Motivation

Thank you for all of your comments and support on my last post! They were very encouraging. Today I bought another walking-in-place workout DVD. I'm coming to realize that variety in my workout routine keeps me motivated. You would think, if you knew me in person, that it would be the opposite. Normally, I am a big advocate of having a routine. But I guess until exercising becomes a part of my routine, I need to keep things exciting and new. I suppose we all need a little unpredictability in our lives. The problem with exercising is I can't do anything too strenuous because of my bad back. Walking, however, is doctor approved and encouraged! So, these walking-in-place workouts are a great invention.

I have read up on motivation. Most experts say you should visualize what you want to achieve. For me, the perfect mental image for losing weight is imagining Mitch and I relaxing on a Caribbean cruise. Cruises, however relaxing they might seem to most people, have always been intimidating to me because of the casual attire. In the cruise commercials, all the women are in bathing suits or tank tops (and they are all thin, of course). Well, because of my weight and insecurities, I have a hard time wearing swimsuits in public. I know it sounds silly, and you are probably thinking, "Oh, just don't worry about that! No one cares what you look like in a swim suit." But for me, it is much, much more than that. You see, I am not just battling weight loss or how to control my eating habits; I am battling to win back my self confidence. To comfortably be able to walk around a cruise ship wearing a swimsuit means not only I lost weight, but that I gained back my self confidence.

So, in honor of this motivational exercise, Mitch and I have decided that we are going to set up a cruise fund. Every time I reach a goal of mine, we are going to put some money in our fund. And, when I have won the battles, Mitch and I will set sail with swimsuits and self confidence in tow!