I have had so many people ask me how I was so successful in my weight loss journey. Of course, I would tell them the logistics of my journey. You know, my calorie intake, workout routine, all of that. Don’t worry, we will get to that. But when you get past that it really boils down to one word: Integrity. I’m telling you that one word has changed my health, my mental state and well… my life.
Have you ever thought that word? What does that mean? What does it mean to you? According to dictionary.com, integrity means “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness.” You’re probably thinking right now “What on earth does integrity have to do with weight loss?” I will explain and how it has changed my life.
Integrity has always meant to me keeping your word when you say you are going to do something. This could mean anything. Maybe a promise you made to a friend, your kids, your spouse – really anyone. I’ve always tried to keep my promises to people. I’ve never wanted someone to say, “Well, she’s a liar” or “She said she would, but she didn’t.” I wanted to be the one someone could rely on. I’m not saying I am perfect at all, but that character has always been important to me. Now having children, I want them to know that your word is important. People rely on you. This could be to a sibling, or on a sports team. It’s integrity, or character. But, what about integrity to yourself? Have you ever thought about that?
Integrity to yourself! How many times have you told yourself “The diet starts Monday?” and you know it’s true that that Monday never comes. One Monday comes and goes… then another and another and before you know it an entire year has passed because you broke your promise to yourself. Hey! I’m talking to myself here too! I have broken so many promises to myself! I used to say “Oh, I’ll do better starting Monday” or “I’m going to start this program tomorrow morning” and It never did, but then I learned about Integrity! Here’s something that changed my life! Not only the concept of personal integrity, but the belief that I was worth having that integrity.
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I was worth keeping my promise to myself...
It came down to seeing myself as valuable.
I was worth keeping my promise to myself because if I didn’t I would put that workout off, or eat that junk food rather than asking for something better. It came down to seeing myself as valuable.
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I was worth keeping my promise to myself...
It came down to seeing myself as valuable.
That can be so hard! We can be so hard on ourselves, especially moms. We tend to put ourselves on the back burner. We give our babies the best! We give our toddlers first of everything or even our older kids. I know I did. I would give my son first of everything during the day and then my husband got home and I would put him first. That’s how I got to 205 pounds. I had to switch my thinking. I had to take care of myself. Whatever that may look like for you. We just put ourselves last, but we (and by we I mean me) need to put ourselves first. I’m telling you, when I grasped that important bit it completely changed my life. It changed how I looked at my life. It has completely changed my look on being a mother.
You might be thinking. “But Becky, that is so hard! I get so overwhelmed!”
OH I KNOW!!! It’s so overwhelming! It can be, but here’s something that I would focus on: ONE THING AT A TIME! You don’t have to change your entire life in one day. In fact, you really shouldn’t. Don’t look at this as a magic pill. This is a lifestyle change. It’s building new habits. For me, I would get so overwhelmed and then I would quit. Well, with this, I picked one thing and just focused on that. For me it was water.
I changed my water intake. It’s my promise to myself. Every day I drink half my body weight in water. YES! I know it’s a lot, but I promised myself I would and I do. I did that for 7 days and then I would add a new healthy habit. It was all about building healthy LONG TERM habits. I wanted something that would be long term. Don’t worry, we will go into this more later, but now just know it’s all about integrity!
Now, I choose better for me because I feel better. I love how my body feels! I love that I have more energy to chase my son and how my clothes look. I also love how much stronger I am now. I know that I got here because I see the value in myself. I am worth keeping those promises to myself. So, think of one thing you can promise yourself that you WILL NOT give up. Be like a pit bull. Be so focused that nothing will change you, nothing will make you take your eyes of your goals. You WILL get there! It’s time to have INTEGRITY to yourself! You are worth it!
