The Process Never Ends Until We Die

"In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die, the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility." Eleanor Roosevelt

Responsibility, what a heavy word. But in the end it is truly up to each of us. Wouldn't it be easier if we could pay someone to walk this path for us. If we could have a "pinch weight-loss runner" who we could trade places with at the finish line, thin, healthy and fit. But I guess we would miss out on all this journey has to offer.

Each week is a blank canvas on which you can paint a beautiful picture filled with vivid colors, or scribble a black and white stick figure drawing. We all have to live each week, but it is our choice how we shape that week. And, we must accept that this process will never end, but is always filled with change along the way.

They say the secret to survival is the ability to adapt to change. I can tell you that I hate change, always have, and always will. Lately I have been struggling with all the changes involved on my path to fitness. I used to think that it was pretty straight forward - exercise, eat less, and you lose weight. And it is true that calories in / calories out is basically what it is about. But to be truly successful, you need to switch up your workout and your calories, and don't get me started on metabolism! I wish there was a manual that told you everything you need to do, but being fit does not seem to work like that.

Last week, I needed to change my workout because I was getting bored and unmotivated, so I knew that I needed to change up some things. My husband encouraged me to try the rowing machine at the gym. I always wanted to try it, but didn't think I would be able to do it. So, I thought, what do I have to lose. My husband strapped me in and away I went. I was going to try it for five minutes. My husband went to take a shower, but at the end of five minutes, I couldn't get unstrapped. So, I decided to keep going until my husband came out to help me. I went 15 minutes and burned a bunch of calories. So, the next day I wanted to see if I could go 30 minutes. Sure enough, I could. Then, I set a goal of going 3 miles which I already accomplished and am now on to new goals. And then it hit me - by changing up my workout, I was not bored anymore and in fact, excited to see how far I could go. Now I have some variety for my cardio. So I guess change is not so bad after all, which is good, because now I need to change my weight workout at the end of the month. You see change never ends.

So what is the moral of the story? We all need to relax and walk the path that God has given each of us. Don't get set in our ways. If we want to truly survive and thrive, we need to develop the ability to change. Look around, do you see any dinosaurs on your path? They could not adapt to change. We don't want to end up like them do we?