ONE STEP UP AND TWO STEPS BACK.....

Ok...pity party ahead! LOL No, it's not a self-indulging whine but just a fact about life. It never seems to fail that something comes between you and your goal. I was making all the progress possible with my exercise and healthier eating. I had lost 18 lbs in 4 weeks, my diet couldn't have been much better and I was noticing major improvements in my strength, stamina and body shape over the course of the two months I've been working with Chad. It was exciting and thrilling! I wanted to share it with everyone! Wouldn't you?

Then I started to get run-down. First came the bronchitis and then came the pneumonia. I've been out of "real" workouts for the past 2-3 weeks, it seems. I'm scared to think that I'll be out of more workouts for the next 10 days or more. How frustrating!!!! I'm already noticing a loss in what I've gained in terms of my physical shape. I've lost muscle tone. I've lost momentum. I've lost stamina. BUT... what I've gained with my self-confidence, knowledge about nutrition and the absolute reality that I CAN lose weight and be healthy, I will NEVER lose.

I can't wait to get back to exercising again. I miss Chad and the friends I've made at Shaping Concepts. I worry they'll think I've dropped out and given up because I haven't! I want nothing more than to get back to the studio and continue with what we've started. I'm hopeful and anxious about returning to the gym.

I saw a cartoon recently that caught my eye. It so true about many things in life. You can either get yourself "PSYCHED UP" or "PSYCHED OUT" about lots of things. It really is a matter of choice, isn't it? You can follow self-pity, regret, frustration and depression down the path towards being psyched-out or you can look forward with a positive attitude about the future and what it will bring and get yourself psyched up about the prospects of better things. For me, even though I feel really crappy as I recover from this pneumonia, I'm psyched up about returning to many things...work, Chad, the studio, my renewed health...you name it!

I hope when you come to a similar choice in life - and we all will at some point - that you will keep looking forward with optimism about the future. It's a choice -- and one path I intend to take as often as I can! :)