Managing Stress

I have noticed that when I have small gains, or longer than a week plateaus, it usually correlates to something stressful going on in my life. As a person, I worry a lot. A LOT. About everything. And generally take on way more stress than I need to. But that is MY personality. 

I am currently wrapping up my first semester of grad school! I am still working full time, going to the gym and also preparing for my boyfriend and I to move in together. So, I would say that I have been relatively stressed. I keep telling myself I won't let it affect my weight loss. Which it always does. 

I've gained about 4 pounds in the last week or so. That's the most I've gained in 3 months. It is disheartening to see on the scale, but I am trying to be confident that it is just a minor blip, and that things will be back on track soon.

Stress and emotional eating have always been my achilles heel. I lose all motivation and willpower when I am sad, stressed, or upset. And I end up eating weird things, like oatmeal raisin cookies and pickles for dinner (Authors Note: Don't do this. BAD idea).

It is really hard to talk about "failures" (and yes, to me a 4lb gain is a failure). But I am hoping that by putting this out there - I can help myself remember that it is not the end of the world if I have a bad week, and that I will still get where I want to be. Also, I am hoping it could help some of you, if you have experiences or are experiencing something similar.

This journey is not a sprint, its a marathon. Focus and patience and pace. That is going to be the mantra for the next few weeks. 

Check In

Hello Blog-osphere!

In an effort to not abandon my blog again, I am making an effort to at least check in. I am in another tricky spot- hovering around another 10lb marker. This seems to be a consistent problem with me. I've been doing great the last few weeks, down about 9lbs. Then for the last 2 weeks I have seemed to stall. I am hovering between 189 and 193 and I cant seem to push down into the 180's. 

I am trying not to get discouraged, but  I wonder if I have some sort of mental block that causes me to hesitate crossing that line. I had the same problem when I was bouncing between 199 and 202 for months. I am hoping that another week of focus and pushing hard will get me over this block.

I am really enjoying the new workout program we came up with. I started to do a bootcamp style class (we call it HELL CAMP) a few weeks ago and I think it has been great for me. It is a lot of cardio mixed with body weight exercises done in a pyramid style. It definitely KICKS MY BUTT. Maybe in my next post I will go into more detail describing what we do (for those of you who dare try it on your own!)

Running still sucks. I have been trying to stay consistent with the long runs, but with the humidity and a growing pile of school work, it is hard to find the motivation. 

Going shopping for new shorts tomorrow - none of the ones I bought last summer fit. I'm using safety pins to keep them up for now. But I figured 1 or 2 new pairs in a nice smaller size couldn't hurt.

Have a great weekend and thanks for reading!