I am not particularly fond of large crowds, cheesy fries, corn dog or late nights, but I did love this past weekend when the Battle at Bristol finally came to town.

It was a sight to behold with so many moving parts coming together just right, to pull off an enormous event. A big thank you to the sponsors and all the people that were involved that contributed funds, time and effort to make Bristol an even better place to live.

From all the festivities downtown on Thursday night, concert on Friday night and the big game on Saturday night, it was all just spectacular! I am so very proud of our city!

Saturday evening, I started out screaming “Go Hokies” and then it turned into “Oh No Hokies,” and of course my seat was in the middle of a sea of orange. I made a lot of friends, and as I told all my “new friends,” Mike and I are really Vol fans when they are not playing Virginia Tech. Everyone has a good time because both Virginia Tech and The University of Tennessee have great fans that have respect for the game of football and for each other! Let’s do it again!

As I looked surveyed the event, there were people of all different shapes and sizes both young and very old. They all had made quite an effort to get to this game. Unfortunately, Mike lost his Fitbit somewhere at the event but I guarantee that we walked 10 miles and climbed 50 flights of steps, by the time the night was over. I told Mike that if we had one of these events every weekend, a lot of people would sure be in better shape. They were forced to walk a lot of miles to see something that was very important to them. My mind starting going straight to the thought, why were they motivated to do this but not motivated to walk a couple of miles a day for their own health.

The answer is…. they were motivated! Motivation will take you a long way in any endeavor in life. When the going gets tough your motivation can keep you going.

Let me just throw this thought out to all of you. What motivates you to move? If you need some motivation, try some of these suggestions:

» Wear a trackable device: Research shows that people who monitor their exer-cise are more successful in long-term behavior change. Count your steps, set goals to do a certain number of steps each day.

» Set Goals: Set goals with your movement just like you do with other things in your life that you want to accomplish. Set short term and long term goals and measure and record your progress.

» Partner-up: Find a friend that motivates you to move! Clearly having a cheerleader in your corner will help you to move on the days you do not want to move. Accountability partners are a treasure! Seek out someone that you have watched them succeed with their health and wellness. Perhaps you can help them with something they struggle with in life as well.

» Attend Events: Absolutely attend as many active events as you can. You will walk more than you think, all while having fun.

Motion is lotion to your joints and muscles, so keep moving and keep all your moving parts in good working order.

See you in the gym!