The Best Motivation!

Dear Sheryl,

I love you!!  I think you are amazing!  Out of all the blogs I read, I always, always come back to yours as my number 1 go-to site for inspiration.

I love how you know what it's like to be overweight and that you get how hard this whole journey can be.  You completely understand what it takes to achieve your goals and the set backs you have to overcome to get there.

You have taught me so much and I am forever grateful to you.  You really have made an impact in my life, more than you will ever know.  Thank you xxx

Staying motivated has always been difficult for me due mostly to the self-doubt I have for myself.  It is something that I am slowly conquering and with the help of my favourite blogs it is starting to get easier for me.

Today while reading one of my most treasured blogs I came across a gold mine of motivation.  First there was the 10k Down and Dirty Mud Run in the Bronx then the NYC Tunnel to Towers 5k 2011 and then a post on motivation - what more could a girl ask for!

"I remind myself why I want this. You have to figure out why you want it. That's your motivation"

"I was motivated by the progress I made at the gym, or when I saw I could try something new, not be great at it, and do it anyway, the best way I could. I was motivated by how much better I felt - I breathed better, walked better, felt better when I moved or sat or crossed my legs. I was motivated when I realized oh my goodness - I really am enjoying my life now! How awesome is this and why didn't I do this sooner?!"

"Here's the tricky part: You just have to keep your motivations in mind when you're making decisions every day"

It really is an awesome post and one that I will refer back to often.  As always Sheryl has come to my rescue.  It's as though she knows what to write about just as I need it the most.  My motivation has seriously been lacking over the past 5-6 weeks, but now, it's back.  Thank you so much Sheryl, you are my hero!

Back in May, Sheryl did something amazing - she ran the Brooklyn Half Marathon! This is such an achievement that words really can't describe it, congratulations Sheryl, you are a champion.

The thing that makes me laugh about this post is what Sheryl did just after she had finished her run -

"After crossing the finish line, I didn't cry, surprisingly. I just pulled over to stop all my devices & tweet my status."

I would have been a mess and I think I would have broken down in tears and embarrassed myself in front of everyone, but what does Sheryl do, she tweets!  This really made me laugh.

After the post-race celebrations, Sheryl went home to sleep - as if - she went bike riding! -

"By the time I got home, I had biked nearly 20 miles total. To tell you the truth, I had a hard time forcing myself to go home and put my bike away because it was still nice out, I was in a great mood and I really wanted to bike more."

I can not express how much I admire Ms Bitch Cakes, she is a true legend in my book. Sheryl is a brilliant role model for anyone.  Not just for someone wanting to lose weight, but for anyone who needs to learn how to believe in their own abilities.  Sheryl is living proof that dreams do come true.

Why is something as easy as writing down a list so difficult? Tracking what I eat is the hardest part of weight loss for me and I don't know why, but thanks to the fabulous Ms Bitch Cakes and her post on tracking I think I understand myself a little better now.

Here are some parts of Sheryl's post that really made me look at myself and admit to myself the reason why I am so bad at tracking. It is good to know that I am not the only one who really struggles with this part of the journey.

"When I'm not tracking, I'm really not taking care of myself. I'm not putting myself first. I'm not making my health a priority. And I'm not being good to myself......Not tracking for me means not monitoring my behaviors and not facing and being accountable for my choices."

".....I'll be off to a great start, having tracked my breakfast, snacks and lunch but then do something crazy like eat 22 PointsPlus worth of what I call "vegan junk food".... not track them and then get home and not track dinner. Or whatever else I eat from that point forward."

THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I DO!!! - Oh my goodness, I absolutely love this woman. I love her experience with weight loss and I love her courage to admit to herself (and followers) how she is feeling and what she is going through. Most of all though, I love that Sheryl is willing to share her blog and insight with anyone who chooses to listen, well read, like me and I love how I always learn something from it that will help me succeed on my journey.

More from BC,

"How is *not* tracking helping me? It's simply not. It's just keeping me in denial and often subtly encouraging me to do it again. And that's where one not-so-great choice can lead to another and another and another until actual weight gain occurs."

"........Writing down everything I choose to ingest. They're my choices, the least I can do is be accountable for them in eTools."

Bitch Cakes recently ran in her 4th qualifier for her 2012 NYC Marathon. It was the Colon Cancer challenge 4 mile Run in Central Park.

I just love the positive nature of BC's blog. She always tries to keep it as positive as possible, (even if her run/day wasn't as good as she had planned), which is something I am endeavouring to do as well. I know we all have bad days and I know that sometimes it shows on our blogs, but I just love the optimistic tone of Bitch Cakes' blogs and posts.

At the end of her post Sheryl wrote a list of lessons she had learned from this particular run. The title of the list in itself is great - "Lessons learned from this run? (Remember, it's FEEDBACK, not failure!)" This is something I have to remember more - feedback NOT failure! It is something I can really relate to - I need to be kinder to myself and import some more positive feedback into my life.

Out of the 8 points on the list, the last one just really resembles Bitch Cakes affirmative and encouraging behaviours - I love it!

• "And yes, keep the promise to myself that I will never, ever give up. Just keep going. No matter how long it takes or what obstacles I encounter!"

These are the sort of promises I need to make with myself and KEEP them. Thanks again Sheryl. Even though we have never met in person and probably never will, I just want to thank you sooooo much for sharing your amazing life with me (and everyone else). I really do feel privileged to be able to read along and follow your successes.

BC wrote this about what inspires and motivates her to continue on her journey!

"......I think the most important things to remember are:

1. This is for life. Your life. Literally. Not just this meal/this week/today - but forever. You have to eat and move till your dying day - why not choose more healthfully so you will feel better, be healthier and look better?"

