Keep Your Goals!

I’m sure we all have experienced this from time to time, where we will set a goal and then when it doesn’t seem we will reach it, we adjust our goal. After seeing this quote it made me think, that’s probably not the best way to approach it.


Because I’m at a point where the weight comes off very slow, I decided instead of having weight-loss goals I would have non-scale goals to keep me from being discouraged. I still weigh in every week for accountability, but I’m just not focusing on the scale. Something I’ve recently set as a goal is to get some more 5Ks in, and then do a 10K by May and a 15K by October. And after I have my next assessment I will set some other non-scale goals. But, now I’m thinking I should still have some type of weight-loss goal, because I do still need and want to lose weight; but just not focus only on the weight-loss. I want to be realistic with the weight-loss, so I’m going to set a goal to lose 8 pounds in six weeks. I just started a 21 day challenge with Fitness Together that I think will help me, not only reach my weight-loss goal, but even some of my non-scale goals.


When we set a goal, typically we also have set some type of plan. But, as life can be unpredictable, plans don’t always go as expected. We really need to focus on the goal, and that should never change. If we see our goal won’t be reached when or how we were expecting it to, instead of changing the goal we should re-evaluate our plan and adjust where needed to reach that goal.

WHAT A WORKOUT!!!!

photo courtesy of Michael Watkins - owner/operator
Fitness Together Downtown Tulsa
Fitness Together Jenks/Riverside

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been kind of struggling to pull my thoughts together on what I should write about. Last couple days were kind of rough emotional days, but as usual I got through them with all the support and kind words from various people. So, even though today I woke up feeling a little better, I just wasn't sure what to expect when I showed up at 5:30 AM for my private session with Michael. He mentioned he was just thinking last night I hadn't blogged about one of our workouts lately. I should have known he had a beast of a workout planned for me!

But, before I get to this morning's workout, I want to mention some other things. Last night I had an opportunity to have a what I call a therapeutic run with Michael. We both were able to get a good run in, and I was able to spill my guts while he listened. After being able to talk with him, and then his crazy workout this morning, I went into work feeling better about things that were bothering me. But, then a few other things happened that really just made my day. I got an email from a girl I work with letting me know that I've been such an inspiration for her, and she's been doing well but was starting to lose motivation. She wanted to know what I did to keep my motivation with this new lifestyle change. It really made my day, and then had two other people make comments that it looked like I was getting smaller. This really made my day because the scales haven't been going down very much lately, so this at least is telling me that even if the scale isn't doing much I'm obviously improving elsewhere.

So, after being able to get through a couple of days of an emotional roller coaster, a killer workout, and few reminders of how well I'm doing; it caused my mental block to crack and I have a couple blog topics I'll be working on this week. The first one I plan on working on is how I keep my motivation living a healthy lifestyle. Look for that post within the next couple days!

But, in the meantime, let me just tell you about Michael's killer workout this morning! Two sets of exercises, four exercises each set. I worked 30 seconds on and 15 seconds of rest for four rounds each set! And by the way, it involved suicide push-ups! Oh, and that's not all! You gotta have a beast of a finisher, right? So, Mr. Watkins decides to let me do a EMOTM (Every Minute On The Minute) of 30 yard sled sprints at 100 pounds for 10 minutes! And I would also like to thank Michael for thinking of everything I would need for my blog and snapping the picture above while I did the sled sprints! Like I said, WHAT A WORKOUT!!!!!

My Thanks To You

Sometimes when someone asks me what's wrong, or what is on my mind, I have a difficult time expressing my thoughts verbally. This is one of the reasons I started my blog, so I could easily express my feelings and thoughts to get me through those difficult times. But, then there are days like today when I can't even figure out why I'm feeling down, which makes it difficult to express myself even through writing and my blog. All day I've been trying to figure out what I could blog about because it's been several days since I've written anything. I kept thinking of all these topics I could touch on, but couldn't seem to pull the thoughts together to write about it. I tend to start getting frustrated with myself when I can't explain why I'm not feeling myself. But, today instead of letting it bother me, I started to think about all the people who have been there for me. So, I want to take a moment to say thank you to all my friends and family who are always there encouraging and supporting me through, not just my good times, but also my bad moments. And a big thank you to those who continue to support and encourage me by reading my blog. I truly appreciate each of you. And don't worry, this mental block won't last long, and I'll soon be expressing my thoughts and opinions! :)

My Drug

I frequently get asked how often I go to the fitness center. A typical week, I'm there six days a week, sometimes two to three times a day. That's when I will get the usual reply, "sounds like your addicted (or obsessed)". I was just talking to a few people recently at the fitness center about how to this day I still get the following questions/comments from people.

