Exercise was Lacking in 2023

Depression does a lot to ruin energy and motivation. It became more difficult to get off the couch, let alone complete any kind of physical exertion. 

I can tell you when we did so well on core-strength it was due to building it into our work schedule: First break we would do 1-3 min of abs. Last break we would do twisty-screw core exercise for 1-2 min. That’s it. Once you just put it in the routine, it’s pretty easy and efficient to get it done.

If you have love handles, saddlebags, or thick thighs like I do, incline is the best way to melt them off! Once I get the fancy treadmill in working order again, I’ll resume this, because it’s way easier than trying to target these areas (all kitchen).

ugh! Look how good we got at doing strength work! Damn dropping this really hurts. To make it a habit again we have to do 5-10min for 7-10 days in a row. I swear, even a little bit helps build it into a habit. You don’t have to do a full 30 min or anything. Just get it going.

What I’m saying is without the mental health component in place, it’s extra-harder to get the fitness in the routine. I suggest CONSULTING A DOCTOR and building the foundation so that you can build the motivation on top of it.

Don’t Break the Chain: Running a daily mile

I have been running at least 1 mile a day for

NINE

straight years!

I can’t even believe it.

That’s a minimum of 3,288 miles

Lessons for Success:

***disclaimer: I am not a medical professional. Consult your doctor ***

DON’T SKIP A DAY OR THERE’S NO MOTIVATION TO CONTINUE

Like Nike says, Just do it. No matter what. 

Even when depressed, even when stressed out or tired. Sometimes the mile was the ONLY thing I did that day, but “it feels good when it’s over.” I never once regretted running.

10 min is literally 1% of my waking day so what excuse do I have to skip it???

15 min max to run a mile (probably less)

______________________________________________

14 hr x 60 min/hr = 840 waking min

Put a reminder on the calendars and on the daily reminders.

Track your progress.

Make time or distance goals to work toward.

Get fit in the gym lose weight in the kitchen is so real. Running daily does not keep a person from getting fat.

Don’t drink until it’s finished so I both don’t forget to complete it, and don’t waste alcohol by sweating/exhaling it out.

If you have a cold/covid/vaccine reaction you can still run. Take it slow, and take small breaks on the quarter mile, or by length, or even every 10 meters. Just get the thing done. 

Also, I promise exhalation, sweating, and moving the joints actually does make you feel a bit better when sick.

On a moving day, do it in the morning–no matter what. Running after packing or driving super-sucks. And anything can happen to bust the timeline on a moving day.

On a road trip a nice run on a side road does a lot to increase energy and decrease boredom.

The treadmill is your friend. It’s assessable and easy.

Intervals are my best friend, especially when I’m out of shape. Slow, fast, slow, fast helps me get it done without dying!

HIIT is way more entertaining on a treadmill. Change your speed and incline all the time and you won’t get bored.

Do the mile at lunch so I’m not tired at the end of the day, and so the end of work is the end of my obligations.

Hydrate. Sweat, salt, sugar, alcohol, etc.. make a person dry and fatigued. Water honestly does pick up your energy, rinse out toxins, and make your skin and organs better.

Take your running clothes and shoes with you. On vacation and stuff you can fit in a mile pretty easily, but you NEED the sneakers.

(I started Daylio in 2018, not running)

Let your friends and family know that you WILL be running, and be prepared to go somewhere weird by yourself to get it done while everyone else is socializing. It’s 15 min max, so the FOMO is only temporary.

I’ve heard anecdotal statements that running neutralizes getting drunk, helps when consuming too much, and cures a hangover. 

There is evidence to suggest that exercise may attenuate the ethanol-induced decline in hepatic mitochondria and accelerates ethanol metabolism by the liver. Exercise training seems to reduce the extent of the oxidative damage caused by ethanol. 

Have a playlist.

Taking a sponge bath after a run is pretty refreshing and hygienic. Buy the wipes and feel fresh.

Good weather and a safe, scenic trail is a big treat.

All-weather tracks are fucking awesome, and great for timing runs and distances and calibrations.

It’s OK to save the run for after a nap–just don’t forget.

