What's MY excuse?...

This week has truly worn. me. out.

It started with an hour and a half of house cleaning, followed by an insanely long kickboxing/HIIT workout the next day. Then it was weightlifting on Wednesday and another killer kickboxing/HIIT workout today. Now add in basketball practice a couple times a week for my son, gymnastics for the princess, summer activities and play dates. Oh, and a sprinkling of groceries and errands...

All week I have felt exhausted and just wanted to find my trusty butt print on the sofa and not move. Somehow though there was a push inside me that kept me going and made sure I had a smile on my face doing it! (OK... most of the time, not all of the time! lol) I am not too familiar with this feeling, since this is the longest I have ever been committed to a healthy and happier lifestyle. Usually the sofa would win. The pizza delivery would triumph. And the half chocolate cake would draw me in. I would always, ALL WAYS, find some kind of half-ass excuse as to why I couldn't keep going. My emotions reigned over my food choices and my unfit body would convince my mind I just didn't have it in me to work out.

What did I have?
Mostly a bad attitude!

Physically, I have always had something that would interfere with my efforts...
Let's work our way down...

• Head: I suffer intermittently from Vertigo. That means, if I make a wrong turn in bed at night, the world starts spinning uncontrollably and it takes anywhere from a couple of days to a month to work itself out. It also means I can have trouble driving or doing burpees... it's the sudden up/down motion.
• Torso: In 2005 I was rear-ended and because I saw it coming I tensed up and my lower back took the shock of the collision. Physical therapy didn't do much for me. Add to that the large belly I was lugging around and the outcome now is a very sensitive lower back region. Once in a while it will still tweak unexpectedly (like when I am peeling a pineapple and turning the wrong way brings me to my knees suddenly... ouch!). This area is always a problem when lifting weights if I am not careful.
• Backside: Sciatica. Thanks pregnancies. I really needed this! (not). Another monster that rears its ugly head completely out of nowhere!
• Legs: Charley Horse in the calves. Thanks again pregnancies. If it wasn't for you I would be able to stretch like a normal person and not fear painful cramps in my legs. Something I need to be careful with if I walk too much or do too many calf raises.
• Legs: Knees. Well, just one of them really. I am not sure where this pain came from actually. OK, if I had to guess, it would be the weight they have been asked to carry around for such a long time. That, and trying to catch a lizard on a rock in a plastic bag when I was 9 and abruptly falling on both knees and needing to be carried into the house. Aah... childhood!
• Feet: Thanks to my flat feet I have had Plantar Fasciitis (or Joggers Heel) for many years now. Joke's on them.. I don't jog! HA! Again... too much weight... for too long. This I feel daily, especially if we run a lot during a HIIT workout or we do a lot of walking when we are out on the weekend.
• Internally: I have Hypothyroidism and Borderline Diabetes. Both of which I take medication for. Also, if I let my blood sugar drop too low, I will pass out. The end.
• I'm a Gemini, continuously at war with the side who wants to eat well and exercise and the side that wants to order pizza and watch TV. It's a big problem! ;)

So, there it is... my list of excuses why I can't do it. And even though they are all true, they are also all just that... excuses! And I used them. Every. Day.

You know what else? I still have all the above issues, but I have decided to be more than that. Stronger than that. And not give in. So this week, when I felt like I had no energy and no motivation, I said 'NO'... shut up and go do it! I find when I give myself the time to feel good about a workout I pushed through or a healthier food choice, I also give myself that boost I needed to know that I am better than my excuses. Physical or mental. 

I won't be an excuse anymore. 

I will be the reason!

peace out. ;)

Thank goodness for rest day tomorrow!

:)