December 23, 2013

Motivational Monday #46


I have a short but sweet Motivational Monday today, which I hope just means that everyone is having too much fun during the holiday season to send in some pictures ;)  I've had a completely draining week, and as long as Mark is fighting this cancer, I'm sure it's going to be hard on me emotionally. I visited him again today, and he was doing better than Saturday as far as pain management. There were 100 more cards in the P.O. box for him this morning! I know I keep saying this, but I am SO grateful to everyone who has shown support for him. There are so many good people in this world, and I thank you all for reminding me of that :)

Anyway, I've had an emotional week, but I have NOT used food to make me feel better, and for that, I'm very proud of myself. I'll write more about this on Wednesday, but food has been put on the back burner in my mind this week, which has been helpful. I also managed to get through an 11-mile run on the treadmill Friday, which is definitely something to be proud of ;)

Here are a few motivational stories just in time for Christmas...

Stacey and her girlfriend, Kaitlin, started counting calories early this year and have now lost a combined 70 pounds! Stacey has also gotten Kaitlin interested in running, and Kaitlin ran her first half-marathon in October, finishing in 2:06. Stacey didn't even start running herself until joining the Air Force, and then she realized she was a natural-born runner. She ran her first half-marathon in 1:57, and has since PR'ed with a 1:43 finish; she ran her first marathon in 3:56, and has even run a 50K! 


Forty days ago, Shelley joined a fitness challenge at her gym that had a big incentive: lose 20 pounds in 40 days by going to the gym 5-6 days a week and eating clean, and get your money back! At her Day 40 weigh-in, she'd dropped 21.6 pounds, several inches (two dress sizes), gained muscle, and made some great friends. She received her money back--$359! Now her goal is to run and set some new PR's.



About five years ago, Emily started doing the Couch to 5K program, and lost some weight during that; however, she injured her knee so badly that her doctor told her she should never run again. In August, she moved out of state for school, and there wasn't a local dog park for her beagle, so she started to take him on walks instead. She started with just a mile, and then two, and then four... building her way up. One day, she jogged up one of the hills out of impatience. And then she started jogging up all of the hills, and she hasn't felt a single twinge in her knee. She started out with 22-23 minute miles, and today she ran a mile in 11:54! She's thrilled with her progress, and she said that she heard Santa was going to bring her a Garmin to track her runs ;)  (Emily's blog)



Don't forget to check out some more motivating stories (and share your own) on the Motivational Monday Facebook post!

3 comments:

  1. This is really inspirational and congrats to all those people in the post. I always love these success stories because it is possible to get in shape once you have the mindset. It was hard for me in the beginning but with strong will and attitude I managed to get into the best shape of my life at 30. Thanks for sharing!

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  2. Fantastic inspirations this week!!! Great job everyone!

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