Who am I?

Who am I?  I often struggle with who I want to be and who I want others to see me as.  When really they should be the same person.  When I started this journey of mending I was told by both my counselor and trainer to "just tell yourself"  positive words and praise and encouragement.  But to me I felt like a big fake, after all I didn’t believe ANY of it.  I didn’t believe I could be strong,  or pretty,  or worthwhile.  I didn’t believe I could be thinner or healthier or better emotionally.  I didn’t believe I could have a better marriage, a better family life or experience more joy.  I didn’t believe it, because I didn’t tell myself to believe it. 

You hear people talk about mindset, or at least I did and I still do.  For a long time I didn’t like the word mindset, mostly because I didn’t understand it.  Before the phrase “change your mindset” came off as “new age” or strictly an inner indoctrination.  But now I realize that my foundation, which is my faith in God who created me, desires a life full of  hope, joy,  and love.  Which for SOME people needs to start with changing your mindset, or how you perceive yourself to be and how you perceive the world around you. 

An example might be: “I can never loose weight because I don’t have the time, I don’t have the money or the resources”  what you are really telling yourself is that You don’t value yourself enough to put your desire to loose weight first.  You don’t perceive yourself to be smart enough to develop a plan to get started and put that plan into action.  You don’t see your value or your worth to your family or people around you to allow yourself to be happy and be all that you were created to be. 

I know what that inner voice is like: “you can’t do that”  “you will never succeed at that” “that’s being selfish”  “you will never be that _________ (wife, mom, friend) that ________ (insert any name here) is.  And your right ….. You will NEVER be all that you can be with that mindset.  So why is it so hard to change that? Why is it so hard to give yourself GRACE?  Why is it so hard to give yourself love and compassion? 

I believe it has to do with perception….. Which is why I asked myself the question “who am I?” The first time that question was asked was March of 2012 and it was my trainer asking me to write down “who is Jenny Flynn?”  my answers were really sad.  Sad enough I don’t care to share… but I will share who Jenny Flynn is now! 

Jenny Flynn is:  a really good Mom, Jenny Flynn is an amazing wife (I double checked with my husband on that :) .   I am a friend who will listen, give advice and care deeply.  I am someone who will motivate and inspire anyone who desires a positive change.  Jenny Flynn is someone who is constantly growing in her faith, learning from her mistakes and being patient with her journey.  Jenny Flynn is fit, strong, beautiful and courageous.  And although I may not believe each and every one of these things 100%........ I’m okay with it because I know the more frequent I tell myself these things I will begin to really believe it! It’s not being fake…… it’s being real. 

I encourage you to ask yourself “who am I?” write it down, if you don’t like what you see start telling yourself what it is you WANT to see, and eventually that negativity will turn into positivity! 

have an amazing week all!

Jen

Don't stand Idle'd!

Have you ever been so passionate about something that you find you can hardly contain yourself?  And at times that passion and excitement can come out sounding a bit crazy?
That is me!  "the only people crazy enough to change the world.... are the ones that think they can" -Steve Jobs.  Well........ call me crazy, but I think I can help change the world.  Starting with the people I come in contact with either face to face or through this blog.  I want people to discover their potential.  To live a life feeling successful and complete, a life that moves forward in growth and doesn't stand idle.

Some people seek success in different ways, most people seek success through wealth.   I believe success comes from accomplishing goals that you set.   What I mean is..... goals accomplished = success...... however big or small.  Does this mean that because I was successful and have reached my weight loss goal that I don't strive for more? No, because I believe that it is in our design to desire more.  I believe we were created to dream the impossible and have faith that we can achieve even more.  

With whatever goal you set, you have to ask yourself this question: "how bad do you really want it?" Your goals can be small or BIG, some examples: That new pair of Miss Me jeans (remember I said small) .... are you willing to work those extra hours to foot the bill of those cute jeans because It's really going cost you..... you may come to realize...... they are not worth it or maybe they are?  Either way it's your life and your choice.  A new job or career change, you may want to follow your dream but you will have to weigh the sacrifices.  Maybe you will have to work 2 jobs to maintain an income you require, maybe it will mean less time spent in certain areas of your life. But it may also mean that you would feel less stress, make your life more fulfilling and enjoyable.  Maybe you want to change the world (remember I said big) like Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years in prison because he wanted to abolish apartheid, or Martin Luther King who ultimately gave his life for freedom.   Both of these men had huge goals to change the world and leave a mark in history that would outlast their lifespan.  They changed the world forever. 

