Thoughts at the Pool

The other day, I took my sister swimming. We were gone for about 2 1/2 hours (needless to say, my tan looks good), but that is beside the point!

As I swam around, walked around, played with my sis..I couldn't help but notice others around me. I'm a people watcher, so it's inevitable. I was mostly, however, noticing the women around me. Now let's be honest, the majority of women DO NOT like to go swimming.
I couldn't help but notice the same thing over and over again. The lack of confidence. I saw one woman playing with her kids wearing yoga capri's and a workout shirt. I saw two women wearing men's swim trunks and tank tops. A young girl wearing surf shorts and a swim shirt. Lastly, I saw a MAN wearing cargo shorts, white crew neck and a plaid button up over that.

It was rather depressing to see all this. Now..I don't have the best body in the world.  However, I will rock what I have. With that said, I haven't always been that way. I've hated my legs for as long as I can remember. It wasn't until I started exercising and eating right that this whole mentality changed.

I kept asking myself, "Why am not ashamed of myself in this suit? I've never not felt ashamed in my suit." Then it dawned on me..I take care of my body. I see the muscle I've gained, my physical and mental strength, and most importantly, I've seen the confidence that I have built. How proud I am of myself.

Each of those people that I saw lacked just that. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been trying to hide themselves. Confidence goes a long way. Not only does it inspire others, but it inspires YOU.
And you..are pretty important.

Nearer

There's an old saying, "When it rains, it pours." Well I'd like to put my own spin on that...Not only does it pour, but a hurricane takes place. And then a tsunami.
I don't normally write religious posts, but regardless of faith, I do think we could all benefit from what's ahead..

I love to exercise. It's incredibly relaxing and I love how I feel afterwards. The last few days have been pretty tense, today being the icing on the cake. Or chocolate chips to the cookie (for those of you that don't like cake) The best stress reliever, if you will, is to go outside...at least for me. There is just something about being out in our Creator's footstool that is refreshing and detoxifying.

There's a hill that leads to the Bountiful LDS Temple that has such a steep incline, the only way to really get up it is by lunging. (you can imagine how my gluteus maximus feels right now) The incline was getting so steep that my legs started shaking. Halfway there, I started walking backwards. Then I switched it up some more and did side lunges with squats. I cannot tell you how many times I wanted to stop, convince myself that was good enough, turn around and head back. However, I told myself, "I set my goal as the temple. So the temple it is." Once I reached the very top of the hill, I started running. I finally reached the north corner of the temple lot and figured I would walk the rest of the way and cool down.

A rendition of Nearer, My God to Thee came up on my iPod and I could not take my eyes off the temple. I was overwhelmed and filled with an incredible desire to be near Him. It was to the point where I couldn't wait any longer. I started jogging...then running...pretty soon I was sprinting. The pain I felt in my legs and in my chest was unbearable, but realizing who (metaphorically speaking) I was running towards, I didn't want to stop.

Long story short, I made it. Exhausted and quite frankly, feeling broken, I made it.

There's nothing worse than feeling conflicted, compromised, worthless or trapped. One of the biggest testaments to me of a Supreme Being, is how quickly those feelings, when asked, are removed and immediately replaced with peace and assurance. Not because of outside sources like yoga, reading, food or shopping. But because the power and validity of those feelings is SO immediate...you KNOW it can't possibly come from anything else other than a power and source that is beyond anything you can comprehend.

I walked away feeling supported and sustained in all aspects. I honestly don't know what I'm trying to say with this. There's a lot we can live without. The Lord is not one of them. Similar to my walk/climb/run, life is exhausting. It hurts, giving up seems like a reasonable option. HOWEVER, we have to remember what the end goal is. It's not making sure you have a perfect body, dressed to match kids, or a smokin hot husband/wife. It's Him.

There's good, better, best and perfect. Right now, I'm kind of close to good. There is only ONE person who can make me better, best and perfect. The only way that can happen is if He is my end goal.

YOU are the inspiration

“The advice I like to give young artists, or really anybody who'll listen to me, is not to wait around for inspiration. Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain, you are not going to make an awful lot of work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself. Things occur to you. If you're sitting around trying to dream up a great art idea, you can sit there a long time before anything happens. But if you just get to work, something will occur to you and something else will occur to you and something else that you reject will push you in another direction. Inspiration is absolutely unnecessary and somehow deceptive. You feel like you need this great idea before you can get down to work, and I find that's almost never the case.”

