Life is hard. The end. Seriously, I could write that sentence and end this blog because it’s very true. Make no mistake about it, life is challenging. As children, we demand independence and look forward to the days we are not ruled by our parents. Yet, as adults we often times wish that we could go back to a time of no responsibilities and no worries. Since, we cannot reverse the hands of time we are forced to face reality. The reality of bills, parenthood, work, and other duties.
   
     When you throw losing weight and getting fit on top of that it can seem insurmountable. Have you undertaken a weight loss journey? If so, congratulations on taking control of your health and ultimately your happiness. I’m sure one thing you can agree with me on is that losing weight is no easy feat. The heavier you are, the longer and harder your journey will be. No doubt about it. You know the struggles that plague you on your journey and quite often it can seem like the world is against you.
 
     When you decide to not just lose weight, but live a healthier lifestyle you change how you not only view food, but how you view the world. Everywhere you go you notice unhealthy behaviors and activities. You won’t comment on them, but you definitely notice. You are surrounded with temptation, daily. When you go to work, when you go to a party, when you go to the store, heck even some gyms offer you pizza and candy. We may find ourselves giving in and slowing our progress, or even halting it altogether. We know what we ought to do, but very frequently we lack the discipline to do so. It is so much easier to simply throw in the towel and quit. Many people have left the gym angry and frustrated with their lack of results never to return again.
     Let me tell you the truth; quitting is easy and momentarily rewarding. I can not express to you how many times I’ve wanted to quit. My former life of over-indulging in food and being sedentary was so much easier than the life of dieting and exercise that I currently live. In the past, I would go to work, get off of work, come to the house and plop down on the couch. I would look on my phone on Order Up for a restaurant that had a special and order some food from them. While waiting for the food I would fire up my PlayStation 4 and begin snacking on chips, and ice cream while gulping down soda. I would then get up from the couch only to get the food that was delivered to me, or to use the bathroom. All of this occurred during the weekday, so you can imagine that the weekend must have been worse. I was even lazier and ate even more food.

     Even though I was living the life I wanted I was miserable inside. In my mind, I knew that I couldn’t keep this up. I would eventually have to make a change. Maybe your situation is similar, or worse. You were living a happy life of over-indulgence, but you knew that you wouldn’t be able to continue going down that same path without suffering some serious health and mental consequences. How easy would it be for the millions of us on our fitness journey right now to return to our former life of self-destruction? It would be extremely easy and fulfilling in the moment. We could quit going to the gym, quit caring about what we eat and how much we eat, and quit putting our health as a priority. Whew, what a relief right? And maybe for a day, or two, it would be nice. But shortly after we would begin to regret our decision. The feeling of lethargy, the weight gain, and the bad consciousness would immediately make me reconsider my decision.
     While losing weight can be challenging, understand that it’s worth it. Sacrificing each day will always be worth it. Pushing forward when you want to quit will always be worth it. And when you reach your goal after the many years of sacrifice and commitment just know that it will be worth it. I implore you to continue going strong on your weight loss journey. One of my favorite quotes is: “If you remember why you started you’ll never stop.” And if you have fallen astray on your journey, I want for you to regroup and regather yourself. Know that no one is going to get healthy for you. No one can diet and exercise for you. You must do the work yourself. Find your motivation and a reason to go on. Reignite your flame and drive. If you do not, 1 year later nothing will have changed. 5 years later nothing will have changed. And 10 years later, you will still not have made any progress. Remember, small progress added up over time is how you reach your goal.