Don't Judge a Book by its Cover

"I just wanted to tell you, you look amazing. Keep doing whatever you're doing - it's working!" This is what a nice man in the gym said to me last night. Sure, I've heard it before. Yes, it's always nice to hear. Especially on days like yesterday when I was feeling the effects of trade show trauma, my term for the physical exhaustion that follows the packing, driving, checking into a hotel for 10 nights, going to start the set-up process for my show (a total of 6 hours when everything goes smoothly), getting to bed late and then up early to complete set-up which makes the first day of show a 14 + hour day. And all without a lunch or other kind of break, on my feet all day, talking, talking, talking. It was on my agenda to go to the gym after all that but of course by quitting time, I was trying to talk myself out of it, thinking instead how good bed would feel. And then, the list of excuses started to well up like a ground spring - I'm so very tired (true), I am hungry (I was actually just thirsty), it won't make a difference if I skip tonight (probably not but it will make a difference in my mind and how I feel about that decision), and finally - I can work out harder tomorrow (tomorrow never comes when this excuse gets used so this is NOT an option).

So I went and got to hear about how amazing I look from a stranger. I thought about all the work that has gone into my transformation and how the work in the gym is actually the easy part. Well, for me it is because I LOVE weight training. It's the time outside the gym that is the real work. And that is non-stop! The constant self-talk and weighing lifestyle choices is what makes the time in the gym successful. Without that self-support base, where would I be? Probably tipping the scales at 200 + lbs, with a bad attitude to keep myself in miserable company! My time in the gym is easy compared to the rest of the time where temptation is lurking around every corner. While the compliments are nice, my inner champion gets most of her strength training done OUTSIDE the gym!