Most of us, I assume, have made a new years resolution to be healthier, exercise more, etc. How is that resolution going? Why is it that we make this same resolution year after year? Behavioral studies have shown that it takes 21 days for something to become a habitual thing. So you exercise that first 3 days, sore as all get out and commit to never put yourself through that much pain again. Am I right? Let me teach you something about YOUR BRAIN. Yes, yours.
We have in our brain, what is called circuits. This photo here displays perfectly what I am

talking about
It's several interconnected neurons that processes information simultaneously, adapting and learning from past patterns. They conduct impulses in a very coordinated mannered.
So think of things that come second nature to you..typing fast, an instrument you play, a foreign language you may speak. This is because YOU have a circuit in your brain set up for that specific activity. Put two and two together..what's this saying about something you DON'T know how to do?? There's no circuit!! This is where it gets cool...
When you are learning something new..the piano, language, EXERCISE, any skill really, YOUR BRAIN RECOGNIZES THERE IS NO CIRCUIT FOR WHAT YOU ARE DOING. THEREFORE, THE BRAIN ASSIGNS SO MANY NEURONS TO THIS ACTIVITY (every time you do it at least) SO THAT A CIRCUIT CAN BE CREATED! So the next time you attempt that new activity, it WILL be second nature because you allowed your brain to make it so.

 

Does this help you understand why healthy eating and exercise is hard for you? 1-your body is probably not used to something so strenuous and 2-neither is your brain. So don't kick yourself in the pants when you aren't keeping up. Your brain is working on it!

 

So sitting around and waiting for these circuits to be created..? Really not doing yourself a whole lot of good. Think of that quote I shared in the beginning. Waiting for something inspirational to happen to you and get you to do something, especially in health and fitness..you are literally stunting your growth. In more ways than one. Health and fitness isn't about changing who you are. It's about enhancing who you are and what you have. However, this enhancement and growth cannot and will not happen if you sit. And wait.
#justdoit



The Scoop..the deets

So if we're friends on Facebook or follow each other on the Instragram, you have noticed that I make a lot (*ahem* daily) posts relating to health, fitness and/or motivation. I wish I was sorry that they annoy some people..bbuuutt, alas I am not!

SO! With that said, I felt it appropriate to give y'all my story... my inside scoop if you will. This isn't owing anyone an explanation! Simply stating, I haven't always been this way.
I have always had a love for physical activity. I have never been that girl to shy away from sports or hard labor of any kind. However! I will gladly admit that I WAS that girl to shy away from making it a habit DAILY. I had that mentality of, "Well that's for SUPER healthy people. The hardcore folks..the FREAKS!" And I really REALLY did not want to be considered that kind of person.

Now I'm gonna get personal with y'all. Which isn't a shocker due to my inability to filter. However! There are certain things that I don't necessarily discuss. Life has an incredible way of teaching us and molding us and sometimes those life experiences are better left remaining personal :)

When I was 13 years old, I started having seizures. Completely unexplained, dramatic seizures. This is all that junior high and high school consisted of. When I was 19, I had what I thought would be my last episode. Meeting with my neurologist, she informed me that because I was reaching adulthood, she could guarantee I would not be growing out of them. I remember being confused and frustrated, but also having the attitude of, "Oh really? Watch me."
So fast forward! I lived in Georgia (not the country) for a year and a half and never had a problem with my seizures or my medication. Upon returning home is when I started to experience those challenges. Unfortunately, 5 weeks ago, my streak of being seizure free came to an end. I had some tests done which came back abnormal and verified that I had epilepsy. Basically stating, this condition wasn't going anywhere!

