Be the Tortoise

You are going to run into challenges with whatever you are doing in your life. That's what life is about. I believe if there were no challenges, no curve balls, no seemingly bad situations that arise for you to overcome, that's when life is over. That's when God decides we're done here and he takes us home.

Sometimes, just a little bit of cake doesn't seem so bad. Sometimes that little voice starts talking to you, convincing you that "it's just one bite of cake. That's not going to hurt you." But I now see and am in control of knowing that "just one bite" turns into the whole darned thing and, as my friend Kelly put it "well, shit, I just already ate crappy, what else can I shove in my mouth?" And then before I know it, I've consistently eaten crappy for weeks on end.

Darren Hardy talks about your "walls" in his book The Compound Effect. The "walls" are those times when you have to decide if you're going to keep going or not. He says in the book that "it's not getting to the wall that counts; it's what you do after you hit it." He stated "Winning the race is all about pace. Be the tortoise. The person who, given enough time, will be virtually anybody in any competition as a result of positive habits and behaviors applied consistently."

I would describe myself as the tortoise. I can stick with situations even when they are tough, I have consistent routines (some would call that being in a rut), I persevere through situations or relationships, I stick things out. I am loyal beyond when it's even healthy for me to be loyal. So I have the ability to keep the pace for a long, consistent time.

However, I would have to say that over the past 38 years, the things I've been consistent with have not been serving me well. I have not been healthy, I have not been happy, I have not been energetic or excited about life, I have not been able to stand up for myself when I've needed to. I have been consistently eating poorly, drinking coffee, drinking alcohol, not exercising, etc. All of these things over time, have yielded depression, anxiety, weight gain, illness, and a general dissatisfaction with life.

Lance Armstrong wrote "there is a point in every race when a rider encounters his real opponent and understands that it's himself." I came to that point when I decided to "go all in" on this diet. I came to the understanding that I was the one holding ME back. I had to get OK with that, take the responsibility for it, and then work to overcome MYSELF. It's so true. They say "you are your own worst enemy." No one can control what you are thinking about, what you are are happy, sad or angry about. You have to decide what you are going to do, what you are going to have and what you are going to be.

"...you get in life what you tolerate... Put another way, you will get what you accept and expect you are worthy of." And my favorite way of saying the same idea: "If you always do what you've always done then you'll always get what you've always got." (I don't know who said that first but it sums it up pretty well!)