Happy Thursday to you!
Within the last few weeks, I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned a lot about my body, a lot about my priorities, a lot about my relationships, a lot about my health, and a lot about life in general. That’s quite a bit of learning within only a few weeks, eh?! 
Within all of that, I’ve learned that there’s so much more to life than what I was prioritizing before my recent wake up call.
There Is More To Life Than…
1) Getting my workout in for the day.
2) Ensuring that my workout burns plenty of calories.
3) Making sure I only eat ‘x’ amount of calories.
4) Worrying about that extra spoonful or two of nut butter I ate straight from the jar.
5) Thinking about which workout I’m going to do the next day.
6) Wondering what “low-cal item” I can find on the menu when we go out to eat (rather than just ordering what my body is truly craving).
7) That stupid number that shows up on the scale.
![553136_10150659762141645_389649203_n[1]](http://www.myfoodnfitnessdiaries.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/553136_10150659762141645_389649203_n1.jpg "553136_10150659762141645_389649203_n[1]")
8 ) Fitting into a certain size pants.
9) Looking like the supermodel or ripped athlete on Pinterest.
[click on photos for original source]
10) Stressing about a little cellulite on your legs or junk in your trunk. We’re WOMEN for heaven’s sake – we’re supposed to have some fat and curves!
11) Making sure my arms, legs, abs, butt, etc., etc. are perfectly toned.
12) Getting that next PR!
This is NOT to say that I am advocating that you go stuff yourself silly with cupcakes and never do a workout again in your life. Heck to the no! I’m all about fueling your body properly and exercising. However, there is a fine line between recognizing what is beneficial for us and what is damaging to us.
It’s been so nice not having to stress about the few hundred extra calories I may have consumed or worrying about how I’m going to fit in my workout for the day. I hope you are able to remember that there is more to life than these things too! 
Questions:
- Do you ever find yourself worrying about any of the above things I mentioned?
- Now it’s your turn! Finish the sentence: There’s more to life than ____________.
{ 84 comments… read them below or add one }
You said it best! There’s more to life than keeping a perfectly neat and tidy house…
yes! i gotta remember that one too…
There’s more to life than work!
Needed to hear that this morning :] Thank youuuu.
Haha I worry about all of those things and way too often. Working on it! Good thing I have friends like you to remind me what’s important!
Love this! It’s so silly how we can let these kinds of thoughts control us sometimes.
There’s more to life than getting above a 90 on all my exams. I need to keep on reminding myself this so that I don’t go crazy in these next few weeks.
yes, please do remember that it’s NOT the end of the world if you don’t get A’s on all of your exams! i put so much pressure on myself through college to get the best grades, and now i look back and don’t understand why the heck i did that to myself!
Amen sister!
Definitely! I will now have my cake and eat it too
Have a good day!!
Oh boy, I feel like I worry about some of that stuff way to much! Thank you for the reminder to focus on other things that are more important
. Lately I feel like I’ve been focusing too much on making my workouts intense so that I can be “fit” enough (whatever that means) and I think my body is kind of hating me for it. My workouts are feeling blah and instead of feeling energized for the rest of the day I am exhausted! I think I need to change some things haha
what you’re describing sounds exactly how i was before this whole process. don’t do it to yourself! believe me, your body will thank you.
AMEN sister!! Glad you’re “in the know” now!!
you better believe it!
Love this! All the things you said are so true! Until we learn to let go preconceived notions of what a “perfect woman” looks like in today’s society, we can’t live a fun and fulfilling life. It’s exhausting trying to meet certain standards. I love your attitude. “There’s more to life than those extra 5 pounds on the scale.”
This is awesome! I need to remember this more often because it is so true. Life is meant to be lived and fully enjoyed!! Love this<3
great post! You covered a lot of what I focus way too much of my time on.
this is such an amazing post Ashley! its exactly what i needed to hear to remind myself to stop stressing and worrying so much! thank you for this!
i’m so glad!
I love you, and I love this post! Thanks for putting it into perspective for us. It is hard on all of us!! You are such a beautiful person, inside and out!
thanks girl! i love you too!
It’s easy to let the little things bother us. They bother the heck outta’ me! But if we let little things bug us, we forget to also embrace those other little things – the wonderful ones: coffee on a cool morning, a good walk, or even the extra spoonful of pb!
absolutely! well said!
Amen times infinity- Love this!
Love this! Such a great outlook to have and to remind us all to strive for!
Ahh, this is great, thanks for the great reminder! It’s hard to let the little stuff go sometimes, but there definitely is more to life!
Thanks so much for sharing. I struggle with these things daily. I feel like I HAVE to have a hard core work out every day, or I’m a lazy bum. I am constantly down on my self for what I am eating- and I never feel like I’m doing a good enough job.
