I’m tired. I’m having trouble sleeping. I’m kinda emotional. There are two perspectives here:
I’ve got too much on my plate to prioritize working out & eating well.
I’ve got so much on my plate I absolutely must prioritize working out & eating well.
I can convince myself that all that is on my plate is a burden or I can know in my heart that everything on my plate is a blessing.
If you’d rather listen to this blog than read it, please click here.
Yup, life is full right now. There’s a lot to be done and many challenges.
It’s Fat Loss Fast Track launch week which is always crazy.
ASCEND is in 6 weeks.
I’m building a tiny house & don’t know where I’m going to put it.
I’m running a business.
I’m in the process of harvesting my eggs to freeze, so I’m taking an ever-increasing amount of hormones orally and, as of this weekend, via multiple daily injections.
Needless to say: I am tired and emotional but these aren’t burdens. They are blessings. I refuse to turn my blessings into burdens.
Through my choices and attitude I can either be the victim or the victor.
I can create a story about how hard life is, how stressed & tired I am, how much more challenging these obstacles are when I’m trying to build a house and am injecting myself with hormones.
Or, I can create a story about how blessed I am to have a thriving business and people to help. I can create a story where I am getting a chance to practice what I preach – to be a victor creating strength through choice instead of a victim of my circumstances.
This is a chance to refuse to turn my blessings into burdens.
A busy business is a blessing, not a burden.
Opportunities to help people are blessings, not burdens.
Freezing my eggs is a blessing, not a burden.
Situations that allow me to face my fears are blessings, not burdens.
Building a new home is a blessing, not a burden.
Taking excellent care of myself is a blessing, not a burden.
Making great food choices makes things easier because I have more energy and my mood is more stable.
Regardless of the perspective you choose, this is when it matters most that I take excellent care of myself – when it feels hard and would be easy to make excuses or exceptions.
This is also when, in the past, I’d have justified eating what I want, when I want, as much as I want and skipping workouts because it was just “too much”.
No no. When life is crazy and challenging is when it matters most.
Through my choices, hundreds of times a day, I can make this challenging season easier or harder.
Making not-so-great food choices makes things harder because I’m tired, cranky and frustrated.
Working out makes me feel more clear-headed & in control.
I had a doctor appointment at 7am today. I felt rushed with my work because I had to be out of the house by 6am. As I sat in the waiting room, I made a list. I wrote in my notebook:
What choices can I make today to make the day easier? What choices can I make today to make me feel more positive & in control?
Work out. Eat clean. Don’t prioritize work that doesn’t need to get done today. Do what must be done for work. Rest. Ask for help. Do something fun. Listen to great music.
This is when it matters most.
…
Because of my early doctor appointment, I had to workout a little later in the morning than normal but the energy in the class was amazing. The workout was pretty great, too. Hard as hell but great.
First, we worked up to a heavy single power clean. I didn’t go to my max because I had just given blood, but I still pushed myself for a good, hard, heavy lift.
Then we had a killer WOD.
“Pull Over”
For Time:
21 Lateral Barbell Burpees
21 Power Cleans
21 Lateral Barbell Burpees
I came out a bit too hot on the first set of burpees over the bar and slowed down a fair amount on the 2nd set of 21 but I kept moving and maintained a steady pace. I feel good about it.
On the food front:
After my doctor appointment I got a large coffee with a splash of heavy cream. I usually drink my coffee black but since I hadn’t eaten & was heading to the gym, I wanted a little something on my stomach for the later-than-normal workout.
I’m giving myself a working weekend away so I stopped to take myself out to lunch after my workout. I got a burger, no bun, with bacon & avocado. So delish and an indulgence that is completely aligned with my goals.
I made sure to drink a lot of water throughout the day since giving blood can make me feel crappy if I’m not well hydrated.
Dinner was a beautiful piece of white fish and a side salad.
I hope you have a fantastic weekend & choose to stay really focused on what you can do to take impeccable care of yourself!
It’s been a while since I’ve done a “get to know you” podcast or blog so today I thought I’d share a few random things about myself in addition to my daily workout & food choices. I’d love to get to know you, too! How about you comment on this post with 1 random fact about yourself?
I love to sing. I grew up singing at church, in plays & at weddings/funerals. I even went to Africa to sing a year or two after college. My mom thinks that is “my calling”.
I’m obsessed with flossing my teeth. I think it feels so good! I carry floss in my purse & car at all times.
I hate driving. I’m not a very good passenger, either.
I have a thing for feathers & anchors. I think they’re both themes in my life. Strong with purpose, light at heart!
I’m a minimalist. I hate junk & clutter. I’m in the process of building a tiny home because I’m all about having less to create more. My biggest priorities in my tiny home are the bathroom & bookshelves but I’m pretty excited about the copper farmhouse sink, too!
My favorite fruit is apple. My favorite vegetable is brussel sprouts. My favorite liquor is tequila.
If I feel comfortable with you, I’m naturally VERY silly and affectionate.
Today’s workout was much harder mentally than physically. First, I wasn’t in the mood to workout today. But, I don’t workout when I’m in the mood to. I workout to create the mood I want & care for my body. I do it independent of how I feel.
