Let your age motivate you

lilangel317

I am 38 and want to reach my ultimate goal by my 40th birthday in 21 months. I thought to help keep me motivated I would come up with 40 reasons why I want to reach this goal. Here's my 40 in no particular order.

1. to prevent family history from repeating itself with diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol
2. to teach my kids healthy living
3. to be able to keep up with my kids. they are getting old and more active
4. to look good in a bathing suit
5. to be able to buy clothes in regular sizes instead of plus size
6. to look good in lingerie
7. to feel better about me
8. to not cringe when i look in the mirror
9. to not jiggle when I laugh
10. to feel pretty when i dress up
11. to be able to wear high heal shoes again
12. to make other men jealous of my husband because of the woman he gets to come home to every night
13. to be able to bend over and tie my shoes
14. to be more relaxed
15. to have a new outlet for stress besides food
16. to be able to walk at the zoo and not be winded
17. to have a new appreciation and respect for food
18. to not look like I have saddle bags on the sides of my body instead of sexy hips
19. to not look my age
20. to be able to ride horses without fear of breaking its back
21. to live longer
22. to not hear the doctor say "it would help if you reduced your weight"
23. to be able to lay on the couch with my husband
24. to not be embarrassed to dance
25. to be more confident
26. to have a better self esteem
27. be able to paint my toes myself instead of having my daughter do it for me
28. to be able to shave my legs and not feel like I am getting a work out
29. to not have "bye bye" arms...you know the ones that way bye bye when you wave your hand
30. to not have my thighs be as big as a teenagers waist
31. to not have dimples in my elbows
32. to be able to see my collar bone again
33. to not have to wear wide width shoes
34. to be able to be picked up and carried by my husband
35. to have a sense of accomplishment
36. to be true to myself
37. to be able to sit in a chair and my hips and thighs not hang over the side
38. to be able to sit comfortably in a restaraunt booth
39. to be comfortable in my own skin
40. to have the body and health that God intended for me to have and cherish the gift he gave me, my life.

I know some of these seem vain and superficial. I know the most important thing is to live a healthy lifestyle. Being skinny is merely a by product of that. Food is fuel not a drug to medicate me and keep me from feeling and dealing with what I need to to become stronger spiritually and emotionally.

Whatever motivates you in the beginning, keep them in view even if you have to write it out and post it next to the bathroom mirror, the fridge or wherever you need to be able to see it to get the push you need to make it through each day. Take it one day at a time and revel in the small successes (staying within your calorie goal, getting the exercise for that day, drinking water, etc.).

Don't let the scale be your only motivator. Get a tape measure and use it. Get a good friend to be your personal cheerleader. But above all, love YOURSELF enough to want to stick with it and reach your goals.

I look forward to reading some of your motivators. Keep up the hard work. We can do it!

ColleenAtherton

I will be 30 in roughly 3 months. Many of your motivators are also my own!

My biggest one that has kept renewing my motivation is feeling better about myself. I weighed in today and had really slacked on my healthy eating the last week, so I was mentally prepared to have gained, but I had a 2.6 lb loss! That totally made me feel like a ROCKSTAR! And it made me want to exercise some more!

gseburn

I don't have 50 reasons.

leslisa

I definately don't have 43. But at least you gave me something to think about!