Need a little inspiration? By Jennifer Austin

If the hustle and bustle of the season has taken your energy, time to reset with a motivation boost. Let others inspire you with their words.
 

“Most people spend more time and energy going around problems than in trying to solve them.” -Henry Ford. Do you really want to get fit? Getting healthy and fit is not easy. It takes effort, commitment and dedication. It’s really up to each individual how hard he is willing to work. Fitting in exercise may mean getting up earlier, staying up later, paying attention to pre and post workout food and hydration. Be honest with yourself about the requirements of living healthy.

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” -Theodore Roosevelt. Ultimately the choice is yours. You’re the one who has to take the next step on a run, who has to log those extra five minutes on the stair climber, and put forth the effort to complete your last chest press set. A common mistake is promising to get fit to please others. In the beginning, motivation will come easy. However, when workouts get tough one only person can make it happen, you. Work on your mind and your body will follow.

“When you are good to others, you are best to yourself.” -Benjamin Franklin. We’re all in this together. Balancing work life, family life, personal life and many other obligations and responsibilities. It seems the pace of our world continues to get faster and faster. A little kindness and support goes a long way. Letting a fellow exerciser work in a set, handing them a mat when you can see they’re struggling to reach it or offering to help spot their exercise helps us all reach our health and fitness goals. And the bottom line is, exercise is more fun and interesting if it involves smiles and light conversation, instead of frowning and rude comments.

“Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they’ve got a second.” -William James. There really and truly is a special quality in each of us that will kick in when we want to accomplish a goal badly enough. It’s the, I will not give up thoughts. Sometimes we don’t even define it as such, but it is there and it propels us forward. This is the quality, for example, when we never give up trying to teach our children to read. Just because they don’t get the words right at first doesn’t mean we toss the book over our shoulder and say forget about it! Transferring these qualities of patience and perseverance to our own health quest is what translates into results. Results mean pushing through and powering on. Don’t let yourself off that easy, work hard!

Lean on words of others to regain your inspiration. Print out their words or put them into your phone. Look at them often, memorize them as a mantra, do whatever it takes to continue your journey to healthy living. It’s worth it.