My Word of the Year

On By AngeliaIn Life is what you make it.

It’s actually two words No Excuses.

Something we were withholding made us weak, until we found it was ourselves.

– Robert Frost

Today marks the sixth year that I quit smoking cigarettes. Six years! A New Year’s Resolution gone right. I mean, nobody actual succeeds at those…do they???

But I did. Cold Turkey. I smoked my last one around noon January 1st, 2006. I never picked them up again. Not another puff.

I’m not saying it was easy to just walk way from a long-term habit. It wasn’t. I’ve been addicted to a lot of things in my life and this one, by far, was the hardest to kick. I grew up with smokers. I went to France as a teenager surrounded by young kids smoking. I picked it up pretty easily.

It was in my blood, and in my brain. And it became a habit I had to break for many reasons, but mainly health, and for my daughter.

It was tough.

But I did not give myself an excuse to start back again. No reason was good enough to start smoking, because I wouldn’t let it be, and it wasn’t too long before I hardly thought of it. After a few months smoke-free, I became allergic to smoke.

Now, if I’m around it, it gives me a headache and it makes me feel nauseous.

Thing is, I was probably allergic to it all along. No wonder I felt so much better after I quit.

That year, I went on an exercise kick that lasted many years. I quit smoking, I start drinking a ton of water, and I added hard-core exercise. Sometimes, I exercised three times a day.

The extra weight I carried melted away.

December 2005 Christmas Party. I was a very unhealthy me.

Seven months later in 2006…..

The end of my weight-loss journey.

I had a No Excuses mind-set. I would not let anything stand in my way.

Now…I am back to photo number one. I need the mind-set I had in 2006 – one that quit smoking, quit over-eating, and exercised daily. A No Excuses me.

The last few years there have been excuses…….

    I’m too tired. I’m too stressed. I’m too busy. I’m too injured…..from a car accident, a fall, or a nasty break-up.

Excuses is what I have eaten for dinner and taken to bed. They are my BFF.

And I use them, not just for healthy things, but for everything in my life….my photography…..my reading….my side business….my friends.

Excuses. The why I can’t complete or succeed at ________ (fill in the blank).

So this year, I will put my excuses in 2011, and they can stay there.

How about you? Do you have a word or a resolution for 2012?

18 thoughts on “My Word of the Year”

  2. I have a goal in mind, but I need to sit down and make a plan in order to accomplish that goal, because it is pretty broad.

    Good for you and your “No excuses” attitude. I will be here to cheer you on. You contact me (twitter, e-mail, blog, FB, call) if you need someone to give you encouragement or even dinner ideas! I was so happy with my 30 minute meal the other day, I was proud of myself. Cooking can be quick. Takes a little prep work, but it pays off in the end especially when you come home from work tired and hungry.

    XOXOXO YOU GO, ANGELIA!!!!

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  5. That’s so inspirational!! Talk about a NY resolution that brought about so major healthy changes! I’m with you! I need the same attitude to losing weight (again!)! I did it once and I want to do it again, for real this time…no excuses!!

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  7. suzicate

    Good for you for quitting smoking and never picking it back up! I once had that mind set and got in shape…it seems I’ve lost my mind. Help me find it!

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  9. Wow! Good for you!!! So glad you stopped smoking! (:
    I love your words for 2012. In fact I should make those words some of mine words for 2012 as well. I’ve become a procrastinator/excuser pro in the past few months. Must stop that. Thanks for the inspiration. Good luck this year!

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  13. Congratulations. As a former smoker who, even after 20 years, still has to be reminded that smoking is always a choice and one I choose not to do. I also quit cold turkey – put on weight, took off the weight and have put it back on. 2012 is my year to treat myself better. Great blog –

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  15. Oh boy, same for me! I want to exercise and eat healthier (also feed my family healthier). It is frustrating to have lost ground, isn’t it?!!! Best of luck to you and to me!!!

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  16. I really don;t have a resolution for the year. I just want to keep going forward in the direction we are going in, the ups and downs and all arounds that is the crazy goodness of my life. I too have quit smoking, March 2007 was mine. I have never picked up another cigarette since either.

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  18. I also have a goal to be healthier in 2012. I have about 40 pounds to drop to get to a healthy weight and must force myself to get off the couch. I understand about the excuses – I am the Curator of Excuses. This is the year to stop the excuses and start the hard work. Best of luck to you!!

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