I have been asked by a few people over the last while why I am doing this. Why do I want to workout all the time? Why do I do my full time job, teach Ju Jitsu part time and workout in between? Why do I have to eat healthy all the time? Don't you want to take a break from it all? Why do you want to be muscular, are you wanting to be a body builder? You're going to look like a man! Usually I'm thinking to myself, why do I need to justify it?
Of course I have my reasons for eating healthy, training and working out all the time. I want to be stronger, more powerful, faster and better. I want to achieve more as a martial artist and compete better. I am doing this for myself and myself only. I'm not doing it for Ernie, I know he would love me no matter how active or inactive I am. I do this to keep myself happy. When I was inactive and out of shape, I wasn't very happy with myself. I didn't like how I was performing as a fighter, I didn't have much cardio. My confidence in myself was lower than it has ever been. I don't like feeling down about myself, to be honest, I am kind of my favorite person. So shouldn't I be happy about myself? I didn't hate myself, I just wasn't as confident as I could have been. A lot of people think that if you're working so hard to change yourself physically that you must hate yourself, women especially think that. I feel like its the opposite. I feel like you have to say, "I love myself enough that I want to achieve all I can, and imagine how much more amazing I can be!" I think of how much better of a fighter I can be, how much faster and stronger I can be.
Personally for my goals, I don't aim to be really lean or "skinny". I don't want to be a body builder, its just not my thing. However, I do want to be muscular and achieve the "athletic" look, so I train and eat like one. I don't have an on and off season, I want to look the best I can at all times, not just before a competition.
Its not just about appearance though. For me its building the foundation for better habits as I grow older. I wish that I started this journey even earlier than I have. I don't ever want to be in my 50's and look back on my 20's and be wishing that I had better habits as a young person. My family history includes diabetes, cancer, heart disease, etc. I am making it my mission to try and avoid as many of those as I can. I realize that there are certain things that come with age. For me I think as I get older arthritis will likely be an issue. You can't do martial arts for years and years and not expect some sort of wear and tear on your joints
. However if I can eat healthy and stay as active as I can, hopefully I can sway from heart disease or diabetes. I know that as people age, it only gets harder to start. One of the women in the fitness class I did on Friday said to me that she didn't start becoming active until the last few years and it's been difficult to stick to because she was never really active in when she was younger. I feel like if I start now and make it a priority in my life then it will come much more naturally as I age.
I feel the same way about eating healthy. I realize that eating healthy is difficult. Cost of food is atrocious, never mind the cost of eating healthy. I realize that for a lot of people the cost is what stops them. Be that as it may, I feel like its important to think of it as an investment in yourself. Who better in this life to invest in than yourself? Well, maybe Bill Gates, but that's besides the point! Think of eating healthy and buying gym memberships or equipment as an investment into your health. Its like saving for retirement. Work now to reap the benefits for a healthy future. Less money spent on medications, surgeries, etc and you can use your precious time here on earth for the better things in life!
The other very important reason I do what I do is because of something that doesn't even exist yet! I am doing this for my future children. When I was growing up, we were an active family. We used to play baseball in the front yard, go for walks, horseback riding, etc. I want that for my future kids. I want to teach them to cook and eat healthy. I want them to see their mom and dad eating healthy and being active and carry it on for their lives. I hope that if I have girls that I can instill them confidence in their own bodies give them a healthy self esteem. I want my kids to be active and hopefully inherit some of Ernie's athletic stills. Studies have shown that families that are active together stay healthier and the kids are overall happier. Who wouldn't want that for their life and the ones they love?
Of course I have my reasons for eating healthy, training and working out all the time. I want to be stronger, more powerful, faster and better. I want to achieve more as a martial artist and compete better. I am doing this for myself and myself only. I'm not doing it for Ernie, I know he would love me no matter how active or inactive I am. I do this to keep myself happy. When I was inactive and out of shape, I wasn't very happy with myself. I didn't like how I was performing as a fighter, I didn't have much cardio. My confidence in myself was lower than it has ever been. I don't like feeling down about myself, to be honest, I am kind of my favorite person. So shouldn't I be happy about myself? I didn't hate myself, I just wasn't as confident as I could have been. A lot of people think that if you're working so hard to change yourself physically that you must hate yourself, women especially think that. I feel like its the opposite. I feel like you have to say, "I love myself enough that I want to achieve all I can, and imagine how much more amazing I can be!" I think of how much better of a fighter I can be, how much faster and stronger I can be.
Personally for my goals, I don't aim to be really lean or "skinny". I don't want to be a body builder, its just not my thing. However, I do want to be muscular and achieve the "athletic" look, so I train and eat like one. I don't have an on and off season, I want to look the best I can at all times, not just before a competition.
Its not just about appearance though. For me its building the foundation for better habits as I grow older. I wish that I started this journey even earlier than I have. I don't ever want to be in my 50's and look back on my 20's and be wishing that I had better habits as a young person. My family history includes diabetes, cancer, heart disease, etc. I am making it my mission to try and avoid as many of those as I can. I realize that there are certain things that come with age. For me I think as I get older arthritis will likely be an issue. You can't do martial arts for years and years and not expect some sort of wear and tear on your joints
. However if I can eat healthy and stay as active as I can, hopefully I can sway from heart disease or diabetes. I know that as people age, it only gets harder to start. One of the women in the fitness class I did on Friday said to me that she didn't start becoming active until the last few years and it's been difficult to stick to because she was never really active in when she was younger. I feel like if I start now and make it a priority in my life then it will come much more naturally as I age.
I feel the same way about eating healthy. I realize that eating healthy is difficult. Cost of food is atrocious, never mind the cost of eating healthy. I realize that for a lot of people the cost is what stops them. Be that as it may, I feel like its important to think of it as an investment in yourself. Who better in this life to invest in than yourself? Well, maybe Bill Gates, but that's besides the point! Think of eating healthy and buying gym memberships or equipment as an investment into your health. Its like saving for retirement. Work now to reap the benefits for a healthy future. Less money spent on medications, surgeries, etc and you can use your precious time here on earth for the better things in life!
The other very important reason I do what I do is because of something that doesn't even exist yet! I am doing this for my future children. When I was growing up, we were an active family. We used to play baseball in the front yard, go for walks, horseback riding, etc. I want that for my future kids. I want to teach them to cook and eat healthy. I want them to see their mom and dad eating healthy and being active and carry it on for their lives. I hope that if I have girls that I can instill them confidence in their own bodies give them a healthy self esteem. I want my kids to be active and hopefully inherit some of Ernie's athletic stills. Studies have shown that families that are active together stay healthier and the kids are overall happier. Who wouldn't want that for their life and the ones they love?
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