Engage with your smart watch, don’t just wear it.

https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2018/03/garmin-forerunner-645-music-gps-watch-in-depth-review.html

Schedule a time every day to go through the smart watch stats and feel motivated and recognize challenges.

Learn a new feature on your smartwatch and treadmill once a week.

Feel the awe when you have a long, uninterrupted streak!

2023 Stats: The Food of it All

I like to reflect back on the year for New Years Eve. These aren’t necessarily disappointments or regrets-it’s just how it happened. The best thing is New Years is a clean slate for a fresh start, and I’m excited about that.

I mean, nobody knew told us a whole pandemic was about to strike. So we had to eat. Right? Right???

We’ve done better and better in the following years. Thanks to supply chain issues, skyrocketing prices, moving to a food desert where all the businesses had left, and living in an area drivers were wary to go to. 

Even though HelloFresh is more expensive than getting staples from the grocery store and cooking at home, it works better for us. 

I fucking hate entering a grocery store, and how much time it takes when I’m not working and should have some me-time. Also, Cool is very comfortable cooking with all the ingredients and recipes right there.

2022 Progress on Goals (dependent on mood)

It’s funny to see only 15 days below meh, because the year felt BAD. 130 days of 365 (35.6%) were less than good. It’s interesting how our perceptions don’t always match the quantitative data. It makes me wonder what percent my perception changes. I should look at 2021’s moods, because I consider that more good than bad even though I was bullied at work for 11 months. OK, just checked: I had 103 days below good that year. 28.2%. So somewhere between 28 and 36 percent of less than good days is a neutral perception of the year. Weird…

It’s also interesting that it feels like I mostly spend my life working. But it looks like I relax and workout more than I am at work. I suppose the NUMBER of incidents and the HOURS per activity impact this. Sure, I find time to watch TV while I eat dinner nearly every day, but for a brief time. While I’m clocked in 8+ hours. Same with treadmill–yeah, I do it EVERY day of my life, but the longest mile is no more than 15 min (and I probably average 12min/mi).

Things I did well on:

Running and watching TV to relax are the activities I did more than 70% of the days of the year. I also worked out in some manner 84% of the year. It looks like less, because I broke it down into specific types.

Things I need to work on:

30.7% of days in 2022 I did something towards moving.

26% of the days I was tired all day, which probably impacts the next two stats.

26% of days I was anxious–why does it feel like so much more?!

25% of the days I was irritable.

15% of the days I felt stressed out, and I don’t know how that’s so low. Maybe I forgot to log it some days?

Shopping is not really accurate. Amazon has become our grocery store for a lot of food and toiletry items that we NEED. This year I modified 2 categories to track this better: Grocery-NEED and Shopping-Extraneous & fun. Then we can tell how much we’re buying unnecessary things.

An abysmal 5% of the days I talked to my parents on the phone. Partially because of actual packing, driving, and work overtime logistics, partly due to stress making me a tired lump. The time zones are a BIG problem. I am zonked out in the afternoon, and not in the mood to engage, think, be social. So week days are out because their 5PM is our legit bed time. But all of my stuff that I can’t do during work get stacked up on the weekends, so I don’t want to devote a lot of time talking. I think if we shorten the calls, we’ll be able to talk more often. I would also like to start other modes of communication, that are easier, and less time of day dependent.

Dammit! I had just been good at habitually flossing. But it fell apart in 2022. I flossed 59% of the time, which is 36% less than the year before. It just goes to show that you enter survival mode under duress. I want and need 2023 to be more stable so I can work on these things again.

Our water fell by nearly half as well. It’s a lot due to inability to pee just whenever. If you’re home all the time you don’t have to worry about that. If you’re driving or whatever, you can’t just load up on water first. The reduction is also due to the weather difference. Those triple digit temps do motivate you to drink more! Now that things have calmed down, this needs to become a priority again.

15% of the days we had restaurant food. It’s better than our quarantine years (we cut it in HALF), but we need to get this down more.

Reading type of leisure activity fell by 75% because nothing about 2022 was relaxing or calm enough to sit down with a book. But we have so many books I want to read! We’re going to start our creative intervals every day after work again to resume this one. 10 min draw, 10 min read, 10 min write is literally 1% of our day. That’s nothing at all.

writing held its own surprisingly.

