FITNESS: A Journey

A few months ago I stepped on the scale. I don’t put a lot of thought into the numbers that come up on the scale. A long time ago I discovered it was much more healthy for me to go by how my clothes fit than trying to make my mind be at peace with the number on the scale.
To my surprise, I had gained 20 lbs. Considering I had been working out five days a week on a pretty regular basis, did what I could to eat relatively well considering my crazy work schedule, I knew there had to be an error. I thought maybe the scale was not calibrated, after all, the gym had just moved it from one area in the locker room to another. I gimped out to the treadmill and tried not to let my new discovery sway me.

A few days later I ran into the trainer at the gym. I asked her about it, she said no one else had made any comments, but she would go weigh herself to see if there was something wrong with it. When she returned she told me she weighed herself as did a gal she ran into in the locker room. Then she asked me a series of questions, and the conclusion, because of my new work schedule I could not get to the gym on my usual regular basis and I had ballooned up. She told me going full force like I was and then abruptly stopping can cause my metabolism to get off and I gained weight.

RIght around that time I had been working with a man who once was a solid runner in his high school and college days. He had put me on a workout routine to help build up my strength and endurance for running 5k’s. One piece of advice he gave me, “don’t just up and stop from what I’m telling you to do, or you will gain weight and bloat up”

That was it. The answer came to me, I had gone from hiking for two or three hours with a friend at least twice a month on Saturdays’, Zumba every Thursday and at least one Saturday a month and a five day a week work out to next to nothing. My job had gone under some changes and I was no longer working in a clinic close to me, I was driving over an hour to get to work before 8am, which took away my time in the morning to work out. This got me to start working out on the weekends, which I hated, the atmosphere was not the same, I enjoyed seeing the same people in the morning and watching the morning news shows on the televisions. But, it was the time I had to offer so I was trying to make it work.

Then I was hit again, security in my particular job depends on whether or not you are assigned to a doctors office. The doctor I had been working for decided to screw me over (yes, she is vindictive and would do such a thing-which you will find more information at a later time) and change labs. This caused me to be out of work. Thankfully, another lab needed someone and I was reassigned. Unfortunately, this office was quite a drive away and substantially different from where I once had been. But, I needed to work so I made the best of it. Over the course of the next three months I would discover I was not a permanent placement for this office, I was filling in until I could train the girl who would be taking over this location. Which meant, I would once again be at risk of being out of a job. This duration was extremely stressful and I was desperately looking for a job or another opportunity with the company. Then a team lead position came up and I eagerly applied for it.

On April 17, 2016 I was given that position and I was thrilled, it meant job security, a raise, a small car allowance, and a regular paycheck, finally! Unfortunately, it also meant driving close to 2,500-2,800 miles a month. Which meant my schedule could start as early as 5am and go until 8pm. Monday through Saturday. After two months of this routine I was noticing my clothes were getting tighter, I had no regular schedule to eat like a normal person. Often I would try and grab a snack in the morning and run all day and overeat at night because I was absolutely starving. Sometimes offices would have lunch catered and sometimes they would include me, and other times they would eat around me. As I was not their regular staff I could not go in and allow myself to eat their food, so I would wait to see if I would be invited. Often I was not able to go out and grab lunch because they would see patients during their lunch hours. Eventually, I got sick of the snacks I had in my truck and began to loathe work, life, and become very overwhelmed from what felt like a non-stop schedule, staff who did not realize what I did and that I was covering such a large area and so many staff members. I was unhealthy, I was unhappy, I was not sleeping well.

Thankfully, some things at work changed, I was told my boss would crack down on the managers so I would not get so much overtime, which was not allowed. This came after a conversation of her asking my why I was getting so much overtime, and I was more than happy to fill her in on the weeks that I was told I had to work off the clock because I could not get overtime. At this point I easily have close to 40 hours that I have worked off the clock, because I was not allowed this overtime.

Once that occurred, I began to try and go to bed earlier. Unfortunately, I was still stressed out to a point where trying to go to sleep was a challenge. I was still waking up in the middle of the night panicked I was going to be late for work.

Then as my schedule allowed, I began getting back to the gym. While I never saw myself as one of those people who would get up extra early to beat traffic, get to the gym and then go to work, it works very well for me. It helps me stay disciplined and by the end of the day, the last thing I want to do is go to the gym. I want to go to the house and do as little as possible in the evening. Play with my dog, text my friends, make something to eat, watch Netflix, write and not worry about missing my time at the gym.

Being an adult, working full time, paying bills, making meals, cleaning, is exhausting. Then tie in those who have kids, who are active with their hobbies, and you have a very packed schedule. So, what is the secret to maintaining our health?

