My 100 Inspirations for Living Life in Fitness

EmilyLStuart

Thank you to several MFP members for paving the path for this idea.



Throughout my 2-year journey, I have lost around 88 pounds. But more importantly, I have realized many new joys in my life.


Here are my 100 inspirations for living in fitness. Most of these I have accomplished and experience regularly; some of these I am still working toward….



1) To finally be happy, because I deserve it. Simple yet profound.

2) To stop cutting the tags out of my pants because I hate being reminded what size I am

3) To hear “you look even better in person” (than pictures online). Yep, received this twice now and it made my week.

4) To tell Lane Bryant to keep their effin catalogues

5) To not feel ashamed when I pile my plate high at the Chinese buffet. I live fit now. I know how to handle this.

6) To have a new found appreciation for hot bubble baths. Before needing those to ease soreness, I never made time for them.

7) To turn heads.

8) To have people gravitate toward me. And no longer because my sheer mass creates a gravitational force.

9) To get slapped on the butt by my little brother (his way of complimenting me).

10) To not have just a pretty face.

11) To wear shorts in public in the sweltering Louisiana summers.

12) To dig hard when I’m riding on top, and feel it to my core.

13) To set the checker lady at the grocer straight when she comments that “I must eat like a rabbit” (from all the veggies). Hell no I don’t eat like a rabbit, it’s just most people eat like gluttonous pigs.

14) To wear sleazy lil lacy thongs. Every. Damn. Day.

15) To feel desirable.

16) To actually go to my 15 year HS reunion instead of skipping it like my 10 year. And show everyone - while the popular girls were getting chunky, the chunky girl was getting hot. BAM

17) To finally see that yes, I do have a defined collar bone.

18) To be a better person each day than I was the day before.

19) To view the number on the scale without having to lean forward to look over my belly.

20) To never be asked again “when are you due?” Yes, it actually happened to me three times during my fat years. The worst was the Chinese guy working at the buffet: (in Chinese voice) ”ooooh….when da bebe due?”

21) To not mislead a potential boss into thinking that my exterior exemplifies laziness. You hire me and treat me right, and I will work my *kitten* off for you.

22) To sleep naked when I feel like it.

23) To be able to close the tanning bed all the way down. Yep, I previously could not shut it all the way without becoming a charred pork chop.

24) To live long enough to enjoy my future children and grandchildren.

25) To possess a soul that which is volant.

26) To not feel banned from Victoria’s Secret.

27) To help make my dips back into depression less frequent. An evil blackness that had began hollowing out my insides, literally, until I ached.

28) To do it with the lights on.

29) To feel confident in Zumba class despite the fact that I am a horrible dancer.

30) To be asked by a POF date as he’s got his arms around me “and you put average as your body type?”

31) To not avoid eye contact when I go to the gym.

32) To feel that my body looks like it’s actually putting my $140 Brooks runners to good use.

33) To appreciate the heightened awareness I have for the natural sweetness in a strawberry or peach or other fruits. If you’re eating processed sweets all the time, you’re robbing yourself of this joy.

34) To jiggle less.

35) To go hiking for the first time. I know it will happen one day. I can’t wait.

36) To be whispered about. In a good way this time.

37) To not destroy my feet from wearing high heels every day.

38) To set myself free, so that my personality is no longer overshadowed by my exterior.

39) To see “wow” on his face when we meet in person for the first time.

40) To celebrate in other’s weight loss and fitness successes. Until you’ve lived it yourself, it’s hard to fathom how proud you can be of a complete stranger for pushing forward toward fitness.

41) To not be afraid of my own shadow.

42) To savor the soreness that follows a good hard workout.

43) To be asked, repeatedly, “and why are you single?”

44) To further my reputation in my job. People respect you more when you don’t look like a cow. Sucks but true.

45) To have a story worth sharing.

46) To not allow my future kids to feel ashamed because they have a fat mom.

47) To set the record straight when asked “what diet are you on, or, what diet pill are you taking?” You listen here you repulsive lil sloth bucket. You think I did this by taking a little pill? Hell no. I am the product of over 2 years of reprogramming my brain on what to eat, when to eat, how to eat, and plus working my *kitten* off.

48) To one day be a trophy wife. Not too soon, though.

49) To go to LSU games and be comfortable in the seats at Death Valley.

50) To open new doors.

