1.) You don’t have all matching workout clothes from Lululemon. Why on Earth would you even attempt to workout without wearing the latest fashions at the gym??? Other people have to workout right next to you. You should be wearing breathable material that costs $78 a shirt so that you don’t sweat profusely. Someone might smell you!!!
2.) You don’t have an overpriced gym membership to Lifetime Fitness. No one has ever been successful at weight loss without having a fancy gym membership. Everyone knows that! Don’t even bother going on a jog with your dog in the neighborhood, ’cause that’s not real exercise.
3.) You aren’t taking enough “supplements”. Fruits and vegetables are good for you, yes. But GNC has everything you need so that you don’t have to eat them. You need the “magic pill”.
I do hope that everyone reading this was picking up on my sarcasm. I also hope that you realize how incredibly ridiculous all of this sounds. My point…keep it simple. Don’t overcomplicate things. If you really feel overwhelmed by the details, let me know and I’ll see where I can help.
In all seriousness, here are some real reasons why you may not be reaching your goals.
1.) You’re comparing yourself to others. Weight loss is more mental than physical. I see countless stories of individuals that have achieved a goal. On one hand I admire them and am happy for them, but I look at their progress and the time it took them and wonder if I’m doing something wrong because my progress has not come as quickly. Does this sound familiar to anyone?
2.) You’re not doing it for you. If you’ve felt “pressure” from your significant other or any other important person in your life and have been made to feel as though their love or approval rating of you is contingent upon your physical condition or appearance, you may find yourself feeling like you will never measure up. It may be very difficult to find motivation to stick to something. I’m here to tell you that you are beautiful!!! God made you perfect just the way you are! There is NOTHING wrong with you.
My Advice!!!!
Find your own motivation and DON’T QUIT. Motivation is defined as the driving force that causes the change from desire to trying to achieve in life. I find motivation from all sorts of different areas. I am motivated by my husband and children, by others’ success, by words of encouragement. I am motivated by the phrase “Enjoy the Struggle”. I’ve seen that on a T-shirt of someone at the gym. To me, it’s a very classy way of telling me to get over it!!! It reminds me to stop feeling sorry for myself for silly reasons and focus on my goal. It reminds me to see challenges as the things that are only going to make me stronger. I imagine my son as a teenager thinking of quitting and that is what motivates me to keep pursuing my dreams. You see, he has a dream to play football for the Texas Longhorns. I’m sure there will be plenty of individuals lined up ready to tell him that he’ll never be good enough, the odds are too high no matter how good he is, or that it’s almost impossible. I hope that when he thinks of quitting because of all the negativity that he’ll think of me and see how his mom never quit. My daughter is only three but every night before bed she performs an original song and dance for me and her dad. I NEVER want her to feel like she isn’t pretty enough, talented enough, or “good enough” to pursue anything she has the passion or interest in doing. I honestly don’t care if in the world of bodybuilding I never receive the respect that I feel I deserve. If I look back many years from now and realize my children were motivated and inspired by my perseverance then it will all be worth it to me.
And JUST DO YOU…do your own thing. Don’t worry about other people, how much others are lifting, what they are wearing, or how good of shape they are in. You are in the gym to help ONLY YOU. Do what YOU can. Lift what YOU can. Stop caring about what others think. IT DOES NOT MATTER!!! Be motivated by others, your partner, your children, pictures on Instagram, an article in a magazine…but do it all for YOU! You are worth it!
I would like to close this post with a song by Kacey Musgraves. I chose this song because this chick seems to share my sense of cynicism. I think she and I would get along great. So, here you go!
Be crazy, healthy and happy!
Leanna
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