I am a huge advocate for letting go of all dietary restrictions on holidays. I try to focus on family, friends, and making the most of the holidays. Thinking about calories and sugar intake will only fill your mind with worry and guilt, so don't do it! Blakely and I spent the day antique shopping and eating terribly. Not too bad, but bad enough to where I woke up with a milkshake hangover. My tummy does not like dairy. It was a beautiful and relaxing day. I'm so glad I could spend it with him!
Last year on the 4th, Rachel and I ran a 10k in town because unlike every other runner I know, we were not participating in the Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta. We called it "Shannon and Rachel's Run for Patriotism and the Consumption of Not-so-Healthy Food 10k". It was grueling because of the humidity, but we had a blast! I completely forgot about it this year! To be honest, I haven't run more than 4 miles in two months, so six miles would have probably killed me.
The weather was perfect yesterday, so a run wouldn't have been so terrible! We had a Hero WOD planned (a workout dedicated to a fallen solider), and they are always brutal! I enjoy Hero WODs because they are always ridiculously difficult and equally rewarding. The workout was the "Filthy Fifty".
My box had done it before as a team WOD, but this was the first time we were supposed to complete it individually. I didn't realize until a minute or so before we began that there was a 30 minute time cap on the workout. I became nervous because deep down, I am VERY competitive- not just with other people, but within myself. Obviously, it was my goal to complete the workout within the allotted time, but more than anything, living to tell about it was my main focus. It was rough. I felt like I was maintaining a relatively decent pace. I started my burpees at 20 minutes on the dot. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I loathe burpees. They are not tall people friendly at all, and they pretty much suck in general. I don't care how effective they are. My strategy for each movement was to break them up into sets of 10. I did the first 10 burpees at a moderate pace, but after that, it was sets of whatevertheheck I could do. I have never come so close to throwing up in a workout. I picked up my rope at 28 minutes and some odd seconds. Double unders are hard for me. I have reallllly been working on them, and I will sacrifice time to practice them in some workouts, but I didn't have it in me. I thought I could complete the 150 singles in the minute in a half. I didn't, but I wasn't far from it! My time was 30:19. I was pleased. Most importantly, I didn't vomit.
Love these people!
There is nothing that irks me more than people who ask my advice but then offer a thousand excuses for why they can't follow any of it. This might sound harsh, but if you aren't willing to make any changes to your lifestyle at all, then I don't care to hear about how you can't fit in your pants anymore. Take it elsewhere. There are a few things you are going to have to accept if you are wanting to improve your health and change your lifestyle. The methods I used for losing weight might work for you, but I'm sure you can find relevance in some of them. Here are just a few of the things I've learned over the last few years. Keep in mind, I am no expert.
1. Accept the you are going to have to change.
I am not talking about the physical transformation you are hoping to see. I am referring to changing your thought process and daily routines to adapt to a healthier lifestyle. We are creatures of habit. Regardless of whether or not I am actually hungry, I tend to reach for the sweet things around 3 or 4 o'clock because during the school year, that was the end of the day and I needed a pick-me-up. It's been hard to break that habit this summer, so instead of going for my usual handful of Hersey kisses or Skittles, I opt for fruit or a chocolate protein shake.
For those of you that are "too busy to exercise" or are timid when it comes to working out in front of other people, you are going to have to accept that exercise is a key component to losing weight. Suck it up, buttercup.
2. Accept feeling uncomfortable.
Newsflash: No one, absolutely no one in the world looks good working out. If you're anything like me, there is a look of extreme anger and pain on your face the entire time. Sometimes, I even cry because it's so agonizing. I'm a huge crybaby. It's not going to feel good while you are doing it, but it's going to feel amazing once you've done it! Don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. You have to if you want to be successful. When it comes to eating out, it's comfortable to follow your friends' lead when eating in a group. If everyone else is ordering a beer and a burger, that means it's okay for me to do it too, right? Wrong. Occasionally, splurges are fun and necessary, but earn those cheat meals! You might be the brunt of the jokes at the table for asking for water and your salad dressing on the side, but you won't feel guilty the next day for it.
3. Accept sweat.
In my fat days, working up a sweat was one of my biggest fears. I always associated sweating with being overweight. I just assumed everyone was looking at me thinking "the fat chick is sweating again, she must be hot and bothered thinking about some Twinkies". It goes along with accepting the feeling of discomfort. I'm sure you spent a long time deciding what to wear to the gym and how to fix your hair, but no one cares. It should be your new goal in life to sweat so much that it rains into your face and saturates every inch of your hair and clothing. That means you are something right. Accept it!
4. Accept the notion that progress will not occur overnight... or maybe even in one week... or maybe even in one month.
If you are completely sedentary and you begin incorporating dietary changes and exercise into your routine, change will likely happen quickly. For those of you (us) that are already relatively healthy and on a fairly solid exercise regiment and are seeking MORE improvement, change will be slow and steady. Don't give up. Don't assume that it's not working, and whatever you do, don't go back to your old habits. Regardless of whether or not the numbers on the scale are dropping or you physically see the changes in your body, the new healthy habits you are creating are always better than what you were doing before. I was in such a rut last week because I lost 7 pounds during my first two weeks of eating Paleo, but the scale hasn't moved since. I went back and found my fattest picture to compare where I started to where I am now.
It takes time, but I promise it's worth it!
5. Accept the fact that you will not win every battle.
There will be days when you don't feel like leaving the couch. Some days, you might be so sore that you can't use the bathroom without the support of the bars in the handicap stall. Don't beat yourself up over missing a work out.
There will also be times where you are incapable of resisting the urge to face plant into a bowl of ice cream. You might even binge eat cold chicken nachos while standing at your fridge. Your progress isn't ruined. One day will not make or break you. Think of how long it took you to gain the weight you're trying so hard to lose! Sometimes, giving in is necessary. I like to have one super, over the top fat day every now and again to remind myself why I choose to eat healthy, whole foods. You will feel disgusting and full of regret, and you might even spend the entire night sitting on or around the toilet as a consequence of your fat day, but that's okay too. Be realistic and think about splurging in moderation. One day is fine, but don't make a habit of it!
Also, don't be too hard on yourself for a slip up either! Just get right back into your usual routine. Don't over train or go without eating. That's doing more harm than good!
I hope you find this advice helpful. It's taken me years to accept some of these things. I'm still working on fully accepting a few of them.
Here are a couple of recipes that I've tried and loved recently! You can find more on my Pinterest boards!
I made these for breakfast this morning, and they are amazing!
I've made these twice this week. Blakely even approves!
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