I’ll do another post about goals after a few song analysis parts are revealed.

To stick to a habit do ‘in a row’ [Lesson confirmed in 2021]

Like running, flossing became easier once I decided to try to do it as many times in a row as possible without breaking the chain. 

There is just something about accumulating a bunch of successes in a row that makes you not want to give up.  I made it to 447(?) (there is a pic of this on the goal entry) before I legitimately forgot to do it and broke the chain accidently. 

I had alarm set to go off daily.  But if it went off at an inconvenient time I could snooze it.  At bed time I checked all my alarms and made sure to do them and dismissed everything.  In the morning, I pulled down the alarms, and tucked up out of view was “floss.”  Damn.  I just plain forgot, then didn’t see it…

And once there is a break in the chain it’s harder to get back in the habit, because it’s a fail. So without the chain holding my goal together, I skipped other occasional days after that. But not too many, because it’s SUPER-scary not going to the dentist for literal years.

But also I don’t want Covid about it. And it just seems very high risk to sit in an unventilated room with my mouth wide open for a long period of time, splashing water, and a strangers (or 2) hands in my mouth. Especially not knowing the hygienist, dentist, receptionist, other patient true vaccine statuses.

So I’m back on the flossing wagon.

Writing [Lessons from 2021]

-I get excited to write then lose motivation & traction before I finish the writing piece.

I think it’s bc I get discouraged about the writing phases behind the scenes that don’t get published.

It’s the logistics I don’t care for.  I wanna write the thing I’m enthusiastic about, but you have to lay the groundwork, give all the necessary background info, explain where and who, site sources, edit, and by the time I’ve done all that it’s a slog, and I’m onto some other exciting subject.

I think it’s a matter of training my brain.  Which is what I’m currently doing.  I’m going to try to write daily, just to get into the habit of sitting still, not looking at the television, social media, and reconnecting to the writing process.  Once I am OK with the sitting and attending to writing, I’m going to try to publish a daily post.  Then, it’s in the in-a-row territory that works so well for me.

I still need to finish my TNR series, and I need to finish the Diatlov (however you spell it) Pass theory, and finally, I have a lot of song analyses on the back burner. And I’m excited about all of those. Maybe I need to go back to whatever inspired each writing in the first place to get re-motivated.

I can Google this too, and see what suggestions are out there…

Being Accountable for Your Workout: Tips & Tricks for Keeping it Going

Write firm goals. Post them so other people know. Put them up where you can see them.

OK you’ve made your goal and you’re maximally motivated. Let’s get real for a second. On those off-days, the stressful busy days, when your sick–what is the bare minimum of your goal to still keep it alive, but also slack off a teeny bit. Decide a minimum per day that’s acceptable. Probably make this decision after you’re out of the out-of-shape phase, when you know what your maintenance-level is. And hold yourself to it! Nothing less. But try not to use it either, if you can help it. This is reserved for emergency bad days.

Send check-ins to someone else. You can do it on social media or a phone call (and in person once you’re vaccinated for Covid-19, but not before that). Do it immediately after your workout, so your rosy, sweaty face is proof. But check in, tell another person (truthfully and accurately) what you did, and keep up on this. On the days you feel lazy or cheat-y, you should think if what you’ll have to tell this other person. And it should properly motivate you to just get it done. And don’t lie or be sketchy–you’re only cheating yourself!

Don’t rush the results. Impatience can kill a workout. You’ve been working your ass off! You pushed too hard past the out of shape phase, worked out every day even when you were tired or just wanted to screen instead. But why is that number on the scale not budging? It’s not fair! This is the time a lot of people get discouraged and quit. But don’t. This is a time you need to remember WHY you made this goal in the first place. Look at your written goal. Think or write the reasons success of that goal will make you feel better and be happier.

Write a motivational poster. It’s time to write down what motivates you. You want to wear a bikini. You need to keep up with your hyper-puppy on your dog walks. You want to take the 3 flights of stairs at work instead of taking the covid-ater. What do you want in the long term out of this goal? Write those things where you can see them. Then go online (I like Pintrest for it) and find your favorite motivational quotes. Make a poster with like 12 things and put it where you work out. When you want to skip-read it. When you’re tired of running have a pic of it on your phone. When you’re struggling through that last set, look at it as you lift.