There is MORE to life than having the PERFECT body!!
ohh girl, wish i could give you a big hug right now! don’t do that to yourself! you’re BEAUTIFUL!
I LOVE that scale pic. Is that your actual scale? I’m going to have to share that with my FB peeps, and link to your blog of course
There’s more to life than counting every calorie.
no, no, it’s not my scale. i should make my scale look like it though!
I love this because I can definitely relate to them all. There is more to life than worrying about “perfection”.We are all meant ti be unique and different:)
Thank you for this! I can honestly say that I relate to “every” worry that you wrote this morning. It’s kind of embarrassing to admit it— but hey, its true. Your post really puts things in perspective that ‘it is okay’ to live a little and worry less. Who knows what will happen to us tomorrow, right?
I LOVE you. Seriously, I feel like we’re discovering these things around the same time. Lately I’ve been listening to my body SO much more than I ever was before, and eat whatever I think my body is craving. It’s so important to learn to love ourselves for how we are!
By the way, is that your scale? I love that idea!!
And there’s more to life than being skin and bones. Boys usually do like a little junk in the trunk
absolutely! it’s quite the journey, but so worth it in the end.
no, it’s not my scale, but i’m considering making mine look like it! xoxo
Amen. amen. and amen!! I agree with this 100%! I have to say, there are some bloggers out there that I feel “worry” too much and it contradicts a healthy and balanced life that in turn, makes their readers feel guilty, lazy, not doing enough, etc. I have never been the one that worried too much about that piece of cake or cookie, because I know I enjoyed it and treat my body well enough that it can handle it. However, I have found myself considering buying certain products- not because I will enjoy the taste or the nutrients (or lack thereof) it contained- but because it had (this many) less calories than what I’d normally buy and (this certain) blogger has it. Needless to say, I enjoy my brand of choice all-natural crunchy peanut butter- none of that PB2 mess.
This is wonderful girl! Your posts truly show how beautiful you are from the inside out! There is more to life than trying to be perfect all the time! This is a hard one for me, but I have definitely improved when it comes to forgiving myself for the mistakes I make!
LOVE this!
Aww I love this, Ashley!
Thank you so much for sharing!
For me, I’d have to say “There’s more to life than having a flat stomach.” Haha!
I think I have fairly good self-confidence and I’m good with my body, but I still get self-conscious sometimes about that silly mid-section. But I know I’m being HEALTHY, so isn’t that what matters??
Hope you have an awesome day, my friend!
Exactly! I wish I started blogging about my experience sooner. It may have helped me cope faster.
There is more to life than holding grudges.
letting it out definitely helps!
I love love love this post. You are SO right. Of course I have stressed over some of those things, but we only do have one life. We might as well enjoy it
You’re definitely on to something. Sometimes, when I try to think about what’s important, I think about how I’d explain my choices and outlook to my 4 year old niece. I want to be proud of ME, not in a battle. I think that life is basically simple, but we make it SO, SO hard on ourselves. There’s more to life than perfection. There’s more to life than comparison.
I’ve had this quote “Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of someone else” in my head today, pretty good workday mantra.
LOVE that quote, lauren!
there’s more to life than being “understood” by all of your worst critics.
Just be you, it’s better that way.
and I like ya!
I feel like I am in the EXACT same situation as you are!! Trying to exercise less, eating more, not worrying about what I weigh, gaining my period back etc. I am having a hard time some days getting over that hurdle of “If I eat that, I will get fat” or “If I don’t run those extra miles, I can’t have that slice of cheese” etc. It is so frustrating. Any tips?
i think the biggest thing that has helped me is to remind myself what it is i’m ultimately doing this for, and it’s to be able to have children someday. that is worth more to me than any weight gain or race.
Ashley, I really really really REALLY needed to hear this today so thank you so much!! It was a great reminder of what I already know but is so hard to put into practice. I worry about all of these things, all the time! I’ve been making a conscious effort lately to “not sweat the small stuff” so thank you for the reminder I definitely needed.
There’s more to life than…getting an A on every final!
HUG! This may be the best post you’ve ever written, Ash! LOVE IT!
You’re so right–there is SO much more to life than the things you listed! I’ve actually been thinking about this a lot lately…God doesn’t care one bit about whether we ran 8 miles in under an hour, or if we’re able to wear size 2 jeans. Heck to the no! He wants us to be healthy, and that means having a balanced relationship with food and exercise, and prioritizing loved ones and those in our communities! Worrying/obsessing about workouts and calories is so silly…it does nothing but make us miserable, and it prevents us from enjoying those things that truly matter. Let’s ENJOY this life we have, and live for something greater than what’s in front of our eyes! <3
YES! very well said.
Great post, lady – I completely agree!
This is a great mindset to have! I find myself worrying about those things occasionally, but you’re so right — there’s way more to life than that!
