To be Certified or Not to be Certified? That is the question.

I am a person who likes to act. While the internet is a wealth of information, it can also be a distraction which can become negative. I am a high performance person. I want to do well where I commit myself and I want to have my priorities in the right order.

God

Family and friends

My health - both mental and physical

Work

This year I am reading through the bible with two new friends and it is such a great experience. I've never read through the bible before, so making the commitment and following through in a group is keeping me on course.

I have a few good friends and a husband who make my life better in so many ways.

I like the gym I go to and I'm transitioning through to more time exercising by myself. I'm letting go of the thinking that I have to be watched to give a good amount of effort. I show up as I am for what I'm going to do and give it the effort I have available in the moment. Showing up for anything is the most important part. I am a recovering perfectionist and I am working on all aspects of my life to show up as I am and not what I could be or want to be. I am me in every moment.

I've done nutrition coaching several times over. I've tracked exactly what I have eaten and sometimes I move towards my goals and sometimes I don't. Several years ago, I went through the work to get certified as a level 1 nutrition coach. I didn't pay the month to get the certificate, because that is not important to me. Recently, I looked at some of my nutrition coaching documents and revisited the idea of getting certified. Interestingly enough, the price is 40% less than it was when I first went through the program. I thought about doing it again. What is holding me back? Is it the money. I'm not sure.

What I do know is everyone has something they need to put in the world. We all have something to create. We get to choose what that is. Otherwise, our days become monotonous. I've heard many times - idle hands are the devil's workshop. We become complacent and lose focus. The best way to avoid complacency is to try new and different things. I'll be the first to say I am quick to go all in, but I think I'm better than I was. Otherwise, I would have already signed up to be level one certified.

More about my own nutrition - a coach once asked if I was open to intuitive eating, which I absolutely am not. That's a failure from the start. I have no control in my intuition. Boundaries must exist. After five years, I am open to the idea of using hand-size portion guides for food tracking. For me, the specific amount of food I eat matters less than the type of foods I eat. I go off the rails so fast with carbs. I LOVE carbs, because they give me a little rush and that feeds my endorphins which make me feel happy. I've strayed.

I'm currently thinking through the idea of a life plan centering around nutrition for myself and others if the opportunity were to arise. It starts with me. As for the certification, I am considering it. If this truly is a good path for me and possibly others, the certification is likely important. It give credibility which is important for others to trust my advice is well founded. I'm not sure what decision I will make, but I know I have never stopped thinking about the importance of nutrition in my makeup.

Last but not least only because I have to make money doing something I'm good at to support the rest of my activities. I love the opportunities to step out and learn new, scary things. I'm afraid a lot at work, because I want to do the right thing. I have a terrible case of imposter syndrome. I keep waiting for someone to speak up and say my perspective is wrong, but no one does so I keep going. One scary step at a time. I have been blessed with a scrappy New Jersey guy as a partner. At his heart, he is driven, very kind, and more supportive than I would have thought. I always think I'm not doing enough and he always says no worries. Trust me. I'm doing a lot and the pile keeps getting higher. In the last month, I have truly come to a place where I need to listen to more time management tips. I am definitely failing forward through being perfectly imperfect.

Everything I am able to do is based in how I have been equipped by my mental acuity to focus on the very basis of life which is nutrition.