Monday, July 26, 2010

Over Indulgence

I have just finished off a long weekend of over doing it. Over eating, check. Over drinking, check. Over not sleeping enough, check. Over not exercising enough, double check. Over sugar, over champagne, over cake, over lazy, over dancing, over staying up late, check, check and check.

Ok, there were some good times too. I would even go so far as to say great. I was at the wedding of a friend of mine in LA. I got to see one of my best friends in the world. I got to see all my college friends who are like family to me. I didn’t have to get up at 5am to go to work. I watched cheesy movies in the afternoon. I ate the yummiest food ever. I laughed a lot, a lot. I played with the most beautiful baby that ever lived. I danced the night away. I appreciated and felt gratitude for the wonderfulness that is my life…

So how come when the wild weekend is over and the party dresses have all been taken to the cleaners, the stuff I over focus on are my over indulgences?

It’s so easy to feel bad about over indulging, but what good does that do anyone? Do you want to know what happens when I feel bad about a wild weekend? I end up not wanting to exercise. Why bother, last weekend was a wash, this one will be too. I feel hungry for no reason and the more I think about how unhealthy I am, the more I crave a big old bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

I do not know the scientific explanation behind it, but for some reason the worse we feel about ourselves the less likely we are to change. The negative self-talk we will often have after a weekend of excess or even the holidays can hinder our chances of successfully getting back into our healthy routine. The times when I cherish the wonderfulness of my experience and relish all the goodness it entailed, I end up having tons of energy, wanting to work out and craving cottage cheese.

Who cares if you over everythinged in sight, it was one weekend and it was fun! Don’t negate the goodness of your summer holiday with post party blues. Instead have a little positive self-talk. Tell yourself how excited you are that you were able to get out all of your cravings in one night. Be proud that the pizza was consumed with such vigor. The less leftovers the better! Now you have an excuse to refill that fridge with veggies.

Think about how relaxed your muscles are. If you sat on the couch unbuttoning your trousers and watching baseball all weekend, right on! Your butt needed that break. It was tired. Now it has slept and now it is time for some serious walking. Get that butt moving!

So my friends my hope for you this week is that you will savor and appreciate all of your summertime-overs and you will not feel guilt, anger, annoyance or anxiety about any of it. Instead make it an opportunity to feel excited and ready to live your healthy life!

Be Good to your Body, it's where you Live

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