DO IT FOR YOU

My thought for the week, and very much an opinion. When you embark on a healthy lifestyle, and your own transformation, DO IT FOR YOU, nobody else.

I've known friends and clients that start exercising in order to transform themselves with the intention of impressing an ex boyfriend, or winning the approval of a mother or father, or husband or wife. I hear things like "I'm going to look so hot, my ex is going to wish he'd never broken up with me" or " If I exercise harder, maybe my mother will stop criticising me and start acknowledging me more."

The reality is, that there are some people you won't impress, or at least they will never show you that they're impressed or give you the acknowledgement you seek. This hurts, particularly when it's a loved one. It may even cause you to self destruct as you look for other ways to get their attention.

Understand, that the issue is with them. Chances are they're too preoccupied with seeking the approval of someone else, to give you the acknowledgement you're looking for! Embarking on a transformation to impress others will not give you a strong enough reason to succeed, it will leave you feeling empty and disappointed. You are infinitely more valuable than anyone's perception of you, and their approval is of no lasting value. So, do it FOR YOU. For the way it feels to have energy and vitality, for the growth experience of challenging yourself in new ways, for the opportunity to start loving the person staring back at you in the mirror.

Ironically, it seems that people who least require the approval and acknowledgement of others, are the ones that receive it the most (for whatever it's worth). To me, this is a sign of success.
(Ashley Galliard 2015)