Life happens. It’s not an excuse.

Life happens. Don't let that be an excuse.

So, you’re in a rhythm. Working out four or five times a week, exactly on schedule. You’re eating right most of the time. Keeping your food journal and watching those calories. You’re getting plenty of sleep and meditating from time to time to keep the stress at bay.

And then things are scheduled three days in a row and you don’t exercise. Or the dog got sick and you had to rush him to the vet after work when you usually work out. Or you had to stop at the grocery store and the lines were a mile long.

Your living partner brings in a treat that’s too delectable to pass up. Or he / she made a dish that they were so proud of that you absolutely could not turn down.

You listened to the news or read an article that kept your brain working all night long. Two hours of sleep.

You fell off the wagon

Life happens. It’s not an excuse.

It happens to everyone. You’re not special. You’re not immune from life.

So what? You didn’t exercise for three days in a row. You ate a few extra calories. you can’t un-eat them – there’s no going back in time. Or you lost some sleep. No big deal.

Don’t make that an excuse

Life happens. Get back on the wagon. Get back to your regularly scheduled routine.

Don’t make not exercising or eating a few extra calories an excuse to stay off the wagon.

I’ve heard it too often: What’s the use? If I work out today, it won’t make up for the days I lost.

That doesn’t matter. If you wait another couple of days, you’ll be sore in the following days, your energy will be low, you’ll have trouble completing the workout.

You are an exerciser! You’ve built up that habit over months. Don’t spoil that now. Don’t change that habit. You just had an interruption. Get back on that treadmill. Or stick that DVD in the player. Change into your workout gear.

And those extra calories? They don’t matter now. Devote your energy to making healthy choices today.

Read another post about motivation.

Focus on the important stuff

Is frizz important?

There are a limited number of hours in a day. You’ve got to spend 7 or 8 of them sleeping. The rest are up for grabs! Lately I noticed how many products there are in the marketplace for frizzy hair. And lately I’ve noticed that with all the rain and humidity we’ve had my hair has gone totally frizz. Am I tempted by all these products that promise smooth silky hair without frizz? No. It’s not important to me. I notice that my hair is frizzy because I do look in the mirror to make sure I’m somewhat presentable (the public does come into my shop, after all), but I’ve got better things to think about than my hair.

Focus on more important things

I think about training my dogs – what do they need for us to succeed as a team in their sports? I think about my sister’s and my shop – what can I do to make Golly Gear more successful, and our customers happier? I think about what to make for dinner (meal planning sort of went out the window this week…). I think about my new balance exercises.

So, you can see that I try not to focus on stuff that is unimportant to me.

What really is important?

To focus on the important things, though, I have to decide what really is important. Of course, what’s important to you may be very different from what’s important to me. And no one can tell you what’s important – aside from the obvious, of course – family, friends, work, etc.

Prioritize

Once the important stuff is decided, then it’s a matter of prioritizing tasks.  Balancing the different aspects of my life. You would think this would be easy, but it may not be. I find that the best method of prioritizing is to get absolutely everything down on paper and then sort the tasks. It can be a monumental effort, but once it’s done, I get a great feeling of relief.

What’s not on that list of tasks? De-frizzing my hair. Making an appointment with my stylist is, though!

Enjoy every moment!

I know it’s trite. But lately every face I see walking down the street is glum. A restaurant is next door to our little shop, and people should be looking forward to a good meal, meeting with friends or family and having a good time. But many are frowning, having arguments with the people they’re with, or yelling on the phone.Enjoy every moment!

That doesn’t sound like a good time. It might even be bad for the digestion.

Yes, the world is upside-down in many ways these days. The country is divided and hardly anyone seems happy. Or even content. Traffic is a nightmare. Your boss is toxic.

So let’s make our own contentment. Take a look around. If the sky is blue, enjoy it! Or, if there are interesting cloud formations, enjoy that.

Appreciate the flower by the side of the road. Enjoy the cool feeling when you swallow a sip of water.

Look at that dolphin in the picture. He’s doing something he loves doing! Jumping! I took that photo the last time I was at Dolphin Research Center in Grassy Key, Florida. The overwhelming feeling I get every time I go there is joy. I must remember that feeling when I’m overwhelmed by other feelings. Remember that joy!

And I must look around and find something to enjoy! With a little practice you can do it too.