Thursday, February 19, 2015

Motivation Comes in All Shapes and Sizes!

If you are visiting from the Blog Hop, welcome!  I have loved participating in this fun event this month and meeting new blogging friends.  I have learned so much and even though we're only halfway through the month, it has been a wonderful experience!

Do you ever lack motivation?  You just don't really want to go workout for whatever the reason?  Maybe you're just a little too tired.  Maybe you've had a long day and it's just one more thing to do before you get to relax.  Maybe it's too cold, and you just want to stay inside where it's warm.  Or maybe, just maybe you just don't feel like it.

Well, this was me last Saturday.  I DID NOT FEEL LIKE WORKING OUT.  I had no other excuse.  I had gotten a good night's sleep the night before.  My day was pretty tame for a Saturday.  I wasn't overly busy, so I certainly had time to fit it in.  Nope ~ there was no excuse (not that there are too many good ones!)  I just didn't feel like it.  BUT unfortunately (or fortunately depending on the way you look at it) I made a small mistake.  My daughter loves to go up to the studio I work at and get on the treadmill or mess around with the weights and other equipment.  I had promised her that we would do that on Saturday.  I didn't say maybe or we'll see.  I used the words, "I promise".  So you can believe that when lunch time came and went, she was all over me about going to workout.

I had just taken her to Fleet Feet to be fitted for new tennis shoes and she was chomping at the bit ready to try them out.  Being the great mom that I am (NOT!) I tried every excuse in the book.  I told her I was tired and wanted to take a nap.  Of course she said, "Great, we'll go after!"  I told her I needed to get some work done.  She reminded me that I had already finished my work.  I quickly new nothing was going to get me out of it, especially when she said, "But you promised!"

I have been very careful of not ever promising to anything that I didn't come through on.  So, I took a deep breath and said okay.  After thinking it over for a minute or two, I began to smile.  I looked at her and said, "Thanks for being my motivation!  You're getting me to workout even when I'm not really feeling it.  I'm so glad I have you as my daughter!"  Of course, she beamed and I knew at that moment what an impact we both had on each other.  I was there to show her the right way to be healthy and develop healthy habits, and she was there to motivate me and give me that added push to do the right thing too.

 We ended up heading to the studio, and we both got a pretty decent workout.  Once it was over, I was very glad that I went (I usually am) and I felt so much better.

Emily was happy because she was able to try out her new running shoes on the treadmill and "burned more calories than ever before".  I love that she is wanting to do things that I do like running and working out.  It makes me very happy.

So you see, motivation does come in all shapes and sizes, and mine comes in a 5 foot 2, 11-year-old fabulous daughter named Emily.

32 comments:

  1. Awww, this is so sweet! Love that she wants to work out with you! Cherish that! You'll never regret getting your workout in! I've felt that many times and unfortunately only have a 3 year old that would find a million other things for me to do instead of workout!

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    1. Thanks Sue! I can tell you at 3, she was not helpful at all in motivating me to work out. LOL She's a fun sidekick to have around for sure!

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  2. Awww, this is so sweet! Love that she wants to work out with you! Cherish that! You'll never regret getting your workout in! I've felt that many times and unfortunately only have a 3 year old that would find a million other things for me to do instead of workout!

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  3. I absolutely love that your daughter wanted to work out with you. Motivation comes from so many sources, including those where we least expect to find it. It amazes me what can sometimes inspire me to want to get my work out on.

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    1. It sure does make me happy that she's like that. She keeps me on my toes. Her new thing is wanting to start running with me and do a 5K. Yes, this mama is proud!

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  4. Your daughter's almost as tall as I am! It's great that she's wanting to workout along side you and help keep you motivated. What a great team you make!

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    1. She's not far behind me in height at all. When she wears my heels, she's as tall as me. It won't be long before she towers over me. And yes I love having her workout beside me.

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  5. Aww, this was really sweet! I love that you and your daughter have such a great bond and she is your motivation! I agree, motivation comes in all shapes, sizes and sources!

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    1. I love it too. She has always been a mama's girl but now that she's a little older, she's truly enjoying things I like to do as well which just adds to the fun and bond we have.

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  6. What a great way to be motivated!

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    1. I think so too Leslie! I sure am glad I have her when I'm not in the workout mood!

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  7. I think it's fantastic you found motivation to workout from your daughter! Sometimes it's hard to get going and a workout doesn't sound like much fun but I usually find once I get going it's okay - in fact, it's usually great. Just gotta start :)

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  8. I love this story! So happy that your daughter could be a good influence. Sounds like you made her day, too! I agree with Sun. Sometimes I am not motivated but I try to remember that I will always feel better!

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  9. Cute story! We all come in all shapes and sizes for sure. New shoes always motivate me!

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  10. My boys are my motivation too! They love to go running with me, or ride their bike when we head to the park! The days that I don't want to go, they let me know that we are going!

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  11. What a sweetheart! That's wonderful that she helps motivate you to exercise, but you have to give yourself a lot of credit--she wants to exercise because of the model you set for her. That's awesome!!

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  12. That's an awesome story. Of COURSE there are days I don't want to work out! They happen for too regularly! Thankfully, I have planned a lot of my work outs (weekday lunch runs, gym visits, weekend running clinic) to include other people - and if I don't go, I'm letting them down. And when it's a family member - you're also creating that family bonding, which is so critical. You have motivated me! :-)

    #GrowYourBlog

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  13. My daughter and I are using each other to motivate as well! It is nice to be able to share the time together and to push each other a bit! Have a great weekend!

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  14. This really wonderful! You both are each other's best motivators! You both won't ever forget these moments when you've worked out together, made meals together, etc. The healthy habits you are instilling in your daughter will be with her forever and you are both so luck to have each other.

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  15. Sometimes all you need is a little help getting out the door! It's great that you and your daughter help keep each other going!

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  16. This is a great story. I love how you are teaching your daughter lessons in living healthy, but she is also helping you both stay on track. There are definitely days when I am just not feeling it for no reason - I wish I had a little motivator around to steer me right :)

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  17. Having people there to motivate you when you don't feel like working out is the best! Whether it's your daughter, a friend, or a class that you've signed up for, knowing that you've committed to someone else is all it takes sometimes. I'm much less likely to bail on a workout if I know I'm meeting someone.

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  18. This is a beautiful post! I love that you have turned a healthy habit into mom and daughter time! Honestly I can't think of a greater motivation that that beautiful girl you have!!! She's also lucky to have a mom like you who cares and spends quality time with her!

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  19. hehehe, good thing she acted as your motivation! Hooray for accountability, and yay for keeping each other going! <3

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  20. I love that she wants to even be with you! I'm nervous and excited for my daughter to get to 11!

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  21. Aw that's awesome! When a girl gets new shoes (of any kind!) of course she wants to try them out! If I don't wake up bright and early and get in my long run on Saturday before my mind has time to talk me out of it...I will have a really hard time getting out there. I take my relaxing on the weekends veryyyy seriously!

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  22. That is fantastic that you are doing healthy things together and motivating each other. Even better is that you realize how special it is. Great job Mom!

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  23. This is awesome! It's great that your daughter has great habits at such a young age!

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  24. That is so amazing! I love that you guys spend healthy time together. You are a wonderful influence on her.

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  25. That's such a great story! It looks like you're instilling healthy habits in your daughter, which is great! Nice work!

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  26. I probably would do the same thing. Once I make a promise to my daughter, I have to stick to it! It's so nice to see you both smiling in that photo!

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  27. How wonderful that you live a healthy lifestyle together! I hope she loves her new shoes :)

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