Finding My Exercise Motivation

So, I wrote this blog post on 09/04/13, but am just posting it now.  When I look back on it, I can't believe how much has changed in a mere 3.5 months!  Since then, I have actually found something that I love and have made some great lifestyle changes.  More about that later though.  Stay tuned...

This is actually going to be part #1 of a series about my post-baby journey back to health.  The reason that I say health is that I am trying to focus my attention on creating a fitness and diet routine that will not only allow me to look better, but more importantly, to allow me to be a healthier person for my daughter.  

So, let me be clear, this is not about a number on a scale.  This is about waking up every single day and feeling good about myself.

All of that being said, please read on and stay tuned!

From 09/04/13:

I want to lose a few pounds and firm up.  Who doesn't?  Every single day, I wake up, look in the mirror, and feel that same, familiar dissatisfaction with how I look.  Yet I refuse to change it.  How stupid it that?

Let's face it, losing weight is a choice.  It should be a very easy choice, right?  If you want it, go ahead and do it.  Yet it seems like I just keep coming up with excuse after excuse.  What makes it hard is that my excuses are actually valid, which keeps me from coming up with a solution.  I somehow just cannot get motivated to actually make the lasting changes.

I have thought a lot about it and have come to two realizations about exercise and lifestyle change.

1. You have to find something that you love.  If you don't love it, you won't stick with me.  Trust me on this one.  For some people it is running, while for others it is Zumba.  Some prefer the gym, while some prefer workout videos.  The bottom line is that if you don't like it, you won't continue it.

Prior to having the Moose, I worked out with a personal trainer twice a week and LOVED it.  Sadly that is no longer in the budget and I have yet to find something that I like as much.

For my husband, that thing was Crossfit.  He started going there 3 years ago and it really changed his life.  It not only helped him to get into amazing shape, but, more importantly, it helped change his entire attitude towards fitness.

Summer 2009.  Josh (pre-Crossfit) was the heaviest he has ever been.  I, 

on the other hand, looked pretty good, but thought that I really needed to lose weight.  

Ha!  If I only I knew then what I know now!

2. You have to have that "aha moment!" where you really, truly get fed up and make a commitment to changing.  Every single person I know who has been effective in making lifestyle changes can pinpoint the moment that they decided to make the change.

I have yet to get to that point.  I feel like if I woke up one day and my pants didn't fit, that would kick my into high gear because I refuse to buy new clothes.  If someone would call me fat, that would also kick start me.  Who knows though?  Maybe not.

My mom has been incredibly successful with weight loss, having lost over 70 pounds in the last year.  Amazing, right?!  Her "aha moment" was when she went to her cardiologist and he told her that if she continued to carry that extra weight she ran the risk of dropping dead at any time.  That kick started her into a low carb diet and exercise routine (treadmill and weight circuit at the gym) that she loves.

A friend of mine, who looked fabulous even before her weight loss/toning, had her "aha moment" when she was done with breastfeeding and realized that she needed to make her own body a priority after being pregnant for 9 months and nursing for another year.  She has found a workout routine and new diet that she likes and has been super successful.

Another friend of mine has also lost over 70 pounds (don't I have amazing people in my life?!) because she realized one day that she wasn't doing activities like swimming with her daughter because she didn't like how she looked.  From that point on, she has been Ms. Active and has already run 3 5Ks!

Summer 2013.  What a difference 4 years makes!  Josh now looks

great and I cringe looking at myself in bathing suit photos.  Ugh.

At least the little one is adorable in her stylish suit and bow.  :)

So, what do you guys think?  Do you agree that those are the two things needed for success?  Have you found what you love?