Epic Let Down

I have had a few scenarios that have thrown a spanner into the works. Each time I have set my "goal" to simply maintain.

ie Kitchen renovations = shit food, but lots of extra time to exercise = maintain

Or

Son in hospital for months = no ability to exercise at all, no time for anything apart from protein shakes and fruit = maintain.

(*When my son was in hospital, it was terrible, and I will admit that I did feel like I could slide back to old patterns of comfort eating. Which I did, to a small degree (bowls of breakfast ceareal at night.) But that is where the slide stopped. I never fell back to smoking or binge eating or drinking.......)

Hope I am making sense!!

Are you comfortable with rolling with the punches or do you revert back to old/bad habits?

I am pretty bad so far with this. I tend to fall back into old cycles. I think part of this is that I am still trying to buid proper habits and healthy cycles. So a wrench in my plan tends to send me reaching back to what I am 'used' to.


Do you reach out for support or do you keep your struggle to yourself?

Oh I definitely reach out though. And thank heavens for the awesome support structure that I have around me. Reaching out helps me get my act back together and moving forward. One does not abolish the zombie horde alone. :)

My back wasn't feeling all that "with it" yesterday so it was a very low burn day for me compared to most ... but I adjusted my food intake so still hit my deficit goal with no problem. I've already warned Tom that even though he's got the day off from work today I WILL spend some quality time with my bike and maybe even take a dvd up to our room to knock off some more exercise while he entertains the boy (assuming, of course, my back will cooperate after I wake up from the post-work napfest). In the past a down day for exercise or eating would just lead to more and more ... I'm a lot better at bouncing back or at least adjusting accordingly now!

I'm not sure your let down was epic. Not doing the work out you wanted to is a bummer for sure, but the fact that you did something to get the heart rate up & burn some calories is a huge positive. Many out there less committed to being healthy would have used the hip issue as an excuse to do noting at all. You found an alternative and even if it wasn't your best effort or you didn't feel like you got the most from it, you can still move on from that work out knowing your mind is in a strong place. I think you deserve a 'Well Done!"

Your questions...
What happens when you have to adapt to the situation at hand -- either in terms of diet or exercise?
A: We have two choices, have a total let down or make the best of the situation at hand. For diet, when I find myself at a party or event where the food there is so-not diet friendly I try my best to fill the void with water and eat the healthiest options. As of late usually I succeed, but the temptation to build a double-cheese burger is still strong. And when I do falter hopefully I at least restrain myself to a single-burger. For exercise, since I have been on my mission the only time I have had to adapt is when in hotels. You never know what equipment the gym will have. When the equipment is lame, run down, gross; I have chosen to just walk away and go for a walk instead.

Are you comfortable with rolling with the punches or do you revert back to old/bad habits?
Knowing that situations where you have to roll with them will happen from time to time and they are not the norm, I am ok there. As long as I know it is a temporary thing I don't feel at risk for a collapse back into old habits. I'd like to think if the situation is looking like it will not be temporary that I'd fight hard to change the situation before I allowed myself to revert. My mind today is in a strong place and the thought of reverting is not happening.

Do you reach out for support or do you keep your struggle to yourself?
Yes, reach out. Well, at first I deal with it inside, that is my nature. But I have found so much positive in the help from family and from bloggers that I do not hesitate to fess up and listen to the feedback.

Happy Labor Day!

I agree with Patrick. The fact that you still worked out with a bad hip is extremely epic. I know I would of said "I'm hurt, can't work out today".

What happens when you have to adapt to the situation at hand -- either in terms of diet or exercise?
Lately, I've been trying to adapt to my new job. I get up at 4am and don't get home until 4pm. I'm usually too exhausted to work out. I told myself I just have to get used to the new routine, and then I can start my work-outs again. Friday, I found out that there is a fitness class at work twice a week, so I signed up for that. I will be doing that at least.

Are you comfortable with rolling with the punches or do you revert back to old/bad habits?

I'm a roll with the punches girl - now. I couldn't do that 6 months ago. The minute something didn't go right - I would fall off the wagon. Now, I'm comfortable enough with my lifestyle to maintain my eating habits, and will get back to working out soon.

Do you reach out for support or do you keep your struggle to yourself?
I always try and reach for support - even if it's just from my blog or other people's blog (like yours). Sometimes it really helps to see how other people struggle to remind me that I can overcome my own.

The key to a good program is flexibility and listen to your body it is one thing to have goals but you have to reach them if taking an extra day of rest because you are in planet hurt then do so it will help your body adapt to the new level of intensity.

I have a life saying "take the rough with the smooth" although 6 months ago i would have probably cracked completely and given up but i was at rock bottom, now i am more likely to work on a solution to any problem i have and i would do it alone and keep it to myself although recently i have found the online community very supportive, you all rock!

I think adaptation is key. It has been the name of my game for a while, especially since bad knees and then bad back really limited what I can do. I'm curious about your experience with the recumbent bike, and we may have had this chat on twitter before. Yes, the bike isn't the same as say running, but since I started to wear an HRM I actually found that it was better than I thought. Since I aggravated my back earlier this summer it's about all I'm able to do (90m) and I really don't think it is hampering my WL/fitness. I'd really like to be able to do more and hope for my knee t quit barking, but I love that it has done for my legs.

Hey girl, I hope today went a little bit better for you! Check out my blog - I gave you an award! :-)

Great questions, because they will ultimately decide our journey's success:

What happens when you have to adapt to the situation at hand -- either in terms of diet or exercise?

It's good to always know that there is a Plan B in your pocket. You will always, always, always need to adapt to the situation at hand in the crazy little thing called Life.

Are you comfortable with rolling with the punches or do you revert back to old/bad habits?

Depends on the situation. Sometimes I'm super strong when the stress is on and sort of fall apart for awhile after the pressure is off. Strange. But when the going gets tough...then I'm in...for the time, anyway.


Do you reach out for support or do you keep your struggle to yourself?

Again, depends on the situation. With the adrenaline flowing, there's no stopping me. I just need to shore up my Plan B for the coming down off the adrenaline.

Now I have an alternative Plan B to create :-0