NEW YORK, NY – JULY 12: (L-R) Victoria’s Secret models Candice Swanepoel, Alessandra Ambrosio, Erin Heatherton, Lindsay Ellingson, and Lily Aldridge attend the Victoria’s Secret Supermodel cycle to benefit cancer at SoulCycle Tribeca on July 12, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)

Don’t justify bad behavior, get real with yourself. I mean, your mind can make all sorts of justifications and excuses. But your body is keeping track of exactly what you are doing–accurately. Don’t let a disconnect happy. Be absolutely honest with yourself. Because you only hurt your own progress if you don’t.

Give yourself pre-planned breaks. For a holiday, or off day. Know which days those are, and do your minimum.

Don’t do too much too fast. You’ll burn out. Or get injured. The big challenge is to do this LONG TERM. This is a lifestyle, that’s the only way you will lose weight and keep it off. So whatever you do has to be sustainable over time.

Make it easy on you. Not a social butterfly–don’t sign up for those zumba classes. Get bored easily? Don’t buy a treadmill. Not a morning person? Don’t say you’ll wake up at 5 AM to do an exercise video. Work with you, as you are–not as you wish you would be. Figure out when your highest energy level during the day is, what you will do, and cater to that. Because if you go against your nature, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

Do it 1st thing in the morning. Go to bed earlier so you can be rested to get it done first thing. Get up and do it. It’ll be done, and one of the sayings we use nearly EVERY day is: Another run done–feels good when it’s over.

Just get it done procrastination makes it feel worse. I’m talking through experience-it’s worse if you don’t just do it and get it done. The later I waited, the LESS I wanted to do it. I had eaten and couldn’t comfortably do it. Things came up. I just wanted to relax… But there was this guilt and regret about not wanting to skip it. Seriously, on the days you don’t want to do it–those are the days to make sure to get it done as soon as possible. Do it sooner. Then you’re free! If you wait, it’s hanging over your head.

Starting a new habit–and keeping it up

I swear to you–I am lazy. I hate logistics. I don’t want to do things. BUT I do cardio 7 days a week and do strength training at least 4 days a week, and recently, every single day. I want to give you the tips that worked for me, because trainers are too crazy, people that love to exercise are the exception to the rule, and it’s hard to sustain it if done the wrong way (too much, too hard, too soon).

Go to bed earlier!

People need adequate sleep. Stop screening, and go to bed early enough to get 7-9 hours of sleep. Every night.

“Lack of time” is actually a priorities problem.

There are 24 hours – lets give us a very good rest of 9 hours = 15 waking hours.

OK, you have a job, and have to drive to that job, shower, take care of the kids, all your logistics: 9 hours of work 3 hours (?) of logistics = 12 hours of time you HAVE to do stuff.

15-12 = 3 free hours

The Mayo clinic wants adults to get 30 min of exercise every day.

That 30 min of exercise is less than 17% of your FREE time. It’s 7% of your waking hours outside of work. I suggesst you do your own personalized math, and write down what percent of your day it is. My personal percent is 1% of my day is 10 min. So like, nothing at all! And when I’m feeling tired, lazy, or defeated–I remind myself it would be 2% of my day.

Write your goals down.

Be reasonable. Be specific. Have a realistic timeline and write that end date. You can have a big dream. But it’s better to write a goal or 2 with the big dream in mind. Have a plan of what smaller steps you need to take to reach the ultimate goal.

OK, now that you know it’s not that much time, think about WHEN a workout could fit in your schedule. Since you went to bed earlier and you’re rested–you could do it first thing in the morning!

Which I do recommend. Because:

-it starts your day in a productive way

-you don’t have to worry about dressing out & everything, or sweating at work/in public

-starting before your brain is awake gets the exercise done before you can think of excuses NOT to do it

-working out 1st thing wakes you up, and also sweats out in toxins. Get rid of that salt from dinner, that after dinner alcohol, and any sugar from dessert. SWEAT. it. out. It’s true, you’ll automatically feel better, endorphins aside even.

