Hero or Loser?

Day 3: Tuesday. Up again early to leave for a hike called Scout Cave. Every morning here there is a two hour hike before breakfast.This one was five and a half miles.
At the top of the hike, this is the view looking down.

Here is my group inside Scout Cave. The cave is quite large. After this hike I was bumped up to a faster van. I am now in the 2nd fastest group.

The most beneficial thing I've learned while here so far was from the Emotional Eating workshop. The Life Coach here talked about the 3 things that make up a person's weight. The equation looks like this: Fitness + Nutrition + Emotional Management= Your weight. If you struggle in one of these three areas, your weight will be affected. She also talked about all or nothing thinking--I fall into this category as well as my husband. I am either going to do a diet or health plan perfectly or I am not going to do one at all (aka: quitting). All or nothing thinkers aren't failures, they're quitters. Ouch. They have a FEAR of failure so they quit.

She drew a pendalum on the bored and said, "When you are ALL in with nutrition and fitness you feel like a Hero. Feeling like a hero feels happy and good. When you mess up you swing to the other side of the pendalum and you are now NOTHING. You feel like a loser. Feeling like a loser feels miserable and depressed." Instead of getting stuck in this trap she suggested a problem solving technique. She had us write down on paper these three categories (as shown above ) and list what is and is not working.

What is working as far as FITNESS goes in my life? I listed some exercises I like to do and that I have a desire to change. What was not working was that there is just not enough time to do everything. I haven't made a plan of when and what days to do it (routine), and I have unrealistic expectations about how much I can get done in one day. We all have our own lists of what is and is not working. Those were examples of what mine are.

What is working as far as NUTRITION goes in my life? I am loving adding more color to my meals with extra cut up veggies. I am eating good sources of protien with my meals to keep my blood sugar from spiking. I am caring for my body with delicious, healthy foods that nurture and comfort me. What is not working is I need to be better at going to the grocery store on Friday. I put off making a list because it takes a lot of time. My portion sizes are often too big.

What is working as far as EMOTIONAL MANAGEMENT goes in my life? I am kind to myself. I am trying to work with my body and listen to what it needs. What is not working is the fact that often I don't communicate my feelings well. I don't live with mind readers (who knew!). I also need alone time which can be hard to come by in the summer months.

Now looking at the "not working" side I have my work cut out for me. Because I know what the problems are I can start working on them. I can make a daily plan for my fitness. I can make weekly grocery lists that go with my monthly menu. I can calmly and promptly communicate my feelings with others so they know what is going on well before I turn into an outstanding witch.

This technique squelches the tunnel vision of perfection and instead blasts it wide open to allow progress.