Choose your hard

So, I don't always exercise, but when I do something good usually comes of it. Well to be honest, as of late I hardly EVER exercise... haha. I'm trying to change that though. I decided to go for a walk today, and it was so beautiful outside! It probably turned into more of a photo shoot than a workout, but hey! I love the fall sooooo much, I wish the weather and the colors could just stay forever. I just took it from an ipod touch, so the quality isn't the greatest.. I think I need a nicer camera. Anywho, here are some pics!

I really do love the outdoors! I don't spend nearly enough time out there, and I don't even know why. It is definitely something I want to change.
Today I was looking for some motivational quotes to get me going again, and I found one that hit home for me. "Eating healthy is hard, exercising is hard, and staying healthy is hard. But being unhealthy and overweight is also hard. Choose your hard." Uhm, wow! I hadn't ever really thought of it that way before. I often complain about trying to lose weight and get healthy, and how I hate how long it takes, how sucky it is to limit sugar, etc. But I also complain about how crappy I feel in my skin right now. Either way I go, its going to be hard! So I may as well choose the healthier road, so that at least my body is being taken care of!

I think getting healthy and fit is more than making a plan, or scheduling out your month's workouts and limiting yourself to kale and lemon water. (although it is important to eat right and exercise, and it does help to have a plan!) I think it is just making better choices each day and doing simple things like going for walks or playing ball with your kids in the park. It's getting enough sleep, going for bike rides, finding healthier substitutes in your meals.

We can't expect ourselves to withdraw completely from life, and the good things that come with it and become obsessive about what you eat and how many hours you spend at the gym everyday. (Maybe for some of you it works, I guess, but definitely not for me!) It is a mental thing too! You have to find joy in what you are doing or the motivation is not going to last. So, it is a hard road. There are frustrations, let downs, splurge days, and laziness that get in the way of success and make things hard. But if we can't find joy in the journey, we need to change our efforts and attitude. And by we, I mostly mean I!