I’m Seeing Green

If you are a part of my facebook summer challenge group, then you already know that today is all about goals. And although this post is going to be a hodge-podge of non-sense, I promise in the end it will in fact be about goals. So let’s get to it…

About two weeks ago, I went to my doctor for my yearly check-up (I’m only 6 months late this year!!!!!!!) and I got a talkin’ to! My doctor felt some bumps (rash like) under my knees, on the inside of my elbows and near the nape of my neck. She looked at me straight in the eyes and said “Are you following your Celiac diet?”… if you are not familiar with Celiac Disease, it is an autoimmune disease that requires omitting gluten completed from your diet. I looked at my Dr. and was honest, “No, I haven’t”. She replied with… “Then we both know the reason for your hormonal imbalance and fatigue”.

Just like that… I got caught. The truth of the matter is that I haven’t been following my Celiac diet and not only is my skin and hormones telling so… something else told on me too.

I had blood drawn that day and my iron levels are literally close to extinct. Despite being pumped (literally) full of iron less than two years ago, it is all gone.

My doctor and I chatted and it’s two-fold for me. One, I have a genetic pre-disposition in which I do not absorb iron in the way the “average” person does. Two, when I consume gluten, my body stops absorbing much of the nutrients I give it via food.

So I learned my lesson… mainly because I paid $150 for every iron drip I got that summer two years ago… and I had 8 iron drips. That’s $500 gone… like forever. And for what? Well, you know… bread, cupcakes, cereal, pasta and so on, and so forth.

So first I got a little angry at myself… then I went to the grocery store, and there I bought one of the biggest bags of spinach you have ever seen. And I ate it! Not the entire thing in one day, but day by day. Every morning since then, I have had 2 GIANT handfuls of spinach with breakfast… sauteed with onions, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.

Guys……. I can’t eat another bite of mushy, somewhat cold but still a little warm, runny spinach, possibly ever!

I’m seeing green and it isn’t good.

But do you know what is good? Setting goals, learning lessons, re-adjusting, re-committing and staying motivated so that in the end, you can in fact meet your goals.

For the last two weeks, I haven’t even looked at gluten. I haven’t been tempted to eat it and I don’t want to even touch it. I am off to the store again today to get a different form of iron that will not drive me to the insanity (I’m an emotional eater and dramatic person). I am going to keep going… I am going to continue staying away from foods and choices in life that do my body no good and I am going to be thankful for my body and all it does for me.

The amazing this about my goals this month is that they are not what I am currently focusing on. This month I wanted to lose 10 in. off of my entire body as well as focus on taking my vitamins much more religiously everyday. Now please understand that I am still working towards those goals, however some new motivation came over me this month that I wasn’t expecting and rather than brush it under the rug, it’s good to scoop it up and put it to work in my life.

Maybe your goals for this month are no longer in the picture, maybe they are looking you straight in your face because you are THAT close to reaching them, or maybe you are exactly where you started this month and are lacking a bit of motivation. Well, will you remind yourself of something today…

EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS HARD BEFORE IT GETS EASY!

This truth isn’t because you aren’t good enough, strong enough, smart enough or pretty enough… this truth is due to the fact that we are all human, trying to do “it all” everyday of our lives and if things didn’t take hard work and effort, then we would never see self-growth.

So I ask you today…. what are your goals? What lessons have your learned so far this month? How have you become motivated, or maybe you have lost your motivation… how and why? Have you committed or re-committed to anything lately? And finally, what goals are you going to accomplish in the coming weeks, months and years?