As a Health Coach and an avid CrossFitter, I’d like to tell you that I *always* eat healthy and *never* have any issues with my diet, my body, my digestive tract, my sugar cravings, etc., etc. But that is so far from the truth, especially when life does what it does best…surprise you with big life changes you weren’t expecting!

If you’re anything like me, you probably think anyone working in the health industry is this “perfect” being who eats healthy, exercises the “perfect” number of hours a week, and lives this amazingly “perfect” life. But guess what? They…WE…are humans too! We have issues and we have setbacks and we eat things we aren’t supposed to, even knowing how we’ll react to them!! I know?! Isn’t that crazy?!

Let me share with you how I know this to be true! These past couple months, my life drastically changed when I wasn’t expecting it to (you can read about that here, if you’re interested). And I started *occasionally* indulging in little sweet treats here and there. Except that didn’t stay so occasional.

Let’s be clear about how NOT occasional it became…this past weekend alone, I made pancakes (mind you, they were gluten-free, but still full of sugar) with blueberries and blackberries along with maple syrup.  Not just once, but TWICE!! I also bought two packages of Justin’s dark chocolate peanut butter cups. I ate one on Sunday, and I’m pretty sure I ate the second on Monday or Tuesday. Let’s just say these had become staples for me at my weekly grocery store trips. Oh, and don’t even get me started on Larabars. I was having at least one a day, if not two! My sugar cravings were insane!!

I’ve also over-indulged on dairy, which I know doesn’t agree with me. I’ve had pizza more times than I care to admit over the past several weeks, I’ve been eating more greek yogurt, and my omelets and burgers (when eating out) have been smothered in cheese. In my mind, these have all been *occasional*.  Mind you, when viewed all together, I was actually overloading my system with copious amounts of sugar and dairy! And let’s just say neither agree with my system.

It wasn’t until this morning that I had a huge wake-up call that something wasn’t right. Yes, I am stubborn because I’ve had *several* wake-up calls before today, but I didn’t actually see it until today. Let’s see…where to begin. I haven’t been sleeping very well lately, getting in bed and tossing and turning, plus waking up completely exhausted, no matter how much sleep I actually get. I’ve been completely drained throughout the day and struggle through many of my work-outs. My face has been breaking out and I’ve been fighting some sort of sickness. My knees (and other joints) have been bothering me a lot more than normal. I have a weird rash/bumps on both my elbows/arms.

But here’s the big one…the one that you’d think would have been an “aha” moment for me. On Monday during my Crossfit workout, I had a major asthma attack…as in, my coach told me my lips were blue asthma attack. I haven’t had one in YEARS!! I don’t even carry an inhaler anymore because I have it under control. But let’s be straight with each other…that wasn’t enough for me!! I thought nothing of it, other than it was humid and that’s what caused my attack.

Enter my workout this morning. It was humid, but didn’t think anything of it. I started out pretty strong…and then came the burpees. And out went my breath. I finished the workout, but struggled with catching my breath. Afterwards, I asked my coach (the same amazing one from Monday) if my time was “slow” for an Rx workout, to which he immediately responded, “Yes.” He clarified what he meant and we talked about what could be causing my breathing issues this year since I had no problems last summer.

Let’s just say when I left the gym, I started doing some hard soul-searching. I was really trying to pinpoint why I was having these issues, because I felt like a complete failure at the gym. I needed that harsh truth this morning. Because only then did it finally hit me like a ton of bricks…it was my diet. Duh. Like, serious smack myself in the head duh.

We all have slip-ups…that once in awhile little treat or dessert or dairy (or whatever food triggers you may have). But when those once in awhile treats become an every day or every other day thing, it creeps up on you. I know it crept up on me. My body had been trying to tell me for weeks…I just wasn’t listening. Truthfully, I don’t think I wanted to listen.

So I’m here to ask you all to help hold me accountable. I am going to get back on track and hopefully kick my asthma’s butt (for the second time around)! I’m cutting out dairy and sugar, which may not be very pretty. I have a feeling my withdrawal symptoms aren’t going to be very fun!

