It feels like it has been too long since I sat down to write something. What’s really been weighing on my mind lately is how long we’ve been here. It’s been almost a year, and we are still right here. I have been feeling down and I know I need to do something about it since I am the only one with the power to pull myself out of this. I look around and I know we are all experience this differently, but we are all experiencing covid fatigue to some degree. And as a nutrition coach I see first hand how it can take a toll on our eating habits, exercise habits and how we take care of our health in general.

Many of us put our normal lives on hold, and with it we put our goals and our health on hold as well. If you lost your way during this pandemic, you are not alone. And I don’t blame you.

Struggling is relative, and I know I have it much easier than a lot of people. But it’s been a year and I feel it. And the fact that someone has it harder than you does not invalidate how you’re feeling.
My mindset this week has alternated between feeling okay to feeling like I need this to be over right now or I won’t make it.
However, this week I finally went for my long overdue annual check-up. Before today, I had not seen my doctor face to face in well over a year. On top of that, I have not been getting regular massages or getting regular body work to keep myself healthy, I skipped my teeth cleaning at the dentist, and overall, I put taking care of my health on pause during Covid, initially thinking it would only be for ‘a little while’. But the thing is, we now know that it won’t just be a little while. So, just like our eating habits and exercise routine, it’s understandable that it might have changed during this time; but now may just be the right time to find our way back.
It’s time to course correct. We can have these feelings while still nourishing our bodies well and taking care of our health in a way that we know will better support our physical and emotional wellbeing. Big and small, we make choices and decisions daily. Remembering this helps me: I am always one choice, one workout, one meal away from being back on track. It’s up to me to bring myself back. I have a say in how I feel, always.

Maybe you found yourself:

  • Skipping workouts to lay on the couch one too many times because zoom workouts are just not the same. 
  • Maybe you hear yourself making excuses as to why you are not keeping your own promises to yourself. 
  • Maybe your glass of wine after work turned into 1 bottle every other day.
  • Maybe, since it’s been going on for 12 months, now you have given up on your goals entirely because what’s the point?
  • Maybe your bed time snack went from a couple of squares of dark chocolate to a whole bar. 
  • Maybe your bed time is now 2 hours later than it should be because you need time to unwind on your phone at night, when you know what you truly need is more sleep?

Ask yourself what comfort are these choices really giving you? Do I feel better or worse when I skip the gym or eat the cookies? Am I ready to make some changes? Do I want something different for myself?

Start by accepting where you are today and then figuring out where you want to go. There’s no sense in beating yourself up for your past decisions. Also, other peoples’ lives are just that, other peoples’ lives. You are not me and I am not you. So scale your expectations to your life right now in a way that makes sense for you.

My life is built around what I value and what makes me happy. I try to make choices with these things in mind, and I create an environment that supports this. When I feel off course, I course correct just like you can. Our lives are likely quite different, where we are in our lives and what we value is likely quite different. We all need to create a plan that fits our lives, and set goals that are in line with the effort we’re capable of putting forward right now.  

I think we can save ourselves a lot of frustrations if we truly understand which stage of our lives we are in right now. This is a time that many of us have never experienced before and we need to remind ourselves of this. Make a list of what matters to you right now, make a list of what you need in order to be happy, what you want out of your life and create a plan that supports it. Set a plan for you, not a plan put on by some 30 year-old influencer who has a life that looks NOTHING like yours, or even by me, who also has a life that looks very little like yours. 

Chances are, many of you would find my life boring. It’s okay. Just like how I look at professional athletes sometimes, and maybe envy their bodies or how fit they are for a split second. But then I remind myself that I don’t actually want to do what they do or live like they do. I love family pizza nights too much and I don’t want to workout 5hrs a day!

I can’t tell you when things will get better. I can, however, tell you that you will feel a lot better if you start putting yourself back in the driver’s seat. Don’t wait for life to get easier, start working on what you want right now. Be where you are, do what you can. What habits are serving you? Which habits need to change?

“Life is not happening to you but responding to you”, Rhonda Byrne.

Next up for me? Booking a massage, its been way too long.

Annie 🙂