Getting My Groove Back

I can be as on-the-ball-cruising-along-all-systems-go as anything with the healthy lifestyle, and all it takes is one nasty cold to blast it all to hell.

Well, maybe it's not that bad... but for a few days last week it really seemed like it. At the very least, life as I knew it pretty much screeched to a halt. I didn't feel like eating, much less eating well, and forget about the running routine. All I wanted to do was wrap myself up in a blanket and sleep until it was all over.

After a mess like that, it is really, really hard to get back into the swing of things. I had stopped exercising, given up the food diary, lost control of the meal planning and had no motivation to go to the grocery store. I had lost my momentum.

For another several days after I started feeling better, I kind of floundered a bit as I tried to regain my footing. We ate take-out more often than I'd like because a) there wasn't much in the fridge and b) I had no inclination to cook, though I am proud to say that for the most part (short of being in control of every single ingredient) we were able to keep it healthy: Chinese shrimp & mixed vegetables, Greek chicken souvlaki with grilled vegetables, and that one Wendy's baked potato with some chili. Having lost a week on my running program, I wasn't sure where to start back up. I regained one pound that I lost during my illness -- which was fine, because that was kind of a "cheat" pound, anyway, but it also shined a light on the fact that I have been really off my game.

This weekend, I started taking steps to get my groove back:
1. Meal plan. I buckled down and created that meal plan for the week. From that, I made the grocery list. And then... I actually went to the grocery store. The house is now stocked with everything I need to stay on track, and I once again have a road map for the week's dinners. Now, at dinnertime, there is no "but there's nothing in the house" or "I don't know what to cook" -- my two favorite excuses.
2. Running program. When it comes to exercise, Nike really had it right: just do it. Seriously, I just had to get up off my arse and do it. I ran one day at the level where I last left off; then stepped right up to the next level and will continue the program from there. And you know what? It felt good. Why that fact is so easy to forget is beyond me.
3. Food diary. Really and truly, I believe in the food diary one hundred percent. Not only does it keep me honest, it helps me to evaluate my eating habits and ensure that I am eating enough of the good stuff. I know, for example, that I really need to kick up my vegetable intake a notch; I'm not getting enough dairy, or fruit for that matter; and I should probably pull back a little on the cheese. That doesn't even sound painful at all -- go figure, a "diet" where I have to eat more!

Despite a minor detour, I think that I am headed back down the right path. And it only took me a week to figure it out; in the past, it might have taken a year. That's progress!