Welcome to the first ever Motivation Monday! 

As part of its grand debut, I wanted to create a post that would have the greatest effect on you!  In my Psychology class, my professor taught me about an internal locus of control.  Basically, people with an internal locus of control are intrinsically motivated – they do the things they do for themselves and themselves alone.  Studies have shown that people with an internal locus of control are more successful at achieving their goals.  In terms of weight loss, in order to be the most successful, I want you to want to become healthier for YOU, not because some Victoria’s Secret model said that you should weigh 90 pounds!
Part of creating an internal locus of control is keeping yourself accountable.  You have the power, and the responsibility, of not only setting your own goals, but also achieving them.  The best way to do this is to put your goals, both long term and short term, in writing.  Use the worksheet below to write down your goals as you create your internal locus of control:

Some important things to consider when setting your goals:

Hi, my name is Anika and I’m a fitness addict.

I first started dieting when I was in the fifth grade.  I had always been a good 10 to 20 pounds heavier than everyone else at school.  Though in elementary school, no one commented on my weight, assuming I was just a late bloomer who hadn’t lost her baby weight yet, my parents made me realize it.  I always knew I was heavier, but I didn’t think it was a problem until my parents told me I needed to watch it.  Hence, I started watching what I ate, or dieting, to be blunt.  Many people look at my parents as some kind of monsters for forcing a nine year old girl to give up endless quantities of chips, cookies, ice cream and soda.  In all honesty, throughout my whole rocky and bumpy road, I did too.  I mean what kind of parents did that?!  However, I feel that had my parents not stopped me then, I would not have started my fitness journey and who knows where I would have ended up?  Today, I am especially grateful towards them for pushing me, because honestly, if they had been "good-cop" parents who didn't want to hurt my feelings and didn't tell me to slow down, I would have never changed my lifestyle and would probably have developed some very serious medical complications by now.

I’ve been a yo-yo dieter for these rough eight years.  I went through this vicious cycle of losing weight, then gaining it back plus more, losing it (never all of it though), gaining even more, and so on.  With that, I decided to get on track in high school, when I was fed up with all the snickering and mean comments from bullies throughout junior high and the beginning of high school.  In my sophomore year of high school, I had lost all of my excess weight and had achieved something close to the dream body I had always wanted.

At the end of it, I thought that my body would just stay the same – no matter what I did.  I saw it as a free pass to eat whatever I wanted, and I gave up exercise all together!  In one summer, a mere three months, I gained 20 pounds.  After talking to one of my skinniest friends in the world, who eats like crap and exercises a LOT, I started following her regime.  I started exercising, not nearly as much as she did though (which is probably why I failed miserably when I tried imitating her style), but I still ate junk.  I will say that I controlled myself a bit more when it came to my diet, but it was not a significant difference.  I ended up gaining 10 more pounds throughout that school year. 

After a shocking awakening from my doctor at my annual physical, I was in utter shock - as were my parents, if you can imagine!  "You've gained 10 more pounds this year.  You are still at a healthy weight for your height, but you can't keep gaining ten pounds every year, sweetheart." I started tearing up in her office and the second I got into my car, I broke down.  How had I just let myself do this to my body?  All my hard work at losing all that blubber was now down the toilet just for that stupid doughnut and that poisonous couch!  How can one person lose all self control, blinded and unaware to what is happening to her body?  My parents went on a rage, going as far as banning ketchup because it had too much sugar. (This radical phase just lasted for a few days, though.)  At this time in my life, I hated myself SO MUCH!  I had come so close to my dream body, and I ruined it.  I had to start all over again, but this time around, the starting point was even worse than before.  When I came home, I promised myself, in writing, that this time, I would not blow it.  I found this quote and my journey started....for the second time:


I researched endlessly until I knew enough to get me started and keep me going.  Through proper diet and regular exercise, I lost those extra 30 pounds plus more.  Though I still have not achieved my overarching goals, I'm on this healthy lifestyle for good, and I'm never going back!  I have learned that this is a lifestyle that you constantly have to live with; it’s not something that you can just stop doing once you’ve reached your goals.

The first time I started my fitness journey, I lost weight and I ended up finding it again.  I didn't have the support, resources, or knowledge to get rid of my excess weight forever.  I want to help you all get rid of your weight, not lose it!

Good luck my lovelies!  Remember, with hard work and determination, anything is possible!