Just doing it

“There is no try.” — Yoda, Jedi master

I’m inspired to write because of this blog post on the Team RWB website. He wrote what I have been trying to explain to countless people: Why I moved, where I am and where I hope to be.

The pain is temporary, but the long-term gains will last forever. It was about no longer saying, “I can’t” and saying “I can.”

It is supposed to snow all weekend. Thanks Winter Storm Jonas. But we have all of our supplies and are staying cozy.

Notice, I didn’t say comfortable. I’ll be comfortable once spring starts again, maybe soon.

I took a few steps back in my fitness goals the past few weeks. I thought I was doing well, but I noticed some things were off: I was more tired than usual, my Spibelt that needs to be replaced was tighter.

I gained weight, a lot more than I would like. Looking back, it started as the temperature dropped and things got harder.

My dryer only works for two loads and then quits. In a day or so, it’s back to normal. Getting up at 4:30 a.m. to exercise is hard to do when you have no goal. Even the thought of running a race in about a month isn’t really motivating me.

It’s freaking cold.

I can’t run in my house and the gym is hard to get to.

I’m so stressed about starting this group. I think I’ll eat three helping of that chocolate coated chocolate to feel better.

My co-workers are bringing in all their leftover sugary desserts from the holidays. How can I turn them down?

Blah, blah, blah. So many excuses.

And then I read this blog post. This is why, exactly why I did what I did and do what I’m doing now.

There is no try.

You either do it or you don’t. The work you do/don’t do will show. Like running a marathon when the longest distance you’ve run is three miles, you and everyone else will know whether you’ve stepped up and prepared for the task.

In some ways, I can feel when I eat healthy and when I don’t. I can feel how an extra six pounds puts more stress on my knee joints.

I promised myself I wouldn’t get above a certain weight. And I’m almost at that point, again.

In the blog post I referenced, he talks about how the short term problems are insignificant when compared to the long term gains. When it comes to my health, I have a hard time seeing that sometimes.

I focus on the immediate pain from doing a High-intensity workout from Spitfire Athlete. I focus on how cold it is when I go outside to attempt a group run I organized.

And then someone during that group run says, “Thank you for doing this.”

That’s when that long term focus kicks in. I helped someone! Time to do a happy dance.

While it’s easy to help others for me (I’m a mom, it’s one of my jobs), helping myself is hard, very hard.

That’s why I started the Blogging 101 course. That’s why the smell of roasted chicken and Brussels sprouts is filling my house. That’s why I’m going to set my alarm so I run in the snow (I love making tracks in the snow) before work.