Amongst the health challenges I was facing, I decided to take control of the situation I was in. I had the thought, "This is my body. I can do whatever I want to it, right?!" I figured if I started exercising daily and eating right that I could decrease my epilepsy in some way, or even make it cease completely. I was then introduced to an app featured by Nike called Nike Training Club. I absolutely loved it and still recommend it to people! I loved that I didn't have to go to a gym and that I was able to use my own body weight against me. Within 4 weeks I saw definition in my arms! Another 4 weeks I was able to do workouts that exhausted me in the past. And with greater intensity! I was receiving an incredible amount of confidence as well. The best part was, it wasn't coming from any outside source; shopping, boyfriend, food, etc. It was all coming naturally.
Remember how I told you my 4 year streak came to an end? After my seizure a while back, I got extremely bitter, angry, and hostile. I felt as though everything I had been working for all summer was for nothing. I felt betrayed by my own body and no longer saw the sense in continuing forward with this new habit. I started thinking about the lack of control I have with epilepsy and then realized WHY I love exercising! It love that I can control it; the movements, the duration, my tempo, everything. I may not be able to control my condition, but I can control being healthy the rest of my life.

I wanted to share my progress with others..not to be annoying and rub it in their face! But to show how far I had come and I wasn't where I used to be. And most importantly to motivate someone else! A friend of mine saw my posts, messaged me on Facebook and asked if I wanted to be a coach for a health and fitness company called BeachBody. I jumped on it, even though I was pretty intimidated! I chose P90x for my workout regime (not knowing what to expect!) And so far, it's been an incredible journey.

I have been doing P90x for 5 1/2 weeks now and as hard as it is, I love it. I'm encouraged daily to challenge myself, to give MY full 100% and I do! I have never EVER liked doing pushups, I think they are awful, ok? 4 weeks ago I thought I was hot stuff for pumping out 2! Haha and then barely making three! Almost 6 weeks in, I can now do 8-10. Which for some folks, that isn't a lot, but look where I was before!

We only get one set of skin, bones and muscles. There's no "trying it on" seeing if it fits, if you like it, etc. THIS IS IT. For some, they may not like that idea. We do not realize how much control we have over that! I'm a believer in a higher power creating my body and my taking care of it, is an amount of respect and gratitude for that creation. Regardless, I believe in listening to our bodies. Coming to know how they function and making sure WE are helping it along.
I don't care where you start, how you start, just start somewhere!

Your body will thank you for it.

Authentic Self

Recently, my little sister started kindergarten and this morning I was able to take her to school. For anyone that knows me, mornings are not my strong suit. Unless Disneyland or Sea World is involved. Even still, it's a stretch.
So when it was time to take my sister to school, I was still waking up...y'all know the symptoms: Can't talk/won't talk, blurred vision, deep voice, bump into things, the battle of whether or not to even put on a bra...mornings can be rough.

Moving on! We get to school and she's pumped! All the students are outside waiting in line for their teachers to come outside and get them. My sister is the first one there so I waited with her. As we are waiting, an 8 year old girl ran up to me, her eyes the size of silver dollars and said, "You're REALLY pretty." I'm not sure what MY face did, but considering I had just gotten out of bed, I'm sure it wasn't an award winning smile. She just kept staring at me! Then she said, "I'm gonna come back and talk to you after I put my back pack down!" And of course, she did! 

Children have the capabilities to see, hear and speak with the most innocent of tones. This girl had no idea that I had just barely rolled out of bed. With my Brad Paisley T, sweats and Nike slip on's. She also had no idea that I have struggled for a very long time with self image, still do. It's a battle that I'm learning to overcome by doing things because I love myself, not because I hate myself. 

She came up to me and told me I was pretty..really pretty. When I didn't feel like it and in my personal opinion, didn't look like it. However, I can safely assume that she saw something beyond that. That clearly, I can't. This isn't about me boasting and saying I'M PRETTY AND YOU'RE NOT! 
More simply..I could have easily changed that whole situation and said, "Wow! I actually just got out of bed so I'm really not :/ I need a shower, do my hair, make up, GET DRESSED, but thank you!" 

I have been wondering ever since..What did she see and why am I not seeing it? I found this quote on pinterest a few nights ago and it has changed my way of how I view myself entirely. It is the honest to goodness truth! My authentic self is my best self; even it's a Brad Paisley T, sweats and Nike slip on's. 

The Most Important Thing..

Family: It's about TIME, therefore, make it happen.

Regardless of how you view 'family', that could be friends who have nurtured for you, a church community that has never let you down, members within a community that have given you that TLC, the list goes on and on. I'd like us to pause and reflect on simply what is known as..FAMILY.

