The past couple of weeks I’ve really been struggling with addiction.
Up until this point, I’ve been training hard, dieting and losing weight with the goal of hiking the Andes Mountains in just a few months.
But every time I start to make progress towards my goal I find myself turning right back to the things that made me comfortable and "feel good”
Binge watching Netflix while eating my feelings…
Having just one more drink before I go to bed…
One more night of having a smoke to calm my nerves…
And every time I would tell myself this is the last time, because tomorrow we’re back on the horse and we're hitting the ground running.
And every time I would get back on the horse I would take things to the extreme…
I would diet way under my calorie limit…
I would go 5 extra miles per day at the gym…
And I would punish myself for my shortcomings and failures…
And every time I would go right back to my addictions for comfort…
So, as I sat down this week having just gone through another busy, stressful and self-punishing week I was really feeling like giving into my old addictions...
But then I had a realization that changed everything.
I realized that everything I had been doing and working towards for the past couple of years has all been geared towards one singular goal.
To climb the Andes mountains.
And every time I fell short of reaching that goal I felt like I was a complete and total failure.
But the thing is, it’s not about the mountain…
And it never was.
It doesn’t actually matter if I summit the Andes mountains or if I get halfway through the hike and have to be airlifted out.
And it doesn’t matter if I weigh a specific amount by a certain day.
What matters is the person I’ve become on this journey to climb the mountain and that transformation doesn’t stop the second I reach the summit.
My journey will continue long into the future over many more years and through many more goals and challenges.
And as a byproduct of working towards the mountain I WILL lose weight and I WILL reach my goals.
But I’ll achieve these goals because of the journey…NOT the mountain…
(And if you haven’t picked up on it yet, I’m not actually talking about hiking…)
Once I realized it was never about the mountain and it was always about the journey all my stress went away.
I didn’t care that I accidentally went a few calories over my goal or that I didn’t hit the exact workout I wanted to.
And I no longer felt the cravings to fall back into the old addictions and old way of doing things.
Because who we become during the journey is way more important than if we actually reach the mountain.
And once you realize this, everything becomes a lot easier.
I’m rooting for you,
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