Fitness doesn't have to be your whole life

I got absorbed into fitness. It became my whole identity and I got swept right into it. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but the problem is that I also exited this life as well.

I still workout, I still run, but I run less and workout less. I probably run 20km a week less than what I used to. I probably ran 40km+ a week and now I run 20km + a week. I used to do cardio for 45minutes of cardio on the days I didn't run. I usually only went to the gym or ran 6 days a week, always giving me one rest day. Now my cardio is usually 20-30 minutes and I'll do 45 minutes once or twice a week. I don't always do cardio when I go to the gym. Usually at least 2 of my gym visits a week has under 10 minutes or no minutes of cardio.

I used to lift weights/strength train 6x a week for 45mins-1 hour and now I do it for about 30minutes-1 hour.

Honestly, I was bored with my routine, and I switched up a few moves that weren't working anymore, so that has helped.

Luckily I am moving soon so I get to experience a whole new gym so I can get back on my A game with new moves.

But this lifestyle became my whole life for a little over a year. Until about May/June this year I started to slow down. Since I slowed down I probably gained about 5/6 pounds. But 2 of those pounds were muscle and the other few are fat.

But I am not fat. I have fat, but so does everyone else. I just have more fat than I had 5 months ago, which is fine.

It is fine. It is fine. I keep saying these words to myself over and over and over again. Is it really fine? I suppose it is. I am happy with my body. I am 126 pounds and my body fat% is around 23%. It was at 17% at one point. I would like it to get back down to that point, but spending almost 15 hours a week working out really isn't going to be an option that I can take, or I even want to take.

Part of my problem is my eating habits have slipped a bit. I always slip on and off my diet but I always get back on, which is what matters.

I guess my whole point is that fitness doesn't have to be my whole life. I got way too swept up in it. But I have rediscovered a new kind of respect for fitness and I think I can handle that in my schedule.

It's really simple, move your body when you can and eat the healthiest foods you can. Buy stuff from the market, drink lots of water, do cardio, lift weights, run... it's so simple.

I still do plan to run a full marathon someday. It won't be this year, maybe next year. There's no rush.

If you are new to the fitness world it can be exciting. Don't completely quit it when it bores you, just let go a little and hold on to what you want to hold on to. Don't get too swept up into the bodybuilding scene because it is almost inescapable and you feel guilty when you try to escape it. Just be healthy, that is all that matters.

Something I have had to accept- Physical Level of Fitness

I didn't really accept or really learn what it meant to be in your "top physical condition of your life". I hit that point a few months ago, when I ran the 30k and the half marathon.

Since then, I am still running, but less often. I have gained more muscle and more fat, though. I started doing less cardio to gain more muscle--- and it did work!

But even though I look stronger, I am not. I just look it. I trained for appearance. I have also gained body fat. You DEFINATELY cannot see any abs now. I am not fat. I just have fat.

What I have had to accept is that I can't be at the top of my physical fitness game, at all times. Things happen, life happens, it is a pain in the butt to be an intense athlete.

I am going to hop bag on to this again, though. I am going to train to run a full marathon. The furthest I've run since my half marathon at the beginning of May was about 17km. I need to get to 42.2km. If I do, by the end of September, I am going to find a Marathon for sometime in November, to run (since I am not 18 until the end of October, and you need to be 18 to run a marathon).

But what I have to accept, also, is that it is okay not to be at the top, it is okay not to have the best body and best endurance and strength. I won't let myself go, but I also won't pressure myself into crying and having mental breakdowns over it.

I have one body and I want to be kind to it.

I think part of my issue, along with running less, is my eating habits. I don't go over my calories, usually, but sometimes I will have something like a McFlurry, instead of an actual healthy dinner. It's the same calories, it just isn't nutritious. I need to watch everything!

This summer, I am going to use my extra time to get in the habit of eating healthy. Bodybuilders tend to plan their meals for the weak, put them in tupperware, and that is their fridge. I want to do this. If i get in the habit over the summer of doing this, once I am in university, I feel like I will eat a lot healthier.

I don't plan on gaining the freshman 15. I think it is so absurd. I have a lot of willpower if I train it, and I know I can be healthy, even while living on a budget.