I started my weight loss journey on January 1st 2010, so that's 11 months 2 days since I started, when I first started this journey, I made short term, longer and final goals as I began to loose the weight I began to get "cocky" and think "Man, this is a piece of cake," then I started bumping up my goal times, thinking "hey I've already did this so I'll move the goal date" well by doing that I didn't realize it but I was setting myself up for failure in the long run.
First Example, I had lost 35 pounds by the very beginning of April and knew that I'd moved my goal to 45lbs by 5.16 my wedding anniversary, keeping the "piece of cake" mind frame, I got lazy, stopped exercising and whatnot and basically coasted thru April with only loosing 5 pounds. May 16th rolled around and I was about 8lbs from my "GOAL". I was crushed and very disappointed in myself that I didn't make my goal, well that spun me into a 2 month downfall and finally about July I let it go, Decided that at 6 months I'd make it day 1 again and off I went on the journey (still very determined to make another goal by October) Long story short October came and went and I didn't make the 75lbs gone that I had set out to accomplish, heck I barley had 50 and again was upset with myself..... Again frustrations set in...
Then I read an article on Sparkpeople Titled "Remember to reward yourself"
www.sparkpeople.com/resource/motivation_articles.asp?id=86 and started thinking about how I was approaching my journey. I had some how turned my getting healthy lifestyle into a gigantic race. I was racing so hard that I forgot which route I was on and ended up seriously lost. Worst part was I guess I couldn't (or wouldn't) allow myself to see how far I'd come and celebrate it, instead I was mad, angry, frustrated, totally annoyed that I wasn't where I wanted to be and well that just made me care even less about my accomplishments and totally had me focusing on my failures.
Well not anymore! My journey is not a race, it never was, I see that now, I see that every pounds I've shed is one pound closer to my goal and I celebrate every single pound gone (62 now).
From now on, I will not focus on dates, and when I'll be this size or that size, that's not important and I refuse to set myself up to be disappointed if I don't make it by then, so what if someone who started after me has lost more than me, I will not focus on that, because it's not important anymore, because I'm not racing!! What is important is that in 11 months I haven't given up, I haven't stopped, I'm determined and no matter how long it takes I will keep plugging away, no longer pushing to be such and such by this time but to be healthier each and every single day.
It was hard coming to terms with I'M NOT RACING, but I'm glad that after 11 months it's finally clicked inside of me that I'm doing this for myself, no matter how long it takes I wont give up or quit!!! I'm in this for the long haul. and today I celebrate all of my successes that I've accomplished in the 11 months..
Are you celebrating your successes too?? If not, I ask you to take a look at how far you've come on your journey even if its just 5 pounds you've lost. Celebrate them, be proud of what you're doing for you!!
HUGS!
Krystie
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