Advice from a Bear

Live Large.

Climb beyond your Limitations.

When life gets hairy, grin and bear it.

Eat well.

Live with the seasons.

Take a good long nap.

Look after your honey!

I found this on a postcard this summer while in Colorado. It is by a poet named Ilan Shamir.  I found this to be cute and also something I could apply to my journey to fitness which I had only just started. I started my blog just before that trip in July. It 's amazing to me how much sharing my thoughts with all of you has helped me to THINK more thoughts worth sharing.  Now I look for wisdom in places I never would have before. I think about how things relate to my quest for health both inside and out. 

This poem spoke to me because before this life change, I would have chuckled at the "fat person" humor hidden here. But now, I see so much more.  

Live large no longer means, enjoy how fat you are. Love yourself at your fat size. Now, it means, live life to the fullest.  FILL your life with things and people you love.  Make living your life an ACTIVE instead of PASSIVE activity.

Climb beyond your limitations is not something you just SAY and philosophize about, it's something you DO, every day.  You learn new things, do new things, and push your body and thoughts beyond where you never thought you could. Like me with the push ups and chin ups and RUNNING?  Never would have thought to do those things before. And don't forget Tae Kwon Do.

Before, when life got hairy, I got hungry. Eat when I'm stressed. Eat when I'm sad. Eat when I'm disappointed. Eat when I'm angry. Eat when I'm......well, just eat, eat, eat.  Eating always makes you forget, right? Until the next day and I'm fatter and more miserable. So then what? The cycle starts ALL over again. NOT anymore. NOW, Grin and bear it means, GRIN and bear it. There will be times when things are hard, but a good attitude and a smile, go a long way to helping you through it. You don't need any food to get through those times. All you need is a smile and patience.

Eat well would have meant pig out whenever you want before. Eat the whole pizza and bread sticks and don't forget dessert. NOW, it means EAT WELL.  Eat good things that are good for me.  Avoid unhealthy choices. Eat to BE well.

Live with the seasons now means, GET OUT and see the world. Enjoy each season and the healthy foods and activities each one brings. Enjoy the change in the feel of the air. See the trees and flowers and the go by as I'm jogging or riding my bike. EAT in season fruits and veggies. LIVE in the NOW.

Take a good long nap DOESN'T mean lounge around after the huge binge and before the football games start anymore. It means, SLEEP is important to your body. It's another form of fuel your body and brain need. You have to REST body and spirit sometimes.  Respect your sleep and make sure it is quality.  The weeks I sleep more and better, I LOSE more weight. All that crap on the news has roots in fact after all.

Look after your honey is NOT referring to ACTUAL honey or chocolate or whatever other treat I plan to hoard and hide from anyone else in the house. YES I've done it. I've hidden cookies and candies and shit, there's a chance I still have other such trash stashed somewhere. NO. Look after your honey means, take care of those around you. Yes, my husband, but my friends and family and my blogosphere friends also.  Making the most of your life means taking care of each other.

And so, I took that slightly amusing postcard with the Fat person humor and turned it into well...inspiration. Why? Because suddenly I am an expert or literary genius or maybe I just enjoy lecturing all you people. NO. Because my body is changed, my BRAIN is changed and I see the world a WHOLE new way because this is a LIFE change.  And it is for REAL.

What about you? Are you changing your brain AND your body? Or are you still in your old thinking playing those same thought games with yourself? "When I'm skinny I'll eat what I want." or "If I weigh what she does, I can eat those cookies, too." or "I'll just eat ONE candy bar." or "Today is my free day, I'm giving myself a break from the program."

Make sure you are working on your BRAIN and your body. Without that long term success will be hard to come by.