How obtainable is your goal? Go bigger!!!

This morning I was putting clothes away and came across my old size 24 jeans. I hadn't tried them on in a while so I figured why not! Please excuse my messy look in the picture with my face showing.
When I first started Weight Watchers and the idea to get healthy, I remember thinking, "Man, if I could just be a size 14! I didn't even think that was possible but I hoped I could get to that size. The thought of wearing a smaller size was not in my mind at all. And just so you know, I never had a pants size goal in mind. I just wanted to lose weight and be healthy. Whatever that looked like in the end, I was going to be happy with. These jeans got me thinking, though. I am so glad I didn't set a size 14 as my goal. Just like I'm glad I didn't set a one mile run or to be able to lift a certain amount of weight as my end goal. I think sometimes we set goals that our within our reach because we fear the goals that are bigger than what we can do within the ability we have RIGHT NOW. I would've cheated myself out if I had set my goals within my ability at the time. We're going to be hitting the new year very soon, and for many of us it's goal setting time. We want to start the year off with some goals in mind we'd like to reach within that year. I want to challenge you, dream bigger than you've ever dreamed. Reach for goals that seem impossible. Believe that you can do it. The only limitations are ourselves. And it's not even what we can physically do but it's what our minds tell us. It's what our past failures tells us. It's what those around us that don't want to see us succeed, tell us. So I want to challenge you to start setting some "IMPOSSIBLE" goals for 2013. You will want to quit, you will over eat, you will skip workouts, you will get down on yourself and you might even want to punch someone just for no reason at all ;) And all that's ok, what's not ok is quitting. The more you quit the easier it gets to quit and the harder it is to start up again. So take it from this hot mess of a girl.. YOU CAN DO MORE THAN YOU EVEN IMAGINED! YOU ARE STRONGER THAN YOU THINK YOU ARE! IF YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO IT YOU CAN ACCOMPLISH IT!!! I'm always cheering you on!!! BRING IT ON 2013!!! Let's make this year count so we don't have to start another year with the same old goals!!!  (Picture on the left are my old size 24 jeans under my current size 4 jeans)    >>>>That's just me over there, trying on my old jeans :)

Running uphill... what a pain!

You don't have to be a runner to know that running at an incline can be a pain in the... butt.. legs... tummy... a pain all over! I was out for a run last week, my usual running path, and I hit the part of my run where I have to run at an incline. I noticed I slowed down, my breathing got heavier, I had to push myself harder to get to the top. But when I got to the top and started making my way back down (now this is a slight incline, I know I'm making it sound like a huge mountain.. but that's what it feels like it) I had to give little effort. I just let my legs sorta go with the flow and I didn't have to push myself at all. I started thinking about my journey. And how the lessons I've learned have been during the inclines. Those times that I've had to really push myself to stick with it. The times that it wasn't easy to make the healthier food choices. The times I didn't want to get out of bed and work out. The times when things were going on in my life that could have caused me to emotionally eat. Those are the times that I had to push through. Those are the times that the life changing lessons are learned. I find that easy times are like a gift. We can just flow with it. We don't have to put too much effort in. It's in those times that you feel as if every single ounce of energy you have is being used to just barely hold on.. those are the times you are learning those lessons that will carry you through your life. I have learned endurance and perseverance. I have learned that my mind is stronger than my body. I have learned that reaching a goal, especially one that I never thought was possible, really is obtainable. You learn how to dig deep and conquer the quitter attitude. You see, we all get tired, we all want to quit. It is HARD and DIFFICULT and seems IMPOSSIBLE for everyone! I think when we're in the middle of something and facing something that makes us feel challenged, we tend to think we are the only ones that feel this way. We tend to think that's an excuse to give up. And really that's just another opportunity for us to grow. That is life giving us a moment to grow. The digger we deep, the stronger we become and the farther we can go. Most of the time we don't know how we've grown or the lesson we've learned until we're through it. So I want to challenge you, during those "inclines" push through. Try and enjoy them ;) (ok.. I know that might be asking a little too much) but know that when you get to the top, you have pushed through something that was difficult and might even seemed impossible, but you pushed through it! It gets easier, I promise. But you have to be willing to keep going even when you want to quit! Never quit :)