Success in 2011.

Over the past few weeks you've probably put some time into making plans for 2011. What you want to accomplish this year, who you want to be, goals, travel plans, etc. If, like me, you don't buy into new years resolutions that people never seem to keep, that's ok but a new year is a great time to analyse what you want to do better in the coming months. I don't make resolutions, per se but I do sit down every few months and think about what's next for me.

Once you've gotten that far it's time to start putting your goals into action. How are you going to get from point a to point b in 2011. My advice? Start with taking responsibility. There is nothing more frustrating to me (and I'd venture to guess for you) than people who play the victim. Guess what? Life is hard for all of us. We all have the same amount of hours in a day and for most of us it never feels like enough. We do what's important to us. Our time and our progress in life is a reflection of our priorities.

So it's time to let go of all the excuses you made in 2010 that kept you from getting done last year what you now hope to accomplish this year. I am no exception. 2010 was a big year for me and as I shared before I really honed in on building a more disciplined lifestyle. I knew that my eating, my sleeping, my time management, my household (cleaning), etc were out of control and I knew I didn't want to live another year that way! I may have absolutely dominated 2010, which let's be honest, I did...but there's much left to be done.

I remember before I started losing the weight (in April) sitting down and trying to be honest with myself. Why had I let myself get overweight to begin with? Why had I never really tried to get it off before? Don't get me wrong, I tried every fad diet and quick weight loss plan in the book but I never really put in the work. Losing weight isn't easy. It's not drinking slim fast out of a can or skipping meals or even just working out a little more. And honestly, I had to quit feeling sorry for myself for being the one who 'got the bad genes' and realize that the only person limiting my success, was me! You have to change your habits to have long-term success. And again, you have to stop making excuses. I finally took ownership for being the one who got myself into that mess and I got myself back out!

You have time to exercise. You have 24 hours in every day. Set aside 1 of those 24 hours and stick with it. With my crazy lifestyle that sometimes means 5am and sometimes means 10pm. But you know what? I make it a date and I show up.

I read 50 books last year. Between 2 workouts a day, leading bible study, book club, daily devotionals, keeping up a house, traveling 16 times, being a good friend, etc - I still read 50 books. People are always saying to me 'I wish I had more time to read like you'. Time? You want to talk about time? My Dad is probably the only person I know who was busier than me this time last year.

It's not that I have all this extra time laying around to read - it's that I value reading as a way to keep my mind sharp. So what did I do? I cut the crap. I cut out the TV time that most of my friends relish. While they were sitting in front of the 'boob tube' 2 hours a night, I was reading a book, on the bike, at the gym. I read books while I dried my hair. I packed lunch and read on my lunch breaks instead of going out. I made time where it didn't exist.

So here's my challenge...what's one thing you're always saying you want to do, but you never get the job done? Is it losing weight? Is it working out? Is it spending time with the Lord? Is it being a better friend? Is it journaling? Is it reading more books? We all have something. Now, tell me what it is and how you're going to make it happen this year. You know what you want, what sacrifices are you going to make to get there?

Don't worry, I'm not letting myself off the hook after calling you guys to stop making excuses and 'do work'. : ] Continuing in the theme of discipline I've added 2 new challenges for myself in 2011...

Morning devotions. Giving the Lord the FIRST part of my day, not the leftovers. I do not judge anyone who doesn't do theirs in the morning. As long as you're spending time with Him daily, I think you're doing a great job! But for me, it was time to take this too the next level and I feel like the Lord wants me to get up and get with Him in the am.

Morning workouts. I know, I know, I'm officially crazy. Not only have I been working out 1.5 hours a day but I've now added morning workouts to the routine. At 6am! Ouch. And they haven't replaces my nighttime workouts. Even more brutal. But I'm committed to reaching my ideal weight this year and I'm willing to put in the work to do it. Jillian Michael's is always saying in my videos, ' results don't come for free' well I'm paying for mine with my sweat morning and night now.

You may have noticed the 'morning' theme here. I hate mornings. I want to sleep til the last minute, then be timely and oragnized when I enter the office. But guess what? I also want to eat 5000 calories a day and watch reality TV at night. Doing that just isn't going to get me where I really want to be. So I'm dragging my butt up in the mornings and getting to work. I'll say here that I'll take all the prayers I can get about this one...hopefully I'll get use to it soon. 6am sure has been feeling early lately.

Love,
B