Feeling Down Due To Temporary Setback

navygrrl

I have been doing really well with my exercise since starting on my journey last month. I now need to take it easy because of an infection, and I'm worried that I'll lose momentum and not be able to get back once I'm better. I would really love it if you all could post about how you were able to bounce back after a physical setback. I thought I would be able to keep up with my exercise, even if I had to cut it down, but even cutting back is causing pain.

TIA!

vorgas

Everybody gets knocked down. Everybody gets set back.
Champions get back up.

For me personally, I reset my goals to something that worked with recovery. I seriously reduced the weight I was lifting, but focused on form, technique, and gradual progress. I didn't compare myself to what I was when I stopped, but rather where I was the week before.

kaylatee0

I went through the same thing a few weeks ago when I dislocated my rib. I was terrified that I was going to lose my strength, motivation and willpower… I workout 6-7 days per week and am extremely active, I didn’t know what to do with myself.
Someone on these forums encouraged promoting a healthy lifestyle in ways other than exercising. I did just that, I read a few new books, went for some easy walks, tried some new healthy recipes and visited with some family I hadn’t seen in awhile.
Before I knew it I was clear to get back at it, I felt rejuvenated.. my body and mind needed the break to realize that this really is a lifestyle, and some time off isn’t the end of the world.
Sometimes we psyche ourselves out, and things aren’t as bad as they seem! : )

lauriemueller9

I went through the same thing when I hurt my back. I couldn't really do much of anything except easy walks. When I recovered I was glad to find I wanted to exercise again. My motivation didm't go anywhere.

ihad

My setback story:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/ihad/view/my-thanks-to-the-man-of-steel-407835

kbmnurse

You said an infection, can you still walk for exercise.

FitnSassy

The only thing that works for me is to "just do it!"

votkuhr

A temporary setback, maybe. But I bet you're still on an overall progress.

Keep your chin up and fight harder again when you can! :flowerforyou:

hellomanen

rest well cure completly and THEN go back to work out but SLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWLY! and I meant it!
I've had the exact same issue tho I hurt my back and legs and moving was hard enough, just stick to a healthy diet (don't go 1200 cals tho, not good, go between the 1500 &1800) and try to walk a bit if it doesnt hurt too much, and when you are completly fine thn you can go swim and walk more and do some veery light cardio! If u stay commited you will be fine! I lost like 8 pounds in the entire month I wasn't working out.
So chill, relax, get well and things will be fine

DakotaKeogh

No worries. Life happens and you just have to make yourself stay in the Zone for when you're healed up. And think about things that you can still do. There's always something. After I had knee surgery and had to stay off my legs for several weeks I was still able to workout with hand weights while I was sitting. It doesn't burn much. But it keeps your head in the right space.

dt3312

I had pneumonia, a bad strain. I was bedridden for a month. 3 months later I still didn't have full energy back. I kept reminding myself that if I had not been in such good shape, I would have been even sicker. I very slowly got back into shape. I am happy to report that I am in good shape now. I went through senior citizen fitness testing and I am in the top few percentiles on the tests and in some things I am over the top. I am in better shape than most of my peers.

navygrrl

Thanks so much everyone for the replies. I have a small hole in my belly button that opened up and got infected. Apparently you become more prone to those after having had laparoscopic surgery, and I've had two of those. My doctor wants to make sure the hole closes up, so doesn't want me to do anything that will aggravate that. Walking sounds like a good idea. It just doesn't feel like exercise, though, LOL.

amy_kee

Everyone has setbacks in all aspects of life. Learning to deal with all these setbacks is a part of growing and learning. You can let something get you down and complain about how bad you have it and how horrible things are. But, this gets you no where at all. You just wasted good time complaining and also helping to get others down when you do this all the time. YOu've got to think more positively about a whole lot of things in life. This gets easier as you get older and learn more. You must always look for things that you CAN do and always continue to look for more ways of doing things and better ways of doing all the things in life you can think about. This is what life is all about. You just don't give up and feel down on yourself for something that's not going as planned. You think about it a lot, and look for solutions and began trying to incorporate them. There are always going to be setbacks in life. It's all a matter of how you handle them. The more you learn, the more you learn ways to handle things.

navygrrl

Everyone has setbacks in all aspects of life. Learning to deal with all these setbacks is a part of growing and learning. You can let something get you down and complain about how bad you have it and how horrible things are. But, this gets you no where at all. You just wasted good time complaining and also helping to get others down when you do this all the time. YOu've got to think more positively about a whole lot of things in life. This gets easier as you get older and learn more. You must always look for things that you CAN do and always continue to look for more ways of doing things and better ways of doing all the things in life you can think about. This is what life is all about. You just don't give up and feel down on yourself for something that's not going as planned. You think about it a lot, and look for solutions and began trying to incorporate them. There are always going to be setbacks in life. It's all a matter of how you handle them. The more you learn, the more you learn ways to handle things.

I wasn't aware that I was complaining. I was feeling down because of setback that is temporarily slowing my momentum. People offered helpful suggestions, for which I am thankful and appreciative. I'm sorry if you felt like I got you down because you quantified this one post as me complaining "all the time." Actually, I'm not sorry because I posted in the Motivation and Support area in order to get support.

nomad1000

Thanks so much everyone for the replies. I have a small hole in my belly button that opened up and got infected. Apparently you become more prone to those after having had laparoscopic surgery, and I've had two of those. My doctor wants to make sure the hole closes up, so doesn't want me to do anything that will aggravate that. Walking sounds like a good idea. It just doesn't feel like exercise, though, LOL.

Good luck on a speedy recovery. Don't push yourself too hard and just take some walks to keep yourself moving. I know people who have done nothing but walk for their exercise and they have lost a lot of weight.

JTick

Everyone has setbacks. Learning how to deal with them early on will only help you in the long run.

I started losing weight and exercising two weeks before I had knee surgery in 2012. I then wound up with major complications from the minor surgery, and couldn't exercise for MONTHS. I just kept counting calories, and when I was finally allowed to start exercising again I was healthy and ready to go. Don't rush things, you can still lose weight without exercising. This is a long term deal...a few weeks is nothing.