Food and Fitness Friday: Really?

Sunday I ran the St. Louis Rock ‘n’ Roll 1/2 marathon. It was fun. It was good. I felt great for most of the race and wasn’t sore at all afterwards. I was treating it as a training run rather than a race, but in the moment it is easy to get caught up and try to push it, which I kind of did at times and came out with a time that wasn’t my fastest, but was way faster than my slowest, so I felt good about it.

I ate really well last week in preparation for the race and worked hard at staying good and hydrated. I even took a couple of rest days toward the end of the week, and then ran a 5K on Saturday to kind of loosen myself up so I was ready.

And then Monday came. And Tuesday. And Wednesday. And Thursday. I have done nothing but eat terribly all week. Cookies. Crackers. Candy. Pizza. Snacks. Just terrible. I did cook overnight oatmeal one night, so had a couple of decent breakfasts, and I made a great crock pot potato leek soup so have had that for a few meals, but other than that, I haven’t made good choices. And I feel it. I am tired, sluggish, bloated, and not motivated at all to change it.

I have managed to not miss a workout this week at all, and have even felt myself pushing harder this week, despite some nagging pain in my shin. So that’s good, but the eating has got to get back in line.

As I have tried to figure out why I am struggling so much, I realized that usually after a race I take a week off from running to rest and recover, but because I am continuing to train for the Goofy Challenge, I couldn’t do that this week. And I wonder if that’s why I have let my good eating habits go out the window for a few days. My mind knows I need a break somewhere and that’s what I can do.

The problem is, sweets are drugs, and once you let them in, it’s hard to get them back out. And it’s Halloween time. And parades galore. And there is candy overflowing the “candy cabinet” in our house. And I’m weak.

But I can’t let my weakness turn into permission to eat junk. I can’t let my exhaustion dictate bad food choices.

So I’m done. I had a few days of indulgence, now it is back to what has become normal for me – eating right. My head is convinced, now to convince my stomach. 🙂

And let’s hope the candy they throw at the Centralia parade on Saturday is all stuff  I don’t like or can’t have.

Do you ever find yourself struggling to re-gain control of food or exercise patterns? How do you get back on track?