Why - why do I really want ____________? You fill in the blank.

A friend shared this cute video with me.  When this little guy lands on all four feet it reminds me of how graceful I am when I go to the gym and exercise.  Well, graceful may not be the correct word.  I actually look about as awkward as this dog.  But I love  the sense of accomplishment when I am done and I also love how strong and energetic I feel for the rest of the day!  So I continue to go to the gym and I am happy about it.

In a lesson at church a few weeks ago we talked about the difficulty we have have changing the way we do things even if we know that what we are currently doing may not be the best for us.  I was joking about counting weight watcher points and reaching my total for the day by eating breakfast.  One of the women later said if you want to be somewhere you have never been before, you have to try things that you have never done before.  And then she said "ask yourself WHY - why do you really want to have this outcome?"

So I went home and pondered on this.  I don't care so much about losing weight - it is honestly more about my health.  I am now in the winter (I think) of my earth life.  I sincerely want to be healthy and feel strong and energetic like I do after a good workout.

I decided to stop counting points (not that I had ever done so successfully so why did I keep doing it?) and I decided to make one change in my eating.  I will be aware of how many fruits and vegetables I eat each day.  No more pretending that a baked potato with butter, cheese and bacon bits counts as a vegetable.  It has been really hard.  The first day I ate a salad with lots of bacon bits, cheese, and dressing as well as an apple with the Jif chocolate silk (remarkable chocolate and peanut butter mixture). The next day I got up and asked myself why I had done this?  But a small part of me was proud that I had made the effort.  So I ate a can of green beans (love them - low sodium), a salad with a little bacon, cheese and dressing, and an apple with just a little bit of the chocolate silk.  I felt strong and energetic.  

Sometimes it takes a leap of faith to honestly answer the WHY question. Why do I want to have better eating habits:  honestly, to be strong, healthy and energetic.

Of course there are other reasons I want to watch my eating and go to the gym.  I'm going to list a few and give myself permission to have these feelings:

1.  I like how I look in my yoga pants and I wear them every time I go to the gym.
2.  I like the feeling of self control that comes when I get out the green beans or lettuce or apple.  Instead of "beating myself up" because I ate the chocolate silk with the apple I remind myself that I ate the apple, too , and I know I would not have eaten the apple without the chocolate silk.
3.  I like seeing people at the gym who are younger than I who have as much or more trouble than me completing their workout.
4.  I like being able to say "I go to the gym."
5.  I like  not worrying about what anyone thinks of me while I am at the gym. I'm pretty sure they hardly notice me and I barely notice anyone else.  I love the anonymity that is there.
6.  I like being able to say "I just ate green beans and I love them" and then eating a cookie to make it feel like a real meal.
7.  I like glancing up to see someone watching me work out and think (probably a false assumption) that they are impressed by how hard I am working!
8.  Basically, I like being able to answer the question that prompted this blog:  Why do I really want to go to the gym and eat healthy food?  So that I can be strong, energetic and healthy.


Oh, and in case you didn't know:  IALAC.  Look it up or ask a young woman going to camp this year.  It's our theme and it is true - I AM LOVABLE AND CAPABLE AND SO ARE YOU!

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