I thought I'd have one more week at my gym before all the new years revolutionaries invaded but alas, I was wrong. I headed to the gym today to do my 90 minute workout from personal training and it was packed! I know that it's the first Monday of January, but classes don't start here for another week! What are people doing back already!? I'm seriously afraid of what the gym is going to be like once everyone is back. Mayhem!! I guess it's a good thing I'm in half marathon training mode -- that means 3 days a week will be spent running outside (I hope). Speaking of running, I am OBSESSED with my new Garmin. It's seriously the motivator I was hoping it would be and I love uploading it to my computer and getting all my stats! It's feeding the tech nerd I know lives inside me :)
As I walked around my gym watching all the newbies push themselves too hard, I found myself feeling incredibly happy that this year I don't have any weight-loss related new years goals. I think this may be the first year since I became aware of my weight that I haven't attempted to "start the year off right." My goals were always unattainable, and I inevitably ended up failing and feeling guilty and disappointed in myself before I even made it to February 1st. It makes me realize that I am so proud for embedding a fitness routine in myself. Sometimes I forget how far I've come -- while I was home for the holidays I felt so strange and lazy to be taking so many rest days, and yet I was still working out every other day. It just goes to show you that habits (even those seemingly impossible ones) can be formed.
I'm not going to sit here and bash any diet-related new years resolutions. But let's be honest, the majority of people are not going to achieve their goals. Most of the time these goals are too large and just completely unrealistic. There is no way a couch potato is going to magically transform themselves into a person who diligently exercises at least 5 days a week and cooks every meal at home just because it's the first of January (or a Monday for that matter). Becoming healthy is a lifelong process and requires small changes at a time.
I know in my last post I wrote that I lost 25 pounds in 2010, but to be honest, I spent the last 4 years losing and gaining those 25 pounds. When I realized four years ago that my life was heading down an incredibly unhealthy path, I started making small changes. I tried to exercise once a week, then twice, then three times. Eventually I joined group fitness classes and wanted to "get my money's worth". I eventually started counting calories and paying really close attention to eating only low fat and low calorie food. I lost weight, went home for a month and gained it back, then lost it again.
It wasn't until I was living in South Africa that I started to eat whole and REAL foods almost all of the time -- everything was so cheap so I was constantly cooking and buying fresh produce. I by no means paid attention to calories while I was traveling, and all of my exercise came from hiking, walking, and trekking up a mountain to class every day. It was also the first time in my life that I maintained my weight. I came back from Africa within 2 pounds of when I left, and I knew that there was something strange going on. Don't people always gain weight when they go abroad? Had I discovered some weight loss/maintenance secret? Well no, but I did discover that I feel and look better when I'm eating real foods. Not to say I don't still buy some processed food/eat out and get fries and a buffalo chicken, but I have slowly incorporated more fresh and whole food into my diet. I almost always go shopping once a week and I feel this habit forming the same way as my exercise habit.
This post is getting a little long and lecture-y so I'm going to wrap it up. I think what I'm really trying to say can best be summed up in this quote I read in a blog the other day:
"For this New Years health resolution, focus on what you want to GAIN, not what you want to lose!"
Instead of setting unrealistic goals, why not commit to making one or two small changes, then spending the year turning those changes into habits? Focus not on how much weight you can lose as fast as possible, but the emotional gains you get from feeling proud, healthy and motivated.
Happy January!
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