fresh start
To say my priorities have been all mixed up for the last month or so would be an understatement. I had been so busy with volleyball that pretty much everything else was put on the back burner, if you hadn’t noticed from my lack of blogging. But, it wasn’t just blogging that took a hit – my family did, my real job did, and so did my healthy habits.
My goal this week has been to basically “start over”. I got my “do over” with Matt and MacKenna this weekend. I spent all Saturday morning with MacKenna, even though it was just going shopping, which thankfully she loves. But, I enjoyed getting to spend some much, much needed time with her, and not having to worry about the week and games ahead of me.
Love being able to take her on runs with me – she was happier once we got going.
I also got to start over with Matt on Saturday night, which we desperately needed. Any of the time we had spent together these last 3 months has been while working or talking about coaching. I’m so thankful to be married to someone who understands the demands of coaching and teaching. But, we really needed a nice date night to catch up and not worry about anything but the two of us. Saturday night, we were able to go downtown to eat at Bailey’s Range for dinner, which I have been dying to try! The food was absolutely delicious, and the company was even better. I’ve missed my family so much the last few months – it’s so nice to get to spend quality time with them!
My veggie burger with goat cheese and caramelized onions – it was sooooo good!
Family was an easy fix – they have to love me and can deal with my not being present (mentally and physically), even if they don’t necessarily like it. But, my health has been a whole other story. I just haven’t been taking the time for myself lately and it’s caused my energy to plummet, my moods to be out of control, and has left me feeling completely burnt out.
I’ve begrudgingly kept up with my workouts throughout volleyball season. I only missed one workout the entire season because I didn’t hear my alarm and overslept. But, the last 3 weeks have been tough to get out of bed (at 4AM since that’s the only time I had to workout). I actually ended up taking it really easy the past few weeks, but mostly because I just have no motivation to do more than the bare minimum (for me). I have a race on Friday night and another one in 2 weeks, but I haven’t even thought about training for them. Sort of an after thought and I’ll do the best I can, but I’m not feeling prepared for either one of them.
What I need is a fresh start, something to get me motivated to push myself through a training plateau. I actually don’t really have a goal to get faster right now. Sure, that’d be nice, but what I really want is a new challenge. So, I’ve decided that what I want to do during the cold winter months is try out some new distances. And what better way to do that than through the St. Louis Track Club Frostbite series. The short courses are a 3K, 2-mile, 5K, 4-mile, and 3-mile – exactly the challenge I need. Nothing too long (I can’t stand long runs!) and new distances that I’ve never raced before! It gets me excited and ready to actually train for something! Hopefully the kick in the pants I need to get out the door and push myself again!
But, the hardest thing that I’m going to have to work on are my eating habits. I’m not always the healthiest eater to most people’s surprise. There is a reason why I still have a post-baby bump 2 years later – I just LOVE food and sweets! I usually eat pretty well, but lately has been absolutely terrible. I’ve eaten more fast food in the past 3 months than I have in the past 3 years. I’ve skipped meals, I’ve eaten M&M’s for breakfast (seriously), and just eaten plain bad. My weight has been all over the place (thank goodness I’ve stopped weighing myself everyday), and it is making me feel lousy. Yes, I’ve been tired because I don’t get a lot of sleep, but I also know my energy has tanked lately because I have been eating crap for the last few weeks.
Yes, this was my breakfast more than once in the past few weeks. At least it has cereal, right?!
I don’t really have a plan to fix my eating. My plan is just to get back into better, regular eating habits. No more fast food because I’m too tired and lazy to make my lunch. No more M&M’s for breakfast. I really need to back off on how much sugar I’m eating. It’s out of control right now! I just want to cut back on sugar and fill up on fruits and vegetables! My body needs it!
So yes, a fresh start has definitely been warranted. I’m ready to get back on track and back to feeling more like “myself” again. Lord knows that I’ve missed feeling like “me”.