Hometown love

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The desire to be a movie star, rock star or any kind of star is every kids dream.  Not many children look at the moon and say that is my dream.  It was for one small town boy, his dream was to explore space and get to the moon.  I am sure this small town boy was told his dreams were to large and many probably wonder if the boy was crazy.  After all how in the world would someone from a town called Wapakoneta make it to space, let alone the moon?  But Neil Armstrong knew that his dreams were in fact big enough to happen.  He knew that if he could dream it, he could do it.  He did just that!

So why blog about Neil Armstrong? I didn't know him, never studied space and never had a desire to fly small planes like him.  I am blogging about Neil because he put my hometown on the map. Every conversation that started with "Where did you grow up?" Always ends up with "Wapakoneta, Home of Neil Armstrong the first man on the moon."

The picture above is the Neil Armstrong Air and Space museum, in Wapakoneta.  As a child, this museum was the place to go sledding, as it had the biggest hill that Wapakoneta had to offer. The place where you got astronaut ice cream and the place you could walk in a room full of stars.  As a child the museum was just a place to play, nothing more.  After all I wasn't alive when Neil stepped on the moon, it didn't feel so special any more with NASA sending astronauts there every year. 

That attitude about Neil and that museum changed when he passed away last week.  I never realized what a true symbol that little museum actually was to our small community, to the world for that matter.  Neil didn't come from money and he didn't come from a big town.  He came from a town where everyone knew his name, a town where children only dream big things.  He walked the same streets as me, played in the same parks and called Wapakoneta his home. 

You see, Neil is no different than me.  He was given a choice to live his life making his dreams happen or continue wishing his dreams come true.  Neil didn't think his mission was impossible because he only believed in the possibilities of it all.  I live my life just like Neil, I believe in the possibilities and the million reason why I can, instead of can't.

We can all learn a lot of Neil Armstrong's story.  He had the courage to take the step in achieving great things.  He took a leap not just for himself but for the world.  Thanks Neil, for showing us that no matter how small your town is you can live a life as you want it.  Thanks for reminding me that I can do something amazing with my life, that no dream is impossible. 

I will wink at the moon just for you, I hope someday you will wink back.

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Exercise-some motivation required.

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Motivation or rather lack of it, is one of the key problems in weight loss.  People who need to lose weight know that they NEED to do it, they know they SHOULD do it and they most often know HOW to do it.

There are countless diets and weight loss courses available on the marker, video's, trainers..etc. but still the majority of people find it difficult to achieve their target weight.  Why is that? Why if they know they NEED to, SHOULD and HOW to fall short of the finish line?

The problem is most often not it is not about the lack of resources or the knowledge.  With reasonable effort you can get information on how to achieve weight loss.  All you have to do is Google Healthy weight loss and a million things come up.  So what happens?

They get all the information and all the successful tips to lose weight, it's like something really stops them.  Something puts a brick wall in front of their achievements.  This something is LACK of MOTIVATION.

Weight loss is hard enough for most people and it requires a good deal of motivation not only to start but more importantly to continue even after the optimal goal is met.  This is the main reason that so many weight loss diets and programs come on the market every year.  People start a diet, start a program but never seem to have the motivation to finish.  Then something slowly starts to happen, the weight comes back, the need to lose it becomes even stronger and the people start again.  It is an evil cycle, which is so unhealthy for your body.

The key to losing weight is to WANT it badly enough and to find the motivation to carry it through.  That motivation will be different for each person.  For my client Leann, it is to be there for her daughter when she gets older.  For my Dad, it is to keep the medications away.  For me, it is to never go back to the way I use to live my life.

Everyone has there motivation but everyone doesn't have that drive to get to the end result.  So I challenge you to really look deep inside yourself to find what can keep you going.

"The biggest secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work." -Oprah Winfrey

There are only 2 choices; make progress or make excuses. -Ellen Mikesell

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Px90

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Before I became a Beachbody coach, I would always say what is this Px90 stuff everyone is talking about.  I would always talk about Px90 and get a confused look.  After the confused look I would be corrected with Kathy it is P90x. So many people think Px90 when it is in fact P90x.  No matter how you say it this workout is for real. 

My online trainer, beachbody coach and friend Corinne Crabtree has a huge success story.  Her story is remarkable and just shows that if you have the will you can do anything.  Her pictures prove that with hard work and healthy foods anything is possible.  She has completed many beachbody video's, as well as leads others to their own health goals. I have done many events with her and can't wait to do the Disney Challenge with her in Jan 2013.

I have done Px90 (P90x) and Asylum but I felt I wanted to see what this Px902 (P90x2) was all about.  I wanted to see if I could complete the program while training for a full marathon.  Results are still to come.. I have 83 more days to go! I can say after the first week I have noticed a huge different in my abs and my body feels tighter all the way around.  It is such a good feeling when you see results so fast! That just proves that my hard work, clean eating and staying away from drinking is paying off.

One of my beachbody clients is killing it! She has done Turbo Jam and is now working out with Tony Horton in Power 90.  Leanne is training for her first 5K that is coming up in 2 weeks.  She is a mom, works full time but never makes an excuse on skipping workouts and eating clean.  She prep's her food every single Sunday.  Which gives her the evenings to spend with her daughter instead of slaving over a hot oven.  She gets what it takes to make this journey a successful one.  Her daughter and living a long healthy lifestyle is her main focus.  Now she is helping others reach their goals!

