Month: May 2009

Tapping into your Potential

Published on by Christine2 Comments

How many times have you shot down a goal or dream because you thought you couldn’t do it?  What if you told yourself you could do it?  What if you truly believed it?!  So often we fail to tap into our true potential because we’ve trained ourselves to believe that we CAN’T do it, or we give a mediocre effort and then tell ourselves it’s all we’ve got.

This is especially true in the area of weight loss.  Sometimes looking at the big picture is so overwhelming we give up before we even start.  If I would have thought in my mind that I had almost 100 pounds to lose, I would have thrown in the towel and dove into a bag of Doritos (the cool ranch kind).

Could it be, that you have no idea what your true potential is?  Maybe just maybe you are strong enough to conquer your fears and go for it! 

Try this:  Strap on your running shoes and go for a walk/jog…even if you are not a jogger.  When I first started jogging, I couldn’t jog anymore than 30 seconds before I wanted to puke in my mouth a little (sorry, descriptive I know).   

Warm up 5 minutes walking, now start jogging; even if it’s barely a jog.  When your breathing gets laboured and your legs start to burn and your mind starts screaming “holy Hanna Montana you have got to STOP!!!”…Don’t do it! Keep going!  Tell yourself, you will jog another 15 seconds.   Go again the next day.  This time go for an extra 3o seconds, or an extra 5 minutes…depending on the level you are at.  The point is, you CAN push through it. 

Don’t let yourself believe that you aren’t strong.  You are only limited by your mind.

My sister Janice has MS.   Before she got sick, she was the most active & vivacious woman I have ever met.  She loved to go for speed walks and being active was just part of who she was.  She now walks short distances with the aide of a walker. When I first started exercising, my little sister and I went for a walk/jog while on our family vacation.  I could not for the life of me keep up to her!  It was like chasing Forest Gump.  I returned back to the cabin a good 10 minutes behind her so I was feel discouraged about my slow pace.  Janice was in the cabin when I returned and I told her how bummed I was because I couldn’t run very fast.  She looked at me and said “I wish I could run again.”  I had to duck into another room because I was so overwhelmed by her statement and realization of how spoiled I was complaining about how difficult exercising is when I CAN exercise. 

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My sisters and me Christmas 02 (my little sister is missing from this shot as she was basking in tropical son).  Me, Roxy, Sharon, Janice, and Darlene.

So I run because I CAN run.

This is the song I play on my Ipod when I don’t want to run anymore (I apologize for the crude Madonna photos that accompany this song.  It was the only one I could find on the net that I could embed.  Just listen to the words!).  The words of this song remind me of my sister and I refuse to quit when I hear it.

Push yourself and tap into your potential.  You won’t believe how strong you actually are.

Four Years Ago Today…

Published on by ChristineLeave a comment

I hit my goal weight four years ago today.   I can’t begin to describe all that I’ve received back from changing my life.   I am so thankful for the support and I look forward to supporting others in their own journey. 

“It doesn’t matter how long we may have been stuck in a sense of our limitations. If we go into a darkened room and turn on the light, it doesn’t matter if the room has been dark for a day, a week, or ten thousand years – we turn on the light and it is illuminated. Once we control our capacity for love and happiness, the light has been turned on.”  Sharon Salzberg

Look Ahead, Never Behind.

Published on by Christine5 Comments

Always look ahead.  Move forward.  Take the steps necessary to move onward.

If the past holds hurt and pain for you, let it go.  It does not bring good into your life.  You are not defined by your past.  You define your future.

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Start FRESH.  Today is a new day full of possibilities and hope.

I’ve had some horrible things happen in my past.  I held onto it like a badge of honour, but it brought pain and darkness into my life.  I needed to let it go.  Forgiveness doesn’t mean you forget.  It means finding the freedom to say that the past can’t hurt you anymore.  It means giving yourself permission to release the anger and the pain.  Let it go.   Celebrate the freedom in that.

When you release the pain, you will move forward.  You can’t help it. 

Look at all the beauty around you!  It’s everywhere.  Find JOY in the little things…like the hot sun after a long winter, the beauty and life brought on after a May rain, the tender hugs my kids give me even after I yell at them to clean their room. 

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Life is a gift.  Life is good.  Count your blessings and forget the pain of yesterday.

I can’t say this enough, but you have the power to be exactly who you want to be.  The power to be that person falls in your lap and it’s up to you to make it happen.  It’s all you baby 🙂

 

I can’t embed this video, but you MUST click the link below and listen to this song!  I chose this song “Video” by India Arie  to play when I received my goal weight key-chain.  I love it and the message is so powerful: 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHXEE7Pi6iQ&feature=related

Depression vs. Healthy You

Published on by Christine4 Comments

One of the main reasons I exercise and stay in control of my eating is in the mighty fight against depression.  I do realize that there are varying degrees of depression and that not all depression can be fought with a work out or a healthy meal plan…but it works for me.

I have a lot to be grateful for and thankful for in my life, but I fight with depression (which really has nothing to do with not realizing that I have a lot to be thankful for) 

It’s a darkness that at times sneaks in and envelopes me like a heavy blanket.  Sometimes I don’t even know I’m in a funk until I realize I don’t want to see anyone or talk to anyone.  It’s more than a feeling; it’s a state of being and it’s hard to explain.

You know when you hear a song that is connected with a memory and as soon as you hear that song you are taken back to that time, feelings and all?  It’s sort of the same way with depression, I hear the word depression and I can for a split second feel the darkness, the loneliness, the confused state as to why I feel that way.   I’m not going to lie: it’s hard to share this openly because there is also a lot of shame attached with depression.

When I feel it coming on, it’s all I can do to wait for my husband to get home so I can go for a jog by myself.  It’s not that I enjoy running all that much, but I LOVE how it makes me feel during and after.  I feel strong, in control, capable, proud, full of life…Yes, it’s uncomfortable; but in a good way. In a way that lets me know I’m alive.

In much of the same way, eating a healthy meal plan and staying in control and away from bingeing on the wrong foods also keeps depression at bay.  It’s a great feeling to know you are feeding your body what it needs.  Food is fuel and whatever you put in, that’s what you get out.  Put in good foods that are full of vitamins and nutrients, and you feel full of energy and life.  Put in crap, well…you feel like crap! It may be hard, or seem not all that fun to eat that way at first, but your body adapts quickly!  Before you know it, if you even try and go back to eating foods high in fat, they will most likely make you ill. 

If you tend to binge on foods to deal with depression, it’s important to change the way you view food.  More often than not, after you binge on your comfort food, you feel worse than before.  It’s a horrible feeling, and there is no way to lift yourself up if you continue to beat yourself down. 

If you deal with depression, to any degree, I encourage you to fight it by celebrating and taking care of YOU in a different way.  Life is a miracle and it’s a gift. 

Sorry if this tune is a bit on the “after school special” side, but hey…this song speaks so many truths about how precious life is and it’s a great reminder that life is gift and full of miracles.

Have a great active day!

Christine