Thank you Blue Shield of California for sponsoring this post. They are committed to health and wellness, and they believe in tackling health issues before they start.

Why do you workout?

I’ve said it about a million and one times now, and I keep talking about my fit pregnancy journey with this baby boy in hopes of encouraging others to do the same. I’ll be honest — I rarely worked out after Ava was born and for the past two years of her life, I’ve had no drive to do so.

None.

So when I started working out from home using a free workout app, so many of you were encouraged and inspired. It drove me even harder to be a better version of myself. I’ve never received so many messages asking what free at-home workout videos I use, and that just makes me heart so happy that there’s interest there. But regardless, it’s not easy.

It’s very difficult for me to stay motivated to workout.

I’ll go 3-4 days without finding the motivation to do so and finally kick myself back into the groove. And here’s why:

I’m naturally skinny.

The first thing I think of when I think of working out is “weight loss” and “transformations” and I’ll be quite honest, that’s at the core of what I think about when I hear “healthy living.” Well you know what? I’ve just got genes that are “great” in that department. I was 10 lbs below my pre-pregnancy weight within three months of giving birth...without even trying.

And who wants to workout when you know you aren’t going to “see” results? Especially now that I’m pregnant, we all know the outward results will be going in the wrong direction and that’s not very encouraging. Not at all.

But there is so much more to health and fitness than being skinny.

I’ve always eaten healthy - that’s just how my parents ate and how I was raised so hey, I’ve got half of this healthy lifestyle equation down. I married a man who played football throughout his life and in college, and even to this day, health and fitness is a huge part of his life. So his healthy eating habits are just like mine, and we have continued that together.

Health and fitness is for the inside...the outside is just a bonus.

That’s all there is to it. Yes, seeing results and transformations are encouraging, but for me, it’s just not motivation enough because of my body style and my current stage in life. The ability to “lose weight” or “lose a pant size” isn’t what motivates me, and I know I’m not the only one here.

So here’s why I started my healthy pregnancy journey again. There’s one reason and one reason alone. This is my WHY:

My kids.

Fit Pregnancy Blogger - The Overwhelmed Mommy Blogger

There’s a baby boy growing inside of me and the more healthy foods I put inside my body and the more I workout to keep myself healthy, that’s giving him the best start at life I can give him. That’s directly affecting his health from Day One of his life in this world.

And although Ava has been growing like a weed outside of my body for the past two and a half years, she needs her mama. I lost my mom to cancer when I was 18 years old, and that’s one of my biggest fears in life for my baby girl. I want her to grow up with her mama, I want her mama to meet her kids and grandkids one day. I want to be there for her, and while we cannot predict the future, I CAN choose to live healthfully and do everything in my power to be here on Earth with her as long as I possibly can. That all starts with both physical and mental health. That’s starts with ME.

I’m doing this for my babies.

And if that’s not the motivation I need, then I don’t know what would be.

So ask yourself — Why do you workout? Why do you eat healthy? Or why do you want to live a healthy lifestyle if you don’t already? What’s your motivation? What’s your WHY?

If you live in California, then listen up!

Blue Shield of California has an amazing suite of programs called Wellvolution that is literally proven to prevent and reverse disease solely through a lifestyle approach. Diet, activity, even stress management, and social support and all that comes along with your mental health is key - and Blue Shield of California is committed to supporting mental and physical health by tackling issues before they even start.

If you’re already a Blue Shield of California member, Wellvolution is a support system to help you become your healthiest, it’s prescribing lifestyle as a medicine and improving lives one day at a time through this amazing well-being program. If you’re already a Blue Shield of California member, click here to sign up today - it’s free for you to join!

In addition to this amazing Wellvolution program, Blue Shield of California also offers access to a huge range of doctors, specialists and hospitals to help patients find care close to where they live or work. They’ve got quality care resources such as Heal, NurseHelp 24/7, and Teladoc with around the clock support. And as a Blue Shield of California member, you even have access to services such as gym membership discounts and LASIK eye surgery, promoting an overall healthy living lifestyle to help with your WHY.

Now what is your motivation to start, or keep going? What is your WHY?