Amber McCourtney 6

I often hear people say things such as “I just don’t have the time.”, “Man I wish I had your energy.”, “I just don’t have your enthusiasm.” Well my friends I’m here today to bring you this breaking news… I don’t always have it either lol!! I love what I do but not every day can be fantastic. I don’t jump out of bet at 5am every morning and say “YES! CARDIO AND OATMEAL HERE I COME!” BUT I do make the choice to better myself and in doing so you have to push through the times that may not be so fun to live a happy healthy life. It’s a choice. I made the decision to push myself to be better and do better and try my hardest to better the people around me and in doing so I’m committed to standing by my decision and doing whatever it takes. This week I’ve decided to take a minute to go over a few common misconceptions and/or obstacles and ways to either lessen or resolve them.

TOO TIRED:

                Diet:

Step back and look at all the toxins you’re putting into your system. Your body has to filter all that out. Does your air conditioner run exceptionally well when the filter is caked with dirt and junk? CUT THE CRAP! You and your body are better without it. I promise you’ll feel better.

                Journal:

 Try a food log to make sure you are holding yourself accountable.

                Sleep:

 I know it’s your favorite show but it can wait till the weekend. Sleep is going to make you more efficient all day long so rather than cut too deeply into your rest time to get things done. Rest up and you’ll likely do them better and more efficiently when you’ve had some good quality sleep. If you struggle with sleeping it could go right back to diet and exercise. Hmm, are you seeing a connection here?

TIME MANAGEMENT:

I AM THE WORST! I have been notorious all of my life for mismanaging my time. So, naturally that was always one of my excuses. “I just don’t have the time.” That may ring true for some of us but for the majority of us we are simply not paying attention to where our time goes…  How much time do you spend watching television, surfing the web, chatting on the phone, texting, FACBOOKING!?  I’m all for all of these activities but only if they don’t interfere with the life you live in the real world.

                Time Log:

Start a time log. Write down what you spend your time doing for one whole week even just a few days and you can easily see where you lack time and where you could easily draw a few minutes from. Be honest with yourself!  You may be amazed.

                Get organized:

This is another way I mismanage my time and a way that I am still learning to save myself one minute at a time till TaDa I have an extra hour every day! “If you don’t have the time to do it right when will you ever have time to do it over?” John Wooden.

                Bulk up:

One of the things that really drives me batty is when people tell me you don’t have the time to eat better. If you have the time to stroll through all the center isles of your local grocer, wait for your food at a sit down joint, or even better sit through the long lines at a drive through during any one of the meal time rushes you could have had a delicious and nutritious meal already in your tummy. There are so many tools to help us save time these days utilize them! Crock pots, ovens, steamers.. you know “Set it and forget it” kind of stuff. Make extra and then all you have to do is portion it out for the rest of the week and you have no more lines no more $10 lunch specials and NO MORE CRAP! Hey you can even watch that show while you prep for your week! :)

ENTHUSIASM:

LAST BUT MOST DEFINITELY NOT THE LEAST. It’s not easy to stay positive, you’re not always going to want to get up and get going day in and day out. Your head is going to get the best of you at times but this is where you must be strongest because its your thoughts that determine what you can do and ultimately what you will do. Think of your thoughts as your children it’s easy to let them get worked up or carried away but you are in charge of your mind and how your think. You choose which side to spend your time on, the half full side or the half empty one.

                Get inspired:

Find a way to inspire yourself every single day. Be it a person you follow,  and photo you have, a quote, a thought, The Book, make a conscious effort to get inspired every single day. Some days my inspiration comes from simply having done what I set out to do. I may not have wanted to get on the treadmill but I did and I’m now one step closer to my goals.

                Set Goals:

How do you eat an elephant?? One bite at a time… you’ll get there give yourself small reasonable goals to meet. It may be as short term as finishing all twelve reps. Whatever keeps you going.

                Stay Positive:

As my grandmother always said to me as a child, “Amber, you mind is a beautiful garden. Don’t let the pigs in.” It’s not an easy task and I likely will never fully master it but after several years I’ve learned not to dwell on the negative any more than I have to I allow myself a reasonable amount of time to handle any situation and then I move on back to the bright side. Try to surround yourself with only positive encouraging people. Every week I get to see my coach and my team up at Powerhouse and that alone can be my saving grace sometimes. We spend so much of our time harboring these negative stresses it weighs us down and adds to the pollution we are putting into our bodies.  Make the decision to be positive and stay positive.. You are in charge!

LIVE, LOVE, AND TRAIN YOUR ASS OFF!

Amber McCourtney