My Why(s)
I've heard that to keep motivation going it's important to "know your why".
Seems like good advice.
So why do I want to lose weight? It's about more than fitting in, or self-image. Though I'd be lying if I said it wasn't at least partly about that.
It honestly is a lot about vanity. Ok. I admit, I like wearing clothes that reflect my style, and right now, shopping isn't fun. There are a lot of cute yoga pants and activewear out there, but I'd love to be able to pick out just about anything and have it work, like once upon a time.
I also want to look younger. I get it, this is not how I "should" think about things, this shouldn't matter, but I have two younger sisters that in the last few years have gotten in great shape and look better and younger than they did years earlier, and I'm jealous. They do not have kids, which admittedly, ages you faster than anything, but I want that for myself! I feel like the extra weight in my face makes me look older and I do not like it, no not at all.
I want to feel good. I notice that things like running, jumping, and all that is harder than it used to be. I seem to be at an age where I can tweak my shoulder and have no idea how it even happened. Or feel my knee twist the wrong way just walking through the yard! I have no doubt that even a modest amount of extra poundage is harder on my body than it needs to be. It is SO important to me to stay active. I don't know why, I just know that I have always aspired to be active my whole life, like one of those 80 year olds out running 10Ks and such. I will NEVER willingly be an old lady sitting in chair indoors with a blanket on my lap, or in a motorized wheelchair because I just got too out of shape- that is my nightmare. I kind of feel like prevention of that starts now. If I keep getting heavier a bit each year, I'm gonna end up needing knee replacements. I do not want that.
I am so interested in the anti-aging and protective effects of fasting. I find it fascinating that our bodies can clean up the inner trash and regenerate even at older and older ages, and keep us biologically younger than we are. I think it's so amazing that breast cancer recurrence can be prevented by something as simple as not eating for 13 hours a night or more. (All this comes from studies I've read, by the way). Because I want so badly to stay feeling good and mentally there and doing things in my old age, I want to give my body the best chance possible. And of course I want to be healthy and stick around for my kids.
I want to improve my bloodwork. My cholesterol has always been borderline getting too high. I wish I would have thought to take some bloodwork before this experiment, but I can always compare it to the year before's. I sometimes feel guilty because I do things to take care of the parts of my body I can see, but neglect the things that I could do to care for the parts I cannot see, like eating things that would help my skin or heart or joints be healthier.
I want to feel like I've figured out something that works for me. I don't want to be struggling with this for the rest of my life. I want to feel like I have the self-discipline to do the things I know work for my particular body and not do things just because others are. I face this a lot in social situations. I will eat if everyone else is, even if I'm not hungry, because I feel a social or family pressure, even if it's not outright. If you're familiar with Gretchen Rubin's 4 Tendencies, I'm an obliger, and do things I think others are expecting me to do. In these types of situations that tendency is very unhelpful, and I want to learn to put myself first, because afterward, I get so mad and disappointed in myself, because I'm basically mistreating myself just to conform to expectations that may only exist in my own mind.
So there's a lot of whys. Not just one thing but many, and probably more besides. I'm going to try to keep these in mind over the next month.
Seems like good advice.
So why do I want to lose weight? It's about more than fitting in, or self-image. Though I'd be lying if I said it wasn't at least partly about that.
It honestly is a lot about vanity. Ok. I admit, I like wearing clothes that reflect my style, and right now, shopping isn't fun. There are a lot of cute yoga pants and activewear out there, but I'd love to be able to pick out just about anything and have it work, like once upon a time.
I also want to look younger. I get it, this is not how I "should" think about things, this shouldn't matter, but I have two younger sisters that in the last few years have gotten in great shape and look better and younger than they did years earlier, and I'm jealous. They do not have kids, which admittedly, ages you faster than anything, but I want that for myself! I feel like the extra weight in my face makes me look older and I do not like it, no not at all.
I want to feel good. I notice that things like running, jumping, and all that is harder than it used to be. I seem to be at an age where I can tweak my shoulder and have no idea how it even happened. Or feel my knee twist the wrong way just walking through the yard! I have no doubt that even a modest amount of extra poundage is harder on my body than it needs to be. It is SO important to me to stay active. I don't know why, I just know that I have always aspired to be active my whole life, like one of those 80 year olds out running 10Ks and such. I will NEVER willingly be an old lady sitting in chair indoors with a blanket on my lap, or in a motorized wheelchair because I just got too out of shape- that is my nightmare. I kind of feel like prevention of that starts now. If I keep getting heavier a bit each year, I'm gonna end up needing knee replacements. I do not want that.
I am so interested in the anti-aging and protective effects of fasting. I find it fascinating that our bodies can clean up the inner trash and regenerate even at older and older ages, and keep us biologically younger than we are. I think it's so amazing that breast cancer recurrence can be prevented by something as simple as not eating for 13 hours a night or more. (All this comes from studies I've read, by the way). Because I want so badly to stay feeling good and mentally there and doing things in my old age, I want to give my body the best chance possible. And of course I want to be healthy and stick around for my kids.
I want to improve my bloodwork. My cholesterol has always been borderline getting too high. I wish I would have thought to take some bloodwork before this experiment, but I can always compare it to the year before's. I sometimes feel guilty because I do things to take care of the parts of my body I can see, but neglect the things that I could do to care for the parts I cannot see, like eating things that would help my skin or heart or joints be healthier.
I want to feel like I've figured out something that works for me. I don't want to be struggling with this for the rest of my life. I want to feel like I have the self-discipline to do the things I know work for my particular body and not do things just because others are. I face this a lot in social situations. I will eat if everyone else is, even if I'm not hungry, because I feel a social or family pressure, even if it's not outright. If you're familiar with Gretchen Rubin's 4 Tendencies, I'm an obliger, and do things I think others are expecting me to do. In these types of situations that tendency is very unhelpful, and I want to learn to put myself first, because afterward, I get so mad and disappointed in myself, because I'm basically mistreating myself just to conform to expectations that may only exist in my own mind.
So there's a lot of whys. Not just one thing but many, and probably more besides. I'm going to try to keep these in mind over the next month.
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