If you really want something, you’ll find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse….. When struggling through a difficult or tragic period in your life; I understand it’s hard to see there IS a way. Painful emotions are like cataracts, causing your vision of the world to darken and forcing you to squint to see even a glimmer of light. Challenge the misperception that there is no way out because 
you are too beaten down to get out of bed. When you feel sad or broken, exercise is often the farthest thing from your mind. I’ve been there. I understand the helpless feeling you get after realizing you’ve lost control over your own life. Be brave. I’ve learned that if you really want to be happy, feel better about yourself, overcome tragedy, get rid of excuses, and step into the light, you need to fight for it. Believe that there is a force inside you that desperately wants you to see again. It will un-relentlessly hunt for a cure; if you let it….That force in my life was fitness and exercise. If you’ve read my story, you know how passionately I believe that fitness helps you develop the strength needed to regain control of your life. Exercise made me feel alive again, and it can do the same for you.
On my lowest days, I made so many excuses for not exercising ~ I’m too sad to get off the couch. My life is so unfair; there’s no point in fighting anymore. Nothing is ever going to be good again, so why try. ~ We make excuses because we fear not having the strength to change, to keep pushing through, or to live a better life. My inner voice would say “Not trying means I can’t fail, and remaining blind and stagnant is so much safer than trying to fight, right?” Mmmm, sorry inner-self, you were wrong. So, I stopped making excuses and started moving. Cataracts don’t go away overnight, and I had my fair share of dark days. But, gradually, my days became brighter. I saw exercise and the power of will transform my life. I felt the change. Exercise was the vessel that took me away from the darkness. The ability to exercise is now something I cherish as a blessing, a gift, and my saving grace.
My Dad, a man who exercised everyday, loved working in the yard, and would drop everything just to go hiking with his family, lost the ability to walk as brain cancer slowly took over his body. It was devastating to watch everything he loved about life suddenly taken away. I still think about this: For my Dad, there was no way, no choice. As I sat feeling sorry for myself, I realized I had a choice. I could remain paralyzed, continue making excuse after excuse, and let the pain I felt destroy my life, or do what my father would have done~ stand up, put my shoes on, and get moving. I’m pretty sure you know which choice I made.
Think about Christopher Reeves, a man who, despite being paralyzed from the neck down, was determined to live the best life he could regardless of the odds against him. He could have easily retreated into the depths of despair, but he chose to fight. He didn’t make excuses…. So when you think about it, what excuse do you really have? “Not having time” isn’t going to cut it. Find joy in the blessing of good health. Don’t take it for granted. You have to believe there is a way to heal your blurred and darkened vision. Failure is not an option.
No more saying “I’m going to change how I eat” or “I’m going to exercise and get healthy,” and then coming up with a million different excuses for not taking action. There is ALWAYS a way. It’s time to see the world again. No, it’s not easy. Find the resiliency inside yourself to decide that there will be no more excuses, only action. Throw away your fear. You have the ability to choose what kind of life you want to live. If time is such a scare commodity in your life, don’t waste it.
Resiliency Fitness 