What's Your Excuse?

     I did a facebook post on this yesterday, but I'm hoping to expand on it here. I know this is supposed to be my fitness blog, but I think it ties into my own personal journey. So away we go.....
     I was standing in line at the grocery store and just had to snap a picture of this rag.

     This publication has been around for decades. I can remember my mother reading it when I was young and I'm 39 now. There was just so much wrong with this cover that I couldn't resist taking the picture. I was already agitated and I'd only looked at it for about 13 seconds. The biggest headline isn't the fact that Victoria lost 186lbs., it's that you can apparently "melt 14lbs. a week". I'm curious as to how you'd do this. I can think of one way and that's by being deathly ill. It's simply not healthy to lose that amount of weight in one week, I don't care what magazines or T.V. shows tell you. Usually a weight loss of 1-2lbs. is considered normal through diet and exercise. It can be more depending on what you're doing and usually that ends up being water weight. But 14?! Come on!
     We then go on to learn that we can melt belly fat with a spice. OOOOOO! Really?  Well hell, that sounds a lot easier than working my ass off with weight training. Just when I thought I couldn't get any more excited, they tell me I can cure cellutlite with a pill! WOW-WEE! I didn't even know cellulite was a disease, let alone there was a cure for it. Here I was, all dumb and shit, thinking that it was a type of fat, and the only way to MINIMIZE its appearance was once again through hard work. Boy, I'll tell ya, if nothing else, this magazine has made me realize just how uninformed and uneducated I truly am. Thank you Woman's world for opening my eyes. 
     OK, can you sense my attitude here? It's one of frustrated disbelief. I cannot believe that in 2016 women still fall for this shit. Nothing on this cover says anything about getting stronger or more capable. I bet you dollars to doughnuts that 'ole Victoria up there is as flabby and jiggly as she ever was at 300 and some odd pounds. Especially if all she was doing was walking and eating a frickin spice (which, by the way, I highly doubt). I begin to wonder, as well, why women got themselves into the spot of being a target for all this bullshit. Yes, I put the blame squarely on our shoulders because we can go back to medieval times and map out how men were in charge and kept us under control, yadda yadda yadda, but at some point we became strong enough to expect better. Women expect to be taken seriously so how is this stupidity still being accepted? I challenge you to pick up a men's magazine and find the same amount of quasi-medical information in it. I know there are still some scams that are geared toward men, but on a whole, I would bet that women take the brunt of it. That leads to the fact, however, that they must fall for it because these magazines sell.
     It also led me to a discussion this morning about mental toughness. I think if someone is grasping at this drivel to lose weight, then they are weak and simply looking for the easy way out. I was told that, no, it's because women are desperate. Well, to me, that's pretty much the same thing. You'll hear so many excuses why someone can't lose weight - no time, no money, they're "depressed" and have no motivation, nobody understands how hard it is. On and on and on. I'm a very imperfect person but one thing I've learned along my journey over the past few years is that excuses are BULLSHIT; each and every one of them.
     I was depressed. Not to the point of hurting myself, although the thought crossed my mind once or twice, but I got pretty low. No one pulled me out of that except myself. No doctors, no drugs, just me; me and some iron and old fashioned work. I made a choice to change and not just to lose weight, but to get strong and healthy. I made the decision to get myself to match the vision I had always had of myself ever since I was a little kid. I'm still working towards it, but I'm closer now than ever. Inside and out I changed. My will got stronger, my mindset got stronger, my body followed suit. There were days when I would be in tears halfway through a workout because I was so incredibly sad and empty and had absolutely no desire to continue. But I did. Days when my mind hurt and my heart felt nonexistent made it difficult to stay motivated, but I pushed on. Days when I hated the fact that I was lifting and hurting, but I carried through with it. So please don't tell me how hard it is. I know. 
     Have no money? Last I checked everyone has a body and body weight exercises are some of the best ways to get in shape. Think you don't have enough room? If you can lie on the floor and stretch your arms, you have ample room and on good days, take your ass outside and work out. And one more word on the whole depression bandwagon: weight training and working out increase the "feel good" chemicals in your brain. Just FYI. Proven fact.
     Mental fortitude is something that's taken a serious hit over the past decade or so and I'm not sure why. Lots of reasons I suppose and we could discuss it for hours. Preferably over a beer or two and some good food.  All I know is that it sickens me to my core to see weakness so widespread. Why no one wants to be healthy and strong now so that they won't be frail little elderly people that can't fend for themselves is beyond me. I want to be that old woman that's still out gardening and mowing her lawn when she's 80. I don't want to be dependent on my daughter to help me live my day to day life. I want to be strong and so I will be. And I don't want to listen to weak ass, bitchy excuses from people as to why they can't be. Suck it up, buttercup and either join in the games or get out of the way and let the badasses through. We have shit that needs doin'. ;)