You are NOT perfect.

stop beating yourself up just because you missed your calorie goal today... or went over on your carb macro... or didn't do the exercise you planned on doing last night... or ate pizza over the weekend.

i see this all the time on here: people expressing how ashamed or disgusted they feel because they didn't meet a ridiculously high standard they have set for themselves. those are not words that should be in your vocabulary when it comes losing weight or getting fit. save them for their correct intended usage (i.e., Pauly Shore movies).

- set realistic goals.
- try to meet them.
- recognize that falling short happens to all of us from time to time.
- when you fail, don't let it affect your self worth... pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and vow to try harder tomorrow.
- don't forget to enjoy life in the process. that means it's ok to have a slice of birthday cake at your kid's birthday party.

you will always be a "work in progress" until the day you die. there is plenty of room for the occasional "bad" day between now and then. try to have many more "good" days and the long term trend will always be skewed toward a better you.

most importantly, don't give up. there is no true failure, except the failure to continue trying. accept that you're not perfect and cannot be perfect and that you will stumble along the way. we all do.

this message is intended for everybody who is struggling, but especially those folks who just got started around New Year's and are getting frustrated because they haven't lost the 35lbs they wanted to lose in the past 6 or 7 weeks. slow and steady wins the race. quitting never does.

(yes, i'm aware that i've exceeded my cliche quota in this post, but like i said... nobody's perfect. )