AIN'T SETTLING

"I ain't settling for just getting by, I've had enough so so for the rest of my life, Tired of shooting too low, so raise the bar high, Just enough ain't enough this time, I ain't settling for anything less than everything, yeah"

If you are a country music fan, then you have heard Sugarland's lyrics above. Well, for the last couple of months it has become my theme song!

Have you ever settled for something in your life and regretted it later? I am sure most of us have. So often we settle for less and rationalize it away. We are inches from what we truly want, but we stop and ponder, or worse yet, we turn back. It is right there, we can smell it, taste it, and feel it, but we always seem to settle for less. Why do we settle? It is because you think you cannot get it? Perhaps you think you do not deserve to get what you want? Friends and family will turn against you? Afraid of what other people will think about you?

I am very content with my life and LIFE IS GOOD but there are areas where I know I can step it up. A few months back, I took a good look at my fitness goals and realized I was settling. I was working out and eating right but was it enough? Once I wrote out all of my goals, I knew that I had been settling. So I stepped it up. Once I took that step, I knew nothing was going to stop me from achieving every single one of my goals. Why? Because I knew my reasons were big enough, my beliefs were solid enough and my desire was intense enough and therefore, nothing could stop me.

I made the decision to never, ever give up. I recognized from the very beginning that my goals required persistence. To get me through rough periods, I knew I would have to rely on my own visualizations, plans (goals), a support group (my hubby and my fitness friends), and my own capacity for self-examination. It isn’t always easy admitting what your faults are. :-)

I took responsibility for my actions that actually empowered me to direct my life rather than be a victim of circumstance. Some people told me they would never be able to lose weight because of their genetics. In fact, one lady told me that I would never be able to have rock solid abs because I had a child. Hmmph! I think it is a bunch of hog wash. If you are blaming your poor health on genetics, you are stuck living a life of quiet hopelessness. There is nothing that you cannot do if you put your heart and mind into it. If, however, you take responsibility for all the conditions in your life, the desirable and not so desirable, you are then in a position to change. Go for it and QUIT SETTLIN!

Personal Note: We had our 1st Annual Luau at our house last Saturday. Kevin and I worked our bums off getting the Luau together. We decided to have a Friends' Luau only because my family is so massive it would be impossible to host them all together. Believe it or not, I made ALL of the side dishes and desserts and Kevin prepared all the meat for the Luau. We also set up the deck and patio with tiki torches and Luau decorations. All in all it was a great day! (for those family members who read my blog, the Family Luau is September 8)! Can’t wait! :-)