Since my last post I have learned so many things about myself. The biggest one is that in order to have a chance at consistency in your gym time and diet, you have to have a community that supports you and encourages you. This can be family, friends, trainers or websites that inspire you. I have found out this past month that the community I have developed at my gym and my family help to keep me on course when life derails me.
As I posted before I have been having some health problems and this past month at my annual exam my Dr found a lump in my breast. Talk about being derailed!! I was going on with life, my fitness goals and stressing about my first graders spelling test he was struggling with and that hit me like a ton of bricks!! My open and care-free schedule now had a looming appt at the Breast Center for a mammogram. All I could think about for the next few days were my friends that I had that had passed away from breast cancer, my mom that had fought and survived breast cancer and the fact that I didn't want my kids to become motherless at such young ages. The BRCA gene mutation runs in my family so although I had been tested, I still new my chances were a little higher than the general population. I told my husband first and then immediately called my sister to vent about the news. As we were talking she googled the statistics of Breast Cancer in the population, so typical. The next day I had to meet with my trainer for our weekly weightlifting session. I usually LOVE meeting with him and I get totally geared up, but now I could barely eat, my mind hadn't allowed me to sleep well the night before, and the tension in my body was ridiculous!! I was a train wreck... totally derailed!! Well, when I met with him it all came to a breaking point. I hadn't cried about the news yet or really reacted at all about it. Well, I did right there in the gym... on my awesome trainer. Lucky for me he said, "Well, you have come to the right person" and from then on he talked while I let out some frustration on the weights. I felt tons better after that workout. My mind felt clear, the tension in my body was released and man oh man did I sleep better that night.
During that awful week I found myself reading a lot. I found an article that I loved and read several times. It is what helped me decide how to react to my news and whatever results I might get. Check out the full article here http://www.t-nation.com/powerful-words/5-secrets-of-the-relentless but for the part that inspired me, here ya go:"Physical Strength and mental strength go hand in hand. They reinforce one another. And the relentless know that personal responsibility is the foundation of mental strength. It's grit. And it's what gets them through hardships and makes them tougher as a result of those hardships. They know that blaming other people for their problems is an easy way to dodge responsibility, stay weak, and impede their own growth. So when the relentless experience adversity, they look for ways to become champions over their circumstances rather than victims. The weak-minded do the opposite." I LOVE this!! I want to have that grit in me for when life tries to derail me, it can't. Another gem I found that week that kept me going and kept me consistent was a quote. I did a ton of reading that week and I can't find the source for the quote but if you know where it came from or who said it please comment!! "The Juice is Worth the Squeeze"!! I find that awesome! I thought about it for awhile and this really makes sense to me. Who wants a dry orange?? No one! Why? Because the juice is the best part of an orange. How do you get that awesome juice?? You gotta get in there and squeeze it out. A wonderful definition of "squeeze" is "to force out, extract, or procure by pressure". I want the best to come out of me and I know that won't happen if I never have pressure in my life. I want to be squeezed by The Hand of God and to know that He is bringing the sweetest juice out of me!! When I am working out I remind myself (usually when I'm dying on the stairclimber) that the body I want and the muscle definition I desire is not going to come easy and I can always "squeeze" myself a little harder.
During that week my family helped me with the boys and the community I had developed at the gym (all the people and trainers there) helped keep a smile on my face. They didn't even know what was going on in my life but the conversations, the greetings, all kept my mind off of me. Every Thursday night Chad and I take the boys to the gym and Christian runs track and plays racquetball with Chad while I do some cardio and Liam goes to childcare. They absolutely love this. Well, the night before my appointment we were supposed to go and I just wanted to stay home and crawl in bed. Typical of my sweet hubs he wouldn't let me. He said that I needed to go to the gym... he was right. Our gym has some of the nicest people!! Some say Memphis is an awful town and that no one is nice or worth anything. Well, WellWorx proves them wrong. Even the big "meat heads" are nice, intimidating as heck, but nice!! All of that to say, you need to surround yourself with people that are encouraging, wether you are going through a difficult medical scare or just struggling to drop the weight and eat right. One of the trainers at the gym is a true gem of nutritional information. Matt Oliver leads a weight class and I make sure that I take it every Tuesday. If I can get him talking about food or lifting, I soak it up like a sponge!! Not only does it help me gain more knowledge but it keeps me from driving my Trainer nuts with questions ha ha!! Some of y'all may have seen me post the video of Matt on the news this week. The tips he gives are great and it isn't some uneducated person giving you "what worked for me" advice. The dude is educated! Like certified up to his eyeballs in stuff!! If you don't have the community in your life or the accountability you will struggle. I highly encourage you to check out what he has to offer you as far as nutritional help, accountability, and check out his pic... the man is ripped, so he can help you in the workout area as well! Here is the link: http://flexdieting.com/index.htm. I have no shame in advertising him either because he is that great.
As far as the results of my test. I woke the morning of my appointment early and with a Word from the Lord. Psalm 118:24 "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." So before I fell back asleep I made the decision that no matter the news I would rejoice and be glad. I would be glad for the day that I lived, the time spent with my boys and for any future days that the Lord decided to bless me with. My results on the breast with the lump was good but they actually found something in the other one. I was told it is nothing to freak out over but I have more appointments awaiting me down the road and I am now on the yearly Mammogram list. However, I am still one blessed, relentless woman!!
