It was Summer 2008 in Northern Virginia, about 15 miles outside of Washington DC. We had recently moved there from the California Mojave desert. Being a military wife with three small children had taken it’s toll on me. I was 20 pounds overweight, sleepless, and, quite honestly, mildly depressed. I knew no one in the immediate area, and was limited as to where I could go with three children in diapers. Before my husband would leave for work, I would drag myself out of bed, and run until the sun rose. It was the few precious moments I had to myself. Going outside was the only place I could go to think. I began guarding my runs like a mother bear. I was slow, my legs were tired, my mid section spilled over my shorts, but I didn’t care. For 40 minutes a day I was running away from life. I was free.
I entered my first 5K that Fall. It was at our local church, so I could walk to the starting line. My goal was to finish without walking. Winning a race never entered my mind. I wasn’t even sure I could finish, so you can imagine my shock when at mile 2 I was neck and neck with the lead lady. I looked at her in disbelief, not sure what to do next. In a split second I made the choice to MAKE YOUR MOVE. I mustered up all of my strength, all of my courage, and painfully pushed my body beyond what I could have imagined. I crossed the finish line as the first overall female. It was a small race, but to me it didn’t matter. It was a defining moment in my life and I still remind myself of it to this day.
I share this story with you because it was the juncture in my life when I realized that how we think about ourselves can limit us, or set us free. I realized I didn’t have control over much, but I did have control of my thoughts. I wasn’t sure if I could even finish the race, let alone win. My self esteem was so low I did not have the ability to see what I was truly capable of. It was a wake up call, one that defines who I am today. I was limiting my entire life based on my thinking. It got me wondering, “In what other areas was I making myself small?” “How could my perception of myself be so wrong?” “How was I closing doors on myself?” Shortly thereafter, I began a blog and started writing with the hope of connecting to other people going through the same thing.
Little by little, I would catch those self defeating thoughts and replace them with something kinder and more positive. To this day, I still catch myself, but being aware has opened the pathway to living my best life.
As we enter into this new year, I can’t help but revisit those crossroads and remind myself that in 2015 all things are possible with desire, hard work, and passion. That leads me to my partnership with Kohl’s and their Make My Move Campaign. Kohl’s is asking us to make ourselves a priority. Make Your Move is about choosing to live your best life. To move more, sleep better, and stress less. For me personally, Make Your Move is about eliminating thoughts that don’t serve as a pathway to achieving my goals.
Why do I love this campaign? I love it because it’s got me thinking and dreaming. I love that Kohl’s doesn’t limit you to certain things, they just want you to think, “How can your life be better?” I’ve always loved, shopped, and received killer deals there. I even wrote a post about it few years back. It’s one stop shopping, from Journals to Fitness equipment- they have it all.
Here at RunWiki, Make Your Move will be a step by step, 7 part series about how to take those first small steps toward your dreams. I am sharing with you, my personal process of living a whole life.
Today I share with you the first step in that process– be on the look out for for challenges 2-7 which are coming up in future posts. I invite you to join in, and share your progress in a blog post, email, or on Instagram using hashtag #MakeYourMove.
Challenge 1- Journaling
I begin every day by journaling –if I’m busy, I do it at night, but I try for first thing in the morning. I literally purge my thoughts onto paper. My journal is not a place for me to judge myself, I do not have to have perfect grammar, I don’t need to use neat writing, or complete sentences. It doesn’t even need to make sense. Sometimes, it’s one big run on sentence, and other times it’s ideas that pop in my head.
I also brainstorm and ask myself questions, such as “Who inspires you the most?” “What qualities does this person possess?” I take a few minutes to write down everything I desire. I never judge myself in this process — if I put down I want to live on a horse ranch or drive a Mercedes, then that’s what it is. I put down anything that pops into my head. Then I expand that out and create bubbles around this on what small ways I could achieve that dream.
If you write things down, they are much more likely to actually happen. When you have a vision, it guides you to do something small toward this dream every day. From your journal, you can transfer your task into your daily planner. Example: Dream: “To Spend More Time with Friends” — transfer a note into your day planner to call or message an old friend and ask them to lunch. Let’s do something bigger. Dream: “To qualify for The Boston Marathon” — transfer into day planner: contact a running coach, or start speed training with local group.
1. Royce Leather Journal
2. Aristo Journal
3. Royce Leather Journal
4. Zippered Jr.
5. Padfolio
6. Leather Journal
So grab your “Make Your Move” journals, and start organizing your day around your dreams. In addition to that, I started a Make My Move Pinterest Board, adding items that assist me in accomplishing my goals, quotes, clean eating recipes, and tips to help me stay the course. Follow my board right HERE, and create your own, making sure to tag me so I can follow yours. 2015 is the year we take small steps on the journey toward our dreams.
I invite you once again to join me and make your move in 2015. What dreams and goals do you have this year? Share them with Kohl’s and I on Social media, using the #MakeYourMove hashtag.
Follow Kohl’s –>
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How many of you keep a journal? What are some of your dreams and hopes for 2015? How will you Make Your Move this year?
This post is sponsored by FitFluential on behalf of Kohl’s.
