Day 28: All the Questions
Let's start with the number one question.
When is the right time to start a journey like this?
My answer: Honestly, there is no right time and no wrong time. If we look forward and think our life is going to get easier soon. We'll have more time later and can really dedicate some of it to doing this right. If we do that, I can guarantee one of two things. That extra time will never come, or once life picks back up in its demand, we will drop this new priority and lose it in the tumult. This is why it's so important to carve out time now, to create a habit and prioritize ourselves. A priority that supersedes what life can throw at us. Cause we all know life can hit hard, and we're going to fall, but proving to ourselves now that we can do something will give us confidence and courage to pick ourselves back up when we do.
When is the right time to get help?
My answer: This answer is going to be similar to the last one in some ways but I also hope it is a bit different. There is one thing we need to understand, and that is that the field of health is ever-evolving. What we think we know from our past is quite possibly wrong or inferior to something new that has emerged. Let's make a deal and make sure we never assume we know best because we don't. Professional Athletes are constantly on a fitness journey and I don't think I have ever met a successful athlete at a high level who took on the journey by themselves. We need to acknowledge that no matter our experience, no matter our current situation, that we can use help. That we can learn something new. Then the question above changes. When is the right time to stop learning? I hope the answer to this for everyone, is never!
When have I accomplished my goal?
My answer: This is one of the reasons I keep making small goals along the way, Each goal of mine is a five-pound increment. This allows me to set a new goal and re-evaluate. The terms I was taught are short-term and long-term goals and they might be outdated now, but it's still an important concept. First, if my only goal was to reach 220 lbs, I may never make it. Since I was last at that weight, a lot of things have changed. I may never weigh that again in my life without losing muscle mass, which isn't conducive to my healthier lifestyle. So, if I was to create that one overarching goal at the beginning, somewhere along the way I would compromise on one of the two focuses. All that to say, I hope I won't ever have accomplished my long-term goals because I will keep adjusting it, but I sure hope we are all hitting our short-term ones!
What's the best path to reach the top?
My answer: There is a right path for everyone and in truth no wrong path. I want us to look at this picture. See how there are people climbing this tower... Well, guess what, there is an easier path for all of them. All they had to do was go inside and take the stairs. Why didn't they? Well, maybe no one ever showed them the front door. Or maybe that door is locked and no one gave them the key. But I guarantee there are people inside that tower climbing it the easy way; safe from those lightning strikes. What am I trying to say here? Just that there is no wrong path but there definitely are harder ones. So, this goes back to the question of when should we get help. The right person helping us is that difference. Those people can just be encouraging us, giving us advice, or drawing a detailed map with every twist and turn along the way. I'm just hoping we all reach out for that helping hand when we need it.