It’s been 526 days since we stepped in a gym, or at least it feels that way. Even worse, many of us have officially forgotten and stopped caring about maintaining any sense of a schedule, which means sleep and normal mealtimes are out, and 10am happy hour is in. Our kids are home and CONSTANTLY snacking while we stumble through homeschooling. Meanwhile, our minds are in a constant state of low-level anxiety over, well, everything. Our lifestyles are the furthest thing from healthy (other than our dry, over-sanitized hands) and we look in the mirror with regret as we hold our breath trying to button our jeans before resorting to another pair of leggings…..**sigh**
Phew! Did we get it all out? All the negativity and self-loathing? Great! Let’s do something about it.
If you have worked towards any fitness goal ever, it probably didn’t take long to realize that your biggest obstacle to overcome is your own brain. Not the hard workouts, not the lack of time, not your body’s ailments. It’s your brain. If you didn’t figure that out on your own, well, SURPRISE! Mystery solved.
Now, this is not a shame session for giving up or giving in. We ALL have moments of both. Especially now. Look back on the past week of your life and count how many times you said “Not worth it” about a healthy choice you could have made. You probably don’t have enough fingers and toes to tally it up.
So what can we do? How can we reset our minds and start feeling better?
Start with these 3 mental rules, or self-regulations:
1. GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK! Seriously. Show yourself some humanity and remember that EVERYONE has weaknesses and IT’S. OKAY. This shake-it-off mindset can help because it stops this vicious cycle: skip workout > stress about it > eat too much > stress about it > drink too much > stress about it > no sleep > too tired to work out….and repeat. Round and round we go. If you remove the “stress about it” part and replace it with “accept and adapt” you will find yourself making better choices and feeling better faster. One missed checkmark doesn’t have to ruin your whole list. Today’s bag of chips doesn’t have to lead to tomorrow’s bag of candy. Allow yourself to make 1 health-related mistake every day so the expectation is imperfection. That 1 freedom you give yourself can make all the difference.
2. TURN OFF THE TV! Yes, I said it. Turn that thing off. The news, the Netflix, The Bachelor, all of it. Let’s be honest, even the commercials these days are affecting our mood and reinforcing the “what’s the point” mindset. Set a rule for yourself that food cannot be eaten with the TV on. Turn on some music instead if you need some noise to drown out the kids (or your own thoughts). This little change will help you be more present and mindful of your meals and prevent you from consuming too much food OR too much TV.
3. MAKE A SCHEDULE! No schedule. Nowhere to go. Nothing to keep us out of the kitchen. The kids want snacks? Guess I’ll have one too. Make. It. Stop. Time to embrace something that we can actually control, how we manage our time. Here’s a couple of rules you can try: Designate certain time frames during the day when you will or won’t eat. This can be done with consistent and specific mealtimes, or just a simple “no snacking” rule. Another option is to think about what and when you would be eating during a “normal” day. Pack your kids lunches, pack your own lunch, or just ask yourself: “If I were at work, would I be eating this?” This return to normal thinking even though our lives aren’t normal at all can at least make you feel more in control.
At the end of the day, keep reminding yourself that it’s all temporary. There are ALWAYS things you can control and there’s ALWAYS a bright side. Trust God and trust the process.
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