• Are you still working out with a personal trainer?
• How much longer do you plan on working with a trainer? Shouldn't you be able to eventually do this on your own?
• How much more weight are you going to lose?
• You're losing too much weight.
• You're obsessed/addicted to working out.

It used to really bother me, and even though it can still be somewhat annoying, I've learned to not let it upset me. The thing that would bother me the most is, the people making these comments typically don't understand what I've gone through. They don't know my current weight, body fat percentage, measurements, or how much further I really have to go. They don't realize this is a part of my life, not just a phase or something temporary.

Today a friend of mine posted on her Facebook page about how her whole body feels like it was hit by a truck. She stated, "For some reason I like being worked out until I feel like hell". The thing is, I totally get this feeling. When others who don't understand continually make comments as if we were addicted to some horrible drug, it can become slightly irritating. I know the majority of the people who say these things aren't trying to be annoying, but like I said, they just don't get why we love what others hate about working out. Now, I do feel there are a few who make these comments out of jealousy because they want to be able to get the results I've gotten; which if they really wanted to, they could. They just have to want it bad enough, be ready to change, and be willing to put in the effort and hard work.

Yes, I push myself to the limit and then push harder. Yes, during my session I'll yell out I hate this and I'll even tell my trainer I hate him; but then the next day love the feeling of the aches and pains because that means I pushed myself outside my comfort zone. I'm not looking to be skinny, but I'm working my ass off to be healthy. So, if anyone is curious of my replies to these common questions/comments above:

• Are you still working out with a personal trainer? Yes, I'm still working with a personal trainer.
• How much longer do you plan on working with a trainer? Shouldn't you be able to eventually do this on your own? I don't ever see me not having a personal trainer. It's called maintenance and accountability.
• How much more weight are you going to lose? I don't know. When I get there, I'll know because I'll have the guidance of my personal trainer.
• You're losing too much weight. How do you know if I'm losing too much weight? So far my personal trainer AND my doctor feel I'm moving forward just fine.
• You're obsessed/addicted to working out. Call it what you want, I'm the healthiest I've ever been in my life. I'm doing things I've never done before or never thought I could do. I can deadlift 255 pounds!

So what if I'm addicted/obsessed with working out, at least it's something that's benefiting me in a positive way. I'm proud to say, "working out is my drug, and my trainer is my dealer"! What's your addiction/obsession; and what's it doing for you?

New Year - Moving Forward

What a way to kick of 2014! Had a great workout with an amazing group of people at Fitness Together! I believe there were 21 of us that showed up and we all killed it! Several of us also completed day one of the January challenge I posted. And.....I also weighed in! I wanted to share my thoughts on the importance of utilizing tools for accountability.

A couple days ago, Michael made the comment it looked like I was losing inches again. And I might have, but I told him I wasn't sure what the scale would indicate. Even though I worked out and made healthy choices, the fact I didn't weigh-in or write anything I ate down for the past three weeks was reflected on the scale (and I also know I had a few moments I allowed stress and my emotions get the best of me). I was up 3.8 pounds from about three weeks ago, and I know it could have been way worse. I just need to get back to completing my food journal and doing my weekly weigh-ins to keep me accountable. I've mentioned before the importance of having people in your life that support and encourage you, because they are great about keeping you accountable as well. And yes, I have several people, in fact it seems my circle of support continues to grow and I LOVE it! But, there are still some things I have to do myself to make sure I am meeting my goals and being successful.

When I saw the picture and quote above, I thought it was perfect for this post. I know for me personally, as I've gone through my own personal health and fitness journey, I have gone through these exact emotions from time to time. So, I'm not going to worry about what I could have or should have done. I know where I slacked the last few weeks, now it's just a matter of moving forward!