7 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
A. personal B. insecurities C. moments D. admit E. follow F. good
G. grow H. issues I. right J. crucial K. activities |
How I Tricked Myself into Enjoying Healthier Foods and Exercise
Most of us would like to think that when we reach a certain age or point in our careers, we automatically evolve past the point of worrying about our appearance. Body image and self-confidence, or our lack of confidence, is something that we never really talk about for fear of drawing attention to our 1 .
But the truth is that our body image issues affect us more than we’d like to 2 . Over the last eight years I’ve worked hard to 3 my business. My main focus has been my work—writing books, creating products, launching products, growing my team—and I’ve dedicated long hours to my company’s success. My diligence has definitely paid off and my business is thriving, but all of that hustling has come at a(n) 4 cost. I’ve spent long hours at the computer and little time exercising or eating 5 . I tried to ignore it and I told myself that no one noticed, but my weight steadily crept up.
As a result, my confidence slowly decreased, and I retreated from the 6 —both personal and professional—that I loved. I stopped going out with friends, stopped sharing photos of myself on social media and avoided media interviews. Even if I didn’t want to admit it, I knew that the underlying problem was that I just didn’t feel 7 about myself. I had to make a change. I started by getting clear about my goals, which included getting into the best shape of my life, changing the way I ate and running a 10K on my 40th birthday. But more importantly, I got honest with myself about why those goals were so 8 and then I asked the people that I trust the most to hold me accountable. From there, I had to make the daily decision to 9 through.
It wasn’t easy. In fact, there were many 10 that were downright painful. But I’m succeeding, and I’m happy to see that I’ve made changes and am now leading a healthier life.