It comes to the basics, eat wisely, don’t deprive yourself, but don’t over indulge either. Find a way to enjoy salads, vegetables, fruits, so they can be something enjoyed in life not dreaded. Next, find a way to work out at least three times a week. Maybe start with three times a week and build up to five days a week. Whether it is taking your dog and your kids out for a long walk after work, playing for a solid 30-45 minutes in the yard, or finding a family friendly gym and all of you go and workout together. Yes, that means the housework gets put off, yes, it means less time with Netflix, but it means a healthier you. That is what it is about, finding what works for YOU and sticking with it. Adding it into your routine so when you don’t get to workout you notice, and you try to maintain that healthy step in your life.
You have to want to do it. No one can do it for you. If you want it, which you should want to have healthy habits in your life, then you will find a way. It is not easy. I use to think how the ‘skinny girls in high school’ had it SO easy! They were small, petite, skinny, popular and I had assumed they were naturally that way. While it may be true for some, here is the thing. A lot of those girls did have a high metabolism, but one day that changed in their lives and suddenly they had to adjust their entire way of living, eating, and working out. Some girls were super active in high school and into college, then got a real job and discovered as they were not as active, they gained weight, loss self esteem and began their roller coaster battle. All of our paths are different, we cannot compare ourselves to someone else. Just because you see someone very fit at the gym, at the local department store, running a marathon, does not mean it came easy to them. They have their challenges, their struggles, just like you and I do.

One way to help yourself get on the right foot, is get rid of the voices in your head. Stop beating yourself up, start lifting yourself up with positive reinforcement. A lot of what stops us from pursuing what we want in life in any capacity, is fear, insecurity and the voices in our heads which tell us we cannot do it.

Find a way to win the battle against that voice. From there on in, it will get easier, when you start telling yourself you CAN and you WILL verses I cannot, that opens the door to opportunity. Whether in your fitness, your career or anything you want to accomplish, first you have to stop settling for less, find your worth and value and go make it happen.

Now, how do you make it happen? Each path has to be specific to you. I can’t give you the solution to who, what, how to make it happen because your life is different from mine. Yet, I can share with you what worked for me and my schedule. From there take what you can find to be useful, find other resources as well, but don’t over research at some point put down the magazine, turn the internet off (yes, I said OFF) and go do it!! Try something not just once but twice, because maybe the first time you didn’t like it, but the second time it might come easier, or really make it clear it was not something you enjoyed. Enjoy this journey in life, we only get one shot at it. Yes, we all have aches and pains we all hurt after a solid workout, but that does not mean we give up.

Prime example, two men, both older, maybe about 10 years apart. One was a dairy farmer, who worked hard every day, had pain due to high school football injuries and added pain from the tough duration of farm work.
Another man, who was a little bit younger, had a factory job who would climb up into high and sometimes what seemed like unreachable areas to replace light bulbs at work. Not always easy job climbing, reaching, carrying heavy things and over straining his body.

Both had knee issues, back issues and pain. One complained about his pain while he sat on the couch and ate junk food. The other went along his day, having just as much pain, but working his way through it and finding he felt better the more active he stayed.

Don’t be the guy stuck on the couch, gaining weight, watching endless tv, complaining. No one wants to be around that guy. Because we ALL hurt. It is what you do with your life experience which builds your character.

Join me, as I am embarking on facing my challenges with work, seeking a full time writing career and my journey as I lose 50 lbs. I am not happy about having to lose 50 lbs considering just a few months ago I was a lot closer to my goal weight. This won’t be easy, but this will be my struggle, my path of how I got there, then once I get there, how I maintain it. Something that took me  a long time to learn, is once that weight is off, it does not magically stay off, it can come back. Good health and fitness is a lifestyle change that has to be a part of your life. Which is why you need to find a way to enjoy it. Because there will be days when you will not want to be at the gym, yet you will need to go. Those particular days I enjoy getting the work out over. It is easy to give up and quit, and that makes it all the more difficult to get started.

It truly comes down to, what is it that you want? Do you want to lose that weight? Do you want to be healthy and look good in your clothes? I know I do. I also know it won’t happen overnight, and it won’t be easy.

But, this will be real. Real food, real workouts, mistakes and victories, along with a solid effort on my behalf to get me back to where I once was when I moved to Nashville, Tenn. My goal weight, good health and an active lifestyle. I’m not going to let my disappointments, my failed attempts, my job, get me down. I’m going to move forward and do what I can to achieve my goals.

I won’t announce my goal weight, because it is just a number. For my build and height that number is not a number like 135 or 145, and when I see it, it gives me this mental moment of being judged, whether I am or not. I don’t want it staring at me. I know I have 50 lbs to lose, and I will post where that number lies, whether it goes up or down. Just remember, your weight, whatever it may be is just a number. It does not define you.