Patterns

This week is crazy. My birthday was Tuesday, today is my daughters birthday and Saturday and Sunday are birthday parties. Last night was also a relief society birthday party. What does that mean for me and my goals? Food, lots of sugary, greasy, "hey who cares its your birthday" yummy food. I decided to indulge on my birthday. I ate a burger and fries and cupcakes and pizza and soda. Everything I was dreaming to eat. But at the end of the day I was so sick. I was dying to get back on track and eat healthy the next day. Yesterday was a day of temptation and although I managed to stay on track for most of it I just couldn't say no to the delicious cake sitting right in front of me. Today my daughter wanted to get doughnuts for her class so of course there were doughnuts for breakfast. I managed to say no and eat my healthy veggie and egg breakfast. But I was feeling overwhelmed because as part of the birthday fun I wanted to take molly out to lunch today. She of course wants to go to McDonald's and when I asked what she wanted me to make for dinner tonight her response was mac and cheese. It's starting to feel like too much! And my thoughts were selling me on the idea of giving up or pausing til Monday. Luckily, I listened to a podcast yesterday that really motivated me to stay on track. The podcast was by Ed Mylett (another life coach) and I heard about him through my brother in law. It was the first podcast from Ed Mylett that I have listened too but it made an impact on me.

His podcast was about patterns. Patterns we create in our lives when things get hard or when things get good. He said we all have a pattern of action that we don't really recognize. For me that is eating healthy. I have a pattern of doing good and then a situation or situation(s) come up where temptation is everywhere or it feels like it is everywhere. I then feel overwhelmed and my action is giving up or stopping, which I always hate because then I have to start all over again. I felt it in February when I started the 28 day health challenge, then in week 2 I went on vacation. I feel it now with birthday week. This thought that I can't or I don't want to do this. But Ed said that if you can recognize the pattern, if you can make a conscious decision to acknowledge it then it no longer has any power over you. That is so awesome! And I feel it working for me. Last night when I was feeling weak and reviewing in my head all the food I would be missing out on, I examined my thoughts and realized its a pattern. Now I feel so much power and so much more in control just because I am determined not to follow the pattern. I will keep plugging away, loving myself, eating what I healthy when I can and not beating myself up for mistakes. I will not give up and I will not be defeated. I will keep going because I worth it!

A quote I keep by my bed says: "IF YOU DON'T GIVE UP THEN YOU CAN'T FAIL" it is so true!