DO-IT Consistency

con·sis·ten·cy (kn-sstn-s)

n. pl. con·sis·ten·cies

1. Agreement or logical coherence among things or parts; correspondence among related aspects; compatibility.

2. Reliability or uniformity of successive results or events.

3. Degree of density, firmness or viscosity.

One of Mir's DO-ITs for this challenge is Consistency. Why is consistency so important in any challenge you take on? Because it works.

Check out the definition above. Consistency means agreement among parts/compatibility, reliability and firmness. When we're talking about weight loss and finding your healthy self, consistency is your power tool.

Compatibility - Are you compatible with yourself? I mean, Can you get your head, your heart and your body all going in the same direction at the same time? Yes, it's a challenge for most of us on any given day, but it can be done. Your body wants to be healthy and strong - that's how it was formed. Your mind is an amazing motivator. Encourage yourself! Look in the mirror and say "Hot Dang, Girlfriend! You're BEAUTIFUL!!"

(Aside...your mind can also an incredible destroyer. Stop bashing yourself! Go read this.)

Reliability - Are you being reliable? I'm not talking about having the exact same loss posted every week and eating exactly 1200 calories per day with a precisely measured 100 oz. cup of water. I mean the kind of reliable that you build by developing habits that will ensure your own weight loss success. Can you rely on yourself to make the right food choice, to drink [water] like there's no tomorrow, to move your body, to love yourself enough to fight for your life?

Firmness - Firmness. Not your mattress, your head. Mental Tough. Tough enough to say no to garbage food, tough enough to exercise when you don't want to. Tough enough to walk away from a donut. I wasn't simply being flippant when I typed "...love yourself enough to fight for your life;" this is seriously a fight for your life. Don't buy it? What is obesity doing for you? Nothing but destroying your pancreas and making you insulin resistant. Nothing but putting excessive pressure on your heart and lungs. Nothing but sucking the life right out of you. It's killing you slowly. Me? I'm not ready to die.

It's time to FIGHT, my friends! Time to put on the armor of Consistency, get out there and fight for our health. It's time to make an plan and track what you eat. It's time to get off your behind and move, Move, MOVE!! Get that heart pumping, sweat until your panties are dripping and build up some strength.

You’ve got to get stronger because this is a long, uphill climb, and it will take its toll on you, both mentally and physically. You’ve got to get stronger because time is not on your side, and Life will jump up and throw hurdle after hurdle after hurdle in your path. You’ve got to get stronger because me and everyone else that follows your story aren’t going to be satisfied until you reach your goals. ~ Jack Sh*t

(Ahem. I'm sort of liking the Xena Viking Warrior look. Do you think it's available in red?)

Be a Warrior. Keep the Faith.

DON'T DO-IT Self Bashing

Self Bashing = using negative terms to refer to yourself, your behavior, or your actions

I think this little ditty is needed more this week than an essay extoling the virtues of exercise. Note – there are some religious references here, because this is from my heart, and my faith is so ingrained into my being that I can't deny it.

I checked in on everyone this week, and I lost count of the number of times I read ‘fail’, ‘I’m Bad’, or some other version of self bashing. Let’s get this straightened out.

STOP IT.

RIGHT THIS INSTANT!!

First, the greatest cheerleader in your life is you. Not your Mom, not your BFF, not your husband or boyfriend, not Mir, not me. It’s all you, Sweetie. You live with yourself twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. You know yourself better than anyone else on the face of this planet. You cannot go through your days slapping destructive, negative labels on your forehead every time you miss a workout session or eat something fattening. They'll get tangled in your hair and leave sticky goo on your face.

Would you berate a little kid for eating a poptart, shaking your finger in his face and calling him a failure? Would you tell your Mom “You’re a bad person” if for some reason or another she didn’t run a mile yesterday? Would you scream at your Boss for eating a donut? No, of course not.

Then why the heck do you treat yourself that way?

You are a sentient creature, perfect in your creation, and you have a free will. This means that you are good, beautiful and complete simply because you exist. Because you breathe, walk, talk and think, you are the most amazing being in God’s creation. You are not a failure because you ate x-number of calories yesterday. You are not bad because you put something sweet in your mouth. You used your free will to make a poor choice, but you are not bad. You are NOT a failure.

What would you say to a child who has made a mistake? You’d forgive them, help them clean up the mess and then get on with the day. That is exactly how you should treat yourself. Pick yourself up, clean up the mess and move on. If you need help getting up, then ask someone. If you need help with the mess, ask someone. Poor choices are part of the weight loss game. They’re going to happen. Learn from them.

“Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want.”

I know I’ve said this many times on my own blog – the physical part of losing weight is actually quite simple and very easy to do – eat less, move more, repeat. The mental part is a bazillion times more complicated. It starts with loving yourself, deciding to care for the body God made, making it healthy and strong. It continues with loving yourself, developing good eating habits and exercising. It ends with loving yourself and reaching out to others to share that love.

Love God above all else – love your neighbor as yourself. As Yourself. YOURSELF.

Love Yourself. Keep the Faith.