For the last 18 months, I was doing a volunteer mission for my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, in Atlanta, Georgia. I had the opportunity to teach people and strengthen peoples faith about their Savior, Jesus Christ. I bring this up, not to boast, but for two reasons: #1-Some people do not even have a CLUE the ideals of family. LET ALONE THIS CAN GO ON INTO ETERNITY. #2-Being away from family (aka the loneliness factor) totally bites. When it seemed like all else was failing, I knew my family was back home cheering me on. There were days that that was all that kept me going.

Life gets hard, does it not? Sometimes life gives you lemons and you wanna say, "Screw it. I am NOT putting up the lemonade stand today." Unfortunately you do NOT get to have that attitude. ESPECIALLY with your family. There's Good, Better, and Best. When these crap-shoot moments come (which they will), channel that energy into turning your family into better. INTO BEST. Do not settle for mediocre: Of moderate quality; not very good.
There's a really great book, where brother is fighting against brother. And soon, nation against nation. However, there is a difference between these two nations. One fights merely for bloodshed, gain/victory, pride and glory. The other nation, fights for liberty, protection of his family (wife, children, brothers, sisters, etc.) land, and religion. Thousands upon THOUSANDS are killed between these two. Yet the nation that is...in a sense...humble, never gives up on their family and those whom they associate with.

Whatever higher power you believe in, whether it be the dog sitting next to you or God Almighty..that higher power did not put you in a family to quit. There's no crying in baseball, there's no worries, and NO GIVING UP ON FAMILIES.

Matthew 28:19

So...if you haven't realized yet, I'm going on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I have been called to serve in the Georgia Atlanta mission and will be serving for a period of 18 months. AKA...a year and a half. When I think of just 'a year and a half', it's really not that long to me. It doesn't seem long enough! Granted, I will miss a lot of wonderful things here back home, but I really, in all seriousness, don't care. I would much rather be talking of Christ and His goodness 24/7 than anything else.

I never knew how real the adversary was until I started preparing for my mission. The second I started announcing that I was going and getting the papers ready, he was right at my side. Constantly taunting and hissing in my ear reasons why I shouldn't go "Girls like you don't go on missions." "All the boys you like will be married and gone...." "Boys don't like sister returned missionaries." Do you know how annoying that was? Not only was he throwing those in my face, but other frustrations and temptations as well. Anytime we try our very best to do something good, he will do his very best to stop us.  


I opened my mission call May 25, 2011. It was an experience that cannot be described. My departure date of August 31st seemed so far away...and now it's a mere three weeks. I wish my friends and family could understand or feel how excited I am. Sending out a missionary kicks butt, but to be the missionary...that's even better. I've tried to put into context how important this is to me to me family and friends and why I am going on a mission. It's not because I'm a 21 year old Mormon, Utah girl who isn't married yet and doesn't have anything else better to do. It's also not a reason to give boys a chance to grow up or make them realize what they're missing. It's plain and simple folks: When the Lord commands it, do it. I had incredible experiences two years before I even started thinking about a mission. Then a few months before I started the papers I had another one, which confirmed I was to go. (Clearly, they are not going to be shared on here).

My life has been full of difficulty, heartache and challenges that I would never wish upon another. However, those moments in my life, where I felt I couldn't breathe, felt abandoned, lost or angry, have become stepping stones for me and have made me that much stronger. I know I just sounded like a country song, but without those experiences, I wouldn't be that grateful of a person. 
I know that those experiences have prepared me for my mission and will become valuable on the mission as well.

I love this gospel with all my heart. We put so much focus on having the glamorous car, the sweet babes and gorgeous dudes, but all that doesn't matter. Stick to the gospel and everything will fall into it's proper place. I am so excited to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of Atlanta. I have such a burning testimony of it's truth and burning testimony of Him. The Book of Mormon....it's true! I can't..put it into words? But I feel it every time I read and study the Book of Mormon. We are Sons and Daughters of the most glorious being in the universe. We were created in His image and it's safe to assume we walked and talked with Him before we came here. As a member of this church, one who was born with the fruit in my hands, it is my duty and responsibility to share the gospel with those who were not born with that same blessing. "Go ye therefore and teach all nations." That is what I intend to do.