So what feels like yesterday is now almost three weeks ago which was a weeks holiday for me before I started a new job. The reason I bring this up is for two reasons....food and exercise.
Let's start with food because I think this is a huge sign of being able to cope with my decision to be more healthy. The reason I say this is when I was away I was able to eat healthy and still enjoy myself. The best part is for two days I ate out for all meals and I was able to make good choices. You must be asking how I know this? Easy...I LOST WEIGHT ON HOLIDAYS!!!
Next is maintaining exercise while on holidays. Yes while at the hotel I actually used the gym, and did not miss a workout. Why, because it is that important!
Lastly during my holidays I was able to incorporate activity as a mode of celebration rather than food which is something I have thought about a lot lately. All celebrations involve food and I do not think they have too. Why not a walk? A favorite game? Not easy but my point is food does not have to be the focal point of celebration as it has in the past for me, and hopefully now with this breakthrough I can keep it going!!
Next challenge is the new job and what might have been a typical response in the past? Yes stress..stress then leads to shortcuts such as comfort food, bad sleep habits, poor nutrition and discontinuation of exercise due to being overwhelmed and tired. I am proud to say none of these things have happened and I can safely say I have been under a lot of stress but have made a huge point of reminding myself that my old lifestyle will not get me through it any easier. The new job has actually been easier to get through because of food, water and exercise. It just takes commitment, and right now I am proud to say, most days I have it!!
This month and I am close to 6 pounds lost for March. That is more than a pound a week, so I am more than pleased with this!
During this time I have also started to see a Chiropractor for the glute that popped back four weeks ago. Interestingly she feels that the tightness in my hamstrings is due to my glutes not firing. I am getting deep tissue massages from her and I can already say after two weeks I am getting more range of motion in my hamstrings.
I am hoping this is the key to improve my running as I felt stalled or on the verge of injury. My quads were getting bigger and bigger but I did not feel any real power improvements in my legs and it seems this is a side effect of the glutes not firing as they should. Most interesting our bodies are!!
This bring me to the Around the Bay 5k on Sunday March 25. My legs felt ok but I had hoped to break 31 min for the 5k but unfortunately it was not in the cards this time (official chip time 32:07). It definitely has made me aware I must do some hill training when my glute is fully healed as the small hills in the race are what ate me up. Overall it was an awesome day around awesome people and friends. I could have not asked for a better day. Here is a picture of the finish line inside Copps Coliseum.
Once things settle down, I will definitely post more details about food and current exercise.
