I've been there. You know changes must be made to improve your situation. And yet, months go by. Statements like, "Life is just crazy right now" and "I tried (any exercise) and it hurt" play on repeat. Add in the hundreds of thousands of websites, videos, podcasts, and apps that provide information and MISinformation. Of course you're not making changes.
It's overwhelming. You feel completely isolated in this quest for something more. You feel inadequate, out of control, and helpless.
You're probably sitting there thinking about how you've read through x number of blog posts similar to this telling you what you need to do. You read the post making mental notes that you tell yourself you won't forget but you know they won't stick. You read through the author's 500-step plan to get you where you want to be.
There's a lot of great information and stories out there of people sharing what worked for them. Remember, though, just because it "worked" for them doesn't mean that it will (or won't) for you. Also, know that situations and knowledge change. What I mean is this. If you've read through my journey, you know that I used to run and count calories and blah, blah, blah. It worked for me. And that is still true to this day but with tweaks. My life is different now than it was years ago so, naturally, I've had to make adjustments. I've also gained so much more knowledge.
One blog post isn't going to provide all of the information you need.
Here's the part where I throw in my two cents. If you're at a point where you don't know how to start but you're ready and willing, do this:
- Grab and piece of paper and a pen
- Write down your boundaries/limitations
Examples of boundaries/limitations: every Friday night you're in-laws pop up last minute to ask if you want to go out to eat, "something" comes up during your hour-long lunch causing you to not go to the gym, you have limited time on Sundays to meal-prep, you know that when you get home from work things are super crazy with supper, kids' homework, bath night, house chores, etc.
Write these down without any emotion. These are things that just are as they are (we'll eventually talk about the perception of not having any time and the fact that you always feel like you have to take every phone call or say yes to everything).
Use this list as a tool to eliminate what won't work for you. Example: you have limited time on Sundays to meal-prep every meal for the next 5 days. Okay, cool. Can you cook a big batch of roasted veggies to add as a side to your lunches? Can you whip up a batch of energy balls to have with you when you need a snack? There ya go! It's SOMETHING!
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