This week was sucking. No energy. Feeling weird. Over on my calories every day. This week was downright awful. I needed something. Something that would turn this crappy week around and make it something positive. I looked all over for the motivation. I looked at articles, at others' blogs, at my SparkTeams. I couldn't find it. So I looked at my other goals. One of my Fast Break goals that I chose this time around was "give yourself a 5-minute pep talk each day." I thought "Sure, whatever. Couldn't hurt, right?" So I sat down, set a timer for 5 minutes, and I started.

It felt silly, at first, "Well, this is me, doing my 5 minute pep talk." I didn't know what to say to myself, so I started with the problem, "You've been down, feeling weird, and over on your calories." I sort of flew by the seat of my pants, not really knowing where to go next, "You need motivation, and you're not really sure where to find it. Well, that's what I'm here for. To motivate you." I decided that Motivator Me was who was giving me the pep talk, and Motivator Me is fabulous at giving pep talks, "I've got all the motivation in the world, so I'll just give you some of mine. Which is easy, beacuse you're me, so you already have it!"

Motivator Me is a fantastic person. She's me, in the future. Having already reached her goals, she knows exactly what I need to reach mine. She has all the energy that I don't because of my weight. She's the one that fits in my mini skirts, and looks awesome in my midriff tops. She's earned all of the rewards I've lined up for myself, and she knows how to maintain her ideal weight. What's more, she has a vested interest in helping me reach my goals, because if I don't reach them, she doesn't exist! Everyone needs someone who's got their back in the weightloss journey, whether it's a close friend, a personal trainer, a family member, or, in the absence of those options, your Motivator Me.

Thanks to my Motivator Me, I've created a plan and a goal for the month of February: Get my Level 7 SparkPoints trophy! After taking the time to calculate what I can/will realistically do on SparkPeople in one day, as well as how many SparkPoints I need to reach the next level, I;ve worked out a plan for reaching my goal. However, it will only work if I log enough food and do enough fitness minutes every day. This plan will help me continue moving in the right direction, as well as help me bump up my daily, weekly and monthly fitness minutes. And I have a goal, a prize to keep my eyes on: that beautiful Level 7 trophy!

Yesterday was an incredible turning point for me. I can't even remember the last time I felt this motivated and sure about reaching my goal. That 5 minute pep talk was likely one of the most important "5 Minutes" I could have spent in my journey so far. I feel positive, energetic, and well-armed to battle the motivationless monster with my weapons - Motivator Me, my "5 Minutes" mantra, and of course, SparkPeople!