In order to do this they first set a goal, they found a path to take knowing that the path may wonder but inevitably lead to the ultimate goal.  They were successful because they were driven and had the mindset to give whatever it takes.  For me my goal was to loose weight.  I had attempted it many times only to fail over and over.  This time, because I changed my mindset.... I was successful.  It wasn't easy and many times I wanted to give up but with help and with diligence I persevered.  It hurt me physically and emotionally, ultimately my coach and trainer broke me.  Broke me of my pride, my Will and my emotional insecurities.  With that came the acceptance of myself that I am enough, that I can do the impossible.  Like a man named Demosthenes, who wanted to become a speaker but realized he had a lot of shortcomings.  A speech impediment, he lacked physical strength and a commanding presence.  He fixed his speech by placing pebbles in his mouth and began speaking forming his lips and moving his tongue to speak clearly. He ran up hillsides while reciting speeches to increase his lung capacity and shouted above the crashing waves to make sure he could be heard.  He became the most well known speaker of his time. Imagine what you could do if you had that type of mindset...... to do anything you believed you could do to reach your goal.  

Don't stay idle'd in your life..... keep moving forward, I believe in you.

Jen

"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal, nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude."  ~ Thomas Jefferson

One year

What a difference one year makes!!!..... yesterday I celebrated my 39th birthday.  What a difference THIS birthday from ANY other birthday.  Today I find myself 100% completely happy with my life.  I am surrounded by my family that loves me,  I have  many wonderful friends that called and texted and left me messages which made me feel so loved.
A lot of people have told me how much I have inspired them, which I LOVE to hear, so when I thought about this last year and all that I have been through and all that I have accomplished..... it felt even BETTER to know it's been MORE than for just myself.
Today at age 39 I am fully confident I am going to live a long and healthy life.  I have changed not only the way my body looks but how my body functions. I will not have diabetes, I will not have heart disease, I will no longer suffer from depression, I will not lead a sedentary life that weakens the immune system and leads to many health problems.  I am HEALTHY and FIT and STRONG!  I am beyond excited for the future that lies ahead of me.... one that has fulfillment, one that has purpose and one that has joy.
My last birthday I was in the pit with a lion..... struggling with how much further I had to go, what I really wanted out of all this hard work, feeling overwhelmed in a job I was not completely happy with and I remember feeling like "how am I going to continue this fight?"  Even when you have a good support system there are times you feel really alone.
I have often said this journey has not just been about weight loss, and I am grateful to have been put in a position where someone who had the knowledge and took the time to teach me.  It's been a journey to have a deep understanding of how much the human mind can overcome.  Oh my gosh that sounds so cliche, but it's the truth! I had this idea of what life should be like.... emphasis on SHOULD.  My should be life consisted of a nice even path, no hills to climb, no pits to fall in.  Where I got this idea from, I have no idea?   But it sounded really good, I mean who doesn't want to coast through life?  If given the choice would you take the nice easy path with the beautiful scenery?  Or would you take the path that was difficult and at times very dark... so dark it's hard to see.  At times...... such a struggle you wanted to turn back and give up?
Me?..... I now chose the difficult path.  I'll tell you why.... because the growth that comes out of the difficult path, the triumphs you feel through each obstacle, the beauty you see when you reach each milestone....... is so much better than any scenic  route you will EVER take.  You may just have to trust me on that one!  
For me it came in the form of weight loss.  A lot of people want to loose weight but they don't DESIRE it, they don't believe they can do it. I know because I was that person for many years. It takes desire to want a healthy lifestyle, it take desire to change jobs... It takes desire to WANT TO CHANGE and NEVER look back.  And that comes at a price......
Get rid of the old you, get rid of your pride, get rid of your negativity, get rid of your fear.  It takes the ability to be willing to take responsibility over YOUR own choices, YOUR own actions.  This is where most people fail and I mean really fail.  If you learn how to exercise, eat right and live a healthy lifestyle but don't apply it...... you need to do it for YOU.  I encourage you to learn to "love who your are" be patient with yourself and push yourself to make a long lasting change.... one that you will make and NEVER look back!


Jen