Progress, not Perfection

Happy Friday Bloggies!!!  These past couple of days have been tough emotionally.  People, even those who love you, will try their best to disrupt your energy.  When I say that, sometimes when others are hurt by your actions or words instead of knowing how to express that they seek to make you hurt also, therefore disrupting your energy.  The problem with this is that essentially nothing gets fixed and the more time you give negative energy to fester, the harder it is to reverse it.  Life is short and it's okay to say, "This hurt me," to someone you love.  Most times its not even personal, but because we are selfish by nature we like to think that everything is about us and done towards us.  Well, that is my soapbox for the day and on to business.

I've been mulling over this topic for a couple of days now, Progress not Perfection.  I should make this the tagline for my life, lol.  If I give you nothing else with this blog, when going through a weight loss journey, or any journey for that matter, remember Progress not Perfection.  What does that mean to me...where shall I start.  Being overweight my ENTIRE life, as I've mentioned before, I've tried every diet known to man.  In a society where everything is so accessible we have lost the virtue of patience and want instant results with lasting effects.  That isn't how life works.  I've been offered gastric bypass numerous times and declined.  Why you may ask? It's not a quick fix.  Now, don't get me wrong, there are many people who benefit from the procedure and I am in no way putting down any who has had or is contemplating getting it.  What I am saying is that I know people who have gotten it, lost weight and subsequently put that weight plus some back on.  Whether you get a lap band, your stomach stapled or any of these available procedures, if you don't commit to changing your lifestyle, eating habits and incorporating some type of fitness into your life, then those procedures will be in vain.  We all want to lose 20 pounds in a week, but that just isn't realistic.  Furthermore, that isn't healthy for your body.  I always tell people, "your body will treat you as well as you treat it."  If you go to extremes to lose weight, it is going to talk back to you.  

So I'm saying all of this to get back to my point of Progress not Perfection.  Stop looking for everything to happen quick and take time to live in your progress.  Small victories add up to BIG wins.  Saying no to those bag of chips may seem like such a small notion, but do that enough times and you'll lose a couple of pounds.  You want to go out to dinner, do that and set small goals for yourself.  Tell yourself, "this time I won't indulge in that oh so enticing bread basket.  Next time, I'll be sure to order veggies as my sides."  This journey is not about perfection...that is what leads to sabotage.  You've been there, you just HAD to have that cookie, I mean you're human.  Afterwards, you feel like a failure but most importantly its that feeling of letting yourself down that drives you to keep going in the wrong direction.  STOP IT!  I'm very guilty of this myself...you can't gain back all the weight you've lost or unravel weeks of doing good all with one cookie...stop letting something so small have that much power!  Remembering this is what keeps me motivated on this journey.

I don't seek to be perfect, I just want to see the progression physically, mentally and spiritually.