Change The Furniture Around

“Being stuck is a position few of us like. We want something new but cannot let go of the old  -old ideas, beliefs, habits, even thoughts. We are out of contact with our own genius. Sometimes we know we are stuck; sometimes we don’t. In both cases we have to DO something.

-Inga Teekens

Do you ever feel stuck? Do you ever feel like your life is like a train heading full speed down the tracks laid out for you- and the landscaping is boring?  You can’t go back and you can’t even stop, and you can’t even hope for more than a fork in the road. Maybe you are in a job that you never wanted or turned out much different than you expected. Maybe you’ve lived the whole marriage, kids, and empty nest just because it was expected of you. Maybe your marriage is empty.

You need an adventure. If you keep on this path, the boredom will cause you to snap and you will do something you’ll regret.

You might not be able to change your job and you certainly can’t change your husband and kids (you’ve probably tried), so it’s time to change your environment.  Change the furniture around, paint a room, hang up photographs, buy new curtains, organize your cabinets. You don’t need to move to a new place or spend lots of money (that’s just self-medicating), simply take ownership of your life and make it prettier, more interesting and functional. Learn to enjoy where you are. Let your home improvement project symbolize your life improvement.

You are not stuck on any tracks. You are right where God wants you to be. Now go find out WHY he wants you to be there.

Oh, What a Year......

    One thing that so many people fear is Change. As much as we all want to run from it, it always seems to catch up with us. Sitting down today to read and reflect over the last blog I wrote a year ago definitely brought me full circle with the impact of Change. Firstly, I was astonished that I let a whole year go by without writing a single blog. To be honest, this entire year was a whirlwind and I am finally beginning to catch my balance. When I graduated last July, I made a big commitment to myself. I had already fell madly in love with running (Re-reading my previous blogs definitely brought that to light again) But I made a commitment to take all of the extra time that I wouldn't be pouring into research papers, exams and assignments and focus it on my health and fitness. (Fully commit for one FULL year) 

 

    One month after I made the commitment to my health, I joined Energy Sports & Fitness. I already owned a treadmill at home and had made major progress in weight loss but joining Energy really helped me grow my fitness goals. I knew as soon as I walked in that it wouldn't be an easy journey but it was going to be a fulfilling journey. And that it has. One of the many favorite things I loved about Energy when I joined is that there is a room completely dedicated to Cardio and guess what...it is dark! Up until now, I had always ran alone and completely in my own zone, the last thing I wanted was to be bothered by anybody in a public gym. So for a solid 3 months, I ran in the dark cardio room. I loved it and I could still stay completely focused on going the distance. Although my dedication to running was impressive, I eventually hit a big plateau and found myself growing extremely discouraged. I knew that in order to progress, I was going to have to venture out of the cardio room and onto the equipment. At first, I had no structure what-so-ever. It was kind of comedic actually. I would start upper body, switch to lower, sometimes venture back to upper. I mean, whatever I felt like doing I did. Luckily, I got a little help and eventually was able to develop somewhat of a routine.
    One year later, I have to tell you....I am completely lost without the gym. My friends and family joke about me needing an intervention because I can not go a day without.  Honestly, I probably DO need an intervention and I recognize that BUT the craziest thing is....it is the 1 thing that has kept me grounded. Everything in life can feel completely chaotic when I walk in the gym, but I always walk out of there feeling renewed. I definitely do not run like I used to and reading over my old blogs has opened up my eyes to what I truly fell in love with, before I had a gym. I have realized that running was what started my journey and I will never abandon it again.

The most important thing I took away from my commitment to my health is: it is not a year long but a lifetime long commitment.

                                                   

Far From What I Once Was.

   Well, I can not believe nor want to accept that I am going to be 26 years old one week from today! Kind of crazy I think. But the one thing that makes getting older much more bearable is that I honestly feel better than I ever have. I consistently catch myself trying to refrain from posting about my workouts on Facebook and Twitter because I know that it gets old and people might think that it is an "attention ploy." But then again, I love working out, I love running and I love when my friends post positive updates! With all of the negativity swarming this election, a friends' workout summary is quite refreshing!

   I met a woman at the gym today that not only inspired me to work harder toward my fitness goals but reminded me that progress comes in a variety of different ways. You may not always see the number on the scale change every week or your pant size drop overnight but it is the ease in your run that wasn't always there and the extra push you give yourself that proves to you that all of the work is paying off. Knowing myself how hard it is to work at it every day, it was astonishing to meet someone today that lost 125lbs in less than a year.

 

    I never really realized until I got serious about my health that being healthy wasn't just something you did Monday-Thursday. Being healthy for me was going to mean giving up my french fries and tiramisu, Cheescake Factory and Outback, pancakes and waffles. (And not just for a month either) Does it suck? Well, it definitely did at first! Lindsey give up french fries? That is a cardinal sin. No, but really....It feels great to be able to go to Chick-Fil-A and order grilled nuggets and a fruit cup. That was never me but I am happy to report that this is the improved me.

