Yes, Doo for me also, I do better setting small goals (some really small) Otherwise we set ourselves up for failure with too high-standard goals. I've always had to break things down, in order to be manageable/doable. I will be needing physical therapy soon, I see my own orthopedic/sports medicine doctor on Tuesday to find out what I need to do. I am in a lot of pain lately, have been since 2002 after a serious car accident where I should have been thrown out of my car but I wasn't. God must want me around here a while longer. LOL. :-)

I already set some goals to take time out for me, so that I can take care of myself better; cooking, cleaning...etc.

That sounds like a good time frame... long enough to make new behaviour a pattern and see some results. I had heard that six weeks was good... but I think 40 days SOUNDS better, even though they are quite similar... now I have to choose a small goal... lol... to try it out... hmmm! : )

I have been able to stick to a few of them but my will power lately is in the pooper lol.

The advice I've heard online from fitness people is this....the hardest part of fitness lifestyles is getting started. Just get started with something small, then build on it later.

I can give you some links to fitness websites with pics of what fitness training can do for you. I find those very inspiring, really I do. Almost anybody can improve their health through lifestyle changes...but they have to DO IT!!! Fitness and lifestyle changes are about changing habits. Once you start imprinting new habits, it gets a lot easier...especially when you start getting more energy from it. It kind of feeds on itself and gives you a much more positive outlook on life.

Someone asked an Olympic gymnast how she managed to reach the top of her sport and win a gold medal at the Olympics. They expected something about supplements or inspiration in the answer...but all she said was..."I don't know, I just kept going back to the gym."....LOL. Sometimes that's really all there is to it.

LOL on the gymnast. I found that myself (for the most part) once you get started it keeps building. There are days where I absolutely cannot do it but I have gotten two days in so far this week and taken a walk before I do anything in the morning.

January when my membership at the Y starts it will get me going just by getting in the car, work out and go for a swim all in one place. It is how I do it here in the summer. I walk to the housing complex behind us and with their permission use the outdoor pool then walk home and get on my machine. I have a picture of a figure that is close to mine but in shape on my background screen and my cell phone to motivate me.

I'm fortunate in having bought a complete exercise set from Kmart years ago when I had money coming in. So I can work out right in my living room...everything is stored in the utility room and I bring out what I need. The set includes a weight-lifting bench, two short bars so I can set up dumbbells, a bar, and stacks of plates. Plus I've added to it with things I found in Goodwill.

So I can do cardio and lift weights without having to drive to a gym, which can take about a half an hour each way depending on the time of year...there's nothing close by.

Lately I've been using a very labor-intensive method in my garden, that helps too. I have to do a lot of shoveling, mixing, turning compost piles, hoeing, etc. It's taken a while, but I seem to be getting used to it.

So it all works together...hard work in the garden, working out with weights and calisthenics, lots of fresh vegetables from the garden. I wrote in my little journal book yesterday that my goal is to overcome what I was taught growing up...do everything you possibly can to avoid physical exertion. I'm trying to go in the opposite direction from that...back to an earlier time without washing machines, power steering, power brakes, power windows, electric can openers, rototillers, rider mowers, etc. People thought nothing of working hard on their gardens and landscapes...that was relaxation to them. Back then people had muscles in their arms...not just bone,fat, and skin.

I like the saying..."Fitness isn't a goal to strive for, it's a lifestyle."

I love to swim and I don't have a nearby pool in the winter, it does me a lot of good mentally also.