Thanksgiving and a little motivation :-)

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving at the beach with my family. There was sooooooooooo much food (over 33 items) on the menu but I stood my ground and had a plate of veggies and a side salad. Then I ate about 4oz of baked turkey and I indulged a little by having a dinner roll and some dessert. I got in tons of exercise from moving, climbing, cooking, standing, walking and etc... and burned well over 900 cals Thanksgiving Day. I hit the beach for a nice stroll with the family the next day and just relaxed. I received soooo many compliments about my weight loss  and was greeted with congrats, hugs, questions about my journey and stories of how i've inspired them.

Sunday night after we all went back to our destinations, my mom called me and told me how proud she was of me. She said that she couldn't get the image of me out of her mind. Now, for those who don't know, my mom has survived 3 or 4 strokes and 2 mild heart attacks. She’s also a diabetic and she has hypertension and high cholesterol. She has slight paralysis on her left side and spends most of her time in her wheel chair. She is one of the reasons why my health is a priority!!! She told me that her wheel chair was malfunctioning so instead getting it fixed or staying at home she decided that she would get up and walk with her walker. She hasn’t used it in a few years because she was completely comfortable with relying on her wheel chair. She said that seeing my drive, will power and determination along with my fitness journey success is what replayed in her mind. She said “Hope, if you can do it so can I!!!” She said she walked everywhere she needed to go. Up the stairs, down the stairs, to church and etc…. with her walker. She said “I moved at a slow pace BUT I moved!!!” My heart was FULL!!! After we got off the phone I just wanted to go and run an extra mile for her.

 

This journey is for REAL! There are so many people who need to see that it is possible and that it can be done. Though you may have setbacks, times of frustration, lack of progress, injuries and etc… don’t ever give up!! Get back in there and pick up where you left off. Your journey is never JUST for you! You are an inspiration to someone else whether you know it or not. Get out there and find a way to make it happen!!!