-do it before you’re tired or fatigued or have a bad day

So you have the time, you carved out a spot in your schedule to always do your workout, now TAKE IT EASY!

I don’t want you to go hard. Overdoing it is a sure way to have an unpleasant experience, get tired, be sore, and dread the next workout. Don’t burn yourself out! It’s difficult enough just to put on a sports bra and sneakers. Just do enough. You want to stair step your progress over time. And when you’re beginning a new goal-remember you’re just on the very first stair step. Don’t pole vault up to the top–because remember what happens after you clear the bar? You fall, fall, fall all the way down and land on your back. Instead, we’re looking to stand at the top of those stairs. Progress slowly!

The big, big thing to starting a habit is to do that habit every. single. day.

All days. As you know, I’m big on not breaking the chain. And I’m really gung-ho on it because it has worked for me. I have run every single day in a row for the last SEVEN years. I did it with flossing my teeth, because I was lazy-ing out half the time, and I’ve now accumulated 203 days in a row. It works because not doing the habit on one day isn’t just messing up that day, it’s fucking up a string of days, a record. And who wants to throw away a week for a moment of weakness? Or longer? This also works because people say a new habit is ingrained after 26 days of practicing it. So it’s science too.

In the past, it has helped me to attach my goal, let’s say doing ab work, to something I absolutely have to or want to do. I cannot shower until I do my crunches. That way, you’re putting your new goal on something that’s already a habit, so it’s likelier to stick.

Remember, it’s better to do a light or short workout rather than skipping. Just. do. something.

That means if you’re sore–don’t skip! Go lighter. Or shorter. Or easy.

One last thing–plan ahead. If you have a big presentation early in the morning, plan to do the workout after work that day. If you’re going on vacation–remember to pack your running clothes. Part of starting and maintaining a habit is planning ahead for those irregularities.

Starting a habit is more about training your brain than it is about training your body (at first).

And seriously. Just keep your appointment with you and if you do only 8 min of biceps–that is A-OK–congratulate yourself for accomplishing another day. Don’t get all down on yourself and quit. Just keep swimming.

Don’t Beat Yourself, Don’t Beat Yourself Up

Once your passed that out-of-shape phase (see my previous 4 posts about that) the biggest enemy to your fitness is. . . Your own mind. It’s amazing what our bodies can handle! Moms who pull their child out from under a school bus? Athletes with no legs running track? (just think about the determination here, not the murder). People that survive famine? We can do so much more than we give ourselves credit for, it’s usually our own minds that stop us.

Find a balance. Don’t talk to yourself like an enemy would. Love yourself. But also, don’t be too soft on you that you lazy out.

You have to want it.

Nobody is going to do this for you. If you don’t lose weight (or whatever your fitness goal is) nobody loses out but you if you don’t achieve it. So stop blaming. Stop cheating. Want it. Own it. Work it. Emphasis on work.

You have to want it for the right reasons.

If you’re trying to lose weight to impress your boyfriend, show up classmates at a high school reunion, or be the hottie at the beach–well, it’s not a sustainable outlook/goal. What happens when you break up with that douche giving you poor self-image? Or after the reunion? Or during winter? You have to love you and want you to feel good and live longer. And the superficial benefits are great, but those aren’t gonna get you off the couch when you’re tired and sore. Ultimately, you have to be trying to get fit for you.

Have reasonable goals and expectations.

Don’t try to train for a marathon in a month. Don’t make a goal of losing 30 pounds in a year. Make, small, reasonable, attainable goals. Instead of trying to pole vault to your goal, take the stairs. Or a ramp. And check in on yourself. If something isn’t working figure out why. Then amend your routine to account for that. Example: We used to skip our strength workout at least once a week if not more. Despite really wanting to do it, and feeling better and stronger when it was accomplished. The reason? After work I’m fatigued/tired. I don’t want to do logistics after I’m off. So we started waking up earlier and getting the workout done first thing in the morning before I’ve become fatigued from working an entire day. And we haven’t skipped since. When you achieve the first goal, make a next goal. Progress through your goals.

Make a reasonable timeline.

