TOMORROW is the day!

I've been waiting since November to start a new whole30 challenge but had to get through all the holiday eating and festivities first! Tomorrow starts my 2nd whole30 challenge. I was asked today a question someone else recently asked, so I thought I'd answer it in this post. The question of the day: What do you do to stay motivated? 

I honestly had to really think through this one. I'm a hard-headed person. Once I want to do something, I just do it and plow through. That's an intrinsic personality trait I likely take for granted. So I'll try to share what motivates me. There is first a very vain element. I want to fit into old clothes and go shopping for new ones. I want to feel sexy and beautiful.While David has always loved what I look like even nine months pregnant, there is this really primordial anti-feminism element that makes me want to please his eye. That sounds SO prehistoric that I'm nearly ashamed to share that! Seriously, that is not the only motivation but it's a nice perk knowing he likes the fit shape. OMGosh I can't believe I wrote that. Okay onto less embarrassing reasons....

There's the vanity as I've already said. There is also the knowledge that my body has been in shape before and so I have that image in my mind and KNOW that I can attain it again. It might not be exactly what it was at 35, 30, and most definitely not at 25, but it can be the best possibly fit bod at 39. I feel better when I'm in shape and healthy. That feeling motivates me. Knowing what it feels like to be healthy and unhealthy is a motivation to keep focused on the goal. I also was not happy with my body as a teenager so I think when I finally had a shape that I was proud of, part of me is wanting to continue making up for lost time. I think women who have struggled with their shapes as teens have a deep desire to be in shape because we weren't the girls in the short skirts and skimpy tops as teens. So in some ways, I have a deep appreciation for fitness and a healthy body that maybe others, who come by it naturally, take for granted. 

Then there are deeper reasons. I showed my children my pictures before my third pregnancy. Makenna said to me, "poor mommy." She could see how much I had changed since then and they felt bad for me! ha! We talk often about health here although we don't talk about size or weight. But we talk about being athletes and being healthy and strong. I wanted to be the healthiest and strongest example for them. I don't want my daughters to struggle like I have. I want them proud of me. 

Then there is a really deep core reason that I believe is the drive behind everything. It is the love of the life God has given me and the deep respect for taking care of the body he has given me. When I'm on my bike and I want to quit, I can appreciate that I'm alive and strong enough to ride. When I see the wealth of this country and all the food I have at my fingertips, I am motivated to eat right when all the right foods are available and so many people around the world are dying of starvation. 

So it's a lot of reasons. And not just one. But I pull from different reasons at different times. I think motivation is different for everyone. You have to know your 'why.' For me, it starts with vanity but underneath that is a desire to care for the only body I've been given and live as long as I can so I can see my grandchildren grow up and have babies.

In my next post, I'll post my menu for the week!