I have chosen this quote because the "feminine figure" that BC has been rewarded with is exactly what I want and her "healthy decisions" will keep reminding me what I have to do to get it!

"I currently look better than I ever thought possible and it's mostly due to making as many good healthy decisions as possible - eating good and real food, moving my body, challenging myself, making myself and my health a priority, telling myself I will never give up - and I've been rewarded with a fantastic, healthy, gorgeous, feminine figure........I know some of it is luck (genetics) but the rest of it is all my choices, all my hard work over the years that added up resulting in the woman I am today. That's such a fantastic feeling, and a priceless gift I've given myself - not only being healthy, but finally being able to love and appreciate my body."

BC wrote this on a post about her recovery from a 4 day binge!

Today I did what I always tell you guys to do: Forgave myself, learned from it and moved on. I say that all the time and I want you all to realize that I honestly believe in it. I believe in what I tell you. I don't just write these things, I actually live them and they are what keep me going! They are how I am still here, why I am still a success and what I will use to keep me from ever getting back to 208 pounds.

It's like I try to remind you often: It doesn't matter how many times you fall down. You WILL fall down. Sometimes for a longer period, sometimes harder and further, and sometimes worse than others. All that matters is that you get back up. As quickly as possibly. Continue the journey. You may be a step or two back from where you were but how many steps back are you going to be if you don't get up at all?

I pulled this quote from BC's Empire State Building stair climb post.

"........when you're in the stairwell, you don't see the whole thing. You only see what's directly in front of you. And at that point, you're just putting one foot in front of another. You won't see the enormity of what you're doing as you're doing it. You just do it. You Just. Keep. Going. I think this is a great analogy for the entire weight loss journey, or anything you want to do in life. Yes, you have the end goal in mind (in this case, the observation deck/finish line, but this could also be your goal weight or any other goal you have), but you don't let yourself get freaked out about that, or scared at how far away that end goal might be. You just tell yourself you're going to do what you need to do right now and take it (literally, in this case) one step at a time. And whether you're climbing 85 flights of stairs, running 26.2 miles or losing 100 pounds, you'll get there - when you get there. It takes as long as it takes. Just never, ever give up."

BC wrote this the day after making her goal weight at WW.

"..after decades of losing and gaining weight and giving up on myself repeatedly, I reached my goal weight at Weight Watchers. It's something that for a very long time I didn't even believe I was capable of. But somewhere into my journey I realized this time was different. This time I actually changed my life - from the way I think about food, to why I eat, to the foods I eat and most significantly my new found love of activity!"

"......I try to stress to not worry how long it takes you to "lose weight" or get to a goal number on the scale. That's not the big picture. In fact, that number so many people get obsessed with is actually a very tiny part of it. The big picture is the journey - making the changes, learning about yourself, doing things you've never done, experiencing things you never have, becoming a person you never thought you'd be - and yes, celebrating the new you and your success all the time."

"..... whenever you make a *better* choice than you would have previously - that's a success. Any progress, no matter how small you may think it is, is a success."

"..... Even if it's a 'small' victory, or one good decision, that's a success and it's important to acknowledge that. And you have to realize it's all those small victories, all those tiny decisions that add up and bring you to the big milestones."

"I will track it before I start eating it. For one thing, I am being accountable by tracking. For another it will give me a moment to reflect on why I am eating that thing at that time."

“I do not allow myself to feel guilty for any of my decisions……I keep things in perspective - I know that feeling guilty about eating something or about any of my decisions is not going to help me in any way. Instead, I need to accept what I did, learn from it and move on. The sooner the better. Guilt is not going to help me. It will make me feel worse and can keep me in that downward spiral, punishing myself for one bad decision with another bad decision. It's totally unproductive, so I simply don't do it. I forgive myself, accept that I will not be 'perfect' and I move on. That's it. It's really that simple.”

"When I started eating more naturally I saw that it was *worth it* to me to 'spend' 2 points on a banana instead of 1 point on a VitaTop - because the banana satisfied me more, was real food, and didn't make me crave more processed food."

"…..it's important to be aware of when you are eating, why you're eating and what you're eating."

Bitch Cakes on binge eating.....

"it's NORMAL. You can and will get to goal without being perfect. None of us are perfect. None of us should try to be perfect because it's unrealistic and you'll be disappointed and likely 'quit' when you get frustrated about not being perfect. Persistence, remember? Not perfection"

"I never 'starve' myself to punish myself for overindulging/binging or make up for extra calories consumed. My body still needs protein and nutrients. Especially since I probably just consumed a lot of empty calories. I make sure to give it a real meal."

"I am reminding myself how truly physically awful I have felt the last few days while my eating has been out of control…… I feel sluggish and my clothes are already noticeably tighter. I do not like this feeling. I do not want this feeling and I do not want it to continue. I also remind myself that no taste and no food is worth all the physical and mental repercussions of those calories."

"I tell myself that I didn't come this far to slide back into my old habits long term. I didn't do all this work and achieve everything I did just to turn around and gain weight back. I'm fine with normal daily fluctuations at the scale, but putting actual weight back on is just not an option for me."

"food is not going to solve my problems at work or love me. It's only going to compound the problems with new problems."

"Remember that every single choice you are presented with after a not-so-great choice is a chance to move forward, a chance to choose better, a chance to just get back up and start over. You don't need to wait for the next week, the next day, or even the next meal - every choice counts. And every choice is a chance to choose differently and better. Every choice counts"

"It's not all about that 'number on the scale'. It's about the JOURNEY. It's about learning what you need to learn and it's about changing your life"

"I just focused on doing what I needed to do: make healthier choices, tracking my food, taking my vitamins, planning, moving my body a little - basically staying on program as well as possible"