Friend of Julie: Finish What You Start

It's easy to believe that because we didn't succeed once or twice, we will always fail. Albert Einstein once said “I think and think for months and years. Ninety-nine times, the conclusion is false. The hundredth time I am right.” It is this kind of optimism we need embrace to be successful on our weight loss journey. Don't think about how many times you failed before. You didn't fail all those other times--you just didn't finish! Finish what you started today-don't wait for tomorrow to begin your weight loss journey.

I created this comic strip of myself using Pixton Comics
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In mid-January I joined a handful of key-friends in a 30-day squat challenge. My kitty Ginger loves it when I do squats, because I rub her belly each time I squat. I was disappointed, as I'm sure Ginger was, that my two earlier attempts at squat challenges were unsuccessful.

This time, I was determined to finish my 30-day challenge. After finishing day one, I proudly placed a black check mark on my chart and then wrote about my progress, something I did every day of my challenge. All four days.
This morning I saw my unfinished squat post and I realized I was feeling like a failure every time I saw that blog piece, as it reminded me of something I started and didn't finish. I realized my little mean girl was acting out and suddenly I had a perfect topic for today: finish what you start.

I am not a failure because I didn't finish those squats! I simply didn't finish what I started. The key is to start something you really want to finish. I asked myself: how important it for me to do those squats? Right now, it's just not that important. I hushed my little mean and I broke free from the cycle of failure!

It's important to finish what we start, because we feel great when we do and we feel lousy when we don't. When we don't finish what we started, we feel like a failure. We feel embarrassed. Why do we feel embarrassed? Because we often ANNOUNCE to everyone that we're going on a diet or exercise program. Later we feel embarrassed and shameful because we didn't finish what we started.

Does any of this sound familiar to you? How many times have you announced to friends and family you're going to start a diet or exercise program and in a short amount of time went off your program? You no longer talked about it. You silently hoped none one would ask "how's your program coming along?" You felt full of shame. You felt like a failure. You may even have completely shut down and stopped feel anything. Months or years may have passed before you dared announced you were starting another diet or exercise plan. How many times have you repeated this cycle of feeling like a failure? Isn't it time you break out of the cycle and finish what you started?

I have attended a number of personal growth workshops and I didn't announce them everyone, because those workshops were way out there. After four years on this program, I'm still at a loss of words to describe how or why this works. This program may be out there, but it works.

The day I began my weight loss journey, I felt a shift inside me that I couldn't put to words. Three years ago, I began this blog because when I'm at a loss for words, I write to process what I'm going through. I didn't talk to friends and family about this program, but every day I let about 300 people listen in and join in my conversation about my weight loss journey.

But I digress. My point today is this: finish what you start. Start again and again and don't give up on your plan. Ask yourself if you really want it and every time you feel like going off your program, remember how much you want this. Free yourself from the cycle of failure.

Have you fallen off your diet or exercise plan? You did not fail - you haven't finished what you started.

Tell you inner critic, that voice I refer to as your little mean girl, to hush and get right back on your plan this moment. You've been in the cycle of failure enough times to know tomorrow never comes.