Love this! Just what I needed to hear today! Thank you for posting!
Wow! This is awesome! So true! I worry about all of that everyday…. There is more to life than worrying about clean dishes and laundry. There is more to life than cleaning up all the toys every night! And so I don’t need to worry about the extra snickers peanut butter egg that I just inhaled!
Thanks again! I totally , woke up thinking how this post was a blessing to my life! I just want to order what I want when i go out to eat! Ugh! So done trying to live this crazy life! Thank u!
Hallelujah! Love your blog missy, I don’t comment often, but I’m an avid reader, and I think this post was great, exactly what I needed to hear
thanks melissa! glad you commented!
Beautiful post! YOU ARE SO INCREDIBLE! I think of you daily, you know?
There is more to life than worrying about how many times you eat out in a week!
I am going out for lunches/dinner a lot this weekend, but I just need to enjoy
Love u babe
Love your outlook on this Ashley- I admire how well you seem to be handling all of the changes- you have such a great attitude!
Money!
Awesome Post!! Exactly what I needed to hear! There is more to life than having a perfect body.
LOOOOVVEEEE this! GREAT post, girl!
There’s also more to life than lots of $$$, work, and a super clean house or car!
WORD!
Such an amazing post Ashley! So true, it’s hard to remind ourselves of this sometimes. To take a step back and not be worrying so much about the little things! Yes we need to be healthy, eating right and being active, but not to put so much pressure on ourselves and making sure every little calorie burned or eaten is accounted for!
Great post!!!
There’s more to life than being the perfect daughter/sister/friend/puppy mother
!
Love all of these! I really have nothing new to add lol… You hit the nail on the head quite well
Everything you wrote about is stuff we won’t be thinking about in thirty years reflecting on life so far! All so true!
I agree with #1… There is definitely more to life than getting in a workout every single day… like my sanity.
There is more to life that… constantly looking to see if I have “back fat”! (Yes… i do that constantly). Ugh!
Great post!
LLLOOOVVVEEEEE this girl!!!!!! You are such an inspiration hun and I am so happy that you are taking care of yourself, living, loving, and having fun because you are right…there is oh so much more to life!
This has been one of my huge focuses in the last few months…SO GREAT TO HEAR(..see it) IT FROM SOMEONE ELSE!
It is so true.
This is such a great list!
Thank you for sharing Ashley 
I am going through similar health issues right now and just wanted to say thank you for posting about it. Its so helpful to hear about what the journey is like for other people. Thanks!
Thank you so much for this post Ashley. I read you blog everyday and am going through a similar issue of finding healthy ways to gain weight and stop obsessing over making sure I get a workout in everyday. I understand your struggle and am cheering for you! Just curious, you mention that you have been increasing you intake of dairy products, what kind of milk are you drinking/using in your diet? Skim/low-fat/etc.? Thank you again!
hi caitlin! i’m so glad you’re making a point of changing some of your lifestyle habits to make your health a priority! that’s awesome! i used to only drink soy or almond milk (of which had little to no fat in it), but now i’m drinking 1% because that’s what my husband likes. 2% and whole are a little too “much” for me. i DO buy whole/full fat yogurt and cottage cheese though!
You’re rocking with the positive, awesome posts lately!! Love that you put this into perspective for us! Please tell me that’s your scale, that is awesome. There is more to life than counting calories day in and out! Seriously…Have a great Friday!!
Love this! I definitely think that there’s more to life than stress in general. I worry too much about being perfect…in shape, clean house, star employee. It’s time to take a step back and relax again.
Amen, girl, I love it!
i just wanted to let you know that i bookmarked this page, and refer back to it whenever i’m feeling extra self conscious about my body! thank you. it’s extra hard to keep these things in perspective during bikini season.
this is so true. why do women (myself included) seem to obsess about every little calorie and work out? it’s currently driving my boyfriend crazy and I need to lighten up…as I also have irregular/nonexistant periods for a while now.
it’s hard being a woman!
I love the photo in #7!
There is more to life than… an all-or-nothing mentality when it comes to health and/or weight loss!
Amazing when you stumble upon something that you NEEDED to see. I see that it’s an older post but I just recently found your blog. Thanks for the positive thoughts!
Amanda
This post made my day!!! Its a struggle to have a positive self-image and to NOT stress about the “perfect” body, perfect diet, perfect workout…and this post really made me remember the important things in life…thank you!!!!
You hit this topic on the head. It’s perfect and I couldn’t even add anything else. I constantly worry about all those things. Maybe not all but most, especially all of the first few.
I love this post! It’s so true…it’s so easy to focus on all of those things and I have certainly been guilty many times. But all of those things are really not important in the long run. The main point is to be happy and healthy. Great post!