Have any of you had these “aha” moments recently? Or been ignoring the things your body is telling you? Let’s go on this journey together! Because, let’s face it, it’s more fun (and easier) to do these things with someone else! Let me know in the comments what you’ve been struggling with…sugar cravings? Pizza addiction (who isn’t addicted to pizza?!)? A love for all things breaded?

I can’t wait to go on this journey with you! And I can’t wait to share my results of cutting out sugar and dairy…even more importantly, I can’t wait to get my breathing back on track so I can get back to kicking butt during my workouts!!!

With love and wellness,

Whitney

So I’ve been living alone (again) for a week now.  It’s been an adjustment, to say the least.  For many years, I lived on my own, so that’s not the issue.  But for those many years, I had a furry little four-legged friend (or two) to keep me company.  And I’d only really been alone for a couple months when I started dating Scott.  And then I technically wasn’t alone anymore (I spent most of my nights at his house).

So when we moved in together, I instantly went from being on my own to (every other week) a family of five and a big ol’ Husky to always keep me company.  Needless to say, there was always some noise or something going on, so I was never really alone.  We made dinner together, we ate together, we watched movies together, etc. etc.  And I’ll admit, I got spoiled.  He did most of the cooking, while I did most of the clean-up, and we were both okay with that arrangement.

And I think that’s where the biggest adjustment has been for me….having to cook for myself again.  And judge how much food I actually need for just one person, LOL.  I think in my head, I’m still used to cooking for two (or five, depending on the week), which means I have lots of leftovers.  Not that that’s a bad thing, but it makes a difference, LOL.

Plus the silence…I can’t get over the silence.  The first night was definitely the hardest in that I didn’t have internet yet (how did I possibly survive??) and it was so silent in the house.  Every night since then, I’ve had music playing or a movie or TV show on my iPad to have some noise.  I don’t know what that says about me, but it’s nice to have the background noise.  And to be honest, I’m completely okay with it :P

I don’t want to give anyone the wrong impression though.  I thoroughly enjoy my alone time and don’t mind the quiet/silence.  But after being with someone almost every day for the past six months, it’s made for a big change in my life.  It also doesn’t help that I like to watch scary movies by myself.  At least at Scott’s, I had the Husky to protect me :P

I’ve finally gotten into my new routine though…I like it.  Actually, I love it.  I have so much more time to get things done, and I’m able to take care of myself (by practicing self-care) so much better now.  There’s something about a hot bath all by yourself with no interruptions that just soothes the soul.

I’ll admit, I let self-care take a back seat when I lived with Scott.  I put everyone else first, especially the kids.  And I know I wasn’t technically a “mom,” but I can now see how mothers are stressed and tired and put themselves last all the time.  Women, in general, want to take care of everyone and everything, more often than not to the detriment of themselves and their health.  Now add in being a mother and that becomes that much worse.

We, as women, need to make sure we take care of ourselves first.  And yes, it sounds selfish, but if we are sick and tired and run-down, how can we take care of anyone else?  I’m not saying that we need to put everything/everyone else on the back burner, but we have to learn to give ourselves some downtime.  And more importantly, to not be so hard on ourselves!!

Our houses don’t have to be spotless, the beds don’t have to be perfectly made, and the laundry doesn’t need to be all done in one sitting.  Because if you are happy and healthy, the significant other is happy and healthy, and the kids are happy and healthy, then that’s all that really matters, right?

So I’m off to end my lazy Sunday with an early bedtime (I had a late Saturday night), and to start my week off right.  So remember, take time for yourself this week.  Have a hot bath, practice a little meditation, take a walk by yourself, get a pedicure, or maybe even spoil yourself and get a massage!  But whatever it is, enjoy it and don’t feel guilty for doing it!  We all need to learn to love on ourselves a little more!!

Here’s some motivation for you to start your week off right!

With love and wellness,

Whitney