Thank you Sparkpeople

I wonder if it gets any easier, ever? I bet many of you want to know the answer to that. I would love to tell everyone that it gets easier but alas it does not.

Does it ever just become natural? Some days exercising feels natural and normal and then other days it’s a fight. I win some and I lose some of those fights.

The truth is that weight loss and living healthy is like life... it’s hard. You are going to face roadblocks. You will stumble and you will fall. It’s how you get up and the choices you make that determine if this is a lifestyle or just a get slim quick plan.

The hardest part of my lifestyle has been to realize that I am never going to be perfect. I have days that appear to be perfect on paper but there are other days I could do more… The true test is getting through those tough days and building on that. The other hard part is to realize I have no control over anyone but myself. I can’t control the food brought into the office, my husband leaving me, him seeing our daughter, other people who eat junk and annoy me because they say that want to lose weight. I can’t do anything about that. All I can do is react and own the choices I make.

Those are tough lessons and they have to be relearned all the time. However, once I got that I was empowered. You only have yourself to control. How much less stress is that to know you don’t need to worry about anyone else. Yes, I know we have husbands, boyfriends, children and friends... But nothing you can do will change what they do. The only think you can worry about is the choice you will make in the moment. You are powerful because it’s your choice and yours alone.

I was reading comments to the blog I posted in September and it is overwhelming the amount of support and encouragement that strangers post to me. If I have learned anything else it’s that you never know what life will deal you but there will be people who learn from you and that you learn from. I only ever intended to use Spark to log calories and to log fitness, but I got so much more from this site than I can ever give back. I made friends and was given a voice to reach people and to have people reach me. I try to respond to everyone; but life happens and I lose track of time. So for anyone who has ever commented, sent me a goodie or an email, please know that every word written was read, appreciated and helped.

My favorite thing I have ever said is you can’t finish until you start. Every day is a start to something. Never quit on yourself because we all believe in you; you just have to give yourself the power to believe in yourself.




This is what happiness looks like