Make the attainable goal, and put a timeline on it or it’s just a wish. But the timeline must make sense for YOU. If you go too big, you’re bound to get discouraged and quit. So really look at your past behavior and decide what you can and will actually do.

Be real and honest with yourself.

*This really is a key. For example, people who keep a food journal chronically UNDER-estimate how much food they eat. Or round down. Or don’t count a rice cake bc it’s just a small snack. That kind of thing. But here’s the bummer, even if you low-ball and round down your calories–your body will always count them exactly accurately. We don’t try to lie to ourselves, but that’s what’s happening.

And with exercise, we OVER-estimate how much, how intense, and the number of calories burned. Did you know 1 beer averages about 200 calories and many Starbucks grande average 400 calories, while running an 8 min mile burns approx (depending on body weight & other factors) 70 calories? It’s not fair, but keep it in mind.

So try your very best to be accurate, b/c your body always is. And that disconnect between underestimating what goes in and overestimating what is worked off, leads to disappointment. Be as realistic and rational as possible when evaluating your own fitness.

Don’t make excuses and justifications.

Along that same track, be accountable for your goals. When you write down your attainable goals with its end date, also write what the bare minimum to still keep this goal can be. Example: I have not broken the chain for running in SEVEN years. I have been sick some days, stressed, busy, moving to new apartments/states, on vacation (where bears were frequenting), hurt with broken ribs, and LAZY. So of course every day is not my A-game. And that’s OK, expect bad days. But make a backup (emphasis to be used in emergency situations only) for those off days. Write that down too. My bare minimum distance is at least 1 mile. And the least effort I can make that doesn’t break my goal is to run in place on the floor and I have to get the mile done mostly consecutively, like in at least 30 min. So, when I had a bad head cold with fever and couldn’t breathe and called out sick to work b/c I felt so bad? I stood on my floor and jogged in place for a half lap at a time (12.5m), stopped to rest and recuperate (I felt like shit!), then resumed in the same way until the mile was done. I think it took a little over 15 min to get it done, when my average mile is probably 9 min, and my goal mile is 7 min. But I got it done. And you can too. But plan for it. And stay exactly accountable to it.

And my pet peeve (especially for middle-aged and older people) is YARD WORK DOES NOT COUNT AS EXERCISE. You need to get your heart rate up for 20 consecutive minutes to get any benefit. So the yard work is great as an extra thing, but it is absolutely not the whole thing.

Don’t say all the things you can’t do, tell yourself all the things you can do to overcome limitations.

I am not saying ignore major health issues or tough out debilitating conditions here (consult your Dr., I am not a professional). I am suggesting that a lot of reasons for not doing something can be creatively neutralized or dealt with if you just change your thinking. There are a million excuses and reasons not to do exercise: You’re tired, your knees hurt, you have asthma, you don’t have good shoes, there is no time in your busy schedule, you have kids to take care of, you don’t have a place to do it, on and on and on and on…

OK, but why CAN you do it? How CAN you make this happen? Don’t waste your energy thinking about why you can’t, put that energy toward finding compromises and solutions. These legitimate reasons excuses are often just your mind dragging you down. Don’t let that be your headspace and go too negative. Get practical. Be a solutions generator: go to bed earlier/take vitamin B, lose some weight/modify/go slowly, get better or more medication/condition your cardiovascular/workout with an air purifier in the room, do a lower impact workout/go shoe shopping/borrow shoes, cut out some screen time/wake up earlier/get organized, involve your kids in your workout/trade off workout & childcare days with a friend, find a park/get a treadmill/go to a trail.

Don’t listen to your brain when it’s telling you that you can’t make it.

My brain is lazy. Especially when it comes to endurance exercises. It will shout, “slow down” “you’re tired” or
“you’re not going to make it” so loudly! But my body is often in good shape (remember reasonable goals) to do the thing we’ve (my body and mind) been working toward. I’m not saying to keep pushing if you’re actually going to injure yourself, but do push past mental blocks.

I suggest thinking of a mantra, like “I’ve got this” or memorizing a quote such as, “if you’re tired of starting over, stop quitting” or singing a song in your head. This distracts your brain from all the negative self-talk, and also conditions you to be a more optimistic person in the future.

