Prioritizing

"Losing weight is not your life’s work. Your life’s work is to love, to serve, to be honest, to develop personal integrity, to be kind, to raise healthy children, to grow spiritually, to adore yourself. Which is not to say you can’t choose to shed some excess baggage. You’ll just do it with a sense of perspective." ~Lisa Turner

I cannot remember which blog I read this quote on, only that it was written by Lisa Turner. But regardless, I felt the need to share it. It explains so well where I am at in my weight loss journey right now. Yes, I am already at my goal weight, so it's easier to say I don't need to make losing weight my "life's work," but that isn't the point. It has never been and was never meant to be my life's work. I never intended to put losing weight on the top of my list of priorities, and whenever it started to feel like that was what was happening, I would make efforts to reign that urge in.

Losing weight was meant to enhance the rest of my life. Being healthy, fit and active was only a means to an end, a way to be present for my kids in the long-term and capable enough and with enough energy to cope with their needs. Being fit has meant being able to go on long walks with my husband (who has always loved walking and hiking). It has meant I have more energy and better confidence in myself.

It has meant a lot of things in my life, but it was never the be-all and end-all of my existence.

Please don't let it take over your life either. Let your healthy lifestyle and the excess weight you are losing enhance your life, but not become your life.