51) To help ease the affects of the endocrine disorder that I have (PCOS).

52) To find purpose in life.

53) To have less square footage when shaving my legs. I’m all about efficiency.

54) To go scuba diving one day and rid my mind of the irrational fear of excessive buoyancy that surely accompanies blubber.

55) To wrap a standard size bath towel all the way around me and have plenty of room to tuck it in.

56) To feel like I’m worth it. Everything. Anything I want. I can have it. I deserve it.

57) To cleanse my body of overly processed foods.

58) To be grinded hard, up against the wall, gripped by my legs, feet in the air. No way would that have been possible at 240 pounds.

59) To possess the final piece that makes me the total package.

60) To make up for all my wasted years, living my teens and 20s in edacious listlessness and an unfulfilling marriage.

61) To wear sleeveless shirts in public. Yes, even this was previously unfathomable for me.

62) To finally be skinnier than my btchy hateful sister, who was always prettier than I was and who was ashamed to be seen with me in public.

63) To be an inspiration for those who don’t think it can be done. For those who think they have too far to go. For those who feel dejected and overwhelmed and hopeless.

64) To see my daddy beam when he acknowledges the accomplishments of his little girl.

65) To measure success by the ever increasing gap between my legs.

66) To order a salad because I truly want a salad, rather than ordering it because I felt pressured.

67) To fit better together when spooning.

68) To smile more. Smiling is uplifting. Smiling is contagious. Smiling is like hugging someone without touching them (especially good route for strangers). It makes people feel good.

69) To deepen the intensity of orgasms. Cheers to that one.

70) To break my life cycle of work, go home, eat, sleep, work, go home, eat, sleep, repeat, repeat.

71) To be asked on second dates. Every time.

72) To feel like a gazelle when running; not a rhinoceros.

73) To stop pulling the size 22 markers off my hangers so I don’t see it every time I walk into my closet. My closet is now filled with markers reading size 8. Size 6 is next.

74) To tip toe across a creaky wooden floor without making a sound.

75) To see my cousin for the first time in 4 years and hear him say “um, you are uncomfortably hot”.

76) To stop avoiding mirrors in public places.

77) To one day come to terms with my extra loose skin, realizing, it’s loose, yes, but much better than skin which was taut only because it was overly stuffed with fat.

78) To not feel like a pariah, distanced from all my young, average to fit, female coworkers.

79) To eventually run half marathons with my cousin.

80) To try new positions. I want adventure.

81) To believe the possibilities are limitless.

82) To be a good example for my mom, dad, sister, and brother, who have all fought some form of weight issue in their adult lives.

83) To be in awe when I am swept from my feet and thrown onto the bed.

84) To bathe in the glory of dripping sweat after I’ve given it my all.

85) To let go of the anger I hold for naturally skinny girls. Still have a long way to go on this one.

86) To no longer feel as if he’s out of my league .

87) To not be nervous about my fat hanging over the seat on commercial flights. It’s not often I get to use the corporate jet with the huge comfy reclining chairs.

88) To not wallow out a huge sink hole in my mattress. Those damn things are expensive.

89) To truly prefer an apple over a cookie. Well, most of the time.

90) To one day be brave enough to answer the door completely naked. For a complete stranger.

91) To not be conscious of my rear end when I’m trucking it on the elliptical.

92) To wear pencil skirts.

93) To not contribute to the perception that “Americans are fat” or “southerners are fat”. Yes, true. But not this chic.

94) To not feel as if I deserve to be sick, if I ever come down with a terminal illness.

95) To pull off the hot librarian look when I wear my reading glasses.

96) To no longer consider house cleaning or walking on lunch break as exercise.

97) To the joy of feeling sick after eating too much greasy food. I actually love that my body is miserable after I’ve done something I know I shouldn’t. It’s a newfound awareness.

98) To discover new little muscles that I didn’t even realize existed in the human body.

99) To fully realize the meaning of exuberance.

100) Lastly, and most importantly: To ensure that my daughter’s life, which was taken so that I may continue to live, was not in vain.

kariebo

love this...especially 16, 46, and i think it was 55. congrats on all ur hard work so far, with all that behind you i know you can crank out that last bit and reach your goal!

kariebo

love this...especially 16, 46, and i think it was 55. congrats on all ur hard work so far, with all that behind you i know you can crank out that last bit and reach your goal!