  

   (Yep, this is very true. Of course you will eat that Hershey bar you bought from the store, just don't bring it home)

   I completed my very first "all running" 5k on 9/22/12 in 28:47 minutes. It felt amazing! Being able to participate in an event that will change the lives of others' was definitely a feeling that I want to feel many, many more times before my life is complete. I can not wait to improve my time and be able to work toward a longer race. I never thought I would say this but....I love to run!

 These past couple months have truly brought me so much closer to my fitness goals and once again I owe it all to inspiration. A lot of people keep me inspired and while I know that the motivation and inspiration truly has to come from within, we all need those people in our lives who keep us on track and moving forward.

   Here are some more things that helped keep me motivated:

In It For The Loooong Run!

      This week has been one extremely emotional week for me and there have been a thousand things I felt like giving up on, running being at the top of my list! But honestly, running is the one thing that has been keeping me grounded and I just won't give up on it.

      A week ago Jeremy and I were talking and I was telling him how excited I was that I got my mile to 10 minutes. I jokingly said, "wow I could do 6 miles in 60 minutes." Although I never expected it anytime soon, I did honestly hope that I could work up to it. His response kind of shocked me, Not gonna lie. He kind of chuckled and said, "yea riiiight." Jeremy has been one of my biggest cheerleaders so I knew that I had to prove him wrong. Monday I stepped on the treadmill and ran a steady 5 in 50. Although, I knew I only needed to do 10 more minutes I psyched myself out and gave up. I was def excited about my accomplishment though and texted him the pic. His response, "Told you, you couldn't do it. Nice try though!" 

     Holy madness! I was "raging" as my little brother calls it. Well, for every day following I stepped on that darn treadmill and failed. Tuesday I only made it 3.5, Wednesday 4, Thursday zero (Jason Aldean Concert), Friday 4, Saturday 4, and Sunday a whopping 2! Every failure honestly was more and more discouraging. It angered me that I could get so close and let myself fail.

 Well, guess what I did today?!?!

     I finally did it! Sometimes it really takes someone telling you that you can't do something for you to get out there and do it. I can't even explain how good it feels. Beyond amazing, that's for sure. 

     I have thought a lot about motivation this week, what motivates people? Emotions motivate me. I can run the best when I have a lot on my mind but more-so because I think about all of it and forget that I am running. My really good friend Jess is a huge inspiration to me too. She has lost over 40lbs in less than 4 months and looks amazing! She rocks and seeing her accomplishments truly helps me work harder to achieve mine. I think about her a lot when I run. Man, if you had seen us on a lunch break about a year ago you would never believe it was the two of us. (Now she has me turning down 5 layer Chocolate Cake.) Sometimes it really helps to surround yourself with people who are working toward the same goals. She has definitely gotten me back on track.

     So, no more rambling but I do just want to leave you with all the stuff that motivated me this week! :)

Yea, so as you can see...It took a lot to keep me motivated!

Run, Run, Run...

One day during the summer of 2011, I was driving in the car with my parents and two brothers Anthony & Alex. We were all coming back from dinner and Anthony made a proposal to all of us that we start a weight loss competition. I don't exactly remember how the proposal came about or the exact details of what he proposed but I vividly remember my response. "Absolutely not, I am not at a point in my life where I can handle that right now." 


That day changed my life.


I still feel like I am forever indebted to Anthony for his challenge. He not only made me, what seemed at the time to be a ridiculous proposal, but he immediately discredited my response. He told me there was not a better time to do this than now. And knowing how competitively natured I am, he even used reverse psychology and told me that there was no way I could win. Well, count me in! 


June 6th, 2011 we started the competition. August 26th, 2011 we finished the competition. Between the five of us that competed, we lost 120lbs. I didn't win the competition but I came in second behind Jeremy with a grand total of 35lbs in 3 months. 


But, I didn't just lose 35lbs. I discovered a new passion and love for running. If at any given point in my life, you ever asked me if I liked running, I would have most definitely laughed. I ran when I was a cheerleader but ONLY because it was required, I hated every second of it. 

Honestly, this was me! And I smile every time I see this because it really hits home. I can't imagine my life without running now. I still get really tired and I have days that it is the last thing I want to do but when I put on my running shoes and get passed my 2 minute warm up, it is game on! When I run, I know that I am running for me. It is the one thing I do religiously that I am not competing with anyone but myself on. If I quit, I am only quitting on myself. If I double the distance I originally planned to do, I am only doing it to show off to myself. 


Anthony saw something that I was just to stubborn to see. He saw his little sister giving up on herself. Today, I am not anywhere near the physical condition I hope to be at, but I can tell you that I finally feel like ME again! 


"I may not be there yet, but I am closer than I was yesterday!"