Stress, life, activities, chores, appointments, stuff… it just piles up. Not only can it get to the best of us, it can create anxiety and make us more vulnerable. It’s in everyone’s life. Things trigger your emotions daily. People trigger your emotions daily. Some of our habits and routines can trigger your mind to continue down a path you don’t want to go. Life does not slow down, it just keeps going on and on and we have to figure it out.

Wait, figure it out? Deal with stress on my own? What do you mean? I have no idea how to deal with it all. My life is never the same, instead it’s full of ups and downs, sometimes with problems and other times with peace. How on earth do I figure this out? How do I stay grounded?

This was my life up to the point where I learned how to WIN my fight-throughs! I realized I needed new habits. I needed new coping skills. No longer could I sit back and let my life fly by… I had to create and keep new habits. My life took a big turn in 2012 when I decided I wanted to be a runner. I needed a new habit, one that created a schedule I had to stick to. A friend said something to me when we were debating it. Even today it sticks in my head, “do you have something better to do?” And it was like a challenge, a dare. I jumped right in.

It was easy for me to give up a lot of things. I gave up sleeping in Saturday mornings with my pillow and cozy bed. I gave up every alcoholic drink offered to me. I gave up nights out with friends and chose to go home and run. I gave up pizza Fridays and popcorn nights. I learned to choose squash over pasta, sweet potatoes over French fries, and protein over carbs. Not only did I change my diet and start to run, I did a lot of working out, and I got stronger.

The first goal… run a 5k.  I made it and did fine. I had never run before so my time wasn’t great, but I did feel like I had accomplished a lot. The second goal… run a 10k. I about died during that race and my running partner ran ahead and signaled to me to keep coming. I finished and that’s all that mattered. The third goal… a half marathon, Women Rock 2014. The moment I went across that finish line and dodged my family waiting to greet me (ask my husband it’s true!), I knew it wasn’t for me. I am not a runner. This was not natural, and I just knew it wasn’t my game.

Does it matter that I gave up the idea of being a runner that day? In the end, I learned something about myself. I learned the process to make me a runner created new confidence. I WON the fight-throughs. From the temptation to stay home, relax, and have another glass of wine, to ultimately breaking up with sugar, something was created in me. I won. I am a winner.

I guess my point is this… do you have something better to do? Do you have a dream you want to pursue, but you’re waiting to figure it out? Can you establish a new habit that is better for you?  Because you are going to feel amazing when you go after whatever habit or dream it is that you want to create. I chose running because people that ran marathons inspired me. Figure out what inspires you.

So where do I start? According to Dr. Jason Selk and Tom Bartow, in their book Organize Tomorrow Today, get ready to go through 3 stages with a new habit and change.

1. The honeymoon. During this phase, you’ll make yourself proud. You’ll feel so excited that you are starting something and it will feel good. This could last for three days or even a week or two. You might even start to think, this is easy. But no matter what, you will at some point be presented with an opportunity to lose your focus. When I set off to run a race, I had no choice but to keep going. It was scheduled and I was meeting my running partner. There was just no choice.
2. The fight-throughs. This is where the change or habit becomes hard. An obstacle will present itself at some point. When I started running I remember countless times saying to my running partner, “I am dying,” or “I am stopping to walk,” or the one time I said, “I’m just going to run backwards!” Most people drop off somewhere around this point. Don’t let that happen to you. Make sure you recognize the barrier and say to yourself that you will win this one today. Every time you win, it makes winning the next battle easier. Ask yourself two things – how will I feel if I win this battle? How will I feel if I lose? Think about your quality of life if you keep winning.
3. The lifetime habit. It does not take 21 days to create a new habit. Google that. It actually takes anywhere from 21 days to sometimes 2 or 3 years. What is it that you want to change or fix? How many times will you win? All of this will determine your success on this new change. And when you win, it will be amazing.

Come see what it feels like on my side. Start to win those fight-throughs! The reality is, you won’t be able to win every time. You just move forward. You’ll have setbacks but you really can’t let them determine your success. Today marks day 19 of my new eating plan. I am working on eating a ketogenic diet. And I am feeling stronger and more energetic than ever. It has reminded me that I am winning. It is getting easier and easier.

The moral of the story is this, I had created a passion in myself for health and wellness throughout the entire training period for my first ever half marathon. And I became hungry for more!! I jumped in and learned a lot of new things about diet, exercise, supplements, and eating well. I started to learn how to become stronger mentally. I dove into so many positive books and those authors have stuck in my head. And every minute of my life since then… I have loved it all. Challenges are now obstacles. Every new habit I want to create becomes an obstacle and I win… “do you have something better to do?”