As a lazy person myself, I hope these tips can help you achieve your fitness (and other) goals. At the very least–it doesn’t hurt to try something new, does it? Straddle the line between holding yourself accountable and being realistic. You are doing this to be a better you, not to impress other, not as punishment. Love yourself, push yourself. It’s Velveeta (I’m trying something here), but it’s also true.

The out of shape phase

I suspect some people never push past this 7-10 day horrible feeling. When you get off the couch and just start running/lifting weights/fasting/drinking water/*insert uncomfortable habit here*

When you first start, running feels horrible. You are really tired and out of breath, you get sore all over, and your feet hurt. It super-sucks. You feel like even the shortest distance is so long, and you’re sweating like a maniac. And running after that–on top of the prior day’s soreness… It’s actually awful.

Lifting weights. At first even the 5lb feel so heavy. You have to be cheat-y on the reps, either skipping some or half-assing the form. Your arms wanna float to the ceiling when you’re done. Your muscles tremor, and even lifting a coffee cup is taxing for your arm. Every. Step. Hurts. The shaking and weakness. And the days after that are nearly impossible!

Skipping that 1st meal plain sucks. You feel weak and headachy. Your mind is preoccupied with food, and every fast food commercial and Taco Bell ad on Spotify is a personal affront designed to torture you. You daydream of burgers and dips and cake… You feel pale and horrible. Light-headed and shaky. Your stomach won’t shut up! Water makes it worse. The hours go by ever so slowly…

You try to drink more water. But it makes you feel full, and maybe like you’ll throw up. You drink and the water doesn’t taste good. It’s plain, it’s boring. You’re overly full. You are not at all thirsty. And you’re peeing every 2 min. Like, your boss is giving you the side-eye b/c you’re going to the dirty, public bathroom so much. You are only halfway to your water goal, and feel discouraged and like you may explode.

I get it. I’ve been there. All of these things are everything I’ve felt, and they are the worst. But do you know what’s even worse? The guilt, regret, failure of quitting before the 2 week mark. You never get into a groove and feel the benefits of what you’re trying to do. I promise it gets better by the 7-10th day. If you just stick with it!!! I am NOT miss fitness. I am actually very lazy, and love watching TV and snuggling with kitties. But b/c I finally stuck with these things, I can feel a difference between that ugly out-of-shape phase and maintenance.

It never feels amazing, I’m not going to lie to you, and I’m not one of those insane people who like fasting or running–that shit is crazy (or lies). But I promise, promise, promise all of those things suck a lot less when you’re a little used to them. And what IS awesome is the the long-term benefits and sense of accomplishment from following through all those things.

The running stops being owie. Your cardiovascular, muscles, and feet DO get used to it, and every sec doesn’t feel like an eternity. Running is good cardio so my heart and lungs are strong. My legs are also toned. I feel good when I reach speed or distance goals. And I always, always feel like I did at least 1 productive thing when I run. Even if that’s the only thing I did that day!

Lifting weights adds years to your life. It also makes you look good in a tank top–and who doesn’t enjoy that? Incorporating strength allows you to do more in your daily life. Carry that heavy cat litter, no problem. Lift that railroad tie in the yard like a beast. Be tough and independent. And you do end up being able to do every rep with good form, and even increasing weight! And most times I’m maybe a little sore like I worked, but not sore to walk and sit and roll over in my sleep anymore.

Fasting cuts down those calories without going without your favorite foods. You don’t have to give up all carbs or stop drinking your wine. Fasting makes your mind more focused. It helps me lose weight more than any of the daily exercise I do (unfortunately). And that meal that breaks your fast? Tastes so damn good! I had a few times that it was a breeze too. Play with the times you start and stop, as changing from a dinner-dinner fast over to 10 AM lunch (anywhere in that 2 hr range) zone for 24 hours made a HUGE difference.

And finally, drinking water helps you feel more energized, makes your skin look younger and softer, eases digestion, gives your hair a sleeker look, helps you fight heat, keeps your salt in check, so many benefits I can’t list them all here. And you stop peeing every fucking minute when you drink a lot and your body gets used to it.

So please, any resolutions you made: Stick to them for at least 2 weeks, and it does get easier and less sucky.