I Packed For Paris On Sunday. And Re-Packed Today.

FOR MY PARIS MARATHON !!!!!To say I am fairly excited is an understatement.  To say I am SUPER-DUPER EXCITED is not.

ONE YEAR AGO I decided that April 2014 would be MY year to run my FIRST FULL MARATHON. 

I had been maintaining a decent health status at a BMI of 24-25, which represented about 130 pounds lost, for about a year at that point through this AMAZING comprehensive HEALTH PLAN that I LIVE DAILY, and I made the command decision to FOCUS ON OPTIMAL and even ULTRA health.

Was I happy where I was?  SURE!  I was not discontented with my health status.  I felt wonderful, amazing, never better, and THAT was an amazing place to make the DECISION to continue my health journey towards ULTRA health.

You see, in all of my past "diets" I had been awesome about losing weight.  I could do it alongside the best of them.  I had been a professional dieter.  I would lose GOBS of weight.  Then once I would hit my goal I would REGAIN gobs of weight.  Once I hit bottom again, and experienced deep emotional pain and conflict, I'd begin ANOTHER DIET.  Thing is, the commonality between all of those past attempts "to lose weight" never resulted in me KEEPING IT OFF (which is what I now call "Maintenance, not 'keeping it off').  Until THIS AMAZING HEALTH PLAN! 

The plan I utilized, which came with the FREE assistance of my most amazing Health Coach who offered that extra layer of support and accountability without being a nag, without chasing me (in fact, I have called HER every week for 3 years now!), was persistent about pointing me towards Healthy Habits so that I could incrementally work on adopting those Habits of Health as my own.

When my final health journey began in 2010, I was committed to HEALTH, not LOSING WEIGHT.  I was committed to TRANSITIONING TO MAINTENANCE, not "keeping IT off".  And I progressed in my health goals and did indeed attain a healthy BMI.  Then my focus remained on MAINTAINING OPTIMAL HEALTH which I did for an entire year.  THAT was the springboard from which my Paris Marathon journey began last April.

Here is the interesting thing I learned about myself last year in April.  I learned that LIFE WAS GOOD HERE (in health) and I was in a great place! 

So, you ask, if I wasn't in a place of emotional pain and conflict, then why in the world would I choose to continue?  What was my motivation?  After all, I was in a GREAT place! 

I wasn't disgusted with myself
I wasn't growing OUT of my wardrobe
I wasn't disliking what I saw in the mirror

My motivation did not spring, then, from what I wanted OUT of my life (pain, conflict, etc) but my motivation sprang from WHAT MOST AWESOME THINGS I COULD CONTINUE TO ACHIEVE as regards my health.

I was looking FORWARD to the GOOD things I would be bringing IN to my life as a result of moving towards ULTRA health!

And THAT, my friends, is the difference between having POSITIVE GOALS and NEGATIVE GOALS.

Positive goals are things I am looking FORWARD to.  Negative goals are things I want to GET AWAY FROM.

On all my previous "diets" I wanted to ultimately get away from MYSELF.  On THIS journey, however, I began to LOVE myself and CHERISH getting to know...ME!  I didn't seek mindlessness, I didn't seek numbing out, I didn't wish the process would speed up already and I could be "done with this thing" and off of it.  No.  I wanted to continue IN optimal health and even achieve ULTRA health.

Have I arrived?  NO!  And that is the beauty of it!  I never want "off this thing" because I never want "off this life!"  I LOVE my life.  It's good here, in health!  And in addition I have attained a even MORE healthy BMI of 21-22!

So, I began planning my trip.  And I made my whiteboard training schedule.  And I committed to following it.  And I did.

Now, on Thursday of this week, I will board an airplane to Paris.  I will stay on a houseboat at the base of the Eiffel Tower for 11 beautiful intriguing exciting nights.  I will walk and walk and walk.  I will sit by the River Seine with my journal and get to know myself EVEN MORE.  I will have an affair with the city of Paris.  On April 6th I will don my running gear and shoes, present myself at the starting line with my Race Bib # 61234, and I will run.  And run.  And run. 

This IS freedom.

Life IS good here.  Come join me in Health.