This weekend I saw a good friend achieve something really significant – something I’ve always dreamed of doing myself. I wasn’t envious, I was incredibly proudĀ of him.
When I was in the pub drinking beer, he was drinking soda water. When I was eating takeaways, he was eating balanced, nutritious food. Whilst I was gaining weight, he was losing it. When I was ticking over in training he was applying himself. It was enough to jolt me back into my normal routine after a 7 week hiatus since running the Chester Marathon.
We discussed this at our groups this week, and after asking if anybody else had been similarly re-motivated, one of our members said yes, she had! Her sister has cancer and hasn’t been very well at all. She told us all that her poorly sister has been positively encouraging her to get back to how she once was, healthier and fitter – “I want you to be more like the old you”. I was absolutely choked and, for once, lost for words. After all that her sister is going through, her only thoughts were to provide encouragement to her sibling.
This wasn’t that dissimilar to my own lifestyle change motivation – when I chose to make a promise to a Mum who watched her son pass away after allowing doctors to switch off his life support machine. Adam’s organs gave the gift of life to five other people that night. How could I ever let that incredible lady down after what she had been through? After that I just never stopped wanting to lead by example.
Does December really have to get in the way of our goals? Are we not strong enough to manage a really positive routine right through the month? If you’re off to a Christmas party one night, just take one night out of your routine – not the whole weekend, the full week or all month.
There are some people who no longer have the opportunity to change their life, we all know somebody. Let’s dedicate December to them and demonstrate how mentally strong we are!
You can do it, I know I will.