It’s the good food time of year! Leading up to Thanksgiving, we’re grateful for mashed potatoes, stuffing, pies, and all other fattening and delicious things. There isn’t much time to recover from Thanksgiving, because we go directly into holiday parties and family dinners that are loaded with Christmas treats. It’s hard to only eat one portion of these yummy foods and often this leads to a calorie overload=weight gain.
At this time last year, I was under a whole new level of stress. I’d been having significant issues with anxiety for a few years, and I was in a class that sent my anxious feelings into overdrive as well as dealing with some news that about to change my life all over again. I was feeling pretty miserable and I don’t know if it was from the stress of everything or if being stressed was causing me to overeat… but I managed to gain 20 pounds in 2 months. 2 MONTHS.
I’m embarrassed to admit it. I really don’t know how it happened. At a friend’s wedding in mid-October I was the same weight I’d been for a few years (i.e. overweight) and then by new years I was a miserable 20 pounds heavier. This past April I’d had enough and knew that I needed a goal to help me move on from my unhealthy life and become a new person. I found the Iron Girl Triathlon and jumped into training headfirst and spent the next few months losing those 20 pounds.
I’ve maintained my weight generally since the triathlon in August and I’m currently working on ways to get in some good exercise despite still dealing with significant back pain. I’m determined not to be seduced by sugary treats and fatty dinners this season and do the impossible: lose weight before Christmas.
I’ve got a few health goals that I’m working towards for next year and I can’t afford to be set back by weight gain and a sedentary lifestyle. SO I’ve joined the Holiday Sweat challenge! One of the blogs that I follow is Run to the Finish by Amanda Brooks and each year she has hosted a community fitness challenge to help us fight the forces against us at this time of year. You can get an explanation of the challenge here if you would like more info/to participate.
The challenge technically started on Sunday but you should still be able to sign up and join all the groups. After you sign up on the website, you can join the Facebook group and then follow and be followed by your community members on Twitter/Instagram. It’s a great way to meet other people from all over the world who are trying to better their lives as well as be inspired to meet your daily/weekly goals. Join the party!
