I realized when I wrote my previous post that I wanted to expand and give you some examples from my own experience but I also needed to ask permission from some of the people involved. With that now given I can explain how recently I found myself sandwiched between to situations. In 2016 my eldest daughter set her sights on hiking a mountain in Peru, she knew it would require some life style changes to accomplish her goal. She has a wonderful career in a high stress environment, she was a smoker and was carrying some extra weight. She had been diagnosed with a thyroid condition that often left her exhausted at the end of her day. Her food choices were limited: mainly potatoes, dairy and coffee from the drive-thru.
One of the reasons she has been so successful in her career is her determination (an understatement) to achieve her goals (or prove anyone wrong). Taking that quality she quit smoking, lost a lot of weight, incorporated new healthy food into her diet, began running, working out daily and yes, she climbed that mountain!! Some (not I! ) thought she would return to her old habits once she returned, oh but not her, she continued to lose more weight, ran more, further, faster and ramped up her workout to 6-7 days a week. She's a machine. She looks amazing and feels wonderful!
I should have been motivated. Should have been but wasn't really. No, I don't want to incorporate chia seeds, or avocados, or do the twelve week bikini body workout, 5 km run, no; thanks anyway.
Then my mom, who is in her 80's had a couple of falls, nothing really serious, she didn't break any bones. But she leads a very sedentary life and has lost most of the strength in her legs. She has had limited mobility for several years. She has never been into health or fitness, and hasn't really been active since she stopped raising/chasing little children. The falls left her bruised, sore and frightened and more limited than ever in her mobility.
This is the point at which I began to feel very, very motivated. I began using my car less and walking more, I bought a skipping rope, increased up my regular a.m. yoga/resistance training. I make sure I don't skip my yoga classes at the studio and I adopted an iron-clad morning routine of meditation, prayer, journaling and a 40 minute brisk walk. (goal to keep body, mind and spirit strong).
The happy ending to all of this is that my daughter is in amazing shape, is less affected by the stress of her job, her thyroid is stable. I am feeling inspired and already reaping the benefits of being more disciplined. And my mom? The happy outcome is that she found a physiotherapist who has been very patient, he has encouraged her to regain her mobility, she is making great strides! I also heard that at the end of her first session with this young man, he asked her if she had any questions. "Yes", she said, "Do you already have a girlfriend?" Oh my goodness MOM!!! I guess whatever inspires her is good news.
Thank you for stopping by at My Turquoise Kettle Life today.
Wishing you a day full of good choices,
Sandra
