Now that I'm finally getting back into working out, I decided to assess how I could do better than I have in the past. Even though it's clear that my biggest obstacle in the last year has been illness, I realized that there were areas where I could improve even during those times when I'm not feeling well. There have been countless times over the years when I felt too sick to work out. My approach typically was to just get through the day and try again tomorrow. Even though my focus was still on doing the best I could to eat right, very often I felt so exhausted that I simply didn't feel up to putting in the energy necessary to fix a BFL compliant meal. I would simply tell myself that one day or one meal wouldn't make that big of a difference. Generally, that logic was sound. Unfortunately, I assumed that the illness would subside within a day or so. But that approach doesn't cut it when you find yourself facing one setback after another... over time those exceptions that you thought might at worst slow your progress have actually led to regaining a lot of weight...
Although I'm feeling pretty confident about conquering my chronic illness, I have been developing some strategies to give me some good fallback options if the road gets rough again. I've got several crockpot recipes that will allow me to have several meals in the freezer anytime I need them. That way even if I don't feel well, I can still have a BFL-compliant meal. For example, I've got a great chicken tortilla soup recipe that is a no-brainer to make.
With the holiday season in full swing I wanted to encourage my BFL buddies to avoid that trap of thinking it doesn't really matter if you miss a workout or mess up on a meal (I know, I know...I should do better at taking my own advice!!!). The truth is that it doesn't really matter if that only happens occasionally, but you have to be careful that it is not the result of a change in focus or a lowering of your standards. It is too easy to change your focus from a passionate "How can I make great progress and excel?!" to the crash-and-burn focus of "What can I get away with?"...
Have a great holiday season. Enjoy it but wouldn't it be great to start the new year feeling empowered and excited instead of feeling the regret of 'losing it' during the holidays? You betcha!!!
Keep on truckin'!!!