You are sore. It hurts to get out of bed. You are now aware of muscles you never knew existed. Common and routine activities like brushing your teeth and putting on your shoes have become difficult to perform. Each step around the house getting ready for the day to come is a complete and utter annoyance. You wish today was Sunday so you could have a latte in bed and not have to think about being productive. It hurts to just think, let alone consider returning back to the gym today to do thirty five minutes of interval training on the treadmill. You ask yourself, "Is this good to be so sore? Did I push it too hard? Am I hurting my body? Is this worth misery in the morning?" You take a rather difficult breath, your lungs even hurt, and tell yourself that whenever there was a time to be strong and brave this would be the day!
"Deep breaths," you say to yourself, as if you have to say it out loud for your body to respond. "This is good, this is what I needed." You coach yourself to put one foot in front of the other, knowing that it is not just the soreness that is making you heavy footed and uncomfortably tight in the shoulders. You are quite aware of the fact that your fitness and health are unsatisfactory. You feel embarrassed and are ashamed of yourself a little. You think about how you use to feel, how back in the day there were only 20 pounds to lose and now, you ask yourself how I could let this happen. It's the truth that hurts as well and it's your muscles and bones that have to carry that around with you. It's the responsibility that you now have to adhere to, to allow acceptance to reduce the swelling and create blood flow in your stiff muscles and joints. It is the truth that has brought you to this moment!

Today you stand on the edge of yourself. Today you are faced with the naked truth. You cannot run away from it, because it will follow you, embedded deeply in your muscles, bones, and joints. Today you finally begin to listen to what it has to say, for the truth is nothing more than the obvious that you cannot escape from nor cover your ears so you cannot hear it. Today is the beginning of everything else to come. You personally decide today how you will recover from the soreness, from the truth. This is the day that most become discouraged, when most begin to question the amount of work and effort is involved in achieving their ideal body. Today is the day that most will not go back to the gym because they will talk themselves into resting on the couch, struggling to recover from yesterday. However, today is the day that truly defines who you are.
It is your character and your heart that will help you lace up your shoes and get you out the door on your way back to the gym. It is your integrity that will put one foot in front of the other. It is your perseverance that will help you climb up the stairs to the entrance of the gym. And it's the goals and dreams that you have spoken of that directs you to the treadmill for your second workout of the week.
Stand on the edge of yourself! Be vulnerable! Be angry at the measurements, the scale, and the body fat composition! With love, be angry at yourself, and then be courageous! With courage you will begin to walk, to run, to lift heavier weights, to push harder, to hold the plank for 20 more seconds. With courage you will continue to challenge your endurance and strength. Be more than you ever thought you could be!!!!!!!!
We are always stronger than we think we are. We can always run faster than we have ever run. Today you escape the boundaries and limitations that have held you back! Today you become loud and defiant! Today you do not give into the weakness! This is it, the irrevocable moment. Stand on the edge of yourself and have the courage to do whatever it takes to pursue success. Envision thoroughly how you want to look and feel about yourself. See it! Breathe it! Define it! And do not settle for anything less than what you have asked for! What you cannot see, you cannot change!