Recently while I was talking to a client, I said to her that it sounds like you’re trying to take a new you and make it fit an old routine. Not those exact words, we all know I don’t talk that concisely – but that was the gist.
The weather changes with the seasons and we change as we age.
It’s an easy concept in theory, but in practice not so much.
The past year and half I’ve gotten really good at ebbing and flowing. Rolling with the punches and changing my routine as I need to, and reevaluating my definitions of success, purpose, progress, etc.
Being back online the past four months has been interesting. It’s brought some good stuff, some weird stuff, some ‘ah-ha’ moments and some crap too.
Some of the good stuff – conversations with strangers. Not just on the podcast, but also with other strangers. Strangers in person, other strangers online. I guess the more we talk, then less stranger we are.
Some of the weird stuff and the ‘ah-ha’ stuff. Every now and then I get pulled into wanting to do things that used to serve me, like compete. But putting on my suit again the other day, while giving me rush, also showed me that I’m at a really interesting place in life that I never thought I would be at. It’s ok to have your heart straddle ideas, but this pushed me forward into my running and creating consistency again. It reminded me that competing had been a good part of my life and gave me things I needed at the time that I don’t currently need. That’s a big statement for me.
More ‘ah-ha’ – January has been all about consistency. I know I want to progress certain lifts and increase my running, but I also know that I didn’t have a lot of consistency in the fall and into the holiday season. While I was getting to the gym about 2 to 3 times a week and was walking around a lot, I didn’t have a structure in place, so this month I’ve been giving myself some structure that I can build on in February. In February, I’ll write out a program that I’ll follow for the month with specific days I’m doing specific workouts. I’ve been getting to the gym the same days each week and I’ve been trying to keep the split similar, but I’ve been playing with different weights and ranges. This can be good and bad. I don’t always think you need a goal in order to workout, but I also know that I’m goal driven and even something loose like increasing my deadlift is helpful to keep me pushing.
The crap – well, I think we’ve all been talking about unfollowing or not listening to things that don’t serve you. I’m probably going to be preaching that a lot, partially to remind myself that I have a choice in the matter.
If I think back to when I started my journey there have been a lot of changes.
- A new, healthy relationship
- Changing jobs and then careers
- Buying a house
- Changing my physical health focus from fat loss for health to fat loss for sport to maintaining healthy behaviors
- Obtaining another degree and working on continuing education
I’m not overweight or obese anymore. I don’t need the hardest of hard deadlines to feel like I’m working toward something bigger. Again, something I know and have known, but still a big statement to say out loud.
Running is fun again and it feels really good in a way that I forgot it could. Using the traditional workweek for my lifting structure also feels satisfying because working from home can give you cabin fever and then sometimes, you blow through your day not even realizing how it became 8 pm.
Sharing how I got here is important because I know there are so many people still figuring it out. Each day someone new is making the choice to change their life. I also want to make sure that I’m sharing how I’m enjoying being here and what this life looks like for me. I’m not brushing off how hard maintaining healthy behaviors can be for some, but I also want to make sure that I’m sharing what I’m doing and how it’s possible.
I’ve been a new me for quiet some time and it was just hard to see that. I guess I’m always learning too.
