Tuesday, September 8, 2015

It's A New Day...







It's been seven months since I've posted here. Seven months where LIFE beat down on me and kept me busy and gave me excuses to ignore the pink elephant trumpeting in the room. For fifteen years I have been passionately pursuing the chance to receive my Master Fifth Degree Black Belt rank in TaeKwonDo but for the past two years or so I have sorely neglected my training. This shows in the numbers on the scales and my inability to participate in testing for the ultimate rank at my school.

To be completely honest, I am ashamed of what I have become. Saddened I have allowed ANYTHING...EVERYTHING...get in the way of reaching my martial arts goals. So easy to blame the fourteen hour days of summer camp or commitments of my new writing career or even the requests of friends and family that can eat away at my free time. But I started this particular blog to try and keep it real...to be completely honest with myself...and the ONLY REASON I am overweight is because I have allowed it to be so.

I'm returning to this blog after a soul-searching hiatus where I have worked hard to prepare myself for the long road ahead. There are unique as well as common medical issues I deal with but I refuse to allow them to get in the way. I have limited financial means to buy the healthiest of meal items but refuse to allow that to stop me from doing what I can. I even have a bum leg that is a constant reminder of the person I can no longer be but I REFUSE to allow it to be the reason I won't reach my goal of becoming the new and improved me!

To that end, and to keep myself accountable, I will randomly post updates to my journey as well as share various things I learn along the way which have been helpful to me. I know I'm not alone in my struggles with my weight. But it is my nature to self-sabotage...as if I am not worthy of a healthier lifestyle and THAT is the monkey on my back I will endeavor to shake off. 

Am I alone in feeling this way? I don't think so. I think there are many others like me in the world....wanting so badly to step out of the shadows and into the light of self-appreciation. Maybe some will follow my journey. Maybe some will join me in the battle. I hope so...then we can all be WARRIORS together and reach our individual goals together!

Here are four things I've put into place to help me move forward with my plan to claw my way back to a healthier me:

1. Joined a gym...it's only $10 a month and by cutting out junk food I will be able to afford to do this. I started today and will see how sore I am in the morning...;~)

2. Loaded the Hungry Girl Diet app on my iPhone...this free app gives me easy access to healthier meal choices and I can always go to their website at www.hungrygirl.com for even more cool recipes.

3. Loaded the My Fitness Pal app on my iPhone...this free app allows me to track things like what I eat, how much exercise I get, and the water I drink. It also gives me encouraging information like how much overall weight I will lose in a certain time frame if I stay on track.

4. Going back to training one on one with my martial arts instructor two times a week beginning next week. The combination of these changes will hopefully allow me to test for my Master rank by this time next year.

Have YOU  been wanting to make changes in YOUR life? Are YOU wanting to get back to a healthier weight? You don't have to struggle alone. Let's reach that goal together!! Let me know in the comments one change you can implement in your life right now to put you on that path to a better you...
 

2 comments:

  1. Thank you for being honest and in the open about your journey!

    I, too, have recently begun a journey to better health and improved fitness.

    I make mistakes. I make less-than-ideal choices sometimes. But it's a process and not an all-or-nothing deal. One day at a time, one moment at a time. That's how it's done.

    All the best to you in your journey. God bless!

    Beth

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    1. Hi Beth and welcome to my blog! I severely injured my leg 6 years ago right before testing for 4th Degree Black Belt. It set me back 2 additional years while I struggled to heal and regain some ground in my training. I allowed my feelings about certain health issues and LIFE in general to lead me to MANY wrong choices and here I am...six years later and weighting more than I ever have in my life! But...I have made a vow to myself to correct my past mistakes and step out into the future a healthier me. If it's in the stars for me to achieve my Master Fifth Degree Rank next year then so be it...if not, at least I have tried! I will try to post regularly on this blog...at least once a week for now...while juggling running my martial arts school, a career as a children's book author (www.donnalmartin.com) and making time for my new exercise plan. I can't say I'm not staying busy...lol...

      Good luck with your own journey and I'd love to hear from you again. Thanks for stopping by and come back any time!

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