Starting Your Road to Fitness with One Thing

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." -Lao Tzu

"How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." - Unknown

"How fast can you change your state [of being]? *snap* How fast? *SNAP* --Tony Robbins

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” Schweitzer

The myths we tell ourselves:
I have come to find out that starting my fitness routine is easy for me. The more challenging thing is to stick with it. I will get excited about something for a few weeks, then the challenge will wear off or the results won't happen right away. This is not uncommon among mommies across the board. I have done the research it takes to have a fitness site. The saturation in the diet and fitness market is LOADED with quick weight loss pills, teas, 'supplements' and detoxes. Sure, it works for some people because of the placebo effect, but at the same time, it can be dangerous, and don't forget costly! I've done Alli, Jillian Michaels weight loss pills, bodybugg, and many other supplements out there. I am one of you. America is great at making money off of hope, and we can see that it works! Let's just try to work from ourselves: from within, shall we? (Besides, It's FREE on Mommies Who Love Fitness! I vow right now this will never be a pay-site.)

Wrap your Mind around Fitness for a moment:
What I propose for the members of this group is to get real. Get down to the brass tacks of why we haven't started yet. What is it? Lack of goals? Too lofty of a goal? Well, 'there's no such thing as too lofty a goal' you say. That may be true, and I applaud you for saying it! But have you considered that too high a goal (at first) can actually do the opposite for your motivation?

Many Mommies do it. We get excited about what our bods could look like and how we could feel, and then we count calories during the day, (then applaud ourselves for doing so) or don't eat altogether, then at the end of the evening, we wind up binging to make up for our lack of nutrients, perhaps gaining more weight than previously! How do you feel right now? Let's drop the guilt, shall we? Let's just start over.

Start with small goals. Make small changes. Your body will change gradually, and for good:
Along with putting an end to the hype and BS that comes with dieting and starvation and binging, I'd like to address the way *most* people set goals. We HAVE to talk about this as mommies, because our children are watching. They learn from us how to live their lives and become healthy people, no?

We have to set realistic goals, and goals that resonate. If we don't align our mind and heart with our goals, those goals won't mean much. I've discovered that if we don't feel gratitude along the way for what we do have or what we have accomplished... then we are shortchanging ourselves of the happiness we deserve!

One Thing:
What I propose for us is to create a challenge where we take One Thing. One thing we can change and commit ourselves to that is realistic and smart, measurable and tangible. Is it to weigh a certain amount before summer? Dig deeper. Is it to fit into a smaller size jeans? Dig deeper. Make sure that One Thing hits your pride: hits your ego: hits your heart. Make that One Thing you change about yourself be that you are a better mother to your kids because you are a great example and have enough energy to sustain yourself for a lifetime.

So let's explore: what One Thing will you change in your life and make you proud, daily, to say you've done so? Take this One Thing and commit to it, such as limiting your sugar, taking your kids on walks once a day, not sitting down after you get home from work, commute to work by bicycle, not eating past 7pm, cutting out pasta, drinking 8 glasses of water a day, waking up before everyone and doing some yoga/running...what is YOUR One Thing?

After you commit to yourself you'll do it, you will know what intrinsic worth is. Intrinsic worth is what fuels the fire of anything you encounter, and is the driving force of this group. One day it could be cutting your sugar. The next thing you know, your one thing could be walking a mile every day. Or running five miles. You get my point. Hit your pride. Climb that ladder. Make it grow. Walk tall, even if (especially if!) you're 300 lbs. Walk tall, and make that One Change. It will give you the loveliest of consequences: a long healthy life of a Strong Woman who made the right decision.

What is your One Thing?