I was up late last night working. I was up early this morning working. Today’s workout was mostly running. I just wasn’t feeling it.
As I ran, I was feeling pretty negative. The negative thoughts were on overdrive this morning: I’m tired. This sucks. I hate running.
I know those thoughts only make it harder so I was determined to follow each negative thought with a positive one: I’m healthy. I’m capable. I’m here. I’m doing it. I’m disciplined.
I don’t believe that we have to “turn off” negative thoughts – I don’t even think that’s always possible. But we can always redirect them. That’s what I was practicing today.
This workout was more about the mental work than the physical work.
I powered through, I felt proud & I got it done.
“Playground”
1 Mile Run
21 Kettlebell Swings
21 Goblet Squats
800 Meter Run
15Kettlebell Swings
15 Goblet Squats
400 Meter Run
9 Kettlebell Swings
9 Goblet Squats
It’s a good day.
On the food front:
Before my workout I had the new ready to drink Bulletproof Coffee cold brew. I just wanted a little something before what I knew would be a tough workout.
A couple hours after the workout I had my cabbage salad bowl with half my normal amount of cabbage, a handful of walnuts, Primal Kitchen Chipotle Lime Mayo, bacon & eggs.
Around 4pm I had an early, large dinner of steak & eggs. It was so delish!
…
I’m excited for my latest order to come in from Thrive Market – I tried a bunch of new-to-me things including some super low carb noodles, so I’ll be sure to share all the details with you guys. I want to try some plays on spaghetti & meatballs with something lower carb than spaghetti squash.
If you haven’t tried it out yet, be sure to listen to this podcast where I talk about my 8 fat loss must haves & how I’m getting them for a serious discount through Thrive Market!
We focus way too much on strategy & willpower. However, it’s our thoughts that drive our choices. If you want to change your habits, you’ve got to change the way you think. Mindset is the untapped super power.
I recently hosted a live master class on motivation & mindset. If you’re struggling with consistency, self-discipline or motivation, you don’t want to miss it!
In October 2019, our relationship with Thrive Market changed. They decided to put their marketing dollars in avenues outside of podcasting but we still think they’re a good choice if you’re looking to save money on health & personal care products.
I got an email yesterday that I addressed in the Mindset & Motivation Master Class. When I read it, I was instantly struck by just how different the Fat Loss Fast Track is.
A book by Gretchen Ruben that discusses The 4 Tendencies, was really interesting. I took her accompanying quiz and realize that I’m an “Obliger“. Having read more about this, I believe it’s one reason why I have a hard time “just doing xyz” or feeling like I have zero motivation when it comes to ME. Obligers: meet outer expectations, but struggle to meet inner expectations. They’re motivated by external accountability; they wake up and think, “What must I do today?”
My point is that I bring 110% at work, at the gym, having due dates in college, etc. This perspective helps me understand my struggle with personal consistency when it comes to expectations I set for MYSELF.
In your FLFT, I really appreciated the basic expectations you put down for us. I’m wondering if (for Obligers like me) some sort of tangible accountability would help improve with consistency and motivation?
Here’s what this boils down to: you keep promises you make to yourself or you don’t. If you don’t, I want to help you change that, not just make you accountable to me. I want to help you solve the problem, not avoid it.
I don’t personally believe that someone is a certain way & that way can’t be changed. Maybe in the past you haven’t kept promises you’ve made to yourself but that isn’t who you are. It’s what you’ve done. It’s a past pattern of behavior. Not an identity. There’s a difference.
So, if I’m working with someone who breaks the promises they make to themselves, I’m not going to respond by saying, “okay, well, make a promise to me and see if that external accountability works better.”
No. I’m going to say, “We need to look at how you’re justifying breaking the promises you make to yourself. That’s where our work is.” That’s the change we need to tackle.
I am here to teach you to fish, not to give you a fish.
Because ultimately, for success in finances, fitness, career and just about every arena, we will do far better if we develop the ability to keep promises we make to ourselves. In fact, we should work towards valuing those promises more than we value the promises we make to others!
….
With the Fat Loss Fast Track launch kicking off last night, I didn’t workout this morning but instead went to a mid-day class. I needed to use the morning to catch up on some work stuff but that didn’t mean I couldn’t workout later.
I go to the gym around 12:15pm for a great strength workout.
Pausing Front Squat – Build to Heavy Single
Front Squat – Build to Heavy Single
It was a quick workout but I really love heavy barbell work and all forms of squatting, so I was a happy camper.
On the food front:
Since I didn’t workout at my normal AM time, my food routine was a little bit off. I had my cabbage salad bowl around 9am and worked straight through until my workout.
From the gym I went to visit my mom & grandmother. I wasn’t hungry after the workout so I stopped to get a coffee for the road.
There’s a new Whole Foods between my house and my grandma so I checked it out on the way home and got chicken thighs and some prosciutto wrapped basil & mozarrella. I snacked on those while getting ready for the final Motivation Master Class tonight! I hope to see you there!
