SWAGGER

I see them coming down the street... they wear their baseball cap, hoodie over their large T shirt, boxers out the top of the pants, low slung jeans tied with a shoe string for a belt, sagging low, with impeccable shoes. Their hands are in their pockets or texting on their phone.  They greet one another with a quick nod.  As they walk past me weeding my yard, I stop to stare at them.  One of them gives me a quick nod and looks away.  The other one is texting and doesn't even notice me.  The other one has his head back, Adam's Apple pushed out, and I have to say, has swagger. The other glides by effortlessly on his skate board, back arched with just enough coolness to say he knows what he's doing on a board.  

I was just never that cool.

Attitude.

We know they have it, right?  They are dripping in it.  As adults, we roll our eyes, but you can't deny they are soaked in attitude from the sticker on their cap to the soles of their shoes.  But, attitude goes way beyond being cool.  It motivates or un-motivates.  It sends someone head first into a dream or holds them back to lay on their bed depressed. It lands someone in jail or keeps them sitting in a corner at a party avoiding talking with other people.

It's the story of the guy that wins the race but only has one leg.  He shouldn't have won.  He shouldn't have been faster.  Yet, he was.  He nailed it and blew away the competition.  Why?  Because prior to running that race, he spent time - weeks, months, years, a lifetime training and cheering himself on.  When everything told him he couldn't do it, HE told himself he could.

You see the same thing with people who seem to have everything handed to them and yet, seem to fail no matter what they try.  Certain celebrities come to mind that continue to get in trouble though they are millionaires and can buy anything they want.  But, they are not respected because they live their lives with a sense of entitlement that normal people find rediculous.  When everyone told them they could do anything and everything they wanted, they did so without thinking.  Their attitude was more in line with a WTF attitude.

Then, there is the person who negatively tells herself that she can't do it.  She isn't good enough.  She isn't as pretty as the next girl. She allows herself to find solace in food, in pulling back from outings, in wearing tents and sleeping all the time.

My fellow, beautiful Fat Chicks ... remember that your attitude is probably the most important thing you can have to make you a success at WHATEVER it is you try and do - your weight, health, job, relationships, etc. Sometimes you are pushed down by what other people say or do.  God, they can be inconsiderate, can't they?  But,it's more important how you handle it, then what they did or said.

Be your own cheerleader.  Root yourself on when no one else is!  And, if they are, well, ALL THE BETTER!  Because that's what loving someone is about - loving them for the person they are, and not how much they weigh.  But, it starts with you.  Do you have swagger?  Get your swag on Ladies!

Challenge of the Day:
Get your swag on when facing your nutrition and exercise routine.  Be your own cheerleader! Tell yourself YES when other people aren't saying that to you.  You can do this!! Until next time...