are chasing is impossible to reach. We blame others around us or our circumstances but in reality the responsibility is ours. If we keep making excuses as to why we CAN'T do this or that, then we'll always be in the same place.. never moving ahead. When is a better time to make up your mind to do something? If you want something bad enough, you'll go after it! You allow nothing to stand in your way. If you do, then I don't believe you want it bad enough. Harsh? I only say that because I remember buying weight loss books, diet cook books, heck.. I had even joined Weight Watchers two other times before. I tried different diets and faithfully watched Biggest Loser to gain encouragement from. None of it worked, because I didn't want to do the work. I didn't want to make the sacrifices needed. I didn't make up my mind to actually do it. I don't believe that there's such a thing as "this was just my time" because I believe you have to choose to make it your time. It doesn't just happen. I know that those that are reading this and might be struggling with making up your mind, really are strong enough to do it! You just have to make the decision to and not quit! 

It's unbelievable how strong our minds are!