Book Review: Me Before You & Finding Motivation

The other day I mentioned that I had finished a new book in three days.

Well, this is the book, and here is the review of Me Before You by Jojo Moyes.

Me Before You is a story of a quirky girl, Louisa, who finds herself laid off from her long term cafe job. The cafe was her comfort zone, but Louisa found herself at the local employment office in search for something new. What she came across probably wasn't her first choice, but since the jobs were slim, this was the next best thing. Louisa was employed by a quadriplegic man, Will Traynor, and his family to become Will's care attendant for a six month term.

Me Before You is a story full of humour and the love of putting yourself before others - hence the title. Louisa developed a passion for making Will comfortable and soon, this passion turned into a mission to make him happy and motivated for a more fulfilled life after Louisa discovered a secret that the family had been keeping from her. I had my nose so far into this book that I would come racing home after yoga to read chapter after chapter. Ryan would ask if I was ready for dinner. "Sure, after this chapter!" And then two more chapters would go by, I'd be hungry, but I also wanted to know what happened next. Reading about the very REAL struggles that Will encounters puts things into perspective for a perfectly able bodied person, and it truly made me feel thankful for my life and all it encompasses. 

If you are looking for a book that will make you smile and pull on your heart strings simultaneously, I highly recommend this. Me Before You was an easy read because it kept me engaged throughout the whole book. You know when you read a book and are tempted to skim through the pages because it is so slow moving in some parts? Me Before You is not like that whatsoever.

Bonus: they are making a movie based on this book, and immediately after I finished this book I watched the trailer. I cannot wait for it to come out!

Any other book recommendations for me?!

So, let's talk about motivation for a second here.

First things, first. Yes, I am training for the Lululemon Seawheeze Half Marathon. Secondly, no, I have not done any serious running in the last month. At the end of April I had the goal of running 75 miles this month, and I can say right now that that is not going to happen. We have, what, six days left of the month? And I am not even half way there yet.

And I am okay with that! No, for real, I am okay with that.

So, what is my plan now? I am going to be doing yoga two to three times per week depending on my schedule (realistically three would be the maximum, four would be stretching it), and I have been toying with the idea of getting my runs in early in the morning before work. The long run of course is an exception, as this will have to take place either on Saturday or Sundays, again depending on what I have going on that weekend. This weekend, for instance, my long run will probably have to be on Saturday since I will be in Vancouver for a Brownie event on Sunday. It's great to have a plan, but it is great to be flexible with that plan, too!

With that all being said, finding motivation can be hard. Have you ever found yourself motivated for a second and then it's like a switch turns off and suddenly you just feel down and ready to call it quits and watch Netflix instead? I have been there. I get it. While finding motivation can be a challenge, it definitely helps to have an end goal. Having a finish line, whether that be a real finish line during a race or simply something you want to accomplish, can be a great motivator in itself. Talk to people who are involved in the same activity as you to draw inspiration from them. For example, when I first started my running journey I joined a run club. This weekly running meeting not only held me accountable, but also was a good way for me to meet other people with like-minded attitudes and goals. It's hard not to want to push farther and faster around people who are literally cheering you on and wanting to see you go out and beat your previous record time. Right now, my motivation is the Seawheeze coming up and the thought of going on vacation in August (I will chat more about that as we get all the details). Fortunately, I am pretty good at motivating myself if I truly want something, and right now I am looking forward to the Seawheeze because a) I loved the course last year, b) I am exciting to go to the sunset festival with Ryan, and c) I want to kill the run and confidently rock a pair of cut offs at the festival. I mean why not, right?

For those of you who may be interested in the training plan, this is the one that I have printed out and scribbled all over ; )

That is all for today! See ya in the next one.