Motivation is defined the act or an instance of motivating, or providing with a reason to act in a certain way (no judgment for using the word in the definition please). This week's entry is about what motivated and still motivates me to continue this lifestyle change. Perhaps, it'll even get you think about what's important to you to either make a change or keep going with goals! Of course I can answer this with the most common answer possible and say to get healthier, but I think I can dig a little bit deeper than that. I wanted to like myself, to be able to look at myself in the mirror and be proud of the person that I am and of the accomplishments that I've achieved. With little to no self-confidence this was something that I wanted to feel the most. Being able to look forward, not down at the ground because I'm not longer ashamed of myself has been amazing. Being able to fully participate in physical activities with my friends while not having my weight limit me has been amazing. Being able to wake up in the morning (on most days) and have an outrageous amount of energy has been amazing. The list can honestly go on and on.
There are so many things that I can do now that never even cross the minds of people that have never struggled with their weight. For instance, I can go to the mall and practically go into any store and they'll have my size. The options for clothes are endless and I am no longer confined to wearing clothes that I strongly disliked, wasn't representative of my style, and aged me about 20 years. Honestly, talking about clothes may sound materialistic, which I am not, but it's such a great feeling to have the freedom to choose what I want to wear. Before my weight loss journey began, I dreamed of wearing pencil skirts with my shirt tucked at work and form-fitting dresses when I'm going out on the weekends with my friends. I can run into a store to grab an outfit really quick and no have to spend a lengthy period of time frustrated that nothing fits right. Now it's a reality and it feels great! Am I at the point where I think every article of clothing I try on fits me perfectly? Pshh no way, but who truly is? I still have my trouble spots that I'm working on, but I can wear so much more now and that's what really matters.
About a year and a half ago I went to an amusement park with my friends. I'm a fan of roller-coasters and rides so I was extremely excited that was until I got onto one of the wooden coasters. The seat was definitely snug and the bar that comes down over your stomach was tight. I went from being excited to completely embarrassed and I didn't want to experience something like that ever again. That was another motivating factor for me losing weight. I did not want to be ashamed of my appearance.
From a medical standpoint I wanted to make changes so I could improve the quality of my life as well as the length. I also knew that if I lost weight it would help alleviate the chronic lower back pain I have been experiencing for years. Between the weight loss and my weekly trips to the chiropractor my back has improved tremendously, which has improved my daily mobility. As a person who has PCOS I knew there were detrimental symptoms to having this syndrome, but that I did have the ability to reverse most of them. Back in March I went to my endocrinologist to get blood work done to see if my weight loss really did have a positive impact on my health. It did indeed. Normally an overweight person with PCOS needs to see their endo every three months and take Metformin, which is a medicine that helps with insulin resistance. I didn't want to have to take Metformin anymore (and I wasn't for a while because it also made my tired and groggy). Getting the confirmation from my doctor stating that all my numbers looked excellent and that medication was unnecessary was the biggest relief. As I was leaving her office she said "Okay see you in a year. You don't need to come in every couple of months anymore." #winning
Honestly, there are so many reasons why I wanted to lose weight other than the most typical answer of "Oh I just want to get healthy". When I really thought about it I was able to clearly see what things have value and importance in my life. The desire to live long, active, happy, successful life inspired me to lose weight. What's your reason?
Picture from: http://myveganweightlossjourney.blogspot.com/2012_02_01_archive.html
