We are now 3 months out from our January resolutions and 2 weeks out from our Olympic celebrations.  In terms of your fitness goals, where do you stand?  I'm guessing most are standing next to the refrigerator feeling guilty about eating the 4 pound tub of left over potato salad from your weekend picnicking and enjoying the uncommon March weather thinking "it expires tomorrow and there is really only 2 pounds left, it would be wasteful to toss it".  You are not alone, well maybe on the potato salad thing, but I think many of us can relate if you insert: ice cream, chilli or any other food that can be measured in pounds. 

            Don't feel bad, it happens to the best of us.  Actually, I take that back.  You should feel terrible, but them feel happy, then sad, then hungry, then angry from the insulin spikes from all the sugar you just ingested.  What will differentiate you from the masses will be how you deal with this.  Every day is a new day and should be treated as such.  Stop the self wallowing and move on.  Everyone will have moments of weakness; this is what makes us humans.  What separates us from animals is the ability to make the decision to change without relying on instinct.  If you toss your tub of goo that you were hoping to eat for a midnight snack, you will probably still have the option to eat something else.  We all make mistakes or fall off the wagon when we set goals; we just have to decide to get back on the train before it becomes habit.  If you over indulged during the Olympics, reset your goals.  Tomorrow is a new day and if tomorrow you fall off, get back on.  One of the biggest problems I see with people that struggle with getting into their routine of eating and exercising regularly is that it is the all or nothing approach.   To quote Ozzy Osborne "Don't wait until you are sick and tired of being sick and tired".  For every day that you are lax in your regimen, it takes that much longer to get back into it.  If you must, start back at square one and follow the same progression you started in January (refer to January article). 

            My final thoughts as per Jerry Springer:

            Usually when you feel bad for inflicting something negative upon yourself, you are alone in this feeling.  If you want to feel better about yourself, do something about it.  Too often we have a sense of entitlement that makes us feel that whatever good has happened to others should all of a sudden happen for us.  So and so lost 30 pounds, why can't I do the same?  Refer to the tub of potato salad for the answer.  Be accountable for your own actions and move on, what's done is done (unless you have a hot tub time machine).   Here are some suggestions for getting back on track:

• Don't dwell on the past, take everything one day at a time and only look forward.
• Surround yourself with people that are supportive of your goals.
• Surround yourself with people that are energetic and can make you laugh.
• Hug someone, your dog, a tree or whatever makes you happy (just not the tub of bacon grease in your fridge that you were saving for a rainy day). If you don't have something to hug, try random high fives or the less popular high two.
• Write your goals down and put them somewhere you see them every day.
• Make goals that are achievable.
• Write in a journal; include your workouts and nutritional info.
• Take at least 30 minutes a day to something for you.

There are many other great strategies to use (other than the high two's), but I don't want to seem like a self help guru.  At the end of the day, we are all responsible for ourselves first (and family/friends).  Take charge of your life, make fun of it even, but don't look back unless it is reminiscing of the good ol' days.

Best of luck in your future endeavours!

Yours in Strength,

Joe McCullum