What Motivates You?

I'm speaking to physical fitness right now. There was a time in my life that this did not concern me. I was an athlete in high school, playing sports year round. I pretty much ate whatever I wanted because I was burning a ton of calories every day. I remember my dad telling me when I was younger that I was going to be in trouble when my metabolism slowed down. I just laughed at him because I was young, and I believed that I was invincible. I would never gain weight, I would always be thin.
When I was 16, I developed a chronic headache disorder which means that I have tension headaches every single day. I was put on a low dosage anti-depressant which controlled the headaches. While the headaches were controlled, the medicine created unbelievable cravings. As I mentioned before, when I was in high school this was not an issue. When I got to college however, I gained 20 lbs in what seemed like overnight. In college, I was either in class, doing homework, coaching my club volleyball team, or working at my 30-hours a week job. There was no working out. There was a lot of eating. By the time I graduated college, I had gained 50 lbs from my high school weight.
After college, life slowed down but I hadn't built a healthy foundation for living. I graduated college on a Friday, and started my career on the following Monday. Life became cocktails and quesadillas at the cantina across the street from my branch after work. It got even worse when I met my future husband, and we moved in together. We ate out every single night. Red Robin on Monday, Buffalo Wild Wings on Tuesday, Newport Bay on Wednesday, etc. You get the picture. I gradually went from a size 10... to a size 12... to a size 14... until the day I didn't fit into my 14's.

I was 180 lbs. I had reached my breaking point. It was either go up to a size 16, or do something. Right around this time, the hubby and I went to Hawaii with his company. The pictures we took while we were there changed my life. There was one picture in particular that shamed me in so many ways. I will share with you this photo that changed my life (it's not easy to share this by the way!)-

February 2007

My husband tells me I carried the weight well. I say that's not the way a 23-year old should look. In the end, it doesn't matter. This photo inspired me to get healthy again. I already had a gym membership, but now I actually used it. I started small, 30 minutes a day, 3-4 times a week. I started cooking at home, using Cooking Light. Slowly but surely, the weight started to come off. It took me a year, but I lost 40 lbs. It took me another 6 months but I lost another 10. 

I won't ever make it back to my high school weight but I know that that's just not realistic. I am very happy with my body as it is now. I worked hard to get healthy again and I am going to work very hard to make sure I don't slide back into unhealthy habits. That photo of me at my heaviest reminds me of where I have been, and where I don't want to return to. It's a huge motivator for me! I've also got the Brazil Butt Lift to keep me in check (still killing me, by the way!).

A picture of me today, getting ready to do Pilates. Who loves the Oregon phone cover by the way? Booyah!