What do you DESERVE?

DESERVE is a funny word… and it can completely wreck your fitness efforts if you ask me

Has a well-meaning friend ever said “it’s ok to have one piece of cake – you deserve it!”?  Have you ever said to YOURSELF – “hey girl, take one day off the diet train and order the enchiladas!  you DESERVE it!”?  take a day off from your workout – you DESERVE it! … and if you indulged in your well-deserved reward – did it move your toward your goal?  did it make you feel “deserving” or like you took a tiny step backward instead of where you wanted to go?

Don’t me wrong because I am not insinuating that you DON’T deserve a shake or some fries or a night out on the town without having to calculate what you are ordering… WE ALL DESERVE good things   At least I do! hahaha  We work hard and we put in a lot of effort, not just in fitness but in life.  Of course we are deserving…

BUT here’s the catch – calories and fat and weight and fitness don’t work on DESERVE – they go by numbers plain and simple.  It has nothing to do with what you do or don’t deserve, it’s not a punishment doled out by the universe and it’s not a reward for effort or kindness or a great personality.  Too many calories = too much for your body to process = too much excess baggage on the thighs -  Plain and simple.

I deserve a million dollars but economics doesn’t work that way either – and just like my daily budget of dollars I can afford to use, I have a daily budget of calories my body can afford.  If I always told myself “go ahead and buy it – you DESERVE it!” I would quickly be in a pile of debt, not unlike a lot of Americans  … a simile, you get it

So erase DESERVE from your vocabulary regarding diet and fitness – you’ll be better off – and while you are at it – erase FAIR too!  We could do whole other post on that word!

One thing you certainly deserve is to feel good about yourself and to treat yourself well – and while a piece of cake feels like a treat at the time, good health is the best treat you can give yourself in the long run!