Listening to Your Body is Easier Said Than Done

Happy Friday! It's been awhile since I've chronicled my fitness journey, and yet I'm still out here living it 24/7. What's been happening lately is a classic case of "What goes up, must come down," and as with many situations that bring us down, I haven't felt like writing about what I'm going through. Funny how that works, because I know writing is the very thing that's most therapeutic to me. So here I am. Maybe this is something you can relate to?

Image via Pinterest

My family and I did the Big Climb a couple of Sundays ago, and the week leading up to it was a doozy. THANK YOU to everyone who donated, by the way! I felt like I was on top of my fitness game, and my diet was pretty good too. I'd been dipping my toes into barre, and loving the few classes I'd done so far. Barre is a perfect compliment to the variety that my other workouts provide, and I'd found in Pure Barre a team of really nice, really welcoming, and really talented women who know what they're doing. Even though I get my butt and all these little tiny muscles I didn't know existed kicked, I love every minute of it.

That week, I think I did like ten workouts. Lots of sweat, lots of fun. All the while, a cough was starting to build that week, and by Saturday it was enough to head to the doctor.

Having the time of my life doing lateral elevated squats! 

"Oh, you've just got a cold." Doctor said. It didn't feel like one to me, but I went with it. That turned into a week of being almost bedridden with said cold and what turned into an even worse cough. I powered down so hard after the Big Climb! Even though I felt relatively fine, my body decided it needed a break.

The cold went away, but this cough is STILL lingering even today, not nearly as bad but enough to be annoying. I'm fairly certain it's a reaction to allergies since Claritin has done the best job of alleviating the cough for awhile, plus I hear it's going around. It sucks, but last week I was finally able to get back in the swing of things as far as working out and Zumba.

This Sunday, after my boyfriend's victorious MMA fight, I was getting ready for bed when I pulled a muscle right next to my ribs on my right side. I've never pulled a muscle before, and thought maybe I somehow stretched the wrong way and it'd go away overnight.

NOPE. On Monday and Tuesday, I winced my way through workouts, and when it was painful just holding planks or bridges, I knew I had to take some time off again. SERIOUSLY? I just got back!

My pulled muscle be like.... (Image via Pinterest)

Just getting over being sick then having this happen (on top of other "just not my luck" things that have happened lately - but that's another post) - let's just say the past couple of weeks have not been my best as far as optimism and positivity goes. It's scary how quickly your mind goes to dark places when you are thrown off your groove. I hate losing momentum, and I've struggled a lot this past week with that. You try telling a Type A to slow down! How quickly we become the complete opposite of everything we were just a few days ago. Not working out means I'm off my early morning routine, which means my mind is thrown off, I can't get my to-do list crossed off as quickly, I get lazy, I stop journaling, I stop eating right...etc. etc.

This is when I remember how therapeutic writing is to me. I force myself to write, then I let myself spill until I reach a point where I can't anymore. I naturally turn into my own healer, my own cheerleader. "Okay, you're bummed. Now how are we gonna fix this?" And I start thinking of all that I'm grateful for. All the things that have gone my way, even though my mind is fixated only on the bad. All the ways to get out of my funk and make progress as soon as possible. I am all for owning and reveling in your emotions, but I am also one for action. If I'm not happy, or thinking negative, destructive and non-productive things, I need to get myself out of that mindset quickly. My business deserves better, my blog deserves better, and most of all, my well-being deserves better. Nothing productive ever comes out of me staying feeling sorry for myself. 

So what's my biggest lesson this time around? Learning how to listen to my body, and understanding why it's so important to rest rather than trudge through pain. I'd rather rest for a few days and be back at it than prolong (or worsen) my injury. The adrenaline we get from working out is almost addictive, but the body needs rest as much as it needs to be challenged. I'm looking forward to getting back in the studio soon, but for now, I'm learning how to be okay with injured life - temporarily. ;)