“Can’t” can no longer be in my vocabulary

So say bu-bye & kick that negative word to the curb ya’ll.
The “I can’t” statement has ALWAYS caused issues with my progress whether it was a diet/exercise regimen or self-development. It most likely came from the words I use to hear a lot growing up, “You Can’t.”

Negative words I’ve used on myself:
“I can’t”
“You Slob”
“Oh yeah, eat another fatty”
“You’re such an idiot”
“You’re worthless”

Oh yes, I’ve mumbled these to myself, actually more than what I have listed. But I thought about it; did saying those things push me harder to succeed? Give me motivation? Make me love myself? Um that’s a NO. They caused me to lose faith in myself & my goals. What did I do? I simply gave up & hated myself.

If you don’t have confidence in yourself mentally it won’t reflect on you physically. How do you expect to reach a certain life ambition? If it’s for exercise/weight loss; how do you expect to have progress? How do you expect your body to change? Without positive reinforcement how do you expect to succeed? Hey, I had to learn… being hard & doubting yourself is a tough habit to break! I’m with you! I was the poster child for “I hate myself.” I had to work very hard on my mental state of mind & finally take myself out of a very negative environment to get where I am right now…. three months & I’m still learning! You need to take it one day at a time & you can’t just expect it to happen overnight! If it does, then you’re lying to yourself.

The first time I actually said anything positive to myself was when I participated in The NJ Marathon in Long Branch, NJ 5/1/11. This was my first race ever, & I was running a Half! The non-profit I work with was getting participants together to raise money for the organization, so I figured why not. I trained (I will train a lot different next time) & I was ready to go. It was a very emotional weekend. I found out the day before I was leaving for the marathon my Uncle Ben had passed away (My Dad’s best friend from HS & my godfather). While running my mind was on my Grandma, Uncle & my Dad, but I knew I needed to stay focused. At mile 9 I started to lose it & started to cry. Then the words I never thought I would ever say to myself, “You can do this Sandy… Keep going you’re too close to give up now!” The tears immediately stopped & I had this blast of energy come over me & I finished… 2:27:05.96. When we filled out the paper work we had to say what we thought our time estimate would be, I put 2:30. I don’t think I have ever been more proud of myself in my life. I worked hard… I pushed through the pain & sadness… end result… I accomplished something truly amazing.

You need to surround yourself with positive vibes! Never forget that! You know how it feels to see the sunshine after a cold dark day… it makes you feel good right? Well that’s what positive thoughts can do. They will help you feel whole & stay focused on your goals whatever they maybe.