Leanne has lost 40 pounds and continues to shed pounds each week!

Just like Leanne many of my clients are having success.  Why? With Beachbody programs like Px90 (P90x), Shakeology and private accountability groups.  As a coach it is my job to make sure my clients are doing the work.  The private group is geared towards diet, exercise and food prepping but what I love most about this group is we all become good friends.  We share a bond together and that bond is our passion in wanting to live a healthy happy life. 

My good friend Angela is having some awesome success with her Asylum video's.  She lives a healthy lifestyle but just needed the extra push to do something different.  Read about her Shawn T experience. 

I challenge you to join us in this passion.  Join a challenge group, give Shakeology a try, let me find a workout video that is perfect for you.  It is okay to reach out to others when you feel lost and alone.  I remember someone telling me they feel weak when they ask for help.  That is certainly not the case! It takes a strong person to come to someone and ask for help.  So be that strong person, challenge yourself to do something different.  

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10 weeks till race day

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Columbus Marathon-10 Weeks Away

To say I am excited about my 2nd Marathon would be an understatement.  I can't stop thinking about the race.  What should I wear, what will the weather be like and wondering if I will hit a wall. The next ten weeks will not be a walk in the park.  It will be full of pain, questioning my sanity and doubting myself.

I know it will not be easy but I plain on jumping over, knocking down, run around, or crawl under any wall/obstacle if I have too.  Walls are just walls and it is up to me to decide how I handle them.  Honestly, I think Brick walls are there for those who don't want it bad enough.  If you want it you will find a way to make sure you get to the other side.  That is what I will do if I ever reach one, thankfully I haven't yet!

Today's 10 miler was anything but easy.  Last week I ran 14 miles and had an awesome run.  Today my legs felt like they had bricks on them.  My knee started to hurt around mile 8 but I continued to run because a little pain will not stop me.  I welcome the pain and tell it to join me on my runs.  I will know when to stop if I ever have too but for now little aches and pains are normal.

In the next 10 weeks I have a 12, 14, 18, 20 and 22 miler.  With a few fall back runs that I will surely welcome.  I am ready for the long runs, ready for the challenge.  What I will need from all of you is support.  I will need to hear you cheering for me.  Sometimes running is a lonely sport and it great to know you have someone rooting for you.  I will try to blog about my runs each week.

I love this picture down below.  So true. 

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Walking back into my faith..

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A few weeks ago I was driving to my speed training workout.  I was busy paying attention to traffic, listening to my music and getting my mind focused on my upcoming workout.  Out of no where I heard a voice that said "Kathy go to church." I was the only one in the car so I started to think you have lost it.  Then I heard it again.  I wasn't sure if it was God or my own internal voice talking but it really hit a nerve.  Tears starting to stream down my face as I realized right then that I have stopped making time for God.

I was born and raised in a very strick Catholic family.  Went to Catholic School for 9 years, Church every single Sunday and every holy day.  We never started a meal without an "Our Father" at the Morgan household.  Faith was important to my Mother and Father, so they wanted to make Faith just as important to us. But when I went away from home I also walked away from my Faith.  

I would go to church once in a while because my Dad would always ask me how it was going.  There is one person in this world I hate to upset and that is my Dad.  So I would lie to him and always tell him Church was wonderful and so was my Priest.  My Dad had rules, if you lived or were under his roof you would go to Church.  So any time I would come home that is what I did.  I felt like I was being forced to have God in my life, which at the time I didn't like or understand.

I use to think that since I went to Catholic School I had my time with God.  We prayed every morning and would go to Church at least once a week.  Church wasn't special to me because it was just something I had to to at school.  I hated it and hated my parents for sending me to a Catholic school where I was labeled different.  The public school kids hated us, which in turn made me question my Faith.

When it was time for me to decide if faith was important I completely shut the door on its face.  Of course I would pray for my friends and family, I would attend Church when I was home and would always go to Church every Sunday for lent.  However, once Easter Sunday was over so was my weekly visit to Church. 

The one thing I haven't done in years was pray for myself.  I don't think I deserve to ask God for help when I basically am always turning away from him.  Thing is I need to start praying for myself because my life is what I call in "pause mode"  I feel like I have been in pause mode for a few years now.  I am starting to think the reason I feel this way is because I stopped following God's path. 

I make time for my workouts each week, time for my friends, time for work and time to sleep but I never make time for the one person that built me.  God put me on this earth for a reason and I will never find that reason if I don't trust him and ask him to guide me in the right direction.

So I am making a promise to myself to make time for God again.  It is only one hour a week! I need him in my life to help me figure out what to do with my job, my future and to be with me when the rest of the world is away.  I am a better person when I attend Church.  I smile more, feel at peace and  feel complete.

I will never be the kind of person to throw God down someone's throat or wear I love Christ shirts. I will never question my friends for not going to Church and tell them that they are sinning.  I am not the judge and I will judge others for what or how they believe. I will just sit back like I did when I was in Catholic School and soak it all in.  I am ready to welcome God back into my life and am going to commit to being a better Catholic. It is time to get my priorities straight.  Sleeping in, playing on my computer and getting drink should NOT be a priority.  God should be!

"Technology makes us feel full leaving no more room for God and our Faith. It is time to turn off the TV, the computer and hide the Iphone to find room for God." -The Priest at Church Sunday