Lung cancer reQuit Smoking Dadmains the No. 1 cancer killer AND the leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., and yet 1 in 5 Americans still smoke. What does this have to do with the bike? In 5th grade – Ms. Jelsma’s class – I made a poster for my dad asking him to please quit smoking, including the words “I am afraid you are going to die.”

There is nothing like the bluntness of a child who has not learned to filter their words and says exactly what they feel.

I wrapped it up and gave it to him for Christmas. That spring, after saving the $$$ from NOT purchasing a carton of smokes each week, he bought me my first 10-speed bike. While it wasn’t his final smoke, he did eventually quit for good. I’m so proud of him and grateful for the many Christmases we’ve had with him (and many more to come).Gift of Heart

Lesson learned? Be courageous and ask someone you love to quit an unhealthy habit OR start a healthy one. They may say yes.

Passion discovered? I once heard it said that to figure out what your passion or purpose is in life, look back to some of the things you did as a child. Oprah, for example, can remember interviewing her dolls. For me, this is just one of the many stories from my childhood that have guided me toward one of MY passions: Cycling!

In health and fitness – as in life – consistency is key and it happens daily, if not hourly. You are in an endurance sport – the sport called LIFE. This applies whether you are abandoning an unhealthy habit like smoking, or adopting a healthier way to eat and fuel your body. There are no quick fixes where you do something for a said period of time and then stop – or return to your old bad habits – and everything keeps going hunky dory. It takes daily consistent action towards improved health.

WorthItWhen my husband and I got married, we made a promise to each other: to be as healthy as we could possibly be, for as long as we possibly could be. Every day I make choices to honor that promise and consider it a gift I continually give him.

Know that there is someone in YOUR life that is counting on YOU to be your healthiest self, and that someone starts with YOU. They, and you, deserve that.

Repeat after me: “I am worth it.”

 

 

 

Want to learn more about our nutrition or coaching programs? Visit LivingLifeMoreAbundantly.com.