I myself am most definitely one for active and healthy living. However, just like a lot of you, I am absolutely falling off the wagon during “busy-March.” At first, you feel okay about it because it has only been what, like three days since you’ve hit the gym? Then you realize you had Spoke fries for lunch. Then you realize it hasn’t been three days, it’s been three weeks.
It’s alright, though!
I personally believe that a month’s slip is actually healthy, especially for people who live that active, green lifestyle the majority of the time. It puts your actual goals in perspective for what you really want. You just want to feel happy and good again because you realize that those salads, chicken breasts and rice may have been bland, but the effortless smiles you had most definitely weren’t. It gives you realistic goals for fitness again rather than feeling crappy for not looking like Alexis Ren or Kayla Itsines. Yeah, they look great, but so do you! Having a few weeks of falling off your routine may sound like a long and excessive amount of time, but I mean, in university, a month literally can feel like two days.
I know that this month has been absolutely nutty with deadlines and exams but hey, we made it. Sure, half of my body weight is King Richie’s and espresso but I believe that at this point, it’s just part of the experience that we need to appreciate. I have again begun to defrost my chicken breasts and fry up those veggies for meal prep, but it feels good to press restart sometimes. I didn’t feel like my goals were really effective anymore; I was extra stressed because of midterms hitting, and my overall healthy living was a struggle to maintain (it is usually more extreme than most but it was routine, right?). So I indulged in pizza and cheese and beers for what I wish was a few days, but of course was actually weeks. But I just keep telling myself that it’s alright because I’m only human, and I do work hard every day. Some days I work harder than others, but I still give every day my effort.
Sure, I don’t have the abs I did this time last year. But this time last year I didn’t have these improved grades and the hilarious memories over Spoke beers with my friends. I find that it’s all a cycle of student life but you just gotta roll with it. I’m back in the gym now and feeling so great and strong. I get to set new goals with a clear head and a more aligned perspective with what truly works for MY life at THIS time.
It’s all good, my friend. Falling off the wagon is totally alright. You will come back with some scrapes and bruises to heal, but it just keeps you going to improve. You come back for more improvement than you’ve ever seen possible for yourself. You come back new and improved from your healthy life hiatus because that’s just probably what you needed to get on a better track. We are making it and we are doing so well. We got this.
Think of it as three steps back, but six steps forward.
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