the simple mindset shift that completely changed my approach to fitness.

leggings. tank. bra. shoes. weights.

Today I want to share with you the crazy simple mindset shift that completely changed my approach to fitness and healthy living.

But first, let me go back a bit by sharing a truth with you.  I have always hated my arms.  They’ve never been skinny, even when I was young and my legs looked like twigs they were muscular.  And the second I gain even the tiniest amount of weight, guess where it goes?  Yep, my arms.

I’ve spent most of my adult life feeling mildly self-conscious about them, trying to dress around them, cover them in the most flattering possible way, you get the drift…

Working out was primarily centered around getting my body in shape so that my arms would no longer be “bulky.”  I was careful to lift weights, but not too much wight, because, once again bulk.  My whole approach to my health and fitness came from a place of scarcity; from my body not being right, not being enough.  I was never drinking enough water, never thin enough, never toned enough.  I needed to eat healthier, stop drinking Diet Coke, get more sleep!  Relax more often.  Every healthy decision was made from this place.  Which, to no one’s surprise, does not add up to consistent results.  And why would that surprise me in the slightest?  I’ve been a mom long enough to know that negative tension does not motivated children make.

Then in the fall I went to try out Orange Theory Fitness for the very first time, and it blew my mind.  The workout was incredible, hard, effective, and fast.  (well it felt fast). Most of all it was fun and I was shocked to discover that I LOVED doing it.  Like fan-girl level loved doing it.

And suddenly, my mindset shifted.

Maybe my workouts weren’t a punishment after all, maybe they could be a reward!

Maybe doing all the things that would make me the most healthy could come from a place of abundance, rather than scarcity.  Maybe they could become a reward instead of a punishment.

This was the mindset shift that changed everything for me.

And it happened so simply.

Do me a favor, will you?

STOP PUNISHING YOUR BODY!

Stop working out and guilting yourself into living a healthy life as a punishment to your body!

Instead, wake up every morning and thank God for the body you’ve been given, love and appreciate it.  When you love and appreciate something, caring for it no longer feels like a burden, it feels like a privilege.  A reward.

So now, because I love and appreciate the body I have been blessed with, caring for it is a reward. Going to Orange Theory at 5 am is a reward,  and I look forward to it, everyday.   I let go of Diet Coke, because drinking DC and eating fast food isn’t treating my body well, and treating my body well is a joy, a reward.  So instead I fill my body with lots of fruits and vegetables, and I drink a lot of water as a reward.  It’s amazing how effective this simple mindset shift is.

This is what I did, and this is how my life changed.

I’m more consistent with my workouts, healthy eating and water drinking that I have ever been.

 I feel better at 36 than I did at 28.  And I could probably outrun 28 year old Cori too. ;-)

So here’s your homework.  When you’re finish reading this I want you to put your phone, computer, or tablet down, go find your self a mirror, look at yourself and say ” I am grateful for my body.  My body is a gift.  It is enough, it is awesome.”

Now go out there and start rewarding that awesome body!