I'm in for the Long Haul

As we continue to work toward our personal short- and long-term Thrive goals, consider this:

What’s the surest way to kill your consistency?

Answer: Think in a short-term frame of mind.

Have you ever seen before and after photos and think, Wow, amazing, she looks like that after only 12 weeks, but feel even worse than you did before you laid eyes on the photos? Most of us have all been there. We want those results. And we can do it in 12 weeks just like her. So we sign up. Then things don’t go according to our “plan”.

Did we miss those two tiny phrases below the before and after shots? “Results not typical” and “Client did five rounds (of said program).”

Then we see someone in the gym who has a bod we wish we had. I want to look like that. What we neglect to see in that moment are the YEARS that person has poured into their fitness routine.

Let’s repeat that—YEARS.

Lasting, sustainable changes take time.

Brenna and I have transformation stories of our own. No, not the kind of stories where we lost over 30 pounds in 12 weeks, but the kind of REAL stories that aren’t told in the headlines.

Brenna: I was at least 30 pounds heavier than my "normal" weight after my first pregnancy. It took A LONG time to lose that baby weight. People in my life kept saying, "You're breastfeeding so you can eat whatever you want and the weight will just fall off." I quickly realized that wasn't true for me. I have never been able to eat whatever I wanted. I signed up for a 10K run 3 months after I was "cleared" for exercise to motivate myself to get back into the active lifestyle I wanted. It was a SLOW 10k but very satisfying to finish! I then began running with a borrowed jogging stroller and loved that I could include my baby in my fitness journey. I needed the support of friends and family and relied on my other new mom friends to help with fitness, well-being, and parenting goals/struggles. I got more used to the emotional and physical demands of being a new mom, and I became more intentional about clean eating and balanced nutrition and discovered the magic of meal planning. I started to feel more like my pre-pregnant self and fit into some of clothes. It took over a year before I was really wearing my original wardrobe but my body/belly still looked different. I gave myself permission not to feel badly about the changes as I was doing the best I could to use a balanced approach. I was lucky enough to be pregnant a second time and got to practice this all over again! I never imagined I would be where I am today with fitness and health so core to my daily living. It is definitely a journey and a process!

Amy: My story starts with a series of misfortunate events: pregnancy (no, this wasn’t misfortunate but then…), pre-term labor, 3 months bedrest, preemie twins in the NICU, muscle atrophy, sleep deprivation…you get the picture. I try really hard to dislike the Nietzsche quote, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger,” but then I realize it’s the hard, challenging, and, oftentimes, shitty times in life that actually have produced a stronger, truer, more confident version of me. I’ve learned to respect and appreciate that statement even though it’s hard to stomach those tough times. After the twins were born I found myself unable to recover alone. I partnered with a physical therapist and personal trainer who helped nurse me back to health, both mentally and physically. That started over four YEARS ago. My journey toward whole-body health did not happen overnight and no one expected it to. So why do we expect it of ourselves?

Why are we sharing all of this with you?

Answer: Because we are real people with real stories and because you are a real person with a real story all your own.

What’s your story?

Getting into a frame of mind where we understand that we are in this journey toward whole-body health for life is extremely valuable; that nothing concrete will happen in “30 days,” that we need to accept and appreciate the value of hard, long-term work; and that if we commit to long-term consistency, we will experience our own REAL transformation stories.

Let’s keep our momentum going, ladies!

Amy & Brenna